The Red Rose was an impressive galleon with three masts and 130 feet in length from bow to stern. In death, the ship is a dark shadow of its former self. The sails are torn and blackened in places but the holes do not seem to slow it down. The once beautiful red wood from which the ship received its name is now dirty brown, grimy, and in rotted away in places. On the ocean it always surrounded by a low mist. The ship emits a miasma of dread and evil. Birds and fish can sense it from a mile away and flee from it in terror even if they don’t understand the source of their fear. Any attempt to take a long rest on the ghost ship is a really bad idea and any player who tries will suffer 1 level of exhaustion. Short rests are allowed but roll a 1d6 each time the players try. On a roll of 1, 1d2+1 ghost crew will stumble on the players and disturb the rest. The ghost ship sails in the ethereal plane during the day and the material plane during the night.

Main Deck: The main deck has six cannons, three on either side with a bag of powder and a small pile of cannonballs sitting next to each one. It is pockmarked with holes in the floor. Ragged ropes dangle from the masts. Stairs at the stern lead up to the quarterdeck while stairs at the bow lead up to the forcastle. There is also a door leading into the ship beneath the the quarterdeck.

There are always 4-6 ghostly crew members found on the main deck usually engaged in the standard tasks they once performed in life such as mopping the deck, managing the sails, and cleaning the cannons even though none of these tasks are needed to maintain the ghost ship anymore. The cannons are rusted and the powder useless. A character proficient in alchemy or some form of machinery may repair the cannons in about twenty minutes with a successful Intelligence DC 15 check. The door leads to hallway 1 on the upper deck.

Quarterdeck: A large steering wheel dominates the quarterdeck. Next to it is a chest with a thick lock on it.

No one but Captain Dafeers can steer the vessel and he can do it without touching the steering wheel which sways and moves of its own accord even when a ghostly ship crew pretends to hold it. The chest lock can be picked with a successful Dexterity check DC 15 (the insides are rusted) or broken apart with a successful Strength check DC 12. Inside the chest is an old periscope and an astrolabe. There is a trap set on the astrolabe. A perception check DC 14 notices the wire running from the astrolabe. A successful Dexterity check DC 15 disables the trap. Picking up the astrolabe or failing to disable the trap by 5 or more causes the box to explode and causing 3d6 fire damage to anyone within 10 feet of it.

Forcastle: The Forcastle rises above the main deck to look out onto the dark ocean and the ship’s bowsprit. A number of ropes attached to grappling hooks hang along the wall.

Crow Nest: Towering over the ship, the mainmast is the tallest point on the ship. Inside the small crow’s nest at the top hides the ghost of a small child. He stares up at you fearfully with his hand firmly gripping a thin rope.

A climb check DC 12 is required to get to the crow’s nest at the top of the main mast and to climb down. The nest is thirty feet above the main deck. Falling will result in a player taking 3d6 bludgeoning damage and crashing through the main deck into the Galley. The ghost boy’s name is William and he has been unwillingly enlisted as the ship’s cabin boy. He is terrified of Captain Dafeers and will not leave his post. However, if approached in a friendly manner he will talk about the Captain and the ship. Captain Dafeers rules with an iron fist. He powers the ship with ghosts and is always looking for more. William has a small rope that he is supposed to pull whenever he spots another ship to alert the captain and the crew. He is a noncombatant and will flee to the ethereal plane if attacked.

Hallway 1: This dark narrow hallway ends at an ornate door with a gilded frame. A more plain door is on the wall to the left and a set of stairs leading down on the right.

The door to Captain Dafeer’s quarters is magically locked and trapped. The Knock spell will not open this door nor can it be picked. Attempts to break down the door will always fail. The door unlocks and the trap is disabled once Captain Dafeers has been defeated. A perception check DC 16 spots the small needle trap in the doorknob. A successful Dexterity check DC 20 can disable the trap. Opening the door before Captain Dafeers has been vanquished or failing the disable check by 5 or more will result in the needle shooting out and stabbing the victim at the door. Make a +6 attack roll against the victim with 1d2 + poison damage. The poison causes 1d3 Constitution damage (no save) and the victim may may a DC 15 Constitution save at the beginning of their next turn to take no more damage. On a failure, the victim takes an additional 1d3 Constitution damage and then the poison has run its course. A victim can recover lost Constitution damage by taking a long rest.

Store Room: A small store room contains boxes and barrels filled with rubbish and broken equipment. You hear an odd chittering sound coming from a corner under some rotting wood.

The store room has nothing of value as everything is wasted away. Bolts of cloth disintegrate when picked up, old hammers and nails shed layers of rust, and the beams and boards are worm-ridden. There are three ghost rats hiding in a corner. They will attack if disturbed. Use the rat statistics from the monster manual but add the ghost’s damage resistance and condition and damage immunity. The ghost rats still uses a bite attack but change their damage to 1d4 necrotic. Increase the rat’s CR to 1 for the purpose of experience.

Captain’s Quarters: The Captain’s room is large and spacious. You see a huge two poster bed with rotten hangings. There’s a desk with a large number of moldy maps on it that crumble when you touch them. A large chest sits open at the end of the bed and you can see the glitter of gold coming from it.

The chest contains 4,800 gp, 50 gp worth of gems, a small vase worth 100 gp, 4 random magical items (possible treasure set: belt of giant strength, ring of free action, +2 long sword, wand of secrets), and a model ship of The Red Rose.

