Ghosts of Saltmarsh doesn't only contain a bunch of old dungeon crawls put together. It provides the DM with a ton of information regarding politics, terrain, random events, and a complete setup for naval combat. If your DM is just having your run dungeon crawls back to back, then they are putting in very little effort with the information given to them. I was really shocked how much information GoS provided. There is a ton of information and tables to create other adventures and side quests. It may be a case of they are overwhelmed with the amount of information given. Maybe they should look at DMS guild for some guides to help them out or side adventures if they want everything pre-made and don't want to use the non-dungeon crawl information given to them in the campaign.
Our DM set up all the stuff about the Traditionalists and the Loyalists, And I was REALLY into it, but since the first session, he has not mentioned any of it again! I find it frustrating because it seemed like a great back drop for a lot of interesting situations.
It allows you to play quite a few political plots in the city. Regarding the dungeons, I don't want to give away any spoilers, but there is one in particular that you can solve without taking a single hit (only through diplomacy). And then there is another one that you could also solve, although it is more complicated, by pure infiltration (without combat). But this second depends on many things, and it is very likely that you will end up involved in combat. It also obviously depends on what the players are doing and how the DM runs. I ran it years ago, and the players pretty much balanced diplomacy and combat. They also moved a lot in the city plots, and brought their own plots to the game that gave a lot of flavor. I integrated all this with the core of the module, and I was quite happy.
First of all, I just want to say that this is not a PBP Thread for Ghosts of Saltmarsh (sorry to disappoint if you thought it was).
I am at the moment playing in Ghosts of Saltmarsh (the DM is running it as a campaign rather than a bunch of separate one-shots), and I have to admit, I am kind of bored. It basically seems like a ton of various dungeon crawls! I am wondering if anybody else agrees. I just want to make sure I'm not the only one.
Good for your DM. My DM, who is also my roommate, did the same thing until Covid hit. Have completed that campaign todate.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Watch your back, conserve your ammo, and NEVER cut a deal with a dragon!
Old guy here. I owned and ran the original module, Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh. I kind of chuckle at the dungeon crawly comments. This module was written in the '80s. They were ALL dungeon crawlers. That being said, it was kind of boring back then. I just bought the book and sounds like they didn't improve it much. Too bad. But could be a good exercise/product to make to up the "seaworthiness" of this old creaky ship. Eh? Aye!
My DM also ownes the old versions of the modules. He mostly used them, when he was running GoS, as source material. That campaign has been hiatus since Covid hit also.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Watch your back, conserve your ammo, and NEVER cut a deal with a dragon!
I am currently playing in a Ghosts of Saltmarsh-based campaign. I think what makes it work for our group is that our DM is familiar with the Greyhawk setting, and has basically sprinkled the adventures from the book throughout a broader storyline where other events are also in play. Going strictly by the book, it may feel like basically just one mission after another with little to connect them, but it can be a good starting point for DMs to build on.
A good portion of the groups I play and DM with have been into D&D since the early 80's and some further back. Both myself, and another DM, in our gaming circle have been using Greyhawk for decades. I recently, just before the Christmas holidays, completed running the old Vecna module converted for 5e. My roommate ran GoS based out of Greyhawk. When I ran it for a different group of players, I ran its of the Sword Coast of the Forgotten Realms midway between Waterdeep and Neverwinter. I much prefered the version my roommate was running before Covid hit. :)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Watch your back, conserve your ammo, and NEVER cut a deal with a dragon!
It might be interesting to combine Ghosts of Saltmarsh with Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft.
I am glad that I am not the only one that sees that option. With the Dreadwood near by it is a perfect tie in to Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. The mist could appear within it or seeping from the forest during certain moon phases or combinations of the two moon phases and transport them to a domain. Maybe someone disappeared within the mist and they need to try to find them.
Our DM set up all the stuff about the Traditionalists and the Loyalists, And I was REALLY into it, but since the first session, he has not mentioned any of it again! I find it frustrating because it seemed like a great back drop for a lot of interesting situations.
It allows you to play quite a few political plots in the city. Regarding the dungeons, I don't want to give away any spoilers, but there is one in particular that you can solve without taking a single hit (only through diplomacy). And then there is another one that you could also solve, although it is more complicated, by pure infiltration (without combat). But this second depends on many things, and it is very likely that you will end up involved in combat.
It also obviously depends on what the players are doing and how the DM runs. I ran it years ago, and the players pretty much balanced diplomacy and combat. They also moved a lot in the city plots, and brought their own plots to the game that gave a lot of flavor. I integrated all this with the core of the module, and I was quite happy.
Good for your DM. My DM, who is also my roommate, did the same thing until Covid hit. Have completed that campaign todate.
Watch your back, conserve your ammo,
and NEVER cut a deal with a dragon!
My DM also ownes the old versions of the modules. He mostly used them, when he was running GoS, as source material. That campaign has been hiatus since Covid hit also.
Watch your back, conserve your ammo,
and NEVER cut a deal with a dragon!
A good portion of the groups I play and DM with have been into D&D since the early 80's and some further back. Both myself, and another DM, in our gaming circle have been using Greyhawk for decades. I recently, just before the Christmas holidays, completed running the old Vecna module converted for 5e. My roommate ran GoS based out of Greyhawk. When I ran it for a different group of players, I ran its of the Sword Coast of the Forgotten Realms midway between Waterdeep and Neverwinter. I much prefered the version my roommate was running before Covid hit. :)
Watch your back, conserve your ammo,
and NEVER cut a deal with a dragon!
I am glad that I am not the only one that sees that option. With the Dreadwood near by it is a perfect tie in to Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. The mist could appear within it or seeping from the forest during certain moon phases or combinations of the two moon phases and transport them to a domain. Maybe someone disappeared within the mist and they need to try to find them.
I am combing it with Hoard of the Dragon Queen, so the players have Rise of Tiamat to go to after Saltmarsh wraps.