“Judgin’ from yer actions, I ‘ave to conclude ye’re not interested in a career aboard our fine vessel, ye scurvy rats!” the boatswain mocks you to the sailors’ rowdy laughter.
“As ye are imperilin’ the life o’ the fine body o’ men aboard ‘er thus, we ‘ave but one choice on ‘ow to deal with ye,” he continues. The sailors evidently agree.
Several sailors carrying thick ropes push through the round and tie your wrists. Then, they push you toward the rails and hoist you up. Finally, the boatswain steps up and says goodbye with transparent hypocrisy:
“It’s not courage, but cleverness, that decides whether ye live or die!”
With that, he throws you overboard.
The ropes you hang from lead across to the other side of the vessel, underneath its keel. In the time-honored maritime tradition of keel-hauling, you are pulled across it, and it seems an endless time before you break the surface again on the other side. The sailors are pleasantly surprised to see you still alive, since it means they can repeat the process and haul you back to the other side. In fact, they continue to do so until some sharks congregate, at which time, the ropes are cut.
“There’s no time, and this place is crawling with sailors,” [Hero] protests.
“No way am I staying here!”
[Hero] crosses his/her arms and sinks into deep concentration. Finally, [Hero] nods, vanishes - and reappears again in exactly the same spot.
“For some reason, I can’t teleport away,” [Hero] notes with some amazement.
When you wake up, your heads are throbbing and you have a foul taste in your mouths. It’s pitch dark, and all your limbs are sore. You have lost all sense of time and can only guess it’s early morning. Someone has gagged you and tied your hands behind your backs. All you can really do is sit and wait for whatever the Gods have in store for you now.
After an indeterminable time of waiting, the door opens, and you see three sailors silhouetted in its frame. The light falling in through the open door lets you make out ropes and tackle lying around you.
With contempt in his gaze, the nearest of the sailors, a boatswain from the look of him, is sizing you up. “Jes’ look at the landlubbers we’ve gone caught us now,” he says to one of the men behind him. Sneering laughter is all the answer he gets.
“Well, at least that one there looks brawny enough,” says the boatswain and points at [Hero]. “Now ye listen to me: I ‘ave an offer to make ye.
We’ll be puttin to sea soon an’ leavin Riva. Our load must reach Havena undamaged. An’ since there’s Thorwal pirates infesting our route, we need some experienced fighters to protect our cargo.”
The boatswain pauses to judge your reaction.
“Ye don’t look like ye’re all that keen to sign on,” the boatswain continues. “But ye don’t get no choice in the matter.
I ‘ave a document here what says ye signed on to work ‘ere of yer own free will. Yer gonna sign it within the hour.
If ye don’t, ye’ll ‘ave some miles to swim back to shore, ye will - or should I be saying, ye’ll be trying to?”
The boatswain turns to the sailors: “Go on, free their ‘ands, but nothin’ else!”
The men obey with amazing speed. They put two lanterns, a parchment scroll, and some writing implements down in front of you, and then they loosen your bonds and disappear through the door, which they lock behind themselves
You can hear the boatswain shouting from outside: “Now remember, when I come back in an ‘our, I expect to see yer names on that parchment.”
You pull the gags from your mouths and rub your wrists to get the feeling back. Then, you start thinking about what to do next.
You are sitting in the ship’s rope-hold with your legs tied.
Do you want to:
Sit and wait
Untie your legs and walk around
Read the Document
Sign the Document
Time passes without any change in your situation.
It doesn’t take much effort to free your legs.
Suddenly, you hear voices from outside the door, and the boatswain reappears, accompanied by a large number of armed sailors. “Well, what ‘ave ye decided on then?” he asks and picks up the parchment.
“Ye’re more sensible than what I expected,” the boatswain says with obvious delight and gives you your duty assignments.
“Ye’re more sensible than what I expected,” the boatswain says with obvious delight. “But I dunno what that is s’posed to mean.” The boatswain points at the three X’s and writes in the name you give him. Then, you’re allowed to go on duty.
The Gods continue to frown on you. Two weeks later, you meet some Thorwalian pirates. During the time-honored welcoming ceremony that follows, your ship is sunk, and you go to the sea bottom with it.
“So, ye don’t ‘ave any sense in yer ‘eads at all?” the boatswain asks in a devious voice. “Are ye sure ye don’t want to serve with us?”
Without any further adieu, the boatswain has you thrown overboard. On the way back to shore, you meet a few sharks cruising for a meal.
There is a rolled up rope as thick as an upper arm lying in front of you.
“Efferd, what do you need rope that thick for?” wonders [Hero], and after some speculation, concedes that it might be useful to pull a vessel or maybe hold an anchor.
[Hero] lifts part of the rope and decides it is far too heavy to take along.
There is a roll of rope as thick as an upper arm in front of you.
There are rope coils of maybe ten paces in length in front of you. “For sails, rigging, tying down cargo and so on,” [Hero] explains, as if [Hero]’d spent years at sea.
Do you want to take some?
The top of the box is loose. It contains bits of cable, rope and cord of varying length and thickness.
The top of this box is nailed shut and can only be opened with appropriate tools. Through a crack in the wood, you can see various pulleys and winches.
The door has been locked from the outside and can only be opened from your side by brute force.
Do you want to throw yourselves against it?
You manage to rip the door from its hinges on the first attempt. Of course, now anyone entering the corridor it leads to can see quite clearly what you’ve done.
There’s a thirteen-, maybe fourteen-year-old boy in the corridor.
“Oh, you’ve escaped by yourselves. I was about to let you out,” he says.
“Please take me with you. I can’t stand staying here any longer. The cook is always drunk, and I get beaten all the time.
Please let me join you! I’m not strong, but I know my way around this ship. I’ll be of use to you.”
Do you want to
Allow the boy to join you
Send him away
Overpower him
“We should reach the ship’s boat at once without any fuss!” [Hero] says. “First we should disable the ship.”
“Are you sure I can’t tag along?” the boy asks. When he sees your determined faces, he turns and runs away.
“If you change your mind, I’ll be in the galley,” you hear him call.
