Month: April 2018

Loose Bones Caves

High above the cove, a craggy, narrow cave entrance sits ominously in the face of the sea cliffs. Inside is wet, and slick with moss. The cave slopes down, down, under the beach, out under the sea, and leads to a fine treasure.

1 – The Entrance
2 – The Trapped Bones
3 – The Pearl
4 – The Mussel
5 – The Red Hawk

1 – The Entrance

Getting to the cave mouth requires a difficult climb up the cliff face. The opening is about 5-feet wide and might require a bit of a squeeze for larger characters. This part of the cliff is over some sharp and jagged rocks – jumping out past them might require some effort.

Immediately apparent upon entry is how the entire cave slopes steeply downwards. It appears to crawl down the cliff and then out under the water. Water drips from the rough, natural stone and puddles about on the floor. There is nothing of significance here, save for a narrow passage leading onward.

2 – The Trapped Bones

The passage drops out into an open area. There are three separate off-shoots, one of which is significantly steeper than the others. Here though, visible from the end of the entrance passage, is a large boulder. It seems to have fallen from the ceiling, and it has pinned down a skeleton named Jorge. He is stuck, and it would require significant effort to release him.

Jorge is a distrustful skeleton, who found a secret treasure in this part of the cave. In another room is a massive, over-sized, purple mussel. In its mouth was a massive, over-sized, black pearl. He managed to tickle the mussel open and roll the pearl out before being caught under the falling boulder. The pearl rolled into 3 – The Pearl. He definitely does not want anyone else to make off with his pearl, but probably wants to escape more than he wants to profit.

Jorge might…
beg to be released
offer information about his treasure as payment for assistance
reveal the secrets of the purple mussel

3 – The Pearl

This passage curves slightly, leaving the massive, over-sized, black pearl just out of sight until the last moment. It is 6-feet in diameter. Removing it from the cave would be quite tricky. If it is touched, the massive, over-sized, purple mussel in 4 – The Mussel wails loudly, screaming and crying but exclaiming nothing intelligible. As the mussel wails, the cave shakes and shudders. Pieces of rock fall from the ceiling, probably requiring some effort to avoid. If the mussel wails long and hard enough, eventually the cave entrance will collapse.

4 – The Mussel

This large area is nearly entirely dominated by a massive, over-sized, purple mussel. It is easily 10-feet tall, and wider even than that. Its natural state is closed and dozing, but it wails and sobs uncontrollably if its massive, over-sized, black pearl is touched. The only way to console it is to put it to sleep, through various means (gentle rocking, a quiet song, magic, etc). If attacked, the mussel will become hostile, thrashing and snapping but not pursuing.

5 – The Red Hawk

This path has been eroded down to a smooth and slippery state. It gently switchbacks its way down, down, down until the light from the entrance is not visible in the slightest. The increased pressure is quite noticeable. At the end, the path drops out into a naturally open chamber. There is rubble and loose rock everywhere, and a sizable puddle of water.

Above, crashed through the ceiling of the cave and acting as a plug, is the bottom hull of The Red Hawk. Inside is a copious amount of treasure. However, if the hull is breached, treasure isn’t the only thing that begins to fill the cave. Water from the ocean begins pouring into the cave, filling it in minutes. It will require great effort to make it back up and out of the slippery cave while carrying any amount of treasure.

Shag’s Board Shop

When The Red Hawk sunk, it’s treasure went down with it. For your average humanoid, retrieving treasures from the seafloor can be quite difficult. For a skeleton, however, the task proves little more than trivial.

While Shag was never much of a surfer himself, he had gained some renown as a board builder. Once a nomadic sort, traveling from beach to beach selling boards and his special brand of wax, he settled down once he discovered Loose Bones Cove. The cove’s attractions? A captive clientele, a seemingly never-ending supply of the purple mussels he makes his wax from, and of course, a sunken treasure to collect. With only one place for skeletal surfbums to buy, repair, and wax their boards, Shag has quite the monopoly on the treasures of The Red Hawk.

