The River-Temple

a follow up on the evil boat hoard from this post
Level 3 Heretic Temple
Crown: the Riverbed Servitors
Riverbed Servitors are humanoid nightmare creatures, cloaked in sodden black robes. The sludge of riverbed detritus can be seen under their hoods, shaped into the approximation of a face. Mundane weapons mire in them as your feet might in a mud flat at low tide.

This boat resembles the trading barges common to rivers in the Kingdoms of Law, but seems so decrepit as to seem barely afloat. The splintered remains of oars emerge from their holes in the hull and feebly twist in the air, no longer able to reach the water. The boat still moves, however, dragged along from below by unseen hands, the water clouded by churned up mud.
The ship travels back and forth along the river between 0603 and 1103, traveling at a rate of 1 hex per day under all weather conditions. It lingers at 0603 for 1d4 days, and by the mouth of the river in 1103 for 1d4 days. It will only otherwise stop if its passage is blocked (issuing forth 2d6 Riverbed Servitors per day to clear the obstacle) or if there is opportunity to invite willing guests aboard.
If the boat spots travelers that are not hostile to it, Matheo will hail them and attempt to invite them aboard. When you make a reaction roll under these circumstances, interpret friendly results as a desire to spread the nightmare elsewhere through gifts, and hostile results as a desire to entrap the players inside to feed the central nightmare.


1. The Deck
Rope ladders hanging from either side of the boat lead up to a rickety wooden railing, covered in cracks and cuts from years of neglect. The wooden planks of the deck similarly show signs of cuts, scrapes, and blows. In spite of this every surface is kept spotless and clean. When first boarding, 1d4 Riverbed Servitors are present, attending to their cleaning duties. They will favor this task over joining combat in other rooms or pursuing anyone fleeing the boat, though are ready to defend the deck itself.
At the stern (north on the map) there was once a rudder attached, but being unnecessary it has been allowed to fall off.
A wooden ladder leads to a raised deck atop the cabin (2). The cabin itself has various small and oddly shaped windows that don’t seem to follow a specific logic of shape or placement, doorways obscured by hanging strings of heavy clay beads towards both the bow and stern. They clack together rhythmically with the swaying of the boat in the water.

2. Raised Deck
Under a rainproof canopy, upon sumptuously patterned rugs, surrounded on four sides by braziers burning with wood and incense, is Matheo (he/him), acting as priest of the temple. He splits his time between playing at giving orders to the Riverbed Servitors (who are largely able to carry out the nightmare’s wishes directly, outside of interacting with humans) and plotting new ways to spread the influence of the nightmare he has dedicated himself to. His orders are twofold: convince those living in fearful circumstances to seek safety aboard the Temple, and send those who are not receptive to the idea away with gifts that might spread the nightmare to new locations. He talks of the boat as a divine gift, built in ages past as a sanctuary against disaster — and what is the exodus from Catage if not a disaster in need of a miraculous salvation?
He has a more personal goal to pursue as well. There is a previous priest of the temple who he opportunistically ousted, and he wishes her dead in fear that she might return for revenge or spread word of the Temple’s true purposes. To particularly ruthless seeming parties, or to those who see past the Temple’s facade but remain willing to deal with it, he describes Adhira (she/her) whom he believes has fled to the Valley Collaboration (0807).
The raised deck is about 10 feet above the main deck, and has a wooden ladder leading down.

Matheo
Level 4 evil human cultist
Armour 13, Hit Die 1d6, Morale 0, Speed 8, Surprise 0. Attributes 13
Skilled at religious debate, flattery, and the occult.
1 weapon attack (staff) or spell per round
Spells known: Create Object, Enlarge, Message, Detect Illusion
Matheo’s spiritual enemy is Beastlings.
He has the key to room 7.

