Solo Savage Pathfinder – Scene 5 – Smugglers’ Caves
Not much bookkeeping needs to happen from the last scene. The Chaos Factor remains at 7 and I’ll add Sergeant Strop to our list of NPCs.
Let’s test the scene – rolled a 1 – “Altered Scene”. Hm, okay. I imagined Sergeant Strop showing Ondo around the warehouse, so let’s say that the guardsman has other duties to attend to. He just leads Ondo to the docks, points out the building, then leaves.
So let’s dive into…
Scene 5 – Smugglers’ Caves
It’s mid morning of the same day as the ambush when Ondo and Sergeant Strop arrive at the waterfront.
(rolling on the Mythic Locations, the warehouse is – “Remote”. So it’s on the outskirts of the docks. Probably near the cliffs and connected to some hidden caves, too, right? – “Yes, and…” Naturally. That’s a great location for an adventure!)
The two men are standing on the wharf, a stone abutment along the shoreline with a network of wooden docks extending into the protected Delcor Bay. Longshoremen and sailors are busy at work all around, engaging in the commerce of the nation, paying no attention to the guard or the mage.
“It’s the one on the end, near the cliffs,” says Sergeant Strop. “That’s where we busted the smugglers.”
Ondo nods. Strop looks like he’s going to say something more, but then thinks better of it, turns and quickly heads off through the dock workers, back towards his precinct.
Since he’s down at the docks, Ondo wants to check in with the ship he’s hired, Devotion, and Captain Perkins.
(Was his absence missed? — “Yes, and…” The captain was alarmed when Ondo didn’t show up this morning. They had planned to sail on the morning tides, so he sent a few deckhands to find him. They found the aftermath with the town guards and crowds of onlookers, so the crew are well aware of the ambush).
“Good to see you healthy and hale, sir,” says the first mate as Ondo boards.
“As am I,” says Ondo. He finds Captain Perkins belowdecks in his cabin, poring over charts. “I hope I’m not interrupting,” Ondo says after knocking politely on the open door.
“Ah, Master Baridad!” says Perkins, coming over to shake his hand. “When we heard you were assaulted in the streets, we feared, well…” he trails off. “Let’s just say I’m happy to see you again,” he continues.
Ondo says, “I hope this doesn’t throw our schedule off too badly”.
Captain Perkins shakes his head. “No, no, I was just re-plotting our course. The wind would have been against us all morning, so if we put out with the evening tide, I believe we will have only lost a little time,” he says.
“About that…” says Ondo. Perkins looks at him quizzically. “I may have stumbled onto a lead about our objective, right here in Delcor City. The men who attacked me might have a connection to Wran. I’d like to check it out before we set sail”.
Perkins looks at Ondo seriously. “Well, you’re the client. But I must insist you take an escort with you if you’re going to be traveling in town again. These ruffians seem the worst sort, attacking in you broad daylight. Take two of my men…”
(Random Mythic words to generate some crewmate names – “Ancient” “Fall”. An + Fall…sounds like Anvil. A cool nickname – Anvil. And another using the SW Solo tables – “Mental Harm”. How about Tarm).
“…Anvil and Tarm. They’ve got sharp eyes and will keep you safe,” says Perkins. Ondo is about to protest, but realizes he was thinking along the same lines earlier in the day. He had been considering contacting some of his old companions to assist him on his mission.
“I’d be glad of the company, captain,” Ondo says. After finalizing a few more scheduling details with Perkins, Ondo leaves the Devotion with Anvil and Tarm in tow. Anvil is a short, brutish man with a square jaw and equally square head. Tarm is a former marine recruit, with a notched cutlass tucked into his belt. They follow behind him about ten paces, making Ondo feel self conscious and even more uncomfortable than he had been alone.
(Anvil’s name suggests how he looks physically. I made a roll on a Mythic table to flesh out Tarm. Character Identity for him – “Military”).
Ondo questions a few dock workers about the warehouse at the end of the row near the cliffs. (Persuasion roll – success. We’ll generate some quick info and then jump to Ondo exploring the warehouse).
(Have they seen anyone at the warehouse recently? – “Yes, and…” We’ll say that they noticed several people coming and going to the warehouse and they know who they are. Crewmembers of a ship in harbor, maybe. Let’s generate the ship and name of the captain, things that a dockworker would take note of. SW oracle – “Personal Planning”. How about “Captain Lanning”? Now the ship’s name? Using the Mythic tables, which I think are a bit more evocative – “Trick” “Malice”. Well, if that isn’t ominous. The ship’s name is the Deceptive Malice).
Ondo files away the information and heads to the dilapidated building Strop had pointed out to him earlier. It’s one of several older structures off the main row, surrounded by old packing materials and broken, cast-off shipboard tools and components. He scouts the outside cautiously (Stealth roll – success), but finds the rundown wood and stone building empty (Is anyone home? – No). There are no signs of activity and inside he finds nothing but debris and empty crates (Notice roll – fail).
Metagaming a bit here, we’ve established that there are hidden caves in this warehouse, so Ondo is going to spend a Benny to reroll his Notice (reroll – success with a raise!). Basically he’s paying game currency for this information.
On a second stroll through the dank building he notices a steady cool breeze coming from the back, where the stone foundation blends with the sea cliffs. He clears a few empty boxes away from the wall and finds a dark crevice leading into the cliff. Tarm and Anvil share a look.
“Awful dark in there, sir,” says Tarm. “Maybe we should head back to the ship for some proper explorifying gear.” Anvil grunts in agreement.
Ondo, however, doesn’t want to delay his search. Whistling a quick bird call, he summons a small, glowing yellow bird that radiates light (Casting light/darkness spell. Spellcasting – success with a raise!) The little goldfinch perches on Ondo’s head, banishing the darkness in the sea caves as though he were carrying a lantern.
The trio walk along the smooth floor of the cave, Ondo with his magical bird light leading the way. This place has definitely seen a lot of use, he thinks. After a hundred winding feet or so, the narrow tunnel opens into a larger chamber. Water drips from the ceiling and they can hear the distant crashing of waves somewhere up ahead.
(What do they find inside? Rolling on the Mythic Dungeon Descriptions table – “Enemies”! This sounds like a cue to roll a random encounter. I pull up the Savage Pathfinder Companion and draw on the Coastal Encounters table – 2d6 Giant Crabs. The table is made for a full adventuring party, so 2d6 is probably too many for Ondo and his two Extra bodyguards. These things have d12 Strength, d10 Fighting, and 10 Toughness! I think one is plenty for this group).
They enter the room and Ondo watches as the shadows on the wall behind them begin to shift. He thinks it’s a trick of the light, but after a moment it becomes all too apparent that the rocks are shifting. The three men turn in confusion and suddenly realize the cause of the strange phenomenon. The rocks are not really rocks at all, but are in fact a monstrous crab! They find themselves looking at the huge beast as it moves in, claws snapping.
End Scene 5
Okay, a great cliffhanger to stop on! That “scene” probably encompassed two or maybe three scenes, but I’m going to say it was all related to Ondo’s investigation.
Next scene will be combat with the giant crab!
