After a long day of deliberation at the groghouse, the majority of the group agrees to go with Thit.  Many have their own reasons for doing so, but the ever present Message of the Evangiel seems to overshroud them all.  The trip is a long two weeks to the western coast on various mounts.  Horses, a relatively new and untamed animal that began showing up around the same time that humans did, are too small for most.  Larger animals are called for by most.  Various animals are purchased in Bargul Dulg for the journey, most of them large enough to eat a human or invar in a single bite.  Both mammals and reptiles are available and each buys to suit themself.

The two weeks brings little in the way of trouble.  The occasional wild animal shy’s away from the powerful company of warriors.  Along the journey the group gets to know one another much better.  [Feel free to converse in the thread entitled “Travel Conversations”]

On the last day of the journey, the group tops a hill overlooking the ocean.  Down below, the dirt road ends in a well fortified city of wrought stone.  Kradok built and controlled, the port city is relatively new and contains representatives of every race.  The city is a free city-state run by a council government made up of one individual from each race: Kradok, Invar, Anthros, Unbular, and even one of the spider-folk, the Echtinik.  The horses are sold and their price is used to purchase passage on a sturdy three-mast ship that will carry all across the ocean to the continent Thit mentioned: Xamador.  The ship will leave in one week.

To everyone’s surprise, on the fourth day of their stay in the city of Ca’adoric (a Kradok word that means ‘big water stone’ or more precisely 'ocean ore' [as Kiro explains], Tyler Darkwatch arrives.  “I delivered the message as planned, through a...courier that I met two days out of Bargal Dulg.  She will deliver the message to our home town,” he says, looking at Genovia.  “After prayerful consideration, I decided that I could still be of help to the group.  That, and I need to know what will happen to my people if the Evangiel’s Message comes to fruition.  We have just over three years.”

For the week, the group is staying in the Gilded Eel, a quiet tavern set near the eastern wall of Ca’adoric.

As the week ends, the group gathers at the docks with their newly acquired supplies and a newfound sense of direction.  The ship that will bear them across the vast expanse of water is a tough looking Unbular galleon with three main masts, four minor masts, and hardened wood sides.  At the waterline (and below) metal spikes more than ten feet long extended out or down into the water.  (You learn later that the entire bottom of the boat is covered with them).  What dangers the oceans hold that makes them necessary is not something one wants to contemplate too long before boarding.  The ship can carry a crew of fifty and up to a hundred more, and enough cargo room to hold five times as many.  Its name, typical for Unbular, was The Sea Mace.  The Sea Mace was not built for speed or agility in any fashion.  Wide and sitting low in the water when fully loaded, it would not make more than 5 knots under the strongest manageable wind.  What The Sea Mace lacked in speed, it made up for in durability.  Its infra- and superstructures were both metal bound, reinforced double-layered and hardened wood.  The railing mirrored crenellations at the tops of Unbular fortifications (like those at Bargul Dulg’s stone towers).  The whole ship was designed as a floating fortress that could withstand a single large attacker, another ship, or significant boarding parties.  Pirates were not unknown in coastal waters and in the few remote island chains, but the larger problem lay in the huge reaches of uncharted waters and the crazy mad life below their surface.

“She’ll get you there, sure enough.  Welcome aboard,” the captains said, beaming.  Captain Megaumar Thrumhull was a fifth generation sailor.  While he spoke with pride in his ship and crew, the ogre acted rather humble about himself.  The folks in the city gave him the accolades that led to choosing The Sea Mace over the three other ocean-crossers available.  All four ships overshadowed the caravels, triremes, and fishing boats darting in and among them.  Two of the other ships were also Unbular, but one was heading into the icy north to hunt wormwhales, and the other did not receive as much good report.  That ship, The Salt Skewer looked as if it had encountered something massive out in the deep and barely survived.  Repairs were almost complete, but the ship did not look stable.

The last of the ships was of Kradok design and generally received good-natured ridicule by the Unbular.  The Bochtarn was made almost entirely of metal.  Volume-wise it was only half the size of the The Sea Mace and entirely enclosed.  Clear bubbles for viewing and metal portals supposedly capable of being opened covered the surface of the egg-shaped ship.  The Bochtarn had no sails and no visible means of propulsion.  A series of open, circular tubes ran the circumference of the ship above and below the middle, equidistant from that line.  Part of the ribbing came from the fact that the ship hung from a complex series of ropes and pulleys about five feet above the water.  The Bochtarn was a prototype and had yet to be tested, or even touch the water.

Captain Thrumhull looked over at The Bochtarn and chuckled.  “’Tis a sad thing that I’ll miss tha launchin’ o’ that contraption.  I’ve bet not a few tethril that it’ll simply sink to tha bottom o’ the ocean.  But who knows, the Kradok are crafty engineers and I’ve ne’er seen them give up on an idea once it’s got into thar heads.  Do ya believe that tha captain claims that it’ll float jes fine un’er tha water!”  He laughs a hearty laugh and continues to switch between bellowing orders and welcoming the few passengers to come aboard.

The group loads and gets settled in their quarters.  The few others that are seeking passage find cabins near yours.  The crew sleeps in bulk barracks in the main cargo area, which is currently full of various trade-stuffs and food for the voyage.  It is a five month trip one way.

As the sun reaches its zenith, Thrumhull takes his place behind the wheel and begins shouting orders.  Ponderously The Sea Mace makes its way out of the harbor and into the open ocean.

GM: Roll Fortitude checks, no taking 10/20. :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:24, Tue 01 Mar 2011.

Adryn nods toward the Captain. "It would be a sight to see a chunk of metal like that floating on water, wouldn't it?", Adryn says with a smile.

Unfortunately, the humor did nothing to help diffuse the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach as he boarded the ship. "What I wouldn't give for a nice sturdy tree right about now", he thought to himself.

19:28, Mon 28 Feb: Adryn Longmane rolled 18 using 1d20+7. Fort save.

Kahmaul has no trouble storing his armor inside his quarters and becoming accustomed to his new surroundings. But the shaggy haired Anthros does not take easily to the constant rocking of the ship. His upset stomach leads him to be surly and reclusive.

11:23, Today: Kahmaul Quddus rolled 13 using 1d20+11. fort save.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:53, Thu 03 Mar 2011.

Flynn stares at the iron ocean bound liner and snorts, "We aren't seriously getting aboard that thing are we?" The lack of response to his jest going unanswered, he looks at the others before noting their assent to the ride, he sighs and follows the others into the Sea Mace. Once within the ship he quickly regrets his choice.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:23, Sat 05 Mar 2011.

Since everyone was heading to their cabin, Vertium decided this wasn't the time to try conversing with the others. He therefore also headed to his cabin and started studying his book again. He was so focused on the book that he was blissfully unaware of the rocking boat.

To one extent or another the group is affected by this new form of travel.  Only Grondor, and surprisingly, Vertium seem unaffected.  Adryn recovers after about four days.  Aethen and Kahmaul are out for almost a month.  Flynn, Kiro, and the humans seem affected for little under a fortnight.  Yet the month goes by slowly and peacefully.  The breeze on the open ocean is refreshing and only a few storm showers come and go, doing little more than helping swab the deck.

After about five weeks of travel, the captain passes the word that a massive front is brewing on the horizon.  At dawn, the almost black clouds are just visible.  By noon they have appeared to pass overhead, though the front has not hit at ocean level yet.  The clouds carry a strange orange-green cast to them, causing most of the sailors to double their prayer efforts and Captain Thrumhull to scowl.

"That's not a good sign," he growled to no one in particular.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:35, Sat 05 Mar 2011.

   Aethen had thought the cave stifling, however, this boat had managed to cram the smells of every body scent, scrap of refuse, and exotic cargo into an amazingly small space.  Add a dash of humidity, just to get them all working together, and what afflicted Aethen could not have been wished on any enemy.

   Topside was no better for his stomach, the pitching of the deck being accompanied by a horizon that jumped along with it.  But did have a benefit, because "losing his lunch," as Grondor put it, when leaning over the side left no mess to clean up.

   Were he able to spend any amount of time meditating, Aethen certainly would have asked Addyir to put him out of his misery.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:25, Sat 05 Mar 2011.

"I don't ever recall seeing a storm system like this...", curious about the strange storm on the horizon, Adryn effortlessly climbs and swings his way up to the crow's next to get a better look at clouds rolling.

[Private to GM: Knowledge nature - 26]

"'Tis not a natural storm.  It portends the coming of the saelithist and her brood.  It is likely that we are too small to be noticed, but the danger is there."  He scratches his beard and orders his sailors to make ready to repel boarders.

[Private to Adryn Longmane: The storm is indeed unnatural.  You've heard rumor of this 'saelithist', a monster of the deep oceans that can swallow some ships whole.  Though you can imagine that swallowing the Sea Mace would be like swallowing a porcupine.]

Vertium was downstairs in his cabin blissfully unaware of the storm to come. He was too busy trying to uncover new spells to even be aware the real world existed, let alone what was going on in it.

His studies were fascinating and the understanding he was gaining would prove invaluable. Soon, he should be able to uncover the secrets of the book. Until then he would spend as much time as he could spare in his pursuit of knowledge and the rules that were behind the spells used by every wizard in the land.

Adryn drops down from the crow's nest with ease, and lands square on the deck.

"Yes, quite an unnatural storm. I have heard stories of this 'saelithist', and if what I hear is true then they are not to be taken lightly. It's been told that they can swallow ships whole, if so inclined. Luckily, I ship like this would be much like swallowing a sea urchin. Lets hope that is enough motivation to leave us alone."

Adryn turns to the captain, "Anything you need from me before the storm hits?"

"Nae lad, just keep yer wits about ye.  If the Saelithist do be comin' after us, there's not we can do to her.  But if her spawn do be boardin', we hafta clean them from the deck as fast as we can.  They do be tryin' to throw me crew overboard ta' chum tha' waters wi' 'em and draw their mother.  Prepare yerself for that and pray to Qin'ah for a good battle or a glorious death!"  The captain roars in laughter and defiance at the storm.

   Aethen suffers a rare moment of clarity in all of this, and finds himself confused as to how it would even be possible to fight on this cantering collection of tree bones.  If a storm were to make conditions even worse.....

   "Captain what, exactly, are 'her' spawn?"

Kahmaul watches the storm clouds gather. He shakes his head wearily, wishing again that he were once more amongst the thick cluster of trees with solid dirt under his toes, and begins whispering a prayer under his breath. After a moment he calls to the captain, "If her spawn are upon us soon, we should do our best to prepare for it. Are there any weaknesses we should know immediately? And do we have enough rope to secure the men to the mast? I like not the thought of being cast overboard."

He casts a look at the group and shouts, "Gather your weapons, and someone go warn Veritum. We will lhave need of his help if we want to get out of here."

Flynn rushes down towards Veritums room and pounds loudly on the door. He waits a moment and opens the door. He speaks quickly,"Sorry to intrude in your studies, but it seems that we might have some trouble, and I think we may need your help."

The Invar goes into his own room and retrieves his bow and quiver of arrows before also grabing his large companions crown and bracers before throwing them into a sack along with his one length of rope. He rushes back out to the deck waits to speak to the others.

Vertium was startled by the rushing Invar. It took him a whole minute after the Invar had spoken to actually understand what had been said. He then took his essential gear and headed upstairs to see why the others seemed to think they were in trouble. He hoped he wasn't been disturbed because they needed someone to start a magic fire on which to roast their meat.

As he looked up from his notes, the world seemed somewhat unreal almost as if the colours weren't quite right. By the time he got upstairs his vision was back to normal and he was looking at the others and the storm not quite understanding what they expected him to do about it. " Interesting storm... I hope I am not meant to wave it away with the flick of an arm?"

Dathnaea arrives moments later with Genovia in tow.  The two had become fast friends on the voyage to this point.  It would be interesting to see if their combat synced as well as their personalities.

"Ready and able, cap'n!" the young woman shouted with gusto.  Her face dared the storm, the sea breeze blew her hair in streamers behind.

Kiro trundled on deck, weighed down by his armor suit.  The thing appeared to have grown recently and looked less like an Anthros' harness and more like a true set of plate armor.

Once the others had filled him in, Kiro nodded and muttered something about being prepared for such things.

The captain never took his eyes from the water, but answered Aethen nonetheless.  "They be shaped vaguely like you an' me.  They walk on two legs, 'cept they truly be a mass of tentacles that pretend t' be legs.  Each thistling has two sets of arms, one pair ends in vicious hooks that can tear an ogre's head clean off.  The other pair tis more like th' legs, all tentacled and such.  Once they get a hold of ya, ye best be prayin' to Qinah to gi' ya a swift death."  The captain shuddered at some memory and spat away from the wind before continuing.  "Them is pale as ghost, but solid enough.  Thar bodies are slick, like a cuttlefish out o' its shell.  Eyes, pitch black, that stare through a being like he ain't even thar.  And then there's tha mouth.  A beak for sure to be tellin, but one that hides all manner of nastiness.  The tongue is long and agile.  It'll surprise you sure so watch for it.  And tha' bloody things can spit a jet black ink that blinds the eye, nauseates the stomach if it gets inside, or makes the skin slippery so's you can't hold yer weapon."

He grinned fiercely, taking adverse pleasure in the telling of the tale, as if naming a thing stripped it of its power and him of its fear of it.  He risked a glance at Aethen and winked.  "Only one savin' grace of a thistling..."

Adryn pats the new spear at his side, "With any luck, this will help keep them at bay."

"Do these thistlings have any weaknesses? Any advantage going into this would be helpful."

[Private to GM: Premeptive heads up: Should we encounter these creatures, I would most likely catalog one for potential wild shapes... when and if I manage to get to that point. :)]

The captain glances at Adryn.  "Aye, that's their saving grace.  They're awful easy ta kill.  Fire, electricity, cold, a good solid swipe of a sword or blow with a hammer...almost any thing that hits will kill 'em.  Might have to hit a couple of times with flight arrows, which are pointless on this ship, or daggers, but other than that...  Well, the only problem we'll face is their numbers.  They'll attack hard, hurt when they hit, and out number us ten to one if not more.  Thing is, if we can chum the waters with them, instead of they with us, we'll drive mama off.  She won't wanna come near us.  But we gotta do it fast enough she won't wanna come investigate."

Kahmaul grins as he takes his guantlets from Flynn and speaks a soft prayer before they are transformed into his Hammer and Shield. Looking at the others, "Alright, hard and fast it will be. Archers, surround and protect Veritum and put down as many as you can."



The Anthros warrior looks quickly to find a rope to tether himself down and moves towards the side towards which the storm is fast approaching and motions for Grondor and Kiro to step forward, "We can stand here at the forefront, and let the druids cover our backs. With any luck if we can each tie ourselves to the mast we shouldn't have to worry about them pulling us off."

Vertium spoke even as he was considering tactics to assure their victory. "I will do what I can but in all honesty, I had not prepared for an attack and so most of my spells that I retained today were focused towards helping me with my studies. On the other hand, I am a knowledgeable tactician and should be able to give valuable tactical advice that may help us defeat the sea monsters. "

This was bad. He soon realised that as the only wizard in the group, he would have to keep more offensive spells at hand for future attacks. That was if they survived this one of course.

[Private to GM: Vertium is taking 10 on a knowledge tactics check for a total of 20. He will take into consideration what the captain has told him as well as any advantages the boat layout and crew and party skills may offer to the situation.]

After the description given by the captain the passengers take up positions as Kahmaul directs.  The crew goes about the business of running the ship and the captain continues to bark orders.  The situation is tense and muscles begin to knot from the anxiety.

Eventually the storm hits, a rough wind that batters the masts and carries a foul odor.  The crew has already trimmed the sails at the captain's orders.  And the Sea Mace rolls with the large waves that come with the front.

An hour passes...

...soon the front of the storm passes and the wind settles into a steady gale that the sailors can use to tack through the storm.  The rise and fall of the ship and the tension cause those who have not gained their sea legs to loose their previous meals [GM: If you failed your first Fortitude check at the beginning of the voyage, please roll again.  If you already passed, don't.]  The other passengers, one a human a bit taller than Tyler and dressed in comfortable traveling clothes, have come on deck to survey the storm front.

Several more hours pass and a torrential downpour has come, but no thistlings.  "It may be a day or two before we see them," the captain says over the rain.  "We'll have warning so ye'll be able to help in time!  Go below decks and get what rest ye can!"

When the time comes, Ardyn falls into rank behind the fighters and prepares himself for battle.


11:53, Today: Adryn Longmane rolled 21 using 1d20+7. Fort save.

Days pass in weary anxiety.  The storm is brutal and carries with it the strange sent of something foul.  The Sea Mace, low to the water and sails trimmed has no problem roughing out the storm.  On the fourth day since the front passed overhead, the roar calmed to an eerie silence.  Though the storm raged all around, a circular hole to clear sky appeared in the clouds.  All around the ship the water lay perfectly flat.

"They'll hit us now or never.  PREPARE TO BE BOARDED!!!" Captain Thrumhull bellows.

GM: Roll initiatives.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:19, Tue 15 Mar 2011.

This message was deleted by the player at 00:58, Sun 20 Mar 2011.

Before the combat, Vertium gave some tactical advice to the crew as well as his companions.

"The archers and I should be in lower crows nest. It gives a better angle for ranged attacks as the thistlings come up the sides of the ship and a safer position once the board. Kiro, you and the other support members should pick a combat focused member and stay with them. As for the rest of the combat focused members, you should split up to defend crew."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the combat was about to begin, Vertium got ready for the onslaught hopping he would keep up with the enemies.


OoC: 00:23, Today: Vertium Thrusius rolled 20 using 1d20+5. Initiative.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:23, Tue 15 Mar 2011.

Dathnaea darts up the ropes to the crows nest as the mage suggested.  There she found the twenty quivers filled with arrows she and Genovia had strapped in up there.  The battle would end before they ran out of arrows...she hoped.

Init: 14

Genovia follows Dathnaea up the ropes to the crows nest and secures herself to it.  She makes sure Dathnaea is also secure.  They have enough rope to maneuver easily but not be thrown far if the storm knocks them out of the nest.  Genovia can also cut the lines with her bow or one of several knifes she has secreted about her armor should the need arise.  The black, insectoid armor makes the blonde of her pony tail stand out in stark contrast.  The look on her face is one of fierce determination and readiness for the coming battle.

Initiative: 19

Adryn covers one of the flanks just behind Kahmaul in an effort to defend some of the less combat capable sailors.

