Lightning on Dead Oars

Overview

The ghost galley's grapples slam into the hull before anyone gives an order to board — the dead don't wait for permission. Six Bone Rowers pour over the starboard rail with the mechanical efficiency of slaves who performed this maneuver a thousand times and have never been told to stop. A Bone Lochagos screams commands in archaic Greek from the ghost prow — not battle-rage but drill sequence #7, the same boarding drill they practiced in life. They are not attacking the party out of malice; they are following a routine they cannot exit.

Terrain: Wet deck — difficult terrain in the 10-ft strip along the grappled rail (crashing spray). Three grapple hooks bite the gunwale. The party must hold their main deck before the skeleton tide presses them to the stern.

APL 10 tuning: Boost Bone Rower HP to 26 (double) and add a second Bone Lochagos for a Hard encounter. The Lochagos Elite has HP 84 (+30) and can use Rattle Order twice per combat instead of once on a recharge.

Non-Combat Options

• Mass Turn Attempt. Three PCs use Channel Divinity or lead a group Religion check (DC 14, 3 successes among the group) — drives half the remaining Bone Rowers back to the ghost rail and Stunned for 1 round. Once per encounter.
• Cut the Grapples. Athletics DC 13 (action) to sever one grapple hook from the gunwale. Severing all three ends the Lochagos's ability to call boarding reinforcements — he can no longer use Rattle Order to summon skeletons across the gap.
• Name the Drill Aloud. Insight DC 14 on the skeletons (bonus action): reveals they're executing rote formation drill. A cleric, paladin, or character with military background who says "They're running boarding drill — break the formation" aloud grants Advantage to the next creature that uses Turn Undead or a control effect this encounter.

Mechanics

• Win: All Bone Rowers and the Lochagos reduced to 0 HP or driven back past the grapple line — the ghost galley's boarding attempt collapses.
• Oar Gang: Each Bone Rower adjacent to at least one other Bone Rower gains +1 AC. Bunching them is their default — area effects punish it.
• Reinforcement wave (Round 3 if no grapples cut): 1d4 Bone Rowers crawl over the rail at the start of Round 3 unless all grapples are severed.
• Lodestone Nail: The nail vibrates harder when a Bone Rower is within 5 ft. of it. DM foreshadowing only — no mechanical effect yet.

Overview

Two Storm Knights step off the ghost rail and walk amidships as if they own the deck. Three Tempest Effigies condense from the storm itself — not from the ghost galley but from the air between the ships, drawn by the accumulated charge. The knights fight with perfect military discipline, not aggression. They are executing a boarding action because they were ordered to secure the deck and the order was never rescinded. Their lightning auras crackle at 5 ft. — fighting them in melee is punishing.

Terrain: The amidships mast and sail rigging create a choke point. Climbing the rigging (Athletics DC 12) grants high ground (+1 to ranged attack rolls) but exposes you to the Effigies' Static Burst. The Lodestone Nail hums loudly enough to be audible now.

APL 10 tuning: Give each Storm Knight an extra 30 HP (HP 98) and boost the Effigies to 55 HP each. Add 1 extra Tempest Effigy (4 total) for a true Hard encounter. Alternatively, one knight uses Thunder Step on Round 1 to split the party.

Non-Combat Options

• Name Him Dead. Insight DC 14 to recognize the emptiness in a knight's eyes (bonus action), then Persuasion or History DC 15 to name the admiral's fleet and when it sank. Success: the knight pauses — becomes inert armor (remove from fight). Failure by 3 or less: the knight delays his action until end of round, processing. Failure by 4+: no further diplomacy checks vs. that knight this encounter.
• Ground an Effigy with the Nail. Action to press the Lodestone Nail against a Tempest Effigy within 5 ft. or touch it: the effigy becomes Grounded (speed 0, flight disabled, vulnerability to bludgeoning) until the end of your next turn. The nail can be used this way once per short rest.
• Formation Command. Performance or Intimidation DC 16, spoken in correct ancient Greek military form (Linguistics/History DC 13 identifies the right form): all Storm Knights must succeed on DC 13 Wisdom save or spend their movement only this round, compelled by the old chain of command instinct. A character with a military background makes this check with Advantage.

