Battlemap
The Brine-Choked Sluice
Salt crusts the eyes of the living and the lungs of the dead.
A derelict industrial facility half-swallowed by the crashing surf. Rusted machinery and caustic runoff create a lethal environment for intruders seeking the treasures hidden within.
The air is heavy with the smell of rotting kelp and sharp, stinging salt. Rhythmic clanking of rusted pistons echoes through the damp corridors. Lighting is provided by flickering bioluminescent moss and the occasional copper lantern sputtering with whale oil.
☠ Threat
Tidecaller Vrekk and his Barnacle-Crusted Marrow-Eaters. Vrekk, a bitter warlock of the depths, controls the sluice's ancient valve systems to trap and drown interlopers. He seeks to transform the entire coastline into a drowned wasteland, fueled by the chemical vats that still simmer in the facility's lower levels.
History
Originally built by the Salt-Trade Guild to refine minerals using alchemical catalysts, the sluice was abandoned when rising tides made operations too dangerous. It sat empty for decades before a coven of sea-worshipping outcasts moved in. They have reactivated the old machinery to defend their territory, using the ebb and flow of the ocean as a weapon against the surface world.
Encounter Table
CRThe reanimated remains of guild workers, their skin replaced by thick crusts of salt.
A massive cephalopod that has wandered in from the ocean through the intake pipes.
Rumours & Whispers
The Screaming Sluice is actually haunted by the ghosts of the workers who were locked inside during a great storm.
Tidecaller Vrekk has found a way to turn the salt into a drug that makes people loyal only to him.
A legendary sunken ship's hold is actually connected to the bottom of the Grinding Vats.
Quest Hooks
Quest giver: Lord Hallowell
A wealthy merchant wants his grandfather's signet ring recovered from the abandoned sluice.
500 gp and a favor from the guild.
Quest giver: Fisherman Jory
Local fishermen report the fish are coming up mutated and salty-black. They want the source of the pollution stopped.
A weathered treasure map leading to a nearby cove.
Corridor Notes
Rusty pipes leaking high-pressure steam that deal 1d4 fire damage to those who touch them.
A flight of stairs completely covered in slick, green algae requiring a DC 12 Acrobatics check.
Turn The Brine-Choked Sluice into a sheet
A high-res, share-ready sheet you can post or print.