Best wishes to all, Camris included. Hope to see you all around the forums.
I'll admit I'm a little disappointed. Shaedeen would've either made a terrific pirate or a terrible one...not sure which.
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On vacation to Alaska for a couple weeks. Enjoy! Don't get eaten by a bear! (Or a cannibal, for that matter.)
Shaedeen creeps along the inside of the wall toward the guard at the gate...not quite as stealthily as she'd hoped.
"I'm needed more on the inside than out here," Shaedeen opines, starting to climb the rope. If Reijo really thinks there's a good reason for her not to be on the infiltration team, he has time to yank her back before she's scaled the wall.
Shaedeen shrugs, grunts, and finally nods, unable to come up with a better plan herself.
"Hmm...Plan B then. What if we charmed the guard, asked if they're keeping prisoners in one of the huts, and rescue and arm them first? Looks like we might need all the help we can get if we're to take this place in one go. Rescue-and-retreat might be a viable Plan C."
Shaedeen assesses the situation. "Try to take out the gatekeeper first, then maybe fireball the group at the table?" she asks in a whisper, woefully overestimating what the new party members might be capable of.
Shaedeen is taken off-guard when Sunny is the first to try to attempt to climb the palisade to get a peek inside. "MY job!" the teen growls under her breath as she creeps to another section of the wall and attempts to shimmy up it. The recent rains have made the palisade slick, however, and the girl can't find any purchase, try though she might.
"You think so?" Shaedeen asks Reijo. "I mean, with all the ghosts swimming in the surf, I figured they might be responsible...or maybe the whole island's cursed! I have no idea what a snake coming out of a bowl of soup to bite your tongue might symbolize...assuming it even has some hidden meaning."
Shaedeen frowns at Des's words, not liking the implications. "I hate this stupid island!" she mutters to anyone who might be listening. Regardless of who cooks what for breakfast, the young rogue takes tiny bites as if suspicious that live snake might be a hidden ingredient.
Shaedeen hangs back a bit, keeping watch on the party's rear to make sure no enemy creeps up behind them.
Shaedeen awakens, thrashing madly, one hand going to her mouth and checking for blood. Then she calms down. "Stoopid dweam! Stoopid, stoopid dweam!"
"Chelaxians," Shaedeen replies, gently correcting Sunny's pronunciation. "I was born there but luckily got out while I was still a child. I don't have a lot of memories about the place, and the ones that I do have aren't particularly pleasant."
"Either devil worshipers or little more than willing slaves," Shaedeen answers Sunny, a hint of bitterness or disdain in her voice. "Their queen or whatever title she goes by allied with Hell to win a civil war right after Aroden died."
Shaedeen does a lot of looking around, shifting debris, and peering out at the lighthouse and cannibal village, but not much comes of her activity. "Seems to me Sunny's plan is solid, especially if we move in during one of the downpours when visibility's at its worst."
Shaedeen's eyes widen when she sees Seadreamer dig the rope and grappling hook out of his pack. "Ooh! I could use one of those! Wish I'd brought my own but my exit from Magnimar was a bit...rushed and chaotic. But yeah--I think I might be able to scale the outer wall if it comes to that." Shaedeen listens wordlessly to Sunny's plan to actually reach the village, nodding for the most part. "I might be a good enough swimmer to get across a small river," she tells Sunny. Then she looks to the appointed leaders--Reijo and Terry--for their views.
Shaedeen barely gives the wrecked galleon a second glance, not wanting to swim out into waters (and likely rocks and maybe even a reef) that had laid such a mighty vessel low. Crouched low in the underbrush, the teen whispers, "How do we want to do this? We probably should try to get eyes inside the pallisade just to get an idea of their numbers, though I'm not sure if I could climb the wall to peek over the top." "I suppose we could spy on them from this vantage point to see what sort of patrols they send out and on what sort of schedule, but if we take out a couple of patrols and break in only to find like a hundred savages waiting for us...we're in trouble."
My condolences as well.
Shaedeen falls quiet, following whatever orders Reijo (or Terry) gives her.
Shaedeen suddenly blinks her emerald eyes. "Wait a second...this rock is called Smuggler's Shiv, right? I heard a story once, back in Magnimar. A tale about Chelish soldiers who were shipwrecked on a small island during a partial invasion of Sargava. No one dared rescue them, and as the years passed, they turned to cannibalism!" Having just helped Sunny drag several corpses to the other end of the beach, Shaedeen is aware that their lightish (albeit tanned) skin and dark hair is consistent with her own Chelish heritage. "If I'm remembering the story correctly, the Chelish built but never quite completed a lighthouse along the southwest coast of the island. Maybe these savages built their village around that, assuming it still stands? And if it DOES still stand, that'd be a great place to try to signal passing ships to get rescued!"
