Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

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Benyamin's picture
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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Xer'mun smiles at the Double Mind's use of the ancient tongue. He steps forward solemnly and purposefully from the shadowy bench he had been. The githwarrior takes up the skull and looks intently at the device and utters a soft whisper. A long ebony haft seems to grow in his other hand, topped with a shimmering and shifting axehead of silver. Runes in the Old Speech dance upon the astral halberd, words that impress hunger and hatred for illithid blood onto the viewer's mind. He then looks around to the others with unwavering intensity.

"Brothers, I would serve you without oath or invocation, as befits the People; but I bind myself, Xer'mun gi'Ij'akzul of the Silver Stalkers from the Band of Silver, in the name of the Forerunners, and the Liberator herself, to honor the blood that flows in each of you, to protect it as I am able, until my leaving, in life or death. May we bring death to the Enslavers and make all roads safe for the Sons of Gith."

"I ask only to be given the role you would offer a wayfarer and ally, neither to command or be commanded; I will assist you and ask assistance as one would a brother and kin."

He utters the whisper once more and the blade vanishes. The intensity in his bearing fades, making him seem more shadow than Gith. He hands over the skull to either a commander or another newcomer, whoever reaches out for the control skull next. The githwarrior silently returns to his place in the peripheri of things.

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Ii'Jyka'Vaar clears her throat, not because of nervousness or similarities to that, just for her to get a grip and clear her mind of the hatred she has for this group she is about to put a vow to.. to remove the distaste as it were..

She reaches out tot he skull when offered tentatively by last new-comer who just swore his oath to the Black Fleet..
"Survival is on all our minds, killing the great enemy is a second best only to survival, I can accept that as a good basis for a mutual understanding...

she pauses a few seconds.. to keep her momentum and thoughts clear and going.. she then takes the skull from his hands, draws her Nagamaki, holds it above the control skull holding it by the blade, so some of her blood spills onto the skull, and drones out;

"...I, Githees Sarth’Gar Ii'Jyka'Vaar gi Dhar'Gi'Ghaaz, only survivor of the band of the Azure Eye, vow to work with or in the Black Fleet to my best efforts, for the survival of all Children of Gith.. those within and outside of the Black Fleet. I will do this for the duration of this operation till all parties included in this ceremony are satisfied it is completed.."..
She then offers the skull to anyone else who wishes to take the vow.

When the skull is taken from her hand, she then and only then sheathe's the blade again...

Weapon description:
(for those new to the group..)
The Nagamaki:
The hilt and blade of this weapon are made from one single piece of black indefinable material, it seems to suck the light away slowly, but only very close to itself.
The weapon is heavy, however, it feels very smooth to handle, the weapon is not much bigger then the normal version of it, but just that more dense, the big rock went completely into the making, nothing got wasted, as the 'metal' formed itself more and more as it was beaten into shape by the weapon smith as if the 'intelligence within was slowly understanding what we wanted and adjusting itself, shrinking to accommodate our wishes, but we had to mold it physically to 'make it understand' .
The handle of the weapon is overlain with the stony grey hide of a Darkmantle, hold fastened with semi liquid godsteel.

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Gy-Nath takes the skull from the Knight. "I am Kith'rak Gy-Nath of Iron. I will join my blade to this band. As always I will defend any of my brothers or cousins. I will do so for as long as we remain among this crew."

He then passes the skull first to the other Git'ribani. Each make simple oaths similar to Gy-Nath. The duthka'gith then take the skull and reaffirm their oaths to the black fleet before passing the skull to Ar'dru and Kirath.

****

Kirath holds the skull aloft with flames dancing in his eyes." I Kirath of the Copper Ring swear that, for the duration of this mission I shall be a member of the Black Fleet. By Tiamat's Five Fold Breath I swear I shall help lead this Black Fleet to Honor and Glory!

***

Each githyanki takes the skull in turn. Each reaffirms his or her oath to serve the Black Fleet and each other ...

