Shark Week, or how my PC might have become unplayable.

[oxybe]

So it's shark week on discovery channel.

This isn't normally relevant to our gaming sessions, but one of our players was missing for the session, a second had to leave half-way through and a third one (well, he's one of our old players, he just left for military training/exercises before the campaign started) was joining in, so the GM didn't want to put something too plot heavy at the moment.

So we had shark week.

Specifically Weresharks. Wereshark. Only one, mind you, but it did it's damage on... drumroll please... my PC!

Knowing nothing of weresharks, or werebeasts in general beyond "they the scary mean shapeshifters" while my own kitsune tried to sneak up invisibly, only to have a third of my HP literally ripped off me in a single AoO bite.

And a single failed fort save later, followed by the gm making a face, I soon figured out OOC what we were fighting and what I contracted.

Unfortunately, none of the PCs really understood what a werebeast was (or how to identify it) and most likely simply thought the Sahuagin Wereshark was just another mutation variant (something we did manage to figure out about the freaky fish people that hucked spears at us earlier in the session).

So, TL;DR, My fox-man is likely going to turn into a fox-shark-man on the next full moon, fully unaware of what he was afflicted with.

How does one proceed from here? I sent the GM an email with three questions and while i'm still awaiting his answer but i'd want to get a better handle on how we might handle it should Question #1 "Can I keep playing my PC or should I roll up a new one?" be answered "Yes, you can keep playing the PC."

Question #2 is simply how to implement the Lycantropy.

We're level 5 right now, my own PC being a kitsune ninja 2/tattooed sorc 3. Now, PF does give the stat changes, which in effect lower my charisma by 2, from 19 to 17 which hurts a bit, but not too much all things considered when I get much better physical stats when transformed, among other things like fantastic defenses against low-level enemies.

I was thinking of maybe having to take a "level" in werebeast, akin to gaining a LA or a savage species monster progression, but those really don't exist in current Pathfinder. A feat cost maybe? I dunno. It just seems like a rather incredible boon for a low level PC to get and can be really unbalancing. I know in a few levels DR5/silver is laughable (and is, right now, laughable against major threats), but the natural armor does help since I do plan on meleeing occasionally (ninja vanishing trick+touch spell+sneak attack)

Question #3 is a pretty rule heavy one:

Kitsune and Werebeasts both have a Change Shape ability. These are basically Alter Self variants, which itself is covered by the Polymorph spell rules.

the important part, for the sake of question #3 is this section of the polymorph rules "You can only be affected by one polymorph spell at a time. If a new polymorph spell is cast on you (or you activate a polymorph effect, such as wild shape), you can decide whether or not to allow it to affect you, taking the place of the old spell. In addition, other spells that change your size have no effect on you while you are under the effects of a polymorph spell."

If, say, during the night of a full moon i'm already transformed into my human form (currently affected by a polymorph effect) can i use it as a "get out of jail free" against the "unwilling" transformation of the lycantropy curse as i can decide to whether or not allow it (wereshark transformation) to affect me? What about the flipside, if I'm currently in Wereshark mode, can i use my Kitsune Change Shape to override the Wereshark transformation without having to make the constitution check?

[Crimson Wolf]

Well yes it can be a boon I would say this as both a PC and DM who loves werecreatures. It is a terrible cost at the same time. Say there is a group of werehunters who hate anything were, no matter the creatures alignment. You now have silver wielding hunters after you if the caught wind you were bitten. And in pathfinder there is a LOT of stuff that can harm werecreatures in a bad way. Another is full moons, or spells that imitate the moon, causing you to need to pass saves else you transform right then and there and attacking people because you lost control and have let the beast take over. Also the polymorph thing, I would say should not work just out of rollplay because this affliction is not only magical, but is meant to be a horrifying experience and turns you into a monster, not something that a simple loophole in the rules can overcome.

[Yanisa]

Answer 1#
The strict RAW advice is that you can play your character, but any action done while in were-form the DM is in control of your actions. If, or once, you learn to control your were-form things might change. This all sort of depends on your DM.

In a strict RAW sense you would roll a will save (DC 20) each morning after a night of rampaging. If you make it, you realize what you have done and now you are are aware of the allfication. Once aware you may start to make constitution checks to shape change around at will although alignment issues still persist, meaning that hybrid and animal forms make you shift to chaotic evil (and your evil self might not want to change back). It still is better to allow the DM to play your character in this evil state, showing you are not in control.

