"Brace yerself lads," I say with some trepidation as the little monsters flow towards our position.
The three eyeclusters opened like clams but very quickly. They snapped open tearing the sinews that kept them shut and destroying any of the eyeballs that had grown over the seal between the clam shell like carapace.
Orlan:
More than a dozen tiny crablike creatures leap out of the eyecluster nests or leap down from the ceiling of the elevator shaft. The majority of them target Hru who strikes them as being big and slow-moving. Several of them slide off your armour or get knocked aside before they can do any damage and attempt to scuttle down the side of the shaft between the elevator and the wall.
Klyndak is nipped by the claws of three of them. Two of these three hang on to Klyndak. The other is shaken loose.
Although six of them try to get a claw full of half-orc, only three of them manage to draw blood. One of these six manages to sink its claws in hard enough to hold on.
Kelborn gets the worst of it. Although only two manage to sink their claws into him, they sink both claws in hard. One of these two keeps its grip.
The crabs that fell off attempt to scuttle to the edge like their companions.
Rule note:
I keep the flaming sphere on the 'nest' just in case there are any more in there and attack the one on me with my warhammer.
Attack: (1d20+7=17)
Damage: (1d8+3=11)
"Don't let 'em be eatin' yer 'ead's lads!"
Reacting poorly to the creature hanging onto his flesh, Kelborn reacts how anyone attacked by creepy crawlie things might: by grabbing at the things and attempting to throw them off.
Reacting poorly to the creature hanging onto his flesh, Kelborn reacts how anyone attacked by creepy crawlie things might: by grabbing at the things and attempting to throw them off.
Hru deftly brings his sword around in a shaving-like maneuver to attempt to scrape the beastie off.
Hru deftly brings his sword around in a shaving-like maneuver to attempt to scrape the beastie off.
For DM:
When you entered the cave the sun was still out. It's dark now and Quarrel isn't anywhere to be seen. He left more soup though.
Orlan shudders as he sees more of the soup. "Better be stayin' away from more o' that," the dwarf mutters as he rubs his rumbling stomach. Shuffling to his feet, he checks all of his gear and looks around once more for any sign of Quarrel. Finally giving up on the bugbear, Orlan decides to renew his journey and head back to the Spires.
In a panic, Kelborn pulls at the creature digging into his flesh, attempting to pull it off as fast as possible.
Hru misses badly, but Gorum protects him from the indignity of being impaled in his own sword.
Klyndak kills one stalker crab but another remains. The remaining stalkercrab hanging off Klyndak finds it difficult to discern beard and body hair from flesh and ends up burrowing into his beard. It is getting closer to your neck though.
Kelborn and Hru both fail to rid themselves of their stalkercrabs. The two crabs begin to claw away and burrow down.
Though the angle is ackward, I attempt to sweep the crab in my beard away with my hammer.
Hammer Attack: (1d20+7=15)
Damage: (1d8+3=5)
"Argh, itsa goin' fer me throat lads. Use me fire to burn them off iffin' ye can."
Though the angle is ackward, I attempt to sweep the crab in my beard away with my hammer.
Hammer Attack: (1d20+7=15)
Damage: (1d8+3=5)"Argh, itsa goin' fer me throat lads. Use me fire to burn them off iffin' ye can."
Hru cries out to Gorum "Cleansing blade of Gorum, rid me of this foulness!" as he once again attempts an intricate shaving-like maneuver with the huge blade.
To his mind unbidden comes a random thought "I wonder if my brother Golg ever had crabs?"
Shaking off the thought he concentrates again on the task at hand.
Hru cries out to Gorum "Cleansing blade of Gorum, rid me of this foulness!" as he once again attempts an intricate shaving-like maneuver with the huge blade.
To his mind unbidden comes a random thought "I wonder if my brother Golg ever had crabs?"
Shaking off the thought he concentrates again on the task at hand.
Hru roars in a paroxysm of pain as the vile thing bores into his living flesh!
Realizing that grabbing at the crabs is not working, Kelborn follows the lead of his companions by slicing at the creature with his longsword.
Klyndak manages to knock the critter out of his beard and send it flying. It smushes as it hits the wall. Maybe Hru will find out if stalkercrabs are edible later. For now, however, Hru has a more serious problem. The stalkercrab attacking him has burrowed beneath his flesh. Removing it without hurting Hru is going to be impossible. Kelborn's stalkercrab has mistaken leather for flesh and has succeeded in burrowing into a belt. Kelborn's pants may fall down but he suffers no more damage yet.