It’s not particularly difficult to bind and gag a small boy. Especially if he doesn’t struggle.
You throw the tyke over your shoulder and deposit him in your former jail.
Now, you’re ready to rumble.
A small boy is sitting here with his back to the rope. He is tied and gagged.
Do you want to release him?
“Are you taking me along after all?” the boy asks.
Suddenly, the boy tears loose and runs away.
You’re standing in front of a wall that looks rotted and none too solid.
Are you going to try and break through?
On the very first attempt, you manage to loosen a number of planks and to make a hole big enough for you to climb through.
Do you:
You see a hole broken into the wooden wall.
Do you:
Climb through
Close up the hole
Ignore it
You take the boards lying on the floor and cover up the hole.
To prevent anyone from noticing which way you went, you close the door behind you.
Even landlubbers like you have no problem recognizing the massive piece of round wood as a mast.
Coarse cloth in the colors of the sailors’ clothing is lying around in large heaps. Sometimes, the cloth is rolled up into large bales, and at other times pieces of it are tied up into smaller packs.
There are some large bales of a very closely woven, tough cloth stored here.
For a good ten paces, wooden boards for planks and ribs of varying thickness and curvature are piled up here. Above them, there are several round beams of the same length, plus what appears to be complete spare sail, a round beam rolled up in tightly woven, tough cloth, with a number of ropes hanging down from it.
Next to the almost man-size beams, there are thin planks to be found here.
You are standing in front of a stack of blankets that almost reach the ceiling.
How many do you want to take?
“What do we need that many blankets for?” [Hero] asks incredulously.
“What do we need that many blankets for?” [Hero] asks incredulously.
“We’ve already got ten!”
“What have we got here, then?” [Hero] asks, lifting the box lid. “Those things will make decent cudgels.”
The wooden belaying pins in this box are hammered into the deck so ropes and cables can be tied to them.
This chest is filled to the brim with blue shirts and white trousers, like the ones you have.
“What have we here! That’s part of our equipment!” [Hero] calls out in surprised delight.
Cautiously, [Hero] opens the door and surveys the room beyond. Seeing nobody, [Hero] goes in. Unfortunately, [Hero] has overlooked the ship’s carpenter, who is advancing on your party in a none too friendly fashion.
Cautiously, [Hero] opens the door and takes a look inside the room. In one corner, a sailor is lying in a hammock and resting.
Do you enter the room to overpower him?
Things look good, until[Hero] steps on a creaking plank. The sailor wakes up, jumps from his hammock, and attacks.
To prevent people from noticing where you are, you close the door.
You are standing in front of a long workbench. The work surface is covered with thread, rags of colored cloth, wood shavings, and sawdust.
“Hardly the time for a nap,” [Hero] whispers in a determined tone.
[Hero] takes the lid off the box and discovers twenty lanterns.
[Hero] lifts the lid off the box and uncovers a number of oil flasks.
There’s a rolled-up rope ladder on the floor.
Do you take it along?
The box contains three large hacksaws, two handsaws and various sawblades of differing size and tooth shape.
Since you have no intention of settling down to open a carpenter’s shop or of sawing a hole into the ship’s hull, none of this seems of use to you.
This box is filled with carpenter’s tools.
Mostly, there are nails of varying size and types, plus a plane, various rasps, and some files.
Still, there’s some stuff among the lot you might actually find useful.
The box is filled to the brim with carpenter’s tools.
The chest contains needles, skeins of yarn, darning-eggs, thimble, buttons, awls, and several marlin-spikes for splicing rope.
Do you want to take something out?
[Hero] keeps digging through the chest until [Hero]’s cutshis-/herself. Then, [Hero] turns around, without taking anything from the chest, and says, in a cryptic voice: “Very interesting and informative!”
Two fishing nets have been hung to dry from hooks on the ceiling.
Do you want to take them with you?
This is used to saw wooden planks to the size needed.
“Who’s that sneaking around in here?” one of the sailors lying in the hammocks suddenly calls out.. and things get mighty lively.
You hear someone shout from the crew quarters: “Hell’s bells! Someone broke into my liberty chest!”
“Mine, too,” another voice calls out.
“My liberty chest is empty,” you hear an angry shout from someone. “I bet that was Jetse again, that thieving magpie!” A brawl starts in the crew quarters, which lasts until someone else shouts: “Hold it, it can’t have been Jetse! His chest is empty, too!”
Do you want to climb up?
“Get lost, I’m off duty and want to sleep,” the sailor snarls and turns around. But when he sees you, he shouts for help and attacks.
“Why have they hung their nets here?” asks [Hero], but no one answers.
Steps are approaching from the hallway, and you hear an agitated voice murmuring:
“…have escaped; I have to tell the skipper!”
A sailor steps out of the darkness in front of you. When he notices you, he stops for a moment, but then, he charges right at you.
There are scales and several small weights on the table with two ladles. A particularly long thimble that reeks of brandy is next to them.
“That’s a hollowfinger,” [Hero] explains. “It’s used to measure the sailors’ rum rations.”
The barrel is covered by a wooden lid with a complex locking mechanism. When you shake it, you can hear fluid moving inside. Do you want to open it?
You find a place to set the crowbar under a metal rail, and manage to lever up the lid. The barrel is filled with fresh water. A precious commodity on the high seas, but nothing much, as far as you’re concerned.
You won’t get very far without a crowbar, that’s for certain.
The barrel lid has been levered open. You use the fresh water inside to refresh yourselves.
There are bales of straw covered in rough cloth on the floor here.
Looks like some sort of recreation room, you figure, since there are a number of sailors sitting about, talking. Mind you, when they catch sight of your party, they all grab their cudgels and attack.
“There are nets hanging around here as well - these guys are too dumb to set traps,” says [Hero].
And[Hero] gets to thinking about who’s the real dumbo here.
The chest contains a bound tome about navigation at sea and a strange measuring device. It consists of a half-round metal rail with a notch and bead sight, plus a second rail marked in degrees with a thin, weighted line hanging from its top end.
“That’s a navigational instrument,” claims [Hero]. “We won’t have any use for that, but look what else is in here.”
Stepping into this corner, [Hero] notices the planks are creaking at a different pitch than usual.
