"Perhaps we should try to speak to Captain Umog," Effort tells the others, continuing to use message as subtly as she can while not being scrutinized by their goblin watch. "Maybe probe about the next destination of this ship. Ask if they know anything about cultists. Perhaps not let air that we are hunting said cultists. While I do think we should free at the very least that water genasi girl, this seems like a valuable opportunity to try to trace this rot to its source. If we can get even a name out of her, that would be something to work off of. If anyone has a good idea of how to proceed, I would be open to ideas. My only thought is that I might be able to reach the prisoners if I get close enough to their hold, and use my ability to teleport. I must be within thirty feet of their cells, however, and I've no idea of how to open them, other than brute force."
Effort sets Cadmael to scouting, ostensibly the surroundings, but in actuality the activity on the surface of the ship. Cadmael Perception: 17
Nothing wrong with brute force,Brask whispers back.
Now he's alert, he's paying attention to the boats for the next few hours. How many goblins are there? Does the captain ever leave her post? Any other potential dangers? He's not exactly a skilled tactician, but he's not stupid enough to blunder into someone else's home turf without at least doing some scoping out. Usually.
Dunno why we'd be asking the captain about doglovers, except that we want to kill doglovers, or we are doglovers and want to join up? I don't think I could pull that one off. We can't sneak your water girl off, not if she's powering this thing. They'll know, right? When the boat... stops. He shrugs, as this magic tech stuff is way beyond him. Unless we sink the boat. Heh. That might distract them.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
"That's not a bad idea," Effort says to Brask thoughtfully. "Once we're in Green Fork, that is." She looks over the side of the longboat and studies the larger boat itself, trying to determine if her eldritch blasts could penetrate the hull effectively and disable the ship. She has Cadmael swoop low along the water to assist her, using his eyes as her own.
You all continue to survey the ship and its occupants for the next few hours. Cadmael keeps close watch on the main deck, noting when the goblins switch shifts. There are always four or five manning the ballistas at any given time, and the boss that you saw back on shore occasionally comes out of his quarters to check on things. Umog mostly stands at the helm, but goes downstairs a few times when the goblin boss is present.
Brask remembers seeing at least 8 or 9 different goblins at this point, thinking back on when you boarded the ship and all of the different individuals you've seen on the trail boats. Then there's the boss and the captain, of course.
Cadmael gets close to the ship, flying low and out of sight. The hull is thick, he thinks. Very thick. You may be able to puncture a hole in it, but it would take multiple attacks. Not sure how many.
By now you can deduce that the shifts change about every eight hours or so. The goblins on your boats trade off with two new ones. Sometimes they head downstairs for rest or for food - you're assuming - and sometimes they trade places with a goblin on the main deck ballistas.
The landscape hasn't changed much, although you do start to see more rolling meadows interspersed with the dense forest. Eventually, some appear to be cultivated. Wheat, you think.
The ballistas are a big problem, both if we're fighting and if we're running. Brask thinks a little more.
I reckon we can take this bunch, if we split them up. But not all together. And not if they have ballistas. A full assault would mean picking the time when the biggest number of goblins are sleeping or eating. Get to the main ship, take out the ballista goblins with surprise, mop up the rest quickly and get ready to face reinforcements coming from the trail boats and below decks. Maybe take control of the ballistas and use them to hit the second wave. Umog looks tougher than the goblin's boss, so we want the first attack to be when she's not around.
Yeah. Risky plan. Might work. Lots of unknowns. Maybe find a way to weaken the little buggers. Poison? I don't got any. Magic? He looks at Effort and Burik. Don't ask me. Your little goblin buddy's probably thought a lot about how to do this. Does he have any ideas?
(All of this is whispered in conversation with Effort using the Message spell - Brask's not saying anything any nearby goblin ears might overhear.)
"I can create a small zone of complete silence, might stop an alarm if we're fast. It won't move with us, but it will prevent some spells being cast too. But I've nothing to weaken them before the fight."
He thinks for a moment, "Why not message the Genasi, after all you can see her through Cadmael's eyes, right? Maybe they know something, or can even lend something to the fight. But if we're going to do something, we might need to do it before reaching a settlement sympathetic to these... Goblins." Burik almost spits the last word (as much as you can through message, as he's doing the same as brask)
The friendly goblin appears periodically near the deck, usually around the time of a shift change. He pauses, waiting for potential messages, and then goes on his way.
