There is not much to do but wait as the captain shouts his ultimatum. Bosko takes the opportunity to make a mental note of where his companions were, before trying to slink back into the fog himself and find cover whilst still having viability of the other ship.
As it’s tattered sails come further into focus, he grips his bear claws a little tighter.
You all watch with concern as the mysterious ship moves closer. The captain of the Sea Spirit orders his crew to raise the other two main sails, but as the sailors scramble with the ropes, it's apparent that they won't be able to get them up before the other vessel reaches you. It's cutting quickly through the water, and as it continues to approach, you begin to get an even more clear view of this ship as it emerges from the fog.
Roughly the same size and configuration as yours, it's another three-mast sailing ship, but with a style that looks to be much different than yours. The overall design of the masts, hull and the general adornments and detailing look like they're from another time, perhaps a few hundred years old, if not more, a fact that seems to be consistent with the tattered condition of the sails and the extreme amount of wear on the wooden planks.
With little delay and amidst a chaos of commands between officers and crew, the captain orders a shot, and his crew fires a single ballista right at the side of the oncoming ship. The long, sharp projectile sails true and slams into the railing of the vessel. However, this doesn't seem to create any kind of deterrence, and the mysterious ship keeps moving closer.
By now, it's only 30 feet away, right alongside you and fully visible, rocking gently in the same rhythm as your boat, on top of waves that seem to have increased in the past few minutes, along with the fine mist of rain that has now begun to drop out of the thick fog.
The captain sees the inevitable, and he shouts a single command, as he sees what you all see... the shapes of numerous humanoid outlines beginning to appear in sight, their features still obscured by the gloomy haze and heavy darkness that hangs over all of you.
As Bosko sees the outlines of figures on the other ship, and hears the Captain’s shouted order, he decides that he and his companions will be better off sticking together.
He knew he was hired to protect the shipment, but never in his wildest dreams did he think it would be against some sort of ghost ship from a hundred years ago. He didn’t want to face this alone.
He moves swiftly across the deck.
”Alyndra!”
”Lazarus!”
“Markus!”
”Sunita!”
He calls for his companions in loud whispers as he moves.
Sunita moved immediately to Boskos side, though her face was tense and she seemed unnerved by the otherworldly appearance of the raiders and their ship.
Alyndra waits with held breath as the seconds turned to minutes, the creaking of wood and rustle of sails of the pair of ships barely making the silence bearable until Markus set off a bolt of fire up into the air, shouting and causing her shoulders to tense, shifting her weight towards Lazarus. Seeing the tattered sails and ancient looking adornments she couldn't help but murmur to her partner, "It looks like a ghost ship..."And a small part of her hoped that perhaps it was somehow simply unmanned, sailing empty into the ocean. But how would it do so and what would have happened to the crew, regardless? Her musings only made the sinking feeling in her stomach worse.
When the humanoid forms became visible she was nearly glad, for what could she do against a creepy ghost ship? It was the Captain's orders and Bosko's shout of their names that finally sprung her into action finally, gasping in a breath that she had been holding for too long and began moving towards Bosko, her hand tugging at Lazarus unless he protested.
"Please just be pirates, please just be pirates..." She chanted in a whisper to herself, nodding to Bosko and the others as they approached. Her spells flipping through her head until she focused and began summoning an Ice Knife into her right hand, holding it in a loose fist. The half elf was waiting until she saw a humanoid on the ship come within her striking range, preferably one with plenty of allies around them.
Lazarus would get lost in the waters behind the boat, the crashing waves caused by the ship were always interesting to see. The ocean life would come to jump around over the makeshift waves. He had actually lost himself to time as he would come back to the here and now as Alyndra would come and give him some food, which he would take as she would then point to the water at his side to which he would let out a sigh. "Yeah, yeah."
He was gnawing away at the jerky, chewing and aiming to make the meat last a bit longer, he could feel the meat starting to get stuck in between his teeth but would worry about that later. The fog itself was starting to make his sightseeing pretty crappy. It was then that he heard the bell and he would look around, seeing something out in the fog. "Well...that doesn't look ominous." He would hear the captain and other yelling and then the ship coming closer.
He would look around and then start his way back toward where the group was, only to hear the voice of Bosko carry across the fog. "Bosko?" Lazarus would call out lowly. He would look out toward the oncoming ship, his eyes aiming to discern how many figures he could see.
