The dragon egg was the size of a watermelon. It sat in a creche on a lacquered work table in the laboratory of the Ketan wizard named Keledek who had abandoned the egg in fear for his life. The recently slain four-armed albino simian beast lay dead on the floor.
The four members of the A-Team looked at the egg. They were covered in the blood of their slain enemies. The three lizard-men who accompanied them on their mission to recover the dragon egg stood nearby. The reptilian warriors eyed their warm-blooded allies-of-convenience warily.
Auric gritted his teeth and cast his narrowed eyes towards the lizard-men warriors. He could sense the tightening of their grips on their weapons, the silent glances they exchanged, the subtle signs of imminent betrayal. He looked around to make sure his friend Annor wasn't in the room. The scrupulous warrior would not approve of what was coming next. He knew it was a matter of time before the lizard-men made their move. Better to preemptively deal with it here and now. He looked at his companions, pointed towards the lizard-folk, and casually gave the order: "Kill them."
CHAPTER 19
"THE DUKE OF SEATON"
The A-Team:- Avastana "Aella" Kádár - Neutral, Half-Elf Outlander and Sorceress from Ket.
- Annor Whalerson - Lawful Good, Human Marine and Fighter from Saltmarsh.
- Marlin Whalerson - Chaotic Good, Human Seeker and Rogue.
- Auric Ravenson - Neutral Good, Aasimar Shipwright and Cleric of the Raven King.
Special Guest Star:
- Alot Aname - Neutral Warforged Fighter.
Curse Your Sudden Yet Inevitable Betrayal
DM Note- I didn't even bother with the fight vs. the lizard-men. The outcome of that fight was a foregone conclusion. I am pretty sure turning on your allies and murdering them because you are pretty sure they were planning on doing the same to you is a little out of character for ostensibly "Good" aligned characters. Because I didn't want to start an argument about the philosophy of the D&D Alignment system, I told the players that they interrupted the lizard-men in mid-betrayal, so it was technically self-defense. Auric's player said, "Doesn't matter."
After preemptively eliminating the lizard-men, Marlin put the dragon egg in his bag of holding and threw the bag over his shoulder. Aella carried the unconscious Captain Vile while Auric carried the the unconscious and badly injured Duke of Seaton. The party left the wizard's laboratory and made their way through the room with the magical sundial and into the sandy grotto bisected by the river.
Marlin said, "Wait, weren't there still skeletons in this room?"
Auric shrugged, "Eh, they're just skeletons! Who cares?"
As the entered the sandy cavern, the loose bones scattered in the sand came together in a hulking animated mass, forming a roughly humanoid shape composed of various pieces of skeleton. The humanoid shape rose up like an ogre before them.
Auric replied, "Oh. Huh. Interesting."
The Skeletal Swarm
The skeletal mass crashed like a wave onto the party, knocking several of them to the ground. The bones quickly reformed into a vaguely humanoid shape. The automaton fighter Alot regained his footing and charged the mass while Aella cast a witch bolt, creating a sustained bolt of lightning that blew many of the bones to splinters. Auric quickly said a prayer to prevent the duke from dying.
The skeletal mass formed bony claws and attacked Auric while Aella's witch bolt continued to blast away at the bones. As the party attacked the skeletal swarm, it appeared that bones began to fall off - as if the mass was beginning to lose cohesion.
The mass once more reared up and crashed down on the party, sending them once more to the floor. Aella's witch bolt finally blasted the mass into smithereens, sending bone shards flying. Before anyone could recover or breathe a sigh of relief the scattered bones reformed into twelve smaller skeletons around the cavern!
Aella cast a spell that created a massive wind gust. She directed the hurricane force winds against the skeletons, blowing them back away from the party.
Alot charged into the center of the skeletons and was quickly surrounded.
Aella maintained the stream of wind to keep the skeletons at bay. The skeletons pushed against the wind to advanced against Alot who stood at the edge of the river. Marlin moved up behind the Alot and used Warforged Warrior as a shield, darting out to stab at a skeleton before ducking back behind cover.