20:06, Today: Adryn Longmane rolled 15 using 1d20+2. Initiative.

Grondor steps up to the aft of the ship behind the captain, prepared to defend him while he steers the ship.

Initiative: 9
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:27, Tue 15 Mar 2011.

Kiro grimaces as he enchants his weapon and armor with his artificer skills.  He knows that he is not the best when it comes to front line fighting, but he is the third best armored on the ship.  Mayhap the Tetragolem armor will have a few surprises that will see him through this.  He looks around to see who his support is.

Initiative: 7

   Aethen stands ready at the hatchway leading below deck.  His plan was to help on deck as he could, but primarily haul wounded below so they would not be taken overboard. As he stands watching the tension worsen with the weather, Aethen digs through his memory to see if he had ever heard of a reference to Saelithist in the hopes of recalling some useful bit of information.

   On a more positive note, he was very thankful that he had started to grow "sea legs", as the sailors called it.  He still felt sluggish from the extended sickness, but recent days had seen more food stay down.

02:52, Today: Aethen Ironroot rolled 13 using 1d20+2. Initiative.
08:44, Sun 13 Mar: Aethen Ironroot rolled 23 using 1d20+6. Fort Save.
02:57, Today: Aethen Ironroot rolled 25 using 1d20+13. Knowledge: Nature check.

Kahmual readies himself, keeping himself steeled for  battle, and nods to Adrynn. He was glad to have another Anthros at his back for this battle. A grim smile appears on his face as he whispers a soft prayer to Addyir. Once done he cries out, "Be ready men! Stay sharp and we shall get through this day. As long as we focus our attacks, we will beat back these swarms!"

11:52, Today: Kahmaul Quddus rolled 18 using 1d20+3. int.

Flynn stands near to Danathaea and notches an arrow, watching the horizon for the swarm to come.

11:53, Today: Flynn Darktreader rolled 22 using 1d20+6. Initiative.

Tyler takes up position near Kiro mid-ship.  The two are not as powerful as Kahmaul or Grondor alone, but they are more heavily armed and armored than any of the rest.  Their position would give them close access to the archers and Vertium should the need arise.

Minutes pass and nothing happens, then all at once they bubble up out of the water.  There are many many thistlings, so many that it seems a white wall of flesh is writhing up out of the ocean up the sides of the ship and flowing around the spikes.  That number will overwhelm the crew in seconds if they reach the railing.

This is not going to be like other combat in the past.  This is a roleplaying battle.  They will die in one hit and are worth 10xp each.  For each well thought out post you get another 40xp.  The main idea here is to chum the waters with as many thistlings as you can before the eye of the storm passes.  If you loose too many crew, the ship will take longer to sail to Xamador and other dangers will threaten.  If you loose more than that, the ship can't sail at all and will have to limp to the nearest port...if the saelithist does not come.  Each round a crewman is killed and tossed into the water, I roll a cumulative roll to see if the saelithist comes.  Remember, I'm looking for good storyline here so make the battle spectacular!

There will be 12 rounds.  The first two are ranged only.  On round 3 the thistlings will board and begin killing crew (100 + captain).  Don't worry about initiative unless you interact with another player (support).  I'll post in initiative order during recap before next round.  Post any pre-combat questions in the OOC thread.



      _____________________________________________________________________
     /          |                                                 |        \
    /       ____|_                                                |___      \
   /         | | |                                                _|_|       \
  /         _|_|_|                                                |           \
 /              |                                                 |            \

	_                     ________
___      Door    _____         /        \        _____	_
			/     \		/     \    Door
	___
	\_____/		\_____/
	\________/

\          ____|_                                                |            /
  \          | | |                                                |___        /
   \        _|_|_|                                                _|_|       /
    \           |                                                 |         /
     \__________|_________________________________________________|________/


      N
      ^
      |
 W <-----> E
      |
      v
      S


In this picture the ship is headed west (left).  There are two main levels to the ship's deck, the main deck with the three masts (centered), and the upper decks at fore and aft (west and east).  On the west upper deck (fore or front of the ship) there are two sets of stairs leading up each side to the wheel box where the captain steers the ship.  On the aft, there are also two sets of stairs.  The aft section is manned by 21 crew right now and there are 7 harpoon guns that can be loaded with smaller rounds, nets, and other things to fight boarding.   The fore has only 4 guns.  Each railing on the main deck has 4 guns.  It takes 3 Unbular crewmen to man a gun, 2 if there is an ogre in that gun crew.

There are two upper crows nests in the smaller masts and a lower crows nests where Dathnaea, Genovia, Flynn, and Vertium are in the center mast.  There are also two doors that lead under the fore deck and one main door that leads under the aft deck.  Massive cargo is side loaded up ramps and sealed for the voyage.  The thistlings cannot enter the ship without punching through the very thick wood or overwhelming the crew on deck.

If there is anything else you need to know, ask. :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:03, Thu 31 Mar 2011.

As the water around the ship begins to churn, Adryn quickly realizes the shear number of the beasts about to board were more than they could handle in a one on one fight.

He quickly begins to scan the deck for some large... and heavy!

[Private to GM: Adryn wants to find something large and heavy... perferrably something that might require an extra hand to lift. The basic idea is to crush as many creatures that come over the railing as possible. Some something that might resemble the mast of a sail might be suitable (assuming its something Adryn + Kahmaul could manage). Fitting for his feral side eh?]

   Aethen sees the throng moving toward them, but does not suffer the same kind of panic that had gripped him in the cave.  This was an enemy that had been anticipated.  Anticipation breeds planning.

   "Addyir, we ask your blessing and protection as we walk the Path."  Aethen whispers to himself the prayer that came so easily from use.  Right now, more than any other time, he meant every word of it.

   Focusing the power in a way that was not commonly used was an interesting challenge, and were he not about to be torn apart from a horde of creatures, he could have contemplated it further.  Looking to port, he finishes the preparation and arrows the spell at the water near the side of the boat, praying he succeeded.

Casts Entangle at the water, where the diameter of the circle falls on the railing for the most coverage.  He is seeking to call kelp, seaweed, alge, etc.

Kahmual points off towards the right side of the ship, "Archers, focus your fire! If we can keep one side clear of these things we can keep our backs safe as we fend off the rest!"

He turns to the sailors, "Allright men, arm yourselves with anything you can and stay near. I can only help those whom I can touch."

"Remember what the captain told us. The more we kill, the better. It is best if we kill the creatures as they climb aboard. Swordsmen should stand near the boat edges." Vertium never having any experience with boats didn't know the correct word for this. "Hit the creatures while they are climbing aboard. Hopefully, they will fall on their breathen and slow down the attack allowing us to more easily dispatch the creatures that climb aboard. "

With that Vertium fired two ice missiles at the closest creatures hoping to discourage the creatures from wanting to be at the front and slowing them down. It probably wouldn't work but at least he would be able to improve the crews moral.

"See, these creatures are weak! How about a competition to see who can kill the most? That is if anyone can keep up with me..." Vertium was trying to motivate the crew and passengers in the hope that it would improve their fighting abilities

OoC: I am assuming attacking the creatures as they climb up will give them an Attack of Opportunity?

As the thistlings begin to fall, Dathnaea launches her arrows.  One pierces the eye of a thistling, knocking it off the ship's side and into several others.  Those begin to climb back up immediately.  Her second arrow lodges deep in the chest of another which takes a third with it.  The third slams, back first into a spike and there is an audible CRACK above the din as something inside snaps.

GM: Attacks of Opportunity are a melee rule.

Genovia's arrows are more devastating than Dathnaea's.  Each missile punches through the soft skin of one thistling to protrude out of the back of another before losing all momentum.  Two or more die with each shot.  Her second arrow of the round explodes the head of one thistling and impales two more who fall into the ocean, which is now turning black with blood.

Not wasting a round waiting, Tyler lets one crossbow bolt fly down the side of the ship, devastating the shoulder of one of the creatures.  The arm flies off, completely separated as the creature falls silently back into the depths.  Needing a round to reload, he decides instead to begin tying the weapon to his belt and draw his melee weapon to back up Kiro.

Flynn smirks and fires a shot towards the the indicated side of the boat, following the first shortly after with another. He looks at his companions egging the sailors on and wonders if it won't cause more harm than good. In his own experience, a foolish and untried warrior was a dead one, despite any advice or courage they already possessed. Still... There were far to many of these things to not rely on them. And perhaps he might be surprised still by the inspiration his fellows might cause. For his own part, Flynn stayed silent, only indicating to Danathaea with short chuckle at her excellent aim.

Another human dressed in simple traveling robes has joined the crew on deck.  He draws out a crossbow as he makes his way up near the captain.  Taking a bead over the rail he lets fly and watches with satisfaction as the pale beast from the depths falls back into the water, its home now a grave.

Flynn (22) - 20xp [Private to Flynn Darktreader: (+40rp)]
Vertium (20) - 20xp [Private to Vertium Thrusius: (+40rp)]
Genovia (19) - 50xp [Private to Genovia Swiftfoot: (+40rp)]
Kahmaul (18) - 0xp [Private to Kahmaul Quddus: (+40rp)]
Adryn (15) - 0xp  [Private to Adryn Longmane: (+40rp) There are barrels, ropes, and a number of other things that will fit your bill, but you aren't experienced enough to know which might be necessary for the ship.  You do know that between you and Aethen and maybe the clerics you can replace the fresh water easy enough.]
Tyler (15) - 10xp [Private to Tyler Darkwatch: (+40rp)]
Dathnaea (14) - 20xp [Private to Chadaros: (+40rp)]
Aethen (13) - 50xp  [Private to Aethen Ironroot: (+40rp) +50 for a unique use of a spell!]
All manner of kelp and underwater plants burst from the water snatching at thistlings, dragging them off the boat.  They may not be dead, but the Sea Mace has moved beyond them now effectively removing them from the battle.
Arvil (11) - 10xp [Private to Arvil: (+40rp)]
Grondor (9) - 0xp
Kiro (7) - 0xp

Death toll
Thistlings - 20
Crew - 0

Begin round 2!
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:15, Fri 18 Mar 2011.

After a couple seconds something catches Adryns' eye that gives him an idea. An over-sized barrel sitting by the railing, large enough for a medium sized man to sit in, sparked a childhood memory of a game where he would roll large rocks to knock down pegs on the other side of the glade. If he could position himself properly, this giant barrel may just have the same effect, but on a much more devastating scale.

Adryn shouts to the crew, "Stand back from the railing!", as he rushes over to the barrel near the railing and begins to line up a shot, praying that the shear weight of the barrel would be enough to crush and/or knock many of their assailants back into the water, before this fight became an all out melee.

OOC: Ahhh, such fond memories of Donkey Kong come rushing back :)

Dathnaea releases two more arrows.  One glances off of the shoulder of a thistling, not penetrating.  The thistling manages to hang on and resumes its climbing.  The second arrow punches through a chest and the thistling rocks back into the ocean several feet below.

   Aethen quickly flashes through what he had at his disposal.  Selecting one that would serve more than one purpose, he focuses on his hand while speaking the words to bring it forth.  Finishing, and holding his arm up so as not to harm anyone nearby, a blade of pure flame appears.

   Since the fight had not broken out onto the deck, Aethen moves to the port side railing and throws in with the men there.  It is then that he sees men with scratches and more severe wounds, leaving a mess of blood mixed with the entrails of the creatures.  Considering that thistlings were more likely driven by smell than sight, Aethen began to worry that the blood of the crew would only antagonize the creatures into a frenzy, akin to that of a shark.

   Thinking of the best way to fix the problem, since the use of a spell would be too much for so minor a problem, Aethen takes men back one at a time to cauterize their wounds with his blade, profusely apologizing as he does it.  Alternating between this and defense, he hopes that keeping the crew's wounds from inducing fatigue.

   Not seeing a break in the constant flood of the creatures, Aethen wonders if they can create one, however brief.  Looking around for the others or the captain, Aethen yells, "Is there any way to oil the water?"

Flynn lets loose another two arrows. Each finds a thistling to bury itself into, dropping the creatures back into the quickly bloodying waters. He worries as the horde moves ever closer in on the ship. They are working quickly, but for every one they put down another three seem to fill its place.

In reply to Aethen Ironroot (msg #52):

As Adryn waits for the first wave of creatures to come over the rails, he stops to think... "What's actually inside this barrel?"

If it were oil, perthaps that would help facilitate Aethens plan.

OOC to Vertium: You wouldnt happen to have grease in memory, would you?
OOC to the GM: Being on the ship for as long as we have, would I have any idea whats actually inside this barrel I am about to hurl at these critters?

As he noticed the growing amount of enemies attacking the ship, Vertium got an idea. The side of the boat was quickly becoming wet and if he were to freeze the water, it would make it that much harder for the creatures to climb aboard. Taking that into consideration, Vertium fired Ice missiles at the feet of two of the climbing creatures, hoping that at least some of the ice would attach itself to the boat side.  Those two at least fall into the drink.

Vertium then looked around determining whether there was anything else they could use to their advantage. [Private to GM: Knowledge tactics check for 20.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:04, Thu 24 Mar 2011.

Seeing his Anthros brethren hurling barrels at the coming creatures Kahmaul smirks and rushes to aide him in sending another barrel overboard. Standing next to Adryn, "Either way these will slow them down and hopefully speed us through this rush. We should move to bear the brunt before they manage to get a solid grounding on the deck."

Seeing the flurry of activity keeping the creatures mostly at bay, "Addyir is with us! Lets beat these thistlings back and feed the bottom dwellers well this night!" He heaves a barrel with his full attention. When done he will stand 5 feet from the railing and looks to the heavens. He glows with light making a silent prayer and his gauntlets shape into his axe and shield.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:06, Thu 24 Mar 2011.

Arvil leans over the opposite side of the boat to which the ice missles were sent and casts ray of frost on side of the boat and smiles as several Thistlings (3) bounce off each other falling back into the water.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:12, Thu 24 Mar 2011.

Genovia smiles a wicked smile as the tactics of her companions begin to take a nasty toll on the thistlings.  Two more arrows send another three back into the drink.  "Well shot!" she praises her fellow archers.

Kiro sees the brilliance of his companion's moves and hears Aethen's question.  He smiles and leans over the railing.  "Shemen tsiy!"  The words of power leave his lips followed by a spray of fine, brown mist from his fingertips.  Soon the liquid is running down the side of the ship.  Any thistlings who try to clamber up through it slip and fall back into the ocean.  Soon there is strip of the Sea Mace's side that is entirely free of thistlings as they scurry around.  The overall volume able to climb up is thus reduced.

Grondor seizes on the barrel tossing immediately.  He hefts two on his shoulders and hurls them down the side of the boat with enough force to shatter them against the first thistling each hits.  The debris takes two more and slows a number of others as they dodge flying barrel bits.

Tyler remains ready to back up those in need, but can do little more than prepare himself mentally this round.  He encourages his friends with cheers as they slaughter the thistlings coming of the sides with barrels and arrows and well placed spells.  "Ever seen a fight like this, Captain Thrumhull?"

Then a thought hits him and he quickly bows his head and whispers a silent few words.  Suddenly a circle of light with a complicated pattern of geometric designs appears in the water below him and a pillar of light rises up from it.  When the light fades a sleek grey shape leaps out of the water and knocks three thistlings back into the water.

OOC: Summon Monster I - Celestial Dolphin
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:23, Thu 24 Mar 2011.

Captain Thrumhull grimaces at the loss of the barrels at first, but upon seeing their effectiveness grins fiercely.  When Aethen hollers his question about oiling the water, his grin turns to a frown.  "Don't be igniting no oil near my ship, ye land lubber!  We'll all be a roasted snack for tha' saelithist for sure!"

At Tyler's question, that captain throws back his head and laughs, shaking it from side to side in answer.

The extra crew of the Sea Mace take their cue from the adventurers and began hurling water barrels over the side to great effect.  Soon More than fifty thistlings are floating in the water and none have made the rail yet!
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:11, Thu 24 Mar 2011.

Adryn heaves a massive barrel over the side of the railing hitting the first thistling square in the chest. The force of the blow knocks it back in to the water, taking two of the thistlings crawling up behind it down as well.

Adryn shouts back toward the Megaumar, "Don't worry captain, if we survive this... I will personally replace your water supply". Adryn chuckles and tosses one more over the edge for good measure, eliminating two more attackers from the onslaught.

Flynn (22) - 20xp [Private to Flynn Darktreader: (+40rp)]
Vertium (20) - 20xp [Private to Vertium Thrusius: (+40rp) Not at the moment.  The tactics the group is coming up with are working better than I had planned for.]
Genovia (19) - 30xp [Private to Genovia Swiftfoot: (+20rp)]
Kahmaul (18) - 20xp [Private to Kahmaul Quddus: (+40rp)]
Adryn (15) - 50xp  [Private to Adryn Longmane: (+40rp)]
Tyler (15) - 30xp [Private to Tyler Darkwatch: (+40rp)]
Dathnaea (14) - 10xp [Private to Dathnaea Searii: (+40rp)]
Aethen (13) - 0xp  [Private to Aethen Ironroot: (+40rp)]
Arvil (11) - 30xp [Private to Arvil: (+40rp)]
Grondor (9) - 40xp
Kiro (7) - 60xp [Private to Kiro Latroony: (+20rp)]

Death toll
Thistlings - 81
Crew - 5 injured

Begin round 3!
Standing at the railing the crew draw their melee weapons as the thistlings reach the rail and begin to swarm over.  There are only forty people at the rail all around, but nearly double that trying to come over.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:35, Sun 27 Mar 2011.

As the thistlings climb the rail, Genovia targets those who have no crew or adventurer to prevent them from coming aboard.  Her first arrow punches through the chest of one and knocks it several feet out over the ocean before it plunges into the water.  The second shatters the head allowing the body to fall back and take the one right behind into the water with it.  "That works much better," she says with a satisfied smile.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:33, Sun 27 Mar 2011.

Tyler swings his mace crunching through the arm and torso of the nearest thistling.  Now the battle will get down to the blood and gore.  He adjusts his position a couple of steps back attempting to move slowly into a support position without leaving his back bared to the attackers.  He and Kiro have some unique abilities that might compliment each other, but his first order of business was to keep everyone else up and healthy.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:34, Sun 27 Mar 2011.

The barrel tossing was a nice distraction, but the shear numbers of thistlings had finally caught up to them. As the masses started to breach the top of the railing Adryn brandishes his new spear and charges down the railing into the incoming thistlings in an attempt to impale as many as possible.