The air is eerily silent after the captain gives his order, and the entire crew watches with fearful anticipation as the mystery ship emerges fully from the fog and rocks its way closer. Your can hear the waves buffeting against the two hulls and the creaking of the ancient ship's wooden planks as they shift from the vessel's movement the water. The eyes of most of the sailors are in complete shock, and you guess that most, if not all of them have never seen anything like this before. Of course, there are legends of ghost ships that haunt the open seas, but for most folk, they exist only in the tall tales of tavern talk.
Judging by the way the carry themselves, you would guess that most of the twenty sailors are mere commoners, and when the order was given to prepare for defense, they all scrambled towards a crate on the main deck, where they retrieved simple wooden clubs before fanning out to face the oncoming ship. The first mate and the captain stand with a little more confidence and short swords that are now in hand.
A few seconds later, you hear a loud crash of wood on wood as the ghost ship slams into the starboard side of the Sea Spirit. Almost immediately, wide wooden planks are dropped between the two vessels, and you suddenly see three streams of humanoid figures starting to cross. Much to Alyndra's dismay, these are not simple pirates... perhaps they were at one time long ago, but now all that's left of them are the grisly undead skeletal remains of their former shapes, still clad in the tattered remnants of garb that has long rotted away over the centuries. Most are armed with worn, rusted, broken blades that have have seen better eras, but are just as deadly.
At first count you see at least fifteen of them, perhaps more.
Lazarus would watch the ship moving closer and the current crew starting to shuffle around to get ready for the oncoming battle. He would look around till he found Alyndra and the group and then he would pull his rapier from his hip. "Guess it's time to earn our keep. Figured it would be against...alive things." Looking around, aiming to make sure that if someone would get hurt, he could keep the allied casualties to a minimum.
The longer the eerie stretched the more dry her throat felt until finally there was a lurch as the two ships bumped against one another's hulls before the planks dropped. At first she thought it was simply her overactive imagination but as she looked at the crew's faces, Alyndra realized what she was seeing was real. It was one thing to know that undead existed and to read stories involving heroes overcoming them. It was another thing entirely to actually see them in person. "Of all the times to be right, I really didn't want it to be now." The half elf whined, her freckled skin turned pale as she tried to steel her queasy stomach. If she could just get the first one across the plank.... But even then there was still two planks. Maybe she could use Graviturgy, but there were so many people around....
The sailors are spread out on the main deck, forecastle and quarterdeck, the captain is positioned up on the quarterdeck, along with his bosun and first mate. The three planks have been lowered at regular intervals about ten feet apart on the main deck. Given the size of the ship, you can pretty much make it all the way across the main deck in one move, or from the front or rear of the ship to the center of the main deck in one move.
Ok, it begins. Everyone can take their first turn now.
Lazarus would look around to see that the majority of the crew were getting into their positions and he figured doing a sneak attack on his own behalf wouldn't do him much. So, with that last thought, he would pull himself to his full posture and raise his rapier to point toward the closest undead that would be making its way across the plank and let Vicious Mockery coat his lips. "You were a nothing in life and you're still a nothing in death!" The magical words would seemingly cut through the air to strike true.
Vicious Mockery = DC14 and if fail; 4 DMG & DIS on its next attack
Markus quickly approaches one of the planks and empties his bag of little marbles (Ball Bearings (bag of 1,000)). "Hopefully this will make a few a them falling of the plank in the sea" he thinks. Markus then tries to retreat behind some cover.
Bosko advances towards one of the planks, a look of disgust more than horror on his face.
“Dead shall not board ship!”, he calls.
He blocks the path off the plank and strikes out twice at the first skeleton coming across it. Each of his long furry arms swings forward in turn wielding his bear claws.
Movement: Step onto a plank that doesn’t have ball bearings on (different to the one Sunita is blocking). Action: Attack with Bear Claw (includes Surprise Attack damage): 12+5=17, Damage: 6+(5+1)+3=15 Bonus Action: 2nd Weapon Attack with Bear Claw (includes Surprise Attack damage): 12+5=17, Damage: 6+(4+4)+3=17
Surprise Attack
If you hit a creature with an attack roll, the creature takes an extra 2d6 damage if it hasn’t taken a turn yet in the current combat.
As the skeletons begin streaming across the planks, Lazarus casts his mocking cantrip at the first skeleton on the left hand plank, and the creature definitely appears to stagger a bit as it shuffles along on half rotten shoes that barely cover any of its bony toes.
