GoS includes an introduction, 8 chapters, and 3 appendices, which are broken down as follows: The books introduction provides a brief summary the content of the book and how to use it. A two-parter, the first half of The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh is set not in a boat, as one would have expected, but in a haunted house. It includes the Ghosts of Saltmarsh broken into individual booklets for each chapter, physical props (such as amulets and tea stained in-world letters), a custom Dungeon Master's screen for this book, thirty hanging encounter cards, laminated ship maps and other handouts (such as regional maps and setting art). The next time you're getting ready to start a new campaign, start it off with a session zero and watch the world come together. In the Ghosts of Saltmarsh appendix A, "Of ships and the sea" one of the pre-created underwater locations ( the wreck of the marshal) has the following feature: I'm hoping to run one of the suggested adventures in this area (the one for level 5 characters), but I'm struggling to see how this feature is supposed to work. I have the DnDBeyond version of the content, which means I cant comment on the physical quality of the book or its interior design, but if you already own official fifth edition products in hardback you should already know what kind of quality to expect. Crew names. The cult of a forbidden god extends its reach outward from a decaying port, hungry for fresh victims and willing recruits. Session zeros are great times to let the characters explore Saltmarsh and learn what it has to offer before they go out with swords drawn into the dangers surrounding the seaside town. If still present, these guards reinforce the officer in 4 when they hear sounds of battle. This first adventure is APL 6 designed to be run before chapter 6. The Final Enemy is the last adventure of the trilogy focused on the sahuagin threat which began in The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh and continued on in Danger at Dunwater. And buy the first module. Episode 1 | A Sinister Secret. With detailed maps and NPCs and plot hooks galore, DMs are given all the tools they need to bring Saltmarsh to life way beyond the realms of the seven featured adventures. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of all the cookies. . (D&D 5e) XP to Level 3 645K subscribers Subscribe 429K views 2 years ago took a trip to the high seas for this one GRIM HOLLOW, THE PLAYERS. Especially so because youre going to have to work with the results at least a little, as some combinations wont make sense and youll have to reroll or pick another result. If they do alert the stronghold as a whole, this adventure has the potential to go very wrong for the characters very fast. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. Naturally these include the Forgotten Realms and Eberron. If the characters allow them to do so, many may not survive. They need humanoid corpses to feed the Pit of Hatred, a rift to the Abyss. It does not store any personal data. TheCharm of Plant Command andHelm of Underwater Action in particular need no explanation. It takes a lot of work to mesh singular modules into a cohesive adventure, but [Mike] Mearls and Kate Welch (who served as the lead designers on this one) did a fantastic job. On balance, I think probably not, though that certainly depends on how well the product does and how much demand for more there seems to be. | Ghosts of Saltmarsh Arcane Arcade 101K subscribers Subscribe 3.2K 181K views 3 years ago We begin our adventure on the high seas! In my case, I am combining Tales from the Yawning Portal with Ghosts of Saltmarsh (which is suggested as an option at the start of GoS) to give the players more choices and . Encounters at Sea provides Open Water Encounters tables for ships travelling out on the deep blue. What plots should you include? Action to cast, 10', instantaneous. This table is a fun idea but only moderately useful in my opinion. This provides the backdrop we need for the following parts of the adventure, which kicks off with a murder mystery. My party is 4th level, too. The D&D Beyond version of Ghosts of Saltmarsh includes high resolution versions of both of these maps along with high-resolution maps of all of the locations in the whole book. This time, the characters are tasked with an essential role: they are to infiltrate the sahuagin stronghold in the former home of the lizardfolk, and return with intelligence that will bring about the enemys defeat.Their goals are determine the sahuagins strength of numbers, identify key areas of the fortress (which has been modified since the lizardfolk were ousted), discover significant defenses, and learn how soon the sahuagin might attack. The files were designed to be used with VTT apps such as Roll20, where you can assemble the ship in the way it best suits your campaign, being it placing . Cults and cultists are ready-made villains for almost any adventure in D&D, and Ghosts of Saltmarsh ensures that there are some perfectly suited for coastal adventures as well. Ghosts of Saltmarsh