Saltmarsh Continued

[azato]

The heroes are finally nearing the end of the first module ( I have no plans to do the rest) and they wound up with the following

1. A ship

2. A fair amount of trade goods

3. A smuggler (npc) who sort of "helped" them. May be a good opportunity for a new player to join into the group.

4. A wild mystic (sort of a voodoo guy with no powers).

5. A mysterious man found captive on the smuggler ship. May be a good opportunity for a new player to join the group.

 

 

They are wanting to keep the ship (rather than sell it) and plan to embark on some sort of trade. (maybe not real serious). I am running a low magic campaign...actually a sword and sorcery one.

 

I am looking for some ideas and plot hooks....any thoughts? I will post some possible stuff with the NPCs later.

[azato]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

So far the NPCs do not have a defined background and thus could have all sorts of hidden motives and agendas. It does appear that they will likely continue with the group for one reason or another.

 

I have switched the sea elf in the module for a mysterious man. i am thinking about making him a Suel spy posing as a trader who was captured by the Sea Princes and was being moved. Of course the players would not know that....

 

I think I will try to sway them to be more in the business of transporting goods rather than as merchants per se. I don't beleive any of the characters have trading, bureacratics or even navigation. The will need to hire some people and perhaps work into the business.

 

I plan to go trough old Traveller journals to get ideas as well as some issues of Challange magazine.

 

The question is how to mix one part economics and 1 part intrigue with one part action.

[Lawnmower Boy]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

Smuggling!

[azato]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

It could go that way.....good point.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

Smuggling runs are fun.

[Markdoc]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

In addition, they could take on passengers - with complications. Look at River in Firefly, or Luke and Ob-wan in Star Wars ("Can you sail us to Kessel in that wreck?" "Kid, this is the ship that made the Kessel run in 3 weeks!"). Or they can take a normal, profitable cargo that has something - a vampire's coffin? (Evil grin) or simply a valuable McGuffin hidden in it. As merchants, they could be recruited as privateers, or spies ... there's a lot to work with here.

 

cheers, Mark

[AnotherSkip]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

Actually a place to store all the very bulky teasure pc's get till they can unload it isn't a bad thing..... then thy can get accused og being smugglers etc cause they don't know the rules.

[azato]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

The PCs have decided to keep the ship and practice some trading. Actually, they liberated a merchant and one of the smugglers from the adventure actually joined the party (he gave up in a fight with the PCs and helped the PCs get onto the ship). They figured the merchant character can do the trading and they can adventure while commerce takes place (it make take a couple weeks at port to sell and to purchase). They also hired some soldiers they knew (the party just mustered out of the local army) for protection and to keep the crew loyal. While the party has members who can run a ship, nobody really has merchant nor strong maritime style skills. Here are two of the PCs. As you can see, the merchant is much more than what they bargained for.

 

NPC’s and Motivations

BeBe (aka Bloody Bejorn) has spent his life as a sailor and the last few years as a smuggler. Having sailed for years under Captain XX he became dissatisfied with his lot. Because of his experience and his skills, he spearheaded the land based portion of the smuggling operation. His love was for the sea, not to be cooped up in a cave supervising lackeys (he was a smuggler in the Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh who surrendered early and helped the players get aboard the SEA GHOST). His desire is for the sea , the excitement of new ports and for money. While he never gives any he loyalty to any one person, he is not one willing to betray his employer unless circumstances warrant. Even if “satisfied” he constantly seeks to raise his wages/cut. He always looking to get the best deal possible and is willing to haggle for hours over sometimes meaningless items/services.

 

 

Rhy-mun – as far as anybody knows he is a merchant from the land of Idee. The adventures found him captive in the hold of the ship chained to the wall. He tells them the story that his ship was captured by pirates and the present vessel was merely used to transport him and that they had not part of his captures. He also states they were planning to either sell him into slavery. The truth of the matter is that he is a captured spy, currently using the identity of Rhy-mun (one of several). He does indeed have merchant skills and is quite adept in negotiations, bribery, bureaucracy and trade.

He is a spy/provocateur for the Scarlet Brotherhood and his real name is Bri-Lee. The merchant identity allows him a good background to explain his travelling, his money and his conducting of “business”. He was indeed captured and was bound for the Sea Princes because he was found out, not because of piracy. There is some debate in my mind whether he was captured willingly or unwillingly. He is very much wanted by them for his crimes.

Since given a great deal of authority and responsibility given to him by the PCs, he is going to take full advantage of them since he has no oversight. He will ensure that they make money, but he will siphon off funds and deposit them to different accounts in different port cities. There is no telling where this will wind up but his purpose is not merely to make money…it is to fund his destabilization of governments.

He is very calm and never appears flustered. He is a phenomenal martial artist but he hides he abilities. His is very skinny any usually downplays and physical prowess he has.

Some thoughts on him:

* He starts a local rebellions while in port.

* He changes identities – killing someone and thus framing his own murder and stealing their identities.

* He frames the adventures killing the victim in their sight and then shouting for the police.

* He kills all the people on board the Sea Ghost that were present during his initial capture. All those people are working for other companies/ships now. But if he sees them he will arrange their death. This will manifest by an occasional murder in various ports and the players will recognize the bodies. This will be on an infrequent basis and will be a kind of mysterious thing.

* He sets up a weapons run into the Middego jungle. The purpose is to arm the natives against the Sea Princes. The ship may be stopped at sea OR in port. He will invoke a mysterious charter and the captain/official after speaking privately will take a bribe and allow the ship to continue on.

[Markdoc]

Re: Saltmarsh Continued

 

OK, sounds like a winner right there

 

cheers, Mark