Assuming Effort asks him about a plan... "Oh...I don't know. I am not a warrior," he whispers. After thinking for a moment he puffs up his chest as much as he can muster. "But I will help. I can...um...create a distraction? I am not very good at this kind of thing. I believe the genasi girl can be very helpful to you if you can free her. I don't have anything strong enough to break her shackles, and only the boss and Umog have keys."
In addition to asking about a plan, Effort also asks the goblin to keep the window slightly open the next time he sneaks in - now that she knows the Genasi girl is there, she can simply send a message to the girl directly so long as there's a crack in the window to send her message through. She thinks it's unlikely that they will have the time to wait until evening and ask the prisoners for help, but it can't hurt to ask.
"A distraction during the changing of the guards might be best. I've no way to break the chains on the prisoners, so Brask, we'll need to find a way to get you down there. That means getting us on board this ship. Whatever our plan is, it is more likely to succeed on the deck than in this boat," Effort messages to Brask and Burik.
Waving over the goblin guard on the longboat, she asks him: "If we were willing to pay extra gold, could we be able to board your ship? I am willing to pay any penalty fee your captain may be asking to get these that one off of this longboat," Effort says crossly, pointing at Brask. "He keeps trying to fish with his spear. If my companion and I don't wrestle him onto your ship, he's going to capsize this longboat sooner rather than later. You won't be having a good time then, either, and neither will the River Horse."
(I'm about to make a deception roll here. Anyone want to help me out for advantage? XD )
Brask still has his glaive, which he will use to try to skewer a fish. He's paying more attention to giving a good performance but not actually capsizing the boat, and not really caring about catching fish, though. (Enough to give advantage to Effort?)
Oh yeah, that's plenty. This goblin is probably intimated by Brask's size already.
By now you've probably discerned or asked the friendly goblin about how many there are on the boat. There are 9 goblins total, plus the boss and the captain. Two on the longboats at all times, four or five on the top deck. The rest of them eat or sleep when they're not on a shift.
"Okay, okay! Just tell your hairy friend to stop!" The goblin gestures over to the other longboat, and waits for a nod from that goblin. He hops up onto the chain and climbs up toward the deck.
After a moment he reappears with the goblin boss. He sneers down at you, and calls out. "No extra charge. You can climb up the chain or you can wait until we get to Green Fork. Sleeping up here is much more comfortable, I assure you." He turns for a second, but then looks back down. "Need to surrender all those weapons though once you get up here. No negotiations on that front."
Effort gives him a nod, because it should be self-explanatory that there is no way she is going to give these people her weapons.
"Alright, we're coming up," she calls to the goblin, before turning to the others with a message. "I think we should strike them by surprise as soon as we are on board. I see no point in giving them our weapons and then attempting to gain them back later. And I do not trust that they might not try to enslave us as well, once we were parted from our weapons. So ready yourselves. If there are goblins near the edge of the boat, it might do for you to simply try to throw them overboard than fight them."
Effort then casts guidance on herself (OOC: for use with the potential initative roll, though I'm stanning for a surprise round XD), and then steels herself for the undoubted upcoming difficulties.
You can see the stern castle and the forecastle fairly easily, and it appears five goblins, along with the boss, are either manning ballistas or walking around. There's probably another few hours before shift change, if you're guessing the time of day correctly.
Brask, roll a raw luck check. 11-20 and the friendly goblin is on the main deck.
We are preparing to assault your ship. Do what you can to prevent the other crew from joining the ones already on deck, that will be the biggest help. If you can somehow inform the prisoners of what is happening, or assist in any other manner, that could also be helpful.
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"Perhaps we should try to speak to Captain Umog," Effort tells the others, continuing to use message as subtly as she can while not being scrutinized by their goblin watch. "Maybe probe about the next destination of this ship. Ask if they know anything about cultists. Perhaps not let air that we are hunting said cultists. While I do think we should free at the very least that water genasi girl, this seems like a valuable opportunity to try to trace this rot to its source. If we can get even a name out of her, that would be something to work off of. If anyone has a good idea of how to proceed, I would be open to ideas. My only thought is that I might be able to reach the prisoners if I get close enough to their hold, and use my ability to teleport. I must be within thirty feet of their cells, however, and I've no idea of how to open them, other than brute force."
