GA1 The Murky Deep
GA1 The Murky Deep
GA1 The Murky Deep
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gating some objects supposedly relcovered mission, and free heal spells for six months af-
from the sunken city of Carsall. ter the mission, but that is his final offer. If the
The gentleman who brought the objects to party refuses to accept that price, there are
the temple was very secretive, and refused to plenty of adventurers who will.) The party
reveal where he obtained them. He would not will also be allowed to keep any monetary
tell the priest where he came from and would treasure found in the expedition.
give his name only as Aaron. He told the head If the party accepts the mission, August
priest that if the temple could obtain informa- turns over all of the materials from the cabinet
tion from the objects about the location of and offers the use of the temple libraries. He
Carsall, he would allow some of the priests to can also give the PCs the information on Car-
accompany him on an expedition to ihe site. sal1 that follows and anything else the DM
In order to further the knowledge of his order, deems appropriate.
the priest agreed. The strange man disap-
peared a few days later and has not been seen What Really Happened
since. Two of the priests (Jan and Jirac) who Aaron was actually a fisherman named
were examining the objects disappeared at the Liam who took his boat out farther than usual
same time. August fears foul play. about a week after a storm. He caught some
Among the objects were sealed potion bot- strange objects in his nets. Having grown up
tles, some navigational instruments, bits and on the stories of the sunken city of Carsall, he
pieces of old jewelry, and a sealed cabinet. believed that these objects must have come
The cabinet was sealed with strange glyphs from there. Having heard of the fabulous trea-
that the priests ascertained were specific to sures to be found in Carsall, he took the ob-
Manannan Mac Lir, the Celtic god of {thesea. jects to the temple of Desarius. He hoped to
When the cabinet was opened, all that was in- find some clues to the location of the city. He
side were some sacred writings of Manannan knew that he could not recover them alone,
and what appeared to be pages from an old however, and hoped to pique the temples in-
ships log, All of the material was water dam- terest enough to obtain their help.
aged and appeared quite old. The missing priests are young clerics out to
On the night when the three men disap- gain a little glory for themselves. They man-
peared, a commotion was heard in the library aged to open the cabinet and find the location
where the objects were kept. When some of of Carsall.
the priests went to investigate, the room was a They successfully identified the treasure of
shambles. The furniture was overturned and which the old stories spoke. The legends tell
most of the objects in question were missing. that the priests of Manannan Mac Lir owned
All that were left were some of the sacred four objects that allowed them to control the
writings and the pages from the log book four elements. The altar of the temple held a
which had been torn up and scattered over the b0Ud commanding water elementals, censer
floor. controlling air elementals, stone of controlling
August would like the party to ascertain earth elementals, and a brazier commanding
what happened to the two priests and Aaron, fire elementals. The items were enchanted to
and to recover them and the objects safely. allow use by priests as well as mages.
We offers the party 1,500 gold pieces each, Hoping for the chief priests praise, they
and the priests of the temple will heal anyone went to the fisherman and convinced him that
injured on the mission. (The head priest is the three of them could go out together, bring
willing to raise his offer to 3,000 gold pieces back the treasures of Carsall, and all be he-
each, resurrection for anyone who dies on the
6
roes. To gain time for their search, tlhey staged contain air.) While perfectly willing to offer
a phony kidnapping and robbery and con- him their hospitality, they were not willing to
vinced the fisherman to leave with them se- reveal themselves to the surface world by tak-
cretly. ing him to the land above. They feared that if
The priests identified the potions as potions people knew their temple survived, eventually
of water breathing and took them along to aid someone would seek the sacred objects given
in their explorations. They took the other ob- to themI by their god. They would then be
jects to enhance thc2 appearance of ,a robbery. forced i:o defend their temple from defilers
In a rare attack of good sense, they left the once a gain .
written materials 1:Pehind to allow pursuit in To filI his time beneath the waves, the sea
case they did not rerum. \/TL--.
L-_-
I ney rore up me log
L--- L1_- 1 _ - __
captain
_ I _.- kept a journal. In the vain hope that
pages to slow down anyone following them.) he coulld escape or at least get a message to the
Unfortunately, Jan, Jirac, and Linm did not outside world, he wrote down the location of
consider the current inhabitants of the tem- the temple and its treasures in his logbook. He
ple-a small band of sahuagin who were hap- conceailed this information so the tritons
py to take them prisoner. The sahuagir LL a3-n
L c vavrw
T n *u*ilu iiwc A:e,nxrev
ULJLWVFL
A rrnt 3- A destroy it. The cap-
aiiu
trying to set up a new stronghold, and f ound tain eventually died anc1 his belongings were
the underwater temple of Manannan Mzgc Lir put away for safekeeping:. Upon his death, the
to be perfect for their needs. tritons placed his book in a locked cabinet.
The three men are presently hard at w _.- - -1 -
wK TL- :--:-- - _ _ _ 1__
I ne surviving page Dears the location of the
restoring some treasures that the sahuagin temple. This is revealed by reading every fifth
found on the bottom of the ocean. They are word of the entries.
being held until the priestess of the clan needs One inaccuracy exists in the log, however.
a suitable offering for Sekolah. The temple is no longer inhabited by tritons;
the complex was taken over by a clan of sa-
The Objects In the Cabinet huaginl. Their priestess now possesses the
The sacred writings of Manannan Mac Lir magical items. She is using the bowl and the
are not of much use. The only information stone ito try to bring other clans under her
that can be gained from them is the identity of sway. The priestess plans to gather an army
the various objects of elemental control in the and use them to raid coastal cities for wealth
altar of the temple. Learning this will take sev- and slaves. The censer and brazier are useless
eral days' study, as the books are water- to her now, but she knows that they will be
stained. valuablle when she attacks the land dwellers.
