[Outpost] GM Bearington's Echoes of the Overwatched (Inactive)

Game Master Gummy Bear

Etienne shifts over and searches his memory if he's seen a creature like this.

He then trains his eyes on the creature, and shoots it a look that attempts to curdle its soul.
Evil Eye, -2 to AC, DC 15 Will, 7 rds

Etienne gives the Merrow an auspicious look, but it seems largely undisturbed by it. Fortunately, the temporary distraction seems to have left an opening in its defenses!

COMBAT ROUND 1
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Erhun (5 damage, Grappled, Cover)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (Grappled, Cover, -2AC [Evil Eye, 1 Round])
Atronia
Arrius
BOLD ARE UP!
________

What is it's weakest save? I'll share the info with everyone.

Will save is the weakest! She just rolled well on your DC :/

Kn. Local/Nature: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (10) + 6 = 16
Kn. Planes/Religion: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19

"Oh! Hold on, this will help!" Callah calls out as she reaches out to grant Erhun a little guidance to help him break free from the creature's grasp. She then falls back to allow the others room to move forward.
________

Callah will cast Guidance on Erhun and then move back a pace or two; I'm currently on mobile so please adjust her map position accordingly! Also, Callah has a swim speed too in regards to movement.

Arrius watches the western door carefully, planning to send overwhelming waves of mental force towards any merrow counterattack.

Readying an action to use daze[DC 13] on the first attacker to come out of the door opposite the entrance. Attempt to identify with Knowledge (Nature) (+2 bonus for creature being aquatic): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18 And apologies for posting out of turn--I may be away from a computer for the rest of the day and didn't want to hold things up.

The two undine give the big guy some space to work, Arrius eyeing the other opening warily and Callah giving Erhun some support.

COMBAT ROUND 1
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Erhun (5 damage,Grappled, Cover, Guidance)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (Grappled, Cover, -2AC [Evil Eye, 1 Round])
Atronia
Arrius
BOLD ARE UP!

My CMB should be +5, my CMD 16. No attack of opportunity before the grappling?

Get rid of Grapple, Guidance: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 5 + 1 = 14

The Merrow's gleefully twisted smile intensifies as Erhun struggles feebly to escape. Prey in hand, it begins to move him deeper into the cold, dark depths of the room, but with a surge of desperation, Erhun is able to slip from its claws! "NOOOOO!" it roars furiously. The water begins to froth as it moves to chase after Erhun.

COMBAT ROUND 1
--------
Erhun (5 damage, Cover)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (Cover, -2AC [Evil Eye, 1 Round])
Atronia
Arrius

COMBAT ROUND 2
--------
Erhun (5 damage, Cover)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (Cover, -2AC [Evil Eye, 1 Round])
Atronia
Arrius

BOLD ARE UP!
________

"Nicely done!" Callah calls out as Erhun breaks free of the merrow's claws. She falls back another step, hoping that he can lure the creature into the room, but not before giving Atronia an encouraging pat on the shoulder.
________

Callah falls back another square to her current position and then hits Atronia with Guidance!

"Let's try a different approach." A subtly different stink eye emerges on Etienne's face, directed again at the merrow.

evil eye to attacks, -2, Dc 15 will, 7 rds

Atronia draws her sword as she wades through the shallow water to get closer to the door. She holds it poised for an attack. "Erhun, move back. Let this thing come forward if it wants a piece of us."

Edit to clear things up: taking a move and drawing my sword during it, then preparing an attack for when the thing steps within reach.

power attack: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (3) + 5 - 1 = 7
dmg,2H weapon, PA: 1d10 + 4 + 3 ⇒ (8) + 4 + 3 = 15

Erhun moves, and tries to attacks the creature. His powerful blow only spashes into the water, drenching everyone around.

Booting... Uploading Stat Block... Initiating Bot Sequence for Arrius

Arrius changes focus from the middle room to the lumbering beast from the depths of darkness and thrusts his mind into its own with incredible force.

