"Intelligent? No. Just fish. Disagreeable fish, but still fish." Kalathiel retrives his rapier from his side and prepares to dive. "Don't know if I've ever tried to knock out a fish. Stabbing is easier." He glances sideways at Tess. "You know, just in case."
With that he dives again, swimming quickly in the direction of the problem fish.
Those who swim down towards the fish see the long creatures, fastened to the bottom of the Peregrine's hull. The fish seem to roll towards you a bit, as if they reason out why you are there. No matter how close you get, they seem to maintain their hold on the ship, however, though they grow agitated.
Kar will wait for Tessa and Kal to take the lead. He's just there for support and backup if needed.
Tess smiles. "I'll definitely tell you to allow the fish to kill you." She then joins him down the water.
Deciding she'd best make the first move after requesting to wait with the most efficient option, she approaches and tries to grab one of the fish to pull it away from the ship.
Kalathiel follows closely, rapier in hand, waiting to strike either of the fish should they become aggressive.
As Tess approaches, intent shows in her eyes. The strange fish creatures disengage themselves from the ship. They turn towards the approaching humanoids, and attack!
Kar, seeing their aggressive actions, moves forward (hopefully) to defend his comrades.
Once in range, he is able to take a swing with his fist. Factoring in the -4 for not using a piercing weapon. And Kar will be doing NON-LETHAL damage. And we'll throw on some Elemental Fist for the first attack, just to get things going.
NON-LETHAL
Rounds of holding breath.
28 rounds to start.
One round under water and two actions.
25 rounds remaining.
Jader realizes that he hasn’t seen his companions all morning he begins to look around. Before going inside however he remembers something from yesterday about checking the underside of the ship. He decides to look overboard to see if anyone is in the water
After looking around Jader goes to help his friends near the base of the ship. Not being much of a natural swimmer he looks for other options before diving into the water
Kalathiel swims a bit close, just out of range of the hostile fish, and holds up his rapier, point out, ready to jab at the creatures should they get close to him.
Against all odds, Kar moves his sleek body through the water effortlessly, and drives his fist through the resistance of the water enough to batter the fish, slamming it against the hull of the Peregrine. His short jolt sends a current through the water that sets the teeth of any nearby to tingle.
Kal moves close, but stays out of the effective range of the little creatures' suckers. Just after he sets a spot, Tess swims in to grab one of the little creatures. The fish slaps at Tess with its tail as it is grabbed.
It misses, and the little creature begins to work against Tessara's grip in the hopes of escape.
The other fish swiftly swims over to attack Tess in a frenzy of biting teeth and a whipping tail.
Both fish creatures fail miserably in their efforts. One remains in Tessara's grip, and the other fails to make a scratch of any sort on their humanoid foe.
Jader swims down to see the ensuing chaos of his companions pulling out all of the stops...fishing. The eel-like creatures they're attacking do seem to be quite ferocious, though.
Jader decides a creature that is more suited to the water would be a better combatant. He does his best to do the proper incantation under water, concentrating on summoning a dolphin to attack the fish like creatures
Seeing no reason not to, Kar resumes his attack. Staying with the non-lethal damage for now, he will unleash a full flurry of blows against the one he has already hit.
Rounds of holding breath:
25 to start the round
23 remaining
After looking up rules for under water combat, yes. I do half damage with my fists since they're bludgeoning and I take a -2 penalty for attacks.
I'll factor that in myself in the future if you'd like, or you can.
The elf shakes his head. The fish aren't going quietly. He kicks his legs, gliding quickly through the water and around behind the fish free of Tess's grapple. He jabs at it, his blade piercing through the water with little resistance.
Kal's blade sweeps in to stab the grappled fish, skewering it through like a tasty snack. The eel-like form writhes in Tessara's grip, violently seeking freedom.
The dolphin flashes past, trying to bash the smaller fish, but the hull of the Peregrine provides good cover for the creature and the dolphin misses. Kar, though, does not, and his fist pummels the fish again.
"They're resistant but if we can just apply a little pressure..."
Tess attempts to maintain the grapple, then tries to hit the fish on the head with the butt of her trident.
Tessamine slaps the fish creature with her trident, seemingly dazing it for a moment. Its head clears, and instead of trying to wriggle away again, the fish creature turns in to its captor, and tries to latch on to Tessamine with a needle-toothed sucker. It succeeds, and Tess immediately feels an odd sensation of lethargy course through her.
The other fish closes with Kar and tries to slap the man with its tail even as it bites at his skin. The creature draws blood with its flashing teeth, and its tail packs quite the punch as it raises a welt on the human target's skin.
Kalathiel frowns. This is starting to get out of hand. If they can be driven off, fine. If not, so be it. His mind made up, the elf stabs again with his rapier.
Dolphin attack
Jader will attempt an attack with his magic green long sword if that is possible
Also growing frustrated, Kar rapidly clears his mind and focuses on the enemy. Using the pain of the bit as a catalyst, he summons up the force of the world around him, this time taking the form of sparking electricity in his hands. (Elemental Assault, 1 round only. Still going for non-lethal with the unarmed strike, electricity not so much.)
