Difference between revisions of "JesseLowe/PirateMonkeySession22"

Latest revision as of 21:49, 8 June 2010

• Back to Session 21

TonyC materializes out of thin air.

TonyC [to Apollonian]: Hey, what's the new wiki address again? exalted.?.?.nz

Apollonian [to TonyC]: It's http://exalted.xi.co.nz/wiki/wiki.pl

TonyC [to Apollonian]: Thanks. BRB.

TonyC goes home.

TonyC materializes out of thin air.

TonyC [to Apollonian]: back

jetman has arrived.

Apollonian [to TonyC]: How's it going?

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yo ho! )

TonyC [to jetman]: I'm not late this week. Woohoo.

jetman [to TonyC]: Always a good sign!

Apollonian [to jetman]: Ahoy!

TonyC [to Apollonian]: Could be better. But nothing I can't handle.

Apollonian [to TonyC]: I hope it gets better, then.

jetman [to TonyC]: Likewise.

Monkey . o O ( But enough about me, How about you guys? )

The Storyteller is doing all right. Thinking about going to library school.

TonyC [to Apollonian]: I'm sure others have told you this already, but there's no money in that field.

Apollonian [to TonyC]: As compared to being a creative writing major, it's a gold mine.

jetman [to Apollonian]: That sounds interesting. Nothing exceptional on my end, good or bad.

TonyC [to Apollonian]: A very good point.

Apollonian [to TonyC]: 'sides, my wife's a librarian, I'm a library technician, I'd get free tuition (job-related), so...

TonyC [to Apollonian]: Free is always good.

You say, "Oh, and it's been interesting, weather-wise, here. We dropped from 70 degrees F to 19 degrees in about a day and a half."

jetman [to Apollonian]: Indeed. It sounds like it would be rewarding in other ways besides financial.

jetman [to Apollonian]: Ack!

Apollonian [to jetman]: Indeed. It's not that it's cold (though it is, for Florida), but the contrast really hardens the nipples.

TonyC [to Apollonian]: Having gone through 0 degrees days, I have no sympathy.

Apollonian [to TonyC]: Bah. I'll remember that when I'm idling through another 99% humidity, 105 degree day...

Wisely doesn't mention the 79 degree days here.

Apollonian [to TonyC]: through half the goddamn year.

The Storyteller has Elvis on the brain.

jetman [to Apollonian]: Try more hair gel and he should slide right off.

Apollonian [to jetman]: I thought that acted like bait...

Monkey lives pretty close to Lake Superior. He understands 99% humidity and 105 degree days. Commiserates.

Captain Kaizoku says, "Sounds like Tony gets the worst of both worlds..."

The Storyteller is a poor Pacific Northwest boy, used to long, temperate, wet winters, and short, hot, dry summers...

Monkey . o O ( Well, any metagame issue that needs to be taken care of? )

think Just that Charm that CK proposed. I'm going to toss it up on rpg.net to see if it can get some peer review before I approve it, but it looks okay. Have you looked on the wiki to see if there's anything that matched your needs in this department?

The Storyteller . o O ( Just that Charm that CK proposed. I'm going to toss it up on rpg.net to see if it can get some peer review before I approve it, but it looks okay. Have you looked on the wiki to see if there's anything that matched your needs in this department? )

TonyC [to jetman]: Nah. Minnesotans got it worse. The lake effect moderates winter around here. We got tons of snow, but when it's 0 here, it's -20 in Minnesota. When it's -20 here, it's -50 there.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Hmmm, I didn't look on the Wiki, just threw it together off the top of my head. )

Monkey . o O ( Summary of charm? )

Captain Kaizoku says, "Didn't you get it? Well, spend 6-essence hours listening to a langauge and commit four motes to speak it as long as you need."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Speak a language that is. )

TonyC [to jetman]: Suggestion: Commit the motes first.

jetman [to TonyC]: That sounds sensible.

The Storyteller is working out some last minute stuff before he makes a quick bathroom visit. Also, can you rough out your plans for the next few game-days?

Monkey . o O ( Bodyguarding through the meet. Keep an eye out for enemies and hot chicks, hopefully both. Then continue training. Then teach Captain archery. )

Monkey . o O ( Life is simple for Monkey. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( It depends on how quickly and smoothly setting up the alliance with the northmen goes, but the order of things is do that, fix the Nimbus and prize ship up more while maintaining a patrol around it for stray enemy ships, then sail to Lookshy for more extensive repairs. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Did Monkey learn Occult yet? I took the 3 weeks out of the last four to do the occult/archery mutual instructions )

Monkey . o O ( My intuition for charm: Linguistic 3. Essence 2. Simple charm. )

Monkey . o O ( By my count, I'm 4 days short from learning Occult. )

Monkey . o O ( Probably because I counted something else first before I counted Occult. )

Monkey . o O ( Ah, now I remember. I trained Skytongue first. Then Occult. )

Monkey . o O ( I figure being able the understandNorthmen comes first. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Ah, I see. What will Monkey's art be to go with Occult. )

Monkey . o O ( Logically, it'll be something you taught. Which art do you know? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Summoning beasts, warding Exalted, Weather Working and one I'm not sure of... Warding ghosts or demons. )

Monkey . o O ( I thought all warding count as one art? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Looks like... guess I was looking at the summoning section when I was choosing. )

Monkey . o O ( Well, pick a new one then. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Back. The way the free thaumaturgy works is that you get a free specialty in an art with every two dots of Occult. )

Monkey . o O ( Ah, then I don't get anything at Occult 1. Cool, no need to make a decision. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( OK then! )

Monkey thinks, "Great, more talking. I wonder if anything interesting going to happen." He yawns.

Obviously high politics doesn't count as interesting in Monkey's book.

The Storyteller . o O ( we'll begin at point B, which I've arbitrarily assigned to a point about 20 miles west of the city of Onde Cliffs, east of the Cherak border. )

Captain Kaizoku gives Monkey a slight nudge and whispers to him "Opening one's mouth that wide can be taken as a sign of being possessed by demons, Monkey..."

Monkey whispers back, "Strange superstition. Back home the sure sign of being possessed is a tic on your right eyebrow. That's where the demon resided, you see.

By the time the Corona arrives at point B, it's deep in the night. A few flickering campfires can be seen on the beach, mostly masked by the ships of the fleet and the northmen. If you strain, you can hear the sound of carpentry over the pounding surf.

Captain Kaizoku brings out his spyglass to carefully assess the situation on the ground at in the nearby sea.

The Storyteller . o O ( Make a Perception + Awareness roll... )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 4 dice on No Awareness yet. and got 3 successes.

Monkey rolled 3 dice on Per+Awa and got 1 success.

The area appears to be clear of any ships and people save the Solar Wind Fleet and the northmen.

Captain Kaizoku gives the word to land the ships, the Stormhammer with Monkey going in first.

Guided by the fires and illuminated by the starlight, the Stormhammer finds its way in safely, followed by the rest. The deep-water ships anchor a decent distance from the surf, while the galley beaches itself. Once landed, Kerrigan reports to the Captain.

Captain Kaizoku gives Kerrigan a salute and waits to hear her report, though it is clear that she completed the most important mission already. "Monkey, round up the other senior staff."

Monkey stands proudly on the prow. Once Stormhammer docks, he jumps down and strides to the nearest Northman.