The first strike tears through the torso of a thistling with ease and doesnt appear to break his forward momentum. Adryn charges through the first thistling, spearing a second, and finally a third. In one smooth motion, Adryn hoists the lifeless bodies of the thistlings into the air and tosses the bodies overboard into more oncoming assailants, knocking two more from the side of the ship.

Wondering to himself "Just how far will this go?" Arvil with an almost evil grin grabs hold of the closest thistling with a Shocking Grasp.  As planned, the soaking thistling has trailed water from the oceans and allows the arcing electricity to affect another too close behind it before the spell dissipates for distance.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:30, Sun 27 Mar 2011.

Looking at the number of injured sailors, Kahmaul frowns and swings down at the first coming thistling and removes the body of it from its grasping tentacles cleanly. He watches it drop slowly into the ocean as two more take its place. He calls out, "If any get seriously injured, fall back and begin to try and keep the things at bay with any weapon that can keep them out of reach. I can heal those most in need, but some of you will have to drag your friends away from these damn things if they fall, and let me heal them after we've gotten out of the thick of this horde!"

With speed the Invar executed two more swift shots, aimed to pin down a thistling making a lunch of one of the sailors, dropping the foul creature and freeing the man. He wondered what sort of creature made these things and how woeful it would be to deal with their mother.

   Like a wave cresting on the edge of the shore, the thistlings were now beginning to pour over the railing onto the deck.  Proportionally, the wounds being inflicted were increasing as well.  One, then another sailor fell to blows, but the fighting had not escalated to the point where Aethen could not pull them out of the fight and take them below deck.  Upon returning, however, he sees that several more are nearing that breaking point as well.

  Watching Tyler's display with his dolphin, Aethen is inspired and quickly whispers a spell.  Feeling its effects take hold, he gives a quick prayer to Addiyr and feels one of her blessings slip away from his mind.  The next instant, a tentacle streaks out of the water and rips a thistling from the side while a bulbous eye stares up from the water.

  "Cloud the water for your safety!  Keep them from climbing up!"  Aethen yells to the squid.

  Moving to the other side of the boat, Aethen looks at the state of things.  The grease was still there, but its effectiveness was waning due to the sheer numbers.

  "Can we light this grease? That would clear this side for a bit.  Captain, can you turn into a wave to put it out?"

Cast Speak with Animals
Sacrifice Soften Earth and Stone to cast Summon Nature's Ally II

As the tide of thistlings grows thicker, Dathnaea saves her shots for helping those in distress.  She is less able to get the numbers that way, but perhaps that will make the difference down on the deck.  Two more thistlings, who might have won otherwise, die to her arrows.

Kiro whirls his staff about deflecting thistling attacks even as he counters with his own.  Their four arms overmatch him except for his staff which has two ends.  He also notes that to lash forward with the deadly hook end of one arm requires him to rare back, disengaging the other pair of hook and suckers.  He manages to down one thistling, caving in its chest and knock another over the railing.

Vertium knew that their only chance of survival was to stop the enemies from swarming the boat.

The wizard considered also summoning a see creature to help cause more chaos in the enemies' ranks. On the other hand, he knew that their best chance of survival was to prevent the monsters from overwhelming the boat. He therefore decided to summon some celestial dogs and send them to attack the large group of enemies, closing gaps where there were no soldiers to defend the railing.

He was getting carefully observing the deck making sure that no enemies were swarming his allies.

OoC: Summoned 1D3 Celestial dogs (Rolled a 3), each attacking 1 creature.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:50, Sun 27 Mar 2011.

Grondor leaves his sword sheathed considering the closeness of the combat.  He realizes that its size would risk hitting friend while he swung at foe considering the close quarters of combat.  Instead he waits for one thistling to attack him, swinging either hook arm or sucker arm, and grabs the appendage.  With a might heave, he whirls the flailing creature over his head and takes out two more at the railing.

Unfortunately while doing so, a fourth creature manages to score a wound across his leg.  It isn't enough to incapacitate, but it stings like fire.  Grondor roars defiance at the pain.

"Aye, we can light it," says one of the crewmen.  He brings out a self-igniting torch (a Kradok invention) and tosses it toward the grease.  He scores a hit and the grease immediately flares up.  For his troubles the crewman is grabbed by three thistlings and thrown overboard.  His scream is cut off only after hitting the water 40 feet below.

The grease licks at the thistlings who shy away from it instinctively.  Their numbers lessen even more.  Only one other crewman is tossed into the brine, his body gored and torn apart in a spray of blood.

Flynn (22) - 20xp [Private to Flynn Darktreader: (+40rp)]
Vertium (20) - 30xp [Private to Vertium Thrusius: (+40rp)]
Genovia (19) - 30xp [Private to Genovia Swiftfoot: (+20rp)]
Kahmaul (18) - 10xp [Private to Kahmaul Quddus: (+40rp)]
Adryn (15) - 50xp  [Private to Adryn Longmane: (+40rp)]
Tyler (15) - 10xp [Private to Tyler Darkwatch: (+40rp)]
Dathnaea (14) - 20xp [Private to Dathnaea Searii: (+40rp)]
Aethen (13) - 10xp  [Private to Aethen Ironroot: (+40rp)]
Arvil (11) - 20xp [Private to Arvil: (+40rp)]
Grondor (9) - 40xp [Private to Grondor Swordstorm: (+40rp)]
Kiro (7) - 20xp [Private to Kiro Latroony: (+20rp)]

Death toll
Thistlings - 134
Crew - 9 injured; 2 dead or in the water

Begin round 4!
The effectiveness of the groups tactics are actually wearing down the thistlings and fewer stream over the railing.  No less vicious, the thistlings change tactics and begin teaming up on individuals.  Their main goal seems to get people in the water and if they can manage to bloody them first, all the better.

Tossing the last batch of thistlings over the railing gave Adryn a closer look of its design. He hadn't noticed until now, but there was actually a substantial amount of metal in the railing. He knew there was a way to super heat the metal, but he hadn't quite mastered that tier of spells yet, so he decided it best to call upon his companions for help.

"Vertium, Aethen... do either of you have a means to heat the metal in these railing?", he shouts. "It may help keep the creatures at bay for a short time."

Taking queues from his companions last actions, he feels it best to try and level the playing field and fight numbers with numbers. He steps back from the railing momentarily and begins casting.

Within a brief instant a small shimmering portal opens and then snaps shut as an eagle comes streaking through. The eagle takes focus on two thistlings that are attacking a struggling crew member, and immediately initiates a dive. Attacking talons first, the eagle just barely manages to drop the first thistling. Using its beak, the eagle punches through the soft torso of the second thistling, killing the creature.


Casting defensively - Casting Summon Natures Ally I in place of Faerie Fire

Genovia rounds on another thistling attempting to hook a crewman.  Instead of a kill, she severs the tentacle allowing the crewman to finish it.  Rather than taking more time to search for another opportune shot, she rapidly destroys a second thistling then reaches to the stock of back up arrows in the crows nest.  These would not be as devastating as her own Echtinik enhanced arrows, but her saber bow would still put some power behind the shots.  She put aside a momentary pang of regret that she would not be able to recover her best arrows from this fight.

Flynn watches grimly as a thistling wraps itself onto a crewman. He fires an arrow at the creature and manages only to wound it, and fires another to kill the monstrosity before it could overwhelm the poor man. He cries, "Use longer weapons! If these things grip onto you, it will only spell death!"

   The sounds of the vicious struggle surround everyone as the tide of foes surge more and more over the railing.  Everywhere he looked, men were beginning to falter.  Several times he was able to save them with a crude thrust of his fire blade, but the instances were becoming more frequent.

   The first lesson that he had ever learned from his father began to surge forward in his mind as he fought.

   "Sapling," his father would start, "when the prey is hunted, on the ground is death."  Aethen would ask why.  "Because, young one, on the ground the hunter can get you here...or here...or here..." His father would illustrate this by tickling the young boy in a different spot, causing him to spin and try to defend his vulnerabilities.

   "But up there," the tall Anthros looks up into the illuminated canopy, "Up there the hunter can only come from one direction."  The pleasant memory fades as reality comes crashing back, punctuated with the yells of men and cries of monsters.

   "We have to ascend to the fore deck!  Protect the captain and guard the stairs!"  Aethen repeats the message in different languages for everyones benefit.  Grabbing one man by his collar and dragging him up the stairs, Aethen leads the way.

Tyler watches, helpless, as another crewman gets wrapped up and thrown over the railing.  He crushes the torso of another and hauls a crewman from the dead grasp of the felled thistling.  Hearing Aethen's call to head to the fore decks, he tosses the crewman, a slender Unbular orc, ahead of him up the stairs.  Then he turns to help others consolidate their position.

Kiro hears the call to regroup.  He gives up an easy shot at a thistling to grab the harness of a goblin about to be hurled over the rail.  The thistling gashes his shoulder, but releases the goblin.  Kiro backs slowly up the stairs defending with his staff.  He is still too low to see Grondor's fate and too far to do anything about it as it happens.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:18, Thu 31 Mar 2011.

The battle was going well but Vertium decided they needed more reinforcements. He therefore summoned yet more Celestial Dogs. This time, the mage was only able to summon 2 more creatures. He sent the creatures to help the members of the crew that seemed to be struggling most with the monsters.

He was hoping to avoid as many unnecessary deaths as possible and sending his summons out seemed the best plan of action at this point in time. Hopefully, the monsters would try attacking his dogs (who would return to their plane unharmed when badly injured) rather than killing yet more crew members.

The monsters were now going down but the mage knew this was no time to relax.

OoC: Current Summons: 3 Dogs: 2/3 Rounds. 2 Dogs: 1/3 Rounds.

Kahmaul nods at his companions suggestion and holds position for a moment to buy time for the crewmen. He uses his shield to knock back a particularly vicious thistling from off of one crewman, and slams his Axe through another as it advances upon him. He grabs the poor bugbear and shouts amidst the chaos, "Regroup! Get everyone back up to the top of the deck, protect the wheel and the captian!"


[Private to Kahmaul Quddus: Unbular would not hire human crewmen and Arvil is the only other human on the boat not in the party.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:06, Thu 31 Mar 2011.

Dathanae releases two more arrows.  She bites her bottom lip as her second arrow finds its mark...on a thistling attempting to climb the ropes to the crows nest.

Grondor hauls three crewmen from the brink but fails to actually harm any thistlings.  As he shoves the last of them towards Tyler and Kahmaul, his feet are ripped out from under him and he goes down hard.  With a thunderous crack that echoes above the din of battle, his chin slams into the deck and his eyes roll back into his head before he disappears among the pale bodies of the swarming attackers.

Only those with a higher vantage point, which is now most everyone, watch as he is dragged rapidly toward the railing.

Arvil smashes through another thistling and darts up behind others onto the upper decks.  There he begins administering healing spells to the worst wounded.

Grondor falls soon after, but Arvil is too focused to realize it until precious seconds have passed.

Flynn (22) - 20xp [Private to Flynn Darktreader: (+40rp)]
Vertium (20) - 50xp [Private to Vertium Thrusius: (+40rp)]
Genovia (19) - 20xp [Private to Genovia Swiftfoot: (+20rp)]
Kahmaul (18) - 20xp [Private to Kahmaul Quddus: (+40rp)]
Adryn (15) - 20xp  [Private to Adryn Longmane: (+40rp)]
Tyler (15) - 10xp [Private to Tyler Darkwatch: (+40rp)]
Dathnaea (14) - 20xp [Private to Dathnaea Searii: (+40rp)]
Aethen (13) - 60xp  [Private to Aethen Ironroot: (+100rp)]
Arvil (11) - 10xp [Private to Arvil: (+0rp)]
Grondor (9) - 20xp; down and headed toward railing [Private to Grondor Swordstorm: (+0rp)]
Kiro (7) - 0xp [Private to Kiro Latroony: (+20rp)]

Death toll
Thistlings - 160
Crew - 17 injured; 11 dead or in the water

Begin round 5!
The tide is certainly thinning with the vicious counter attack by the Sea Mace defenders.  The fore-decks are certainly easier to defend channeling the thistlings up the stairs, but the ropes up to the sails and crow's nests are undefended.

Grondor's fall is tragic and he will be in the water unless aid can reach him this round (please post in initiative order as posted above as this is critical).

There are about forty thistlings on the lower deck (a couple failing to open the locked doors).  The rate of thistlings coming over the rail has dwindled to about thirty per round (which means less than replacement numbers).

Seeing Grondor fall immediately attracted the Invar's attention. Vertium was not ready to allow the man to die, not on his watch. He was no longer focusing on the long term battle plan instead pooling his resources to determine how he would save his ally. The mage had two choices. He could either summon more creatures to impede the Monster's retreat, or he could freeze the creatures pulling Grondor towards the railing. "Grondor is down! We must prevent the Sea creatures from dragging him overboard. He has already saved many lives in this battle, now it is our turn to save his."

With that, the mage sent two cold missiles towards the two Sea monsters closest to the railing which were dragging his ally towards the water. In doing so, he hopped to freeze them to the spot. Since they were holding onto the Unbular and between him and the railing, it should take a while for the other monsters to move them out of the way and to continue dragging the Unbular overboard. Grondor was a valuable friend, a man the mage had come to respect. The young mage was determined to do everything in his power to save him from the brink of death.

Vertium then ordered his dogs to attempt a rescue on his ally.

Dogs 3: Round 3/3, Dogs 2: Round 2/3. Cast Cold Missile: 2.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:59, Thu 31 Mar 2011.

Flynn grimaces as the warrior falls. His next two arrows fire at those thistlings dragging their ally, forgoing any attempts to save another crewman.

Genovia follows Flynn's lead and slams two more arrows into thistlings dragging Grondor, cursing the unenhanced arrows.  But where two fall, three more take their place and the unconscious warrior is dragged inexorably toward the rail. "Halai damn you, fall!" she spits, the anxiety causing her to revert to her native dialect.

Kahmaul roars, and flings himself towards his comrade, his weapons reverting back to their normal gauntlets and his furry fists grasp forward at his companion. Thistlings begin to grapple onto the burly Anthros who carries their weight easily as he moves into the mass to reach Grondor.

He grabs at the warrior through the horde of thistlings and cries,"Grondor! Damn you, Get up!" And channels what energy he can into the warrior as he begins to pull back the fighter from the thistlings before they can drag him over the ledge.
[Private to GM: Going to channel a few healing points into Grondor to try and stabalize him if hes at critical. If the slightest bit keeps him from the death mark, Kahmual will oppose the thistlings and try and drag him closer.]
This message was last edited by the player at 22:10, Sun 03 Apr 2011.

Vertium's call for aid temporarily snaps Adryn out of his battle frenzy long enough to realize that, along side a fallen Grondor, he is one of the only ones still fighting at the railing. Frustrated at himself for not noticing Grondor's dire sitution and enraged at the relentless waves of thistlings, Adryn launches into action, determined to pull Grondor from the swarming of thistlings.

Handle Animal - 20

Adryn raises a hand, makes a couple subtle gestures and orders his summoned eagle to cut a path towards Grondor. Hoping the eagle will act as a bit of a diversion, Adryn rushes in behind. The eagle managed to take down one thisling, and slightly wound another before vanishing back to its home. Adryn gave little regard toward to the attacking thistlings as his sights were set on Grondor, and as a result a couple thistlings managed to land a couple cheap shots as he ran by.

Moderately battered, Adryn finally makes it to Grondors side and whispers a prayer of healing as he assists Kahmaul's rescue attempt to shuttle Grondor towards the relative safety of the fore-deck.

Casting defensively - cure light wounds on Grondor
17:15, Today: Adryn Longmane rolled 6 using 1d8+2. Cure Light on Grondor.

Tyler is focused on healing the downed crewmen.  He barely has time to watch events unfold with Grondor.  Two crewmen behind him are pulled over the rail by thistlings trying to whelm the foredeck.  Tyler grabs his mace and fills the gap, knocking one back into the ocean.  The other wraps a tentacle around his mace arm and a struggle begins.

"I can't shoot into the mix!" Dathnaea cries.  "I'll hit one of our friends!"  Frustrated tears stream down her face as she sites in reinforcements from the sea.  Three more thistlings die, falling back into the water before they can join the others against the rescuers.  From her vantage point it seems hopeless.  Kahmaul and Adryn waste precious moments attempting to wake Grondor as his body (and subsequently theirs) are pulled ever closer to the railing.

   As Aethen hauls the wounded orc up the stairs, he hears commotion, more so than before, behind him.  He turns just in time to see another Unbular swallowed in the swarm of thistlings.  Lamenting yet another lost life, Aethen puts the orc down on the fore deck and moves to aid in defense again when Vertium's cry registers in his ears.

   Realizing the swarmed Unbular was Grondor, Aethen surges to the railing and focuses quickly.  Feeling another of his gifts fade from his mind, the air above him solidifies.  With a caw of triumph, a large eagle-headed horse, bearing wings, explodes away from the ship.

   Yelling out over the din, Aethen addresses the newcomer.  "Pluck the warrior away if you can," he indicates by pointing his finger at the dog-piled fighter, "otherwise rip them apart!"

   Aethen is surprised for a moment at the ferocity of his words, but he decides that to feel any less would be to dishonor the sacrifices that the warrior had already made for them.  "And besides," he mumbles, "I have no intention of planting more weeds."  Aethen surges to cut a swath to their friend.

   The hippogriff tucks its wings and dives....

While Arvil appreciated the ferocity and effectiveness of the mighty hobgoblin, he had other duties to worry about than sacrificing himself and their position for a single combatant.  Weighing the odds of success, he decided instead to stand at the rail of the ship on the foredeck to defend the captain.  Several of the monsters were attempting to sneak over in the confusion.  His spiked mace crashed through two of the attackers, crushing them to grey pulp.

Grondor feels a lurching sensation and hands, so many hands, grasping him.  Something warm and tingly washes through his body, then again, and his eyes snap open...

...just in time to be hauled over the railing.  He scrambles too late for the wooden beam then he is in freefall.  The Sea Mace stands tall in the water and the falling sensation seems interminable.  At last he splashes into the dark depths, noting just before he hits that they have reached the edge of the eye as lightning flashes.  His eyes open wide in terror at what he sees below then slam shut just before the water slams into him.

