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  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
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  crocodile tears
  @deathbybadGer
  life in The vast Swamp 
  An expanded location, 
  new factions & random encounters
  
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
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  An expanded location for the Forgotten Realms.
  by Oliver Clegg
  [@deathbybadger]
  Crocodile tears
  The Vast Swamp is a pestilent canker on the face of Faerun, and a 
  blight on the kingdoms of Cormyr and Sembia. Adventurers who must 
  travel the swamps do so at their own peril, risking life and limb in the 
  muck and the mud. 
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers 
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  4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK.
  2
  
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  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
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  Crocodile Tears
  If you wander in the water
  Be careful, like your parents taught you
  For underneath the riverbed
  A smiling friend might raise his head
  And crying ask you to come near
  Crooning to abate your fear
  You must not flinch, or even blink
  Don’t laugh, don’t stop to pause and think
  Or you too will join the little dears
  Who gave their lives to Crocodile Tears
  This is an expanded location for the Forgotten Realms, 
  covering the Vast Swamp, a bog which lurks on the edge of 
  Cormyr and Sembia. 
  Overview
  The Vast Swamp crawls with diseased orcs, gue-
  rilla goblins and murderous hobgoblins. Behind 
  the scenes, Illithids lurk in the swamps, keeping 
  their existence a secret. Poisons fill the air, and 
  muck coats the water.  It will take a brave compa-
  ny indeed to dare the dangers of the Vast Swamp, 
  and a lucky one to come out alive. Crocodile Tears 
  contains information on:
  The Bordermarsh, and the beasts that dwell there-
  in.
  The Rotting Reach, and the infected orcs seeking 
  out new vectors for their contagion.
  The Deathpits, where traps both manufactured 
  and natural wait to drag you to your doom.
  The Darkfens, where illusions of darkness conceal 
  a nasty surprise. 
  3
  
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  CORMYR
  SEMBIA
  THE ROTTING REACH
  THE DarKfens
  THE Deathpits
  THE bordermarshes
  The Vast Swamp lies on the borders of Cormyr and Sembia, a hideous canker on the 
  face of both realms that neither has the stomach to claim for their own. Widely known 
  for its evil and deadly reputation, the swamp originated in the long distant past after an 
  unknown tragedy devastated the kingdom of Orva. The swamp encroaches year by year 
  on the lands of its neighbours, and those unfortunate enough to live on the borders of 
  the swamp often find themselves battling its errant children - violent animals, rampag-
  ing undead and barbaric humanoids. Since the devastating effects of the Spellplague, it 
  has changed significantly for the worse, to the chagrin of travellers everywhere. The trib-
  al boundaries set by orcs, goblinoids and lizardfolk have long since faded into obscurity, 
  instead replaced by four regions that each exemplify an aspect of the bog’s evil. 
  The Bordermarshes, closest to Cormyr, are a gloomy mess of water, mud and violent 
  animals. 
  The Deathpits, abandoned wastelands of tribal war, remain a killing field of hobgoblins 
  and goblinoids to this day.
  The Rotting Reach has been entirely subsumed by disease and rot, a contagion which 
  seeks to spread itself even further afield.
  The Darkfens, closest to Sembia, are a misleadingly quiet hunting ground for Illithids, 
  Grell, and those things which walk silently by night. 
  4
  
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  Crocodile Tears
  The Vast Swamp
  Factions
  Many dangers lurk within the Vast Swamp. Some 
  are intelligent, others merely feral. All have the 
  potential to be deadly to the unwary, or the un-
  wise. Though some less charitable scholars would 
  condemn the entire swamp as a festering den of 
  chaotic, senseless evil, it remains true that the 
  populations in the swamp are divided into several 
  independent factions, each with their own habits, 
  habitats and agendas.  
  Orcs [The Rotting Reach]
  Driven into the swamps in days long forgotten, 
  the Blood Moon Orcs of the Vast Swamp have long 
  since acclimatised to their existence in the dark 
  and wet. The high prevalence of disease and rot has 
  allowed the Chosen of Yurtruus, a filthy shaman 
  known as Vanchu the White, to assume control over 
  the tribes and marshal them into a hunting force 
  for his cruel whims. Their tribal customs are brutal 
  and unforgiving, largely involving ever-increasing 
  numbers of Orcs being intentionally infected with 
  deadly diseases to act as vectors when the tribe 
  encounters any of the foes they share the marshes 
  with.  
  Goblins [The Deathpits]
  Nasty and thoroughly treacherous creatures at 
  the best of times, the swamp goblins have become 
  little better than murderous gremlins due to the 
  evil influence of their home. When the hobgoblins 
  began to destroy their villages, the goblins forsook 
  their tribes and any semblance of organized struc-
  ture. Since, the goblins have recently devolved into 
  a hideous guerrilla war against any non-goblins in 
  the swamp. Though weak individually, their endless 
  crusade with poisoned weapons and crude traps 
  has proven fatal to more than one careless explorer 
  over the years. 
  Lizardfolk [Enslaved]
  Several tribes of lizardfolk haunt the swamp like 
  wraiths, almost invisible in the mud, fog and wa-
  ter. Enslaved to the ever-growing influence of the 
  mind flayer colony infesting the Darkfens, lizardfolk 
  thralls wander the darkness seeking out food for 
  their betentacled masters.
  Hobgoblins [The Deathpits]
  Outcasts from their militaristic society, the Hobgob-
  lins of the Vast Swamp have dedicated themselves 
  to the worship of Cyric, god of madness and lies in 
  the only way Hobgoblins know how - a prolonged 
  crusade and conquest. Moving through the swamp 
  with a slow but inexorable tread, the Hobgoblins 
  are one of the most dangerous combined threats 
  that inhabits the swamps today. Having destroyed 
  all the goblin settlements, the Hobgoblins found 
  them unable to tame without the blessing of Maglu-
  biyet, and take great shame in their failure to do so. 
  Illithids [The Darkfens]
  Largely unproven, but increasingly suspected, is the 
  rumour of an illithid colony buried in the swamp. 
  The unfortunate truth is born out by the occasional 
  body found with brain extracted, or by humanoids 
  found wandering aimlessly, all trace of their per-
  sonality erased. The illithids kept here have adopted 
  many of the customs of their food, and stay camou-
  flaged under the water, and hidden in mossy banks, 
  where they wait for prey to come within reach of 
  their psionic powers. The reach of the colony is far 
  greater than any scholar has yet imagined, and the 
  resident Elder Brain uses the network of mind flay-
  ers to gather information, foil attempts to pierce the 
  swamp’s interior, and destroy interlopers. 
  Grell [The Darkfens]
  Somewhat unique to the Vast Swamp is a variety of 
  intelligent Grell not found elsewhere. Canny pred-
  ators with greater stamina and psionic ability than 
  their extraneous counterparts, they serve a gigantic 
  and incredibly powerful grell known only as the Im-
  perator. What relations these aberrations maintain 
  with the Illithids is unknown, but for two such pow-
  erful aberrant colonies to remain in close proximity 
  is unusual indeed. 
  The Undead [Everywhere]
  Many have died in the Vast Swamp, slain by crea-
  tures fair and foul. Others died of starvation,of 
  poisoning, or merely drowned in the bog. Many of 
  these corpses have spontaneously animated, im-
  bued with the dark malevolence that permeates 
  the entire region. Many are mummies, lacking the 
  characteristic wrappings but no less ghastly, and 
  equally well-preserved by the bog through millennia 
  of silent torture. 
  What Happened to the swamp I knew?
  Since the last time the Vast Swamp was visited, the 
  world has undergone several catastrophes. The 
  appearance of the Chosen, the Spellplague, various 
  and sundry Sunderings...the ecosystem of the swamp 
  has survived these changes, but the inhabitants have 
  suffered, most devolving into destruction or evil. No 
  longer is the swamp effectively policed by distinct 
  tribes of humanoids, and no longer are the boundar-
  ies as identifiable as they once were. Evil left to itself 
  will always devour its own tail, and the Vast Swamp is 
  a good example of this. 
  5
  
