Attack on the Neveren Trade Fleet

The Attack on the Neveren Trade Fleet was the final conflict of the Banesmark Crisis of 1496, which nearly saw the destruction of the Great Neveren Trade Fleet at the hands of the aboleth S'gothgah, his kraken, and his minions in his cult of Bane as part of a plow to turn that kraken into an Avatar of Bane.
Ultimately, S'gothgah's plans were rendered foiled by the Heroes of Saltmarsh, who killed the kraken, trapped the summoned Sliver of Bane inside the God Trap, and forced S'gothgah to flee.

The Conflict

Prelude

For four years, the aboleth S'gothgah had been working to advance the goals of his master, Bane, the god of tyranny, a situation extremley unique for the normally unreligious aboleths.
During that time, the aboleth's ultimate plan came together, to use the mind-dominating power of the Banesmark to control and compel individuals across the Sword Coast North to serve him. From the Twilight Monastery, S'gothgah learned about the Feast of Corruption, a forbidden ritual that artificially accelerates the maturation of any creature placed inside of it by absorbing the fear and despair in a limited area. S'gothgah also discovered a preserved nest of kraken eggs in the Whalebones. From his base in the Styes, S'gothgah greatly enhanced the radius of the Feast of Corruption to affect nearly every major settlement between Luskan and the Mere of Dead Men, intending to greatly speed up the development of the baby kraken he hatched, keeping the kraken loyal and docile with a Banesmark on its head. Once matured, S'gothgah planned to summong a Sliver of Bane, a piece of Bane's soul, to the Prime Material Plane and merge it with the kraken, creating an Avatar of his god more powerful than any seen in recent memory.
The Great Neveren Trade Fleet was conceptualized in early 1496 during the formation of the Neveren Alliance, which was led by Neverwinter and included Focosgost, Port Llast, and Helm's Hold. The fleet would be composed of merchants and sailors from all four member cities in an extravagant display of wealth and prestige. Following months of retrofitting, the fleet was ready to depart in Nightal of 1496, a time when the Sea of Swords experienced stormy weather, but Lord Protector Dagult Neverember pushed forward, insisting that the fleet's braving of the storms would be a sign of the alliance's ability to break through any obstacle.
Seeing the opprotunity in this fleet for fear and despair, S'gothgah's Banesmarked minions began infiltrating the various merchants, sailors, and guards staffing the ships. Some of these minions included mind-dominated monks of the Twilight Monastery, while others were freshly indoctrinated, including a few ship captains. S'gotgah planned for the attack on the trade fleet to be the final capstone of the campaign of terror he had launched across Northwest Faerun, giving his kraken the final push needed to reach maturation, allowing S'gothgah to summon the sliver of Bane's soul needed to create his avatar. 
Meanwhile, since Flamerule of 1496, the Heroes of Saltmarsh had slowly been unraveling S'gothgah's plans and conspiracies, eventually discovering the aboleth's plans for his kraken. The group stormed S'gothgah's base in the Styes in Nightal of 1496, bringing with them the God Trap, a immensely powerful soul trap that would hopefully trap or prevent the Sliver of Bane from entering the kraken, should things get that far. However, S'gothgah and the kraken, ripping the Feast of Corruption from the foundation and carrying it in its tentacles, managed to escape before the Heroes arrived, heading towards the trade fleet to enact their final act of terror. The Heroes quickly ran to their ship, the Big Nauti, to pursue.

Conditions

Though the Sea of Storms in winter is often rough, the arrival of the kraken resulted in a swirling thundersnow that captured the entire fleet, reducing visability greatly while making the seas incredibly dangerous, with the eye of the storm focused on the kraken

