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J. Doe

 Room for discussion of mermaid land c…

A room for discussing how mermaids can fight on land from the ...
J. Doe
Oct 17, 2016 12:06
@AarthewIII Still there?
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 22:26
Cya!
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:58
They make a point of having land weapons ready, and some of them they use underwater.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:58
The Viking mermaids are some of the best armed, on that note, when it comes to land weapons.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:58
They have some serious equipment deficits.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:56
Of course, a very skilled mermaid really starts to outshine their difficulties.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:56
If you have a skilled human fighter, the mermaids chances start getting slimmer. Those long lunges look really impressive, but they're far from impossible to deal with.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:55
Yeah, decent.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:55
Working in teams, mermaids would do a bit of provocative lunges and killing lunges.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:54
The main weakness of mermaids is ranged weapons.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:54
It may be a bit slower than humans, but with their reach that isn't much of a problem for them.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:53
The mermaids can actually turn and flop around pretty fast, like walruses and fish that are less beached.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:53
Hitting low down isn't actually hard for a human. The issue is your shoulders are high up, so you lose about one or two feet of reach attacking down low.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:52
With mermaids, yes, the counter thrust is hard to avoid, if you give a full lunge.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:48
The advantage that have against humans is, being so low to the ground, the humans are rarely able to counter attack before the mermaid has recovered their posture.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:47
As scary as that is, it's their best trick, and the recovery from it is rather slow.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:47
It'd feel like a javelin flying at you.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:46
A mermaid has a very fast lunge that may be able to reach 8 feet, plus the four feet or more of spear for about 12 feet.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:46
Note that they aren't exactly slow. They are slow in moving around, but they can move their arms and weapon as quickly as a human can, and they can change their adaptable posture very quickly.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:42
Feinted throws, mixed in with proper throws.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:42
Also some rolling.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:42
A lot of lunges and counter lunges, and feints.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:42
Indeed.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:41
Largely, Viking Mermaids focus on raiding land dwellers because they're rich, and their attacks are so unorthodox and surprising to them.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:40
Mermaids aren't highly racist. They have prejudices against land dwellers, but sometimes they'll hate neighbouring mermaid groups like poison.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:40
General mermaids likely don't have a strong opinion on freshwater mermaids, since they see them less frequently. Fresh water mermaids sometimes fight Viking Mermaids, because they're defending themselves or helping allied humans.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:38
Let's see... anything else? for general shared culture, mermaids tend to have very good stone constructions, like the Aztecs, they prize flint, stone, and obsidian weapons due to being underwater, and bronze is an amazing treasure. Iron tools must be kept in water proof containers until they are needed, and are expensive. The stars are commonly worshiped, and the mermaids talk about their mother the sky.

Oh, that's right, some of the more extreme mermaids should be murderous cannibals.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:35
Some of the coastal mermaids can get pretty friendly, run trading businesses, but nothing forces them to like the freshwater mermaids are.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:35
They deal the most with humans, typically, so they tend to be friendlier.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:34
Not to say that attacking at night with large numbers then fleeing before reinforcements can come is chivalrous.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:33
Generally fairly cowardly tactics, less direct combat.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:33
That sort of thing. Tensions can increase, they might start luring people to drown them.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:32
They're not likely to be overly aggressive. They might get vengeful over wrongs.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:32
Probably, unless they are evading humans.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:31
Let's see... fresh water mermaids probably wouldn't be so much a faction, but as a distinctive culture with comparable traits. They are more used to operating on and around land, more used to smaller places, they may make small trips to nearby rivers to visit other lakes.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:30
True, Loch Nes and some lakes would be large enough to support them. Especially if there are rivers nearby.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:29
If I did, it would be a subtle distinction rather than a faction. Like, "everyone knows the mermaids from the red corral are the best whale tamers. The king trusts them to raise his calves."
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:29
Not sure if I should have a true whale whisperer one.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:29
I figured all the mermaid groups were animal tamers to one degree or another.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:28
Now, for water resistance... if you could attach the underwater equivalent to a parachute, that could cause the boat some turbulence and drag. But I can't think of an equivalent to balloon mines in boats.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:26
It would have to be a small boat. A few mermaids might be able to do that to a rowboat. Larger boats, another issue is that wood is very hard, stabbing into it will be difficult of itself. Even if you get a spear in, it won't stay if if you tie that to a whale or a flock of dolphins.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:25
Slow down a boat? With a mermaid?
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:25
Maybe even more shore based ones...
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:24
Let's see... any other mermaid groups to have?
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:24
Controlling the deck will be 50-50. Either you succesfull kill the sentries and the operation goes off without a hitch; or someone notices you and you have to fight off men trying to come on deck (in which case, it's 50-50 if you succeed); or the sentries spot you early on, the alarm is sounded, men come on deck, and you need to enter into a melee or flee (in which case, the odds depend on the numbers and skill of the combatants).
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:22
Some mermaids are opportunists, and will participate in a good raid.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:21
They're closer to that category, yes.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:21
Krakens will likely eat all the obviously living things on the ship, but isn't likely to try to eat barrels or bags of rice.
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:20
Viking Mermaids, more aggressive than the others, they covet the riches of the land.

Followers of the Kraken. A small sect of mermaids who, having the displeasure of surviving near Kraken territory, have come to worship and learn how to direct these creatures.

Atlantis. The most famous city and a central kingdom or empire of the mermaids. A hotspot for mermaids to visit on a pilgrimage, the great undersea city. Atlantian warriors have many excellent obsidian weapons, and even bronze, tin, and mithril artifacts which no no rust. Other mermaid groups fear and respect Atlantis, well beyond …
J. Doe
Oct 16, 2016 21:12
Let's see... mermaid groups. I should work some out.