4. Boatman’s Tavern Basement

The Forgotten Depths Beneath the Ale

Beneath the worn timbers and riotous laughter of the Boatman’s Tavern lies something far darker than old kegs and salted meat. The basement complex, hidden behind a trapdoor cleverly concealed behind the bar, is a decaying warren of shadows—a haven for smuggling, detention, and torture. While most believe it to be a simple storeroom, it houses a chilling secret known only to Captain Tolub, Lodriss, Madame Selentis, and a trusted few.

Tolub’s Smuggler’s Chamber (Northern Basement)

This low-ceilinged, torch-lit chamber behind reinforced warehouse doors is Captain Tolub’s private landing zone for illicit river cargo. The flooring is stone-set, permanently damp, with moss creeping between the cracks. Stacked crates and unlabeled barrels are piled up like a maze, their contents hidden beneath tarps and old sailcloth.

• Contents: Spices from distant ports, crates of stolen textiles, black-market weapons, and barrels of Velunese wine—all looted during Tolub’s river raids.
• Dock Access: At low tide, a concealed ramp opens to the rear pier, hidden beneath a trapdoor disguised as a freight-loading dock. Slaves, weapons, or rare cargo can be quietly moved in and out.
• Security: Two of Tolub’s crew members always remain nearby, armed with cutlasses and orders to kill anyone snooping. Some crates are rigged with tripwire noisemakers.
• Relationship to the Temple: Tolub stores and delivers Temple-bound goods here, though he resents their control. He is tolerated by Selentis and Lodriss for the usefulness of his spoils.

Main Tavern Storage (Main Basement)

Located at the foot of the wharfside stone steps, this section is used for the Boatman Tavern’s day-to-day operations. Compared to the rest of the basement, it smells of grain and brewing yeast. A long row of dusty wine racks line the back wall, housing bottles of local red, fermented berry mash, and a few exotic imports taken from pirate loot. Smoky wall-mounted oil lanterns flicker and cast long shadows over crates and barrels, giving the room a dim glow. Moisture clings to the stone, and a faint mist creeps in from the pier with each tide, curling along the ground like a ghost. Stacked casks of ale and piles of salted meat are bound with thick rope and labeled with crude chalk tags.

• Contents: Ale barrels, smoked fish racks, sacks of barley, wheels of aged cheese, dried fruit, and tankards of spiced root mash.
• Staff: Typically managed by Skole or a pirate assistant. Skole ensures legitimate-looking inventory is maintained separately from Tolub’s goods.
• Signs of Overlap: Keen eyes may notice duplicate barrel marks or mismatched manifests—a clue that legitimate and smuggled goods occasionally blur.
• Lore: This chamber is occasionally used as a cover for quiet bribes or hiding Temple goods in the open.

The Flooded Prison Room (Southern Wall Chamber)

Beneath the Boatman’s laughter and lantern glow lies a cramped, damp warren that serves three masters at once: smuggler’s artery, “legit” storeroom, and drowned gaol. A trapdoor behind the bar drops into narrow stone halls where stacked crates form a shifting maze strung with quiet tripwires; farther in, yeast-and-grain give way to mildew and iron, and the floor tilts toward a half-flooded chamber of rusted cages, a stained rack, and chains that never quite stop swaying. Lanterns spit smoke, river mist creeps under the door, and a slick, plank-braced tunnel—just wide enough for two men and a crate—snakes off toward a ruined shack for midnight handoffs. It is Hosk “Chains” Varlek’s kingdom: ledgers dry on wine racks, keys hang heavy at his hip, and every footfall above has a shadowed answer below.

Hidden Door

Hidden behind a stone wall panel with a barrel rack set before it, the dungeon is a dreadful place of old horrors and drowned secrets. River seepage constantly leaks through the foundation, collecting into slick pools beneath the cages. Mildew cakes the stone. Blood and rust streak the floor. The secret entrance to the smuggler’s tunnel is cleverly hidden behind a moldy ale cask pressed into a stone alcove. A DC 17 Investigation check or DC 18 Perception check reveals the uneven scrape marks and iron hinge concealed in the shadows.

• Conditions: The air is cold and fetid. Water laps against half-submerged cages. The stench of rot competes with that of mold and mildew. A layer of mist crawls the ground.
• Contents:
• Iron Torture Rack: Still functional, flanked by hooks and chains.
• Four Slave Cages: One contains the bloated corpse of a merchant, another is empty but damp with blood, the third has claw marks on the bars, and the last contains only torn cloth and gnawed bone.
• Two Interrogation Cells: Damp straw and rusted buckets remain, signs of recent use.
• Dead Bodies: Forgotten victims, slowly decomposing. Flies and pale fungi spread across their remains.
• Tunnel Access: A hidden panel behind the ale cask opens to a narrow, stone-lined tunnel. The passage is slick, braced with planks, and ends beneath a collapsed fishing shack east of the tavern. Used for secret transfers or escape.
• Trapdoor Ladder Access: A rotting wooden ladder in one corner leads up to a trapdoor that exits into the Boatman’s Tavern kitchen. The hatch is locked from above and covered with flour sacks.
• Lore and Use: Selentis uses the dungeon for high-value prisoners—traitors, spies, or “donations” bound for sacrificial rituals. Lodriss provides the muscle, and Tolub disposes of remains in the river when needed.

