Amongst all the ships in Lindblum harbor, one of them stood out like a sore thumb. Or, to be more correct, like a scarred sore thumb that happened to have a giant claw. It was a re-tooled and heavily modified Alexandrian warship. At nearly a hundred twenty meters long, she was not the largest ship in the harbor by far, but the style of construction made her stand out...as well as the fact that, unlike most of the other non-Lindblum ships, she was heavily armed.
She retained the trademark massive turret on the bow, with smaller swivel-cannon and gunports along the flanks; she also still had the large canvas roof folded atop her, recolored blue and green. However, the massive oars had been removed, and the holes plugged; and two smokestacks sat atop the deck. Internally, too, she was much changed...where the oarsmen would sit had been converted to coal bunkerage, and much of the belowdecks storage space had been cleared and reinforced to allow a large pair of steam engines to be installed.
The ship was made for long-distance travel; she had a well-stocked galley with plenty of eating space for half the crew (which was the most that would be off-duty at any given time, anyway); a nicely-appointed practice and training room, stocked with wooden and blunted metal weapons of all kinds; an armory, of course; crew and officers' quarters; and there was even a trio of mages aboard whose sole job was to provide fresh water.
Though she did still have most of her weapons, many had been removed - and a few smaller magazines had been converted - to allow for supply storage, since so much of the cargo deck had become covered in boilers, pipes, and the like. The ship's nezumi crew scurried about the ship at the party's arrival, making ready to put to sea.
One such preparation marked a historic first, though there were few that knew of it. During the ship's maiden voyage, she'd flown no colors, though she did have Audacious written across her bow and stern in fancy Cleyran script. But now, as her boilers were stoked and last-minute supplies loaded, the crest of Burmecia was raised for the first time on the mast of a sea-going ship.
This post has been edited by Dungeon Master on May 21 2009, 04:00 AM
"A beauty, isn't she?" Ediaru crowed as the party stopped at the gangplank. "A fully-functional warship, the first of the Burmecian Navy. And, err, only. But that'll change! You wait and see...they're gonna build a port on the other side of the Cleyran desert, a whole range of coastal cities. What we learned from the war twenty years ago is that if we're going to survive, we can't hide in our rain-soaked valley anymore. We'll-"
"Dear..." Claire broke in with a tap on his shoulder.
"Oh! Right. Sorry, got carried away...it's anchors aweigh in half an hour, folks! Lines, really - no need for anchors at berth. Anyway! So if there's anything you want to do, shop, whatever, now's the time to do it. Make it quick, though! I don't wanna hafta sic Claire on ya. She's right vicious when she wants to be, aren'tcha, love?"
The former shrine maiden sighed and rolled her eyes, but smiled. "Worry not, none will be left behind. But do hurry, please. We would like to leave sight of land by nightfall."
This post has been edited by Vix Arkelith on May 16 2009, 03:30 AM
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Drake walked down the docks, looking from ship to ship, most were the standard rust bucket fishing boats, some handed down through many generations and kept functional, but not quite pleasing to the eye, when his eyes rested on the bow of the Audacious, and he looked her over, a sour look came over his face…
“Alexandrian? We’re going to be floating around on one of Brahne’s boats… This is a joke right?” he said to Dan and Hellena, he knew he didn’t have much of a choice, and that the sooner he got off his feet the better. He knew this ship would be one of the only ships in the city, if not the continent that would get them across the ocean in one piece.
Your opinion has been noted. Rejected, but noted. XD
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Melody gazed around the ship. She had never been on an Alexandria ship before, and so she spent some time looking around the ship.
"It's beautiful! How did you manage to get this?" she squealed with happiness. In her excitement Ediaru's suggestion of shopping flew over her head as she ran to the other side of the boat and leant fully down, her body arching as she looked over the side.
"It's a long way down..." she whispered, before standing upright again and mischeviously grinning at the others. "...But we can always throw Frato in there if he gets too annoying." she joked.
