RPG Retro Review : The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh

Comments · 97

• RP

  @RPGmodsFan · 6 years ago

  At the time, U1 was a unique and fun module.  A "haunted house", a smuggling ring, and a "ghost ship" to boot!

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• CO

  @coyotebrown2294 · 6 years ago

  I remember playing it back in the day, and in between fake haunting and smugglers the Scooby Doo jokes were non-stop.

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• DA

  @DarkNog · 6 years ago

  In my campaign, the players are sent by their king to Saltmarsh. Their job is to make contact with a spy in Saltmarsh, who is under cover there and then follow his orders. When the players get to Saltmarsh however, this spy is nowhere to be found.<br><br>At this point, the townspeople talk up the sinister rumours happening around town. These include:sightings of different coloured lights in the empty spooky house miles away along the cliff&apos;s side. A local drunk who has been to the house says he saw vampires in the basement. The players also have nightmares of a cackling old hag if they roll below a 5 whilst taking a long rest (there&apos;s a hag in the Dreadwood according to the 5e version and I think I will use this as a plot hook later). I also make sure to say that there have been some disappearances from town lately.<br><br>The smuggling gang has in fact kidnapped my players&apos; spy contact. The gang have been hired by the BBEG to do a bunch of other stuff, which the spy is able to tell the players about after he gets rescued from the ship. The lizardmen are also doing some other stuff for the BBEG (another plot hook) and are being paid in weapons so they can fight the sahuagin.

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• DN

  @DnDnBeer · 6 years ago (edited)

  Scooby Doo was exactly what I was thinking!

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• TR

  @trickyfinger3636 · 6 years ago

  I think this was the first D&amp;D module I purchased where we had pure fun with it. Kind of like a Greyhawk/Lovecraftian village of Innsmouth mashup. Was able to work in a few of the (TRADEMARK WARNING AHEAD) Cthulhu (tm) monsters from the original Deities and Demigods for the rest of the U Series.

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• BA

  @Basement2006 · 6 years ago

  I’ve never played any of these modules but so many of your videos have given me meaningful inspiration for my own games. So I’d really like to thank you for the craftsmanship of your videos!

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• MI

  @michaelernest1076 · 3 years ago

  I always love the way the old modules were named 😊

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• BR

  @briancherry8088 · 5 years ago

  My players followed the footsteps to the trap door and ended up going straight to the basement. &nbsp;sigh. &nbsp;So much for the &quot;haunted&quot; house.

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• JO

  @jonathanduplantis1403 · 5 years ago

  The u 1 to 3 are awesome. &nbsp; 33 years I&apos;ve been playing them

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• KE

  @kendo2377 · 6 years ago

  One of the best low level modules made. &nbsp;&apos;The Village of Hommlet&apos;&apos; was another great one.

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• IR

  @IRmetal9456 · 3 years ago

  This module rocked. A new group I played with this was our start

• LE

  @legisnuntius · 6 years ago

  Saltmarsh was detailed in the DMG II from 3rd edition. &nbsp;In running this adventure several times, the party never considered getting into the politics or interacting with the NPCs much. &nbsp;Danger at Dunwater required a more thorough description.<br><br>The first part of the module is appropriate for a party of 1st level characters, although the climax can give them some difficulty, particularly if they are the sort that charges in. &nbsp;It is more appropriate for an experienced DM, but newbies to DnD enjoy it very much. &nbsp;The DM must present the haunted house as haunted and add additional descriptions such as, creaking floor boards that give the sense that someone is walking around, moving objects around when the party&apos;s back is turned, jump scares using the spiders and vermin etc. &nbsp;The inner laboratory of the alchemist should be very suspenseful with the DM asking for absolute clarity on what the party is doing and where they are located. &nbsp;The party will likely expect the dead alchemist to attack at any moment. &nbsp;In one final kick, the DM can shatter the PC&apos;s relief after solving the mystery and include undeniable, supernatural phenomenon that indicates that disturbing the alchemist turned the estate into an actual haunted house.<br><br>One of the best features of this adventure is the description and maps for the Sea Ghost. &nbsp;Everyone I knew who had this module used it for flushing out a ship or ship battle in a homebrew adventure. &nbsp;This was great before the release of the Forgotten Realms supplement Pirates of the Fallen Stars and for 3.5 edition the book Stormwrack, which provided more detailed material for seafaring adventures.

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