The 2nd Fleet: Journey to the Edge of the Known World — IC

[BartNL]

"Anyone have a light?" Doran asks. "Looks like there's grain and either ale or water, but there's also something etched in the ship. Can't say if it's writing or something else."

[ratwizard]

"Here, this should help," Armantine says to Doran, slipping a candle from her pack before chipping a spark at it with flint and steel. Turning back toward the corpse, she steps inside the cell, kneeling next to it.

"At the risk of overloading ourselves, I suggest we wrap this creature up in a sheet or whatever we can find, and bring them back to the camp. It seems silly, I know. But what we may have found here... it defies reason," she admits. "There are... many folk who truly need to see such a thing to believe what we would claim."

If there are these, what, beast-people that live here already, then what sanctuary can this land truly be? Are we no better than the Church, looking to make a home out of what is not ours and claim to do so in Her Name?

[Scratcherclaw]

"Perhaps it would be best to present it to the expedition leaders first?" Raj considers with Armantine's suggestion. "Lest we trigger a stampede of eager Explorers Guild members." As entertaining as that may be to watch, we can hardly afford the inevitable injuries.

 

[ratwizard]

"It would be prudent," Armantine agrees. "Though I suspect our return will bring an inevitable stampede, regardless. There is a great weight on our shoulders."

Mechanics

Have I seen any rags or sheets or anything that could be used to help transport this body?

[BartNL]

Doran takes a closer look at the markings.

[Namelessjake]

Armantine

While it was far from pristine condition, you remember seeing some spare sailcloth in the hold which could be used to wrap the body.

Doran

You step into the cell and up to the hull of the ship, peering at the etchings, trying to make sense of them in the dim candlelight. They seem quite clearly to be words of some kind, perhaps four or five individual words in all, roughly carved into the wood, however the language and its alphabet is wholly unfamiliar to you - the symbols being unrecognisable.

[BartNL]

"It looks like writing, but not any language I know. Taliesin! Could you help me with this mystery?" Doran asks, calling Taliesin over.

[Fialova]

"It isn't going anywhere, and it isn't immediately useful to us either," Heidi responds to Armantine, hoping to curb her enthusiasm for the corpse. "We are here to scout this ship for food and supplies, oddities to be researched could be retrieved later, by another team. How long has it been decaying here, years? What's another few days, when we have grain and possibly potables to fill our small boat with?" The corpse is fascinating for sure, but this woman has no sense for prioritization. She sees a poor, deceased creature and thinks of it before the many dozens of people back at camp that are relying on us to bring back something of use? As misguided in this as she is in her choice of bishop.

[ratwizard]

Sister Armantine listens to Heidi, her face betraying little of the emotion inside. I wouldn't expect the New World Trading Company to understand the value of such a finding over something that can be eaten, used, or sold.

"Each of us may be here together, yet each of us is tasked with our own duties in the end. Our boat is small — hardly able to haul more than a few days of supplies. And with our fresh catch earlier, we've done more than we set out to already in feeding our people. I would be doing my leaders a great disservice not to bring such a finding back," she reasons. "And I believe they would agree."

"I will be right back," Armantine adds, turning to go and fetch the sailcloth she had spotted earlier in the hold.

[Scratcherclaw]

"Food is as vital to our survival as understanding this land's wildlife," Raj posits as the pair argue over the skeletal remains. "However, both of your points do have merit, and I can sense the resolve each of you holds. Curiosity or stability. Is there truly room for only one?" He looks on with a steady gaze after his fairly meaningless words, determined to not have to make the decision himself.

[FinalTemplar]

Taliesin walks past the others, mostly ignoring their bickering. "I'm hopeful that I can read it, I'm extremely interested in what this person could have written." He says softly, stepping forward to examine the writing.

[Namelessjake]

Taliesin

You step into the brig and examine the etchings more closely. While it appears that it might bear some slight resemblance to elvish, the language is unknown to you and you are unable to read whatever has been carved into the ship's hull.

[Chanchabruhh]

Eldrin watches Taliesin approach the writing with keen interest. "Let us hope that it holds some insight," he says, his voice carrying a mix of anticipation and curiosity. "Knowledge is a powerful ally in these uncharted lands."

