If picked up on Ship's pouting, Aylar will give the wheel a placating pat, along with a reassurance that such an unbecoming appearance be only temporary and necessary for tricking the enemy. Then he will join the others and concentrate on directing Zephyr along the safest possible route.

Once the team makes landfall and everyone has stealthily sheltered in the brush, until it be time to move in, he will check the extent of his current connection to the Crew's charms. It be good if he can be at least aware of everyone's condition, but if distance or a number of people is an issue, he will prioritize Crew in his current team.

When it comes to deciding when to move, he will either wait for Devin's signal or move after the Count, letting him take point, but cautioning him to give a good listen for either clear coast or signs of trouble before going in. He will also make sure everyone else is following and doesn't get separated. Upon hearing Grog'tial's intel, he will pay attention to the candle just in case if the light source suddenly moves out of sight or extinguishes. He will also quickly signal to Clíodhna once the Crew be entering the Prison to notify her that the Team seemingly haven't been detected and for Ship to begin repositioning according to plan.

Once inside and briefed on the situation, he will note down the approaching footsteps and readying ambush, and signal to Devin to make sure the target goes down. Hopefully by that time ladies will have safely cleared out. Since the lower level door seems to be secured now, he will quietly move upstairs, along with whoever else in the team volunteers to assist - his goal is to quietly take care of the two sleeping guards while the ambush hasn't yet begun, as there still be an opening to quietly and safely secure them with more of that drugged wine, if there is any left; and if anything goes wrong and they start waking up, he and his small group are to hopefully make sure they do not finish doing so and getting anywhere close to aware of what's going on either way.

[Aylar makes sure the team safely gets in, signals the Ship, and then sneaks upstairs (with whoever would like to assist) to make sure the sleeping guards stay asleep through the coming ambush.]

Devin sees Aylar's signal and gives a slight nod. It will be done.

If/when the being coming upstairs makes it to their level, Devin will strike swiftly from shadows or behind if possible.
- If it is a living guard or townsfolk, he will use his rapier hilt to knock them out. Then he will drag them near the others, administer the drugged wine and pocket their purse.
- If he senses it is an undead or similar enemy, he will strike to kill (beheading or with silvered dagger), immediately dodging behind the door and shutting it against any ash if it be a vampirate. Any body left to be disposed of as they leave.
- If the unlikely happens and it is a prisoner, he prepares a lullaby to sleep them quickly for a brief time while it is decided what to do.

Afterwards Devin will check in again with the cat. If he judges he is needed in another area more, Devin will move as swiftly as possible to get there. Otherwise he will go upstairs if Aylar needs back-up, or shadow the Count if he proceeds downstairs. He will keep an eye on Argy as he can.

Devin acknowledges Aylar's signal and will strike depending on the situation. He checks on the cat and will move to assist where he deems he is needed most.

Bellandra: (roll dice) Your brief try reveals no change. You do not sense any of your kin in the house, nor the direction of the prison. There is still the unawakened fluyt, and very briefly, an echo far to the north.

Bellandra noted with interest the brief echo in her mind of one of her kin to the north. Something to keep in mind.

Bellandra whispered, "Cap'n, though I like the idea of bluffing, consider 'ere doing that - even if ye succeed in yer bluff, the guard would depart, aye, but he would go to whatever post in town ye direct him to, and once there would learn of our deception. This would buy us a short time indeed, but at the cost of rousing whatever foes be there to come here as well, mayhap too soon ere we are done moving the carver and carvings. If ye go for this, choose a faraway place, to buy the most time."

"Knocking them out rightaway would avoid it- ye do have a fair tactic for it, and I can strike with the pommel of me cutlass if need be."

"Another way could be, we climb inside that darkened workshop window once the guard passes, with them none the wiser." She peers at the windows, trying to gauge if they would be large enough for their crew, and whether they are shut tightly. "Or mayhap there be a second door on the other side, though I doubt they would leave it unguarded."

She suggested that they would quickly evade the patrolling guard to check the possibility of a silent entrance on the other side, before going for the bluff or knockout strategy.

However, if no such option was found there, she would agree with the knockout strategy and would support BenKii, Durik and Gilius in their attempt, following silently behind Durik and using cover of bushes as much as possible. If any attempt at bluffing or knockouts by the team failed, she would attempt to rush the guards from behind to knock them out. But if it seemed like the opportunity for surprise was lost she would aim to use her crossbow to kill them instead (or her cutlass if they were in close range by the time).