Eventually all the skeletons were once again defeated and the party continued to the boat landing in the large grotto.
Lemundo the Lovely
They boarded their boat with their two prisoners, leaving the previously captured smuggler locked in the cage. Marlin grabbed a bucket of chum before they shoved off.
They soon encountered Lemundo the Lovely in the narrow confines of the passage brandishing an oar and fighting off two octopi trying to overturn her rowboat. Marlin threw the chum into the water and the party invited Lemundo to join them in their escape.
Lemundo crossed over onto their larger boat and the party escaped the smuggler caves and emerged into the early dawn sky.
Marlin quickly blindfolded and gagged their prisoners, bound their ears, and covered their heads with burlap sacks.
Lemundo asked them what was happening. Auric, Marlin, Aella, and Alot did their best to explain that they had just rescued the duke, whom they thought was her father, and captured the pirate responsible for her imprisonment.
Lemundo exclaimed, "He's not my father!"
Lemundo explained that the duke was her uncle, but since the supposed death of her father he tells people he's her adoptive father! Her actual father is the duke's older brother, Obertus.
Auric and Marlin both understood that Obertus Feldren died a few years ago from an illness. Lemundo said that that was her understanding too. But she had recently discovered that her father was, in fact, still alive!
Her uncle, Marik Feldren, had faked the death of his brother and had hidden him away in a secret prison cell on an island somewhere - she didn't know where. She had learned that Duke Marik had been making secret trips to the island to see his brother. When she learned that her father was alive, she stowed away on the ship, hoping to find her father's hiding place, expose Duke Marik's secret, and restore her father as the rightful duke.
Unfortunately, the ship's captain, Captain Horatio Vile, apparently betrayed Duke Marik and brought him here instead. She was discovered and put in a cage. Captain Vile's crew hadn't yet decided what to do with her.
She was no friend of Duke Marik and likewise Marik would likely have her imprisoned after this to help keep his secret hidden.
Marlin offered to kill the duke but Lemundo declined. He was a pretender but he was still her uncle. Also, he might be needed to help find and free her father. And finally, the penalty for murdering a noble was severe! No, Duke Marik needed to be rescued. She would remain hidden but would try to follow him again someday to find where he's keeping her father.
Aella offered to let Lemundo hide in her house as long as she needed and the team vowed to help Lemundo in any way possible. They would equip her and do what they could to help her free her father.
They returned to Saltmarsh in mid-morning. They gave Lemundo a hooded cloak to wear and quickly carried Duke Marik and Captain Vile to the House of Whaler. Aella took Lemundo to her house and gave her a place to sleep and hide as well as a sword with which to protect herself.
DM Note-
The players asked what Lemundo wanted to do - Join them? Become an adventurer? Stay in town? I told them that they had complete narrative control over that decision and storyline. "You tell me." I like giving players decisions over stuff like that. Its their narrative and their story. Its up to them if they want an NPC sidekick or not. They ultimately decided to let her do her own thing for now. They might help her in the future.
Reunion
Annor Whalerson was preparing to leave the house when Marlin, Auric, and Alot burst in, dirty, covered in blood and sand, and carrying the semi-conscious Duke Marik Feldren, still with a gruesome wound on his face and neck, and a sea captain whose identity was unknown to him.
DM Note- Annor's player finally showed up this week after an absence of over a month. He had to sit on his hands all night as I tried to get the group back into Saltmarsh. The second the group was about to enter the door, he had to take an important phone call and stepped away from the table. ARGH! We had to wait for him to come back.
"Where have you been? It's been three days! Did you rescue my goatherd? Wait, is that the duke of Seaton??"
Marlin was about to explain everything to his brother but stopped. He realized it only takes an hour for a wizard to re-summon his familiar. He explained that Keledek might be listening in. He leaned over and whispered a run-down of the past two nights in his brother's ear.
Marlin then explained that he needed Annor to accompany them to the gaol so that they could transfer their "guests" to Eliander and the town guard.
Annor agreed and the group put the two groggy captives in a cart and hauled them to the gaol - conveniently less than a hundred feet from the House of Whaler.
