"How much blessed water do we have in the stores?" Nash asks aloud.
"Are they like ants or bees? Would there be a hive or a queen?"
Aenthurien stares at the creatures.
This particular swarm seems unusually large which would indicate the presence of a queen nearby. These large monsters typically lie at the heart of an underground complex, where they spend months repeatedly spawning ravenous swarms before exiting the caves to hunt and seek a new lair. When a vescavor queen is deep in her spawning, the surrounding area becomes inundated with the swarms, as you are witnessing now. If the queen
can be found and slain, the swarms will quickly dissipate, allowing the army to move onward toward Drezen.
"We must search out the queen that is spawning these swarms. If we kill the queen, the swarms will disperse." Aen tells his companions, then goes on to fill in details.
"We'll need a way to deal with the swarm in the meantime."
Gorn-Rel turns to an aide. "Request that Aravashnial join us.
The aide nods before running off to fulfill Gorn's request. A short while later he comes back, elven wizard in tow. "You have need of me?"
"Yes. I believe we may need your magic. Do you have any magic that can harm swarms, protect us from swarms, or hide us from them?"
"Swarms? Of course. I have enough evocations to deal with any swarms. You mean the piling mass of demonic swarms up ahead? I suppose I could help you."
"I don't think you need to exhaust yourself dealing with all those swarms. Rather, you should accompany us while we find our way to the queen and held us deal with any swarms we might encounter."
Turning back to the aides, "Have the scouts reported back? Are there caves in this region or any obvious way to entire the hive structure?"
"I see. When do you plan on heading out to become glorified exterminators?" Aravashnial asks.
The aide shakes his head. "No sir. They have not reported back. We fear the worst."
"Soon, Aravashnial, soon. When you are ready and the holy water flasks have been prepared. There is glory, my friend, in exterminating these demonic insects -- otherwise our armies will not be able to liberate the city. Do you have recommendations on how to deaden their senses?"
Gorn-Rel nods at the aides. "Prepare the holy water. Send for the healers. Prepare the camp for the night."
Gorn-Rel will take ten on his perception check (for 20)
Gorn peers over the horizon and sees that clouds of the ravenous creatures constantly swarm in and out of several large holes spread throughout the riverbed. The closest of these holes on the eastern side of the swarm lies about 80 feet from the swarm cloud’s edge.
You all drop down into the 5 by 5 foot hole in the ground. Warm air fills this crystalline cavern, pulled through a vent in the ceiling twenty feet overhead. A continuous, high-pitched noise issues from the three tunnels ahead, a disconcerting drone melded with the discordant buzz of an angry crowd. The walls, floor, and ceiling of this cave glisten with moisture and are caked with a thick red resin resembling dried mucus, giving the chamber the disturbing illusion of being the interior of some great beast’s body.
Gorn will take point.
Nash mutters a spell and touches Gorn’s shoulder, shielding the noble hobgoblin prince with an aura of demonic force.
”That should protect you for a time. I have a feeling this place isn’t going to be lacking for danger.”
As you creep along, you spot a few lone vesacavors at first but soon they start flooding the room until the sound of their gibbering drowns out most other sounds.
Vescavor swarms can drive a person insane. Any creature within 15 feet of a vescavor swarm or inside it must succeed at a successful Will save or be confused for 1 round. This is a mind-affecting compulsion insanity effect. And any creature that spends more than 3 rounds inside a vescavor swarm must succeed at Will save or gain a type of madness
”Don’t let them get near you or surround you. Their droning will drive you mad!”
Aenthurien follows along, nodding at Nash's report. "I have two extracts of enlarging and one of striking true, if Gorn or Nash would like to make use of them."
Gorn moves forward ten feet and toss in a vial of holy water into the swarm.
"I could use the enlarge."]
Varda pulls out a vial of blessed water and holds it ready. "Steady, everyone... remember we're all in this together."
Gorn throws the holy water and it splashes right into the middle, the hissing and gibbering grows louder as the water sizzles on their carapaces. Varda pulls out her own vial and commands her allies to shake it off.
Aen follows suit and tosses a flask at the northern swarm.
Aen also throws a flask and more of the vermin are burned by the holiest of waters.
The first swarm heads towards the target that dared to throw holy water at it.
The other swarm covers Varda, Larissa, and Aravashnial.
Aravashnial starts losing his breakfast and moves away from the swarm.
Varda grimaces and tosses her flask, then moves away in another direction.
Gorn-Rel shatters another flask of holy water within the swarm.
He then moves to .
Both Larissa and Varda miss, doing minor damage to their target from the splash though the mighty Gorn scores a direct hit.
Nash retrieves his own vial of blessed water but gestures dismissing Larissa back to the Abyss.
Aen tosses anothe flask at the northern swarm, then moves back toward Aravashnial.
Aen hits with another flask. The northern swarm makes it way over Nash.
The southern one moves away from Varda and towards the large grouping of elves.
Aravashnial moves back and launches a ball of flame!
The northern swarm is incinerated!
Nash growls as the flames engulf him but he can't argue with the results.
"Finish the other one!" he says while tosses his vial of holy water.
Moving to , Gorn tosses another vial
Aen smashes a flask on his head.
Nash hits with his flask while Gorn misses. Aen fails to resist the gibbering and smashes a flask on his head.
Varda moves toward the swarm and tosses another flask.
The swarm continues to nom on Aen.
Aen walks up and unleashes another smaller gout of flame.
And the swarm dissipates as most of the insects are toasted.
"Let's keep moving. It's only a matter of time before more of those things show up", Nash says as he brushes the dead insects off of him.