+
+
13 total damage on the one that bit me.
10 non-lethal, 3 electric.
Tess looks around her as everyone loses clear patience with the fish, but, perhaps out of naivety, tries to push her luck in knocking them down just a little longer...
I forgot the half damage for my fists. So only 5 non-lethal.
Watching his companions splash about, Posh calls out "You know, I heard there are better ways to fish now days. I mean..."
Stopping short as a figure draws his attention, he moves to the far side of the boat.
The strength of the humanoids is just plain overwhelming to the fish like creatures. Tess and Kal batter and stab the one in Tess's grip, and it succumbs, falling limp and bleeding out into the water. The second falls under the onslaught of Kar, Jader, and his dolphin sidekick, and it also floats listlessly through the water.
A grindylow? What could possess a grindylow to spectate this little affair? With no answers forthcoming, Kalathiel gestures toward the surface beside the boat, indicating they should surface. Once there, he speaks, saying, "That was more difficult than expected. Still, I think one might still live." He shrugs, apparently moving beyond that particular concern. The elf continues speaking, scarcely pausing. "I did see a grindylow watching the proceedings as well. Swam off as soon as the fight was over. Unsure why it was there. Probably not a major problem, but something to keep in mind. Now, shall we let Ramona know we've solved their problem?"
Jader notices Kal’s Motion to swim to the surface and follows him there
Grindylow? Didn’t we fight some of those coming to shore near the colony? Or was that something else?
He looks around for anyone’s response
Tess takes a deep breath when she reaches the surface and lets her body float as she takes in the discussion.
"Those were grindylows, I believe, yes. I see no reason to chase them down if they leave us be... But I suggest we keep a close eye on the shores as we build up the colony."
She starts moving towards the ship to climb it. "For now, I'd say mission accomplished."
As she starts climbing, she pauses for a second and turns towards the other. "And thank you for entertaining my request. The outcome ended up somewhat bloody after all, but simply choosing to approach it without violent intent means a lot to me, as does the fact one might make it."
She climbs further up, ready to report to Ramona.
Kar thinks about the grindylow as he climbs back onto the ship. When we return to the colony, I intend to investigate the sunken boat near the dock.
Ramona greets you as soon as you climb back onboard, having been watching the action...or trying to, as you battled underwater. She grimaces at the telling of the grindylow, even though she seems thankful to have the ship dislodged from those creatures.
We may continue to have trouble with these creatures if they aren't driven off for good. A sailor onboard told me she spotted a partially submerged sea cave not far back; it may be worthwhile to explore it on our own terms instead of waiting for a surprise raid as we set up at Talmandor's Bounty. What do you think?
Kalathiel places a hand on his chin, thinking. "Seems like the sort of place they might nest. It would be best to root out any infestation before it spreads and does any more harm to the colony. Probably worth looking into at the very least." He looks over at Kar, nodding. "And yes, good thinking. I hadn't given that boat much thought, but it's the sort of thing a grindylow or some other little beast might hide under. We should investigate when we can. Be sure the others are careful until then, Ramona."
Posh nods in agreement, as his mind begins to wander.
Slowly a smile spreads across his face as his head bounces up and down periodically...to nothing in particular. "Oh yes. Friends indeed!" he exclaims finally.
Ramona nods thoughtfully, then adds. Agreed, then on to the colony, but I'd task you with rooting out these Grindylows after we're set up. She turns to announce to those on deck that the ship is underway once again, and the Peregrine makes good time to turn around out of the small harbor. A rousing cheer goes up, and smiles abound as the ship is once again underway.
Upon arrival, the Peregrine drops anchor in the bay and both the ship's crew and the colonists work together to begin unloading the ship using the ship's boats. Ramona approaches you as you arrive. Since you're working as our trouble-shooters, you'll have first pick of houses; can you show me around and point out anything we need to know, and show me where you'll be calling home?
After requesting his home's location, Kar takes up position in front of the haunted chapel's door, sitting cross-legged in the entrance way. He is waiting for the "priests" to arrive and won't let anyone in due to the dangers of the place.
Tess picks out one of the buildings outside the palisade, close to the shore. She also points out any places where the gang encountered wildlife and such. "We're not out of the woods here quite yet, but I think we'll be able to make this place home."
Jader decides to take the home where he found the green sword glowing in his hand. He methodically cleans and dries the blade before putting it away. Ramona I would love to investigate the underwater cave but do we have magic or resources for breathing under water? Some of us don’t have that problem but for the rest of us we can only breathe air
Quickly setting up a bed in the room full of books, Posh smiles to himself. 'Now this looks like home....those long nights studying...archiving....reading....oooo this takes me back...'
Startled as another colonist walks buy, he chuckles. "Oh, hey...was uh...just thinking... Suppose I should go find the others and see what's next on the list."