Monkey . o O ( This would happen before Kaizoku gives the order to round up the senior staff then. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yes. )

Monkey says, "Ahem. Glad you Northmen decided to come. So who's your captain and where is he?"

Kerrigan says, "Captain, Nail is working on the Nimbus. He says it'll be a while before she's seaworthy, and -- well, you'd better talk to him about the prizes. The northmen have encamped at the east end," she gestures in that direction, and you see that the barbarians have established a camp. Some are watching the activity of the fleet, others are eating. They seem unusually subdued and disciplined for barbarians. "One of them -- the leader, I think -- said the captains' council wanted to speak to the 'Sun lord.' I'm guessing that's you. We've got the Raitons keeping an eye on them, and the Marukani have established a perimeter about a mile out."

The northman Monkey approaches is a stocky, burly man dressed in blue and brown wool -- tunic and leggings --, with a woolen cloak shielding him from the wind. He holds a spear and a shield rests against his leg. He holds his hand up in a sort of salute as Monkey approaches and says something in a language Monkey doesn't understand.

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey doesn't know Skytongue, right? )

Monkey . o O ( Not right. )

Captain Kaizoku replies "Excellent. Well done." He looks over the barbarians and then back. "Pass word to the Raitons and Marukani to watch the skies as well, and one of our Dragon-Blooded gunners is to be on one of the Implosion Bows at all times. Now, point the leader out to me and call Nail over."

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey _does_ know Skytongue? )

Monkey . o O ( Yes. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh. )

Monkey . o O ( Monkey also knows how to swear in at least three more languages. One of the perks of being a sailor. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Hrm. Okay, scene order: Monkey + northman sentry first, then CK + Kerrigan. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Also, a house rule: Social interactions conducted in a language that is not the native (or equivalent fluency) tongue of the participants is at a +1 difficulty to rolls. Sound good? )

The Storyteller has been spending a lot of his Exalted-focused time lately working on social interaction and relationship rules.

Monkey . o O ( How do you establish fluency then? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yes, it seems either you are or you aren't, according to the language rules... or do more dots of it add to the depth of all languages? )

Monkey . o O ( I think a better approach is to rule that social interaction done through an interpreter or through obvious magical means (obvious spell, obvious charm, obvious artifact) gets +1 difficulty. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Take a specialty in the language, use a Charm, or have it as a native tongue. I'm also thinking that, for Linguistics, you can have more than three specialties, as long as only three are non-languages... See p. 140 of the core book. "Characters with high Linguistics will be able to express basic needs and desires in most languages, but cannot express complex concepts or understand even simple idioms." It's like the difference between ordering a taco and writing Don Quixote. )

Monkey . o O ( I disagree with this approach. Exalted is not geared for this level of detail. But you're the GM, so let's do it your way and move on. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay. We can discuss it further over e-mail... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh -- did Monkey have Anima flare during the first part of the naval battle? )

Monkey . o O ( None. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Got it. )

The northman warrior says -- in awkward Skytongue -- "Hail, warrior! My name is Jarkko Heikela Rahkamo and mine captain is Auli Rahkamo. What be yours?"

Monkey says, "My name? Monkey. My Captain? Taiyo Kaizoku."

Monkey says, "Where is he? My captain would like to discuss an alliance with him."

Jarkko says, "Be he the Sun-Lord?"

Monkey thinks for a bit.

Monkey says, "He's definitely a bit sunny. Not as in happy cheery way, but you know, glowy, shiny way. But Lord? Nah, I wouldn't call him lord. Very good captain though."

Jarkko wrinkles his brow and strokes his beard. "Ah, he be an under-captain, then? I understand. Auli, she is under-captain, but good."

Monkey scratches his head. "I think there be misunderstanding. But never mind. So who's Auli's over-captain then?

Jarkko says, "That be Lotta Rahkamo, eldest sister of clan. They both be in captain council now." He gestures over toward one of the fires with his free hand.

Monkey says, "Ah. Thank you."

Monkey turns about and heads toward Corona.

The Storyteller . o O ( And over to CK and the officers... )

Monkey says, "Captain, Monkey reporting. Nothing unusual."

etc., etc.. Lotta Rahkamo, etc., etc., captain council.

Monkey goes to round up the senior officers, as ordered.

Captain Kaizoku looks behind Monkey, to see if anything in his trail is on fire.

Monkey . o O ( Nothing, yet. :) )

The Storyteller laughs.

Monkey . o O ( Kaizoku? Lord? Not to Monkey. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Not until he sets up the reconstituted Solar Deliberative anyway. )

The Storyteller . o O ( An aside: Are the wiki sheets up-to-date? )

Monkey . o O ( Mine is over-to-date. :) Remember, ignore Occult, ignore the MA charms. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Och. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Nope... the sheet I sent you last week is more current. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay. CK, you know the new Wiki address, right? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Not at all. I was looking at your personal page with the data. )

The Storyteller . o O ( it's http://exalted.xi.co.nz/wiki/wiki.pl )

Monkey . o O ( Oh, what's the temperature presently? )

The Storyteller . o O ( Somewhere between damn cold and pretty chilly. I.e., around 40 degrees + a cold breeze every so often. )

Monkey . o O ( Ach, that's just a bit nippy. ;) )

The Storyteller . o O ( now where were we... Ah, yes. Officers. Captain, where are you meeting them? On the beach or in one of the ships? )

Master Jaff snuggles inside Monkey's jacket rather than sitting at his customary place on the shoulder or head.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( The beach, so he can survey the prize ships as they talk. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay. )

Master Jaff will only peek out if he hears something interesting.

Monkey . o O ( I hope someone is typing something long at the moment instead of the two of you waiting for the other to set the scene. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( I'm waiting. )

The captain surveys his prizes, four Realm galleys captured... largely intact... They're drawn up on the beach in a line, with the wounded Nimbus at the far end of the group. The Corona's on the near end, neatly bracketing the galleys. Sailors move over all of the ships, cleaning them of gore and debris and hacking away at timbers damaged beyond repair. From the Nimbus, the captain can see his carpenter approaching, wrapped in a seaman's coat to ward against the chill. Turning from the ships, the Captain looks at the northmen. Kerrigan pointed out a blaze that the messenger named the captains' council fire, and watches the shapes of cloaked men and woman move in silhouette against it.

The Storyteller . o O ( Hmph. Need two chat boxes, one for long poses and one for quick messages. )

Nail walks up to the Captain, boots crunching softly in the sand, and bows. "Captain Kaizoku, sir!"

Monkey . o O ( This comp doesn't have any IM programs, but I do have an ICQ account that I very rarely use. )

Captain Kaizoku returns the bow. "Status of our new prizes, Mr. Nail? What sort of performance can we expect of them on sail alone?" he asks, turning to look at the campfire of the council.

Monkey . o O ( logs are going to be a bitch, but a better way of having two chat boxes is using IRC. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Eh, too much work. And I need my logs. They're precious. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Is it possible to log in twice here? )

The Storyteller fondles his logs and croons, "precious, yes, precious to me..."

Monkey . o O ( Captain, no. )

Monkey . o O ( Hmmmm, actually, if the irc windows are separated into "in-game" and "ooc" windows, logs ought to be easier. Next problem will be securing a dice roller bot. )

After some time, Monkey returns with the other senior officers.

