HomeShulls and Cackles Discussion Thread
Page 1 of 1
Shulls and Cackles Discussion Thread
by Shinigami02 Mon Jan 17, 2022 11:36 am
Also home to major info dumps and side rules not related to character building.
Checks to Avoid Discovery: When you go somewhere you're not supposed to be for a prolonged period of time you'll need to take action to avoid being found. Usually this is going to be Stealth, but with a good enough explanation other skills (such as Athletics, Diplomacy, Deception, etc) might be usable. If you can take advantage of a sufficient distraction or excuse, these checks will generally be easier.
- A Pirate's Day:
- The Wormwood runs on discipline and routine, and Cap'n Harrigan likes to see to it that his crew is kept busy. Every morning when the Dawn Bell rings, everyone is given a ship's biscuit for breakfast, and assigned a task. These tasks will usually involve one or more Skill Checks, Ability Checks, or Saves. Tasks run from Dawn until Dusk, and during that time each PC an usually take 1 Daytime Activity [see below]. At Dusk everyone gathers for the Bloody Hour, when punishments are handed out for failures and rule-breaking. Then dinner and a Rum Ration is served, one unlucky crewmate is assigned to Night Watch, and the rest are free to do as they will until Dawn Bell rings again. Between the Evening and the Night each PC that's not on Night Watch can usually take 1 Night Action [see below].
- Night Watch:
- The crewmate on Night Watch is responsible for keeping the ship from running aground or otherwise encountering excessive trouble at night, as well as keeping an eye on restricted areas of the ship. If a PC is unlucky enough to get assigned to Night Watch, they will have to make a DC 12 Sailing Lore check and a DC 16 Fortitude Save. Like with a normal job check, failing the Lore check will likely result in punishment at the next Bloody Hour, while failing the Save will leave the PC Fatigued come morning.
When a PC is on Night Watch, then they can choose to grant another PC a +2 Circumstance Bonus on checks made to avoid discovery as part of a Night Action, as the Night Watch turns a blind eye to their actions. But be warned, that if such negligence is discovered, the Night Watcher will be punished.
- Daytime Actions:
- Work Diligently: Ignoring the distractions on a busy ship, you focus on just buckling down and getting your job done. Gain a +3 Circumstance Bonus on any one check for your job's daily task.
Influence: At some point during your daily task you attempt to chat up an NPC. Make your job's daily task checks as normal and attempt to influence a single NPC. This will usually involve a bit of RP and often a Diplomacy (or in some circumstances other skills) check.
Sneak: Taking advantage of spare moments you slip somewhere you're not supposed to be and check things out. Make your job's daily task checks as normal and briefly explore one area of the ship. You can make a single Perception or Skill Check with no chance of detection.
Shop: You slip away to visit the quartermaster's store. Because shopping can be an involved activity, take a -2 Circumstance Penalty to your job's task checks. You can also attempt to Influence the Quartermaster at this time.
Shirk: You take your time to fully explore a part of the ship. You take a -2 Circumstance Penalty on your job checks and must make a check to avoid being discovered, but you can perform a single Perception or Skill Check as if you'd rolled a 10.
Gather Information: You spend a bit of time eavesdropping and asking pointed questions. Make your job's daily task checks as normal, and also make a Diplomacy check to Gather Information about a topic of your choice.
Downtime: You neglect your daily task to instead do some work on the side. You take a -2 Circumstance Penalty on your job checks, and can spend 1 Day on a Downtime Activity.
- Night Actions:
- Sleep: You hit the sack early and sleep through the night. Remove the Fatigued condition automatically.
Gamble: Either bet on or participate in a bit of pirate entertainment [see below].
Entertain: You perform to entertain the crew. Make a DC 18 Perform (or other relevant Skill) check. On a Success you gain a +1 Status Bonus to Charisma-based Skill Checks with any listener among the crew for the next 24 hours. On a Critical Success you gain a +2 Status Bonus instead. But if you Critically Fail this check, the next time you attempt to Entertain the crew they'll ignore you unless you can successfully Bluff or Intimidate them into listening.
Influence: Chat up an NPC. This will usually involve a bit of RP and often a Diplomacy (or in some circumstances other skills) check.
Sneak: Take your time exploring a part of the ship. You must make a check to avoid discovery, but can take a dirty 20 (as if you rolled a 20, but without the success-bumping effect of a nat 20) on a Perception or Skill Check.
Steal: Attempt to open a locked door, locker, or other container. On top of the check to open the lock you must also make a check to avoid discovery.
Checks to Avoid Discovery: When you go somewhere you're not supposed to be for a prolonged period of time you'll need to take action to avoid being found. Usually this is going to be Stealth, but with a good enough explanation other skills (such as Athletics, Diplomacy, Deception, etc) might be usable. If you can take advantage of a sufficient distraction or excuse, these checks will generally be easier.
