The Umathelan Campaign

Campaign background

Location

As a starting base I'm using the non-Gloranthan City of Santon. This

contains some nautical NPC's and some stuff about the drug farweed. I

have placed the city on the southern Pamaltela continent in Umathela

and eventually I hope to move them to mainstream Gloranthan locations.

The Crew

The original crew of the Black Pig consisted of one third Dormal

sailors, one third Wachaza marines and one third Tskanth pirates. This

allowed players to have a choice of cults and allowed rivalry and even

intrigue between the cults. The rationale is that the Pirate Captain

operated a Dormal/Wachaza crew and then found a boatload of Tskanth

adrift after a ship wreck. He has allowed them to join his crew but

didn't trust them and would not leave them alone on the ship.

The PCs have now left the Black Pig and crew a Sambuk which was

formerly a Fonrit naval vessel. They are the Captain (a female elf who

worships Dormal), five Wachaza marines, two Tskanth pirates,a

shipwright slave and a ludoch mermaid. Hissinga was washed overboard

from an Elf ship and rescued by humans, Codpiece got drunk in Santon

and missed his ship, Horace was acting as a marine escort on a

merchant ship and finished his contract. Scar killed a fellow pirate

in a brawl and was 'asked to leave' his ship. Da Marco is a young

rebellious noble who has run away to sea to seek his fortune. Rutan is

a Wachaza sailor from Fonrit. Khaleem the Hideous is a blue skinned

Veldang slave skilled in carpentry and craft. The last two characters

had fallen foul of the evil Fonrit confederacy were drugged and cast

adrift in a leaky rowboat. They joined the other players in the middle

of a naval battle.(see 10 below) Rhyll was an out of work Wachaza

marine seeking adventure. Silver Spray is a ludoch mermaid who

worships Triolina (see Sub campaign details) Walker is a Keet who was

stranded an island on which many of the crew were also shipwrecked.

Scenarios so far.

1. Hissinga goes ashore for recruits and hires the above after a

pub brawl. Some elf haters picked a fight.

2. An impressed farweed dealer hires the Black Pig to pick up some

cargo from Reamrha. His rivals ambush the beach landing of farweed and

are beaten off. The PCs actually ambushed the ambushers in the sand

dunes because they arrived a day early due to a following wind.

Someone poisons the drinking water on the outward journey.

3. The PC's are hired to burn down a warehouse in revenge.

4. An anonymous person ( Alchemist ) hires the Black Pig to obtain

tree sap from a magical tree on a nearby island. While the party

barter with the Hermit of the tree they are attacked by Broo. These

have been sent by a broo shaman with the same idea. The broo used

primitive canoes hollowed out of tree trunks.

5. The Black Pig is hired to intercept a rendezvous between two

ships transferring farweed. They successfully defeat the first crew

and assume their identities. The second ship arrives and the crew

instantly attacked them. (Its has already been taken by pirates). The

pirates are massacred by the PC's. The ships healer leaves the ship in

disgust at the next opportunity.

The PC's now had three ships. One (with grateful rescued sailors) is

sent off to trade on their behalf. Another has its identity changed to

the Flying Elf and is used by the PC's. The Black Pig provides crew

for both the other ships and continues to operate with an NPC captain.

6. The PC's enter the contest of the Sea Goddess, Sensu in the City

of Santon. Events included swimming, mast climbing, combat, carving a

masthead and a boat race. Hissinga wins.

7. A merchant hires the Flying Elf to investigate the mysterious

sinking of a ship which he had hired and if possible recover its

cargo. Hissinga and Codpiece dive down to the vessel which is riddled

with holes. This was caused by a giant sea dwelling woodworm. This

defenceless creature is killed by the dynamic duo but its blood

attracts sharks. Fortunately demoralise spells cause them to retreat.

The cargo (arms for Orlanthi fighting against Fonritian invaders) is

recovered. Some money is spent careening the hull and buying new ropes

and sails for the Flying Elf.

