"The Styes" Is a Great D&D Adventure from GHOSTS OF SALTMARSH

Roll20 was recently kind enough to let me get a taste of the new Dungeons & Dragons adventure module Ghosts of Saltmarsh. I was gifted a copy of one of the adventures called “The Styes” along with tokens, handouts, and the like to see how I liked it. I will say, I really enjoyed it. I wish I could’ve been a player, but overall, it was very solid. I’m going to put a spoiler warning in case you don’t want to know what happens. Simply know, this one adventure was a lot of fun, and we didn’t even get to finish it yet due to time.

So, “The Styes” is designed for 4-6 level 11 players and is set up more as a mystery with a hint of Lovecraftian influence. When I was reading through it, I was reminded of Mansions of Madness a little bit and loved it. A man was essentially possessed and used by a cult to commit murders. He is then caught and killed, but his friend knows he didn’t do it and so he wants to find out the truth. That’s when the heroes come in and they get to find out what’s really going on leading back to a fish-like creature and kraken. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get all the way to the end with my group yet, but with how far we did get, it was a ton of fun and it was nice to have the guidance of the adventure. There’s plenty for inexperienced DMs to pull from, and yet it’s adaptable enough for more experienced DMs to add their personal touch.

There were a couple of things that my players kept asking that I had to make up or really try to steer them towards something, but results may vary based on your player group. For instance, they kept asking about how common cremation was (a suspect was quickly caught and cremated) and that detail felt like it was buried. Once again though, your players will probably have different questions. Just be sure to read through it once or twice and you should be fine.

As for using Roll20, I really enjoy the tokens that come with the module. I also appreciate that they have HP, AC, and statblocks already in for convenience. The HP bars are especially nice for DMs, and it’s possible to make it so that players don’t see it and cheat. It can be a bit much for new players, but if you have time to sit down and learn how things work (it’s not too hard), Roll20 has plenty of great tools.

All in all, if “The Styes” is any indication of what to expect from Ghosts of Saltmarsh, I am really excited to look at the other adventures and highly recommend it.