Chasing the Sunset & the battle for Port Fennrick

Where the Mighty River enters Port Fennrick, there’s a checkpoint where ships must stop for inspection.The Miranda’s deck gun sends the skeleton crew of Shadows (O’Later’s sinister agents) fleeing. They don’t have the personnel to deal with this! Instead of ramming the bar blocking the way with the Miranda, Buckle goes ashore and raises the bar in the intended manner.

Buckle: Let’s go rally the forces of good remaining in this town!

The Miranda heads for the Clock Tower, the tallest building in the city. They take the smaller canal in the back instead of approaching the main docks. Buckle hails some Merfolk swimming past.

• Tracy she/her, Merfolk Surly Coworker: They really don’t want to be here. They hate this place, and will bug off if you need them to.
  • Biting Sarcasm: You cannot Talk Sense to a Surly Coworker.
  • Conveniently Off Duty: The Surly Coworker will flee the scene if things get too wild and dangerous for them to handle.

Buckle Speak Solftly 10+

• What can you tell us about the main docks?
  • Ugh, the docks! I went on break 20 minutes ago and I don’t want to go back. It’s such a mess. The dock workers don’t know what they are doing. They think yelling at us will make their foolish plans work. They act more like soldiers than dock workers
• What are they doing? What will they do next?
  • I was unloading a whale. Now I’m trying to avoid going back to work.
• What would they have us do about the vampires?
  • I’m not from Port Fennrick. It would be nice fi the docks ran smoothly and those weird spies didn’t steal our best stuff. Those creepy guys with the little uniforms.

Buckle: I am also tired of those people stealing my stuff.

Shadow: There they are!

One of the Shadows from the checkpoint has led a group of Bloodletter’s Warriors to the Fellowship!

• Group of Warriors: A number of warriors armed with a variety of Melee spears and axes. They are mostly undead, so they don’t feel pain or fear. They will easily overpower anyone one-on-one.
  • Overpowering: Anyone trying to act alone against the warriors must pay a price. If they are a Gang or Army, the warriors are Piercing and Giant.
  • Group: This enemy can act against two people at once. When this enemy is
    destroyed, this stat is damaged, or this is their only stat left, replace the Group
    with two normal enemies.

Fortunately, Bloodletter’s warriors are terrestrial creatures carrying axes, so they can’t do much against a boat.

Buckle: Hello! On whose authority do you carry those weapons?

Warriors: Bloodletter! Bloodletter!

Buckle: Are any of you fine folks vampires?

Warriors: Find boathooks or ropes. Let’s board them!

Tracy disappears under the water. The Shadow has also disappeared.

Buckle wonders if the Dwarven Tunneler will work underwater, since it works underground. Probably not.

Buckle: We need to get on shore, and let Gus and Rose take the boat to the docks.

The Warriors throw ropes to the Miranda and pull it towards shore.

Stella: We could get Buckle out of his fancy-pant fireproof suit, put you on the crane and swing the crane towards them. And you can excite them with fire.

Buckle sets the ropes on fire.

Buckle Overcome 7-9 temp solution

The ropes break and the Warriors look for more. Stella and Buckle jump onto the boardwalk (on the other side of the canal from the Warriors). Ugg, and Rose pilot the Miranda towards the main docks. Gus, Silk, Elektra, and Ichabod accompany Stella and Buckle.

Stella & Buckle Get Away (+hope) 10+ avoid notice, bring Companions along

Stella damages Grace

Buckle damages Grace

They scramble away and reach the clock tower, and climb the spiral stairs inside the tower. A Shadow drops from a balcony and kidnaps Stella! Elektra dive-bombs the Shadow. The Shadow panics and releases Stella. Stella felt that the Shadow had warm hands, so she’s probably alive and not a Vampire. Stella tires to stay out of the Shadow’s reach, and the Shadow tries to stay close to the wall to avoid Elektra.  Buckle bum-rushes the Shadow and knocks her over the railing. Buckle looks over and sees a cloak lying on the floor far below. A door opens and shuts. The Shadow has escaped.

Buckle: And good riddance!