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  Terrain: The Bordermarsh
  [Beasts, Roads, Marshland]
  The Bordermarsh
  The Bordermarsh is as safe as the Vast Swamps 
  get, which is to say, not at all. The trees are thinner 
  here than elsewhere in the bogs
  Lighting: The Bordermarsh is brightly lit during 
  the day, and only occasionally impeded by fog.
  Terrain: Waterlogged earth, occasional stone paths 
  fallen to disrepair. Frequent lakes, ponds and small 
  growths of spindly trees. 
  Navigation DC: 10
  Foraging DC: 15
  Special Rules; The Vast Swamp emits an aura of 
  evil which drives lesser creatures to violence. See 
  Tainted Resonance.
  Navigation
  A party traveling to a specific destination, or to 
  another general part of the swamp must succeed on 
  a Wisdom (Survival) check to find their way, even if 
  they have a map, Characters not proficient in Sur-
  vival automatically fail this check. 
  Tainted Resonance
  The Vast Swamp emanates an aura of evil, which 
  pulses outwards at random. These convulsions 
  affect creatures near the swamp, driving them into 
  bad moods and foul tempers. Beasts are particular-
  ly affected by this. Any beast with an intelligence of 
  less than 4 that enters the Outer Swamp becomes 
  hostile to other living creatures not of its species. 
  Fey creatures, and creatures with the Fey Ances-
  try trait feel uncomfortable here, as if something is 
  watching them.  
  Bordermarsh Tactical Terrain
  The Bordermarsh can be relatively safely traversed 
  by those following a map and sticking to the dam-
  aged roads. Elsewhere large water features block 
  the path of those unwilling to swim or sail, and the 
  mud threatens to drag careless wanderers under-
  neath to their deaths.
  Stay On The Road. Characters on a stone road are 
  not susceptible to attack by lesser undead here, as 
  ancient warding magics protecting the trade ways 
  continue to repel creatures of darkness. 
  Bordermarsh Terrain
  30 % crumbling fork in the road
  10 % path leads into a dark lake or still pond
  30 % large jagged stones dot the earth here
  10 % 1d4 quagmire pits (see sidebar)
  5 % abandoned campsite, evidence of violence
  5 % flickering lights in the distance, further into the 
  swamp
  Bordermarsh Encounter Table
  d12+d8
  Darkfens Encounters
  2
  1d4  crocodiles
  3
  1d4 giant frogs
  4
  1d6 swarms of rats
  5
  2d6 stirges
  6
  1d6 poisonous snakes
  7
  1d4 zombies
  8
  1d4 skeletons
  9
  1d4 lizardfolk (hunting beasts)
  10
  1d4 orcs and 1 hand of yurtruus
  11
  1d6 swarms of insects (flies)
  12
  1d4 swarms of rot grubs
  13
  1 giant toad
  14
  1 vargouille
  15
  1d4 lizardfolk druid (crazed)
  16
  1 swarm of poisonous snakes
  17
  1d6 goblins
  18
  1 will’o’wisp (leading people astray)
  19
  1d4 death dogs
  20
   1 giant octopus (looking for food)
  QUAGMIRES
  A quagmire pit covers the ground in roughly a 
  10-foot-square area and is usually 10 feet deep. 
  When a creature enters the area, it sinks 1d4 + 1 
  feet into the quagmire and becomes restrained. 
  At the start of each of the creature’s turns, it 
  sinks another 1d4 feet. As long as the creature 
  isn’t completely submerged in quicksand, it can 
  escape by using its action and succeeding on a 
  Strength check. The DC is 10 plus the number of 
  feet the creature has sunk into the quagmire. A 
  creature that is completely submerged in quag-
  mire can’t breathe (see the suffocation rules in 
  the Player’s Handbook).
  A creature can pull another creature within its 
  reach out of a quagmire pit by using its action 
  and succeeding on a Strength check. The DC is 5 
  plus the number of feet the target creature has 
  sunk into the quagmire.
  6
  