Meanwhile, Bosko approaches the center plank and quickly hacks the first skeletal invader with two brutal slashes with his unique martial weapons that appear to be a set of extended dagger gloves that look like like something out of a nightmare.
Sunita closes in on the right hand plank and attacks the first pirate skeleton on that side with brutal, and efficient use of her swords. Despite her quickness, though, the skeleton remain standing as it continues its approach.
Over on the left side, Markus open up the string closure on his bag of ball bearings and sends them towards the ground just in front of the first plank, right as the first of the skeletons is about to step off on that side.
There is not much to do but wait as the captain shouts his ultimatum. Bosko takes the opportunity to make a mental note of where his companions were, before trying to slink back into the fog himself and find cover whilst still having viability of the other ship.
As it’s tattered sails come further into focus, he grips his bear claws a little tighter.
Stealth: 7+7=14
Sunita simply waits for whatever is coming her eyes picking out the locations of her companions so she could get to them if needed.
You all watch with concern as the mysterious ship moves closer. The captain of the Sea Spirit orders his crew to raise the other two main sails, but as the sailors scramble with the ropes, it's apparent that they won't be able to get them up before the other vessel reaches you. It's cutting quickly through the water, and as it continues to approach, you begin to get an even more clear view of this ship as it emerges from the fog.
Roughly the same size and configuration as yours, it's another three-mast sailing ship, but with a style that looks to be much different than yours. The overall design of the masts, hull and the general adornments and detailing look like they're from another time, perhaps a few hundred years old, if not more, a fact that seems to be consistent with the tattered condition of the sails and the extreme amount of wear on the wooden planks.
With little delay and amidst a chaos of commands between officers and crew, the captain orders a shot, and his crew fires a single ballista right at the side of the oncoming ship. The long, sharp projectile sails true and slams into the railing of the vessel. However, this doesn't seem to create any kind of deterrence, and the mysterious ship keeps moving closer.
By now, it's only 30 feet away, right alongside you and fully visible, rocking gently in the same rhythm as your boat, on top of waves that seem to have increased in the past few minutes, along with the fine mist of rain that has now begun to drop out of the thick fog.
The captain sees the inevitable, and he shouts a single command, as he sees what you all see... the shapes of numerous humanoid outlines beginning to appear in sight, their features still obscured by the gloomy haze and heavy darkness that hangs over all of you.
"READY DEFENSES AND PREPARE FOR BOARDING!"
As Bosko sees the outlines of figures on the other ship, and hears the Captain’s shouted order, he decides that he and his companions will be better off sticking together.
He knew he was hired to protect the shipment, but never in his wildest dreams did he think it would be against some sort of ghost ship from a hundred years ago. He didn’t want to face this alone.
He moves swiftly across the deck.
”Alyndra!”
”Lazarus!”
“Markus!”
”Sunita!”
He calls for his companions in loud whispers as he moves.
”We should stick together”.
From his cover, Markus nods. Staff in his hand, he is ready
"What are we fighting?" he wonders
Currently Playing: Regdus Ironfist (Greyhawk) Lvl 1 Storm Sorcerer ; Goraseth Drerjoxian (Icespeak) Lvl 3 Paladin Oath of Glory; Lerak (The Wild Beyond the Witchlight) Lvl 3 Barbarian Wild Magic
In Pause: Grimnir " Shadow-Feet", Lv 11 Owner of "The Basilisk & the Monk" (OotA) - Kurma Kappa, Lv 8 Priest of Oghma (ToA)
Currently DM'ing: Princes of Apocalypse >> Tomb of Annihilation
Sunita moved immediately to Boskos side, though her face was tense and she seemed unnerved by the otherworldly appearance of the raiders and their ship.
Alyndra waits with held breath as the seconds turned to minutes, the creaking of wood and rustle of sails of the pair of ships barely making the silence bearable until Markus set off a bolt of fire up into the air, shouting and causing her shoulders to tense, shifting her weight towards Lazarus. Seeing the tattered sails and ancient looking adornments she couldn't help but murmur to her partner, "It looks like a ghost ship..." And a small part of her hoped that perhaps it was somehow simply unmanned, sailing empty into the ocean. But how would it do so and what would have happened to the crew, regardless? Her musings only made the sinking feeling in her stomach worse.
