I agree, by the way, that this thing will likely be a challenge to hit. Could be an interesting battle.
Well... now that we all have our actions in, we'll just need to wait to find out. But 12 pts of damage so far isn't bad. Let's hope giant crabs have low hit dice! And that it rolled poorly for hit points...
~ When the giant crab surfaces and begins to move claw-clinkingly towards Bogdan and his enticing torch on the ledge above, the party is ready and reacts.
Emm steps forward bravely and thrusts out with her spear, impaling the huge crustacean in the right rear flank for a moderate wound. Caelvanna responds in turn, moving quickly through the shallow water, and thrusts her well-honed elven short sword into the center of the giant crab's backside, sinking it to the hilt in a loud crunch of outer shell. Up on the ledge, Bog yells out to keep it's already-drawn attention and stabs downward with his masterwork spear, but due the confined space and awkward position, unfortunately misses his mark.
Although heavily wounded from the druidess and Wild elf's dual attack from the rear, the giant crab reaches out blindingly quick for the torch and clamps down upon it, along with the armored gauntlet of the half-orc's off-hand and wrist, with it's left claw (nat20;5dam). Embers errupt in a sudden flash from the broken torch and the light flickers it's last bit of illuminating life from the crushing blow. The massive crustacean then attempts to reposition itself and swing it's right claw back at Caelvanna, but due the restricted space and the waterlogged dingy, misses terribly!
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*** I need a d6 initiative roll and Declared Actions for the party for Round 2! ***
OOC: Alrighty then, gang, sorry for the late response here, work has been brutal these last 2 days. That was a good round for the party and the crab is definitely not in good shape. Happy to report that my DM's "green dice of death" have finally returned, with Bogdan receiving their usual malevolent givings! Of course, it's second attack back at Caelvanna was a natural 1, so guess it all balances out, really.
Note: the torch is flickering and will be considered as going out in Round 2, but there is still enough ambient light from that and the cave opening to not cause any penalty modifiers to hit.
Damage taken by party
Bogdan - 5 damage (from crab's left claw)
Damage taken by Opponent(s)
Giant Crab: 12 damage (Emm's spear, Calevanna's short sword)
TOD: 10:21am of Day 1
HPs/Status: Bog 23/28 ; Caelvanna 25/25 ; Emm 10/10 WIH (primary/secondary): Bog – spear/torch ; Caelvanna – short sword (arrows fired: 0) ; Emm – spear/SC (SC = spell component/spell to cast) M.O./LocationInside the watery cave: (up on the rock ledge) Bogdan ; (at the giant crab's rear) Caelvanna , Emm
Caelvanna will patiently pick her spot. While she is certain her strike would be deadly as she began her attack, she fears her preoccupation with any potential approaching claws in her direction may have been enough of a distraction to cause her to miss.
~ It's the giant crab's turn to press the action. Having caught and killed the bright bait torch, and also inadvertently delivering a crushing wound to the half-orc that was holding it, it spins around to see what is trying to kill or eat it. Pushing past the dingy, it looks to attack the druid and fighter, their silhouettes somewhat accentuated by the sunlight at the cave entrance behind them.
The left claw, sizeably bigger of the two and very one that snatched the torch, strikes out at Caelvanna... but closes just a deadly click too soon.
The smaller right one jabs out at Emm... and shows it ain't all about the size but the aim! It catches the druidess high on the right leg for a crushing pinch!(5dam)
The young druid stabs out desperately with her spear to stick the giant crustacean, and hopefully try and make separation. Unfortunately, she slips on something slick under the water when she lunges and loses her footing. She falls backward in the water, and actually ends up sliding forward, coming to be partially submerged almost directly under the deadly, looming pincher!
Stunned by the great crab's speed and tenacity, and confused by Emm's choice to go for an underwater attack, Caelvanna waits for it to step closer before she strikes. The timing is good but the angle wrong and the sharp elven blade bounces of the hardened, armor-like shell. A Wild elf guerrilla fighter curse is not far behind.
Having felt and then steeled himself against the pain of the giant crab's pincher attack as well as the hot, burning spray of embers arising from the torch's fiery then water-soaked death, Bogdan unwinces and looks out to see the tables have turned on his companions. The dingy has fallen back down in the water below him, right where the crab rose out of the water. The giant clicky menace is just past the dingy, and looks to have the drop on his two leather-armored associates. It slowly creeps forward to menace them with it's big, snappy clickers.
