Part One: The Wormwood - Game Thread

As you spend your day on the decks of the impressive pirate ship, you notice a huge clock hanging from the main mast. The copper-and-bronze mechanism glints in the sun, swaying with the motion of the ship. Immediately below it are manacles bolted into the mast. They're mounted on sliding tracks, currently placed at about the height of Master Scourge.

As the sun sinks lower in the sky, Master Scourge and Mr. Plugg stalk around the deck, hurling insults at crew members, administering punishment to the unfortunate crew. Suddenly, the clock emits a bellowing, melancholy sound that you might consider a whistle of some kind, just as the sun disappears below the horizon. As the ship's lanterns are lit for the night, Mr. Plugg appears standing on the foredeck, tying a rope around a sad-looking man's waist. His hands are bound and a bandana covers his face. From the poop deck near the ship's wheel, the captain bellows, Alright, ye scurvy dogs! Th' bloody hour be at hand! Jakes Magpie committed the crime of thievery and is t' be keelhauled! Several members of the crew around you cheer and shout things like, "Keelhaul th' thief!" and "Feed 'im t' th' fishes!" Mr. Plugg, execute th' sentence! Mr. Plugg walks the man to the edge of the ship and without warning, plants his boot in the middle of the blindfolded man's back, knocking him over the railing. The rope around the man's waist goes taut, and Mr. Plugg grabs it in his gloved hands, jerking it roughly. As he pulls on the rope, hideous screams are heard from Magpie below. Mr. Plugg repeats this process at least ten more times, raking Jakes Magpie's body against the barnacled hull of the ship's keel, until the screaming stops. He hoists the disgraced pirate back onto the foredeck and kicks the body of Jakes Magpie with his boot, a vicious looking smile on his face. The thief's punished, cap'n! The other pirates cheer as Mr. Plugg rejoins you on the main deck.

Soon after, Fishguts Kroop and the one from your group called Tobarrus start serving up turtle stew with a lump of hardtack in it. Surprisingly, it's very delicious and filling. Kroop passes out small tin cups full of rum. Everyone standing around you drinks it immediately and hands the cup back to Kroop. He urges you to do the same, whispering that you'll be punished if you don't, and stands there until the cup is empty. The drink is strong and you can tell it may have lingering effects.

After the rum's passed around, the other pirates break off into groups, laughing and carousing, gambling, or sleeping. Most stay on the upper decks, enjoying the relatively calm evening. Dawn comes early enough, and after all, they've made it through another day without keelhauling. Such is your life now, whether by choice or not, a pirate of The Shackles!

After a long night of revelry or respite, depending on how your first day on board went, you wake to the baleful droning whistle of the ship's clock. The sun is streaming in the portholes of the lower deck. You see that most of the sailors have already left this level of the ship, but a small group seems to be up to no good. Two human females, a human male, and a half-orc male seem to be watching the new crew, then laughing and sneering as they loiter about.

One female is wearing a black kerchief. Wisps of greasy auburn hair poke out from underneath it, and her teeth are quite rotten. The other woman has large ears that stick out from her head and blond hair pinned in a bun. Both women are extremely loud and raucous. The human male is fat and bald, and stands shifting from foot to foot, as if it's a nervous tick. The half-orc is quieter than the others, but his eyes are filled with malice. A single tusk juts out from his lower lip. You also happen to notice that they stand between you and the only obvious exit.

The woman in the black kerchief bristles as Flora speaks, Ye hear that Jape? This mother of a sea cow wants t' know if we's got any works t' do. She stalks toward Flora and jabs her violently in the chest with her finger. Our workin's t' be beatin' yer fetchin' head in, love. The silent half-orc appears behind her right shoulder, while the woman with the blond bun gets to the side of Flora. The fat man stays in the back to watch the stairs as the others try to surround her. You notice that they have no weapons; they intend this to be a fistfight, pure and simple.