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  bird and beast
  The Bordermarsh, though imbued with the same lurking evil as the rest of the Vast 
  Swamp, still plays host to a variety of animals driven feral and vicious by the taint. In-
  cluded below are a list of animals or variants that call the Vast Swamp home. 
  Doom Leeches
  Native to the Vast Swamp, Doom Leeches are an 
  unfortunate blight on the already inhospitable land-
  scape. Hiding in the waters of the Darkfens and the 
  Rotting Reach, the Doom Leeches have thrived on 
  the bodies of suicidal orcs tumbling into the water 
  to find release from the Wormwood Plague infection. 
  Though the size of a man’s fist and incredibly ugly, 
  the term Doom Leech is a misnomer, based on the 
  mistranslation of roguish Gnome explorer Bimble-
  fuzz Potterbee, who was heard to exclaim “Dumb 
  Leeches” as he trudged back from his brief foray 
  into the swamps. The Doom Leeches are harmless 
  to living creatures, only feeding on dead materials 
  and corpses. 
  Bog Bees
  Corrupted from tame bees that once provided suste-
  nance for the fallen Orvan empire, the Bog Bees are 
  a dangerous nuisance to anyone who eats between 
  midnight and dawn, when swarms of the insects 
  rise from the swamps to pursue unlucky holders 
  of sandwiches. Use the statistics for a swarm of 
  insects to represent bog bees, with a flying speed of 
  90 feet. 
  Giant Enemy Hermit Crabs
  Mutated into monstrous size by an overabundance 
  of mussels, snails and protozoa in the Vast Swamp’s 
  ecosystem. The crabs of the Vast Swamp are partic-
  ularly awful in that they like to skin any humanoid 
  prey they manage to kill, and drape the skin over 
  themselves as accessories. Precisely why they do 
  this is unclear, but it makes for a gruesome specta-
  cle.
  Crocodiles 
  The crocodiles of the Vast Swamp have a particu-
  larly nasty reputation. Infected by the malice of the 
  Bordermarshes, the crocodiles are far more cun-
  ning than their ordinary counterparts. They employ 
  tricks and traps to catch food, from camouflaging 
  themselves under mud to pretending to be wound-
  ed. Additionally, they’ve been known to work as 
  teams by hounding prey into goblin traps or poi-
  sonous gas clouds, dashing in to retrieve the bodies 
  when the target has been worn to exhaustion. 
  Critters Galore
  The Swamp is a large ecosystem home to a wide 
  variety of angry animals. A brief breakdown of the 
  more frequent flavourful fauna in each region might 
  include:
  BORDERMARSHES
  • Frogs & Giant Frogs
  • Crocodiles
  • Beetles
  • Giant Crabs
  ROTTING REACH
  • Leeches
  • Insects
  • Snakes
  • Lizards (poisonous)
  DEATHPITS
  • Flies, maggots, rot grubs
  • Hyenas, death dogs, carrion eaters
  • Crows and ravens
  • Badgers
  DARKFENS
  • Quippers
  • Leeches
  • Crocodiles
  • Sharks (inexplicably)
  7
  
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
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  Inspired by dreams of conquest, and haunted by errant dreams, a Cormyrean vanguard 
  has been lured to the Bordermarshes by illithid minions of the Imperator, an elder brain 
  of immense power residing deep in the swamp. Believing themselves on a sacred colo-
  nial mission, the Cormyrean vanguard has set up a palisade camp at the edge of the 
  Bordermarshes from which to launch ill-fated sallies into the darkness with torches, 
  salt and axes.  
  Cormyrean VanGuard
  Human LeGion - the bordermarsheS
  Appearance
  The largest fortification of the Cormyrean assault 
  on the Vast Swamp is a high-walled and newly con-
  structed palisade encampment, trussed together 
  from timber harvested farther inland. The ground 
  here has been salted, stabilised and fortified by 
  the magic of the War Wizards, and is comfortingly 
  steady underfoot. The camp is huge, large enough 
  to house the entire entourage of knights-errant 
  and their retainers, in addition to a full regiment of 
  blades and telswords. 
  Key NPCS
  Lionar Arthur Cormaeril (LN human knight) is 
  overseeing the enterprise, and is thoroughly sick 
  at the very idea of swamps. Middle-aged and only 
  moderately successful, he is an estranged scion 
  of a noble family and his weak blood has placed 
  him far from the possibility of wealth or stature. 
  His family (much diminished in fortune and fallen 
  from favour) has pressured him to mastermind the 
  crusade, but his heart isn’t in it. Worse, he rec-
  ognizes the assault for the futile gesture it is, and 
  thus has very little to do with the day-to-day run-
  ning of things, preferring instead to lurk inside his 
  command tent and brood over outdated maps. Of 
  late, he’s been having strange nightmares he can’t 
  explain, something he keeps to himself, and this is 
  responsible for much of his dour temperament. 
  Swordcaptain Lance Alabaster (NE human cham-
  pion) is second in command, and handles many 
  complaints that Lionar Cormaeril won’t attend to. 
  He is young, impetuous, and often seen about the 
  camp giving orders and throwing about opinions 
  noone asked for. His skin is deathly pale, and his 
  eyes a peculiar purple colour. This stems from his 
  parentage, as Lance was born to a Deep Imaskari 
  mother in the gutters of Baldur’s Gate, and has 
  done much to advance his position since. He’ll do 
  almost anything to climb up the ladder of power, 
  and whilst conscious of the dangers of the Vast 
  Swamp, sees it as a challenge that will propel him 
  further up the military chain of command.
  Kettle & Black are tabaxi merchants. They are in 
  fact, the only traders willing to bring their supplies 
  so close to the Vast Swamp (the risk of their entire 
  stock mouldering away is quite high) as the twins 
  are incredibly keen to take a look at the things peo-
  ple bring out. Originally from far-off Maztica, the 
  Tabaxi have strong accents, and often gabble their 
  words so fast that it’s impossible to understand 
  what they are saying. Kettle & Black sell alchemy 
  supplies, herbs, healing potions, food and other 
  consumables.
  The Black Hand are a martial extension of the 
  Church of Bane. Willing and eager recruits to 
  the Vast Swamp have proved hard to come by, no 
  more so than in the sorely needed cleric powers 
  of healing. Temples of peace and forbearance have 
  condemned the enterprise as foolhardy and waste-
  ful. The expedition was largely saved by the arrival 
  of the priesthood of Bane, to whom the military 
  lifestyle comes naturally. High Priest Jandil (NE 
  human priest) is a tall and imperious woman with 
  a harsh countenance. She values excellence above 
  all, and it is her peerless and ceaseless devotion to 
  perfection that has gained her Bane’s favour.
  [Kettle & Black sell alchemy supplies, herbs, heal-
  ing potions, food and other consumables, as out-
  lined in Appendix A: Trades and Services]
  8
  
