Holding the torch in his off hand, Hildigrim draws his rapier and moves forward 20 feet. "Fascinating," the halfling mutters.

Action: Ready action: If the creature comes into melee range, Hildigrim will stab at it with his rapier.

Initiative: 11

If ready attack is triggered:

Extra d20:

DM rolls...

Welp. 

Party vs. Baby eye monster

Round 1 RESOLUTION phase

Starting map: no map needed

Resolution:

In the blooming light of Hildi’s torch you see the tiny nightmare creature hiss at you, waving its stumpy eyestalks. The light wavers as the halfling struggles with some unseen force tugging on it, and Ilena exclaims, “By Grimjaw's Even-hand, What in the…” and Pascal shakes his reptilian head, “Well, now, that’s just unlikely...”

Then Jorin, who already has both battle axes out and is set, splashes forward through the sewage. Reaching the tiny thing as it rears back, its eye wide, he brings one axe around (23), embedding the head in… well, the head (9 dmg), then hacking with the second axe (15) with a wet splat and the scrape of metal on metal (11 dmg). Neatly cloven in two, the lifeless ball falls ingloriously into the muck with a pair of plops.

The rest of you start to rush forward, draw weapons, and prepare a spell… but there is no need.

Notes: Poor little Gazer made a poor initiative roll, and managed to do nothing.

Next: Out of combat.

In the torchlight you see there is a ladder leading up into a stone shaft, ten or fifteen feet to a circular metal cover. Further along the tunnel another of those yellow sun symbols.

Drusk pokes the gazer with the mace to see if it had any candy hidden inside. (Maybe Jorin just hit the wrong parts.) Also check the exterior for any identification: symbols, tattoos, jewelry, or collars.

Drusk (and I as well) doesn't remember if someone explained what the yellow sun symbols are, and mentions this out loud. Is it a gang sign (someone else would need to explain)? Or is it perhaps a religious symbol (Religion: 22)?

Ilena looks down at the poor little aberration with pity. "Little thing hardly stood a chance it seems. But what is it? Are they hostile?" A waft of foul odor stops her line of questioning and reminds her to hold her scarf over her face. Her voice is muffled as she says, "Augh, that's foul. Shall we on then? The sooner we get out of here the better."

Jorin shakes the gore off his axe blades.  "Aye, Ilena, we have encountered this type of creature before, albeit a bit larger.  They are monsters to feed the blade, that is all."

Drusk: "I realize that the kenku warehouse robber imitated someone who said to follow these symbols, but does it mean anything to you Waterdeep natives? Might help to know what to expect at the other end of this trail. It isn't part of any sun god iconography that I've seen."

OOC: Good question! Does Hildigrim know anything about the sun symbol that he hasn't thought to explain?

Intelligence: 7 (history or arcana +4, nature or religion +2)

Hildigrim continues forward to inspect the two halves of the creature. He bends over it, replacing his rapier and drawing a dagger in order to poke and prod a little more intimately. "Fascinating," he repeats.

3 (perception +5, investigation +6, medicine +1, nature +2)

Bringing all of his considerable skills to bear, Hildigrim pokes and prods at the two halves of the Gazer, and concludes that it is extremely unnatural. He doesn't see how it flies, how it digests, how it generates energy, if those are lungs they are tiny... basically he shrugs. It's weird. Really weird.

As for the symbol, something nags at him, but nothing clicks. (He can try that Int (Skill) check again after a long rest.)

"The symbol looks familiar to me, but I can't place how," Hildigrim comments distractedly, still looking at the gazer. "This, however, is completely foreign to me," the halfling says with excitement. He looks up, a big grin on his face. "Look at how completely alien this is!" He spears one of the tiny organs on the end of his dagger and lifts it from the cavity. "Is this a lung? I don't know!" He waves it around to give everyone a good look.

Quote from Guiltysparc >>

Jorin shakes the gore off his axe blades.  "Aye, Ilena, we have encountered this type of creature before, albeit a bit larger.  They are monsters to feed the blade, that is all."

