Ghosts of Saltmarsh DM's Bundle

New creatures, adventures, tables and maps for use with the Ghosts of Saltmarsh adventure for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons.

Credits & Legal Writing, Editing and Layout: Mark A. Wilson

Acknowledgements: Maps created using Dungeon Designer 3 by ProFantasy Software. Cover image and all internal artwork was obtained on Pixabay and is released under Creative Commons CC0. My thanks to the Reddit creator community for the D&D visual assets and fonts used on the cover. D&D cover fonts are released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Mark's other work can be found on his website, Bumbling Through Dungeons

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©2020 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Boéchat 31, 2800 Delémont, CH. Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK. Table Of Contents Pg. 4 - Alternate Hooks & Adventures Pg. 7 - Aquatic Creature Compendium Pg. 12 - Ship & Sailor Names Pg. 14 - Nautical Nonsense Chart Maps are included as separate files

Sample file Alternative Hooks & Adventures Using This Resource Room/Encounter Adjustments: This document outlines alternative hooks and adventures for Room 15: This is where Iouna is being held captive, the maps included in Ghosts of Saltmarsh. These can be instead of Ned (who is removed from this adventure). used outside of the Saltmarsh adventure, or incorporated Iouna is familiar with the secret doors from rooms into it. Some are relatively minor hooks that will not 20 to 21, and 21 to 25. She will share this constitute a full adventure. Others will take longer to resolve, knowledge to try to goad the party into an and may be used as standalone adventures. Dungeon encounter with Sanbalet. She remains unaware of Masters are encouraged to mix and match ideas to best suit the secret entrance to 24. the needs of their table. Conclusion: The fisherman will offer them 5d10 gp, most Wherever possible, I tried to keep the layout, room of his life savings, and a few trinkets rolled from your furnishings and even enemies the same as in the book, to favorite trinket table. facilitate easy integration with the existing Saltmarsh location descriptions. However, when encounters or descriptions change to facilitate the new hook, they are Fungal Growth indicated in this supplement. Map: 2.3 Sea Ghost APL: 2

Hook: The Sea Ghost’s first mate, Bloody Bjorn, was the Encounter Adjustments only escapee from a strange series of events on his ship. After The new hooks and encounters are largely intended discovering a patch of mushrooms growing in the wood of to be balanced for the same average party level one of the decks, the crew quickly removed the worst of them (APL) as they exist in the official adventure. and threw them into the sea. However, as they were doing However, an APL key is included for each new this, the mushrooms produced a spore cloud which infected hook to account for variations to this. the ship’s inhabitants. Within minutes, several of the crew In general, the APLs listed assume a group of were acting erratically and Bjorn was forced to flee with five players. Minor adjustments may need to be some of the crew’s gold to seek out those who could aid him. made to account for differences in level or player A local alchemist has seen these effects and sold Bjorn a count. dozen potions that reverse the effects. Having heard of a local group of adventurers, he’s eager for their assistance. He’ll hesitantly offer a gold reward, going as high as 500gp depending on the party’s negotiating.

Adventure Summary: The potions can be force-fed to living The Fisherman's Daughter enemies, once they are grappled, with a successful melee Map: 2.1 Haunted House and 2.2 Haunted attack. They can also be fed to unconscious enemies. Bjorn House Cellar and Caverns can get the party onto the ship, at which point the crew are zombie-like with patches of fungal growth on their forms. APL: 1 However, they will not attack immediately. This will give the party at least one surprise round of their choice. Once the Hook: A local fisherman was powerless to stop his daughter, first of the crew has been turned by the potions, the entire Iouna, from falling in with a gang of thieves. Last night, she crew will be alerted to the danger and will attack on sight. came to her senses, but instead of being allowed to leave the Any crew who are fed the potion will pass out and be group, was kidnapped. The group is led by a would-be wizard unconscious or severely groggy for 1d4 hours. named Sanbalet. If the party will rescue her, he’ll reward them with what little gold he has, and his eternal gratitude. Room/Encounter Adjustments: The fisherman can point them toward the abandoned house they call a base, which is far enough outside Saltmarsh Room 9: The chest contains only five electrum ingots, as jurisdiction that the local guards won’t deal with it. Bjorn took the others to pay for the potions. Room 13: The brass box is no longer beneath the bed, as Adventure Summary: While many of the enemies remain Bjorn took it to pay for the potions. the same, the mission is one of rescue and escape. Once they Room 14: Oceanus remained unaffected by the spore locate Iouna, she’ll request that they kill Sanbalet for his cloud, but was unable to escape. betrayal, and will offer to lead the party to him. In return, she In addition to any other information he gives the promises them several hundred gold. This is a lie, which party, Oceanus will be able to share rumors of she’ll Samplefreely admit once Sanbalet is killed. Failing this, she’ll spore clouds and malevfileolent fungi in The Drowned claim to know a sea exit from the house (which is the truth) Forest. He does not know the Abyssal origins of that may help them avoid pursuit. In truth, it is to bring them these phenomena, but the information may be used near Sanbalet’s room. to seed further adventures in the area.