Shag might…
ask for assistance with collecting mussels
ask for help with the wolves harassing the skeletons
tell the tale of the treasure

Stone’s Throw Cantina

The Stone’s Throw Cantina, named as such for its proximity to the ocean, is a single, open bungalow establishment. The bar wraps around, forming a small square where the bartenders can normally be found.

In life, Bud and Beety were a happy, newly-wed couple. In undeath, eternity has eroded their goodwill for each other; their constant bickering is the number one complaint of the clientele. While their sour attitudes may stand out in this sun-drenched paradise, their drinks are to die for. Or drink singular, rather. Crafted from mulched sea anemones, Pink Puckerups are cheap, delicious, and very effective. Sea anemones are extremely plentiful in the cove, so much so that Bud and Beety freely distribute the drink; they’ve nothing better to do, after all.

Bud and Beety (or one of their patrons) might…
ask strangers to settle their arguments
ask for help with the wolves harassing the skeletons
ponder the cave mouth in the sea cliffs and argue about what might be inside

The Wolves Dire

Loose Bones Cove is bordered by a forest that stretches into the mainland. Recently, a pack of wolves led by a single Dire Wolf have taken a fondness to gnawing on bones – particularly ones that are laying in the sand and don’t put up a fight. Many a surf-skeleton has lost a finger, femur, or rib in the night to these pesky hounds. The community is fed up, and many are willing to offer rewards for pelts or better yet, returned bones.

roll	1d4 wolf hunting encounters
1	1d4 wolves away from the den, gnawing on 1d4 sun-bleached bones of various sizes
2	a wounded wolf, whimpering under a tree
3	a well-equiped human hunter, surrounded by 2d4 wolves
3	the wolf den; 2d6 wolves and the Dire Wolf (1d6 bones)

Where the sand is white, the waves are choice, and the surfers tell no tales.

Part 2 / Part 3

Loose Bones Cove was once a coastal paradise. Nestled between ocean and forest, it features pristine white sand beaches, cool water, and towering sea cliffs covered in purple mussels. Decades (or even centuries) ago, the cove was a hot-spot for tourism, sand castles, and of course, surfing. Now, few mortals dare travel to this lost paradise, even if the tasty waves are as tantalizing as ever.

Captain Bartholomew Spittail

Ages ago, Bartholomew Spittail was a pirate. He sailed the seas with his crew, pillaging and looting wherever they went.

The crew was on their way to hide their copious amounts of treasure when their ship, The Red Hawk, was scuttled just off the coast of what is now Loose Bones Cove. Captain Spittail, as furious in death as in life, couldn’t stand the constant stream of tourists and surfers enjoying life just above his resting place. So, naturally, he cursed the place; whosoever enjoys the waves above his ship would be doomed to roam the cove for eternity.

Loose Bones

It only took a few years for most mortals to abandon the newly skeleton-dominated stretch of coast. However, a few brave surfers still show up from time to time, determined to catch the very best waves – even if it means sure damnation. Skeletons have taken over the day-to-day operations of the beach cantina, and a board shop (owned by the human Shag) is still kept afloat through bony patronage. Most inhabitants of the cove pass their time surfing or sleeping in the sand.

roll	2d4 encounters
2	1d6 skeletons pop out of the sand, surrounding you and demanding your money (or board wax)
3	a wolf emerges from the forest, sprinting towards a snoozing skeleton
4	a group of skeletons sits around a beach fire, swapping tales and encouraging you to share yours
5	a skeleton approaches in desperate need of board wax
6	a man exits the board shop and begins scaling the sea cliffs, prying purple mussels from the walls
7	a giant crab rises from the water, and a handful of skeletons attempt to beat it back
8	1d6 skeletons emerge from the water, gold and jewels draped all about them, headed for the board shop (1d10 * 6 gold)