Briefing Eliander
Eliander Fireborn, captain of the guard of Saltmarsh and veteran of many campaigns against the Sea Princes, gave a warm welcome to his fellow veteran Annor while casting a cold glance towards Annor's brother, Marlin. Captain Fireborn inquired about the two captives.
Annor explained that they had rescued the Duke of Seaton from captivity at the hands of the unscrupulous Captain Vile. Annor requested special accommodation for the duke.
Eliander sputtered as he realized the the duke himself lay blindfolded, gagged, bound, and trussed on a cart outside his gaol. He quickly ordered his men to carry the duke to his office and place Captain Vile in a cell.
In the privacy of Eliander's office, they removed the duke's hood, blindfold, and gag. The duke's face was horribly wounded by the lizard-men's teeth and claws and he was covered in blood and sand. The duke stared vacantly and did not respond when addressed. The duke had difficulty remembering his name or where he was and seemed incapable of focusing on anyone or verbally interacting. He was not delirious - he was vacant and blank.
Eliander declared that the duke would be taken to the town's chiurgeon immediately and that the priests of the Temple of Procan would called to pray for his well being.
Marlin told Eliander that Captain Vile was working with the guild of smugglers called "The Organization". He pulled up Captain Vile's shirt, performed a quick search of his body, and located the secret tattoo marking his membership. He also mentioned that Captain Vile was working at the behest of Gellan Primewater and the Ketan wizard Keledek and that the duke was kidnapped as part of some unknown plot.
No one mentioned Lemundo or the possibility of the duke's brother being alive.
Eliander said that he had his suspicions but that Primewater's position on the town council made it difficult to act upon. He asked Marlin and Annor if they had any proof of Gellan Primewater's involvement.
They admitted they did not.
Marlin then warned Eliander about the wizard's familiar and urged discretion. He said he'd work to obtain evidence and expose the plot. Eliander derisively dismissed Marlin's promise and Marlin was suitably insulted.
The A-Team then left the gaol and returned to the House of Whaler to rest. It was noon and everyone was exhausted. It had been a long night.
Alot charged into the center of the skeletons and was quickly surrounded.
Aella maintained the stream of wind to keep the skeletons at bay. The skeletons pushed against the wind to advanced against Alot who stood at the edge of the river. Marlin moved up behind the Alot and used Warforged Warrior as a shield, darting out to stab at a skeleton before ducking back behind cover.
Eventually all the skeletons were once again defeated and the party continued to the boat landing in the large grotto.
Lemundo the Lovely
They boarded their boat with their two prisoners, leaving the previously captured smuggler locked in the cage. Marlin grabbed a bucket of chum before they shoved off.
They soon encountered Lemundo the Lovely in the narrow confines of the passage brandishing an oar and fighting off two octopi trying to overturn her rowboat. Marlin threw the chum into the water and the party invited Lemundo to join them in their escape.
Lemundo crossed over onto their larger boat and the party escaped the smuggler caves and emerged into the early dawn sky.
Marlin quickly blindfolded and gagged their prisoners, bound their ears, and covered their heads with burlap sacks.
Lemundo asked them what was happening. Auric, Marlin, Aella, and Alot did their best to explain that they had just rescued the duke, whom they thought was her father, and captured the pirate responsible for her imprisonment.
Lemundo exclaimed, "He's not my father!"
Lemundo explained that the duke was her uncle, but since the supposed death of her father he tells people he's her adoptive father! Her actual father is the duke's older brother, Obertus.
Auric and Marlin both understood that Obertus Feldren died a few years ago from an illness. Lemundo said that that was her understanding too. But she had recently discovered that her father was, in fact, still alive!
Her uncle, Marik Feldren, had faked the death of his brother and had hidden him away in a secret prison cell on an island somewhere - she didn't know where. She had learned that Duke Marik had been making secret trips to the island to see his brother. When she learned that her father was alive, she stowed away on the ship, hoping to find her father's hiding place, expose Duke Marik's secret, and restore her father as the rightful duke.
