Ghosts of Saltmarsh

(Nancy Kaufman) #1

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  1. DISTRICT GARRISON
    This three-story stone building houses the district's
    militia (some two hundred LE guards, ten bandit c ap-
    t ains. and one v eter an) in crowded conditions more like
    a prison than a barracks. A handful of the guards are
    honest, but they are the exceptions. Most of the militia
    members are youths who needed a job, and whose ambi-
    tion was satisfied by becoming paid thugs. The guards'
    patrol routes are determined entirely by who pays the
    largest fees for protection. The gallows in front of the
    garrison seldom lies unused for more than a few days.

  2. COUNCIL HALL
    This once-elegant structure is the traditional seat of the
    council in the Styes, which is a part of the larger city
    government in name only. Today, the four councillors
    who run the district spend most of their time in thei r
    own homes and businesses. A small staff of clerks
    works here, and the councillors hold town meetings i n
    the hall once or twice a month, but most of this struc-
    ture's other rooms have sat unused for decades.

  3. REFRUM'S WORKSHOP
    This modest wood and brick building along the edge of
    the Alchemists' Quarter is the home of Master Refrum
    (LG male human priest). Refrum has much to say to
    the characters, as discussed previously in "Adventure
    Hooks" and below in "Murder Mystery.''

  4. DORY'S WAREHOUSE
    This is the home and business of one of the Styes· coun-
    cillors. the sinister Mr. D ory (see appendix C). This lo-
    cation is detailed fully in part 3, ''Hemlock Pit."

  5. RASHLEN MANOR
    One of many run-down manors in the High Quarter, this
    building is home to Rashlen (NE male elf assassin),
    one of the Styes' councillors. The manse is said to be
    guarded by golems and similarly horrible creatures.

  6. THORNWELL TOWER
    The tallest structure in the Styes, Thornwell Tower is a
    pinnacle of black and red marble surrounded by a stone
    wall. Councillor Thornwell (LE female human mage)
    dwells here. Locals whisper that the tower is haunted by
    devils and contains a portal to the Ni ne Hells.

  7. MORTUARY
    The lack of a strong religious presence in the Styes
    means that the task of dealing with the dead falls to the
    mortuary. This large building is surrounded by a dis-
    used graveyard. but the district's dead have long been
    universally cremated. Those who operate the mortuary
    are rumored to be thieves. undead, or wererats. The
    truth is a combination of all three. The master of this
    morbid structure is Sliris (NE female wererat). a devi-
    ous and secretive member of the council.

  8. HOPENE'ER ASYLUM
    This enormous building (detailed in the following sec-
    tion, "Murder Mystery") is the last remnant of a more
    optimistic time, when the desperate and doomed of the
    Styes were cared for and watched over.


Part 2: Murder Mystery


Once the characters have been contacted by or referred
to Master Refrum, they travel to his abode in the Alche-
mists' Quarter. Refrum's cluttered home is filled with
half-finished clockwork inventions, and the air is thick
with the smell of grease. Hundreds of books line every
available inch of shelf space, and a tiny bed, likewise
covered with books, stands in a corner of the room.
Refrum is a slight, bent figure. He wears simple gray
clothing, speaks in short, excited gasps, and waves his
arms when carried away with enthusiasm. The inventor
is one of the last phi lanthropists in the Styes, and he
strives constantly to focus his research on caring for the
local poor. Rcfrum uses the statistics of a male human
priest, with these changes:


  • Refrum is lawful good.

  • His AC is 10, and he is unarmed.

  • He has the speak with dead spell prepared instead of
    spirit guardians.


D A RK JUSTICE
Refrum has few friends in the district, and he is eager
to enlist the characters' aid in clearingjarme Loveage's
name. Refrum attendedjarme's execution the previous
day, and the memory pains him. Becausejarme spent so
much of his time alone, he had no alibi for the murders,
but Refrum insists that his friend was a kind and honest
man. (lfjarme's sister, Eleanor, is present. she supports
Refrum's testimony with tears and pleading.)

(II \l'I ER 8 I 111[ srns ib<)

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