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  Appearance
  The undead of the vast swamp have often been well 
  preserved by the swamps, and even skeletons can 
  commonly be seen with fleshy remnants dangling 
  from their filthy bones. They often smell horri-
  bly, which can make them easier to detect as they 
  chase down living prey. Bog mummies are rarely 
  mummified, and instead present as pickled hu-
  manoids, though they are no less deadly.  
  Those Who Came Before
  The King That Was. Legends of fallen Orva have 
  long since faded into obscurity for all but those 
  bards who make it their mission to recall the songs 
  of olden days. Precisely where Orva was, and what 
  the people were like, is a fact simply lost to con-
  temporary scholarship. Equally unknown is the 
  fact that a relic of Orva still lives in the form of 
  The King That Was, a death knight who stalks the 
  swamp, meting out justice and murder as he sees 
  fit. Word of his presence has never escaped the 
  swamp for the simple reason that none who have 
  faced him have ever lived to tell the tale. Should 
  The King That Was ever be slain, his curse would 
  return him to wander the bogs until such a day as 
  he could make amends for his crimes.
  The Queen of Drowned and Forgotten Things. 
  The kingdom of Orva knew many secrets, but now 
  they all lie under the water, lost to all but those 
  who would dare to dive down deep into the dark-
  ness. Shackled to her tomb, the Queen of Drowned 
  and Forgotten things rages, spitting curses into the 
  void. An ancient mummy lord, her powers extend 
  to encompass all those who drown in the swamps, 
  puppeteering their corpses as mummies and send-
  ing them to feed on the living.
  Jack of the Lanterns. This lonely and hunch-
  backed caretaker of the swamps can be found 
  tending to the dead, sending them back to slumber 
  with a whisper. The light of his many lanterns can 
  be seen from a distance, shimmering through the 
  trees in an eerie fashion. He hasn’t been seen in 
  so many years that he has become little more than 
  a fairy tale. Some say that Jack is an avatar of 
  Kelemvor, walking in the world of mortals to soothe 
  the restless dead. Others say he is a servitor left 
  over from a dead kingdom, following his master’s 
  last command over and over. 
  Old Habits Die Hard
  The restless dead of Orva can sometimes be seen 
  mimicking things they once did in life, or re-en-
  acting scenes from their memories. To generate a 
  random life event for randomly generated undead 
  to be performing, roll on the Chewing The Scenery 
  table below.
  the UNdead
  WanderinG undead
  The undead which haunt the Vast Swamp are of nebulous origin. Often called 'spontane-
  ous undead', the skeletons and corpses of long dead adventurers, explorers and tribes-
  men frequently animate and assault the strongholds of the living. The preservative qual-
  ities of the swamp results in a higher than usual quantity of mummies, carrying with 
  them the dangerous mummy rot disease. Precisely what evil touch results in these un-
  dead occurrences has yet to be discovered, but rumours of anything from necromancers 
  through to an insane cabal of liches have been mooted over the years to little agreement.
  Chewing The Scenery
  d10
  Darkfens Encounters
  1
  Skeletons, performing a silent play.
  2
  A mummy looking for a lost child.
  3
  A zombie wife drowning her husband.
  4
  A skeleton smashing its head into a tree.
  5
  A shadow clutching at the water 
  6
  A zombie pretending to drown
  7
  A skeleton walking endlessly in circles
  8
  A ghoul chewing on a tree.
  9
  A crawling claw stroking a skull.
  10
  A banshee singing a dirge
  9
  
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  @DEAtHbYbADGER
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  Terrain: The Deathpits
  [Traps, Corpses, Wasteland]
  The Deathpits
  The Deathpits are a warground between savage 
  hobgoblins and guerrilla goblins. This war has long 
  since lost any meaning, and will likely endure until 
  one side manages to exterminate the other, or drive 
  them away. The ground is littered with dangerous 
  traps and deadly pitfalls laid by the goblins, and 
  patrolled by murderous hobgoblin kill squads. 
  Lighting: The trees in the Deathpits have suffered 
  a lot of damage from excessive logging and from 
  explosive traps or spells. The area is brightly lit in 
  the day. 
  Terrain: The terrain here is less waterlogged than 
  elsewhere, and in some places you can walk easily. 
  Other puddles can range from ankle to waist deep. 
  The earth is grey and ashen - occasionally goblinoid 
  bones poke out from shallow graves. 
  Navigation DC: 10
  Foraging DC: 15
  Special Rules; The Deathpits are riddled with the 
  eponymous goblin pit traps. See Traps.
  Navigation
  A party traveling to a specific destination, or to 
  another general part of the swamp must succeed on 
  a Wisdom (Survival) check to find their way, even if 
  they have a map, Characters not proficient in Sur-
  vival automatically fail this check.
  Deathpits Tactical Terrain
  The Deathpits, despite having been purged of most 
  natural dangers by the goblinoid rampage, remains 
  a treacherous battlefield thanks to the high number 
  of goblin traps and the carelessly discarded tools of 
  war lying all over the place.
  Deathpits Terrain
  60% filled with 1d10 goblin deathpits placed at ran-
  dom intervals
  10% shattered blades and sharp edges scattered all 
  over the ground
  5% thick mud clogged with bones and blood, difficult 
  terrain
  5% unburied skeletons and bodies, carrion eaters 
  everywhere
  10% air thick with buzzing flies and stench of death
  10% abandoned goblin or goblinoid campsite
  Traps
  The goblins here have long staged a guerrilla war 
  against their hobgoblin oppressors. Traps are 
  hidden everywhere, and the most common is the 
  infamous Goblin Deathpit.
  GOBLIN DEATHPIT
  Simple trap (level 1–4, dangerous threat)
  This 10 foot deep hole in the floor is con-
  cealed with a muddy blanket and dead 
  leaves. At the bottom are poisoned stakes. 
   Trigger. Anyone who steps on the leaves or 
  might fall into the pit.
  Effect. The triggering creature must make 
  a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw. On a suc-
  cessful save, the creature catches itself on 
  the pit’s edge or instinctively steps back. 
  On a failed save, the creature falls into the 
  pit taking 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage from 
  the fall, 1d6 damage from the stakes, and a 
  further 1d4 poison damage. 
  Deathpits Encounter Table
  d12 + d8
  Deathpits Encounters
  2
  1d6 gnolls and 1d4 hyenas
  3
  1 giant badger, hungry
  4
  1 ghast and 1d4 ghouls
  5
  1 goblin (looking for food)
  6
  1d4 hobgoblins
  7
  1d6 goblins
  8
  1d6  goblin skeletons
  9
  1d4 hobgoblin  zombies
  10
  1d4 hobgoblins (dying from wounds)
  11
  1d8 goblin corpses nailed to a tree
  12
  Prayer to Cyric etched into a tree
  13
  1d4 goblins and 1d4 pet wolves
  14
  1 goblin, running away from 1d4 hobgoblins
  15
  1d4 grey oozes, (looking for corpses)
  16
  1d4 hyenas (scavenging bodies)
  17
  1 vulture picking at a hobgoblin corpse
  18
  1 death dog (feral)
  19
  2d4 giant rats (diseased and scavenging)
  20
  2d6 gnolls, starving
  10
  