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Once all have taken or reaffirmed their oaths, Ya'shenn looks into the sky (the teahouse being absent any roof), trying to gauge how far behind the Black Fleet is behind the other commands at this point. Ideally, she would like for their own party to not fall too far behind, and this ritual, while exciting, has already cost them some time.

She speaks to the 'oldcomer' crew. "You've had three days. How ready is the Black Fleet to sail?" Given Styrrn's disappearance, there might be a time-consuming mess to deal with before the fleet can even leave the harbor. What condition are the ships in? What about provisioning?

__________________

BoGr Guide to Missile Combat:
1) Equip a bow or crossbow.
2) Roll a natural 1 on d20.
3) ?????
4) Profit!

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Zimrazim wrote:
Once all have taken or reaffirmed their oaths, Ya'shenn looks into the sky (the teahouse being absent any roof), trying to gauge how far behind the Black Fleet is behind the other commands at this point. Ideally, she would like for their own party to not fall too far behind, and this ritual, while exciting, has already cost them some time.

She speaks to the 'oldcomer' crew. "You've had three days. How ready is the Black Fleet to sail?" Given Styrrn's disappearance, there might be a time-consuming mess to deal with before the fleet can even leave the harbor. What condition are the ships in? What about provisioning?

Gav'jji the Swift answers, "We can sail before dawn, if we leave the galleons and the damaged sloops behind. I kind of figured that would happen anyway, so we've already made some moves."

A short exchange ensues. Evidently, Gav'jji is sailing master, Shar'shau is paymaster, and Xailen is quartermaster of the fleet. Or at least that's how things are shaking out after Styrrn's inner circle has deserted them. There remains some work to be done before the fleet is ready to sail, mostly by the graith sailors.

Before talk about the graith can go too far, Shar'shau reminds them that it is now time to choose a command. "We must choose a Captain. Of course, now that the newcomers are also members of the Black Fleet, they may all participate." he says with a small bow. One of the gith with finer gear who follows him immediately puts Shar'shau's name forward as a candidate for captain-commander (since by tradition one should not volunteer their own name). He smiles politely at the suggestion, of course. None of the other principals seem to support him, though.

A couple of gith yell out "Xailen", and there is a murmur of approval from several younger githyanki. He wants no part of it, though, and instead he refills the cups of the two who called his name, saying, "Thank you. Really. But absolutely not, brother."

Varsh-Mil speaks again in favor of Na'rai of Jade. "She is obviously an experienced leader, being a Kith'rak. She commands an elite squad, so adds a total of eight ready blades including herself. And she was approved by the other commands. That is a legitimacy among the fleets that Styrrn (spits) never had."

"The recommendation was the Jade Kith'rak, The Warlock, and the Knight." Khem the Sharp speaks, "A traditional command group, something no other fleet has. I say each has their part to play, in their role. The Kith'rak issues tactical commands. The Warlock deals firepower as directed by the Kith'rak towards large threats and enemy spellcasters. The Knight engages powerful foes as directed by her own hubris. Is that not the way it always was?"

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Ya'shenn does not yet speak in favor of any choice. After the recent 'discussion,' the psion might seem likely to vote for Na'rai, Kirath, and Ii'Jyka'Vaar, but at the moment she is at least tempted to support the Jade alone. In truth the psion feels more divided than she is letting on; Ii'Jyka'Vaar's willingness to defy Master Pale weighs heavily in the knight's favor, but at the same time, Ya'shenn does not want to contend with a mutiny if the githees antagonizes the crew so much as that. This mission with the Black Fleet is a project she wants to succeed. If the commanders in that meeting had intended this mission as a left-handed reward or even a punishment, she is determined to shock the lot of them by having their own group account themselves well.

She takes this opportunity to gain insight about the internal politics of the original crew of the Black Fleet. Gav'jji has seven warriors who appear to follow him, and Khem the Sharp, while one of the few duthka'giths on board, seems to wield some influence.

__________________

BoGr Guide to Missile Combat:
1) Equip a bow or crossbow.
2) Roll a natural 1 on d20.
3) ?????
4) Profit!

