[CLOSED] FORCES: Going Against the Grain

[katabasis]

WHO: Derrica, Darras, Lazar, Colin, Poesia, Edgard & Nell
WHAT: Riftwatch is off to burn, sink, destroy, or otherwise intercept the cargo of two Antivan merchant ships.
WHEN: Early August
WHERE: The Waking Sea
NOTES: Piracy Privateering on the high seas. Action adventure violence ensues. Forces Mission: OOC Info

Riftwatch agents are to immediately depart Kirkwall aboard the Reaper, an agile Tevene-made cutter perfectly suited to the life of a privateer. They are to sail East and intercept two merchant ships, the Leonilda and the Uccello Canoro, which are laden with cargos of grain and bound for Val Chevin.

THEIR ORDERS— They are to sink and destroy both merchant ships without being observed from the shore or by any other nearby shipping. However, should it somehow prove impossible to do so, capturing the ships or destroying them while under observation is preferable to letting either vessel slip past to supply Val Chevin.



As is the way with many merchant vessels, the Leonilda and Uccello are discovered sailing within easy view of the Free Marches coastline. Observing the pair at a distance proves that the Leonilda is the more agile of the two, while her ungainly sister is constantly having to course correct and adjust her sails to keep from slipping toward the coastline under their lee. Both ships are significantly larger than the Reaper (their crews likely outnumber yours), however only the Leonilda is armed with anything resembling ranged weaponry (a single medium-sized ballista fixed to a plate on the ship's deck, the direction of which might be adjusted via being hauled around by the ship's crew).

The mission may be approached one of two ways: the assault may either happen now in broad daylight not far from the coastline or the Reaper can follow at a distance and attempt to snap up both ships under the cover of night.

If Riftwatch chooses to make their assault by DAYLIGHT, they risk being spotted by unseen observers from the coast. Although this particular stretch of land is rocky and unlikely to be inhabited, there's no guarantee that there isn't some goat herd nearby interested in the boxing match. Further, Riftwatch will face a tough fight between the speedy Leonilda's ballista, and the mage (who specializes in winter and ice primal magics) on the ungainly Uccello. Despite the challenging assault, Riftwatch will ultimately be able to successfully burn/sink/destroy/etc both ships, however the Reaper will suffer enough damage that slipping back into Kirkwall without raising undue suspicion may require some creative thinking.

If Riftwatch chooses to make their assault by NIGHT, they will find themselves locked in solo combat with the Leonilda as the Uccello make a break for it. The good news is that once on her own, the Leonilda can be dealt with with (relative) ease. Further, the Uccello is ungainly enough that some good guesswork and a little luck is likely to lead you to her before she can reach Val Chevin. The bad news? The Uccello is ungainly enough that some good guesswork and a little (bad) luck lead to the discovery of her wreck along the rocky coast likely due to poor handling in the dark from the clumsy boat. While her cargo will be destroyed in the shipwreck, at least some of her crew are actively in the process of ferrying themselves to shore and will either need to be dealt with (which risks damage to the Reaper) or allowed to escape into the Marches.

Comments

[staysail]

Darras flashes him two fingers, confirmation, and taps his temple. "I'll start you a tab, I'm not fishing out a coin purse in the middle of a battle. Good thing we're not fighting seagulls."

He focuses on the sling on the deck next. Been in enough battles to know what it will be used for, and what sort of danger it might spell for them. The Leonilda's crew swarms all over her deck, but there's a concerning knot of them amassing around the ballista. Currently it's facing away from them, but that won't last long.

He points at it. "Big target, but valuable if we get it out of service. Two sovereigns for that one. Take it out so we don't get fucked. Those of us who can't help--" Poesia, Lazar, himself-- "we'll have to earn our money later."

[muckspout]

Edgard looks to where Darras is pointing. He raises the bow without an arrow to measure the distance with his eyes.

"So long as the wind doesn't blow, I'll take care of it."

He lights the arrow and then draws it. Don't fuck this up. He breathes deep, his eyes lock onto the target, and he releases. He is rewarded by a sudden brightness spreading from the deck.

He turns and beams at Darras.

[tender]

There's a little fire in Derrica's aresenal. It's a gift from Matthias, one that came so much more easily to him than to her even after months of practice. The flames gutter in her hands, uncertain of themselves each time. She's reluctant to volunteer them now, and looks to Nell as they draw up along the rail.

"How close do we need to be for you to throw some of their men off the side?"

Assuming Nell could do that. Derrica's pain-blurred recollection of Nell blasting a guard through the doorway might be overstated.

[galvanising]

It's not, but Nell is squinting at the gap of sea between them and the ship opposite, its crew now lit by the fires they're scrambling to put out.

"About half this distance, I think," she says to Derrica without turning away to her, "I need to be within thirty feet or so to hit with enough force to do any real damage. We could try lightning from here, even if it just hits the water alongside it might soften 'em up a bit. You've got some of that too, yeah?"

[tender]

"I do."

Enough to make some of those sailor's lives very miserable.

"Getting closer can only help them," a brief gesture at Poesia, Lazar. Edgard seems to be doing well-enough with his crossbow.

"Can either of you swim?" she asks suddenly, turning slightly from where she's been leaning on the rail. Darras clearly can, but it occurs to her that maybe not everyone here will do well in the water even if they get close enough for that.

[extortionate]

Lights flare.

Lazar watches them pass — one, another — three — and doesn't grunt for an answer; if Darras can't tell he's paid attention (it's dark, it's dark, and there's a ship on fucking fire) there's no point in miming.

"Just fine." He can swim. Been a while since they jumped off that cliff together, but the intervening days haven't inspired trust: "If you ain’t frying the water."

Jumping off a cliff, that's one thing. Jumping into an electric lake of saltwater? Pay's not that great.