When Grog'tial enters and sees Devin's signaling, he silently positions himself near the stairs leading down. If an enemy coming up is a vampirate, he'll attempt a heart-shot (with both bolts if necessary) before said vampirate is near any crew member, otherwise he acts in such a way as to provide the least amount of risk of waking up the upstairs guards (i.e. if the downstairs enemy is wearing heavy armor, he doesn't want said enemy to go clattering down the stairs, but of course that's still better than that enemy shouting out).

If an exploding vampirate occurs nearby, he dodges out of the way, if necessary and possible also dragging along any crew member who might be in danger of being touched by ash.

If the downstairs enemy is already taken care of before Grog'tial can act, he'll silently come along upstairs to take care of whoever is there (preferring to use his dirk, but being okay with otherwise incapacitating).

After all the action is over, he'll use his mirror on the unexamined rooms, grab any (safe-looking) loot, and get ready to head downstairs.

[Grog'tial tries to account for all permutations of possible action sequences and do the necessary]

Mission 5 - Turn 2
*Turn Ends 11PM UTC, 10 October 2024.*

(roll dice) The tavern brawl has spread out until most of Dock Street's taverns and two brothels are involved. The Guard is slow to arrive, held up by a nearby inn's flock of aggressive geese and several goats that have gotten out somehow. Alarms ring out as the eastern pier's storage building continues to burn brightly.

Kyp - Harbor Chain: (roll dice*3) You and Pearl paint the chain links while Finn keeps an eye on the tiger shark. You manage to coat it well and not get any on yourself. Afterwards you address the shark. Your manners and attitude please the shark and he is curious to watch what you are doing. The shark agrees to not only accompany you, but will help to guard you. You see, he is here because the big mannish ship dropped two bodies into the harbor, so he stuck around. Now the ship has left and he is full and bored, waiting to see if it comes back or if more bodies will be dropped. He guides you over to the other chain. This one is tangled with seaweed in one section. In that seaweed, below the chain, you see a skeleton and something that glimmers slightly in the dark.
-----

Team 2/Prison Team - Aylar, Argy, Grog'tial, Baldbeard, Karnstein:
(roll dice*4) There is quiet merriment as seven seductively dressed ladies exit the prison. They seem quite satisfied with events. The lead lady, a buxom blonde, blows a kiss at Aylar with a saucy grin, then makes a welcoming gesture towards the door indicating it is safe to enter.

A dark haired beauty winks at Count Karnstein as he approaches the entrance, then trails her fingers over his chest, "All yours, tall dark and dashing. When you're done, come see me sometime," she says in a sultry purr.

A third winsome brunette caresses Captain Baldbeard's bald head and lush beard. "Ooo-la-la, the bald bearded ones are always sooo passionate. Ask for Natali, mon cherie." She brushes his cheek with a kiss and saunters off to join the others headed back to town.

A pair of sassy twins start towards Grog'tial, then pause after glancing at Argy. They smile and wave instead, then sashay off with the others, all laughing lightly and swaying their hips, calling out invitations to come visit them in low voices as they leave.

As you enter the Prison you see seven guards in various states of disarray, reeking of wine and ale. (dice rolled previously) All are knocked out (in a drugged sleep for several hours), gagged and tied with various silken bindings or colorful leather and fur restraints, two with their own belts. Any armor has been expertly unbuckled, weapons tossed in a corner, their clothes are well rumpled and pockets turned out with any purses or valuables obviously missing. It looks like it was a wild party before the guards must have passed out and had their purses stolen.

Aylar: (roll dice*2) You check your connection to the Crew's charms. It is there, but the magic in the weave doesn't come as easily and is not as strong without Cliodhna's phoenix part in the bond. You will have to take time to work with Cliodhna to strengthen the bond and rebalance your magics. In the meantime you can sense the Crew's states and attempt to protect them as you can. (The loss of Cliodhna's phoenix half has hurt the Crew's charm weave - 50% as effective against undead, 1/3 as much resist evil; until the two of you can rebalance and possibly find another way.) All Crew are currently fine, although Captain Baldbeard seems a bit bemused by the attention of the lady. You send the message to Cliodhna to bring the Ship into the harbor as you and Argy urge Captain Baldbeard into the Guard Room of the Prison.

(roll dice*4) Once inside you note Devin's signals and signal back to him. He gives you a slight nod. On the tables are still a few bottles of the drugged wine. You take one and quietly move upstairs, indicating for any volunteers to come along to assist in quietly taking care of the two sleeping guards. Upstairs are sixteen beds, two between each arrow slit with locked chests at the end of each bed and a small weapon rack hanging over each. Most of the weapon racks are empty, the weapons with the guards. A small table with unlit candle stands between each pair of beds. A single candle burns in a lantern by the head of the stairs. The loud snores are coming from a half orc only three beds away to the right. Over his head is a bastard sword and a cudgel lies on the table beside his sleeping form. Four beds away to the left is a human, breathing heavily. A mace and hand crossbow are racked above him, along with a quiver of 4 regular and 6 hardened bolts.