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
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  tHE bOGGARtS
  SWAMP GOblins
  The swamp goblins who live in the Deathpits have rapidly habituated to their guerilla 
  lifestyle. Freed from the tyranny of the hobgoblins, they have developed hit-and-run tac-
  tics, a wide variety of pit traps, and move their small cells around the swamp day by day 
  to evade the predations of their enemies. Despite the initial inconvenience of the move, 
  the goblins have lost very little in terms of living standards, and gained much in personal 
  freedom. 
  Running A Swamp Goblin Encounter
  When running an encounter that includes Swamp 
  Goblins, keep the following ideas in mind:
  • Live to fight another day: Boggarts are cowards, 
  like most goblins, and will happily retreat if 
  things go ill for them.
  •  Fight dirty: Poison, traps, disease. The goblins 
  don’t have care for concept of honor. A kill is a 
  kill.
  •  The True Enemy: Swamp Goblins will drop ev-
  erything if they catch wind of hobgoblins, mak-
  ing efforts to scatter or prepare traps as context 
  demands. 
  Appearance
  The boggarts, or swamp goblins, have a pale blue 
  skin which seems green in bright light. Their eyes 
  are orange, and they retain the slanted ears and 
  wretched forms that mark them out as goblins 
  rather than halflings or gnomes. Lack of sleep often 
  results in sunken eye sockets, and malnutrition can 
  make them seen emaciated. 
  Tactics
  Swamp goblins attack any hobgoblins they see, oth-
  erwise preferring to keep a safe distance and watch 
  from afar. If a good moment presents itself, they 
  attack creatures for their supplies, launching salvos 
  of poison darts and arrows before retreating into the 
  swamps. They will often then track their targets, at-
  tacking once their prey seems weary or complacent. 
  In this fashion, they are capable of taking down 
  much stronger and better equipped foes.
  Swamp goblins travel in cells of four to ten. Half 
  of these goblins are usually female, and some will 
  be carrying young goblins strapped to their backs. 
  Goblins old enough to walk are considered old 
  enough to join the hunt, and contribute in battle. 
  Traps
  The swamp goblins spend any spare time they have 
  repairing and creating the endless series of Death-
  pits they are famous for. The simplicity of the pits 
  allows for minor variations in execution, and the 
  pits are usually filled with whatever the goblins 
  have to hand, from spikes through to oozes, or giant 
  badgers, 
  Boohyag
  Though Swamp Goblins have as much reverence for 
  Boohyag (“magic”) as their landbound cousins, they 
  owe their freedom to the swamps, and worship it as 
  a deity. Calling it variations on the Great Maw, the 
  more fervent amongst them sometimes receive dru-
  idic powers as a result. Use the druid statblock to 
  represent these boggarts, adding the Nimble Escape 
  feature common to all goblins, 
  11
  
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  @DEAtHbYbADGER
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  The lost leGion
  Cyric worshippinG hobGoblins
  A relic from some long forgotten war, the Lost Legion were once a proud hobgoblin 
  regiment dedicated to their tyrannical god Maglubiyet. As they camped near the Vast 
  Swamp, the hobgoblins came under the influence of the Cyrinishad, an evil text which 
  converts all those who read it to the worship of the dark god Cyric, lord of madness and 
  lies. Order soon turned to chaos as Maglubiyet forsook his faithless children. The hob-
  goblins, bereft of leadership, blamed their lesser goblin kin for the tragedy, and have 
  hunted them through the bogs ever since. 
  Appearance
  Retaining the distinctive orange skin and proud 
  bearing of other hobgoblins, the Lost Legion proud-
  ly bear the dark sun of Cyric tattooed on their 
  foreheads and painted onto their equipment. They 
  often leave the sites of their murders inscribed with 
  mad prayers to Cyric and daubed in blood on every 
  surface. 
  Tactics
  Abandoned by their god, the hobgoblins of the 
  swamps have long since given up their regiments 
  and companies in favour of 4-man assassination 
  squads. Even Cyric’s influence could not entire-
  ly purge the competence from the hobgoblins, it 
  seems, as the murder cells have proven dangerous 
  and effective in the darkness of the bog. Able to 
  move stealthily in smaller groups, the hobgoblins 
  have largely remained a threat due to their ability to 
  work together and adapt. Sleeping in trees, taking 
  shift watches, keeping careful track of time and the 
  feeding habits of swamp threats - each hobgoblin 
  cell is a goldmine of knowledge about the swamp, 
  something they use to their advantage when track-
  ing down prey. 
  Four Man Cells
  A typical four man cell contains four distinct roles.
  •  The first, the Striker, handles combat with dan-
  gerous foes, and uses his body as a shield for 
  weaker members of the cell.
  • The second, the Strifeleader, is a priest of Cyric, 
  and uses his murderous magic to end fights 
  quickly. If a member of the cell is close to death, 
  the Strifeleader casts an augury to determine 
  whether they deserve to live.
  • The third, the Warcaster, is a relic from the regi-
  mental days. Using scraps of knowledge remem-
  bered from those days, the warcaster enchants, 
  disables and controls the battlefield with arcane 
  magic.
  • The fourth, the Nightblade, scouts and spies for 
  the cell, recovering information and silently 
  tracking foes. 
  The Cyrinishad
  It’s unknown how a copy of the Cyrinishad ended 
  up in the hands of the Lost Legion. Regardless, it 
  isn’t known where the copy vanished to after the 
  Lost Legion disappeared into the swamps. It’s been 
  suggested that a sneaky goblin stole the book, bear-
  ing it off into the swamps, and that this is the rea-
  son the hobgoblins hunt down their erstwhile slaves 
  so brutally and relentlessly. It’s just as possible that 
  the book has been lost in the preservative muck of 
  the bogs, and that some unlucky soul could stum-
  ble across it entirely by accident. 
  12
  