Effort sets Cadmael to scouting, ostensibly the surroundings, but in actuality the activity on the surface of the ship.
Cadmael Perception: 17
Nothing wrong with brute force, Brask whispers back.
Now he's alert, he's paying attention to the boats for the next few hours. How many goblins are there? Does the captain ever leave her post? Any other potential dangers? He's not exactly a skilled tactician, but he's not stupid enough to blunder into someone else's home turf without at least doing some scoping out. Usually.
Dunno why we'd be asking the captain about doglovers, except that we want to kill doglovers, or we are doglovers and want to join up? I don't think I could pull that one off. We can't sneak your water girl off, not if she's powering this thing. They'll know, right? When the boat... stops. He shrugs, as this magic tech stuff is way beyond him. Unless we sink the boat. Heh. That might distract them.
"That's not a bad idea," Effort says to Brask thoughtfully. "Once we're in Green Fork, that is." She looks over the side of the longboat and studies the larger boat itself, trying to determine if her eldritch blasts could penetrate the hull effectively and disable the ship. She has Cadmael swoop low along the water to assist her, using his eyes as her own.
Investigation (help from Cadmael): 7 + Guidance 4
You all continue to survey the ship and its occupants for the next few hours. Cadmael keeps close watch on the main deck, noting when the goblins switch shifts. There are always four or five manning the ballistas at any given time, and the boss that you saw back on shore occasionally comes out of his quarters to check on things. Umog mostly stands at the helm, but goes downstairs a few times when the goblin boss is present.
Brask remembers seeing at least 8 or 9 different goblins at this point, thinking back on when you boarded the ship and all of the different individuals you've seen on the trail boats. Then there's the boss and the captain, of course.
Cadmael gets close to the ship, flying low and out of sight. The hull is thick, he thinks. Very thick. You may be able to puncture a hole in it, but it would take multiple attacks. Not sure how many.
By now you can deduce that the shifts change about every eight hours or so. The goblins on your boats trade off with two new ones. Sometimes they head downstairs for rest or for food - you're assuming - and sometimes they trade places with a goblin on the main deck ballistas.
The landscape hasn't changed much, although you do start to see more rolling meadows interspersed with the dense forest. Eventually, some appear to be cultivated. Wheat, you think.
DM - Above & Below
The ballistas are a big problem, both if we're fighting and if we're running. Brask thinks a little more.
I reckon we can take this bunch, if we split them up. But not all together. And not if they have ballistas. A full assault would mean picking the time when the biggest number of goblins are sleeping or eating. Get to the main ship, take out the ballista goblins with surprise, mop up the rest quickly and get ready to face reinforcements coming from the trail boats and below decks. Maybe take control of the ballistas and use them to hit the second wave. Umog looks tougher than the goblin's boss, so we want the first attack to be when she's not around.
Yeah. Risky plan. Might work. Lots of unknowns. Maybe find a way to weaken the little buggers. Poison? I don't got any. Magic? He looks at Effort and Burik. Don't ask me. Your little goblin buddy's probably thought a lot about how to do this. Does he have any ideas?
(All of this is whispered in conversation with Effort using the Message spell - Brask's not saying anything any nearby goblin ears might overhear.)
"I can create a small zone of complete silence, might stop an alarm if we're fast. It won't move with us, but it will prevent some spells being cast too. But I've nothing to weaken them before the fight."
He thinks for a moment, "Why not message the Genasi, after all you can see her through Cadmael's eyes, right? Maybe they know something, or can even lend something to the fight. But if we're going to do something, we might need to do it before reaching a settlement sympathetic to these... Goblins." Burik almost spits the last word (as much as you can through message, as he's doing the same as brask)
The friendly goblin appears periodically near the deck, usually around the time of a shift change. He pauses, waiting for potential messages, and then goes on his way.
