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Dungeons
Port City with some infighting among groups · Medium · Medium

Portmaster's Vault

Beneath the docks, bribes and blades decide who owns the port.
Rooms
8
Foes
18, CR 1/4 to 4
Traps
5
Treasure
1,130 gp
12345678Entrance
Select a room on the plan to open it.

The party is in

1. Customs Entry Hall

Seen

Something wanders by

At a glance

The threat

The vault is being torn apart by a violent power struggle between two dock factions, while their hired enforcer captain uses the chaos to seize the old customs treasury and the blackmail ledgers locked below.

Wandering monsters (1d4)

  1. 1

    1d4× Roaming Dock EnforcersCR 1

    When: Loud combat, open treasure, or repeated failed stealth checks in the corridor networkHarbor bruisers searching for stragglers, loot, or someone to blame.
  2. 2

    1d3× Smuggler ScoutsCR 1/2

    When: Any unexplored side passage or recently disturbed storage roomNervous smugglers with knives drawn and lanterns hooded low.
  3. 3

    1d2 plus 2 dogs× Harbor HoundsCR 2

    When: Smell of blood, spilled food, or movement near the flood stairsA trained mastiff pack led by a one-eyed handler, used to track blood and wet footprints.
  4. 4

    Brine-Cursed BonepickerCR 3

    When: Deep in the dungeon after a fight, especially near water or old bloodA grim corridor cleaner who drags bodies and evidence into the lower drains.

Rooms

8
1

Customs Entry Hall

2 foestreasuresecret

What they see

Read aloud

A cracked iron door opens into the old customs entry hall, where broken scales and toppled ledger tables make a narrow barricade. Fresh bootprints cross older bloodstains, and muffled shouting from deeper rooms tells the party that the factions are already fighting over the vault.

Features

  • Broken customs scales
  • Toppled ledger tables
  • Fresh bootprints in dust
  • Bullet pocks and blade marks

What the GM knows

Monsters

2× Dock ThugsCR 1/4

Dock toughs with cudgels and hooked knives who watch the entrance and raise the alarm fast.Tactics. They fight in pairs, trying to shove intruders into the broken furniture while one runs for help.

Treasure

Dock Coin Pouch25 gp

A pouch of mixed dock coin and a brass customs token that can pass one locked port gate.
Room secrets · GM only

Notes

This room should feel like the first warning that the dungeon is active, not abandoned. Let the nearby guard room hear any loud combat here.

4 doors: W (normal), N (locked), S (locked), E (normal)

The place

What it is

Beneath the port district lies a fortified customs vault that has become a secret war zone for rival dock factions.

Atmosphere

Salt air leaks through cracked stone, mixing with tar, fish rot, and stale lamp oil.

The threat

The vault is being torn apart by a violent power struggle between two dock factions, while their hired enforcer captain uses the chaos to seize the old customs treasury and the blackmail ledgers locked below.

History

This complex began as the old Portmaster's Customs Vault, built to store tariffs, ledgers, and contraband seized from smugglers.

Rumors

1d5
Roll a rumor

  1. 1The customs vault has become a butcher's den where rival dock gangs settle scores after midnight.
  2. 2Someone heard a floodgate opening below the harbor, though the tide had already gone out.
  3. 3A captain in black rope tags is buying information from both sides and selling it back twice.
  4. 4The old customs ledgers list every bribe paid in the port for the last ten years.
  5. 5There is a hidden cache beneath the vault that only opens when the tide is low and the lamps are out.

Plot hooks

4
investigationThe Missing LedgersA harbormaster begs the party to recover the stolen customs ledgers before the dock war closes the port to honest trade.From: Harbormaster Elsin ValeReward: 300 gp and a letter of mark granting safe berth in the port
faction negotiationA Knife for the Other SideA rival gang boss offers payment if the party removes the captain and leaves the vault open for their people.From: Sable Ketta, fence and fixerReward: 250 gp, faction favor, and access to contraband markets
mysteryFloodgate LiesA terrified clerk claims someone in the vault is using old flood gates to stage murders and fake smuggling losses.From: Tomas Reed, customs clerkReward: 200 gp and a cache of official seals
rescueTaken BelowA missing dockworker was last seen being dragged beneath the customs house, and his family wants him found alive if possible.From: Mira Brine, fishmonger and widowReward: 150 gp, free meals at a dockside inn, and local gratitude

Corridors

4

  • Between the entrance and the central guard rooms

    Rust-stained chain hooks line the walls, some still swaying as if recently used to drag cargo or bodies.

  • Lower corridors near the treasure and boss rooms

    Half-flooded runoff channels carry brackish water and discarded evidence from one faction's raids into another's territory.

  • Every junction and chokepoint

    Painted tally marks and scratched gang symbols appear over older customs seals, showing how the port's factions have turned the dungeon into a covert battleground.

  • Near the boss approach corridor

    A broken listening tube set into the stone carries whispers and footsteps from adjoining rooms if pressed to the ear.

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