Make a photocopy of the page from the log- When the sahuagin searched the temple
book and either cut it up into about a dozen upon their arrival, they found the cabinet.
pieces for the players to reassemble, or give it Unable to open it, they discarded it with other
to them intact, explaining that the priests of "trash:" This refuse was stirred up by the
Desarius have pieced it back together since the storm and caught in Liam's nets.
disappearance.
The page of the logbook is moire helpful. What the Party Can Discover
This page comes from a sea captain who was The following information can be gained by
saved by tritons many years after the sinking the party at the temple. This information can
of Carsall. His ship sank during a storm and be found in whatever order seems logical to
the tritons from the temple carried him to the party's search.
their abode. (Some sections of the temple still The temple library will yield the party as
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much information on Carsall, tritons, and six to seven days sail southeast of the port.
Manannan Mac Lir as the DM wishes. Reading every fifth word of the log will re-
Reading the texts from the temple of veal the location of the tritons temple of
Manannan Mac Lir will tell the party that the Manannan Mac Lir and the sacred objects.
altar of the temple contained four sacired ob- The actual message is:
jects. These were granted by Manannm Mac From Dragons Teeth, sail two days due
Lir himself and gave the priests of the temple south to coral reef. Dive two hundred
control over the four elements. The objects feet to big opening. Inside is the entrance
were a bowl commanding water elementals, to the tritons temple o f Manannan. Four
censer controlling air elementals, stone of items are on altar.
controlling earth elementals, and a brazier
commanding fire elementals. These items This will lead the party to the cavern con-
were all enchanted to allow use by priests as taining the temple. The objects are no longer
well as mages. on the altar, however; the sahuagin high
Because of the water damage to these manu- priestess now stores them in her quarters.
scripts, determining this information will take Note: if the players miss the hidden mes-
four days of study. sage, or do not conclude that they should look
Reassembling the page from the ships log in the cavern for the missing priests, have
will reveal an account of a simple fishing expe- Tiron suggest the solution while looking over
dition to an area called Dragons Teeth. Re- a PCs shoulder.
search in the library or inquiries around the
docks will reveal that Dragons Teeth is an ex-
tensive area of coral reefs and rocks that lies
The following information can be gained name as Mirran will eventually try to get the
through careful inquiry on the docks. party's attention.
This will occur after a long afternoon of
A fisherman matching Aaron's description questioning taciturn fishermen and receiving
has been missing since returning from an expe- not-so-subtle insults. (i.e. "M'hat would I have
dition after the last big storm. This roughly to tell you about Liam? Nothing! I been mind-
matches the time .Aaron showed up at the tem- ing MY own business. More people should try
ple with his mysterious artifacts. Further in- it." Or: "I can't imagine that anyone down
vestigation will reveal that his boat has been here would interest fine adventuring types like
missing since the night of his disappearance you. We're all too busy working for a living to
from the temple. Learning this information lead exciting lives.").
will take one or two nights of wandering the Mirran will tell the party that he has infor-
taverns near the docks. mation of interest. He will meet the PCs in the
If the party is persistent, (spending an- alley behind the Ship's Chandlers an hour be-
other night investigating around the docks), fore miidnight. If asked why he can't tell them
the PCs will find someone who claims to have immediately, he will glance around nervously
seen three people boarding Aaron's boat and whisper that he doesn't dare. If pressed,
around midnight on the night in question and he will hint at evil conspiracies and deadly
setting sail. dangers. Then, telling the PCs to bring gold-
he'll need to leave town fast after this
The Whitton Docks evening-he will run off.
lif the PCs wish to ask questions about The young man knows nothing about
Aaron, they should eventually find them- Liam. He heard the characters asking for in-
selves down on the docks. The fact that he ar- formation and decided to lure them into an al-
rived with objects from an alleged sunken city ley and steal their gold. He will appear tonight
should lead the characters to conclude that he as promised, but after the party arrives, it will
may have been on a boat. be ambushed by some of his friends.
If the characters simply ask about someone Mirran is a 5th-level thief. His friends,
named Aaron, they will gain nothing but frus- (three more than the number of party mem-
tration (his real name is Liam). However, of- bers at the meeting) are 3rd-level thieves from
fering a description of the man will eventually the local guild.
net them the information that a local fisher-
man named Liam, who matches the descrip- Mirran, 5th-level thief: Str 16, Dex 17, Con
tion, has been missing for several days. The 15, Int 17, Wis 12, Cha 16; AL CN; AC 1;MV
party will be directed to the south end of the 12; hp 31; THACO 16; #AT 1; Dmg 1-6 +3;
docks where the fishermen moor their boats. SA backstab for triple damage, always strikes
A description of Aaron-early forties, 5' 10" first in round; magical items bracers of de-
tall, 175 lbs., dark tan skin, sun-bleached, fense AC 4, short sword of auickness, ring of
thinning hair, green eyes,-is readily availa- invisibility.
ble from August.
