So my PCs just completed Redhand, and will be starting LoLR sunday. I'm pretty sure that windwalk isn't going to get them through the hurricane force winds that surround, and the characters themselves do not have the arcane means to transpose the storm that surrounds it. Thus, I'm thinking its boat time. I already have a sub-adventure planned getting a ship from one of the guests at the party (Kilraven, plus I'm also playing STAP and the group is pysched about water combat). I'm wondering if anyone has thrown the whole "Three-hour tour meets Captain Nemo" sidetrek of getting to Tilagos, and if so, what encounters you used. I need to boost PC xp slightly to compensate for character death, but don't want to kill them (average level 15).I could just look in the MM, but krakens and aboleths seem a little out of hand in a campaign with plenty of malevolent, powerful monsters. Pirates, perhaps?
Well, they're going to encounter Orc pirates on the beach at Tilagos, but I suppose it wouldn't be out of place to have an encounter with some kind of sea-raiders dispatched by Iuz's commander on Admundfort Island. I'd go with a sea serpent, myself, or a caller from the deeps, or maybe a crazed bronze dragon. Can't remember the CR of a storm giant off the top of my head, but IIRC it's somewhere around 20, perhaps a tad high. But with the big storm surrounding the island, maybe finding and defeating a storm giant bound by oath to the Order of the Storm to guard the approaches to the island might be a good short side-quest.
If you can lure them off the coast line, and into the depths of the lake, then anything's fair game, certainly monsters (that's why no-one goes there).
My idea would be have them meet Wanyrocathystus, aka the Woeful Worm, aka The Lord of Unknown Depths. He's in the Oerth Journal #6, available as a free download somewhere. Maybe lure then into the depths with tales of the Isles of Woe? (they could even bump into one of them, if you want more side-trek adventures).
If they stick to the sides, I guess there's Rhennee pirates.
I once played an interesting Living Greyhawk module that took place on a voyage crossing the Nyr Dyv where one of the encounters was the Ship of Fools (iirc). An insane, highly-magical ship full of crazy people/things flying under the flag of Zagyg. I'm not sure if it is Greyhawk cannon, or just a neat nautical themed encounter with followers of Zagyg, but it was a wild experience in a trip otherwise harried by sea hags, scrags and orc pirates.
We swam towards it, then quickly decided to retreat, but you might be able to have fun with something totally wild and non AoW.
These are all excellent suggestions. I'm probably going to run my standard three types of encounters: a fight, a roleplaying encounter, and an encounter that can be easily bypassed. I'm thinking a sea serpent will serve as the main fight, followed by a "ghost ship" crewed by knowledgable but deadly undead (making the incorporeal ship almost a focus of unhallow), topped off with the storm giant encounter. I'm thinking it's high time I hit the party with a riddle since there seems to be NONE in the entire adventure path. (Yeah STAP! 1st module had a pretty neat one...)
Well, here's the tail end of the Nyr Dyv boat adventure I ran, just to give others ideas.. I had Kilraven sell them a vessel he used to own which they ran towards Tilagos. During the first leg, they encountered Ogre Tempest (MM4) pirates lead by Ogre Mages. The entire thing would have been above a cr20, but I allowed them about 30 rounds to spot and disable the invisible ships, as well as the assistance of an unseen ally before one out of the three approached. The party ship to ship fought six of the ogres and an Ogre Mage/Fighter 7 that directed the assault. The whole thing was a EL16, and got complicated by the presence of a SeaDrake (Fiend Folio), whom the expert diplomacizers were able to befriend. For no tribute (made helpful), the Drake escorted him through their territory. After their escort I pulled a made up monster moment. I had a localized "cursed" ghost ship appear, basically a floating ethereal representation that acted as a point of an unhallow. Aboard the ship, that attacked by floating through the PC's ship, was a Mob of 5th level Rogoue Ghosts lead by a DeathShriker (EL 16). The undying host was dispatched with no loss (stupid heal spell killing poor DS...), though visually it made for a cool encounter and scared the pants of the characters. (Mob Ability Drain is nasty): Finally, I gave them two storm giants who asked them a series of riddles before allowing them passage to the island. I asked two and then gave the party three chances to stump me with their own (Something got pulled out of the Gunslinger novels on me, the heroes won)
Good fun... Now they've just beat 1 out of 4 trials (the most difficult)