"Ah...I almost traveled to Riddleport once, but opted for a ship voyage instead," Shae tells Des. "NOT one of my better decisions!" Grinning, Shae concludes by saying, "We city gals ought to stick together! I'll watch your back if you'll watch mine. Deal?" She again sticks forth a small hand to seal the proposed agreement. Turning to Terry, she gives him a brief nod, apparently of approval. To him and Reijo she asks, "So...what's the plan? Where do we go from here?" Sense Motive DC 19 (Or Just Peek for an Amusing Anecdote): Did Shaedeen blush briefly when she first mentioned Riddleport??!! OK...I went back and checked some of Shaedeen's earliest posts in this game. She's sort of a recycled character, from one or two failed "Rise of the Runelords" games on these forums. I think it was in one of those games that she ended up in Sandpoint while on the run from enemies in Magnimar, and her original goal was to travel all the way north to Riddleport. I didn't find that in this version's backstory, but in searching discovered another Riddleport reference from the early days of this campaign that I'd totally forgotten about: She [Shae] grabs a book to keep her occupied, blushes deeply when she realizes its title is "The Misadventures of Lusty Leclair, Riddleport Pirate," and hides the tome behind her back. Yeah, she was considering asking Des if Lusty Leclair was a real person.
Shaedeen was predisposed to dislike Destinie but found it impossible for things to remain so. "I'm a city girl, too--Magnimar. Where are you from?" Once she gets Des's answer, the teen further addresses the newcomers. "I'd say our group's leader is Reijo. Your little trio have a leader or spokesperson? If you're not ready or willing to follow him, maybe you could put forth one of your number as co-leader. That way, we'd have two trusted folks putting their heads together on most matters. If they're split, maybe then we could all vote on it." "Don't get me wrong--everyone would have a say in things beforehand, but then Reijo and maybe one of you folk would make the final decision on our course of action. Sound fair? Everyone having an equal vote's OK in theory but can be slow in practice. And everyone just doing their own thing is a recipe for disaster. If we're to somehow get off this rock alive, we need to work together."
Hmm...If only one of the two remaining players roll really low...I'm a winner! I'll just wait here and hand Reijo and Terry their d20s when they're ready to roll.... Nothing to See Here!:
Shaedeen's eyes light up when she sees the stacked coins in the chest, but then they cloud over as the scrawny gal realizes they may be more trouble than they're worth on an apparently deserted island in the middle of nowhere. Maybe she can talk Reijo and/or Sasha into carrying her share. "Pretty...but also pretty useless, at least until we make it off this rock," Shaedeen grumbles. While she waits for the other three castaways to tell their tale, Shae does a bit of out-loud thinking. "No sign of Aerys or Gelik along the shoreline, so that either means there's at least one more warband of those savages on the island...or that their village is close enough that they were able to drop off their captives and head out again for more." The girl falls silent as she lets sharper minds than hers decide the group's next move(s).
Once there's sufficient light to work by , Shaedeen approached the chest and gives it a once-over. After examining the chest , she again pulls out her thieves' tools and starts working in earnest to pop the lock.
Until Sunny finds some clothes with pockets, Shaedeen will continue to carry Sunny's share of the gems we found recently. Maybe even afterwards! Such a kind and true friend! :D
After helping Sunny stack the dead tribesmen at the far end of the beach, Shaedeen takes a few moments to loot any jewelry they might wear. Then, in a rare fit of having a conscience, she explores the edge of the jungle near the beach for any sign of the the two missing castaways and assumed captives.
Shae again opens one eye, then the other. The smirk on her lips broadens into a full grin. "That was almost too easy!" she comments, getting to her feet. To Reijo she says, "I'll go after her--I suppose it's kinda my fault she ran off in the first place." As she passes Terry she quietly adds, "Sorry for snapping at you." Outside, as the deluge instantly drenches her, the girl has a Sunny-esque moment, reveling in the soothing and cleansing effect of the warm downpour. She's had a revelation: There are no "right" courses of action on the Shiv...only less wrong ones and those that are more likely to get oneself killed. Chasing down Sunny, Shae asks her, "How do you want to do this? Maybe pile them all a ways up the beach, as far from the wreck as possible?"