Unfortunately, the ship's captain, Captain Horatio Vile, apparently betrayed Duke Marik and brought him here instead. She was discovered and put in a cage. Captain Vile's crew hadn't yet decided what to do with her.
She was no friend of Duke Marik and likewise Marik would likely have her imprisoned after this to help keep his secret hidden.
Marlin offered to kill the duke but Lemundo declined. He was a pretender but he was still her uncle. Also, he might be needed to help find and free her father. And finally, the penalty for murdering a noble was severe! No, Duke Marik needed to be rescued. She would remain hidden but would try to follow him again someday to find where he's keeping her father.
Aella offered to let Lemundo hide in her house as long as she needed and the team vowed to help Lemundo in any way possible. They would equip her and do what they could to help her free her father.
They returned to Saltmarsh in mid-morning. They gave Lemundo a hooded cloak to wear and quickly carried Duke Marik and Captain Vile to the House of Whaler. Aella took Lemundo to her house and gave her a place to sleep and hide as well as a sword with which to protect herself.
DM Note-
The players asked what Lemundo wanted to do - Join them? Become an adventurer? Stay in town? I told them that they had complete narrative control over that decision and storyline. "You tell me." I like giving players decisions over stuff like that. Its their narrative and their story. Its up to them if they want an NPC sidekick or not. They ultimately decided to let her do her own thing for now. They might help her in the future.
Reunion
Annor Whalerson was preparing to leave the house when Marlin, Auric, and Alot burst in, dirty, covered in blood and sand, and carrying the semi-conscious Duke Marik Feldren, still with a gruesome wound on his face and neck, and a sea captain whose identity was unknown to him.
DM Note- Annor's player finally showed up this week after an absence of over a month. He had to sit on his hands all night as I tried to get the group back into Saltmarsh. The second the group was about to enter the door, he had to take an important phone call and stepped away from the table. ARGH! We had to wait for him to come back.
"Where have you been? It's been three days! Did you rescue my goatherd? Wait, is that the duke of Seaton??"
Marlin was about to explain everything to his brother but stopped. He realized it only takes an hour for a wizard to re-summon his familiar. He explained that Keledek might be listening in. He leaned over and whispered a run-down of the past two nights in his brother's ear.
Marlin then explained that he needed Annor to accompany them to the gaol so that they could transfer their "guests" to Eliander and the town guard.
Annor agreed and the group put the two groggy captives in a cart and hauled them to the gaol - conveniently less than a hundred feet from the House of Whaler.
Briefing Eliander
Eliander Fireborn, captain of the guard of Saltmarsh and veteran of many campaigns against the Sea Princes, gave a warm welcome to his fellow veteran Annor while casting a cold glance towards Annor's brother, Marlin. Captain Fireborn inquired about the two captives.
Annor explained that they had rescued the Duke of Seaton from captivity at the hands of the unscrupulous Captain Vile. Annor requested special accommodation for the duke.
Eliander sputtered as he realized the the duke himself lay blindfolded, gagged, bound, and trussed on a cart outside his gaol. He quickly ordered his men to carry the duke to his office and place Captain Vile in a cell.
In the privacy of Eliander's office, they removed the duke's hood, blindfold, and gag. The duke's face was horribly wounded by the lizard-men's teeth and claws and he was covered in blood and sand. The duke stared vacantly and did not respond when addressed. The duke had difficulty remembering his name or where he was and seemed incapable of focusing on anyone or verbally interacting. He was not delirious - he was vacant and blank.
Eliander declared that the duke would be taken to the town's chiurgeon immediately and that the priests of the Temple of Procan would called to pray for his well being.
Marlin told Eliander that Captain Vile was working with the guild of smugglers called "The Organization". He pulled up Captain Vile's shirt, performed a quick search of his body, and located the secret tattoo marking his membership. He also mentioned that Captain Vile was working at the behest of Gellan Primewater and the Ketan wizard Keledek and that the duke was kidnapped as part of some unknown plot.
No one mentioned Lemundo or the possibility of the duke's brother being alive.
