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Skullport

Overview

Skullport is a grim, cutthroat outpost of civilization where adventurers can resupply and take refuge. Yet few souls of the surface world have any clue how to reach this shadowy reflection of Waterdeep, making any talk of the Port of Shadow akin to a rumor, or a warning - which is just how its denizens like it.   Skullport fills an immense cavern. The town has three levels: a lower level, a middle level, and a top level. A stone bridge connects the southern end of the town to an island around which flows the sluggish River Sargauth. The island is called Skull Island, and atop this island stands a fortress garrisoned by minions of the beholder crime lord known as Xanathar.  

Reaching Skullport

The routes by which adventurers can arrive at Skullport are described below.  

Through Undermountain

Skullport is connected to level 3 of Undermountain by the underground River Sargauth and by five meandering subterranean passageways. Beggar’s Rest Pass, Shadow Pass, Steamfall Pass, and Taglath’s Gap all eventually converge into area 17a, and Whisperhaunt Pass leads to area 23b.  

Through the Sea Caves

Skullport can be reached by traveling through a series of natural caverns and magical locks that stretch from the South Sea Caves on Waterdeep’s shore to the River Sargauth far below Mount Waterdeep. Crashing waves and jagged rocks make the outermost of these flooded caves dangerous to navigate. Dozens of old ships lie wrecked within, their swollen hulks home to sea hags, merrows, and other aquatic creatures.   The waters grow calmer as one travels deeper into the mountain, where a series of magic locks control the water level. Vessels descend hundreds of feet as they pass between them. Where the locks end is a vast cavern containing a smooth stone retaining wall that rises 10 feet above the water’s surface. The partially collapsed remnants of a ten-story-tall hoist loom above the retaining wall. This contraption was designed to lift a vessel of almost any size, swing it over the wall, and lower it down the other side to the River Sargauth 100 feet below. Skullport lies just a few hundred yards farther along the underground river. Time and neglect have rendered the hoist nonfunctional, thus preventing large ships from reaching the Port of Shadow. Many denizens of Skullport would like to fix it, but they lack the mutual trust and cooperation required for such a project to succeed. The absence of the hoist hasn’t stopped all manner of nefarious sorts from using their own ropes to haul rowboats and other small craft over the barrier wall.  

What Dwells Here?

The Port of Shadow has been held, claimed, or occupied over the years by duergar, drow, dwarves, crazed wizards, slavers, and pirates. Currently, the town is under the sway of Xanathar, who has turned the forlorn settlement into a haven for its criminal organization.   Few folk have permanent residences in the Port of Shadow, and most of the local businesses are presently shut down. The people who do remain in business pay Xanathar for protection. Adventurers can find food, drink, shelter, and supplies here - or perhaps a quick death, if they antagonize the locals.  

Flameskulls

Thirteen ancient flameskulls haunt Skullport. These entities, which have defended the town since its founding, are all that remain of the Sargauth Enclave, a settlement of Netherese wizards. The flameskulls consider themselves the true rulers of Skullport, but they have lost touch with reality, their minds drifting in and out of the present and the past. They rarely communicate, and when they do it is often in a dead language.  

Exploring Skull Island

The island’s features are as follows:
  • The island sits in the middle of a vast cavern with a roughly dome-shaped roof that rises to a height of 120 feet above the water level.
  • Atop the island is a stone fortress, its 20-foot-high outer walls interrupted at irregular intervals by 30-foot-high (two-story) towers topped with battlements, ballistae, and flame cannon.
  • A natural column of rock rises from the heart of the fortress and merges with the cavern ceiling.
 

1. Murkspan Bridge

An arched stone bridge connects the island to the town. The middle 30-foot span of the bridge is rigged to collapse. Two stone levers hidden in secret compartments at the south end of the bridge trigger the collapse when they are pulled simultaneously (requiring an action for each one). Anyone who searches the south end of the bridge can find the levers and discern their purpose with a successful DC 20 Wisdom (Perception) check.  

2. Main Gate

The main entrance to the fortress is protected by a sturdy iron gate. Winches in the flanking guard towers open and close this gate.  

