"Well, Captain, I may not be a soldier like Rupert but I can certainly hold my own in a melee." He suddenly flips out of his chair and with surprising grace he lands on his hooves with longsword in hand. Bazz begins a bit of swordplay, flashing the blade about with surprisingly beautiful lunges and slashes (Uses Cha 18 Hex Warrior ability for attack and damage).
"I'm also quite adept at ranged combat as well!" Suddenly his other hand flashes with a greenish light and a beam of crackling energy blasts from his palm and strikes the target!
"And then there are my abilities to entertain; to negotiating; and even cast some minor healing magics! With all of this and my usefulness as an extra jammer, what more do you need? If there is something, feel free to ask and I'll get right on it and learn all I can!"
Bazz then offers a deep bow then once again takes his seat.
Acrobatics: [1d20+6] = 17+6 = 23; Flipping
Mirthful Leap: [1d8] = 2; Only +2'
but it's a bonus 2 feet above his normal flip!
Eldritch Blast: [1d20+6] = 15+6 = 21, Damage: [1d10] = 9
Captain Threadvine smiles slightly and chuckles. "I had been planning on asking for a demonstration, but I think that fits the bill pretty well." he says, "Well, gentlebeings, I think that we would be more than happy to find a berth for you here on the Riposte. Since this is not a fixed term expedition, wages are going to be done by recovery shares. Any and all loot, plunder, treasure, or wealth discovered by members of the crew from the moment we leave dock until we return will be considered property of the crew as a whole, although use of non-expendable magic items by the crew will be authorized by the Captain on a case-by-case basis. As we tend to run a small crew to increase share value to everyone, shares are determined by the various duties both on and off the ship that each crewmember undertakes or are assigned. Before I move on to the share value of the various jobs and what duties those jobs entail, do you have any questions or comments for me?"
He pauses to take a sip of his coffee and looks to see if anyone has any questions or comments.
"THAT SOUNDS REASONABLE TO ME!"
"Just two, regarding your policies," Bassalan replies with a charming smile. "First, are there any rules against partying, carousing, celebration or generally making merry? And second, what is your policy surrounding mingling, fraternizing or copulation with the opposite, same, or non-gender of similar or dissimilar species?"
Bazz awaits the Captain's answer with an innocent smile.
"As long as the celebrations do not go so far as incapacitation, I find that small events and the like are useful to break up the monotony of a long journey. But letting it go too far, especially on a small crew, is a good way to die out there. Leave that kind of partying for port. As far as fraternization, I only have a problem if it starts to make a problem. If a relationship falls out and the parties involved can't find some kind of resolution, I am more than happy to find some place for them to disembark and find their own paths away from each other. Other than that I try to stay out of the crew's love lives as much as possible. It should be noted that there is only so much room on the ship, and the crew bunks are communal, so venues for dalliances are limited and will not be welcome in open areas, particularly if they lead to a dereliction of duty. Also we only have so much in supplies, and given the somewhat unknown duration of the expedition they have to be somewhat rationed, which is another consideration on big parties." He rambles through talking points that it is apparent he has said many, many times before.
With a smile and a gesture meant to encompass the whole ship and the crew, he says, "I and Ashheart try to keep things simple. As long as your job is getting done, whatever you do to get you through the day is fine. If you fall down on the job, depending on circumstances you get a second chance. If you fall down a second time, or if your screw up is big enough the first time, we will find the next habitable place to let you find your own way back from, with whatever portion of your shares are available at the time. If your accident causes the death of other crew members, a vote will be held by the survivors to determine your fate." He shakes his head grimly and continues, "Fortunately that has only happened twice in my years abort this vessel. Both times the crew elected to barrel the bastard, and less said about that the better."
He smiles again and takes another sip. He says, "I realize that is sometimes a heavy dose of reality for some. I hope it doesn't turn you away. You seem a competent sort, so I'm sure you won't have much to worry about."
"I am a merchant, so I am curious if crew are allowed any space in the cargo hold for their own cargo. Obviously with inspection allowed by you or Ashheart to make sure there is no dangerous or contraband cargo. And how much space is reasonable. An example if necessary. Let's say I find a planet that has some unique foodstuff, or better yet let's suppose something that will not spoil, a rare metal. Could I purchase a ton or so or few hundred pounds of that cargo to later sell at a profit somewhere where that metal is rare? If so, would my profits be mine? Or the crews?"
Threadvine's eyebrows rise in surprise and Ashheart's mustache flexes. The captain says, "Hmm, no one has ever asked that before. I would say that any initial load of such a discovery would be taken on by the crew and sold as part of the spoils of the expedition. Should someone have contacts that could be leveraged to garner a best offer price then that might entitle that crew person some kind of 'finder's fee' or even an additional share as the ship's broker, depending on the scope. I would think those details can be worked out, in addition to who has saleable rights to the find, on the way back to port. Good question though."