[FinalTemplar]

Taliesin frowns and wants to lie, but chooses not to. "It seems to be some ancient language. Related to elvish, maybe - but at least for now, it is unreadable. Perhaps after my ancestors left, the language continued to be used and morphed over time. I want to study this more later." He says, putting his hand out to touch the writing.

ooc

Can I attempt to transcribe the writing? I have writing tools.

[Namelessjake]

Despite being unable to read the words, Taliesin is able to sketch down the symbols using a quill and parchment from his pack. As he does, Armantine returns with the sailcloth from the cargo hold.

[ratwizard]

With sailcloth in hand, Armantine gets to work on preparing the body for transport. "Any luck?" she asks Taliesin, noticing him scrawling symbols.

[BartNL]

"Solving mysteries is important, though the mystery of what we are going to eat and how we are going to build a strong camp has priority in my eyes. Besides, we have collected it's writings. So there's something to keep the scholars busy for a while." Doran says, regarding the question on whether to bring back the body.

[ratwizard]

Armantine listens to Doran's lecture as she continues to wrap the strange body in a portable fashion. If I've prioritized wrongly here, then that is for the Archbishop to decide.

"I'm sure the scholars will appreciate that," she says. "As for the First Fleet, it seems we will not find our answers here — yet, at least."

[Scratcherclaw]

"I should hardly think a skeleton would weigh much," Raj posits, rolling his eyes as the debate is still ongoing. And it is hardly worth the air to discuss this so much. Especially with how stubborn these Elysians might be.

 

[Namelessjake]

Armantine is able to wrap the remains in the sailcloth, bundling it tightly and tying the parcel to her pack. 

"That just leaves us the room above us and the aft castle above that," Ko says once the group is ready to move once more. "We can only hope the Captain left something of a private stash for us to find," the dwarf adds, a glimmer in his eye.

[BartNL]

"I'll lead the way." Doran says, heading for the last room.

[ratwizard]

Armantine shoulders the wrapped body, nodding at Raj's assumption. A few years prior the burden would have felt impossible to her, but years of recent conditioning had given her a soldier's strength. She falls in line behind Doran, eager to allow somebody else to take the lead. I'm not in tip-top shape after the jaws of that damned fish.

[Namelessjake]

Following Doran, you head back into the rat infested cargo hold, and make your way up to its upper level, navigation of the slanted ship decks beginning to become second nature to you. The door on the upper level opens with a strong push knocking the rust off its hinges. Your torches illuminate a narrow woodened corridor, lined by six wooden doors, three on each side, and ending at a staircase that leads up into the ship's aft castle. A large timber beam appears to have come loose when the ship ran aground, crashing down through the staircase destroying many of its stairs.

[BartNL]

Doran tries the first door to his left.

[Namelessjake]

The door creaks open, similarly stiff from sitting closed for a number of years in the salty sea air. Daylight greets you, rays of sunlight catching the dust in the air as they stream in through an open gunport turned portlight. The room appears to be a shared cabin with a pair of twin beds, likely reserved for the high ranking members of the ship's passenger compliment - as the arrangement was on your own ships during the crossing. The cabin is small and cramped, with only enough room for the two beds, a sea chest at the foot of each and a small desk in between them beneath the cabin's window.

[ratwizard]

Sister Armantine heads toward the desk, looking for any written logs or journals. I am glad that our own fleet did not end up this way, abandoned and rotting.

[FinalTemplar]

Taliesin gave one last glance between the symbols and the wall scrawlings. "I'm hoping one of the scholars back at camp can figure it out. I want to help them, but- He puts the notebook away quickly, and returns to the others. "That's for later." He says.

---

He follows the others back toward the upper level looking into this room from the doorway. "Anything of interest in there?" He asks, letting his vision dance across the room swiftly.

[Namelessjake]

Armantine

The top of the desk is clear, however inside a small drawer you find an assortment of writing materials, parchment, quills, and pots of ink. You find a number of letters, addressed to a Milni. However, scanning their contents reveals little of note, with the author writing little of their and the First Fleet's exploits, instead choosing to wax lyrical about being separated from their love. One of the letters appears to forgo the poetic tone of the others, instead describing a number of sexual acts in graphic detail that the author wishes to partake in with Milni.