Most people at the fishermen's end of the 3rd-level Thieves: Int Avg.; AL LE; AC 6
dock are surly and uncooperative. They are a (leather armor -+ Dex); MV 12; hp 17 each;
very closed group and distrustful of outsiders. THACO 19; #AT 1;Dmg 1-6; SA backstab for
However, a young, flamboyantly dressed double damage.
man with reddish-blond hair who gives his
When the characters arrive for the meeting,
9
Mirran will be waiting for them at the spot ever, all of their money, gems, and jewelry are
marked M on the map. The thieves will be gone.
waiting at the spot marked T. Mirrart seems If all the thieves are killed in the battle, the
very nervous and motions the PCs down the watch arrives three rounds later to check out
alley to a cul-de-sac on the left. He walks all the commotion. After listening to the party's
the way down the side branch and asks to see story and checking them out with the temple,
money before he tells them anything. After they will release the characters. In either case,
the party shows him at least 50 gold pieces, he the city watch will advise them that if they
has a brief coughing fit. This is the sig,nal for want to ask questions about a fisherman, they
the other thieves, who will then begin sneak- should go to the Purple Mermaid instead of
ing silently down the alley until they are with- letting themselves be lured into dark alleys by
in striking distance of the party. thieves in the middle of the night.
Mirran then starts weaving a tale for the
party to distract it and to gain time for his The Purple Mermaid Tavern
confederates to sneak up while moving; silent- This is a clean, friendly neighborhood tav-
ly (45% chance). If the thieves manage to sur- ern with a brightly painted mermaid over the
prise the party, they announce their presence front doors. Cheerful music plays inside.
with backstab attacks on the two closest party The layout of the Purple Mermaid is de-
members. tailed in the map later in this module.
At this point (or sooner if his confederates The fishermen are indeed friendlier here
are detected), Mirran looks up and yells than they were on the docks-but not by
(seemingly in terror), "It's them! Help me!" He much. The music and conversation stops
draws his sword as if preparing to fight on the when the party enters the door, especially if
side of the party. Mirran hangs back in the the PCs come straight from a battle with the
battle, seemingly afraid to engage. Holwever, thieves in the alley. If the party sits down at an
when an opportunity presents itself, he back- empty table and orders drinks, the crowd
stabs one of the party members and joins in eventually forgets them and activities gradu-
the battle against them. ally get back to normal.
If the battle goes against the thieves, Mirran The party's best source of information is the
uses his ring of invisibility to try to escape. If waitress, Cassie. If the PCs ask questions of
captured, he begs for his life and tells the par- anyone else, they will be directed to her. She is
ty that while he doesn't have any information, a lovely woman of about thirty, and will give
he knows where they can find out what they them a bright friendly smile as she asks for
want to know. their order.
If spared, he tells the party that all of the Cassie is a good friend of Liam, and she has
fishermen congregate at the Purple Mermaid been extremely worried about him ever since
tavern in the evenings. The fishermen are his disappearance. She will tell the party that
more friendly and relaxed there, and for a few she has been even more worried in the last few
drinks or a little gold, the fishermen or the days, since Liam's boat disappeared.
staff might be able to tell the party what they She is reluctant to discuss Liam with the
want to know. party, but if the PCs reassure her that they are
If the party loses the battle, they will wake not trying to hurt Liam, she will tell them
up at the temple of Desarius, having just been something she heard just a while ago.
ressurected. Their belongings will have been Corac, an old beggar who she gives an oc-
recovered by the city watch, which showed up casional meal to after closing time, told her
just in time to chase away the thieves. How-
that the other night he was sleeping by the They will hopefully have decided that the
docks when he heard a sound from the direc- missing priests and Aaron are at the sunken
tion of Liams boat. He went to investigate temple of Manannan Mac Lir.
and saw Liam accompanied by two strange They may have also concluded that the
men. When he called out to them, one of the three men went off voluntarily. This will not
men said something unintelligible and Corac change the mission. August will still be just as
was suddenly paralysed. Cassie would have worried about the two missing priests. He
discounted Coracs story as a bad dream, but knows that they are impulsive and head-
the next morning, Liams boat was gone and strong, and he will be sure that they have got-
hasnt been seen since. Cassie has been afraid ten into something dangerous.
to tell the city watch for fear that Liam has August will agree with the partys conclu-
gotten into something illegal. However, she sions (vvhatever they are) and offer the use of
has been even more afraid that Liam will be in a ship and crew for the expedition. He will al-
danger if she doesnt tell someone. so supply the party with any normal equip-
What actually happened was that Corac ment they feel necessary, and sufficient
surprised Liam, Jan, and Jirac as they were potions of water breathing to last each party
preparing to slip quietly out of town. Jan was member for 24 hours.
so startled that he cast a hold person spell on He will request that the party set sail the fol-
Corac, which kept him out of the way until lowing morning for the temple, though he will
the trio had weighed anchor. allow one day to gathering equipment and
Some other people the party might wish to study appropriate spells.
speak to at the Puxple Mermaid are Osric, the The ship provided will be the pirate hunter
bartender and owner, and Corac the old beg- Venger. August still feels that the three men
gar. may have been taken by force, and he wishes
Osric is a large, cheerful fellow. Me will lis- the party to be prepared for combat.
ten to the characters questions with great in- The Venger is a great galley and corres-
terest and tell them that Liam is one of his best ponds to statistics for this ship in the Players
customers. He is often in the tavern to spend Handbook and Dungeon Masters Guide. The
time with Cassie, and being a good fellow, he Venger carries 25 marines and a full crew.
spends plenty of money. Osric feels it is a real
shame that Liam is missing. Not only does he Marines, 2nd-level fighters (25): HD 2; hp 15;
miss Liam, but Cassie hasnt been the same THACCI 19; #AT 1; Dmg 1-8/1-12 (long
since his disappearance. sword) or 2-5/1-6 (heavy crossbow); AC 8
Corac is a thin, wiry, old man in rags and (leather armor); MV 12; MR 13.
tatters. He is perfectly willing to tell the party
anything he knows in exchange for a few Before setting sail, August will remind the
drinks and a hot meal. However, he is a bit PCs that the primary mission is to return the
senile and forgetful, and his mind wanders. A two priests and Aaron unharmed. If the party
long and fairly frustrating round of questions finds anything of interest to the temple, he
will not net the party any more information would be grateful for information, docu-
than Cassie has already provided. ments, or treasure. If the party has identified
the sacred objects from the altar of Manannan
What Happens Next Mac Lir, he will offer 2,000 gold pieces extra
When the party feels it has sufficient infor- for their retrieval.
mation to act, they should speak to August.