Nail says, "Straight up? We can't. They need full hull patches to be even seaworthy in anything more than a light breeze. Once we get that done, we can expect decent sailing performance -- as much as you'll get with any galley. What we need are materials, especially some good, seasoned timber. Those ballistae we've got are marvellous for winning battles, but bloody hell on salvage work. And, of course, there's the poor Nimbus..." He shakes his head and hefts his hammer. "We're short on oars, too. Mind, that's not an issue till you've got some oarsmen, and we can salvage enough for the Nimbus from the prizes. The furniture on all the ships needs touching up... Well, to be frank: This'll be a good month's work with the crew we've got who are halfway decent with a hammer and nail. Add another month to that if we need to work with foraged material..."

The Storyteller . o O ( finished reading? It's big chunk, I know... )

Captain Kaizoku narrows his eyes. "We are in a vulnerable position here, and too close to a Realm-controlled city for my comfort. Make up a full list of the materials you will need... and in the meantime, I will see if we can get some new willing hands to help in the work"

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yep. :) )

The Storyteller . o O ( Quick note: Onde Cliffs is not Realm controlled. It's more-or less independent... Or at least as independent as you can get this close to Cherak. Lip service, hospitality, etc. )

Nail bows and says, "Aye sir, I'll have the list to you by morning."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Though that's bad enough as far as the Captain is concerned. )

Captain Kaizoku bows again and says "Make it so. Monkey, Kerrigan, Wolf, you're with me." he waves them forward as he walks up to the Northman council, getting a sense of who is in charge and who wants to be by looking carefully.

Monkey . o O ( Nimbus should get first priority. The others, well, it's not like we have enough men to crew them right away. They can wait. Or heck, give them away. )

Monkey . o O ( IIRC, Wolf comes from this region. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yep. )

Monkey . o O ( By this region I mean Somewhere on The North, not somewhere around Cherak. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Hmm... she does, doesn't she? Captain, any ideas on where in particular she might have originated? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Her past is "No one knows how a Northman came so far south, and she's never said." )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( So it could be anywhere, since I wasn't up on my geography... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay. I'll work it out in my head. )

The Storyteller . o O ( does the captain ask her for advice? )

Monkey . o O ( The naming scheme is different from these Northmen, so probably not the same people. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Cultural advice, yes. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Who's in charge, who's in favor and who's not. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Do a bit of dialogue to start that off, please... )

Captain Kaizoku says in a voice that doesn't carry far over the sounds of the sea and repairs "What do you make of these Northmen, Wolf? They seem strongly behind their leader... is that strength firm? Are they content in following her?"

Snarling Wolf responds in the same low tone, "Can't say, Captain. I've never met these people, though I've heard of them. They call themselves the Kamsa, means 'people.' From what I know, they're farmers and raiders from the lands around the Black Crag Mountains... I don't know what they're doing so far east, either. If they're anything like the other nations there, they organize along family lines, like all sensible folk."

The Storyteller needs to go put another pot of coffee on...

Captain Kaizoku looks to Monkey and Kerrigan. "Are there any impressions you have formed of them?" he asks quietly. "Their flight was clearly desperate... the question is, how has it affected them?"

Monkey says, "What do you mean? They seem perfectly fine to me. If they are affected at all, they're very good at hiding it."

Captain Kaizoku says, "Their pride may be a wall against what they have been subjected through, but how thick does it remain?"

Kerrigan says, "They haven't talked much to us. The messenger said only that they wished to treat with the Sun-lord, and described you... fairly well." She cocks her head to one side. "If I had to take a guess, I'd say they've dealt with one of your kind before. I'm not sure why... just something about the way the messenger said 'Sun-lord.'"

Monkey says, "From my brief meeting, seems they're taking things well in stride. Perhaps Kerrigan, who's been with them longer, might see more."

Captain Kaizoku nods briefly. "There is one reputed Solar in the North... the infamous Bull. He would not seem to be their ally... Very well, let us treat with them..." He begins to walk forward to the camp, firmly and decisively, stopping at the edge of the circle and meeting the eyes of their leader.

The Storyteller . o O ( Ah! Remember, the Bull is a Lunar in this campaign. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Is that well-known though? I thought it was a secret. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Since he's doing terrible things, he'd get called a Solar, even if he's not. )

The Storyteller . o O ( It's about as well-known as the Bull being a Solar is in canon Creation. I.e., anybody with a decent Occult or Lore score recognizes him as a beastman barbarian Anathema, not a shiny ubermensch Anathema. )

A dozen yards away from the campfire, Monkey lengthens his stride and approaches the council first. Putting fist on palm, he announces the party, "Monkey greets you. Behind me is Captain Taiyo Kaizoku of the Unconquered Sun fleet and some of his senior staffs, Kerrigan and Snarling Wolf. Oh, and this is Master Jaff. Nice to meet you."

Monkey . o O ( Replace Solar with Anathema, and your sentence works. )

The Storyteller . o O ( I'm also working with a bit of a different take on the Silver Pact, so... well, it's probably not going to come up any time soon, I think... )

Master Jaff hears his name mentioned and peeks out. "Oookeee?"

The Storyteller . o O ( Right, what was I thinking? Of course all Anathema are Solars, because that's the only kind of non-dragon-blooded Exalted anybody thinks about... Nevermind that the Lunars are the ones who've been savaging the borders of Creation for the last 700 years while there haven't been any Solars until about five years ago. )

The Storyteller fumes a bit.

TonyC [to jetman]: Replace Solar with Anathema, and your sentence works.

The Storyteller looks a little embarrassed.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( It's alright. )

The Storyteller . o O ( posing... )

Monkey . o O ( Monkey's playing diplomat. That's what Kaizoku gets for not learning Skytongue himself. Nyah nyah. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( The Captain's study time will be very handy when the time comes for it... )

The Kamsa sentries, cloaked and bearing spears, bow at your approach. One, a woman in her middle years, steps forward and says in pretty decent Riverspeak, "Hail, Sun-lord! The clan of the Rahkamo greets you in blood debt. Our captains' council would treat with you." She bows deeply toward Captain Kaizoku.

Monkey . o O ( Does Kaizoku understand Riverspeak? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Nope. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Hm. )

Monkey . o O ( Kerrigan might? )

The Storyteller . o O ( That'll make things interesting... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Just the Realm languages. )

The Storyteller . o O ( No, she doesn't... (Checking character sheets.) )

Monkey says, "Se no habla Riverspeak?"

The Storyteller . o O ( Yup. The only one of the officers who knows Riverspeak is Akbar... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Just Akbar. And Razor Leaf. )

Monkey looks at Wolf, "I thought you taught me Skytongue. These people speak an entirely different language!"

Her greeting being met by blank looks, she repeats herself in Skytongue, and bows again.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( And Hydros. )

Captain Kaizoku returns the bow and says "Greetings, captain of captains" in Low Realm, looking to Monkey and Wolf to handle the translations.

Monkey says, "He says hi."

The Storyteller . o O ( Heh. )

Monkey . o O ( I'm laughing like a madman. )

The woman says, "My name is Noora Lenho Rahkamo. My captain is Viljo Rahkamo, and my eldest sister is Lotta Rahkamo. Will you treat with the captains and share our meat and drink tonight?" Her Skytongue is a good bit better than Jarkko's. Or Monkey's, really...

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Imagine if these were hostile negotiations... :) )

TonyC [to jetman]: He says you're Sunlord, and the Rahkamo clan owes you big time. Then something about the captain's council wanting to talk to you.