[ratwizard]

Armantine smiles, finding the lurid notes amongst the desk's contents. If my Perry were here, he'd insist these were burned. I don't know that anyone values privacy as much as that man. She tries not to think about how Milni will likely never see the author of the notes again.

"Nothing but love-notes," the Sister says finally, closing the desk and leaving her findings within. "Let's look through the rest of the quarters."

[Scratcherclaw]

"How charming," Raj replies curtly as Armantine shares her findings. Amusing reads, perhaps, but bringing us no closer to the truth we seek. He lets out a sigh, making his way toward one of the chests to check its contents.

 

[BartNL]

"Let's take those, so the scribes can preserve them. Even a simple lover's notes can mean the world to the person left behind." Doran says, as he takes the notes and carefully puts them away.

OOC

Are the chests locked?

[Namelessjake]

Doran

After pocketing the letters, you try to open the sea chests, finding them unlocked. Both chests present a similar sight, having been emptied save for a few pieces of clothing; a grey woollen jacket, a purple velvet doublet with silver embroidery, a pair of black leather riding boots, and a worn tricorn hat.

[BartNL]

"Some good clothing, worth taking." Doran says as he stashes the clothing away, smiling as he offers the hat to Armantine.

[Scratcherclaw]

He has the time for the sentimentality of a lover's note, yet scorns Armantine's sack of bones? Peculiar. Raj sighs, shaking his head. "A shame we have not found more answers, though supplies are surely welcome. Let us not linger overlong however."

[Fialova]

Heidi watches in minor annoyance as the heretic fails to heed her words, and struggles to haul the corpse on her own. Devoted to her cause as always, I suppose I cannot judge. Good to know her false bishop expects foolish, blind loyalty in her service, that will likely prove useful later. 

In the new room, the woman smirks at the mention of the love letters, finding amusement not in their contents, but in the fact that they are some of the only documents to survive the wreck intact. To think that whoever wrote those is likely dead or in captivity somewhere, yet their sappy notes remain for us to review. It is a bittersweet thought. 

"Clothing is useful, but hopeful the other rooms yield more of value," Heidi states, as the first room appears to be mostly a wash. Seeing that it is in good hands with the others, she instead tries the first door on the right, opposite the room the others have congregated in.

[ratwizard]

Armantine titters as Doran offers her the tricorn hat, placing it on her head. "How do I look? Our fellow expeditioners have good taste."

Nodding at Heidi, she approaches — halberd in hand and eyes alert.

[Namelessjake]

Opening the door across the hallway, you find another cabin almost identical in layout and furnishing to the one you had just been in. However thick vines have grown in through the cabin's portlight, creeping across the furniture, walls, floors, and ceiling of the room towards the doorway.

[Scratcherclaw]

"Let us hope luck finds us here," Raj says, striding in and stepping to any chest he can find. He brandishes his dagger, slicing through any vine that impedes his path.

[Namelessjake]

As Raj steps into the cabin, drawing his dagger, the vines seem to respond to his presence. They move quickly, taking the Crescent Bluff native by surprise as they lash out towards him. Catching him in the torso, the vine wraps around him and quickly pulls him further into the room and up onto the leftmost bed, where more of the vines continue to writhe around him, tightening their grip.

Mechanics

Roll Initiative!

Vines: Vine's Grasp OA on Raj, 28 vs Ref = crit. Raj is grabbed and pulled 2 squares into the room. He takes 5 poison damage and 5 ongoing poison damage.

Status
Raj HP 46/51 Grabbed, 5 ongoing poison damage.

[ratwizard]

Armantine's grip tightens on her runed halberd as she spurs to action. Goddess, are those vines alive?

Initiative

Initiative: [1d20+3]=12+3=15

[Scratcherclaw]

"Does... everything in this godless land.... try to kill you?" Raj manages, straining against the vines.

Mechanics

Init: [1d20+8]=11+8=19

 

[Namelessjake]

"Don't worry Raj!" Zemi says, drawing her shortsword and rushing into the cabin to try and cut the serranborn free.

As she does, the vines on the other side of the room reach out for her, quickly grabbing a hold of her and pulling her away from Raj. The woman tries to hack at the vines as they wrap around her, trying desperately to avoid ending up in the same predicament as Raj, however for every vine she cuts, another two wrap around her.