Error... Error... Programming insufficient to replicate speech patterns...
________
Cast Daze, DC 14 Will Save

The bloodthirsty Merrow barely makes it forward before the party's brutal offensive collides with it. Responding to its body language, Etienne manages to break through its defenses with a debilitating curse, making its arms remarkably sluggish. Winding up like a designated hitter, Atronia swings for the fences and cuts deep enough to see ribs. Yet before it can howl in pain, Arrius's mental offensive shorts its brain for a moment, leaving it reeling. The tide seems to have turned in your favor...

COMBAT ROUND 2
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Erhun (5 damage, Cover)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (17 Damage, Cover, -2 Attack [Evil Eye, 7 Rounds], Dazed)
Atronia
Arrius

COMBAT ROUND 3
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Erhun (5 damage, Cover)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (17 damage, Cover, -2 Attacks [Evil Eye, 7 Rounds])
Atronia
Arrius
________

Having psychically reached into the merrow's mind and found a foothold, Arrius tries to maintain dominance. Few creatures can fight on the mental and physical planes simultaneously!

Arrius will try daze (DC 13) again on the merrow if it's still fighting.

Etienne pulls out a weathered deck of playing cards, selects one, and with a bit of focus it burns purple with arcane energy. He flicks it towards the merrow, trying to thread the space between Atronia and Erhun.

Deciding to be a bit more proactive, Callah draws her longspear and steps behind Erhun before attempting to drive the pointy end between the merrow's ribs.

Attack vs. Merrow (Longspear): 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Damage: 1d8 ⇒ 1
________

Snake eyes! Woe is me :(

Power attack: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (1) + 5 - 1 = 5
2H power attack: 1d10 + 4 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 4 + 3 = 8

Another big splash...

Booting... Uploading Stat Block... Initiating Bot Sequence for Atronia

Atronia winds up for another mighty swing on the Merrow, eager to kill the beast before it lashes out at Erhun again. Hold still you son of...
________

The Merrow's smile returns a little as it is able to juke and swat away the painful weapons. It roars as it rips into Erhun savagely, a sadistic gleam shining in its eyes. Finally able to see just how many of you there are, its eyes grow wide. "So... much... MEAT!"

COMBAT ROUND 3
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Erhun (14 damage)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (17 damage, Cover, -2 Attacks [Evil Eye, 6 Rounds])
Atronia
Arrius

COMBAT ROUND 4
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Erhun (14 damage)
Etienne
Callah
Young Freshwater Merrow (17 damage, Cover, -2 Attacks [Evil Eye, 6 Rounds])
Atronia
Arrius

________

Four ones in a row?! Come on dice! Arrius, Daze can only be used on the same creature once per minute. You can retcon your action in addition to posting your actions for this round.

The Merrow's sheer savagery is enough to throw off Arrius' psychic connection. Perplexed, the Undine ponders the relative merits of brute force and primitive instinct versus refined technique and higher order mental development.

Sorry, overlooked the daze limitation. As the Merrow has soft cover and is in melee, I don't have much to offer right now. Sorry guys! Arrius will just do Total Defense until this creature is put down.

Atronia hesitates for a moment, wondering if she should bolster her team, but looking at Erhun, she decides it is time to bring this creature's demise. She yells as she swings downwards, aiming for the merrow's head.

attack: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21
damage: 2d6 + 6 ⇒ (3, 1) + 6 = 10

Right, sorry about all that, GM Bearington. In fact, sorry to everyone for my suddenly sporadic presence. Stuff at work is a little exhausting at the moment, but I'll try not to forget to at least show up once a day.

As the Merrow rises up for another set of claw attacks, Atronia expertly times her blow to catch it, disbelief etched into the beast's face. With a sickening crunch, the heavy blade splits her skull and lodges itself there as the Merrow's bulk crashes to the floor with finality.

COMBAT OVER! Where to now? :)

________
No worries Atronia! I don't mind botting people and life happens :) Combat is the only place where absence significantly affects everyone, if you have to take a break during some of the exploration, don't sweat it. Hang in there!

"Well...that was certainly exciting," Callah breathes as Atronia finally cuts down the merrow for good. "But we need to take care of Erhun's injuries before we go any further," she continues as she pulls out a small wand. "I've got this available or if you have one of your own I can activate it for you," Callah offers.

Callah can use her personal Wand of Cure Light Wounds or activate Erhun's if he has one. Either way is fine, just let me know and feel free to roll the healing yourself!

