[Game Thread] Chapter 1: There Is No Honour

[Avelestar]

Soller thinks for a moment, and counts something on his fingers. "Alright, you can come up. But only for ten minutes." He waves a hand, and walks off back below decks. In the meantime a rope ladder is thrown overboard and the three of you clamber up it. You can't see Soller anywhere on deck, but the three remaining sailors ask you to wait and stand watch over you lot. Now that you're on top the deck you can't see anymore than the original three sailors, but you can hear alot of commotion below decks. After a couple of minutes, Soller returns to the deck carrying a pair of cages, another sailor behind him with two more.

Again with a wave of his hand, Soller dismisses the man who just helped him, and shows the cages to you. The first three cages contain colourful parrots, but the fourth contains a little blue lizard, sleeping quietly. It sends out a jolt of electricity at Soller when he pokes his finger in the cage to wake it up, and continues to hiss at him. "Alright, make it quick. Five hundred gold for a parrot, or three thousand for the shocker lizard." You notice he keeps looking out at the sea anxiously, as if he's waiting for something.

[Barark]

Herb whispers to jules, "whadda ya rekon? Climb up? and sneak in, i can hear voices maybe the others are on the deck now" Herb waits for a reply.

[HarpyBane]

Yeah, but lets be careful slipping beneath deck.

[Barark]

Herb starts the careful climb to the railing, not going over but just checking to see whats happening on deck.

[Redoak]

"Three thousand for a shocker lizard? Well my contact said to acquire the item I seek ahead of time, as you sometimes prefer to keep payment and not deliver your goods. The item I seek is the Lady Vanderborens family seal, and I have a writ from the Dawn Council here demanding you hand it over." waving his Scroll of Hypnotism that is rolled up in his right hand.

"Shall I read it for you or will you concede to an authority higher than your greed?" he asks as he unrolls the scroll.

OOC Readied action to cast Hypnotism on Soller Vark if they initiate combat.

[Avelestar]

The moment the words Vanderboren and Dawn Council leave your lips, Soller draws the sword at his hip and starts yelling for his men to attack. With a smirk, Hubris speaks a few quick arcane words, before facing the oncoming smugglers and simply saying. "Why don't you go for a swim to the docks, the water is nice at this time of night." The eyes of two of the smugglers glaze over, and they smile happily before leaping over the starboard side and starting the 100ft swim to the docks.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, GET BACK HERE!!" bellows Soller, looking at his swimming men with great confusion. "He's a wizard!" he screams, before turning back to Hubris to charge at the nobleman. Hearing the commotion, Jules and Herb leap over the railings they'd been hanging from and join the fight.

OOC:   Jules Herb Boar Kevot Hubris Smugglers Soller Please post your AC/HP and any effects you're under in the title of your post. Don't bother posting in initiative order either, makes the game way too slow. For now there's only Soller and 1 Smuggler on the deck, but you can hear rushed footsteps from below decks.

[Redoak]

OOC Taking a 5 foot step backwards and Fighting Defensively as a full round action. +4 to AC.

Stepping backwards as he realizes he just made himself target number one, Hubris wards his body with his quarterstaff defensively. "Ahh I don't think he wants to hand over the ring peacefully gentlemen." he states the obvious to his companions.

[Askaran]

Anticipating the attack as Hubris assaults their mark with the exact words he did not want to hear, Kevot with practiced ease and fluidity draws the massive bow from his back aswell as an arrow, nocking the slender missile as he takes aim directly at Soller, "So much for peace and cooperation, eh?" The Half-Elf smirks as he lets the wizard back behind him taking in a breath as he pulls back the string of his greatbow, the sound of the wood creaking and the bowstring tensing filling his pointed ears before with a soft exhale he lets his arrow fly.

OOC Shooting the baddy bossman

[Barark]

Herb drops lightly onto the deck with the trained stealth of a pirate, he draws he rapiers quietly and then charges straight into the back of Soller.

Crit comfirmed

[HarpyBane]

Jules takes the situation in in an instant, and shouts at the top of his lungs: "DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"

OOC would this be an intimidate check or what?

[Redoak]

"Yes drop your weapons or we shall slay you all, don't you know who that is?! That is Boar the Brutal, Pit Champion and slayer of men. And Herb the Horrible, a cut throat pirate from the Seas of Madness!!" flourishing his quarterstaff defensively Hubris continues.

"If you give up now they may accept your surrender, if not then Jules the Viper will finish you off with his bare hands and Kevot Strongbow will nail your coffins shut!" plainly trying to add to Jules attempts at non violence.

[Avelestar]

As Soller draws his sword and charges forwards, the deck of the Blue Nixie suddenly explodes into action. Jules shouts at the two smugglers, attempting to fear them into a surrender, Hubris adding flair to his words. Meanwhile the rest of the group intend to show them just what will happen if Soller doesn't surrender the ship. The remaining smuggler is cut down by Herb, struck from behind with no way to defend himself. Whilst Soller himself nearly loses an arm to one of Boar's axes, before a rather large arrow burries itself deep into the man's forehead.

Another smuggler comes up from below decks, a female who screams in horror at the sight of Soller's corpse. She immediately runs below again, screaming "BURN THEM, BURN THEM ALL!"

OOC: The S token shows where the smuggler came from/disappeared to. At the moment you can just see her boots going around a corner. Looks like Soller wasn't an important character Also Herb didn't actually have the room to charge, look at the map. You need at least 10ft in a straight line to gain the bonuses. But you minced him regardless!

[HarpyBane]

Cursing under his breath, perfectly aware of how badly this situation is heading, Jules screams and moves as fast as he can down the stairs. "NO, DONT BURN THEM" He draws his sickle, and puts Regda down, slipping down the underneath the deck as quickly as he can.

[Redoak]

The scene before Hubris explodes in blood and death, the two able-bodied men who were threatening them mere seconds before both now lay dead or dying on the deck.
"By the gods.." the young man whispers. He seems stunned for a moment then rushes forward to the man who identified himself as Soller Vark.

Slipping his hand underneath his head to try and offer the man some comfort, he discovers the point of a large arrow protruding from his skull. Pulling his hand away quickly, the palm of which is smeared with blood and bits of foamy pink matter that can only be brain tissue.

Looking up blankly at no one in particular, perhaps to shocked to notice the female pirate or he words. "She said no violence" a choked sob escapes his lips.
His boyhood prayers come back to him from the evenings spent at the temple of Wee-Jas. Not bothering to clean his hand, he claps them both together and begins praying for these souls safe departure from this world into the next.
"Wee-Jas, mistress of death and mystery, guide these poor souls to the rest that is promised to the worthy. If they be good men that walked a bad path judge them not harshly. If they be bad men let there punishment be metered out with mercy. In your name we pray all men are judged fairly, praises and glory to you Wee-Jas." crossing his middle finger and ring finger over each other and tucking his thumb into his palm Hubris makes the sign of Wee-Jas over the two corpses.

OOC West sigh-eeed... I mean Wee-Jas sigh-eed

[Askaran]

She said not to throw the first blow.. Don't worry, you'll still get your pay" Ignoring Hubris's prayers Kevot sprints after Jules, determined not to leave the man alone to fight the rest of the crew, bow finding its way to his back while the curved dagger at his belt is now gripped tightly in his hand.