Dame Edella Montfort – Human Paladin member of the Notorious Nine. Cheery, Stalwart champion of justice. Though out of her element she is determined to do what is needed to save the day.
Elriel (aka “the Opal”) – Elven Druid member of the Fate Fighters. Not the most personable of elves, but good hearted and powerful. Seems to prefer to remain the shape of a large tiger, but willing to take his normal form as needed. Currently in the form of a large water elemental.
Raskin Daggermaw – Half-Orc Rogue member of the Notorious Nine. Surly and braggadocious, he seems to be helping begrudgingly, but looks forward to using his skills at violence and (hopefully) getting paid.
Ron Cunningham – Halfling Bard member of the Notorious Nine. Good natured and willing to ride along for another adventure, crazy as this one seems to be. His artistic stylings are strange, but his magic is powerful.
Wu Xen – Human Monk/Cleric member of the Fate Fighters. Disciplined and holy, he seeks to do good and help to defeat the evil that threatens the Astral Plane. Nobody but Edella seems interested in his stories and parables.
Furreltuff “Furrel” Mellburrow – NPC Kender “handler.” Originally just a (mediocre at best) guide Furrel has decided to stick around and help. The fact that he has no idea what a Planar Key is or where might be found in no way deters him.
The Living Sea, Astral Plane. Date unknown.
Opal had just enough time to warn Wu, who was just swimming up to the tower, that he had heard voices below. The monk attempted to swim below the window to the tower so he could ambush any Sahuagin that might come to investigate.
He had barely hidden when two of the creatures emerged and, spotting Opal in the form of a water elemental, said something to him in a language neither Opal nor Wu understood. When they failed to get an answer, the creatures began to yell loudly and attacked. Wu swam into the tower and unsuccessfully attempted to grapple one, while Opal began pummeling the other.
The rest of the group, seeing that things had turned into a full battle, began to swim to that tower as quickly as they could. Edella swam to one of the towers as quickly as she could, aided considerably by a spell that Opal had cast on her. Drawing a magical Rod of Darkness to be able to see in the murky darkness, the paladin managed to get into the tower and strike one of the Sahuagin, though it did not do much damage.
While the others swam to the tower, hampered by the water, Wu was able to grapple the Sahuagin he had attacked, putting it in a chokehold, so it could not continue calling for help. Opal meanwhile pummeled the other Sahuagin to death, before also killing the one Wu was holding.
Another call came up from down the tower as the rest of the group arrived. None knew the language, but Edella’s magical trident, the Mermaid’s Spear (which went by the nickname “Wave“) did. It told the paladin that the Sahuagin below were asking their companions if all was well. With Wave feeding her the words, Edella tried to answer back that all was well, but her inability to bluff caused the Sahuagin to immediately realize that it was a ploy.
Realizing the jig was up, they all began to swim down the hole that led into the main keep.
Opal, in his form as a water elemental, was fastest and got down into the keep first. As outside the walls were all made of coral and the furniture seemed to be made of stone, coral or just carved straight into the walls. The room he was in held a weapon rack and what looked to be a wardrobe carved into the coral wall. Opal spied one Sahuagin in the room and another beyond him in the main welcome hall, seemingly ready to flee for help. Opal engaged the nearer one, pummeling it badly. Edella swam down next, using her spell to swim straight past the nearer Sahuagin and impaled the Sahuagin preparing to flee with Wave, striking it down. A moment later Opal finished off the other Sahuagin and the others joined them.
“So, what’s up. Is the alarm sounded?” Raskin asked Wu, who had arrived in the room a moment before him.
“I do not know,” the monk admitted. “A couple of them were able to scream, but so far there has been no response. Still, it would be prudent to presume an alarm has been sounded.”
Despite Wu’s feelings, no counterattack immediately came, and so they regrouped before continuing into a nearby room that had some comfortable looking benches and chairs carved out of coral and a small stone table. Raskin offered to sneak ahead and scout the path out of this room, finding himself in a corridor.
They continued on through a room that had a large amount of shelves carved into the coral walls and several “books” on them consisting of thin sheets of slate bound together. A few tables and chairs made of coral or stone led them to conclude they had found the library.
Continuing through the group came upon a junk room and while searching it found a magical scroll written on sealskin. This prompted them to backtrack to the library where Ron and Opal used Detect Magic to find a few more scrolls in with the books.
While they were in the library, though, a number of Sahuagin soon entered the room. It seemed some form of warning or alarm had, indeed, taken place. The creatures swam into the room en masse, tridents at the ready.