I
12
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counte:
The nymphs will be curious and flighty. coral reefs where crabs have their lairs, they
They want the party to play games with them attack the ship, looking for food.
and flirt with handsome male characters.
They will not try to charm any of the charac- Crustacean, Giant-Giant Crab (7): Int Non;
ters or crew. If attacked, they dive away and AL N; AC 3; MV 9; HD 3; hp 22, 17, 23, 16,
do not reappear. 15, 18, 19; THACO 16; #AT 2; Dmg 2-8/24;
SD Surprise; SZ L; ML 13; XI 65 each.
Sea Nymphs (3):Int Exc; AL N; AC 9; MV 12,
SW15; HD 3; hp 15,13,16; THACO 17; #AT The giant squid is also hungry. If it can
0; Dmg nil; SA Spell use; SZ m; ML 7; XP 14. snatch three crewmen, it is satisfied and
leaves. It will come up from the back of the
The whales are a small group of young ship and try to snatch the crew from the helm.
males. They will not attack unless provoked.
If attacked, they come up beneath the ship to Squid, giant (1):Int Non; AL N; AC 7/3; MV
strike it with their tails and try to sink it. Sw 3, Jet 18; HD 12; hp 77; THACO 9; #AT 9;
Dmg 1-6 ( X 8)/5-20; SA constriction; SD Spe-
Whale, Common (4): Int Low; AL N;AC 4; cial; SZ G; ML 13; XP 9,000 each.
MV SW18; HD 16; hp 97,104,83,67; THACO
5; #AT 1;Dmg 1-8; SA Tail; SZ G; ML 15; XP The merchant ship is on its way to Whitton.
5,000. The captain only wishes to find out what the
Venger has met on its way so far. If the Venger
The giant crab encounter involve..s seven has had many encounters on its way, the mer-
creatures. When the Venger passes inear the chants will try to hire it as an escort.
I
15
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I.. .
. . .. . .- . . . -. ... . - .. - .. -
._ . ... . . . . . .. . . . . .. . .
17
The sea snake will attack to sink the ship. It and the ride becomes pretty rough.
cannot be driven off, but must be killed. Any character making a successful Wisdom
check notices the captain looking worried and
Snake-Sea, Giant (1):Int Animal; AI, N; AC the crew stowing away anything that might
5; MV 12, SW 12; HD 10; hp 64; THACO 11; come loose in rough weather. A character
#AT 2; Dmg 1-6 or 3-18; SA Poison and con- with the Weather Sense proficiency who suc-
striction; SZ G; ML 11;XP 3,000 each. ceeds a check realizes that a bad storm is COM-
ing. If anyone asks the captain, he confirms
The eels are curious, nudging the ship to see that a storm is coming.
what it is. If attacked, they attack for three If the characters offer to help, the captain
rounds and then flee. says that he hates to have lubbers on deck
during a storm, but will need every hand to
Eel, Marine (5): Int Non; AL N; AC 6; MV Sw come through this one.
9; HD 8; hp 52, 43, 60, 37, 26; TWiCO 12; If any characters have sailing skills, they
FAT 1; Dmg 4-16; SA Electric shock;: SZ H; can provide hands-on help during the storm.
ML 9; XP 975 each. However, even characters with no nautical
skills can do their part. Bards can raise the
The giant sea spiders fight to the death for morale of the crew with a rousing sea chantey.
food. They attack by stealth, crawling up the Thieves can use climbing abilities to get up in
stern of the ship. the rigging (a dangerous task in a storm).
Mages can use various spells, such as unseen
Spiders, Giant Marine (8): Int Semi; AL N; serzmnts to perform dangerous jobs in the rig-
AC 4; MV 15; HD 7 + 7; hp 54, 61, 47, 38, 46, ging, mend to repair damage as it occurs, and
53, 57, 63 THACO 13; #AT 1; Dmg 3-12; SA spider climb to give someone a chance to
Poison; SZ L; ML 14; XP 1,400 each. avoid being washed overboard. Clerics can
help keep up the crew's strength with resist
The mermen are merely curious about the cold or protect the deck crew with protection
ship. If the party is honest with them, they from lightning. Fighters can lend their
wish the characters well and leave. The mer- strength to aid the deck crew even if they
men know nothing about the tritons or a tem- know nothing about sailing, as long as they
ple, but they do warn the party that lately, are willing and able to follow orders.
there has been a lot of shark activity in the vi- There is a 20 % chance every two hours that
cinity. , a crewman will be thrown overboard. If this
happens, let a random party member see him.
Merman (24): Int Average; AL N; AC 7; MV They should attempt a rescue. You should
1, Sw 18; HD 1+l;hp 9 each; THACO 18; make the rescue as dramatic as possible. Make
FAT 1; Dmg By weapon type; SA grapple it look as if the two are about to be lost at any
ship; SZ N;ML 10; XP 1HD: 35 each.. time but let the party succeed with the rescue
in an appropriately heroic manner.
