Scuttling and Crippling (OSS)

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It is possible for creatures (including PCs) to attack a ship's hull directly or climb aboard a vessel and cripple it by cutting at its oars, masts, and rigging. Generally, such attacks require a number of creatures acting in concert while using the appropriate tools (pick-axes, crowbars, shears, and the like). Note that creatures of Huge size and larger may use their natural weaponry to attack ships in this way.
Scuttling (attacking a ship's hull directly in an attempt to sink the vessel) is a rather time consuming process for most creatures. Six man-sized creatures can inflict 1d2 points of hull damage per round if appropriately armed. Teams of less than six creatures can still inflict damage, but they suffer a one-round delay for every creature missing. Thus, it would take a band of five sahuagin two rounds to inflict 1d2 points of hull damage. For scuttling purposes, two Small of four Tiny creatures count as one Man-sized creature, one Large creature counts as two Man-sized creatures, one Huge creature counts as three Man- sized creatures, and so on. Note that all of these rules assume that the creatures in question can match the speed of the target vessel or somehow attach themselves to the side and underside of the ship.
Player characters must first overcome the difficulties associated with underwater movement and survival (detailed in Chapter 5) before they can attack a ship in this way. PCs may only use piercing weapons to accomplish this task. Furthermore, surface-dwelling creatures must have a minimum of eight attackers attempting to scuttle a vessel in order to inflict the listed damage otherwise they suffer a one-round delay for every creature under eight. A free action effect (whether through a spell of an item) negates this additional personnel requirement.
Attacking a vessel's oars, masts, and rigging requires the same number of creatures as scuttling-though this attack causes 1d4 points of crippling damage each round rather than hull damage.