When the humanoid forms became visible she was nearly glad, for what could she do against a creepy ghost ship? It was the Captain's orders and Bosko's shout of their names that finally sprung her into action finally, gasping in a breath that she had been holding for too long and began moving towards Bosko, her hand tugging at Lazarus unless he protested.
"Please just be pirates, please just be pirates..." She chanted in a whisper to herself, nodding to Bosko and the others as they approached. Her spells flipping through her head until she focused and began summoning an Ice Knife into her right hand, holding it in a loose fist. The half elf was waiting until she saw a humanoid on the ship come within her striking range, preferably one with plenty of allies around them.
Nym Durnodel - Aspiring Heroes of Faerûn // Danica Amastacia - Red Dead Annihilation
Lazarus would get lost in the waters behind the boat, the crashing waves caused by the ship were always interesting to see. The ocean life would come to jump around over the makeshift waves. He had actually lost himself to time as he would come back to the here and now as Alyndra would come and give him some food, which he would take as she would then point to the water at his side to which he would let out a sigh. "Yeah, yeah."
He was gnawing away at the jerky, chewing and aiming to make the meat last a bit longer, he could feel the meat starting to get stuck in between his teeth but would worry about that later. The fog itself was starting to make his sightseeing pretty crappy. It was then that he heard the bell and he would look around, seeing something out in the fog. "Well...that doesn't look ominous." He would hear the captain and other yelling and then the ship coming closer.
He would look around and then start his way back toward where the group was, only to hear the voice of Bosko carry across the fog. "Bosko?" Lazarus would call out lowly. He would look out toward the oncoming ship, his eyes aiming to discern how many figures he could see.
Perception = 15
Lazarus Ryder - Adventures Abound in Wildemount
The air is eerily silent after the captain gives his order, and the entire crew watches with fearful anticipation as the mystery ship emerges fully from the fog and rocks its way closer. Your can hear the waves buffeting against the two hulls and the creaking of the ancient ship's wooden planks as they shift from the vessel's movement the water. The eyes of most of the sailors are in complete shock, and you guess that most, if not all of them have never seen anything like this before. Of course, there are legends of ghost ships that haunt the open seas, but for most folk, they exist only in the tall tales of tavern talk.
Judging by the way the carry themselves, you would guess that most of the twenty sailors are mere commoners, and when the order was given to prepare for defense, they all scrambled towards a crate on the main deck, where they retrieved simple wooden clubs before fanning out to face the oncoming ship. The first mate and the captain stand with a little more confidence and short swords that are now in hand.
A few seconds later, you hear a loud crash of wood on wood as the ghost ship slams into the starboard side of the Sea Spirit. Almost immediately, wide wooden planks are dropped between the two vessels, and you suddenly see three streams of humanoid figures starting to cross. Much to Alyndra's dismay, these are not simple pirates... perhaps they were at one time long ago, but now all that's left of them are the grisly undead skeletal remains of their former shapes, still clad in the tattered remnants of garb that has long rotted away over the centuries. Most are armed with worn, rusted, broken blades that have have seen better eras, but are just as deadly.
At first count you see at least fifteen of them, perhaps more.
Everyone roll initiative.
Bosko watches the wooden planks crash down bridging the gap between the two ships, and sees the skeletal figures start to cross.
“This unnatural, must be defeated!”, he growls and sets himself to join the fray.
Initiative: 15+3=18
Initiative : 17
Currently Playing: Regdus Ironfist (Greyhawk) Lvl 1 Storm Sorcerer ; Goraseth Drerjoxian (Icespeak) Lvl 3 Paladin Oath of Glory; Lerak (The Wild Beyond the Witchlight) Lvl 3 Barbarian Wild Magic
In Pause: Grimnir " Shadow-Feet", Lv 11 Owner of "The Basilisk & the Monk" (OotA) - Kurma Kappa, Lv 8 Priest of Oghma (ToA)
Currently DM'ing: Princes of Apocalypse >> Tomb of Annihilation
Lazarus would watch the ship moving closer and the current crew starting to shuffle around to get ready for the oncoming battle. He would look around till he found Alyndra and the group and then he would pull his rapier from his hip. "Guess it's time to earn our keep. Figured it would be against...alive things." Looking around, aiming to make sure that if someone would get hurt, he could keep the allied casualties to a minimum.
