Lowcountry

Crawl
A Southern Gothic RPG Zine

1
 Lowcountry Crawl
Issue 1: Barrier Islands
If you grew up in these lands, it’s likely that you’ve
never seen a living specimen, but you’ve most
certainly heard one. No, not one--thousands. Their
constant hum throbs in your ears as you walk below
gnarled oak branches laden with the curls of gray
moss. It’s like a voice was given to the heat. The song
of the cicadas is a chorus that boils the blood and
maddens the mind, leaving your body both quiet and
buzzing, hollow like the crisp golden shells that the
bugs leave on the azalea leaves and on the sides of
houses painted in pastels.

It’s impossible to think that magic doesn’t exist in a

place like this. A place where the calling of insects is
enough to mesmerize. This place is the Lowcountry.

LOWCOUNTRY CRAWL is a collection of tables, house

rules, monsters, and other resources acting together
as a toolbox for generating a deep coastal South-
inspired atmosphere for your game. In this inaugural
Zine we will be exploring the Barrier Islands.

In This Issue
◇ BARRIER ISLAND GENERATOR - Create a variety of
Barrier Islands for your players to explore.
◇ ISLAND CRAWL ADVENTURE for levels 1-2.
▪ Over a dozen fleshed out locations
spread across 4 different islands.
▪ Streamlined travel and time tracking rules.
▪ 40 Random encounters, each with an
Omen to hint at what will happen.
▪ 6 New creatures and 6 colorful items.

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 BARRIER ISLAND GENERATOR 5
ISLAND CRAWL ADVENTURE 11
CREATURES 22
D6 ISLAND LOOT 28
WHERE YOUR MONEY GOES 30

Written by JOHN GREGORY

unlawfulgames.blogspot.com

Consultation from Akelah

Editor/Sensitivity reader at Salt and Sage Books

Layout and design by David Schirduan

Art contributions by Charles B.F. Avery
@CharlieFergaves

Published by Technical Grimoire

Find more issues and games at

technicalgrimoire.com

All text © Lawful Neutral 2019. Layout @ Technical

Grimoire 2019. Tommy Rawbones and Chaw artwork ©
Charles B.F. Avery 2019. Cover and Maps from “A Map of
the British Empire in America” by Popple, Henry.
Special thanks to K.M. Alexander for his brilliant Map
Brush Packs blog.kmalexander.com. Other images from
the digital archives of the British Library.
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 Barrier Islands
The Barrier Islands are the dozens of small, shifting
islands that hug the Lowcountry coastline.

From little sandbars that come and go with erosion, to

larger islands with established vegetation, to islands that
only a few fisherman know of and treat like their own
little sanctuary. The forces of erosion, habitation,
agriculture, and the fishing industry have all contributed
to this ever-changing landscape.

When your island-hopping adventurers decide to go off

the beaten path, bring their boat down river, or get
horribly lost in the marsh, roll a few times on the table
below. There is a 2-in-6 chance of the island already
being inhabited by sentient folk of one type or another;
otherwise, it is uninhabited, exploitable wilderness.

A NOTE ON PLUFF MUD: Nearly any of these marshy

islands will be surrounded by a ring of Pluff Mud that
exposes itself at Low Tide. This stinky, sucking mud is
halfway between quicksand and a tarpit; add to that vast
beds of sharp oysters and you have a mobility nightmare.
Low Tide can be advantageous, exposing hidden
connections between islands or buried secrets.
However, movement through the Pluff Mud will slow you
down considerably and relieve you of your boots.
Whenever you travel through Pluff Mud, fill an inventory
slot with Mud that can only be removed with a thorough
washing and scraping. All travel speeds are halved when
traversing Pluff Mud.
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 Island Generator
Roll a d20 four times on the chart below and use the
results to create an island for your adventure.

ENVIRONMENT SIZE ADJECTIVE NOUN

1 Savage John’s 1
2 Red Jenny’s 2
Sandbar
3 Black Crane 3
4 Timid Bull 4
5 Small Old Snake 5
6 Dark Alligator 6
Marshland
7 Long Buzzard 7
8 Short Toad 8
9 Saint Wren 9
10 Rocky Sweet Helena’s 10
11 Green Harold’s 11
12 Lost Folly’s 12
13 Forested Last Point 13
14 Medium Dead Turtle 14
15 Hermit Palm 15
16 Structures Big End 16
17 Little Crab 17
18 Crazy Head 18
19 Other Surly Man’s 19
Large
20 Young Lady’s 20

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 Environments
SANDBAR: Truly the most common sort of Barrier Island,
these islands are more or less just piles of sand and silt
that have formed due to current and wave patterns. More
often than not, sandbars form at the mouths of various
rivers and creeks that meet the ocean and tend to vanish
and reappear with the changing of the tides. What might
seem like a safe sandy shore to rest upon might be ten
feet underwater a few hours later. A large sandbar would
be something like a desert island, home to some clinging
vegetation and casts of filter feeding crabs.

