The terrifying Bulette

[Chillearth]

I've just come from facing a Bulette in the Underdark at level 5. On its first attack it jumped at my half-orc paladin, a hireling character, Kerz (who was at full strength with 44HP).

The Bulette did 16 bludgeoning and 19 slashing with its jump, then in the same round had a bite that did 69 damage plus 4 strength for a total of 73 damage. All told it did 108 damage in one attack sequence. My Paladin survived only because he was a half-orc and due to his relentless endurance, he was still up, on 1hp.

This was especially annoying as on my first try the combat bugged out at the start, so this was after a reload.

Fortunately, my Paladin had a misty step amulet that allowed him to get away without dying and my party then hit the bulette with everything they had and polished it off pretty quickly.

However, let's go through those damage figures on that bulette attack. The 73 damage (the bite) was 8d12 damage for 69 plus its strength (+4) for 73. But how do you get an odd number for 8d12 damage ? I can only assume it was actually 70 damage reduced by one for the half-orcs relentless endurance to get the 69. That was actually a below average bite, because half of 8d12 (the average) is 48 which would do 96 damage on a crit.

If that bulette gets lucky (as it did with the bite on my character) it can drop anyone (though a half orc or a raging barbarian might just survive). It is the most brutal thing to face at level 5. Sure you can cheese it if you want (and I have done that), but played straight it can flat out wreck your party in one go.

[Zsrai]

This is one of the issues I've had with the game, that makes combat feel tedious. Save scumming because of a one shot is a feels bad moment, not engaging gameplay.

[wendigo211]

Depends on your party. If you have a caster or a Monk with stunning fist, it's pretty easy to beat its initiative and keep it stun locked for the duration of the fight. It was worse in EA when the level cap was 4.

[Nico Snow]

Those damn land sharks!

[Pan Darius Cassandra]

The silver bulette is very powerful and I'm fine with that - the problem I have with it is that it's yet another "gotcha!" ambush that the player has little ability to prepare for or detect. It's scripted to play out exactly the same no matter what you do, so player agency is virtually non-existent in this encounter, like so many others in this game.

The best way to handle this encounter is to send in a sacrificial lamb (preferably one that doesn't need to concentrate on anything, at least before the battle starts) to get the bulette to surface and blow it's wad (you have more than enough Revive scrolls, and the help action, after all), then start sending in the rest of the party one at a time and lock it down with CC/debuffs so it never gets another turn.

Sometimes you just gotta bite the bulette and brute force your way through it. This is a fight where it's ok to use up valuable resources to end it as quickly as possible.

[Cthulhu]

did Bulette bulled you?

[Kafik]

Originally posted by Zsrai:

This is one of the issues I've had with the game, that makes combat feel tedious. Save scumming because of a one shot is a feels bad moment, not engaging gameplay.

There are several flags that something is going to happen. Spread your party about. At the very worst you should be fooled once buy this.

[Kafik]

Originally posted by Nico Snow:

Those damn land sharks!

https://youtu.be/MnfX466iVEU?si=WDdU9qEzldtd2bpa

[Pan Darius Cassandra]

This is also one of my least favorite encounters.

[Cthulhu]

8d12 he did only 69, why are you crying? :D
edit: did you fought the gith patrol?

[Pan Darius Cassandra]

Originally posted by Cthulhu:

8d12 he did only 69, why are you crying? :D
edit: did you fought the gith patrol?

I mean, to be fair, it is 17 above average...

[solaris32]

Git gud. The bullette is stupid easy at level 5.

[IdealPoint]

You actually get to roll a skill check and your character will comment, saying something like "This looks like a predator's hunting ground" if you examine the various dead bodies and mangled body parts around the area where the bullette attacks.

Also, when the creature is stalking you, you can see it creating a dusk cloud like effect below your party as you move.

The bullette can literally wreck your whole party with bad luck. It attacked me close to a cliff and knocked two characters into the abyss the first time I encountered it. Yes, that feels bad. Yes, you probably have to reload. But it also is a reminder that your party is mortal and you are travelling through an exceedingly dangerous part of the D&D universe.

[Chillearth]

Originally posted by solaris32:

Git gud. The bullette is stupid easy at level 5.

.............and I did win the encounter if you actually read all the way through my post........and that was with three characters. I never tried to say you couldn't win this fight - I have over 1300 hours in this game, so I have played this encounter many times and won many times, but I thought adding details of one encounter with this beast would be interesting (at least to some).

Also "git gud" comments add nothing to the discussion, especially as I never tried to say the encounter shouldn't happen, just that it is a very dangerous encounter. If you want to use pre-knowledge to jump on the mushrooms early and avoid knockdowns, you can. If you want to abuse barrelmancy, you can do that too (though I never use explosive barrels).

[MewTressym]

The Bullette is tied to the Arcane Tower story, they aren't normally in the under-dark.

If it plays out without you killing it on the first meeting, it will playfully knock you down periodically and eventually jump out and bite and so forth and then run away again, as if playing tag.

This particular bullette is smaller then normal, indicating a youth, possibly a lost child bullette. As noted through some of the lore in the story.

Bullette are supposed to be absolutely terrifying to encounter in D&D. :S One of the types of creatures that can easily wipe a whole party if they're unprepared or don't know how to deal with it.

You'll find notes linking the Bullette to Lenore, and possibly giving some indication that either Lenore died playing with the Bullette/trying to befriend it, or she left the underdark entirely after a play session gone too rough and fled to Baldurs Gate leaving behind her tower, and the baby bullette. (that last part I don't think is ever specified)

[Chillearth]

Originally posted by IdealPoint:

The bullette can literally wreck your whole party with bad luck. It attacked me close to a cliff and knocked two characters into the abyss the first time I encountered it. Yes, that feels bad. Yes, you probably have to reload. But it also is a reminder that your party is mortal and you are travelling through an exceedingly dangerous part of the D&D universe.

Yes, I've had the exact same thing happen to me, two characters yeeted off into the abyss. I've also had (in a very early playthrough) three characters put down to unconscious on the first turn. I've also killed the bulette at level 4 with little trouble - there is a large variation in what can happen, if you aren't cheesing things or using pre-knowledge.