Heroica RPG - Quest #114: The Tale of the Sea Fiend

[KotZ]

"We have no coin to spare for those who won't help us. You may not even need to fight, we just need people out on the ship able to help with something, be it steering or what have you. Do you know others who may be able to help if you are not able to?"

[Tachyon]

"Give me a moment." Mizuki said to Ettin, before she turned to face the Hobgoblin selling newspapers. "Umm, how much would it cost for a copy of the Eubric Herald ?

[Actaeon]

Actaeon rushes over to Francis and the man missing a leg. Seeing how bad of shape he's in, Actaeon looks at Francis and says, "Give him a potion, I'll try to get help."

Quickly, Actaeon rushes to the man with a staff, "This man needs medical attention, where is the nearest healer?"

[CMP]

"We have no coin to spare for those who won't help us. You may not even need to fight, we just need people out on the ship able to help with something, be it steering or what have you. Do you know others who may be able to help if you are not able to?"

"I never did any sailing myself, I just caught the fish. Everyone I know who could be an asset is now sitting in the stomach of that..monster."

"I can captain the ship myself Kiray. What we need are fighters."

"Give me a moment." Mizuki said to Ettin, before she turned to face the Hobgoblin selling newspapers. "Umm, how much would it cost for a copy of the Eubric Herald ?

The young hobgoblin grinned up at Mizuki with broken teeth enthusiastically.

"20 gold miss. Little high but less likely to get shanked reading paper than asking around bars, yeah? Heheh. Rawg knows how it goes."

Actaeon rushes over to Francis and the man missing a leg. Seeing how bad of shape he's in, Actaeon looks at Francis and says, "Give him a potion, I'll try to get help."

Quickly, Actaeon rushes to the man with a staff, "This man needs medical attention, where is the nearest healer?"

The cleric has tears streaming down his face, and he seemed to sobbing loudly.

"That'd be me I *sob* guess. I did the best I could, I mean it. But *sniffle* there was so much blood. I tried bandaging up his arm but it was too late. I had to- *sob* I had to- *choke* " The pale man burst into even more tears. "It would take a miracle to save him now *sob*. Or at least enough potions to restore 100 health... "

[KotZ]

"I'm really not liking the idea of it being just us five, Lane." Kiray whispered. "I'm also considering putting all of these folks out of their misery."

[Tachyon]

Running over to Kiray, Mizuki said to her "Can you do me a favour ? I sort of need two gold coins." As she waited, she noted the guy bleeding like crazy. Going through her things, she pulled out two bottles of elixir and yelled to the cleric "You think these might at least help in in some way ?"

[KotZ]

"Have you made anyway headway, Mizuki? I've got nothing here," Kiray replied before giving her two gold coins.

[CMP]

"I'm really not liking the idea of it being just us five, Lane." Kiray whispered. "I'm also considering putting all of these folks out of their misery."

Lane's eyebrow raised into his hat.

"That's pretty extreme, don't you think?"

Running over to Kiray, Mizuki said to her "Can you do me a favour ? I sort of need two gold coins." As she waited, she noted the guy bleeding like crazy. Going through her things, she pulled out two bottles of elixir and yelled to the cleric "You think these might at least help in in some way ?"

"I'd *sniff* think so..."

[KotZ]

"That's pretty extreme, don't you think?"

"I'm just venting. These people are broken and most aren't going to be any help to us. We could impress them if we had to and use them for fodder, but I'd rather not do that. There just have to be people willing to help."

[Tachyon]

"Not yet........thanks for the gold." Mizuki said as she pocketed the coins. Still holding the Elixirs, she passed them to the cleric. "See if you can save him. I guess his life is sort of in your hands now." Moving on to the hobgoblin, she passed him twenty gold coins. "Copy of the Eubric Herald please."

[Captain Settle]

Francis stared at the injured man in horror.

"Uh, what happened to you sir?"