Although no longer directly below him, it is not so far away that the dwarf-trained half-orc fighter cannot reach it. His off hand still works and he grabs the spear with it, gripping it now in both hands. Still crouching, he pushes off the ledge and jumps right onto the back of the overgrown crustacean. Before the full weight of the burly warrior bears down upon it, he drives the silver-infused, Karagonian masterwork weapon all the way through it. Right between the eyestalks.
The crab shudders and collapses down onto the water-covered cave floor under the weight of it's armored killer. Being sort of under it just before that happened, Emm's legs get pinned and she's pulled underwater!
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OOC: Alrighty then, looks like you guys are supplying dinner again!
Apols for the late response here, gents. Work continues in brutal mode.
Confirming that the giant crab is dead and Emm is trapped underwater!
Note: cave dark again; torch was killed.
Damage taken by party
Bogdan - 5 damage (from crab's left claw)
Emm - 5 damage (from crab's left claw)
Damage taken by Opponent(s) Giant Crab: KIAed with 19 damage (Emm's spear, then Calevanna's short sword, finally Bogdan's masterwork spear!)
TOD: 10:22am of Day 1
HPs/Status: Bog 23/28 ; Caelvanna 25/25 ; Emm 5/10 WIH (primary/secondary): Bog – spear/torch ; Caelvanna – short sword (arrows fired: 0) ; Emm – spear/SC (SC = spell component/spell to cast) M.O./LocationInside the watery cave: (up on the rock ledge) Bogdan ; (at the giant crab's rear) Caelvanna , Emm
Last edited by Argennian on Tue Sep 02, 2014 12:58 am, edited 9 times in total.
Reason:edited for correctness/completeness!
Bog quickly slides off the crab and then either pulls Emm out of the water or pushes the giant crab off of her, whichever is easier and faster.
Once she is safe, he will remove his spear from the crab's cranium, muttering a simple,"Close one."
Dinner it might be, but moving it back to the beach by the ship might be a task for some of the ship's mates. Bog turns his attention back to the boat. He will get the torch relit so he can examine the boat more closely. He wants to see if it can be used after the water is removed. If so, then he'll work to flip it over to empty it before uprighting it. Then he will quickly examine the area in the water where the crab was to see if it has anything of interest in its lair before moving the chest into the boat.
If the boat is not salvageable, then he will pass the torch and just grab the chest to haul it out manually.
Outside the cave, does it look like the beach can be followed to get back to the ship?
Caelvanna will quickly join Bog in his efforts to rescue Emm.
Once the druid is safe, Caelvanna will turn her attention back to the boat. She again approaches cautiously, trying to get a closer look at the closed crate that was sitting at the bottom at the stern.
~ As quickly as the sudden encounter with the giant crab unfolded, it is over.
Seeing young Emm pinned beneath the giant crustacean in a flurry of flailing arms, air bubbles and water splashing about, Caelvanna quickly sheaths her blade as Bogdan jumps down off its back to move over and assist. The burly half-orc nods as he lifts up the massive crab carcass and the Wild elf archer grabs Emm's arms and pulls her back up and out. The druidess surfaces with wide eyes and a fit of coughing up water, but other than her forced swim and wounded upper right leg, she is alright.
The scouting trio take a few moments to regroup while the adrenaline subsides, allowing the waters in the cave to calm and for everyone's wounds and conditions to be assessed. Bog yanks his spear free of it's latest victim. The overgrown crustacean is huge. If the crew wants more surf than turf for dinner this night, it would well be enough many, many times over. The big man contemplates the logistics of getting it back, looking over at the dingy floating upside down whilst Emm finishes coughing and catches her breath. Caelvanna looks her over and once she's sure her companion is good, she slaps her on the back with a wink and watches Bog as he considers a plan.
Bog finds the dead torch floating nearby. The crab near snapped the thing in half and it's pretty much useless. He shrugs and moves over to his pack to retrieve and light a new one. It fires up quickly and he sets it on the ledge to turn his attentions to the rowboat. Caelvanna moves forward, and with a nod of understanding to each other, the two fighters lift up and flip over the waterlogged rowboat over. The two oars and the crate are missing out of it but it floats. The waterlogged stern dips a bit but no water is seen leaking or filling up noticeably.
