Undersea Monster Encounter

[Chilxius]

I have an aquatic campaign going with PC's about to hit 7th level. I'm about ready to have them stay underwater for several consecutive encounters (rather than diving into an underwater temple with air pockets). I have one question and one idea that needs critiquing.

1. My question is: is there any spell or magic item that would allow a normal sailing vessel, a caravel for instance, to dive beneath the water and still sail while keeping the air-breathing crew safe? I'd like my PC's to be able to explore the briny deep in style, and safe from pressure. Plus it would be nice if they acquire a ship that they can use anywhere, be it ocean surface, underwater, or sky.

2. My idea is for an underwater encounter. It's a kind of escort quest. They will be helping some giant creature (currently I'm thinking some colossal, intelligent whale, maybe even a quasi-deity) pass through dangerous waters. It will be attacked by Anguillians (SW 136) that will attempt to latch on and suck the CON out of it. Once the fight is almost over I want a big bad monster to show up. I was thinking Kraken, but if there are other good choices out there I'd love to hear them. My PC's could be anywhere from level 7 to 10 by then.
I will give the whale some kind of enclosure on its back that the PC's and NPC's can ride in.

Also, if anyone has any good house rules for underwater movement & combat, I'd like to hear them.

PC's are: Ultimage Magus & Warforged Fighter. NPC's are: Mermaid Shugenja, Human Cleric

[DrMotives]

I'm not aware of anything for letting a surface ship sail underwater, although you could compare the prices for flying and over-earth traveling ships plus the price of an artificial atmosphere and make your own. There are ship stats for a submarine in both the Arms & Equipment Guide and also in Dragon #345. That same issue of Dragon magazine also has 3 different sea serpents, statted out like true dragons with no wings. Those might be a little less expected than a kraken for your boss fight.

[curious-puzzle]

The Submerge Ship spell from Spell Compendium (pg 211) is pretty much exactly what you're looking for, though it's a level 7 spell that lasts 1 hour/level. It lets the ship travel underwater, and everyone aboard to breathe water (and not automatically float away). As for monsters, a Kraken is pretty iconic, though a dragon turtle or a dragon eel could do the job too. Sahuagin (along with sharks, possibly a giant fiendish megaladon) is also a pretty cool aquatic encounter.

[Tarlek Flamehai]

Do you have Stormwrack? I would suggest the animal of legend template for your whale.

Some other interesting menaces.
Eye of the Deep
Aboleth, but I think they are freshies
Water Elementals!
Sea Hag
Kelpie
Leviathan
That Damn Crab!
Revived Fossil TDC!
Siege Crab
Tempest
Mosasaur
Sirens on the rocks

Becalmed!
Maelstrom/whirpool

[DrMotives]

Sirens on the rocks aren't very challenging, they start the encounter already shaken.


But seriously, sahugin clerics (like drow, the clerics are always female) with a megalodon shark would be good. A big dumb animal boss with cleric support? That'll make for a more dynamic fight than most simple big bad whatevers. Or keep your theme, anguillian clerics escorting your sea monster. Aquatic ogre were-moral eel? That could have class levels and still look like a big biting eel.

[AlanBruce]

I ran a 3.5 sea faring arc where the PCs had access to Submerge Ship- a single scroll of it saved for a dire emergency.

Amongst the many hazards the party and much weaker NPC crew of privateers had to face out in the vast stretches of the ocean was The Lament's Passing.

This natural canyon jutting from the ocean had amassed a large number of ships for over a century. Nobody had been able to tell how, but the ships sailed in, none sailed out. The few survivors who swam to nearby islands and were later rescued told of ghosts that called sailors to their demise, causing the ships to crash against the rocks and debris.

The party decided to sail in anyway.

They weren't mistaken- there were ghosts, but not as the sailor's tales had accounted for.

Three powerful fey- a Selkie, a Nereid and a Kelpie had taken residence in the Lament. All three had class levels and were rather well optimized (the party was high level).

The nereid had Wild Soul levels and would call watery versions of Joystealers (MM IV) to lure the crew.

The Selkie had bard levels and would sing from atop a derelict ship under an illusion to enthrall the sailors and keep them in place while the Joystealers did their thing.

