Treasure. One chest holds the following items: a
set of leather straps and belts with silver buckles and
adorned with coral (10 gp). a Oask of perfumed oil (5 gp),
a silk scarf (3 gp). and a purse containing (^50) ep.
The second chest holds the following items: a silver
mirror (10 gp), a flask of perfumed oil (5 gp), a bolt of
velvet cloth (20 gp), and a purse containing 50 ep.
The bowl. the decanter, and the two goblets are made
of silver and are worth 10 gp, 5 gp, and 3 gp each, re-
spectively.
36. ROYAL BATH
This bare, stone-flagged room features a twenty-foot·
square pool of clear water at its center. The floor of the
pool is stepped to provide easy access.
The steps into the pool are between 2 and 6 inches high.
Clear, warm water fills the pool , though it is not possi-
ble for the characters to see to the bottom at the center.
where the water is 15 feet deep. The lizardfolk common-
ers, if they Aed from area 35, are hiding in that location.
37. ROYAL HATCHERY
It is noticeably warmer in this area. The walls and ceiling
of the room are unremarkable, and the floor is cov·
ered in mud.
The warm mud on the floor is 6 inches deep. Buried in
the mud are twelve lizardfolk eggs (not visible above
the surface). These are the queen's eggs, which are very
valuable to her. Unlike with the eggs in the hatchery
(area 25), the characters might succeed if they attempt
to use these eggs as bargaining tools.
- MINISTER'S QUARTERS
This is a small, comfortable room. In the center is a c ir·
cular wooden table on which lies a closed book. To one
side of the table, an aged lizard folk occupies a crudely
upholstered armchair. To the other side, a plain wooden
chair sits empty. In the northwest corner, a brass tripod
supports a brass bowl filled with hot coals. The room is
warm and smoky.Seated in the armchair. reading a papyrus scroll. is the
queen's leading advisor and by far the most intelligent
lizardfol k in the lair: the aged minister, Sauriv. The
minister does not fight, even in self-defense, and can be
slain without undue effort. His first reaction to intrud-
ers, assuming he is not immediately attacked, will be
one of mild surprise, asking them who they are. where
they come from, who sent them. and so forth. He knows
they are not ambassadors. for he has made no arrange-
ments with humans. Nevertheless. he is amiable and
willing to talk.Sauriv has the statistics of a lizardfolk noble. with
these changes:- Sau riv is lawful neutral.
- His Armor Class is 13 (natural armor).
- H e has a swimming speed of 30 feet, and he can hold
his breath for 15 minutes.
He has a Wisdom score of l 8 (+4).
His skills are Deception +7, lnsight +6, Persuasion +7.
His passive Perception score is 14 , and he has disad-
vantage on all Wisdom (Perception) checks.
He speaks Draconic and Common.
Sauriv is extremely wise. and it is due to his inspira-
tion that the strategy of forging an alliance against the
sahuagin was devised. He arranged for the purchase of
the weapons the Sea Ghost has been transporting (as
related in The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh).
His appearance betrays his age. His teeth and claws
are stained and blunted, his eyesight is fading, and his
senses of hearing and smell have lost their acuity. He
wears a large gold chain (200 gp) around his neck.
Development. Before any conversation about the
alliance or the sahuagin can occur, the minister must
be satisfied that the characters are not allied with the
sahuagin. As long as the characters haven't been unnec·
essarily brutal in their treatment of other lizardfolk. he
reaches this conclusion if any character makes a suc-
cessful DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) check. But if they
have slain any lizard folk, the DC of this check incr eases
by 2 for each victim.
On a successful check, the minister is satisfied that
the characters are not in league with the sahuagin, and
gives them information about the planned attack on the
sahuagin lair. Further, he offers to arrange an immedi-
ate meeting between the characters and the queen. with
the purpose of bringing humans into the alliance.
On a failed check. or if the characters are noncom-
mitcal about their relationship with sahuagin {or if they
pretend they are friendly with them), the minister makes
no mention of the alliance or the impending assault.
Instead, he excuses himself and goes to area 40 to warn
the queen of the presence of intruders. Guards return to
area 38 to accompany the characters to the drill hall.
In this event, if the characters do not cooperate and
resist attempts to take them into custody, their mission
ends in failure. The queen immediately orders her fol-
lowers to hunt down and kill or capture the party- the
chance of encountering a patrol in the corridors of the
lair increases from 1 in 12 every 10 minutes (see ·'Pa-
trols in the Lair"') to 1 in 2 every 5 minutes.
Reading Material s. The scroll the old lizard folk min-
ister peruses is written in Common and was sent by the
local locathah chief to the lizard folk queen. 1t id entifies
the Jocathah currently present in the lair as the chief's
ambassadors and authorizes them to act on his behalf in
all matters pertaining to the alliance. 1t has no specifics
regarding tbe nature of the alliance or those against
whom the alliance is directed: the word ·'sahuagin" is
never used.
The book on the table. Power Politics by Abel Mackie.
is written in Common. It discusses the trickier and
more devious side of political life. It can be sold for 5 gp.
I' II A 1'1 ER J U \ N <.(:;I< AT D l ... \\ \ 1F R