Caelvanna gathers the oars, one good and one broken in two. While pushing the small craft out of the way, Bog's armored boot slips into a hole under the water. Further investigation with the torch and a poking around of his spear reveal a massive hole underwater they hadn't seen previously! It had been concealed mostly due the partially submerged dingy in front of it. It's in the furthest part of the cave where the floor and ledge wall meet. It appears to go first down and then in below the ledge and rock floored section of the cave that heads in eastward. Although it barely seems big enough for the crab to have squeezed through, it's definitely big enough for the crate that was sitting in the stern of the rowboat to have fallen into.
Emm walks over to stand next to Caelvanna and the three of them are looking down at the underwater hole and potential crab den. While Bog holds the torch down near the surface and pokes about underwater with his spear to gauge details, the druid and Wild elf swear they see the glint of torchlight reflecting off something in the bottom of the hole, maybe 12-15 feet down?
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OOC: Ok all, I need to get the giant crab encounter entered in the Party Encounters: Kills, Treasure & XP thread, along with the giant boa constrictor you three killed previous. Had it all in my New Hope game binder but never entered it here! I went through and updated a few other things and will post that in the game announcement thread when completed later.
Damage taken by party
Bogdan - 5 damage (from crab's left claw)
Emm - 5 damage (from crab's left claw)
Party Kill Giant Crab: KIAed with 19 damage (Emm's spear, then Calevanna's short sword, finally Bogdan's masterwork spear!)
TOD: @ 10:30am of Day 1
HPs/Status: Bog 23/28 ; Caelvanna 25/25 ; Emm 5/10 WIH (primary/secondary): Bog – spear/torch ; Caelvanna – short sword (arrows fired: 0) ; Emm – spear/SC (SC = spell component/spell to cast) M.O./LocationInside the watery cave: (in the water at rock ledge examining the crab hole) Bogdan , Caelvanna , Emm
Bog glances down at Emm's wound and asks,"Can ye heal yerself with those magics of yours, Emm?"
Assuming the tale of glitter is passed on to Bogdan, he passes the torch over to the elf shield maiden and says,"I'll check it out..."
Bog jumps into the hole.
Kidding. He might be half orc, but he's no dummy.
Bog climbs back onto the ledge and begins removing his armour. It takes a bit longer in the confined space, but after a bit of time, he is stripped down to his breaches, which he leaves on, given the present company.
Clamping his Karagonian dagger between his teeth, and desperately fighting off the desire to growl out a "Yar!", Bog takes a deep breath and slips into the hole to see what glitters beneath the water...
A victim of her own innate clumsiness yet again (8 DEX!), Emm's hacking could bring the entire island's fauna down upon the trio. She tries to thank her friends, but just as she thinks she has all the unwanted seawater ejected from her lungs, another fit of wheezing overtakes her. As the Half-Orc Warrior peels his armor away for a plunge, she manages to regain control long enough to make it clear his nasty wound must be bound first. She will care for her own gash afterward, when Bog is inspecting the underwater cave.
Caelavanna is privately thankful for Bog's willingness (if not eagerness) to explore their underwater discovery. Simply being around water is difficult enough for the wild elf; she certainly was not going to be volunteering to actually go under the water.
~ The three island scouts peer through the water in the small cave and down into the giant crab hole, their curiosities arising as to what could possibly be down there reflecting the torch's illuminating light...
Bog glances over at the Emm and visually assesses her wound, recommending she look after it in a divine manner, if possible, before handing the torch to Caelvanna and heading over to the ledge to remove his armor. The Wild elf takes the torch and although she says nothing, is privately thankful that the half-orc is volunteering to swim down and see what's shining up down there.
The young druid thinks Bog's idea is a good one, and nods her head in the affirmative before she begins another coughing and wheezing fit that echoes vibrantly throughout the hidden cave in both directions. Once she's finished and caught her breath again, she insists on looking at the half-orc's wound before he goes for his swim. There's not much she can offer ministration-wise, other than wrapping it up with a cloth strip. Bogdan acquiesces with minimal fuss and continues stripping off his banded armor. The druidess moves out of the way and casts a cure light wounds spell on herself (+8hps). She can feel the power of the Aerth Mother spread down to her leg and envelope her in warmth. A moment later the wound is healed and she is back to full strength!