The leader of this trio, the Kelpie, who had Eldritch Theurge levels would buff up and go invisible and snatch the stragglers with her teeth and drop carry them overboard, dropping them to the rocks below.

The party had will saves through the roof, so they were largely unaffected, but just keeping the crew from following the Joystealers or being snagged by the Righteous Might buffed Kelpie was a challenge in and of itself.

Once the crew had been wrangled up and placed in a Rope Trick, they took upon the three fey, releasing one from a curse that kept her dominated (the nereid), intimidating the selkie into inaction and ganging up on the real villain here- The Kelpie.

The encounter can easily be used underwater as well, since the three fey are aquatic, but given your party's level, you might want to make the fey a lot less powerful.

[Bullet06320]

a group of anthropomorphic lobsters that have started attacking fishermen in revenge for catching and cooking their king

[Geddy2112]

Some other interesting menaces.
Eye of the Deep
Aboleth, but I think they are freshies
Water Elementals!
Sea Hag
Kelpie
Leviathan
That Damn Crab!
Revived Fossil TDC!
Siege Crab
Tempest
Mosasaur
Sirens on the rocks
Becalmed!
Maelstrom/whirpool

I like this list. I think aboleths can go fresh/salt, or are mainly ocean based. Either way, they would be the type to command an army of saughain or similar derps instead of headon fight.

Galvo's are a pathfinder monster that are a humanoid swarm of electric eels, and pretty sweet. A nereid with a troupe of animals might also be an interesting challenge(that might be more non-combat)

[Chilxius]

The Submerge Ship spell from Spell Compendium (pg 211) is pretty much exactly what you're looking for, though it's a level 7 spell that lasts 1 hour/level.

That's exactly what I'm looking for. I thought I remembered a spell like that, but couldn't find it in Stormwrack. A permanent Submerge Ship effect would probably cost a king's ransom, but maybe they can join the crew of a wealthy adventurer and 'inherit' the ship when he heroically dies.

I'm steering the campaign toward the Leviathan Elder Evil, but all the evil NPC's are worshipers of Dagon instead of Demogorgon. I'm trying to get them used to sea monsters and aberrations. I will definitely use Aboleths at some point. They've already seen Ixitxachitls, Ahuizotls, and a Chuul (which nearly wiped them), and I've used giant crabs, sharks, piranha, black dragons, crocodiles, and water naga. I'm looking for good deep-sea creatures, the kind that never see the light of day. Eye of the Deep is good. I may just use existing creatures but describe them differently. I want my PC's to be so grateful to be on the surface again that they swear off the deep sea forever. (Though they will be going into the Shadowsea at some point). And I want them to face off against a beast that can't be reasonably fought man-to-man - I want them to have a ship battle agains the beast.

I'm thinking of simplifying the swim check rules. Something like 'you can move the result of your swim check -10 as a move action, or move your swim check as a full round action'. Obviously low rolls still sink.

[Flickerdart]

Consider the fantastic Titanic template applied to a typical, normally non-dangerous marine animal. Even a Titanic Toad would be a dangerous foe, but consider animals with interesting abilities such as the porpoise (120ft blindsight), octopus (60ft cube of ink + camouflage + improved grab), or shark (30ft blindsense and blood scent).

The interesting thing about the octopus is that it only has two attacks, Arms and Bite - the arms are used to establish a grapple, and then the octopus attacks with the bite. No ridiculous Constrict stuff, nor the Kraken's 9 attacks, so the titanic octopus should actually be a reasonable challenge for your party.

[Tarlek Flamehai]

Flickerdart, that is a great idea. Take nearly any deep sea critter and apply the Titanic template, for extra fun add Pseudonatural. Pseudonatural Titanic Angler Fish, Vampire Squid (a real life beasty) or anything else on this list http://list25.com/25-most-terrifying-deep-sea-creatures/5/. I read somewhere that there is saltwater relative of the piranha that would make a great swarm. Even a normal swordfish has been known to ram boats...imagine a Titanic one doing it!

[Flickerdart]

Don't be silly - the vampire squid* would have to have the Fiendish template!

*Vampyroteuthis infernalis, literally "vampire squid from hell."