Al-Rathak Actual Play Part 2

Qasim and crew continue their search for the Isle of Black Palms.

Scene 3. Day 3. Shallows. Weather: Special: Warm weather and breezes. Not Lost. Foraging +5 rations. POI: Calm Seas. No Day or Night Encounter.
Day 4. Deeps. Hot Weather. Not lost. No POI. Encounter: Friendly. Raft with 6 survivors. Night encounter: Ghost Haunted Fog.

The crew of the Shalandi encounter warm weather and cool breezes the next day. They make time for fishing and swapping stories. Qasim al-Dim thinks he has done well to have found such a varied and interesting crew.

The following day brings more sweltering weather and lethargic winds. A call from above alerts the crew to a something floating in the distance. As it gets closer they can make out 6 people clinging to a raft in the sweltering sun. Barbak is the only one who utters his dislike of having 6 more mouths to feed, but a word from Youssef reminds him of his good fortune. Barbak nods and quickly joins the crew in hauling them aboard.

Story of the castaways: Oracle: Rule. Release. Menacing.

The survivors were slaves aboard a large pirate vessel. There was a mutiny and an explosion. They managed to survive for the last 4 days on this makeshift raft. The Shalandi crew agreed to help the best they can. The survivors will need to take turns staying in the cramped storage area - but the crew will get them to safety.

That night during third watch, Amira feels a chill as the already faint moonlight dims even more. She notices a thick fog approaching and then the sound of moans rolling across the still water. She decides to avoid the alarm bell and alert the captain directly. As Captain Youssef, Qasim and many of the crew come on deck, the moaning begins to turn into shrieking. Shapes seem to be flowing swiftly through the all encompassing fog. Many crew and some of the castaways are wide eyed and uttering chants and prayers to ward off any Djinn or mad spirits.

Terror check fails: 3 survivors form the raft and Barbak: Does he pull his sword? No, but he starts swinging fists wildly. 

Barbak roars more in terror than anger and swings his fists at anyone near. A castaway leaps into the dark water while another climbs a mast. Qasim and Youssef manage to hold Barbak while Cyra and Hana tie him fast. The swirling fog and its screaming inhuman voices seems to last for most of the night. Later when Amira checks the watch-glass, she swears it actually only lasted 20 minutes.

In the aftermath, 2 castaways are missing while a third is found dead in the farthest corner of the hold, all colour seeped from his body. Barbak is quiet and will not speak. The crew decides to try and get some sleep and spend time fishing the next morning instead of pressing on.

Scene 4. Day 5. Deeps. Partly Sunny. Not Lost. Island POI due to turtle encounter. Medium Island. Not Isle of Black Palms. Terrain: Plains. Encounter: Ruins. Large 7 areas. 2 Floors.

When the crew of the Shalandi spot an Island ahead, Qasim is very hopeful at first. As they get closer he sees there are very few trees and none of them black palm trees, assuming the naming of the island was literal. Youssef al-Sabah decides to allow the crew to replenish supplies and stretch their legs on shore. This island does not appear on his charts and he remains cautious. Hana al-Fayal reports some ruins and requests to explore with a small team. Qasim volunteers and trying to get that spark back into Barbak’s eyes, asks him to join as well.

Does Barbak join the party? Yes.

Barbak ibn Abdul snaps out of his reverie and hoists his mighty Great-saber to join Qasim and Hana on shore with Amira al-Sherif rounding out the party.

Hana soon leads them to the outskirts of stone ruins. Crumbled lichen covered walls and remains of some taller buildings can be seen through the tall grasses and plants.

Area 1: NPC. Quality: Poor: Stranded. Sparks: Obstacle. Jewel. Reaction: Actively Helpful. Is he with a group? No. Did he come here alone? Yes, but… something involving an enemy happens. D3 Large Skeletal Snakes:1. 8 HP, Amour 0, Attack d6, Morale 7. Morale check after arrow: Stays to fight. No night encounter. 

Running footsteps can be heard from inside the perimeter of the ruins. The party readies their weapons and Hana signals for them to crouch as she disappears into nearby bushes. A ragged man comes rushing from an opening in a collapsed wall. His eyes are wide and he keeps looking back. Qasim, bow ready tenses up. A rasping clicking sound is heard and the man cries out in fear. Hana leaps from nearby bushes and tackles the man as a very large skeletal snake comes slithering out of the ruins, ribs clicking along the ground. Barbak yells and charges the snake - finally roused from his state of torpor with something tangible to hit. Qasim lets loose an arrow that embeds itself in the snake's spine. Barbak follows with an overhead strike to the snake’s skull and narrowly avoids a snapping bite. Hana throws a dagger to finish it off.

The man cautiously stands up beside Hana and profusely thanks everyone. He explains that he was abandoned 3 days ago when the crew he hired left after being attacked by a similar snake. He has been trying to breach the ruins ever since.

“I swear to you all by my name, Rashid al-Rashid, that riches like none but the Sultan himself have seen lie in the caverns underneath our feet. I have studied the histories of this Island. These ruins were once a temple to a horrible snake called the Azhdaha. Worshipers did not make blood sacrifice, no! Instead they brought treasures in hope Azhdaha would grant them eternal life. This I swear!”

Qasim and the others conferred and decided to take the matter to Youssef al-Sabah. The crew of the Shalandi all discuss their next steps while enjoying a cool late evening under the stars. After, sharing tea and fish on the deck. It was decided a large party will venture forth and delve into the ruins in the morning. Afterall, were they not all hungry for adventure such as this?

1 XP.

Notes: I forgot to roll for night encounters in the last sessions - wasn’t expecting to do that at sea (but very glad I noticed for going forward). I also missed the table to enhance and/but results form the yes/no oracle. That table added the snake attack from asking if the NPC was alone.

I have decided to count 1 ration as representing daily food and water for the crew and 2 rations for feeding more than the regular crew. The sailor skill makes this not an issue.

For the fog encounter I used a Presence check at disadvantage for the survivors and regular for the crew of the Shalandi.

On day 5 I decided that Qasim’s encounter with the turtle would allow the crew to find an Island as a point of interest and let the dice decide if it was the Isle of Black Palms.

I have noticed that having a higher Presence attribute makes encounters much more friendly on average. This has been a fun and interesting element to the gameplay with Qasim al-Dim.

I decided on the snake attack before actually rolling the Azhdaha as the ruins dungeon boss. Very fitting. A decent party will enter the ruins. I am not expecting all of them to survive - but I am hoping numbers will prevail.

Al-Rathak is by Bookwizard999 and SilverNightingale

For this and other Actual Plays check out my Table of Contents Page.