Assuming Effort asks him about a plan... "Oh...I don't know. I am not a warrior," he whispers. After thinking for a moment he puffs up his chest as much as he can muster. "But I will help. I can...um...create a distraction? I am not very good at this kind of thing. I believe the genasi girl can be very helpful to you if you can free her. I don't have anything strong enough to break her shackles, and only the boss and Umog have keys."
DM - Above & Below
In addition to asking about a plan, Effort also asks the goblin to keep the window slightly open the next time he sneaks in - now that she knows the Genasi girl is there, she can simply send a message to the girl directly so long as there's a crack in the window to send her message through. She thinks it's unlikely that they will have the time to wait until evening and ask the prisoners for help, but it can't hurt to ask.
"A distraction during the changing of the guards might be best. I've no way to break the chains on the prisoners, so Brask, we'll need to find a way to get you down there. That means getting us on board this ship. Whatever our plan is, it is more likely to succeed on the deck than in this boat," Effort messages to Brask and Burik.
Waving over the goblin guard on the longboat, she asks him: "If we were willing to pay extra gold, could we be able to board your ship? I am willing to pay any penalty fee your captain may be asking to get these that one off of this longboat," Effort says crossly, pointing at Brask. "He keeps trying to fish with his spear. If my companion and I don't wrestle him onto your ship, he's going to capsize this longboat sooner rather than later. You won't be having a good time then, either, and neither will the River Horse."
(I'm about to make a deception roll here. Anyone want to help me out for advantage? XD )
Go ahead and roll with advantage. I assume Brask will smash his maul into the water a few times and rock the boat. :)
DM - Above & Below
Brask still has his glaive, which he will use to try to skewer a fish. He's paying more attention to giving a good performance but not actually capsizing the boat, and not really caring about catching fish, though. (Enough to give advantage to Effort?)
Oh yeah, that's plenty. This goblin is probably intimated by Brask's size already.
By now you've probably discerned or asked the friendly goblin about how many there are on the boat. There are 9 goblins total, plus the boss and the captain. Two on the longboats at all times, four or five on the top deck. The rest of them eat or sleep when they're not on a shift.
DM - Above & Below
(Whoops, sorry - super busy weekend!)
Deception: 17 + guidance 1
"Okay, okay! Just tell your hairy friend to stop!" The goblin gestures over to the other longboat, and waits for a nod from that goblin. He hops up onto the chain and climbs up toward the deck.
After a moment he reappears with the goblin boss. He sneers down at you, and calls out. "No extra charge. You can climb up the chain or you can wait until we get to Green Fork. Sleeping up here is much more comfortable, I assure you." He turns for a second, but then looks back down. "Need to surrender all those weapons though once you get up here. No negotiations on that front."
DM - Above & Below
Brask stops what he is doing, looks at Effort, and raises an eyebrow, as though to ask: We doing this now?
Effort gives him a nod, because it should be self-explanatory that there is no way she is going to give these people her weapons.
"Alright, we're coming up," she calls to the goblin, before turning to the others with a message. "I think we should strike them by surprise as soon as we are on board. I see no point in giving them our weapons and then attempting to gain them back later. And I do not trust that they might not try to enslave us as well, once we were parted from our weapons. So ready yourselves. If there are goblins near the edge of the boat, it might do for you to simply try to throw them overboard than fight them."
Effort then casts guidance on herself (OOC: for use with the potential initative roll, though I'm stanning for a surprise round XD), and then steels herself for the undoubted upcoming difficulties.
Before Brask agrees, he'll take one final look at the layout of the ships, and who's currently on deck? How long since the last shift change?
You can see the stern castle and the forecastle fairly easily, and it appears five goblins, along with the boss, are either manning ballistas or walking around. There's probably another few hours before shift change, if you're guessing the time of day correctly.
Brask, roll a raw luck check. 11-20 and the friendly goblin is on the main deck.
DM - Above & Below
5
Brask whispers silently in response to the Message, Can you get our friend up to help?
You don't see him on the main deck, but he's certainly in range and the ship's walls aren't 3 feet thick, so Effort can get a message to him.
DM - Above & Below
Effort sends a message to crooked jaw:
We are preparing to assault your ship. Do what you can to prevent the other crew from joining the ones already on deck, that will be the biggest help. If you can somehow inform the prisoners of what is happening, or assist in any other manner, that could also be helpful.