The Storm Around 1O:OO p.m., the storm hits. It lasts
On the last day before reaching the Drag- eight hours, causing the following checks.
on's Teeth, the Venger runs into a bad1 storm. Once during the storm, roll the seaworthi-
The morning starts out bright and sunmy, but ness rating of the ship (45%). Each party
as the day passes, the sky gradually darkens member lending his or her talents to manning
and the wind picks up. The waves get higher the ship will add 2% to the rating to a maxi-
mum of 60%. If the roll is failed, the ship sus-
tains damage sufficient to slow it by 25%. Once during the storm, roll a Constitution
Every hour, there is a 20% chance of light- check for all characters without sea based pro-
ning occurring. If it does, there is a 5 % chance ficiencies to see if they become ill. If so, they
per hour of the storm that the ship will be will have to go below for the duration of the
struck. Once the lightning begins, there is a storm. They will be no use to anybody until
20 % chance every subsequent hour that it will the seas, and their stomachs, are calm again.
stop. If the ship is struck, there is a 5% chance
that a random party member on deck will be If the ship is damaged, the crew will manage
struck for 6d8 points of damage. Otherwise, to make sufficient repairs during the next two
the ship will sustain sufficient damage to slow days of travel and while the party is raiding
it by 2590. This is cumulative with damage the temple to restore one-half of the speed lost
from the storm. The ship could end up at half- during the storm. The rest will have to wait
speed by the time the storm is over. The ship until the ship can be pulled into drydock.
will not be slowed to less than half. If the party offers to help during the storm
Every half hour, every PC must roll a Dex- and is of some real use, the crew will become
terity check to avoid being washed over- extremely friendly toward them and will ac-
board. If the first check fails, a second check cept the party as their own. Anytime in the fu-
should be allowed to see if the character can ture that the party needs a ship available,
grab something to avoid being washed out to there is a 70% chance that the Venger will be
sea. If a character is washed overboard, a sail- in dock. If so, they will be more than willing
or will throw him an empty barrel which will to take the party anywhere.
keep him afloat until the storm ends and the
ship can pick him up.
When the Venger arrives at the place speci- LCzsser Clerics (3):Int High; AL LE; AC 5; MV
fied in the logbook, the captain will drop an- 1:4, Sw 24; HD 3; hp 21 each; THACO 15; #AT
chor. He will tell the party that the ship will 1or special; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-4/1-4/1-4 or 2-7
wait for them for three days. He knows that (tridents); SA Special and spell use; SD Spe-
they only have water breathing potions for 24 cial.; SZ M; ML 12; XP 270 each
hours, but he will not take a chance on leaving
them stranded. SIhark, common (2): Int Non; AL N; AC 6;
The temple is inside a large cavern (placed N IV SW24; HD 8; hp 54/47; THACO 13; #AT
there by Manannan Mac Lir to protect it). The 1;Dmg 3-12; SZ M; ML 10; XP 420.
entrance is now shrouded with kelp and can
only be seen with a successful search. There is All sahuagin encountered in the temple will
only a 10% chance per hour spent searching fi;ght to the death unless they see the priestess
to find it. Contrary to the logbook, the temple Sl,ain. She is a fanatic, and they all fear her
is inhabited by 25 normal sahuagin led by a mLore than anything the party could possibly
chieftain and three lieutenants. He, in turn, is dc3 to them.
commanded by a 5th-level priestess and her The entrance to the lair is guarded at all
three 3rd-level lesser clerics. There are two ex- ti:mes by two sharks and four of the normal
tra sharks with them as well as the cleric's Sithuagin. The sahuagin at the entrance are
companion sharks. All sahuagin encountered ai-med with heavy crossbows and daggers. If
in the temple should be subtracted from these at:tacked, three of the sahuagin will stay to
totals. hiold off any intruders, while the fourth will
leave to warn the chieftain of the attack.
Sahuagin (25): Int High; AL LE; AC 5; MV 12, The sahuagin will fire their crossbows, then
Sw 24; HD 2 +2; hp 15 each; THACO l6; #AT djiscard them and charge in to attack with
1 or special; Dmg 1-2/1-211-4/1-4/1-4 or t lteir claws and teeth. The fourth will stay
weapon type; SA Special; SD Special;:SZ M; I CIng enough to fire his crossbow before leav-
ML 12; XP 175 each. ir'g *
The sharks will attack as long as the party is
Chieftain (1):Int High; AL LE; AC 5; MV 12, within reach but will not follow them into the
Sw 24; HD 4 +4; hp 35; THACO 14; #AT 1or tImple.
special; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-4/1-4/1-4 or 2-7 + 3 The temple is completely contained within
(trident +3); SA Special; SD Special; SZ M; tl:lis large cavern. However, the walls of the
ML 12; XP 420. Ciivern all but touch the sides of the building,
e:ccept in the front. There is no way around to
Lieutenants (3): Int High; AL LE; AC 5; MV tlle sides. The only access to the temple is
12, SW 24; HD 3 + 3 ; hp 26, 25, 27; THACO tlirough the front doors. The front doors of
15; #AT 1or special; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-4/1-4/1- tlie temple are plated with gold and embossed
4 or 2-7 + 1(tridents +I); SA Special; SD Spe- I4rith the symbol of Manannan Mac Lir. The
cial; SZ M; ML 12; XP 270 each. d oors are open when the party enters the ca-
Vern.
