Day 1 - Somewhere Beyond the Sea

An excerpt from the diary of Vicks Underfoot

This week, our adventurers kicked off the campaign with some maritime enjoyment! Halfling rogue Vicks Underfoot and Elven singer-swordsman Valamonde Brightsong, strangers with common goals, both chartered the same ship to travel to the land of Saiha. Saiha is rumored to be an exotic land with little law and much fortune; perfect for two budding adventurers. The ship, The Olestra, is captained by Kynan "8 Fingers", a seemingly kind man with a deadly longsword. Valamonde regaled the crew with songs of seafaring, while Vicks overheard an argument between the captain and one of the crew concerning the cargo below deck.

The Captain and the irritated crewman, a fighter elf named Legli Dorn, went down into the crew deck and proceeded to have a heated discussion with one man guarding the cargo below. This six foot thug with black hair and a jumpy disposition stood all day in the same spot, and he introduced himself to Vicks as Dirk Fillibuster. Vicks, in an attempt to befriend Dirk, pickpockets him first, and tries to start a conversation. Dirk acts a little nervous, and doesn't reveal much. Valamonde, curious as to what is going on below the deck, attempts to move unnoticed toward the stairs. Unfortunately, he rolls a 1 (I relish every critical failure), and he face-plants onto the deck right at the top of the stairs. Luckily, he used some quick thinking, and pretended to be seriously injured; causing a distraction amongst the crew and the captain. This allowed Vicks Underfoot to sneak by, steal a bottle of bourbon from the captain's quarters, and share it with Dirk. It was then revealed that Dirk was guarding human cargo!

Vicks's diary, continued

Hyza Woodheart had chartered a ship to take her to a distant village in her search to find her father. However, she was kidnapped from her lodgings and held in the cargo hold of the Olestra. Dirk confessed that he and his gang, the Slyhorns, were being paid to kidnap and deliver her somewhere. However, Dirk doesn't want to be in a gang anymore. He was using this trip as an escape; a way to get away from the Slyhorns, by traveling to a foreign land and disappearing. He apologizes to Hyza, and gets exceedingly drunk. The night falls and the crew and our adventurers go to sleep after a tiresome day.

The next day, the captain sees a ship in the distance, flying a white flag and limping along. Since he is a noble fellow, he orders the crew to investigate. Valamonde, suspecting something fishy, heads up to the crow's nest to get a better look, while Hyza and Vicks stay below deck. As the Olestra nears the other ship, a woman can be seen on board, waving a large white flag back and forth. She asks for aid, saying that her captain is sick and medical supplies are needed. Kynan orders some medical supplies to be brought aboard. Then, much to his surprise, members of her crew jump out and reveal themselves as pirates. A red flag with a black octopus zips up the mast of the pirate ship, and several pirates attack the crew of the Olestra. A battle ensues! Valamonde encourages the crew with a brave song about defeating pirates, though he takes a serious injury by sword, Vicks slays the leader, Isabella, and Hyza joins the battle at the tail end to daze their foes. The adventurers and their allies were victorious, though Dirk Fillibuster was nearly slain. Hyza saves Dirk's life with her healing kit, while Valamonde and Vicks investigated the pirate ship. Loot was shared amongst the adventurers, though Vicks did steal a large amulet with a red stone from Isabella's quarters unnoticed. This is where we wrapped for the night.

I felt guilty starting this campaign with one character bound and gagged while the others were allowed to move freely. I think it was a risky decision, though it did end up turning out alright. I thought it might be helpful to Rhianna to see how the game was played, since it was her first time playing. As a DM, getting characters together can be an annoying task, and often does not work out as expected. The combat this week was not as difficult as I initially thought it would be, due to the fact that my characters, including the swashbuckler, Isabella, were rolling extremely poorly. Isabella dropped her rapier on the deck (I rolled a 1), and was easily finished off by Vicks.

Lessons Learnt: 
Level 1 characters can be ridiculously weak. Valamonde took a really hard hit toward the beginning of the battle, and was knocked down to 2 hit points. Combat can be very dangerous for new characters, and strategies in this game are very important, especially at the lower levels. Hyza, the character with the lowest hit points, made a great decision to stay below decks for most of the combat in order to avoid a possible death.
Knowledge skills are helpful. Having a bard, or other class with knowledge skills, can be really useful and/or help add some flavor to the story. Valamonde rolled extremely well and was able to identify the name of the semi-notorious pirate Isabella and her ship, The Octopussy.
Making friends can go a long way. Vicks immediately began to buddy up with the strong fighter, Dirk Fillibuster. His peace offering of bourbon helped reveal the mysterious cargo, and possibly made him a future ally.