3. The Shrine
The boat’s cabin serves as a shrine for supplicants to the temple. A huge copper pool dominates the center, full of water, with 5d6 coins scattered in it as offerings, and a 1-in-4 chance of an additional special coinage (from &&&&&&&&& Treasure). The water in this pool is deathly cold at all times, and anyone reaching, falling, or otherwise entering the water must save against health or take 1d6 damage. To the side of the pool sits a chest for offerings that cannot be made wet.
The walls of the shrine are covered in intricate wood carvings, depicting human cities in miniature being watched over by hooded robed figures that loom above them, often emerging from bodies of water and bearing gifts of fish and whales. The hooded figures have no faces, in their place small windows are left to the outside of the shrine to allow light to stream in.
Concealed in the corner behind the chest is a trapdoor and ladder leading downwards to room 4. Any who make an offering to the pool or chest have their attention drawn to it.

4. Guest Quarters
Any person entering this room finds themselves separated from their companions, in a cabin lightly furnished but bearing several qualities they find comforting — a familiar smell, their preferred light source, a bed they find comfortable to lie upon. Beside the bed sits a chest. It is empty now, but if the nightmare steals any belongings, this is where they will be placed. This is the sanctuary the boat offers, a room in which no other humans can enter. Sounds from outside the room will emanate into it, but when sounds from within the room may only be heard by their owners. Riverbed servitors can enter any guest’s quarters freely and distinguish sounds from any of them. If significantly hurt, Matheo and Nahid will try to flee to their own quarters.
A ladder to the east of the room ascends into room 3, and a curtain of beads to the south leads to room 5.

5. Corridor
This corridor is unlit and unadorned. Wooden slits in the walls are large enough to see into rooms 6. The interred boatmen within rooms 6 can and will reach through these slits to grab at anyone fighting in the corridor or trying to force the door to room 7 open. A curtain of beads to the north leads to room 4, and a locked and sturdy door to the south leads to room 7.
Nahid (they/them) is lurking in this hallway. They are a recent addition to the Temple. A communist guerrilla fleeing from the Kingdoms of Law, they survived the slaughter of most of their comrades at the Rittersnake dam in 0603 by boarding the ship, and they are wracked by guilt. The nightmare has a hold on them through their fear, but they are not fully given over to it. They are actively trying to square their philosophy and the temple’s mechanisms into one coherent whole to justify their continued presence aboard it, but cannot convince themselves fully.

Nahid
Level 2 chaotic human fighter
Armour 13, Hit Die 1d8, Morale -2, Speed 7, Surprise 0. Attributes 10, Fer 15
Skilled at fighting, scavenging, labouring, and falconry.
1 weapon attack as fighter (falchion) per round.

6. The Crew
Ten interred servants (stats as silent accusers) are seated in each of these chambers, from which there are no entrances or exits to accommodate them. They work the useless oars and hate to be interrupted.

7. Reliquary
The nightmare here is anchored by a broken compass, from which icy cold water drips forever, inside a wooden trunk with a cloth draped over it to serve as a shrine. This anchor is worth 1600 coins to one willing and able to buy such a thing. The walls are carved much like the walls of room 3, but the hooded figure’s empty faces are windows into unidentifiable murk and they are shown to be leading the human cities in war against strange geometric monoliths emanating from the ground. Atop the trunk-turned-shrine are a much-rusted brand and a copied codex (both from &&&&&&&&& Treasure).
Two large chests sit on the floor. One contains 1000 coins donated to the temple. The other contains the rare powdered spices that Matheo gives as gifts or trades with the Rittersnakes at 0603, worth another 1000 coins in this quantity.


Encounter die d8
special event for a 2-3: an item conspicuously goes missing. It can now be found in it’s owner’s version of room 4, in the chest if it is small or hung decoratively on the wall if it is larger.

1-2. 1d4 Riverbed Servitors (stats as Wound Men)

3. 1 willing Temple cultist (stats as Thaumaturgist)

4. 1 Temple resident, undecided on allegiance

New Riverbed Servitors enter the Temple from the river below it, climbing aboard the deck. They may enter any version of Room 4. cultists and residents emerge from their versions of room 4 and cannot enter the room 4 of others — if they are encountered while there, they can be heard outside.

Stats, rules, procedures etc assume use of The Nightmares Underneath.
Stat blocks for Wound Men and Thaumaturgists found in the bestiary available on Johnstone Metzger’s patreon.
Map made with Dungeon Scrawl.