The Storyteller . o O ( Both of you roll Appearance + Presence )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 5 dice on App+Pre and got 2 botches.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Aieeee! )

Monkey rolled 5 dice on App+Pre and got 1 success.

Monkey . o O ( Tsk tsk tsk. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Damn, dude... It's a good thing Monkey's doing the talking. )

TonyC [to jetman]: That's Noora. Her boss is Viljo and her eldest sister is Lotta. She's inviting you to a party.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( It should be inverse App though... barbarians don't like prettyboys. :) )

Noora looks the four of you over as she leads you to the gathered captains. She doesn't seem to like Kaizoku's looks much, but keeps looking at Monkey's ass. Hmm.

Monkey [to Captain Kaizoku]: That's Noora. Her boss is Viljo and her eldest sister is Lotta. She's inviting you to a party.

Captain Kaizoku says, "Tell her we are honored to accept, and would know more of their circumstances Monkey."

Monkey says, "He says sure. And... <scratches head> uh, how are you doing?"

Monkey . o O ( So, what does Wolf do all this while? )

TonyC [to jetman]: I argue that all women like prettyboys.

The Storyteller . o O ( Wolf follows along behind the captain, like a good proreus, keeping an eye on things and not letting her guard down. Make a Per + Awareness check... )

Monkey rolled 3 dice on Per+Awa and got 2 successes.

Captain Kaizoku rolled 4 dice on Ever no Awareness and got 3 successes.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( :smacks head. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Hard to say for sure -- Wolf's a hard read -- but she might be checking Noora out. Mentioning that might be a good way to lose an ear, though... )

Noora says, "That is good. I am doing well. Much better than I might be, that is sure."

Monkey [to Captain Kaizoku]: She's fine.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( By the way, is this a strictly warrior camp, or are there the old and young too? )

Monkey . o O ( Okay, is this good enough or should I try being more diplomat-like? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( How can the Captain tell? :) )

Captain Kaizoku says, "Monkey, tell them I wish to know the details of their flight from the Realm fleet."

Monkey . o O ( You know that scene in Lost in Translation? With the director talking for three minutes long with great emphasis on something, and the foreign actor asks his Japanese agent/translator what he said and she said two sentences? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Haven't yet seen Lost in Translation... )

Monkey . o O ( And not even the right two sentences. )

You enter the circle of the firelight cast by the captain's fire. There are about twelve people seated around it, mostly to the landward side -- upwind from the smoke -- eating and drinking. The food is hardtack and smoked fish, the drink watered mead. Upon seeing you, all of them rise and bow. Noora points out eight of them, five men and three women. "These are the captains of the clan. Our eldest sister--" she points -- "is Lotta Rahkamo." The woman indicated is in her late thirties by the look of her, and has the hard, weathered look of an experienced warrior.

Monkey . o O ( Besides, you can ask Wolf. )

Monkey says, "Hola."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Ah, but the Captain wants to have Monkey take the lead, as a Solar. )

Monkey . o O ( Hah! You have only yourself to blame then. )

Monkey says, "So, Captain Kaizoku wants to know everything about your escape from those ships."

Captain Kaizoku asks Wolf "What is the protocol for hospitality among such clans? Is meat and mead earned or given?"

Going around the arc of Kamsa, Noora introduces each of the captains, apparently in order of precedence. "Antero Rahkamo," a man with a nasty-looking scar across his neck, "Viljo Rahkamo," a big man with an easy grin, "Auli Rahkamo," an older woman with graying hair and a brilliant blue scarf, "Kim Rahkamo," a young man missing two fingers on his left hand, "Nils Rahkamo," a middle-aged man with a gut and a cunning gleam in his eyes, "Suvi Rahkamo," a hatchet-faced woman with a big sword strapped to her back, "and Johan Rahkamo," a man in his early thirties with blond hair and the eyes of a god-blooded storm-child.

The Storyteller . o O ( Erk, that was a big mouthful. )

Monkey points at himself, "Monkey" and then at the appropriate people, "Captain Kaizoku, Snarling Wolf, Kerrigan." He then points at the bundle inside his jacket, "Master Jaff" and Master Jaff, hearing his name, pokes his head out and noticing the food and drink, scampers out and starts begging for food.

Each of the captains has a braid on the right side of his or her face, with colored thread entwined through the hair. The length of the braid and the number of different colors seems to indicate their status.

Wolf leans over and says, "Among honorable people, hospitality is first given, then earned. We're probably good for a meal or two, but should return the favor at some point."

The Storyteller is going to get his coffee. BRB.

Captain Kaizoku asks quietly "And what about the giving of gifts? Would a great one from us require them to respond in kind or lose face?"

Master Jaff does a one-and-a-half somersault, lands on his hands, and walks around on hands. "Oook?" He rolls into a squatting position and puts both hands out, palms up.

TonyC has reconnected.

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh, to answer a previous question: The group is mixed. There are elders and children present, but anyone between their teens and fragile old age carries a weapon in the manner of a fighter. There are no pregnant women, infants or toddlers, or invalids in the group. There seems to be a slight gender imbalance in favore of women. All told, it looks like there's about 20-30 people per ship, and about 80% of those are fighters. )

A small girl, perched on a rock near the fire, tosses Master Jaff a piece of dried fish and laughs as he dives for it.

Master Jaff has a new best friend.

Captain Kaizoku says, "I am curious Monkey, to know of the exploits of their tribes that brought such a strong fleet from the Realm to crush them."

Wolf says, "Depends on the gift. Small gifts are in the nature of friendships, large gifts are matters of deal-making -- dowries, bribes, or such. Too large a gift offends, since it implies that the giver believes you can be bought. On the other hand, blood debt can only be paid in kind."

The Storyteller . o O ( Where was I... )

Monkey says, "I'll ask, Captain."

Monkey . o O ( Of course, they haven't answered the previous question yet. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Working on it... )

Lotta Rahkamo stands up and holds her hands out, empty and palm up. She speaks in Skytongue, not fluently: "Captain Kaizoku, blood debt is owed by Rahkamo Clan. You give refuge from foes, safety from enemies. This be just: till debt is paid, Kaizoku honor is Rahkamo honor." The captains all hold their hands out and nod assent.

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh, and roll Appearance + Presence again. )

Monkey . o O ( Okay, spending willpower this time. )

Monkey rolled 5 dice on App+Pre and got 4 successes.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Likewise, for conviction that this was the right thing to do. )

Monkey . o O ( +1 for autosuccess. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Ooh, nice. )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 8 dice on App Pre Conv and got 2 successes.

The Storyteller . o O ( Damn... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( What did Monkey get? Enough to become their new totem? )

Monkey turns to Captain Kaizoku and says, "Rahkamo clan owes you for your help. Until it's paid, they'll defend your honor.

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay, this is how it works. For the rest of the scene, you've got bonus dice of your successes on social actions with the captains. )

Monkey . o O ( A gentleman doesn't tell about his successes with the laydeez. )

Captain Kaizoku bows deeply to Lotta. "I am honored by your honor, and hope to slay many enemies with the Rahkamo Clan in the future."

Monkey says, "Thank you very much, and hopes we can kill lots of enemies together."

Lotta looks a bit happier at that comment, and says, "Yes! Eat. Drink. We shall talk of much tonight." She demonstrates with a mug of mead and a bite of fish.

Monkey . o O ( It was really tempting for a moment to say 'ty, l3ts join n pwn the n00bs." )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Aieee! )

Monkey says, "Party! Party! Party!"

