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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 6707093" data-attributes="member: 20323">My party is gunning for the so-called "Carrion Crawler Queen", basically an enormous carrion crawler that has been breeding the carrion crawlers causing all the ruckus in their village, and making the carrion crawlers more aggressive than usual.I'm looking at ways to make this showdown both fun and challenging!The Scenario: Aquatic carrion crawlers (along with a host of other nasties) have come up from the Underdark and plague the surface world! The PCs are fighting back, and have killed 4 crawlers already that were haunting the village's waterways. Now they've tracked the crawlers down to a lair in a cave somewhere that borders a 25 mile long by 10 mile wide lake. There are multiple watery caves branching off this lake with varying levels of submersion vs. dryness. PCs are in exploration mode, hoping to find the crawler's cave soon. Note that this is a planned hunt, and the PCs plan to go into this fight as fresh as they can get, with full resources.The Party: The party is six 2nd levels PCs (ranger, fighter/paladin, monk, rogue, cleric, sorcerer, monk/warlock). They've teamed up with a scout (CR 1/4) and a swanmay (CR 3) who they previously rescued, and the ranger PC has a "behind-the-scenes" immature giant badger (CR 1/4) companion  -- control of these companions can be passed on to a player whose PC gets paralyzed during the fight, so that way no one is sitting on the sidelines for long.The Opposition: 2 carrion crawlers (CR 2), 2 swarms of insects (centipedes, re-skinned as baby carrion crawlers) (CR 1/2), and the carrion crawler queen (CR 3?)Carrion Crawler Queen: A souped-up huge carrion crawler with lair actions, essentially. Notable changes to the stat block include:HP 76 (8d12+24)Enduring Poison. Creatures suffer disadvantage on saving throws against her poison while grabbed by the Queen’s tentacles.Multiattack. Make six attacks: five paralyzing tentacles (reach 15 ft.) and one bite. The same creature cannot be targeted by more than one paralyzing tentacle.CR 3 (750 XP)[SBLOCK=Lair Actions]On initiative count 20 (losing all initiative ties), the Carrion Crawler Queen can use one of its lair action options. The Queen cannot use the same lair action in consecutive rounds.Call the Young: The Queen screeches ear-piercingly. Elves and gnomes (and any with sensitive ears) within 30 feet must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be deafened for one minute. 2 swarms of insects (centipedes) burst forth from nearby egg sacks and act on their own initiative count to defend the Queen by attacking weakened or unconscious creatures. The Queen may only have 2 swarms defending it at a time, though it may call a total of up to 6.Grasping Tentacles: The Queen makes two grab attacks up to 15 feet, and may immediately pull two grabbed creatures up to 15 feet toward it.Threatening Reach: Until the start of its next turn, the Queen can make up to five opportunity attacks with its paralyzing tentacles against creatures that move any distance away from it, as long as they fall within its reach of 15 ft. Only one opportunity attack may be made per creature.[/SBLOCK][SBLOCK=Regional Effects]Cairngorm’s Hollow is plagued by the following effects while the Carrion Crawler Queen is alive. If the Queen is killed, the following effects fade over 1d10 days.<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Carrion crawlers infest the waterways, feasting on corpses, carrion, and easy prey.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Disease affects the livestock and other domesticated animals.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Corpses left in the open attract carrion crawlers in 1d10 hours and are soon eaten.</li> </ul>[/SBLOCK]Still need to work out treasure...but that's the gist of it.Any thoughts? Advice? Crazy ideas?</blockquote>

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