Dave W.
Adamant (Warforged)
Adamant
Posts: 4,643
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Post by Dave W. on Feb 27, 2018 19:45:48 GMT -4
Adamant makes an awkward bow when introduced but says nothing. When scolded he shifts a bit and fumbles his arms into a position folded in front of him...
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Ken
Belarin Malizia
Belarin
Posts: 5,691
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Post by Ken on Feb 27, 2018 20:35:38 GMT -4
Belarin stands near Thul, silent and invisible. His grip on the pact dagger is so tight he wonders if his knuckles will crack. Even the tittering voices in his head are muted. The mocking fey chorus seems to be holding its breath, just as he is.
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Joe
Streko Tavven (halfling)
Streko
Posts: 3,518
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Post by Joe on Feb 27, 2018 22:10:56 GMT -4
Streko thinks it over, then chooses NOT to wait. He calls on Olladra and suddenly, his form shifts, his skin tone darkens to a lava-like red, his eyes glow a deep golden color and a tail juts out from underneath and behind him, while horns sprout out of his skull and bend back toward his ears. His hair is the same color as Melethos, dark blue, but loose, not braided. In the end, he looks like a young Melethos! His robes become a black leather jerkin and dark red trousers. He reaches back into his haversack and removes a small mirror and then slides up next to Melethos. He glances up at the Tiefling. "Hello, Father." He smiles, allowing the illusion of a young Tiefling to settle in. "Best not to have any Halflings aboard at the moment, don't you agree? I'll stay down here and...stare at myself...or whatever you order me to do. Best if I act slow, but not so slow as to be a liability. Give orders and I shall follow as you will." He pulls his knees up to his chin and frowns, attempting to look threatening. _______________________________________________________ Streko casts Disguise Self to look like a young Tiefling, to include travelling clothes.Melethos looks down in horror at Streko. "By the gods!" he whispers, "have you lost your mind? Whatever you have done, undo it right now, before Wylkes sees you!" Melethos then shifts to place his body between Streko and Lord Wylkes, in an effort to hide this "tiefling" Streko from the Coin Lord's sight. "Calm yourself, Elf-Lord. Should I be questioned, I will simply act as a childish version of you. They certainly have no reason to be looking for a four foot tall demon-kin, do they? Until then, I shall be a terrified waif, of which only half of that is false."
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Darren
Kalarian d'Deneith (human)
Kalarian
Posts: 7,310
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Post by Darren on Feb 28, 2018 1:00:33 GMT -4
Tangat, whose tail has been swishing anxiously, rises up from where he'd been lying on the ground. Resembling a brown and black hunting dog with a spiked color. "Keep that mutt from wandering!" Brack shouts at Kal, at least Kal's pretty sure he means him. Wylkes holds up a palm. "Now, now." He kneels and claps his hands together—white wand still gripped between his fingers—and beckons the dog over. Whining, Tangat pads over to the Coin Lord. His tail wags— but Kal can feel anxiety exuding from the dog. He's nervous. "Give every dog a chance," Wylkes says, his obvious fondness for hounds coming out. He smiles a little and rubs Tangat around the ears. "What's your name, boy?" Brack glares over at Kal. "Well? Whatsisname?" At the moment, Wylkes is focused on Tangat, and hasn't yet looked overlong at Melethos, Starg, Streko, or Shorak. Not yet. Kal keeps his eyes down and tugs on his forelock the way he's seen other sailors do in the past. "Tengar, m'lord," Kal mumbles in a gruff voice without meeting Wylkes' eyes. Though Kal's upbringing may have allowed it, Kal knows that a deckhand on a ship would never consider a Coin Lord to be his equal and so Kalarian acts appropriately cowed. "Sorry, cap'n," Kal says to Brack, motioning for Tangat to sit near the rope that Kal is coiling. He returns to his work, assuming that the Coin Lord would have no further need to converse with a common deckhand.
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Post by Dave B. on Feb 28, 2018 2:50:22 GMT -4
Shorak raises his head slilghtly to glance at the speakers, then drops his head back down and continues his "nap", apparently unconcerned.
