The Savage Tide [IC]

[srgonzo]

Oi, Doc Kohain, you're pretty trig and quite the chummer. Take the wand.

Ka'Xet doesn't seem to have a problem with less money or recognition. He tells the others (in his own way) that he knows he showed up to the party later than everyone else and expects that he'll have to prove himself. He does set about to putting together some ideas for how he'd go about tracking this roguish brother of his new employer.

[lostsole31]

*ninja'd on EDIT*

Ka'Xet, the movement expert, gets the potion of gaseous form.

[srgonzo]

Ta, mates! 'Course it might do to be wispy-like for those who've no skill for skulking, but if I'm the movement Lenny, then 'tis me bailiwick to Day Vorah t'all out, innit?

[lostsole31]

You know how when you watch cartoons, and there is a plinking sound that is usually used for when people blink while giving a blank stare?

Yeah, Ka'Xet gets a lot of those right now...

Lazer says .... slowly .... "I'll take that as a .... yes."

[srgonzo]

Too right, chummer! Knew you was trig.

[lostsole31]

Korian shakes his head to himself and says, "Lazer, it's a good thing you didn't give him the charming wand. He might charm them if he used it, but they'd never have a clue what he wanted."

[srgonzo]

The good doctor's trig enough. He can ken-ken basic Common.

[PersonMan]

Celiss muses about the group's makeup. She was changing into something markedly inhuman, Darrius seemed to be turning into some sort of shadow-thing, Lazer was going more deeply into his religion than most did, Korian continued to have remarkable growth spurts and they had just been joined by a Xeph who spoke some strange dialect of Common. If anyone ever told a story about them it'd sound like a joke-"So, a beast-like god-child, an aquatic shadow-man, a devil-woman, a clean-shaven dwarf and a crazy soul-blade-wielding guy who speaks a weird form of Common walk into a bar..."

Where are you from? I don't recognize your...dialect. Celiss asks her new ally, curious. People who spoke what was almost a different language, yet called it 'basic Common' weren't exactly the sort of thing you'd expect to suddenly be working with. This, combined with the death of Vakrissa and her own sudden change, had left her unsure of what to do aside from pursue the renegade Vanderboren and her own arcane studies. It seemed like their new ally was simply taking everything in stride, however, which was yet another unusual thing-although, perhaps such sudden, massive changes were the norm among the Xeph? Or maybe it was simply taboo to speak of such things with those you had only recently met. Interesting...

[srgonzo]

Wail 'alloo there chummer! My speech, no 'tisn't a different tok-tok, but when a body goes traipsing over highways 'n' byways, Traveler's Patwah y'ken-ken?

[PersonMan]

Ah, I see. Celiss nods, understanding both what the Xeph says and the nature of the quasi-Common he speaks. A mishmash of languages, probably, with all sorts of words and phrases borrowed from the tongues of different areas to form something vaguely understandable by all of them. So, what brought you to Sasserine? Celiss asks, curious.

[srgonzo]

Quicksilver's me toff, ken-ken? 'E sez to me (Ka'Xet affects a bad impersonation of Quicksilver) 'Ka'Xet, me ickle droogie, the nannotchka Vakrissa will travel the Road Beyond in a tick. Come wi' me and take up the journey onna path laid before ye in 'er stead.' Me globbos never did kan-kan the twinkles of Sasserine, so... New trek, new ruby-red, new droogs.

[PersonMan]

Ah, I see. Celiss replies, able to piece together the meaning of what the Xeph is saying.

[srgonzo]

Solid. Twice rikki we'll have a go at your brooks, eh?

[lostsole31]

Given that at least Celiss has her magic as a fallback, Korian realizes that as the frontliner he needs - in addition to his top-notch agility and intuitive defensive training - as good a set of armor as he can afford while still allowing full mobility (a key part of his martial technique). He commissions a mithral chain shirt (through Eliezer).

He also commissions a set of masterwork dastana (special bracers to reinforce lighter armors).

Now that he has money, he gets himself basic adventuring equipment.

The view of him as a beast entirely belies the fact that Korian's fighting prowess depends on tactics and positioning. He purchases a type of spear that the others have not seen before. He calls it a 'pilum', and over half of this very thin spear's length is made of metal. He purchases one that is masterwork. It is a reach weapon and can be thrown, but unlike most spears it is too thin to be effective against a charge.
...........................................

Rabbi Eliezer, as part of his ceremony, is gifted with a masterwork warhammer (and the other he had is returned to the armory of his church).

He pays to have his masterwork sharkskin armor enchanted.