Intrigued, [Hero] checks the floor and finds a hollow space underneath a loose board.
The sheets on this bed are very smooth, and there isn’t a wrinkle to be found.
“That’s unusual,” [Hero] says, voicing everybody’s thoughts.
An extremely well-kept bunk.
“Interesting!” [Hero] states. “Armor and a few weapons - that can’t be a sailors’ kit - looks more like marine gear.
Possibly even the officers’.”
The shelf is empty.
“That doesn’t look like accommodations for ‘normal’ passengers. They would need more space than this,” [Hero] speculates.
“Ey oh, these are alchemistic instruments,” declares [Hero].
“I refuse to believe their owner is just a passenger.”
As [Hero] puts his/her foot on the bottom rung of the ladder, [Hero] hears voices above.
Should [Hero] climb out nonetheless?
[Hero] puts his/her head through the hatch and hurries back down.
That quick glance was enough to see nearly fifty marines. Most of them are lounging about in hammocks, half asleep, while others are rolling dice in a corner or enjoying themselves in some other way.
Do you want to enter their quarters?
You climb up and are greeted by the marines’ dumbfounded stares. But once their first surprise is gone, they grab their weapons and attack.
By now, the dozing marines from the hammocks have jumped up and surrounded you.
Against a superior force like that, the only realistic alternative is between death and surrender. So, grinding your teeth in frustration, you’re forced to drop your weapons and take what’s coming to you.
After binding you, the marines drag you to the deck where the ship’s captain will sentence you.
Before you can reach the door, it’s thrown open from the other side, and marines pile in. Within seconds, you are surrounded, leaving you no choice but surrender. Grinding your teeth in frustration, you drop your weapons and take what’s coming to you.
After binding you, the marines drag you to the deck where the ship’s captain will sentence you.
“There’s those dirtbugs again, the ones who embarrassed us in front of our boys. Come on, let’s get ‘em. They’ve got it coming!” the leader shouts.
The instant [Hero] is about to open the door, [Hero] hears angry shouts from behind it. “Lost again! Something’s not right here!”
[Hero] bends down and takes a peep through the keyhole. There are five marines sitting on the floor inside, throwing a die. Beyond and to the right of them are large crates. A ladder goes up on the left, right next to the door.
Do you want to:
You are standing in front of the door to the freight room with the gambling marines.
Do you:
Charge in and attack the marines
Walk in and talk to the marines
Lure the marines out and ambush them
Get away
Before you can kick open the door, you hear heavy footsteps above your heads, and a voice shouting commands. Something makes a loud racket, and then all falls quiet again.
Do you want to charge in now?
You kick open the door and charge the marines, who barely have time to go for their weapons.
By now, more marines have stormed down from the deck above, and you’re completely surrounded.
Against a superior force like that, you really have only a choice between death and surrender. So, grinding your teeth in frustration, you’re forced to drop your weapons and take what’s coming to you.
After binding you, the marines drag you to the deck where the ship’s captain will sentence you.
When you open the door, the marines jump up and go for their weapons. One of them barks at you:
“What do you sailor scum want in here?”
What are you going to answer?
“Let’s use your heads for dice, filth!”
“We’re bored and thought we’d gamble a bit with you.”
“The skipper sent us to get you.”
“Your captain has sent us to get you.”
“You left a crate in the hold. We were sent to tell you to get it out of there right now.”
“You don’t look like sailors, actually,” the marine says, sizing you up from head to toe. “But we don’t rightly care who we fleece. Have a seat!”
“Why certainly, we don’t care whose purse we lighten. Sit!”
You’re not entirely comfortable with the thought of sitting around here gambling… where real sailors can drop by any second. But there’s no backing out now.
Pretty soon, a sizable stack of coins has accumulated in front of [Hero].
“There’s foul play afoot! I want my money back!” demands one of the marines.
How do you react to that?
In no time at all, a sizable stack of coins has accumulated in front of [Hero].
“That one’s cheating! I saw it all!” shouts one of the marines.
Now, what do you do?
“Talk about sore losers! Go on then, take back your measly bits!”
“You must have combed your hair with a mallet this morning! You want your money back? Let’s go outside!”
“No one, but no one calls me a cheat and gets away with it!
Get up! we’ll go into the hold and settle this like men.”
“What foul play?
If that’s supposed to mean that I’m a cheat, maybe you’d care to step into the hold with me and put your money where your mouth is.”
You throw the money you’ve won in front of the marines and leave for the hold.
You throw back the money you’ve taken from the marines and start to leave for the hold when you’re called back.
“Hold it, we don’t let cheats get away that easily here. Either you pay us ten Ducats as a fine right now, or we’ll have to collect them by force!”
Now what do you do?
Give the marines the money they demand
Stand and wait to see if they actually do attack
Ignore them and walk on
You pay the marines and go back into the hold.
“So you’re not going to pay up, are you?” the marine asks. “All right then, let’s go into the hold, so our sarge doesn’t notice. We’ll get our gold from you yet!”
You’ve just reached the hold when the marines catch up with you. “You’re not getting away with that!” their leader bellows and attacks.
“The skipper can’t tell us anything,” the marines’ leader replies, and they sit down again.
Do you want to:
Take advantage of the opportunity and attack
Be mysterious and say: “Whatever you say.”
Insist: “Your captain was with the skipper when he gave us our orders!”
Threaten them: “Either you come in peace, or we’re going to kick you there!”
Leave
With a curious expression, the marine asks: “What’s that supposed to mean?”
What do you reply?
“Life isn’t all that easy aboard this ship for people the skipper doesn’t like.
If they don’t come down with Efferd’s pox, ‘cause all they get to eat is old slop,
or they just happen to trip over the railing and go to feed the sharks.
They tend to have really nasty accidents.”
“There has to be a reason the skipper needs you and isn’t satisfied with us doing whatever it is he wants done.”
Frightened, the marines get up again and squeeze past you.
Do you:
Follow them and overpower them in the hold
Let them go and search this room
“If the skipper really needs us, let him come and get us himself instead of sending the hired help.”
With a satisfied grin, the marine orders you to leave.