8. Jan, an initiate of the local knowledge cult, brings news that a

mysterious shell island has been seen to the NE of Reamra. The crew of

the Flying Elf investigate and board it. The island is protected by a

wailing sea song which attacks the players. Wax ear plugs nullify some

of the effects. Other defences include a strange floating ball which

fires javelins, three spirits (of merman , a troll and an Orlanthi),

and a shark headed gorgon which rips off Codpieces left arm. The party

penetrate to the lower level and Hissinga uses a small water elemental

to remove a magical air bubble and a silver disc from underwater

cells.

9. Someone makes a night attack on the Flying Elf at the quayside in

Santon with burning barrels.

10. The merchant (Pigo) hires the ship to deliver arms to Orlanthi in

the coastal village of Vilmir who are fighting Fonrit invaders.

Hissinga meets some Elvish allies of the village who provide warning

and harrass the Fonrit column.The party help defend this village

against Fonritian troops. They subsequently defeat a Fonritian naval

vessel which planned to make a landing with marines. However Vilmir

falls after a night attack and they help some of the survivors escape.

11. Hissinga sells the Flying Elf and now sails in the captured

Fonritian ship. She wishes to capture a spirit in a newly acquired

(empty) spirit storage crystal. The new ship anchors at the Haunted

Cliffs and a party is sent ashore to explore. They find a caves,

secret passages and many spirits haunting an abandoned village.

Eventually they stumble upon a band of smugglers hidden in one of the

buildings. They are forced to retreat after a tough fight. They

subsequently discover a temple to Arin (The smuggler cult) and loot

some hazia from the building. Their ship is attacked by the ghostly

crew of a spectral ship.

12. They arrive at a nearby village just in time for the local

harvest festival and return to Santon with a cargo of grain (and

hazia). Hissinga holds a contest to decide who will receive additional

training. Di Marco wins and Rutan comes second.Their ship and many

others is confined to port for the Typhoon season. Hissinga sells much

of the hazia to Velyns henchman, Roreld. It later emerges that Roreld

died some weeks earlier and they lose half of the payment. Most of the

players are arrested after a barfight and then fined.

13. Hissinga captures a drug dealer and interrogates him. He learns

of the location of Drago's warehouse.The party attacks the warehouse

and seize a large amount of hazia. An enemy leader escapes using a

smoke bomb. Khaleem discovers two pools of water with holding timbers

infested with shipworm. An inspection reveals all three ships

associated with the players have been affected.

14. The priests of Sensu foretell that the edge of a Typhoon will

hit the harbour at Santon. The players flee to Vullen and seek a local

pilot to lead them upriver to safety. Hissinga discovers the missing

Vellyn who is lying low in the town. They sell him the hazia.

15. The players ships are relatively undamaged and decide to take

advantage of lucrative trading opportunities. They set off to Fonrit.

On the way they are attacked by a giant Octupus and large scaled

mermen. A landing party also encounters a giant crab.

16. While moored at Vilmir a ship rounds the headland. While they are

distracted a group of sailors attack from the dockside. In the combat

that follows the crew are demoralised by a unearthly wailing from the

sea. The other ship starts to weigh anchor but is attacked by a Sea

Serpent. The latter morphs into a mermaid who introduces herself as

Silver Spray. It emerges that they have been attacked by worshippers

of Uralog, the Sea Ghoul cult.

17. Leaving a small party to repair the captured vessel (It had been

damaged by the huge sea serpent) they sail on towards Fonrit. Silver

Spray (and her dolphin) accompany them. On the way they investigate an

island. A large Undine attempts to drive them towards the rocks but

Hissinga and Codpiece leap over the side and join Silver Spray in

destroying it. They are attacked by Scorpion men (that are hidden

under water) while investigating the wreck of a weird ship constructed

from a long sea shell.

18. The landing party are forced to retreat to the jungle when they

are cut off from their boat by another group of Scorpion Men.. On the

island they team up with others who have been shipwrecked their

previously a couple of Tskanth pirates, two Fonrit marines and a keet

(duck). Their ship sails off. Hissinga and Walker investigate the

vessel on the beach at night. They explore inside and discover weird

machinery, crews quarters and stores, all of which are covered in

dust.

