Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Spells for Ships and Boats

A few new spells from our recently ended "Far Isles" campaign. Enchantments for boats and boating. Written for Labyrinth Lord, but you're smart enough to use them for any version of the original game I'm sure.


Repair Hull (reversible)
Level: 3
Duration: Permanent
Range: 10’ per level

This spell may be used to repair breaches, warped wood, shattered planks, and other damage to the wooden hull of a ship (or other wooden structure). The volume of wood repaired is 2 cubic foot per level. In terms of ship hit points (SHP), the spell repairs 2 SHP per level of caster. 

The reverse of the spell, warp hull, damages a ships’ hull by twisting or warping the wood, permanently destroying its shape, form and strength. 






Mist Skiff
Level: 4
Duration: 6 turns + 1 turn per level
Range: 0

Casting this spell causes a cloud of mist and vapours to coalesce into the form of a small boat (equivalent to a river boat in terms of size, movement, etc). The boat requires no rowers or sails, instead being propelled by a half dozen misty, vaguely human forms. These rowers take no room. The boat is also unaffected by the effects of wind, waves, and current; it will always move at its base speed, will not be overturned by rough waters, etc. The mist skiff is also immune to normal attacks and damage, and is affected only by magical attacks. 


Enchant Boat
Level: 6
Duration: 1 day or see below
Range: Touch

This spell can be used to enchant one boat; any vessel of sailing boat size or smaller. The exact effects are up to the caster, but in general is can be used to improve one feature of the boat. For example, acceptable uses would be:

Increase speed by 50%;
Increase SHP by 50%; or
Increase cargo capacity by 50%.

The duration of the spell is one day. This is based on the degree of improvement noted above. Lesser improvements will increase the duration. For example, if the speed is increased by only 25%, the duration could be doubled to 2 days. 


Enchant Ship
Level: 8
Duration: 1 day or see below
Range: Touch

This effects of the spell are the same as the 6th level spell enchant boat, except it may be used on a vassal up to the size of a large sailing ship. 


Saturday, February 9, 2019

Edge of Night Sector Session #2 - Collecting Data




DRAMATIS PERSONNAE
Navy Lieutenant Raj Kundra - 4 terms - UPP 758C8C
Mechanical-1, Pilot-1, Medical-1, Jack-o-T-1

Other Durjan Hammill - 3 terms - UPP A69467
Gambling-3, Forgery-1, Brawling-1, Shotgun-1

Army Lieutenant Bill Fisker - 1 term - UPP C643C9
Rifle-1, SMG-2

Navy Lieutenant Alexi Kurigane- 2 terms - UPP AB8579
Vacc Suit-3, Ships Boat-1, Sword-1

Army Major Leif Vilchis - 2 terms - UPP 5A77A9
Admin-1, Rifle-2, Fwd Obs -1, Blade-1, Leader -1, SMG-1, Tactics-1

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Baron Kudra and Mr. Kurigane settle into their new jobs. Mr. Kurigane is issued his sidearm and baton and gets into the routine of the various security patrols around the shipyard; regular patrols on foot and by air/raft between the two 15' razor wired perimeter fences, regular foot patrols in the shipyard, and infrequent patrols in the adjacent scrapyard. There are also cameras and motion detectors around the perimeter, and cameras in the yard. Similar camera setup in the main administrative building. All monitored in the security building by the main gate, although the security guard at the desk in the administrative building usually looks after those cameras. Both Baron Kundra and Mr. Kurigane try to get unaccompanied access to the scrapyard, as they learn the scrapped hulk of the Adda Dubsar (a Kinunir class cruiser) is there. But both are rebuffed by their superiors. 


Outside the shipyard, the others do some further investigation:

  • Mr. Fisker tries tracking down Aya Cheung, the local shareholder with the former Tschadi Shipyards. Easy to get her address and number from the phone directory. Put that info away for future use.
  • Thinking some firepower is going to be helpful in the future, Mr. Hammill goes back to the card table to make a few credits and hopefully a few new underworld friends who can provide connections to some illegal guns. He isn't convincing though and gets no leads.
  • Instead, Mr Fisker and Mr. Vilchis decided to open a fake security company, 'Tacyon Advantage Security Solutions'. Getting Mr. Hammill to draw up some fake papers, they head off to the police station to apply for purchase and carry permits for automatic pistols, small SMGs and cloth armor. The documentation passes muster, and the pair are soon armed, uniformed and undoubtedly dangerous. 
  • While the other two are gun shopping, Mr. Hammill stakes out the General Shipyard gate to see if there is a particular bar everyone heads to after work. This leads him to the 'Spacer's Arms' at the starport. After a few days hanging out and listening, he focus attention on an old guy [Alwin Thorne] that's always drinking at the bar and telling stories about the old times at the shipyard. Buys him some drinks and gets him talking about the old days when they were building the Kinunir cruisers. Able to get remarkably detailed information on the fuel tanks, as well as names of a few old engineers who worked on the cruisers back in the day. A later search of HR records by Baron Kundra shows one engineer, Calvin Voll, is still working at the yard. 

Back at the yard, Baron Kudra and Mr. Kurigane decide they need a distraction to get free access to the hulk of the Abba Dubsar and make some measurements.  A memo appears about next weeks  'Bring Your Kids to Work Day'. Decide that Mr. Fisker (being the youngest and dumbest) will pretend to be Baron Kundra's developmentally delayed younger brother, whom he brings to work for the family day. In the midst of the chaotic day, they are able to slip Mr. Fisker into the scrapyard, where he gets into the engineering sections of the Abba Dubsar and is able to measure the location of the jump drive fittings and maneuver drive/power plant couplings.   Mr. Fisker is able to finish the work before anyone else at the yard notices he is missing and a hue and cry is raised to look for him. 

Still need to get the location of the black globe generator fittings on the bridge. Mr. Fisker starts to bawl and blubber; says he left his teddy bear in the scrapyard. Mr. Kurigane offers to go look for it; manages to get away alone given the general disorder in the yard today. Makes his way to the bridge, and crawls under the open control panels to start measuring. After a few minutes senses something in the room with him; looks up to see a Panther Locust (8' long, 3' high, black fur and six legs. Mix of insect and mammalian traits, scary claws and a maw of teeth). It leaps to attack, biting and clawing the prone Mr. Kurigane. He hauls out his auto pistol, and after a few shots is able to kill the beast before it does too much damage to him. Calls for help on the radio, security and medical response team (including Baron Kundra) arrives to help. Once Mr. Kurigane is carried away to the ambulance, Baron Kundra clears the incident scene to do an investigation (but only after Mr. Kurigane surreptitiously slips the Baron his notes and measuring tools). Once alone, the Baron finishes the measurements and goes to collect his 'brother' and take him home.   

While this is going on, Mr. Hammill decides to shadow the engineer Calvin Voll for awhile. Learns the man is having an extramarital affair with a young blond waitress. Mr. Hammill gets some compromising pictures of the two together, then backed by Mr Fisker and Mr. Vilchis, contacts the engineer to blackmail him; user name and password to the engineering computer network at the yard in return for the pictures and negatives. Calvin tries to bluff his way out of it, but eventually caves. After a few days provides a user name and password (not his own though; doesn't want to be traced); Mr, Hammill likewise turns over the incriminating photos.  Turns the username / password over to Baron Kundra, who uses it to access the shipyard blueprint database while at work. Downloads the Kinunir blueprints to a data-cube, then walks out the shipyard gate with the last of the information they need to get paid ...