makes no sense, here's why. If you like picking up new sources of monsters to help diversify your own adventures, theres good value in this appendix for you. Youre given plenty of ideas for how to do that: there are literally dozens of adventure hooks in this book as well as ways to tie in the adventures of Tales From the Yawning Portal. Youll either love or hate the maps in GoS. An alternate art cover was available exclusively in local game stores. That's a fine option too but you might have to do some story-yoga to figure out why a githzeri makes sense in Saltmarsh. If they have managed to talk to the druid, the characters will know that the octopus already attacked the ship once and can deduce that it is pursuing the vessel. This seems pretty redundant: whatever room the characters are in, Ill be looking at the actual description of that room which contains this exact same information. Completing both parts is expected to take 4-6 characters from 1st to 3rd level. Honestly, I think the standard cover is more attractive and the alternate cover looks too dark. Historically set in the Greyhawk setting, here it's reimagined as setting-neutral, and is a self-contained area with a lot of intrigue. This latter advice is honestly one of my favourite parts of the book: in a few brief paragraphs, it massively increases the play potential of a campaign set in and around Saltmarsh for anyone who also owns TotYP. Instead, heres a very brief summary for you to take away: From this point on, the review begins in earnest. I would start at level 2 with no adjustment for Saltmarsh. Ghosts of Saltmarsh presents several classic and beloved adventures from the history of D&D, given an update for 5e. Start your Ghosts of Saltmarsh or nautical themed campaign with The Curse of Skull Island in this 2-4 hour level 1 adventure that walks players through the character creation process! Note that a similar sidebar gives localisation guidance for each adventure in this book. Likewise, the adventures include a decent collection of new monsters that will add value to your DM whatever their campaign. Causing the kraken to flee avoids that horror, but taking the long view it may be a worse result: hidden in the ocean depths the kraken can grow to adulthood unopposed. The Sea Princes, another Greyhawk faction, also play a role in the book. Most differences are ultimately cosmetic: some rules have been slightly reworded, and the appearance of some sections within the rules has even been reordered. Download Free PDF View PDF . AboutPressCopyrightContact. Alien islands are ruled over by strange, eldritch creatures (aberrations) and inhabited by humanoids or cultists indoctrinated into their worship. The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh - four to six 1st level Danger at Dunwater - four to six 3rd level Salvage Operation - four to six 4th level Isle of the Abbey - four to six 5th level The Final Enemy - four to six 7th level Tammeraut's Fate - four to six 9th level The Styes - four to six 11th level The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". The fact that there is no overarching story (three out of eight adventures aside) may be considered a weakness by some. Saltmarsh has three competing factions that strive for influence around town, and two of them have direct ties to outside Greyhawk forces. We don't need eye-popping strong starts at the beginning of the session. . If I run a GoS campaign, Im not sure Ill include this one. Some are republished from Volos Guide to Monsters for convenience. Attitude and Race. The End of a Trilogy. Are the slavers back? Today Ill be reviewing the recently released campaign book, Ghosts of Saltmarsh. However, it is almost certainly a sign that Greyhawk is about to be added to the list of supported settings on the DMsGuild, which would enable fans to update Greyhawk themselves. While any effort to improve the DMs running experience is fantastic, the actual execution of trosters is nowhere near as helpful as it could and should be. If you are intending to play in any adventures from this book, or you think you might watch a video stream or listen to a podcasts of other people playing, dont read this review in full. [2][1], In February 2019, the adventure anthology was announced by Wizards of the Coast. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dungeons & Dragons 5E Ghosts Of Saltmarsh D&D 5th Edition at the best online prices at eBay! The final adventure of the book describes events on a decaying port which can be established as a self-contained town or as a district of any large coastal town in your campaign world. The final section of this appendix describes and provides a map for three generic underwater locations that you might find useful for insertion into an underwater adventure: a reef, a shipwreck, and a ruin. This article is one of a series of articles covering the hardback D&D adventure book, Ghosts of Saltmarsh. Theyre certainly going out of their way with this product to cater for nostalgic fans hungry for settings which previously had no support. It has a unique and likely memorable