[CMP]

"I'm just venting. These people are broken and most aren't going to be any help to us. We could impress them if we had to and use them for fodder, but I'd rather not do that. There just have to be people willing to help."

"A bunch of 'fodder' isn't going to help much against this kind of creature. What do you intend to do, placate it by feeding it a few civilians?"

The elf woman crossed her arms as Kiray and Lane mumbled to one another.

"I'm sorry I can't help you right now. Really, I am. Even assuming my arm heals, it'll be weeks before I can use it for anything. Please, I just need a hundred gold. Just enough to keep me afloat for a while until I can get another boat. I have nothing now."

"Not yet........thanks for the gold." Mizuki said as she pocketed the coins. Still holding the Elixirs, she passed them to the cleric. "See if you can save him. I guess his life is sort of in your hands now." Moving on to the hobgoblin, she passed him twenty gold coins. "Copy of the Eubric Herald please."

The sobbing cleric took the elixirs. The hobgoblin took the gold and handed Mizuki a paper.

"There miss goes, heheh. Rawg hopes she enjoys it, yes."

Copy of The Eubric Herald - (Gives the target the transcended- and inspired- effects for the duration of one battle)

Mizuki unfolds the front page.

Francis stared at the injured man in horror.

"Uh, what happened to you sir?"

The cleric kneels down to feed the man the elixirs. He coughs, raising his one hand to his head.

"...ugh...I'm...alive?"

He blinks slowly, one eye bruised and bloodied.

"...Thanks..I..."

The man swallows, breathing heavily.

"....I was adjusting one of our sails...Cedenra thought she spotted a school of fish and we were just...turning, when this...this thing lunged out of the water. It was...enormous. I don't even know what I was looking at....a neck...a tentacle?....it was just so...sudden....I couldn't even..." The man wipes some blood off his mouth. "...hold on....no, wait, I remember. As it rose up, I saw....I saw a harpoon, stuck up under one of its scales. I don't know what managed to get it in there, but....it was an old wound. The...the flesh was all swollen, and bloody....Frederick saw it too. He tossed a second harpoon, nailed it too." The man coughed, but a lopsided grin appeared on his face despite his sorry state. "That hurt it, bad. I could tell. Then it....swept down, and...." The smiles is gone just as soon as it came.

The Party

Assets

• The Hydra
  
• Captain Lane
  
• 'Old Wounds'
  

Kiray Nastayo (KingoftheZempk) *Immune to Fire* *Lucky* *Party Leader*

Level 10 Knight

Power Bonus: 0

Defense: 5

Health: 19/19

Gold: 104

Equipment: Fleuret (WP:9, longsword, borrowed from Mizuki), Orcish Shield (SP: 4, double if user is a greenskin, borrowed from Mizuki), Flameproof Armor (SP:1, immune to Fire; bodywear, suitable for anyone), Loaded Die (Gives holder the Lucky-effect, accessory, suitable for anyone, borrowed from Mizuki)

Inventory: Sword of the Kin (WP:3), x5 Potion, Banana (Restores full health when eaten), Chaotic Bomb (Causes 100 elemental damage to all opponents), Bedroll, Mediocre Pongcanis Brew (Encouraged + Enraged), Everlasting Venom (Adds the poisoned by 10-effect to one weapon permanently), Sleep Bomb (Deals 5 damage and the Asleep-effect to all opponents when used.), Remedy, Dragon Scale, 2x Nostrum, x3 Fire Bomb, x4 Venom, Sanctified Rito Longsword (WP:6, doubled against Flying enemies; longsword), Scutum Shield (SP:3; shield)

Mizuki Kimura (zakura) *50% More Gold Stolen* *Death Mask* *Ignores Positive Effects*