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Feb 28, 2018 7:18:08 GMT -4
"Calm yourself, Elf-Lord. Should I be questioned, I will simply act as a childish version of you. They certainly have no reason to be looking for a four foot tall demon-kin, do they? Until then, I shall be a terrified waif, of which only half of that is false." Okay, I'll assume this is something Streko said before Wylkes came aboard and not right now in full view and hearing of the man..."Tengar," Wylkes repeats, patting the dog on the flank one last time before standing up again. Tangat pants "happily" then turns around and goes where his master directed him. "Oh, oh!" Brack exclaims, seizing Wylkes's attention again as he points over at Starg in his younger, more virile and scarred minotaur form. "That's Garrash Kul, my lord. He's just joined up. Only two days out of the Red Ring! Wicked strong. Backswing like a hurricane. Please tell me, my lord, that you've seen him fight?" Wylkes shakes his head. "Too busy to see sport lately." Brack shrugs. "More's the shame. Well." The shifter then points at Melethos in his tall elven shape. "Another of the Last Chancers. El-narr...Elan-narra...Elorana? Eh, I can't say the elvish names right anyway." He turns to indicate someone else, but Wylke's gaze has settled on the gold-eyed, red-skinned, and horned "child" of Streko standing beside Melethos and trying to look menacing. Brack lets out a disgusted sigh. "Ghh. I don't even know. He's with them." "A tiefling child?" Wylkes says. "And here I thought that prophet scooped them all out of the city by now..." Brack shrugs. "I wouldn't know..." There is a long pause, then the shifter curses loudly and suddenly, drawing back the Coin Lord's attention. Brack strides over to where Shorak is slumped by the mast; the half-drow is still in his usual clothing but also looks very much human. "What the bloody hell?" Brack drops into a bestial crouch in front of Shorak, snarls, and than smacks him across the face, but he opens his palm...and his fingernails have grown long and instantly leave three red slashes across Shorak's left cheek. The pain and blood is real. "Am I paying you to nap, man?!" he roars, his sharp feline canines having also elongated slightly. Eyes blazing. "The next time I find you napping, I'll be hauling you overboard without a gods-damned warning." Lord Wylks looks on, amused. At no point has anyone addressed Belarin. He seems to have melted completely in the dimness of the sterncastle. Even Thul isn't sure where the other man has gone. Brack continues to stand over Shorak, panting like a beast. "Get on your feet, cur. You'll be doing bilge duty for the rest of the week." Wylkes doesn't interfere with the "berating." Instead he turns and looks pointedly at Melethos. "So, you're going to Last Chance, master elf? You're not chasing after the Eye like everyone else?" Melethos struggles to think. Has he heard that name? Yes, he remembers seeing the name "Last Chance" on a Xen'drik map or two. He doesn't know anything about it at all, but it's a dot somewhere south of Stormreach in the jungle, not very far but not especially close. That's all he can remember.
Brack's (surprise) advantaged attack vs. Shorak: 17, 10 (hit) / 4 slashing damage to Shorak*
*Note that given his ruse, I figured Shorak would choose not to use Uncanny Dodge on this.
Melethos's Intelligence check: 12
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Brian
Melethos (tiefling)
Melethos
Posts: 5,085
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Post by Brian on Feb 28, 2018 9:04:24 GMT -4
"I do not chase, my lord," Melethos says to the Coin Lord. "As to the Eye, let the rest fight for it. I care not, for it is my belief that such an artifact should remain out of the hands of men in general. I have found that even the wisest of mages cannot hope to contain or control that much magic." His gaze drifts down to the tiefling next to him. "My apprentice. Not very bright. Do you know the tiefling custom of taking a quest name before he can use his given name? This one is called Dung, I am afraid. My hopes for him grow dimmer by the day." Melethos nods politely. "Good day to you, sir," he says, and shifts his attention once again to the river. _________________________________________________________ It was all good until the roll... Melethos:1D20+3 → 7(4 + 3)#Charisma(Deception) check
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Feb 28, 2018 10:29:25 GMT -4
Wylkes walks casually, slowly, toward Melethos. One of the Iron Watch guards keep right beside him, and its white-gleaming gemstone eyes Melethos somehow knows are fixed right on him. The tiefling suspects his turning away from the Coin Lord may have pressed him on. He surely does not like being dismissed.
