The Return Of The Dred Pirate Cortez

Captain Araxie and the others prepare the ship for departure. Araxie has long since desired to go back to the ship wreckage location where she feels there certainly must be some sort of treasure. Crews are assembled and assigned tasks. The former captain, Captain MacKensey, has been removed from the ship for inciting disrespect to the captain and potential mutiny.

A Song and Dance but No Madam Tuqill

Araxie and Val return back to the city to try and summon the old gnome woman and her magical shop. Even after a rousing musical performance, the odd magical shop fails to appear. Perhaps the is done with the group, as they had finally completed her task.

Maddox, followed by Droop, return to the Order's Keep. There awaiting them is a envoy from the Netir Vale. The official leader of the entire Order Of The Obisidian Dagger, has read the plea from Maddox and has sent a representative to help re-establish order within the Baldur's Gate faction.

Fixing The Order

Amn listens to Maddox tell of the fracturing of the Order of recent and Maddox's troubles in re-establishing some semblance of military order. He suggests that the Order no longer allow high ranking inductees to function without taking the full oath. Perhaps that would prevent further corruption of the values within The Order.

While a very serious discussion of politics and world order is taking place, Droop, the goblin who has taken it upon himself to serve The Order, sees the small entourage who accompanies Amn. They are two goblins and a hobgoblin. He taunts the haughty goblins for their very un-goblin-like demeanor, serving this Amn. The chef and personal servant goblins deem Droop below them and soon ignore his taunts. The hobgoblin squire takes offence and looks to Amn if he may teach this goblin some manners. Amn quietly nods.

The fight is short and brutal as Droop drops the hobgoblin within seconds. They revive the hobgoblin, sparing him death, and he takes up his position again, while glaring at the annoying Droop.

Droop then decides to have some fun and heads off to look for some fun poisons. He eventually is directed to a seedy part of town in a seedy side street. He is able to obtain what he believes is a potent poison but a fight ensues and soon Droop is trying to decide what to do with a dying human.

Introducing Absinthe

It is then that a small group of darkly dressed humans walk by the entrance to the back alley. The girl, Absinthe, interrupts the fight to defend the humans and scares off the goblin. They tail the group back to the ship, and following along with the other sailors loading the ship, slips on. Deshani, the wizard, watches as this strange group boards the ship and she stops them. Who are they and what are they doing? Absinthe tries to cast her magic and befriend the wizard, trying to convince Deshani that they belong on board. Deshani, resisting the spell, will have none of it. She calls for Captain Araxie.

Captain Araxie arrives and immediately Absinthe tries her magical hand again. Absinthe convinces Captain Araxie that they are old friends. Captain Araxie tells Deshani that all is right and that the group belongs on board. The group moves below and makes themselves at home.

The Long Voyage

Droop, the goblin, makes a home among the ropes and riggings holding the ship's large balloon. He uses his time to harass and in general make trouble for the sailors. Absinthe, seeing this, casts a Geas spell upon Droop and for the next month of sailing the goblin is a perfect model of a sailor. He is helpful, kind, polite and considerate. The other sailors come to admire him and consider him a friend.

Deshani and Vall both use their time during the voyage to read over some of the tomes they have acquired back in the library and Soul Spire. Val becomes knowledgeable enough with automatons that he is able to reprogram his automaton, acquired from the library in Baldur's Gate, to become his personal servant. He names him Mr. Sparkles. Dehsani reads a sacred book and over the course of a few weeks is able to detect thought at will.

The Return Of The Dred Pirate Cortez

12,900 XP

Then one day, out of the setting sun, Droop notices something approaching. It flies above the ship and then is not seen again. The others fan out around the ship's deck. Soon several goblins, some of which are grey skinned and move differently than the other goblins, descend the ropes from the balloon and onto the deck. Behind them comes a human who stands hands on hips near the bow of the ship.He is badly burned. His once long blond locks are now scraps of hair on an otherwise scarred and burned head. One side of his face is burned badly leaving scars where once a flawless complexion shined. 

It is the Dred Pirate Cortez. He is back for his revenge. He likes Araxie's new ship. It will do in compensation for the destruction of his last ship. He beckons his goblins attack. The little goblins run for cover and shoot arrows while the grey-skinned goblins attack hand-to-hand. The group finds that these grey-skinned goblins are much heartier and deadly than their little goblin counterparts.

Araxie quickly throws her iron net over top of the pirate Cortez and it transforms into a steel cage, trapping the pirate and preventing him from jumping overboard and escaping. The others dig in and try to defeat the grey skinned goblins while Droop pleads with his fellow goblins to abandon their loyalties to the Dred Pirate Cortez and the one to kill the pirate will have plenty of gold.

The goblins race towards the cage holding the pirate Cortez and begin savagely stabbing him to death. They each stab again and again into the now dead body, claiming that they had dealt the death blow. They then line up against the railing, hands out, waiting for their reward.

The others resort to a number of methods in order to dispatch the grey-skinned goblins. Deshani uses her Bigby's Hand to grab and move the creatures over the railing and drop them to their deaths. Araxie uses her barbarian rage to grab and throw a couple off of her ship. Absinthe transforms one of them into a frog which is then tossed overboard.

A Falling Flying Carpet

Once, the deck is cleared of the combatants each return to their duties or cabins as their usual activities. Droop is curious about how the pirate and his crew got aboard. He climbs the rigging until he is on top of the balloon and he finds a large carpet. He rolls it up and calls for some of the goblins to come and help him carry it down. It does not go well. Soon a nicely rolled carpet is plunging into the sea below. Vall thinks he notices something fall out of the corner of his eye....but no. Nothing there. 

Droop simply crawls back into his rope nest below the balloon and sulks. So close to having his own flying carpet.