Of Ships and the Sea

The ocean is a vast and dangerous place, ripe with adventure both above and below the waves. This material expands the material available in the Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide, providing further resources for waterborne adventures.
For information on the different kinds of vessel that may be encountered in The Azure Sea, see the article Ships of the Line.
The rules below are based on A Complete Guide to Nautical Campaigns, an excellent 5E resource by the brilliant Dungeon Master and author Guy Sclanders.

• Naval Combat
  • The Basics
  • Ship Statistics
  • Crew Quality
  • The Order of Combat
  • Ship Orders
  • Levelling Up
• Underwater Combat and Drowning

Naval Combat

The Battle of Tynamore Reef by Darek Zabrocki

The Azure Sea is a place of high adventure with infinite opportunities to fight upon its surface. Whether you want to blow stuff up and steal some booty, capture five huge ships and learn first hand why that's a bad idea, fear for your lives as you try to outrun overpowered pirate hunting vessels, or create your own enchanted Man of War with wings for sails and fire breath attacks, these simple rules allow for doing all that and more.

The Basics

• Ships are based on NPC stat blocks.
• Naval combat rounds do not last for six seconds, but for whatever time is required to complete all the Actions.
• Wind direction and strength matters and affects the speed of the ships.
• Distance between ships is represented by the Scale Movement Tracker, and not by a grid.
• Average visibility at sea, under good conditions, is 1 to 3 miles. Perception checks made from Crow's Nests are made with Advantage.
• Each ship has a Captain and other optional ranked crew.
• Most actions require the ship's crew or officers to make an ability or skill check.
• Customizing ships is easy and fun!

Ship Statistics

Ships have their own statistics that used as the basis for ability and skill checks. Each ship has the following statistics.
Strength. The potency of a ship’s attacks. This could represent the size of its siege weapons or the precise aim of a well trained crew. Uses: damage roll modifier.
Dexterity. How manoeuvrable a ship is. Smaller ships are more dextrous. Uses: initiative modifier, “Coming About” action.
Constitution. Construction quality and fortitude of a ship. Uses: hit point calculation.
Charisma. Represents the quality of the crew and their leadership. Uses: To Hit, “Full Sail” action.
AC. Represents the resilience of the ship’s hull or its small size and agility. Each component of a ship (helm, sails, weapons, etc) also has it's own AC.
Travel Speed. Determines the speed in feet during combat as well as the distance a ship can travel each day.
Hit Points. The amount of damage a ship's hull can take before it is begins to sink. Each component of a ship (helm, sails, weapons, etc) also has it's own HP.
Crew. The number of crew on board. This can alter the effectiveness of the ship in combat and the chance of mutiny.
Orders. The maximum number of orders that can be given to the ship's crew each combat round.
Cargo. The weight of cargo that the ship can carry.
Stores. Consumable items such as food, drink and medical supplies.
Weapon Emplacements. The number and types of weapon emplacements on the ship, such as ballistas, mangonels, rams and more.

Crew Quality (CQ)

The quality of a ship's crew, an amalgam of their skill, pride, attitude and loyalty, has a big effect on the functioning of a ship, especially in battle.

• CQ ranges from -10 to +10. This is a modifier that applies to any Action taken by the crew.
• CQ can fall if the number of crew members is reduced to half of that required to run the ship. Increasing it again requires recruitment or press-ganging.
• If the CQ of a crew is below 0 they may mutiny. A mutiny check is made daily by the Captain, using a Charisma (Intimidate or Persuasion) check.
• CQ can be improved by resting, training, increasing their salary, increasing loot share, and increasing rations.

The Order of Combat

Like creature combat, ship combat is organized into turns and rounds. Initiative is rolled for each ship, and each PC and ranked crew member also roll initiative. Independent creatures like sea monsters or characters that are not on a ship roll their own initiative.
Each player can take their normal actions during the round, and each ship can take a number of actions as well (determined by the type of ship).
Combat is split into the Chase Phase and the Boarding Phase.
Chase Combat

1. Determine weather and wind direction
2. Make perception/stealth rolls - attacking ships get a free round of actions if they are unseen.
3. Roll initiatives for both ships and their combatants.
4. Orders are issued and the ships take actions on their turn. Players can issue orders and take normal actions on their turns too.
5. If neither ship was destroyed, Complications are determined.
6. Speed of both ships is determined and the Movement Tracker adjusted accordingly.
7. If ships are close enough (<10 feet) Boarding can take place. If the distance has grown the chase may end.
8. A new round begins.

