After the characters are reunited with the crew of The Merry Ann (see Chapter 4d) they will be safely away from the events in Chapter 4. Captain Pectas will hold a memorial for any crew members, or players, lost in the doomed town of Land’s edge.
Afterwards the Captain will eventually ask to see the charts and other information the players have returned with. He knows nothing about an undersea temple or who it might belong to, he does know a few rumors about “The Isle of Eternal Vigilance”. Of the rumors he knows none are very cheery. They all speak of a haunted place, guarded by spirits protecting an ancient evil from being unleashed on the world but, those are just rumors after all.
The trip to the temple’s supposed location will take about 10 days. The captain will want to hurry the trip so as not to be late with his cargo shipment. Upon arriving in the area the captain will happily discuss plans with the PCs. He knows that they can only stay under water for a very limited time, he needs an idea on when to give them up for dead. He is very sorry that no crew member can help them out this time but he wishes them luck and offers his lucky sea shell, with an admonition not to lose it, to any player that has been fairly friendly to him. Before the players go underwater discuss certain things with them that the captain is likely to bring up.
The Captain will speak of : how long they can stay under water, light sources, how deep the ocean is likely to be here. Also those without free action will be very hampered by the presence of any real armor. Combat is sure to come up, some spells (fire) don’t function well underwater and most non thrusting weapons are unusable to those without free action. Having figured these things out the players will be ready for their trip under the sea, HAH!.
Note: See both the players handbook and the Dungeon Masters guide for combat in underwater environments.
