Background and Mission
Hundreds of years ago, the continent of Aberdeen was essentially wiped from the planet in a cataclysmic event, sinking to the bottom of the Avakolli Ocean. All that remains of this once-mighty continent are a string of islands and atolls, spread across a large swath of the mid-Avakolli, which are the only parts of the mostly sunken continent that still rise above sea level.
Three years ago, in the year 986, the nation of Malorious dispatched dozens of ships to survey this string of islands, hoping to determine their suitability for the establishment of a new colony.
At the conclusion of this successful two-year survey mission, the island of Vanderlandt was selected as being the most viable for colonization.
Last year, in the year 988, the Malorious government, in conjunction with a group of wealthy private investors making up the Reclamation Venture Company, sent an initial group of supplies and colonists to the island of Vanderlandt aboard the ship Freedom's Messenger in hopes of establishing and outfitting Anthol's Recompense, the name of this new colony. Their primary objectives being the construction of homes and community buildings, and the planting of crops for a sustainable food source.
A second ship -- the Ocean Pearl -- was scheduled to set sail from Vintas, the capital city of Malorious, and arrive at the new colony six months later, armed with supplies and additional colonists.
The adventure begins as you find yourselves onboard the Ocean Pearl, as key members of this planned second mission.
The Ship
The Ocean Pearl is an impressive, three-masted sailing ship with a spritsail on the bow. The vessel is 100-feet long and 25-feet across at its widest point. There are three decks and the ship can accommodate 180 tons of total cargo:
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Two ship’s boats, used to ferry passengers and cargo ashore, are stacked on top of each other on the top deck. Each ship’s boat is 10-feet by 20-feet, and is capable of transporting eight individuals and their possessions comfortably.
The cargo on board does include some supplies and materials, but as it was anticipated that the tools from the first mission are still available, the load in the Ocean Pearl contains much more food... and a small herd of goats.
There are 79 total passengers on this mission, including 5 ship officers; 16 sailors; 6 soldiers; and 46 colonists.
Ship Officers
The captain of the Ocean Pearl is Riffolk Goodwel, a blue-eyed man in his mid-forties, with a short beard and prematurely silvered hair.
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Over the course of your six-week journey to date, you've determined him to be a fair man who's really hoping this venture is successful so that he can obtain future contracts for additional supply runs.
He has made no attempt to conceal where his loyalties belong:
His crew.
His ship.
His passengers.
In that order.
Captain Goodwel runs a tight ship, and has made no secret that they must remain on schedule in order to meet his payroll and supply needs.
The ship's first mate is Nelenwe, who has green eyes, wavy auburn hair, and stands just under 6-feet tall; a tad taller than her captain.
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Nelenwe has a natural talent for mechanical devices and climbing the ship’s rigging.
Her steadfast loyalty to Captain Goodwel is reinforced by his promise to sell her the Ocean Pearl at a generous price when he retires.
At the helm of the Ocean Pearl is the ship's navigator, Ophia, whose talent at being able to peer through the fog, mist, and rain is highly valued by her captain.
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Ophia is the strong silent type, but what she lacks in charm and personality, she more than makes up for with her powerful presence. Most sailors and colonists move out of her way as she paces the decks; the only exceptions being the ship’s other officers and Lebrellye, the colonist's leader.
Perhaps the most feared individual on the boat is the ship's boatswain, Aderchtok:
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Bosun Aderchtok appears to be a typical burly half-orc, with green-tinted skin covered in tattoos, two protruding lower tusks, and a gravelly voice. He is responsible for managing the 16 sailors aboard the Ocean Pearl and answers to only the captain and first mate.
Despite his gruff demeanor, Aderchtok is a competent manager who knows when to bark and when to offer praise and positive reinforcement (in the form of a reserved store of grog) to get the most out of the sailors under his command.
The last ship officer, Jane Dysle, serves in a dual-role as the ship's quartermaster and purser.
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Jane, or "Numbers" as the crew refers to her, has two roles aboard the Ocean Pearl:
As quartermaster, she directs the steering in conjunction with Ophia, primarily with adjustments to the ship’s sails.
