2022/08/17

Last time in the Iron Kingdoms, High Captain Waernuk paid the price for his stupidity.

The party was kicking in the door to the Grinning Gator bar on the Wake Islands. They knew where the heads of the Salter Crew pirates were going to be meeting, thanks to Gazza's reconnaissance the previous night, so there was nothing else for them to do but burst in and neutralize Waernuk's allies. As the party did that, the other unaffiliated patrons of the Grinning Gator wisely decided that this was a whole load of not their problem and promptly hid or fled the bar. In the back the party then engaged the three main leaders of the Salter Crew and a number of their crewmen. The fight was swift and brutal though ended in the party's favor with the three heads of the Salter Crew killed and the few remaining crewmen fleeing the bar by any means necessary.

With the Salter Crew dealt with, the party then boarded the Twisted Blade's ship and set off to engage Waernuk on the high seas. The Knucklebone Boys also accompanied the party on this expedition, as they had been swayed to the party's side though diplomacy. The journey was fairly short before the party's quarry was sighted. With the target in sight, orders were shouted for men to be at battlestations and to prepare for a fight. Waernuk's crew proved to be quite capable at naval combat, scoring a crippling blow on one of the main boilers for the engines of the party's ship as they were closing the distance to board the Wailing Farrow. This damage was extremely dire for the party as their ship was mostly dead in the water until the boiler was repaired. Shakes and Charlotte went down below to see what could be done to fix the engines, while Xavier did what he could to tend to those injured when the boiler exploded. While this was going on the Knucklebone Boys drew the Wailing Farrow's attention, an act that they paid for, as their ship was sunk in combat against the enemy pirates. Eventually however, the ship was repaired and was able to close the distance against the Wailing Farrow, and the party was sent away to board the enemy ship and pacify the enemy.

On the deck of the Wailing Farrow, was sheer pandemonium, members of the Twisted Blades fought against Waernuk's crew to capture the ship. On the bridge was Waernuk and two of his old associates. The party then fought their way to Waernuk and his allies and eventually slew them along with many of the enemy pirates. Gazza was injured during the fighting though was able to be patched up by Xavier in the immediate aftermath of the battle. With the enemy dealt with, the party then set about seeing what if anything of value the Wailing Farrow had on board. The search turned up an decent amount of art and gems that the pirates likely stole from other ships on the sea, as well as a couple of arcantrik devices that were either stolen or purchased on the black market. The party appropriated these resources for their own gain, while the Twisted Blades were making arrangements to tow the Wailing Farrow back to Five Fingers for their use, something the party had no issue with.

Back in Five Fingers, the party met with Atrixia and Jannish Riordan, to discuss the outcome of the operation. High Captain Riordan seemed pleased at the demise of the Knucklebone Boys, stating that any group that is easily persuaded to turn on their allies is one to be kept at arms length. The conversation then turned to the remaining High Captain, Durgan Kilbride. Both Atrixia and Riordan were concerned as to what the paranoid High Captain thought of the recent events in Five Fingers, and there was a slight worry that Kilbride would think that the revolution had him in his sights as well. Riordan said that he would attempt to get in contact with Kilbride through official channels though, he warned everyone to be on the lookout in case things went pear shaped. After Riordan left the party talked further with Atrixia who noted that Abe was having concerns about the conflict so far, Atrixia attempted to address this and at the end of it told the party that they look like they could use a drink and a meal, and she knew of just the place, telling Abe and the rest to not drink her out of house and home. The party then went back to Undertow and bonded with each other, with a tale of a unnamed warcaster who shot her general at the Battle of Northguard in the Thornwood, before disappearing, never to be seen again by Cygnarian forces. The party eventually retired for the night, with the expectation that they would meet again the next day to make sure that things were still running smoothly.