The back story is that some time ago a group of sahuagin raiders hit the docks. They sunk a few ships that were moored there and slaughtered a bunch of sailors and merchants. After they took what they could they left. The aristocrat who owns the docks and the ships couldn't (until now) afford to have them repaired so they've been sitting there broken and dormant.
A week ago a strange green glow started coming up from the water under the docks. It's gotten brighter and brighter and nobody has had the courage to investigate. The city counsel has ordered the aristocrat to investigate the glow and repair the docks, or else they will seize his house to pay for it.
Enter the brave adventurers.
What kind of monsters would you suggest I stock this encounter with? I'm using sahuagin later on in the story, so I don't want to over use them. My buddy is building a model of the docks, so how would you use the terrain to challenge the players? There are a number of what look like living quarters also that need to be cleared room by room. I'm wondering what kind of monstrosities would have taken up refuge in those buildings.
The zombies and/or ghosts of the dead crews of the sunken ships would be appropriate, and you could easily justify those undead having killed/turned the people living near the docks who didn't manage to get away.
If you want to take it a step further, the sunken ships could have become ghostly, and not only raised themselves from the bay's bottom, but sailed to the mouth, blocking travel in or out for the other ships present.
For a green glow under the docks, maybe a storm washed out some accumulated sediment, revealing part of a Nautiloid burried under the docks. Monsters of varying types might be eager to get into this Nautiloid for whatever might be in it that they can use to increase their power. Possibly the dock's here to begin with to hide it, and the noble family that runs this city/port have sought their own way in, and for the same reasons. None of them know what's actually inside. Depending on the level of the party, you could fill the Nautiloid with Intellect Devourers, and maybe some Illithids, or even a lone Alhoon with its Intellect Devourer minions.
The back story is that some time ago a group of sahuagin raiders hit the docks. They sunk a few ships that were moored there and slaughtered a bunch of sailors and merchants. After they took what they could they left. The aristocrat who owns the docks and the ships couldn't (until now) afford to have them repaired so they've been sitting there broken and dormant.
A week ago a strange green glow started coming up from the water under the docks. It's gotten brighter and brighter and nobody has had the courage to investigate. The city counsel has ordered the aristocrat to investigate the glow and repair the docks, or else they will seize his house to pay for it.
Enter the brave adventurers.
What kind of monsters would you suggest I stock this encounter with? I'm using sahuagin later on in the story, so I don't want to over use them. My buddy is building a model of the docks, so how would you use the terrain to challenge the players? There are a number of what look like living quarters also that need to be cleared room by room. I'm wondering what kind of monstrosities would have taken up refuge in those buildings.
Also, any ideas on the source of the green glow?
Thank you all for any input.
The zombies and/or ghosts of the dead crews of the sunken ships would be appropriate, and you could easily justify those undead having killed/turned the people living near the docks who didn't manage to get away.
If you want to take it a step further, the sunken ships could have become ghostly, and not only raised themselves from the bay's bottom, but sailed to the mouth, blocking travel in or out for the other ships present.
For a green glow under the docks, maybe a storm washed out some accumulated sediment, revealing part of a Nautiloid burried under the docks. Monsters of varying types might be eager to get into this Nautiloid for whatever might be in it that they can use to increase their power. Possibly the dock's here to begin with to hide it, and the noble family that runs this city/port have sought their own way in, and for the same reasons. None of them know what's actually inside. Depending on the level of the party, you could fill the Nautiloid with Intellect Devourers, and maybe some Illithids, or even a lone Alhoon with its Intellect Devourer minions.
There wil be 3-4 5th level players in the party. They're very fighter/palladin heavy. No healers and no spellcasters.