Beneath the Primewater manor lies a large, cool cellar, the air heavy with the scent of aged spirits. The stone walls are lined with casks of wine, rum, and whisky, each carefully marked and stacked. In one corner stands a small tasting table with a few well-used glasses—an unassuming place to sample the family’s finest stock.

The door to the cellar is locked (DC 16 Dexterity check with thieves’ tools). Keys to the cellar are held by:

• Gellan Primewater

• Maris Primewater-Weller

• Valblücher

• Old Bren

• Linhart Weller

A secret door is concealed in the wall beside the tasting table, leading into the smuggler tunnels. A successful DC 18 Intelligence (Investigation) check reveals the hidden mechanism.

A compact working office dominated by a heavy table strewn with charts and marked routes—privateer paths, smuggling lanes, and coastal hazards noted in practiced hands. The air smells of salt and old parchment. An aged, weather-warped door stands to the north.

• The room is locked (DC 18 Dexterity check with thieves’ tools).

• The northern door is not locked but is swollen and stiff; forcing it open requires a DC 12 Strength (Athletics) check. It leads into older tunnels.

• A thorough search reveals shipping charts and cargo manifests, some legitimate, others clearly not.

The room is used jointly by Old Bren, Gellan Primewater, and Linhart Weller to plan and coordinate their smuggling operations.

The hold is packed tight with illicit cargo stacked for transport and concealment. Crates and bundled goods fill the space—rare whiskies and rums, sacks of spices, rolled rugs and fine cloth, and the occasional crate whose weight and rattle suggest weapons rather than trade goods. Everything is arranged for quick loading and discreet removal.

The contents of the hold are determined by the DM and may include:

• Weapons

• Spices

• Rum / Whisky

• Cloth or Rugs

• Other Contraband

The doors to the hold are secured and locked (DC 18 Dexterity check with thieves’ tools).

If you want, I can also provide a quick random cargo table or seed specific items that tie into factions or future adventures.

These adjoining rooms serve the everyday needs of the smugglers. The bunks are a cramped sleeping area lined with rough beds and personal effects, while the mess functions as a simple eating hall with scarred tables and benches. The smell of cheap food, salt, and damp wood lingers in the air.

• There is nothing of particular interest here, aside from the odd personal item or a discarded weapon.

• At any given time, 1–3 smugglers (use the pirate stat block) may be present in each room.

This hold has been abandoned to the sea. Nasty marine growth clings to the walls and spreads across the floor, fed by damp air and brackish seepage. A pale, spongy sea fungus carpets the deck, and the space hangs with a clammy haze of moisture and rot. The smell is sharp and unpleasant, a mix of saltwater and decay.

• The floor is infested with 2d6 Sea Fungus (use the Violet Fungus stat block).

• The area is slick and damp, and movement may easily draw the attention of the fungus if characters are careless.

A short cliff inside the cave drops to a lower chamber where a rope-and-pulley lift can be hauled up to a small dock. A single rowboat rests alongside, and a worn hammock hangs from an iron hook in the stone wall. Below, the grotto opens into a broad, flooded cavern. A waterfall spills down the southern wall, while to the north a heavy metal gate opens out into Saltmarsh Bay.

• The lowering is used to load smuggled goods onto rowboats for transport to waiting ships.

• A smuggler (pirate) is here at all times.

• The grotto is home to 1d10 crabs and 1 octopus. These creatures only attack creatures swimming in the water.

• A lever set into the wall operates the metal gate, allowing small rowboats to enter or exit the bay.

The air here is stale but not foul, carrying the scent of rainwater and runoff rather than rot. Shallow channels of water trickle through the stonework. A large iron grate dominates the center of the chamber, set into the floor. Tunnels branch away in all directions; north, south, east, and west, disappearing into darkness.

• Heading east eventually ends at a stone wall fitted with a metal stair leading up to a drain somewhere within the village of Saltmarsh. This route can serve as a discreet way into the village or access to smuggler tunnels.

• If the central grate is opened, it drops 20 feet into dark, stagnant water below.

• A giant crab lurks at the bottom of the shaft and will attack creatures that enter the water.

Old Bren’s quarters are sparse but practical. An old rowboat—long past seaworthy—has been repurposed as a table and storage surface, its wood scarred by years of hard use. A well-worn cot sits against the north wall beside a small trunk. The room is surprisingly well lit, giving it a sense of quiet order despite its rough furnishings.

Old Bren can be found here at night, once smuggling operations have concluded.

This is his private space, chosen for its isolation and proximity to the tunnels and holds. Bren values being close to the work while remaining out of the way.

A search of the room reveals:

• Bren’s ledger (encoded in the same manner as the one found in Gellan’s loft)

• A shortsword

• Leather armor

• Two daggers

This secure hold contains items of exceptional value, set apart from ordinary contraband. On a reinforced stand rests a finely crafted suit of silvered armor, polished and carefully maintained. Nearby coils a jade serpent with gleaming ruby eyes, posed as if mid-strike. Shelves along the walls hold small chests and reliquaries containing gold, gemstones, and other rare artifacts, each wrapped or boxed for transport to discerning buyers.

Security

• Iron-bound door, complex lock: DC 22 Dexterity (thieves’ tools)

• Force open (with crowbar): DC 20 Strength (Athletics)

• Roving guard (pirate stat block) checks several times daily

• Keys held only by:

  • Gellan Primewater

  • Old Bren

  • Linhart Weller

Magical Defense

• Jade Serpent (construct) attacks anyone who does not speak the command word: “Fang of the Tide.”

Contents

• Silver Armor: 500 gp, human-sized

• Gold, gems, rare objects (some possibly magical)

• High-end goods destined for elite buyers in Gradsul, Seaton, and distant ports

DM Guidance
Seed items that:

• Hint at powerful collectors or rival smugglers

• Act as quest hooks or cursed relics

• Cause trouble if removed or sold