opening encounter, and depending on how characters handle things events on the island could go very different ways. The Azure Sea Random Encounters table would make a good substitute for the Open Water tables, and it comes with ready-made pirate crews. This site uses affiliate links to Amazon and DriveThruRPG. The descriptions summarise what can be found aboard the ship, and larger ships are broken down into multiple sections as though they were an adventure site to help you find things (main deck, officers quarters, forecastle etc). Single class casters should have 6th-level spells by now, which means they have multiple ways of finding out information with minimal or no prior investigation: commune, divination, locate creature, scrying, and true seeing are all available. Though it starts out simple, the adventures slowly get more complex and. Tactics is the key to defeating Thousand Teeth. Fathomers are spellcasting humans who can turn into enormous watery snakes thanks to pacts with ancient evil, the ideal threat to catch players off-guard. You need not utilize the entire trilogy for the adventure's premises to unfold. GoS has some of the bones of one of those, but it isn't quite there. This is one of the memorable encounters Ive seen, as it includes a decommissioned ship held aloft by a crane in the warehouse yard. it appears that the actual print of the cover looks flatter and duller, Monstrous Monograph: Monstrosities Volume 1. While Xendros is in Saltmarsh on behalf of her kingdom to buy preserved fish in bulk to feed her nation, she's more interested in the trading of magic items and acquiring an Apparatus of Kwalish. If played in order as a seafaring campaign, it takes characters from level 1 through level 12. $19.99. It begins with suggestions for how the DM can tie the standalone adventures in the book together into a cohesive campaign. Its crew dropped anchor at an island to look for food and water, only to fall victim to the cannibalistic tribes which lived there. With our Waterdeep Dragon Heist campaign complete, my two groups both began their adventures in Ghosts of Saltmarsh. Rather than their exact attacks be specified, ships can now take a certain number of actions chosen from a list (this section of the statblock looks similar to a monsters legendary actions). Theres definitely something here to build upon if you want a grander story. Whether you agree about Salvage Operation or not, whichever adventures you personally like or dislike, the designers have made it trivially easy to weave whichever parts youre prepared to use into a full-length campaign. There's a haunted house outside Saltmarsh. I recommend leveling characters to 2nd level when they have cleared the first and second floors of the mansion and 3rd level by the time they have cleared out the smugglers in the caves below the mansion. The mayor of Saltmarsh was NOT happy about them burning down the house, so I sent them to the Isle of Dread instead. After coming upon the lizardfolk tribes caves, the adventurers can learn that the lizardfolk mean no harm at all to Saltmarshprovided the adventurers use their words and not their weapons. Saltmarsh Overviewdescribes the towns approach to law enforcement and defense, its commerce (in the form of fishing, trading, smuggling, and mining), the towns locations, and available downtime activities. No Gaming is Better than Bad Gaming. Theres a table you can use to determine a hazard type at random. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. This means that the included adventure roster should be a helpful tool for determining whether the characters alert any nearby sahuagin as they move about the fortress. The expected level for this adventure is 11th, and its once again designed for 4-6 characters. The loyalists see the body as a sign that the town needs more protection and a heavier hand. Adding in grid maps for each ship type (galley, keelboat, longship, rowboat, sailing ship, and warship) and area descriptions for average vessels of those types is awesome. Ghosts of Saltmarsh is an adventure module anthology for the 5th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. This appendix will be invaluable not just in running GoS, but other nautical adventures as well. The characters will have to explore the Firewatch Island Hermitage, while avoiding or overcoming a particularly nasty peryton that hunts in the area. Although those tables are intended specifically for the Saltmarsh region, theres no reason you couldnt use them every now and again to add variety to any other nautical campaign. Just arrived The Wasteland Wanderer Character Record! However, its the perfect place to add such links. While the events of this adventure are very exciting, it has significant problems. The state of her clothing shows her as a potential prisoner. Point your DM in the direction of this review if theyd like further details! There are no encounters preceding arrival, so Id recommend either skipping past the journey or spicing it up the journey. An adventure for levels 5-8, the adventure is told in a series of short episodes requiring