The four of you climb down into the filthy bilges and the smell crawls up your nose. As the last of you reaches the bottom of the ladder, there is a rustle in the straw and more ripples in the water. Rosanne and Tobias see the large rat-like creatures as they surround you all.
These aren't normal rats! They are Dire Rats! Much larger than a normal rat. Take care that you don't contract Filth Fever from being bitten,
Filth fever: Bite—injury; save Fort DC 11; onset 1d3 days; frequency 1/day; effect 1d3 Dex damage and 1d3 Con damage; cure 2 consecutive saves. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Surprise Round
Tobias takes a quick look around and sees his glitterdust would not work. Along with the rats, everyone would be blinded.
With his trusty rapier, the young sailor begins his assault on the vermin, yet misses with his first strike.
"Jakes was not mistaken. These, they are dire rats, much greater than lesser rats. They often carry disease, these vermin, filth fever. Not a hard disease to fight off, but better not to risk it, oui?"
Rosanne grimaces at the emerging vermin. "We have enough rats atop!" She hisses. Summoning a ball of freezing snow and launching it at the nearest Rat.
Both attacks missed. You can all take round 1 actions.
Jacques stabs the rat immediately south of him.
Round 1
Hoping to follow Jacques's example, Tobias continues his attack.
Sighing at her spell hitting only bilge water Rosanne lashes out at the Rat to her West with her claws.
"At least this takes care of tonight's dinner." She giggles.
Cnut slashes one of the dire rats clean in two with his bardiche before it has a chance to bite him. Some of the other rats are wounded from your attacks, 7 remain.
Most of you avoid the pointy teeth of the dire rats but Jacques takes a nasty bite .
Round 2
Tobias catches a glancing blow against his vermin opponent.
He stabs again at the rat he injured last time, hoping to take at least one of them out of the fight, wincing a little at his injury.
Rosanne again attempts to dismember the Rat to her West.
Cnut slashes again at another rat but only cuts wood chips off the ship's bulkhead. Tobias disables a rat, Jacques kills the rat he previously injured, stabbing in right through the head and Rosane JUST misses her foe with her claws.
The dire rats continue biting, the one Tobias disabled now dies from the effort of fighting. Jack is bit again by the same rat as before, that one must be the alpha rat of this pack with the strongest jaw and sharpest teeth . Rosanne is also bit by the rat she wasn't focused on.
Cursing foully Rosanne keeps trying to fillet the Rat.
"Working in the galley pays off!" She laughs happily as blood flies.
Round 3
One down, Tobias focuses on the next nearest vermin.
While the others make no solid strike, Rosanne's claws finally kill a rat.
The remaining 4 dire rats keep attacking the intruders, one scratching Tobias .
Round 4
Tobias lunges with his rapier at the rat who scratched him, but misses.
Jacques stabs at the rat again.
Rosanne grimaces in disgust as filth invades her body.
She slashes at teh swarming vermin again, badly this time.
Cnut chops the other rat next to him in two, he is now free to help someone else next round. Jacques also stabs a rat through, a lethal blow but it doesn't die yet .
The rat attacking Jacques exerts itself too much for its wounds and fails to harm Jacques any more as it finally dies. Rosanne is bit again . Only 2 dire rats remain.
Jacques steps next to Tobias and stabs at the rat still in front of him.
Round 5
Tobias continues his fight for survival.
Rosanne mutters some foul thoughts as she is again bitten, slashing back with her claws.
Cnut steps to one side of the rat next to Rosanne, trying to flank it.
The rats don't find any flesh this round.
Round 6
Tobias's frustration mounts as the vermin evade his blade.
Jacques takes another step around the rat, angling to flank.
The rats prove hard to hit, only one of Rosanne's claws making contact this round, leaving a mark in the dire rat.
The same dire rat that Rosanne scratched with her claw managed to scratch her with its teeth .
Round 7
After many attempts, Tobias's aim hit home and through the dire rat before him.
Jacques steps behind the rat to flank it, then stabs again with his rapier.