Answer #2
From a game rule perspective, the lycanthrope template is only 1 CR, which in 3.5 terms comes to about 1 LA. This LA may or not be removed once you hit third level (by RAW no, by RAI yes) so at level 5 any LA should be moot. At worst you are stuck to one level of LA. Besides, the buffs and bonuses are pretty minor for a caster and many depend on the animal and hybrids forms (the ones that are Evil and you don't want to be).

Answer #3
Yeah, strict RAW reading you are right.
However RAI, I do suspect you at least need to make a constitution check (DC 25), like how normal were-beast transform between forms. The problem is that you don't get these checks when unaware so the first time will always happen until you make that DC 20 will. Then again you could easily shape change back to kitsune or human out wereshark form, but being chaotic evil I suspect you lack a reason. But this is all RAI based on were-beast rules. It's also for the sake of drama I say the first time your turning will happen, or it will be a pretty anti climatic were-beast sub plot.

[oxybe]

Oh i'm fully aware of the downsides of the werecurse... the horrible monster form does shy most people away from you, but then again, I would imagine the same for being a 6ft, bipedal carnivore (you know, like a fox :P ). This is the main reason I rarely show my kitsune form and stay looking human in any inhabited area.

A thing of note though, Pathfinder lycantropy doesn't seem to cause any sort of alignment change, regardless of form. I just reread the lycantrope rules/template and I don't see any mention of my own alignment changing or the assumed form being of any given alignment.

There are two lines that indicate a change in personality but none that indicate a permanent/concrete or even a wild shift.

"Ability Scores: +2 Wis, –2 Cha in all forms; +2 Str, +2 Con in hybrid and animal forms. Lycanthropes have enhanced senses but are not fully in control of their emotions and animalistic urges." this reads like a sort of throwaway line, in the "dwarves are stout but gruff" type generalizations, in this case highlighting the loss of charisma, which often represents a sense of self, IE: "not fully in control of emotions and animalistic urges" and the wisdom increase via "hightened senses", which is true... that's a whole +1 perception right there! Rather then your character becoming an emotionless and cruel killing machine, I would say it simply seems to indicate that while I would still think like myself, I now have an shark-like influence, which are neutral by nature.

Other then that, I can really only find mention to a hard change of mentality in this paragraph

"A creature that catches lycanthropy becomes an afflicted lycanthrope, but shows no symptoms (and does not gain any of the template's adjustments or abilities) until the night of the next full moon, when the victim involuntarily assumes animal form and forgets his or her own identity. The character remains in animal form until the next dawn and remembers nothing about the entire episode (or subsequent episodes) unless he makes a DC 20 Will save, in which case he becomes aware of his condition."

And even then, it seems to only last until I become aware of the condition and act accordingly

It does seem like I don't have to worry about killing my fellow party members as i would assume that sometimes the during the night I would begin heading towards the dock as quickly as possible in a sort of trance/sleepwalk (or nearest beach, which isn't hard since the town we're on is on an inlet of sorts and there are large, open water virtually everywhere in a short walk/running distance... I am literally staying about two houses away from a pier) just knowing that i need to get to water and turn into a giant shark, waking up sometimes on the shore the next morning after sharking about in the waters, probably having ripped up nets and traps in search for food.

I would, however, likely wake up on a beach or on the pier in my normal Kitsune form. At which point I'll have to quickly escape sight and transform to human form by virtue that, as i said at the start, I imagine most people would be freaked out by a 6ft, intelligent carnivore with slight draconic features skulking about the market, looking for a pair of pants.

[Yanisa]

Yeah the problem is the hybrid forms by default are evil. It's also normal for classic werewolfism to be to murdering evil beast under the full moon, hence why the curse puts you under DM control. Also I can toss many quotes back that lycanthropes are feared and even fear themselves for causing massive destruction and rampage. It's more then a slight personality change. It's living in fear, knowing that one day you will kill your friends, or they need to kill you.

Few seek the fate of the lycanthrope. Shunned, hated, and feared throughout most of the world, these misbegotten monsters of the night live hard and often short lives.

Shame plagues the best of them for their nocturnal bouts of amnesia and any forgotten misdeeds they may have committed, while the worst lycanthropes revel in the madness of transformation

Most nights out of the month, an afflicted lycanthrop has little trouble hiding her curse. On those nights when the moon is full and shining, however, it behooves lycanthropes to have a plan for stifling their bestial urges or at the very least concealing their identities while their alter egos rampage.