As the ship’s purser, she is solely responsible for managing the ship’s stores and supplies as well as the cargo.
She is also nominally in command of the ship’s cook.
On this voyage, the responsibilities and pressure on "Numbers" have never been greater -- she must protect the supplies destined for Anthol's Recompense while ensuring she has enough food and water for the crew to return to Vintas, the coastal city from which you set sail.
In addition to the 5 ship officers, there are 16 sailors, 6 soldiers, and 46 colonists on board.
You have learned, over the course of the six weeks you've been on this journey that the sailors, for the most part, are "able," in that they have only one or two voyages under their belts, and know the basics of being a mariner. So far, they've proven to be quite competent.
The Colonists
Of the 46 total colonists on board, 10 of them have made more of an impression during your journey:
In all of your experiences with Duli, she has been friendly and affable.
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Age has begun to get the best of her, so when she learned Malorious was establishing a new colony, she applied for citizenship and won a spot among the second group of settlers. Her willingness to support the community with her alchemical knowledge was instrumental in her inclusion.
The exotic Niyol has a deeper tan complexion than many of her fellow colonists. She keeps her head shaved bald and has several tattoos of runic and animal totems representing the moon and owls.
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Niyol, a nomadic hunter, comes across as coarse and blunt, but you have also witnessed her exhibiting kind and nurturing instincts. She tries to see the best in people. Niyol almost didn't qualify for the trip, and her application to become a colonist was initially rejected due to her lack of citizenship. Determined, she agreed to undertake a series of challenges designed to gauge her skill as a hunter and naturalist, and her skills impressed the investors enough to win her place.
Toke, a man of average height with short, wavy brown hair, does his best to keep his beard well-manicured.
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While he is one of the half-dozen soldiers assigned to protect this nautical trek and isn't an actual colonist, Toke is definitely the most approachable of all the soldiers on board and integrates well with those seeking to start a new life at the new colony.
Erolwel and Yanish are missionaries who volunteered to join the colony. The pair bicker like an old married couple, but despite appearances, they are the best of friends and nothing more.
Erolwel is a tall man with straw-colored hair and an infectious smile. The half-elf dislikes confrontation and his outward demeanor is relaxed and friendly... except with his lifelong friend Yanish, whom he refers to as “Father Grouse.”
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Yanish, a middle-aged human, is relatively short, with a slight stoop to his shoulders. His face is lined with a few wrinkles, and he keeps his steel-gray hair cut short.
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While the more serious of the two missionaries, Yanish's bark is worse than his bite. Outwardly, he appears curmudgeonly and easily irritated (he refers to Erolwel as “Father Easy”), but this is mostly an act. He is more tolerant than he lets on.
Crastor, in his late twenties, has raven-black hair and a pale complexion. He is handsome, snobbish, and prides himself on his excellent physical condition.
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He is the youngest adult son of the Barkley family, wealthy horse breeders in Malorious.
Crastor receives a stipend from the family business, but, because of his decision to join this excursion, has forfeited his share of the family fortune which will now go to his two older brothers when their mother passes away. Before leaving, however, Crastor sought a means of advancement that avoided family infighting, and negotiated a deal with his aging mother -- he would join the new colony, establish himself, hire workers to build stables, then be able to import a dozen of his families prized horses to the island at later date.
Chirkos is balding, with dark hair at the sides and back of his head, and sports a bushy mustache that he thinks accentuates his manly attractiveness. He has a stocky frame, but far more of it is muscle than fat.
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Chirkos is friendly and outgoing, but definitely has a masculine perspective. He’s prone to sizing people up to determine their attitudes and opinions, then either adjusting his own opinions and behavior to fit in, or using his differences with them as ammunition if they ever argue with him. The fact that he is the only blacksmith on this voyage only inflates his already strong sense of self-importance.
Elen is a strawberry blonde woman of average height and slender build, with blue-green eyes and a lopsided smile. She pulls her hair back in a ponytail and dresses in sturdy but comfortable clothes and custom-fitted boots.