MARSHLANDS: With Barrier Islands, you generally

encounter two types of marshland:, Salt Marshes--the
predominant type--and Freshwater Tidal Marshes.

Salt Marshes have two zones: a Low Marsh and a High

Marsh.

Low Marsh is a biome that is affected by the daily tides

and is dominated by a rich morass of Pluff Mud and a
thick growth of salt resistant plants, such as
cordgrass,etc. The Pluff Mudmakes traversal difficult for
larger animals, but nurtures a large ecosystem of flora
and fauna that feed upon the nutrient-rich mud.
Oysters, snails, shrimp and crabs sit at the bottom of the
food chain with predatory birds, otters, large fish and
turtles making up the upper tier(although occasionally
alligators come down river for a snack). In the rivers
around marshlands it is not uncommon for sharks,
porpoises, manatees, and dolphins to also be present.

High Marsh, on the other hand, is only affected by the

bi-monthly Spring Tides that are much higher than daily
tides. These areas tend to have high salinity soil and
much of its vegetation is stunted or specialized, such as
sweetgrass or needlerush. Creatures living in this area
tend to be scavengers who obtain most of their food from
the low marsh and then retreat to the high marsh at high
tide. Raccoons, opossums, nutria, snakes, and coyotes
would be common here.

A large enough Marshland Island might have enough

height to have swampy areas or even small groves of pine
and oak where the tides do not affect their growth.
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 ROCKY: Although typically not found near Barrier
Islands, a rocky island in this case would be comprised
of erosion-resistant rock that could withstand the strong
ocean currents. More often than not, these islands would
simply be jagged outcroppings, more a threat to shipping
lanes than adventurers. But perhaps there might be
sunken treasure nearby, lizard-people laying traps, or
even big dye producing snails worth a few gold a piece.
Very large rocky islands are aberrant for this region and
might be artificial or volcanic in origin.

FORESTED: These biomes often form on islands with

great mass and/or great height, surrounded by a ring of
marshland. The interiors tend to be swampy, and may
nurture trees able to thrive in the salty soil. Expansive
Live Oaks, Tidewater Cypresses, Sweetgums, Yellow
Pines, Mangroves, Palms of various sorts, and robust
ferns are the most common large plants found here,
almost all of them adorned with hanging moss. The
makeup of these islands is often impacted by the needs
of nearby civilized peoples; Live Oak is highly valued as a
ship building resource and Yellow Pines are prime home
construction material. Forested islands might be
inhabited by black bears, bobcats, white tailed deer, wild
boar, turkey, fox and so forth. In the freshwater lagoons
common near these forested islands, alligators often
amass in sizable congregations.

STRUCTURES: This island has been cleared of much of its

natural environment to make space for human or
humanoid habitation. It might be a military base, a
plantation, a pirate lair or a whole small urban center.
These islands are not always necessarily inhabited as the
threat of disease from mosquitoes, regular flooding,
hurricanes, and other natural phenomena is ever
present. You should expect there to be several docks and
possibly small bridges to other nearby islands.

OTHER: This is the space for the weird

oddball islands that fantasy might throw
at you occasionally. If you roll Other, roll
again on the list below or make up
something gonzo.

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 OTHER ISLANDS
1 Roll on Environment again, superficially that result, actually a giant
turtle. 1-in-6 chance of being a massive stinking corpse.
2 Repeating Island: Island is caught in a time loop and repeats the same
day over and over again. Must break the loop to escape, no time
apparently passed outside.
3 Haunted Island: can't spit without hitting a headstone and waking up
a ghoul.
4 Tip of an underwater mountain: perhaps sea-dwarves have hollowed
out the underside.
5 Illusion Island: You can only step foot on it if you are also an illusion.
6 100-Year Island: Avalon or some shit, only appears for one night every
hundred years.
7 Doll Island: Weird hermit has covered this island in hundreds of dolls.
8 Animal Island: This island is dominated by a single out-of-place
species. Roll once on a Mutation Chart, all of the dominant animal
species possesses that mutation.
9 Prison Island: This entire island is a prison complex for dangerous
criminals who don't know how to swim.
10 Statue Island: It's all statues. All the way down.
11 Floating Island: This island is literally floating, an enterprising
madman might have put a mast and rudder on it one of these days.
12 Flying Island: À la Laputa. If it's inhabited, folks are probably just
here for a visit. If it isn't, old security drones might be still wandering
around.
13 Eyeland: IT'S NOT AN ISLAND, IT'S A GIANT EYE, REVERSE
REVERSE!
14 Castle Island: A single tower peeking up from the water, the rest is
below.
15 Woven Island: Made out of reeds, trapped air, and maybe a bit of faith,
this artificial floating island is half raft, half hamlet. Prone to fire.
16 Anti-Island: The reverse of an island, this is actually an extremely
deep hole, may occasionally produce a maelstrom.
17 Sargasso Gyre: Due to weird current patterns, this artificial island is
made up of sargasso, shipwrecks, and detritus.
18 Mimic Island: Looks like beach resort paradise with friendly
inhabitants, beautiful sights, and comfortable beds. Inhabitants are
always touching the ground in some way. Everything is actually a
single, massive mimic, mouths can appear anywhere.
19 Cannibal Island: Everything living on this island can only survive by
eating creatures of the same type. Rations don't work unless they are
made of whatever you are made of. The Island itself eats other islands
every few score years.
20 Artificial Island: A perfect metal cube of terribly large proportions with
no sign of rust. What's inside? Where's the door?

