Combat on a ship at sea... how?

[frankthedm]

If your players are still complaining after all that, let the acquatic sahuagin trail them into the open ocean and dissable the ships rudder without coming to the surface. After that, they can let the crew starve of scuttle the hull at their leisure, all without coming up to draw breath. After they've had to swim 20 miles back to land, fighting sahuagin the entire way, the players may be a little less chagrined by on-ship ambushes.

Yeah. If the players want to moan and groan about the encounter, I say sink the boat.

 

[Whisper72]

As for fighting things IN the water, while the PC's are on board the ship: Lightning bolt does wonders.

So does anything that will provide explosions under water. The pressure wave will mean lots of dazed/stunned merfolk come floating to the surface...

 

[frankthedm]

As for fighting things IN the water, while the PC's are on board the ship: Lightning bolt does wonders.

So does anything that will provide explosions under water. The pressure wave will mean lots of dazed/stunned merfolk come floating to the surface...

Sorry, the game rules don't support that.

 

[Hussar]

Really, actually spotting something climbing up the side of the ship would be very difficult. Usually the gunwales of the ship (The sides nearest the deck) are the widest, with the ship tapering in a fairly wedge shape down to the keel. Climbing up would be difficult, but not impossible for things with claws. Spotting something that actually could climb the sides of the ship unassisted would be virtually impossible until it got over the side.

But, yes, night attacks would be a must. Sahugin have darkvision and blindsense. Heck, climb up the stern while it's anchored at night. Ships usually don't sail at night. Nobody ever looks over the stern of a ship.

 

[Merkuri]

So does anything that will provide explosions under water. The pressure wave will mean lots of dazed/stunned merfolk come floating to the surface...

I was under the impression that bodies don't start floating until they've been waterlogged for a few days, or something like that. When you're unconscious you don't just start floating (otherwise drowning would probably be a lot less common because there'd be a chance you'd float to the surface with your face up).

 

[tzor]

Step one: Know your ship. Have a good deck plan available. You would be surprised at how many areas have partial cover from other areas of the ship.

Step two: Know your crew. The guy in the crow's nest is supposed to be looking out for other ships out there, not sneaking guys boarding the deck from the depths below. Unless you are in known waters with fish monsters sneaking on board boats, you won't probably be looking for them.

Step thee: Know your environment. The ship is rocking, the wood is creaking, and if the encounter is in the dark (the best time) the ship doesn't have running lights, so there will be a lot of the ship in relative darkness. Partial cover and dakrness are the crew's enemy.

And if you want lots of fun, as there probably won't be a large watch at night. Use a small squad to sneak in and spike the doors to the belowdecks shut so that the large force can come en masse while the crew is trying to get the doors open.

 

[thundershot]

What other monsters are good for attacking a ship, and how would they get aboard? Also (asking again), does anyone know of any good ship deck plans in B&W?

My players are going to hate me.



Chris

 

[Storyteller01]

With all the gear and Charisma that comes from a PC, the sanguine (butchered spelling) will know when and when not to board, on what side, as well as who is the greatest threat. When raiding, they'll watch the ship and plan it out first. With their high Int, this isn't much of a stretch.

Wait until a PC isn't on watch. If the PC's rotate shifts, attack from a side they're not on. If all the PC's work at once, even better! I doubt they'll stay up all night... . Unless campaign rules differ, an NPC shouldn't have a Spot check of more than +8. Most will be much lower.

Standing guard is tediuos work if there haven't been any recent encounters. Have the guards roll endurance checks to not fall asleep.

Sanguine have claws I think? If not, they can make climbing claws. Ropes won't be needed, especially if the ship isn't de-barnicled (I forget the name of the process...) regularly.

If the ship is carrying cargo, it'll lay low in the water. Have the deep sea critters make a hole wide enough for them to slip through. Even if noticed, there isn't much the pc's can do until the hole is made. After that, the ship rapidly fills with water, giving the beasties home court advantage. PC's being what they are, they can (hopefully) figure out how to repair the ship after the battle.

Make it guerilla style tactics. Don't make a single raid; hae the sanguine take one NPC a night, either via sniping (they have those damned speargun-ish crossbows) or by having a rogue climg up and take out a look-out at night. Leave the body to be found. Paniicy people make mistakes. Have some of the crew start going nuts, maybe killing each other at the extreme. When numbers and morale are whittled down, make the mass raid.

 

[Storyteller01]

I was under the impression that bodies don't start floating until they've been waterlogged for a few days, or something like that. When you're unconscious you don't just start floating (otherwise drowning would probably be a lot less common because there'd be a chance you'd float to the surface with your face up).

Largely depends on the bodies condition. Gases in the blood help influence bouyancy. And, as the saying goes' 'fat floats' (no disrespect intended here). There's also what is being worn, what comes to nibble on the body, etc. I'd guess that the body floats almost immediately, given how often muder victims are found weighted down, bodies are found floating immeditaely after plane and boat accidents, etc.

 

[just__al]

also take note, ship dimensions. I had done a bit of research for my seafaring campaign. I had look up the sizes of scores of ships.

the main details I found was (that I then made formulas in a spreadsheet):
a ship is 4-6 times longer than it is wide
The ship height (not counting masts) was about 2/3 it's width
The ship's draft was about 1/2 it's height (actually varies based on load, but for simplification).
Divide the ship's height by 6, and that's about how many decks you'll have.

What all this math means, is that a 100 foot ship, has a height of 16 feet, or so, with a draft of 8'. That means the badguys only gotta climb 8 feet to get over the rail.

Forgive my ignorance... ship's draft