< WARNING SPOILERS FOR 50 FATHOMS AHEAD MATEY!>
DAY 149
PLACE: THE PIRATE SEA
WEATHER: FOGGY
TIME OF DAY: DUSK
The pirates got their planks in place and began a boarding action on the junk from the Nightmare Ascendant.
A man in green robes flew across the gap and tried to cast a burst at the men on the planks before landing on the junk. He introduced himself to Red Pirate Roberts as Ricardo Montagne, a spy from the Spanish Guild. Ricardo had noticed the buildup of forces in the harbor of Baltimus of the man o' war H.M.S. Justice, 2 galleons, and 3 brigantines of the British East India Company being readied for war and worried that New Madrid might be the target. So he disguised himself as a noble rake named Richard and attended a rave held by Bruno Baltimus. The Frenchman Pepe La Roche was also in attendance flaunting a noble signet ring of France from Earth. He spied a meeting of Bruno and Pepe in private and saw Bruno give Pepe a sack of money before the exchanged a handshake and a European kiss on both cheeks to seal whatever deal they had made. He made friends with Pepe at the party revealing that he was an air mage who could be of use to him on his personal noble ship. He had drunkenly followed Pepe La Roche back to his ship anchored on a beach far outside Baltimus, the galleon, the Nightmare Ascendant. That is when it had clicked together for Ricardo. Pepe La Roche was none other than La Sanguine, one of the three pirates that were part of the Coalition who had vowed to defend Brigandy Bay. The British East India Company was going to invade Brigandy Bay and Bruno Baltimus had just paid off La Sanguine to break his deal to defend it while sending Admiral Duckworth out to fight them while Bruno knew they would only have two ships to defend the town.
He pretended to help La Sanguine, using his zephyr spell to improve the Nightmare Ascendant's speed as they fled Baltimus while looking for a chance to warn the pirates or alert the Spanish Guild to what was happening. When he beheld the visage of Red Pirate Roberts, hated enemy of the British East India Company and a pirate queen in her own right, he knew the time to change sides was nigh.
[Ricardo Montagne spent most of the battle talking having spent 5 power points on zephyr on the Nightmare Ascendant and 6 on the fly spell with only 4 left for two bursts. Ricardo is half French/half Spanish and from the Pyrenees. This is the result from the Turncoat card played last time.]
"Traitorous swine! You will die for zis Richard!"--La Sanguine
Red Pirate Roberts ordered her men to fire pistols and used their knives to slash the men on the planks. She hid behind Smithers after tripping on the rudder controls due to her peg leg. Smithers aimed at La Sanguine.
Horventerous sent a blast that killed most of the center crew of the Nightmare Ascendant.
Unk swung to the other ship and slashed two of the pirates down with his long sword and hook.
Unk was surrounded by pirates swarming up from below decks and was wounded. Pirates at the head of the planks tried to rally and fight back the sailors. Other pirates created half a plank bridge. La Sanguine aimed back at Smithers.
Ricardo flew forward and cast a burst that blew away the new plank and plank makers before flying back and landing on the junk again.
Smithers fired at La Sanguine but hit the bulwark of the Nightmare Ascendant instead. Red Pirate Roberts ordered her reinforcements from below decks to fire on the boarders and killed a few. Her men with knives at the planks stabbed the pirates and broke their initial rush. Her men in the north reloaded.
Suzu rushed in and killed a pirate with her spear trying to reach her surrounded brother. Unk used Rope Monkey to escape the surrounding pirates and attack La Sanguine, wounding him with his long sword and hook. His concentration on the aim broken, he turned his one good eye to Unk.
"You are not even a man, nothing but an ape!"--La Sanguine
[Angered Chessie used the Payback card to increase her next attack accuracy and damage!]
Horventerous cast another blast at the pirates who had surrounded Unk.