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An employee of the Reclamation Venture Company (the group responsible for funding half the cost of this extremely costly expedition), Elen tasked with surveying the island in greater depth than was done by the ship-bound surveyors. She was hired as a naturalist, but her responsibilities extend to identifying known ancient ruins, mineral resources, local flora and fauna, and inland locations of freshwater. She is also tasked with estimating the square footage or acreage of the forested areas for future lumber concerns.
Niserie is a petite female with red hair that she keeps cropped short.
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A scholar and historian, Niserie is pleasant and soft-spoken, but very precise and confident in her knowledge. Her gentle demeanor doesn’t impinge on her ability to point out when she thinks others are wrong, which she does with dogged stubbornness. It is not unusual for her to carry on doing what she feels is important and disregard what anyone else thinks.
Niserie is also an employee of the Reclamation Venture Company and her responsibility is to chronicle daily events in Anthol's Recompense and provide Lebrellye with scholarly advice on the nature of any ruins or ancient and valuable relics discovered. She also sees it as her duty to provide her employers with high-quality maps of the island.
Lebrellye has a naturally tan complexion that deepens during the ocean voyage. She keeps her brown hair cut short and dresses appropriately for a subtropical climate. She spends very little effort on her appearance, but she has an attractive face that hides behind the cloud of concern she feels toward her fellow colonists.
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Lebrellye has a jocular sense of humor and easygoing nature, which she keeps firmly buried beneath a mask of stoicism.
The Reclamation Venture Company’s designated leader for the colony, once the Ocean Pearl arrives, she is expected to deliver a sealed letter to Soheil Shareef, the colonist leader from the first mission, and assume command of the entire colony. Soheil, then, is instructed to serve as her second-in-charge.
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I do NOT like to start games this way, so apologies. It was necessary, though, as there really was a ton of information to present.
Future updates will be nowhere near as dense. Including the next one, which I will post shortly, and which will be an actual action post and not just exposition.
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Date: 1 Martius 989 Time: 14:21
Daily Forecast
Sunrise: 7:47
Sunset: 19:13
Temperature: 81°
High: 84°
Low: 77°
Conditions
Wind: Breezy
Precipitation: None
Humidity: Low
Visibility: Clear
Light Sources
None
Known Conditions
None
Spells in Effect
None
Character Details
Rex as Kari | Female | Neutral Good | Half-Orc | Fighter (1) | HD: 1 (1d10) | HP: 13 | AC: 16 | SP: 30' | Initiative: +2 | Darkvision: Yes | Inspiration: No
You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Relentless Endurance: 1 (Recover: Long)
When you are reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 hit point instead. You can’t use this feature again until you finish a long rest.
Savage Attacks
When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon’s damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit.
On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level. Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
Monsieur Rose as Rocco | Male | Chaotic Neutral | Variant Human | Bard (1) | HD: 1 (1d8) | HP: 10 | AC: 14 | SP: 30' | Initiative: +3 | Darkvision: No | Inspiration: No
You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Fey Ancestry
You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can’t put you to sleep.
You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
As an action, you can touch a creature and draw power from the pool to restore a number of hit points to that creature, up to the maximum amount remaining in your pool.
Marullus as Tharmyr | Male | Neutral | Rock Gnome | Storm Sorcerer (1) | HD: 1 (1d6) | HP: 5 | AC: 11 | SP: 25' | Initiative: +1 | Darkvision: Yes | Inspiration: No
You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Gnome Cunning
You have advantage on all Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws against magic.
Whenever you make an Intelligence (History) check related to magic items, alchemical objects, or technological devices, you can add twice your proficiency bonus, instead of any proficiency bonus you normally apply.
Using those tools, you can spend 1 hour and 10 gp worth of materials to construct a Tiny clockwork device (AC 5, 1 hp). The device ceases to function after 24 hours (unless you spend 1 hour repairing it to keep the device functioning).
Sleeping in light armor has no adverse effect on the wearer, but sleeping in medium or heavy armor makes it difficult to recover fully during a long rest.
When you finish a long rest during which you slept in medium or heavy armor, you regain only one quarter of your spent Hit Dice (minimum of one die). If you have any levels of exhaustion, the rest doesn’t reduce your exhaustion level.
