Mawrheim

Naval Rules
By Daffy
 crashing when it crashes into a creature or object. Any damage
Amaras Ship it takes from the crash is appl ied to the naval ram rather than
Gargantuan Vehicle (100ft. by 20ft.) to the ship.
Creature Capacity 30Crew, 30 Passangers These benefits don’t apply if another vessel crashes into the
Cargo Capacity 200 Tonnes warship.
Travel Speed 8km per hour (192km per day)
TREBUCHET
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
20 (+5) 4 (-3) 20 (+5) 0 0 0 Armor Class 15 (Huge object)
Hit Points: 150
Damage Immunities: poison, psychic
Damage Immunities Poison, Psychic
Condition Immunities Blinded, Charmed, deafened, exhaustion, A trebuchet is a powerful catapult that throws its payload in a
frighteded, incapacitated, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, high arc, so it can hit targets behind cover.
prone, stunned, unconscious
Before the trebuchet can be fired, it must be loaded and aimed.
It takes
ACTIONS • Two actions to load the weapon
• Two actions to aim it
On its turn, the Ship can take 3 actions, choosing from the
options below the options availible to the players will depend • One action to fire it. A trebuchet typically hurls a heavy stone.
on the number of crew members they have: However, it can launch other kinds of projectiles, such as
barrels of oil or sewage, with different effects.
- Only Party Members - 1 action, Half Speed
- 10 Crew Members - 2 Actions, Half Speed, Quarter Weapons Trebuchet Stone. Ranged Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, range
- 10 - 15 Crew Members - - 2 Actions, Full Speed, Half Weapons 300/1,200 ft. (can’t hit targets within 60 feet of it), one target.
- 15 - 25+ Crew Members - 3 Actions, Full Speed, All Weapons Hit: 44 (8d10) bludgeoning damage.

• Fire Ballista - The Ship can fire its ballista. MANGONEL

• Fire Cannons - The Ship can fire its Cannons.
• Move - The Ship can use its helm to move with its oars or Armor Class: 15 (Large object)
sails. As part of this move, it can use its naval ram. Hit Points: 100
Damage Immunities:: poison, psychic
HULL
To use the Mangonel it takes:
Armour Class: 15
Hit Points: 500 (Damage Threshold 20) • Two actions to load the weapon
• Two actions to aim it
CONTROL: HELM • One action to fire it. A mangonel typically hurls a heavy
stone, although it can hurl other kinds of projectiles, with
Armour Class: 18
different effects.
Hit Points: 50
Move up to the speed of one of the ship’s movement Mangonel Stone.
componants, make a 90-degree turn. If the helm is destroyed, Ranged Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, range 200/800 ft. (can’t hit
the ship can’t turn. targets within 60 feet of it), one target.
MOVEMENT: OARS Hit: 27 (5d 1 0) bludgeoning damage.
Armour Class: 12
Hit Points: 100; –5ft. speed per 25 points of Damage taken
WEAPONS: BALLISTA (2)
Speed (Water): 20 ft. (Requires at least 20 Crew members) Armour Class: 15
Hit Points: 50
Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, Range 120/480 ft., One Target.
MOVEMENT: SAILS Hit: 16 (3d10) Piercing Damage.
Armour Class: 12
Hit Points: 100; –10 ft. speed per 25 damage taken WEAPONS: CANNONS (4)
Speed (Water): 35 ft.; 15ft. while sailing into the wind; 50ft.
while sailing with the wind Armour Class: 15
Hit Points: 75 each
NAVAL RAM Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, Range 600/2,400 ft.,
One Target. Hit (6lbs; 1lb Blackpowder): 44 (8d10) Bludgeoning
Armour Class: 20
Damage. Hit (10lbs; 1lb Blackpowder): 55 (8d10+10)
Hit Points: 100 (Threshold 10)
Bludgeoning Damage.
The warship has advantage on all saving throws relating to

PART 1 | Overview
1
types of Officers ballast and ensure level sailing. He is responsible for the
watches on board the ship, keeping a watch log, and
Captain maintaining discipline among the deck crew.