The Fellowship reaches the top of the Clock Tower without further interference. They have a great view of the town. City Hall and the Contraband Warehouse next to it are levelled. The channels around them and a smaller dock are choked with debris. The three other Contraband Warehouses are undamaged. Several ships are docked at the main docks. A blue whale. A Fairy Ferry, the same boat that brought Buckle to this continent. A Manatee chariot. A launch from a large ship out to see, from a strange and faraway land.  The Group of Warriors that attacked the Miranda, and the main Gang of Warriors are both headed for the Clock Tower.

Buckle stands on the ledge of the Clock Tower, casts off his cloak, blazes brightly, and shouts at the top of his lungs.

Buckle: Good people of Port Fennrick! Cast off your shackles! Throw down your Vampire overlords! Come to the light.

The roof of the clock tower starts to burn. Ichabod eats the fire to prevent it from spreading out of control. Some people on the ships below cheer for Buckle.

Buckle: Good people of Port Fennrick!For too long, the Shadows have stolen your wares!

Merchants: Yeah, let’s break open those warehouse and get our stuff back! And maybe some other people’s stuff if they’re not here.

Buckle: Let’s get your stuff back!

A few of the Merfolk from the Blue Whale, and a man from a launch belonging to a large ship out to see are ready to fight!

• Group of Merfolk Sharks: A buff, powerful merfolk with a bad attitude.
  • Jaws: The shark’s bark is as bad as their bite. Their bite is a Melee, Piercing weapon. Anyone trying to use Speak Softly, Talk Sense, or Keep Them Busy against a shark must damage their Wisdom to do so, as the shark berates them and belittles them all throughout.
  • Street Shark: The shark is king of their turf. Nobody messes with them
    without facing the consequences. They can command other Merfolk Innocents
    to do as they say, without question.
  • Group: This enemy can act against two people at once. When this enemy is destroyed, this stat is damaged, or this is their only stat left, replace the Group with two normal enemies
• Thrill Seeker: A near death experience left them wanting more. Now they keep throwing themselves into trouble for the thrill of it.
  • Danger Magnet: The thrill seeker is looking for trouble. When a Dangerous attack happens near them, they are always among the collateral.
  • Death Wish: The thrill seeker has a knack for surviving the worst. When the thrill seeker would damage this stat, they miraculously escape, alive.

Buckle tucks his fireproof suit under his arm, grabs Ichabod’s talons, and they fall with style from the clock tower into the channel in front of the docks. They get uncomfortably close to the mast of the thrill-seeker’s launch. Buckle lets go of Ichabod and drops straight down into the water. Thrill-seeker jumps in after him. Buckle puts on his fireproof suit so the water around him stops turning to steam. The Merfolk form up with him. Buckle sees Merfolk scattering into buildings under the water. Port Fennrick is two cities stacked on top of each other. Buckle and the Merfolk head for the warehouse.

Buckle: Anyone who wants to free Port Fennrick follow me!

Stella and her companions run down the stairs and reach the docks just as Bloodletter’s forces start crossing a bridge from City Hall to the docks. Ugg fires the ballista. If he misses, he’ll hit the ruins of City Hall, not innocent people. The bolt flies through the crowd of warriors and most of them scatter. A few stand their ground and throw their axes, damaging the Miranda’s deck crane. Now there are two groups of Warriors coming across the bridge.

The Group of Warriors that harrassed the Miranda earlier engages Stella and her companions when they exit the clock tower.

Buckle: Get the chili powder!

Gus pours chili powder into Stella’s hands and she gracefully spins around, throwing the powder into the eyes of the Warriors surrounding them. The Spice Dance is successful, keeping the Warriors back. Stella rides Silk and attempts to break through. One Warrior flails blindly and strikes Silk in passing. Bloodletter’s group of Warriors is crossing the bridge. The non-combatants on the dock are scattering.

Stella: Whale, use Tail Slam!

• Whale: A massive sea beast, infamous for destroying boats by mistake. The truth is, they are gentle filter feeders. Just don’t get swallowed up with the krill.
  • Killer Whale: Ships that sail too close to a whale take damage.
  • Belly of the Beast: Whales don’t intentionally eat people, but if you happen to be in their way when they feed, they’ll swallow you along with their food. The inside of its stomach has an air pocket and shallow enough water that you can survive inside it for a little while, but not for too long.