4 Stop the Summons Ambush on the Waves Map: 3.1 Lizardfolk Lair Map: 4.1 Emperor of the Waves APL: 3 APL: 4

Hook: A amateur conjurer named Obbleroy recently Hook: A barnacle-crusted human walks into Saltmarsh and discovered a powerful tome capable of summoning a is taken into guard custody. He bears a warning from the powerful demon. Before he was able to alert those who could Lady of Rot, Zuggtmoy, that the region has been claimed by destroy it, his home outside of Saltmarsh was raided and the her to expand her glorious realm of decay. As an example of tome stolen. Obbleroy tracked the tome back to a lizardfolk her power, the crew of the Emperor of the Waves has been lair approximately 10 miles along the coast from Saltmarsh. destroyed and the boat claimed as her own. He is eager to see is returned and ultimately destroyed, and Two days later, the ship will be spotted floating adrift. Its will offer a band of adventurers 500gp and a minor magical former captain, Aubreck Drallion, has a large fortune in staff as recompense. Additionally, he knows the lizardfolk to promissory notes on the ship that he is eager to get back. He not be overtly hostile toward other humanoids. Thus, he was will approach the party as outlined in the book, and the surprised at the attack, and is hopeful that the situation can Saltmarsh Council will also approach them to reclaim the be rectified without bloodshed. He will provide the name of vessel and investigate any attack that was made on it. the lizardfolk queen and suggest a diplomatic course of Adventurers who view the messenger will see similarities action to begin. in characteristics to the spore-controlled crew members from the “Fungal Growth” adventure in this collection. Adventure Summary: The lizardfolk queen, Othokent, is unaware of the raid. Secretly, one of her shamans, an evil Adventure Summary: The warning from the messenger is a priest named Silponesh, who is a traditionalist and not loyal calculated trap, designed to draw the area’s most powerful to the queen took a small group of traditionalists on the raid. adventurers to the ship before sinking it with them aboard. For background on these factions, refer to the introductory The giant octopus that ultimately destroys the ship is notes in Chapter 3 of Ghosts of Saltmarsh. This hook may be similarly under Zuggtmoy’s sway. The party can be escorted run alongside existing hooks in the book. to the ship as per instructions in the book. Silponesh hopes to summon and control the demon to seize control over the lizardfolk community. During the Room/Encounter Adjustments: adventure, he will be in the process of preparing the ritual. Make the following creature replacements. All creatures Should he get wind of the party’s intentions, he will do aboard the ship show signs of mind control consistent everything he can to thwart their efforts. with the spore control detailed earlier in “Fungal Growth.” The adventure can play out much the same as it might Swarm of insects (spiders) becomes Swarm of regularly, with a point system for determining the trust of the insects (beetles). queen. If Silponesh is killed before reaching 50 points of Where possible, giants spiders become swarm of trust and the murder is discovered, the queen and her quippers. minions will become hostile toward the party. At 50 points, Giants wolf spiders become constrictor snakes she can be swayed to believe the party’s story and, if he is still or, where possible, Ixitxachitl. present, will have her soldiers present Silponesh and the Phase spiders become kuo-toa monitors. tome to the party. While creatures aboard the ship still take damage from The tome’s ritual summons Yibiyru, the Rancid Lady of the octopus, their goal is to keep the party on the ship as it Bitter Bile and chief lieutenant of the demon lord Zuggtmoy. sinks rather than escape or survive. Silponesh is wholly incapable of controlling her once summoned, but is unaware of this. Refer to the new creature section of this document for Yibiyru’s statistics.

Room/Encounter Adjustments:

Room 20: The shaman in this room is Silponesh. Additionally, two other lizardfolk shaman accompany him at all times except when sleeping. All shaman in the complex are loyal to Silponesh. Most other are loyal to the queen, though the disciples in Room 20 may be swayed to either side. After three days’ time, Silponesh will either flee or will have prepared the ritual and will summon Yibiyru. After killing her summoner, she will ignore any others in the room, summon 3d4 violet fungi Sampleto block her escape, and attempt to leave. If file reduced to half health while escaping, she will attack those in her immediate vicinity.