The captain is elected by the crew, but their power is Sail Master
only absolute in battle or when Living chase. The The sail-master is the most experienced crewman in
captain’s wishes can be overruled by a simple majority, rigging and usually one of the best sailors on the ship.
or by a veto from the quartermaster/first mate. The He is responsible for maintaining the sails and the
captain is expected to a skilled and dependable seaman rigging. He knows every knot, line, rope, block, and
as well as a bold and decisive leader. tackle in the rigging and how to repair them. He is
responsible for training and running the sail crew as
The Captain will also act as The master gunner and is
well as overseeing the making and patching of sails. He
responsible for the care and cleaning of weapons. He
takes orders from and reports to the navigator.
also runs the gunnery crew and is responsible for
making certain that cannons hit the target and trebucets Surg eon
are reloaded. He maintains an inventory of powder and
shot for all guns on the ship. The surgeon is one of the toughest men on the ship. He
serves as a barber, doctor, and surgeon for the entire
Quartermaster crew. He deals with the sick, wounded, and dead. The
surgeon is responsible for maintaining the necessary
The quartermaster is also elected by the crew and holds
tools of the trade. He takes orders from and reports to
authority second to the captain. He represents the
the quartermaster. Ships rarely have real doctors. The
crews’ interests and commands during the absence of
Surgeon also as out the duties of the cook.
the captain. He keeps order, settles conflicts between
crew members and determines the amount of food and Windsinger
drink distributed to each crew member. The
quartermaster is also an accountant who counts loot A character or hired crew member who can control the
and watches over it until it is divided amongst the crew. elemental magic of the ocean and the winds. Thus
The quartermaster works with his subordinates allowing the ship to always have the weind to its back.
(boatswain, master gunner, master of arms) daily to Having this role filled will allow the ship to travel at 1.5x
effectively run the ship. its normal travel speed.

The quartermaster also acts as Master of Arms. The Carpenter

master of arms is often the most skilled warrior of the
The Carpenter is responsible for the maintenance &
crew and is responsible for training the crew in hand to
Surgeon and repair of the wooden hull, masts and
hand combat. He leads the ship’s boarding parties and
yards. He works under the direction of the ship’s
hunting parties.
Captain and Boatswain.
Navigator/Pilot The Carpenter’s duties are to check the hull regularly,
The navigator is often the most educated person on the placing oakum between the seems of the planks and
ship. He is responsible for the navigation, determining wooden plugs on leaks to keep the vessel tight. The
the ship’s latitude and longitude, plotting and Carpenter also assists as the Ship’s Surgeon
maintaining the ship’s course, maintaining the ship’s performing operations and amputations with the same
charts and tools of navigation, keeping logs of sailing- wood working tools.
related events, recording depth, currents, wind patterns,
ship location, reef/sandbar locations, and the state of
the rigging. They also oversee the work of the sail- SHORE LEAVE
master and take readings from the moon and stars to Life aboard a ship is a constant wear on the crew. Spending
pilot and maintain the course. Navigators are time in port allows the crew to relax and regain its
composure. If a crew’s quality score is 3 or lower, the score
sometimes kidnapped by other pirates if they are skilled
increases by 1 for each day the crew spends in port or
as sailing charts are extremely valuable. ashore.

Bosun
The boatswain (AKA bosun) maintains food, water, rum,
gunpowder, shot, sails, rope, wood, and tar needed to
keep the ship and crew ready. The boatswain should
also make sure the ship is seaworthy. He directs the
loading of cargo in the hold to maintain the proper

PART 2 | Officers and Crew

2
 Crew
The number of crew members that you have will influence your ability to run your ship properly. Crew memebers use the basic stats
for a commoner, and can be enlisted from tavers or shipwrights. some may stay with you for years, while others will leave your
employ at the next harbour. The Captain will roll a percentile die each time the ship makes port, the result is the percentage of crew
retained.

More powerful crew memebers can be enlisted, however these tend to be NPC’s who have a reason for travelling.
The cost per day while sailing is 2sp per crew member, and 10% of any loot found while traveling.

While docked for more than a day, the cost per crew member you choose to retain drops to 5cp per day, and no share in loot is
expected from the crew.

A ship requires a number of able-bodied sailors to crew it, as specified in its stat block. A crew’s skill , experience, morale and health
are defined by its quality score. This score can affect a number of general ship activities, like the crew’s ability to notice threats or
contend with hazards.

A crew starts with a quality score of +4. But that score varies over time, going as low as - 10 and as high as + 10.