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
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  Terrain: The Rotting Reach
  [Disease, Poison, Bog]
  The Rotting Reach
  The Rotting Reach is dominated by the influence 
  of the orcish general Vanchu the White, a Chosen 
  of Yurtruus who has subjugated the Blood Moon 
  orcs in the swamp and infected them with mind-ad-
  dling pestilence. From his grisly throne in a fetid 
  backwater. he directs his minions to mindlessly 
  assault anything they encounter in the swamp, in 
  an attempt to spread his infection (and thus his 
  influence) farther afield.  
  Lighting: The Rotting Reach is dimly lit, as the 
  thick & corpulent trees block out some of the day-
  light.
  Terrain: Thick and stinking mud, riddled with ver-
  min corpses, dying trees and decomposing plants. 
  Tracks stick easily here, but food is almost impossi-
  ble to find.
  Navigation DC: 10
  Foraging DC: 20
  Special Rules; The unnatural aura of the Rotting 
  Reach affects healing. See Yurtruus’ Blessing. Also, 
  the unholy influence has increased the pernicious 
  nature of the pestilence that hangs over the area, 
  see the Wormwood Plague sidebar. 
  Navigation
  A party traveling to a specific destination, or to 
  another general part of the swamp must succeed on 
  a Wisdom (Survival) check to find their way, even if 
  they have a map, Characters not proficient in Sur-
  vival automatically fail this check. 
  Rotting Reach Tactical Terrain
  The Rotting Reach is not as hard as other parts of 
  the swamp to traverse, but it visitors are likely to 
  be hampered by the stench of rot and death that 
  hangs in the area like a pall. 
  Bad Air. The air here is tainted and foul. Wisdom 
  (perception) checks based on smell fail automatical-
  ly for any character that needs to breathe. 
  Rotting Reach Terrain
  30 % Small 10 fee radius island, waterlogged
  10 % 2d6 withered trees, obstructing view
  30 % Thick fog, visibility reduced to 10 feet
  10 % Vines and creepers hang down from the trees
  5 % Poisonous mist - [DC10 constitution saving throw 
  or poisoned for 1 hour]
  5 % Psionic Anomaly - [DC10 wisdom saving throw, or 
  gain short term madness trait]
  Yurtruus’ Blessing
  The foul influence of Yurtruus imbues the waters 
  of the Rotting Reach. Characters have disadvan-
  tage on saving throws against poison and disease 
  whilst in the reach. Characters who attempt to use 
  an ability that cures the poisoned condition, or 
  removes a disease, must succeed on a DC12 Cha-
  risma saving throw or expend that use of the ability 
  to no effect. 
  Rotting Reach Encounter Table
  d12 + d8
  Darkfens Encounters
  2
  1 gas spore
  3
  1 mummy
  4
  1d4 giant poisonous snakes
  5
  1d4 giant rats 
  6
  1d6 orcs, (poisoned)
  7
  1 orc nurtured one of yurtruus
  8
  1d6 skeletons
  9
  1d4 death dogs
  10
  1d4 orcs and 1 hand of yurtruus
  11
  1 orog (poisoned) and 1d4 orcs (poisoned)
  12
  1 carrion crawler
  13
  1d4 swarms of insects (leeches)
  14
  1 spawn of kyuss
  15
  1d4 swarms of rot grubs
  16
  1 eye of gruumsh and 1d4 orcs (poisoned)
  17
  1d6 goblins
  18
  1 wererat (feral)
  19
  2d6 giant rats (diseased)
  20
  1 troll 
  13
  
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
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  tHE blood Moon
  orc tribe - the rottinG reach
  The Blood Moon orcs, a tribe which have long dwelled on the outskirts of the Vast 
  Swamp, have in recent years been decimated by an internal threat which threatens their 
  very existence. A Chosen has risen in their ranks, dedicated to Yurtruus, Orc god of dis-
  ease and rot. Under his brief and unpleasant stint of leadership, the tribe has fallen to 
  pestilence and death, becoming a mere fraction of their former numbers. As the bodies 
  begin to form mounds, Vanchu the White looks beyond his borders, dreaming of spread-
  ing his foul will across the entire swamp, and perhaps even into the lands of men.
  Wormwood Plague
  When a humanoid creature is touched by a 
  creature that carries the disease, or when 
  it comes into contact with filth or offal con-
  taminated by the disease, the creature must 
  succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw 
  or become infected.
  It takes 1d4 days for wormwood plague’s 
  symptoms to manifest in an infected crea-
  ture. Symptoms include fading of the skin 
  to a pale white, loss of colour from the eyes, 
  and an intense desire to touch other crea-
  tures. The infected creature suffers one level 
  of exhaustion, and it regains only half the 
  normal number of hit points from spending 
  Hit Dice and no hit points from finishing a 
  long rest.
  At the end of each long rest, an infected 
  creature must make a DC 11 Constitution 
  saving throw. On a failed save, the character 
  gains one level of exhaustion. A creature 
  killed whilst infected with Wormwood Plague 
  becomes a zombie. 
  Appearance
  Blood Moon orcs vary in their appearance depend-
  ing on how sick they are. All Blood Moon orcs are 
  infected with the Wormwood Plague, and many have 
  entered the later stages of infection. These orcs have  
  entirely white eyes, and their skin is a pale grey/
  white. 
  Tactics
  Most Blood Moon orcs, other than those few devot-
  ed to the worship of Yurtruus, have lost their mind 
  to the sickness. They are violent, murderous and 
  careless. Seeing another living creature is enough to 
  drive them into a frenzy, the infection driving them 
  to attack strangers in the hope of securing new 
  hosts for the disease. Priests of Yutruus, allowed 
  to keep a modicum of their sanity by Vanchu, can 
  sometimes be seen guiding groups of mad orcs to-
  wards more civilized areas. 
  Vanchu the White
  Rescued from a hideous death at the hands of a 
  virulent swamp plague by Yurtruus, Vanchu the 
  white is a young and thin orc with emaciated ribs. 
  He leans heavily on a staff hewn from a white willow 
  tree, and speaks in a hoarse whisper. His word is 
  law to those orcs infected with Wormwood Plague.  
  Undying Sentinels
  Orcs killed by the plague are animated by the infec-
  tion, instead becoming zombies under the control 
  of Vanchu. Whilst this is a useful tool which Van-
  chu uses to police the borders of his domain, these 
  Orcs are no longer capable of transmitting the infec-
  tion to a living creature. 
  Running A Blood Moon Orc Encounter
  When running an encounter that includes Blood 
  Moon Orcs, keep the following ideas in mind:
  • Mindless Vectors: Most blood orcs are driven to 
  spread their disease however necessary -tooth 
  and claw can be especially scary.
  •  No Fear: Infected orcs are beyond fear of death or 
  capture. They always fight to the death,
  14
  
