Ghosts of Iron
A one-shot adventure for Crystal Heart
Piracy is nothing new to the Islands,
but of late a new phenomenon has reared its strange metal head.
An iron-clad ghost ship attacks traders
around the Large Lands, appearing out of
nowhere and disappearing back beneath
the waves.
This is the Arakil, a Bygone Age submarine
which was recently discovered by Delmin
Sendo, formerly the first mate of a small
Fjordstadian frigate until she was thrown
out of her city in disgrace. Now calling her-
self “Captain Sendo,” she gathered a group
of disgruntled engineers around her, and the
crew became pirates, rising to prominence
with a series of daring raids against mer-
chant vessels.
Pirates Aplenty
A Syn flight over the South Chain recently
spotted a massive submarine breaching the
surface close to Hanaleili, a port known to
be favored by pirates. The vessel is clearly
a relic from the Bygone Age and corrobo-
rates the fragmented stories being spread by
survivors of the attacks. While there is no
evidence that the pirates are in possession
of any Crystals, the existence of such a vessel
and the damage it has caused is sufficient to
warrant an intervention by Agents of Syn.
Their orders: Seize the vessel or send its
wreckage to the bottom of the ocean.
Built around a natural harbor on the south
tip of a small Island, Hanaleili is a bustling
hive of activity. The port is frequented by
numerous pirate crews and has become a
haven for those seeking to offload goods ac-
quired through dubious means. While the
docks are the busiest part of the port, the
market square is the heart of the community.
Surrounded by taverns and warehouses, all
trade is conducted out in the open, ensuring
a constant coming and going as new loot is
brought ashore.
The Agents’ only ally in the port is Jala, a
local who has worked with Syn in the past.
Jala has gathered some important intel about
the pirate submarine and even has access to
2
a small cache of supplies (equal to 3 levels).
He was already paid by Syn, but claims he
wasn’t, demanding the Agents hand over 1
Requisition per piece of info or level of sup-
plies. An Intimidation roll can lower him to
1 Requisition for the whole info packet, but
a raise can make him completely back off,
forcing him to reveal his bluff.
Jala is able to provide the following intel.
• The ship is called the Arakil. She seems
old and strange, and the crew is mostly
Fjordstadian.
• Captain Sendo regularly resupplies at
Hanaleili, but in order to do that, she dis-
patches the Ishmu, an auxiliary submarine.
The Arakil is too large for the harbor.
• The captain herself never leaves the ship.
The Ishmu is piloted by First Mate Illira
Tomovic, along with a handful of crew.
Illira has a reputation for being direct
and aggressive. She is the only one who
knows the rendezvous coordinates where
the Arakil is waiting.
• The pirates can often be found in a tav-
ern called the Crystal Kraken, where Illira
spends hours poring over maps of the Is-
lands and meeting with contacts that sell
her the routes of lucrative prizes.
Approaching the First Mate: Tomovic has
been sent ashore to obtain supplies and the
latest intel on potential targets. Forthright
and arrogant, she will engage the team di-
rectly when approached by them, trusting in
her combat prowess and willingness to fight
dirty. She will take the first chance she gets
to surprise them with a sudden shot from
her hidden pistol, signaling to her crew to
attack.
Tomovic will surrender when she’s the
last woman standing, or when she’s brought
down to her third Wound level. However, she
can also become very bitter, very fast. Any
successful Taunt Test on her will make her
so spiteful that she’ll prefer dying in battle
rather than giving the Agents the satisfac-
tion of getting any information out of her.
The Arakil’s location can also be deduced
from the First Mate’s navigation journals,
with a Boating or Research roll.
Taking the Ishmu: The small submarine
is the best way to approach the Arakil. First,
because the larger sub will be waiting under-
water, and second because Captain Sendo
expects the Ishmu to return.
The Ishmu is docked in a wooden boat-
house to the side of the port, guarded by a
trio of pirates. They probably had time to
hear of the Agents’ bar brawl with their First
Mate, and so they’ve trapped the entrance
and rigged the windows with small flash
bombs (Vigor -2 or become Shaken) and hid
behind the crates of supplies.

First Mate Illira Tomovic

Illira Tomovic gets things done. If the Cap-
tain ordered the crew to jump it would be
Tomovic that told them how high. Born with
a congenital hand difference that affected
the development of her lower left arm, she
fights with a custom built cutlass pistol.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d6, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d6, Battle d4, Boating d8,
Common Knowledge d4, Fighting d10,
Intimidation d8, Notice d6, Persuasion
d4, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Thievery d8 Written by Craig Duffy
Pace: 6; Parry: 8; Toughness: 7 (1) Crystal Heart by Aviv Or and Eran Aviram
Edges: Extraction, First Strike, Streetwise, Art by Aviv Or
Trademark Weapon (Cutlass pistol, +1 ap- Editing by Eran Aviram and Keith Garrett
plied to Fighting) Layout based on designs by Manuel Serra Saez
Hindrances: Arrogant, One Arm and Ruben Smith-Zempel
Gear: Leather armor (1 Armor), cutlass pistol This game references the Savage Worlds game
(see below) system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment
Special Abilities: Group at www.peginc.com. Savage Worlds
• Cutlass Pistol: Can be used as either a and all associated logos and trademarks are
cutlass (Str+d8) or a pistol (10/20/40, 2d6, copyrights of Pinnacle Entertainment Group.
RoF 1, Shots 6). Min Str d6. Used with permission. Pinnacle makes no
• Specialist Ammo: One chamber of the representation or warranty as to the quality, vi-
cutlass pistol is loaded with a smoke round ability, or suitability for purpose of this product.
that explodes on impact creating a dense © 2019 Eran Aviram and Aviv Or, Up to Four
cloud of smoke (Small Blast Template, -4 Players www.uptofourplayers.com
penalty to actions requiring sight) for 3
rounds. Illira uses the smoke as a distrac-
tion, blinding one group of enemies as she
charges into combat with another.

