Skullport


 * This is an article about the city of Skullport. For the sourcebook, see Skullport (sourcebook).



Geography
The Port of Shadows is a teeming hive of evil that lies deep beneath Waterdeep, on the third underground level of Undermountain. Considered part of the Underdark, it is a lawless place of slave traders, pirates, and demi-humans, which traffic with illithids, drow, beholders and other less savory creatures beneath the surface.

Snake Pit
In the wretched heart of this subterranean city's mercantile district, among the stone columns of the lower Trade Lanes, a magnificent structure stands out among the nearby homes and taverns. Its walls are carved with images of serpents and scales, and two powerfully muscled, snake-tailed Yuan-ti stand guard at its gates. Called the Snake Pit by its wary neighbors, this imposing edifice is the residence of Zstulkk Ssarmn, a prominent slaver of the Iron Ring consortium.

In the heart of Zstulkk's mansion, a coiled ramp leads down into the stone below. At its bottom lies a cayern lit with lurid red flame. This cavern is the terminus of the skull-shaped portal in the tail of the Great Petrified Serpent that lies in the Serpent Hills. The cavern houses the temple where Zstulkk Ssarmn leads his Yuan-ti brood in worship of Sseth.

Sargauth
Skullport lies along the subterranean river Sargauth, used as a traderoute to the outside world. Over the centuries, several portals large enough for entire ships to pass through have been built in the cavern walls along this waterway. One such portal, about 400 feet east of Skull Island, is only faintly visible as a scratched outline in the stone. Triggering the portal requires no special key, just extraordinary confidence on the part of the ship's pilot, since the vessel must be steered bow-first into the wall. When the bowsprit makes contact with the portal, the vessel and all its contents are transported instantly to the middle of the Lapal Sea.

Personalities

 * Zstulkk Ssarmn