Page 62 - ghosts-of-saltmarsh

CHAPTER 3: DANGER AT DUNWATER

HE DISCOVERY THAT A COLONY OF LIZARDFOLK THE T RUE THREAT
lies near the small fishing town of Saltmarsh
and is purchasing weaponry considered The people of Saltmarsh, and of course the characters,
sophisticated by lizard folk standards has are unaware of the true situation as the adventure gets
alarmed the Saltmarsh Town Council. under way. The lizardfolk are not preparing for war
Greatly troubled and filled with apprehension. against Saltmarsh, but against a much more sinister
the councillors call an emergency meeting. presence: the sahuagin.
This adventure is designed for a group of four to six Just over a year ago, a colony of lizard folk were driven
3rd-level characters. from their home by an invasion of sahuagin. Forced to
find a temporary home, they restored an old lizard folk
BACKGROUND stronghold that had been abandoned for decades.
Determined to recapture their home, the lizardfolk
The characters are not required to have finished The have been busily purchasing arms and negotiating an al-
Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh before playing Danger at liance with other nearby aquatic races. The lizardfolk's
Dunwater. If they arrive in Saltmarsh after the events of main purpose is to form an army to expel the sahuagin
the prior adventure, they learn the following information from the area. In so doing, they hope to discourage the
from the townsfolk: sahuagin from ever again intruding on the region.
• A smuggling ring operating out of an abandoned The lizardfolk have not approached Saltmarsh with an
house has been disbanded. offer to join the alliance because Othokent, their queen,
• The smugglers were slain or jailed. considers humans and other land-dwelling races as of
little use in a battle to be fought largely underwater.
The smugglers were supplying weapons to a tribe
Ambassadors from the koalinth. the locathah, and
of lizardfolk that have established a colony near
the merfolk are present in the Iizardfolk lair. The sea
Saltmarsh.
elves were not invited to join the alliance because of
When the councillors discover that a seasoned group long-standing disputes between them and the koalinth-
of adventurers has arrived in town, they send a message even in the face of the sahuagin threat. no cooperation is
to the characters inviting them to a meeting. The council possible between chese two peoples. The Iizardfolk, con-
hopes to hire them to investigate the lizardfolk lair and cluding that the koalinth are the stronger tribe, invited
learn why the creatures are arming themselves. The them to participate rather than the elves.
council's main priority in the context of this adventure is Members of these four races have come together.
to keep the town safe from a possible lizardfolk attack. overlooking their previous rivalries and differences, to
Judging from a crude map found aboard the smug- negotiate an agreement of cooperation. But even as the
glers' vessel and from information provided by the lizardfolk strive to hold their alliance together in the
sea elf Oceanus, it seems likely that the lizardfolk are
face of a common foe, the bonds are beginning to fray.
preparing for war. The council members hope that the How the characters perform their mission, and what
townspeople are not the intended target, but they greatly sort of relationship they establish with the Iizardfolk on
fear th_is possibility. behalf of Saltmarsh, will determine if the coalition has
any chance of success.
ADVENTURERS NEEDED
The site of the lizardfolk colony has been tentatively
FRIEND FROM THE DEEP
identified as a coastal promontory adjacent to a small If the characters freed Oceanus from his cell aboard the
river, the Dunwater, some ten miles southwest of Salt- Sea Ghost in The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh, the elf offers
marsh. The council considers it essential that a scouting to join them in their expedition to the lizardfolk lair. His
party be sent to reconnoiter the area and ascertain the skills in combat and knowledge of the seas and the dark
strength and size of this colony, as well as the intentions things that dwell there might prove invaluable to the party.
of the lizard folk. The characters (whether or not they He recognizes and Identifies the sahuagin remains in the
are veterans of the previous adventure) are approached lair. He takes an equal share of both treasure and experi·
to undertake this mission. ence points.
Alternatively, Oceanus might have allied with the town
The leader of the council impresses upon the charac-
council previously and offers to join the characters as they
ters that they are not required to act with hostile intent-
embark for the lizardfolk lair.
in fact, quite the opposite. Their assignment is one of in-
What He Wonts. Oceanus wants to discover the truth
formation gathering, with the additional hope that they behind the lizardfolk's purchase of smuggled weapons and
can return with knowledge of what the lizardfolk are up armor. Like the town council, he initially sees the lizardfolk
to. A reward of 700 gp is offered for the successful com- as a potential threat.
pletion of the mission.