The next day (5/15), they set sail for Hestrin once again. Ollie felt ill and remained on the Naked Isle. Elona took her half-share of treasure to Zhargrave and resumed studies. The crew that disembarked included Urgesh, Tienarth, Hocuspo, Ferris, Nate, Saul and Aderian. With them also went Felon, Brond, and Mulinsa (three dwarves rescued from slavery), and two adventurous elves, Karerei and Hata. Ylindar also journeyed on the ship but was merely an observer.
Aderian was a sailor before joining Tienarth’s Raiders. Urgesh spent time with more experienced sailors aboard Ephor’s ship. Both of them had apprentice-level understanding of sailing, and having made the trip to Hestrin several times, they both felt confident in charting a more direct route, perhaps requiring fewer days than before. (See Professions for a discussion of how PCs improve professional skills).
The journey this trip required four days, only a day longer than they expected. During the trip, they spied a ship flying a flag of the church and another flying an unknown flag, black with a green oak leaf. The first ship they let pass by. The second ship seemingly appeared out of nowhere, just a 70 yards away. With a minimal crew of just seven sailors (including Aderian and Urgesh), attention to duties was always divided.
The strange ship haled them and introduced themselves as corsairs in service of the druids of the order of the oak leaf and mistletoe. Saul was unfamiliar with this order, but the other crew were impressed to meet a druid at sea. The were hunted for enemies of druids, including followers of the Anointed One. Aderian offered them false directions to an island. Saul asked his pet albatross to follow them for a day, but the bird had little to share when he returned the next day.
On the fourth day (5/18), Hestrin Island was spotted as were two ships flying black flags. The pirate ships kept a safe distance but followed them to the island. Urgesh suggested a devious plan to use the island as visual cover, then circle The Garlic Frog back around the face the pirates in battle. The two pirate ships were within 200 yards when the maneuver completed. A deadly attack commenced.
Tienarth in dragon form lifted Urgesh and flew for the smaller of the two ships, a carrack they would later come to be known as The Shark. The other ship, a small galley called The Pride of the Serpent attempted a volley from crossbowmen that harmlessly struck The Garlic Frog’s hull. After Tienarth delivered Urgesh, who had guzzled a potion of growth, the old elf turned his attention to the galley. He produced a cloud of poisonous gas at the bow. The forward momentum of the ship carried it through the cloud. To a man, every pirate dropped dead on the spot.
Meanwhile on the carrack, the crew surrendered to a double-sized Urgesh. Loot from the two ships was transferred and the galley was anchored. Tienarth shared a plan to take both new ships back to The Naked Isle, if possible, noting the great value of the ships themselves. It was generally understood by sailors that a galley could move under sail with a crew of three.
The crew of The Shark included a captain, three mates and four sailors. They were all forced to come ashore. The Raiders openly discussed their utility as sacrificial lambs before the dangers of the tomb, but the pirates could only go along with the orders given the obvious power of adventurers. Soon, they were all back in the tomb on the north side of the 30′ pit Ollie had fallen into a few days before.
Ferris climbed around the pit and affixed two spans of rope to the walls, one high and one low, making a bridge. Aderian forced a pirate across and escorted him into the circular room. A tall, black dais stood in the center of the 50-foot chamber. He noticed a stack of papers left on the top of the dais. They lingered at the edge of the top-most level of the dais that rose eight feet over the floor. Around the dais were stone benches matching the curve of the room. On the walls were painted scenes of spirits rising out of dead bodies, and on north and south walls were black tapestries hanging. They showed angry knights slaying weeping peasants.
As the rest of the party waited down the hallway and across the pit, Aderian prodded the pirate towards the tapestry on the north wall. The ragged decoration came to life and engulfed the pirate. Aderian shrugged off its attacks and hacked at the rug with his axe. Each blow cut the fabric and drew screams from the pirate. At the commotion, Urgesh urged the others to cross the pit. Ferris was already lingering the in hallway and refused to get closer to the danger. Tienarth crossed over, stood in the doorway and let loose magic missiles. Before long the tapestry was in tatters and the pirate inside was dead from several axe-blows.
At this, Urgesh ordered everyone over the rope bridge, though Saul’s lion remained, unable to easily balance on a rope. The pirates were pushed into the room and Urgesh stood in the hallway to prevent escape. A pale terror flattened the faces of these helpless men as the half-orc ordered two of them to approach the second tapestry. As it, too, came to life, they backed away and tried to flee past Urgesh. The former captain managed to knock Urgesh off his feet, allowing the other pirate to step over them and cross the pit. Unfortunately, the lion took this as an act of aggression, killing the poor fellow.
Meanwhile, Aderian and Saul fought with the tapestry, which was soon destroyed. Urgesh slipped from the capatain’s hold, reversed it and tossed him into the pit. He gasped as crimson life oozed from the many spike-wounds. The remaining pirates were then truly without hope. Urgesh shoved another pirate towards the dais. Suddenly, stone snake shapes emerged from the dais and snapped the sailor in two.
Aderian stepped up next to Urgesh and the two of them attempted to destroy the snakes. Urgesh suffered many bites, each one delivering a slowing poison. Tienarth offered a counter-measure in the way of a haste spell, but the deluge of bites soon had the barbarian’s limbs weighed down like lead. Over a few minutes, two of the snakes had been broken up, but several more remained. Feeling this strength wane, Urgesh stepped away from the battle. Aderian retreated as well.
They all left the tomb and rowed back to the ships. Four sailors from The Shark remained alive.
End Notes
- Days
- 5/15 – 5/18 Sailing to Hestrin Island
- Treasure
- Loot of The Pride of the Serpent (small pirate galley) 2,000 sp, 900 gp, an amethyst (worth 75 gp), an aquamarine (worth 500 gp), a chalcedony (worth 50 gp), a moss agate (worth 10 gp), an opal (worth 1,000 gp), an anklet (worth 600 gp), an anklet (worth 1,100 gp), a clasp (worth 300 gp), a comb (worth 200 gp), and a knife (worth 1,200 gp)
- Loot of The Shark (pirate carrack) 2,200 cp, 1,200 ep, a spinel (worth 500 gp), a belt (worth 800 gp), a bracelet (worth 1,200 gp), a flagon (worth 1,600 gp), and a necklace (worth 900 gp)
- Combat: 3,690 xp
- Captain (F6) 500 xp
- 1st Mate (F3) 145 xp
- 37 Fighters (F1) 925 xp
- 37 Sailors (NM) 370 xp
- 2 Animated Tapestries 1,750 xp
- Characters 568 xp each (6.5 shares)
- Aderian (human, fight, leads) 636 xp
- Ferris (human, skills) 630 xp
- Hocuspo (npc) 284 xp
- Nate (human) 625 xp
- Saul (human, wilderness) 630 xp
- Tienarth (patient) 574 xp
- Urgesh (half-human, aggressive, action-oriented, outdoors, fight) 619 xp
- Ships
- The Garlic Frog (Caravel)
- Crew/Passengers: 5/ 8
- Hit Points: 68/75
- Cargo: 53 of 75 tons
- Food: 22 man/weeks
- Water: 5000 gallons
- 22 tons of sugar, 5 tons of cocoa, 5 tons of cotton
- The Garlic Frog (Caravel)