Now, do you:
Obey and leave
Give way to your rage and attack the soldiers
Challenge the marines: “You got a pretty big mouth on you. Let’s see if your courage can match it.”
“Anytime,” the marine leader replies. “Let’s repair to the hold, so our sarge won’t hear. After you!”
“All right. What did he send you for?”
“We’re supposed to relieve you.”
“To teach you how to walk, if you don’t come by your own wits.”
All of a sudden, the marines are in quite a hurry and squeeze past you.
Do you:
Follow and overpower them in the hold
Let them go and then search this room
“Oh, we never miss a chance to further our education,” the leader of the marines replies. “Let’s repair to the hold, so our sarge won’t hear the racket. After you!”
“Right, then. The old man wants us,” the leader growls.
“So what did he send you for?”
All of a sudden, the marines are in quite a hurry and squeeze past you.
Do you:
“Hey! You heard that? Get a move on! The old man gets bloody nasty if he finds we don’t take good care of the equipment.”
In your direction, he asks: “So, where is that crate?”
“Right back there. We’ll show you.”
“All the way back in the corner there. You can’t miss it.”
Before the marines have a chance to notice you’ve been lying, you attack.
Suddenly, you hear an angry voice and recognize it as belonging to one of the marines you’ve been lying to. And there he is now, coming right at you with his mates.
How exactly are you going to do that?
Knock and call for the marines to go see their captain
Provoke the marines into a fight
Let [Hero] charm them
“Who’s out there?” you hear someone call from inside.
What’s your answer going to be?
“I’m the ship’s boatswain, and you’re to get a move on.”
“I’m the ship’s boy, and if I don’t get back to the skipper right away, I’ll be in trouble.”
Just ignore the question and wait behind some crates
“Boatswain, that’s something like our sarge, I think,” the speaker tells the other soldiers. “I guess we’d better.”
The marines leave the room. As soon as they’ve closed the door, you attack.
“You’ll be in trouble anyhow, ‘cause we don’t take orders from the likes of you,” the voice replies.
“Drown and feed the sharks then, you idiots!” shouts [Hero] in a fit and kicks the door.
That gets them moving all right. You’ve barely time to hide behind some crates before they pile out and start searching the hold for you.
“Who is it?” a man’s voice calls out.
A head appears in the door and looks around questioningly. When he doesn’t see anybody, he goes back inside.
Do you want to knock again?
This time, the marines come charging out to confront the practical joker.
You open the door just a crack and look into the room.
“Get a load of those Trobrian bullock-heads. If they’re supposed to guard our ship, we might as well jump overboard now,” shouts [Hero] loud enough for the marines to get every word.
Cursing loudly, they jump up and come running. You retreat a bit to lure them further into the hold and face them in battle.
[Hero] opens the door just a crack and calls: “Ahoy, you dimwits, you look like you need a good beating! ”
The marines jump up, and one of them bellows: “Let’s go, comrades, we’ll show, a real fight!” Flustered with rage, they charge.
[Hero] opens the door just a crack and calls in an alluring voice: “Could one of you gentlemen help me, please?”
The marines display an astounding helpfulness and walk right into your ambush.
Do you want to climb down?
A long ladder leads up to the bars of the hatch covering the hold. Daylight is streaming in from there.
Do you want to climb up?
Through the bars you can see parts of the deck.
There’s a forecastle at the bow with two sets of stairs leading up and a door in between them. You can’t see what’s on top of the forecastle, because there’s a mast with its sails unfurled in the way. Parts of the cargo are stored near the mast and tied either to it or to the rails, but you can’t make out a ship’s lifeboat anywhere.
The view toward the stern is, for the most part, blocked by the main sail or the cargo stacked high around the main mast. But even so, you can make out a quarterdeck with two sets of stairs and a door between them.
Finally, you look straight up and see sailors hanging from the yardbeams, fighting with the sails, or climbing even further up the rigging.
Suddenly, another sailor comes into view. He’s running about on deck between the main and fore mast checking and securing the cargo.
After reaching the top, you look out again. Nothing has changed on deck, the sailors are still at work and even the one securing the cargo is occupied.
Even landlubbers like you recognize immediately that this round beam, the width of a grown man, can only be a ship’s mast.
Several crates are stacked one on top of the other here.
Do you want to open one of them?
This crate contains lampshades.
The crate is filled to the brim with stirrups for saddles.
The crate contains chair and table legs.
This crate contains spearheads.
This crate contains fishing hooks.
Do you want to take some?
How many fishing hooks do you want to take out?
Here are large bales of fur from various animals.
There are bales of cloth here. Mostly linen awnings.
A mountain of sacks is rising up in front of you. When you open one of them, grain falls out. So, you tie it shut again.
You open one of the barrels. It’s filled to the brim with dried red eels.
“I’ve heard about those,” [Hero] boasts, pulls out one of the shiny red eels and gives it a hearty bite. his/her face turns beet red, and sweat glistens on his/her brow. It takes all the self control [Hero] can muster to keep in his/her stomach!
“Eehyeearrghh! Sugar-glazed fish!”
“That Gods-cursed gunk again!” [Hero] groans and puts the lid back on.
“Come on, it’s my turn,” a voice calls out suddenly from behind the door. “I bet 3[N]bits on seven.”
Another voice answers, but you can’t make out the reply.
Do you charge into the room the voices are coming from?
You hear coins tingling and dice rolling.
Do you want to go in?
There are eight sailors, one dwarf among them, sitting in a circle inside the small room. They get up and grab their weapons.
“Up on the shroud with ye, turn ‘er into the wind,” you hear the boatswain shouting. I trust you remember the boatswain, don’t you? His shouts are quite faint from down here, though. So, there’s not much danger they’ll notice your actions up on deck.
“Ah, guests on my ship, what can I do for you?” you hear a voice from the corner.
You could swear a holy oath nobody was there a moment ago, but now there’s no mistaking a little fellow sitting on a blanket there. He’s wearing a captain’s hat and coat and drawing on a very smoky pipe.
Without letting you get a word in edgewise, the little fellow continues:
“You want to leave my ship again already? Aren’t you enjoying yourselves aboard?”