He pauses to think for a moment and adds, "It should be noted that I've never had a find like that, as the spoils usually come down to salvaged ship titles, weaponry and the occasional magic artifact or art object. On the other hand, I can't say I've really tried to find something exchangable like that. Interesting thought."
Seeing no other questions forthcoming, Threadvine continues, "Now, if you already have some cargo in storage somewhere that you would like to bring along we can determine a portage rate depending on tonnage. That cost will be deducted from your shares, with any outstanding balance to be provided by you on mutually agreed termination of expedition or forfeiture of the cargo." He spares Melville a warm smile before continuing, "Mate Ashheart can handle the details of that with as needed."
"On the topic of shares," he says as he picks up a stack of documents written in common from his desk, "Each member of the crew is entitled to one share of the profits of the expedition. A share is defined as a even split of the final profits of the expedition, after the cost of food, air, and water as well as any healing or other limited resources used by the crew are taken into account." He sets a sheaf of paper down in front of each of you, and Ashheart sets an inkpen next to each pile. Just glancing at the top page makes it obvious that Threadvine is reciting the most pertinent points from memory. "Those costs are documented in the ships ledger and available for review upon request and at the convenience of Mate Ashheart, who maintains it. The profits of the expedition are defined as the monetary value of any ship's title, object de art, magical items and artifacts, helms, miscellaneous equipment and objects including but not limited to weapons, armor, coinage, jewelry, gems, statuary, etcetera. Any member of the crew make stake a claim on any item found unless previously claimed by someone else on the crew. Only specific items may be claimed in this manner, not classes or groups of items. The value of the item will be assessed and deducted from the value of the member's shares. Consumable items, such as potions and scrolls, may be used in emergency situations to preserve the ship and crew, and will be divvied up among the crew for use at discretion of the Captain during the expedition. Spells from any recovered spellbooks or spell scrolls may be recorded by any applicable casters on board." He pauses for a moment to take a sip of something from a wooden tankard on his desk. "in addition to the base crew share, any caster is eligible for an extra share provided they take on spelljamming shifts. Weapons crews and boarding party work also makes you eligible for an additional share. Other specialized skills such as navigation, doctoring, cooking, quartermaster, broker, carpentry, etcetera are also worth additional shares. As you are the last additions to the crew some of those roles are already taken, although some redundancy is worthwhile. Finally, participation in exploratory sorties and the like will entitle you to an additional share if saleable goods are recovered from that action at the discretion of the leader of the exploration group, either myself or Mate Ashheart. I'll give you a moment to review the documents, although you will find that they are simply a record of the terms I have just presented. A copy of these will be stored in the ship's logs and registered with the Dockmaster of Bral, as well as provided to you for your personal reference. If you need them in another language, please let us know what that is and we'll see what can be done about that. Any questions?"
Bazz picks up the contract and begins to read it carefully. He was slightly concerned about the division of shares but not really for himself. As a Jack-of-all-trades, he could slip into almost any roll and had no problem with taking a few shifts of Spelljamming. But what of the Gif who couldn't help with spelljamming? It would seem his earning potential would already be at a disadvantage.
[OoC: I don't know if we need to make a skill roll or which skill to use. Would it be investigation or insight or something else?]
"Captain, I'm curious. You say, 'a share is defined as a even split of the final profits of the expedition, after the cost of food, air, and water as well as any healing or other limited resources used by the crew are taken into account.' So does that mean I will be compensated for using my healing ability on the crew? I obviously don't mind healing the gravely injured but I don't want to be expected or ordered to use up all my healing so there's none left for me or my companions and then be expected to pay for our own healing. That doesn't seem fair."
(12-22-2020, 09:17 PM)GM Anthraxus Wrote: [ -> ]Threadvine's eyebrows rise in surprise and Ashheart's mustache flexes. The captain says, "Hmm, no one has ever asked that before. I would say that any initial load of such a discovery would be taken on by the crew and sold as part of the spoils of the expedition. Should someone have contacts that could be leveraged to garner a best offer price then that might entitle that crew person some kind of 'finder's fee' or even an additional share as the ship's broker, depending on the scope. I would think those details can be worked out, in addition to who has saleable rights to the find, on the way back to port. Good question though."
He pauses to think for a moment and adds, "It should be noted that I've never had a find like that, as the spoils usually come down to salvaged ship titles, weaponry and the occasional magic artifact or art object. On the other hand, I can't say I've really tried to find something exchangable like that. Interesting thought."
[OoC missed this post]
" I did not mean found salvage. That obviously would be for the entire crew, and the more we sell it for, the better for everyone. I meant purchased cargo, that I purchase with my own coin, to later sell at a profit in a different port."