The burly half-orc finsihes removing his armor and strips down to his breaches. He draws his dagger from it's belt sheath, and nods his readiness to his companions. Emm recovers her spear and takes up a position next to Caelvanna. The Wild elf holds the torch up in one hand and the other nervously caresses the hilt of her short sword as she nods back to Bog.
The big man puts the Karagonian dagger in his teeth, silently makes a salty dog invocation and dives down into the water. He quickly swims through the hole and downward. Caelvanna tries to hold the torch closer to the water to provide the most light. Bog swims down about 15 feet and can see that there are indeed many shiny objects among what looks to by debris and detritus lying there on the bottom, some of which look as if they could be bones. The hole continues in, being mostly circular and about 6 feet in diameter, but it's really hard to see how much further, due being dark and heavily shadowed...
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*** I need a d6 surprise roll for Bog here, please! ***
OOC: Ok then Al, please give me a surprise roll for Master Bogdan and we'll see what's what down there!
Great roll on that CLW, Rexx! Showing Emm at full strength again!
TOD: @ 10:35am of Day 1
HPs/Status: Bog 23/28 ; Caelvanna 25/25 ; Emm 10/10 WIH (primary/secondary): Bog – dagger in teeth ; Caelvanna – torch/short sword (arrows fired: 0) ; Emm – spear/SC (SC = spell component/spell to cast) M.O./LocationSwimming down inside the underwater crab den:Bogdan ; Standing at the mouth of the underwater crab hole watching him:Caelvanna , Emm
(If Bog notes anything dangerous, he immediately uses his powerful legs to push off from the bottom to the surface. Once there, he clears away from the hole.)
~ As soon as Bogdan reaches the bottom and begins trying to see what's what down there, he suddenly catches movement out of the corner of his eye. There are numerous small shapes that appear to be moving around in the dark shadows about a dozen feet or so further into the underwater area.
Straining his eyes, the big man soon realizes that they appear to be about a dozen baby crabs! Although "baby" might not be the best descriptor, as they are definitely giant baby crabs, looking to be at least a foot long and resembling the massive adult that he and his two companions dispatched up above. They do not appear to be interested in him, or at least they do not scurry forth to apply their miniature giant pinchers. Although it's very hard for him to tell in the dark underwater den, they appear be swarming about an object just beyond his sight further in.
Looking back at his feet, the half-orc diver can see that the shiny bits look to be a bunch of coins scattered about. Lying in the debris off to the side about three feet away is a small crate that resembles the one that was submerged in the back of the skiff when they first arrived.
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Actions?
Questions?
OOC: Alrighty then Al!
~ Bogdan was not surprised and the baby giant crabs appear to have either not noticed him or if so, have not taken an interest. Just as an obvious point of order, Caelvanna and Emm will not be privy to this from above.
TOD: @ 10:35am of Day 1
HPs/Status: Bog 23/28 ; Caelvanna 25/25 ; Emm 10/10 WIH (primary/secondary): Bog – dagger in teeth ; Caelvanna – torch/short sword (arrows fired: 0) ; Emm – spear/SC (SC = spell component/spell to cast) M.O./LocationSwimming down inside the underwater crab den:Bogdan ; Standing at the mouth of the underwater crab hole watching him:Caelvanna , Emm
For now, Bog grabs the crate and pushes up. Once he is high enough, he rests the crate on the bottom, outside the hole. When he finally gets out of the hole, and standing on his own, he tells the others what he saw. Or... didn't see.
"There was something else in there. Don't know what crabs might swarm over, though, besides maybe something they are eating. Thought we could try to come back when we can get a light source that goes underwater somehow, like one o' them magic spells might do. We could also lure those smaller crabs out with something or other, like some bacon rind or beef fat. There are a few coins at the bottom of the pit. Maybe interesting to look at to see what realm they come from, but not enough to get excited about..."
If the others agree to leave with what they have, he'll don his armour, collect his gear, put the crate and the chest in the dingy, and begin moving the boat out the cave.
I went through and updated a few other things and will post that in the game announcement thread when completed later. 