It decreases as a crew takes casualties, suffers hardship, or endures poor health.

It increases if the crew enjoys high morale, has good health care, and receives fair leadership.

BASIC SHIP UPGRADES

HEN YOU FIRST CLAIM BUY A SHIP, IT MAY
not be in a condition for for travel or Trebuchet
warfare on the open ocean. The upgrades A Trebuchet can be purchased from any shipwright or
below are for taking your ship from a simple
merchant or be built by a Weaponsmith who has the availible
sailing vessel to a mobile bastion of warfare.
materials, the cost for one Trebuchet is 4500gp and take 3
weeks to build and install on the ship.

Ballista Ammunition for Trebuchet:

• Trebuchet Stones (20lbs): 1gp Each.
A Balista can be purchased from any shipwright or merchant
or be built by a Weaponsmith who has the availible
materials, the cost for one Ballista is 1500gp and take 1 week
to build and install on the ship. Cannons
Ammunition for Ballista: A Cannon can be purchased from any shipwright or
• Ballista Bolts (10lbs): 2gp Each. merchant who has them availible, the cost for one cannon is
2800gp.

Ammunition for cannons:

Mangonel • Black powder: 250G for a 20lb keg or 35G for a 2lb horn.
• Cannon Ball (6lb): 5 gp
A Mangonel can be purchased from any shipwright or • Cannon Ball (10lb): 8 gp
merchant or be built by a Weaponsmith who has the availible
materials, the cost for one Mangonel is 2250gp and take 2
weeks to build and install on the ship.

Ammunition for Mangonel:

• Mangonel Stones (12lbs): 6sp Each.

PART 2 | Officers and Crew

3
Superior Ship Upgrades
OME VESSELS POSSESS EXTRAORDINARY Vines covered in thick leaves hang over its side, and the
abilities, whether due to magic or superior wood runs with fresh sap when damaged. The ship
artisanship. The upgrades below can replace a gains a +2 bonus to all Constitution checks or saving
ship’s existing components or provide a new throws. As long as the ship has at least 1 hit point, it
element to augment a ship’s abilities. regains 10 hit points every minute.

HULL UPGRADES REINFORCED HULL

A master shipwright can use superior materials and
• Any ship with a hull can gain one of the following clever design to make a ship’s hull more resilient. Such
upgrades. In some cases. an upgrade also provides a reinforcement doubles the hull’s hit point maximum.
benefit to the ship’s other components.

• Adding an upgrade costs 15 ,000 gp and requires ld4

VIGILANT WATCH
weeks of work. During that time. the ship must A row of crystal orbs. each filled with viscous liquid and
remain in port. If the ship leaves, the work must start a beholder’s eyeball, is mounted along this ship’s hull.
over, but you don’t need to pay the gold piece cost a Invisible creatures are visible while on the ship or
second time. within 120 feet of it.

CHURNING HULL Movement Upgrades

Each movement upgrade applies to a specific movement
A tempest rages within these rune-etched, iron chains.
type. A component can gain the benefits of one upgrade.
Raiders and pirates who operate under the blessings of
a storm god sometimes make use of this. By draping the
chains over a ship’s hull, the storm’s fury thrashes into
CLOCKWORK OARS
the water around it. The water within 210 feet of the Using a combination of magic and clockwork, the oars
ship is difficult terrain for everything other than this on this ship require only one crew member to use them,
ship. pushing the button or lever that activates them.

DEATH VESSEL EVER-FULL SAILS

Crafted with materials from the Shadowfell, this grants These billowing sails are woven from cloud-stuff drawn
the ship an aura of dread. As an action, the ship can from the Elemental Plane of Air. Wind whips and
create a pulse of horrific energy. Each enemy of the ship whistles around them, allowing a ship to move with a
on board or within 210 feet of it must make DC 14 speed of 60 feet regardless of direction relative to the
Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature is wind.
frightened of the ship for 1 minute. On a successful
save, the creature is immune to this ability for 24 hours. DEFIANT SAILS
Once this ability is used it can’t be used again ld4 hours.
These sails glitter with a fine coat of mithral treated
with abjuration magic. While the sails are unfurled,
FROST-LOCKED HULL ranged weapon attacks made against the ship and
anyone aboard it are made with disadvantage, as a
This upgrade replaces a ship’s hull with supernatural result of the sails’ protective magic. This drawback
ice drawn from the elemental planes. The hull and the doesn’t apply if the attacker is aboard the ship.
other components of the ship are immune to cold
damage but vulnerable to fire damage. The ship can
also move at its normal speed over ice of any thickness,
floating on the ice at the same depth as it would in
water.