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The Audacious did look rather strange to Frato, he wasn't very familiar with ships, mainly because he preffered to travel by land than by airship, and he rarely travelled anyway. Still, he found it hard to believe that the ship was Burmecian in origin, it didn't look like something constructed in his homeland, nothing traditional or native to Burmecia rang from the ship. It looked foreign.
Frato did listen to Ediaru's ramblings, he wanted to know more about the ship he'd effectively be trusting for a safe passage. He'd heard a few rumours about the coastal towns developing, but he had his own view on the scenario. Before he could say anything about that though, his ears twitched when he heard Melody's little joke. He shot a fierce glare in her direction.
"You can try." He growled menacingly. "If I annoy you that much, maybe I should make use of this little shopping time!"
The hybrid then stormed off towards the weapons tores. He did want to switch back to a more trusted spear, especially since it looked like he'd be in for some tough battles in the near future.
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--Tenacious (auto-revive post-fight) --Sig. Weap. (20% crit CoS Spear/Polearms) ==Fury (SOS-Berserk) ==Elem. Def. (+50% dmg fr/ Fire) ==Vulner. (2x CoS to Transform) Traits: Heightened Senses, Allegiance, Family Ties, Secret Place.
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The harbor's weapon and item shop was a bustling place, and looked to've been recently renovated - or the whole place was new. The employees wore crisp blue uniforms, and all the armor and weapons had that "just forged" sheen to them. The sign over the door read "Aaron's Amor and Things", and a smaller sign below read "all marked prices are final. We can't afford to haggle, since we offer you such insanely low prices!"
(nearly anything with 70% or greater availability can be assumed to be in stock)
This post has been edited by Vix Arkelith on May 17 2009, 03:12 AM
"Hey now kids," Ediaru chided. "Be nice!" Turning back to Claire, he continued, "We should probably get some new digs, too."
"But we mustn't leave the ship at this critical point..."
"Of course not, dear! That's what crew is for." Ediaru flagged down a crewmember that'd just unloaded his crate, and handed him a list of equipment to go buy. "Half an hour, lad!"
With a jerky but earnest salute, the young man ran off towards the store with the list and money the dragoon had given him. Claire boggled briefly at the efficiency of the exchange. "I must admit, I am impressed that you planned ahead! Usually such things are left to me."
Ediaru just grinned, and went back to standing tall with his shoulders back, and trying to look important. He'd never gotten to be a captain before on a proper voyage, and was quite looking forward to it. Just wish I had a real captain's uniform...and some uniforms for the crew, for that matter. Maybe my Claire can make one up while we're at sea, she's brilliant at that sort of thing. I'll have to ask her once we're gone.
This post has been edited by Ediaru & Claire on May 17 2009, 01:04 AM
Edsel had been deeply troubled by Temosh's news the whole way to Lindblum...until she stepped off the lift and into the harbor for the first time. The sight of the city's exterior had been magnificent enough, but she'd had a few days to get used to that. The harbor was another matter, inset into the cliffs, one couldn't see it until they were IN it.
The white mage was a country girl, grew up in a village in the mountains; it was all she could do to pay attention to where she was going as she took in the astounding sights. All the strange people, all the weird ships, the shops, the activity...a lot to take in. The whole walk, she scarcely said a word, busily examining everything and filing it away so she could describe it to her parents someday.
However, when Ediaru mentioned shopping, she knew she couldn't just be a tourist. I'm going to need some better gear to face whatever we find at the other end of this trip... "I'll be back," she assured the dragoon and his wife. She didn't even notice what Melody said about Frato; she was already taking a self-inventory and trying to figure out what she might be able to afford.