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
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  Terrain: The Darkfens
  [Nightmares, Darkness, Underdark]
  The Darkfens
  The Darkfens is a dangerous and treacherous area 
  plagued by illithids, grell and the walking dead. The 
  tribes of humanoids that inhabit other areas dare 
  not wander here, lest they end up dinner for any of 
  the horrors that dwell in the darkness. The plants 
  here are invariably poisonous or rotting. 
  Lighting: The Darkfens is covered by a thick cano-
  py, and pitch black.
  Terrain: This ares is completely waterlogged. Char-
  acters must swim or sail here. On the rare and 
  occasional landmass, the tangled roots, trees and 
  sinkholes make this entire area difficult terrain. 
  Navigation DC: 15
  Foraging DC: 20
  Special Rules; If the characters take a long rest in 
  The Darkfens, roll on the Bad Dreams.
  Navigation
  A party traveling to a specific destination, or to 
  another general part of the swamp must succeed on 
  a Wisdom (Survival) check to find their way, even if 
  they have a map, Characters not proficient in Sur-
  vival automatically fail this check. 
  Bad Dreams
  The Darkfens are filled with ambient psionic res-
  onance from the large populations of Illithids and 
  Grell that inhabit the area. Groups that try and rest 
  here may fall prey to that influence. When a charac-
  ter finishes a long rest in The Darkfens, roll on the 
  following table to decide if and how it affected them
  d20   Result
  1-10   No effect
  11-14 Character forgets the events of the last 24 
  hours.
  15-16 Character gains no benefit from the rest.
  17-19 Character gains no benefit from the rest, and 
  gains a level of exhaustion.
  20      Character gains a Long Term Madness trait, 
  [see DMG]. 
  Darkfens Tactical Terrain
  The Darkfens is an incredibly difficult place to tra-
  verse, filled with obstacles both living and dead. 
  Attackers native to the swamps often attack from be-
  neath the water using camouflage, or assault intrud-
  ers from the branches of trees. Every encounter in 
  The Darkfens is affected by the following attributes.
  Fog. A miasma of sickly yellow fog grants light ob-
  scurement and disadvantage on checks that rely on 
  scent. 
  Water. The water here ranges from neck deep to 
  unknown depths. 
  Darkfens Terrain
  30 % Small 10 feet radius island, waterlogged
  10 % 2d6 withered trees, obstructing view
  30 % Thick fog, visibility reduced to 10 feet
  10 % Vines and creepers hang down from the trees
  5 % Poisonous mist - [DC10 constitution saving throw 
  or poisoned for 1 hour]
  5 % Psionic Anomaly - [DC10 wisdom saving throw, or 
  gain short term madness trait]
  Darkfens Encounter Table
  d12 + d8
  Darkfens Encounters
  2
  1 Illithid (spying)
  3
  1d4 giant crocodiles
  4
  1 roper
  5
  1 Otyugh
  6
  1 Giant Crocodile (crazed)
  7
  2d6 swarms of quippers
  8
  3d4 lizardfolk (mindless thralls)
  9
  1 Catoblepas (grazing)
  10
  1d4 black puddings
  11
  1 wood woad (guarding a tree)
  12
  1 beholder zombie
  13
  1 wraith
  14
  1 spawn of kyuss
  15
  1d8 crocodiles
  16
  1 mindwitness (patrolling)
  17
  1d4 gibbering mouthers
  18
  2d6 lizardfolk thralls and 1 mind flayer
  19
  1 shambling mound and 1d4 will’o’wisps
  20
  1 Hydra (territorial)
  15
  