3
 A Perilous Journey
The Ishmu is of Fjordstadian construction
and held together by patchwork repairs.
Using it to reach the Arakil is a Quick En-
counter taking place over four rounds.
If by the end of the fourth round the team
accumulates a number of successes at least
equal to the number of Agents, they arrive
on time and without raising any suspicion,
gaining The Drop during their first con-
frontation with the crew after docking as
they take the pirates by surprise. If they fail
then they arrive late or fail to respond in a
proper manner, and the paranoid Captain
makes sure her crew is alert and ready for
anything.
The four rounds of the Quick Encounter
are:
• Navigating a series of undersea trenches:
Boating, only one Agent can roll but the
others can Support (perhaps with Com-
mon Knowledge, Notice, or Survival).
• Repairing an engine blowout: Engineer-
ing at -2, up to two Agents can physically
be next to the engine at the same time
(others can Support in other ways).
• Impersonating the crew when contacted
over radio by the Arakil: Intimidation or
Performance.
• Docking with the Arakil: Boating, only
one Agent can roll, but others can Support.
Taking the Arakil
The Arakil is a relic of the Bygone Age, a
metal monstrosity with an armored prow
that the pirates use to ram merchant ships
with. The ship almost seems like it was dug
out of a huge block of metal, rather than con-
structed: Narrow, tube-like corridors carved
directly into the thick metallic hull connect
between bubble-like hollows.
The largest room is filled with enormous,
humming cylinders that disappear into
the ceiling and somehow propel the boat
through the water. Other, smaller bubbles
have been repurposed into cramped living
quarters and chaotic workspaces. Electri-
cal light permeates the open spaces but
many of the corridors are sealed off behind
semi-translucent walls or shrouded in dark-
ness. The crew of 30-odd pirates is dispersed
4
throughout the Arakil with the majority
currently assembling at the front boarding
hatches in preparation for boarding actions.
The small docking bay for the Ishmu is at
the stern of the boat and connects directly
to a cavernous space that the pirates have
transformed into a hold. Three pirates are
working in the hold but are not expecting
trouble unless the Quick Encounter ended
in failure, in which case there are instead
six pirates, and with weapons drawn.
The easiest way to seize control of the
Arakil is to capture the bridge, located
in the exact center of the submarine and
manned by Captain Sendo and six pirates.
Getting there requires passing through the
propulsion bubble, bunk rooms, and the
galley, which is stocked high with barrels
of spirits. As the Agents enter each section,
draw a card; if a Club is drawn the room is
occupied by three pirates who attempt to
escape, instigating a chase as they try to
alert the Captain.
The Bridge: This stuffy room is a hub of
controlled activity. It has a single entrance
and is lined with a gleaming, metallic sur-
face that projects floating glyphs from its
surface. The crew has learned to interpret
them through trial and error, trusting in
guesses and Captain Sendo’s limited un-
derstanding of the ship to navigate the
seas.
Negotiating with the Captain is hard but
not impossible. She believes a new world
order is right around the corner, a world
in which people who know how to control
the mysteries of the past will also be able to
control the lives of others, and rise to the
top. She sees Syn as being at the forefront
of the revolution, and so she’s both excited
and wary of it.
Sendo is willing to give the Agents one
chance to explain themselves. She makes it
very clear that any situation where she will-
ingly surrenders the Arakil would require
suitable compensation: She demands being
implanted with a Heroic Crystal, a position
of power within a Fjordstadian Syn facility,
and more. There is very little chance that
Syn will agree to these demands, unless the
Agents are willing to support her (an effort
that will take time and a total of 10 Requisi-
tion). Sendo intends to keep the submarine
as collateral until she is fully satisfied. She
controls the boat using a shard she discov-
ered as a young sailor and that she keeps
secret from the crew; without her mastery
of it the Arakil is less than useless, since it
stops circulating air.
If Sendo senses that the Agents are not
going to accept her demands, or are lying
to her, she attacks at once. She is even will-
ing to scuttle the submarine if necessary,
believing that the Agents would not risk
the loss of such an artifact, and will surren-
der before allowing her to crash it.

Captain Delmin Sendo

Captain Sendo recovered the Arakil after
obsessively piecing together its location
from dozens of Island legends and rumors.
It cost her her reputation but the crew has
reaped the rewards.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d6,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Academics d6, Athletics d6, Battle
d8, Boating d10, Common Knowledge d4,
Engineering d8, Fighting d6, Intimidation
d6, Notice d8, Persuasion d4, Shooting d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 7 (2)
Edges: Bygone Age Expert, Calculating,
Command, Hold the Line!
Hindrances: Cautious, Wanted (Major)
Gear: Captain’s vest (2 Armor), revolver
(10/20/40, 2d6, RoF 1, Shots 6) and officer’s
sword (Str+d6, AP 1)

Crew
Use the Islander stats (Crystal Heart p.162),
with the Pirate skills and Edge suggestions.
Gear: Revolver (10/20/40, 2d6, RoF 1, Shots
6) and cutlass (Str+d6)