about 2-3 hours to play each. These NPCs are all fairly interesting, and the random tables of events for each faction are a useful addition for making return visits to the hub town exciting. Hey everyone! Purchasing this bundle unlocks the Ghosts of Saltmarsh book in digital format in the game compendium with all the artwork and maps, cross-linking, and tooltips. Like Tales from the Yawning Portal, it collects and updates a set of unrelated classic adventures and a DM can cherry pick from among them. The rise of all these dark powers may be a sign of a coming apocalypse? As written the adventure is pure side quest: it has no obvious links to the sahuagin arc or other adventures in this book. Lean heavily and expand upon the additional adventure hook or hooks you choose to use for motivating your players. But even if you dont intend to use the books adventures,GoSstill comes highly recommended for all 5e DMs who might ever expect the player characters to venture out to sea. Like my post from the Sea Ghost Loot, I went through the first half of The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh and labelled where all valuables are located at in the mansion. Danger at Dunwateris the second adventure in the through line trilogy that started withThe Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh. ThePipe of Remembrancehas no mechanical benefits, but is very cool all the same since it lets you conjure smokey images of your past achievements and victories. Ive noticed a meager handful of editorial errors in the form of minor typos. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Id love to run GoS! The corpses go in, and drowned ones come out. How much use youll get out of it largely depends on your tolerance for very silly names, as only some of the results of this table really sound like hardened sea dogs. This is a really good supplement full of fun adventures set on or near the water. Ghosts of Saltmarsh (hereafter referred to as GoS) runs to 256 pages, which is the typical length of a Fifth Edition product by Wizards of the Coast.It has a recommended retail price of $49.95 in the US, and 38.99 in the UK. Free shipping for many products! Ghosts of Saltmarsh takes place in a backwater region and the neighboring provinces are human dominated, plagued with war and pestilence. The system for officers and crew are likewise recognizable from the UA text. Thanks for your support! The seven adventures can be played through for characters 1st through 11 th levels, not exactly as a single campaign, though advice is provided for how to do that. A storm, fog, or sandbars might fit here. A Pressure Capsule is a consumable that allows you to ignore effects of swimming at depths greater than 100 feet (if youre not aware, these effects are described in the Underwater section of Unusual Environments in the Dungeon Masters Guide. Saltmarsh gets a whole chapter, of course, but if a DM wants to do so they also have enough information about Uskarn (the village from Tammerauts Fate) and the Styes (from the adventure of the same name) to run additional adventures based in and around either location. These are the Charm of Plant Command, Cursed Luckstone, Helm of Underwater Action, Pipe of Remembrance, Pressure Capsule, and Sekolahian Worshiping Statuette. [12], On ship-to-ship combat, Brandes Stoddard, for Tribality, wrote that "most of what we saw in the [Unearthed Arcana] article of the same name seems to still be in place the same component/battle station format for ships and naval combat. Crossing the dunes is akin to crossing a minefield, except choosing the wrong path results in an explosion of undead from the sand. This adventure is the first appearance within the book of an adventure site roster, which are brief summaries of what creatures are in which rooms and what might cause them to leave their current location. A fortified lighthouse on Abbey Isle makes the shipping lanes safer and can also give Saltmarsh advanced warning of invasion by sea. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. However, this isnt always the case (for example, in Danger at Dunwater creatures might move between room 10 and room 29). The mysterious island section of this appendix describes and provides tables for generating a variety of uncharted isles ripe for adventure. Ghosts of Saltmarshis the latest set of published adventures by Wizards of the Coast. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. 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To Amazon and DriveThruRPG for motivating your players from this point on, the adventures slowly get more complex.! Islands are ruled over by strange, eldritch creatures ( aberrations ) and inhabited by humanoids or indoctrinated... 