Perhaps because of the brutal nature of the were-creatures, many of these “cures” are tantamount to torture, granted an air of legitimacy by the inclusion of silver tools or a certain amount of ritual. To be sure, beating a subject unconscious on the eve of a full moon may stop her from wreaking havoc when transformed, but this is no cure.

Some afflicted rather torture themselves to near death then wanting to transform.

Granted it's all fluff, and the alignment thing could have stated better in strict RAW. It's even unclear if a natural lycanthrope has control over his alignment, but it is implied. Best quote for that one is

Lycanthropic Characters

Such PCs should likely be natural lycanthropes so that the players can remain fully in control of their characters' powers throughout the course of the campaign.

Also a major downside, you will go wereshark every time you are hurt, so its not just one a month kind of deal, more like every combat. After the first full moon that is. Imagine loosing control of your character every second combat because you took damage.

[oxybe]

On the turning into a monster thing, we can talk classic wolfmen of literature but I tend to put "classic" stories as filed under "don't assume D&D works that way, it probably doesn't".

The first paragraph Yanisa quoted is pretty much moot once you've passed that will save: at that point you're very much aware of what's going on since

"The character remains in animal form until the next dawn and remembers nothing about the entire episode (or subsequent episodes) unless he makes a DC 20 Will save, in which case he becomes aware of his condition."

Then again, if we're going to start quoting flavour text as something to be taken as hard rules: every instance of the insanity/madness/losing oneself seems to occur at night, rather then during any given transformation. Little is actually written about the werebeast's mental state during a non-lunar transformation.

"Shame plagues the best of them for their nocturnal bouts of amnesia and any forgotten misdeeds they may have committed"
"On those nights when the moon is full and shining, however, it behooves..."
"...until the night of the next full moon, when the victim involuntarily assumes animal form and forgets his or her own identity"
"To be sure, beating a subject unconscious on the eve of a full moon may stop her from wreaking havoc when transformed, but... "

Either way, during the involuntary full moon transformation my "Alter Ego" is going to be a shark since it forces me to turn into my animal form, not my hybrid. Unless we somehow end up in a merfolk village, the damage I can do to people is probably going to be minimal (Though I might destroy some fishing gear going for a meal).

Also, I was unable to find where it says you wolf out when you get hurt. I can't find reference to it in either the template or humanoid entry Yanisa linked.

This is one of the things i absolutely dislike about most D&D editions: it doesn't make the rules clear.

[Yanisa]

Also, I was unable to find where it says you wolf out when you get hurt. I can't find reference to it in either the template or humanoid entry Yanisa linked.

Because that is in the curse description, the only part of lycanthropy a player should read and should known. Bestiaries tend to be DMs domain.

Lycanthropy (Werewolf)

Type curse (injury); Save Fort DC 15 negates, Will DC 15 to avoid effects

Onset the next full moon; Frequency on the night of every full moon or whenever the target is injured

Effect target transforms into a wolf under the GM's control until the next morning

See Lycanthrope Bestiary entry for more information.

And yeah it's annoying the rules are spread out like this, but the curse part is in the core rule book I believe. It is also the only part it mentions GM control. And so in the end everything depends on your DM and how he wants to handle the gaps in the rules.

[oxybe]

Wow that is hidden.

It's not even in the universal monster ability "Curse of Lycanthropy".

As for being in the rulebook, I really wouldn't know. I don't own the Pathfinder PHB, or care enough about the system to spend money on it. I either borrow another player's books if needed or keep it to the PFSRD as I primarily play using my laptop (And play via lappy isn't just for PF. Any game I can I will play using my laptop, if only because it allows me to organize my information easier. Usually. Glares at lycantropy rules.).

Sigh.

I have four tabs open right now, regarding lycantropy, trying to piecemeal information on this potential character destroying affliction. Five if I include the animal's (shark) stats.

This is silly and dumb and made of butts. Like... seven butts.

[Fax Celestis]

Don't Kitsune natively have the shapechanger subtype? Wouldn't that mean you'd be able to end it whenever you wanted?

You can only be affected by one polymorph spell at a time. If a new polymorph spell is cast on you (or you activate a polymorph effect, such as wild shape), you can decide whether or not to allow it to affect you, taking the place of the old spell. In addition, other spells that change your size have no effect on you while you are under the effects of a polymorph spell.