 “Plus they ain’t great for nothin’ but a gumbo. I’d offer to cook it up later, but...” Pascal looks to the muck covered creature, “I feel like that might be a bit more trouble than it’s worth...”

Ilena's eyes grow wide as Pascal suggests cooking the aberration amidst the sewage and you think she may have said a swear word, muffled by her scarf. She holds her stomach and swallows, doing her utmost to hold down whatever is rising from it.

OOC > I'm loathe to pick a direction for you, as you now have two (up the ladder or continuing to follow the symbols) but in the interest of continuing the flow...

As you gather to mourn the little aberration... sorry, as you gather to decide what to do next, someone carefully climbs the ladder to see where you are. You have come across other ladders in the hour you have slogged through the sewers, and they have always emptied into the streets of Waterdeep, within the Dock, Trades, or South Ward. As it is daytime, some of those checks have involved curious onlookers seeing you, or animals sniffing your faces. This time, it opens into the kitchen of a tavern. One of the employees sees you, and says, "Eh, sewer rats, stay out of 'ere! De Spouting' Fish is not for the likes o' you!" And she waves a ladle menacingly at you. "Amma, I tell you we should stack the crates on that sewer topper, I don't care if it is a convenient garbage hole!"

Hildi and Jorin will confirm that the Spouting Fish is a tavern in the Dock Ward with a good reputation (for the Dock Ward).

If the party then continues along the sewer, I will assume the same marching order as before (Hildi, Jorin, Ilena, Pascal, Drusk), and that Drusk renews the Light spell on Jorin's axe.

About ten minutes further on, you spot an intersection at the outside edge of the light, 40 ft out. 

The sewers have had junctions before that you have passed through, but this one opens up wider than the others. Drusk, with his 60' of dark vision, confirms that the sewer opens up there into a three-way circular hub, about 15' across, with a small island of stone in the middle, rising above the muck. Straight ahead, there is a solid wall, but to the left and right, it would seem to continue. You will know more when you get closer.

You are 40' feet from the intersection, in a five foot wide sewer tunnel. Please let me know how you approach.

(Couple of comments:

• So this thing wasn't set as a guard, but instead found a convenient spot to hang out and wait for rotting salad greens to rain on it? Either we'll need to check on the Spouting Fish later, or we have to be worried that more Gazers were flushed into the sewers by citizens of Waterdeep who were bored of their pets.
• If the party is approaching with stealth, Drusk should be far enough back not to mess up the group roll. But not so far back to prevent aid.
• An intersection is a prime location for scavengers or Oozes. Or an otyugh, although hopefully not for low-level characters.
• Hildigrim had carried around the Crawling Hand at the end of his rapier. Any chance he did the same with the Gazer remains? Might want to toss it into the intersection, and see what kind of response it gets. )

"Oh yes, the Spouting Fish.  I have eaten there many times.  They have very tasty mutton, so perky.  Odd, given the name, I know" Jorin says after climbing back down the ladder.

Something about the closed off spoke doesn't seem right to Jorin.  He crosses the junction and begings tapping on the wall with the hilt of how sword, looking for something like a secret door.  Investigation: 1

edit: lol!

Ilena

Ilena, who is doing her best to keep in good spirits despite being ankle deep in filth, watches Jorin cross the intersection [ooc: he didn't even look both ways!]. Seeing the large man cross so brazenly, but noticing the hesitation of the others, Ilena creeps up to where the wall opens up and takes a peek down both paths, but then realizes that she'll need light to see anything. 

stealth : 23

perception : 8

She tries to whisper something to Jorin, but her voice is so quiet not even those near her can hear it.

[DC23 to hear what she says]

OoC - Jorin's passive perception is 10, with a +0 to rolls, so he is straight up oblivious unless natural 20... 11

Hildigrim (who didn't keep the strange organ on the end of his dagger) bids Drusk to step forward and checks out the small island of stone. (He is oblivious to Ilena's whisper.)

Investigation: 16

Drusk moves up to within 15' of the intersection. Paying more attention to the solid wall (is it a wall, or some kind of ooze?) and watching the muck and islands for excessive movement. Perception: 3 (Investigation 1 less)