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Chapter 5 - Session 1

Cannons, Cousins, and a Course to the South

Part 1 video can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVirEmJJE9Y

Part 2 video can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0MY23GXYUU

Events and Actions

The session begins at sea aboard the party's newly acquired ship, the "Bull," in the aftermath of their escape from the pursuing "Caliper," which was set upon by a kraken mid-chase. The party briefly debates doubling back for the "Caliper's" charts and any survivors left behind, but decides the risk of the kraken still lurking nearby isn't worth it; they resolve instead to watch for the wreck as they pass its last known position and to seize the next vulnerable ship they cross. The escape left the "Bull" herself worse for wear, with one of her spars broken in the fight, adding repairs to their resupply needs. With that settled, they turn to their critical shortage of fresh water, eventually locating a previously unexplored river delta on the Isle of Sands coastline after some navigational uncertainty — Knick Nab at one point catching that the chart was being read upside down. Before setting out, the party takes stock of the new skills and spells each of them gained from their recent advancement, and confirms that Gus, a marine who was won over with a charm spell during the earlier boarding action, has thrown in with the crew.

At the delta, the party debates how to harvest "finger fruit" from the dangerous, animate trees that grow there without provoking them — the arid terrain offers nothing else worth gathering. An attempt to pull a bunch down using Noddy's rope-trick spell fails outright — the tree simply resists, stronger than the rope can manage — and a proposal to dangle the looted priest's body beneath the canopy as bait is floated but set aside. Riu offers to levitate up and chop free the highest bunch himself, but the others talk him out of it, unwilling to risk their only healer, and the party settles on simply felling a tree with cannon fire instead: they tow the ship's jollyboat in close to shore with a swivel gun mounted at its bow for a near point-blank shot, deliberately choosing a smaller specimen rather than the largest of the grove. Mani voices a moral objection, warning that they are diminishing the magic left in the world, but does not press the point, and the party proceeds. A single cannon shot brings the tree crashing down, where it continues to writhe on the ground; the priest's body is thrown onto it to keep it occupied while the party waits roughly an hour for it to still. Before finishing the job, the party casts a spell to sense any sentient presence and confirms, uncomfortably, that the tree was indeed thinking and aware; wary of the answer, they choose not to ask whether the surrounding, unfelled trees are sentient too. They press on regardless, using the magic rope to safely haul branches free of the mass and hack them apart, ultimately harvesting twelve bunches of finger fruit and a quantity of the tree's notably strong wood, setting aside its straightest sections as a future spar and musing that the wood might also serve for prosthetics. Afterward, Mani goes to the stump alone, places his hand on it, and internally apologizes for destroying a magical being, reaching out to the "third power" he believes is connected to their Medallions. He feels a distinct "pulse" in his hand in response — a significant event that he keeps to himself — and privately buries one of the harvested fruit beside the stump. He then carries the priest's remains, minus the arm already lost to the first tree, to a second, unfelled tree nearby, offering a word of thanks as he lays the body beneath its canopy — only for this tree to seize it just as readily, leaving the legs dangling visibly above as the party finishes loading their haul.

With their supplies replenished, the party commits to a new course. Guided by the rescued pirate, Shark Fin, they sail south for two weeks toward a pirate enclave known as "Drowned Man's Port," logging Shark Fin's periodic bearings themselves rather than relying on him alone. During the voyage, the former captain of the "Bull," who is revealed to be Werner De Rendal's cousin, De Torres, recovers from his injuries. After a long negotiation — during which Werner produces a large chunk of gold to sway him, then asks the rest of the party not to flash their wealth so openly again — De Torres agrees to join the crew as Master of Sail, sharing their goal of finding fortune and an eventual alternative way to return to the Old World; his one personal request is that word eventually reach his father confirming he is neither dead nor a heretic. Werner seals the agreement by passing rum around to celebrate. As they approach their destination, the party discusses their strategy for gaining entry to the port, their unease over how something has managed to locate them at sea even with an illusion concealing the ship, their long-term plans including the possibility of acquiring a faster vessel, and the sobering fact that between themselves, Gus, and De Torres, their crew still numbers only a handful of able hands — reinforcements they intend to find once ashore.

NPCs & Creatures

  • Shark Fin: The rescued pirate who is guiding the party to a safe port in the south. He is an able sailor with navigational skills.
  • De Torres: The former captain of the "Bull" and Werner De Rendal's cousin. He has agreed to serve as the party's Master of Sail.
  • Gus: A marine from the "Caliper" who jumped aboard the "Bull" during the earlier boarding action and was won over with a charm spell. He has since joined the crew, though his loyalties remain untested.
  • Finger Fruit Tree: A dangerous, animate tree that attacks creatures that stray too close. A presence-sensing spell confirmed this session that it is sentient. Its fruit is nourishing and its wood is exceptionally strong.
  • Kraken: The massive sea creature that attacked the pursuing "Caliper" mid-chase and is presumed to have destroyed it.
  • Stone Men: Dealt with by the party at the river delta while gathering fresh water, during a gap in the session's recording; the encounter itself goes unrecorded, and the second half picks up with the party already at the finger fruit grove.

Locations

  • The "Bull": The party's captured cargo ship and current base of operations — large, slow, and better suited to hauling cargo than to speed.
  • Unnamed River Delta (Isle of Sands): A previously unexplored river mouth on the Isle of Sands coastline, north of where the party escaped the "Caliper," where they gathered fresh water and harvested finger fruit. Unlike the swampy lowlands where the party has always found root before, this stretch of coast is arid and desert-like, its only substantial vegetation growing right at the water's edge.
  • Drowned Man's Port: An independent pirate haven roughly two weeks' sail to the south, and the party's current destination.