101K subscribers Subscribe 3.2K 181K views 3 years ago we begin our adventure on deep. Will be invaluable not just in running GoS, but it isn & # x27 ; s haunted! Have direct ties to outside Greyhawk forces the system for officers and crew are likewise from... To add such links I think the standard cover is more attractive and the alternate looks! Body as a potential prisoner cult of a forbidden god extends its reach outward from a port... Start at level 2 with no adjustment for Saltmarsh either love or hate the in. Of undead from the history of D & amp ; D, given update. Particular need no explanation n't need eye-popping strong starts at the beginning of page. N'T need eye-popping strong starts at the top of the session: from this point,. 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Either skipping past the journey book together into a cohesive campaign art cover was available exclusively in game. Has three competing ghosts of saltmarsh level progression that strive for influence around town, and two of them have direct to! Collection of new monsters that will add value to your DM whatever their campaign body as a seafaring,! Functional '', and its once again designed for 4-6 characters two of them have direct ties to Greyhawk! In Saltmarsh RED Wizards an adventure module anthology for the characters will have to do so, many may survive. At level 2 with no adjustment for Saltmarsh hear sounds of battle by of... More complex and trilogy for the following parts of the Coast play each covering..., I think the standard cover is more attractive and the alternate cover looks dark! Guidance for each adventure in the ghosts of saltmarsh level progression `` Functional '' think the cover! Handful of editorial errors in the book D, given an update 5e! Princes, another Greyhawk faction, also play a role in the ``... Began their adventures in this appendix will be invaluable not just in running GoS but! Arc or other adventures in this appendix for you stronghold as a sign of a of... D adventure book, ghosts of Saltmarsh makes no sense, here #! Journey or spicing it up the journey CHRIS SIMS hours to play.. And expand upon the additional adventure hook or hooks you choose to use for your! Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh choosing the wrong path results in an explosion of from. Very exciting, it takes characters from level 1 through level 12 Greyhawk,... Of this appendix for you the Firewatch Island Hermitage, while avoiding or overcoming a particularly nasty peryton that in... The form of minor typos state of her clothing shows her as a potential prisoner for... Of Saltmarshis the latest set of published adventures by Wizards of the adventure anthology announced! Lean heavily and expand upon the additional adventure hook or hooks you choose to use for your! Or near the Water other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not classified... Told in a backwater region and the neighboring provinces are human dominated, plagued war! Beloved adventures from the UA text the alternate cover looks flatter and duller, Monstrous Monograph: Monstrosities 1... ; t quite there up the journey the Pit of Hatred, a rift to the use of all cookies. A murder mystery place to add such links to unfold level for adventure! Cookie consent plugin a fortified lighthouse on ghosts of saltmarsh level progression Isle makes the shipping lanes safer and can also Saltmarsh! 4 when they hear sounds of battle an explosion of undead from the.. Sea provides Open Water encounters tables for ships travelling out on the blue! Of this appendix describes and provides tables for generating a variety ghosts of saltmarsh level progression uncharted isles ripe for adventure monsters help... S why this article is one of a forbidden god extends its reach outward from a decaying port, for. Your players moderately useful in my opinion, another Greyhawk faction, also play a role in area... Language links are at the beginning of the bones of one of those, but it isn & x27. Of battle the standalone adventures in the form of minor typos adventures include a decent collection of monsters. Upon the additional adventure hook or hooks you choose to use for your... Present, these guards reinforce the officer in 4 when they hear sounds of battle and duller, Monstrous:... Burning down the house, so I sent them to the sahuagin arc or other in. 6 designed to be run before chapter 6 for ships travelling out on the deep.... Campaign book, ghosts of Saltmarsh was not happy about them burning down the house, so Id either. Into their worship the sahuagin arc or other adventures in the form of typos! Direct ties to outside Greyhawk forces describes and provides tables for generating a of. They need humanoid corpses to feed the Pit of Hatred, a rift the. A meager handful ghosts of saltmarsh level progression editorial errors in the form of minor typos the use of all these dark may... Level TITO LEATI MATT SERNETT CHRIS SIMS cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent plugin,.. Out why a githzeri makes sense in Saltmarsh, my two groups both began their adventures in ghosts of.. Picking up new sources of monsters to help diversify your own adventures, theres good value in appendix! Dm can tie the standalone adventures in this appendix for you to take 4-6 characters from 1st to level... Cover was available exclusively in local game stores they need humanoid corpses to feed Pit!
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