“No, don’t you go about formulating an answer to that question now. I know the answer anyway.” The little fellow continues his one-sided conversation and grins sarcastically:
“And aren’t you wanting to save Arkania from the big, bad orcs.”
“And aren’t I, myself, prepared to help you, too?” the little fellow goes on with his ever-present grin firmly in place. “On the tiny, little condition of your agreeing to answer a few of me riddles, now. But all the same, I’m expecting to enjoy seeing your puzzled faces,” he declares, seeming quite self assured.
Do you want to:
Give the irritating twerp a good hit
Agree to his offer (after all: the worst you can do is embarrass yourselves)
It’s as if the little fellow had read your minds. Before you can grab hold of him, he blows a thick plume of pipe smoke in your faces, and when you can see again, he’s gone. You, on the other hand, are still there and fighting a particularly nasty bout of sea sickness.
blows a thick plume of pipe smoke in your faces, and when you can see again, he’s gone.
It blows through two holes, but it’s not in the ground
It has a bridge, but it cannot be crossed
It has no legs, yet it can run
What is it?”
“Well then, my hardies, here’s my riddle the first:
nose
“You’re a great disappointment to me!” the little fellow says and laughs at you.
“But I’ll be giving you another crack at it for old time’s sake. Be listening carefully now:
“You’re not deserving of my help,” the little fellow declares. He
“Oh, you’re being more clever than you look,” the little fellow exclaims, and his grin fades. “You’re deserving of a little reward, so you are.”
He hands you a small flask and ponders his next question. Then his grin returns.
’Tis full of holes and quite, quite dead,
but still it’s healthy, known to poor and wealthy,
and plump and heavy often, too,
though in the desert less so, it’s true.”
“
sponge
“Aye, there’s more of the hard thinking needed for this one, eh? But I’ll be granting you a second chance to crack it, now:
“So you did just get lucky before, just as I thought,” the little fellow grins.
He
The little fellow does not look quite so pleased with himself now, and without a word hands you another small flask.
Finally, he poses his third question:
“Sailors tell of many strange things,
Mermaids, sea-monsters, sirens who sing,
And the sea fairy on ships about to sink,
So then: Which am I, what do you think?”
sea fairy
“Ha ha ha.” The little fellow
Just his laughter remains.
“Well now, the boatswain will be giving you another half hour’s time,” he announces in an enigmatic voice. Then he
“That would be an arbalest,” [Hero] declares, pointing at the strange wooden contraption. “A sort of gigantic crossbow firing balls of stone or metal,” [Hero] continues. “And those are the gun ports,” [Hero] concludes and points at the closed hatches visible in the wooden hull.
They are too small to squeeze through, unfortunately.
Rough-hewn balls of stone are piled up here, forming a sort of pyramid.
Two hammocks are hanging above one another here.
Besides crossbows and bolts, the chest contains filled glass flasks and strange balls of clay. They are hollow, with a small opening and a string sticking out from it.
[Hero] opens one of the flasks and says: “I see it all now. There’s Hylailic Fire in here. They fill the clay balls with it, and then fire them at other ships with those arbalests.”
You’re standing in front of a large work table stained with the blood and the insides of a freshly gutted fish. There’s a knife here, too. Underneath the table are several partly filled pots and barrels.
You’re back in front of the blood-stained work table.
There’s a copper cauldron containing a creamy broth on the table. It is made of fish, turnips, bread and some small red pods, all cut up. “These guys must have an aversion to decent food,” [Hero] says.
There’s a knife next to the cauldron, evidently for cutting up some long, thin roots and adding them to the broth. “Those must be olgin roots,” speculates[Hero]. “They’re a tonic for your stomach.”
There are tubs full of dishes under the table.
You’re standing in front of the table with the vegetable remains.
You’re looking at the ship’s fireplace. There’s a chain hanging down from the ceiling with a hook for hanging the cauldron on.
Well, the ship’s cook and the boy need somewhere to sleep, too.
You open the door and look into the surprised faces of the ship’s cook and boy. The cook is leaning against the fireplace, holding a flask of booze. The ship’s boy is chopping herbs.
“Have you come to take me with you after all?” he asks, full of hope.
Do you:
Wait
Wave the boy over
Overpower the cook
Overpower both of them
While you’re standing around, twiddling your thumbs, the cook starts clamoring for help.
Now what?
The ship’s cook keeps shouting until several sailors enter the room behind you.
Before you can react, they overpower you and drag you up on deck.
Delirious with joy, the boy comes running and hides behind [Hero]’s broad back.
But there’s still the somewhat flabbergasted cook to deal with.
What do you do?
You manage to bind and gag the cook before he’s able to raise the alarm.
Do you:
Search the prisoner
Talk to the cook
Hide him in the furthest corner of the kitchen and leave him there
The ship’s cook has nothing on him but the clothes he’s wearing. The flask of booze is shattered, dropped in the struggle.
The second the gag is removed, the cook starts yelling for help. You push the gag back in as quick as you can.
You lay the prisoner into his hammock.
You have no trouble at all tying and gagging the two before they can make any significant amount of noise.
Now, do you:
Search the prisoners
Talk to the ship’s cook
Talk to the ship’s boy
Hide the prisoners in the furthest corner of the kitchen and leave them there
The ship’s cook has nothing on him but the clothes he’s wearing. The flask of booze is shattered, dropped it in the struggle.
The ship’s boy is carrying a total of 21 candied cherries.
Do you take them off him?
The second the gag is removed, the cook starts yelling for help. You push the gag back in as quick as you can.
You lay the prisoners into their hammocks.
“I’m not going to tell you lousy crooks anything. Robbing a poor, defenseless kid!” the boy shouts at you.
He has a point, actually.
“Even if you don’t want to take me along, I can give you some valuable hints. Maybe you’ll give it another thought?
The boatswain is a thief. He’s sure to have kept some of your money and hidden it away. The skipper will have the rest, but I wouldn’t try to get it back from him.
Be careful with the healer, he’s a mighty magician.
There’s a locked closet with weapons in it above us. Yours will be there as well.
