Part 5: Three Sheets to the Wind8th of September
With the Proudmoore Admiralty in a weakened state as of late, the pirates on Kul Tiras had grown increasingly bold. That much had become clear throughout the duration of the orcs' stay upon this island. Proof of this came all the more in Captain Climidea Curtsy's bold plan, as the time had finally come to unveil it to the orcs. As it turned out, a pact had been made between all the many different pirate factions and crews to band together and make a daring assault into the Tiragarde Sound. In order to get the entire pirate fleet there however, there was one obstacle that had to be dealt with: Daelin's Gate. This impressive fortification held the strait that led ships into the Tiragarde Sound, and as such had to be taken down. The pirates clearly had a plan to deal with that... but there was still a road to take to get there first.
In order to strengthen his own thinned out crew (and no doubt to expand a little beyond that just to make sure he would have more sway with the other pirates with a bigger crew to back him up), Curtsy's plan was to involve the Red Blade orcs into a little aggressive expansion. To prepare for the assault on Daelin's Gate, the plan was to hit as many taverns and inns in Freehold in an attempt to recruit any who might be swayed to join Curtsy's side. A selfish goal, to be sure, but he was still the best chance the orcs had to finding a way off this island. Besides, it mattered little to the orcs whether these pirates were loyal to one pirate lord or to another. They would fight the Kul Tirans one way or another, regardless of who their master was. And so, the orcs split up. One group led by Climidea himself, and another by Zul'garr Firefist, a sailor who had recently linked up with the clan and just so happened to be familiar with the nightlife of Freehold.
Climidea's group started off easy. The first inn, Dead Man's Tale, appeared to be a respectable enough place. It proved to be quite unlike any usual tavern with rowdy pirates. Instead, a humble crew of privateers were having dinner at its tables when they were approached by the orcs in an attempt to recruit them. Just as the talks were underway however, a second group arrived. Blacktooth Brawlers. They attempted to convince the orcs to side with them in order to take over the establishment, kicking the privateers out. Just as the orcs were threatened to be involved in a pirate conflict, Zouyo Rainclaw offered a solution: a drinking contest. The Brawlers agreed, but to their own rules... a game of drinking -and- brawling. Whoever beat the most ale out of his opponent's flagon with a club, won. Zouyo, Lo'Gush Heartseeker and Razaron Madeye stepped forth to take up the challenge against the Brawlers' champions, the Clubbers. The orcs threatened to lose as Zouyo lost to a particularly heavy-handed dwarf and Lo'Gush drew against the second champion, but then Razaron gained the upper hand and beat his opponent, winning over not only a small crew of the Blacktooth Brawlers, but also the onlooking Great Sea Privateers! Two birds in one stone.
Next up was Rodrigo's Rides, where the innkeep heartily welcomed them. After a brief exchange of drinks, he offered the services of his famed Parroteers... but only if they could answer his game of wit by providing the right answers with the right mindset. The right mindset, as it turned out, proved to be filled with lousy puns and overly simple logic that the innkeeper found utterly hilarious, to the point of fainting. The orcs managed to provide the right answers after a bit of prying and prodding however, so the Parroteers were won over to their side.
Next was the largest tavern on their path, aptly titled "The Relieved Pants Pub". It certainly wouldn't get any more atmospheric than this in Freehold, considering the sheer amount of brawling and drinking that went on there. It would prove difficult to gain the attention of any of these gentlemen without any serious intervention, however. The orcs chose for the option of distraction. By announcing free ale outside the tavern, the entire throng rushed outside in a panic, leaving behind only those who had already passed out or were only just awake enough to stand on their own feet. It wasn't much, but the scallywags were men after Climidea's heart. He took whatever drunkard he could find and shipped them off to his ship in the harbour in hopes of seeing them sobered up the next day... or two.
On Zul'garr's end, another impressive display of pirate diplomacy was shown. First, they happened upon crew members who belonged to the Bilgerats, three Hozen, two Vulperan and finally, two Quillboar - one named Snuffly and another particularly big one named Pork Scratching. They seemed to be an approachable enough sort despite their appearance... but unfortunately, due to a misunderstanding, Snuffly thought the orcs's attempt to bribe them was an attempt to poison them, ensuing in a risky fight. The fight was quickly cut short however, as the nine foot tall Pork Scratching was punched once in the chest, and then proceeded to bawl like a small babe. As the rest of the crew gathered around to comfort the big oaf, they agreed to work for the captain in exchange for the mean orcs not hurting him again.
The second group on their way were a bunch of gambling Goblins who went by the name of the Clever Boys, led by a goblin who seemed to be wearing a particularly lousy attempt at an orc costume called Grimgashgorsh Smolorcen (his actual name being Jace Gilttrouser). To supplement his beliefs, he kept insisting he was a midget orc. Realizing he couldn't match the "bigger orcs" for strength, however, he challenged the group to a riddle game in exchange for their service. Surprisingly enough, the orcs won. When Smolorcen attempted to scavenge some lost honour through a last riddle, they lost once more, resulting in them working for half the original pay.
Finally, there was a group of five Kul Tirans led by a massive man called Bosun James. The orcs were met with a particularly nasty welcome, as the men hated orcs with a passion. The group was forced into agreeing to work for Captain Curtsy after having lost a classical brawl, however, promptly forcing them into service. One of them commented about a certain Captain Stone not being happy that they will have switched sides, but such concerns were quickly quelled when he was silence by the Bosun in an attempt to keep such news quiet for whatever reason... Hopefully not a thing that will come back to haunt the orcs.
All in all, the night resulted in an impressive haul of fresh crewmen for Captain Curtsy. One that is certain to make him one of the more "respected" and more popular captains, all thanks to the orcs' efforts. One can only wonder - or fear - what purposes the captain might have in mind for such an impressive crew... and what awaits at Daelin's Gate, for that matter.