Level 24 Assassin

Power Bonus: 0

Defense: 0

Health: 34/34

Gold: 0

Equipment: Dual Gladii (WP:12, Darkness and Light elemental, dual-strike), Sticky Gloves (Increases the amount of gold stolen by 50% (rounded up)), Death Mask (Increases assassination chances to 1/3 when the target’s health is lowered to 1/3, headwear, suitable for assassin), Fox Tail (user not affected by opponent's positive effects, backwear)

Inventory: 20 Venoms, 8 Nostrums, Bedroll, Shovel, Pickaxe, Telescope, Magic Compass, Magnifying Glass, 1 Think Jeeax Scales, 1 Rito Feather (consumable, grants the hastened- and blessed-effects upon use for one battle), Gladiator Trident (WP:11, causes bleeding effect; spear), Tonic, 3 Potions, 1 Weak Potion 1 Fire Bomb, 2 Chicken Drumsticks, 2 Deadly Venoms, Neutralizer, Weak Regeneration Potion, The Eubric Herald (Gives the target the transcended- and inspired- effects for the duration of one battle)

Actaeon Artus (Actaeon) *Hastened*

Level 6 Ranger

Power Bonus: 0

Defense: 0

Health: 11/11

Gold: 50

Equipment: Sanctified Rito Bow (WP:6, doubled against Flying enemies; bow), Quickdraw Quiver (Gives wearer the Hastened-effect, backwear, suitable for rangers, borrowed from Mizuki)

Inventory: Smoke Bomb, Potion x2, Remedy x2, Bedroll, Scroll of Frailty, Stun Bomb (Deals 5 damage and the Stunned-effect to all opponents when used.), Trial Brew, Dragon Scale, Mead, Smelling Salts, Venom x2, Greaves of the Aubergine Dragoon (SP:2, protects from the Bound- and Slowed-effects. Footwear, suitable for anyone.)

Francis Barkley (Captain Settle)

Level 5 Ranger

Power Bonus: 0

Defense: 3

Health: 10/10

Gold: 17

Equipped: Training Bow (WP 4), Tricorne (SP:3)

Inventory: 3 Potions, smokebomb, bedroll, mead, longbow (WP 3) venom, Lustrous Cloak (1/6 chance of dodging damage rolls and free hits. Suitable for rogues, artifact, backwear), grand potion, grating stone, Top Hat (WP: 14, 50/50 chance of dealing the stunned-effect, retrievable, borrowed from Mizuki), Sylph Shuriken (WP:12, wind elemental, retrievable, borrowed from Mizuki)

Captain Pierce Lane (NPC, controlled by KingoftheZempk)

Level 10 Cannoneer

Power Bonus: 0

Defense: 0

Health: 26/26

Gold: 0

Equipped: Hand Mortar (WP: 5, handcannon), Cannoneer's Sashes (The damage output of bombs consumed are added to the weapon power of attacks, suitable for cannoneers, accessory)

Inventory: 2 Fire Bombs, Water Bomb, Dirt Bomb

Edited October 1, 2014 by CallMePie

[Captain Settle]

Francis turns to his fellow heroes.

"Well there you go, all we need to do is stick an arrow in that wound and the beast should die. Seems easy enough."

[KotZ]

Francis turns to his fellow heroes.

"Well there you go, all we need to do is stick an arrow in that wound and the beast should die. Seems easy enough."

"Of course, Francis," Kiray called out to him. "We'll let you do that." She flashed him a quick devious smile.

Kiray walked over to Mizuki and looked at the front page. She wasn't too surprised to see Count Shadeaux on there this soon. Where is Tridentia, she thought, I've never even heard of there.

[Tachyon]

After waiting for Kiray to finish reading, Mizuki rolled up the paper and passed it to Ettin. "This one's on me."

[CMP]

Sorry for the slight delay, had the pictures but needed to edit them.

Francis turns to his fellow heroes.

"Well there you go, all we need to do is stick an arrow in that wound and the beast should die. Seems easy enough."

"Hah," chuckled Lane, though whether or not he was under the impression Francis was joking seemed unclear. "May as well go now if it's that easy."

