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Secrets of the Saltmarsh

A Dungeons & Dragons 5e game In the world of Oerth
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For years the southern coast of Keoland has been plagued by pirates, bandits, monsters, and supernatural events. King Skotti of Keoland, no longer able to expand his northern boundaries, has embarked on an ambitious project to transform these backwaters into large cities that will dominate shipping lanes through-out the Azure Sea and beyond. This first phase of this plan is to entice large groups of immigrants to settle in existing outposts and villages in order to tame the hinterlands and bring order to the monstrous stories.   You have responded to his call for immigrants. Visions of shining jewels, huge tracts of land, and a home you can call your own made it worth risking everything by travelling from far away by land and sea. However, since you've arrived in this sleepy backwater village of Saltmarsh, you've discovered that there is no royal organization to this endeavor. No funds, no outline, and no specific directives. In fact, the insular villagers resent the influx of migrants and the King's interference. These simple townsfolk just want to keep their traditions and have things to go back to the way they were so that they can live in peace and quiet.   However, the King has assigned Captain Eliander Firebrand to this village in a bid to ensure that national concerns are addressed. The King desires growth and urbanization to push back the dangerous wildlands surrounding it, because his ultimate goal is to increase the economic power of Keoland through trade. This group dedicated to the interest of the King, these loyalists who are here mostly by appointment, are committed to law, order, and the expansion of the town.   Meanwhile, across the bay in the Azure Sea, the Sea Princes are still lurking. After decades of prosperous raids onto the coast of Keoland, Duke Mark Feldon finally handed these pirates a brutal defeat two years ago. While diminished in fleet, the Sea Princes seek to circumvent the Keoland navy and continue to eye the southern coast looking for revenge and a steady stream of resources and slaves.   What secrets lurk in the depths of these hinterlands? how will you bring prosperity to you and the village?

This story is told by

Maps

Maps

  • Kingdom of Keoland
    Showing the greater Kingdom of Keoland and surrounding countries. Credit to Anna B Meyer. Website https://www.annabmeyer.com/
  • Saltmarsh - Player View
    The town council once commissioned a wizard to provide an accurate map of their town.
Supporting Cast
  • Councillor Anders Solmor
    Brash and inexperienced, Anders is enjoying the rush of being a local celebrity due to his unbridled success with his fishing and trading vessels. His energy and ambition help fuel the town's love for his rise to fame
  • Councillor Eda Oweland
    Eda is the current senior member of the town council as well as the owner of three fishing vessels. A native of Saltmarsh, she is keenly interested in expanding the fishing industry, but is very wary of the dwarven mining facility and the expansion of any other industry in Saltmarsh from outsiders.
  • Captain Eliander Firebrand
    A veteran of the royal army of Keoland, he walks upon a finely carved wooden peg. Eliander is a burly man that strikes an imposing figure, but is quite renown within Saltmarsh, because of a gift with languages.
  • Councillor Gellan Primewater
    Gellan runs a profitable trading company that deals primarily in textile and lumber. He shows great suspicion for this grandiose royal plan of making Saltmarsh a major trading hub.
  • Councillor Manistrad Copperlocks
    Once a fearsome warrior, she is Iron-willed dwarven woman that is a competent leader and savy miner with a knack for pulling off impossible jobs. She leads the mining operation near Saltmarsh and has little patience for the rest of the council who she sees as dullards.
Timelines

Sessions Archive

6th Apr 2024

Session 27 - Drawing up a heist

Having cleared the natural well of the Grick, the party works out a plan to liberate the famed painting of Kimberos Skotti from the Agile Hand.



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3rd Mar 2024

Session 26 - Tidings within a port city

The party arrives safely at Redshore to begin exploration prior to freeing the stolen painting, but are immediately tasked with a quest to cleanse a natural well.



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11th Feb 2024

Session 25 - Pursuit of the Hand

Primewater's expensive portrait of King Skotti has been stolen. Fireborn wants the Try-hard Misfits to retrieve, covertly.



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7th Jan 2024

Session 24 - Joining the Band

The characters wrap up threads from last session and we add a new player before setting up next session.



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10th Dec 2023

Session 23 - The Rising Tides

The party gets awakened by a loud clatter that reverberates within their rooms and head out to find the source of the din.



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11th Nov 2023

Session 22 - Lizardfolk come to Saltmarsh

After returning from the island, the party needs to decide what to do regarding their prisoners, check in with the Merchant's Guild, and they discover a new encampment in town.



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19th Aug 2023

Session 21 - The end of the Winding Way

The party is deep within the winding tunnels of the abbey with a foul stench invading their senses. Will their search ever end and what will they do with the veteran guards?



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23rd Jul 2023

Session 20 - Within the Winding Way

The party has resolved the cultists camping out in the ruins of the abbey, but they've learned that there is a secret treasure worth ten thousand gold and want to recover it before heading back to the Sea Mariner's Guild.



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9th Jul 2023

Session 19 - The Skull Dunes and the Abbey

The party heads out from Saltmarsh to procure the island for the Sea Mariners guild.