Seeing the creature burrow into the belt allows Kelborn a moment of relief, which quickly disappears when he realizes that the creature is still alive.
Being both raised by orcs, and a warrior-priest of Gorum, Hru quickly realizes what must be done. His eyes flick quickly from his belt where it seems like eons ago, once hung a utilitarian dagger.
Jumping back from the spider things, he scans the area for something useful. Reigning in the pain with his iron will, he calls out "A DAGGER, BY GORUM! I NEED A DAGGER.....ARRGH!!"
Then turning his sword skillfully (perhaps as no other, with such a cumbersome weapon)he plunges it into where the thing has burrowed in!
Kelborn's crab finally manages to tear a hole in his flesh to burrow into.
Hru, seeing a bulge in his chest stabs at it but injures himself badly.
Hru drops his greatsword, the pain of that seeming even worse than the pain he had just inflicted on himself.
Blood-foam flecks shoot in all directions as he struggles to control the pain and rid himself of the evil parasite. "Aaaargh! a dagger! Someone!!"
Kelborn's crab finally manages to tear a hole in his flesh to burrow into.
Kelborn drops his sword, realizing that he will need more finesse for the task ahead. He pulls his dagger from his belt, and turns it toward himself, just as he hears Hru screaming for a dagger.
For a moment he considers.
Then, after a sharp pain from the crab-thing, he mutters "Sorry, Hru," just before a last-ditch effort to stab the crab within.
Kelborn's crab finally manages to tear a hole in his flesh to burrow into.
Kelborn drops his sword, realizing that he will need more finesse for the task ahead. He pulls his dagger from his belt, and turns it toward himself, just as he hears Hru screaming for a dagger.
For a moment he considers.
Then, after a sharp pain from the crab-thing, he mutters "Sorry, Hru," just before a last-ditch effort to stab the crab within.
As Kelborn fails to stab it, the crablike creature slips under his flesh.
Klyndak can see the crab like creatures sliding beneath the flesh of his two compatriots. The crabs are working their way up to his friends' necks.
Grimacing and trying as hard as he can to fight the pain, Kelborn will tell himself that stabbing himself will hurt significantly less than the crab tearing at his insides, and attempts to get at the thing through his own flesh.
Hru draws a ragged breath and calms himself. The voice of Gorum rippling through his the canyons of his mind.
"Lay thy hand on the neck of thine enemies......"
Then it comes to him and he focuses the power of Gorum on the creature within him.
"Burn 'em off lads," I suggest again, this time with a little more urgency, "Like ticks!"
I direct the ball of fire to a spot between or next to both Hru and Kelborn.
Meanwhile, I attempt to attack one of crabs on Hru which has not yet managed to burrow in but my subconscious fear of hurting him holds my hand back from effectiveness.
** spoiler omitted **
"Burn 'em off lads," I suggest again, this time with a little more urgency, "Like ticks!"
Not entirely fond of the idea, Kelborn hesitates at first. Upon feeling the next sharp pain, however, he realizes that at this point, he is willing to try anything.
He jumps in.
As Kelborn presses his chest and shoulder into the flaming sphere, he feels a violent thrashing about as the stalkercrab shares the heat. The thrashing stops.
I wince as Kelborn actually takes my advice and plunges himself into the flame.
'At least he isn't 'avin' a beard ta singe,' I tell myself.
Letting out a blood-curdling scream as the flames engulf him, he lets out another cry as the thrashing inside him gets more intense for a moment.
Then a the deepest sigh of relief escapes his mouth when he realizes that the thrashing has ceased.
Letting out a blood-curdling scream as the flames engulf him, he lets out another cry as the thrashing inside him gets more intense for a moment.
Then a the deepest sigh of relief escapes his mouth when he realizes that the thrashing has ceased.
"Burn 'em off lads," I suggest again, this time with a little more urgency, "Like ticks!"
I direct the ball of fire to a spot between or next to both Hru and Kelborn.
Meanwhile, I attempt to attack one of crabs on Hru which has not yet managed to burrow in but my subconscious fear of hurting him holds my hand back from effectiveness.