The Blue Whale lifts its mighty tail and smashes the bridge, sending Bloodletter and her troops flying. Bloodletter is staked by a jagged piece of wood! Two surviving Warriors fall into the water. Axes and broken timbers rain down on the Blue Whale, killing it. Stella keeps killing her allies! She might need therapy for this. The merchants are appalled!

Meanwhile, Buckle, the Thrill-Seeker, and the Merfolk Sharks emerge from the water and march on the Contraband Warehouse. There’s a guard, but not as many guards as normal. Buckle casts off his fireproof suit and his eyes blaze.

Buckle: You, join the revolution!

• Thug: They beat up things that need a beating.
  • Street Tough: A Thug deals damage to anyone who Keeps Them Busy.
  • Hard As Nails: The first time a thug would be damaged or destroyed, damage this stat instead.

Usually the guard is motivated by fear and power, but Buckle stumbles as he removes his suit, so the guard is not impressed. Buckle stumbled over a Guardin’ Gnome, one of many strange and wonderful things stored in contraband warehouses. The ornamental statue starts to crawl up Buckle’s leg! Buckle is on fire, but ceramic has a very high melting point.

• Guardin’ Gnomes: Ceramic simulacra that hate you. They pretend to be purely ornamental until you have wandered too far into their territory to escape easily once you have been surrounded.
  • Lawn Ornaments: The gnomes appear to be decorations or toys. While they stand still, they are Secret and no one will suspect them of their ill intent.
  • Strength In Numbers: If the gnomes are in a Group or a Gang, this stat must be damaged twice.

The Merfolk sharks are a bit slow, since they can’t stand on their fish tails, but they engage the Guard and trade blows. The Thrill-Seeker pulls the Guardin’ Gnome off of Buckle. Buckle leaves his allies behind and runs to the door of the warehouse. He feels with his electrosense for any hidden living creatures. Sensing nothing, he pulls out a Molotov Cocktail and hurls it at the door. The door burns, but a hidden trap above the door fires an arrow. It hits him in the face, disabling his electrosense and making him look foolish. Buckle sets the arrow trap on fire too. Buckle enters the warehouse and looks for weapons to arm his allies.

The Merfolk Sharks take out the Guard and leave when they hear their Blue Whale die back at the docks. The Thrill-Seeker throws the Guardin’ Gnome into an obstacle. It shatters, sending ceramic shards everywhere, but the Thrill-Seeker dives away and twists in mid-air, dodging every projectile. He lands in the water and leaves the scene.

The warehouse is tall enough to have catwalks for accessing the top levels of the tall shelves. Buckle finds an object that looks like it comes from very far away. It’s marking remind him of the clothes the Thrill Seeker wears. It’s a big chemical battery that can hold its charge for years. Buckle wonders if it could power his Medallion of Cleft Sky? It can restore one Use per session. He takes a moment to recharge the Medallion.

Back at the docks, the remaining boats are leaving as fast as possible. A Group of Warriors threaten Stella, and two more Warriors are in the water, swimming towards Stella. The Warriors lower their visors to protect themselves from Gus’ chili powder.  Stella calls on the local saltwater crocodiles to assist her.

• Crocodile: A dangerous enemy that uses the murky waters to hunt land-bound prey coming to drink.
  • Chomp: The gator’s bite is Piercing. Anyone it bites is damaged twice.
  • Ambush Predator: This threat is Secret until it attacks.

Caling out for aid isn’t defending oneself, so the Warriors strike Stella and Silk. They meneuvered around the pallets and dock equipment and had to stand right on the edge to attack. Silk is hurt and must retreat. Stella is filled with fiery rage. Silk is her bestie. Literally ride-or-die! This cannot go unpunished! She summons crocodiles to leap out of the water and pull the Warriors in!

GM note: Stella’s player showed me a terrifying video of an alligator leaping vertically out of the water to justify this move.

The enemies of the Fellowship are defeated, but the Merfolk are horrified and the merchants are fleeing. Stella wants them to stay, so she uses the Wireport to suddenly appear aboard the Fairy Ferry.

Stella: Hey, the people who stealing your stuff are gone, and we’re going to make sure it doesn’t happen again. You can leave, but please don’t leave yet.

Captain Periwinkle: That’s great. We should go spread the news about this change in management.

Merchants value free trade and safety. Stella promised both, but her recent actions were extremely unsafe, so they are still scared of her. Good to her word, Stella does not prevent the Fairy Ferry from leaving.

