The Ferry Overfull
For 6 level 8 PCs, 3 to 3.5 hours, 3 encounters. Charon is not a kill target.
Style: Underworld disaster escort where the hardest fight is keeping order on a boat that must not sink.
Win: The living are turned back or delivered lawfully, Charon's ferry stays balanced, and the dead keep their road.
Lose: The barge capsizes into Styx; living names wash from memory while undead opportunists steal the crossing.
Maguffin: Balanced Obol Ledger · Ally: Myrto with the Blue Lantern · QG: Charon, Overworked Boatman
"A damp manifest with too many living names and only one column marked 'return fare.'"
Major Beats
- A living mother offers Charon every coin she has and the name of her last enemy.
- The dead mutter that the living always think grief is a ticket.
- The barge tilts when someone lies about who belongs aboard.
- A stolen name drips from the boss's hook like black ink.
Difficulty
| Tier | Adjust |
|---|
| As Written ★ | 6 PCs · APL 8 |
| Library Standard | 6 PCs · APL 8 — Identical to As Written — this guide’s baseline is already 6 PCs at average level 8. |
| Easier | APL 4–6: reduce minion counts ~30%; DCs −2; boss loses one recharge or legendary option. |
| Harder | APL 10–12: boss HP +25–35%; +1 legendary action; add a lieutenant or extra wave. |
ENC 1 — The Queue That Should Not Breathe
Enc. 1 - Social triage · ~50 min · Styx dock, rope lanes, obol booth, shade benches, and black water below loose planks.
- Run triage as 5 successes before 3 failures using Insight, Persuasion, Religion, Medicine, or Intimidation.
- Each failure adds 1 to the Overfull clock; at 3, passengers surge onto the barge.
- The Balanced Ledger reveals one forged fare or rightful return with each strong clue.
- Recruit Myrto by recovering her name-token from a living petitioner using it as false fare.
ENC 2 — Midstream Weight
Enc. 2 - Escort skill challenge · ~60 min · Long black ferry, pole lanes, passenger benches, coin brazier, and fog banks hiding swimmers.
- Balance clock starts at 0; failures move it toward capsize, successes move passengers to lawful places.
- Useful checks include Athletics at the pole, Persuasion at the benches, Religion with rites, and Perception in fog.
- Charon rows and judges; he helps clear one lawful order but never becomes a damage solution.
- Coin-Drowned Dead board if forged fares are burned without naming the thief first.
ENC 3 — Too Many Names in the Wake
Enc. 3 - Hard holdout · ~85 min · Tilting ferry deck, two side rails, prow ledger stand, stern bell, and grasping black water.
- At initiative 20, roll a ferry event: list, passenger fall, fog wall, or Styx surge.
- A PC can spend an action to stabilize the barge, rescue a passenger, or command a lawful seating shift.
- Maguffin payoff: place the Balanced Ledger on the prow to reveal the Fare-Thief and reset the Balance clock once.
- Charon cannot be killed for victory; if attacked, he stops rowing and the river becomes the real disaster.
NPC / ALLY
Charon, Overworked Boatman
- Keep the crossing lawful, paid, and afloat despite living petitioners forcing their way aboard.
- He will not abandon the dead, waive the oldest laws, or let the party kill passengers to simplify the load.
Myrto with the Blue Lantern
- Recruit Enc. Enc. 1 or Enc. 2: Find her missing name-token, defend her place in line, or let her speak for frightened shades.
- AC 13 · HP 55 · Lantern flare +6 to hit, 10 radiant to undead; grants advantage on one social check with dead passengers.
Remember
- The living are turned back or delivered lawfully, Charon's ferry stays balanced, and the dead keep their road.
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