3. Harbors

Skull Island has two natural harbors (area 3a and area 3b). Each harbor is 60 feet deep and lined with rotted wooden docks. Steel augers installed along the mouth of each harbor can be raised or lowered on rusty iron chains connected to winches in the towers to either side of the harbor. When they are raised, the augers pierce the hulls of passing ships, flooding their lower decks and causing them to sink.  

4. Duergar Barracks

Ten duergar are quartered in this two-story building.  

5. Human Barracks

This three-story edifice looms over the northeast harbor (area 3b). Seventy human thugs are quartered here.  

6. Depleted Armory

The Xanathar Guild plundered this two-story building after taking control of the fortress. It stands empty.  

7. Bugbear Barracks

Sixty bugbears inhabit this two-story stone building.  

8. Gargoyle Towers

Twelve gargoyles perch on the battlements of these three-story stone towers (four atop each tower).  

9. Tower of the Seven Woes

The fortress’s half-ogre commander, Sundeth, lives in this hollowed-out spire with his wyvern mount.   The column merges with the cavern roof, narrows in the middle (where a stalactite and a stalagmite converged eons ago), and has abundant ledges and handholds on the outside. The outer door is made of iron and squeals loudly when opened, alerting the spire’s occupants.   Carved into the column is a seven-story prison composed of windowless torture chambers connected to one another by rough-hewn stairways. Worshipers of Loviatar used this tower to imprison and torture slaves. The walls throughout are lined with manacles; rusted shackles lie strewn amid torture racks, spiked cages, and other contraptions that have fallen into disrepair.  

10. Kuo-Toa Lair

East of the island fortress, an old dock protrudes from the mouth of a damp cave like a wooden tongue.  

10a. Old Dock

The dock creaks and groans but is safe to stand on.  

10b. Kuo-Toa Cave

A hungry kuo-toa named Hlool crouches in the middle of this cave. If anyone gives it food, Hlool eats the food, then dives to the bottom of the River Sargauth, returns minutes later with a bundled-up cloak of the manta ray that he took from a dead adventurer, and gives it as a thank-you gift.  

Exploring the Town

The town’s key features are summarized below:
  • Everything has a deteriorated, haphazard look to it. Tightly packed buildings of wood and stone are piled atop one another, creating three levels: a lower level (often called the street level), a middle level, and an upper level.
  • Unnamed thoroughfares wind through the town at street level. Above this labyrinth run mazes of catwalks made from the wood of old shipwrecks. Old rigging is used to suspend the creaky catwalks.
  • The 90-foot-high cavern ceiling is covered with a forest of stalactites.
  • Most of the lanterns that once illuminated Skullport are gone, turned to rust or stolen by thieves long ago. Denizens carry their own light sources or rely on darkvision to see. Flameskulls are often mistaken from a distance for bobbing torches as they drift through town.
  The town has no general store, and some merchandise that is abundant in Waterdeep simply isn’t available here. Prices in Skullport are five times higher than normal.  

11. Old Markets

These open-air spaces are dreary and forlorn.  

11a. Old Fish Markets

Closed shops and warehouses enclose an abandoned market dotted with empty fish stands.  

11b. Old Slave Market

The shops that surround this abandoned slave market appear vacant. Further investigation reveals that one shop (area 12) is open for business.  

12. Dead Man's Corner

A sea hag named Olive Stillwater sells human zombies out of this dilapidated shop. She appears as an old woman covered with snails and barnacles.   Olive keeps a dozen human zombies in her cramped shop. “They’re great for setting off traps!” she says with a chuckle. As payment for each zombie, she demands a vial of the buyer’s blood and three hairs plucked from the buyer’s head. She owns a pair of rusty iron shears that can be used to draw blood and cut hair. After consuming this payment, Olive gains the innate ability to cast the animate dead spell once per day for the next three days.   Each zombie wears a hempen rope noose around its neck. Anyone who buys a zombie must lead it around by the noose; otherwise, the zombie stands still and does nothing.  