19. Hissinga and the others recce the island. They encounter a giant

boar and some more scorpion men on the beach. At one stage Scar

becomes stuck up a tree and decides to jump down into a war net. He

lands heavily when it emerges that the net is held by an elf, a duck

and a one armed man. The three Tskanth celebrate their High Holy day

in a private ritual. They return to camp bloodied but without any lost

limbs.

20. They are contacted by Silver Spray and arrange a joint attack on

submerged caves beneath the cliffs. They lower themselves down the

cliff on rope and swim into the tunnels. In the final assault the

Scorpion Queen powers up her bodyguards with rune magic's, and summons

an undine and a whirlpool. Walker the Keet distinguishes himself while

others are knocked down at his side. The Queen transforms herself into

a seagull and escapes. The humans destroy her egg chamber which is

above water. The grateful Prince rewards them by gifting them a horn

with which to summon ludoch aid.

21. With help from the mermen the strange sea shell vessel is floated

off the beach. Hissinga and Walker experiment with it. They are able

to get light, open the iris window, float and submerge and an air

supply. However for some reason they cannot move it backwards or

forwards.

There are also some subplots, one of the people killed in the brawl

was the brother of Black Jake an infamous pirate, someone nearby

Reamrha is conducting piracy and even taking isolated crew members

from ships who land at the island, and there is a local legend of lost

underwater city!

Encounters at sea/onshore

Sea serpent, Giant Sea Spider, Malasp Mermen, a School of flying

Bronze Fish, an intelligent Giant Turtle, a giant merman, a Giant

Crab, a Wild boar, a Rock lizard, a sandbank, Yssabau mermen, a

geyser, an octopus, a ghost ship, a large Undine, sea ghouls, scorpion

men and several large bats..

Sources

Runequest

Strangers in Prax

Tales of the Reaching Moon (Issue 10) - Sea Special

Gods of Glorantha

Elder Secrets

Griffin Mountain/Island

The Gloranthan Bestiary

The River of Cradles

Sun County.

Vikings

(The Barran bit in SIP is very useful because it contains a ship plan,

ideas for shipborne NPCs, monsters including octupi, nereiads, sharks

etc.)

AD&D

Pirates of the Fallen Stars

The Murky Deep

Beacon Point

Ships and the Sea

Islands of Terror

Sea Devils

Evil Tide

Night of the Shark

Golden Voyages (Al Qasim campaign)

Corsairs of the Great Sea,

City of Delights

Land of Fate

Other RPG's

Sea Kings of the Purple Towns - Stormbringer

Sea Law - Rolemaster

Swashbucklers - GURPS

Adventures on the High Seas - Palladium

Sailing on the Seas of Fate- Elric

Pilots Alamanac - Harn

Sea Lords of Gondor (Tolkein's Middle Earth)

Pirates of Pelargir

Historical

Pirates - David Mitchell

Pirates - Fact & Fiction

Ships and Seafaring in Ancient Times - Lionel Casson

The Lost Wreck of the Isis - Robert Ballard

The Dictionary of Pirates - Jan Rogozinski

Fiction

The Sea - Angelo S Rapport

South Seas - Donald Mackenzie

Classic Sea Stories - Leopard

The Dolphins of Pern - Anne McCaffrey

The Roof of the Voyaging - Garry Kilworth

The Princely Flower - Garry Kilworth

Eaters of the Dead - Michael Crichton

HP Lovecraft - The Haunted of the Dark

Playing Aids

Figures

Celtic Myth - Fomorian Sea Devils

Grendel - Swamp Creature, Quayside, barrels etc

Harlequin - Saracens (for Fonritians), Sea Trolls

Ral Partha - Sahuagin (Malasp), Sea Trolls

Redoubt - Pirate figures

RAFM - Water Elemental

Merman Ale - Caledonian Brewery

Sea Cults (and other useful material)

Dormal

Gloomshark

Wachaza

Magasta

Arin - Smuggler Cult

Uralog - Sea Ghoul Cult

Inner Knowledge of the Sea Gods - What the Mermaid Priestess says Map

of the Oceans Prospaedia of the Gods Zola Fel

(Sub) Campaign Background

Location

A grouping of coral reefs and sandbars on the borders between the

Marthino and Maslo seas.

