Guardian Trainer Brutus
Greeting
"Brutus. Pirate fighting is dirty fighting. I'll teach you to be dirtier."
Dialogue Topics
Town
A smuggler's cove that grew into a town. Hidden coves, contraband, and everything for sale at the right price. Captain Nemo discovered the portal to the Sunken Empire from here.
Training
I train those who would defend Saltport. The threats here are real -- you'll need every skill you can learn.
advice
Never pay full price, never turn your back on the tide, and never trust a captain with clean boots.
Threat
The pirate syndicate traffics corrupted artifacts from ancient sites. Pirate Lord Blackbeard built a fleet in the hidden coves. And the cove's deep waters connect to the Sunken Empire -- ancient things stir below.
Government
Loosely governed -- Captain Nemo and the pirate captains hold power. Fisherman Jack is the voice of the common folk, but in Saltport, gold speaks louder than votes.
Trade
Everything -- legal or not. Smuggled goods, pirate treasure, rare items from the Sunken Empire. The coves hide more than ships. They hide secrets.
Corruption
The corrupted artifacts flow through Saltport like water. The syndicate doesn't care what they sell -- only what they earn. But someone is buying these artifacts for a purpose, and that purpose isn't profit.
Faction
The Syndicate -- profit, freedom, and the black market. The Crown's guards can't reach us here. Let them try.
The Pirate's Code
There's a pirate code -- not the kind you follow, the kind you find. Blackbeard's code. It's supposed to be hidden in a cave near Saltport, and it details every smuggling route on the coast. The Syndicate has been looking for it for years. If you can find it before they do, we can shut down the corrupted artifact trafficking. The cave is somewhere in the hidden coves. Good luck.
Cave Fishers in the Coves
The hidden coves used to be safe -- perfect for hiding contraband. Now the cave fishers have moved in. Strange fish-things that drag their prey into crevices. Captain Nemo says they're not natural -- they were drawn by the corrupted artifacts the syndicate has been trafficking. The sea doesn't like what we've been hiding in it.
Reef Crawlers on the Coast
The reef crawlers have spread from Port Tidesong's sea caves to our coves. Bigger and meaner than they used to be. The corruption in the water is changing everything. Fisherman Jack says the catch has been half what it used to be. The fish are fleeing. Smart fish.
The Trench Stalker
Something came up from the deep trench -- the trench stalker. It hunts in the lower coves, where the water is dark and the tunnels lead down. The smugglers won't go there anymore. They say it's guarding the path to something. The Sunken Empire, maybe. Or something worse that the empire is hiding from.
Abyssal Horrors in the Deep Coves
The abyssal horrors are the reason the lower coves are empty. Tentacled things from the ocean floor, drawn by the corrupted artifacts. They've turned the deepest coves into their hunting ground. Whatever the syndicate was trafficking, it attracted the wrong kind of attention. The sea is reclaiming what we stole.