Ghost Ship

The Ghost Ship

"I believe I can enlighten you on that matter, me
lad," exclaimed Aghar.

"And what do you know of ghost ships and ghosts, old
man?"

Young Irondar eyes the old man, if he really knows
anything.

"I saw it once, while sailing under the Bloodhawk. You
know that ship, me lad?"

Oh yeah, Irondar heard of the legendary Captain Timor
and his infamous ship while growing up. All of the
people in this port have heard of him in one way or
another. Only when the Elven Imperial Navy arrived did
he curtailed his activities. There is a rumor that he
is plying his trades in another part of the crystal
sphere. He is, or was, a hunter seeker, a bounty
hunter, and his ship is, or was, crewed by some of the
most fearsome skilled men and women this space way
have ever seen. His name and his ship is synonymous
with unrelenting tenacity to catch a mark.

"I was a cook in that vessel and after seeing ghost
ship, I went to shore and never boarded another space
faring ship."

"So was it that scary seeing the ghost ship?"

"Yes, after the watch alerted the crew, I went on the
main deck to see the commotion, and in front of me was
a galleon, in all it's spooky glory. The ship was in
full sail and it was bearing down like it was going to
ram us on the port side. I can still see that eerie
glow and that unearthly essence from the ship. I felt
it pulse from a distance, like a heart beating. I
swear that I saw the stars behind the ship, it was
translucent and shimmering, in an eerie way. The weird
thing was from all the stories I heard before of ghost
ships, this one was in good condition. The sails
were not tattered and the ship itself was in better
condition than the Bloodhawk. I saw ghosts  adjusting
the rigging, masts and sails. They look like they were
alive and not an undead sense that I saw or felt, if
you know what I mean. We did all we could, but that
ship rammed us, or it tried to, and it passed through
the Bloodhawk. When part of that ship passed through
me, I felt the coldest chill this old bones have ever
felt. It scared me and when we docked for repairs
and supply, I left the ship and never again returned.
I think that is why Captain Timor left for other parts
of wildspace, because he can't bear to witness again
the only thing that ever scared him. You can fight the
living and even the undead, but ghost and their ghost
ship is another thing. Most of the crew aged that day,
and the oldest ones were dead cold when we saw them
next after the incident. It seemed like they were
scared by a hundred ghosts at the same time, which
happened, I tell you."

"So where can I find this glorious ship of yours old
man?"

"We saw it by the leeward side of the last moon of
Deneb, Mystera," the old man answered young Irondar in
frank candor.

"I think that is one area I will avoid," smiled
Irondar, "I am not ready to be sent to the next realm,
my god can wait, if you know what I mean."

Aghar laughed and hoped that that ship would stay
where it was, like a good ghost ship and not wander
around scaring god fearing folks.

-------------------------------------
This is a start of an idea sparked by the Sci-Fi
Channel new show Phantom Force. A magic item that can
turn a ship and it crew into a ghost ship. The Phantom
Stone turn the ship and everything on board into
non-corporeal or ethereal state. If you are a
ghost-like through magic or ethereal then you can
board the ship as if it is a normal ship in real
space. Combat on board while in this state would be
like normal combat. The ship, because of it massive
use of magic, is somewhat anchored in real space and
can be seen in normal space. The ship can fly almost
through anything, like an asteroid or other ships,
except items that are bane to real ghosts, like
ethereal steel. The ship itself can not be turned
since it is not alive, but the crew is subject to a
cleric's ability to turn undead. Since the ship and
the crew are not undead, they don't look like what you
would think ghost ship would be like. The ship and the
crew are in the same condition when they converted, so
no broken down ship, tattered sails or ghastly undead
crew. The Phantom Stone's magic can be turned off
anytime and the magic can be used once a month. The
ghost conversion will last until the Phantom Stone is
powered down.

A few questions...

1) Can the ship convert into non-corporeal without
being based in ethereal space? Their own non-corporeal
dimension apart from the ethereal zone?

2) Since the crew are not real ghosts, but a
facsimile, can they used aging attacks on opponents on
real space?

3) Can the ship have this aging effect on opposing
ship or crew in real space, if at all possible?

My group will have their hands full trying to figure
out how to stop this menace. =)

P.S. The rumor that the phantom stone was created by a
40th level magic-wielding phaerimm is not to be
believed by sane folks. Everyone knows that the evil
creature called phaerimm are no more and are only used
to frighten children, when they act up.


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