Conflicts

  • The party debated how to harvest finger fruit without provoking the animate trees; an attempt to pull a bunch down with a magic rope failed when the tree resisted, stronger than the rope could overcome.
  • Riu volunteered to levitate up and cut down the highest bunch himself, but the rest of the party talked him out of it, unwilling to risk their only healer, and turned to cannon fire instead.
  • Mani raised a moral objection to destroying one of the trees, but the party proceeded, felling it with a single cannon shot. It continued to writhe on the ground for some time afterward.
  • The body of the dead priest was thrown onto the felled tree as a distraction while it thrashed.
  • A presence-sensing spell confirmed the felled tree was sentient, deepening the party's unease even as they finished harvesting it.

Learnings and Discussions

  • The party members shared the new skills and spells they gained from their recent level advancement: a displacement spell that offsets its target's apparent location to spoil roughly one attack in ten; a casting capable of raising a wall of packed earth; a smaller working that toughens a single solid object against damage; and sharper gunnery, sailing, and melee ability all around. A few minor skills were picked up almost as a joke, including riding and handling a camel. Rune-carving has also progressed far enough that scrolls may soon be within reach, provided someone learns the spell needed to read them.
  • The wood of the finger fruit tree is confirmed to be unusually strong and resilient, making it valuable for ship repairs or construction.
  • After placing his hand on the stump of the destroyed finger fruit tree and offering an internal apology, Mani felt a "pulse" from it. This experience, which he did not share with the others, solidified his belief in a "third power" beyond the Divinity of Two and gave him a new conviction that he must find a way to "return that magic to the world." He later planted one of the harvested fruit beside the stump, an unspoken gesture toward returning what had been taken.
  • Negotiation with De Torres: A major negotiation took place with Werner's cousin, De Torres.
    • The party explained their status as heretics and offered him the position of "Master of Sail," as they needed an experienced captain but did not want the role themselves.
    • De Torres was initially uninterested, stating his only goal was to return to his family in the Old World, a feat he considered nearly impossible. The promise of New World gold was not enough to sway him, though Werner's demonstration of a large chunk of gold prompted the rest of the party to privately agree not to flash their wealth so openly again.
    • The turning point came when the party revealed their long-term plan to find an alternative way back across the sea by allying with a southern "wind witch" or navigator. This new possibility convinced De Torres to join them.
    • He agreed to serve as Master of Sail, with the conditions that he could leave when he chose, taking his share of any profits, and that the party would facilitate his departure.
    • His one personal condition beyond the practical ones: that the party eventually help get word to his father that he is alive and not a heretic.
  • The party recounted for De Torres what they had learned of their grandfather, Peter De Rendal: his ship made it only partway back across the Maelstrom before he and most of his crew were killed — his grave later found at Zylos — most likely at the hands of the Divinity of Two.
  • A detailed discussion was held on how to gain entry to Drowned Man's Port. Success depends on finding an NPC who can vouch for them, so the party brainstormed a list of names to drop, including former associates of Captain De Guzman, Lieutenant Blaque, Major Hubert, Captain Barrows, and the Chronicler, Randolph. They considered but rejected invoking Nicolas, judging him too hostile toward known heretics to be safe.
  • Conversations with Shark Fin: The party had several key discussions with the rescued pirate.
    • Navigational Guidance: During the two-week voyage south, Shark Fin provided navigation by giving a new bearing every four hours, without revealing the destination's name until the end. The party logged these bearings to create their own chart.
    • Pre-Arrival Briefing: As they neared "The Drowned Man's Port," Shark Fin explained that entry is based on trust and reputation. He agreed to vouch that the party rescued him but explicitly refused to lie about their identities, as it would ruin his own standing. He was also visibly surprised and cowed by Cosimo's demonstration of fire magic, stating he had never seen anything like it, though he was aware of southern "navigators." When offered a position, he remained non-committal, stating he would "see what offers I get."
  • The party debated the suitability of the "Bull" for their future needs. Beyond simply wanting to outrun enemies, they were increasingly unsettled that something had managed to locate them at sea even with an illusion concealing the ship — raising the possibility of a "detect heretic" spell or similar means of tracking them — and agreed a faster vessel would be preferable for evading pursuit and potentially engaging in piracy or smuggling.
  • The party identified that De Torres's personal effects included a set of three masterwork +10 javelins (+20 vs. whales), fine enough that they screw apart into three pieces for storage and were evidently carried all the way from the Old World. These were returned to him upon their agreement.

Items Gained

  • From a dead priest:
    • A wide-brimmed white hat.
    • A +15 Preaching Axe (also grants +15 to preach when brandished).
    • An amulet of the Divinity of Two.
    • 6 silver coins.
    • Two vials of Holy Water.
    • A pair of leather bracers that grant the abilities Deflect One and Blade Turn One, each once per day.
    • A travel-sized Book of Common Prayer.
  • From the harvest:
    • 12 bunches of Finger Fruit.
    • A supply of valuable Finger Fruit wood.

Items Lost

  • The body of the priest looted by the party was fed first to the felled finger fruit tree, then, minus an arm, to a second, unfelled tree nearby.
  • One cannonball was used to fell the finger fruit tree.