Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
It Came from the Depths of the Abyss
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Eltab" data-source="post: 7148252" data-attributes="member: 6803337"><p><strong>The situation:</strong></p><p>A Band of Heroes (a.k.a. the PCs) have defeated Boss1 and Boss2. They are known to be sailing aboard a merchant ship towards Boss3, Boss4, and FinalBoss’s home. The remaining bosses meet to take counsel. All bosses have gained their power by consorting with fiends. They know the PCs have located a legendary weapon (a <em>Sword of Fiend-Slaying</em>) and are heading towards a <em>Sword of State</em> – possibly to spark a revolt in the land the bosses oppressively misrule.</p><p> </p><p>The bosses’ plan is to summon an aquatic abyssal creature to attack and sink the merchant ship. They want to create a death trap for the PCs, similar to the IRL fate of the <em>USS Indianapolis’</em> crew, but done on purpose.</p><p> </p><p>The remaining Bosses understand the power of information. To make sure they are hitting the right target, several “fishing boats” form a picket line well off-shore, with orders to meet every incoming ship. There are legitimate fishermen aboard, who will attempt to sell fresh fish to the crew of the ship. This is honest cover activity; but meanwhile a Wizard (hiding out of sight aboard the fishing boat) uses a spell such as <em>Arcane Eye</em> to observe aboard the merchant ship. Or the Wizard might have a fiendish familiar that can be sent to spy out the ship. In both cases, the Wizard has been given a description of the PCs, and the PCs are believed to be so overconfident that they will not take precautions or be vigilant against the tracks and traces left by the observation method(s). When the ship with the PCs is located, the beast will be summoned against it as it nears the horizon, as seen from the fishing boat’s deck. (Mid-level Wizards are not expendable cannon-fodder, we don’t want to accidentally destroy one in the process of deliberately destroying the PCs.)</p><p> </p><p><strong>Considerations:</strong></p><p>- The merchant ship and the fishing boat will be converted from 3e-era stats for size, crew, HP, &c.</p><p>- I do not yet know what level the PCs will be for this scenario; I anticipate L10 plus or minus 2. I need a range of potential encounters, based on what level they actually are (how tough they have become).</p><p>- The Wizard might perform the summoning with a Ritual rather than a spell slot. Ditto the scouting method (<em>Arcane Eye</em> requires a Wiz7 for a 4[SUP]<span style="font-size: 10px">th</span>[/SUP]-level spell slot). He will be equipped with whatever is needed within the rules to perform his task; he has a special job to perform and an organization backing him up, after all. 4e <em>residuum</em>, a 3e circle of casters, whatever can be plausibly explained is fair game.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Possible creatures to summon:</strong></p><p>- Plesiosaur (“Nessie” the Loch Ness Monster)</p><p>- Megalodon (XL Great White Shark)</p><p>- Kraken, not intelligent</p><p>- Giant Squid, as in <em>20,000 Leagues Under the Sea</em></p><p>- Use some big beast to deal with the ship plus a swarm/school of smaller monsters to deal with swimmers and lifeboats</p><p> </p><p><strong>My questions:</strong></p><p>- Is there an aquatic layer of the Abyss? This will add to the lore (and the feel, I hope) of the campaign</p><p>- What denizens live in that layer?</p><p>- What other covert methods of spying out the ship could the hidden magic-user use?</p><p>- Is there any monster from the Elemental Plane of Water that would be appropriate?</p><p>- Are there other well-known sea beasts to use? From movies, books, TV shows, anything iconic.</p><p>- Is there a template to make a 5eMM monster into an Abyssal creature?</p><p>- Is there a guide to add / subtract levels or CR from published monsters?</p><p> </p><p>Many thanks to all.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Eltab, post: 7148252, member: 6803337"] [B]The situation:[/B] A Band of Heroes (a.k.a. the PCs) have defeated Boss1 and Boss2. They are known to be sailing aboard a merchant ship towards Boss3, Boss4, and FinalBoss’s home. The remaining bosses meet to take counsel. All bosses have gained their power by consorting with fiends. They know the PCs have located a legendary weapon (a [I]Sword of Fiend-Slaying[/I]) and are heading towards a [I]Sword of State[/I] – possibly to spark a revolt in the land the bosses oppressively misrule. The bosses’ plan is to summon an aquatic abyssal creature to attack and sink the merchant ship. They want to create a death trap for the PCs, similar to the IRL fate of the [I]USS Indianapolis’[/I] crew, but done on purpose. The remaining Bosses understand the power of information. To make sure they are hitting the right target, several “fishing boats” form a picket line well off-shore, with orders to meet every incoming ship. There are legitimate fishermen aboard, who will attempt to sell fresh fish to the crew of the ship. This is honest cover activity; but meanwhile a Wizard (hiding out of sight aboard the fishing boat) uses a spell such as [I]Arcane Eye[/I] to observe aboard the merchant ship. Or the Wizard might have a fiendish familiar that can be sent to spy out the ship. In both cases, the Wizard has been given a description of the PCs, and the PCs are believed to be so overconfident that they will not take precautions or be vigilant against the tracks and traces left by the observation method(s). When the ship with the PCs is located, the beast will be summoned against it as it nears the horizon, as seen from the fishing boat’s deck. (Mid-level Wizards are not expendable cannon-fodder, we don’t want to accidentally destroy one in the process of deliberately destroying the PCs.) [B]Considerations:[/B] - The merchant ship and the fishing boat will be converted from 3e-era stats for size, crew, HP, &c. - I do not yet know what level the PCs will be for this scenario; I anticipate L10 plus or minus 2. I need a range of potential encounters, based on what level they actually are (how tough they have become). - The Wizard might perform the summoning with a Ritual rather than a spell slot. Ditto the scouting method ([I]Arcane Eye[/I] requires a Wiz7 for a 4[SUP][SIZE=2]th[/SIZE][/SUP]-level spell slot). He will be equipped with whatever is needed within the rules to perform his task; he has a special job to perform and an organization backing him up, after all. 4e [I]residuum[/I], a 3e circle of casters, whatever can be plausibly explained is fair game. [B]Possible creatures to summon:[/B] - Plesiosaur (“Nessie” the Loch Ness Monster) - Megalodon (XL Great White Shark) - Kraken, not intelligent - Giant Squid, as in [I]20,000 Leagues Under the Sea[/I] - Use some big beast to deal with the ship plus a swarm/school of smaller monsters to deal with swimmers and lifeboats [B]My questions:[/B] - Is there an aquatic layer of the Abyss? This will add to the lore (and the feel, I hope) of the campaign - What denizens live in that layer? - What other covert methods of spying out the ship could the hidden magic-user use? - Is there any monster from the Elemental Plane of Water that would be appropriate? - Are there other well-known sea beasts to use? From movies, books, TV shows, anything iconic. - Is there a template to make a 5eMM monster into an Abyssal creature? - Is there a guide to add / subtract levels or CR from published monsters? Many thanks to all. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
It Came from the Depths of the Abyss
Top