Kiro finally realizes what is happening.  Growling in frustration he lumbers over to the railing on the foredeck on the side where Grondor has just gone over and without stopping leaps over.  He angles his body lengthwise and manages to take a whole slew of thistlings with him.  As he falls, he calculates the angle and manages to just miss several of the spikes protruding from the Sea Mace.  Just before he hits the water he remembers two things: 1) Kradok are strong swimmers but very dense, 2) he is wearing relatively heavy armor.

The hippogriff just misses Grondor, but manages to rake a whole line of thistlings who go down like bowling pins.  Vertium's cold missiles freeze two of the thistlings, but to no avail as more take up dragging Grondor toward the rail.  Rather than concentrating on pulling Grondor from the mass of writhing tentacles, Kahmaul grabs hold and channels healing power into the hobgoblin warrior.  Adryn does the same, successfully waking Grondor just in time to see him flung over the railing.  Kahmaul is nearly flung over himself [Private to Kahmaul Quddus: d20+STR mod to resist unless you want to go over on purpose, which will give you a controlled dive].

The archers are left with fewer and fewer targets as the thistlings begin a retreat.  The eye of the storm is passing and with it their attack, for good or ill.  One last frustrated holler then a squishy thud followed by an oompf! signals Kiro's decision to follow after Grondor to render what aid he can.

GM: It is up to each of you to decide to jump in and try to find Grondor (and Kiro) or ride out the storm aboard the Sea Mace.  The waves are ginormous and only the bulk of the ship and the will and strength of her captain are keeping her from floundering.  It is highly suggested that the archers make their way down from the crow's nest.

Vertium proceeded to summon a giant octopus in Grondor's location, tasking the creature with bringing the warrior back to the boat. He then started to climb down the mast towards the relative safety of the deck. He tried shouting out orders to the druids for them to help out. "Try summoning more sea creatures to get our allies out of the water!" Hopefully, they would hear him and act accordingly, Vertium really didn't want his friends to die unnecessarily.

Seeing the thistlings make their retreat, Arvil turns his attention back to healing all that he can. He knows if those that went over board make it back it will take all his strength to heal them.

Following Vertiums lead, Adryn turns his attention toward to sea and begins casting... within moments a porpoise surfaces and swims over to help keep Kiro afloat.

Adryn shouts, "Aethen, is that flying friend of yours big enough to grab Grondor and Kiro out of the water?"

Casts: Summon nature's ally - Porpoise

   Aethen looked up at the circling hippogriff, then down to the rough water.  Considering how much armor Grondor was wearing, it was unlikely he would be able to surface on his own.  Were Kahmaul able to find him, the chances would be better.

   Reaching a decision, Aethen focuses on the water and wills another of his gifts away in order to bring a servant of Addyir from the ether.  The water roils near the boat and the large eye of a squid peers up from the water.

   "Dive down and save the sinking warrior.  Bring him up.  Go!"  As an arrow from the bow, the squid instantly jets downward, disappearing into the turmoil of the ocean.

   Aethen turns to Adryn and tosses his staff.  "Take care of that for me, brother."  Aethen dives into the water, weighed down by nothing, seeking the fools covered in metal.

Genovia collapses her bow and secures the remaining arrows back in their quivers.  Attached to her belt, the bow is secure.  She wonders if the others have seen what she has seen down deep in the water every time the lightning flashes.  She has not time to warn them and do what she needs to do.  The Sea Mace is rocking again as the eye passes and the eerie storm engulfs them once more.  Waves swell, tilting the crows nest back and forth, making it precarious to stay in it without anchorage.

Timing the rocking of the crows nest, Genovia waits till it is beginning its swing out over the water for the third time, then dives.  Her angle puts her far out beyond the spikes on the side of the ship and she makes a clean, head first dive into the water.  Her Echtinik chitin armor is light and does not weigh her down.  With powerful strokes she makes for the surface.  Another breath and she dives, looking for Grondor, Kiro, Aethen, and the summoned animals.

What she sees sends terror throughout her body, electrifying her muscles with adrenaline.  What she sees in the next flash of light is a dark body, massive beyond belief, and rising up below her, the ship, and everything in sight...

Kiro feels himself sinking in the heavy armor but does not panic just yet.  He sees in the flashes of lightning above in the storm the animals summoned by his friends.  Another appears and heads for the thrashing form of Grondor who thankfully is awake.  Kiro turns his attention to the thistlings who are all leaving the Sea Mace and streaming down into the depths.

In the next flash of lightning he begins to panic.  A form, massive beyond belief, is rising up from the depths, a gaping maw able to swallow the ship whole the way Kiro might swallow a tiny mustandar seed.  The spikes would not even be noticed by that thing.

He kicks furiously toward Grondor even as he understands there is no escape.

Dathnaea watches Genovia dive in eyes wide.  The woman had balls!

As the rocking increases with the size of the waves and the return of the storm front, Dathnaea realizes she needs to get down from the nest.  She slings her bow across her back, knowing the string is no good in this weather anyway, and starts down.  Time after time she is forced to press her soaked body against the ropes as the angular momentum of the mast attempts to hurl her out in the water.  The ropes are growing slicker and slicker as the rains return.

Halfway down, the ship rides up a wave almost vertically giving Dathnaea a clear view of the water directly below.  Lightning flashes and she gasps, loosing her grip in shock.  Then she is falling, falling, falling...

...just before she hits the water, a slick, feathery form shoots by underneath.  She lands on the hippogryph's back as its foreclaws drag in the surface of the ocean, almost as if surfing in the wave.  With powerful beats of its wings, the summoned creature fights back into the sky as the crest of the wave surges underneath.  Dathnaea watches as the Sea Mace rises above the ocean and heads down the other side of the wave.

Another flash of lightning shows the dark form that had made her loose her grip in the first place.  It is growing rapidly and is more massive than reality allows for.  If she survives, this, Dathnaea will have a tale to surpass all tales her friends and mentor have ever swapped back in the human lands.  Fear grips her, but she urges the hippogriff higher and higher, hoping the duration of the summon will miraculously last for more than the next few minutes.

The captain fought the wheel of his ship, willing the craft up the waves.  He knew it was all in vain.  He'd never known the beast to breach with so few given to the sea as bait before, but perhaps she was starved with a lack of prey in recent times.  "THE SAELITHIST COMES!!!" he bellowed into the storm.  The wind immediately stripped his words away, but the crew took up the cry.  He would have his crew die fighting with full knowledge of what was coming.  There was no point in not telling them.

To their credit, the crew did not panic.  They continued about their business attempting to keep the Sea Mace afloat in the titanic storm.  He grinned fiercely.  "Qin'ah, today we come to your hall as warriors!  We offer ourselves to your glory in the heart of battle, pitting ourselves against one of the mightiest of Loartec's creatures!  Accept our offering, my Lady!"

Those in the water and those at the rail will see much the same thing.  With every lightning flash a darker form that the depths of the water grows.  It is vaguely circular in shape, and immense beyond belief.  It's as if reality itself cannot contain the size of the thing.  Certainly it is approaching as it grows to encompass everything below that can be seen in the brief flashes of light.  Yet still it has not reached the group.  Darkness, refraction, and the dire nature of the situation distort estimates, but the creature rising from below must be greater than a mile in diameter.

Grondor is picked up thirty feet underwater by the summoned animals.  Kiro is harder to see in the murky depths of the ocean.  Genovia is a pitch black arrow, much like the dolphin, and a powerful swimmer.  She heads for another crewman who has managed to survive being tossed into the water by the thistlings.  As the group looks around, other crewmen also live and are desperately swimming for the Sea Mace.  All the while, the saelithist looms closer, large enough to swallow all.

What do you do?  What can you do?

Adryn looks back toward the Captain as he shouts his warning, and then peers back towards the water. With the thistlings retreating, there was nothing more he could do to help the Sea Mace. He had companions in danger in the water, and regardless of whether the Saelithist meant their end... he could at least prevent them from drowning before that happened.

He stows his new spear inside his Handy Haversack, and places Aethen's mysterious staff beside it. He secures the haversack to himself and searches for the shadowy figure that was once Kiro.

He whispers to himself, "Addiyr have mercy.", and leaps from the railing out into the water.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:27, Sun 10 Apr 2011.

Hanging onto the railing, Kahmaul fights to keep his footing against the thistlings who are attempting to bring him into the oceans depths in their dwindling assault. The warrior has no time to watch the waters below and as a result is ignorant of the Sealithist as it comes until the Captain's shout. He wonders what the man means, his time in the deep forest leaving him unprepared for the darkness rising up to the ship.

Flinging the last Thistling from himself he calls out, "Addyr! Here me, your warrior, and give me the strength to face this beast. Show me the way, or greet me soon should my strength not be enough." He calls out to the captain, "This creature, I'll assume we can't outrace it? How far are we from any shore?"

Vertium rushed to the railing. He wanted to see the creature if it was the last thing he did. He watched in amazement unable to do anything. Even if he got off the boat, he would drown soon after. There was nothing he could do apart from leave his fate in the hands of the gods. He never was an overly religious person but he believed that in a situation like this only the gods could save him.

   Unable to find Kiro or Grondor, Aethen surfaces to get a breath.  It is from this vantage that he watches the thistlings rush away from the ship, as if it were sinking.  Curious, but not necessarily a bad thing.  He hoped the squid had met with greater success.

   Perhaps there was a celebration on the deck for their survival?  That was the only motive that Aethen could attach to the yelling he heard coming from the ship, along with the frantic movement by the crew.  It looked like spotters were still eying the water for thistlings.

   Salt in his eyes, he could do no more than take a deep breath and dive again.

Lightning continues to highlight the approaching monster, turning the ocean momentarily incandescent white as it highlights the leviathan.  As those with vantage watch, the staccato flashes count down the moments to the afterlife.

Then a flash appears to one side of the beast, this one a deep ruby in color.  Those in the water feel a rush of bubbles flow past their bodies, even buoying them upwards.

Another lightning flash shows the full saelithist body as before, but it doesn't seem closer.  Two or three more flashes confirm it.  The saelithist has halted its ascent!

Knowing what to look for, the spectators see a ruby trail lance through the water from a source just outside the saelithist's silhouette and slam into its side.  That one is followed by seven more before the leviathan moves toward the source and overshadows it.

"WE HAVEN'T DIED YET!  GET THOSE MEN OUT OF THE WATER!!!" Captain Thrumhull's voice whip-cracks over the storm.  His men jolt into action throwing lines and rope ladders down the side of the ship for the survivors to find their way up.

Lives hand in the balance as the sea still swells and many are far enough away from the ship to loose sight of it.  Those in the water have a less clear picture of what is unfolding below and on the ship.

Unaccustomed to being surrounded by so much water, shuttling survivors back to the ship was beginning to take its toll.

As the lightning continued to flash, the new red highlights in the water only made him think one thing... the blood of his companions and ship's crew were staining the waters all around him. Ignorant to the true meaning of the red flashes, the thought of losing more people to this storm renewed him with a second wind, pushing him through his fatigue.

A strange buoyancy seems to making traveling through the water easier, as well as making people easier to see as more heads start bobbing in the water. Adryn grabs the 2 closest survivors and hurries them back to the ship.

[Private to GM: Just a reminder, the alertness and endurance feat will probably be fairly handy in this situation.]

Focussed on healing all that are brought to him, Arvil has little time to glance at the water or even know what is going on below the surface. As he works he mumbles a prayer for all their safe return.

As he makes for the struggling warrior, Kiro feels his armor drag him down.  There is little he can do about it as he is not even sure how to take it off.  His vision begins to narrow, and red lines start to appear across it.  Oddly, they strongly resemble the new Kradok anti-behemoth weapons called searing lances that his people had been developing as he left for this new quest.  He really was loosing it.

The searing lances made fighting the rare towering monstrosity that tended to rampage in the edges of civilization a cinch.  They were molten metal encased in an electric field which kept the metal rigid.  When the lance struck, the field would ablate from the lance and the metal would embed itself deep into the creature cooking it from the inside.  One idea was to add an extra spell that made them explosive.

These thoughts raced through the artificer's mind just before his vision went black...

...then blue, with strange lines and pictures of everything around him as if he were looking through the air on a normal, sunny day.  He released his breath (with a small amount of water coughed up) and gulped in another.  It was fresh, clean, and not full of salt water.

The tetragolem!  Somehow it had shifted form to allow him to operate under water!  Wasting no time, Kiro located the nearest crewman and kicked toward him.  The suit responded and propelled him with porpoise-like speed toward his target.  It was an orc woman.  She had a couple of minor wounds from the thistling hook, but nothing else.  This deep in the water, she had only a minute or two before she would drown permanently.  Kiro wrapped her up and kicked toward the surface.  Using his legs to keep afloat, he willed the top of the suit to open and it complied.  Water washed over him, running down the inside, but was removed almost as fast as it washed in by one of the suits systems.  Putting the wonder aside for another time, Kiro compressed the woman's chest several times repeatedly to push the water out, then forced his own breath into her lungs.  After several tries, she coughed up an ocean of water and opened her eyes.  She was only able to smile weakly in thanks before collapsing exhausted against Kiro's shoulder.

Closing the suit, Kiro used the magical sight to locate the Sea Mace.  He sped toward it and delivered the orc woman to crewmen who were drawing other survivors from the water.

Before seeking more survivors in his amazing armor, Kiro looked down deep in the water to where the saelithist had halted its ascent.  It battled something, something small.  Yes!  Those WERE searing lances.  The Bochtarn!  Kiro laughed.  Captain Thrumhull would not believe it.  The metal Kradok ship was deep under water, drawing the attention of the leviathan away from the Sea Mace, and actually holding its own.

Vertium quickly summoned another squid to help the struggling survivors.

Once he had accomplished his duty, the mage sat down near the railing and got out his tools. he quickly started sketching the scene he saw bellow. If he survived to tell the tale, he wanted a drawing representing this mythical creature. The mage was fascinated by the creature and as he started drawing, he quickly forgot the chaos surrounding him moving on to a plane where only knowledge existed. To him, it was like a cursed treasure room containing millions of Gold pieces any one of which could bite his hand off. It was like seeing the rarest artefact and being able to record its properties so that it would remain in the books of history forever.

Kahmual rushes to grab a rope and throw it towards his companions and any other stragglers knocked off the ship. He hopes to use his brawn to speed the process. Seeing another crewman nearby he calls out, "Quickly! Lets get these people out of the water now. Grab a line and haul them out there, lets stop staring like idiots and save some lives."

The rescue efforts go well and the group rescued a number of crewmen who had been thrown overboard.  Captain Thrumhull ordered the dead left at sea.  Dathnaea landed on the deck astride the hippogriff which vanished the moment her feet touched the deck.  Kiro climbed aboard last, his armor shifting from a strange new aquatic form back to the familiar heavy fighter armor.

"Loosen the sails!  Shore up the rigging!  We flee this place while the leviathan is preoccupied!"  The crewmen, with renewed vigor in light of a second chance leap into action.  Those who rescued them catching their breath and staying out of the way, but on deck in case they were needed again.

Tense seconds turned into taught minutes stretched into strained hours, and none dared speak and break the spell that took them by stealth from the very maw of death.

Then the storm passed and the seas turned relatively calm again.  A strong western breeze pushed the Sea Mace at its best clip and dried the survivors.  A crewman finally delivered a verbal report and the spell finally dissipated.  Conversation rose quickly from a whisper, to a murmur, to a hubbub, then a spontaneous cheer of defiance and survival against nigh infinite odds.

   Aethen rejoiced with the others on board, glad that few had lost their lives.  Seeing the blurry visage of the behemoth swelling towards the ship from underwater had left a lasting impression on the Anthros, momentarily stealing away any hope of survival.

   That survival had been snatched from the literal jaws of death seemed a fluke to Aethen, almost a dream.  No truer example of nature could have been represented, a predator and prey, and somehow the prey survived.  He was humbled by the events that had transpired, and took time to think on the occasion throughout the rest of the trip.

   Aethen takes it upon himself to replace the lost water stores when necessary (seeing as how the barrels to store had been disposed of) and plans to have a ceremony for those who had lost their lives from the attack, as soon as the time of jubilation has passed.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:34, Sun 17 Apr 2011.

Relieved to have survived such insurmountable odds, Adryn happily aids Aethen in re-supplying the water... a promise he had made to the Captain just before using it as ammo against the thistlings.

He sits and thinks to himself, this will certainly be a story to be handed down for generations to come.

[Private to GM: What sort of creature type was the thistling? For future reference with the prestige class...]

Flynn looks down at his quiver and sighs, all but one arrow left, and nothing left to shoot at. He makes his way down to the others silently grateful that none of them were lost. He goes to sit atop a barrel still left aboard and wearily speaks, "Lets never go on an open sea voyage again. When we get back to real land I'd rather walk back than deal with those things again."

For three days the mood on the ship is morose.  The wind speeds the ship onward as if making reparations for the delay of the unnatural storm.  Few words are exchanged, and only those as are necessary.

On the evening of the third day, as the world turns away from the local star, Captain Thrumhull asks the clerics on board to say a few words for the three crewman who died at the hands of the thistlings.  The crew stand silent attendance at the rail, looking out toward the sinking day star.  Their chins are lifted, proud to have known their fellows, honoring the manner of their death as all Unbular are wont to do.

[Private to Adryn Longmane; Aethen Ironroot; Arvil; Kahmaul Quddus; Tyler Darkwatch: The crewmen who died were an orc, a hobgoblin, and a bugbear.  Each were strong, proud members of the crew who died bravely.  Unbular are a fierce, battle-hardened kind who honor those who fall in combat, especially those who fight against impossible odds.  Say what you will for the dead as the Captain has asked, or refuse via PM.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:03, Tue 19 Apr 2011.

There is naught greater than to die in battle defending your comrades. These three will not be forgotten. Let their names be inscribed on the very ship they gave all to protect. Add them to your lore bards, praise them in song. May their deeds in this life be reflected in the next.

   Like an open wound, the three days was fraught with tension and pain.  Crewmen went about their tasks mechanically, carrying the loss in their faces, while the passengers tried not to interfere with the daily duties.  It was almost a relief when it was decided to have the ceremony for the fallen crew.

   Aethen was humbled by being asked to speak.  He had simply wanted to ensure that a ceremony was held, but to speak on behalf of the fallen crew was a high honor.  At the appropriate time, Aethen nods to the captain and steps forward.  Squaring his chin, he looks to those around him as he begins.