Adventuring Notes

• DC 14 Survival or Investigation check reveals dried blood smears, drag marks, and boot prints to the prison wall.
• DC 15 Perception identifies distant sobs, the faint clink of chains, or a moaning voice echoing through the stone.
• Clues Found: Temple papers, slave ledgers, ritual knives, and half-torn notes from terrified captives may all be recovered here.

Boatman's Tavern Basement by 3orcs

Conclusion: The Rot Beneath the Revelry

This basement is no mere cellar—it is a crucible of cruelty and control, where laughter above masks the pain below. Every barrel, every bloodstain tells a tale of corruption. And any who uncover its secrets face a decision: expose it… or become the next forgotten voice beneath the tavern.

d20 Captain Tolub Piracy Loot – Bulk Goods (Basement Storage)

Hosk “Chains” Varlek — Warden of the Drowned Keys

Keeper of the Boatman’s Basement for Lodriss and Skole (and useful to Madame Selentis)

Role & Presence

A narrow-shouldered man with a ropey strength, old bite scars on his forearms, and a loop of iron links at his belt. Hosk moves like a patient spider—soft-soled boots, whistle kept between his teeth, eyes always counting exits. He “keeps order” below the Boatman’s: receives captives, breaks spirits, and schedules midnight transfers through the hidden tunnel. The basement’s existence, trapdoor access, and its use for smuggling and detention are known only to a small circle—Tolub, Lodriss, Selentis, and a few trusted hands.

Personality

• Bureaucratic sadist: Courteous voice, fussy about ledgers and routines; cruelty delivered like paperwork.
• Risk-averse schemer: Lets others draw blood while he pulls strings from safety.
• Listener, not talker: Files away every word; mimics accents later to set traps.

Motivations & Goals

• Keep the line moving. On time transfers through the rear ramp and the collapsed-shack tunnel earn him Lodriss’s coin and Selentis’s favor.
• Protect the secret. The bar-trapdoor, hidden panel, and kitchen hatch stay undiscovered; snoops are “repackaged.”
• Leverage, not loyalty. Hoards slave ledgers and notes to blackmail pirates, cultists, or PCs.

Methods & Territory

• Smuggler’s Chamber (north): Uses the maze of crates and tripwire noisemakers to stall intruders while pirates converge.
• Flooded Prison (south): Works the half-submerged cages and rack; keeps prisoners miserable but alive for sale or sacrifice. DC 17 Investigation/18 Perception to find the door.
• Transfer Routes: Narrow tunnel to the collapsed fishing shack; emergency kitchen hatch locked from above.

Tactics

• Open: In humanoid form, hangs back, uses Help (Mastermind) to feed allies advantage; blows whistle to raise the north-room alarm.
• Midfight: Shifts to hybrid in darkness; fights with shortsword + Sneak Attack, uses Cunning Action to melt into crate-shadows or climb damp stone.
• Control: Lures foes into flooded footing; orders minions to shove targets against cages/rack.
• Escape: Potion of invisibility → tunnel run; leaves caltrops and a chained “decoy” prisoner to delay pursuit.

Relationships

• Lodriss/Skole: “The bosses.” He delivers results, pays a cut, and keeps their names off the paper.
• Madame Selentis: Shares select pages when it hurts rivals; expects protection when heat rises.
• Tolub: Professional friction—Hosk inventories pirate cargo and “loses” things that look too noisy. (Tripwire crates are his.)

Secrets & Clues the PCs Can Find

• Coded journal (Thieves’ Cant): prisoner schedules, bribe lists, and a sketch of the tunnel route (advantage to track transfers for a week).
• Ledger cache: Names, ransoms, ritual notes, and Temple papers hidden in a bottle rack false back.
• Whistle signal: Two short, one long = bar the pier doors; long trill = move a captive via tunnel.

Adventure Hooks

• Midnight Handoff: Intercept a transfer at the shack exit while Hosk supervises under invisibility.
• Paper Cuts: Trade the ledger for amnesty—then watch Selentis and Tolub turn on each other.
• Silver Problem: Town rumor: “The chain-man bleeds wrong.” Finding silvered weapons flips the fight fast.

Sample Lines

• “Keep your voice low. The river hears better than I do.”
• “You’re not prisoners… yet. Tell me whose ledger you belong in.”
• “If you see the fog down here, it’s already too late. That’s the river coming to collect.”