After waiting for Kiray to finish reading, Mizuki rolled up the paper and passed it to Ettin. "This one's on me."

"Heh. Seems this old bastard's still got his charms." He winked at Mizuki and skimmed the paper. "...the hell is this rabble...sea monster? For the love of bloody Neron....how am I supposed to get rid of a problem that goddamn big?"

Lane looked over Ettin's shoulder, and shifted over to Mizuki.

"Anything there that can help us?"

Kiray walked over to Mizuki and looked at the front page. She wasn't too surprised to see Count Shadeaux on there this soon. Where is Tridentia, she thought, I've never even heard of there.

"Wait!" cried the elf as Kiray leaves. "You're supposed to be heroes, aren't you? Why the hell aren't you helping me?? I can't help you right now, does that mean I deserve to lose everything?"

"Oh, that's not true at all, miss..."

The charismatic, well-practiced voice came from nearby, the leader of a group of three men approaching from Eubric.

"It's just that not everyone in Eubric keeps the common folk in their hearts."

The man was muscular and had a mouth lined with gold, clearly the leader of this little band.

"...Indeed."

"But what about the heroes Reg I'm scared. Please can we go back to the sewers."

"Relax, men. We're only here to help the poor elf and her friend over there." The man reached into his cloak and pulled out a small sack of gold, which he tossed to the elf. She caught it, looking skeptical.

"...that's...that's it? You don't need anything from me?"

"Of course not. You merely seem to be having something of a rough day....just remember Ulric Wolfkin's generosity when the time comes, milady. The Wolfgang doesn't forget about the commoners, even when others do..." he glanced sideways at the heroes.

The others on the docks watched the scene, some mumbling to one another and looking at the heroes a bit more suspiciously. It was clear the man had every intention to cause a scene, and had succeeded at that. The elf looked down at the gold incredulously while the man and his cohorts seemed to be waiting for some kind of reaction from the heroes.

[KotZ]

The others on the docks watched the scene, some mumbling to one another and looking at the heroes a bit more suspiciously. It was clear the man had every intention to cause a scene, and had succeeded at that. The elf looked down at the gold incredulously while the man and his cohorts seemed to be waiting for some kind of reaction from the heroes.

"I'm sorry, but she was asking for all the gold I had on me, and we need that gold to hire crew members for our expedition. We need able-bodied people to fight this sea beast, and unfortunately this elf was not able to help. When we are finished I would like to help you, but I can't do much until we stop this beast."

Kiray then walked up to the Wolfgang members. "Reg... do you happen to know a Diana?"

[CMP]

"I'm sorry, but she was asking for all the gold I had on me, and we need that gold to hire crew members for our expedition. We need able-bodied people to fight this sea beast, and unfortunately this elf was not able to help. When we are finished I would like to help you, but I can't do much until we stop this beast."

Kiray then walked up to the Wolfgang members. "Reg... do you happen to know a Diana?"

"Excuses," scoffed Reg. "We incur plenty of expenses too, knight. We've all seen your Hall - explain why you can't spare a few hundred coins with Heroica sucking more gold than most of these people have seen in their entire lives. We know about you and the ranger. You've helped out our organization in the past, and that's more than most 'heroes'. But I don't think you understand our ideals. We help people who need it, when they need it."

[KotZ]

"Excuses," scoffed Reg. "We incur plenty of expenses too, knight. We've all seen your Hall - explain why you can't spare a few hundred coins with Heroica sucking more gold than most of these people have seen in their entire lives. We know about you and the ranger. You've helped out our organization in the past, and that's more than most 'heroes'. But I don't think you understand our ideals. We help people who need it, when they need it."

"Just because the Hall has a lot of coin doesn't mean I do myself. I'd help her too but I have business to attend to first. There's a creature out there that needs stopping right now, and the longer it's out there, the harder it will be for the common folk to make a living."

