Seafaring loot ideas for your next D&D 5e session!
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Hey traveler,
Welcome to this new entry for "Ink and Dice", the Isshobi blog where we're gonna share tips, resources, behind-the-scenes, design bits, and art from our world of Irydale!
Seafaring treasures and loot for 5e
Today we're gonna briefly discuss and give you a few ready-to-use ideas for your next session.
Are you playing a full-on maritime campaign, or has your party simply ventured off the coast? It can sometimes be difficult to come up with themed loot ideas for what can be found both in the depths of the sea, oceanic ruins, shipwrecks, or simply on small atolls.
One thing to keep in mind if you're trying to design small rewards for your party is to avoid focusing too much on the value of the items themselves. It can be tempting to enrich the loot with gold, gems, art objects, etc to create excitement, but ultimately, with the way D&D 5e is structured, gold is not as useful as it could be. Oftentimes it's much better to spark the curiosity of the player and reward them with something that has a small utility or can unlock an extra bit of lore of the world.
Trinkets and curiosities
Here is a small d10 table of themed trinkets you can use on the fly!
Maritime themed trinkets
| d10 | You find | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coral Pendant | Polished coral pendant, faint warmth when submerged in seawater |
| 2 | Coral Inkpot | Hollow coral inkpot; refills with briny black ink each dawn. |
| 3 | Black Pearl | Pearl etched with spirals, rattles faintly when shaken |
| 4 | Driftwood Mask | Mask carved as a weeping face, drips saltwater occasionally. |
| 5 | Algae Jar | Jar of glowing algae |
| 6 | Star Map | Cloth map of constellations, useful for navigation. |
| 7 | Broken Spyglass | Cracked spyglass, shows faint silhouettes of ghostly ships. |
| 8 | Clamshell | A very large clamshell that will not open. |
| 9 | Corked Bottle | Corked frosted glass bottle labeled "North Wind". |
| 10 | Drifting Locket | Copper locket floats on water, image inside eroded to blank. There are carved initials on it. |
Making your loot more magical!
Following are 2 magic items that fit the same maritime feel. These come directly from our magic item compendium, Treasures Untold, a book filled with hundreds of magic items, trinkets and more! You can use them as rewards for quests, store them in a sunken treasures chest or even better, use them to start the next adventure!
If you're not familiar, each item starts with a lore block telling you a bit about the item itself, followed by D&D-ready mechanics and a tool we call "Narrative link" or "Plot device" which is a way for you to integrate the item in the world right away.
1-Marisport's Sailor Garb
Lore
Cut from waxed cloth and lined with eel-threaded mesh, this garb is standard wear among Marisport’s long-haulers and ship guides. It repels water, resists tearing, and clings close in heavy wind. Most are patched, sun-faded, and handed down through crews, prized more for utility than ornament. A well-kept set is a mark of inexperience.
clothing (robe), uncommon
While wearing this garb, you gain advantage on saving throws against strong winds, being knocked prone, or moved by environmental effects, such as ship heaves, sudden gusts, or turbulent decks. You also have advantage on Dexterity (Acrobatics) checks made to maintain footing aboard ships or in similar unstable environments. Crew's Resolve. If an ally wearing similar sailor’s garb is within 20 feet of you, both of you gain a +1 bonus to Armor Class and saving throws against being grappled or restrained, as your practiced teamwork and reflexes kick in. This effect can apply to multiple allies wearing the garb, but no character can benefit from more than 2 at once.
The Marisport trading company
The Marisport Trading Company fields a dozen merchant crews, each sworn to the ledger and marked by uniform. Sailor garbs are passed down with seniority, each set patched and branded with crew sigils, stitched debt records, and initials of prior holders. Newcomers “buy in” to the garb—and the obligation. Garments that go missing are pursued, not for magic, but because they serve as binding contracts.
2-Damarune Stone
Lore
As the legends go, this stone is not of this realm but a fragment of the moon Daeria, which once graced the night skies. Fishermen from the coastal villages carry this stone as a charm. When cast into the water, it lures fish and other sea creatures closer, ensuring a bountiful catch. A true treasure for those who understand its value, ensuring their nets are never empty.
Wondrous item, common
As an action, you can cast the Damarune Stone into a body of water. For the next hour, aquatic creatures within a 120-foot radius of the stone are drawn toward its location. Tiny or Small creatures are charmed by the stone for the duration, willingly swimming into nets or traps set within range. Once used, the stone becomes inert.
Daeria’s Fate
Reports have surfaced of a luminous phenomenon beneath the waves, drawing exotic and unknown marine creatures to the coasts near Marisport. Town rumors speak of Daeria’s heart, the largest fragment of the lost moon, lying in a submerged temple. This might be the best chance yet to uncover the mysteries around the moon’s disappearance.
Which of these are most likely to spark your player's curiosity?
Thanks for reading,
Rob of Isshobi