Tobias finally manages to stab the rat and Jaccques skewers it with him and the rat dies on their blades. Cnut chops the last remaining one in half.
The water is quiet, 8 dead dire rate lay at your feet, bleeding into the water, guts everywhere. If the dire rats are not cleaned up, the whole of the bilges could become infected with filth fever, making working down here even more hazardous. You are also alone and can search the bilges freely. Jacques found some loot one time here was here but didn't find everything.
"Cnut, could you gather the rats for us, please", Tobias asks the large bear of a man, while the young sailor kneels down before Rosanne, examining her wounds.
"I'm no healer, but those wounds look back", Tobias speculates as he holds the sorcerer's heel in a clinical, yet soft grip. "And this is why I wear boots on a ship, my dear." Tobias smiled up at her. "Hopeful Ms. Quinn will have the means to fix up up, right as rain."
Rosanne nods her thanks at Toby's efforts at healing. She cleans her claws of blood and gathers the Rats by their tails. "We were sent here to deal with these pests. Best to show we've dealt with them. Or bloody Plugg and his asskissers will send us back most like."
Jacques shakes his head at all the trouble. "We should gather the vermin into a pile and burn them, to prevent disease from spreading. Where are they have been coming from, I wonder? Let us search down here more carefully once we have dealt with them, see if there are other secrets to be found?"
"No, Jacques", interrupted Tobias. "We need to show proof that the work was done. They'll never believe us otherwise. Besides, having those around might help Ms. Quinn treat Rosanne."
Taking some time to search the bilges you find several items hidden in the dark corners, the water, and the old broken boxes. A masterwork handaxe, a vial of holy water, a tanglefoot bag, tindertwigs(2) and 21 gold worth in coins.
Cnut helps gather the dire rats with a disgusted look on his face. It takes a little bit of time to gather and put them all in a small crate. You remember Grok talking about a ruined grain allotment that Kroop had complained about. The rats must have come aboard in it and chewed their way out after they ate all the grain.
Jacques keeps his distance from the diseased rat corpses. He gathers as much treasure as he can carry with the intention to try and trade it for their weapons, at least.
Rosanne will return everything Grok gave her. She will also display the dead rats to Plugg without comment. Still trying to work out the nasty politics of this ship.
She does give Sandara a hopeful look and display the numerous rat bites she picked up. "Got anything that can fix nasty diseases my love?"
With a heavy heart, Tobias returns his armor and weapon to the Quartermaster. "Well, thank you for allowing us to use the equipment we came on board with. I think it made the job easier."
"Ah so there was some real danger hiding down there." She takes one look at the left over dire rats and frowns. "Disease ridden vermin!" Once the armour and weapons are returned she nods. "It's good you got rid of them all. Perhaps if you keep it up, the Captain will allow you to have your previous things back."
Carting the crate full of dire rats, you make your way on deck. "What took yer so long?" Mr. Plugg yells as he sees you and makes his way over. He takes one look into the crate and says to Jakes who was swabbing nearby, "So yer weren't lying."
"Is the bilge clear then?" Once you confirm it, he sends Jakes back to the Bilges to continue his job. Jakes Magpie heads back down with a sigh, stopping at the ladder that leads below for a moment to itch his ankle.
"Well toss those foul things to the sharks and get back to work!" Plugg yells.
Jacques goes back to swabbing, and is fatigued at the end of the day.
Toby goes back to hauling rope and knot work and succeeds easily but is still fatigued at the end of the day.
Cnut goes back to rope work in the rigging and succeeds at his job.
Rosanne goes back to the Galley and Fishguts, listening to his stories and seeing him liven up a little more than usual.
"Hmm, it's Filth Fever from those dire rats isn't it. Not hard to guess that. I can help you treat it to help your body fight it. Unfortunately Besmara has not permitted me powerful enough spells to cure you, only enough to heal the damage it might do to you . Were any of your friends bitten? I will help them too. Untreated, filth fever can significantly weaken you, sometimes even kill." Despite what she says, you feel just fine, well except for the nasty bite wounds. "I can heal those bites however. Gather the others." With those of you that were hurt gathered, she prays to Besmara and channels the goddess' power, radiating positive energy to you all.
