The guards escort the group inside. The one in the lead offers an explanation as they go about how they will be taking you to the Gatehold Barracks to discuss terms with the Taskhand. The people in the town look weather-beaten, but hard. They look at the passing parties with mild curiosity, but none waste more than a moment or two before going back to whatever they were doing.

From around the corner of a crumbling building, five twitching, skinless masses of blinking eyes and slavering mouths wriggle into view. One of them is shredding the flesh of a hapless soldier in three of its amorphous maws. His shriek of agony is cut off by the sudden loss of life. Trumpets blare an alarm, and several Aurora Watch soldiers hurry into the streets. One of them, a male drow, pauses to address you. “Newcomers? No time for pleasantries—draw your weapons or get to safety! Find me at the barracks after!”

Ten more of these skinless masses crawl over some of the lower rooftops. Ayo balks, Dermot recoils in fear, Maggie sets her jaw, Irvan shrugs and pulls a dagger from seemingly nowhere, Galsariad edges slightly behind Ayo and hisses about maybe getting terms sorted before combat, and Entropy nods her head, ready for combat once more. They then look to you to see what actions you take.

DM: What do you do?

OOC: poop. Do the PCs know what they are?

DM: Give me an Arcana or Religion Check, Ylis. 

Bombur pulls out the Hymnal and blesses his weapon (blessings of the forge). 

[8 initistive]

“I know not what these creatures are, but they are surely evil!”

Ooc: trying to use my phone is terrible 9

Yois Arcana check 

OOC: Shoulda waited until I got home.

"Ew it ate that dude! Gross! I think it's ok to kill them!"

Ylis Initiative 9 

Ayo and her crew snap into action with the Fellowship, for once even out-pacing them as they rush to make up for being caught flat-footed with Bert and Ernie's dynamite special. They rush forward and engage a group of 5 of these creatures crawling down from the rooftops of some buildings on the left, while the Kryn warriors form up on the 5 coming down from rooftops on the right. That leaves the 5 in the street that just nibbled a Kryn warrior to pieces.

Ylis has no clue what they are but she is absolutely certain they are not cuddly or friendly. They are likely fiends of some kind and given what she has already been told a few times about Bazzoxan, they are likely some kind of demon. 

They bear down on the party. 

DM: Everyone else Roll Initiative. 

Initiative- 7

Jacaranda did not know what the things were but she knew they were wrong.....

She headed north-east stopping just before the door and fired twice at the central creature.....her first shot channelling energy from the stones beneath her feet to fill the shaft with unreleased potential.

Attack: 16 Damage: 7 + 6 Force damage to all within 10 feet.

Attack: 16 Damage: 7 

Morgan: initiative 16 (with advantage from Tides of Chaos), and Arcana check: 4 

Round 1

Morgan has no idea what these are. He is more uncertain than Ylis is, in fact.

DM: The creatures won initiative. They will go first, followed by all of you.

The creatures babble incoherently with dozens of mouths for each creature. The amorphous heaps of roiling flesh, teeth, and eyes shamble hungrily toward the group of heroes. As they shuffle onto the party, the ground around them literally warps. Reality around their feet becomes sticky and soup-like.

DM: Ground within 10ft of any one creature is Difficult Terrain.

Additionally, the cacophony of all the mouths screaming in pain, moaning in pleasure, yelling in terror, shouting in rage, and many other indecipherable chittering sounds assault the mind.

DM: Each of you please make 5 Wisdom Saving Throws, DC 10. On any failure, roll 1d8 to determine how the sounds have affected you during your turn. I will resolve multiple failures.

1–4. You do nothing on your turn.
5–6. You take no action or Bonus Action and use all your movement to move in a random direction (determined by me).
7–8. You make a melee attack against a randomly determined creature (determined by me) within your reach or do nothing if you can’t make such an attack.

Four of the creatures smash themselves up against Randa and Morgan, three on Randa, one on Morgan. They begin to gnaw at the intrepid heroes. Meanwhile, the one in the back, A, does not quite reach the party. So instead, one of the larger mouths launches a glowing glob of spit at the party.

DM: Dexterity Saving Throw for everyone please, DC 10. On failure, take 5 Radiant Damage and you are Blinded until the end of the monster’s next turn.

