Page 135 - ghosts-of-saltmarsh

Five shell sharks (see appendix C) swim above the gain access to the exit. Alternatively. a character who
racks in this room. They have not been fed in some time makes a successful DC 18 Strength check clears the
and attack the characters on sight. rubble in a matter of moments.
Stored Items. If the characters want to count a LI the The sound of the slab being smashed rings through
items in here, they find the following supplies: the nearby rooms, drawing the attention of the three sa-
• Twenty-three lengths of rope huagin champions (see appendix C) in area 50, if they
Fifty hides of various sizes (2 gp each) are still alive. They arrive 5 minutes later with twelve
• Two hundred nails sahuagin and two sahuagin coral smashers (see ap-
• Fifty hooks and buckles pendix C) drawn from area 60.
Forty-eight warhammers Treasure. The four canvas sacks hold 500 ep each.
Seventy daggers The coffer contains the baron's personal treasure:
Eighty-four spears Two platinum and pearl coronets of sea elf design
• Seventy tridents (700 gp each)
Secret Door. The secret door in the south wall con- • A fine pearl necklace (500 gp)
sists of a slab of stone hinged along its top edge that • Two gold wristbands inlaid with diamonds
swings open toward area 52. Noticing the door requires (250 gp each)
a successful DC 1 4 Wisdom (Perception) check. A char- A silver ring bearing the signet of the Prince of Mon-
acter who examines the two tridents at the south end murg (see the "Insignia of Prince Monmurg'' sidebar)
of the rack along the east wall notices that the tines are 200 pp scattered loosely
blunt, not sharp; these are used to prop up the secret 53. ARENA
door when it is open.
This area consists of two distinct sections, so the de-
52. TREASURE CHAMBER scription of what the characters see depends on which
section the party enters from.
Central Arena. The arena proper I ies somewhat
The secret door opens into a short passage that leads lower than the rest of this level. Double doors at the
south into a larger area. At the far end of that open area, south end of a downward-sloping passage running
perhaps fifty feet away, stands a closed coffer with can- south from the crossroads near the torture chamber
(area 50) provide access to this section. These doors
vas sacks propped against it.
can be barred from the outside with bronze bars set in
brackets. preventing any combatant from escaping in
The threshold of the chamber at the south end of the that direction.
passage is trapped with a glyph of warding spell. The walls of the arena rise 30 feet from the floor to
The glyph can be spotted by a character who makes the lower edge of the gallery, which is supported by pil-
a successful DC 15 Intelligence (Investigation) check lars at each corner. A clear quartz dome. slightly convex.
while examining the floor in this area. The glyph is trig- rests on the four edges of the gallery and arches over
gered if any creature passes from the corridor into the the arena. so that at its center the dome is about 40 feet
chamber. If that occurs, each creature within 20 feet of above the arena floor.
the glyph must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, Gallery. The gallery is tiered on three levels, with
taking 22 (5d8) cold damage on a failed save, or half as 10 feet between levels, so that the uppermost tier is
much on a successful one. 50 feet above the floor of the combatants' area and the
Coff er. The coffer is locked; the key to open it is car- ceiling to feet higher than that. Access to the gallery is
ried by Baron Kepmak in area 42. It can be opened by provided by short passages in the east, south, and west
a character who makes a successful DC 14 Dexterity walls. Each tier has a row of stone benches that sur-
check using thieves' tools. round the area, except for flights of steps that provide
The coffer is also trapped. A character who searches access to the benches.
the coffer and makes a successful DC 14 Intelligence On the lowest tier. in the center of its south side. the
(Investigation) check discovers the trap. A character row of benches is broken by three special seats. The
who makes a successful DC 15 Dexterity check using center and western seats. the largest and most ornately
thieves' tools can disarm the trap. The trap is triggered decorated, are reserved for the baroness and baron, and
if a character fails to disarm it, or if the coffer is opened the eastern seat. larger and better decorated than an or-
without first disarming the trap. dinary bench but not so finely as the baroness's and bar-
When the trap is triggered, a stone slab springs out on's, is for Blademaster Makaht. Any sahuagin of lesser
of the ceiling in the passage, knocking the secret door rank caught in these seats immediately goes to the top
closed (and with sufficient force to break the tridents of the list for the next fight in the arena.
if they are being used to support the secret door). Any On important occasions, more than two hundred sa-
creatures standing near the door must make a success- huagin fill the arena to watch the sport. but at present
ful DC 14 Dexterity saving throw or take 18 (4d8) blud- fifty· five are here: forty-nine sahuagin, five sahuagin
geoning damage from the door as it closes. champions. and Blademaster Makaht (sahuagin blade-
Trapped Inside. The slab is badly damaged. riddled master. see appendix C), who sits apart from the rest in
with cracks after crashing into the doorway. The party his special seat. The warriors and lieutenants are scat-
can spend a few minutes clearing the rubble away to tered around the area. All the sahuagin in the gallery
have their usual weapons and equipment.
C l l\l'J 11! 6 I I Ill llNAL IN~ M\
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