Mechanics

• Win: All Storm Knights and Tempest Effigies defeated or removed from the fight.
• Lightning Aura: Creatures that start their turn within 5 ft. of a Storm Knight take 3 (1d6) lightning damage — even allies. Don't cluster.
• Nail in Effigy: Pressing the Lodestone Nail against a Tempest Effigy sets speed to 0, disables flight, and gives vulnerability to bludgeoning until the nail is removed or end of scene.
• Transition: After Enc. 2, the ghost galley's stern — where the admiral's shade waits — is now visible through the smoke. The party must choose: press forward across the grapple gap, or take a short rest first. Rhea recommends pressing forward before the admiral summons another boarding wave.

Overview

Admiral Lysander's Shade stands at the ghost stern, issuing quiet commands in a voice that carries over thunder but never reaches living ears. A remaining Bone Lochagos, 2× Tempest Effigies, and 3× skeletal rowers fill the ghost deck. The admiral is not monstrous — he is precise. He fights with the economy of someone who has maintained battle-readiness for forty years and sees no reason to change his methods now that he is dead.

Terrain: The ghost galley's deck is tilted 5° (difficult terrain unless Athletics/Acrobatics DC 12 to compensate). The ghost mast is the decisive objective — driving the Lodestone Nail into it suppresses all Storm Knight lightning auras and strips the admiral's lightning resistance. Blue lightning forks overhead whenever the admiral uses Mast Arc. The ghost hull glows cold-white: touching it deals 3 lightning damage.

APL 10 scaling: Lysander at 142 HP and 2 Legendary Resistances is appropriate for Deadly at APL 10. If the encounter runs easy past Round 3, deploy the optional Lesser Charybdis — the whirlpool pulls both ships and forces pilot checks alongside combat.

Non-Combat Options

• Drive the Nail into the Ghost Mast. Cross to the ghost mast through enemy lines. Action: set the nail and strike (attack roll vs. AC 15, or if no enemies adjacent, automatic placement as a full action — "mast HP" 25 to represent the drive-in). Success: all remaining Storm Knight lightning auras suppressed AND Lysander loses lightning resistance for the rest of the encounter. This is the primary tactical accelerator.
• Name Him Dead. Persuasion or History DC 17 (Advantage if the party identified the fleet in Enc. 1 or convinced a Storm Knight to stand down): Lysander knows he is dead; he simply refuses to say it. He loses Legendary Action "Order" until end of his next turn, unable to process the admission. A PC who looks him in the eye and names the date and place his fleet sank makes this check with Advantage.
• Break the Storm-Standard. Investigation DC 14 (bonus action) identifies the storm-standard at Lysander's belt as the source of Dead Command. Targeting it (AC 15, 20 HP) or Sleight of Hand DC 16 if adjacent destroys it — the Bone Lochagos no longer acts on Lysander's initiative.

Mechanics

• Win: Lysander's shade reduced to 0 HP. All remaining storm knights collapse into empty armor; the ghost galley dissolves from the prow backward over 1 minute.
• Dead Command: The Bone Lochagos acts on Lysander's initiative (20) if Lysander chooses — effectively a free skeleton captain action each round. Break the standard to remove this.
• Mast Arc (1/day): Line 60 ft. along the ghost boom, Dex DC 16, 36 (8d8) lightning. Creatures at rail height on the ghost galley have disadvantage on the save (the boom sweeps low).
• Legendary Resistance (2/day): Lysander auto-succeeds two failed saves. Budget high-DC spells carefully — use control/terrain effects before save-or-die.
• Optional Charybdis (Round 3+ if encounter runs easy): A Lesser Charybdis whirlpool begins forming beneath both ships. Each round at Init 20: ships make Dex/Str pilot check DC 14 or drift 10 ft. toward vortex; creatures failing Athletics DC 13 fall prone. The whirlpool recedes automatically when Lysander falls.