Monkey . o O ( I'll have you know that in real life, I'm not and was not a frat-boy. )

Captain Kaizoku sits down and bids Wolf, Monkey and Kerrigan to do the same, as soon as the Northmen have done so, eating and drinking and making only small talk for the moment. "Not too much mead Monkey..."

The Storyteller . o O ( Do we want to spend more RP time on the party, or do a couple of Socialize rolls and sum up, getting on with action? )

Monkey says, "Of course not."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( "I am not, and never have been, a member of the All-Night Party." )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( The latter, with just a general impression of how it goes. Do any of them speak any Low Realm? )

Monkey . o O ( Little does he know that there is no such thing as too much mead for Monkey. )

Monkey . o O ( Let's go for the latter. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Afraid not. They all speak some kind of tribal tongue among themselves. About half speak Skytongue, a quarter of those fluently. Only Noora speaks Riverspeak -- not that that helps -- and they all know a few words in High Realm. "Kill," "Surrender or die," "Where's the bathroom?" etc. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Anyway, make Charisma + Socialize rolls (don't forget your bonus dice) at difficulty 2. And what are your goals for this initial meeting? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( How many bonus dice for the Captain? )

Monkey rolled 8 dice on Cha + bonus and got 6 successes.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( And break the ice and get a feel for their situation and history, mostly. )

The Storyteller . o O ( 2. Though any rolls he makes re: Noora are difficulty 3... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey is a good party guest. Master Jaff probably helps. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Spending WP for auto-success, on getting a good, eye-to-eye relationship with Noora. )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 5 dice on something and got 2 botches.

Monkey . o O ( Too bad Monkey isn't The Sun-Lord. Bwahahaha. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh, my, god. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Oh, my god. )

Monkey . o O ( Hey, you got 1 success. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Still... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( That's two huge botches during the process so far. But great Awareness rolls... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Leader of men, right? Heh. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( I guess it is all luck... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Re: Noora. At this rate, she's going to be the love of the Captain's life, because only such relationships get off to such a rocky start. She hasn't cut his throat, but that's only thanks to Monkey's "diplomatic" translation efforts. )

TonyC [to Apollonian]: Excellent argument. And backed up with abundant literary evidence too.

The Storyteller . o O ( Captain, you can make another roll for general socializing with the captains. Same thing: Cha + Socialize + 2 dice. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Nothing will be set in stone until he accidentally sees her naked. )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 5 dice on Socialzing and got 2 successes.

The Storyteller makes a note.

Monkey . o O ( Or she sees him naked. )

The Storyteller tries not to think about _that_ image.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Likewise... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay, summing things up from a night of mead and dried fish. )

The eight ships are the entirety of the Rahkamo Clan, one of the smallest of the 20+ clans that make up the Kamsa. The clan is not on good terms with the rest of the Kamsa at the moment, and a little digging reveals that this is Lotta's fault: she did a little raiding contrary to Eino Selin Sun-lord's wishes, and made things worse by not giving him the appropriate tribute. This resulted in something of an ostracizing of the clan, and they have been making their way ahead of the rest of the Kamsa in hopes of getting back in Eino's good graces without losing too much face. Unfortunately, without the backup of the rest of the clans, they were easy meat for the Realm wolfpack you defeated, and lost about 75% of their ships in a battle a day ago.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Does the Captain know anything about Eino Selin? )

Monkey . o O ( Steal the Rahkamo, and let's see Eino Selin person. )

The Storyteller . o O ( That's it. Eino is pretty obviously a Solar, and leader of the Kamsa at the moment. "Leader" seems to mean something along the lines of "first among equals" in this crowd. They're headed east on a vision quest, though no one you talk to is really sure what the vision is -- that's Eino's call. )

The Storyteller . o O ( They've been on the road of whales for about two years now, having marched west from their old lands across areas dominated by the Deathlord The Bishop of the Chalcedony Thurible, swiped ships from the Varajtul Cannibals, and sailed back east this way. They haven't any fondness for... well, just about anyone they've met in their travels. At the moment, they're taking great glee in dissing the Realm and its client states. )

Captain Kaizoku says "I can see that the Rahkamo are indeed bold and daring, too daring for your Sun-Lord to accept, perhaps. Are you bold enough to join your path to mine? I came to the north to fight my enemies, the Dynasts of the Realm, to help those who were making so much trouble for them."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Monkey says "Want to come with us and wreck stuff?" )

The Storyteller . o O ( They'll warm up to the latter more quickly than the former, I can tell you that much. Do you ask this at the party, or next day? )

Monkey . o O ( That's actually more succint and to the point that what I came up with. Let's use that. )

Monkey says, "Want to come with us and wreck stuff?"

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( The next day. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey: Charisma + Presence roll. )

Monkey . o O ( With or without bonus? )

The Storyteller . o O ( without. )

Monkey . o O ( Spending wp for autosuccess )

Monkey rolled 4 dice on Cha+Pre and got no successes but no botches either.

The Storyteller . o O ( 1 success, eh? )

Monkey . o O ( yes. )

Lotta answers -- speaking through Noora, who's pretty much their translator -- "We will accompany you in these waters, but it would be honorless to forsake our people." In other words, they'll stick with you as long as you're more-or-less close to the rest of the Kamsa, but leaving the Kamsa is going to take a bit more persuading.

The Storyteller . o O ( BRB, nature calls. )

Monkey says, "I say we see this Sun-Lord and see what he has to say."

Monkey . o O ( In other words, let's kill him and take his stuff. :) )

Captain Kaizoku says, "I would never ask anyone to act against their honor. Now, you are all capable sailors... I have ships here in need of crew and repairs. Would you do me the honor of crewing them for me while I show the dogs of the Realm that they should look away from Blessed Isle?"

The Storyteller quietly raises Eino's XP count.

Captain Kaizoku says, "He does sound like someone we should see Monkey... but our first priority is to raid a shipyard and get the supplies we need to restore these ships to full strength."

Monkey says, "Can't the Rahkamo do that? I mean, if you ask them to repair the ships and bring them to Lookshy, I think they'll be happy to oblige. Okay, maybe we'll have to give them one of the ships. But still, should work, right?"

The Storyteller . o O ( back. Dinner did NOT agree with me. )

Captain Kaizoku says, "You are thinking only on one level Monkey... by taking our supplies from the Scarlet Fortress, we show the client states of the Inland Sea that the Realm cannot protect them, as well as getting the things we need and helping our friends restore some prestige in the eyes of their clansmen."

The Storyteller . o O ( Time-wise, we've moved on to the next day, right? )

Monkey . o O ( Yes. )

Monkey says, "Oh, that's different then."

Monkey says, "What will you need then? I'll ask them if they want to join forces and raid the Scarlet Fortress."

Captain Kaizoku looks slightly pained at being distilled down that much, but says "Yes, but explain what we want there... to get the supplies to fix these ships."

The Storyteller . o O ( Now we're cooking. 'Course, that means I need to come up with a map of the SC, and opposition, and, well, all that. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( May have to do a Stormwind recon to make sure the Realm fleet isn't in force there. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh, aye, and the fleet. Hrm. )

Monkey . o O ( Or you could skip all that, come up with the final encounter on the fly, and drop Kaizoku there. Or me. Or both. )

Monkey . o O ( Montage works not only for training, but also for big fights. Think Ocean 11. )

The Storyteller . o O ( I'll work it out. No worries. Meanwhile, does Monkey propose this rash adventure to the Rahkamo? )

Monkey . o O ( Of course not. Captain will propose it. I'm just translatin'. )

Monkey says, "Captain Kaizoku wants to raid the Scarlet Fortress. He could use more men and ships. Does the Rahkamo want sign in?"

