Rimeclaw Skulker

Stub-class article · First seen: s17 · Last seen: s18
Rimeclaw Skulker
the Rimeclaw
Portrait of Rimeclaw Skulker.
Character
StatusPartially-Killed
First seens17
Last seens18
FactionSapphire Sea fauna, Frost-zone creatures

The Rimeclaw Skulker is the smaller, ranged creature of the session-17 reef-line fight on the Sapphire Sea: a water-borne hunter that pokes its head above the waves and spits a ball that turns into an icicle [1]. At least two attacked the skiff, one at Steven (a miss) and one at Mike (turned by his Shield), and by session 18 the DM said “his pack has been reduced to only one” [12][7]. That one missed Caelumn, and Hugo then took the head of what the DM called “the wolf”, most likely the skulker [4].

Overview

The Rimeclaw Skulker is the smaller, ranged-attacking predator of the cold-water frost zone in the southern stretch of the Sapphire Sea, met in the reef-line fight of sessions 17 and 18 beside the giant worm (Brinemaw Wyrm), the Reef Stalker and a pack of Water wolves. At least two were in the fight, and neither was killed by the end of session 17 [1][3].

The DM named the creature on the first skulker’s initiative slot [1]. By the top of session 18 only one was left, and Hugo most probably killed it [4].

Appearance and demeanour

Smaller than the giant worm, and partly submerged until it attacks, when it pokes its head out of the water [1]. The pale shapes at the reef that “look like fish” and one that “grips the reef with long claws” may be skulkers, but the DM does not say [6]. The party never got close enough to describe a body or blood.

Abilities as played

  • Icicle spit. A single-target ranged attack, “a ball of spit that turns into an icicle midair” [1]. The first skulker’s shot at Steven, who was prone, was a flat roll and a 9 missed; the second’s 20 at Mike was turned to nothing by his Shield [2][3].
  • Pack. In session 18 the DM noted that, its pack reduced to one, it “no longer gets pack tactics” [7]. That skulker’s attack on Caelumn missed on a 10 [8].
  • No other attacks seen.

Relationships

Notable quotes

“You’re going to see it poke its head out of the water, and it’s going to fire what looks to be a ball of spit that turns into an icicle midair” — Nick (DM), [1]

History in the campaign

Session 17: New Hands, the Black Mask’s Renegotiation, and the Rimeclaw

Main article: Session 17

The DM brought “this Rimeclaw Skulker” into the initiative order: it poked its head out of the water and spat a ball that turned into an icicle in mid-air, aimed at Steven [1]. Steven was prone, so the roll was flat and a 9 missed [2]. “The one right next to it” went for Mike with a 20, and Mike’s Shield turned it aside [3]. Neither skulker was killed before the DM ended the session at the close of the second round [11].

Session 18: The Wyrm Falls, the Catfish Escapes, and Mike Dies on the Road

Main article: Session 18

The fight resumed with the skulker at the top of initiative. With its pack reduced to one, the DM said, it “no longer gets pack tactics”, and its attack on Caelumn missed on a 10 [8]. Hugo, still airborne, swooped down and hit on a 22, and the DM described him taking the head of “the wolf” [10]. The DM had just named the skulker, so the kill is most likely the skulker, though a stray water wolf is possible. His closing line, “as the last shapes vanish beneath the reef”, suggests that any other survivors dispersed [5].

Status

As of session 18. Probably dead: the last skulker was most likely the creature Hugo decapitated, and any others dispersed [10][5]. It does not appear again.

See also

References

  1. ^ Session 17, line 1604: DM introduces "this Rimeclaw Skulker"; pokes head out of water, fires "a ball of spit that turns into an icicle midair" at Steven.
  2. ^ Session 17, line 1607: Icicle attack on prone Steven; flat roll, 9 misses.
  3. ^ Session 17, line 1609: Second Rimeclaw Skulker, "the one right next to it", fires icicle at Mike; 20 hits; Mike Shields for 0.
  4. ^ Session 18, line 119-124: Combat resumes; DM notes "his pack has been reduced to only one, he no longer gets pack tactics" (s18 L119); Skulker's attack on Caelumn misses on a 10; Hugo's longsword 22-hit decapitates the small creature (most plausible reading: this is a Rimeclaw Skulker, narrated as "the wolf", a DM verbal slip; see body text).
  5. ^ Session 18, line 176: Encounter end: surviving Skulkers (if any) implied dispersed by DM closing line "as the last shapes vanish beneath the reef, the water closes over it".
  6. ^ Session 17, line 1570: Inline citation.
  7. ^ Session 18, line 119: Inline citation.
  8. ^ Session 18, line 119-121: Inline citation.
  9. ^ Session 17, line 1604-1609: Inline citation.
  10. ^ Session 18, line 122-124: Inline citation.
  11. ^ Session 17, line 1987: Inline citation.
  12. ^ Session 17, line 1607-1609: Inline citation.
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