- Notable Locations on the Ship:
- Main Deck: As the name implies, the main deck of the ship. Makes up the majority of the upper layer of the ship. The Mainmast, the largest mast of the ship, is located here.
Foredeck and Poopdeck: Raised areas at the bow and stern of the ship respectively. The foremast and mizzenmast are located here respectively, and the bridge is located on the poopdeck. Mr. Plugg and Captain Harrigan spend much of their time on the Poopdeck, and when the Captain is on deck the Poopdeck is off-limits to everyone except officers and those with official business.
Officer's Quarters: Located directly below the Foredeck, this is where the ship's officers (except the Captain) sleep. Generally at least one can be found there at all times during the day, and it is distinctly off-limits to standard crew except on official business.
Armory: A small weapon-holding closet off of the officer's quarters, kept securely locked, and regularly inspected by the ship's Master Gunner Riaris Krine.
Longfarthing's Laboratory: A cramped closet-sized cabin on the opposite side of the Officer's Quarters from the Armory, the ship's Sailing Master (and resident Sorceress) Peppery Longfarthing uses this space for her magical experiments. It is kept very securely locked when she's not there, and no one's quite sure if that's to keep people out or keep something in...
Captain's Cabin: Located directly below the Poopdeck, this is Captain Harrigan's personal quarters. He has his own store room off to one side. He often entertains his officers here in the evenings.
Cabin Girl's Quarters: A small compartment off the Captain's Cabin, opposite his personal store-room, this is where the cabin-girl "Caulky" Tarroon sleeps.
Middle-Hold: The ship's main hold, this is where you came to at the start of the adventure. On top of cargo, this section of the ship also holds the ship's main siege weapons, a series of Light Ballistas and a currently-disassembled Light Catapult. The aft section also holds a staircase up to teh Captain's Cabin, but it's common knowledge among the crew that that door is trapped.
Quartermaster's and Cook's Cabin: Located near the stern of the Middle-Hold, this is where the ship's Cook Fishguts and Quartermaster Cut-Throat Grok drink, sleep, and otherwise entertain themselves in the evening and night.
Galley: Taking up much of the stern of the Middle-Hold, this is the domain of Fishguts during the day, where he prepares the night's meal, usually fishgut stew.
Quartermaster's Store: Stowed away alongside the Galley, this cramped storeroom acts as an unofficial shop on the ship. Technically speaking any and all plunder belongs to the captain, but among pirates, well, everything has a price. Goods can be traded here, with crewmates usually able to purchase the goods within at full cost, or sell (or barter) goods they've "acquired" at half-price. If someone is caught trying to sell something stolen from the captain however, their goods will usually be confiscated and they will be punished accordingly.
Lower Hold: A spacious hold beneath the middle-hold, this is where the crew sleeps. It's also usually where the night entertainment takes place.
Bilges: The lowest deck of the ship, this foul, damp, generally unpleasant place is usually filled with cobwebs and often holds one to two feet of disgusting brackish water. This area doubles as the ship's brig, and has a pump near the stern that's used to extract the continuously building up pool of water.
- Pirate Entertainments:
- Arm Wrestling: Not your landlubber's arm wrestling, this pirate test of strength is conducted
on a barrel top covered in broken glass, knives, caltrops, and other generally unpleasant objects. Participants make opposed Strength checks, and the loser takes 1d4+the winner's Strength modifier in piercing damage as their hand and arm are shoved into the bits covering the table. While these matches are sometimes done just to settle a dispute, they're also often the centerpiece of rounds of betting.
Hog Lob: A simple game, pirates take turns hurling a lead ingot wrapped in a greased pig skin, the "hog" as far across the deck as possible. This is done with either a Simple Thrown Improvised Weapon attack roll or an Athletics Check, with the total roll being the distance the Hog is thrown in feet. Regardless of check used, the -2 Item Penalty for it being an Improvised Weapon still applies, unless the thrower has an ability to remove the penalty for using Improvised Weapons (like the Weapon Improviser dedication feat). This game is almost never played without betting being involved. There are stories of pirates who claim to have played this game against Asmodeus himself, using a live hog.
Heave: A potentially lethal drinking game played with excess rum rations, played between any number of pirates, who bet on the winner before hand. Each participant drinks a half-pint of rum in a single swig. For each consecutive swig, the DC to resist the rum ration's effects increases by 2. Pirates take turns drinking until only one is left standing, or the others forfeit.