Priestess (1):Int High; AL LE; AC 5; MV 12, If the alarm is given, the sahuagin will be
Sw 24; HD 5; hp 40; THACO 14; #AT 3. or spe- P repared and moving about the halls looking
cial; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-4/1-4/1-4 or 2-7 + 1(tri- fc3r intruders. Otherwise, the sahuagin will
dent of wounding, acts as a sword of niostly be in their rooms.
wounding); SA special and spell use; SD spe-
cial; SZ M; ML 12; XP 650
20
Rooms and Encounter Area 2. priest's Cloakroom
This 20'X20' room was once used to hold
Areas in the Temple the priest's ceremonial vestments. Now it is
Unless otherwise noted, all areas of the tem- used as a storeroom for the sahuagin. It con-
ple are dark. The party can see only three to tains weapons and ceremonial knives used to
four feet in front of them without an addition- make sacrifices to Sekolah. There are also sev-
al light source. Infravision does not work eral sealed vessels containing food for the cler-
underwater. ic's shark companions. There is a door in the
east wall leading further into the temple.
Area 1. The Altar Room
This 100' X 70' room is dominated by the Area 3. Hallway
huge altar at the far end. There are two doors There is a 35 % chance that there will be one
in the east wall flanking the altar, and a dou- of the lesser clerics and two normal sahuagin
ble row of pillars stretching down the center returning from feeding the shark in the back.
of the room. There are no benches or other If present, the cleric will turn and flee through
furnishings in the room (the priests didn't need the door at the far end of the hall, while the
benches after being clhanged into tritons, so other sahuagin attack the party to cover her
they removed them). Behind the altar is a retreat. They will be armed with trident, net,
large statue of Sekolah, the great shark. If the and dagger. They will throw the nets first at
party has not provided a light source, the first whomever is at the front of the party and then
one to approach closely enough to see this move forward to engage in combat. They will
sculpture must make a save versus Wisdom or try to hold off the party as long as they can so
be overcome with terror for two rounds. that the cleric can call back the sharks to de-
Upon examination with sufficient light, it fend her.
will be obvious that the altar has been dese- If the sahuagin were not present, this area
crated and turned to the worship of evil. will be empty.
There are four shallow depressions where the The cleric's spells are cure light wounds,
four sacred objects previously rested, but the command: silence ;
items are missing. The wall behind the altar
shows signs that previous decorations have Area 4. Shark Grot
been removed and the statue of Sekolah put in The back of this large room nas ueeii ~ e -
their place. moved and a large opening has been dug out
A secret panel that the sahuagin are un- of the cavern wall. This whole area connects
aware of is built into the back of the altar. to the sea. The priestess and her lesser clerics
This compartment contains a specially blessed use this area to feed their shark companions.
holy symbol of Manannan Mac Lir, which al- If the sahuagin were present in area 3, then the
lows one of his clerics to calm rough waiters in cleric will be here with four sharks. If not,
a ten-mile radius once per day. It is worth then there will only be two sharks here wait-
2,000 gp to a cleric of Manannan Mac Lir. ing around to be fed.
The north door leads to room #2. The soutl-11
door leads to a stairway up. Shark, Common (4): 11
Careful examination, with proper light, wil" MV Sw 24; HD 5; hp 2
reveal that the silt has been disturbed near th-P
south door. This will only have occurred if 1
fourth sentry escaped from the attack at 1
entrance.
If the cleric is here, the sharks will attack felt that these items would be safe with their
normally to defend her. If not, the two sharks "pets" to guard them.
attack the party and the other two arrive 3
rounds after blood is drawn. If blood is Stairway Up
spilled, roll percentile dice for each shark This spiral stairway leads up to the next
present each round. There is a 30% chance level of the temple. The stairwell is full of wa-
each round that the shark will enter a blood ter and the party can quickly swim upward.
frenzy and attack a random opponent (includ-
ing another shark). There is no chance of this Area 6. Main Second Floor Hallway
as long as the cleric is present. This hallway stretches for the length of the
The cleric will hang back and attack with second floor with a cross hall about midway
spells until she is out, then she will move into down. If no alarm has been given, this area
combat with her trident. will be empty. If an alarm has been given,
There is nothing of note here except for there will be ten normal sahuagin led by one
some bones and scraps of clothing from pre- of the lieutenants waiting to ambush the party
vious captives who were fed to the sharks. as they leave the stairwell. The sahuagin will
wait around the corners of the intersection un-
Area 5. Treasure Room til the entire party has entered the hall. They
Behind this secret door, the priestess and will then drop hooked nets which have been
her two clerics have stashed the monetary attached to the ceiling on the party. Because of
treasure they have stripped of past sacrifices. the slowness of falling objects under water,
There are 1,200 gp, 125 pp, and a large black give all characters a save versus dexterity to
pearl worth 2,500 gp in this room. The clerics escape the trap. Regardless of the effectiveness
22
of their trap, the sahuagin will attack in the Area 7. Barracks
round immediately following. This room once housed low-level clerics of
Five of the sahuagin and the lieutenant have Manannan Mac Lir. It is now used as barracks
heavy crossbows. They will fire them and for the normal sahuagin troops.
then attack. If there are any recognizable If an alarm has not been sounded, there will
spellcasters in the party, the crossbowmen will be 3-5 (1-3 +2) normal sahuagin in this room
concentrate fire on them. No more than three resting. they will have spears and daggers at
will fire at any one target, however. The re- hand but unless the party has made an inordi-
maining five sahuagin will wait for the cross- nate amount of noise, they will be surprised
bows to be fired and then attack in the same and spring to the attack with claws and teeth.
round. The lieutenant will hang back during they will try to get one of their number free to
the fight and continue firing his crossbow at sound an alarm if possible.
any unengaged party members. He will con- Any disturbance with the doors open will
centrate on spellcasters if at all possible. Sa- have a 50% chance to bring 5-15 more sa-
huagin know about land-dwelling spellcasters huagin from other rooms to investigate.
and fear them greatly. These sahuagin will If the alarm has been given, this room will
fight to the death. If obviously overmatched, be empty as all sahuagin will have been placed
they will attempt to inflict as much damage on by the priestess in combat stations.
the party as possible in order to give the chief- If the room is searched, a loose floorboard
tain and the priestess as much chance as possi- will be found. There is a pouch under it con-
ble to defeat them. The sahuagin will taining three 10 gp gems. The sahuagin missed
especially target spellcasters and try to get it when they ransacked the temple for valu-
them to use up as many spells as possible. ables.
