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Swimming into the main cavity, the trio swims into a room full of the remains of a formidable array of siege engines (ballistae) amid piles of moldering rope and rusting chain. At the forward end of the deck, a spiral stairway exits out to the main deck and two sets of steps (one to either side) lead into the bow cargo hold. There are several small fish here, but nothing that presents a danger.
Chumtooth swims up the stairs into the hold, keeping his harpoon at the ready.
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Chumtooth swims down the staircase into the forward hold, followed closely by Dantes and Faengrim. Rows of shelves follow the hull’s curving slope in this large storage area, but the crates they once held now lie in a large, jumbled heap at the bottom of the hold. Rotting remnants of food and other ship’s stores float near the top of the chamber, and tiny fish dart through the water, feeding on the decay. Also here is a gigantic box jellyfish that moves eagerly towards you, sensing new prey.
INITIATIVE
Chumtooth
Jellyfish
Faengrim
Dantes
Chumtooth hurls his harpoon at the jellyfish.
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The harpoon slides easily through the giant jelly, leaving a gaping hole in the bell. Tentacles move towards the group, two grasping at Chumtooth and one each at Faengrim and Dantes. Chumtooth is hit twice for 15 points of damage, Faengrim takes 8 and Dantes takes 10. Each of you needs to make a Fortitude save (DC 17) against poison or lose 1d4 Constitution.
plus poison
plus poison
plus poison
Chumtooth grasps the magical harpoon as it returns to his hands and lunges at the jelly fish again.
Under the effect of the haste spell, he strikes again.
Finally, he strikes a third time.
Fort Save
Faengrim swims up to the jellyfish and tries to impale it on his trident.
Zul (Trident): human bane, pwr atk
Dantes will cast mage armor on himself this round.
The jellyfish poison overwhelms Chumtooth's senses causing everything to go black as he passes out.
Kill kill kill
Zul (Trident): human bane, power attack
Zul (Trident): human bane, power attack
Fort save
Dantes swims down and to the side, trying to get out of the reach of the jellyfish tentacles.
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Faengrim stabs again at the jellyfish and finally, it ceases to struggle and sinks to the bottom of the hull. The seawater has ruined the ship’s cargo of furs and cloth, but several small, sturdy metal drums have survived. In addition, a number of carefully padded packing cases have also survived intact.
Let's get this booty up to our ship and get some light while we're up there.
Chumtooth floats listlessly in the water, the magic of the water breathing potion the only thing keeping him from drowning at this point.
Dantes will cast enlarge person on himself and swim over to the captain. He'll use the advantage of his size to grab him and pull him up to the surface. Once there, he calls out to the crew, passing Chumtooth up for medical attention. "Lower the longboat!" Dantes orders.
Then he plunges back below. He works with Faengrim to bring the treasure up to the longboat. When the enlarge person wears off, he'll use bulls strength. When the items of apparent value are brought up and he and Faengrim are on the surface, he'll say "We don't know how dangerous this find is. We should open it away from the main vessel as a precaution."
Dantes will cast detect magic and detect poison on all of it before they start to open it.
Chumtooth gets to his feet and nods his thanks to the priest.
"Shall we search the rest of the upper half, and make sure we have missed nothing? I do not think we can claim anything from the deep rift without stronger magic."
OK. Assuming there are sunrods or some such we'll gather a few of those, rest up for the night and go back down for the second part.
Chumtooth asks the ship's healer, "Does your god have any magic that will help us resist cold or the crushing of deep water? If so, could you use that magic upon us in the morning before we dive again?"
Chumtooth nods in acknowledgement, then heads to his cabin to rest and recuperate before they resume diving in the morning.
"I'll be sure to file my teeth to prepare for tomorrow."
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That night, the ship's surgeon casts healing spells and channels positive energy sufficient to restore everyone to full health. In the morning, he casts communal endure elements on the three of you, giving you each 8 hours of protection from the cold. He also casts pressure adaptation on Chumtooth and Dantes (Faengrim should be immune in his shark-man form), granting 7 hours apiece of protection from the great pressure. "I can do nothing about the vision issue," he admits.