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"Some store owners don't like mages healing people in their shops, even for free, like I do." -Adroit(staves)--Hardened I--PureSoul II--Pers.Elem:Wind- =Elem.Defic:Earth==Vuln:Seal==Code of Honor
Maria thought of chasing after Edsel or Melody so she wouldn't shop alone, but shook her head at herself. Nono, it's about time I did something myself. I can shop. The blade dancer practically skipped towards the store, imagination brimming with ideas of things to buy...but her enthusiasm waned rapidly as she counted her money. Nonetheless, after a bit of searching, she managed to find a nice ring and a pretty yellow scarf. She brought them to the item exchange counter, and put them on it together with her old guardian bracer and the requisite amount of gil.
Yellow Scarf (1500) Fairy Ring (1250) blind proof, poison proof Sell Guardian Bracer for 260
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"YOU! You're ugly, you're creepy, and you ruined my dance! I don't care how big your hammer is, you're going DOWN!" SpecTraining(polearms) --SigWep(polearms 20%) Ele.Def.(Water) == Slow Learner (2pt) == Frail (1pt)
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A young human came to the counter, and quickly surveyed the items. "Oooh, good choice!" he exclaimed with entirely too much cheer. "Strength & status immunities...you must be an adventurer! Best of luck to ya wherever you're headed - and have a fantabulous day!"
With the combined cost of the items she bought and the price of her bracers she sold, Maria now has 549 gill left.
It wasn't terribly long before the anonymous crewmember faithfully returned to his captain with the requested items. A rare beaststriker javelin for Ediaru, and a thorn bow for Claire. The dragoon hefted the javelin as if to throw it, then slung it over his back with a smile. "Much more appropriate than a sword; I like it. Nice work, lad."
Claire, meanwhile, tested the pull of her bow and found it a little harder than she'd expected, but still well within what she could do. "Thank you. This will do nicely. Go and take a ten-minute break now, if you wish, from loading the ship."
The young Burmecian sighed in relief, and took a seat nearby.
"It's too bad we couldn't afford armor," Claire noted. "We shall have to make do with what is available from the armory."
"Eh, it's not that bad. Still a sight better'n what we've got on now."
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Ediaru was left with only 394 gil, and his wife with 1003. Note: the players CAN forego shopping, since they haven't enough money to upgrade all their equipment to a suitable level; or they can just buy accessories. The ship's armory will supply basic armor (no stat bonuses or specials) of slightly lower quality than what's available in the store at no charge.
When Edsel entered the shop, she actually had to double-check to make sure it was a shop, for it was nothing like the shops she knew. Well, Lindblum IS an unusual city...so I guess it makes sense they have some unusual shops. I don't even see a smith in here! It didn't take her long to realize she had squat for cash. She selected an Echo Wrist, and brought it to where everyone else seemed to be buying things, together with her money.
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"Some store owners don't like mages healing people in their shops, even for free, like I do." -Adroit(staves)--Hardened I--PureSoul II--Pers.Elem:Wind- =Elem.Defic:Earth==Vuln:Seal==Code of Honor
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Dan let out a long, low whistle at the sight of the ship as he gazed over it, clearly impressed with the nautical vessel. Damn, they sure don't make 'em like that anymore. It was his first time seeing such a grand sea ship before, and despite it being Alexandrian in origin he couldn't wait to get his hands on it's inner workings It was all he could do to keep himself from diving head first into the ship's engine room.
Though at the announcement of a bit of shopping time, Dan decided he'd have to put that on hold. I should get rid o' some o' this old crap. What was I thinkin' with that crowbar? Making his way into the arms shop, he browsed around a bit. It didn't take him long to find something he liked in the firearms section. Figuring shooting nasties from a distance would be better than getting up close and personal (that was a warrior's job, after all), he picked out a handgun and some shells before walking up to the counter. While there, he figured he might as well get rid of some old equipment and the crowbar he'd been lugging around.
This post has been edited by DentonClone on May 17 2009, 04:55 PM
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The Original Burmecian Mr. Fix-it Adv:Ambidextrous,Good Fortune(x3) Dis:Fury,Gold Sink(15%) Traits:Bottomless Pockets,Compulsion(adv.tech),Heightened Senses,Walking Disaster
Aboard the Audacious