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

"As a Sarth’Gar, I have been in command of a wing of Dragon Riders, roughly between 6 and 12 in total.. this should account to some experience as to how I could tactically deploy on a ship... Command that particular ship and work with it in tandem to support the rest of the fleet.

My Dragon-ling does not have an unlimited endurance, so I need to base myself somewhere suitable."

"I have some ideas as to how and in what way, but would need feedback from the fleet as to their thoughts of me in co-command with the captain of a particular vessel I have in mind, ..the Raven's Claw. On the topic of working with others in regards to my suitability, I would like to propose the following;
To my knowledge, K'rr'jakak of the Voidwalkers, is a psychoportive specialist who transports the honoured swordwraiths into battle, this is similar to my perceived deployment albeit it being via my Dragon-ling, this seems to me to be a good basis for teaming up as a strike force."

Ii'Jika'Vaar nods honourably towards the latecomers who she perceives as the swordwraiths.

Diplomacy
I rolled 1d20+10, the result is 13, 10 = 23.
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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Ya'shenn looks upward sharply, toward the figures on the second floor, when the topic of swordwraiths comes up. At least on the surface, swordwraiths seem completely out of place among a crew of such never-do-wells as these. Undead in general tend to be far more steadfast in their loyalties than the living (and, indeed, many varieties of the unliving lack true free will altogether). Furthermore, were not swordwraiths generally created from honorable githyanki, like the varsh aboard Pale's ship?

How could such a being end up aboard the ships of the Black Fleet, whose crew were so widely reputed to be scum? She says nothing about it as yet, though.

__________________

BoGr Guide to Missile Combat:
1) Equip a bow or crossbow.
2) Roll a natural 1 on d20.
3) ?????
4) Profit!

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

One of the younger githyanki forwards Gav'jji's name as a choice for commander. He is an obvious choice; sailing master and navigator, experienced with dealing with the graith, and known to have been a gith pirate. For his part, Gav'jji seems eager to take command ... to eager for some. Varsh-Mil speaks again in support of the triumvirate of Kith'rak Na'rai, Warlock Kirath, and Githees Ii'Jyka'vaar.

A younger githyanki shouts for the Varsh himself to take command, but he smiles and waves the suggestion aside.

The debate proceeds swiftly, and quickly boils down to the three choices; Gav'jji, Shar'shau, or the three newcomers. A voice vote is taken, and Gav'jji seems to have the most support at first. However, the duthka'gith both side with the newcomers, as does Mil. When Xailen votes, he also goes for the newcomers, which draws dire looks from both Gav'jji and Shar'shau.

With support from the Varsh, Khem, Xailen, and the Voidwalker, a few of the younger pirates are swayed. Also, all the newcomers, having sworn into the Black Fleet, have votes of their own. Gy-Nath throws in his support, and the Git'ribani follow him. There are also Na'rai's seven Jade. When all the votes are tallied, therefore, the newcomers edge out both Gav'jji and Shar'shau for command of the Black Fleet.

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Burning Spear wrote:
... My Dragon-ling does not have an unlimited endurance, so I need to base myself somewhere suitable."

"I have some ideas as to how and in what way, but would need feedback from the fleet as to their thoughts of me in co-command with the captain of a particular vessel I have in mind, ..the Raven's Claw. ...

Ii'Jika'Vaar nods honourably towards the latecomers who she perceives as the swordwraiths.

Ii finds K'rr'jakak levitating upside-down in a cross-legged pose next to her. He welcomes her, "Welcome, Githees. All githyanki yearn for our beloved Queen, in our own way. It will be good to have a Knight again." The seriousness of his tone is juxtaposed with his ridiculous posture. His white hair hangs free, and his weapons (daggers) dangle in their sheaths. Still, the look on his face is serious. "You would be welcome aboard Raven's Claw. We are short of living githyanki. None of the others want to berth with undead. I only do so because I'm everywhere, and I don't sleep. And to honor the swordwraiths. There are also graith necromancers aboard who use undead sailors. If you still wish to come aboard, I will tell you more about them.