8
 Sizes
SMALL: Between a
few acres and up to
a quarter square mile,
an Island of this size
could be a sandbar so
small that it vanishes in
the high tide or an area
large enough for a small hamlet
and a dock. Islands like these
are perfect places for buried
pirate treasure, lonely hermits,
a lagoon of hungry alligators, a
village of inbred marsh-dwelling
rednecks, an island getaway of
rich elite, an isolated
lighthouse, etc.

MEDIUM: More than a quarter square

mile and less than twenty square
miles, with around ten being the
standard. These islands are big
enough for a reasonably sized town, a
large hunting reserve or a plantation.
One might also encounter sea-forts, pirate
lairs, sea turtle nesting sites, native burial
grounds, or hidden lizardman
swamp-villages.

LARGE: More than twenty square miles but

less than forty. The largest of the Barrier
Islands are between 60-70 square miles
and should serve as primary setting
pieces for a Crawl, so any randomly
generated Large Island should be
smaller than those. Large Islands of this
nature would not be on the main map,
usually for good reason; they might be
infested with wild creatures, inhabited
by dangerous natives, the site of a
horrible magical accident, or a secret
government facility. They could also
simply be places that the recent
colonizers have yet to explore.

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 ST. ERASMUS
A
One of the few settled
islands before you
reach true wilderness.

A) The Chapel of Ease

B B) The Armory,
The Harbor
The Molted Crab,
C
ALOYFIN
Those who prefer to live on
the edge of civilization have
D E found a home here.

C) Aloyfin Sound
D) Saltlick Stables
E) Blackwater Bay
G
F) Ebalast Marsh
F
JONHAVER’S
H True wilderness.

I G) Fort Assumption
H) The Green
I) Land’s End Beach

J WILDLY’S
Rumors of magically
augmented creatures are laughed
off by sober men.
K
J) Far Shore Beach
K) The Idol
L
L) Folly Point Lighthouse

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 Island Crawl
AN ADVENTURE FOR LVLS 1-2
On the opposite page are 4 pre-made Islands.
The rest of the zine details their contents, NPCs, quest
hooks, strange creatures, and engaging locations.
Some simple rules for exploring the Barrier Islands:

☞ Time is measured in 4-hour chunks called

“Watches". Three during the day, three at night.

☞ Every trail shown on the map takes 1 Watch

to traverse. Leaving the trail or trying for a
shortcut takes 1d4 watches.
(For example, trying to go directly from D to E
might end up taking longer than expected.)

At the beginning of each Watch, roll on the

Encounter Table of your choice (next page):

4am 8am

During Night During Day

Watches 12am 12pm Watches
Roll a d20 Roll a d10
on the table On the table
8pm 4pm

Then roll a d6 to use the Omen:

1. Don’t read the Omen, the encounter happens

immediately without warning!
2-4. Describe the Omen, give the PCs a round
or two to prepare for it.
5. Describe the Omen, give the PCs a chance
to disengage or flee before it arrives.
6. Just describe the Omen. No encounter occurs.
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 Coastal Encounters
ENCOUNTER OMEN
1 Trader/Shrimper/Sailor Salt, Sweat, and Swearing

2 Swarm of Thieving Gulls Persistent Squawking

3 Bag of Sticking Chaw Faded yellow wax paper, stink of

tobacco and brimstone
4 2d6 Buzzards [1HD] Rot and filth, a recently picked
1-in-6 chance of Buzzard corpse (unrecognizable), guttural
Stone squawks
5 3d6 Wild Boars [1HD] Squealing and snuffling, freshly
turned up earth