Bastard's Fool Poker: A simple game of cards, where bluffing is as important as your hand. There are two ways to play Bastard's Fool, the full way or the fast way. The full way will only be used if multiple PCs join in, and at the discretion of participating players the Fast Way may be used instead. A character must have at least 10 sp to play, and the crew is loose enough to accept gear as currency for its full value. All rolls made as part of Bastard's Fool Poker except Initiative should be made as GM Rolls, known only to the player and the GM.- The Full Way:
- At the start of the game, each participant rolls 1d20. This determines their position at the table. The player who rolls lowest receives the initial Blind token.
At the start of each round, the holder of the Blind token places an initial blind bet, usually 5 cp, and each player is dealt 5 cards. Then, proceeding down the turn order from the player immediately after the holder of the token (so to the highest initiative holder on the first round) each player chooses whether they want to Call, Raise, or Fold.
Call: You match the current bet.
Raise: You bet some amount greater than the current bet. The amount you bet becomes the new current bet.
Fold: You back out of the current match of cards. If you have already bet anything, you don't get your bet back.
This continues along the initiative order until all players have either called or folded. The last player to Call instead Checks. At this point each participant can hand in any number of cards from their hand. The deck is then shuffled, and new cards are dealt out so that each player is again at 5 cards. Starting from the next player after the one who Checked, participants perform another round of betting, again until all participants have either called or folded. The last player to Call again Checks. At this point, participants still in the round reveal their hands, and the player with the best hand wins. The Blind token is then passed to the next person, and another round begins. Participants may bow out of the game between matches or at any time after they've folded.
Poker Hands
Once per round when it is your turn to bet, you can attempt to Read another participant. You can make a Deception check opposed by the target's Perception check. The information you get depends on your level of success, using their result as the DC:
Critical Success: You manage to divine the highest value hand the target currently possesses.
Success: You get a general feel for whether the target's current hand is better than, worse than, or on par with yours.
Failure: You can't quite manage to get a read on the target, and get no useful information.
Critical Failure: You read the target totally wrong and get the opposite information from a success. If their hand is on par with yours you get a random result between better or worse.
During the mid-game re-deal you can also attempt to cheat. You can make a Thievery check against the highest Perception DC of the other participants. When making the check you may voluntarily make a -2 or -4 Circumstance penalty. Doing so impacts the Success result.
Critical Success: Pick any 5 cards. Those are your hand now.
Success: After the cards are re-dealt, pick one card from your new hand. You can exchange that card for any other card of your choosing. If you took the -2 penalty, you can instead exchange 2 cards. If you took the -4 penalty you can instead exchange 3 cards.
Failure: You catch another participant paying attention, and abort the attempt. You don't get to change any of your cards, but you also don't get caught.
Critical Failure: You get caught trying to cheat. The results of this depends on who's playing, but at a minimum you lose your current bet and are ejected from the match.
- The Fast Way:
- Like the full way, every participant rolls 1d20 to set their initiative turn, and the lowest places the initial blind of 5 cp. Each participant then rolls 1d20, and then their choice of 1d4, 1d6, 1d8, 1d10, 1d12, or 1d20, and sums the two dice together. If the total is 20 or lower, the sum represents your hand. If the sum is more than 20, the higher value of the two dice is your hand, representing a bad hand. A single round of betting then occurs as the full way. Once the last player Checks, results are revealed.
Like the full way, it's possible to read and cheat in the fast way, though they are more streamlined. To read someone in the fast way, make a Perception check against a Moderate DC of the target's level. On a success you determine if the target's value is higher or lower than yours. On a failure you don't get anything. There is no Critical Success or Critical Failure result for this check.
To cheat in the fast way, when you're rolling your dice, make a Thievery check against a Hard DC for your level. On a success pick one die to roll twice and take the higher result. There is no Critical Success result. Like the full way, on a failure you abort the attempt, and on a critical failure you get caught.
- Rum Rations:
- Aboard many ships, half a pint of rum is distributed to each crew member at dusk. The rum is staggeringly strong, and is often watered down to make grog. The rum ration is doled out more to keep the crew sated and docile than for recreation. The penalty for selling or visibly spilling the ration is six lashes, or six lashes from a cat-o’-nine-tails for a second offense. Deliberately tipping away rum on board a crowded ship without being seen requires a DC 15 Stealth or Thievery check. While on merchant or navy vessels rum rations are strictly limited, on pirate ships, crew members can often request more rum if they please.
Rum Ration
Alchemical, Consumable, Drug, Ingested, Poison
Price: 2 cp
Usage: Held in 1 Hand; Bulk: L
Activate: 1 Action (Interact)
The Addiction to Rum Ration has the Virulent Trait. You can't recover from the sickened condition from Rum Ration while affected.
If you fail a saving throw against Rum Ration other than initial saves, the affliction’s stage doesn’t increase; the only way to increase the stage of Rum Ration's affliction is to consume more alcohol.