With a final longing look at the shelves, he heads back out to meet up with the rest.
'Hmm...gonna have to check out those caves... I can help with the swimming but not quite figured out the motions for the breathing spell. I'm going to have to practice a bit on them. I think it's going to come in handy here.'
Kalathiel takes a while to help show Ramona the settlement, including places that still needed to be cleared out. He refers frequently to the copious notes he took during the initial scouting mission, relaying as much information to her as he can.
Once that's taken care of, the elf chooses one of the many empty buildings and begins moving his things in. He takes particular care in setting up a small study and alchemy laboratory.
Ramona seems thoughtful. The idea was for Miss Divenvaar to be able to set up her shop and begin creating potions for such a thing, but of course we have yet to do that. I do think that she has the ability, though, to cast a spell to help you with what you need. Alba is setting up her shop in one of the homes to the south.
Kar does not sit in his vigil alone. Anya stops by and sits next to him, silent as always. She seems to know that Kar is about to do something dangerous...and she likes that.
Soon, the two priests join him - Eamon Caranth, a half-elf cleric of Erastil, and Kurvis Nuripco, a human cleric of Abadar. They warily eye the seated warriors, then the chapel. What is the nature of this beast? Can it be reasoned with?
Kar will speak to Anya first, before the priests arrive. He tries to keep his words few, their meaning blunt. He looks at her sparingly, keeping his eyes scanning for the priests.
I have chosen my dwelling here. I will not be around much to see to its upkeep. This bothers me as my sensei taught that one's outer home should be kept clean and organized as a reflection of our inner selves. Unlike many others, I believe you share my desire to keep life simple and uncluttered. For these reasons and others I would ask that you share my roof. The house is big enough for others if there are others you would have share in the responsibilities, but I would leave that decision to you. Do you accept?
When Eamon and Kurvis arrive and ask their questions....
I do not believe that it is a beast. I believe it is a spirit of some sort. We saw nothing, heard nothing, felt nothing. Small objects simply arose and flung themselves at us. I do not know if it can be reasoned with as we were unable to communicate with whatever it is. I will volunteer to protect you if you wish to enter. I would request healing before this, however.
Anya watches without emotion as she listens to Kar, then offers a quick nod. That is a reasonable request; though I'd much rather sleep under the moon, I will help maintain this home. One's home means much to many; I can see that by those that have come here to establish new ones. I never found such a thing important, my people often being nomadic. I shall sleep under the stars near the entrance...perhaps I shall even allow myself the comfort of one of those rope devices...a hammock?
Eamon, the more jovial of the two, nods and comes forward with a warm smile. Of course...a spirit of some sort then. We could try and banish it, but I'm loathe to cause a wandering spirit harm. It could be that this one of our lost colonists who suffered some ill fate. Perhaps you could proceed in, and...distract...it, while Kurvis and I attempt to reason with it?
While he's offering up his proposition, he mutters a prayer of healing and mends Kar's wounds.
Kar looks at Anya when she responds, and nods his head in acknowledgment. After she is done agreeing, he turns his head back to continue his look out, but there is a pleased look to his eyes.
I have never slept in a hammock. Only ever a billet on the ground. If you enjoy the experience, perhaps we can both try it.
To the Priests' request:
I will. Be prepared.
Once they signal that they are ready, Kar will enter the chapel, full defensive posture, and ready to use his deflect missiles ability. He will try to buy them however much time they need to communicate with the spirit (if possible).
Together, the group enters the old chapel. All seems still at first, and Eamon calls out. Our pardons, good sir or lady at this trespass. But, I fear you are no longer for this plane. You are a floating spirit and your anger, no doubt justified, should not be towards us. We come here to help you find peace. Please, give us a sign that you understand.
Suddenly, there is a stirring within the chamber, and a candelabra begins to rise...
Anya acts first, but can do little more than prepare her bow for battle and take aim at the levitating object. She seems calm, if a bit confused.
Meanwhile, the candelabra flies at Kar, end over end. It flies wide of the dodging monk.
As Kar, Anya, and the priests begin efforts to cleanse the chapel, the rest of the colonists disembark and begin to dig into the real work of making this colony their own. Ramona is a tremendous organizer, and she arranges small teams for every mundane task she can think of. Several teams need some muscle or assistance, though, and she is taking volunteers for:
Help dig out the gardens for replanting...and perhaps removing any more critters that have made a home there.
Head out the boar infested woods, for firewood and exploration
Go through the government house and compile and sort through the records.
Jader stands as Ramona’s right hand man. Waiting to participate in any activities that are lacking volunteers or leadership. He busies himself by taking directions from Ramona and organizing tasks while volunteers are assembling for the other tasks he waits for her direction on any of those tasks
Tess, more intrigued by the mystery of the colony's past than she probably should be, considers helping with the archives, but realizes her skills would probably be better put to use with the more manual labor. She decides to join the forest exploration group, but asks the archive group to please share any interesting findings with her.