"Hmm, it's Filth Fever from those dire rats isn't it. Not hard to guess that. I can help you treat it to help your body fight it. Unfortunately Besmara has not permitted me powerful enough spells to cure you, only enough to heal the damage it might do to you Were any of your friends bitten? I will help them too. Untreated, filth fever can significantly weaken you, sometimes even kill." Despite what she says, you feel just fine, well except for the nasty bite wounds. "I can heal those bites however. Gather the others." With those of you that were hurt gathered, she prays to Besmara and channels the goddess' power, radiating positive energy to you all.
"Many, many thanks, Ms. Quinn", Tobias smiled, knowing the Besmaran cleric would know how to properly treat the party's wounds. "I shall need to take you dancing at our earliest convenience!"
Sandara smiles, thinking about dancing. "But who will provide music, or will you sing while we dance? If only Rosie had her fiddle. She said Grok refused to return it to her. I think her temper may have got in the way. Grok doesn't take well to demands."
Once the sun is almost down the ship's bell rings again and the ship is anchored. "Gather round for the bloody hour!" Master Scourge yells as soon as the bell is silent. All the crew gather. "Due to their efforts in the bilge today, the Cap'n has seen fit to reduce the punishments of our newest 4 recruits. Instead of the lash, they will receive a solitary rope bash." He doesn't seem happy about it. Rather than wasting time tying you up. Each of you is grabbed one at a time and forced to stand in front of Scourge. He wields the hefty, sealed end of a ship’s rope and slams the knot into your stomach .
After the punishments, Kroop and Rosanne hand out the soup and Grok hands out the Rum rations. The usual evening events begin.
Sandara smiles, thinking about dancing. "But who will provide music, or will you sing while we dance? If only Rosie had her fiddle. She said Grok refused to return it to her. I think her temper may have got in the way. Grok doesn't take well to demands."
"Hmm. I was not aware of the possibility of violin accompaniment", Tobias thinks out loud. "I have a new goal! Thanks for the tip, Ms. Quinn."
Once the sun is almost down the ship's bell rings again and the ship is anchored. "Gather round for the bloody hour!" Master Scourge yells as soon as the bell is silent. All the crew gather. "Due to their efforts in the bilge today, the Cap'n has seen fit to reduce the punishments of our newest 4 recruits. Instead of the lash, they will receive a solitary rope bash." He doesn't seem happy about it. Rather than wasting time tying you up. Each of you is grabbed one at a time and forced to stand in front of Scourge. He wields the hefty, sealed end of a ship’s rope and slams the knot into your stomach .
The young sailor decides to take this opportunity to have a laugh with the crew. Wincing after the blow, Tobias grunts loud enough for the crowd to hear, "Thank Besmara you have excellent aim, Mr. Scourge. About a foot south and I'd be singing soprano for a week!"
Nighttime Activity - Sleep
After his 'punishment', Tobias saying good night to Sandara, and goes to bed.
Jacques returns to the quartermaster with the treasures they found in the bilge. "I have money and items for trade with you, mon amie, this should be enough to purchase the weapons for all four of us, oui?"
Jacques will turn in early after he returns, tired after his long day.
Rosanne gives Sandara a grateful smile at her healing work. "Thank you my dear. You are a lifesaver in more ways than one."
For the evening, after Plugg again showed he wasn't fit to command any ship Rosanne will try to improve relationships with Jakes. "The bilges were overrun with those cursed Rats. It was obvious to anyone with any sense you getting out of there and warning the ship was the right call."
Scourge shoves Tobias away, not appreciating the joke. Some of the crew chuckle however.
Jack Scrimshaw appreciates the support from Rosanne.