   "As I pray," Aethen begins, using the Unbular tongue, "for these men, these warriors, let it be known that I was only present for their passing.  I did not see their Path, nor how they tread it."  He pauses for a moment.  "But I can see from their actions, from their valor, that they will be welcomed by Qin'ah."

   "Addiyr teaches that there is no death, but simply a new Path.  Because of this, I know that their sacrifice does not mean an end, but a beginning."  Aethen looks skyward, "Qin'ah, you have brave and true fighters in your presence.  Hear our testimony!"  Changing his tongue, he looks down, "Addiyr, speed their journey to the next Path, carry our words to Qin'ah."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:43, Tue 19 Apr 2011.

Adryn slowly approaches the railing, and stares out toward the water for a brief moment before speaking.

"Honor and bravery are fleeting things these days, rarely do you find them in such abundance as I have seen on this ship and from those we lost. The few we lost will not be forgotten, and let us not mourn them... but celebrate their spirit in such a way that we pass their light on to others", he forces himself completely upright from his bestial stance and lets loose a mighty, feral roar... one last tribute to those who fell to save the lives of many.

[Private to Aethen Ironroot; Game Master: Also, at some point between our escape from danger and the wake, Adryn will return Aethens staff back to him. I just totally forgot about it until now.]

Kahmaul remains silent for a moment, allowing the others to speak in turn, before speaking in his native tongue, "Addyir, though your plan escapes me now, recognize that these brave souls traveled this same path you've sent me and have paid for it with their lives. Please guide their souls to rest on their next journey and protect them as you have protected our own."

He finishes his moment in common, "Those who stand fast in the face of overwhelming odds and fight to their last shall always be remembered. In this world and the next."

The memorial service seems to release a dam.  All the pent up sorrow and frustration disappear with the vanishing local star below the horizon.  The first mate, Dhubassa Shiken, tells a humorous story about one of the slain crewmen.  Those who knew the deceased at the time, laugh, and the spell if finally broken.

A week passes before the winds change and another storm arises.  This one, the captain assures the passengers, is perfectly normal.  Four hours later, the crew scurries about in the waxing daylight, refreshed as if washed clean of all misfortune.  Late that evening, though, a crewman shouts down that another ship is visible to their aft.  Captain Thrumhull murmurs something about pirates with a death wish, but his grimace indicates a bit more frustration.  The winds are no longer blowing west.  They head more north now and the Sea Mace is having to tack back and forth just to make any headway.

The lookout indicates that the new ship is gaining fast.

"Prepare to repel boarders!" the Captain bellows.  "Trim the sails!  Tend the harpoons!"

Upon hearing the Captain's warning, Adryn helps the crewman prepare their defenses. It had been nearly two weeks since he had tending to his battle gear, and thought it best make sure all was in order.

He opened his haversack and withdrew his spear and saw Aethen's mysterious staff stowed along side of it.

"Aethen, I believe this is yours...", Adryn removes the staff and hands it back to Aethen. Nodding towards fast approaching ship, he says, "I have a feeling you're going to be needing this. My apologies for not returning it sooner."

"How much time before they are upon us?", he shouts.

"I'm afraid we're going to have to come up with a better plan this time", he says looking around the deck of the ship, "we're all out of water barrels." He chuckles to himself slightly, and continues fortifying the ship.

Vertium had been busy during the last few days. After sketching the monster he ahd seen bellow, he had resumed his magical experimentations. It was a good thing that they had been able to safe all their companions. As the boat started approaching, the wizard was glad that he had kept his combat arsenal rather than the more versatile array of spells he normally prepared. Once they got to ground, the wizard would adapt his array for exploration spells.

He listened in silence as the druids gave their farewells to the dead crewmen. Vertium realised that overall, they had been lucky. Still, he would have preferred a total success that didn't involve any crew casualties.

   Aethen was worn.  He had been sick for weeks, seen men die before his eyes, dealt with a force of nature, and now pirates.  He did not want to fight and see more death, it was as simple as that.  The idea of a looming confrontation brought a depression with it, one that stole the usual energy from his movements.

   Aethen nods to Adryn as the staff is handed back to him, politely but with no emotion.  Here was his weapon, and it would take lives.  STOP IT!  A memory surges against the others, breaking away and gaining dominance.

   "Help that one there, Aethen."  An elderly Anthros speaks to Aethen as he is young in his years of education.  "Apply the poultice as you have been taught, but quickly," says the Elder, as he looks away. "Because more will be coming."

   A young apprentice then, Aethen had asked why these men and women were hurt.  He was quickly told that a band of raiders had attacked a settlement at the edge of the forest, stealing food and other necessities.  As he bandaged a wound, the concept of stealing from, and more so injuring others, had not occurred to him.  He asked why.

   The wizened face of his teacher scowled for a moment, then a small smile crept up the corners.  "Why does the squirrel eat the oak's children?  Or, perhaps, why does the horse slaughter the grass?  It is simply their nature."  His eyes show him to be very far away for a moment before coming to rest on his pupil again.  "Neither make it easy for their hunters.  The oak locks her children in armor, and the grass grows very sharp to cut.  But even so," the Elder points out to where the wounded were coming from, "The oak and the grass do not hate the squirrel or the horse for taking what they made.  Instead, they begin again."

   Aethen blinks as the memory subsides.  There, then, was his purpose.  And he understood 'their' purpose.  Aethen squares his shoulders and regains a bit of his vitality.  Now, all that remained was to not make it easy for them.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:21, Thu 21 Apr 2011.

Long, tense minutes turned into an hour.  The waves had grown steadily in the northerly wind.  "Captain, the ship..."  The crewman in the crow's nest pulled out a Kradok invention, a collapsing cylinder tube with curved lenses in it.  The Unbular called it the far-eye.  Kiro referred to it as a telescope.

"Out with it, Boruda," Captain Thrumhull growled.

"Sir, the ship is no longer behind us.  It has disappeared!"

Captain Thrumhull scratched his chin and called his first mate to take the wheel.  With a rapid movement that belied his bulk, he joined Boruda in the crow's nest.  Then climbed higher and sighted through the far-eye.  He scanned the horizon for several minutes, then clambered back down to the deck, dropping of the tool with Boruda on the way.

"Qin'ah's teats!" he said, then fell silent in contemplation.

Upon hearing the news that the ship following them had disappeared, Adryn was somewhat dumbfounded. To see for himself, Adryn hustled to the aft deck and peer out over the water. Sure enough, nothing was back there, but that didn't leave him convinced. If living in the deep woods taught him anything, it was that just because you don't see something... that doesn't mean it isn't there.

He scurried up to the crow's nest with grace and agility. "Do you mind if I take a look?", Adryn asked Boruda. Skeptical that Adryn would find anything he or the Captain had overlooked, Boruda handed the looking device over to him.

"Many thanks." he says as he takes the far-eye. He studies the waters directly behind the Sea Mace for a moment,  and then using the Kradok device starts scanning the surrounding waters.

[Private to GM: Taking a 20 on spot: 31. Adryn is looking out across the water to find any disturbances in the water similar to the wake that the Sea Mace is making... in the off chance that the ship following them is cloaked or invisible, yet still following us.]

Flynn watched out towards the distance, wondering how a ship could simply disappear. The Invar decided climbing the crows nest might give him a better vantage point. Once there he begins to try and track whatever ship was spotted in the distance... No need for the crew to have to be attacked again so soon.

A disappearing ship. That was curious indeed. The wizard tried also considered getting a good vantage view to check out for the boat. Maybe it was a mirage or another illusion of some kind. The worse case scenario was that it was a cloaked pirate ship, if that were the case, they should prepare for the worst. Either way, there was probably magic involved. That made Vertium's his area of expertise.

The wizard approached the Captain. "It may be a cloaked ship. We should probably stay prepared for an attack just in case Captain."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:56, Sat 23 Apr 2011.

After several minutes of scanning the water to no avail, Adryn hands the far-eye back to Boruda.

"Thank you.", he says as he scratches his head. "Strange that a ship would vanish in to thin air."

"Very strange indeed... have you heard of ships disappearing like that before?", he asks Boruda.

Amidst all the hubbub and activity in preparing for the attack of the ship trailing them, Kiro studied his armor, attempting to access its newfound ability.  When the news came that the ship tailing them had 'disappeared' he could not keep from grinning.  He hoped none of the others thought him sadistic, or worse, mad from their last encounter.

He knew the truth, but would let them anticipate calamity for a bit.  The contrast in feeling from the truth of the matter would be better than if they knew it outright.

"I have not.  Not to disappear.  Maybe Invar could pull off a spell that powerful.  My thought is that it slowed and is hidden behind the waves.  I doubt it could catch us trying to circle round if we were taking a straight line.  But the captain is having to tack back and forth against the wind.  If they are using something other than wind..." his thoughts drift off and his eyes narrow.  He raises the far-eye back to his face and peers through.  After a while, he just shakes his head, arguing within himself but failing to give voice to either side.

Adryn nods, skeptical that they were no longer being followed.

"It seems clear for now, in case it decides to pop up again, I think it best to be on our guard for now." Adryn scrambles down from the crow's nest and continues to help around the ship as best he can, all the while keeping part of his attention on the surrounding waters.

The tension never really leaves the crew, but it does settle somewhat.  Dusk comes and goes and with it the setting of the local star (whose name is Owr and pronounced "or").  The moons do not rise for hours, but when Kece rises, a giant silver ball in the sky, the following ship is back and much much closer than before.  The crows nest, now manned by a goblin named Zakamudich, shouts down a warning to rouse those on deck.

The sea is calmer now and the ship can be seen from the aft upper deck with ease.  It is an odd shape, odder still for having no visible sails or masts.  The thing sits low in the water and is difficult to make out in the light of the night sky.

   Curiosity gets the better of Aethen, and he turns to the captain.  "Captain, you sail these waters regularly, correct?  Any you have never seen a ship of this kind before?"

"A ship that can turn invisible?  Never.  Like I said, maybe the Invar could pull something like that off, but it'd take a massive amount of power, several of their most powerful wizards working together."

Suddenly the goblin crewman shouts down to the deck.  "Captain, she sank!"  After the Captain shakes his head, acting as if he didn't here Zak correctly, the scout points back toward the odd ship and then cups his hands around his mouth.  "She sank.  Into the water."  He then pantomimes a sinking ship as best he can.  Soon the message is relayed and the Captain scratches his head, unsure of what to make of this turn about.

With a lurch, the ship is slammed forward and the water behind boils.  Another attack hits almost immediately after.  "WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!"  Zak screams, desperately attempting to hold on to the edge of the crow's nest and not be thrown into the ocean.

Kahmaul rises from his slumber. His last few days had been focused on healing those crewman who had been harmed in the Thistling assault. And while his job was now finished, it had left the Anthros warrior exhausted. As he rises from the deck he makes sure to wake Veritum and the others, hoping to get them ready to defend the ship again.

Once upon deck he wonders what could be attacking them. And underwater ship? Nothing that Kahmaul has ever heard of.

Vertium simply nodded half asleep ass Kahmaul woke him up.

Vertium got ready to summon creatures to help defend the ship. The last thing they needed was for the boat to get taken by pirates, assuming they were pirates. Especially since the odds were that the first thing the pirates would do would be to throw them all overboard. At least he was fully rested, when the enemy charged them, he would summon all the forces in his arsenal to send them to the afterlife.

The mage was slightly surprised at his way off thinking. Never before had he thought so coldly. As the adventure was going on, he seemed to be getting used to the idea of fighting to the death. The Invar wasn't sure that was a good thing. The last thing he wanted was to become a ruthless killer. And that would be the last thing that he would become but protecting one's own took precedence over the lives of thugs, bandits and monsters.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:51, Thu 28 Apr 2011.

Adryn didn't quite know what to make of the situation. He was not prepared to defend the ship from underwater attackers such as this.

The shouting from the crow's nest was enough to draw Adryn's attention and notice that Zakamudich was losing his footing.  He moves over to the crow's nest to try and keep him from going overboard.

Thinking fast, Kiro realized that an underwater attack would be nearly impossible to defend against from the deck of a surface ship.  He looked around to see his friends all busy with securing the ship and generally feeling helpless.  For once, he could lend a strong hand to the group.  Without further thought, he leapt over the rail and dove headfirst into the water (narrowly missing one of the ship's spikes in his haste).

As the suit's transformation to its water form took over and the visionary illusion of his surroundings resolved, Kiro's eyes widened at what he saw...

   Aethen's jaw clacks together from the jarring impacts.  Gritting his teeth, he looks to the others to see if there are any injuries.  Thankfully, no, only surprise and alert.

   Aethen waits for something to present itself, but stays alert in the meantime.

As all dart around seeking something to do, another blast slams into the Sea Mace from below, rocking the ship and knocking most to their knees.  Others go sprawling.  The blast is not powerful to knock Zak from the crow's nest, though he is hanging on for dear life.  Adryn reaches him in time to anchor him well and they tie safety lines around their wastes to make sure.

[Private to Adryn Longmane: There is a long, dark shape under water keeping pace with the ship about a hundred yards back.  It looks like some kind of giant fish in shape, but it does not move back and forth in the water like a fish, just moves in a straight line.]

"What is this thing? Is it that sea monster returned?" The anthros warrior clearly has no idea that it is an underwater ship, nor connected the attacks with the once sighted ship. He moves to stand next to the captain, and waits for some sort of instruction. He feels almost helpless.

In response to the last blast, the captain orders the ship to come about and trim sails.  Slowly the ship comes to a stop and rocks slowly with the ocean.  A crewman dashes up from below deck and reports.  The captain turns to the adventurers on board and relays what they have found.

"It don't seem that th' blasts breached th' hull. I'm not sure..."

As he speaks, there is a roar of water off the starboard side as a giant familiar metal shape crashes to the surface.

"Qi'nah's teats!  It's the Bochtarn!"

Water drains from the metal marvel and a hatch opens in the side of the tower at the top.  A massive kradok crewman looks around and waves, but a frown indicates trouble.  Several more of the bulky crewmen climb from the belly of the beast.  One looks like an officer of sorts.

"Permission to come aboard, Captain Thrumhull!"

A plank is lowered over to the Bochtarn and the kradok are assisted onto the Sea Mace.  As soon as all five kradok are aboard, the officer introduces himself as Captain Riork Cabbon.  "You've got a serious problem.  The saelithist wasn't trying to eat you, she was seeking to spawn offspring.  That's why there were so few thistlings that came against you.  We drove her off, but she is a resilient one.  But you took off before we could catch you and tell you of the saelibi attached to your hull.  If you don't get it off, it will eventually consume your ship and all aboard."

Vertium decided to ask the obvious question since the captain seemed unwilling to volunteer the information himself. "Who or what are the Bochtarn? If they are pirates, it may help if you tell us everything you know about them."

His question was partially answered as the Kradok came abroad. He was just a passenger aboard so he would introduce himself if it seemed appropriate. Otherwise, he would remain silent listening to the captains' conversation.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:03, Mon 02 May 2011.

As soon as the Captain identified the vessel as the Bochtarn, he recalled it being at the dock as they were setting out on their voyage.

Adryn helps Zak untether himself from the crow's nest and hops down to the deck. "Saelibi? What are those, and how do they ... 'work'? They aren't still attached to the ship are they?"

After a moment, Adryn realizes he has again forgotten his manners. "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I am Adryn Longmane", and he awkwardly extends his hand in a similar fashion that he has witnessed other people greet each other. "Thats quite an impressive vessel you have there." Adryn states, as he glances over to the metal submersible.

"Thanks.  She's a prototype."  The kradok takes Adryn's hand.  "Captain Riork Cabbon.  And to answer your other quetion, a saelibi is a baby saelithist.  You got one attached to the Sea Mace right now.  Your registered plans back at port said you were heading to Xamador, but this baby will eat the ship, crew, and everything before then.  Then we'll have another whelpling to deal with."

The thought of having to deal with another Saelithist didn't exactly appeal to Adryn.

"As much as I enjoyed the last encounter with a Saelithist, I can't say I like the idea of another one roaming the ocean. How are we to go about getting rid of this parasite?"

"I'm assuming this creature isn't something we can reason with", Adryn says, thinking more towards his druidic roots. "I usually have a pretty good understanding when it comes to beasts, but somehow I don't think this thing qualifies...", he adds as flexes his clawed fingers.

"Ah, no, young Anthros.  It does not qualify as something you'd want to shepherd.  The saelithist are magical spawn, unnatural and utterly destructive.  We built the Bochtarn to hunt them since they prefer living matter.  The one you got is big, but manageable still.  We hit it three times with our depth missiles and didn't shake it.  At least we got your attention and you stopped.  We were red lining our drives to keep up with you.  The Bochtarn is tough, not fast."

He grins then, looking over the side of the rail.  "Essentially we're going to have to kill the thing bit by bit and peel it off the hull.  It won't fight back directly, but it can already spawn its own smaller versions of the thistlings.  One group will have to watch for them while the rest destroy the saelibi.  You up for a swim?"

Adryn nods relucktantly, "Water isn't my element, but I'll do what I can. How much time do we have to prepare?"

Vertium was thoughtful for a moment. It seemed like there wasn't much eh could do to help. He wasn't much of a swimmer and he was incapable of casting spells underwater. On the other hand, he didn't want to sit on his hands while his companions were risking their lives. "Unfortunately, I won't be able to help you much underwater. I am no fighter and I am not capable of casting spells under water. I can however summon some creatures to help you out during your task. "

Kahmaul looks skyward and thanks the gods for this stroke of luck. The chances of having a ship come and warn them of the danger of a young sea monster was too small not to be grateful for. He looks at the captain, "I never learned to swim all that well, but I suppose there is a first time for everything."

Coming down from the crows nest, the Invar thief interrupts the conversation, "Wait, we have to deal with more thistlings? Ones coming from right underneath us?"

   Aethen took it all in as the captain detailed the creature that could consume a ship, and its crew, whole.  He felt, same as his companions, that there was little he could do underwater.  He would, however, toss in with the defense of the ship against the arrival of miniature thistlings, which was imminent.

"I don't know about these guys, but I learned to swim in the lake near my home.  I can help so long as you know how to make me breathe under water."  The young woman seemed eager to get into the ocean, more than just to help out, it was like she relished the idea of being in the water itself.

The captain grinned at the human's enthusiasm.  "But of course.  We have an artificer on board who has constructed a magical apparatus for doing just that.  We have enough for twenty people.  The thistlings aren't strong enough to climb the side of the ship.  The best they will do is harass those attacking the saelibi.  If you can't help, then just be patient.  Shouldn't take more than a half hour to destroy the thing.  If you can help, well, that'd be much appreciated."