LIVING VESSEL
This vessel’s hull was crafted in the Feywild under the
direction of master eladrin shipwrights. It is a Living
plant. drawing sustenance from water and sunlight.

PART | Superior Ship Upgrades

4
 DRAGON SAILS CONCUSSIVE ROUNDS
Dragon scales woven into these sails make them more Enhanced by abjuration magic. this weapon’s attacks
resistant to damage. The sails gain a +3 bonus to AC, burst with raucous noise capable of momentarily
and they have resistance to a damage type based on the distracting and disorienting enemy crews. If this
type of scales used to craft them, as shown on the weapon hits a vehicle’s hull, that vehicle’s speed
Dragon Sails table. decreases by 2d10 feet until the start of the attacker’s
next turn.
DRAGON SAILS
Dragon Type Damage Type EXPLOSIVE ROUNDS
Black Acid
Blue Lightning Drawing on powerful evocation magic, this weapon’s
Brass Fire attacks are imbued with unstable energy that explodes
Bronze Lightning in a fiery blast. When this weapon hits. it deals an extra
Copper Acid 2d6 fire damage.
Gold Fire
Green Acid GRASPING ROUNDS
Red Fire
This weapon creates spectral chains that trail after its
Silver Cold
shots, restraining enemy vessels in their grasp. When
White Cold
this weapon hits a ship, that vehicle must succeed on a
DC 14 Strength saving throw or it can’t move away
SCREAMING SAILS from the attacker. As an action. the attacking ship can
Woven from the energy of captured wraiths and bound end this effect, and the target can end it by taking an
with the spirit of a banshee, these sails groan action and succeeding on a DC 14 Strength check.
mournfully when they catch the wind. As an action.
While within 5 feet of the sails, the ship’s captain can
cause the sails to unleash a howl. Every creature hostile
to the ship who is on board or within 300 feet of it must
succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw, or the
creature takes 4d6 psychic damage and is then
frightened for 1 minute. Once this ability has been used,
it can’t be used again until 2d6 hours have passed.

SCYTHING OARS
Sharpened. magically reinforced oars make a vessel
dangerous to approach. When the ship takes an action
that moves it with these oars, any creature or object in
the water within 10 feet of it at any point of the move
must make a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw, taking 2d6
slashing damage on a failed save or half as much
damage on a successfuI one.

WEAPON UPGRADES
The following upgrades can apply to any weapon
mounted aboard a ship. A component can gain the
benefits of one upgrade, or two upgrades if one of the
upgrades is Arcane Artillery.

ARCANE ARTILLERY
Using methods similar to those used to produce magic
weapons, a skilled spellcaster imbues a ship’s weapon
with destructive energy. This weapon gains a +2 bonus
to its attack and damage rolls, and its attacks count as
magical.

PART 4 | Superior Ship Upgrades

5
SHIPS IN COMBAT
HETHER SAILING TO WAR OR HUNTING total of the dice is the number of crew members caught
notorious pirates, ships make deadly in the spetrs area.
weapons and dramatic battlefields. This
section provides guidance on using ships in
CRASHING A SHIP
combat. If a ship moves into lhe space occupied by a creature or
an object, the ship might crash. A ship avoids crashing if
the creature or object is at least two sizes smaller than
SHIPS AND INIT IA TIVE it.