After a good five minutes of discussion, the Rahkamo captains unanimously vote in favor of this idea, as long as "the Sun-lord" leads the charge.

Okay: What's the basic plan?

Captain Kaizoku responds without hesitation. "Of course."

Monkey says, "It is done, Captain. They're all in. So, when do we sail?"

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Are their ships armed at all? )

The Storyteller . o O ( No. They're raiders, not pirates, so they hit land targets instead of other ships. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( And is anything known about the harbor there, or its defenses? )

Monkey says, "Noora, how many Rahkamo are of fighting strength?"

The Storyteller . o O ( The Rahkamo can provide a brief description. The harbor is artificial and fortified, created by sorcery centuries ago. It's of red stone, hence the name. A squadron of the Cherak navy is based out of it. As far as they know, there are no First Age weapons, though there are catapults and ballistae. The city itself is nestled inside a valley formed by two rough peaks. A citadel squats at the west end of the harbor with a commanding overlook of all sea approaches. Apart from that, they know nothing of the Scarlet Fortress. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( How long will it take to restore the shots on one of the Lighting Ballistae? I'm seeing two plans here, one with infiltration first, the other just a frontal assault. Hmmm... no, the ships we have are too well known, after the fleet sent a message. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Also, it's probably where the crews you spared went after you dropped them off... aside: How's this as a picture for Snarling Wolf? http://elfwood.lysator.liu.se/art/y/o/yoosuk/barbaian_woman1.jpg.html )

Monkey . o O ( Ah, elfwood. Good site, that. )

Captain Kaizoku takes his sword out and draws on the ground, sketching the harbor and the fleet deployment, the Stormhammer in the lead, then the Corona behind it, with four raiders on each side of the Corona.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Are those coaster/raiders two dot speed ships? )

The Storyteller . o O ( 3 dot. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( OK, good. )

Monkey . o O ( Pretty good pic. Link it to the wiki. )

Monkey says, "How about this instead."

The Storyteller . o O ( Okay. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Like the pic. How much room will the needed supplies take up, once Nail has the list? )

Monkey scrunches his face and draws with his finger. "Night.Stormhammer lands here. Me and the Marukani trek on-land, tr

Monkey scrunches his face and draws with his finger. "Night. Stormhammer lands here. Me and the Marukani trek on-land and take citadel by surprise. We signal, and everyone sail in.

The Storyteller . o O ( Oh, the list. It's mostly lumber, with a good number of other naval stores tossed in for good measure -- canvas, pitch, oakum, etc. Room needed.... )

Captain Kaizoku says, "Not without promise Monkey, but then who will pilot the Stormhammer on the raid? It will be needed to move fast and disable the naval ships in the harbor. And how many men are in that citadel?"

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( I'm angling for if it's the coastal trader or blue-water merchant that will be needed to haul things. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Figure half a load for the Majestic Voyager, or two full loads for a Rahkamo ship. )

Monkey says, "Why? If we have the citadel and Corona, we can shoot their ships down from both sides. And that's if we want to sink them. I'm sure the Rahkamo wouldn't mind grabbing a few themselves."

Monkey says, "Besides, rather than raiding for supplies and the repairing the ships ourselves, wouldn't it make more sense to just take their good ships if possible?"

Captain Kaizoku steeples his fingers. "Speed is of the essence Monkey, and any ship there will likely be manned... They will be secondary targets, in all likelyhood. Unless there is a tender there. For there are a large number of Realm sailors there, the ones we left..."

Monkey says, "Well, how about we take a look-see first then?"

Monkey says, "It'll take the crew and the Rahkamo some time to get ready after all."

Captain Kaizoku says, "Now you are thinking like a leader... get your Essence Cannon and ask the Rahkamo to have a brave captain accompany us, so he can tell the others of the conditions there."

Monkey says, "Aye aye."

Monkey turns to Noora, "Captain Kaizoku is going to fly to Scarlet Fortress and have a look-see. He wants a brake Rahkamo captain to join him and see the situation himself."

Monkey . o O ( Oh, and how many Rahkamo will be fighting with us? )

Noora says, "I will find someone to go with him. The clan is looking forward to this." She heads off. An hour later, she returns, accompanied by Johan. "Johan will go." Johan bows.

Monkey translates, "Johan's coming with us."

Captain Kaizoku says, "Tell him about travelling by the wind, so he knows what to expect..."

Captain Kaizoku goes to suit up in his Ashigaru stealth armor, putting blank parchment, ink and his spyglass in a bag and throwing a coil of rope over one shoulder.

Monkey says, "Captain summons whirlwind. We jump in. Whirlwind takes us to Scarlet Fortress. Completely safe. But must not jump out before whirlwind disappears, or you fall."

Johan nods and says, in Skytongue, "I understand."

Captain Kaizoku looks at the map carefully before setting out. "Are you ready Monkey? Is Johan?"

Monkey says, "Aye!"

Captain Kaizoku says, "Secure your weapons and hold onto my shoulders."

Captain Kaizoku concentrates and summons up a spiral of emerald ribbons, then takes the end of one and whirls it around over and over around himself and his passengers, invoking the Stormwind Rider.

The Storyteller . o O ( Are you going by land, or sea? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Sea for most of the journey, then land for the last 10 miles or so... Stormwind must kick up a very visible wake. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Yes, of spray or dust. )

Monkey . o O ( And snow! )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( They're watching the sea though... )

Monkey . o O ( Oh, wait, not cold enough. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Either way, the distance is about 100 miles... so it's about an hour's journey. )

Captain Kaizoku calls out over the wind "Take note of the area Monkey! Knowing the terrain can be very valuable!"

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey, make a Per + Awareness roll if you do so, difficulty 2 )

Monkey takes mental notes, "Sea, sea, sea, more sea. Oooo, a bit of land on the left. Sea, more sea. Oh, we're getting close."

Monkey rolled 3 dice on Per+Awa and got no successes but no botches either.

Monkey . o O ( It's amazing how I predicted the dice roll. )

The Storyteller . o O ( It's not very _interesting_ terrain... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Captain, do you stop the stormwind far enough away from the city that it won't be seen from the walls? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yes. )

The Storyteller . o O ( That's about 3 miles out, then, taking into account the ridge that hides the city from the coast. After that, it's a simple question of walking without being noticed... Everybody gets to roll Dex + Stealth. )

You rolled 5 dice on Johan stealth and got 2 successes.

Monkey rolled 6 dice on Dex + Stealth and got 1 success.

Captain Kaizoku rolled 6 dice on Stealth and got 2 successes.

Approaching the city of Scarlet Fortress is not difficult. There are a few manors and peasant farms here on the east face of the ridge, easily avoided by staying off the roads and trails. No one sees you as you ascend the steeper part near the top of the ridge. Walking south along the ridge, you come to an abandoned watchtower that looks out over the sea, the city, and the wild lands beyond.

Captain Kaizoku says "Perfect..." as he leads the small group in and up to the top, bringing out his spyglass to inspect the city below.

Monkey says, "Ooo, a high place. Excellent vantage point."

Monkey says, "Let's see... one ship, two ships...."