6 Giant Man O’War [4HD] Purple transparent crest in water,

thin transparent strands
7 2d10 deer [0HD] Cloven tracks, buck rubbed trees,
and 1 Stag [3HD] bedding circles in grass
8 2d6 Giant Crabs [2HD] Furious bubbling rising from the
water, a faintly sweet smell

9 2d10 Pirates [1HD] and 1 Gruff sea shanties, peg tracks,

Captain [3 HD] smell of grog, nearby ships
10 1 on a d4: Siren [3HD] Fleeting glimpse of a fish tail,
2: Manatee [0HD] faint melodious hum
3 or 4: Mermaid [2HD]
11 Flotsam (random item as a Dark shape in the reeds, lapping
Giant’s Bag) of waves

12 Grey Ooze [3HD] Dark shape in the reeds, lapping

of waves, astringent scent
13 d20 Jellyfish [2HD] Electric blue glow dotting the
water
14 Sea Snake [3HD] Banded shape moving through
water or underbrush, faint
rasping sounds
15 Kelpie [4HD] (Disguised as Trotting, smell of fresh hay with
black stallion) hint of meat and salt
16 1 Sahuagin Capt [4HD] Salt, fish and gore smell, wet
1 Sahuagin Cleric [4HD] slapping footsteps, guttural
2d6 Sahuagin [2HD] grunts
17 Boodaddy Sweet grassy scent mixed with
oyster, tiny footprints
18 Giant Squid [10 HD] Circular ripples rising from water
from multiple places at once
19 Waterspout: Sudden tornado winds, huge
1-in-6 chance of Elemental column of water rising
[10HD]
20 Ghost Ship (3d20 Ghost Sudden dense fog, smell of black
Pirates [3HD]) powder and rotten wood
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 Inland Encounters
ENCOUNTER OMEN
1 Buried Oyster Bed Bubbles in mud
(as spike trap)
2 NPC Scavenger Clinking of metal, squelching of
mud
3 Zombie[1HD] waist deep in Smell of leather mixed with
mud, with Boots of Mud stagnant mud, low moaning
Tromping
4 1d6 Alligators [2HD] An unnatural stillness, even the
driftwood looks sinister...wait
5 Swarm of Horseflies Droning buzz, itching sensation
[4HD total]
6 Raccoon Baculum Necklace White spines poking through the
mud
7 3d10 Stirges [1HD] Leathery flapping, sweet-metal
blood scent, a humming buzz
8 Glory Flowers (dug up as Purple trumpet flowers, heart-
John the Conqueror Root) shaped leaves, sweet scent
9 50% Buried Chest (d100gp) Metal and wood above the mud,
50% chance of 6HD Mimic smell of salt, timber, and rust
10 Large Alligator [7HD] A low thrumming growl, smell of rot

11 Leatherback Turtle [2HD] Scraping of sand, wet muddy

OR Giant Sea Turtle [4HD] slapping
12 Haint Sudden chill, hair stands on end
(As any incorporeal undead)
13 Root Doctor Faint rattling, muttering language,
(Treat as NPC Magic User) scent of strange herds
14 2d6 Rawheads Grinding of teeth, smell of wet
leather
15 1d6 Bloody Bones A clattering dance, the sweet-metal
smell of blood
16 Boohag (25% of 1d4 coven) Breath is caught in throats,
tightness in the chest, hair feels
knotted
17 Plat-Eye Flashbacks to childhood
nightmares, the growling of dogs
18 Will O’Wisp [6 HD] Smell of sulphur, softly glowing
light in the distance
19 Tommy Rawbones Foul smell of water bloated corpses,
red ooze trailed towards shore
20 The Gray Man A sudden chill and deep sadness,
spike in air pressure, smell of ozone
13
 St. Erasmus
St. Erasmus is one of the few
major settled islands you will
encounter before reaching the
true wilderness. Its tabby
architecture and sky-blue
shutters are part of the distinct
but common structures found in
the Barrier Islands. The small
port town boasts a permanent
population of around 500 souls.
The main industries are rice
cultivation, fishing industry, and
lumber for ship building.

A - THE CHAPEL OF EASE

Originally a place of religious gathering for the
Erasmians who could not regularly attend bigger
congregations, The Chapel of Ease was consumed in a
sudden conflagration some fifty years ago. Although
multiple attempts have been made to rebuild, all have
met with disaster, leaving only the white tabby walls and
the old mausoleum standing. Years of disuse have left
the grounds overgrown while the dirt path that passes by
is shunned by the locals, preferring to take longer routes
when possible. They say that hags hold sabbath in the
ruins on moonless nights and the mausoleum is haunted
by the spirit of a child who had been interred alive. The
rail thin and needle-nosed Doctor Pojo can occasionally
be found combing the area for roots and goofer dust for
her hoodoo magic. The Haywood Family will pay to have
their ancestral mausoleum properly exorcised.