Another kradok, even larger than the captain if it can be believed, drags a case onto the Sea Mace and opens it.  Inside are the breathing apparatuses.  Enough for all who want to join in.

Vertium knew that he wouldn't be of much help under water, plus there was something much more interesting nagging at the wizards mind. "Thank you for your help captain, not many would go out of their way in such a manner to help out strangers. Yet, I have another request if it is not too much to ask. Once we have defeated the best, I would be honoured if you gave me a tour of your boat. It is a fascinating piece of technology of the likes I have never seen before and I would really like to have a closer look."

The captain thinks about it and grins.  "Sounds like a fair trade.  You help me help clean your ship off and I'll give you the grand tour."

Vertium was confused, he hadn't meant it to be a trade, simply a request. He looked at the underwater breathing devices wondering what inbuilt capabilities they had.

Vertium may not be very much help under water but it seemed like he didn't have much choice in the mater. He briefly wondered whether the device would allow him to use either his crossbow or his magic. The young mage knew that he definitely wouldn't be any help if it came to a brawl. On the other there was no refusing the offer now. Especially since it would be interesting to see the Saelith in its larval state. "Thank you captain."

Arvil began stripping down to essential clothing for modesty's sake.  He'd saved too many crewman in the earlier battle to have the whole ship eaten now.  "Captain Riork, I'm in."

After putting on the equipment, Vertium quickly entered the water curious as to what the baby Saelith would look like. Unfortunately, the wizard really wasn't a good swimmer which showed as soon as he jumped into the place and got disorientated. He spent the next few moments trying to regain his bearings. Hopefully, he wouldn't spend the next half an hour simply swimming around in circles until someone helped him back onto the ship.

[Private to GM: I rolled a total of 4 on my swim check. ]

Knowing that he wasn't a strong swimmer, Adryn quickly took up Captain Riork's offer for the breathing devices. He may sink like a rock, but at least he wouldn't drown.

He jumps into the water and orients himself for a moment before the showdown with the Saelibi.

07:55, Today: Adryn Longmane rolled 10 using 1d20+2. Swim check.

Kahmual takes a contraption. His size was likely to be a boon for the battle ahead, and if this device worked, he would likely be able to move freely. He moves towards the others and smirks, "I suppose this is a bad time to admit I've never swam in water deeper than my head?"

   Aethen steps forward to take a device with the others.  Turning it over in his hands, he sees how others use it before mimicking them.  "I will give what aid I can.  Not much like the waters of home," he says as he, once again, peers over at the blue water, "but I know how to swim."

   Aethen looks to the captain of the strange vessel.  "So what is required?"

With a playful smirk at the larger members of her traveling party, Genovia walks over to Dathnaea and whispers something.  The two girls giggle and look over at the men.  Dathnaea is practically sizing Arvil up like a piece of meat.  Then the girls giggle again at another whispered word.  Genovia leads Dathnaea over to Captain Cabbon and they take the breathing devices.

The object is simple, really, just a soft leather piece that fits in the mouth and two metallic cylinders jutting to the sides of a central metal cube.  After a brief explanation from the captain, the girls strip out of their armor into surprisingly modest cloth underneath before heading down the ramp to the Bochtarn.  From that deck, they safely dive head first into the water where Kiro and about five Kradok crewmen are waiting for them.

Soon, another seven crewmen from the Sea Mace have joined them.

Flynn shakes his head, there was no way that he was going to go swimming down there, and the Invar decides to remain on the topside. He moves forward to follow the mage. He smirks and speaks softly in Invar, "Looks like everyone else wants to go swimming. Any way I can be of help to your studies?"

Pre-event (In response to Flynn):

"I'm really not much of a swimmer either and probably won't be much help underwater. Unfortunately, the captain will only allow me to visit his ship if I participate in the underwater expedition." It seemed that once again, the wizard was being manipulated by his first for knowledge. "As for anything you could do, if you are a good artist, I would be grateful if you could get a good picture of our visitor's boat. I have a spare parchment and ink in my room and would even pay you for the service if you so wished. The boat truly is a piece of technology unlike anything I have seen before."

Captain Cabbon explains that they are new to this idea of saving a ship from a saelibi as its never been done before.  They know heat damages the creature, but its capacity to regenerate is astounding and fire is not permanent, even if very painful.  They've not had a chance to try other options as no other massive scale missiles were created crossing technology and magic.  If anyone has an idea, the captain says you are welcome to try.  The thistlings are going to be more of an annoyance, similar to a swarm of biting flies.  If anyone has a way to draw them off or take them out en masse, that would be helpful as well.  Summoned water creatures might find them tasty, who knows.

Once the crewmen from both ships and the adventurers are in the water (sporting their breathers) they began to swim down below the Sea Mace.  Attached to the hull, toward the aft of the ship is a giant seed looking things with a myriad of small tentacles running from it across the hull of the entire ship.  Some end in hooks others are the softer, suckers for gripping just like a thistling.

Surrounding the pod are hundreds of tiny versions of the thistlings.  They do not attack, just hover.

At the back of the pod there are two deep pits where the Kradok underwater missiles struck.  These are visibly closing before your eyes.  It seems the saelibi is embedded into the thick planks of the wood, sealed tight.  Removal in the next few hours might be the difference between saving the ship and a massive hull breach when the saelibi is removed.

GM:  This is a puzzle more than it is a combat sequence.  I have some ideas based on your character abilities that will work to save the ship, but I'm also open to imaginative options from you as well.

Adryn tries to absorb as much of the underwater scene as possible before resurfacing.

"Captain!", he shouts, addressing Captain Cabbon. "You think clearing up those tentacles down there might help loosen it up enough to dislodge it? Or do you think it better to just beat it into submission?"

"I was thinking to dislodge the tentacles.  That main body is tougher than taphalium!"

Adryn nods, "I may have an idea to help get rid of this thing."

He slips back under the surface of the water and disappears...

[Private to GM: Adryn is attempting to find some aquatic animal to charm, perhaps a medium-large squid, or stingray of some sort. Something carnivorous, but not large enough to be a threat to the folks underwater. Most likely not a shark or anything, unless the particular species of shark was relatively small.]

On the Deck of the ship...
Flynn nods, "My tutors always told me I had a gift for it. I'll get on that now." The Invar moves to collect the ink and parchment and upon his return begins to sketch the ship for Veritums notes.

   Aethen views the creature from under the ship, at a safe distance.  Its shape and obvious disposition toward the ship were disturbing, a problem further complicated by the rapid regeneration it was displaying.

   Seeing the others move upward, Aethen follows.  He listens to each idea as it is presented, determining what facets they had discovered that he might have overlooked.

After several moments pass, 2 fins break the surface of the water.

Shortly after the fins appear, they begin circling around a point in the water not far from where Adryn went underwater. They circle for a brief moment, recede back into the water, and are joined by several more fins shortly thereafter.

With the arrival of more sharks, Adryn finally surfaces in the center of the shark circle. "Don't fear them, please. They will be friendly towards us as long as we keep our distance and don't engage them. It seems they are rather hungry, and a thistling feast sounded very appealing. I asked them to eat what they will, and chase off the rest for sport."

"Worst case, we have a few less thistlings to deal with, however if they are effective enough, we can proceed down there to start removing the tentacles from the ship without them harassing us.", Adryn adds.

The sharks circle around Adryn as he waits in the water for feedback from his companions. "These fellas are ready to go, any other ideas?".

[Private to GM: Using 1 spell point for speak with animals, and 2 spell points to charm 2 sharks. Using speak with animals, in conjunction with Handle Animal, I am going to ask the sharks to go find their family/school and enjoy a nice baby thistling buffet (I hear its a fine underwater delicacy!). Whatever they don't eat, they can chase off for sport.]

The sharks begin to make short work of the smaller thistlings leaving only the saelibi to contend with.

After analysing the situation for a while, Vertium came up with a possible plan. He indicated for the others to come to the surface so he could speak. Once on the surface, he would explain his plan. "I may have a way to get the Saelith Off the boat with minimal damage. I will freeze its limbs which should allow others to easily break them off, theoretically at least. Assuming there isn't a more efficient solution, I will proceed to freeze the creature, one part at the time."

If there were no objections, Vertium would proceed with his plan.

"That works for me". Adryns pulls his spear from his haversack. "I'll follow your lead".

"Vertium, you wouldn't happen to have an enlargement spells prepared, would you? Assuming we can remove the tentacles, I may have an idea to help remove the Saelibi."

Vertium was curious. "What did you have in mind Adryn?"

The mage paused before answering the question. He really didn't want to use the spell if it wasn't imperative. "Unfortunately, I did not anticipate this situation so I did not prepare such spells. For now, we will have to make do at our current size. I do have a possible spell that I could cast but it is likely to fail underwater. More importantly, if I cast it now before I am ready, the spell will be lost."

"What I had in mind wasn't meant for one of us... exactly. Once the tentacles are removed, its grasp on the ship should be weakened. I have a way to animate the water around the Saelibi, with some luck it may be able to form a wedge between it and the hull of the ship. If we could somehow enlarge the mass of animated water, perhaps it could it us that much closer to prying the thing off the ship.", Adryn says in reply to Vertium.

"This is all just theory of course, my skill with magic is still fairly elementary, so I am certainly open to more suggestions. What do you think?"
This message was last edited by the player at 02:13, Mon 16 May 2011.

   Aethen ponders for a moment, then turns to Vertium.  "Were we to freeze the limbs of the creature, and then break them off, wouldn't we see the same rapid growth that occurred earlier?"  He thinks for a moment more.

   "I assume that extreme cold will not wound the creature in such a way that its healing ability will overcome ?"  He pauses to hear any response to his question.

"The regeneration is not that fast.  If we broke them off close enough to the body we might be able to coordinate something to dislodge the main right after."

"Its certainly worth a try, but we'd have to work quickly just to be safe. The cold ought to slow the regeneration down enough to break through the tentacles, I just hope its healing ability doesn't allow it to regrow limbs as fast as it can heal damage."

   Aethen looks to the unusual ship sitting beside their own.  "Perhaps we don't need to break anything, but simply pry....."  He turns to the others. "If we break the limbs, then we remove the portions that were affected by the cold.  Leave them intact, and thus inert, and use an ox," Aethen looks again to the strange ship, "to do the heavy lifting."

   "I assume we have rope?"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:42, Thu 19 May 2011.

"No, but plenty of metal chain and hooks," he says with a grin.

The proud  Anthros knight smirk as his more quick thinking allies devise their plan. It seems more likely to him in each passing hour that these companions are the greatest blessing Addyr had bestowed upon him. He simply offers, "Anything you need pried or hacked off, my strength will remain under you guidance"

Kiro surfaces and the faceplate of his armor slides back.  "Perhaps your lightning gauntlets may have some effect, my large friend.  Water and electricity don't tend to mix well often, but in this case we might have an exception."

Waiting for the offensive to start, Adryn bobs in the water just a few feet from Kiro. Quizzically, he looks over at Kiro and asks, "How do you manage to stay afloat surrounded in all that metal?".

"Just a minute," Kiro says.  The faceplate slides back into place for a few minutes then retreats back into the suit.  "Its a continuous cycle of water through the suit propelling me based on my thoughts.  Right now the jets are sufficient to keep me above water, but I believe there is enough power to get me a few feet above the water's surface if I need to.  This suit is...amazing."

Dealing with the tentacles definitely seemed like the best first move to make.

Vertium's plan to first freeze the tentacles before attacking them seemed to make the most sense to Adryn, so he readies his action until the tentacles are ready to be attacked.

Kahmaul slips into the water and gets ready to strike the tentacles veritum specifies.

   Aethen looks to the others.   "Any reason to wait?"  He waits for a moment.  "Very well.  Vertium and Adryn, proceed with your plan.  I will get the necessary equipment from Captain Cabbon while he readies his ship to pull.  As soon as you are done, we will hook each arm with a chain and allow the ship to pull it off."

Vertium swims down to one of the tentacles and points both hands at it, fingers together like a blade.  He may have muttered something but the sound is garbled and immediately lost in the water.  Nevertheless, a stream of blue energy lances out and strikes one of the tentacles.  A thin layer of ice forms about an eighth of an inch thick and is almost immediately washed away by the tidal force of the ocean.

Unperturbed, he rubs his hands together and tries a different spell.  This time his gestures are more complicated ending with the butt of his palms together but his hands flat out toward the tentacle.  An icy sphere appears on the tentacle and with Vertium's guidance begins to roll along its surface.  This time the chill is more noticeable, and the tentacle shudders and looks covered in ice at that one spot.

Vertium nods curtly at the spot indicating speed is necessary.

As soon as Vertium nods in satisfaction, Adryn speeds in to start chopping away at the tentacles.

Genovia swims to help Adryn, using a pair of punching knives to do most of the work.

Using the suit, Kiro begins to try and lever the tentacle away from the boat at the weakened point.  Soon cracks appear and the tentacle comes free at the frozen section and beyond.

A deep, resonating sound blasts through the water and the stub of a tentacle writhes around, seeking something to strike, but is too short to do much of anything.  Immediately a number of Kradok swarm the underside of the stub and jam wicked looking spears into it.  The effect becomes apparent when the saelibi tries to reattach the stub to the hull, but only drives the multitude of spears further in.  That tentacle is effectively removed.

Several more remain.

1 damage each from the sonic groan.

Adryn reels backward a little bit, not expecting such a powerful reaction from the Saelibi.

Imagining that it will only get stronger, he resurfaces for a moment to ask the Kradok crew if they have anything that can ward off the effects of such strong sonic vibrations.

   Realizing that the first tentacle had been neutralized, Aethen starts forward, born down by the metal hook and chain.  The chain was attached to the strange ship, which was sitting 200 meters away.

   Swimming forward, Aethen is surprised by the weight of the metal, even in water.  Reaching the group of Kradok wielding spears, Aethen passes the hook to them then turns to get another.  The Kradok place the hook on the exposed underside of the stub and stab it into the flesh, in preparation for the Saelibi's removal.


OOC:  20:03, Today: Aethen Ironroot rolled 17 using 1d20+3. Swim check.

After waiting a moment for the Kradok crew to respond, he decides that expediency is more important. Adryn dives back under the ship and begins attacking another tentacle.

The Kradok are powerful swimmers.  With the multitude of swimmers in the water, the chains are quickly placed at strategic locations around the beast.  Soon the Bochtarn is fired up and the chains are taught.  Only one major problem puts a kink in the plan...the Bochtarn ends up simply towing the Sea Mace as the Saelibi holds on.  It would require removing or weakening almost all of the major tentacles before the inertia of the Sea Mace is enough to remove the Saelibi from its hull.

[Private to Kahmaul Quddus: Please roll d20 + INTmod + WISmod.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:43, Mon 30 May 2011.

Kahmaul continues to dive back down and attack tentacles as directed. He finds himself a bit shaken by the low roar of the underwater beast. He wonders how such a beast gains its size...

[Private to GM: 10:50, Today: Kahmaul Quddus rolled 14 using 1d20+2. int + wisdom. ]

Kahmaul's blows, with their electric shock, cause one of the tentacles to let go as electricity courses through the whole appendage.  After the shock passes up through the tentacle to the main body, it attempts to emit another shockwave, but this one is weak and sounds like nothing more than a horrible version of whale song.  The tentacle slaps back down on the hull but has trouble latching on as the nerves in the suckers spasm.

Seeing the saelibi trying to reattach itself to the hull gives Adryn an idea.

He fixes his gaze at the water surrounding the saelibi, and after a moment it begins to take on a life of its own. As Adryn concentrates on the animated body of water, he begins to position it between the saelibi and the hull of the ship in an attempt to form a barrier between the two.

OOC: Adryn casts animate water at a portion of water near the saelibi.

Adryn's plan works for the moment and the Saelibi is unable to reconnect.  The tentacle is pushed away and Kradok chain-men quickly secure one of the chains to the tentacle in numerous places along its length.  The Bochtarn pulls the chain taught and the tentacle cannot reattach for now.  No sonic burst is emitted this time.

Kahmaul grins at the creature removal. He would normally cry out in reverence of the aid the gods had given them this day, but the respiratory device kept him from much more than a muted series of bubbles.

Kiro swims up next to Kahmaul and points to his own fore-arms, then to Kahmaul, and finally to the next tentacle.  After that, he swims up to the surface to speak with the captain of the Bochtarn.

Nodding his understanding, Kahmaul swims to the next tentacle and begins pounding away with his gauntlets.  Arcs of electricity shoot up the appendage.  Kahmaul grins fiercely as the plan begins to work in earnest.

The plan, once figured out, works smoothly.  One at a time the tentacles of the giant baby are attached to the chains of the Bochtarn until the Sea Mace is freed.  Captain Thrumhull pulls the giant wooden ship far from the beast to prevent it from latching on should something go wrong.

Captain Cabbon secures the creature to be dragged back to Ca’adoric for study while still alive.  Once that is done, all meet aboard the Sea Mace for a final meeting.

Relieved that the beast was finally free from the ship, Adryn nods to Kahmaul. "Well done brother!"

Curious about the creatures nature, Adryn ask Captain Cabbon if he may assist in the study of the Saelibi.

"Are you willing to head back to port with us, Anthros?  We are traveling in the opposite direction."

The night's festivities last for several hours given much needed stress relief and down time for whatever activities are necessary before the two ships part ways.  [Private to Adryn Longmane: You'll have enough time to study it for your purposes if you spend most of this down time in the water with the creature.]

"Many thanks, Cap'n Cabbon.  I suppose I owe ye and yer ship an apology.  Amazin' piece of Kradok workmanship.  Imagine, a ship that can travel under the water!"  The captain of the Sea Mace shakes the Kradok' captain's hand heartily.

"Glad we were tracking the saelithist in the first place, Captain.  We saw it with its saelibi when we hit it with the molten torpedoes.  Thanks for the help from your crew."

The two captains exchange farewells and most of the Kradok crew returns to the Bochtarn.  Captain Cabbon turns to Kiro just before disembarking himself.  "Well, Kiro?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:08, Mon 20 June 2011.