Monkey . o O ( How many ships are there? How many of them are big ones? (Rough numbers are good enough.) )

From here, you have a good view of the city and the harbor. The harbor is clearly artificial, and probably carved out by magic. (Make an Int + Lore check to date the city's architecture, diff 2 from this distance.) A road leads north from the city's only large gate, vanishing into the distance. The walls themselves are squat, thick, and red. The city hugs the harbor, a crescent that matches the harbor's near-perfect arc. On the western end is a tall tower, perhaps a hundred feet high. On the eastern end, a citadel covers a sixth of the city. Even from here, you can tell that it's a manse, probably Air-aspected. Jutting out into the sea from the citadel is a seawall, at least thirty feet wide. A walkway runs along the top. The seawall heads WSW for about a quarter mile before turning due west for another eighth of a mile. At the end of it is a lighthouse, shorter than tower and manse. You can see the flames flickering from the top.

Captain Kaizoku rolled 6 dice on int+Lore and got 5 successes.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Typical. )

The city probably dates back to the Shogunate era -- the style has some resemblance to Lookshy. No First Age weapons are evident, though you see places for them.

Monkey . o O ( Probably been carted off to Blessed Isle. )

Monkey says, "Better defended than I liked."

Captain Kaizoku starts to draw up a map of the harbor, paying close attention to the movements of any ships through it, to look out for water hazzards. Studying the citadel, he asks Monkey "Indeed. What do you see as the best way into the tower?"

Monkey says, "Get into the city and use the tower's front door."

In the harbor, many ships are docked, and there is room for many more. The fishing fleet is probaly out to sea at the moment. What you do see are a squadron of triremes, a tender, a squadron of biremes, and around twenty or so small cargo vessels -- coasters and coastal traders, plus a few blue-water merchants and large merchant ships. Of course, there are also many, many small boats moving around the harbor.

Monkey says, "or I could just go from the outside and jump to the top. But that'll be work."

Monkey . o O ( Read: that'll require significant essence spending. )

Captain Kaizoku says, "You would not need to take the whole tower Monkey, just secure the top, where the weapons are..."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( What sort of readiness do the fighting ships display, and are they local or Realm? )

Monkey . o O ( Are there battlements on the top of the tower or is it a flat roof with no access? How about windows? How big are the windows? )

TonyC decides that saving the world takes priority over chatting and disappears.

TonyC takes a break from saving the world and wanders in.

Monkey . o O ( Sorry. )

Monkey . o O ( Accidentally hit backspace, which told firefox to exit the current screen. )

Monkey . o O ( It's a convenient feature, but not without drawbacks. )

Looking at the flags, you see that the triremes fly the House Ferem banner, while the tender and the biremes are Realm. Flying from the citadel are the banners of House Ferem (ruling house of Cherak) and, on near-equal footing, House Ragara and V'Neef. You also note that there are no Guild banners on the merchant ships -- rather, those that have a flag fly an unfamiliar symbol, of a golden chain around a white shield on a field of black. The fighting ships seem to be in good trim, and you see the expected activity for a ship at dock.

Captain Kaizoku says, "If jumping is not an option, where is the best place to land the Stormhammer and move the Marukani up to the door Monkey?"

The tower on the northern edge of town has a battlement atop it. There are windows dotted all over the tower, though none lower than fifty feet that are man-size. You can't say for sure, but it looks like the windows are shuttered. The same seems to be true of the manse, but not the lighthouse, which looks like it was constructed more recently.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Any first age weapons on the ships? And does there appear to be a well-stocked shipyard? )

Monkey says, "Obviously, at the docks. Since we're repairing the other ships, perhaps a little bit of reworking on the cabins and mast can alter her line enough. Some new paint, and we might be able to slip it off as a rich dynast's ship."

Monkey . o O ( I'm arguing for that Larceny obviously apply for a smuggling run, which is what Kaizoku asks. After all, isn't slipping the Marukani where the local government don't want them too is smuggling? )

The Storyteller . o O ( CK: No, and yes. The shipyard is in the center of the docks, with the military ships docked east of them next to the citadel. Merchant shipping and fishing boats are docked between the citadel and the shipyard, and west of the shipyard. )

Captain Kaizoku says, "But can you pass as a Dynast Monkey? One of the merchant ships would be less conpsicuous, and then we will not need to bring it in and out under fire, only out."

The Storyteller . o O ( Yup. Larceny would apply to the planning and the disguising, which would then add to Sail rolls on the actual run. )

Monkey . o O ( David, what's minimum crew for sailing a tender? )

The Storyteller . o O ( 17 )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( 17 )

Monkey . o O ( Okay, so, what's the plan now? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( What's the richest looking target near the harbor? )

The Storyteller . o O ( In the city itself? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yes, something that seems an obvious target for a raid. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Hard or soft? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Basic plan is this... sail the Venture in as a normal trading ship, Akbar posing as the captain, Monkey in command, with the Marukani abord, and plenty of extra crew... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Soft. )

Monkey says, "If it's me, I'd pick the most dependable sailors, slip them in a disguised Stormhammer, and wait for nightfall. Then I'll take the tower and start shooting at the ships at dock. That'll confuse them. Captain, you and the sailors can then try to take the tender over and sail it out in the confusion. Stormhammer can then sail out with the others, as I'm sure most of the ships will put up sail rather than be sitting ducks to the tower's guns."

Captain Kaizoku says, "An admirable plan Monkey, but it does not take into account our new friends... it is a good start, however."

Monkey says, "Oh, yes, I forgot about them."

Monkey turns to Johan and asks him, "If you're leading the combined fleet, what would you do?"

The Storyteller . o O ( There's a complex of warehouses and stables in the central section of the city -- northwest of the shipyard -- that looks like a combination caravan stop and shipping depot. )

Captain Kaizoku says, "We will sail the much larger Venture in, hiding its deck gun, and infiltrate as you suggest... Then, the rest of the fleet will begin a raid, half going to... that there, while the other half move to the shipyard to get what we need and then burn it. The Venture will be close enough to be loaded up with the wood and the like."

Monkey . o O ( That there? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Exactly. )

Monkey . o O ( What is that there? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( That warehouse complex. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Hrm. )

Captain Kaizoku says, "The troops will deploy from the Tender to stop that part of the raid... then our men will move in and seize it, while fire from the Nimbus disrupts the troops on the ground."

The Storyteller checks travel times.

Monkey says, "Loading will take a lot of time, Captain. Generally we don't do it unless we're convinced we can overwhelm the defenders."

Captain Kaizoku says, "I am... you saw what the Lightning Ballistae did to triremes Monkey. In the harbor, they will find it even harder to dodge."

Monkey says, "I mean the city militia, Captain. The legions, in house-to-house fighting, against our sailors carrying supplies? And we can't fire unless we want to hit our sailors too."

Johan, who has been listening in polite incomprehension to most of your conversation, taps Monkey on the shoulder and points. "Look, a ship." Following his pointing finger, you see a fast courier tacking around the western ridge, making for the harbor. The sail displays the symbol of House V'Neef in bright colors.

The Storyteller . o O ( Time-wise, it's about 1:00 pm. )

Captain Kaizoku trains his spyglass on the ship. "This may change things... it is the realm troops that concern me more though, and they will move in formation to the warehouse first... it is a large diversion. The shipyard attack will take place shortly after.