Edella immediately swam out to engage them, wounding one of the creatures with the Mermaid’s Spear before getting charged by another. Raskin swam over and knifed the creature in the face so brutally that several of the Sahuagin immediately fled. One of them swam past Edella and she struck it down as it went.
One of the braver Sahuagin swam up behind Raskin, evidently hoping to take out this terrifying half-orc, wounding him with his trident. It did not watch it’s flanks, however, because Furreltuff then swam up behind IT, impaling it with the spearpoint of his hoopack staff and killing it.
A flurry of crossbow bolts assailed them from down the corridor where more Sahuagin had arrived but Opal decided to put a quick end to the combat. Still in the form of a Water Elemental, he turned into a living whirlpool and began to go down the corridor, sucking up the Sahuagin, battering them and spitting them out. Any that survived this brutal attack were soon struck down by Raskin, and, Furrel. A pair of Sahuagin crossbowman had ducked into a room in the north, but Edella and Wu pursued them and slew the creatures. With the fight quickly over Edella administered healing and they continued to explore the Coral Castle.
In short order they found a large hole in the floor that seemed to lead deeper into the complex. Opal, still in the form of a water elemental, swam down to investigate. He immediately found himself before several lines of crosbow wielding Sahuagin, several of whom loosed their bolts. Retreating in among the hail of bolts, Opal went back to the others to get healing and advise the of what was ahead.
They formed up and decided a charge with Shock and Awe was the best method forward. Transforming himself into a whirlpool again, Opal led the charge. Behind him were Edella and Wu, with Raskin, Furrel and Ron bringing up the rear.
“If you got any tricks to blast them with now’s a good time,” Raskin said to the group.
“I do have one or two more in the staff, but Alexi and especially Edrick said I shouldn’t use them…” Furrel advised.
“Eh, screw ’em. I’m sure it’ll be fine. Do it little man!” Raskin assured him.
“Ok! I will!” The kender responded excitedly.
Opal hit the lower floor and charged immediately, again suffering a withering fire of crossbow fire, but quickly absorbing four of the attackers in his whirlpool form.
Past the first line of Sahuagin he could see several more of the creatures and, seanted on a huge stone throne, an enormous three eyed creature with four long tentacles writhing from this its flanks, its green body glistening with thick, clear slime. It began to speak but none knew the language it was using. Fortunately Edella had drank a Potion of Comprehend Languages and could understand it.
“Who dares disturb the sanctuary of Lord Ku’lub’thig?” It demanded.
“Can you understand me?” Edella asked.
“Your worthless mewling mean nothing,” the creature continued, not seeming to comprehend the paladin’s words. “You will receive no mercy from me.”
Before anyone else could act, however, the coral walls that led to the throne room began to stretch and grow, closing off the room. Raskin, Wu, Furrel and Edella swam in to back Opal up and fight the Sahuagin that were still near them. Opal also used his magic to summon another water elemental to help him.
Before Ron could swim in to join his companions, however, the coral walls seemed to close on him as well, separating him from the others. The Sahuagin were swiftly slain and Opal and his elemental continued to scout ahead followed slowly by the others.
As they began to move from the chamber they were in to follow Opal and his elemental, Ku’lub’thig suddenly appeared behind them. Wu and Furrel spotted the creature’s sudden appearance and called a warning to the others.
Raskin charged Ku’lub’thig but his Onyx Razor passed harmlessly through it. Furrel followed suit, but his hoopack also did not harm it.
“Uh…I can’t seem to hurt it, Edella. We may need your help…” Raskin called back to his companions.
“Is it an illusion?” Edella asked, thinking of some of the ideas and magics that Froderik often told her about in their private time together.
“I don’t think so,” Raskin replied. “I think it’s just real powerful or something…”
“Definatley not an illusion!” Furrel added hastily as his hoopack attack went harmless through the creature.
At this, Wu and Edella quickly swam back to help their companions, and Opal did likewise taking up a position on the other side of the creature (followed by his summoned water elemental.)
Unsure of what to do to try to affect the enemy Furrel shouted “I have an idea but it might not be effective…”
The kender was looking to Edella, the obvious knight in shining armor when he said this, but Raskin spoke first barking “Do it!”
“Ok!” Furrel replied eagerly and began spinning the hoopack staff above his head before bringing it down as if slamming it on the ground and uttering a command word. Unfortunately it was obvious that the magic went wrong, and instead of whatever he meant to do, he merely transformed into a small sheep.