23 ,
bush in the hallway, an(
preparing for the final as
is armed with a trident 4
arracks has a dugger + 2 . If the t
ere are miintered in thin room.
priestess. Regardless of the number of clerics will move to attack with her trident. Run
in residence, they will not hesitate to attack. these clerics as intelligent. They will use any
They will attack first with spells and then means at their disposal to defeat the party.
close for combat. One of the clerics has a pet Failing that, they will want to hurt the charac-
in the room-a small (barely 12 feet long) ma- ters as much as possible. The clerics of Seko-
rine eel. It is always remains in this room and lah are fanatics and if they have to die in her
will immediately attack anyone other than service, then they will gladly do SO.
one of the clerics who enters the room.
Stairway Up
Eel, Marine (1):Int Nom; AL N;AC 6; M V Sw This spiral stairway leads up to the next
9; HD 6: hp 42; THACO 13; #AT 1;Dmg 2-8; level of the temple. The stairwell is full of wa-
SA Electric shock; SZ H; ML 9; XP 420. ter and the party can just swim up instead of
taking the stairs if they wish.
The eel will use its electric shock imrnedi-
ately if alone. If one or more of the lesser cler- Area 15. The Chieftains Quarters
ics is in the room, it will wait until brought to This large room is hung with bolts of rich
one-fourth of its total hit points or less or until cloth looted from merchant vessels. The drap-
the sahuagin cleric(s) is slain. It will first at- ery move languidly in the water currents
tack anyone stunned by its discharge. If it stirred up by the party members entrance. By
waited until it was at one-fourth of its hit now, the chieftain and priestess will know
points to use the electric shock, it will attempt something is amiss, and will be waiting in area
to flee once it has done so. 17 for the party. Therefore, there will be no
The clerics are all wearing necklaces with one in the room. However the priestess, as a
giant sharks teeth on them. The spells that the favor to the chieftain, placed a glyph of ward-
lesser clerics have memorized for today are as ing just inside the doorway quite some time
follows: ago. Anyone entering the room without
speaking the name of the Glyph (in sahuagin)
Cleric #1(In room): fear, darkness, protection will sustain 10 points of electrical damage
from good, command; charm person or mam- (save for half).
mal, hold person ( X 2). There are two sets of chain mail, two foot-
mans flails, a set of leather armor, and a well
Cleric #2 (Upstairs): cause light wounds, fear, worn short sword lying in a heap in the cor-
bless; wyvern watch. ner. These items were taken from Liam, Jan,
and Jirac. Otherwise nothing of note remains
Cleric #3 (In room or feeding sharks): cure in the room.
light wounds, command; silence 15 radius.
Area 16. The Priestesss Quarters
The clerics will cast charm on a fighter and This room is identical in size to the chief-
silence on any apparent spellcasters. They will tains room across the hall. It is decorated in a
use darkness to counter any light sources the much more austere manner, however. There
party has. Cleric #I will use fear to send a are no adornments of any kind in the room ex-
fighter out of the room and even the odds a cept for a small shrine to Sekolah in the south-
bit. Then if two clerics are present, one will east corner. As was mentioned above, the
attack while the one with hold person memo- chieftain and priestess know something is
rized will use it to even the odds as much as wrong here even if no alarm was given earlier.
she can. After her spells are exhausted, she Therefore, the room will be empty except for
The crew will be waiting eagerly for the centrate charm spells on the marines and will
party and will be more than ready to go direct their other attacks to the enemy spell-
home. They will be properly impressed by the casters. The priestess will conveniently iden-
stories of the battles with sahuagin and will tify the spellcasters from her last battle. The
cast off as soon as everything is aboard. They normal sahuagin will mostly not be armed,
will be a bit amused if the characters have to preferring to attack with their claws and teeth.
send someone up to borrow rope, but the If the battle is going badly for the Sahuagin,
sight of the treasure from the temple will si- the priestess and the three lesser clerics will at-
lence any jokes at the characters expense. Roll tempt to slip below decks and search for the
for normal encounters on the way back, but magic items taken from the temple. Any char-
aside from these, the trip will be quiet for the acter who states that he or she is looking for
first four days. On the evening of the fifth day the priestess or the clerics will be allowed a
is when the trouble will start. roll versus intelligence to either see them go
Just about bedtime, the ship will begin to below or realize that they might have slipped
meander off course. When the captain goes to below deck looking for the magic items. There
investigate, he will find that the rudder is not is a 15% chance every round that they spend
responding to the wheel. The reason will be- searching that they will find what they want.