Crew’s Quarters: Small wooden cots and ripped rope hammocks line the walls of the crew’s quarters. Small chests of drawers sit at regular intervals along with tiny tables with various objects on them such as dirty playing cards, chipped dice, and empty mugs. There are three doors on the far wall.

The chests of drawers contain the remnants of the crew’s possession, most of which has decayed beyond recognition. There are usually 3-5 ghost crew in the room with at least two sleeping. Once alerted to intruders, the ghosts will attack and the two sleeping crew will spend the first round getting up and finding their weapons.

Officer’s Quarters: This small room has the remnants of two feather beds with a large vanity dresser between them. Several grimy portraits hang from broken frames on the wall. A ghostly man stands in front of the vanity mirror shaving his chin. He sees you in the reflection and his head twists around to glare at you with the rest of his body still facing the mirror.

The ghost in this room is Second Officer Boris Cutter. He’s one of Reginald Dafeers most trusted officers and was a vain and wickedly dangerous man in life. He will attack the moment the players open the door. Use the ghost crew stat for Boris but increase his hit points to 40. He wields two rapiers, one in each hand, so he gets a second ghost blade attack on his turn. Make him CR 4 for determining experience. Inside this room is single blue sapphire earring with 1000 gp and a masterwork rapier +1.

The Galley: The smell of rotted fish gusts from the door the moment it opens. Inside, you see the ruined remains of the ship’s galley. A large stove and oven sits along the wall, an open pantry with bottles and containers, a sink, and a large cutting board beneath a chandelier of rusted cooking tools. A bubbling pot sits on the stove. The galley appears empty but a large ladle rolls off a counter to clatter onto the floor as if it was hastily dropped.

Another ghost hides behind the door to the pantry. He’s a fat balding man in a baker’s outfit. He too is an unwilling servant of Captain Dafeers. In life, his name was Pyoter Melvis and he was a baker. He is now forced to cook food for the captain and the crew even though none of them can eat it. They like to look and smell it. Pyoter is a non-combatant and will flee to the ethereal plane if threatened. If treated in a friendly manner or if promised possible freedom, he will happily serve the players a small cake that he was making in the oven. It will give anyone who eats it, an inspiration point. There will be enough for each player to have one serving. Pyoter knows that the ghosts in the ship are trapped in the ship’s heart, which can be found in the bowels of the ship.

Hallway 2: This darkened hallway seems littered with trash. Every step causes the floor to groan with agony. The hallway ends on a door. Eerie blue light shines along the bottom of the door from the room beyond.

The hallway is trapped with a tripwire that releases blades from the walls. A perception check DC 16 successfully spots the wire. Players with darkvision gain advantage on seeing it. There is no way to disable the trap but players can avoid it with a successful Dexterity check DC 10 once it has been spotted. Failure to avoid the trap will result in blades swinging from the walls and strike the one who trips the wire. Make a +5 attack roll with 2d6 slashing damage on a successful hit.

The Hold: The large room has four large cages in it. There are bones scattered along the floor and the smell of death permeates the room. Lanterns shine with a blue light along several posts. A large ghostly woman sits on a stool in the center of the room. She looks up as you enter and then pulls an enormous club from behind her head. “You aren’t supposed to be here,” she coos in a surprisingly childish voice.

The ghost woman is First Officer Amanda Bull. She is Captain Dafeer’s second in command and a formidable warrior. Use the ghost crew stat but Amanda deals hefty damage from her large club. She On a successful hit, she deals 4d6+6 damage and rerolls an 1s or 2s. Increase her CR to 4 when calculating experience. This is the slave hold where Captain Dafeers held all of his prisoners. Any live creatures he hasn’t fed to the ship’s heart can be found here. There’s usually 1-4 ragged humanoids in the cages and shackled to the walls. There’s a secret trap door in this room that leads down to the ship’s heart. It requires a perception check DC 12 to find. The trap door leads to stairs that travel down into a room that shines with blue light.

The Heart of the Ship: In the very center of this room beats a giant heart that seems to grow from the very wood of the ship. A brilliant blue light pulses from it. Standing before the heart is a large ghost with a thick black beard. The ghost clears his throat and in a booming voice shouts, “You filthy bilge rats dare to challenge Captain Dafeers. Your souls will feed my ship. Have at thee.” A swarm of ghostly crew emerge from the shadows and surround you.

This is a challenging battle. There is a minimum of two ghost crew and the add an addition two ghosts for each player along with Captain Dafeers. The ghostly heart that powers the ship cannot be harmed in any way except when stabbed with Captain Dafeer’s cutlass. When the dread captain dies, he wails that his vengeance will last forever and then he vanishes leaving behind his cutlass. His death will also unlock the Captain’s Quarters. After Captain Dafeer’s dissapears, several ghostly victims of varying races, ages, and genders will slowly emerge from behind the heart and plead with the players to free their torment and strike the heart with the Captain’s sword. Read the following if the player’s stab the heart.

You hear a scream of agony the moment you stab the wooden heart with Captain Dafeer’s sword. A whirlwind of ghostly faces explodes from the wound as the spirits flee their ghostly prison. You hear the sounds of thanks and praise coming from dozens of different languages and from hundreds of different voices. And then there is silence. The oppressive feel to the room vanishes and you can smell the crisp salty air of the ocean and the sounds of waves lapping against the sides of the ship. You give a sigh of relief as the sea is once more at peace.