Edella then attacked Ku’lub’thig and the Mermaid’s Spear went right thorough it. She immediately figured out it was an illusion and called that to her companions.
“Opal, is there a path around to the throne room?” She asked. He barely had a chance to respond, however, before his own summoned water elemental attacked him, slamming him in the back. He quickly dismissed it, though he wasn’t quite sure what had happened.
“I guess we’ll have to go around since this thing is too cowardly to fight us.” Edella said, taunting Ku’lub’thig.
“Is that what I’m doing?” the illusion asked, before somehow managing to flip them off with his tentacles and vanishing.
“Yes,” Edella said to the empty air. She then collected Furrel, who seemed unable to remedy his situation, and put him into her backpack with his upper torso and head sticking out. He bleated in response and licked her face.
They group then swam around the way Opal told them was another entrance to the throne room. There they found several more Sahuagin and an enormous water elemental. Opal used the vortex power of his own water elemental form to go around and suck in the Sahuagin and kill them while Wu, Edella, and Raskin engaged the elemental.
Wu and Edella laid into the creature with all they had, but were hardly wounding it. Meanwhile the elemental was slamming into them with increasingly powerful blows that saw both noble warriors forced to heal themselves and keep fighting what seemed like it could have been a losing battle.
Ron, meanwhile, was able to determine that the coral wall that had separated him from his friends was an illusion, but he strongly suspected that it had addiitonal magic that would harm him if he tried to pass through it. He explored to find another way to find his friends, but could find none. Eventually he gritted his teeth and walked through the illusary wall, suffering from no ill effect and soon he was able to the others just in time.
Upon seeing his friends battling the enormous Water Elemental he cast Glitterdust and blinded the elemental and the Sahuagin near it.
Meanwhile, aided by the elemental’s blindness, Edella and Raskin kept whaling away on it, aided by Ron’s magical singing, while Opal was able to scoop up the remaining Sahuagin and kill them. Edella and Wu rallied and struck a series of devastating blows on the Elemental, with Wu finishing it off by striking the same vulnerable spot over and over.
Opal finished off the last, blind Sahuagin that he had absorbed. With no sign of Ku’lub’thig and several of his Sahuagin , Edella and Wu administered some healing and they began to look around, with Opal and Ron using Detect Magic and Edella using Detect Evil. They learned that the enormous stone throne was enchanted. Opal was convinced it was actually an illusion, but Ron diplomatically assured him it was real and enchanted to summon a Water Elemental, presumably the one they’d just fought. Further exploration of nearby rooms turned up some small amounts of treasure but no indication of their quarry or the Planar Key.
Eventually Raskin had the idea to search the throne, speculating that Ku’lub’thig had a “coward hole”.
“What’s a coward hole?” Edella asked.
“You know, a hole for a noble to escape battle. A coward hole,” the half-orc replied simply. He soon found a small button that caused it to slide to the side, revealing a hole leading down. “See. A coward hole”
They headed down the hole, with Opal in the lead. He reached the bottom and saw Ku’lub’thig as well as a warrior Sahuagin and a cleric Sahuagin . They were joined by an octopus as well as an enormous tentacles creature.
The Octopus immediately acted, blasting Opal with a jet of ink, casting the bottom of the hole in concealment and completely enveloping Opal.
Raskin swam down past Opal, groping his way through the ink. He was barely out when another Sahuagin snuck out from behind a large stalagmite and attempted to backstab him. Fortunately Raskin saw him coming with enough time to turn and make it merely a flesh wound.
“Ooooh, you’re quite good…” the Sahuagin rogue spat.
Raskin had no time to gloat, however, as the huge water creature lashed out at him with several tentacles, causing the half-orc to duck and weave to avoid being hit.
Meanwhile, Opal had turned his Water Elemental form into a Vortex and went straight for the Octopus and the warrior Sahuagin, sucking them both up. The Octopus vanished immediately, causing Opal to suspect it was a summoned creature. The Sahuagin warrior, on the other hand, responded by simply screaming in a rage and trying to kill Opal from within the vortex.
Ron, still in the tunnel, cast dimension door and brought Edella, Wu, Furrel (still in the form of a sheep) and himself into the room, and Edella offered prayer to Vesper to allow her allies to help her smite the evil creatures within.