Shaedeen opens one emerald eye at Sunny's words. Already, the emotional teen seems calmer and more in control. "Good point--those sea scorpions or whatever they were might very well be attracted to all the blood we left behind. Come to think of it, remember how everyone who died in that cursed treasure pit we were in transformed into the undead after dying? We could have a whole army of zombies marshaling outside on the beach this very moment!" As a smirk forms on her lips, Shae again closes her eye and resumes her meditation, letting the others worry about this mostly unlikely possibility.
Shaedeen's green eyes again narrow and lock onto Reijo's briefly. "And we can't help them once they're dead!" Then the fire leaves the teen's eyes and she submissively averts them. "Then again, they're probably dead already. Plus, we can't see beyond a few feet in this downpour--we could walk right past 'em and not see them." The teen turns around and moves toward the recovered chest. Passing Terry, she growls, "It's Shaedeen," with more heat than his slight mispronunciation warranted. Having apparently had her fill of people for the time being, the lithe gal draws some metal tools from a belt pouch and squats beside the chest, examining it closely. A few moments later she withdraws from the wooden box without touching it, sitting alone in a corner of the hold. Drawing her knees up into her modest chest, she announces, "The lighting is terrible in here, and I'm not risking getting jabbed by a hidden poisoned needle. If anyone absolutely needs to know what's in the chest right this very minute...have at it." She then closes her eyes and listens to the surprisingly relaxing beat of the heavy rain on the wreck's hull while she regains her usual self-centered composure....
"Terry...Seadreamer...Des." Shaedeen says each name aloud, nodding acknowledgement to each as she commits the names to memory. A moment later she's frowning at Sunny's words worming their way into her conscience. She's about to ask the nekkid elf to accompany her on a quick search of the brush along the shoreline for Aerys and the gnome (whose name she's quite forgotten) when she notes that Sunny's busy helping Seadreamer block one of the hull breaches against the elements. Hmm...good bonding exercise. I'll leave her at it. "I'll try to scream if someone tries to kidnap me," she grumbles as she heads out into the deluge and toward the edge of the jungle to do a quick search for the two missing castaways.
As curious as Shae is about what's inside the chest--and who these three new folk are--a new thought brings more pressing matters to mind. "We were recently shipwrecked near the northern tip of this island and have been wandering it ever since," the teen says to the strangers. "We recently were trapped in a deep pit that claimed the lives of some of our group. Two others avoided falling in, but they vanished while searching the jungle for vines to help pull us out." Again Shaedeen looks to Reijo for approval as she speaks her next thoughts. "Maybe our comrades were taken by these tribesmen; maybe they're lying tied up in the brush just off this very beach, in need of our assistance. We should do a quick search for them, and it'd probably be safest if we did so in pairs." To the strangers she adds, "This would be a great opportunity to show some goodwill toward us...if you were to help." Sticking out a small hand to any who will take it, the pale and scrawny gal sheathes her blade and says, "I'm Shaedeen, by the way."
Shaedeen gave a quick nod and smile at Sasha's praise. Truth was, the teen thought she could fight better than what she had displayed in the free-for-all with the savages, but despite a lot of so-so stabs, she was beginning to leave a decent trail of bodies behind her! Jogging down the wet sand about as fast as her short legs will go, Shae shouts a hearty "Ahoy!" to the dwarf, who'd apparently just beheaded another savage. Not stopping to exchange pleasantries just yet, the gal reached the prow of the shipwreck and beheld more strangers and more fighting beyond.
At first blush, Shae thought that the two strangers further down the beach were both female. Great--more competition trying to keep me from becoming this island's alpha female! she groused mentally. Her sharp eye, however, realized that while the blonde was definitely a very pretty young woman, the red-haired one's body didn't match the effeminate face. That one's a boy. Pretty, but a boy! Some elf blood, maybe? Again, though, there was no time to exchange greetings. Closer by, a brute was trying to kill poor No-Eyes. Ol' Blindey, as Reijo called the cook, had perhaps saved her life with his healing after the life-and-death battle in the treasure pit; it was time for her to repay the favor. "Hey, Jungle Boy!" she yells at No-Eyes's attacker. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size? Or try your luck against a little girl like me?"