(roll dice *4) Aylar, you are able to sneak up on the half-orc and knock him out quietly. The human across the room does not stir. You administer a hefty dose of the drugged wine. An uneasiness begins to come over you. Since nobody came with you, you silently slip across the room and knock out the human guard as well. You finish giving him a dose of the drugged wine when you hear a slight noise behind you and notice your Phoenix charm blazing to life. You turn to see a bat fly in through an arrow slit, followed closely by another. In the blink of an eye both turn to mist and two vampires, one male and one female, face you. You feel the mental influence of one of them try to infiltrate your mind. It is quickly shut down.

Count Karnstein: (roll dice*3) You have no idea why you suddenly feel a seductive caress. You may have to talk to Argy about that tea. It is almost twelve minutes when the ladies come out and signal that it is safe to enter. Seeing Devin's signal, you also move to the door, ready to ambush whoever is coming upstairs and confront them with the cold steel of your saber. Whoever it is takes their sweet time, you COUNT down the seconds, into minutes as they fiddle with something a level below. Just as you are ready to go a bit mad, the steps start up the stairs. As you level your saber to his chest, however, Devin knocks the human guard out and begins to drag him over to join the others. The seductive caress is back, this time stronger. It feels familiar somehow. You look around, but all the ladies have left. However, your charm is slightly glowing.

Grog'tial: (roll dice*4) When you enter and see Devin's signaling, you silently position yourself near the stairs with a clear shot. You judge by the footsteps that it will be a small while yet, so you take the opportunity to use the mirror quickly around the room. Nothing unusual is indicated. A swift glance shows you the only loot left here are the various weapons, armor, clothing and the ale, wine and some food left on tables along with a plain deck of cards. You see Captain Aylar grab a wine bottle and sneak upstairs to try to take care of the sleeping guards before any noise from the ambush might awaken them. By the time the approaching guard finally deigns to come upstairs, you have a good idea of the layout. Devin swiftly knocks the guard out, so you go upstairs to help Aylar. You ascend the stairs quietly, barely noting a slight glow to your charm. Just as you enter the barracks you see Aylar spinning quickly around from where he stands over the knocked out human guard. Looking around you see two bats fly through an arrow slit and dissolve into mist. Then you are suddenly facing two vampires, one male and one female. You feel the female vampire's enticing presence beckoning you forward to come to her. You resist, but now both your charm and the dirk hidden beneath your sleeve are glowing.

For now, Captain Baldbeard is seated in the Guard Room with Argy. He seems to be a bit bemused.
-----

Devin: (roll dice*4) You have taken your Necrotic Resistance potion and pulled on your gloves, positioning yourself in the shadowed area of the doorway leading downstairs. As the Prison Team enters, you signal to them about the approaching footsteps, the two guards sleeping upstairs and silently mouth the warning of "undead." The footsteps pause on the floor beneath you. They seem to shuffle around and you hear some shifting of items, leading you to believe a storage area might lie below. After a short while the steps return to the stairs and begin to climb to the ground floor where you, Count Karnstein and Grog'tial wait in ambush. Your ears tell you there is only one, and your equipment indicate it is not an undead. Prepared, you step up and knock the human guard out just as Count Karnstein levels his saber at him. Assignment accomplished. There should be another guard with the prisoners below in a quieter and less exposed spot to interrogate. You drag the guard over with several others, dose him with the drugged wine then unbuckle his armor, muss up his clothing and steal his purse. As you do you see Grog'tial quietly ascending the stairs to help Aylar. You check in with the cat, who reports movement and talking at the carver's and all now quiet at the prison, C52, and the warehouse. Suddenly the moonstone in your rapier glows strongly and the phoenix feather reacts as you hear slight noises above you. Undead have somehow arrived upstairs!

Carver team continued below ...

-----
Naval Harbor, East Chain: Kyp.
Upstairs Prison w/2 vampires: Aylar, Grog'tial.
Ground Floor Prison: Argy, Baldbeard, Count Karnstein, Devin.

... continued from above.