Kiro looks around at his traveling companions and his shoulders slump a bit.  He sees some of them look at him, not as if he has betrayed them, but in a bit of surprise and he holds up his hands as if to surrender.  "I'm sorry guys, but the Bochtarn and this suit...its just too good an opportunity to pass up.  Captain Cabbon has promised to help me study the suit and put it through some practical tests."  He scratches his nose and looks sheepishly at his new friends, especially the humans.  "Hey, maybe we'll meet up again and I'll be a much better defender than I am now.  Okay?"

"Don't worry about us, Kiro.  You do what you have to.  No one holds it against you.  We must continue on, but we understand completely your need to follow your own path."  Genovia walks over and shakes the Kradok's meaty hand.  "Take care."  She smiles her quirky half-smile and steps back.

"Yeah, no problem, Kiro.  I get it."  Dathnaea tries her best to be cheerful, but it is hard for her to hide the sting of Kiro's leaving.  She does her best, meaning to see him off well, but deep inside she still feels abandoned and now less protected.  These mighty friends are all that has kept her safe aboard a ship that has had her on raw nerves since they boarded it.

She knew that not all Unbular were like the slavers, but her experiences before being rescued had not left a good taste in her mouth.  There it was, and she could not help her prejudice.  Now, one of the non-Unbular protectors was leaving her, the one with all the fancy techno-armor.  The only Unbular she trusted completely was recovering from wounds still and not up to full strength.

As she shook Kiro's hand, she squeezed it tightly then failed to prevent a tear from leaking out.  His disarming, sheepish smile made her reciprocate, and she finally stepped back for the others.

Adryn takes a moment to think about Captain Cabbon's offer. The Saelibi was indeed a unique specimen of nature, but unfortunately his quest was ahead of him, not behind him.

"I'm sorry Captain... I'm afraid I can't turn back that direction. As much as I would love to go back with you, my quest is with them.", Adryn says as he gestures to his new companions.

He nods solemnly, "I wish you safe travels back to port."

Kahmaul nods at his companions decision and offers his long furry arm to Kiro. "Kiro, my friend. I wish you well. But do not doubt yourself. You are a more steadfast and true companion than any we could have wished for. May the gods allow our paths to converge again my friend."

   Aethen raises a hand in farewell to the departing crew, Kiro included.  His relationship with Kiro had never been strong, but the Kradok had been steadfast through all of their trials.  They would be lessened by his absence.

Again the Sea Mace heads for Xamador.  After two months of limping along from remote islands to a floating, deep ocean port called Shiyr Na'athor, the ship finally anchors in Qorlander Bay.  The captain wishes the group well as they disembark, then turns to the harbormaster about repair costs.

GM:  If there is anything you wanted to do before arriving at Qorlander, such as explore islands or the deep ocean port (a floating port supported mostly by buoyancy and some by magic, but not connected to land in any way), or even have conversations of import, now is the time.  I will give two days for that, then post up the beginning of the next leg of the journey.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:20, Sun 26 June 2011.

The Invar thief watches Kiro leave. This was something more akin to what he was used to. The Kradok was a boon for a companion, he was sure he would miss the giant half construct armor he flung around too. Flynn moves over to Danathea and offers to show her how to fletch her own arrows using some of the leftover wood ripped from the ship after the attack. Maybe improving her mood would make the last leg of this trip more bearable.

The town of Qorlander Bay bustles with activity.  Every major kind makes its home here, however temporary.  The Invar tentatively control the town, but it was Kradok designed and Unbular built.  There is no strict military presence, as the world is relatively at peace, at least among most sentient kinds of any significant number, but this city is heavily fortified and it's populace is heavily armed.  Few ships at a time dock at the small jetties located within the protective walls.  Four or five deadly looking Unbular frigates sit outside the walls, armaments positioned toward the wild land beyond the walls.

Within the town there is a solid core citizenry that operates.  Inns, shops, taverns, combinations of all three, and homes.  There is also an Invar academy, and Unbular inner castle (a small area more heavily fortified than even the city walls where Unbular train and live), and an underground Kradok workshop that doubles as a first line of defense against underground attacks from whatever unknown beastie decides to do so.

Xamador is not like the eastern lands, it is wilder, more deadly, like an entire continent that almost matches the fury of Midrath Koar (of which you only entered the fringes, not even the Koar proper).  Xamador also has treasures, knowledge, not in the sense of ancient buildings of vanished civilizations, but in natural (or more likely supernatural) things, things alive and things arcane.  Xamador is said to be the birth place of Niaaca.  The extreme wildness of nature, the chaos and the potent magic, too, likely make the legend true.

GM: What are your short term plans for the day and weekk.

   Aethen's eyes are wide and take in the sights of this new place.  Certainly he was farther than any from his clan had ever traveled.  He spends the day wandering through the streets, admiring the craftsmanship of this city.

   As he meanders, it is easily apparent that the reaction to his open curiosity is not as it was across the sea.  These people were.....harder?  The business of the day seemed to consume most, sparing them little time to deal with dawdlers and gawking.

Aethen had been told about how this place was more feral than what he was accustomed to, but he will make his way outside the city to find a place where he can commune in peace and enjoy the small pleasures of not being in water.

"Aethen," Genovia calls as the Anthros reaches the gate of the city.  "Hold up.  I'll go with you."  She nearly sprints to catch the long-legged druid, then has to maintain a slow jog just to keep up.  "I know you are probably looking to meditate, to commune with this wild place...what? I grew up around your kind.  I know how it works," she says regardless of Aethen's actual response.  "I just need to get out of confined spaces.  The boat, now the city.  I'm a country girl.  I'll watch your back and keep my mouth shut if you're okay with the company."

The black chitinous armor has already drawn a lot of long, hard looks from the denizens of the city.  There are no Echtinik in sight.  It is likely that the scout wants to flee those stares as much as she wants to be loosed from the confinement.

Adryn watches as Aethen and Genovia wander off towards the wilds. Thinking it better to travel in numbers, especially outside the walls of the city, he decided to follow behind them.

Adryn had never been comfortable inside city walls. It would be a welcome change to surround himself with a feeling home... if just for a short while. As he breaches the outer limits of the city, he is greeted by sights and sounds of an immense wilderness.

He stops, but just for a moment, to listen. As the chirps, howls, and wild calls sound off, Adryn smiles to himself... as if he were listening into their conversation. He looks up to find his companions and continues following behind them.

Tyler disembarks from the Sea Mace and nearly kneels to kiss the ground.  Instead, he laughs for joy at being back on solid ground, even finding that his "sea legs" make him wobble when that very ground does not shift the way the boat has for months.

A sober thought surfaces.  Only 18 months left till the Evangiel's Message is supposed to come to fruition.  He hoped they found the means to save his people in that time.  The detours to fight the vicious sea beasts and the stops in the ocean ports grated on him, but he said nothing, knowing they were unavoidable.  He kept his faith that Halai would provide, likely at the last minute and in grandiose fashion from years of plotting that would end up making everyone else looks silly.  All would have a big laugh about it when it was all over.  It was Halai's way.

For the moment, Tyler had made friends with the other priest, a war-cleric of Niaaca of all things, and waited for him to exit the boat.  As the man stepped down, Tyler grinned.  "Care to explore Qorlander Bay with me?  I am sure there are a couple of venues that will help us regain our land-lubber legs."

Tromping down the ramp to solid ground, Arvil smiled at Tyler's offer.  In his mind, the fate of the humans in light of the Evangiel's warnings weighed heavily, but even the most enduring warrior needed rest.  The trip had been long and when not death-defying, tedious in the extreme.  Toward the end, he almost had prayed for another encounter with the Saelithist or another of her offspring just for something to do battle against.

Hearing his own language spoken after such a long trip where proper etiquette demanded Unbular or Kradok made Arvil grin the wider.  "I would relish the opportunity, my friend."

"You boys mind some company?" Dathnaea said, joining them at the bottom of the ramp.  Grondor stood right behind her.  As the voyage had continued, Dathnaea had decided to stay at the big warrior's side to see him fully mended and a surprising friendship had sprung up between the two.  Now they seemed nigh inseparable.

She turned to Grondor, "we're going to get some drinks.  Wanna come?"

"My honor it to be to come," the Hobgoblins said in the human tongue.  "I need beer."

Vertium had been busy studying his scrolls during the two months travel. He had learned a great deal in the short time. His studies had become near obsessive. At one point, his companions had had to force him out of his room when he hadn't eaten in almost three days. As the months passed by, his understanding grew and slowly, he became more social again. By the time the group arrived at port, Vertium had reduced his studies to an almost moderate amount. He was on the deck as Grondor and Daethnaea started heading to the tavern. He decided to leave them to it, silently wondering whether he should do some shopping before they made their way into the wilderness.

Kahmaul shakes his head at Grondor and follows his companion. He was certainly happy to be back on solid ground. While he might not be so enthused by the prospect of drinking, he could use the company and a nice meal. He simply follows silently. There might be few opportunities for such simple pleasures for a long while after this.

The inn is rugged, well built, and sized for larger customers like Anthros, ogres, and bigger Unbular.  Invar, Kradok, and smaller goblinoids have spaces available at the tables as well, though with higher chairs, indicating the ownership to be of the larger category of beings.  Humans can find a spot to sit only because others can.  They all receive guarded looks, some of disdain, others of sufferance, but none of real welcome.

An orcish serving girl arrives to take orders, asking the non-humans first.  Then, with forced politeness, takes the human orders, suggesting patronizingly weak drinks like water and milk, and smirking when alcoholic drinks are ordered.  "Would you like those weakened?  I'm not sure your frail constitutions can handle the stouter Unbular ales or beers."

"I'll take a milk, please." Arvil says to the waitress. He turns to his companions "This is good and all but shouldn't we be moving on?"

Dathnaea looks at the newcomer to their group and raises an eyebrow.  A sharp retort is bitten off as she realizes he has not been privy to all that transpired before she and her friends boarded the Sea Mace.  "We need an evening to get used to being on land again.  More importantly we need Thit to contact his employer, Torhavich, before we can move.  Come to think of it, I haven't seen the little reptile since we boarded."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:55, Sun 10 July 2011.

Tyler's head pops up a bit and he looks around in surprise.  "I completely forgot about the little rogue!  He's the whole reason we came here in the first place."

As Tyler looks around, he is the first to notice that many in the tavern are staring at the group.  As the cleric calls attention to that fact, less subtly than perhaps is best, the rest of the group suddenly feels an overwhelming sense of danger.

"Best be sittin' down, Tyler.  I think we've already drawn enough attention."  Grondor's warning may have come too late as several rough looking Unbular orcs and an Invar warrior with a patch over one eye stands and makes as if to approach the table.  Their looks are not friendly.

Kahmaul shifts his position to stand directly between the incoming Invar and Umbalar Orcs. He smiles at his companions, "All shall be well."

[Private to Grondor Swordstorm: He whispers to grondor, "The Invar looks like he will be fast, watch him. Lets try not to cause too much more attention if we can."]

The Invar strides up to Kahmaul with the orcs right behind him.  He does not look pleased.  "What business do you have with that snake, Torhavich?"

"What did he say?" Dathnaea asks, unable to understand the Invar's words.  The Invar and his entourage can't see it, but Dathnaea has her hand on her dagger, ready to pull and throw at a moment's notice.

"I said, 'what business do you have with that worm, Torhavich?"  The way he sneers the word 'worm' sounds more like 'weerm'.  "Humans do not belong in Xamador. You won't last five seconds in the wild outside the city walls."  He turns half-way to his orc companions.  "I don't give them more than 5 minutes inside the city."

The orcs chuckle.  It isn't a pleasant sound.

"Please, my brother, we mean no offense.  We are simply seeking information and Torhavich has it."  The wizard does his best to calm the situation, hoping his ties of kind will diffuse his kin.

"Do not twist words with me, wizard.  You do not come here traveling with the likes of these," his hand takes in the humans with a sneer of contempt, "seeking Torhavich, and then get to claim that you are here for innocent purposes.  Any one dealing with that serpent is up to no good."

Grondor does his best to translate for those who don't speak Invaris.  When the Invar asserts that the group must be up to no good, he speaks up and asks, "what has Torhavich done that they deserve such a poor reputation in Xamador?  Coming from the eastern continent, we are ignorant in great respect to this Torhavich.  He was only cited as a source of information for us, but more than that, we know nothing.  Please, we implore you, sit with us.  We'll buy you and your friends a round and hear your wisdom concerning why we should avoid this person."

The Invar, taken aback by the warriors smooth speech, blinks at the offer.  One of the orcs leans in, but is overheard by Kahmaul, Grondor, and Vertium. "Fylon, he is no mere warrior.  That is a Swordstorm, I'd lay money on it.  Have a care how you deal with them.  They are much more than they appear."

Fylon's eyes shoot up as he gives Grondor a more thorough examination.  "A true Swordstorm, eh?  Today is a great day indeed.  Not only will we rid the world of some of Torhavich's minions, I will get to prove myself against one of the vaunted Swordstorms!"  His face goes from arrogant to menacing.  "Outside, hobgoblin, or one of your charges is liable to get hurt."

Hearing the challenge, Grondor shakes his head, crosses his arms, and becomes rooted to the spot where he sits.  Fylon continues to glare, but having laid the challenge, can speak no more or look like a wheedling fool.  The hobgoblin continues to stare him down, daring him to make a move toward one of the humans in his care.

Frustrated by the lack of response from the hobgoblin as well as the towering Anthros warrior in front of him, Fylon soon grows impatient, as many non-wizard Invar are wont to do.  He makes to draw his sword when a cool voice cuts through the silent tension, a voice that sends chills up the spines of the humans in its power and command.  "Enough, Fylon.  Go home."

Fylon's eyes go wide and he looks around for a moment before his eyes come to rest on a silhouette in a dark corner.  "Shavon!  I-I didn't know you were here."  He turns to the group and bows, "my apologies for the misunderstanding."  And like that, the Invar warrior and his two lackeys are out the door and gone.

The silhouette moves into the light to reveal a tall humanoid in concealing robes and hood.  The robes are silver in color, lined in white trim.   Though unadorned by ornament or symbol, the robes are without a doubt very expensive.  They make no sound as the one Fylon called 'Shavon' moves to the table where the Eastland group is sitting.

"Fylon is a fool looking for trouble.  He will bother you no longer.  Let him slip from your memory as unworthy of taking up the space in your mind."  Shavon's voice is smooth, cool, and compelling.  It makes one want to listen to him.  His every word promises that he will solve all problems, secure from all threats.  The suggestion to let Fylon slip from memory is almost a command that most would joyfully obey.

"You are here to see Torhavich?"

GM: Roll will saves.

The humans especially seem enthralled by Shavon's speech, but the non-humans shake off the effect.  Once the group acknowledges their plan to meet with Torhavich, Shavon bids them come with him.  Without compelling reason not to, and given that Shavon is the only positive reaction to the name so far, the group follows.

Shavon, remaining concealed below his robes, takes the group from the inn before they can pay for their drinks/food.  The tavern keeper makes no fuss about it though after a nod from Shavon and the two likely have an understanding.  The trek takes half an hour through the winding streets of the city of Qorlander Bay.  The water is soon far behind as Shavon leads the group closer to the wall and the mountains that abut the town to the north.  The way is windy and only an expert cartographer or someone with superb direction sense could remember the way, though Shavon makes no obvious attempts at misdirection.  The city is just large and appears constructed in stages on the whim or need of the moment rather than pre-planned.

At long last the robed stranger invites the group into a large house backed up against the mountain such that it looks like it grows out of the mountain at the base.  The mountain wall is sheer and straight up.

"My home," Shavon says, his first words since leaving the tavern.  "Please, come inside.  I am a friend of Torhavich's and can lead you to him once I know more about you and your purpose in seeing him."

As he climbs the steps to the front door, Shavon waves his hand in front of the ornate handles there and says, "Aksswythian datakthion mothuweiss."  Immediately the doors glow flame red for a brief moment then open wide to admit all who would enter.  From the street looking in, the mansion is well decorated if a bit antiquated in its furnishings and very, very expensive.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:14, Fri 23 Sept 2011.

Kahmaul is impressed by the newcomer, and glad to see that they could avoid incident. He was a bit wary that they might when the Invar moved for his weapon. But upon reaching Shavon's home.

As the man speaks the strange language he decides to speak for the first time since leaving the bar, "What language was that? Its not something I recognize."

Shavon stops and half turns his hooded head.  "It is an arcane language exclusive to Xamador and the Western world.  Come."  He turns back and disappears into the house.

Kahmaul shrugs and glances back at Veritum. He wonders if the Invar has any idea what it might say. He simply follows the stranger in the hopes of gaining some answers.

Dathnaea follows behind Kahmaul, awed by the wealth and beauty of the mansion.

Arvil follows as well, enchanted by the power and grace of their savior.

The house is extremely plush, filled with great riches and unique items that are no doubt of great value and probably magical.  Whoever Shavon is to Torhavich, he is not only high up in the ranks, but a testament to the resources of Torhavich.  The group follows Shavon into a dining area where a cadre of unseen servants pull back chairs and seat everyone.  The servants then bring drinks akin to what was ordered at the tavern.  "You may also order food through them and the chef will cook it according to your specifications.  I will return when I have changed clothing.  I have just returned to Qorlander myself.   Please, make yourselves comfortable.  Just do not traverse any stairs...for your own safety."

With those words, Shavon disappears having never shown his face.

Shavon takes his time changing clothes, but while he is gone, Aethen, Adryn, and Genovia arrive from the main hall.

Kahmaul waves to his companions and motions for them to join him. The furry Anthros has found a rather comfortable ornate chair that seemed to be fashioned from an old tree. He finds it a bit more comforting than the other more plush furniture.

   Aethen moves toward the group, taking in the rich decorations that surround them all.  He politely nods or excuses himself as servants hustle toward different guests in the dining area.

   "Kahmaul,"  Aethen stops and bows slightly, "who may we say is our gracious host?  We were brought here before I could think to ask."  Thinking back, Aethen realizes he showed up before he could think about....anything else.

Adryn thanks the mysterious stranger for leading them to their companions.

He begins to get the 'fish out of water' feeling again as he walks through the lavishly decorated rooms and hallways. The calm that had over-taken him in the wilds was beginning to fade as he took in his surroundings.

Finally, they arrive in a large dining area where the rest of his friends are seated and being doted upon by an array of unseen servants. Seeing Kahmaul sitting at the far end of the room, Adryn makes his way over and takes a seat beside him. Rather than sitting in one of the many chairs in this extravagant room he sits down upon his knees, waving off the servants offering him food.

"He has yet to introduce himself properly, but a hot-headed Invar called him Shavon. He seems to know Thit."

