The Trade Agent's Strongbox
From a chance meeting
Possible rewards: Merchant's Seal Guild Master's Seal
5 scenes. Choices with a requirement only appear when you meet it.
The Trade Agent's Boat
Right away1A dismasted Guild boat wallows in the sky. The trade agent in the stern has lost his hat, but not his voice. "Wreckers ambushed me! They stole the district strongbox with the official Guild seal inside and left me with nothing but the oars. Recover it from their hideout at Saltpan Hole, and the Guild will reward your ship well."
- Accept the job and take the trade agent aboard.He climbs aboard as if he owns the deck and marks Saltpan Hole on your chart from memory.
- [Quartermaster] Have crewmate press him on what else is inside the strongbox.Crew: Quartermaster"Just trade papers," he replies too quickly. crewmate notes the lie as the agent marks both Saltpan Hole and the surrounding patrol routes on your chart.Reveal 2 waypoints
- Tow his boat to the nearest dock and leave the job to someone else.He pays the standard towing fee and not a single coin more.+20 silverThe questline ends here.
A Guest in the Galley
Right away2The trade agent claims the best chair in your galley, helps himself to seconds, and boasts about the district as if he built it himself. Twice he asks how fast your ship can fly, and once whether your crew can carry a strongbox without prying it open. Meanwhile, his boat trails behind on a tow line with a locked chart case tucked under its rear bench.
- Demand an advance on your payment.He counts out twenty silver as if parting with each coin hurts him. "You'll get the rest when the strongbox is back in my hands."+20 silver
- Send a crewman to search his towed boat while he eats.Your crewman pries open the chart case with a knife. Inside is a clean copy of Guild convoy sailing schedules—something no honest trade agent has any reason to carry in an open boat. Your crewman locks it back in place before returning.
- [Galley] Serve him a generous meal and let him talk himself into a slip.Room: GalleyBy his third helping, he is bragging about which patrol routes never pass near Saltpan Hole and how a clever captain could slip past them. He never realizes what he has given away, and your helmsman marks every blind spot on the chart.−1 provisionsReveal 3 waypoints
Saltpan Hole
Sail to Saltpan Hole (2–4 passages away)3 Recover the district strongbox from the wreckers at Saltpan Hole.
The wreckers operate out of an old salt pan carved into the cliffside. Their chief sits atop the stolen strongbox, mending a net. "So the agent sent you. Did he mention he's been selling us Guild convoy schedules for three seasons? This box is his cut, held back because his last tip arrived late and one of our ships ran straight into a patrol cutter."
- Attack the wreckers and seize the strongbox by force.The chief sets down her net and calls her crew to arms.Battle: Sky pirates · Close rangeIf you win:+15 silver
- Pay the 35 silver the trade agent owes them to ransom the box.Costs 35 silverShe counts the silver and steps off the strongbox. "Read what's inside before you hand it back to him. Then ask yourself who the real pirate is."
- [Vulpine] Have crewmate negotiate a deal.Crew: Vulpinecrewmate and the chief spend an hour trading stories about mutual acquaintances. In the end, she hands over the strongbox for two casks of your provisions and a promise that you will read the papers inside.−2 provisions
- Betray the trade agent and hand him over to the wreckers instead.You haul the trade agent into Saltpan Hole at the end of his own tow line. He goes dead silent the moment he sees the wrecker chief sitting on the strongbox.
- Leave it for now.She goes back to mending her net while you withdraw.
The District Seal
Right away4 Decide what to do with the district strongbox and the incriminating schedules.
Inside the strongbox lies the official district seal, and beneath it sit three seasons of signed convoy schedules proving the trade agent's treason. When you return to your ship, he is waiting anxiously at the rail. "Whatever that wrecker told you," he says quickly, "I can pay you better to forget it."
- Hand over the strongbox and the incriminating schedules for his hush money.He pays you eighty silver on the spot and burns the incriminating schedules in your galley stove before going ashore.+80 silver+1 The Guild standingThe questline ends here.
- Keep the incriminating schedules and blackmail him into stamping your contracts.He goes pale, then accepts the arrangement. From now on, every contract your ship signs carries the official district seal and pays full Guild rates—though he will not forget how you forced his hand.The questline ends here.
- Blackmail him with both the strongbox papers and the second list from his boat.He slumps against your rail, knowing he cannot burn two separate sets of evidence. He agrees to stamp all your future contracts with the district seal and hands over thirty silver for your silence.The questline ends here.
- Turn the treasonous schedules over to the Guild court.The Guild court convicts him within the week. The disgraced agent is sentenced to hard labor in the lower mines he once taxed, and the court awards you forty-five silver for exposing him.+45 silver+2 The Guild standingThe questline ends here.
- [Guild +1] Turn him in to the Guild court and petition for his shipping contracts.The Guild standing 1+Because your ship already stands in good favor with the Guild, the court grants your petition. The corrupt agent is sent to the mines, and his lucrative shipping privileges—along with the district seal—are transferred to your command.Relic: Guild Master's Seal+1 The Guild standingThe questline ends here.
The Wreckers' Share
Right away5The chief studies the captive trade agent, then turns to you. "He is worth far more to the Guild in ransom than he ever paid us. We'll hold him until they pay up, and he won't be selling convoy schedules again." She kicks open the strongbox lid. "Take your finder's share: coin, or the official seal he was so terrified of losing."
- Take the silver.She counts out seventy-five silver from the trade agent's withheld cut while he watches every coin leave the box. Every wrecker on the coast will know your ship as a friend now—and before long, the Guild will know what you did.+75 silver+1 The Free Captains standing−1 The Guild standingThe questline ends here.
- Take the Guild district seal.She tosses you the seal in its velvet case. Its stamp works just as well for you as it did for him, earning your ship preferred Guild rates from coastal merchants—at least until someone asks how you got it.The questline ends here.
- Take the district seal and warn her about the second schedule list hidden in his boat.She sends a runner to search his boat and reads the second list with narrowed eyes. "So he was selling schedules to a rival gang behind our backs." She gives you the district seal along with a purse of forty silver for uncovering his double-cross.The questline ends here.
Data from Magehold Fairwinds v1.9.26. Spotted something out of date? Discord