Boarding Combat

1. Once ships are less than 10 feet apart an order to Board can be given. At this point normal melee combat begins.
2. A ship can attempt to break free on it's turn, which may result in a new Chase.

Ship Orders

• Ship orders require a certain rank or position in the crew to make.
• Each ship has a maximum number of orders that can be given per round.
• A PC can make a ship order for a rank they hold as a Free Action on their turn, or as a Bonus Action if they do not hold the required crew rank.
• Captains' orders are always Free Actions.
• Each PC can only give one order per turn. There are some orders that will be considered mutiny if issued by anyone other than the captain.
• Orders that list a Standard Action as the time to complete replace the PCs normal standard action and movement action for the round, but do not count towards the ship’s order limit.
• Each crew rank also has other, non-combat orders they can issue.

The following orders are available during Naval Combat.

ANY OFFICER (always a Free Action)
Fire!	All weapons of the ordered type target and fire on the target ship's hull.
Brace!	The crew braces to reduce incoming damage.
Get us Moving!	The ship begins to move if stationary.
Put that Out!	The crew frantically attempt to quench a fire that has broken out aboard a ship.

CAPTAIN or FIRST MATE
Focus Fire	One weapon attacks the target ship's hull with Advantage.
Reload!	Requires two officers on deck to give the order. Orders a weapon emplacement to reload quickly and fire again.
Split Your Targets	All weapons of the ordered type target and fire on different targets.
Sacrifice to Procan!	Sends a rowboat (if available) full of barrels of oil to explode alongside the target ship (must be within 200 feet)
Kill them All	All weapons of the ordered type target and fire on the enemy crew, if within 100 feet.
Launch Attack!	Launches whatever mobile units the ship has against the target.
Rip it Open!	Orders the crew to rip out any grappling hooks and cables in the target ship, damaging it.
Drag it Down	Attempt to shop the target ship from moving, if it is attached by harpoons or hooks.
Ram Them	If less than 50 feet between ships, and the active ship is moving faster than the target ship, the crew tries to ram the target.
Evasive Manoeuvres	Improves the armour class of the ship for one round, but causes Disadvantage on attacks this round. Requires an Insight check.
Hide	Can only be taken if there are suitable obstacles (reef, islands, fog, etc). Requires a Survival check.
Hoist the Colours!	The ship raises pennants designed to send a message (plague aboard, parlay, trade, allies, surrender, steer clear, etc). The target ship can make an Insight check to determine its response.
Club Hauling!	The ship makes a sharp turn whilst the ship drops anchor, pivoting the ship 180 degrees. Causes damage to the ship.
Dead Stop	Drops anchor and stops the ship instantly, causing it to take damage.
Gnome It!	The ship feints to one side then the other. Requires a Deception check. Gives Disadvantage on attacks from the enemy ship for the next round.
Faster!	The ship gains an additional 5 feet per round movement speed until the end of combat. This stresses the ship, causing it to take damage each round.
Ramming Speed!	Requires oars or paddles, and a ram weapon. If within 100 feet of the target increases ship speed considerably and makes an attack against the target's hull. If successful the ships are locked together.
Reduce Speed	Reduces the ships speed to any speed chosen (minimum of 10 feet per round).

BOSUN
Debris	Drops pitch covered barrels behind the ship, and sets them on fire, forming a minor obstacle.
A Little Surprise!	Rigs a single explosive barrel which is dropped overboard. Takes a full Action and the target ship must be within 400 feet.
Improvised Shot	Uses improvised ammo for an attack by a mangonel or trebuchet, causing more damage if it hits.
Wet That!	Drenches flammable components of the ship in water, giving Advantage to saving throws against Fire damage for the combat.
Jury Rig	Orders the crew to make makeshift repairs to the ship or a component of the ship.
All Hands on Deck!	In dire circumstances, to stop the ship sinking, the bosun orders all crew to help keep the ship afloat. Requires a standard Action and can use any number of the ships orders. For each order the hull is repaired by a certain amount.
Bucket Chain!	If the ship has a Bilge Pump upgrade, water can be removed from the hull, giving Advantage to saving throws against Sinking for the next round.
Cannibalise	Rips apart one ships component to repair another. Takes two rounds and requires a full Action from the Bosun.