Eliander said that he had his suspicions but that Primewater's position on the town council made it difficult to act upon. He asked Marlin and Annor if they had any proof of Gellan Primewater's involvement.
They admitted they did not.
Marlin then warned Eliander about the wizard's familiar and urged discretion. He said he'd work to obtain evidence and expose the plot. Eliander derisively dismissed Marlin's promise and Marlin was suitably insulted.
The A-Team then left the gaol and returned to the House of Whaler to rest. It was noon and everyone was exhausted. It had been a long night.
All Hands on Deck
Late that night the bell above the council hall rang out an alarm. A building was on fire!
The team woke and rushed outside. They could see down the hill towards the Kingfisher river and the docks. Primewater mansion was ablaze!
Annor, Auric, Aella, Alot, and Marlin joined the town's response. Water was pumped from the river with a portable lever-pump and used to combat the fire but it was too late. Over the course of several hours the mansion collapsed and burned to the ground. Luckily the house staff was able to escape. Only Gellan Primewater himself was unaccounted for.
DM Note-
Marlin asked Aella, "Can't you manipulate water? Can you put out the fire?"
Aella replied, "I'm a storm sorcerer. I make gusts of winds. I can make the fire hotter if you want. Or- I can cast a prestidigitation spell but the ability to instantaneously snuff out a candle, a torch, or a small campfire probably won't help much here."
Marlin returned to the charred remains of the house the next day. Looking around he determined that the fire started as a firebomb in Gellan's bedroom. He closed his eyes to sense the presence of magic. This was the result of a fireball spell - TWO fireballs in fact - one in the bedroom and one in Gellan's office. This was an assassination attempt. Further investigation revealed a secret escape hatch in the floor of Gellan's bedroom. The hatch revealed a tunnel that led to the river a few dozen feet away. The hatch was open.
Gellan had survived and escaped.
An Audience with the Duke
The A-Team regrouped and went to check in on the duke. They learned that he had spent the night in comfortable accommodation in Anders Solmor's house - recuperating and tended by healers and priests of Procan.
They paid a visit to the house and asked to see the Duke. Eliander brought them inside and led to the guest room where the duke was recuperating.
The duke of Seaton was sitting in a comfortable chair wearing loose-fitting velvet robes and brocade. His face and neck was scarred but otherwise miraculously healed.
With him in the room were Anders Solmor and Manistrad Copperlocks. The duke seemed more interactive today. He was smiling and talking with his hosts and showed little of the vacant amnesia he displayed the previous day.
As they were led into the room, they caught the tail end of a conversation in which Anders had raised the issue of the king's promissory notes and the possibility of the duke suggesting to the king that Anders might forgive the debt in exchange for being granted a patent of nobility.
The duke seemed to dismiss the idea as absurd which visibly frustrated Anders.
Eliander interrupted the conversation to introduce the party to the duke, explaining that they had saved him from Captain Vile who had kidnapped him.
The duke thanked them and asked if their band had a name and affiliation. Alot answered that they were called "The A-Team" and that they had no official affiliation.
Eliander said that the abduction was the result of increased smuggling and piracy and made the case that greater representation of the king's navy in Saltmarsh would help deter such activity.
The duke dismissed Eliander's suggestion, saying that Saltmarsh had done fine for decades on its own. The duke even went so far as to propose a redeployment of the naval forces in Seaton.
Such a proposal from the historically militant and bellicose duke was a shock to Eliander, Anders, and Manistrad. They immediately began to talk over each other in pleading the duke to reconsider this idea.
Meanwhile, Marlin stood in the back of the room and surreptitiously cast a spell to detect any magical spell cast on the duke. He could sense an enchantment magic. Careful observation noticed that the magic emanated from a ring on the duke's hand.
The duke was being mind-controlled, and the ring was the focus!
Auric, alerted by Marlin, stood in the back of the room and prayed that the duke might be freed from any magical effect. Marlin confirmed that the prayer had no effect on the ring.
Marlin waited for an opportune moment and approached the duke. He thanked the duke for his audience and reached out to shake his hand - hoping for an opportunity to palm the ring.