Lord Wylkes gives a single soft laugh. "I think you're mistaken, friend. Some men, some elves even, may in fact be strong enough to 'contain that much magic.' And I submit that whether you think that's you...you are interested in it. What's in Last Chance for you? Why are you and your friends going there? What, if not the Eye, brought you to these shorts, and to my city?" Melethos detects the slightest emphasis on the word my.
Fortunately, he doesn't seem to give tiefling-Streko another look.
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Darren
Kalarian d'Deneith (human)
Kalarian
Posts: 7,310
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Post by Darren on Feb 28, 2018 10:38:32 GMT -4
Kal tenses as he listens to Wylkes question Melethos. His hands tighten on the rope he is coiling, but then he forces himself to relax and act like he's not even paying attention to the words of those around him. Work to do...
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Brian
Melethos (tiefling)
Melethos
Posts: 5,085
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Post by Brian on Feb 28, 2018 11:00:12 GMT -4
Wylkes walks casually, slowly, toward Melethos. One of the Iron Watch guards keep right beside him, and its white-gleaming gemstone eyes Melethos somehow knows are fixed right on him. The tiefling suspects his turning away from the Coin Lord may have pressed him on. He surely does not like being dismissed. Lord Wylkes gives a single soft laugh. "I think you're mistaken, friend. Some men, some elves even, may in fact be strong enough to 'contain that much magic.' And I think whether you think that's you...you are interested in it. What's in Last Chance for you? Why are you and your friends going there? What, if not the Eye, brought you to these shorts, and to my city?" Melethos detects the slightest emphasis on the word my. Fortunately, he doesn't seem to give tiefling-Streko another look. Melethos turns to give Wylkes a half-smile. "Your city, my lord, is a treasure. No doubt due to the good work you and your fellow Coin Lords do each and every day. I am here because it is here that I can secure passage to the deeper, more exotic parts of Xen'drik. There I hope to find components for a spell I am researching." His smile widens. "So far, I have failed to find the right mixture. Maybe this time I will be luckier. Is there anything else you wish to know, my lord?" _______________________________________ Okay, one more time with the roll!!
Melethos:1D20+3 → 7(4 + 3)#Charisma(Deception) check
Bwahahahahah!!! We're screwed!
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Feb 28, 2018 11:58:44 GMT -4
Coin Lord Wylkes stares at Melethos for a few more seconds with a dangerous look in his eyes. "Do you think I am a fool?" he asks, but the sound turns rhetorical as he turns around and looks back at Bracken. "Here is the riddle before me, Captain. I have to wonder why it is that the best diviners that platinum can buy would send me right here to this very cove...when I asked them to find the thieves who stole from me. From us. Where...?" He strides across the deck, passing in front of Shorak, and stands beside Sem and Larest. The gnome winces visibly. Wylkes ignores him and gestures to the docks, and the water on the starboard side. "Where else in this very cove would these thieves be but on this very boat?" Brack clears his throat. "Well, there're also a few dinghies about, my lord." He forces a toothy smile. "We could—" "Magic doesn't lie, Captain," Wylkes says as he walks back to stand before Brack. "Can anyone explain this?" A tense silence follows.
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Darren
Kalarian d'Deneith (human)
Kalarian
Posts: 7,310
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Post by Darren on Feb 28, 2018 12:14:18 GMT -4
Kal looks up, then clears his throat and stands slowly. He keeps his eyes respectfully down on the deck and shifts nervously. Again he knuckles his forehead. "Beg pardon, m'lord," he says, clearing his throat again. "I dunno about magic, m'lord, but I heard this here cove gets used by smugglers s'mtimes." He casts a nervous glance at Brack. "Not us, obv'sly." He clears his throat again. "Um...anyway...might be hidden spots out there," he looks over the deck railing at the cove around them. "Sorry, m'lord. Cap'n." Kal returns to his work.