13. Thimblewine's Pawnshop

A cheery rock gnome named Krystaleen (NG female rock gnome commoner) runs this shop. She is the niece of the pawnshop’s previous owner, Thimblewine, who died of old age a few years ago.   Krystaleen buys reusable goods from visitors at normal cost. There is a 10% chance that Krystaleen has one of the items below:  

14. Herald's Meet

This town square is littered with trash. Nearly all the buildings that surround it are abandoned.  

15. The Black Tankard

The proprietor of this squalid, one-story tavern is a fat, dour duergar named Droon Stonedark, who works for Xanathar. Two minotaurs stand in dark corners, ready to give unruly patrons the heave-ho. A spectator floats amid the rafters and provides additional security.   Droon sells Alurlyath, a surprisingly sweet white wine. No food and no other drinks are available.  

16. Gyudd's Distillery

This dwarven distillery is a three-story stone building with a sagging roof. Gyudd (LN male shield dwarf commoner), the shield dwarf distiller, makes Zzar, an orange-colored sherry, Dwarven Stout, a thick and bitter ale, and Alurlyath, a surprisingly sweet white wine. He only sells bottles, not glasses, of these drinks.  

17. Skull Square

Empty buildings surround this square, which is festooned with iron cages dangling from wooden masts.  

18. The Sea Chest

This shop used to sell chests and other containers, but the place is closed up. Its proprietor, a shield dwarf named Tor Grayfell, had his brain eaten by a mind flayer believed to still be at large in Skullport.  

19. The Flagon and the Dragon

This wood and stone tavern is a step up from the Black Tankard (area 15). Tending the bar is the proprietor, a female drow named Cal’al Claddani. She always introduces herself by asking, “What’s your poison?”   Cal’al took over the tavern after its previous owners fled. She sells two beverages: an orange-colored sherry called Zzar and Dwarven Stout, a thick and bitter ale.   If adventurers drop a few coins here, Cal’al is happy to furnish them with information about Skullport’s other inhabitants and establishments.  

20. Dark Harvest Market

Food harvested from the Underdark is sold here by 1d6 duergar at any given time, who employ an equal number of wererats as bodyguards.  

21. The Sword and the Sextant

A pair of strongheart halfling brothers named Oleander (CN male strongheart halfling commoner) and Will (CN male strongheart halfling commoner) eagerly buy accurate maps of Undermountain from adventurers. They also sell maps of Skullport and the first five levels of Undermountain for 50 dragons each, and map cases for 5 dragons each.  

22. The Guts and Garter

A sullen, soft-spoken tiefling named Quietude (LN female tiefling commoner) runs Skullport’s last remaining inn and spies on guests for Xanathar. The inn is a run-down structure with windows so shrouded in grime as to be almost opaque. Quietude rents bedrooms for 5 dragons per day, and the inn doesn't serve any food or drink.   The inn’s cellar contains a secret door that requires a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check to detect. Beyond the secret door is a 300-foot-long, rough-hewn tunnel heading west to Xanathar’s Lair.  

23. The Feathered Rat

Ulvira Snowveins (LN female half-elf commoner), a venerable half-elf and Harper spy, runs this single-story pet store. Ulvira’s merchandise and prices are as follows:  

24. Thaglar's Foundry

Skullport’s ugly stone foundry stands four stories tall. Inside, eight duergar smiths under the command of a brutal duergar taskmaster named Thaglar Xundorn fashion weapons, armor, and tools. They sell the following items:  

25. The Bat's Roost

This building, once a seedy tavern, is now a fighting den where visitors can settle their differences through fisticuffs while spectators place bets on the outcome.  

26. The Keel Hall

This two-story festhall shut down after the Spellplague and never reopened its doors. The Zhentarim now use it as a hideout.   Bosskyn Gorrb (LN male tielfling spy), a blind tiefling, leads the Zhentarim in Skullport and uses four flying snakes to deliver messages to his underlings. Bosskyn will help members of the Zhentarim by allowing them to use the festhall as a sanctuary and a resting place and to use one of his flying snakes to deliver messages to anyone in Waterdeep.  