Go Raj!

Mechanics

Initiative Rolled

Zemi: moves into room,

Right Square of Vines: Vines' Grasp OA, 23 vs Ref = hit for 5 poison damage and 5 ongoing poison damage, Zemi is grabbed and pulled 2 squares into the room.

Zemi: moves into room, MBA against right square Vines, 7 vs AC = miss.

Map

Status

[Scratcherclaw]

"Right, I am most assuredly not worried," Raj says through gritted teeth, his dagger's flames searing through the plant. He wriggles, trying to free his body from the vine's grasp.

Mechanics

Move: Escape grab
[1d20+17]=6+17=23

Standard: Blistering Flourish on Vine
Attack: [1d20+11]=16+11=27 vs Ref = Hit
Damage: [1d8+8]=2+8=10 fire damage
Until the end of my next turn, my melee attacks deal 4 extra fire damage

No Action: Desert Wind Flurry of Blows
The vine takes 6 fire damage. If I'm free, I shift one square away

Saving Throw
Assuming ongoing poison is Save Ends
[1d20]=17

Combat Block

Miraj Am'khar

Male Hengeyokai Monk 6
Languages: Common, Serran
Age: 28
Height: 5'11
Weight: 150 lbs.

Speed: 7
Initiative: +8
Passive Perception: 13
Passive Insight: 13
Senses: Low-light vision

AC: 23
Fort: 16
Ref: 19
Will: 18
HP: 51/51
Bloodied: 25
Surge Value: 12
Surges left: 9/9
Action points: 1

MBA: +8 vs AC, 1d4+3 damage
RBA: +13 vs AC, 1d4+6 damage

Resistances: 5 Fire
Vulnerabilities: None
Saves: +2 vs immobilize, restrain, slow, & grab escapes

Active Effects: None

Powers:

Nature's Mask
Desert Wind Flurry of Blows
Blistering Flourish
Five Storms
Agile Recovery
Flaming Accurate dagger +1
__________________________________

Second Wind [_]
Sarifal's Blessing [_]
Light the Fire [_]
Burning Brand [_]
Quicksilver Motion [_]
Flowform Cloth Armor [_]
__________________________________

Masterful Spiral [_]
Water Gives Way [_]
Flaming Accurate dagger +1 [_]
Rain of Hammers Ki Focus +1 [_]

Consumables:

Vial of Darkness

Important Features

Class
Unarmed Combatant: I can use monk unarmed strike with weapon attacks. 

Unarmored Defense: While wearing cloth or no armor with no shield, I gain +2 to AC.

Desert Wind: I gain resist 5 fire.

Racial
Beast Nature: I'm considered both a magical beast and a humanoid.

Fey Origin: I'm considered a fey creature.

Shapechanger: I'm considered a shapechanger for blahblah effects.

Elusive: I gain +2 to grab escape checks and saving throws against immobilized, restrained, and slowed.

Language of Beasts: While in beast or hybrid form, I can understand creatures of a similar type.

Nature's Mask Cat: I gain +2 to acrobatics and climb speed equal to my speed while in Nature's Mask

Theme
Sarifal Feywarden: I gain +2 to Nature and can cast the Spirit Fetch ritual once per day without components.

Feats
Sneak of Shadows: I gain training in thievery. Once per encounter, I can use Sneak Attack.

Unarmored Agility: I gain +2 to AC while wearing cloth or no armor.

Cunning Stalker: I have combat advantage against enemies with no other adjacent creatures than me.

Versatile Expertise: I gain a +1/2/3 bonus to attacks made with light blades and ki foci.

Items
Rain of Hammers Ki Focus +1: Whenever I reduce an enemy to 0 HP, one adjacent enemy to me takes 3 damage.

Iron Armbands of Power (heroic tier): I gain +2 to melee damage rolls.

[Namelessjake]

As Raj breaks free of the vines, the flames of his dagger burn the vines back, which wither and curl up as they blacken from the heat.

Go Heidi, Armantine

Mechanics

Raj: escapes, hits for 15 fire damage, kills, shifts away.

