Actual Play – A rat onboard! (8/6/2015)

GM: Sean Nittner
Players: Karen Twelves, Meg Pressley, Rocko Moran, and Adrienne Mueller
System: Pathfinder
Adventure Path: Skull and Shackles

In the night…

In the middle of the night Davey and Vyv were dragged out of their hammocks and into to the captains cabin. Their with Jape, Scourge, and Plug to watch them, the captain asked them how they answered to Mr. Plug’s charge of mutiny.

Davey leapt forward in defense of Vyv, saying he acted completely on his own accord to save Jack and that he was only doing it for the good of the crew. Captain Barnabas was moved by his plea [Adrienne rolled something like a 28 on Davey’s diplomacy check] but still need an answer for the assault on officer (Mr. Plug sported a black eye from when Davey elbowed him off the wheel) as well as the danger the two of them put the entire ship in… “Had she gone over, she would have never come back up in that storm.”

In response to the captain’s question of what can I do Davey offered up anything he could possibly give, and Barnabas raised an eye at that). Much to their chagrin the other pirates were asked to step outside, while the captain, and these two lowly crewmates bartered for their lives. Captain wanted a spy in his ranks, someone to watch out for trouble on the ship that wasn’t being reported to him by his officers, especially if the trouble was coming from his officers. Davey agreed in a moment by Vyv held back. They didn’t want to be a part of the captain’s politics and refused. Disappointed, Barnabas settled on three lashes from the Cat-o-nine for the both of them. The crew had to see some discipline.

Day 9

Still being smacked around hard by the rain, the crew of the Wormwood were back at work. Some of them more tired than others.

• Madeline worked hard at delivering messages from the crow’s next to the captain, and because of her speed they only barely missed hitting some coral reefs.
• Davey, after getting Babbly the “stichman” to patch him up some more, tried to go fishing, but with all the rain he accidentally cast out the nets without securing them and lost all the fishing gear. Fipps saw it happen and laughed hysterically, rejoicing in the trouble McTavish would get in when he Fipps reported that the lost the fishing nets overboard. Davey got right up in his face and told him he was the grandson of Vincent the Vile, and if he knew was was good for him, he’d shut the hell up and never speak a word of this. He was aided by a piece of block and tackle falling from the rigging and just barely missing Fipps, courtesy of Anand. It worked, he cowed Fipps but word of Vincent the Vile’s grandson will be getting around [Thanks Devil’s Bargain].
• Vyv was set to do repairs, and did fine job of it. Good old Knots!
• Anand was idly sent to do knot work, but mostly he was looking to find out who had tried to off him the day before. He put word out through Ratliner, which worked a little too well. Anand found out that Fipps had cut the line, because he paid Scourges special wooden chits to Sly, Tate, and Jape, to put the hurt on him. Luckily his friends came to his aid and the thugs got more than they bargained for. Also not long after Mr. Plug and Riaris Krine came to break up the fight. Vyv slowed Plug down with an obscuring mist spell “where did all this fog come from” but Madeline only aggravated Krine by trying (and failing) to charm her. Krine looked with daggers in her eyes at the witch who tried to ensorcel her, but she had work to do, which was namely to break up the fight. Everyone but Sly got the message clearly. After a round they broke off their scuffle, but Sly was crazy for blood and ended up with own dagger through her hand pinning her to the formast, courtesy of Krine.

The Bloody Hour

Before the whipping time, Davey appealed to Krine to have mercy on him for the night. He was already going to get the cat for punching plug, please don’t whip him tonight for fighting as well. He had also heard (from Kroop) that Krine suffered from a bit of sciatica, or as he liked to say “itch of the butt” and said he had strong hands that could help with that. She shook his hand and squeezed to find out just how strong they were.  He would do, but it’s a chronic pain, and he be doing it every night.

Oh, and he’d be getting his whipping just like everyone else [failed diplomacy roll]

When whipping came a lot of people were getting lashed. Mostly by Scourge with his whip, but Davey and Vyv got the cat-o-nine tails as well. Vyv was hardy and ready for it (they hadn’t been caught fighting as well) but Davey had already passed out from the pain of his whipping from Scourge. Anand pleaded that he not get the cat as well, it might kill him. “What’s the point of beating a man who is already unconscious?” Eventually the captain relented, called on a toadstool named Kipper to wake him with smelling salts, pour a healing potion down his throat, and then proceeded with the whipping.

Madeline and Shivikah were not impressed. Magical healing takes the sport out of it.

The night

• Vyy, after casting a healing spell on Davey to get him on his feet, got a good night’s rest, it was needed.
• Madeline drank her rum rations with Shivikah and finally made true friends with the ex-slaver [Helpful] and learned that Shivikah was a former slave herself. The two bonded over cruelty.
• Davey made busy rubbing the master gunners back, but not well enough to truly impress her. When he emerged from the officer’s quarters, Tilly saw him and called him the officer’s pet. How right she was, but about the wrong officer.
• Anand went out and found Slippery Sly Lonagan still stuck on the formast. He pulled the dagger from the post and told her she was the worst with knives. Still a bit crazy (and more loopy from the blood loss) she said “wanna bet?” And he did, and so they played knifesies. Anand lost the first game but Sly was willing to do it again. She lost the second bout and stabbing herself led to unconsciousness. Anand didn’t make a friend, but he was pretty fascinated by this crazy woman. He dropped her off at the stichman’s quarters and put the knife under her pillow. As a present?

XP Awarded

• 150 (Defeating Tate, Jape, and Sly)
• 50 (Befriending Shivikah)
• 150 (Securing the the position of captain’s informant)
• 50 (“Winning” at Knifesies)

Total gained: 400
New XP total: 2025

A favorite moment of mine

When Anand and Madeline where chastising Davey for being a rat and Ratliner overheard the word and butted into their conversation. Someone call me?