QUARTERMASTER
Target Component	This orders an attack against a specific component of the target ship (sails, oars, helm, weapon emplacement, etc) within 300 feet. Requires an Investigation check to determine whether the attack is made with Advantage or Disadvantage.
Target Squadron	Gives an order to target an incoming squadron or unit that is within 200 feet. Must use a ballista or harpoon, and if successful the attack does extra damage.
Weighted Shot	Extra weight is added to a shot. This halves the range of the weapon attack but adds extra damage. Requires an Intelligence check.
Rally for Pay	Offers the crew a reward for winning the engagement. Costs 5 silver pieces per crew member, and improves CQ by 1 for the remainder of the combat. Can be used twice per battle.
Rig for Speed	Increases the ships speed by 5 feet per round for the combat. Requires the ship to make a Dexterity check.
Lighten the Load	Orders the crew to dump cargo, increasing speed by five feet per round until the ship is restocked. Requires a CQ check.

SURGEON
Maximum Casualties	The surgeon orders a single weapon from a weapon component to target the crew of the other ship. The target ship must be no more than 100 feet away.
Old Sea Bones	The surgeon uses their knowledge of sea creature anatomy to deal more damage to a sea creature. They can order the crew to attack critical areas of sea creatures, alive or undead, to increase damage. Requires a Medicine check.
Butcher’s Work	The surgeon orders the crew to begin treating the wounded. Can restore lost crew members. A paladin can use their Lay on Hands to have a similar effect as a standard Action.
Invigorating Tonic	The surgeon’s lot in life is to keep the crew alive and tonics are excellent at that! The surgeon orders crew to distribute a tonic. For the duration of the combat, the ship gains +1 to their Crew Quality score. The tonic can only be issued once per long rest.
Heal Up	The surgeon can use 1 Medical store to restore 1d8 hit points to any character within 10 feet, and on the ship, as a standard Action.
Insanity	The surgeon induces a state of hyperactivity in the crew. Considered deeply unethical by many healers, Insanity is a potion given to the crew of a ship. For 1d8 rounds the ship’s speed is increased by 5 feet per round, and the ship can perform 1 additional order per round. At the end of the potion’s duration, 1d10 sailors die as a result of the potion. Any PCs who have taken the potion gain 5 feet of extra speed and 1 additional bonus action for the duration. At the end they gain 2 levels of fatigue.

SHIP'S MAGE
Distraction	When a target is within 100 feet the mage can attempt to distract the target crew with a siren’s song, a flash of light on the water, or a sudden wind buffet. Mages can get creative. The target must make a CQ check or lose 1 ship’s order for the round. This takes a standard Action on behalf of the ship’s mage.
Sparkling Lights	The ship’s mage throws sparkling lights into the air, or out into the water to a maximum distance of 100 feet. The lights blind, daze, and distract mounted units reducing the incoming damage for a mounted unit squadron attack by 1d10 for the round.
Ward	The ship’s mage makes an an Arcana check to impose disadvantage on the next spell attack made against the ship or crew.
Disrupting Hex	The ship’s mage makes an Arcana check to give advantage to the ship and crew for the next saving throw from a spell that has been in effect for one round or more.
Protection of Magics	The ship’s mage waves the ship’s totem around (a small relic said to hold magical power, but probably just some driftwood from the beach) and claims magic protects the ship. For the duration of the battle the CQ is increased by 1. The mage must succeed on a Performance check to use this.
Wind!	The ship’s mage can summon a small wind that fills the sails of the ship. This takes a standard Action. It can be performed once per day by a spell caster of levels 1–10, twice per day by a spell caster level 11–15 and three times per day for higher level casters. It lasts for 1 turn or for as long as concentration is maintained to a maximum of 10 rounds. The ship gains 10 feet of movement for the duration of the spell.
Invisible Workforce	The ship’s mage summons an invisible energy that can drive a ship’s paddles, oars, or flippers for up to 10 rounds, provided the ship’s mage maintains concentration. This workforce increases the ship’s speed by 20 feet per round. It can be performed once per day by a spell caster of levels 1–10, twice per day by a spell caster level 11–15 and three times per day for higher level casters.
Read the Wind	Careful observation of the wind, the water, and a minor incantation allows the ship’s mage to offer sage advice. The mage must make a Survival check to make use of the differing wind currents. If successful the ship gains 10 feet of movement per round for one round. This is only useful for ships that use sails.
Control Currents!	The ship’s mage can summon a strong current that propels the ship forward. This takes a standard Action. It can be performed once per day by a spell caster of levels 1–10, twice per day by a spell caster level 11–15 and three times per day for higher level casters. It lasts for 1 turn or for as long as concentration is maintained to a maximum of 10 rounds. The ship gains 10 feet of movement for the duration of the spell. This is only useable by ships below the surface of the water.
Ship Mending	As a standard Action, the ship’s mage can use the magic of the oceans to repair 1d10 HP to any ship component. No spell slots or material components are necessary to use ship mending, but it may only be used by the ship’s mage three times per long rest. *Note, this ship action is much more powerful and separate from the spell Mending. The spell Mending cannot be used to repair any part of a ship due to its limited effect as a cantrip.