Shaedeen takes a crafty step backward, the better to flank the last nearby foe opposite Sasha. When she judges the savage to be sufficiently distracted, the tricky teen flashes out her blade. For a moment it feels like old times--her and a female friend flanking and befuddling a common mark. Though Sasha's a more-than-capable fighter, she's no Tower Girl: Her moves are more predictable if more powerful than most of her fellow female thieves had been able to muster. Thus, Shaedeen's attack's a bit out of rhythm, doing a lot less damage than she would've liked. And where the hell did Sunny go?! This is no time to be playing games! for
You and Camris both! (Seriously--check out the d20 rolls in his last post!) Shaedeen pitched in as well, with a Nat 1 on her crit confirm roll. (Totally expected.)
Shaedeen easily dodges her foe's counter-attack and tries to again jab her rapier into the man's ribcage. Succeeding, the lithe lass takes a careful step backwards, closer to the other nearby scrum. for for Death by a hundred little punctures!
Shaedeen looks briefly toward the other people the savages are trying to capture, but there's no time for them yet: she shifts closer to Sunny and tries to again stab the grabby fellow she scratched previously. for
Shaedeen stabs at the first savage to reach her. She manages to only graze the man's arm; before she can recover, the second savage seizes her! The lithe teen tries to stomp on her captor's toes with the heel of her boot, but again her execution isn't quite what she'd like it to be. Still, she tries to twist and squirm out of the man's grip. for
Shaedeen breaks cover and silently heads south, trying to keep the potential treasure chest from escaping into the jungle.
"Yeah, I guess," Shaedeen grouses when reminded of all the barefoot tracks they'd found. "I suppose those were nearby enough that Aerys and the gnome may have actually been looking for some vines to get us out of the pit, like she said she'd do. I guess looking for them would be the right thing to do." The look on the teen's face tells that she's not exactly used to doing 'the right thing'...or that she's hoping one of her companions will talk her out of the notion of a rescue mission.
Shaedeen found herself thoroughly enjoying the humble feast, despite the gravity of the now-smaller group's predicament. Reijo and Sunny could take care of themselves in the wilderness...and provide for a handful of others as well; Shae would have to continue to be nice to them. Sasha, too, seemed capable; Shaedeen was the low gal on the totem pole, it seemed. But the scrawny rogue was used to that. She'd rise to the top through charm, wits, and cunning eventually. Eventually, she broaches the subject that's likely on all the castaways' minds: "You think Aerys and the gnome just up and left us for dead? Or do you think something out in the jungle got 'em?" During the trek inland, Shae uses her eyes to try to help the main tracker/trail follower stay on track.
Hey Sunny! If I'm remembering correctly, you're in your warm season. Just wanted to report that 24 hours ago, it was -10F (-23C) in my area. First time in my lifetime that we reached the double-digit negatives Fahrenheit. In unrelated news, I made a giant pot of chili earlier this evening. :D
Nope, not really. Camris uses a bunch of different screen names and avatars for the different NPCs in the game. No-Eyes is definitely a secondary NPC and has mostly been providing some healing after we lost our druid. Shaedeen, Sunny, and Reijo are the only PCs currently.
Hey Terry! I'll let Camris answer most of your questions, but I'll chip in a couple of things. HERE is a link to the Recruitment thread for this campaign; Camris makes a new thread for each chapter of the campaign. Also, Shaedeen (burglar archetype, trap spotter rogue talent) has the more 'traditional' rogue stuff covered...but she'd love having another flanking buddy! It's probably worth pointing out a couple more things as well. First, we haven't hit the 'piratey' part of the story yet: Camris started with PFS "Murder of the Throaty Mermaid" scenario and shifted us to Book 1 of the Serpent's Skull AP. I think his ultimate plan may be to have a ship of pirates rescue us from Smuggler's Shiv (and force our lot into a life of piracy), but you'd have to ask him. Also, this game's pace is a lot slower than DM Fern's (Yeah, I was actually peeking in and following that game's progress for a while), so that's something you might want to consider.
Shaedeen provides a lookout for Reijo and Sunny as they provide food for the group. She wonders if fleeing Magnimar had indeed been the best course of action for her.
Shaedeen bows her head after the cave-in buries the dead and much of the cursed treasure. She doesn't exactly pray for the deceased...she more or less gives a moment of silence to their memory. Before the party moves on, Shae mentions the barefoot tracks. Turning to Sunny, she asks, "I don't suppose it's likely that some of your people might live on this island? And invited Aerys and the gnome to a feast on one of its beaches?"
Shaedeen tries her best to climb out of the treasure pit, using the rope Reijo lowered while trying to dig the toes of her boots into the claylike walls to make footholds.
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