27. The Poisoned Quill

There’s not much need for an expert forger in Skullport these days, but that doesn’t concern the owner of the Poisoned Quill, Tasselgryn Velldarn (NE female Chondathan human archmage), who doesn't need the gold anyway (although she still will forge documents for 15 dragons a page).   “Tas” is an elderly archmage. Her secret is that she and Halaster are friends. The Mad Mage visits her about once a month for tea, and she catches him up on the latest news and gossip. When they are together, Halaster and Tasselgryn act like an old married couple.  

28. Twinbeard's Traps

This single-story building contains the workshop of Xanathar’s shield dwarf trapsmith and engineer, Thorvin Twinbeard. He’s almost never here, however, since Xanathar keeps him busy.  

29. Sargauth's Bounty

Darum Ghaz (CN male shield dwarf commoner) and Duram Ghaz (CN male shield dwarf commoner), a pair of shield dwarf brothers, sell junk salvaged from the River Sargauth. There is a 50% chance that the shop is closed and the brothers are away on a salvage mission. If not, the brothers sell 2d6 + 8 trinkets for 1d4 dragons each.  

30. The Lanternlighter's

Anderian Dusk (LN male half-elf commoner), an old half-elf with a long white beard, sells lanterns. The light in Anderian’s eyes has gone out, as time has slowly crushed his hopes or dreams. While he does not sell oil, directing visitors to the Overflowing Urn (area 33) if they need some, Anderian does sell the following:  

31. Dalagor's Fortress

Dalagor was an evil warrior who surrounded himself with necromancers and undead. He and his minions were destroyed or driven out during the Spellplague, leaving behind a bleak, three-story stone mansion that the Harpers have seized and turned into a hideout.   Felrax (N male copper dragonborn high mage), a dragonborn mage, watches over the mansion. A light cantrip cast on his staff allows Felrax to see in the dark interior. Felrax will help members of the Harpers by allowing them to use the mansion as a sanctuary and a resting place for as long as they need it.  

32. Dumathoin’s Jest

Ygarra Urmbaalt, a duergar, appraises gemstones for a flat fee of 15 dragons, and is willing to buy them. Her establishment is a one-story, ugly stone building.  

33. The Overflowing Urn

This store rests atop another structure that is crumbling with age. As a result, the building tilts slightly to the east. Inside, a man calling himself Garryth sells flasks of oil for 5 shards each.   Five years ago, a doppelganger killed Garryth and assumed his identity after disposing of the body. The doppelganger is content running the business and has no qualms about paying money to Xanathar for protection.  

34. Nightshade's Caress

Displayed in the window of this shop are various potions. The store is cluttered with more such goods, all labeled and clearly priced. The apothecary, Nightshade, is a mummy that looks like a withered crone dressed in a tattered black robe. She sells the following items, as well as common potions and spell components.  

35. The Worm's Gullet

The only restaurant in town is located inside a petrified, hollowed-out purple worm. The food and the service have gone downhill ever since Xanathar installed a new manager: a heartless duergar named Gharz Stonedark.   Gharz makes meals out of whatever his eight kobolds can find, and patrons are expected to eat whatever Gharz serves them. Common meals include stirge loaf, carrion crawler soufflé, flumph stew, and hot shrieker pie. The house wine is Alurlyath, straight from the local distillery (area 16). A meal with a drink costs 5 shards per person.  

36. Tanor’thal Refuge

Carved by the drow of House Tanor’thal, this stronghold resembles an upside-down spider that looms above the rest of Skullport like a great, dark god. The spider’s hollowed-out head, thorax, and abdomen contain windowless living quarters filled with thick webs and six giant spiders. Other denizens of Skullport avoid this place, making it an excellent refuge once the spiders are cleared out. The drow left nothing of value behind when they vacated their refuge.
     
Type
Dungeon
Parent Location
Waterdeep
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Building / Landmark
World
Faerûn
Author
Tatortotzke
Publication Date
3 Feb, 2021
Creation Date
14 Aug, 2020
Last Update Date
7 Mar, 2022
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Locations Locations in the Sword Coast Locations in Waterdeep Dungeons

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