La Sanguine drank a potion and then he lifted his eyepatch and stared at Unk. A black glass eye with yellow and red threads inside flared to life and glowed red. Unk was left crying and afraid of being stared at for an extended time. La Sanguine's pirate engineers put down another plank as other pirates tried to head off the surging sailors who were now boarding the Nightmare Ascendant down the main planks. The pirate's fierce counter attack killed three of the sailors who fell into the Pirate Sea. Red Pirate Robert's other sailors reloaded their pistols.
[Ellen played Rally which removed the Shaken from Unk's fear and her sailors.]
Horventerous taunted La Sanguine but couldn't overcome the pirate captain's will.
La Sanguine shot at Unk but missed and Unk blocked his cutlass with his hook. La Sanguine's pirates attacked Unk from behind but their blows deflected off Unk's armor. La Sanguine's pirates fought at the main planks but couldn't break through. La Sanguine's pirate engineers finished the third plank.
Horventerous aimed a blast at the reinforcements and defeated most of the main bulk of the remaining forces.
Unk attacked La Sanguine and wounded him with his long sword. Suzu speared a pirate as she desperately tried to break the pirate lines to reach her brother.
Red Pirate Robert's men fired but missed. Her sailors surged ahead with Suzu helping to break the line at the northern main plank.
[Andrew used the Inspiration card]
Horventerous ran across the planks to get to the other side of the ship.
Red Pirate Robert's had her men fire on the men on the tertiary plank and then her sailors overran most of the remaining pirates on the planks and amidships on the Nightmare Ascendant.
La Sanguine tried to attack Unk but fell over.
[Critical failed my Fighting roll!]
Unk slashed off La Sanguine's leg and turned around to hook a pirate who dropped his weapons and raised his hands.
"We surrender, don't kill me!"--Veteran Pirate
The other five remaining pirates also surrendered with their captain dead.
Red Pirate Roberts grabbed pieces of eight for the ship hoard.
Horventerous found a Tome of greater healing and read it for four hours.
The sailors moved ship relics and cargo spaces to the Nightmare Ascendant. Then they scuttled the junk to prevent it from being captured by the British East India Company and used in their war effort.
Ricardo gave Red Pirate Roberts a treasure map to a nearby sunken ruin as payment for freeing him from La Sanguine. He asked Red Pirate Roberts what she would do now. She could race to warn Brigandy Bay, take him to New Madrid to report to the Spanish Guild, or sail on to Baltimus which he recommended against with so many British East India Company ships in the harbor. In the end, she decided to head for the sunken ruins and then Brigandy Bay.
[The treasure map is a bonus from their Windfall card play last time.]
Day 150-151
PLACE: THE PIRATE SEA, SUNKEN RUINS
Red Pirate Roberts followed the treasure map northeast to the nearby sunken ruins. Horventerous dived and found a signet ring of Ograpog, a stone sculpture in the shape of a Masaquani, and a gold necklace.
Unk used his hook hand to scoop out Horventerous's left eye and then put the glass eye inside. He then covered it with La Sanguine's red eyepatch.
Horventerous cast greater healing on Unk restoring his junk.
[Stumpy Pete shot Unk's unmentionables earlier in the campaign. The question I had was why not heal his hand instead? Well I guess virile priorities...]
Day 152-154
PLACE: THE PIRATE SEA
The group headed southeast.
Day 155
PLACE: THE PIRATE SEA
WEATHER: OVERCAST
TIME OF DAY: AFTERNOON
The group was spotted by Admiral Duckworth aboard the H.M.S. Justice accompanied by a fleet of British East India Company ships headed to invade Brigandy Bay!
[I got a face card. Andrew rolled the D20 and got this encounter at this time of all times!]
The H.M.S. Justice chased the Nightmare Ascendant briefly before catching up to them and extending boarding planks.
"Prepare to be judged by Justice Bringer!"--Admiral Duckworth.
[Incredulously, I failed a Notice roll by Admiral Duckworth to see the player characters or read the name of the ship. So to him these were just probable pirates on a black ship.]