Once the mending of wounds is accomplished, Callah turns to Arrius with an expectant expression. "That's one down and you said you felt more thoughts from one of the other rooms, yes? Which way?"

Then, something occurs to her. "Oh...I know that with the room as flooded as it is, it's unlikely that there's anything remaining that would be usable but should we have a look around to make absolutely certain? Arrius or myself would likely have the easiest time of it due to our aquatic nature," she chuckles.

In response to Callah's question, Arrius nods towards the doorway opposite the entrance. He whispers, "Mayhaps devise a ruse should we to lure out the hidden, thus turning ambush into open warfare. The wasp may sting the spider, but not when already caught in its webbing."

"That might work," Callah replies, lowering her own voice to a whisper. "But who or what should be the bait? Unless someone knows something of illusion magic then I expect one of us will have to do the dirty work."

Once everyone is back in position, Arrius takes some tasty dried fish from his backpack. With the power of his mind, they rise into the air and are flung into the next room! Then, they start to wiggle in the water as they "swim" back towards the group.

Seeing if I can lure those monsters out with a combination of telekinetic projectile, rations, and mage hand. It may not work, but when you're working with cantrips you have to be creative . . .

I wasn't too much useful here, I guess, just some meat to hurt for this creature. At least I'm the only one wounded. Thank you for your healing, Callah.

CLW: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3
CLW: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

Erhun doesnt want to use all of Callah's wand magic, and only some of his wounds close

Arrius launches the little fish swarm into the other room and swims them back to him. Moments later, you all spy three tiny, strange looking, crawfish swimming towards the fish!

SURPRISE ROUND
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Yellow Foe (DC 10 Dungeoneering)
Orange Foe (DC 10 Dungeoneering)
Callah
Atronia
Etienne
Arrius
Blue (DC 10 Dungeoneering)
Erhun (9 damage)

BOLD MY TAKE A MOVE OR A STANDARD!
________

Callah Surprise Round

"Oh!" Callah gasps as the strange crawfish come swimming and splashing after Arrius' bait. She steps through the water and attempts to skewer one on the end of her longspear.

Attack vs. Yellow (Longspear): 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 1 = 15
Damage: 1d8 ⇒ 1
________

Callah takes a 5 foot step to her current position and then tries to stab at Yellow. I know you normally can't 5 foot step in difficult terrain/water but since Callah has a swim speed, it should be possible in this case - I think. If not, just move her back next to Atronia, whom she'll cast Guidance on instead!

Attack on Yellowfish: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6
Dmg: 1d10 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5

There is much frustration building in Erhun, as the fish easily dodges his blow.

He's now soaked in water

Arrius telekinetically picks up a large rock from the rubble pile and hurls it at the creature in the rear of the attackers' formation.

[ooc]Taking a 5' "Swim" to the left and then launching a telekinetic projectile at the one furthest away (I'm terrible with colors, sorry) because it's not in melee and I don't have Precise Shot. I'm not sure with this spell if soft cover is calculated from where my PC is or where the object is being lifted from. In any event, the range of the spell is 25 feet. Attack Roll: 1d20 ⇒ 18damage: 1d6 ⇒ 4Knowledge (Dungeoneering) to Identify (assuming they're aquatic for a +2 trait bonus: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13

Etienne struggles through the water to move into what he hopes is a better position, while also trying to identify these creatures.

Atronia is surprised by seeing such tiny things come out, but she knows better than to underestimate a creature because of its size. She moves forward with difficult, her feet constantly dragged by the water. As she does so, she pays attention to the shellfish, trying to remember if she has ever heard of those before.

K dungeoneering: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19

Cool image. Good thing you told us they are tiny, because that thing looks dangerous otherwise. Also, considering the knowledge check, I'd like to know if they have any particular defenses (DR, mainly).

Capitalizing on the Reeflcaw's distraction, the heroes form up on the little aberrations. Callah's longspear deftly snips a piece of the Yellow one's leg and it cries out in pain. Overcompensating for the distortion of the water, Erhun strikes the watery coral on the floor, resulting in a wet spray of debris.

Finally noticing the hostility of the situation, two of the Reefclaws spring to attack Callah! She is able to fend of one of their claws, but the Orange one manages to leap upon her, its deceptively strong claws keeping her in check.