The duke glared at Marlin incredulously. There was an awkward silence. Anders cleared his throat and finally said, "It is not customary for a member of the nobility to physically interact with a commoner."
Marlin apologized and withdrew his hand. With that, the party took their leave of the duke.
Return to Ringcurrent Island
The team spent the rest of the day prepping to return to Ringcurrent Island. That night they sailed out of Saltmarsh and navigated their pinnace up the Janustream upriver. Alot merged the Mariner's helm into his body armor and was able to see in the dark of night. This allowed him to navigate the river in the dark.
After several hours of rowing and sailing, they arrived at the ringcurrent just before dawn. The treacherous currents swirled around the island creating multiple whirlpools and eddies.
Alot navigated the current towards the island at its center. He dodged several large floating logs and rocks in the river though one rock smashed into the boat causing some minor damage.
DM Note-
I had Alot's player make five Dextierty skill checks and add his proficiency bonus vs. a target of 10. Each failure would cause 20% damage to the boat. He failed the first check but made the rest. A pinnace probably has 50hp so I figure it took 10 damage and has a leak.
Their approach was spotted by lizard-men lookouts on the shore. A group of lizard-men warriors led by a shaman waited on them as they approached.
After several hours of rowing and sailing, they arrived at the ringcurrent just before dawn. The treacherous currents swirled around the island creating multiple whirlpools and eddies.
Alot navigated the current towards the island at its center. He dodged several large floating logs and rocks in the river though one rock smashed into the boat causing some minor damage.
DM Note-
I had Alot's player make five Dextierty skill checks and add his proficiency bonus vs. a target of 10. Each failure would cause 20% damage to the boat. He failed the first check but made the rest. A pinnace probably has 50hp so I figure it took 10 damage and has a leak.
Their approach was spotted by lizard-men lookouts on the shore. A group of lizard-men warriors led by a shaman waited on them as they approached.
To Be Continued...
DM Note-
Obviously, I have been doing a lot of expansion on the political conflicts in Saltmarsh, including introducing some Seaton politics into the mix.
After the game, I asked my players how they felt about all the intrigue and the feedback I got was a little disappointing.
Marlin's player really enjoyed the intrigue, which I expected from that player, but Auric's player and Alot's player said they didn't really care for intrigue-based storylines.
They want simpler more direct "we know what to do and it's the right thing to do" motivations with no moral ambiguity or hard decisions to make. They want to know who their good guys are and who the bad guys are.
I appreciate their feedback and will try to incorporate it. I need to dial down the ambiguity of "If we help the loyalists, Saltmarsh will become a police state. If we help the traditionalists, Saltmarsh will become a haven for pirates and smugglers of the Sea Princes. If we help Anders, we are helping the Crimson Brotherhood."
In the coming weeks I'll pivot away from intrigue and focus on eliminating the army of the evil immortal lizard king Sakatha in "Tomb of the Lizard King".
Or we'll take a break and play some Deadlands. We'll see.
Obviously, I have been doing a lot of expansion on the political conflicts in Saltmarsh, including introducing some Seaton politics into the mix.
After the game, I asked my players how they felt about all the intrigue and the feedback I got was a little disappointing.
Marlin's player really enjoyed the intrigue, which I expected from that player, but Auric's player and Alot's player said they didn't really care for intrigue-based storylines.
They want simpler more direct "we know what to do and it's the right thing to do" motivations with no moral ambiguity or hard decisions to make. They want to know who their good guys are and who the bad guys are.
I appreciate their feedback and will try to incorporate it. I need to dial down the ambiguity of "If we help the loyalists, Saltmarsh will become a police state. If we help the traditionalists, Saltmarsh will become a haven for pirates and smugglers of the Sea Princes. If we help Anders, we are helping the Crimson Brotherhood."
In the coming weeks I'll pivot away from intrigue and focus on eliminating the army of the evil immortal lizard king Sakatha in "Tomb of the Lizard King".
Or we'll take a break and play some Deadlands. We'll see.
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