Buckle pulls a box out of the warehouse to give to his revolutionary allies, but they aren’t there! The box doesn’t contain weapons. It’s very nice wine. Buckle looks inside the box and finds a label. This wine came from overseas, and was going to Mr. Featherleaf in Milbar when it was confiscated. The box is slightly bouyant, so Buckle pushes it ahead of him as he swims over to the dock.

Stella tries to explain what happened to the Merfolk Sharks, but they won’t listen. Killing their whale goes against both of their values: trade and safety.

Stella: My deepest condolances about your whale. They played an intergral role in securing Port Fennrick’s future. I offer you a seat in a new house of representative for the city.

These particular Merfolk don’t live in Port Fennrick, so that’s not appealing. Buckle arrives on the dock with wine.

Buckle: Stella, what happened?

Stella: Buckle, we happened.

Buckle: Well, start passing this wine around. See if we can calm people down by offering them a drink.

Buckle pulls a dock worker (Mr. Gibbs) aside to ask some questions.

• What are you doing? What will you do next?
  • He’s trying to keep the docks working. They are understaffed because of O’Later’s big project, then more people were pulled away to deal with City Hall exploding. Next, there are no ships, so he’ll go home and drink. Gimme that wine!
• Who used to be in charge?
  • Bork has always run the docks. Before the Vampires, Louie and his boys were in charge of the city.
• How can we get order restored?
  • He doesn’t know Buckle, so he doesn’t trust him to know how things work. The dockworker value respect.

Buckle sends Elektra the Harpy Eagle and Ichabod the baby Phoenix to find Bork and bring her back.

Stella wants to talk to the Merfolk, but they are underwater. She wants to know what they want and assure them that the danger is gone. She’s not good at talking underwater. Buckle climbs on a box.

Buckle: Everyone, I need your attention! The Vampires are vanquished. The city is now yours. Go get your friends. We need to hold a town meeting. Go tell everyone: town meeting at the main docks.

Stella: And not just other dock workers. Bring everyone!

Buckle swims around underwater spreading the word to the Merfolk.

A few hours later, the dock is full of people. Buckle stands on a box. The Medallion of Cleft Sky glows. The sky dims and a glowing aurora surrounds him.

Buckle: Good people of Port Fennrick.The violence of the Vampires that you see before you has come to an end. The town is yours now. For too long I have seen it run by crime bosses and evil. Now is the time to rise from the ashes after this horrible disaster and join as one. One people, running the town that is yours!

The people are not impressed. One speaks up

Vinnie: Who is this guy? We don’t know him…

Buckle blasts Vinnie with Dragonfire! He’s instantly vaporized! Stella’s eyes go wide. Everyone panics and runs.

Stella: Why?

Buckle just knew that he couldn’t inspire people and the mob was going to take over, so he resorted to violence. The Fellowship’s attempt at government has spectacularly failed. They stay in Port Fennrick for a week. It’s a “place of safety” for the Fellowship because no one wants to mess with them. No ships come in from the sea. Ships that come down river pass through without stopping. The Fellowship learns about the various factions in town

• Vampires: just the guards at the other 2 contraband warehouses
• Adventurers kicked out Louie’s mob, letting O’Later take over. They want to regain power.
• Finsea, a Merfolk city nearby, helps with the recovery effort and also expands its influence over Port Fennrick. They actually have resources and logistics.

Elektra and Ichabod return a few days later. They found Bork, but she’s a companion to another party, so she did not come back with them.

The Fellowship heals all their stats and restores all their gear.

Buckle: Stella, we missed our opportunity to help guide them.

Stella: Yeah, because exploding someone was the right cal lthere.

Buckle: What was I supposed to do? The mob was going to take over. Well, to the library? Or we could rain some destruction in Vieport. We see to be good at that.

Stella’s interested in going to the top of the mesa, the Table Of Famine, that they approached when looking for Aku.

PORT FENNRICK MESSAGE BOARD

Stella: O’Later and Bloodletter are both dead. The people of Finsea are going to help rebuild. Watch out for guards and mob.

Buckle: We got rid of the vampires, but did not manage to insall a democracy. Pro-tip: they don’t like violent resolutions.

NO END OF SESSION MOVE