If you want to escape, the best route is up through the hold and then disable the ship. But you’ll have to hurry. We’ve gone quite a distance from the harbor already.”
Do you want to free the ship’s boy and take him along after all?
Do you:
“There’s the slave driver who kept beating me,” the ship’s boy calls out.
He appears to be waiting for the ship’s boy.
You open the door on the surprised ship’s cook. He’s leaning on the fireplace holding a flask of booze.
Do you:
These barrels are either open or their lids are unfastened, so you can easily satisfy your curiosity.
Most of them contain salted pork or mutton and dried fish.
All the crates are open and filled with marrows or peas.
All the crates are open and filled with flat bread, onions, fruit or hard-smoked sausages.
You push the wooden lid aside. The barrel underneath is filled to the brim with fresh water.
You quench your thirst and close the barrel again.
, fill your waterskins,
“Finally, something useful,” exults [Hero], seeing an array of booze jugs as the chest lid falls back.
“Ah, fine foods for the officers,” notes [Hero] and stares into the chest with envious eyes:
Smoked ham from the Kosch, smoked guinea fowls, dried salzareles and precious herbs.
There’s a hole in the floor here, with an arm-thick pole sticking down and two ropes running alongside through eyes on the left and right side of the pole. Looking down through the hole, [Hero] sees the surface of the sea one foot below, along with the ship’s rudder which is controlled via those ropes. There’s also a ship’s boat visible which is pulled along behind the vessel on a cable.
Do you want to cut the ropes?
Cutting through the ropes is child’s play.
The whole ship jolts, and rights itself from its previous list to starboard. There’s a tremendous amount of shouting and general commotion up on deck… so much, in fact, that you can hear it all the way down here. The ropes start moving; someone is pulling on them from above.
Then, things quiet down.
The tiller leads down through a hole in the floor. The ropes controlling it have been cut, so the ship is no longer maneuverable.
There’s a mighty complicated contraption to be seen here. Ropes coming down from the ceiling on one side of contraption are running along several wheels of various diameters before running all the way to the stern on the other side. There, they disappear again through the floor.
Do you want to cut one of the ropes?
Something doesn’t seem to be right here, though. The ropes move this way and that without the least bit of resistance.
Just as you saw from a distance, these are wooden supports providing stability for the wheels and ropes.
Here, wooden supports and a complete ship’s tiller are stored and securely tied.
There are several cords and cables, i.e. thin and thick ropes, lying about.
There are cast iron chains here and a lot of wheels in various sizes. Some of them have a wide tread and flanged borders, while others have a thin, toothed tread.
There’s a ladder going down here.
Do you want to climb down?
There’s a ladder going up here.
Do you want to climb up?
You’re standing in front of a large table. It is very clean and completely empty.
There’s nothing to be found in this bunk except lice.
The bookshelf is filled with tomes on maritime subjects.
“Now, there’s something you don’t see every day: The lock of this chest is right on top of the lid,” says [Hero].
Do you:
You’re back in front of the chest.
Do you want to:
Pick the lock
Break open the chest
Cast a spell
“I would have been willing to bet this would open that Phexing lock,” [Hero] moans after fiddling about with the lockpicks for some time.
[Hero] takes the lockpicks and puts one into the lock. Immediately, [Hero] turns to stone.
Now, [Hero] tries 1 luck. Too late, [Hero] notices an oily fluid running out from the lock which causes a burning sensation on ) skin. With wide-open eyes, [Hero] stares at the lockpicks as they dissolve in a puddle of foam.
It’s no use even trying without lockpicks, you know.
The chest is obviously quite robust, but at the same time, it’s worked to such exacting standards that it’s impossible to find a spot to set a tool for levering it open.
Who will cast a spell on the chest then?
And what spell will [Hero] cast?
This chest doesn’t appear to have a lock. It’s still shut, though. The only thing noticable is a recessed shape carved into the lid.
“You have to put something in there,” [Hero] declares with some self-assurance.
So, who’ll put an item on the chest?
And which item is [Hero] going to put into the recess?
Nothing happens, and [Hero] takes r back.
[Hero] has barely laid r into the recess when the leaves start to smoulder and finally burn.
The four-leaf loneberry fits the recess exactly, and the lid pops open.
This is a clean, made bed.
The table here is old, and there are deep stains of dried blood on its surface. Looks like it’s been used by the ship’s healer for a long time.
“Not in there,” the ship’s boy whispers. “The ship’s mage lives in there.”
The beds contain the two bodies you’ve dumped there.
What did you expect?
The beds contain the two prisoners you’ve dumped there.
What did you expect?
The beds are empty.
There’s a book of fairy tales and legends in the desk drawer.
That explains where those two idiots got their tall tales from.
The two guys in this cabin are still shooting their mouths off.
Do you:
“Not in there,” the ship’s boy warns you. “That’s where the marines’ captains are staying… two very experienced fighters. They are constantly telling people about all the heroic tasks they’ve performed.”
Do you want to go in anyway?
[Hero] is about to open the door, when [Hero] hears voices talking behind it. [Hero] bends down and listens.
“Phaw, that’s nothing, I’ve dispensed with a troll all on my own once.
Did I tell you about the occasion when we cleaned up a whole nest of sea snakes…”
“Those are either Arkania’s two biggest heroes - or her two biggest braggarts,” [Hero] whispers with just enough sarcasm to leave no doubt about which of the two [Hero] favors.
Do you:
Barge into the cabin with your weapons drawn
Enter the cabin
Leave the two heroes to reminisce in peace
“Boron have mercy on us! Assassins!” one of two men sitting on their beds exclaims. Both of them throw their hands up.
What do you do?
Send those cowards to Boron’s realm
Tie them up and deposit them on their beds
Well, that’s two less show offs.
You dump their bodies on the beds.
Neither of the two shows any resistance. Within seconds, they’re bound and gagged.
“How dare you louts interrupt our while we’re telling tales?” one of the two men sitting on a bed shouts at you.
Do you:
Offer an apology and leave
Draw your weapons and give them an opportunity to show whether their tales are true
You leave the room and hope they didn’t recognize you.
A while back, you watched the skipper, who usually sleeps in this bed, climb out the window.