Initiative: 18+3 = 21
Lazarus Ryder - Adventures Abound in Wildemount
Initiative: 16
The longer the eerie stretched the more dry her throat felt until finally there was a lurch as the two ships bumped against one another's hulls before the planks dropped. At first she thought it was simply her overactive imagination but as she looked at the crew's faces, Alyndra realized what she was seeing was real. It was one thing to know that undead existed and to read stories involving heroes overcoming them. It was another thing entirely to actually see them in person. "Of all the times to be right, I really didn't want it to be now." The half elf whined, her freckled skin turned pale as she tried to steel her queasy stomach. If she could just get the first one across the plank.... But even then there was still two planks. Maybe she could use Graviturgy, but there were so many people around....
Nym Durnodel - Aspiring Heroes of Faerûn // Danica Amastacia - Red Dead Annihilation
Sunita swallowed and braced herself....at least it was the dead and not something...worse.
Initiative: 16
Initiative Order
The sailors are spread out on the main deck, forecastle and quarterdeck, the captain is positioned up on the quarterdeck, along with his bosun and first mate. The three planks have been lowered at regular intervals about ten feet apart on the main deck. Given the size of the ship, you can pretty much make it all the way across the main deck in one move, or from the front or rear of the ship to the center of the main deck in one move.
Ok, it begins. Everyone can take their first turn now.
Lazarus would look around to see that the majority of the crew were getting into their positions and he figured doing a sneak attack on his own behalf wouldn't do him much. So, with that last thought, he would pull himself to his full posture and raise his rapier to point toward the closest undead that would be making its way across the plank and let Vicious Mockery coat his lips. "You were a nothing in life and you're still a nothing in death!" The magical words would seemingly cut through the air to strike true.
Vicious Mockery = DC14 and if fail; 4 DMG & DIS on its next attack
Lazarus Ryder - Adventures Abound in Wildemount
Markus quickly approaches one of the planks and empties his bag of little marbles (Ball Bearings (bag of 1,000)). "Hopefully this will make a few a them falling of the plank in the sea" he thinks.
Markus then tries to retreat behind some cover.
Currently Playing: Regdus Ironfist (Greyhawk) Lvl 1 Storm Sorcerer ; Goraseth Drerjoxian (Icespeak) Lvl 3 Paladin Oath of Glory; Lerak (The Wild Beyond the Witchlight) Lvl 3 Barbarian Wild Magic
In Pause: Grimnir " Shadow-Feet", Lv 11 Owner of "The Basilisk & the Monk" (OotA) - Kurma Kappa, Lv 8 Priest of Oghma (ToA)
Currently DM'ing: Princes of Apocalypse >> Tomb of Annihilation
Sunita runs to the forward plank and plants herself at the end of it, hoping to take on the walking corpses single-file.
Any that approach across the plank she will slash across the knees with her shortblade and drive her dagger into any available eyesockets.
Attack: 9 Damage: 8
BA Attack: 11 Damage: 4
Bosko advances towards one of the planks, a look of disgust more than horror on his face.
“Dead shall not board ship!”, he calls.
He blocks the path off the plank and strikes out twice at the first skeleton coming across it. Each of his long furry arms swings forward in turn wielding his bear claws.
Movement: Step onto a plank that doesn’t have ball bearings on (different to the one Sunita is blocking).
Action: Attack with Bear Claw (includes Surprise Attack damage): 12+5=17, Damage: 6+(5+1)+3=15
Bonus Action: 2nd Weapon Attack with Bear Claw (includes Surprise Attack damage): 12+5=17, Damage: 6+(4+4)+3=17
Surprise Attack
If you hit a creature with an attack roll, the creature takes an extra 2d6![]()
damage if it hasn’t taken a turn yet in the current combat.
As the skeletons begin streaming across the planks, Lazarus casts his mocking cantrip at the first skeleton on the left hand plank, and the creature definitely appears to stagger a bit as it shuffles along on half rotten shoes that barely cover any of its bony toes.
Meanwhile, Bosko approaches the center plank and quickly hacks the first skeletal invader with two brutal slashes with his unique martial weapons that appear to be a set of extended dagger gloves that look like like something out of a nightmare.
Sunita closes in on the right hand plank and attacks the first pirate skeleton on that side with brutal, and efficient use of her swords. Despite her quickness, though, the skeleton remain standing as it continues its approach.
Over on the left side, Markus open up the string closure on his bag of ball bearings and sends them towards the ground just in front of the first plank, right as the first of the skeletons is about to step off on that side.
Alyndra is up.