Just as Admiral Duckworth was about to step foot on the Nightmare Ascendant, Ricardo cast zephyr on the ship's sails and they moved away from the H.M.S. Justice. Horventerous read storm from a scroll and summoned a huge storm that lasted two hours.
Red Pirate Roberts safely navigated through the storm. Admiral Duckworth's fleet was not so lucky. They lost two brigantines to the storm and stopped chasing the Nightmare Ascendant to look for any survivors that may be essential for the land assault on Brigandy Bay.
[Admiral Duckworth rolled for the whole fleet, but only had two Bennies, so failed the third and fourth rolls and lost vital tokens for what is coming.]
Day 156
PLACE: THE PIRATE SEA
The group didn't even stop to fish for food as they sailed to Brigandy Bay at maximum speed with Red Pirate Robert's skillful boating and Ricardo's most favorable winds possible with zephyr. Stale provisions for everyone.
Day 156
PLACE: BRIGANDY BAY
WEATHER: RAINY
TIME OF DAY: NIGHT
The group left the ship and started to warn pirates at the docks of the impending invasion of the British East India Company within days. Runners at the ships ran to the various taverns and bars to tell the news to the carousing pirates. Most of the drunken pirates stumbled towards their ships to escape Brigandy Bay.
The group was approached by a messenger who asked to see La Sanguine bearing a message in a scroll case for him with the wax seal of the Coalition...
[End of Session]
XP: 3; Veteran (4; Seasoned)
MINIMUM XP: 33
LOOT: 3,170 pieces of eight, 65 cutlasses, Devil's Eye, gold necklace, 60 knives, 4 muskets, 64 pistols, Ring of Protection, Signet Ring of Ograpog, stone Masaquani statue, Tome (Greater Healing), two double-barreled pistols
MINIATURES
Tri-folds used are from the 50 Fathoms Figure Flat Pack PDF and the metal Kraken miniature made by Pinnacle Entertainment Group. Heroclix by WizKids used for La Sanguine. Jace from Magic the Gathering Arena of the Planeswalkers by Wizards of the Coast used for Ricardo. Ships used are from Letters of Marque by Fantasy Flight Games and a sailing porcelain ship from Red Rose Tea. Kongo (Unk) from Grey Matter Games Deadly Missions Mercenaries and Kitha (Suzu) from Grey Matter Games Deadly Missions Third Edition. Cannons and the planks are actually bridges from a printout page from DramaScape's Western Keep.
MAPS:
For the ship to ship combat, DramaScape's Print on Demand maps Above Decks Volume One 18th Century Corvette was used for the Nightmare Ascendant and Above Decks Volume Two Smuggler's Sloop and The Wave Runner was used for the group's junk. Above Decks Volume One has a damaged ghost corvette on one side and a normal corvette on the other that was used for the Nightmare Ascendant. Above Decks Volume Two's Smuggler's Sloop side was used for the junk. The Above Decks series features mostly top decks for ship to ship combat.
Above Decks Volume One 18th Century Corvette
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/113794/Above-Decks-Volume-One-18th-Century-Corvette?affiliate_id=12615
Above Decks Volume Two Smuggler's Sloop and The Wave Cutter
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/114448/Above-Decks-Volume-Two-Smugglers-Sloop-and-The-Wave-Cutter?affiliate_id=12615
GM Notes
As a player, we didn't really play any of the war sections of 50 Fathoms, so this is definitely a plot line I wanted to go through in this second chance at the campaign as GM if the players wanted. Of course in our run of 50 Fathoms, we were allied with the British East India Company through the machinations of Tellah and Grof and probably would have helped invade Brigandy Bay for a share of the plunder if they had asked us! This time it is different with Unk murdering a bartender in Baltimus and the main group being wanted as accessories to that murder by the British East India Company and Bruno Baltimus. With their attack on a mining camp in the Coaker Mountains and a prison break at Paltos, the group is also wanted by the Kieran Empire. This makes the Spanish Guild their only potential political allies and some pirate factions.
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