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Tinderbeard’s Pirate Stronghold 40x30 Battlemap | VTT and PDF
🕑 Added 2021-11-07 03:29:07 +0000 UTC
While in a seaside tavern you’re approached by an elderly gentleman with grey hair, wearing an old tricone hat and has a gold tooth. He sits down at your table, spilling some of his ale before introducing himself as Captain Idago Swift. He’s quick to explain he’s looking for some folk to assist him in a rescue mission.
You see, his first mate has been captured by a rival pirate and is being used as leverage to try and get something very precious from him. He pulls out a square engraved gold coin, which almost looks like a puzzle piece. He explains that this gold piece is the last of a set which, when combined together, leads to a magical map.
This map, as story goes, allows the user to point to anywhere on the map, and—when envisioning this place in his mind’s eye—vanish in a blink and appear there. Apparently, you can even take along anything you’re touching, including whole ships!
Anyway, he continues, he needs you to infiltrate the rival pirate’s stronghold, which he gives you the location for, and recover his first mate. It’s that simple. And, if you happen to kill a bunch of pirates while doing it, so much the better! In return, he promises the rival pirates hold will contain more gold then you’ve ever seen, and it can all be yours.
When you arrive at the rival pirates lair, you’re meet with fierce resistance. Making your way to where the prisoners are held, you finally come across a single person locked in a cell. She is a young girl, maybe in her early teens. She withdraws from you at first, but if you explain you’re here to help she’ll perk up and tell you that you’ll need the keys to open the cell and explain that Captain Tinderbeard has them on his person. She say’s he’s currently in the next chamber over.
When you enter this chamber, Tinderbeard will turn to you yelling something about Idago being a coward and a thief before attacking you. When Tinderbeard has been dealt with, and the cell opened to release Idago’s firstmate, Idago himself with appear behind you, quickly stuffing a glowing parchment map into his overcoats inner pocket.
He’ll apologize for the deception, before explaining that the young girl isn’t his first mate but actually his granddaughter, at this time the young girl runs to him hugging him tightly.
You see, long ago Idago was captain of this rival crew and together after many years they collected all the square puzzle coins, this led to the magical map which they then used to become quite wealthy.
One night however, Idago overheard the crew talking about a mutiny. His first mate Tinderbeard claimed Idago was getting old and it was time someone new stepped into the role of captain—namely Tinderbeard himself. He offered the crew larger shares of the loot as an incentive.
Idago burst into the room questioning the loyalty of all the sailors within, who with Tinderbeard slowly stood up, drew their pistols and aimed them at Idago. Cursing profusely Idago quickly snatched the map out of his overcoat and teleported away.
He’d gone into hiding for years after that. Every time the former crew found him he’d just use the map again and be gone. That was, until one day he received a letter.
The letter explained his former crew had his granddaughter and if he wanted her back alive he’d bring the map to them. Refusing to give up the map to these traitors, but, without the strength and vitality he once had, he hired you to take care of the pirates.
With this, he hands you the map, saying the damned thing only ever brought him suffering. After this event, he’s seen what’s really important to him; his granddaughter.
GM’s Notes:
The map does in fact work as the stories suggested. The owner may point to any location on the map (which contains much of the mainland’s coast line and outer island chains, but not any of the mainland itself).
The owner however has to have seen the location in some capacity and be able to visualize it in their minds eye. The owner may also take anything with them up they’re touching up to the size of a large vessel.
In addition to this the map may only be used once per day.