BOARDING ACTIONS	Can be used by any officer when two ships are at 0 feet apart on the Scaled Movement Tracker
Have at ‘Em	The crew prepare to attack without mercy. The ranking officer must make an Intimidation or Persuasion check. If successful the crew gain CQ+2 for this combat. You cannot issue this order if the Repel Boarders order has been given to this crew this turn.
Strafe the Decks	The ranking officer orders one of the ship’s weapon components that can fire at range less than 20 feet, to fire on the deck of the enemy ship, and thus the sailors aboard. This will effect both friend and foe alike.
Protect the…	The order assigns a certain number of crew to guard the captain or other important individual, such as a prince or ambassador, on the ship. For each crew member assigned to protect the individual add 10 temporary hit points to the individual being protected. Reduce the ship’s crew number by the same amount of crew assigned in this way for purposes of calculating crew versus crew numbers.
Grapple	Grappling hooks, ropes, chains, and gang planks are lowered to allow crew to cross easily. The grappling ship makes a Strength check versus the AC of the target ship’s hull. If successful, both ships’ speeds are reduced to 0 and neither can attempt to move away. Once grappled, on the following round any number of crew, PCs, ship’s guard can move onto the other ship. No checks are needed.
Pull Away	Using poles to push away, axes to cut lines, and pulling hard on the wheel, the grappled ship attempts to break free. It must make a Strength check versus the Strength check of the grappling ship. If successful the ship is no longer considered grappled and its speed is considered to be 10 feet per round. Chase combat now resumes.
Repel Boarders	The crew prepare to engage with attackers. The ranking officer must rally the sailors with a Persuasion or Performance check. If successful the crew gain CQ+2 for this combat. You cannot issue this order if Have at ‘Em has already been ordered for this crew this turn.

Levelling Up

Ships do not "level up" like player characters. Nevertheless, both they and their crew can be upgraded, at a cost of time and various resources. The kinds of things that can be upgraded are listed below, but this is by no means an exhaustive list.

• Improving Crew Quality (CQ) by training, better pay, etc
• Using better quality building materials
• More, or bigger, weapon emplacements
• Larger holds for trade goods and stores
• Various new pieces of equipment, such as bilge pumps, rain catchers, better facilities
• Unique, species specific improvements
• There are even rumours of ships with magical enhancements, though this seems unlikely!

Underwater Combat and Drowning

Underwater Combat by Unknown

When adventurers pursue Sahuagin back to their undersea homes, fight off sharks in an ancient shipwreck, or find themselves in a flooded dungeon room, they must fight in a challenging environment.
Underwater the following rules apply.

1. When making a melee weapon attack, a creature that doesn’t have a swimming speed (either natural or granted by magic) has disadvantage on the attack roll, unless the weapon is a dagger, javelin, shortsword, spear, or trident.
2. A ranged weapon attack automatically misses a target beyond the weapon’s normal range. Even against a target within normal range, the attack roll has disadvantage unless the weapon is a crossbow , a net, or a weapon that is thrown like a javelin (including a spear, trident, or dart).
3. Firearms do not function underwater.
4. Creatures and objects that are fully immersed in water have resistance to fire damage.
5. Spells that have a verbal component cannot be cast unless the caster is willing to lose a substantial amount of air, or has some kind of ability to breathe underwater.

Drowning

As harsh a death as there is, drowning is a real risk when out at sea.

• A character is considered drowning when they cannot breathe their normal atmosphere and are inhaling a different atmosphere. A race that breathes air will drown when it starts to breath water. A race that breathes water will drown if it starts to breath lava, amongst other things.
• A creature can hold its breath for a number of minutes equal to 1 + its Constitution modifier (minimum of 30 seconds).
• When a creature runs out of breath or is choking, it can survive for a number of rounds equal to its Constitution modifier (minimum of 1 round). At the start of its next turn it must make a DC 15 Constitution Save (DC increases by 1 for each subsequent round) or it drops to 0 hit points and is dying. It can’t regain hit points or be stabilized until it can breathe again.
  For example, a creature with a Constitution of 14 can hold its breath for 3 minutes. If it starts suffocating, it has 2 rounds to reach air before it drops to 0 hit points.
• Casting a spell with a verbal component can be done, but uses up all the PC's remaining air.
• If a PC gets hit, or is otherwise physically stressed, they have to make a Con save (DC 15), or lose a minute of their air supply.
• A drowned character can be resurrected.