B - THE ARMORY
Just off of the community center, The Armory is a small
fortification built of tabby and brick overlaid with yellow
stucco. This building hosts a small number of trained
soldiers (usually fresh faced officers and disgruntled
enlisted veterans on cycle), but is primarily the gathering
place for the fifty man local militia. A large brass bell sits
in the fortress’ courtyard, used to ring out warnings to
the village. A single bell calls the militia to arm
themselves, two bells are rung to call all villages to the
fortification (it can hold all five hundred at a squeeze),
14
 and three bells calls for a full evacuation. In times of
peace, The Armory has been known to host banquets by
the local elite and more than once a drunken dare has
sounded false alarms. The young and arrogant Captain
Pascal Haywood is nominally in charge here. He is
woefully under qualified but everyone knows that his
father and local landowner Atticus Haywood has more
than a little influence. Captain Haywood is looking for
volunteers to test out an explosive new weapon and clear
out a nest of Sahuagin on a nearby reef.

B - THE HARBOR
Here you’ll find the only bridge on these islands,
connecting them directly to the mainland. Traveling from
St. Erasmus to any other location means slogging
through the marshes at low tide or taking a boat. A small
shrimping fleet operates at this Harbor, working
alongside a local market that imports and exports goods.
Goods can also be purchased here, depending on what is
available. The Bliss Brothers, George and Charlie, own
the docks and charge rent for their use. In truth, George
is Georgina and Charlie is Charlotte, sisters who are
skirting an antiquated law about women and riparian
land rights. The master shipwright, Jack Argo, is looking
for quality building material, and he is willing to build a
small ship as payment for reports of exotic lumber and
other valuable crafting materials.

B - THE MOLTED CRAB

The sandy wooden sign shows a pink crab popping out of
a blue-green shell and marks the local watering hole. The
Molted Crab is frequented by islanders of all kinds, from
wealthy sons of the social elite to humble shimpers and
farmers--even mysterious Root Doctors and rowdy
pirates are welcome to take a seat. Gossip and peach
brandy are both on tap at the Molted Crab as well as a
variety of other distilled spirits that can handle the heat
and humidity. A seasonal favorite served is the fried crab
sandwich, where a whole freshly molted crab is fried in
butter and placed upon a split loaf. Mr. Wayland Gooding
and Mrs. Maybelle Gooding run the Molted Crab;
Wayland manages the kitchens while Maybelle runs the
front. More than one rowdy patron has felt the sting of
Mrs. Maybelle’s tongue and strong right hook. Something
has been raiding the Goodings’ crab-pots and driving up
prices, the Goodings are offering a reward for its capture.
15
 AloyFin
C - ALOYFIN SOUND
Between AloyFin and St.
Erasmus is the self-named
AloyFin Sound. The inlet is a
meeting ground between the
warm ocean currents and
the fresh water from the
many nearby rivers, creating
a diverse and fertile
environment. While this
makes the Sound an excellent
resource for the local fishermen,
it also attracts other creatures
interested in those resources...

Now lucrative and dangerous, the

Sound teems with predators both strange
and familiar, including the dreaded Great
White and intelligent creatures like Sahuagin
and Merfolk. Shifting alliances, contracts, and turf wars
are not uncommon as fishing rights are fought over.
Three minor diplomats are to meet on a small sandbar in
the Sound to discuss a truce. Any one of the three might
require assistance to ensure the parley goes favorably or
extract them, should it not.

E - BACKWATER BAY
Really more of a sizable cove, Blackwater Bay is the
stomping ground of the local pirates. While every crew
and every fleet has their own allegiances, Blackwater Bay
is as close to neutral ground as one gets. Its name comes
from the seemingly black water, the result of shifting silt
and pollution caused by pirate activity. Along the coast,
something of a “shanty-city” has been established. Each
“district” within the city is controlled by one particularly
powerful captain and can be identified by their flag.
Captain Seymour Foy has been making waves in the Bay,
literally. A massive deep-sea kraken has been bound to
his ship by both chain and magic, allowing him to set
sail without the needed winds. This may upset the
balance of power among the crews or, should the
creature escape, endanger every every soul in the region.

