The sahuagin have renovated the fortress to conform
with their plans. The two lower levels of the fortress
have been completed. with work on the uppermost level
still in process. A further lowering of the seabed and a
final internal reorganization will complete the prepara-
tions. Twenty or thirty days after the adventure takes
place, the sa huagi n plan to mount their first offensive-
and Saltmarsh is indeed their target.
I f the characters enter the fortress through area 1
(and if they deal with the guards in areas 1 and 2 with-
out drawing attention), they find most of the upper level
empty and bare. Construction is still going on in area
- and the noise of that work echoes through some of
the level. Anywhere between area 19 and the points
marked with at symbol in the corridors on the map, the
characters can hear faint chinking, banging, and tapping
noises if they stop to listen, and these noises become
progressively louder as the listeners approach area 19.
The other two levels of the fortress are underwater. To
achieve their objectives, the adventurers must use magi-
cal means to navigate these areas.
GENERAL FEATURES
The work carried out by the sahuagin and their slaves
on the fortress interior shows expert craftsmanship.
The rock is clean and dressed; all surfaces are smooth,
all corners are near-perfect right angles, and all floors
are level (except in the cave portion of cave 60, which
has been left natural. and parts of area 19). The upper-
most dry level has an eerie. clinical air.
DECORATIVE TILES
The walls and floors of rooms occupied by sahuagin of
higher rank are tiled in various colors (see the individual
room descriptions). The tiles are made from polished
stone and colored with plant dyes and octopus ink.CORRIDORS AND ROOMS
All corridors are 10 feet wide and 15 feet high. All the
rooms arc 20 feet high except for areas 37, 41, and 42
(30 feet high), area 53 (about 60 feet high), and area 60
(45 feet high in the cave proper. 30 feet high over the
area at the lop of th e steps). All walls separating adja-
cent areas are 3 feet thick. Unless otherwise noted , con-
struction consists of plain dressed stone.DOORS
All doors are 4-inch-thick double doors made of dressed
stone, 5 feet wide and 10 feet tall. Except where oth-
erwise noted, each door has a handle consisting of a
horizontal bronze bar set into the stone on each side of
the door, about 4 feet above the floor. All doors open into
the areas they border on metal casters that move along
grooves cut into the stone floor.GATES AND PILLARS
All gates consist of bronze construction and are 10
feet wide by 10 feet high, except for the gate in the cave
mouth of area 60, which is 20 feet wide by 20 feet high.
All pillars are made of smooth dressed stone, 3 feet in
diameter. supporting the roof above. All archways are 10
feet wide and 10 feet high.r II \1'11· Rh THE Fl~ \l l!~E\1) I'~