come readily apparent when one of the crew If they do, the priestess will immediately fill
notices that the rudder cables are cut. The the bowl commanding water elementals with
crew will immediatelly begin repairing the seawater (from a pouch on her belt), and sum-
damage. It is not a biig job, but the ship can't mon a water elemental to aid in the battle. If
go anywhere until it is fixed. she and her lesser clerics are still undisturbed,
While repairs are being done, the priestess they will then begin clawing a hole in the side
will lead a new force of sahuagin to the attack. of the ship and swim away.The hole will fill
She will be leading a force of 30 normal sa- the hold in 20 minutes. The ship will sink
huagin and will be accompanied by three new shortly after that. If the battle is ended quick-
lesser clerics. For simplicities sake, assume ly, the crew can place a waterproof tarp over
that all are carrying thLe same spells as before. the hole and slow down the leaking enough to
She will be armed as lbefore and will still have begin pumping out the hold and making re-
her rod of absorption if it was not used up in pairs. Jan and Jirac are still memorizing water
the previous encounter. The sahuagin will be- breathing spells and that will help to make
gin to clamber up ort all sides of the ship. If things easier. If the party were in the water to
they can, they will attempt to grapple with the stand guard that would make the crew feel
characters and pull them overboard. They are better too. Be lenient on this. The crew can
here to recover the items stolen from the probably handle things if they are given even
priestess and to get sacrifices for Sekolah. five rounds before the hold fills with water.
Any spells which will remove water from the
Sahuagin (30):Int High; AL LE; AC 5; MV 12, hold will help here too (i.e. lower water, de-
Sw 24; HD 2 +2; hp 1.7each; THACO 16; #AT stroy water, using an unseen servant to help
1 or special; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-4/1-4/1-4 or bail, etc.).
weapon type; SA special; SD special; SZ M; Once this attack is survived, there will be
ML 12; XP 175 each. no others. The other sahuagin were willing to
send a second force with the priestess, but los-
The priestess and the lesser clerics will wait ing this force will break her power base. If the
until the normal sahuagin are on board before characters don't get her, the other sahuagin
boarding the ship themselves. They will con- will "allow" her to offer herself up for sacrifice
29
to Sekolah. Unless of course, she returns with are any truly unique old specimens.
the magic items. The other priestesses might Liam will not be able to reward them mone-
then feel that a force of thirty normal sa- tarily, but they will be invited to his and Cas-
huagin was a small price to pay, and the town sie's wedding. She is not going to let him go
of Whitton, and the characters, might be in running off into danger any more if she has
for a late night visit one of these days. anything to say about it.
The party might even get hired to help raid
Home at Last more sahuagin strongholds (being experts
Once the characters return home, their re- now and all) and help put an end to that threat
ception will vary according to how successful in this region.
their mission actually was. If they bring back Liam, Jan, and Jirac but
If they return with Liam, Jan, and Jirac safe not the items, they will still be welcomed
and sound, and the four magic items from the back. However, they will not get the bonuses,
temple, they will be hailed as true heroes. though they will get the payment originally
The chief priest will see to it that any in- agreed upon, and be allowed to keep all mon-
jured or dead comrades are completely healed etary treasure gained. Liam and Cassie will
up and offer to allow the party to rest at the still invite them to the wedding and a fine time
temple as long as they would like. He will not will be had by all.
only give them the bonus mentioned earlier, If Jan and Jirac report on the magic items
but he will let them keep all money and gems and the priestess's plans for them, the party
that they found, though he will hint that he will almost certainly be approached to lead an
would like to examine the coins to see if there expedition to recover them-this time into a
more well-fortified lair, maybe even a sa-
1
they failed to recover them at all or if they re- provide his own laboratory. Also 20% should
covered them and the three (or some of them) be added to the time needed for spell research,
were killed on the way home. If they at least as the pertinent materials will have to be cop-
have the bodies with them the priests can raise ied to take them to the laboratory. This is not
them and everything will be fine. This will be a lending library.
almost as good as complete success. The This can make a bit more work for the DM.
priests will probably even raise Liam if neces- The players will be more prone to research the
sary. world around them when a resource such as
If they don't even hawe the bodies, they will the library of Desarius is open to them. How-
receive no bonuses, though they will still be ever, this will pay off by creating more inter-
paid (grudgingly), and they will have tlo face est in the players about the world their
Cassie with the news that they let Liarn die. characters live in. They will see it less as a sim-
Needless to say, thew w i l l nnt ho i n v i t d tn 3 e to be set in,
wedding. and more as an environment to1 be explored.
If they return empty-handed, they will re- The players will also tend to ha ve their char-
ceive no welcomf5 at aJ1. They will not be paid acters take a more active interest in the politi-
for their rnissiorI, though if they insist the cal and social aspects of the WOI-Id your game
might receive hdlr -1L 11-
L I L ~~rturtey uut ncxning
L--& --Ll-.--- ._set i..n, opening
is_ _ I -
up a wnoie
1 1
new realm of ad-
more. If they mention that the sahuagin are in venture possibilities for you to explore. Also,
possession of the four rriagic items from the \when the year is up the characters will no
temple of Manannan Mzic Lir, an immediate cioubt miss the availability of the library re-
call will go out for advenkurers to raid the sa- 5iource. They will either have to begin amass-
huagin and recover the iitems before they can ing their own research materials, and
be used against the (masLul .til Thn.7
lllFY
L.ILIFJ.
.vvlll
.;11 abtaining a place to keep them, or begin pay-
pointedly not be asked to go on this mission. ing their hard earned treasure for the use of
If they offer their services, they will be in- research materials elsewhere. This can also
formed that, unfortuinatelv. the mission is al- lead
~- to. a. whole
_ . _ new
~ _set
-._ __ _ _. adventures
of -.-.__.._.___and
-.-.-.
31
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Sahuagin Temple
Level 1
One square = five feet
Stairs Up
Sahuagin I emple
Level 2
One square five feet
I Stairs Down
0 0 m * m
Pillar Statue Door Double Door Secret Door Trap Chest Water
Sahuagin Temple
Level 3
One square = five feet
a
5
Undersea Cavern
One square E ten feet