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
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  tHE imperator
  Illithid Colony - the darKfens
  Evidence of illithid influence deep in the Vast Swamp has been hard to acquire, but 
  many scholars have long posited the possible existence of a colony based on the anec-
  dotes of alleged swamp survivors. The truth is in fact far worse than many have guessed. 
  The Imperator, an elder brain augmented with grell mutations, sees the Vast Swamp as 
  its domain. Nothing has yet challenged the Imperator sufficiently as to make it reconsid-
  er this assertion. Buried deep beneath the abandoned Orvaskyte Keep, it reaches out 
  using both abberant minions and illithid servitors to ensure that it remains hidden for 
  as long as it takes to ensure the survival of the colony.
  Appearance
  Illithids and grell under the influence of the Im-
  perator are unusually large, and often coloured a 
  dark blue/grey to blend in with the water and rot. 
  All Illithids and Grell in the Vast Swamp are direct-
  ly controlled by the Imperator, which has a much 
  larger radius of control than a newborn Elder Brain 
  due to its incredible age and puissance. The Imper-
  ator itself is gigantic elder brain with a sharp beak 
  and tentacles buried in a secret brine-filled cham-
  ber deep below Orvaskyte keep, a nightmarish place 
  shrouded in illusions of fiends and dark magic. 
  Tactics
  The Imperator has two main goals. The first, to 
  ensure the survival of the colony by acquiring food 
  whilst leaving no proof of illithid interference. If an 
  illithid is discovered, it must kill all who saw it or 
  flee before it is killed. The second, the Imperator’s 
  pet project, is the augmentation of its own body to 
  enhance what it considers to be the ‘next stage’ in 
  mind flayer evolution. Thus, it collects strange crea-
  tures, and attempts to graft their body parts onto 
  itself. This invariably fails, with the exception of the 
  grell, who have been subsumed into the colony as a 
  result. 
  Augmentation
  The Imperator is quite mad, even by the standards 
  of Illithid. It fears the ascension of an Ulitharid 
  from amongst the ranks of the Illithids, for such a 
  successor might recognise the Imperator’s obses-
  sion with improving itself as an admission of weak-
  ness. Thus, it keeps rigid control of all the illithids 
  in the colony, even to the edges of the swamp. The 
  effort has strained its sanity and made it occasion-
  ally display erratic behaviour, Thus, illithids found 
  in the swamps can sometimes be heard psionically 
  projecting scraps of doggerel, or counting random 
  numbers over and over. 
  Thralls
  The colony has lately suffered an from a lack of 
  suitable thralls. The infected orcs of the Blood Moon 
  tribe are too dangerous to keep in close proximi-
  ty, and the scattered goblin/hobgoblins prove too 
  tricky to track down on a regular basis. Instead, the 
  colony has taken to kidnapping the native lizard-
  folk, finding that their emotionless brains are both 
  receptive to thralldom, and a delicious foodstuff (if 
  an acquired taste), 
  Running An Illithid Encounter
  When running an encounter that includes the Im-
  perator’s colony, keep the following ideas in mind:
  • Safety first: The imperator fears discovery, and 
  unless it has dire need, is usually content to 
  spy on intruding humanoids until they come too 
  close to Orvaskyte Keep. 
  •  Enthralling: Mind flayers of the colony almost 
  always have a contingent of lizardfolk thralls 
  nearby. 
  • Leave No Trace: In the case that an Illithid is 
  seen, its preferred solution is to incapacitate 
  the culprit and enslave/kill them. If this isn’t 
  possible, the illithid disappears as quickly as 
  possible, and reports to the Imperator. The 
  might of the colony will then track the offender 
  through the swamp, assailing them with nightly 
  terrors and manipulating the other denizens of 
  the swamp into confrontations. 
  16
  
  @DEAtHbYbADGER
  tHE CROCODILE’S tEARS
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  orvasKyte Keep
  Orvaskyte Keep
  The ruin of Orvaskyte Keep is buried deep in the 
  Darkfens, away from prying eyes. The mutant Elder 
  Brain otherwise known as the Imperator lurks in 
  the darkest lowest room of the keep, where Faerz-
  ress from the Underdark begins to seep through to 
  the surface.  
  Lighting: Orvaskyte Keep is dimly lit by the faint 
  purple radiance of Faerzress, 
  Faerzress: 
  • A creature in an area suffused with faerzress has 
  advantage on saving throws against any divina-
  tion spells. If a divination spell doesn’t allow a 
  saving throw, the caster must succeed on a DC 
  15 Constitution saving throw to cast the spell. 
  Failing this save means the spell is wasted and 
  has no effect.
  • Any creature attempting to teleport into, within, 
  or out of a faerzress-suffused area must suc-
  ceed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. 
  On a failed save, the creature takes 1d10 force 
  damage and the teleportation attempt fails. 
  Even if the save succeeds, the teleportation at-
  tempt can suffer a mishap as if the destination 
  was known only by description, regardless of 
  how familiar the destination actually is. See the 
  table in the teleport spell for more information.
  Special Rules; Orvaskyte keep is mired in com-
  plex psionic illusions and defences. Creatures have 
  disadvantage on saving throws and ability checks 
  against illusions whilst within 1 mile of the keep.
  The Imperator
  The chief danger resident in Orvaskyte keep is the 
  Imperator, an elder brain mutant of unusual power. 
  The base statistics for the Imperator should include 
  those of an elder brain, in addition to the lightning 
  immunity and paralytic tentacles of a grell.
  The Colony
  Orvaskyte keep is swarming with mind flayers, all 
  of whom act as the eyes and ears of the Impera-
  tor. An unusual number (roughly 100) of lizardfolk 
  thralls are present, performing manual labour and 
  repairing external damage to the keep. 
  The colony is occupied by 3d10 mind flayers at 
  any one time, with more dispersed throughout 
  the swamp. In addition, 3d8 grell float about the 
  perimeter looking for food. Some mind flayers have 
  intellect devourer pets which they unleash on 
  dangerous intruders if the illusions which shroud 
  the keep fail to deter interlopers. 
  lllusions
  The Imperator relies on the lethal reputation of Or-
  vaskyte Keep to ward off intruders. In case adven-
  turers should come too close, the elder brain has 
  cast psionic illusions over the entire keep, causing 
  it to appear haunted by terrifying demons such as 
  balor, hezrou or yochlol.
  A successful Intelligence (Investigation) check 
  against a DC of 21 allows a character to treat these 
  illusions as faint, ephemeral echoes for 1 hour. 
  Otherwise, these illusions seem very real to every 
  sense. Damage caused by the illusions always deals 
  psychic damage instead of the usual type, and can 
  only knock characters unconscious. 
  Tricks & Traps
  The illithid colony guards itself with psionic illu-
  sions and variants on glyph of warding or symbol. 
  These do not appear (in this case) to conventional 
  detect magic spells unless they specifically detect 
  psionic activity. Several illithids are the psionic 
  variant introduced in Volo’s Guide To Monsters, 
  which gives them more spells and enchantments to 
  abuse. The colony has fitted the keep with secret 
  doors that only open to telepathically transmitted 
  passwords
  17
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/DMsGuild/@deathbybadger - Crocodile Tears, The Vast Swamp.pdf