Saving Throw: DC 12 Fortitude; Onset: 10 minutes; Stage 1: +1 Item Bonus to Charisma-based checks and Fatigued (8 hours); Stage 2: Flat-Footed, +1 Item Bonus to Charisma-based checks, and Fatigued (8 hours); Stage 3: Clumsy 1, Flat-Footed, Fatigued, Stupified 2 (8 hours); Stage 4: Clumsy 2, Sickened 2, Stupified 2, Fatigued (8 hours); Stage 5: Unconscious (8 hours); Stage 6: Death
Last edited by Shinigami02 on Mon Jan 17, 2022 3:49 pm; edited 5 times in total
Shinigami02- Posts : 765
Join date : 2018-08-14
Age : 30
Re: Shulls and Cackles Discussion Thread
by Shinigami02 Mon Jan 17, 2022 1:06 pm
- Crew of the Wormwood:
- Officers:
- Captain Harrigan: The strict, tyrannical Captain of the Wormwood.
Mister Plugg: Harrigan's bullying and sadistic First Mate and Second-In-Command. On the deck his word is law.
Master Scourge: The Wormwood's Bosun and Master-At-Arms, and Plugg's Right-Hand. Responsible for discipline on the ship, and oversees the crew on deck.
Ambrose "Fishguts" Kroop: A giant of a man, and the ship's alcoholic Cook. No one's quite sure whether his nickname refers to the contents of his stews or the stains on his aprons.
Cut-Throat Grok: A no-nonsense half-orc woman with a long scar across her neck, she serves as the ship's Quartermaster. It's said she's also quite superstitious.
Peppery Longfarthing: The ship's Sailing Master and resident Sorceress, a long-time friend of the Captain.
Riaris Krine: The ship's foul-mouthed and dutiful Master Gunner.
Habbly Quarne, the "Stitchman": Ship's surgeon and chief carpenter. It's said that his solution for any woe is amputation, and usually a wooden prosthetic.
Kipper: Gunner's Mate, pyromaniac, and a boot-licker for Plugg and Scourge.
Patch Patchsalt: Bosun's Mate and sycophant of Plugg and Scourge.
"Caulky" Tarroon: The Captain's cabin girl, said to be quite skilled at detecting poisoned food.
Owlbear Hartshorn: Plugg's pet, a simple-minded but hulking specimen of a man.
- Crew:
- Sandara Quinn (Swab): A scarlet-haired, and warm-hearted devotee of Besmara. She seems like she's already taken a liking to you.
Rosie Cusswell (Swab): A Halfling fiddler with quite the colorful vocabulary.
Crimson Cogward (Swab): A fiery-tempered and religious young man who enjoys a good fight. Actually volunteered to join the crew.
Conchobar Turlach Shortstone (Rigger): A foppish gnome and serial womanizer. Finds Rosie simply "magnificent", she does not reciprocate.
Barefoot Samms Toppin (Rigger): A former fisherwoman from the Sodden Lands with a passionate dislike for footwear.
Giffer Tibbs (Swab): A bedraggled gnome woman who is missing an eye.
Jack Scrimshaw (Swab): A young lad who earned his nickname for his skill with scrimshaw. Usually willing to sell or trade.
"Ratline" Rattsberger (Rigger): A long-faced shifty ysoki with long arms and three missing fingers.
Tilly Brackett (Swab): A tough joker who greatly enjoys her rum.
"Badger" Medlar (Swab): An older woman with stripes shaved into her greying hair.
Shivikah (Swab): A very tall mwangi woman, supposedly an ex-slaver.
Aretta Bansion (Swab): A foul-tempered ex-harlot with sizeable ears.
Fipps Chumlett (Swab): A fat, pushy bully with a shaved head.
Jaundiced Jape (Swab): A humorless, greedy, and secretive half-orc mute.
Maheem (Rigger): A big rahadoumi with a seemingly permanent scowl.
Slippery Syl Lonegan (Rigger): A somewhat unhinged murderess who fled to sea to escape the gallows.
Tam "Narwhal" Tate (Rigger): An old dwarf with a large nose, and old friend of Master Scourge.
Shinigami02- Posts : 765
Join date : 2018-08-14
Age : 30
Similar topics» War for the Crayon Discussion/Loot Thread
» Skulls a Shakin' Discussion Thread
» Stranger Things Discussion Thread
» Metallic Wasteland loot/discussion thread
» Tarantula's Grip Discussion
» Skulls a Shakin' Discussion Thread
» Stranger Things Discussion Thread
» Metallic Wasteland loot/discussion thread
» Tarantula's Grip Discussion
Page 1 of 1
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum|
|
|