________________________ Deception Check is an 8.....dammit.
Yup. We're all gonna rot in a Coin Lord prison.
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Elvis
Thul (Human)
Thul
Posts: 1,139
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Post by Elvis on Feb 28, 2018 12:22:09 GMT -4
Thul drops the coil of rope and heads down the stairs and steps in front of the illusioned-Warforged to inspect the crossbow.
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Ken
Belarin Malizia
Belarin
Posts: 5,691
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Post by Ken on Feb 28, 2018 12:57:47 GMT -4
Shadow take us all, Belarin groans silently. Oh well.Taking advantage of the attention that Thul is undoubtedly taking by fondling a massive crossbow, Belarin turns -- the shadows around him dissipating to reveal his newly disguised form -- and points down at a spot near the illuminated corner of the pier. "Cap'n Brack!" he calls out in a cracked, teenage-sounding voice. "There's a man in the water!" His cry is really intended to draw the attention of the guards on the pier, who see a man trying to pull himself up on the pier's support -- a man who perfectly resembles a very wet and angry Kalarian d'Deneith, complete with a dragonmark evident on his exposed forearm. As soon as the guards on the pier move closer, "Kalarian" scowls and sinks into the water. ________________________ Belarin casts minor illusion at a spot nearly the illuminated pier corner to the north. He is now visible, but disguised. With all attention on Melethos, Brack, Kal, and now Thul, he's hoping his "appearance" won't stand out.
Charisma (Deception) check: 1d20 (19) + 12 = 31. And that is how it's done.
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Feb 28, 2018 14:48:57 GMT -4
The guards on deck angle themselves towards Thul, watching him warily as he comes down the stairs to fuss with the crossbow mounted next to Adamant. "Cap'n Brack!" he calls out in a cracked, teenage-sounding voice. "There's a man in the water!" Belarin's alarming call triggers a few things: Every Stormreach Guard draws his sword; the Iron Watch already have their great weapons in hand (axes, swords, hammers). The three warforged closest to Brack ready their weapons as if waiting for the word to strike. The one closest to Thul braces its sword in a two-handed grip. Lord Wylkes himself whips out the rapier from his belt. He now stands with a glittering wand in one hand, blade in the other. "Ho now!" the Coin Lord calls out and sweeps his blade out in a fanlike arc, commanding attention. "Easy does it." The two guards on the dock closest to where Belarin conjured his illusion do rush over to the water—to simply watch the utterly silent Kal-illusion slip down into the water. But it seems no one else on deck saw anything anyway. Tangat leaps to his feet, hackles raised. "SO?!" Brack roars out in Belarin's direction. Although new eyes are on the warlock now, there's doesn't seem to be any reaction yet to his sudden appearance. Best map update I can manage from here to show who's changed movement:
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Ken
Belarin Malizia
Belarin
Posts: 5,691
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Post by Ken on Feb 28, 2018 15:01:45 GMT -4
Belarin's eyes go wide as he turns to look at the people staring in his direction. He seems suddenly fearful for his life, and he sheepishly says, "Beggin' your pardon, sir... but the man, he was, I dunno, watchin' the ship, 'n then he pointed his knife at those armored men there," he points to the guards on the dock, "and started wavin' it around." He moves his arm in a small circle. "It didn't look natural, so I, uh, I yelled. Sorry if I upset you, sir," he looks at Wylkes and quickly lowers his gaze, "or you, m'lord. I couldn't make out much, just black hair and a strange-lookin' tattoo. I think the guards down there got a better look." ______________________ Another Deception check, though not as good: 1d20(2) + 12 = 14. Belarin is counting on the guards to corroborate his tale.