[Actaeon]

Without looking up, Actaeon responds to the Wolfgang member. "Heroica is flawed. I won't pretend it's perfect. There are so called 'heroes' that are only in it for themselves. We had one like that on our last Quest, in fact. But there are those of us that truly do want to do the best we possibly can and help everyone that we possibly can. Yet sometimes we have to make decisions that are hard. Diana can tell you about that," he says, thinking back on the previous quest.

"We couldn't give the elf what she needed because we need this money to hire a crew to kill this beast. This beast is killing dozens of men and sinking ships. We can't allow that to continue because of one other person's needs. As much as it pains me, we can't help everyone. It's hard to accept, but it's the truth," he says, trying to block out his emotions.

Edited because of a typo

Edited October 2, 2014 by Actaeon

[CMP]

"Just because the Hall has a lot of coin doesn't mean I do myself. I'd help her too but I have business to attend to first. There's a creature out there that needs stopping right now, and the longer it's out there, the harder it will be for the common folk to make a living."

"Maybe. Still doesn't put a particularly friendly spin on Heroica, though, does it?"

Without looking up, Actaeon responds to the Wolfgang member. "Heroica is flawed. I won't pretend it's perfect. There are so called 'heroes' that are only in it for themselves. We had one like that on our last Quest, in fact. But there are those of us that truly do want to do the best we possibly can and help everyone that we possibly can. Yet sometimes we have to make decisions that are hard. Diana can tell you about that," he says, thinking back on the previous quest.

"We couldn't give the elf what she needed because we need this money to hire a crew to kill this beast. This beast is killing dozens of men and sinking ships. We can't allow that to continue because of one other person's needs. As much as it pains me, we can't help everyone. It's hard to accept, but it's the truth," he says, trying to block out his emotions.

"There you have it. Heroica is flawed. Why should your organization get a free pass to deal 'justice' wherever the hell you want?"

"Come on Reg, are you looking for a fight? I don't have any qualms with these hero types."

"They run around going on about killing sea monsters and helping whoever they can, but obviously they don't care enough about the common folk to even try and help."

Lane looked between the Wolfgangers and the heroes, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm surprised to hear you try and reason with this bastard. Last I heard of the Wolfgang they were trying to assassinate the Bonaparte leaders."

I'd like to give the rest of the party some time to respond before moving on.

Edited October 3, 2014 by CallMePie

[Tachyon]

Still speaking to Ettin, Mizuki said to him "To be honest, the reason why my compatriots and I are here, is to hunt down the sea beast. I'm not saying that you need to help us in any way, but the quicker the sea beast is taken down, the faster you and your house can profit without the chances of your merchant ships going missing. If you could aid us, we would be pretty damn grateful."

Edited October 3, 2014 by Zakura

[CMP]

Still speaking to Ettin, Mizuki said to him "To be honest, the reason why my compatriots and I are here, is to hunt down the sea beast. I'm not saying that you need to help us in any way, but the quicker the sea beast is taken down, the faster you and your house can profit without the chances of your merchant ships going missing."

"For real? Damn...alright, look, lady. I really need this taken care of, but I can't let the higher-ups know I let someone do my job for me, aye? Hows about when you kill that monster you give me some proof that it's dead and I put in a good word with the Hinckwells for you and your friends. I'm not asking for much, some scales, a fin, maybe a tooth. Something I can give to Heinrich and tell 'im it's done."

[Tachyon]

"Heh, I don't think I have any interest in getting any more freindler with the Hinckwells but I'm sure some of my comrades will jump at the chance. Consider it done."

[Actaeon]

Actaeon glares at the Wolfgang member. This man was nothing like Diana. He was here to pick a fight, not serve justice or help others.

Loud enough for onlookers to hear, Actaeon says, "You're looking for a fight. Even your friend knows it. If you're so kind and generous, why would you want to fight people who are trying to save lives?"