Team 1/Carver Team - Bellandra, BenKii, Gilius, Durik:
Captain BenKii: (roll dice) You discuss your plan to persuade the guards to leave with the others of your team. Each one of them cautions against this and advises you, but you are sure your 'captain's charm' will prevail. You hand Gilius your sleep potion, wait while Bellandra checks the back workshop window and for the half-orc guard to pass. You sneak ahead while Gilius gets into position and Durik and Bellandra are sneaking up behind the patrolling guard. Then you boldly go where you were advised not to :P and stand up, adjust your hat, and with a slight tug on your shirt walk around to the front to boldly confront the human guard in a captain's command voice.

"Oi! What are ye two doing 'ere? I was ordered ta guard this 'ere house. The two of ye are supposed to be dealing with all the ruckus in town. They be hooting an hollering like crazy over there. Did the hightower captain mix up our orders again? Ye all hurry up and git over there and I won't say nothing. We can't afford to have anymore mistakes after those blasted pirates caught us with our pants down or the Commodore will have all our heads."

(roll dice, covers eyes and shakes head, consult Luck card, sigh) The human guard looks at Captain BenKii for a moment as if considering, then yells out, "Captain, there's someone out here saying you've mixed up our orders and we're not supposed to be here!"

(roll dice*3) Immediately several things happen; there is rapid movement and the light inside the house dims as one lantern is blown out and the other moves, a crossbow is pointed out a window at Captain BenKii, the half-orc guard starts to charge forward, and the guard captain comes to the door pointing a musket to Captain BenKii's face. (The GM considered it best if Captain BenKii didn't try to throw his punch or any sudden movements at this point.)

Gilius: (roll dice*5) You have noticed the bats and slight movement around C52. After you land you command the vegetation around all of you to provide concealment, especially for Zephyr. You thank Captain BenKii for the sleeping potion to use with your darts, then suggest that a better idea if he insists on trying persuasion with the guards would be to send them to help maintain order in the town. As you follow Captain BenKii carefully, making sure to remain hidden in the bushes. You prepare two darts with the sleeping potion. As Captain BenKii's ruse fails and the human guard calls out, you blow the dart. *Miss!* You blow the second dart and manage to hit him in the neck just above his armor. *Success!* The human guard drops to the ground asleep. As things become quiet again, you grab the guards bodies and drag them to the bushes to hide them. As you do you glance at the C52 building and see several bats heading your way, while another bat joins the one over the prison and both dart down towards the arrow slits of the top floor, looking like they've gone inside.

Bellandra: (roll dice*5) While Gilius takes care of increasing the concealing vegetation around you, you caution Captain BenKii about his idea and suggest other ways. After the half-orc guard passes, you sneak up to check the workshop window. It is locked from the inside. You would have to break the glass. (Sorry, you did have a 30% chance it was unlocked, but the dice said no.) You wait for the next patrol of the guard and follow silently behind Durik while using the cover of the bushes, looking for another entrance along the way. You discover there is only the one door, and the human is guarding it. You continue to follow quietly and creep closer as Captain BenKii tries to persuade the guard. His ruse fails as it appears the guard captain is inside the house and comes out to point a musket at Captain BenKii's face, while another guard levels a crossbow out a window. Seeing the option of surprise completely walk the plank, you quickly bring up your hand crossbow and shoot the guard captain before he can shoot Captain BenKii with his musket and alert everyone in the vicinity that something is going down here. *Success* Your shot takes the guard captain through his leather armor in the chest. He is bleeding, knocked out and down, but not yet dead.

Durik: You discuss possibilities with Captain BenKii, smartly pointing out several problems and suggesting other stealthy non-lethal ways. (Cliodhna has noticed Durik is very smart for a half-orc. Or perhaps he doesn't want to anger her, remembering the incident on the Ship with Cap'n Rummyfangs the last time they were supposed to be quiet to not blow the mission. Then again, not wanting to make her angry could be very smart too.) However it appears Captain BenKii is set on his plan, so Durik has Dakka ready while he quietly (for a half-orc) sneaks along behind the half-orc guard, ready to bonk him or have Dakka swallow him if they are discovered. As Captain BenKii's persuasion fails you take several quick steps and bonk the half-orc guard with your cudgel, knocking him back 23ft/7m into a tree where he crumbles unconscious. You hear the sudden breaking of glass as Dakka swallows the crossbowman right through the partially opened window.

All is quiet except for a slight whimper inside the house.

-----
Outside front of Carver's workshop and house: Bellandra, Captain BenKii, Durik, Gilius.

Argy clings to Baldbeard and shakes him gently. "They be not good for ye. Ye d'serve better lasses" -whispers to him.
Making sure he is not charmed, she will afterwards sneak upon some of the guards and help them having a good sleep with her pan (specially the ones Grog'tial has no good sight of). She also takes some occasional glance to their surroundings, checking that no vampirates or reinforcements arrive by surprise, ready to throw one of the cupcakes to block their way in, should the alarm be triggered.