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Feb 28, 2018 15:08:40 GMT -4
Wylkes gives one of his Iron Watch a look. "So check." The warforged turns, makes a gesture, and then the Stormreach Guards down on the dock mobilize closer together. One of them pulls on a whistle, and a shrill cry issues from it. Another echoes it from somewhere afar.
"Captain," Wylkes commands, looking at Brack. "Open the hatches. I want to see below."
"Aye, of course." The shifter carefully removes himself from his position between the warforged and walks towards the closest hatch, the one in closest tSem and Larest.
Pausing here, as I want to give Dave B. a chance to react.
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Darren
Kalarian d'Deneith (human)
Kalarian
Posts: 7,310
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Post by Darren on Feb 28, 2018 15:32:32 GMT -4
Kal stands and walks over to where Belarin is near the railing. He begins to work with some of the rigging in that area, but doesn't hesitate to look out in the direction the strange man indicated. A deckhand would be curious, after all, so this doesn't seem out of character. As he crouches by the railing, working with a rope, Kal quietly utters some words of magic. From a point near the dock where Belarin's illusion was seen to sink under the water, Kal's own voice is suddenly heard whispering. "Be quiet!" it hisses. "They'll hear us!" A light splashing is heard underneath the docks, heading towards the buildings and back towards land.
____________________ Kal will also use minor illusion to help sell Belarin's deception.
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Dave W.
Adamant (Warforged)
Adamant
Posts: 4,643
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Post by Dave W. on Feb 28, 2018 15:35:19 GMT -4
The guards on deck angle themselves towards Thul, watching him warily as he comes down the stairs to fuss with the crossbow mounted next to Adamant. ... Every Stormreach Guard draws his sword; ... The one closest to Thul braces its sword in a two-handed grip. Adamant, still looking the confused human, raises his empty hands as the guards guard draws. He looks at the guard and then at Thul and slowly takes two steps away from Thul... trying to imply with body-language: If you mean to run him through, I'll be over there...
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Elvis
Thul (Human)
Thul
Posts: 1,139
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Post by Elvis on Feb 28, 2018 16:03:24 GMT -4
Thul sighs, then moves his hands off the crossbow and shows the ironguard his palms.
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Joe
Streko Tavven (halfling)
Streko
Posts: 3,518
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Post by Joe on Feb 28, 2018 22:59:45 GMT -4
Streko scurries behind Melethos's leg and clamps onto his tightly. "DUNG!" he says, glancing around his friend's leg and keeping his eye on the Coin Lord.
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Post by Dave B. on Mar 1, 2018 2:49:28 GMT -4
Shorak is not terribly surprised at Brack's sudden attack and anger. It is how most captains would treat crew sleeping on the job. Shorak grabs his wounded face and rises quickly to his feet, sputtering apologies to the captain. The coin lord's sudden accusations to Brack saves Shorak from having to explain himself and Shorak moves away from the two angry figures of authority, his body language that of someone afraid of receiving further punishment. Using what he learned on the Merrow Down, Shorak starts checking lines, looking over each tie to make sure they are properly secured.
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Mar 1, 2018 10:02:30 GMT -4
The warforged watching Thul doesn't turn away from him for a moment. Wylkes eyes Kal as the sorcerer turns and walks freely up the sterncastle steps to join Belarin. Those closest to the Coin Lord can see his eyes narrow. When Kal casts his spell of illusion to complement Belarin's, he is trusting that both the ship's wheel and the elevation of the sterncastle itself blocks the Coin Lord's sight from seeing the mystic gestures. Brack, meanwhile, kneels by the starboard hatch, fiddles with the lock and pull-ring, then heaves it open. Immediately Shorak, who stands closest to it, instinctively shrinks away from the stomach-turning odor that wafts up from below: it smells like sewage that's been stewing in dead fish for days. He almost gags. Captain Brack himself winces only, like he was expecting it but can't quite stomach it. The smell fills the upper deck quickly. Only Kal and Belarin are spared the worst of it. Wylkes grimaces and covers his mouth and nose in disgust. "What in the gods do you keep down there?" Tangat starts whining at the smell. "Sorry, my lord," Brack sputters. "Bilge's been having some...problems. If you like, I can search for my mask; it's old but it holds against the worst of it..." "No," Wylkes says, then turns to one of his warforged. "Go, search below." The Iron Watch guard just nods, sheathes its weapon, then starts down the thick ladder leading into the hold. Adamant, standing by, finds the reek no less discomforting, but he knows that he and other constructs process bad smells differently than do breathing creatures. It is not pleasant, but he finds such smells less personally offensive. It would be the same for any other warforged.