*****

The pirates quickly talk business, bringing the newcomers up to speed as to the distribution of the fleet. Shar'shau captains the Vengeance, though Mlar-Kav'natch is in charge of her guns. Gav'jji commands Wings of the Sea, and he also sailing-master for all githyanki in the fleet. Styrrn left with his core officers from the Pride, leaving much room there for any newcomers to occupy.

The talk then inevitably turns to the barbarian pirates. Each ship has a Graith Captain, mates, etc. There are assembled here, including the swordwraiths, fifty- five githyanki among almost three hundred graith pirates, one hundred manning the Pride, the rest distributed among the sloops. Varsh-Mil suggest assembling en-masse via dimension-door aboard the flagship first, to let the barbarians know they are still in charge before going out to their own sloops, then getting them underway as well. The Black Fleet githyanki inform the newcomers about the most prominant of the barbarians under them.

The Graith Captain of the Pride is Red Dread, a female half-elf pirate of renown among the barbarians.

The sloop Dirk is crewed by orcs and hobgoblins, their captain, Groth, has a hate vendetta against ghaik slavers, admirable for one not of The People.

Sharks' Teeth is captained by Ska, a ferocious sahuagin with four arms. He claims to be an outcast from his people, and he evidently has some magic that keeps him from drying out when out of water. Under him are the toughest and most vicious pirates in the fleet.

Raven's Claw is crewed by a clan of Kenku, short humanoid ravens, some of whom possess some necromancy magic. The swordwraiths also berth there, as they don't mind other undead.

There are several other barbarian pirates aboard the flagship that bear special mention, too, including a barbarian venerator who worships an evil sea-goddess of this world, Umberlee.

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Azure wrote:
Ii finds K'rr'jakak levitating upside-down in a cross-legged pose next to her. He welcomes her, "Welcome, Githees. All githyanki yearn for our beloved Queen, in our own way. It will be good to have a Knight again." The seriousness of his tone is juxtaposed with his ridiculous posture. His white hair hangs free, and his weapons (daggers) dangle in their sheaths. Still, the look on his face is serious. "You would be welcome aboard Raven's Claw. We are short of living githyanki. None of the others want to berth with undead. I only do so because I'm everywhere, and I don't sleep. And to honor the swordwraiths. There are also graith necromancers aboard who use undead sailors. If you still wish to come aboard, I will tell you more about them.

*****
The last sloop, Raven's Claw is crewed by a clan of Kenku, short humanoid ravens, some of whom possess some necromancy magic. The swordwraiths also berth there, as they don't mind other undead. There are several other barbarian pirates aboard the flagship that bear special mention, too, including a barbarian venerator who worships an evil sea-goddess of this world.

Ii'Jyka'Vhaar simply looks at him, equally serious, not daunted by his acrobatic display and replies;"I am still very much interested, I would to have word with both the Captain of the Raven's Claw and the Swordwraiths.. Regardless indeed of the Queen being here or not, my position is still useful, if somewhat uneasy for most of you pirates.., I thank you, K'rr'jakak for your invitation, and by all means, lead the way.."

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Derog keeps careful tally of all the leaders in attendance, a habit from his days among the living as a double agent, though Azthi'zhan'kel struggles to file all the information. She casts a glance to the other Git'ribani, then Ya'Shenn, Gy-Nath and the rest of the impromptu warband, her mind whirling with questions. She steps towards one of the gith pirates, honing in on a black-haired male with elaborate tattooing in knotwork patterns down to his fingers. She attempts valiantly to ensue it isn't obvious she is eyeing the handsome pirate in more ways than one.

"You pardon, honoured cousin. Have you any notion of what is to become of those of us from Git'riban? I am a physician as well as a rogue and I doubt I would be of much use other than that."

__________________

So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss. If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you may win or may lose. If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself. - Sun Tzu, The Art of War

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Burning Spear wrote:
Azure wrote:
Raven's Claw is crewed by a clan of Kenku, short humanoid ravens, some of whom possess some necromancy magic. The swordwraiths also berth there, as they don't mind other undead. There are several other barbarian pirates aboard the flagship that bear special mention, too, including a barbarian venerator who worships an evil sea-goddess of this world.