5 Bone Collector Map: 5.2 Skull Dunes APL: 5 Warding Medallion (Undead) Hook: Obbleroy, the summoner from “Stop the Summons” in Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement) this adventure collection, has heard of the skeletal graveyard While wearing this medallion, any undead on Abbey Isle. Specifically, he has heard about these creature of CR5 or lower within 30 feet of you creatures coalescing into skeletal juggernauts. He wants to must make a DC12 Wisdom Saving Throw or have the Frightened condition for one minute. On a study the process, and the arcane magic used to create such successful save, they are immune to the monstrosities. He’s tasked the party with recovering bones medallion’s effects for 24 hours. from two of these beasts, and pointed them toward the appropriate end of the island with a description of the juggernauts.

Adventure Summary: This adventure need not include the abbey itself, but can easily be linked to it. See the next entry for an alternate hook that includes the abbey. Further Adventures

Room/Encounter Adjustments: The juggernauts appear Map: 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4 and 7.5 from Chapter after 20 skeletons have been dispatched, per the notes in the 7: Tammeraut’s Fate book. However, ignore the notes that state the skeletons will APL: 9 no longer appear after the first such juggernaut is defeated. This is now true after the second iteration of 20 regular Adventure Summary: This is less a new adventure than a skeletons and second juggernaut have been killed. consideration for dungeon masters. Given the focus on Zuggtmoy, Yibiyru and the Drowned Forest in these new adventure hooks, DMs may wish to substitute Zuggtmoy as Intel at the Abbey the demon lord instead of Orcus in this adventure, to provide Map: 5.3 Abbey Ruins another avenue toward facing that particular demonic foe. APL: 5

Hook: The abbey has been attacked as outlined in the book, and the survivors are left stranded. The mariners’ guild has asked the party to investigate the remains, specifically for information that may have been left by an informant they’ve had on the island for some time. This informant spy is Bayleaf, whose stats and personality are outlined in the book. You may want to include this hook after the guild receives word that the party is traveling to the island at the request of Obbleroy (or vice versa).

Adventure Summary: Once the party confirm their allegiance, Bayleaf will happily confirm the events that led to the abbey existing in this state. He may also have information related to other hooks you may wish to insert into the plot. Additionally, Bayleaf will request that the party help him retrieve a family heirloom that was recently stolen by Ozymandias, a golden medallion. This is a lie. Bayleaf is concerned for his safety and wishes to escape the island, with or without the party. The medallion is magical (see sidebar) and will afford Bayleaf a greater chance of surviving his escape from the skeleton-filled island. If the party wish to continue on investigating after the medallion is secured, he will attempt to leave on his own, using his saved invisibility spell iSamplef necessary. file

6 Aquatic Creature Compendium

Baby Bloop Dolphin Baby Bloops have been seen in various shallow-water locales Dolphins are swift, intelligent creatures who generally only around the Saltmarsh region. Scientists and sailors alike attack if they are threatened or in other mitigating have failed to decide whether the bloops are related to circumstances. Dolphins rarely appear alone, and prefer to jellyfish or more sinister ooze creatures. Some even travel in pods of approximately 12. speculate that the bloops are larval krakens, though this theory has never been corroborated. Bloops are exclusively neon colors: green, orange, yellow and pink. They travel in squads of 8-30. Dolphin Medium beast, unaligned

Armor Class 12 Baby Bloop Hit Points 18 (3d10 + 2) Tiny beast, unaligned Speed swim 40ft.

Armor Class 11 Hit Points 9 (2d6 + 2) STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA Speed 5ft; swim 25ft 12 (+1) 14 (+2) 8 (-1) 10 (+0) 10 (+0) 5 (-3)

STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA Skills Stealth +3 Senses passive Perception 10 4 (-3) 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 6 (-2) 5 (-3) 10 (+0) Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)

Senses passive Perception 7 Hold Breath. The dolphin can hold its breath for 10 Challenge 1/8 (25 XP) minutes.

Sting. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5ft., Ram. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 4 (1d4 + 2) lightning damage one target. Hit 5 (1d6 + 2) bludgeoning damage. If the dolphin was able to swim in a straight line for 20ft. prior to the attack, the target takes another 1d6 damage.

Sample file

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