Hunted at Sea

is the one-hundredth episode of the second campaign of Critical Role.

Previously on Critical Role
''So, last we left off, the Mighty Nein, who had long been trying to bring some semblance of peace between the two warring nations of the Kryn Dynasty and the Dwendalian Empire, had finally allied with some unique allies, made for some strange bedfellows, as you accompanied armadas to meet in the southern reaches of the Lucidian Ocean, south of Wildemount. There, you helped watch the proceeding completion and success of these peace negotiations. Prisoners of war were traded, the last (as far as they’re aware) beacon was given back to the Kryn Dynasty, and you all decided to make your way towards Rumblecusp in preparation for the coming date of TravelerCon, over a week from now– or over a week from the moment we start this session. At the time, about two weeks out.'' ''You had begun traveling southwest, beneath the island Urukayxl, where you once fought your way into an ancient temple and unlocked one of the various seals of Uk'otoa. You went around the Inkclaw Reef, continuing toward this island Rumblecusp, and it was on this fourth day of your journey that Caduceus began to notice something off the stern. It appeared to be a land mass of some kind, but after– well, on the fourth day, it was noticed. That doesn’t mean it was there for four days. You noticed it seemed to be keeping pace. No, in fact, it seemed to be gaining on your ship. As word got around, you all began to realize that this wasn’t an island or a land mass at all. Instead, this was a massive creature, beneath the waves, a domed shell, itself covered in spikes, armored scales. You saw massive fin-like limbs pushing through beneath the water, as its snout - pointed, angry - emerged from the water, this gargantuan dragon turtle was rocketing through the waters in the direction of your ship. And, my friends, that is where we are picking up.''

Part I
The dragon turtle is approximately 200 feet off the stern and gaining on the ship. There is no land in sight. Fjord reminds everyone that he's been casting Water Breathing on the whole party every night at 2:30 am, so they can all breathe underwater, and Caduceus casts Water Walk as well. They do everything possible to make the ship move faster and the turtle move slower to give themselves more time to prepare. Nott, Yasha, and the crew (Orly, Marius, Gallan, and Shelda) man the cannons on the lower deck, while Jester, Caduceus, and Caleb remain above to cast spells at the creature.

As soon as the dragon turtle comes within range, they turn the ship and fire the cannons, hitting it. Caleb then hits it with a Fireball, discovering that it is resistant to fire damage. The turtle continues to swim toward them as fast as it can and dives beneath the surface, making it more difficult both to see and to hit, but Jester succeeds in damaging it with two Guiding Bolts and Caleb hits with Disintegrate. The now-wounded turtle disappears beneath the ship and then impacts it from directly beneath, causing significant damage to the hull, but Jester's Polymorph succeeds (to her surprise) and she turns the creature into a regular sea turtle. The party turns the ship and sails as fast as possible away, but Caduceus is able to perceive that it is still there, staying with them, in its temporary sea turtle form.

They decide to try another Polymorph into a different, slower sea creature, but in order to get within range, they will need to go overboard using their Water Walking abilities, hanging onto ropes trailing from the stern of the ship as it travels. Caduceus jumps in first, both to locate the now-harder-to-see turtle so he can point it out to Jester and Caleb, and to cast Bane on it to make it more susceptible to Polymorph. He is successful at both tasks, and Jester maintains her concentration on her Polymorph while Caleb first locates it and then successfully Polymorphs it into a sea slug.

All three then climb back into the ship and they set off again, under full sail and sailing directly before the wind for maximum speed, as well as using Control Waters for additional bursts of speed. There is no sign of the creature, but they maintain that course (more directly due north than is their intended destination, Rumblecusp) overnight in an attempt to mislead the creature, before eventually turning more to the west towards Rumblecusp Island.

They continue sailing, mostly uneventfully, for three additional days, doing some repairs to their damaged hull. Gallan tells them of a dragon turtle that legend says had an arrangement with the Revelry to help guard Darktow Isle. Caduceus confirms with the Wildmother that the creature is still pursuing them, but is intelligent and can possibly be reasoned with. Nott builds what she thinks is a depth charge, but her low tinkering roll makes it unlikely to be entirely successful in use. On the day before they will reach Rumblecusp, Jester climbs into the crow's nest and uses Sending to contact the turtle, apologizing for attacking it and asking if it's looking for its mate, the Darktow dragon turtle. The turtle responds that it needs no mate; it takes what it wants, and ships carry treasure. Another Commune by Caduceus tells him that the turtle is actually slightly off their course and is not going to reach them before they make port.

In the morning, they see in the distance the jungles, beaches, mountains, and gently smoking massive volcano of the island of Rumblecusp.

The Mighty Nein

 * Beauregard Lionett
 * Caduceus Clay
 * Caleb Widogast
 * Frumpkin
 * Fjord
 * Jester Lavorre
 * Veth Brenatto/Nott the Brave
 * Yasha Nydoorin

Returning

 * Marius LePual
 * Orly Skiffback
 * Shelda
 * Gallan Westman

Quotations
Travis: It's finally happened. Yasha: Let’s go. Veth: Okay.
 * Laura: I have too many dice to choose from right now, and I’m freaking out.
 * Veth: With all due respect, I will not leave my post.

Trivia

 * This episode was the first to be streamed following the 16-week break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was pre-recorded live in the Critical Role studio one to two weeks prior to airing.
 * The audience for the Thursday night stream topped 112,000 concurrent viewers.