The Siphon Buoy
From a chance meeting
Possible rewards: Leadglass Ribs
5 scenes. Choices with a requirement only appear when you meet it.
The Undertow Pipe-Fitter
Right away1A makeshift skiff of iron pipe and tarred canvas is sinking fast. The man bailing it wears an Undertow armband and a heavy valve key on a cord around his neck.
"I'm Jory Kesk, an Undertow pipe-fitter," he calls out. "I helped install a siphon buoy a day from here that drains mana straight out of the sky. They told me it would only darken Crown lamps—instead, it drained the keel-stones under my mother's village and dropped it into the abyss. I have the shutoff key, but I can't reach the buoy alone."
"I'm Jory Kesk, an Undertow pipe-fitter," he calls out. "I helped install a siphon buoy a day from here that drains mana straight out of the sky. They told me it would only darken Crown lamps—instead, it drained the keel-stones under my mother's village and dropped it into the abyss. I have the shutoff key, but I can't reach the buoy alone."
- Bring him aboard and set course for the siphon buoy.He scrambles over your rail with the valve key between his teeth and marks the buoy's location on your chart.
- [Undertow +1] Ask how long before an Undertow tender checks on the buoy.The Undertow standing 1+"They won't send a tender until they notice I'm gone—at least a week," he says, marking both the buoy and the secret approach lane their tenders use.Reveal 3 waypoints
- Turn him over to the Crown provost for a bounty.The provost pays you thirty silver for capturing an Undertow engineer, then eyes the valve key. "Locking him in a cell won't shut that buoy down. Take him back out there in irons—and take my demolition sapper with you."+30 silver+1 The Crown standing−1 The Undertow standing
- Toss him an empty cask to float on and fly away. (-1 provisions)He grabs the floating cask with the valve key still hanging around his neck as your ship pulls away.−1 provisionsThe questline ends here.
The Shutoff Key
Right away2Kesk dries off by your galley stove and sketches the buoy on the mess table: a massive mana tank, a main intake valve, and an outer shell of leadglass ribs.
"An Undertow tender comes every six days to pump out the mana it drains," he says. "The intake valve is stiff—when I wrench it shut, the clang will echo for miles through the fog." He glances down at his raw, blistered palms.
"An Undertow tender comes every six days to pump out the mana it drains," he says. "The intake valve is stiff—when I wrench it shut, the clang will echo for miles through the fog." He glances down at his raw, blistered palms.
- Give him a hot meal and let him sleep before the approach. (-1 provisions)He eats two bowls of stew and sleeps for twelve hours. Refreshed, he marks the Undertow tenders' approach lane and navigation landmarks on your chart.−1 provisionsReveal 3 waypoints
- [Surgeon] Have crewmate treat and bandage his blistered hands.Crew: Surgeoncrewmate cleans and binds his raw palms. Kesk flexes his fingers gratefully. "With my hands steady, I can grease the valve first and ease it shut without making a sound."
- Head straight for the siphon buoy without delay.He wraps the key cord twice around his wrist as your helmsman steers into the Hush fog.
The Provost's Sapper
Right away3Crown sapper Dace Morrow boards your ship carrying two kegs of blasting powder, while Kesk sits on the deck in irons.
"A shut valve can just be opened again," Morrow says. "A blown tank stays dead forever. Kesk claims the buoy's leadglass shell is worth salvaging for your hull, but I say we blow the whole thing sky-high. Your ship, Captain—whose plan are we following?"
"A shut valve can just be opened again," Morrow says. "A blown tank stays dead forever. Kesk claims the buoy's leadglass shell is worth salvaging for your hull, but I say we blow the whole thing sky-high. Your ship, Captain—whose plan are we following?"
- Unlock Kesk's chains and follow his plan to shut the valve by hand.Morrow shrugs and unlocks his irons. Kesk rubs his wrists and marks the buoy and the tender lanes on your chart, while Morrow keeps her powder kegs dry just in case.Reveal 2 waypoints
- Follow the sapper's plan and bring her blasting powder to destroy the buoy.Kesk falls silent. Morrow requisitions three casks of garrison rations for your hold and guards her powder kegs for the entire trip.+3 provisions
The Siphon Buoy
Sail to The Siphon Buoy (1–3 passages away)4 Reach the Undertow siphon buoy and shut it down.
The siphon buoy is a chapel-sized mana tank suspended in the sky by pulsing pipes and armored in leadglass ribs. For a mile around it, the air is drained gray and lifeless.
Kesk fits his key into the main valve. "If I shut the valve, the Hush fog here will thin out. Or I can strip off the leadglass ribs to armor your hull, and let the unshielded buoy drain itself to pieces over the next month. I only have time for one before a patrol arrives."
Kesk fits his key into the main valve. "If I shut the valve, the Hush fog here will thin out. Or I can strip off the leadglass ribs to armor your hull, and let the unshielded buoy drain itself to pieces over the next month. I only have time for one before a patrol arrives."
- Turn the key to shut down the siphon valve.
- Have sapper Morrow blow the siphon buoy apart with her powder kegs.Morrow lashes both powder kegs beneath the main tank and lights a long fuse. The buoy detonates in a blinding flash that clears the Hush fog for a mile around, and the provost pays you seventy silver on your return.The front falls back 1+70 silver+1 The Crown standing−1 The Undertow standingThe questline ends here.
- Strip the Leadglass Ribs off the buoy to armor your own hull.Your crew unbolt the curved Leadglass Ribs and brace them inside your hull. Kesk watches frost form on the bare tank: "Without its shielding, it'll drain itself dry in a month."Relic: Leadglass RibsThe questline ends here.
- [Gnome] Have crewmate shut the valve while Kesk strips the Leadglass Ribs so you get both.Crew: Gnomecrewmate figures out the valve mechanism in a minute and locks it shut permanently while Kesk unbolts the Leadglass Ribs for your hull. Kesk stays behind on the buoy to face the Undertow tender himself.The front falls back 1Relic: Leadglass RibsThe questline ends here.
- Leave it for now.You pull back from the siphon buoy for now.
The Undertow Tender
Right away5An Undertow tender emerges from the gray fog with her pipes trailing. A woman at her bow recognizes Kesk on the buoy.
"Jory, that's your key in our valve," she calls out. Kesk keeps his grip on the iron bar. "This buoy drained the keel-stones under Harrow Stones, Anwen! My mother died when the village fell!" The tender's crew hesitate—the valve is shut, but their ship carries a key of its own.
"Jory, that's your key in our valve," she calls out. Kesk keeps his grip on the iron bar. "This buoy drained the keel-stones under Harrow Stones, Anwen! My mother died when the village fell!" The tender's crew hesitate—the valve is shut, but their ship carries a key of its own.
- Fight her off.The tender swings her weapons toward your hull as Kesk throws himself flat over the shut valve!Battle: Hollowed ship · Close rangeIf you win:+10 crystalThe questline ends here.
- Let Kesk board the tender to convince its crew to leave the valve shut.
- [Undertow +1] Remind her captain of the Undertow allies you've helped to prove Kesk is right.The Undertow standing 1+Recognizing your ship's reputation with the Undertow, the captain relents. "We didn't build this buoy to murder our own villages." She leaves the valve shut, drains ten mana crystals into your bunkers as a courtesy, and takes Kesk back to testify before Undertow leadership.+10 crystal+1 The Undertow standingThe questline ends here.
Data from Magehold Fairwinds v1.9.26. Spotted something out of date? Discord