The Storyteller . o O ( Captain, roll Perception + Awareness. )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 6 dice on Armor Awareness and got 2 successes.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Naturally. )

Monkey . o O ( Okay, I don't get the need to grab supplies from the warehouse. If we grab the tender, we ought to have enough supplies for the immediate need. Now, as a distraction that's fine, but why actually bother carrying and loading supplies rather than just burning down the warehouse and the shipyard right away? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( By "Supplies" I mean the wood and other ship repair supplies, not food and booty. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Since the ships aren't in a shape to get back to Lookshy at this time. )

@emit Movement along the road catches the Captain's eye, and he trains the spyglass on it. Marching toward the city are the sailors and marines he released from the captured fleet.

Movement along the road catches the Captain's eye, and he trains the spyglass on it. Marching toward the city are the sailors and marines he released from the captured fleet.

Monkey . o O ( I mean that. Any long voyage ship will have them. A tender, doubly so. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Enough to repair five badly damaged ships? Jesse? )

The Storyteller . o O ( Thinking... )

Monkey . o O ( Another thing that you haven't considered is cannibalizing a ship. Need a new mast for Nimbus? Why, Scarlet Justicar has a perfectly fine mast. Planking? Well, Nimbus and Scarlet Justicar are built among the same lines. It isn't exactly interchangeable, but Nail ought to be able to salvage the now-mastless Scarlet Justicar for enough planking to patch the hole. )

Monkey . o O ( Alright, enough from me. You should have enough input to decide on a course. If you still think raiding the warehouse is good, just say so. )

The Storyteller . o O ( No. The tenders are designed to provide routine maintenance supplies and enough repair material for a damaged ship to limp home. Therefore I'd say a tender has enough material on board to fully repair two ships -- and I mean fully, back up to battle-ready status -- or to patch all five up to "sail but don't fight" status. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey does have a good point on the salvage thing, too. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( We need lots of ships though... Hmmm. One thing... are the tender's troops on the ship? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Based on the Captain's knowledge, would scrapping one and getting the Tender's supplies be enough to get the Nimbus battle ready and the rest at least seaworthy? )

The Storyteller . o O ( You can't tell from here, but you doubt it. When in port, it's better for morale to lodge trireme crews -- and marines -- on land, since there's so little room on board. That applies to triremes, too... and it gives you a chance to delouse the ship! )

The Storyteller . o O ( CK Definitely. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( OK... still want to get some booty besides the ships though, if possible... any rich-looking warehouses near the military docks? )

The Storyteller . o O ( Yes, some marked with that unfamiliar chain-and-shield symbol. Unlike most of the warehouses you can see, they have guards at the doors, which is promising. )

Monkey . o O ( Has Monkey ever encountered that symbol before? )

Captain Kaizoku notes those on a new, close-up map of the city harbor area.

The Storyteller . o O ( Roll Wits + Bureaucracy, both of you, difficulty 2. )

Captain Kaizoku rolled 6 dice on Wits+Bur and got 1 success.

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( D'oh. )

Monkey rolled 2 dice on something and got 1 success.

Monkey rolled 1 dice on something and got 1 success.

Monkey . o O ( My wits is actually 3. So the two rolls are added together. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Monkey, you recognize it as the symbol of House Margard, a trading concern that operates out of Cherak. )

Monkey . o O ( The info doesn't seem relevant to the raid being planned, so I won't bother pointing it out to Kaizoku. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( What is the courier doing? Any Dynasts above deck? )

The Storyteller . o O ( The courier docks in front of the citadel. A runner dashes in, and about thirty minutes later there's an uptick in the activity there. At around that time, the sailors finally reach the city. From this distance, you can't tell if there are any Dynasts on the courier. How long are you going to stick around? )

Captain Kaizoku says, "The plan is taking shape Monkey... We will infiltrate the Majestic Voyager with you and the Marukani aboard into the harbor... you will seize the tower there at dawn, when the raid will begin. The Corona will dominate the harbor and disable the triremes with its weapons while half of the Northmen ships go for the Tender and support vessels, and the other half raid those warehouses."

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Not much longer. )

Captain Kaizoku says, "Do you have enough of the layout in mind to make your raid there Monkey?"

Monkey says, "Sure. But Captain, you should tell the northmen to put up some sort of identification for the ships they stole, otherwise in the dark, we might confuse friends with enemies."

As you watch over the harbor, you see a pair of the triremes get ready to sail. Oarsmen and marines stream out of barracks near the docks and board their ships, and you hear the tattoo of the drums announcing their departure.

Monkey . o O ( Ah heck, even in daylight, if you actually have to look at the crew to identify them, it'll take too long. )

Captain Kaizoku ho hos. "Even better..." he says, watching the warships start to depart. "We will have banners... that tender should become my new flagship Monkey."

With spider-like motion, the triremes sweep out of the harbor and head west, up the coast. As the rearmost one vanishes around the ridge, you see the V'neef banner being hauled up the mast, to fly above the House Ferem banner.

Captain Kaizoku says, "Well, that is interesting... but now it is time to return."

Monkey says, "Ah, looks like that dynast commander just boarded the trireme to go home."

Monkey says, "Or meet with the main fleet."

Captain Kaizoku says, "Much more likely, considering the disaster the fleet had yesterday."

Monkey says, "Johan, we're heading back."

Captain Kaizoku says, "Ask Johan how well he thinks his clan's ships could sail to there and there first."

Captain Kaizoku points to the tender yard and the warehouses.

The Storyteller . o O ( ping )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( It wasn't backspace again. )

Monkey says, "How good can Rahkamos can go to the warehouse there and next to that ship there?"

Monkey . o O ( Some of the mangling is intentional. The other, uh, my bad. )

Johan thinks for a minute, then says, "Good enough."

Monkey says, "He says no problem."

Captain Kaizoku says "Very good... now, back downstairs and away!"

Monkey . o O ( It is getting late. How much of this must be resolved in game and which one first? )

The Storyteller . o O ( I think we'll cut it off now, so as to give me some prep time. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Getting back to Point B is done quickly enough and without detection... )

The Storyteller . o O ( Any questions / comments? )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Seems pretty straightforward for a complex raid... Just need to figure out Monkey's escape plan. )

Monkey . o O ( There's a thread at sjgames.roleplaying about a play-style similar to Oceans 11. It appears to me that trying it for one or two of our session could be interesting. )

Monkey . o O ( Monkey? Plan? What plan? )

The Storyteller . o O ( That's what I was thinking about doing. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Let's see... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( The "we've got a plan?" one? )

Monkey . o O ( Oh, that one! )

Monkey . o O ( And we really need to get back to stating a mission at the end of a session and actually doing it the next session and repeat. )

The Storyteller . o O ( In the meantime, 3 xp each and we'll hammer out some details over e-mail. With any luck I can put a map of Scarlet Fortress up online, but don't count on it. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( How does the clan take the plan? )

Monkey . o O ( Luckily this week is ideal to start the habit back. )

The Storyteller . o O ( It's a bit more complex than they're used to, but they have a charmingly naive trust in the ability of a Sun-lord to pull it off. )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( Yes. So, raid the harbor to seize the tender, loot the merchant warehouses and fire the shipyards with firedust, and deliver a message about what happens when House V'Neef gets into your affairs. )

The Storyteller . o O ( Well, if that's all... Anything else we'll do over e-mail. See you guys next week... )

Captain Kaizoku . o O ( I'm good. )

Monkey . o O ( See ya. )

• On to Session 23