Session 14 Report

General Summary

The party heads to the Marianne to ask for the crew's aid in confronting Korak and his Magpies. Captain Tides, upon reading Brennon's letter, chuckles and calls him an old friend. She and the rest of her crew gladly agree to take part in taking down the Magpie. She explains that the two ships had been in a stalemate for a while as in peace time, it became costly to go at each other as they did in the past, but now that conflict is brewing again in Ostren, it's as good a time as any to cause some trouble and leave Cressen before the rumored shutting down of ports. The Captain instructs the party to find a way to direct the attentions of the Magpies to the east in about an hour and a half-- time needed for the Marianne to prepare their plan.   In the meantime, the party finds a secluded place to smoke their dillweed to steel themselves for the fight ahead. As the hour approaches, Lephnut uses his disguise kit on Lil D to make him resemble-- to an extent-- a small dragon. Lil D is loosed towards the lookouts on the deck of the Magpie, who are distracted and follow the sight of the flying bird-dragon eastward, where they see an enraging sight: a rowboat floating past with the Marianne's war flag flying and a goliath skeleton hanging from the pole. Korak stomps up deck and screams at the sight and barks orders at his men.   Quickly making their way back to the Marianne, the party is quickly urged by its sailors to get aboard as they prepare to take off-- Captain Tides plans to fight Korak at sea, away from the view and commotion of the docks. Captain Tides explains that the skeleton is of Korak's father and then explains the origins of her blood feud with the living Korak:   Decades ago, when she was not a captain but just a sailing grunt on a cargo ship, Essie fell in love with a wealthy merchant at Port Destiny-- Marianne, the future namesake of her ship and who the figure on the prow is modeled after. They were married and Marianne was saving money for a life together. On a day when Essie was out at sea, pirates attacked Port Destiny, but no ordinary pirates. These were led by Korak, father of Korak, a barbarian from the north who fled Ostra's Pits and took up reaving. Korak's raiders ransacked Port Destiny and Marianne died in the chaos. Marianne's wealth was willed to Essie through bank bonds-- intended to be used to retire from sailing and live a happy life-- but Essie, consumed with revenge, used the funds to buy her own ship and crew, training herself to fight back. Years later, she finally defeated Korak the elder in battle, but by then Korak had a young son, who witnessed his father's death and the cycle of vengeance continued as the two crews battled and killed each other senselessly through the years. Peace in Ostren after the Genosian wars in the past decade had made their continued battle less feasible and both crews settled into a focus on business, only rustled by today's call to arms.   Captain Tides tells the party that she intends no mercy today as she had once given to the young Korak. She intends to slaughter everyone single Magpie to end the cycle, which the party has no objections to. In order to prepare them for the fight ahead, she reveals that she had been withholding some wares before and gives each a greater healing potion. A lookout announces that the Magpie can be seen in the distance, rapidly on the Marianne's heels.   The Magpie throws the first punch in the fight as bolts from the ship's ballistae streak toward the Marianne. Though not struck by the bolts, Valqinor and Big Richard are rocked to the deck by the impact and churning of the ship, taking a rough bump. Captain Tides commands evasive maneuvers as the Marianne speeds towards the Magpie to close into boarding range. As the two ships collide, the party, supported by Marianne sailors, rush onto the decks of the Magpie. The shooters on the ballistae are taken care of first. Captain Tides singlehandedly kills a few with her magic harpoon, while Lephnut is able to quickly surprise a few with devastating sneak attacks. Big Richard, aided by Lil D's flyby attacks, tussles with some crewmen. Valqinor, seeing the clustered enemies, unleashes an explosive thunderwave to take them out.   As the blood splatters the floor of the Magpie, its second-in-command Basco emerges but is hooked by Captain Tides' harpoon and teamed up on. Korak finally joins the fight, showing his might by downing Big Richard and using his prodigious goliath toughness to withstand several heavy attacks. Korak calls Valqinor's magic that of a false god and cries out to another storm lord for aid-- Talos. With his evil god's might, Korak summons his own thunderwave, severely injuring Big Richard and Valqinor, as well as killing one of his own in the indiscriminate destruction.   Big Richard is raised by Valqinor, and heals himself with his potion, withdrawing to a safer location to snipe at a Magpie crewman that had escaped overboard into the water. Big Richard manages to hit a long distance arrow despite all odds-- some would say by divine intervention, though certainly not Big Richard.   Meanwhile, the combined might of the party and the Marianne's crew finally manages to topple Korak, who is slammed unconscious against the walls of his ship. Valqinor heals Jiminy, one of the Marianne's injured crewmen, and though many are beat up, no one besides the crew of the Magpie has been slain in the fight. As they all recover from the battle, their attentions turn to what to do with Korak.