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10th Jun 2023

Session 18 - Interlude within Saltmarsh

The Try-hard misfits have returned from the Dwarven Mine and are catching up with activities within Saltmarsh.



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20th May 2023

Session 17 - The Runaway Anvil

The Try-hard Misfits have discovered tracks that seem to indicate Dwarves have taken Mafera's prized anvil. Can they retrieve it before it disappears forever?



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29th Apr 2023

Session 16 - The Voyage Home - Demons, Devils, and Goodbyes

The part finds itself within the cavern lair of Ixitxachitl and discover new dangers returning to the surface.



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25th Mar 2023

The Voyage Home - The Froth within the Sea

The party has located Krichelle who wants some supplies from her father's ship that crashed upon the Tyrant's shards. She won't be able to pay much, but she only wants a few items from the ship that are sentimental, a Sextant and a painting of her and her father.



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11th Feb 2023

The Voyage Home - The long way around

The party has just captured the Sea Princes ship "The Gladiator" and it's now time to head back toward Saltmarsh. Will they face clear skies and following winds, or will Procan frown upon their endeavor and send them astray?



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15th Jan 2023

Session 13 - Death of the Emperor

Our heroes are on-board the Emperor searching for Aubreck's chest. Will they find it within the bilge? What will happen when they return back to the Soul of Winter? Are there other forces searching for it?



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3rd Dec 2022

Session 12 - Aboard the Emperor

Continuing the search for Aubreck's treasure chest



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22nd Oct 2022

The Emperor of the Waves

Aubreck Drallion heard the song Tryhard Misfit's sighting his ship the Emperor of the Waves. He has requested that the group be his boarding party to retrieve his treasured chest that includes all of the promissory notes of his fortune.



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10th Jun 2022

The Corrupted Cove

The morning after returning to Saltmarsh, Capt Fireborn commissions the party in a mystery



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15th May 2022

Session 9 - The great Azure Sea

Manistrad Copperlocks has had some mining equipment hijacked by the Sea Princes who have now approached her with a ransom fee. She's contracting the party to go negotiate on her behalf.



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16th Apr 2022

The wind and the willows - the passing of time

You were able to negotiate a peace with the Lizardfolk upon learning of their upcoming war against Sahuagin and have earned several weeks of downtime. Most of the party regularly practices Draconic, while Mina works on her herbalism skill.



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15th Jan 2022

Dunwater Lair

A large promontory point rises out of the marsh across the Dunwater river. The trail you've been following fords the river and then runs straight to a cave within the bedrock.



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11th Dec 2021

Session 6: On the topic of Lizardfolk

Immediately after returning with the smuggler's ship, the Sea Ghost, you headed out of town to thwart zombies reeking havoc upon the town and surrounding countryside. In those 4 days away, the pirates have been questioned, the lizardfolk have been interrogated, and the contraband has been properly distributed. The lizardfolk are heading to war and the council wants to know more about their lair, particularly their defenses and offensive capability and target.



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23rd Oct 2021

Session 5: Securing the Sea Ghost

You've taken down the pirate crew aboard the smuggling vessel, the Sea Ghost, but you haven't had a chance to explore it. You'll want to be back at Saltmarsh by dawn in case there are other vessels out here. What cargo is the hold containing? Is there more to the request from the Lizardfolk? What do you do with the Lizardfolk?



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9th Oct 2021

Session 4: The Council Reacts

You've returned to Saltmarsh in victory. You've been through the entire mansion and uncovered the reasons for it's hauntings. Now it's time to bask in the praise from the council on a job well done, receive your reward and move on to your next challenge.



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11th Sep 2021

Session 3: Beneath the Haunted Mansion

As we left our heroes, they had finished exploring the second and first floors of the haunted mansion and in the last room had just heard the loud mocking words "Welcome Fools! Welcome to your deaths!" with fiendish laughter echoing away.



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30th Jul 2021

Session 2: Within the Haunted Mansion

After fighting your way through the wild grounds, you have entered within the ramshackle mansion. Each of you have seen or heard furtive motive but so far no living humanoid has been seen. Is the house truly haunted? Is there a banshee waiting on the first floor?



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18th Jul 2021

Session 1: Arrival to Saltmarsh

You arrived in Saltmarsh a few days ago. Hoping for hero's welcome, you are unceremoniously dumped off at The Snapping Line, a small inn and tavern built into a modified fishing vessel. What might've otherwise been quaint, feels too realistic thanks to the cramped quarters, narrow passageways, and the ever-present smell of rotting fish that has been your unwelcome companion the last few weeks on your travels. The feeling is so complete that you've sworn the floor has rolled beneath you. And just like a real ship, you're confined within its frame. The city watch guards the entrances and turns you back any time you attempt to explore the village.   Today brings hopeful news, though: you and several other persons who recently arrived are being brought to the town council for induction into this village. If they see your worth you can finally start pursuing your dreams of wealth in the surrounding countryside.



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