So basically you can't unwillingly shark out.

[thatryanguy]

I can't say for the rules, but as far as the character is concerned, I'd be inclined to think that already being a natural shapechanger would offer some leeway re: the loss of self when changing. Your body and mind are already used to changing forms without psychological consequence.

From a DMing point of view, I'd allow a will save to become conscious during the rampage, and then when the curse is trying to perform an action you can't abide, you'd immediately get a roll to try and stop it (maybe starting with a -5 penalty on your side, increasing by 3 every time you succeeded, decreasing by 2 when you failed. Success would mean it couldn't continue the action and would move on to something else, failure would mean it does what it was going to unimpaired. If you reached a bonus of maybe 20 or higher you'd permanently regain control, and if you reached a penalty of -20 or lower, your consciousness would be suppressed and the curse would continue to rampage for the night, better luck next time)

[oxybe]

@ thatryanguy
Yeah, I'm still waiting on a return email from my GM on how the particulars of things are going to be handled. I just want to make sure I have all the information available once we've touched base.

@ Fax Celestis
The shapechanger subtype itself doesn't do much

A shapechanger has the supernatural ability to assume one or more alternate forms. Many magical effects allow some kind of shapeshifting, and not every creature that can change shape has the shapechanger subtype.

A shapechanger possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature's entry).

-Proficient with its natural weapons, with simple weapons, and with any weapons mentioned in the creature's description.
-Proficient with any armor mentioned in the creature's description, as well as all lighter forms. If no form of armor is mentioned, the shapechanger is not proficient with armor. A shapechanger is proficient with shields if it is proficient with any type of armor.

However I do have a Change Shape ability that reads "This ability otherwise functions as alter self, except that the kitsune does not adjust her ability scores." and alter self is in the polymorph subschool.

So yeah I believe my natural Change Shape should allow me to not "shark out" if i'm already shapechanged (And i pretty much am all the time, 6ft tall carnivorous shapeshifters aren't the most socially accepted folks while "generic, if nice-looking guy from Cheliax" is).

This is one of the major points I brought forward to the GM and want feedback on.

I think I can also force myself out of either the animal or hybrid forms using my kitsune change shape ability, as they are two different polymorph effects.

as a third "maybe/hopefully" as long as i'm aware of my Lycantropy i can "shark out" until combat is over then forcefully turn back into another form via kitsune change shape as:

"If a new polymorph spell is cast on you (or you activate a polymorph effect, such as wild shape), you can decide whether or not to allow it to affect you, taking the place of the old spell." in this case: if [kitsune change shape] is activated i can decide whether or not to allow it to affect me, taking place of [lycantrope change shape]

Though I think the first forced/full moon transformation is entirely involuntary though, as I'm unaware of the effect even taking place, thus denying me the option to decide if I want to allow or disallow it to affect me.

Once I am aware of the changes though, if everything works as I hope, I might even have a way to force the change as it seems to occur on taking damage, and a self-inflicted 1d4-2 (1, rarely 2 damage) should hurt just enough to force the change... it is damage, right?

Which if it does work, at level 7 will allow for stupid shapeshifter tricks as I was planning on taking the Fox Shape feat either way, which would mean as a Tiny little silver fox, I can bite myself on the leg for 1d3-3 (1) damage to allow the change to occur and immediately hulk out into a Large bipedal shark/fox monster. And once the damage is done, turn back into a human or form.

While typing this post, it also just struck me that I have the perfect "shark out" spot until I can learn to gain control of the lycantropy.

Spoiler: Rise of the Runelords stuff

Show

As you can probably guess from the spoiler, we're playing RotR. We finished the first module a little bit ago, cleaning out Thistletop Keep of it's undesirables and the GM wanted to have us do some side-questing in the meanwhile. Then everything changed when the Fire Nation Sahuagin attacked.

Once/if I realize I'm now a werebeast, I think I might motion for the party to lay claim to the fort as a base of operations (this was mentioned by one PC but we paid it no mind at the time, since we had other business to take care of), as Thistletop has a room that is partially underwater in the lower floors and it seems connects to ocean. With luck I might also take out that darned bunyip in one of my transformations.

Either way, I would say better me then the halfling rogue or axe-happy barbarian, both of whom would likely try to murder the party without batting an eyelid should they flip out.