16
 D - SALTLICK STABLES
On the northern end of Aloyfin, an area of drained
wetland has been converted into a sizable pasture for the
Saltlick Stables. Bethany Roan is the keeper of the
stables along with her children Jon and Zoe. The horses
of Saltlick are the famed Marsh Tackys, a stout,
intelligent, and sure-footed breed that is made for moving
through the mud and marsh without tripping or panic.
Without a stop at Saltlick, the average person would find
their journey deeper into the marshes of AloyFin to be
exceptionally hazardous. The horses, known for their
courage, have been strangely skittish as of late. Bethany
claims a Root (curse) has been put on them and seeks a
rare herbal remedy from the Mangrove swamp. She’s
offering several of her best mares as a reward.

F - EBALAST MARSH
The vast majority of AloyFin is a massive salt marsh
intermixed with numerous small lagoons. Its pristine and
biodiverse environment makes it a fertile ground for
those seeking to harvest its resources. The marsh does
not give up its resources easily as alligators, constrictors,
and continuously changing waterways act as natural
deterrents to the unprepared. The innermost regions of
the Ebalast Marshes have thus far been unexplored due
to the thick and dangerous mangrove forest that grows at
its center. The marsh has swallowed countless would-be
colonizers, as half sunk ruins and numerous skeletons
can attest. Mathyus Bluefield is the latest of these and is
currently throwing money at a project to drain and tame
the marsh. The resulting efforts have roused the anger of
a local coven of sea-witches and has awoken a host of
ancient dead.

17
 Jonhaver’s

FORT ASSUMPTION
A long decommissioned military installation, Fort
Assumption was established to protect the region from
foreign invaders and pirates. Eventually, however, the
costs to upkeep the fort outweighed the benefits it may
have provided. After spending a short life as a plague
hospital, it now lays abandoned and gutted on the shore
of Jonhaver’s Island. The interior of the fort is full of
graffiti from the creatures who have passed through, but
nothing living seems to call it home for long. The empty
cannon batteries and ramparts are said to still be
manned by the spirits of those who served there. Colonel
Barnaby Gant, a long retired nonagenarian, claims he
buried a treasure in the basements of the fortress back
in his youth but is unable to face the ghosts of his past
to retrieve it.

18
 LAND’S END BEACH
This beach sits at the southernmost tip of Jonhavers’,
facing Wildy’s Far Shore Beach. The warm sand dunes of
the beach are a common nesting ground for sea turtles
and horseshoe crabs. At night the waters are lit by
phosphorescent plankton and jellyfish who rise to feed
upon them. The small straight between Jonhaver’s and
Wildly’s is deceptively shallow, leading numerous ships
to wreck upon the reefs. Spring Tide brings the highest
and lowest tides. During the high tide the beach is
completely submerged but during the low the small strait
(and the many shipwrecks) between Jonhaver’s and
Wildly’s are entirely exposed. The bizarre creatures of
Wildly’s Island take this chance to escape.

THE GREEN
The wilderness of Jonhaver’s Island is an especially
dense expanse known as The Green. Massive live oaks,
slash pines, and magnolias dominate with a hearty
undergrowth of ferns and sawgrass. The thick canopy is
made even more claustrophobic by uncountable clumps
of hanging moss swinging from every tree. Rumor says
that within the depths of the Green, crumbled villages
and forgotten ruins lie hidden and haunted by dozens of
Plat-Eye. It is also the supposed grave site of an
infamous Root Doctor. Few are willing to wander the
Green unguided and those who do are laden with charms
to protect against the forest’s myriad inhabitants.
Dr. Buzzard’s grave lays in the depths of The Green.
It is protected by traps, illusions, and strange beasts, but
even a handful of the grave-dirt would fetch a high price
from the right people.

19
 Wildly’s
Given a wide berth by all
who know better, Wildly's
Island was once a hunting
reserve before being
bought by a foregin
sorcerer. Now it serves a
dual purpose as menagerie
and massive laboratory.
The wild woods of Wildly's
Island are filled with exotic
and magically augmented
creatures. The sorcerer
himself has not been heard
of in decades, but each
night his Lighthouse tower
lights its beacon, shining
its sickly green beam out
across the waters.

J - FAR SHORE BEACH

The sandy shores of Wildly’s are studded with cabbage
palmetto, loquat, paw-paw, and persimmon. Though
their fruit laden branches are inviting, the shoreline is
also the favored gathering place of mutant monkeys that
inhabit the island. Several hundred strong, the monkeys
have organized themselves into several highly territorial
troops that are differentiated mostly by the diseases they
carry. The most powerful of these tribes at the moment
are hepatitis b-infected rhesus macaques, led by a two
headed, wagon-sized specimen. Lukluk is the mandrill
leader of a highly intelligent troop of baboons and is
willing to negotiate with outsiders for help rising to power
on the island.

