Shipwrecked in Saltmarsh

The battered ship has been freed from both the rocks and the sunken vessel. It is slowly being directed backward into deeper water, even as the sleet continues to swirl, and the surf continues to pound the shores of this barren, rocky islet.

As the blasting is paused, Octofin gets a closer look at the half-smashed sunken cabin to aft. It's an old ship's brig, with a door made of rusted iron. Within is a broken chamber pot and four skeletons wearing torn and rotted priest robes and manacles with broken, rusty chains.

     As always, Fianna will update everyone around as to the information she is getting.  And as seen before, but more unusual, she will ask to take someone's shoulder for guidance so she can send her own senses and mind directly into OctoFin.

     OctoFin will (presumably?) be able to squeeze into the brig and swim amongst the skeletons.  Keeping a careful eye out in case the skeletons animate, OctoFin search the skeletons and the robes...  

With no obvious dangers other than the turbulent, frigid, black ocean and the cold sleet, Fianna settles into position so she may comfortably see the world through her aquatic familiar.

Inside the partially crushed submerged cabin, the skeletons remain inanimate even as the little octopus explores their chamber. The remains seem to be human, or at least humanoid. They have no jewelry and hold nothing in their hands. Their robes do have pockets, however. Probing a little, Octofin finds a comb in one, and a green figurine in another. Nothing stirs.

     OctoFin will do their best to carry the goods up above water and Fianna will eagerly await them to try and see if they could be the source of magic they had detected...

Octofin successfully retrieves the comb and figurine, and returns to the ship. (How will Fianna detect magic? I believe Kelnan's ritual has ended?)

The captain is preparing to move the ship, badly leaking and listing to starboard, into deeper water, away from the island, where the crew will set anchor and attempt repairs.

     Fianna has no way to magically identify if the items are magical in nature, or if so in what way. She will, of course, hand the items over to another if they have the means to quickly do so otherwise she will try to rest and study the objects and see if she can learn anything of their nature that way.  If the boat is free of obstructions and there are no other attackers, there is little else for Fianna to do but stay out of the way anyway.

(Fianna: Make a religion check.)

Religion: 17

     She's not exactly the pious type so I hope we don't have too high a DC. :)

The comb is unremarkable, but the figurine appears to be of St. Cuthbert. Based on the resemblance, you realize that the giant statue in the sunken hold may also depict this revered figure. St. Cuthbert is a lawful good, human, mace-wielding diety. Followers, in Fianna's experience, generally tend to be good folks, although they are often also intolerant zealots of their faith.

The ship, still listing, is maneuvered further away from both the wreck and the island - into deeper water several hundred yards from the rocky islet.

The damage is considerable - the dwarven crew (whose ranks have been much-reduced in the past few days) is busy trying to pump water out of the hold and patch the series of large gashes below the waterline. The captain intends to spend a couple more hours anchored here attempting crude repairs; either way, he intends on making a hobbled run back to Saltmarsh soon, before the weather or the integrity of the ship gets any worse.

Do you want to continue exploring the wreck (now a bit of a swim away, through cold water, but still accessible), or are you preparing to depart?

     If Keenan is willing to ritually cast detect magic on the figurine, great. Otherwise Fianna would try spending a short rest with it to try to identify if it had any magical properties or not.  She would do this down in her bunk where she could also keep an eye on the box they recovered…. She wil of course support any who wishes to investigate further but her opinion is that they’re not really equipped for underwater adventures and they’ve lost too many dwarves already - best to just get out of here.

Unless Kelnan or others wish to act, Fianna retreats to her listing quarters below with the St. Cuthbert figurine, while the dwarves continue to try to pump out and patch the lower hold and bilges, which are flooded. The ship sits low in the water. A cold, wintery wind whistles through the rigging.

A long hour passes. A short rest for everyone.

Fianna discovers that the figurine is a magical key of some sort, or an arcane activating mechanism of... something.

Fianna will recover some health on the short rest, spending 4 out of 5 hit dice…

22 plus 7

when done examining the figurine/key she'll bring it to the others.  “I’m actually not a fan of this idea but we may want to go back and explore that wreck some more…”  Fianna will then explain everything she knows of the figurine.  “I still think we get home safely and return better prepared for under water exploration… but I think it needs be a party decision.”

“I just want to go back. To Saltmarsh I mean.” Molo limps away to a place on deck where he can sit and give the bum foot a break.

Kelnan excitedly asks to examine the figurine "Divine magics have some peculiar properties, Heznabion described it at twisting the weave in a left-handed direction as opposed to our more conventional magic being right-handed. Something about it interacting better with biological matter. Far beyond my understanding really, all the best prime theorists are gnomes anyway and they're even more exclusive than elves. Do you know how hard it was to get a copy of Pattern Phasics in a size that would suit someone larger than a child? The publisher applied some kind of enlargement protection, just out of spite I imagine! Ended up with a volume the size of that statue down there with text smaller than this figurine's toenail. What a nightmare!

We should definitely have the captain chart the location for later salvage with proper protection though, and move along home. I'm not sure this ship can take another assault."

Dain will offer his strength and constitution to the captain to aid in whatever repairs he can.  He's handy with tools too.

When given a moment he will also express his wish to return to dry land.  He's not objecting to returning here later, better prepared, however.

     "Seems decided then..." Fianna says, about returning home and hoping to return to explore this more later.  "Though, if we include the captain in this, and maybe I am being selfish...  Well I imagine he'd want some piece of whatever we eventually find whether he helms the ship that returns us or not?  And considering his losses so far, it does seem perhaps fair..."

Unless anyone has any further business, additional hours pass. Darkness soon falls, as does a lot of sleet and snow. The anchor holds, but the pumping is nonstop as the leaks continue to be an urgent problem below. The captain is anxious, pacing and mumbling, and short-tempered. He demands that the party remain on guard duty on deck - where a bitter wind continues to blast sleet against every exposed surface. "Keep them blasted harpies at bay! Keep them maraudin' merrows from harpoonin' our crew! If we survive th' night, we'll make a run for Saltmarsh at first light!" Those crew who aren't pumping are standing in frigid water in the lower hold, trying to make crude emergency repairs to the rent hull. The swells are large and the wind relentless, but at least the vessel is safely away from the island, and no longer grinding on the rocks. The night is as black as ink.

Molo will keep watch all night 

perception 11 

Kelnan fashions some earplugs out of candle wax and sawdust, or whatever seems handy, and passes them out to the crew hoping it might help if the harpies return. He spends any time not resting watching the skies and magically Mending whatever he can to get the ship underway.

     Fianna will point out that we need some rest if we're going to be worthwhile if the ship is again attacked, and insist that we take shifts on watch.  Otherwise she is more than happy to to comply with the dwarven captain and his orders.  She would just like to be warm and dry again, and for the footing under he to be still.