If I can basically control when it fails to occur and the conditions on when it succeeds, basically turning a curse into a boon, all things considered I still find it a bit too powerful as a free gift.

[Brookshw]

Ima just gonna pop in to say, just saw the episode about Submarine, pretty freaking terrifying and I hope they hunt that thing down, hard.

[Fax Celestis]

However I do have a Change Shape ability that reads "This ability otherwise functions as alter self, except that the kitsune does not adjust her ability scores." and alter self is in the polymorph subschool.

So yeah I believe my natural Change Shape should allow me to not "shark out" if i'm already shapechanged (And i pretty much am all the time, 6ft tall carnivorous shapeshifters aren't the most socially accepted folks while "generic, if nice-looking guy from Cheliax" is).

This is one of the major points I brought forward to the GM and want feedback on.

I think I can also force myself out of either the animal or hybrid forms using my kitsune change shape ability, as they are two different polymorph effects.

as a third "maybe/hopefully" as long as i'm aware of my Lycantropy i can "shark out" until combat is over then forcefully turn back into another form via kitsune change shape as:

"If a new polymorph spell is cast on you (or you activate a polymorph effect, such as wild shape), you can decide whether or not to allow it to affect you, taking the place of the old spell." in this case: if [kitsune change shape] is activated i can decide whether or not to allow it to affect me, taking place of [lycantrope change shape]

Though I think the first forced/full moon transformation is entirely involuntary though, as I'm unaware of the effect even taking place, thus denying me the option to decide if I want to allow or disallow it to affect me.

Once I am aware of the changes though, if everything works as I hope, I might even have a way to force the change as it seems to occur on taking damage, and a self-inflicted 1d4-2 (1, rarely 2 damage) should hurt just enough to force the change... it is damage, right?

Agreed on all points.

Also, 3.5 had a Control Shape skill that doesn't look like it got ported to PF, but you could see if you could use it.

[oxybe]

@Brookshw

You're talking about "Shark of Darkness" right? It's a Fake-u-mentary. At best you can call it a documentary on a few people's "that fish that got away" story. It's the Shark Week equivalent of a documentary on Bigfoot except with a budget.

It's Megalodon all over again.

[Brookshw]

@Brookshw

You're talking about "Shark of Darkness" right? It's a Fake-u-mentary. At best you can call it a documentary on a few people's "that fish that got away" story. It's the Shark Week equivalent of a documentary on Bigfoot except with a budget.

It's Megalodon all over again.

If it is then great, all the arguments on the internet, mostly by non-experts, I don't know what's going on (though yeah, it does seem to lean against the fake side).

[Kalmageddon]

This is completly outside of RaW or RaI, but personally I would make any creature that already has the "shapechanger" subtype immune to the werewolf curse. It just seems like the kid of "nina pirate zombie robot" that shouldn't happen outside of a campaign that just doesn't care and makes fun of the concept itself.
How do you even roleplay a wereshark kitsune? It just doesn't fit together as a concept. If it was a werewolf you could at least come up with something like "you sometimes lose control of your bestial form and become a meaner, bigger humanoid fox out for blood", but fox/shark? It's just... Meh...

If the OP likes the idea of becoming a wereshark kitsune, great. But if he's not and is looking for a way out, I'd simply flat out tell the GM "a wereshark kitsune is something even the Asylum film company would be ashamed of creating, can we please ignore the failed Fortitude save?"

[Hazrond]

You're talking about "Shark of Darkness" right?

If it is then great, all the arguments on the internet, mostly by non-experts, I don't know what's going on (though yeah, it does seem to lean against the fake side).

Actually no it's from a different one, I also doubt it was fake due to the various footage of varying levels of quality (as opposed to perfect shots every time) but that's just me

[Psyren]

There is a "GM control" section in the Bestiary actually - it's in a sidebar on pg. 196. It does not appear to have made it to the PFSRD though I haven't really dug.

LYCANTHROPIC PLAYER CHARACTERS
When a PC becomes a lycanthrope, you as the GM have a choice
to make. In most cases, you should take control of the PC’s
actions whenever he is in hybrid or animal form—lycanthropy
shouldn’t be a method to increase a PC’s power, after all, and
what an afflicted lycanthrope does while in animal or hybrid
form is often at odds with what the character would actually
want. If a player wants to play a lycanthrope, he should play a
natural lycanthrope and follow the guidelines on page 313 for
playing a character of a powerful race.