A ship rolls initiative using its Dexterity, and it uses its When a ship crashes, it must immediately make a DC
crew’s quality score as a modifier to that roll. On a 10 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, it takes
ship’s turn, the captain decides which of the ship’s damage to its hull based on the size of the creature or
actions to use. object it crashed into, as shown on the Crash Damage
table. It also stops moving if lhe object or creature is
SPECIAL OFFICER A CTIONS one size smaller than it or larger. Otherwise the ship
continues moving and the creature or object collided
During an encounter, the captain, first mate, and bosun
with moves to the nearest unoccupied space that isn’t in
each have access to two special action options: Take
the ship’s path. At the DM’s discretion, an object that i s
Aim and Full Speed Ahead, both detailed below.
forced to move but is fixed in place is instead destroyed.
TAKE AIM A creature struck by a ship must make a Dexterity
As an action, the captain. first mate, or bosun directs the saving throw with a DC equal to 10 +the ship’s Strength
crew’s firing, aiding in aiming one of the ship’s modifier, taking damage based on the ship’s size (as
weapons. Select one of the ship’s weapons that is within shown on the Crash Damage table) on a failed save, or
10 feet of the officer. It gains advantage on the next half as much damage on a successful one.
attack roll it makes before the end of the ship’s next
turn. CRASH DAMAGE
Size Bludgeoning Damage
FULL SPEED AHEAD Small ld6
As an action while on deck, the captain, first mate, or Medium ld10
bosun can exhort the crew to work harder and drive the Large 4d10
ship forward faster. Roll a d6 and multiply the result by Huge 8d10
5 Apply the total as a bonus to the ship’s speed until the Gargantuan 16d10
end of the ship’s next turn. If the ship is already
benefiting from this action”s bonus, don’t add the
bonuses together; the higher bonus applies.
CREW IN COMBAT
Managing a ship’s entire crew in combat can prove
cumbersome, especially as larger ships often host
dozens of sailors. Typically the crew is too busy
managing the ship to do anything else during combat.
Don’t worry about tracking their specific positions
unless you want to add that complexity. You can assume
that the crew is evenly divided among the upper two
decks of a ship.
CREW CASUALTIES
Slaying a ship’s crew reduces the number of actions
most s hips can take, making the crew a tempting target
in combat. Resolve individual attacks as normal, using
the guidelines for resolving many, identical attacks at
once from the Dungeon Master’s Guide as needed. In
the case of spells that cover an area, such as fireball or
lightning bolt, you might track the exact location of lhe
spell and crew to determine how many sailors it affects.
Alternatively, you can roll ld6 per level of the spell. The

PART 5 | Naval Combat

6
 TRAVEL AT SEA
T’S NOT JUST PIRATES AND SEA MONSTERS THAT
make journeys on the sea so treacherous. Foul NAVIGATE
weather, nautical accidents. infested food. illness, Navigator Only
and worse all conspire to send even the most
capable crews to watery graves. The following The quartermaster can try to prevent the ship from
rules help adjudicate travel al sea, specifically voyages becoming lost, making a Wisdom (Survival) check when
of an hour or more. This material builds on the travel the DM calls for it. (See “Becoming Lost” in chapter 5 of
rules in the Player’s Handbook and the Dungeon the Dungeon Master’s Guide for more information.)
Master’s Guide.

TRAVEL PA CE
Ships travel at a speed given in their stat blocks. Unlike
with land travel, ships can’t choose to move at a faster
pace, though they can choose to go slower. If a ship’s
mode of movement takes damage, it might be slowed.
For every decrease of 10 feet in speed, reduce the ship’s
travel pace by 1 mile per hour and 24 miles per day.

ACTIVITY WH ILE TRAVELING

The activities available to a ship’s crew and passengers
are a bit different from the options available to a group
traveling by land. Refer to “Activity While Traveling” in
chapter 8 of the Players Handbook for more
information on some of the topics discussed below.

A number of activities are restricted to ce rtain officers.

unless the DM rules otherwise. For example. a OM
might alJow a bard to engage in the Raise Morale
activity by playing bawdy songs on deck to lift the crew’s
spirits. The party’s pace has no effect on the activities
they can engage in while traveling by ship.

DRAW A MAP
A ship’s captain often undertakes this activity,
producing a map of the ship’s progress and helps the
crew get back on course if they get lost. No ability check
is required.

FORAGE
The character casts fishing lines, keeping an eye out for
sources of food, making a Wisdom (Survival) check
when the DM calls for it.

RAISE MORALE
First Mate Only
The first mate can manage the crew’s time to grant
extended breaks, provide instruction, and generally
improve the quality of life on the ship. Once every 24
hours, if the crew’s quality score is 3 or lower, the first
mate can make a DC 15 Charisma (Persuasion) check.
On a successful check, the crew’s quality score
increases by 1.

PART 6 | Travel at Sea

7