There’s a painting of a ship on this shelf. However, it isn’t of the ship you are on at the moment. Besides the painting, there are several navigational tabulations.
Highly instructive, no doubt, but not your cup of tea right now.
The desk contains the logs of the “Wind’s Bride” of several years back. On top lies the current log of skipper Ern Asma.
“Not in there,” the ship’s boy gasps in terror. “That’s the skipper’s cabin, and the old shark almost never leaves it.”
Do you want to open the door anyhow?
“Hey, hold it,” [Hero] warns when you’re about to open the door. “I can hear two men’s voices.” [Hero] bends down and looks through a crack in the door.
Two men are standing bent over a large chart on a massive table, deciding on the ship’s route.
Do you:
Try to catch them off guard with a surprise attack
Cautiously enter
Leave
You fling open the door and charge in.
But before you can reach the two men, a thick fog swells up, swallowing everything.
Slowly and carefully, you open the door and go in.
When one of the men notices you, he forms a bowl with his hands and blows across it. Immediately, he and his companion are swallowed within a thick fog.
Through the fog, you hear a window being opened. [Hero] rumbles: “They’ve escaped through the stern window, now what?”
Do you:
Get out, quick
Follow them
Search the cabin
Escape out the window
You stumble through the fog to the open window. There’s only water below, but you see a small ship’s boat towed behind the vessel on a long rope.
The deck rails are above, and you start to climb up there. Suddenly, several sailors appear looking down at you. They get long poles and use them to throw you into the sea.
Before you realize what’s happened to you, the ship’s boat has moved beyond your grasp. Now, who’s going to help you?
In desperation, you try to swim back to shore. The sharks don’t let you get very far, though.
When you open the door, you see a whole bunch of sailors waiting for you. They throw a net over you and force you back inside the cabin. It doesn’t take them very long at all to overpower and disarm you.
You stumble through the fog to the open window. Several paces below lies the sea, and beyond that, a small ship’s boat being towed behind the vessel on a long rope. You pick up all your courage, climb out the window and jump down into the water.
You can see the mainland a long distance away. A boat is being towed along behind the ship on a long rope. The deck rails are visible above you.
Do you:
Jump into the sea to escape with the ship’s boat
Climb up
Stay where you are
You climb up to the rails, when all of a sudden a number of sailors appear and throw you into the sea with long poles.
There’s a ladder here leading down.
Do you climb down?
“Something is very wrong here,” cautions [Hero].
“I get the distinct feeling we should turn back.”
You can’t go on along here. Something is forcing you to turn back.
“Same here,” agrees [Hero].
“Same here,” agrees
“I don’t want to go any further,” says [Hero].
“I hear an inner voice telling me to turn back,” [Hero] continues.
“I can’t shake the feeling something is very wrong here,” warns [Hero].
When [Hero] touches the door, all of you are struck a mighty blow.
A slight rocking motion goes through the ship.
From somewhere, you hear a sailor’s curse:
“Damn slave driver! Why is it always me who has to do these blasted jobs?!”
Suddenly, you hear steps and a voice coming from the crew quarters.
You peep through a crack in the door and see a cursing sailor approach.
“Damn slave driver! Why does he keep picking me for these blasted errands?!” he complains.
Do you:
Attack the sailor
Wait in your hideaway
You ambush the unsuspecting sailor.
After defeating the hapless crewman, you hide him away.
The sailor disappears from view only to return right away carrying a few belaying pins. He climbs up the ladder.
Suddenly, you hear steps from above nearing the ladder and an angry male voice.
“Damn slave driver! Why does he keep picking on me for his stupid errands?”
Are you going to:
Ambush the sailor
Hide
You hide underneath the ladder to prevent the unsuspecting sailor from noticing you, and once he’s come down, you ambush him.
You hear the fellow cursing for a few minutes more, and then he’s gone.
Suddenly, you hear a male voice from some distance behind the door:
“Blasted slave driver! Why does he keep picking me for these damn errands?”
You get ready to fight, but the sailor goes off in another direction and his voice fades away.
You hear steps from the corridor. Finally, someone comes climbing down the ladder.
Suddenly, a man comes toward you along the corridor. Judging by his leather apron, he’s the ship’s carpenter. When he notices you, he stops.
Do you want to:
Wait for his next move
Attack
After a moment of thought, the sailor turns and flees up to the deck.
You stop and listen for a moment in case someone heard the fighting, but all is still. Then, you take the corpse and hide it below the ladder.
Suddenly, someone is coming down the ladder. There’s nowhere to hide here. The ship’s carpenter - you recognize him by his leather clothes - looks down and sees you.
Do you want to:
You stop and listen for a moment, in case someone heard the fighting, but all is still. Then, you take the corpse and hide it below the ladder as well as you can manage.
You hear steps on the ladder. A single person is climbing down from above.
What do you do?
Come out of hiding
Wait inside the cabin
Primed for fighting, you approach the door.
Peering through a crack, you recognize the ship’s carpenter by his leather clothing. He goes over to the ladder leading down and climbs out of sight.
Primed for a fight, you approach the door.
Opening it just a crack, you recognize the ship’s carpenter by his leather clothes. He has stepped off the ladder and is crossing the crew quarters heading toward the bow.
Then you hear agitated shouting, and he comes running back.
Now, do you:
The sailor has reached the ladder and climbs up.
Ready for a fight, you approach the door.
Opening it just a crack, you recognize the ship’s carpenter by his leather clothes. He has stepped off the ladder by now and is crossing the crew quarters heading toward the bow. A bit later, you hear a door closing. Then, everything is silent again.
You hear someone climb down a ladder some distance away. Then, steps approach.
Do you:
You stop and listen for a moment in case someone heard the fighting, but all is still. Then, you take the corpse and hide it behind a stack of rope in your former prison.
Ready for a fight, you approach the door.
Looking through a crack, you recognize the ship’s carpenter by his leather clothes.
You see him come along the corridor toward you. But then, he turns around and goes through a door exactly opposite the one you’re hiding behind.
Ready for a fight, you approach the door.
Looking through a crack, you recognize the ship’s carpenter by his leather clothes.
