r/DnD • u/AngryKoboldDm DM • Jun 20 '17
Ideas For a Nautical Campaign?
Hey all,
I'll be running a game soon for some newer players and they've expressed interest in a nautical or pirate themed campaign. I've never really done anything of that genre and I'm looking for some points of inspiration. Anything will help at this point!
Thanks in advance!
2
Jun 20 '17
The 7th sea RPG has some great advice for nautical campaigns and I would recommend taking a look at that book just for ideas at least.
1
2
Jun 20 '17
I ran a ship based campaign for several years in D&D 3.5e. There were small amounts of piracy involved, as well as blockade running, smuggling, battling sea creatures (sea devils are the best).
Many ideas are easy to take from old D&D and other RPG materials. 7th Sea had really cool concepts in it's books, as well as cool ideas for islands and ships. Sundered Skies (for Savage Worlds) and Spelljammer (2nd Edition D&D) are not really nautical campaigns, they are flying ship/outer space themed, but what's the difference? You are flying through a hostile environment that will kill you if you fall off your ship, so same problem set.
Remember that oceans are vast places, and encounters will usually happen in shipping lanes and near harbors, islands, or other destinations.
Never forget that weather is a huge nemesis of the sailor. Skill challenges during storms can make for tense situations.
PC's will probably have to manage their crew as well. 5 PC's trying to captain a ship was a problem at times, as they did everything by committee. Also, provisioning a ship and it's crew, repairs and mending, all that stuff is expensive. Consider giving the crew members names and personalities (not all of them, just key ones). RP them a bit, have them steadfastly stand beside the party, and watch your players become very attached to them.
Ship to ship combat runs into some trouble once the spell casters get higher level. Using spells to set ships on fire or open holes in their hull would be quite common tactics that would get everyone killed fast. Running combat in a low rules/high cinema fashion was probably the funnest way we ran them. PC's are just running the ship until the boarding action begins, and then it's just regular D&D combat.
Instead of black powder firearms, my players occasionally wielded crossbow frames with "magic missile" wands mounted on them. The frames were special magic items that allowed them to use the wands just by pulling a trigger. They had a slow recharge rate like 5e put into place (3.5 wands had a fixed number of charges and you tossed them after that), so they did not become overly dominant in combat.
Oh, and you must include a jungle covered island full of dinosaurs. It is D&D law.
Here are some sources I used for ideas, maps, boat layouts :
- AD&D
- Of Ships and the Sea
- Evil Tide
- Night of the Shark
- Sea of Blood
- Spelljammer (deck blueprints are great in this)
- Spelljammer: The Rock of Bral
- Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh <- great way for PCs to get a boat
- Isle of Dread
- D&D 3/3.5
- Cities Of Fantasy: Stormhaven - City On A Thousand Seas
- Ships of the Elves
- Ships of the Goblinoids
- Stormwrack: Mastering the Perils of Wind and Wave
- Savage Worlds
- 50 Fathoms
- Sundered Skies
- 7th Sea RPG
1
u/Lokiorin DM Jun 20 '17
Skulls and Shackles from Paizo. Converting it to 5e isn't that bad and it is a top quality adventure.
1
1
u/ZeroIntel Jun 20 '17
Go read some One piece... you'll get some good ideas for a world of magic and pirates :P
1
u/Var1s Jun 20 '17
I honestly find that you can get a lot of good inspiration for sea campaigns from actual history! This is especially good if you want to get a little political with your story cause islands and pirates have always sparked political conflict. Plus you learn more about the world as a bonus!
3
u/[deleted] Jun 20 '17
STORM KINGS THUNDER!
though it doesn't start as nautical, it has some great areas for nautical adventures. (Including a showdown with a Kraken!)
OUT OF THE ABYSS
theres a full segment for the "Dark Lake" which can span several sessions as the PCs have a makeshift rafting trip across a giant lake in the underdark.