Map

Status

[ratwizard]

Armantine rushes into the room, turning her eyes to the vines that have pulled Zemi within. With careful aim, she swings her halberd across the thick growth, slicing through them with fervent strength.

Mechanics

Minor
Defender Aura.

Move
Walk into the room, below Zemi.

Standard
Righteous Brand on Vines. Hits 18 vs AC for 16 damage.
Righteous Brand: [1d20+10]=8+10=18
Righteous Brand: [1d10+8]=8+8=16[/url]

Combat Block

Sister Armantine Peroult

Female Vryloka Cleric | Cavalier 6
Languages: Common, Imardanian
Age: 38
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 160 lbs.

Speed: 6
Initiative: +3
Passive Perception: 16
Passive Insight: 14
Senses: Low-Light Vision

AC: 23
Fort: 20
Reflex: 14
Will: 18
HP: 23+8/50
Bloodied: 25
Surge Value: 12, or 10 if Bloodied
Surges left: 8/10
Action Points: 1

MBA: +12 vs AC, 1d10+8
RBA: +3 vs AC, 1d4

Resistances:
8 Necrotic Resistance

Vulnerabilities:
None.

Saves:
None.

Active Effects:
Bloodied. Surge value -2.

Powers:

Righteous Brand
Defender Aura
Righteous Radiance
Valiant Strike
Scale Armor of Sacrifice +1
__________________________________

Second Wind [_]
Valiant Charge [_]
Lifeblood [X]
Healing Word [_]
Healer's Mercy [_]
Healing Strike [X]
Strength from Valor [_]
Dynamic Lance +2 [_]
__________________________________

Paladin's Judgment [_]
Blackened Soul [_]
Moment of Glory [_]
Call Celestial Steed [_]
Scale Armor of Sacrifice +1 [_]
Wavestrider Boots [_]

Consumables:

None.

Important Features:

Racial Features

Blood Dependency: When bloodied, Armantine's healing surge value drops by 2, from 12 to 10.

Human Heritage: +5 racial bonus to Bluff checks made to pass as a "human".

Living Dead: Arma is considered both living and undead. If a power has different effects on living versus undead creatures, I choose which effect applies.

Necrotic Resistance: 8 Necrotic Resistance

Class Features

Battle Cleric's Lore: When using a cleric healing power to allow a target to spend a healing surge, they gain +2 to attack rolls until EOMNT.

Feat Features

Mark of Handling: When mounted on a natural beast or with a beast companion, they gain a +2 feat bonus to speed and +1 feat bonus to AC.

Last Legion Officer: When using a power that would enable an ally to spend a surge, they can also choose to shift 1 square as a free action, or instead gain a +2 bonus to AC and Reflex TSONT.

Two-Handed Weapon Expertise: +1 bonus to damage of charge attacks with a two-handed melee weapon.

Item Features

Wavestrider Boots: If Arma begins her turn on a solid surface, she can move across liquid as normal terrain. If she is still on liquid at turn-end, she falls in.

 

[Namelessjake]

Armantine slices through the thickest of the vines wrapped around Zemi. As they fall free of her, the other smaller vines are easy enough for the explorer to shrug off and she breathes a sigh of relief.

"Thank you Sister," Zemi says. "We should keep an eye out for more of these vines," she adds, brushing herself off.

Mechanics

Armantine: moves, hits, kills.

Status

[Fialova]

Heidi quickly raises her rifle to aim towards the vines as they grasp Raj, though they are quickly dispatched by the others as she lines up her shot. Seeing the man freed from his brief ensnarement, she lowers her gun again, and looks to him with worry. "Vines which can grab the same as we, that does not bode well for us. We should let the camp know to cull any such vines when they see them. We do not want those growing into the camp and stealing away settlers." This land is a cursed place. Death seems to be found at every turn, and creatures that bring.

[ratwizard]

"Of course," Armantine replies, helping Zemi down from. "Let us not linger, then."

She does a cursory search of the room, destroyed as it is.

[BartNL]

Doran takes a look at the vines, and tries to find were they originated from.

[Scratcherclaw]

"Have care to avoid any others," Raj gets, regaining his breath as the moment has passed. "It was nothing I could not shrug off, but those vines still possess a toxin of some nature."