They immediately targeted the huge being, with Wu going first and striking it with the holy power of Vesper that Edella granted him. Furrel, despite his current form, was eager to join the fight and swam out at the Sahuagin that had stabbed Raskin, biting it. With the power of Vesper he dealt a massive wound to the creature, causing it to withdraw. It swam to the wall and manipulated some sort of mechanism, opening a secret door through witch it fled.
Rather than give chance Raskin swam to the huge creature Wu had attacked and plunged his dagger into the beast. He was perplexed when he drew no blood, however. Edella soon swam up as well, finishing it off with a flurry of attacks from the Mermaid’s Spear.
As soon as the creature fell the entire room seemed to change. The stalagmites all vanished and were revealed to be enormous piles of treasure. Additionally the shape of the slain beast changed to reveal the body of Ku’lub’thig, while what they thought was Ku’lub’thig vanished. They quickly realized the creature had used illusions to disguise things. Of the most interest, however, was a glowing blue cube suspended in the water and surrounded by some sort of green energy. Raskin, for his part, stood gobsmacked at all the gold for a moment.
Ron cast Detect Magic on the cube and was briefly blinded by how magical it was. “Ow. I think we found it. Very magic…very magic,” the halfling muttered.
Furreltuff, upon seeing the Planar Key, immediately swam to it, but Edella was able to scoop him up and prevent him from getting to it. He urged the kender to wait until it was fully examined before touching it.
Meanwhile, Opal continued to bash the Sahuagin barbarian in his vortex form and had picked up the cleric as well. The barbarian continued to fight from within, while the cleric managed to slip out and follow the one who had ambushed Raskin earlier and fled through the secret door. Opal soon spat the Barbarian out so that he could be slain by his allies. Furrel enthusiastically jumped at him, but missed and landed in a pile of coins. Raskin and Edella soon finished off the warrior though.
Edella, concerned about what the two fleeing Sahuagin might be up to gave chase, easily opening the secret door and finding the cleric with a few other Sahuagin.
“We should just leave them, we have the money and…er… the key thingie…” Raskin advised.
“Yes, but we can’t just stir up this hornets nest and leave or they’ll take it out on the town,” Edella reminded him. This was followed by a bleat from Furrel that seemed to agree with her.
“Dame Edella is correct,” Wu added. “We mad a promise to ensure these creatures no longer hurt the people of the nearby town.”
“Ugh…whatever,” Raskin muttered.
Edella and Wu swam towards the cleric and other Sahuagin and realized, too late, that they were in a room that held two large pens full of sharks only held in place by two large nets. Indeed, as soon as the two entered the room a pair of unarmed Sahuagin opened those nets commanded the sharks to attack. Rapidly the beasts filled the room and attacked Edella and Wu. Opal soon came into the room, grabbing up what sharks and Sahuagin he could.
Raskin, for his part, opted to stay in the treasure room and guard Ron and Furrel, barely hiding his desire to not risk losing access to the treasure. He too came under attack, however, as a number of Sahuagin from other parts of the castle attacked him.
What followed was a flurry of bloody attacks with Wu and Edella surrounded by sharks, fighting back to back slaying the creatures, while Opal scooped up as many as he could to bludgeon to death in his vortex form. Near the treasure room Raskin single handled slew the five Sahuagin that attacked him, brutally knifing them with Onyx Razor. Midway through the fight the group heard an explosion from the treasure room and saw a flash of green light.
Only one Sahuagin seemed to escape, and it was one of the unarmed shark wranglers who had avoided combat, fleeing out of the castle and into the distance when it became clear his companions were slain and his beloved sharks all killed.
Once the battle was over, the group returned to the treasure room (passing the carnage at the doorway of Raskin’s battle) to find Furreltuff holding the Planar Key in his mouth. Ron was nearby and stunned from the magical explosion the kender had set off.
“Furrel!” Edella chided. “I told you to wait!” A slightly chastised bleat was the only response she received.
The group decided to pull into the treasure room for healing and to attend to Ron before determining their next step.
DM’s Notes: This battle took place over a series of sessions over a kind of long period of time due to player availability issues an some holiday delays. It was a little sloggy, but I wanted to the castle to seem realistically populated with enough Sahuagin to terrorize a town.
The challenge of creating a spherical 3-D dungeon in an underwater realm with no gravity proved difficult, and while I’m sure I did ok at best, my players are wonderful and ran with it and seemed to grasp things. I feel like it would have gone better had Roll20 not performed an update which undid all of the dynamic lighting work I’d performed, but that is neither here nor there. At the end of the day, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and that’s the important part.
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