Interesting haul you have found there. Well none of these things are in my books and if you had stolen from the armory, well one of the other Officers would soon come to me if anything was missing and I would be forced to report you." Grok checks her books and assumes that you have not stole from anyone . "Mostly uninteresting stuff, except for this." She handles the pistol. "Shame it's broken. I have heard there is a pirate captain that knows of these and could fix it for you. I have no idea who. It is such a closely kept secret that there are only rumors. They might kill you for having this to keep their secret all the more." She certainly doesn't want to hold it any longer than necessary. Revealing her ignorance, the powder box and all the other components were all stored together, without any care for the danger or special protection from weather.
rapier: 20gp
pistol: 5gp, It is broken to her, she lets you have it for nothing.
gunsmith's kit, powder, cartridges, bullets, horn: 10gp, Similarly worthless to her.
light crossbow: 35gp
dagger and wrist sheath: 5gp
cuirass and buckler: 20gp
2 daggers, sap and rapier: 25gp
scale mail, bardiche, daggers, wrist sheaths (Cnut): 77gp
75gp 17sp 7 cp left.
Do you wish to purchase anything else?
After going to bed early, tired from the previous days' events, you wake refreshed for another day! Of tiring shipwork...
Though now you have 5 other allies among the ship. Perhaps things are finally starting to go well for you in this terrible situation.
Jobs
Swab the Decks: DC 10 Strength or Constitution check
Jacques is assigned to swab the decks again, backbreaking work mopping the decks and scrubbing them with sandstone blocks called holystones.
Rat Catcher: DC 10 Stealth check, Survival check, or Dexterity check
Tobias is assigned to catch rats and other vermin belowdecks.
Fishing: DC 10 Profession (fisherman) or Survival check. A failed check results in a day in the bilges as punishment the following day.
Fishguts assigns Rosanne to catch some more fish to replenish their stores, loaning her the tools necessary from the Galley.
When Jacques returns, before going to bed he visits his allies and returns their equipment to them. "Let it be known that I appreciate your efforts on my behalf, mon amies, and that as far as I am concerned, the five of us fight all for one and one for all."
Jacques works diligently the next day.
Rosanne sighs at her days task. "Why not get someone who can fish to do it?" She mumbles bitterly to herself. "Silly me, they want an excuse to punish people. Too bad if it fecks the ship!"
She manages to accomplish the task with a number of fish. "They're from the ocean and have fins. Close enough." She decides with a shrug.
While patrolling the railing with her fishing lines she tries to start a conversation with "Badger" Medlar. "So, how did you end up on the Wormwood?" Trying to get the other woman to open up.
Wooden Locker
misc. adventuring gear and kits worth 10gp or less
Wooden Locker
Rosie Cusswell’s masterwork fiddle
starknife
flask of acid(3)
flask of alchemist’s fire(6)
thieves tools(3)
MW thieves tools
candles(6)
Wooden Chest
potion of barkskin
potion of cure light wounds
potion of haste
masterwork climber’s kit
disguise kit
flask of holy water(4)
magnifying glass
manacles
tanglefoot bag(2)
Wooden Chest
masterwork light crossbow
cutlass(3)
daggers(31)
masterwork dagger(3)
masterwork dart(43)
sap(4)
masterwork sap
arrows(120)
masterwork arrows(20)
+1 arrow(6)
crossbow bolts(200)
Wooden Trunk
banded mail
breastplate
chain shirt(2)
masterwork leather armor
studded leather armor(3)
buckler(12)
masterwork bucklers(2)
Metal Trunk
+1 dagger
+1 short sword
masterwork warhammer
wand of bless weapon (16 charges)
scroll of cure moderate wounds
scroll of mage armor
scroll of magic missile
scroll of scorching ray
scroll of summon swarm
"Badger" Medlar, an older, half-elf woman who shaves her gray hair into stripes, looks at you out of the corner of her eye as she works with some ropes. "What better way to gain my fortune in this world. I've tried everything girl: fishing, soldiering, crafting, cooking..." She was almost 100 years old and still traveling and doing whatever she fancied, always looking for treasure and fortune, traveling far and wide. She had volunteered to join the Wormwood well before Port Peril.