You descend into the abyss, 180 feet to the bottom. The water temperature drops as you venture deeper, light from the surface far above fades away into darkness, and the weight of the water above crushes against your bodies—the lightless depths are a hostile and alien environment. At the bottom of the chasm, the rift’s walls narrow and slope inwards, forming a ravine of pitch-black freezing water. The floor drops away at the northwest end into a vast sinkhole that continues even deeper underwater.
The Brine Banshee’s stern rests upright at the bottom of the rift, wedged against a shelf of dark rock. As you approach the wreck, a dark shape arises from behind it. The creature has four arms and is 16 feet tall, completely armored in dense, overlapping, bony plates! It drolls incessantly; pitch-black bile.
Dantes casts haste on the three of them. He doesn't move any closer until he sees what Faengrim and Chumtooth have in mind for tactics.
Chumtooth hurls his harpoon at the four-armed creature.
Faengrim appreciates the haste as he charges at the creature at the creature and stabs at it with Zul, activating Zul if it hits
Zul (Trident): human bane
+2 to hit and damage if an aquatic humanoid.
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Dantes casts haste on his companions and both of them feel a sudden surge of energy filling their limbs. Chumtooth hurls his harpoon, with it catching the creature between the bony plates! Faengrim considers what this might be for a moment, but draws a blank. Undeterred, he swims towards the creature and strikes with Zul. Unfortunately, the bony armor turns the blow.
The creature, angered by the wound caused by the harpoon, snaps and slashes at Faengrim. Faengrim is hit three times with claws and once with a bite.
STATUS
Faengrim -27
Creature -29
Chumtooth recalls his harpoon and swims into a flanking position behind the creature. He lunges at it again.
"Ouch." Faengrim tries to bury Zul into the creature, activating it's ability with each hit.
Zul (Trident): human bane, haste, power attack
Zul (Trident): human bane, haste, power attack
Zul (Trident): human bane, haste, power attack
Dantes readies his favorite wand and triggers it, sending two shards of force through the water and into the creature. Magic missiles, damage
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This is a charda (a blackwater specimen), but it's far too big! Most are about four feet in size. The black bile is supernaturally cold and it can expel the bile as a breath weapon. They are also more vigorous and animated in cold environments (like this one). They are known to be immune to both cold and poison and are hard to kill, fighting on well-past the point that other creatures would succumb.
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The attacks come hard and fast, but the creature continues its assault, despite the massive amount of damage it has suffered. Bleeding from multiple wounds and slowed by the calcification effects. it still manages to connect with Chumtooth, biting for 5 points of damage plus 2 cold.
STATUS
Faengrim: -27
Chumtooth: -7
Creature: -84 (slowed, -5 Dex)
plus cold
Chumtooth lunges again with his harpoon.
"I'm glad that one's down. I really have to learn how to dodge better." Faengrim goes in to investigate the wreckage.
Chumtooth nods and dives down into the wreckage.
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As you approach the aft portion of the vessel, you note that the ship’s helm still stands atop the poop deck, a moldering corpse lashed to the wheel. Below this, the mizzenmast juts up forlornly at the center of the quarterdeck. Its moldering sails hang lifelessly in the chill, dark water. The main deck has been swept clean and the railing is smashed in several places. Only broken stays and snapped ropes remain to indicate that two longboats were stored next to the steps to the quarterdeck.
You can either enter the cabin beneath the poopdeck, the cabins beneath the quarterdeck, or through the gaping hole where the ship was torn in half, the gun deck, or the cargo hold.
Chumtooth swims down towards the corpse lashed to the wheel, keen to determine if this was the owner of the bone that the ring followed.
Faengrim stays with his captain.
Dantes follows along. As he goes, his eyes sweep the oceanscape for signs of treasure amongst the wreckage and silt.