3-2 The Forgotten Abbey

Elysia grabs a fistful of ball bearings from the pouch she uses to carry them (about 200 of them) and then softly casts them out across the gritty floor.Elowin eats a glimmerberry, gaining 1 HP and feeling very full.

Eozindra tiptoes carefully down to her sister, drapes her arms over the rogue’s shoulders and gives a quick squeeze. Knowing all too well what the younger half-elf would see in the mess before them — potential, loot, spoils, etc. — the older sibling whispers, "Let’s do this carefully, yeah? Never know how many more big buggies are out there."

Slipping her arm through Elysia’s, Eozindra takes cautious steps behind the group heading forward with their bear buddy leading the way.

Adran whispers "just in case..." to his sister, and heals Elowin. Elowin gains 5 more HP.

Since Elysia has not given any alarms (and they can see her, crouched at the top of the stairs), the others move cautiously and quietly up the stairs. Eozindra slips her arm through Elysia's, reassuring her that they're together. "Let’s do this carefully, yeah? Never know how many more big buggies are out there." Morik noses forward past them. He leads the way and the others follow. As the bear tries to squeeze along the collapsed wall to avoid the edge of the pool, the water itself rises up to strike him in a surprise attack!Morik is apparently grabbed by the water itself, because the amorphous creature that has attacked is a transparent blob!

Morik the bear takes 6 bludgeoning and 3 acid damage, is Grappled and Restrained, and is pulled down into the pool with a soft slurp of water.

Everyone, roll initiative.

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Ishi (35/35)
Adran (26/26)
Mara (20/20)
Elowin (17/24)
Elysia (24/24)
Eozindra (15/15)
Morik (Bear 25/34, Dwarf 33/33) Grappled, Restrained, Underwater

ROUND ONE
(this is followed by round two)

While exploring the library, combat begins when Morik is grabbed, Grappled, and Restrained by a transparent monster lurking in the pool and is dragged under the surface.

Ishi roars, enraged, and dives into the water.
Elysia hears the voices in the distance stop, then one of them says:
"What was that??"
"What? I didn't hear anything."
"You didn't hear that shriek??"

In the murky water, the barbarian is just able to make out the shaggy shape of Morik-the-bear; and Ishi slashes at the water around the ursine hero. Amazingly, the sword seems to bite into something with more resistance than water!Edit: Thank you. The transparent monster takes 13 slashing damage.

Elowin calls upon Lunea's might, and the sound of a bell rings out. It seems to have no effect on the submerged, invisible creature. Attuned to the distant conversation, Elysia hears the voices again.
"OK, you had to have heard that."
"...yeah."
"Sounded like a bell, right?"
"...yeah."
"We should check it out, yeah?"
"...I guess so."
"You guess so? What, you think a bell isn't suspicious?"
"...the Lord Mayor could have got a bell!"
"Oh, come ON!"
Morik feels the constricting pressure of the transparent creature wrapped around him like a suffocating blanket, and tries to break free. The ursine bulk is too much for the clear monster - it is accustomed to grabbing medium-sized prey - and the bear breaks free of the grasp of the monster. Morik is no longer Grappled or Restrained, but he remains in the water.

Elysia is dismayed at the foul smell that lingers in the air around the water: Morik doesn't smell that bad as a bear, so it must be the funk of the transparent blob that grabbed him. She confirms that the monster that snatched her companion is no longer at the surface and that the pool is mostly normal water by slashing and stabbing at it with her rapier. She sees something bobbing along a handspan beneath the surface, and recognizes Jeffery the newt, in his element, drifting in the drink. He must have floated off when Morik was dragged below the surface.

Adran steps through the miasma left by the monster and takes position next to a bookcase loaded with various kinds of gear (and one book). He recognizes the newt, too, and is reassured that the party mascot is unharmed for now. Mara clicks along behind him. The artificer can now also hear the approaching voices. He estimates that the party has at least ten seconds before the guards arrive at the archway.
"Don't you think he would have told us, if he'd got a bell?"
"...Well..."
"...Yeah, you're right. He wouldn't tell us anything. I don't know why I said that."

Twenty feet down in the pool, the transparent blob swivels invisibly in the water, which Morik and Ishi can only detect as a change in the water pressure or wave within the pool. Hurt, it lashes out at the barbarian that slashed it. It is a powerful hit, but Ishi's rage sustains him. Ishi takes 11 damage (half of 17 = 8 and half of 6=3) and is Grappled and Restrained.

Now it is Eozindra's turn to complete round one.

Eozindra rushes past the pool, discharging her crossbow into the water, and then takes cover behind a bookshelf, content to wait with Adran for the two rounds it will take for the speakers to arrive. The bard's crossbow bolt whizzes past Morik's fuzzy ear and passes through the creature harmlessly. If it hit the creature, Morik observes, it did not slow down at all.

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20 - Ishi (24/35) Grappled, Restrained, Underwater
15 - Elowin (17/24)
10 - Morik (Bear 25/34 Dwarf 33/33) Underwater
8 - Elysia (24/24)
7 - Adran (26/26)
7 - Mara (20/20)
7 - Thing
1 - Eozindra (15/15)

Morik feels the constricting pressure of the transparent creature wrapped around him like a suffocating blanket, and tries to break free. The ursine bulk is too much for the clear monster - it is accustomed to grabbing medium-sized prey - and the bear breaks free of the grasp of the monster. Morik is no longer Grappled or Restrained, but he remains in the water.

Elysia is dismayed at the foul smell that lingers in the air around the water: Morik doesn't smell that bad as a bear, so it must be the funk of the transparent blob that grabbed him. She confirms that the monster that snatched her companion is no longer at the surface and that the pool is mostly normal water by slashing and stabbing at it with her rapier. She sees something bobbing along a handspan beneath the surface, and recognizes Jeffery the newt, in his element, drifting in the drink. He must have floated off when Morik was dragged below the surface.

Adran steps through the miasma left by the monster and takes position next to a bookcase loaded with various kinds of gear (and one book). He recognizes the newt, too, and is reassured that the party mascot is unharmed for now. Mara clicks along behind him. The artificer can now also hear the approaching voices. He estimates that the party has at least ten seconds before the guards arrive at the archway.
"Don't you think he would have told us, if he'd got a bell?"
"...Well..."
"...Yeah, you're right. He wouldn't tell us anything. I don't know why I said that."

Twenty feet down in the pool, the transparent blob swivels invisibly in the water, which Morik and Ishi can only detect as a change in the water pressure or wave within the pool. Hurt, it lashes out at the barbarian that slashed it. It is a powerful hit, but Ishi's rage sustains him. Ishi takes 11 damage (half of 17 = 8 and half of 6=3) and is Grappled and Restrained.

Now it is Eozindra's turn to complete round one.

Eozindra rushes past the pool, discharging her crossbow into the water, and then takes cover behind a bookshelf, content to wait with Adran for the two rounds it will take for the speakers to arrive. The bard's crossbow bolt whizzes past Morik's fuzzy ear and passes through the creature harmlessly. If it hit the creature, Morik observes, it did not slow down at all.

The rest of you can declare your actions for round two now.Note that the round one master post has been updated with this post.

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20 - Ishi (24/35) Grappled, Restrained, Underwater
15 - Elowin (17/24)
10 - Morik (Bear 25/34 Dwarf 33/33) Underwater
8 - Elysia (24/24)
7 - Adran (26/26)
7 - Mara (20/20)
7 - Thing
1 - Eozindra (15/15)