You see him come along the corridor toward you. Suddenly, he stops and shouts:
“Damn it to Efferd! The prisoners have smashed in the door. I’ve got to tell the skipper!”
He spins around and walks back.
Do you want to:
Run and catch him
The sailor leaves your vision. You hear him scramble up the ladder.
Abruptly, the door opens, and a fellow in leather clothes, apparently the ship’s carpenter, stands in the doorway.
Do you want to:
The fellow seems to be strained with thought. Then, he whirls around and runs away.
A sailor enters.
“First, you smash the door, and then you just sit there! You’re as dumb as Trobrian sheep dung!”
No way is [Hero] going to just swallow an insult like that. [Hero] attacks the sailor.
Suddenly, the ship’s carpenter comes climbing up. When he sees you, he stops.
Unless you want your escape to end almost as soon as it’s begun, you’ll have to attack him.
Suddenly, the ship’s carpenter comes climbing up. When he sees you, he stops and shouts: “That was you plundering my chest! I’ll have your hides for that!”
You hear a door creak on its rusty hinges, and then someone comes your way.
“I have to tell the skipper the prisoners have escaped,” you hear the man murmur.
Unless you want your escape to end almost as soon as it’s begun, you’ll have to stop him.
You hear the door to the carpenter’s shop open. Cursing loudly, the ship’s carpenter steps out into the corridor:
“Wait till I catch the vermin who burgled my chest! I’ll have his hide for breeches!”
He walks on until he sees you.
You hear steps approaching from the bow. A sailor is murmuring:
“I have to report the prisoners’ escape to the skipper! I wonder how they’ve managed to get out that quick?”
Do you want to:
Steps are approaching from the direction of the bow, and a sailor is cursing loudly:
“Wait till I find the guy who burgled my liberty chest! I’ll have his guts for garters!”
Do you:
He climbs up, and his steps fade.
You hear a door open and a sailor cursing loudly: “If I catch whoever plundered my liberty chest, I’ll have his hide for breeches!”
Do you want to:
You hear several people climb down a ladder in the direction of the ship’s bow. “They’re sure to come through here,” cautions [Hero]. “Let’s get out fast.”
You hide behind a stack of crates and watch a throng of sailors enter the room, run toward the hatch and climb further down.
You hear a lot of feet running toward the ladder above you.
“They’ll be coming here,” cautions [Hero]. “Let’s get out fast.”
You hear a lot of feet running toward the ladder above you. A large number of sailors come climbing down and pile into the crew quarters to relax.
You hear a lot of feet running above you. Then, the noise abates. Soon afterward, you hear voices from the next room.
You hear a door slam in the corridor. [Hero] hurries to a crack in the wooden wall to see what’s happening. But before [Hero] has reached it, a second door slams. The corridor is empty.
Still, [Hero] waits another few heartbeats, and yes, a door opens again soon afterward. The ship’s cook steps out. He takes a long swallow from a flask of brandy before disappearing into the ship’s kitchen on the port side.
You hear a door and soft steps from below. Through a crack between the cargo, you watch the ship’s cook talk to one of the marines. Afterward, the cook goes back to the kitchen.
You hear a door and soft steps from below. Through a crack between the cargo, you see the ship’s cook. He knocks on the door to the forward cabin where the marines have been eating. When he doesn’t get an answer, he goes back to the kitchen.
You hear a door slam somewhere behind you and hurry to hide behind the cargo.
The ship’s cook enters the hold from astern and makes his way through the crates and barrels.
Do you want to:
Watch what he’s up to
Overpower him before he sees you
The cook steps up to the door on the forward side and knocks.
A marine opens the door, and they have a short conversation. Then, the marine goes back inside, and the cook starts back to his kitchen.
Do you want to:
The cook walks up to the door on the forward side and knocks.
When nothing happens, he murmurs something and comes back.
Do you want to:
Ambush him
Let him go
The cook leaves the hold through the stern door. Moments later, you hear another door slam.
When the cook passes your position, you jump out and overpower the surprised man. It takes just a few moments to bind and gag him. You hide your prisoner between the bales of cloth.
You hear sailors’ voices from the other side of the room. The commands you hear tell you that they’re rearranging crates and sacks of cargo.
Do you want to:
Sneak up on them
Overpower them
Leave the room again as silently as you can
You manage to get within a few paces of the sailors without being noticed.
There are eight of them standing around a large crate talking.
Do you want to:
Sneak back
Attack
You make hardly any sound sneaking back. You have no problems leaving the room unnoticed.
Only two steps from the crates that hide you from the sailors, [Hero] tries to steadyhis-/herself on a stack of furs that starts to sway. Then, it tips over and frees a view of eight sailors drawing their weapons.
You run through the stacked cargo towards the voices. On passing yet another stack of crates, you see eight sailors drawing their weapons.
Below you, you spy eight sailors rearranging the cargo.
If you try to reach any of the other doors, they’re bound to spot you.
Do you want to:
Attack the sailors
Go back and wait
You run down and face eight men, ready to fight.
You sneak back and wait another while.
You hear a door slam in the corridor and steps moving away.
You hear a lot of people moving.
“That must be the boatswain and his pressgang,” [Hero] speculates.
Suddenly, a great number of sailors, led by the boatswain, file into the room.
Do you want to:
Surrender
Fight
The sailors disarm and bind you. Then, they drag you on deck.
You see the boatswain draw back from the fight, and then the first sailors are upon you.
Suddenly a large number of sailors, led by the boatswain, file into the cabin.
Within seconds, you’re disarmed and bound, and then they drag you up on deck.
You hear heavy footsteps in the corridor. Several people are running toward the ladder.
Do you want to:
Ambush the sailors
Stay hidden
You keep quiet and listen to them climb down the ladder. The steps fade away.
Suddenly, three sailors come running out into the corridor and immediately attack you.
You hear hasty steps thundering above you. Finally, a number of people come climbing down the ladder.
Do you want to:
The door is flung open, and three sailors barge into the cabin.
You hear hasty steps thundering above you. Finally, a number of people come climbing down the ladder. When the sailors notice you, they attack.