Hexplorations: Shipwrecks
Our second “hexploration” (charts for details of things you may encounter in a hex crawl or simply developing your world) focuses on shipwrecks. While researching this, I found an article that details causes for shipwrecks including some strange but real world causes such as a hull bursting when cargo of dried peas got wet!
In any case, to use this chart simply roll for each column or look at the options for inspiration or use a combination of the two approaches. For example, you may role 6-2-2-1-4 resulting in an ancient medium merchant ship wreck, fully sunk during a battle. It has since been covered in coral and only has sea animals in it but it has a powerful magic item hidden inside. But looking at those results you may think “well, this item shouldn’t be unguarded, so maybe it had the ability to transform the animals into either protectors (if it is a beneficial item) or monsters (if it has an evil nature).
| d6 | Age/Condition | Ship Type | Cause of Wreck | Inhabitants | Secret |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Recent, partly above water during low tide, one gaping hole | Small Merchant Ship (pinnace/sloop/caravel) | Ran aground: rocks/coral/etc. | Just sea animals | Haunted by evil undead: draugr, etc. |
| 2 | Recent, fully sunk, one gaping hole | Medium Merchant Ship(barque/carrack/brigandine) | Sunk during battle | Sea animals, but a shark or sea serpent hunts the wreck often | Haunted by spirits who will ask they be put to rest via a task |
| 3 | Recent, fully sunk, badly damaged | Large Merchant Ship (galleon) | Hit sandbar, then tilted at low tide and flooded at high tide | Merfolk family | Had a precious cargo of gems or gold. |
| 4 | Old, fully sunk, one gaping hole | Small Warship (cog) | Crew killed by bad weather or disease, then ran aground | Stranded Crew or descendants | Powerful magic item hidden in wreck |
| 5 | Old, fully sunk and overgrown with coral, only half left | Medium Warship (frigate/man o’war) | Giant sea creature attacked | Sahuagin or Merrow | Wreck has proof a war was started for dubious reasons |
| 6 | Ancient, fully sunk and overgrown with coral, only half left | Large Warship (ship of the line) | Accidental: Pitch pot overturned, Dangerous cargo ignited, Water spout, Lightning, etc. | Rarer monster: sea hag, skum/deep ones, marid, sea serpent, bronze dragon, or water elemental | Special (see below) |
Options for a “Special” wreck (These depend on where your setting and most should be rarer than 1-in-6):
- The ship was capable of traveling though space or the planes via technology or magic.
- The ship is just one of several wrecks that point to some mysterious force. Perhaps someone is turning off a nearby lighthouse. Or perhaps a sea hag or siren is causing ships to sink. Another possibility is magical forces mess with compasses while fog rolls in.
- The ship isn’t a wreck. (Ignore the other results.) Instead, it is simply adrift. All the crew is missing, but everything is in place–the mess table is even set with food and plates still in place.
- The shipwreck is the first attack by an army of merrow, sahuagin, etc.
Hopefully these charts and ideas can be the basis of most of the key details to any shipwreck the PCs may find in your game. Customize the results to fit your setting and which groups may be nearby as needed and as inspiration strikes!