   "Well it seems that this Shavon has a significant amount of resources behind him."  Aethen disliked the opulence of the dwelling alongside his pre-existent distaste of walled habitats.  However, his distaste was always tempered with the knowledge that very few races other than the Anthros had whole-heartedly accepted the wilds as a habitat unto itself, not needing the security of walls and roofs to protect themselves or their.....things.

   "This land seems to carry a very distinct hatred for humans.  It was manifested quite regularly as we walked through the city."  Aethen looks to the others.  "Does anyone know why?"

"It is because of the Evangiel's message combined with Torhavich's own interest in them," Shavon says from an entry-way.  There is a gasp from some of the members of the group at the table as they see their host for the first time.  Shavon is generally humanoid in appearance and definitely a powerfully built male.  He stands as tall as Grondor but not quite as broad, though whipcord muscles run down his arms and partially revealed chest.  Beyond that, from head to toe Shavon is alien.  His hair is silver, not just in color but appears to be the actual metal as it reflect light the same way the metal would.  His ears are somewhat larger than a human's with five points running down the edge, almost like wings of some sort.  The eyes are almond like an Invar's, but with thick brows and silver irises.  Shavon's nose is perfection for his face, pointed and turned up exactly right.  A mouth that most women would find perfectly kissable is unencumbered by facial hair.

Simple, yet elegant clothes adorn the strange body.  Shavon's skin is light grey with a tinge of teal to it.  His hands are thin but powerful looking and the three long fingers and two opposable thumbs each end in sharp fingernails almost like claws.  He wears simple boots of what might be leather, but the color is white, undyed.  His shirt is sleeveless and bears much of his silvered chest.  He wears a simple sash and loose white cloth pants.

Shavon continues, "the humans are being seen, at least in the west, as an added burden to the coming distress.  There are few humans in these lands and all of them have caused no end of dischord for the other kinds.  The only humans to have made it this far are followers of Halai, mischief makers to begin with, and loners, explorers, seeking to bolster the human kind with what they find in the ruins of these lands.  Especially in the Cradle."

Genovia looks to Shavon.

"So is this kind of reception what we are to expect from any other places we travel?  Is there something that we can do to help us blend in a little better?  I would rather not draw attention to us if I can keep from it."

"It is to be expected, but it will no longer be an issue.  Just be aware of your place in this world.  Your kind are new here and are quickly becoming perceived as a burden to the other kinds.  Each will react differently.  If you are to survive as a kind, you will need to become stronger.  Were the races of Loartec to ever unite against humanity, it would be as the smiting of a bug in a single swat."  Shavon takes a seat at the head of the table and begins to sip on a drink that either steams or is frosted over with vapor wafting from the top.  "That will never happen of course.  The Evangiel will never turn against you on principle and I think neither will the Anthros.  Where you are going now will not cause you that kind of difficulty and will hopefully allow you to find the strength you need to survive what is coming."

Adryn's ear finally perk at the mention of the Anthros. Pulling his attention away from his surroundings, he finally speaks up.

"Where we are going? I don't understand. Where is it that we are heading?"

Shavon sighs heavily as if mustering all the patience he could to deal with students not paying attention in class.  "Isn't it obvious?  I'm taking you to Torhavich, of course.  After we eat and I answer any questions or concerns you may have about Xamador or your forth coming meeting with my...friend."

Vertium was silent slowly taking in the scene. He made a mental note to learn the local arcane language if the opportunity ever came to him. The wizard couldn't quite shake off the suspicion that their new host had planned the earlier incident. "Thank you for your earlier help. I am Vertium, a travelling Invar scholar from the Eastern Continent. It is a pleasure to meet you Sir Shavon, if that is how you wish to be addressed?"

By the tone of the question and his previous introduction, it was clear that the young mage was trying to politely ask their host for a proper introduction.

"Shavon is sufficient."

Overlooking the obvious signs of frustration in Shavons mannerisms, Adryn speaks up again. "I dont know if this has anything to Xamador or Torhavich, but what do you know of the birth place of magic? Or is that something we would have to speak to Torhavich about?"

Shavon blinks his eyes and nods.  "The Cradle.  Torhavich will tell you more, but it is a place where magic works oddly.  Even spiritual magics can be warped inside the Cradle itself."  He takes in Aethen, Genovia, and Adryn with a glance.  "Creatures around the Cradle are warped, growing stronger, smarter, and gaining strange abilities.  They are not natural creatures but are a blight upon the land, unbalancing it and driving out all the normal flora and fauna.  Those who venture around or into it need to be prepared for these things."  His gaze turns to Veritum and lingers for a moment longer than is comfortable.

Vertium almost sighed in frustration. So much for an introduction... At the very least, it seemed to indicate that their host was secretive. Vertium waited patiently, it seemed that Shavon wasn't in a talkative mood. Maybe he would be able to get more information from him later.

Vertium had to wonder why the stranger looked at him as he mentioned the unnatural mutations. As far as the young wizard knew, his goddess had always been in harmony with nature. So he doubted that this would be a natural effect, that was unless, she had created a place of experimentation. In that case, would it truly be wrong for her to improve some of the local creatures. After all, nature was changing all the time. Maybe, it all depended on the long term effects of such an experiment.

This time, the wizard almost chuckled. Since when had he started thinking of Niacca as his goddess?

[Private to GM: OoC: Any knowledge checks I can make to get more info on the cradle? ]

Thinking back to his encounter in the wilds, Adryns nods and says, "That makes sense. Some of us had an encounter with, what I now believe to be, some of these corrupted creatures. I had a bad feeling about them even before they told me they wanted to feed on our magic."

"What sort of preparation would you suggest if we were to encounter such things in the future?"

Kahmaul remains silent as he listens to the others questions. He noted Veritum was judging Shavon with his own keen eyes. The Anthros himself wondered how Shavon had come to be-whether he himself has been 'warped' by the cradle. He wondered why Thit was to meet them by proxy and how such a meeting would come to pass. Remember, sapling, patience... The forest does not grow in a day, the answers will come.

More and more, Kahmaul's faith in his mission had carried him through. He wondered if it had been almost, too easy.
[Private to GM: Kahmaul will use a sense motive check on Shavon. Got a 14.]

"Ah, yes, the Aetherlynx.  A nuisance, nothing more.  They are semi-intelligent creatures who hunt in packs.  They, like many of the creatures, live partially on raw magic.  It is advised that you not direct magical attacks at them.  Indirect spells, or spells that affect you are more effective.  If their tails even graze a wizard, they will draw the energy stored for spells right out, rendering the wizard useless in the battle.  They are quick and agile, but not very strong or hearty.  A good blow from a decent fighter is usually enough to take one down, if not quite kill it."  Shavon looks directly into Adryn's eyes, boring into them as he continues.  "They are some of the least of the creatures one will encounter as they move nearer to the Cradle."

[Private to Kahmaul Quddus:
Shavon appears to be simply a messenger, willing to feed and probably house the group until tomorrow, then take them to Torhavich as asked.  He is alien to your normal senses and understanding, so it is difficult to read more than that.]

The host turns back to the group in general.  "Your best hope will be in not relying on magic, especially aggressive magic.  On occasion, a spell may work to the best of its potential, sometimes they simply won't do anything, but most often, spells in the Cradle will not do what the spellcaster intended.  This effect grows more pronounced the closer you get.  The adventurers who got farthest into the Cradle before dying were all groups made mostly of non-magic users."
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:14, Fri 22 July 2011.

   Aethen saw the conversation dancing around, with Vertium leading.  A question here, a dodge there.  He couldn't understand why others would choose this way to interact with one another.  Layers of motive and guile.

   "Shavon, what are you?  Race, I mean.  I have never seen your like."  Aethen was still impressed by the creatures presence, but the enthralling aura that had him bound and gagged earlier was fading.  "And my friend, I believe, was trying to gain a sense of your station in this city."

   Aethen did not want to join the dance, he simply wanted answers.

Shavon smiles at Aethen's questions.  "Those are powerful questions, my friend.  The first I cannot answer as you are not ready yet to hear it.  As for who I am to Qorlander, I carry no official authority here.  I am Torhavich's ambassador to the city and to all who come from the east seeking him.  The city tolerates me because it has no other choice, but the relationship does have its benefits for Qorlander as well.  They only grudgingly acknowledge this.  As it stands, I carry great weight in the city so long as I do not overstep the law.  Today's event will actually be well received by those in power here because I averted what would potentially be a very destructive brawl and major property damage.  What they don't know is that I have aided them so much more beyond that by bringing your friends out of there.  You will save Qorlander from certain destruction before you are done.  That is my hope and I am betting much on that."  He smiles a genuine smile at the young Anthros.  "Please, I am not your enemy here.  We have the same goals.  If my path of conversation frustrates you, I plead only that it is difficult for one of my kind (with a few exceptions) to converse in the rapid, straight forward manner of your kinds.  I beg your forgiveness."

He takes another sip from his drink, looking to each member of the group as they eat or talk amongst themselves, waiting for the next question.  While there is a brief pause he adds, "I will answer what I can, but you don't know enough yet to ask all the right questions.  Some of those I cannot answer yet anyway.  Tonight you will sup with me, rest here and if need be, purchase appropriate gear.  Tomorrow I will take you to Torhavich."

Kahmaul grins. He wondered if he wondered if he would ever get any better at hiding his suspicions. Perhaps it was good that he was nearly transparent. It made Flynn feel a bit more important. Speaking of the devil, where could the young rogue be? Ignoring those thoughts he shifts a bit in his seat.

Realizing the truth in Shavon's words, Adryn sits back and thinks.

He truly didn't know enough about whats going on to even know what to ask. Then something surfaced, something he had almost forgotten...

"Do you know anything of the guardians... guardians of life? How many are there? How are they tied to whats going on here?"

The question seems to stun Shavon as if for the first time in his life, or at least in a long while, he has been asked something he does not know the answer to and doesn't have the opportunity to be cryptic about.  "No," he says flatly, then recovers.  "I'm sorry, that name doesn't have any meaning to me except perhaps as a very general reference to the gods or perhaps Addiyr's followers or Niaaca's.  I've never heard it used as a proper title for anyone or anything.  There certainly is nothing like that around here."

Shavon, could you tell us more about the effects The Cradle has on magic? Is there any pattern to how it alters spells?

"That is a good question, human."  He says the word with respect, no sneer is detectable at all in his inflection.  "Niaaca is a being of chaos.  Both she and Addiyr represent nature, but Niaaca represents the wild, vicious side.  Magic, arcane magic, is a wild and chaotic force as well.  It is irony that those who follow her magical aspect are those who bring order and purposeful function to that chaos.  At first, Niaaca did not like those who would bind and control the wild thing that was magic, and it moved through the world destroying and creating all manner of wondrous and terrible things.  But the chaos of magic was destroying the living things that represented the other half of Niaaca.  Niaaca was killing herself, tearing herself apart.  So she granted the first wizards the power to contain and control the magic.  It almost master them, changing them into the fierce, wild creatures of great power.  Finally, they mastered the magic and brought it into subjection.  Now the magic simmers in the subspace surrounding the world like the magma deep below the earth.  And like the magma it provides a useful function there without erupting into real space and destroying everything."

After the long explanation, which had not yet contained a real answer to the question, Shavon takes a long pull on his drink.  None of the group had seen him do so before and it seemed out of character somehow.  Then he continued.  "The cradle is like a living volcano.  The magic is not erupting and spewing out all over the place or it would be death simply to step foot anywhere near it.  The magic would warp your very being.  However, the magic is like the heat of the lava on the surface of the volcano's caldera.  It affects everything, warping it as the heat waves distort vision.  The only pattern to it is the lack of pattern.  Should you cast a spell and a warping effect take place.  You can be certain that should another warping of that same spell take place, it will not happen the same way.  Does this answer your question?"

Adryn looks toward Genovia and Aethen as Shavon's words bring forth a grim realization.

Thinking to himself, he tries to connect the dots as best he can...

If what Shavon says about the guardians possibly being a reference to followers of Addiyr of Niaaca is true, then the message from the wilds could quite possibly be sealing the fate of any one of his companions.

Adryn decides to hold his tongue until their mysterious host leaves before conferring with the rest of the group. As the conversation and questions proceed through out dinner, Adryn's watchful gaze paces back and forth amongst his friends.

She watches the group converse with Shavon showing various displays of emotion.  As Shavon discusses the effects of the cradle on beings, she gets a concerned look and she speaks up.

"What happenes when magical items get close to it?"

Shavon nods in Genovia's direction, pleased with the question.  "It depends on the nature of the enchanted item.  Stronger items are more strongly affected, this we know for sure.  Some objects aren't affected till activated like wands and rings, and then the effect is as if a spell was cast.  Other items, where the spell has long been around and perfected, they work normally.  Other, newer forms of enchantments have more pronounced effects.  Sometimes good, sometimes bad, sometimes...well, sometimes good and bad simply don't fit.  The effect is just different and the user of the item makes of the effect what they will."

Shavon sits and waits patiently for more questions.  When none are forthcoming, he excuses himself citing a need to prepare for the journey tomorrow.  He suggests that if the humans need anything from the city, they have their non-human friends purchase it for them.  Those who need items need to go quickly then return for rest.  The trek to Torhavich's home will take two weeks and all will need their rest.

Soon the group realizes the food is magical, nourishing certainly, but healing bruises and melting away stress like rain falling from a well oiled cloak.  The unseen servants maintain the dinner for as long as folks like.  Shavon does not return, though it is likely that he could eavesdrop if he had the mind to do so.  Considering what the group has witnessed so far, he does not seem to have the need nor desire to do so.

GM:  Posts any last conversation among yourselves here.  If you need to head into town, you can post that here as well or you can also PM me.  The journey starts tomorrow game time in the new thread "Torhavich".

Once Shavon takes his leave from the dining room, Adryn brings up his new found concerns with the rest of the group, not thinking that he could still be listening in.

"While Aethen, Genovia, and I were out meditating in the wilds, we received a message. It spoke of us venturing out to the birth place of magic, apparently The Cradle, and there we find the first riddle towards saving the humans. What starting to make me a little uneasy is that this message talked about how the death of the first guardian of life will bring forth the rebirth of power that will help save life."

Adryn pauses for a moment to let this message sink in before he continues.

"If what Shavon says could be true, that the guardians of life could be a reference to followers of Addiyr or Niaaca, then it could be one of us the message was talking about... dying."

Adryn looks around the room to observe the reactions of his companions.

"Wait, the first answer to the riddle or the first riddle?"  Dathnaea says, perplexed by Adryn's revelation.

Adryn pauses a moment to try and recall what the whispers of the wind said, "Unfortunantely, I think that would be too easy. I'm afraid the riddle is all we will be given."

Adryn looks toward Aethen and Genovia for confirmation.

   Aethen smiles at the verbal confusion.  "Dathnaea, the first riddle.  We were told that the first riddle toward saving humans would be found there."

"Well that's helpful," she says sarcastically.

She nods to Adryn.

"I would assume that is what was meant."

Nodding at Dathnaea, "I know there isn't much to go off of, but at least it's a start. I think things will start to become clearer as we get closer to the cradle."

"Perhaps our meeting will shed some light as well."

"Whatever else may be true, you've received a vision from your god.  He would not send you to your deaths without purpose.  If Torhavich is our friend or our enemy, our purpose seems clear and our path laid out before us.  The gods guide our lives onward and the Evangiel's timeline draws to a close.  If we do not succeed, there will not be time for anyone else to try."  Grondor, usually so silent in important matters lapses back into it to allow the group to digest his words.

Grondor's words certainly rang true for Adryn. The message he received laid out clear and defined objectives.

"You're absolute right, Grondor. There is no time to waste, and the gods would not have shown us this path if it were not important. Whatever the gods have in store for us however, I feel it necessary to be prepared for such things... and might I add, its nice having you back".

Adryn was happy to see Grondor back to his old self.

The hobgoblins grins a toothy grin and pats Adryn on the back heartily.  "Good to be back.  I still owe you folks one.  G'night all."  He trundles off to find the bed, following an unseen servant carrying a glowing stone.

Tyler, who has remained quiet through most of the meal and the discussion, nods to the others and heads off to bed without a word.  His actions do not indicate what might be going through his mind other than the great importance placed on his kind.

   Aethen sits on the floor and samples the various flora displayed on the tables.  Some cause him to scrunch his nose and fight at swallowing, but most give him no such reactions.  As the party begins to disperse into their assigned quarters, Aethen stands and moves toward a servant bearing a glowstone.  He asks the phantom to speak to Shavon, following it as it leads the way.

As the room begins to thin out, Adryn takes a few last bites of his meal and walks towards the rooms exit. He looks around the room with sense of finality, trying to take as much in as possible... certain that this is probably the last time he will see a place like this.

A few moments pass, and the he turns to follow the unseen servant back to his room.

Kahmaul waits for the others to retire to rest. Once they have found their places to retire to, the Anthros finds his way to a quiet corner to pray. He has taken precious little time to do so since their journey began. He wonders if he is strong enough to protect the others within this Cradle and frowns as he thoughts move to the vision of death the others have seen.

Finishing his prayer Kahmaul chuckles, "Fear not death, but a life of regret and failure." He moves to rest for the remainder of their stay.

When the others awaken in the morning they find a smiling Invar waiting outside the gates of Shavons home. He seems to be packed and ready to depart. He found it rude to enter the building unannounced, and his tasks left him within the city until very late in the evening. He waits for the group to depart and falls into step behind them.

The rest of the guests slowly leave to their rooms, one by one, guided by silent, invisible attendants.  Late in the night, a haunting melody drifts through the manse.

Our hearts are heavy laden,
With burden from the stars.
We lean on others strength,
Yearning for home afar.

What will be our end here?
What will be our fate?
Can we last the coming storm,
Or all be found by Hate?

When great evil comes for us,
My kind has not the strength,
Neither skill nor power,
To live before Death's gate.

Give your strength to those,
Who live within the trees.
Arms and hearts for that which grows,
Now tend to us in need.

Give your skill to those,
Whose arts both steel and mind,
With ready wits and bows,
Ne're leave one of us behind.

Give your pow'r to those,
Who stand within the way,
Their bodies and their might,
To shield my kind this day.

To those who've come before,
And those who follow after,
Let your blessings fall e'er sure,
Turning pain to laughter.

Oh Lord most high and mighty,
He who created all,
We beseech your presence,
To save us from our Fall.