Wyvern's Wake Recap 2: Can't See Shit, Captain

Flamerule 17-18

Weather has been dry but warmer and windy, it takes us a day to sail to Darkwater Promontory. Aramil guides us safely and quickly to our destination, and we spot localized storm clouds. Another ship is drawing nearby, a caravel we know as The Cutlass, old rivals captained by Zan, a half-elf woman, who have beat us out of jobs before. Captain Bril believes that their half-orc first mate was the one following us in Raven's Bluff.

The Promontory is a tall black rock rising up about 60 feet, and there is an island with a small beach, swampy areas and small patches of forest. Aramil begins plotting a course around the whirlpool to get us to the island safely, and Abdul-Hafiz, informed that they aren't natural, offers advice on magical effects like the whirlpool. Aramil offers up prayers to Umberlee, but merely succeeds in getting her attention. Captain Bril tries to inspire the crew, and quickly begins lying to them in order to do so, but is less than convincing. The crew thinks we're going to die. Aramil steps onto the quarterdeck and begins offering up historical stories of success at sea, privateers overcoming the worst that Umbrelee could throw at them, which calms the crew somewhat. This allows Captain Bril to inspire the crew to action, as the ship begins plowing into the storm.

Captain Bril steers us into the storm, and we list into one of the whirlpools. As Breck calls out directions to escape it's pull, Reginald jumps quickly to the other side of the ship, giving orders, fastening the rigging and pulling the sails to get us out of the whirlpool. We land on the shore, somewhat roughly but successfully. Abdul-Hafiz leads the work gang that pulls the ship further off the beach so that it doesn't overturn when the tide goes out. Captain Bril orders the crew to make repairs while we're on land, and to signal us with sunrods if someone comes to board the ship. Aramil uses Nature to find a path to the Promontory, and Reginald sees a thatched hut nearby, causing him to tell Captain Bril that he believes the island might be inhabited.

Breck quietly sneaks over to the hut to scout it out, and she finds a nasty-smelling village full of Bullywugs. It looks like they've eaten some of the sailors that washed up on the beach, and they're chanting something which we can't identify as a major pantheon. Breck leads Abdul-Hafiz up, since he can understand Primordial (which they are speaking) and determine if they are casting a ritual to influence the storm. He doesn't believe it's a ritual, but examines the pictures they're drawing in the sand. Abdul-Hafiz recalls that Makthuum Ngtha is associated with the Far Realm. Breck reports back and, with urging from Abdul-Hafiz and Reginald, they decide to sneak up to join him and then ambush the Bullywugs.

Reginald mutters his Oath of Enmity quietly, selecting the Bullywug Mud Lord for holy vengeance. Aramil moves into position to see the targets. Breck runs out of the woods, charging one of the Bullywugs for 21 hp, bloodying him. Bril charges in next to him and attacks the same Bullywug for 3 hp. Abdul-Hafiz charges over and attacks the same Bullywug, but he misses.

Reginald moves forward and launches Radiant Vengeance on the Bullywug Mud Lord for 5 hp and gains 4 temporary hp. Aramil launches his Orb Master's Incendiary detonation, catching most of the Bullywugs in it for 6 hp and knocking them prone. Breck tries to use King's Castle on a downed Bullywug, but misses. That Bullywug stands and launches a spasmodic hop, flipping behind Breck and Abdul-Hafiz, and another next to the Mud Lord does the same, flanking Breck, and one of them hits her. Bril uses his vicious mockery on the downed and bloodied Bullywug, ending his life with a series of insults. Bullywug Muckers come to attack Abdul-Hafiz for 6 hp. Bullywug Mud Lord moves out of the fire, comes out next to Reginald and belches electricity at Reginald, Bril and Breck as well as one of the Bullywug Twitchers. Bril dodges, but the others all take 10 hp and dazes them. Abdul-Hafiz uses his Sword of Sigils to attack two Muckers and a Twitcher, missing the Twitcher, and then uses an action point to Sword Burst, hitting the other Mucker, and he has bloodied both of them. He places his Aegis of Shielding on the Twitcher.

Reginald attacks the Mud Lord with Aspect of Might, nearly killing him. He uses an action point to use Shared Madness on the other Twitcher for 14 hp, bloodying him and killing the Mud Lord as a secondary effect, and then saves against daze. Aramil moves into the bushes and fires Thunder Wave at Abdul-Hafiz (miss) and three of the Bullywugs for 9 hp, pushing the two Muckers into the fire zone. Breck shifts back away from the Bullywugs and saves against daze. Twitcher shifts back into the fire, the other one moves away, taking 2 hp from Abdul-Hafiz, and they both miss with javelins thrown at Abdul-Hafiz. Bril moves into the fire to attack the Twitcher with his rapier and misses. One of the Muckers takes fire damage, charges Bril, jumping onto him with a Bullywug rush and knocking them both prone for 12 hp, bloodying Bril, but Abdul-Hafiz's mark kills the Mucker. The other Mucker shifts out of the fire and attacks Abdul-Hafiz, missing. Abdul-Hafiz marks the bloodied Twitcher, uses Frostwind blade to kill the remaining Mucker and wound that Twitcher, then he moves over next to the other Twitcher.

Infused with holy energy, Reginald rushes over and flanks the Twitcher with Abdul-Hafiz and kills it with a critical Bond of Pursuit attack. Aramil strides into the flames and attacks the Twitcher with illusory magic, but it resists the effect. Breck takes his second wind. The last Twitcher moves away from Bril, drawing an AOO for 2 hp, and then he hurls a javelin at Abdul-Hafiz with a crit for 9 hp. Bril uses Majestic Word on Breck, removing her bloodied condition. Abdul-Hafiz rushes over to the Twitcher and hits him with a crit, killing him.

After a brief rest, we head deeper into the island. Some of us notice that Aramil and Bril are sinking into quicksand. We throw them ropes, but they exhaust themselves pulling out of the quicksand. We all carry a rope between us, and despite Abdul-Hafiz's insistence that quicksand is everywhere, Reginald keeps us free of any further traps. As we move into a clearing, we can see that the Cutlass is pulling around near the other shore, with torn sails, and they are have not yet reached the island. We begin climbing the hill, and Aramil and Reginald slip, taking some damage on the way up.

As we reach the top of the point, we are sixty feet above the ground and can view the entire island. Reginald sees another ship on the island, and Captain Bril looks through his spyglass and believes it to be a larger pirate ship. Neither Aramil nor Breck sense any spell plague nearby, despite what they were told about the area, but he does spot defensive wards that have broken. Hewn rock stairs lead down into the island. Abdul-Hafiz prepares a sunrod, but Captain Bril, with his darkvision, leads the way. Breck reveals his spellscar when he activates his Sight of the Unseen spell-scarred ability, leading Aramil to tell him "We need to talk."

The ceiling features an elaborate planetarium covered in moss and lichen, and kobold bodies are strewn about the floor, with crabs chewing on them. Abdul-Hafiz scoops up some crabs in a bag, and they begin shrieking, so he slams them into the wall to quiet them. When he sees that they are mottled and cancerous, he dumps them out onto the floor and lights up his sunrod. Reginald doesn't find any signs of injury on them other than the crabs, it looks like they died of natural causes. There are more stairs spiraling down, and doors on the south and west face. Aramil determines that these constellations don't belong to modern-day Faerun, suggesting that they are very old or belong to a different culture.