After the last adventure, it is apparent that as blessed as he is, enemies are dangerous and he doesn't have enough healing for a pitched battle. Vakrissa might have lived had he had more healing energy. To this end, he'd like to commission a wand of cure moderate wounds (seems that he has somehow turned into the 'wand guy'). This is definitely a party-use item, rather than a personal item. Such an item costs 4500 gp. The party kitty has a little over 1320 gp, that item to reduce costs. This means that the party would need 3180 gp to cover the remaining amount. That's more than any one person, but with five people that comes to only 636 gp per person. Korian definitely thinks that is worth the cost.

Ka'Xet .... Darrius ... Celiss? What do you think? Are you willing to pony up that cost for more healing for the party?

[PersonMan]

Celiss agrees with Korian and Lazer. She has the feeling that the battle with the renegade Vanderboren will be even more difficult than the one with his lover, and wants to plan accordingly.

[lostsole31]

Ka'Xet ... Darrius? How about you two? Good with a wand of CMW?

[Tacitus]

Darrius has no objections to additional healing resources, knowing full well how a well placed healing spell can save lives. Usually his own.

[lostsole31]

Ka'Xet ... any problems sharing your cash for a wand of healing?

[srgonzo]

I'll give the aye to whatsover keeps me ruby-red in me skinsuit.

[lostsole31]

Team Vanderboren in agreement, the funds are paid for the wand, which is held by Doctor Eliezer. However, for extremis situations, Darrius is shown its use. Such an item is hit-or-miss (mainly miss) in Darrius' hands, but at least he could use it.

Is there anything that you want to purchase individually? Celiss, Darrius, Ka'Xet?

Sheets were updated with having helped pay for the wand.

[srgonzo]

P'raps the missus would dutch me for a Heward's Handy?

[lostsole31]

Seeing as these are 'internal' finances, Lady Lavinia need not be here for this. Mind you, most 'specialists' for noble houses (read: adventurers-on-retainer) would, do to boarding, noble patronage, some (not all) training, would actually take a percentage of earned profits. Rabbi Eliezer says that will come in time, but the group has done sooo much to help her get her feet back on the ground.

That said, but she doesn't have the whopping couple thousand of gold required to commission such an item. (If you labor through the posts - the family vault and this last haul - you will realize what she has. This is not money held in a room. This money is used for a wide variety of projects .... not the least of which is re-hiring the "Jade Ravens" ... which are the Vanderboren House Guard.)

Though, given Ka'Xet's insular scholarliness and out-of-touchness with practical costs, Rabbi Eliezer can see where the poor xeph is not realizing the scope of such a thing.

No, party funds are party funds. She already is doing more than enough (beyond boarding) with noble patronage and building a library.

[srgonzo]

Skosh of set-beside tisn't a lemming.

[lostsole31]

Lazer says, "What?"

[srgonzo]

No cheddar for a Heward's Handy, eh? Twon't be makin' me weepy.

[Tacitus]

If he can put his hands on it, Darrius would like to find one of two magical items. The first is a small pouch that provides food for one person that will fill their belly for a day. The other is more for the group as a whole, which he'd rather determine availability before he tries to get the others to dedicate funds. He's unsure of the specifics, but if the same sort of magic could be applied to a box or other container, it could theoretically feed an entire group for a day...

A lasting item that could further supplement healing for the party might also be very useful...

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So, Everlasting Rations, 350gp from MIC. Feeds a person for a day forever. No water. (Maybe a Replenishing Skin for 1000gp, also MIC, but thats not really important)

The other would be a Field Provision Box, 2000gp, also MIC. Feeds and waters up to 15 people or 5 horses for a day forever. This would be party funds if available, but he'd prefer to see if any merchants can put their hands on one before he tries to acquire the funds. Though, this would be open to veto.

Failing either of those two, he'd like to have rations on hand in case they need to go exploring again. Getting locked underground is never fun without food. Maybe something more than just fish, for more variety.

A Healing Belt (750gp, MIC) would also be a useful tool. >.>

[lostsole31]

Darrius .... Damaal the Wry, Celiss' magical tutor, is a member of Sasserine's most prestigious arcane society, the Witchwardens. He assures you that these items, useful among wealthy sailors and adventurers of the seas, are usually commissioned regularly and he can get his hands on them. He is even willing to do so without any additional markup, thanks to Lady Lavinia's especial patronage.

The everlasting rations, though you could share with someone else, would be something that comes primarily out of your own pocket.