COMBAT ROUND 1

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Yellow Immature Reefclaw (1 damage)

Orange Immature Reefclaw 
(Grappled)
Callah (AoO vs Yellow, Fort Save vs Poison, 1 nonlethal damage, Grappled)

Atronia 

Etienne 

Arrius 

Blue Immature Reefclaw 

Erhun (9 damage) (AoO vs Orange)

BOLD MAY TAKE A MOVE OR A STANDARD! 

________ 

so tiny reefclaws are in callah’s square?

Callah yelps with surprise as two of the crawdad-things suddenly come leaping out of the water at her and she instinctively stabs at Yellow once again with her longspear.

AoO vs. Yellow: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16
Damage: 1d8 ⇒ 3

Fort: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

"Get off me you uppity appetizers!" the undine then cries angrily as she tries to pull Orange off of her.

Break Grapple: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10

AoO vs Orange, Power attack: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (19) + 5 - 1 = 23
2H Dmg, PA: 1d10 + 4 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 4 + 3 = 11

Erhun lets out his frustration in a powerful blow as one of the Strange fish swim nearby

Etienne pulls himself out of the deeper water, and launches an arcance-flecked card at the ungrappled reefclaw near Callah. yellow

attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24
dmg: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5

I’m on the road today, sorry. Please bot me repeat my last action above until those reefclaws are killed.

The barrage of surprisingly accurate counterstrikes crushes the Reeflclaw offensive! Between a spear, polearm, rock, and expertly thrown card, the critters assaulting Callah are quickly ripped to pieces. In an attempt to avenge his brethren, the blue Reeflcaw scuttles over to Erhun! Unfortunately for its revenge, it is unable to get a hold on him.

COMBAT ROUND 1

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Yellow Immature Reefclaw (Smushed)

Orange Immature Reefclaw 
(Smushed)
Callah

Atronia 

Etienne 

Arrius
Blue Immature Reefclaw 

Erhun (9 damage, AoO if Combat Reflexes)

COMBAT ROUND 2

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Yellow Immature Reefclaw (Smushed)

Orange Immature Reefclaw 
(Smushed)
Callah

Atronia 

Etienne 

Arrius 
Blue Immature Reefclaw 

Erhun (9 damage)

BOLD MAY GO! 

________ 

Having never explored the mental constructs of shellfish, Etienne uncertainly cocks an eyebrow and gives the remaining reefclaw the evil eye.

Evil eye -2AC, DC 15 Will, 7 rounds (unlikely to matter)

Arrius swims over to Ehrun, forms his fingers into a spearhead, and quickly lashes out as if to impale the reefclaw!

Arrius doesn't have Improved Unarmed Strike, so this will provoke an AoO.

Attack Roll: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

Damage Roll: 1d3 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

Atronia steps past Callah and over the remains of one of the reefclaws, then aims her sword at the tender spot at the last remaining reefclaw's claw joint.

attack: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15
damage: 2d6 + 6 ⇒ (2, 1) + 6 = 9

Etienne's curse overwhelms the wretched creature, while Arrius tries to jab it with his hand. He isn't able to penetrate its exoskeleton, but the blow sets up a beautiful feint as Atronia follows up with a wicked blow from her sword.

COMBAT OVER!
________

"That's...four? I think Arrius spoke of three or four different consciousnesses earlier, so maybe this level is now safe...or as safe as it can be while the tide is low," Callah remarks as Atronia finishes off the last reefclaw. Curiosity getting the better of her, she splooshes over to the door the reefclaws had appeared from and peeks around the corner.

Perception (Center Room): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (20) + 7 = 27

"Yes, let us see what hidden treasures lie in this muck." Etienne will walk to what seems like the less wet part of the ruin and look in the far door.

perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9

quick retcon

Etienne pulls out his wand and hits Erhun a few times.

1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
1d8 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
1d8 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Atronia lets out a deep breath as she sheathes her sword. She smiles at Callah and Etienne's suggestion. "Since we're sure there is nothing left, I guess we might as well take a look around before going up. Who knows what we could find in here?" She walks up to Etienne to see what lies in the remaining room, leaving the first two to the others.