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 K - THE IDOL
The center of Wildly’s Island is a wide clearing taken up
by a single massive stone idol; its hideous form a
chimeric fusion of a gorilla, lamprey, and spider. The
area around it is heaped with fruit in various stages of
decay. Everything living on the island avoids this area,
but once a week the monkeys of the island will
collectively throw fruit and howl at the statue for several
hours. No one seems to know what The Idol is or where it
came from, but a recent sea-quake shifted the great
statue and revealed a staircase beneath it.

L - FOLLY POINT LIGHTHOUSE

While it once served its purpose of
directing wayward sailors home, the
Folly Point Lighthouse has become a
beacon to be avoided. Balthazar
Durivage came across the sea and
converted the lighthouse into his
laboratory. The interior has
been unseen since his
residence, but the exterior
has warped over time into a
twisted and bent tower
covered in strange pipes
and belching stacks.
Anything directly
exposed to the beacon
mutates hideously under
its baleful gaze. Who knows
what might lay within the
Lighthouse! But every year the
Light reaches further. Many
fear what will happen when it
reaches the other islands.

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 Creatures

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 THE GRAY MAN - 6HD
A young man dressed in a gray frock and a gray top
hat, slightly transparent on closer inspection.

Wants: To forewarn of sudden dangerous weather

Armour: Plate, immune to non-magical weapons
Move: Normal, 2x Normal Flying
Morale: 2, Will Retreat at first sign of hostilities
Damage: Special

The Gray Man is the ghost of a young groom who has

killed on his wedding day when a freak storm sent his
carriage careening into the marsh to drown. Now the
Gray Man wanders the beaches of the Barrier Islands,
only appearing before the living to forewarn of severe
inclement weather. He will not attack and will try his
best to mutely communicate his distress. 1d6+1 Days
after the Gray Man is encountered, a severe weather
event occurs (usually) in the form of a hurricane or
other powerful storm.

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 BOOHAG - 8HD
In the day, a scrawny, crooked, mean tempered old
woman; in the night, a bloody red skinless spirit.

Wants: To ride your chest, steal your breath, and haunt

your dreams.
Armour: Leather, incorporeal immune to non-magical
weapons at night
Damage: Claw (as Dagger)
Move: 1/2 Normal during day, 2x Normal (Fly) at night
Morale: 8

☞ Steal Breath: Once per night, Boohag may target a

sleeping creature. This creature falls into a deep
nightmare and is unable to wake until they are exposed
to natural light. During this time, the Boohag will ride
wildly upon their chest and suck away their breath,
dealing 1d6 CON damage. If a creature dies from this
effect, the Boohag increases their HD by 1.

☞ Spellcasting: The Boohag often works as a

proficient Root Worker and can use Necromancer Spells
as a Magic User of half her HD.

☞ Salt and Sunlight Vulnerability: When not wearing

their skin, Boohags have a fatal weakness to sunlight
and Salt (similar to vampire weakness to sunlight and
holy water).

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 PLAT-EYE - 4HD
A shifting shadow with a single plate-sized glowing eye,
often takes the form of a large black dog.

Wants: To lead you astray, to protect hidden treasure.

Armour: Chain, immune to non-magical weapons
Move: 2x Normal
Morale: 12
Damage: As Dagger ignores non-magic armor.

☞ Terrible Transformation: The Plat-Eye can turn

itself into anything out of nightmare, such a giant
maggot riddled dog or a screaming inverted head. This
does not change its stats, but with each transformation,
it may target one creature who is then affected by
Cause Fear as a Spellcaster of Plat-Eye’s HD.

☞ Haunt Bound: The Plat-Eye is bound to a buried

treasure in a manner similar to a Dryad’s bond with a
tree. The Plat-Eye is unable to move more than 240’
beyond their treasure and if forcibly moved it will
vanish and reappear at the site of the treasure.

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 TOMMY RAWBONES - 4HD
A maniacal bloody skeleton with tattered skin hanging
from from its head and far too many teeth.

Wants: To eat people, especially attracted to liars and

children
Armour: As Chain
Move: Normal, Swim Twice Normal
Morale: 8
Damage: Claw/Claw/Bite

Tommy Rawbones is a type of undead that lives in lairs

built into the muddy underside of the marsh. When
victims come to close to the shoreline where Tommy
Rawbones lives, it will leap from the water and attempt
to drown its target. It will then take its prize back to its
lair to “consume”, leaving only a bloody headless
skeleton. Victims of Tommy Rawbones rise as Skeletons
the following night and will become Bloody Bones if not
buried in consecrated grounds by the following full
moon. When brought down to 0 HP, a Tommy Rawbones
becomes an inert Bloody Bones and a free Raw Head.
Tommy Rawbones’ lair is full of the belongings of its
various victims.