Argy's jostling sets off a tinkle of the little bell Captain Baldbeard has on him, not loud enough to disturb anyone, but enough to bring him out of his reverie. He grins reassuringly to Argy and pats her on the shoulder to assuage any worry. But still, he'll have to remember that Natali. She might have some useful information they'll need!

Seeing that the downstairs seems mostly settled down, he tucks a bottle of wine in his belt and follows Grog'tial up the stairs, grabbing the bell in his hand for a final tinkle of reassurance before closing his fist on it so it doesn't make more noise.

Durik whispered:
"Phew, we almost risked alarm.
Bonk sometimes smarter than talk!"

"Anyway, now Durik be puzzled why Bel no sense her friens.
Me even more worried about trap now."

Durik tried to look inside the window to check the room, expecially to identify the source of the whimper (staying a bit afar to avoid surprises).

(I wonder if there's some hidden threat... maybe we could scan the building with with BenKii's Tricorder, if it's not too loud?)

(Well that all got messed up quickly. My luck was terrible but everyone else seemed to get lucky with all their shots. Well done folks. Now we have a new problem. I think we may have garnered the attention of that bat hanging over the undead pit. Given what I've read from the Prison team, it is a vampirate. I think the next thing we should do is move all the bodies to the bushes, tie them up, and loot them for everything they've got. Including their uniforms. We should put them on and act like the guards in their original positions (2 inside, 1 by the door, and the orc patrolling around the house) hoping the bat will just fly on by. I also would like to use one of my bandages to stop the bleeding on the one guard to prevent him from dying. Don't want to kill if I don't have to. As for my tricorder, I think it will draw the attention of that bat and possibly the undead. I'd wait until we get inside to use it to inspect for stuff. I would like to remind people that bjgamer mentioned earlier "No traps were detected" at the carver's house.)
(Sooo, does that mean the crossbow man is dead? No way to get him out of Dakka? I must be missing something but what the heck is Dakka?)

Dakka is the name of Durik's cursed weapon, a cannon which can swallow and shoot people. The crossbowman presumably isn't dead yet, since theoretically Dakka could shoot allies up onto buildings e.a. (though I don't think Durik has ever done so yet).

See the original thread for more :) and this post for the abilities of the original cursed weapons.

No. It does mean you now know your Luck card is not a diamond, a card of opportunity (which depending on the card would give you luck in information and opportunity). It does not mean your Luck card isn't good in offense (spades), defense (clubs) or health (hearts). ;)

Ah, but during the briefing Cliodhna did say that vampirates do not turn into bats.

If you remember the Star Trek sound effect of the tricorder, that warbling somewhat high pitched hum, you know the sound, and yes it can definitely attract things depending on their hearing and proximity.

Yes, I did say Devin found no traps, normal or magical. Usually he is very good and thorough at such things. Of course that was the outsides of the house and the prison.

Look at the Cursed Weapon list in Post 3 to know what every one does and who has what. Clicking on the CURSED WEAPONS link at the top of the list will take you to where every special item (except yours and Grog'tial's new one) were described originally. Dakka is a living sentient cannon that Durik carries on his back. Dakka inhales or swallows living things and holds them to shoot later. It can shoot enemies, or it can take and hold Crew to shoot up to the roof of buildings, over a wall, etc. (Think circus cannon here, non-lethal unless you shoot the being without a helmet into something deadly.) Swallowing a subject is silent, shooting is loud. Currently the crossbowman is held safe inside Dakka until Durik tells him to shoot, which can be done to knock down other enemies like bowling pins or into the water, or to cough him up. But Dakka, like all the special cursed weapons, can only do this once per mission ... so probably best to leave the enemy safely there for now. ;)

Also, Bellandra has a cursed weapon that can briefly stop time for the enemy, so if things had really gone badly she could have used that ... one of the reasons as well as her shipkin links and intuition that the admiral specified that Bellandra was lead for the carver mission. (In case people missed that little fact.)

Edit: Ah, Ninjaed with a brief and to the point description and links. Thanks gogtrial34987! :)

"Oh sorry, me didn't present Dakka.
He's me pet cannon. Not strange, he's magik.
Ye can pet him, he good boy. He saved this orc from prison." :)

"He ate the crossbow fellow, but guy is alive. Dakka can shoot him later safely in sea if ye want.
Durik must remember tho, or he'll escape.."

And to those who knew:
"(pls no tell about the spiders incident)" O_o'