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Dave W.
Adamant (Warforged)
Adamant
Posts: 4,643
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Post by Dave W. on Mar 1, 2018 11:14:17 GMT -4
It takes Adamant a moment to realize how he's supposed to react now that he's "human". "By the Host!" he mutters and then covers his mouth and nose with his hand.
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Ken
Belarin Malizia
Belarin
Posts: 5,691
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Post by Ken on Mar 1, 2018 12:39:46 GMT -4
Belarin leans over the edge of the ship, doing his best to "look" for the illusory Kal. Without turning his head, he whispers to the real Kal, "Let it play out now."
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Darren
Kalarian d'Deneith (human)
Kalarian
Posts: 7,310
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Post by Darren on Mar 1, 2018 16:15:19 GMT -4
Coiling a rope while casting occasional glances over the side, Kal nods but says nothing else in response.
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Jeff
Administrator
Dungeon Master
Posts: 15,166
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Post by Jeff on Mar 1, 2018 16:33:04 GMT -4
You can hear the guards on the dock speaking brusquely with the sailor and sahuagin still sitting in the rowboat. Adamant and Melethose both sees a pouch held out to the sahuagin by one of the guards. The sea devil grunts, grabs the pouch, then leaps over the railing and into the water. Still holding a gloved hand in front of his nose, Wylkes strides across the deck (one guard staying close to him) to approach Histra. Tangat looks tense, and just watches the man, his tail wagging only slowly, deliberately. "Woman, what is your part in all this?" Wylkes says, his voice partially muffled. Histra looks back the the Coin Lord, her face undaunted. She also seems less bothered by the smell than most; it is a simple wrinkle of disgust on her face. "I do crave the Eye of Azalar...my lord," she says firmly, pulling her hands away from her pack. "But that's all it is. A useless desire. I've not the time nor the gold to contend with its many hunters." Wylkes stops and stands very close to her now, looking down and holding her gaze. "I have seen you somewhere before..." "The gala," she says. "Before your guests made a mess of it." "Ahh, so you were there." "I am Histra ir'Serell. I accompanied my kinsmen out of curiosity. But even they have given up the hunt. We have spells to master and interests that will long outlast the victims of the Eye." Lord Wylkes studies the necromancer with an inscrutable expression.
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Elvis
Thul (Human)
Thul
Posts: 1,139
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Post by Elvis on Mar 1, 2018 18:36:59 GMT -4
Thul's eye contact with the ironguard is unwavering.
"You seem nervous." he says quietly, so only the ironguard can hear him. He flicks a glance at the greatsword. "You going to use that on an unarmed old man?"
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Joe
Streko Tavven (halfling)
Streko
Posts: 3,518
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Post by Joe on Mar 1, 2018 22:32:38 GMT -4
Streko gamely attempts to keep from retching out loud from the stench. "Dung..." he sputters, his stomach heaving. He makes no attempt to move away though. How would Melethos act? A Tiefling has probably created worse smells than this by belching, he thinks. Look and act calmly, but don't overreact by NOT reacting. By the Host, I'd be a terrible actor. He stands taller, retches again, but manages to keep his stomach contents from adding to the miasma.
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Ken
Belarin Malizia
Belarin
Posts: 5,691
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Post by Ken on Mar 2, 2018 0:54:10 GMT -4
Belarin watches the sahuagin dive into the water, and he continues his "watch" for the submerged spy. He ignores Wylkes' conversation with Histra, as he knows that Histra is perhaps one of the least endangered people onboard.
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