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 BLOODY BONES - 2HD
A blood-soaked headless skeleton.

Wants: To find a head

Armour: As Leather
Move: Normal
Morale: 12
Damage: Claw as Dagger, on a fatal blow it tears the
target’s head off.

Immortal: When Bloody Bones is brought to 0 HP, it

crumbles into a pile. It will regenerate 1d6 rounds
later in the presence of blood or moonlight.

Bloody Bones is a near-mindless immortal skeleton

that wanders the swamp in search for a head. As it
has no head, it spends a lot of its time stumbling into
holes, getting buried in Pluff Mud and incoherently
bumping into things. When it finds anything vaguely
head shaped it will attempt to pry said object away
and place it on its shoulders. In most cases this only
leads to frustration but when Bloody Bones actually
dons a head, it becomes a Tommy Rawbones. As a
wandering undead, any treasure it carries is purely
incidental.

RAW HEAD - HD 1
A floating head with bloody
skin hanging limply from it.

Wants: To find a body

Armour: As Leather
Move: Normal/Flying
Morale: 12
Damage: Bite as Dagger

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 Sea Island Loot (d6)
1 - Boodaddy: A crude doll made of sweetgrass and
pluff mud which is then incubated in an oyster for a
month. The Boodaddy is proof against various Low
Country creatures and provides a +1 bonus to any attack
or saving rolls against creatures them. A Boodaddy hung
over your head will completely dissuade Boohags from
attempting to steal your breath and Haunts from
entering a house. Once a month, on the night of a Full
Moon, the Boodaddy will animate and journey to the
river to drink oyster nectar and regain its power. A
Boodaddy will become inert if it is unable to make this
journey due to distance or obstacle.

2 - Buzzard Stone: Take an egg from a buzzard and

poke a hole into the shell. Return the egg to the
buzzard’s nest without their notice. After the other eggs
hatch and this egg does not, the buzzard will use a stone
to try to open the egg. This stone, after being discarded
by the buzzard, is a highly versatile charm. The holder of
a Buzzard Stone may choose to use it as a charm against
all evil, acting as an all-purpose anathema similar to
silver, garlic, and a holy symbol wrapped in one.
Conversely, the holder may use the Buzzard stone to
become invisible during the night. Either effect only
works once for a 12 hour period.

3 - Boots of Mud Tromping: These thick, sturdy

galoshes allow one to move through mashes, swamps,
pluff mud, and similar environments as though one were
walking down a well-tended road.

4 - Raccoon Baculum: The specially prepared

phallic bone of the common Raccoon is actually one of
the most reliable love charms out there. Wearing a
Raccoon Baculum will give the wearer a +1 bonus to any
Charm effects, but openly displaying it might evoke
disgust. A target that willingly accepts the bone from the
current owner is affected as though by a Philter of Love.

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 5 - John the Conqueror: An all purpose magical
herb, any magic involved in attracting or repelling is
empowered the John the Conqueror. On its own, John
the Conqueror allows its user to “get lucky.” Any sexual
congress while chewing the root will result in conception.
The root can also be chewed to allow the user to add
their level or HD to any single roll that is otherwise
entirely determined by luck.

6 - Sticking Chaw: This chewing tobacco is black as

tar and stinks of sulphur. Partaking of this chaw is likely
horrible for your teeth, but lets you spit a wad of the
horrible gunk with the range of a longbow. Targets struck
by the chaw must Save or be held fast as a Web spell
until the gunk is scraped off.

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 Where your money goes
When you purchased a copy of this zine:

◇ 40% of that went to the lead writer: John Gregory.

◇ 40% went to the publisher: David Schirduan.
◇ 20% goes directly to The Penn Center.

It’s because of organizations like the Penn Center that we

still have knowledge of these fantastic legends and
stories. A word from John:

“Growing up the Lowcountry, I found myself

surrounded by nearly 300 years of history. It is easy to
get caught up in the “romance” of the South, but the
real history is far less rosy and far more complex. The
Penn Center has, above all else, worked to preserve,
educate, and celebrate the culture and history of the
Lowcountry and her inhabitants.”

Thank you for helping us support this most excellent

organization. To learn more about the Penn Center, visit
their website at penncenter.com.

Reach out to us!

This first issue is a proof of concept, a test. 19th century
southern US is under explored in games. These legends
and peoples should not be forgotten!

If you share a heritage with the residents of this period

and place in history, reach out to us! We are a small
team making this little zine; and we would welcome any
feedback or contributions you might have.

Please contact me at davidschirduan@gmail.com if you

wish to help us make this zine even more faithful and
true to the early 19th century Southern United States.

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