The field provision box is an outstanding item, and is actually purchased more commonly than the rations by merchantmen (because they might have the money themselves) or by merchant sailors that pool their resources. This item would likely be well-received and accepted by the party, but the wand of healing tapped out the party funds ... which is why the excess came from everyone else. If everyone pooled their resources, it would be an even 200 gp per party member.
* Celiss, what do you think about this item? You have recently discovered that you don't need to eat or drink, and it took you some accidental discovery. In fact, you no longer need to sleep! Making you pay for this item would be unfair ... unless you were just being generous. Pointing this out means that the rest of the party would pay 250 gp/ person.
* Ka'Xet, you've never heard of such a fabulous item!! As a dedicated traveller-type, such an item rocks. Would you be willing to pay the 200 or 250 gp for such a thing?
* Korian can carry plenty more than what he has, but he is torn about this item. On one hand, having it means that he can cut down on carrying food ... considering that he depends on mobility, that's a big plus. On the other hand, is it a necessary expense ... at least now? Sure, you never know what's going to happen, but he doesn't have much money left as it is ... and he's not yet ready to part with his remaining coin for this ... not yet, at least. But it is a nice item.
**** See below.
* Rabbi Cohen, as it was discovered earlier on Parrot Island (as much by himself as the group), also needs neither food nor water nor sleep. This means that, assuming Celiss wouldn't want to pay a whopping 200 gp either for an item that does nothing for her, that ~333 gp would have to be coughed up by everyone else! Korian says that practically wipes him out, and he's definitely not going to go in for that, though he might be enticed to do so later. Now, the good Dr. Eliezer does mention that any day he might find himself on an 'exciting adventure,' then the night before at dinner he likes to put a blessing on the strawberries/ blueberries/ etc that he so loves for his evening desserts (he does eat, he simply doesn't have to) that give these berries a special property ... one berry can feed a man for a day, can heal his wounds just a little bit/ berry, and the enchantment will last for about 3 days.

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Darrius actually recognizes that Lazer is talking about the goodberry spell ... a spell commonly employed by druids to subsist in the wild.

This means that the party can handle a few more days of food than their carried provisions can normally last them, but provisions would still have to be carried.

Since (assuming Celiss doesn't offer to pay for this) that really only leaves Darrius and Ka'Xet to pay for such a thing at a cost of 500 gp per person. That still might be just fine for Darrius, but would drop Ka'Xet's wealth by half for something it seems like too expensive for what the party can handle - at least for now. Better to shelve that idea.

Rations should always be prepped before any mission in which you take 'full gear.' NOTE: As always, when bopping around town ... you are NOT assumed to be carrying your full load of adventuring crap. That's preposterous, you'll be laughed at for being paranoiacs, and that embarrassment will end up reflecting on Lady Lavinia.

As for a healing belt ... the party has already coughed up a ton of money for healing of late. Obviously, since Dr Eliezer has soo much personal and party-funded healing at his command, the assumption is that you would wear this. The magic is great, of course, and a debate could be held til Judgement Day as to 'when is the expense of healing capacity too much?'

Eliezer does a pretty outstanding job, despite an impassioned and well-constructed argument on your end, of dismissing this for now. (His Diplomacy of 31 vice yours of 20.) If he needs assistance with healing, or if he falls, you can always use the new party wand to heal, assuming you do a better job of paying attention to his tutelage of magic item commandeering. The other half of the equation is that such a belt has the less dramatic ability to competently increase one's first aid or medical knowledge. After having checked his medical expertise, Lazer believes that Ka'Xet's travel medicine would still exceed your own.

Soo, Darrius, that would leave you to purchase the healing belt as a person item. Do you?

[srgonzo]

Too right to put cheddar on my cheese!

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"I am in accord with your notion of pooling party resources to the purchase of this object, and I'd be delighted to invest an equal share into such an item.

[lostsole31]

Sorry, I'm still not getting it ... does this mean that Ka'Xet is willing to drop 500 gp on the everlasting rations if Darrius does the same?

[PersonMan]

I think that simply buying two more of those ever-full ration containers, as only Ka'Zet and Korian need to eat, apart from you. Celiss argues, adding that It'd be 1300 GP less expensive, anyways, and I'd be willing to chip in to help pay for them, seeing as I have quite the buildup of funds already.

I don't think a belt of healing is really necessary at this point. Maybe later, but for now it'd be fairly redundant. Is all she has to say about the healing belt.

Celiss will, due to an odd nagging feeling that she can't seem to get rid of, seek out a pin of protective magic. She will also look for a potion to temporarily increase the damage dealt by her fists, in anticipation of another conflict like that with Rowyn.

OOC:

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Looking for a Safeing Emblem(MiC 131) and Elixir of Flaming Fists(MiC p. 159).