The character(s)

Silver Spray is a Ludoch mermaid initiate of Triolina, the Mother of

Life. She belongs to a Ludoch tribe which includes worshippers of

several cults.

Adventures

1. Silver Spray goes on patrol with Codscale, (Speaker to the land).

They are ambushed by Malasp mermen hidden in kelp.

2. While on another patrol she and Grey Fluked Wisdom (Leader of the

shoal) fight a shark and view a sandfall.

3. Silver Spray is sent with Ice for a Heart (a Wachaza initiate) to

locate and ally with a neighbouring group of Sea Elves (Murthoi). They

encounter a giant oyster guarded by a giant crab, some zombies in the

hold of a recently sunk wreck, and a conger eel before exchanging

gifts with the sea elves. On their journey back they encounter a group

of Malasp attacking a ship with a Sea Serpent. They attack from behind

and speak to the Captain of the Black Pig who rewards them with some

bottles of wine.

4. A group of harpies attack a family of mermen sunbathing on a

shoal. Silver Spray drives them off with her captured Malasp crossbow

and spells.

5. Silver Spray and Sea Anemone (A Triolina initiate) are sent to

harvest rare seaweed which can be used to produce a healing paste. On

the way they encounter a Dolphin trapped in a fishermans net. Sea

Spray calms the Dolphin and they cut it free. The Dolphin befriends

them and subsequently helps them tow back seaweed to the tribe. Before

reaching the seaweed they encounter a ship. Approaching underwater

they discover that clinging to nets and ropes alongside are Sea

Ghouls. Silver Spray and Sea Anemone defeat four but are forced to

withdraw when more appear from the other side of the ship.

6. Silver Spray and her friendly dolphin patrol nearby where they

encountered the sea ghouls. She spots the same ship approaching

another moored in a harbour and turns into a Sea Serpent to attack it.

After defeating them Silver Spray speaks with the crew of the other

ship who reward her with a pearl. The crew ask her questions about

mermen.

7. She agrees to accompany them on a journey towards Fonrit. On the

way they investigate an island. A large Undine attempts to drive them

towards the rock but they destroy it just in time. The party approach

a mysterious ship which is wrecked on the beach. They are attacked by

waterbreathing Scorpion men. Silver Spray fights one in single combat

and is saved by two ludoch mermen who approach at high speed.

8. The party defeat the Scorpion Men but are then separated when a

large force splits the shore party from the ludoch. Silver Spray and

the other mermen are forced to retreat to deep water. It emerges that

the two mermen are a Prince and his bodyguard who were out hunting

when their tribe were attacked and captured by the Scorpion Men. They

prevent the players ship falling to the Scorpion Men but return to

Silver Sprays tribe to get reinforcements.

9. On the journey back they encounter a shoal of bronze fish but dive

down to avoid them. They are also unexpectedly attacked by some Malasp

who emerge from hiding in clump of stinging Sea Anemones. The Malasp

seem have coated themselves in a salve which gives temporary immunity

to the poison. Silver Spray captures a shell containing this ointment.

10. On reaching Silver Sprays tribe they drive off more Harpies.

Silver Sprays Runepriest transforms into a seabird and tracks the

harpies back to their eyrie which is on top of a column of rock. He

also discovers a sea cave which seems to have a staircase leading

upwards but can go no further. Silver Spray and others are sent back

to the Island of the Scorpion Men to rescue the imprisoned mertribe

and secure help from the humans to destroy the harpies.

11. The returning mermen contact the marooned via flashing signal

and then Mindspeech. A joint attack is arranged on the caves beneath

the cliffs where the scorpion men are holding the other mermen. The

raiding force then splits into two. Five mermen swim into a fully

flooded tunnel. Silver Spray, the Prince and his bodyguard lead the

humans into a partially flooded one. They lead the initial attack into

the flooded tunnels followed by swimming humans. Later the tunnels

become too shallow and the humans take the lead. In the final struggle

the imprisoned mermen are freed and the Scorpion Queen escapes.