[Yanisa]

There is a "GM control" section in the Bestiary actually - it's in a sidebar on pg. 196. It does not appear to have made it to the PFSRD though I haven't really dug.

PFSRD Link here.

Yet another place for info about lycanthropes.

[oxybe]

Why did they include that in the Werewolf but not the Wereshark if it's relevant?

[Fax Celestis]

Why did they include that in the Werewolf but not the Wereshark if it's relevant?

Because they hate lycanthropes, and by association, you.

[Sartharina]

I imagine you're not going to do much but flop around like a fish out of water on the first full moon.

Or, you're an adventuring wizard by day, and crime-fighting smartass three consecutive nights (Duration of a full moon) every month.

Weresharks inherently fight crime.

[Psyren]

Why did they include that in the Werewolf but not the Wereshark if it's relevant?

That's just where the PFSRD put it, which is not owned by Paizo. In the actual Bestiary, it's under the "Lycanthrope" general entry, before any of the permutations like werewolves etc.

Weresharks inherently fight crime.

"JAWSOME!!"

[bekeleven]

Knowing nothing of weresharks, or werebeasts in general beyond "they the scary mean shapeshifters" while my own kitsune tried to sneak up invisibly, only to have a third of my HP literally ripped off me in a single AoO bite.

And a single failed fort save later, followed by the gm making a face, I soon figured out OOC what we were fighting and what I contracted.

Were you actually invisible? Because if so the attack was illegal.

If you have line of effect to a target but not line of sight, he is considered to have total concealment from you. You can't attack an opponent that has total concealment, though you can attack into a square that you think he occupies. [...]

You can't execute an attack of opportunity against an opponent with total concealment, even if you know what square or squares the opponent occupies.

[oxybe]

@ bekeleven
Yes i was invisible. The ninja's Vanishing Trick: As a swift action, the ninja can disappear for 1 round per level. This ability functions as invisibility. Using this ability uses up 1 ki point

I believe, though, that this enemy had a blindsight/tremorsense type of thing going, as it had no problem seeing the invisible me, nor was I benefitting from invisibility's concealment/50% miss.

@Psyren
I don't own the bestiary so I can't check.

And with that... THEY BITE! THEY FIGHT! THEY STAND FOR EVERYTHING RIGHT!

Oh 90's. You so 90's.

[Psyren]

@Psyren
I don't own the bestiary so I can't check.

I do and I'm telling you that's where it is, there's no need to check Don't you twust me?

(I even gave a page reference... sniffle)

And with that... THEY BITE! THEY FIGHT! THEY STAND FOR EVERYTHING RIGHT!

Oh 90's. You so 90's.

It could have been good - but where it failed compared to TMNT was in not distinguishing the sharks aside from cosmetically. They are almost completely interchangeable in terms of personality, motivations, goals etc. MovieBob has a nice episode on it.

[oxybe]

@Psyren

Oh i'm not disputing you or calling you a meany-pants-liar-face, i just have no way to actually pull up a book and read it myself at the moment without spending money on an ebook i honestly have no reason to buy beyond fact-checking lycantropy or going through alternative methods we cannot discuss about on the forums, and neither of which appeal to me.

consolation hug?

[Psyren]

Well, I quoted the only part that was different verbat-

consolation hug?

...

Entei hug!!! *glomps*

[Tanuki Tales]

Actually no it's from a different one, I also doubt it was fake due to the various footage of varying levels of quality (as opposed to perfect shots every time) but that's just me

There was a South African zoologist that has said that they took footage of an actual shark named Prop and attributed it as footage concerning "Submarine" and that they never once consulted with him, nor did they consult with the researchers who recorded that footage with Prop; he doubted that the "researchers" even existed in the first place.

It's not like this is the first or even second time that the Discovery channel has created docufictions and tried to ram them down our throats as actual things.

[bekeleven]

@ bekeleven
Yes i was invisible. The ninja's Vanishing Trick: As a swift action, the ninja can disappear for 1 round per level. This ability functions as invisibility. Using this ability uses up 1 ki point

I believe, though, that this enemy had a blindsight/tremorsense type of thing going, as it had no problem seeing the invisible me, nor was I benefitting from invisibility's concealment/50% miss.

Huh. I figured the opposite, since both sharks and Sahuagins have blindsense, which doesn't gives enemy locations but doesn't negate concealment within its range.