Party of the Third Part
Anywhere in the sky
From a chance meeting
5 scenes. Choices with a requirement only appear when you meet it.
The Brass Clerk
Right away1A raft of lashed crates drifts through the sky with a brass construct sitting upright atop it, holding a leather document case across its knees. It raises one hand in greeting as you pass. "I am the third party to a legal contract. My transport ship was wrecked, and I am due at a port signing."
- Bring the brass clerk aboard and give it passage.It thanks you politely, names its destination port, and sits motionless in your cargo hold clutching its document case.
- [Construct] Have crewmate ask what contract the clerk is traveling to sign.Crew: ConstructThe two constructs converse in rapid mechanical clicks. crewmate returns with a solemn report: "It does not know what the contract says—it was only instructed to sign upon arrival." You plot the destination port on your chart.
- Haul the construct aboard and sell it to a scrap dealer for 45 silver.A salvage breaker's barge is working the nearby wreckage. The scrap dealer pays you forty-five silver by weight, taking the construct and its document case together.+45 silver
- Set course and fly on.It lowers its brass hand and continues drifting among the debris.The questline ends here.
The Open Case
Right away2On the second night of the voyage, the brass clerk still sits motionless—but its document case now lies unlatched on the deck beside it, displaying a seal press and three copies of a contract placed face-down. Your crew swear nobody touched the latch. The construct sits in silence, waiting to see if you will read them.
- Read the contract aloud to the brass clerk.It is a bill of sale selling the brass clerk itself to a scrap-breaker's yard by weight. When you read the terms aloud, the construct listens with folded hands. "Thank you, Captain. I was told I would learn the terms at the signing—I did not expect the courtesy beforehand."
- Close the document case without reading the private papers.In the morning, the construct thanks you for respecting its privacy and pays thirty silver for its passage from a coin compartment in its chest.+30 silver
- [Quartermaster] Have crewmate privately inspect the contract by lantern light.Crew: Quartermastercrewmate reads all three copies and places them back face-down. "It's a bill of sale scrapping the clerk—but there's a clause on the second page we can use at the port office." In the morning, the clerk pays thirty silver for its passage.+30 silver
The Scrap Dealer's Scale
Right away3Before the construct is even off the weighing scale, the scrap dealer's apprentice pops open the document case. "Boss, look—this is a bill of sale selling this very construct to our yard, signed by the factory and just waiting for the clerk's own mark!" The dealer bursts out laughing. "You just sold me my own scrap, Captain! Only it has to sign the transfer at the port office, or the factory can call this theft."
- Keep the 45 silver and carry the construct to the port office signing for him.He lets you keep the forty-five silver as your transport fee and marches the brass clerk back up your gangway with its document case.
- Refund his 45 silver, take the clerk back, and tell it what the contract says.Costs 45 silverStill laughing, the scrap dealer takes his coin back. Once aboard your deck, you read the bill of sale aloud to the construct, which listens with folded hands. "Thank you, Captain. Now I know what awaits me at the port office."
The Port Office Signing
At a port4 Bring the brass clerk to the port office for the contract signing.
Three copies of the contract lie across the port office table, already signed by the closing factory and the scrap-breaker's yard. The brass clerk reads its copy slowly and looks up. "This is a bill of sale—and I am the merchandise being sold for scrap."
- Tell the construct to sign the bill of sale and collect your 80 silver fee.The construct signs all three copies. The scrap dealer pays you eighty silver for completing the delivery.+80 silver+1 The Compact standingThe questline ends here.
- [Quartermaster] Have crewmate cite the legal loophole on the second page.Crew: Quartermastercrewmate points out the contradiction in Compact law: property cannot legally sign a contract, and any legal party asked to sign has the right to refuse. The clerk sets down the pen, joins your crew, and brings along a mechanical device from its case.New crewmate: ConstructDevice: a random deviceThe questline ends here.
- [Gnome] Have crewmate buy out the scrap contract for 40 silver.Crew: GnomeCosts 40 silvercrewmate haggles the scrap dealer down to forty silver and tears up all three copies of the bill of sale. The freed construct packs the torn paper into its case and signs onto your crew.New crewmate: Construct+1 The Compact standingThe questline ends here.
- Back the construct up as it refuses to sign its own bill of sale.Forewarned by you on the voyage, the construct sets down the pen. "Property cannot sign a contract. Since I am required to sign as a legal party, I exercise my right to refuse delivery." Stunned, neither the clerk nor the scrap dealer can refute the logic, and the construct walks out onto the dock.
- Rip up the contracts and march the construct back to your ship by force.You tear the papers in half and escort the construct aboard your ship, gaining a new crew member while the furious scrap dealer reports your hull number to the authorities.New crewmate: Construct−1 The Compact standing+1 heatThe questline ends here.
Free on the Quay
Right away5Outside on the dock, the brass clerk sets down its case. "I have never refused an order before—I do not know what to do next." Behind you, the scrap dealer is shouting threats, while the factory's agent nervously calculates how much thirty years of unpaid back wages will cost if the construct is legally a person.
- Recruit the brass clerk onto your crew.Delighted to have a position with official duties, the construct drafts its own crew articles on the spot and carries its case of shipboard instruments up your gangway.New crewmate: ConstructDevice: a random deviceThe questline ends here.
- Help the construct claim thirty years of back wages from the factory.The construct drafts an airtight wage claim on the spot, forcing the factory agent to pay out in full. It gives you a hundred and twenty silver as your share and sets up a legal consulting desk right on the dock.+120 silver+1 The Compact standingThe questline ends here.
Data from Magehold Fairwinds v1.9.26. Spotted something out of date? Discord