The Engagement

On the 29th of Nightal, S'gothgah and the kraken's arrived in the fleet's path. Upon the aboleth's mental command, chaos broke out across the fleet, as Banesmarked moles placed amongst the various ships' crews rose up and began attacking indiscriminately. As they did so, a malevolent thundersnow storm summoned by the kraken consumed the fleet, and under the cover of the storm the kraken began tearing ships apart, leaving any crew not killed outright to drown or freeze in the cold waters of the ocean. The aboleth also brought numerous skum with him, which attacked those that jumped into the water and climbed the sides of other ships to attack non-Banesmarked crew. Throughout all of this, S'gothgah remained underwater, staying out of danger and coordinating the chaos.
When the Heroes of Saltmarsh arrived on the scene, multiple ships had already been sunk and others horribly damaged. The Heroes agreed that the kraken was the priority, but knew that S'gothgah had to relinquish control of his minions in order for the fleet to save itself. One of the Heroes, the triton Oceanus, pledged to track down S'gothgah and distract him, plunging into the ocean to find him. Krisella Ferox, an ally of the Heroes, maintained control of the ship's helm as the Heroes approached the kraken, which quickly wrapped its tentacles around the ship to hold it in place.
Though a brutal fight, the Heroes managed to weaken the kraken enough to cause the creature to panic. At that moment, the Sliver of Bane was summoned in the eye of the storm, causing nearly all individuals in the conflict, save for the Heroes themselves, to forcibly kneel in supplication due to its overwhelming presence. However, the God Trap activated upon the Sliver's arrival, seemingly tethering the sliver to the Prime Material Plane and preventing its merger with the kraken, but not absorbing it as hoped. An out of control ship also grazed the Big Nauti, spilling multiple Banesmarked combatants onto the ship's deck.
Undaunted, the Heroes continued fighting, and the Hero Lyra landed the final blow on the kraken, driving her shobo through the Banesmark on its forehead, driving the remaining attackers berserk and insane, though they were subdued before they drowned themselves in the ocean.
With the kraken gone, the Sliver of Bane approached the Heroes, demanding its release from the God Trap, which it referred to as the Findalhamar. The Heroes obstinately refused, beginning their fight with the Sliver with a punch from Mogran Oredelver and then finishing it off after a fight with an eldritch blast from Micah Pierce, weakening it enough to be fully absorbed into the God Trap, resulting in the item releasing its true form.
During this fight, Oceanus engaged S'gothgah, distracting the aboleth to the best of his ability and nearly dying in the process. However, before S'gothgah could finish him off, the aboleth felt the Sliver's defeat and fled into the open ocean, leaving Oceanus' unconcious body floating in the sea, before he was found by the Heroes.

Outcome

Thanks to the efforts of the Heroes of Saltmarsh, the Great Neveren Trade Fleet was saved, though with heavy losses and damages. The surviving ships returned to Neverwinter for repairs, heading back out a few months later to complete their journey up and down the Sword Coast.
The Heroes of Saltmarsh departed as soon as the attack ended, returning home to Saltmarsh before receiving the fleet's full appreciation. However, a note was sent to Saltmarsh requesting the Heroes presence in Neverwinter to allow Lord Protector Dagult Neverember to thank them personally, rewarding them with medals and gold in abundance in Hammer of 1497.

Aftermath

The attack on the trade fleet marked the end of the Banesmark Crisis, as S'gothgah, deprived of his kraken and the secret of his Banesmark, was forced to flee the water of the Sword Coast, though he was ultimately not killed. The Banesmarks too were slowly erased over the following month, as members of the Blackstaves and the Hand of Mana tracked down all of the Banesmarked followers they could locate, magically removing the mark and dampening people's memories about the mark in the first place, to prevent anyone else from making use of it.
Shortly after the battle, on the 4th of Hammer, 1497, Micah Pearce sacrificed the Sliver of Bane to his Great Old One patron, putting great strain on his soul, but ultimately succeeding, freeing him from his contract, permenately, even if slightly, weakening Bane, and empowering his patron with the soul of a god.

Historical Significance

Due to the chaotic nature of the battle, the effects of the Hand of Mana and Blackstaves' mind altering magic, and a general desire to downplay how serious the event was, the role of the Sliver of Bane in the attack and the true purpose of attack to create a kraken Avatar of Bane was not made public knowledge. As far as most people are concerned, the fleet was attacked by a rogue kraken that desired the wealth the fleet possessed, and the Heroes of Saltmarsh were in the right place at the right time to stop it.

Legacy

The Heroes of Saltmarsh's actions in saving the trade fleet and battling a kraken cemented their status as one of the most well-known adventuring groups in Northwest Faerun in this time and elevated them to legends within Saltmarsh. Though most of the Heroes would leave the town shortly after, with only Micah, Oceanus, and Biz remaining, the actions of the Heroes would not soon be forgotten. By 1600, a large statue commemorating the exploits of the Heroes stands as the centerpiece of Saltmarsh's town square.
The attack's failure would also have ramifications for decades for the god Bane and his followers. Though the Sliver of his soul was slight, Bane nonetheless lost a portion of his power and strength when the sliver was siphoned to Micah's patron, an insult Bane would not forget.
Micah's patron too would grew much stronger as a result of its absorbtion of the sliver, growing strong enough to gain a slight edge over many of its fueding rivals, giving it the ability to turn its attention elsewhere.
Though humilitated and out of favor with Bane for his failure, the aboleth S'gothgah did escape from the attack mostly unharmed, free to plot some future scheme to regain his god's goodwill.

Included under Conflict

Banesmark Crisis

Conflict Type

Battle

Battlefield Type

Naval

Start Date

29th of Nightal, 1496

Ending Date

29th of Nightal 1496

Conflict Result

Hard won victory for the Heroes of Saltmarsh

Location

Sea of Swords