Ship-Side

(OOC: I'm going to try to have a separate thread for each situation occurring. The previous post will be used by Shivi for however long she is on her own. For now, this is where those people still on the ship can post, so as not to interrupt the various flows)

Onboard the Farzhoul, Baladas has been investigating the cause of death of the captain and analyzing the state of the ship, its crew, and its cargo. Nabooru, a young magic-user (OOC: welcome, Chloe!), has the chance to begin her (?) own trials.

As a starting question, how open about being a magic-user are you, Nabooru? Those who dabble in the dark arts are generally labelled as some combination of insane, dangerous, possessed, or idiotic.


Go forth!

Chapter 1: The Captain Is Dead

It is April 16, in the Year of the Coffin Nails, 893. The four of you have recently become employed on a smuggling ship running all manner of illicit goods between nations. Most of the crew are dull, ornery, neurotic, or awkward, but in each other you have all at least found some semblance of friendship or mutual interest. So it has gone for several weeks now.

Things are changing now, however. Two nights ago, you docked in the harbor of Rishazzan, a city-state belonging loosely to the Mindeerican Empire. The Captain, a man you knew as Clavard, left the ship to speak with contacts he had in the city. Last night, he fell ill and took to his quarters. Then, this morning, the first mate Fackleman came before the whole crew to announce that the Captain is dead.

There is no clear line of succession on board. Fackleman will almost certainly try to take control of the ship, and the men know him well (though he is not particularly well liked). The crew consists of 17 sailors (21 including yourselves), Fackleman, the navigator Ker-Hess'vish, and an accountant whose name no one has bothered to ask.

The ship is currently filled with merchandise, the exact information of which would be in the Captain's quarters. The men (including yourselves) have not been paid yet this month, and are clearly tense about the whole situation. It is raining lightly, and the sky is overcast as midday approaches. What do you do?

(OOC: when writing anything that is not a direct question about the scene, a description of an action you take, or something that your character says, write it in parentheses with OOC for Out-Of-Character in front. None of you are allowed to post actions for your character until you have equipment and names, but you may certainly ask questions about the world, the setting, the scene, or anything else. You will gain experience for combat and for acquiring treasure, so keep that in mind, though experience is certainly not the only motivator of RPGs. Good luck, and let's get this ship out to sea!)

Prologue: In Which Characters Are Introduced

Welcome all! This is an experimental format for a new Lamentations of the Flame Princess campaign I want to run for you guys. The players I believe we have are Nathaniel, Jericho, Shivranjani, Eli, and Samantha (I, of course, am your humble Dungeon Master Jack).

Play will consist of you guys writing comments in the topical posts that I write. Whenever necessary, you can roll dice and write those results out in your comment (or use an online generator, whatever). When I think a certain post has finished its purpose, I'll start a new one and play will continue there.

During combat, I am going to create little map diagrams so you can see where everything is laid out. You tell me where you want your character to move and what they'll do, and it will happen. Generally, there will be a new post for every round so you all can see updates of position, etc.

So, first things first: time to roll up some characters! Before you decide what you'd like to play, a little background: you are all going to be starting out as new crew on board a smuggling ship. Events and decisions will occur from there, but I just want you to have a little flavor. I haven't decided whether to create my own world or just use a modified version of past earth. Any opinions can be voiced, no problem.

The seven classes available to you are Cleric (holy warriors who can heal and have access to miraculous spells), Fighter (exactly what it sounds like), Magic-User (wizards who can cast spells, and other such business), Specialist (skilled adventurers, have the most options for customization), Elf (mix of magic-user and fighter), Dwarf (incredibly tough fighters with a knack for architecture), and Halfling (wee little fellows, very stealthy and good in the outdoors).

You have six main abilities: Charisma (related to leadership), Constitution (related to hit points), Dexterity (related to ranged attacks and how hard you are to hit), Intelligence (related to some resistances to magic effects), Strength (related to melee attacks and feats of strength), and Wisdom (related to resistance to non-magic effects).

To start making your character, roll 3d6 six times. Assign these scores to the abilities above IN ORDER. You can then switch one ability with one other if you want to change what your character is good at.

I want to stress that ability scores are not the be-all-and-end-all of your character. They have limited effect (less than traditional D&D) on your character's prowess, so don't worry about mediocre scores. If they are too bad to be kept, I'll tell you can you can re-roll.

That's about the start of it. Your first post can be your rolls and class decision (feel free to talk with each other about classes to get a good team). That is all! Best of luck.