The Collective - Session 32

This is the thirty-second session in The Collective campaign and the first and final in the Rescuing Flynt Meadglider sub-arc of the Treasure of Captain Lofy Arc.

Summary
TUESDAY, JANUARY 2, 1001: Now sailing in the Northern Sea of Gales, the Collective learned that life on the sea would not be as easy as they had hoped. Learning from Simpson and Peart that their vessel was much too large to be managed solely by a crew their size, they prepared to work throughout the night to ensure that their journey would be a quick one. Badger spent the day preparing a hammock overhang in the lower deck and peering over the open ocean from the top of the mainsail. Rosanhi sterilized the rudimentary medical equipment in the infirmary and learned of the art of rigging from Bilby, and Roscoe decided to teach Calhoun (who had already previously shown an aptitude for dancing on multiple occasions) how to jig. Gnorbitt and Gorrn went about designing and constructing an incredibly poorly-made crow's nest, which Badger refused to allow them to mount to the top of the mainsail for fear of his own injury or death at its hands. After a long day's work, Gorrn drew the shortest straw and was allowed to sleep while the others kept working throughout the night.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10, 1001: In the morning, Badger spotted an enemy pirate ship (flying the same crimson red flag as Lofy's flagship) headed straight in their direction. Sparing no time, he alerted Peart and the rest of the crew, who prepared to do battle with the ship. Unbeknownst to them, the enemy ship contained four prisoners within it; three defectors from Lofy's crew and a Dwarven Paladin of Hyriat named Flynt Meadglider. As a battle between the two ships ensued, Flynt and his fellow prisoners, Argyle, Finric, and Raemund, managed to open their cell door and retrieve their stolen gear from the hold, lying in wait to prepare for an opportunity to escape. After a quick skirmish, the enemy ship closed in upon the Swift Cabbage at ramming speed. Crashing into the hull of the Swift Cabbage, several of the pirates swung aboard the boat and began to engage in combat with the Collective and crew. Gorrn quickly pushed his way through to the front of the ship and managed to dispatch three of the hostile pirates in a display of incredible strength and talent, while Badger secretly infiltrated the enemy boat disguised as another pirate and the other members of the party continued to defend the Cabbage.

After two pirates fired their disposable cannons at Gorrn and were killed at the hands of Gnorbitt and Badger, the rest of the party jumped aboard the enemy ship, its captain intimidated by Gorrn and its first mate vaporized by Rosanhi's potent divine magic. Flynt and his friends had been just as busy below deck, fighting off their captors and accidentally setting the lower deck of the boat alight. Quickly clambering up the stairs, they surrounded Badger (who was still disguised as a pirate and had just blown a hole through the lower deck with a disposable cannon) and were prepared to kill him before learning of his true identity as a "double agent". Badger, Flynt, Gorrn, and the three defectors brought one of the ship's lifeboats aboard while Rosanhi and Gnorbitt rifled through the captain's quarters, acquiring a small sack of an unidentified substance and various fancy hats. Once everyone was back aboard the Cabbage, a series of arguments broke out and demands were made by both sides of the identity of the other. Flynt, realizing that there was no time to waste, pried the burning wreckage of the enemy ship off of the Cabbage then turned to his rescuers and friends and verbally berated them. After a moment of silence, Peart approached the group and was met with a warm welcome by Finric, Argyle, and Raemond, who knew each other during their time on Lofy's crew. They learned that the trio had also defected due to Lofy's increasingly heinous acts and were imprisoned, being welcomed aboard the Cabbage as part of the crew upon learning that they too were out to get Lofy.

Now able to rest, the Collective and Calhoun sat down in a circle in the lower deck to spark a dwoint and relax after a difficult two days of work. Flint joined them and told them of his backstory. He had been a miner in Suttenhold long ago before joining the ranks of the Justicars of Hyriat. Approached by a Gnomish crime organization from Squidsiddie, he was forced to carry a piece of important contraband to Nottenhold; a treasure map made from Human skin, the same map that the party is secretly in possession of. Calhoun briefly ranted about his disdain for anyone searching for the treasure with the map, claiming that their holding of the map is the reason that Calhoun's father, David, was taken in the first place. Passing around the dwoint, the party each explained their backstories in light detail before Gorrn demanded that Calhoun show them a good jig. Calhoun reluctantly obliged and was thrown off of his feet when the ship hit a large wave, sending him flying across the cabin and knocking him unconscious.