Page 52 - ghosts-of-saltmarsh

It has been arranged (though this does not appear on If the characters approach silently from the port side.
the parchment) for the first signal to be repeated every without using light sources. they will be totally unob-
10 minutes for an hour. If the ship gets no response, it served-the smugglers on deck are watching the coast
is assumed that there is some delay and the Sea Ghost from the starboard side and do not see or hear intruders
sails away, returning the next night. who don't give themselves away. Thus, whether the
The smugglers will drop anchor if the characters send alarm is raised or not depends on a number of factors:
any kind of return signal to the ship not necessarily the from which clirection the boat approaches the ship,
correct one. The crew of the Sea Ghost is accustomed whether the watchers on the ship are alerted to possible
to seeing an improper signal from time to time, because danger (a previous incorrect response to the signal), and
the gang on the shore often operates the lantern clum- whether the characters have taken all precautions to
sily.just in case something has gone awry. however. the conceal their approach.
ship's crew will be on alert when the characters make Between the extremes outlined above (automatic de-
their approach. tection of a direct approach or no detection of a silent
and dark approach from the seaward side). you must
BOARDING THE SEA GHOST judge the circumstances. decide on the probability of
detection, and determine the outcome.
How long it takes the characters to reach the ship de-
pends on what arrangements they have made before- CROW'S NEST
hand. If, for example, it is arranged that the guard mem- This area is not shown on the map but is- predictably-
bers, once they have seen the ship, row ashore and pick atop the mast. 40 feet above the main deck. Access to
the characters up (say in the cave below the haunted it is provided by a rope ladder whose lower end drops
house), that takes 15 or 20 minutes. The characters then near the hatch on the main deck. The crow's nest is an
board the fishing boat, which is rowed out toward the open, wooden platform. 10 feet square with 3-foot-high
ship. The journey to the ship takes 30 minutes (20 min- wooden walls. Opening a 2-foot-square hatch in the Aoor
utes with more than two rowing), but if the boat is to ap- lets out the rope ladder that descends to the main deck.
proach the Sea Ghost from the seaward side. another 5 A single crew member (bandit) occupies this area
minutes should be added. The ship is lying broadside to when the party approaches the ship. The crew member
the coastline, the starboard side facing landward. If the looks toward the house and awaits a signal. There is no
characters approach it from this side, they are automat- chance that he detects the characters' approach to the
ically seen when within 20 feet, even if they approach ship or their boarding of the ship if the others on board
silently and without light. below fail to do so- his gaze is fixed at a higher level.

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