B chews at Morgan. (Bite Attack 8. If Morgan is Blinded, 15. If hit, Piercing Damage 4 and you are Prone)

E snaps at the nimble Randa. (Bite Attack 19 whether Blinded or not. If hit, Piercing Damage 8 and you are Prone)

D also attempts to rend Jacaranda’s flesh from her bones. (Bite Attack 6. If Randa is Blinded, 21. If hit, 4 Piercing Damage and you are Prone)

C then lashes out with a telescoping mouth tubule. (Bite Attack 18 whether Blinded or not. If hit, 10 Piercing Damage and you are Prone). 

DM: After a potentially bloody first round for the enemies, it is you turn!

Initiative roll: 23 (16+7)

Frekor looks at the creature to the north (OOC: the one that is higher on the grid) and says -You'll be mine.- (Bonus action: Hunter'sMark)

He runs to it (25 feet, 5 to the right, 10 downward right and 10 to the right on the grid) while unsheathing his shortsword and scimitar. He then stabs the monster with his shortsword (to hit:18, 11+7.  Damage: 7, 3+4. Hunter's Mark: 1) and then he slashes it with his scimitar (with Nick) (to hit with advantage from Vex: 27, 20+7. Damage: 15, 5+6+4)

Frekor's speed with his scimitar slash caused the creature to suffer more damage than normal (Colossus Slayer damage: 6)

If the monster is alive: he will stab it again with his shorsword. (second attack action) If the monster is dead: he will move 5 feet to the one on the center (bellow the one Frekor attacked) and stab it with his shortsword. (second attack action)  (Shortsword. to hit: 25, 18+7.   Damage: 7, 3+4)

(OOC: Holy shi....!!! First Nat 20 I get in PbP, hell yeah!!!)

[Bombur passes 4 and fails the last Wis save. I rolled a 1 for effect so I do nothing. Passed the Dex save]

Crippled by the horrific sounds of the screaming creatures infiltrating his brain, Brother Bombur is temporarily paralyzed. He grabs his head in both hands and struggles to keep his wits.

Shit, didn't mean to roll that D20. I was trying to make the 5 wisdom rolls faster.

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

Round 1

DM: The creatures won initiative. They will go first, followed by all of you.

DM: Ground within 10ft of any one creature is Difficult Terrain.

Additionally, the cacophony of all the mouths screaming in pain, moaning in pleasure, yelling in terror, shouting in rage, and many other indecipherable chittering sounds assault the mind.

DM: Each of you please make 5 Wisdom Saving Throws, DC 10. On any failure, roll 1d8 to determine how the sounds have affected you during your turn. I will resolve multiple failures.

1–4. You do nothing on your turn.
5–6. You take no action or Bonus Action and use all your movement to move in a random direction (determined by me).
7–8. You make a melee attack against a randomly determined creature (determined by me) within your reach or do nothing if you can’t make such an attack.

DM: Dexterity Saving Throw for everyone please, DC 10. On failure, take 5 Radiant Damage and you are Blinded until the end of the monster’s next turn.

 (OOC: 1. Ops! I took too long on the initiative.  2. Did not know that.)

(Wisdom saving throws: first: 16, 14+2.  second: 5, 3+2. third: 19, 17+2.  fourth: 17, 15+2. fifth: 13: 11+2)

(Dexterity saving throw: 17, 13+4)

Please roll a 1d8, Frekor. 

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

Please roll a 1d8, Frekor. 

 (OOC: I don't know for what, but here it is: 6, without adding anything)

If you rolled a 5 on your second Saving Throw, you failed a Saving Throw and suffer the effects of the cacophony of discordant sounds. Please see post #1355 for full details but the snippet that is relevant to my ask for the 1d8 roll is:

5–6. You take no action or Bonus Action and use all your movement to move in a random direction (determined by me).

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

If you rolled a 5 on your second Saving Throw, you failed a Saving Throw and suffer the effects of the cacophony of discordant sounds. Please see post #1355 for full details but the snippet that is relevant to my ask for the 1d8 roll is:

5–6. You take no action or Bonus Action and use all your movement to move in a random direction (determined by me).

 (OOC: You are right, I didn't fully get the idea. So how is it going to affect my first turn?)

Randa Wisdom Saves x5-

20, 5, 14, 17, 17, 

8