Ii'Jyka'Vhaar simply looks at him, equally serious, not daunted by his acrobatic display and replies;"I am still very much interested, I would to have word with both the Captain of the Raven's Claw and the Swordwraiths.. Regardless indeed of the Queen being here or not, my position is still useful, if somewhat uneasy for most of you pirates.., I thank you, K'rr'jakak for your invitation, and by all means, lead the way.."

The Voidwalker nods, then closes his eyes. He relaxes and slowly enters a meditative state ...

Chaoticgoth wrote:
She steps towards one of the gith pirates, honing in on a black-haired male with elaborate tattooing in knotwork patterns down to his fingers. She attempts valiantly to ensue it isn't obvious she is eyeing the handsome pirate in more ways than one.

"You pardon, honoured cousin. Have you any notion of what is to become of those of us from Git'riban? I am a physician as well as a rogue and I doubt I would be of much use other than that."

The young gith looks Azthri up and down twice, smiling, before opening his mouth to answer. Before he utters two words, he is cut off by Varsh-Mil. "We could use a physician aboard the Pride."

Ship assignments are squared away by Gav'jji. He commands the Wings of the Sea. Shar'shau commands the Vengeance with Mlar-Kav'natch. Ii'Jyka'vaar will take command of Raven's Claw. Dirk and Sharks Teeth will not be difficult to convince to follow the rest of the fleet, especially under the guns of the flagship.

The conclave of gith pirates is now over, and they prepare to leave for the waterfront, from where the gith can dimension-door aboard the ships. Several of the lesser githwarriors retrieve Xailen's kegs of tea and cookware for him.

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Quote:
The Voidwalker nods, then closes his eyes. He relaxes and slowly enters a meditative state ...

Ii'Jyka'vaar suddenly finds herself, along with the Voidwalker and the swordwraiths, aboard a ship with black sails. Short avian humanoids scurry away from them when they arrive. There are also a number of undead on deck, mostly human but with at least one zombie kenku as well. The living kenku squawk in their own language, and seem to defer to a trio wearing dark hoods.

"Well, here we are. The Graith Kenku captain, Black Jay, will be below deck."

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

The Githyanki walk en-mass down to the port. They walk to the closest point to a large, dark, 3-mast ship, then dimension-door aboard in small groups. Within moments all are standing on the deck of the ship among surprised barbarian sailors.

Varsh-Mil and the Khem the dutka'gith quickly take command, issuing orders to get underway. The graith hesitate only a moment, for a scarred half-elf with red hair in a multitude of braids also begins barking orders. When things seem well underway, a few small knots of gith dimension-door over to their respective sloops. Shar'shau and his engineers move off first, followed by Gav'jji and his pirates. This leaves the Jade and the 'Blades' (except for Ii) along with the Duthka'gith, the Varsh, and their following, aboard the Pride.

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Azure wrote:
"Well, here we are. The Graith Kenku captain, Black Jay, will be below deck."

The Voidwalker leads Ii below. They are followed in silence by the swordwraiths. They file past a filthy kitchen, then the main cabin. There are two closed doors in the tight corridor between, and two more at the base of the steps down from the upper deck. possibly pantries or quarters for officers. In the back of the main cabin is a final door; intricately carved of dark wood, with hinges and reinforcements of iron.

K'rr'jakak holds Ii'jyka'vaar up at this point. Instead he motions to the swordwraths, and one steps forward and lays undead hands upon the door handle. Ii senses a small cloud of darkness, like a black mist, originate from that touch. Then the swordwraith opens the heavy door. Inside is dark. Ii can only assume the kenkus' darkvision is as acute as a gith's.

Inside, Ii still sees nothing of note at first, but then notices a single red point of light. There is a black-feathered kenku, wearing black piratical gear and a large black hat, with an eye patch. His remaining eye glows red (unlike the others Ii saw above deck).

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Re: Game: Blades of Git'riban : Primal State

Ii'jyka'vaar steps into the cabin carefully, right hand on her hilt, playing with the pommel.. she makes a nod with her head towards the Kenku Captain.. her red faceplate doing half the work..

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