The Material Plane is vast and infinite, composed of an uncountable number of worlds inhabited by many varieties of Surrounding each of these worlds is the void of Wildspace, a bubble of airless space adrift in the Astral Sea, each one containing numerous unique worlds, treasures and threats.

This section covers mechanics and guidelines for designing Wildspace systems and running adventures within them.

 

Celestial bodies

Celestial bodies are the unfathomably large objects that are scattered throughout a typical region of Wildspace, Ranging from small asteroids to colossal planets and stars, celestial bodies come in all shavws, sizes and forms.

Size Class

All celestial bodies are categorized on a scale of A to J, with A being the smallest and J being the largest. Most worlds are Size E, which includes our home in real life, Earth.

Category	Size	Example
A	10 miles across	Minor asteroids
B	10-100 miles across	Most asteroids
C	100-1k miles across	Ceres
D	1k-4k miles across	The Moon
E	4k-10k miles across	Earth
F	10k-40k miles across	Neptune
G	40k-100k miles across	Jupiter
H	100k-1m miles across	The sun
I	1m-10m miles across	Vega
J	> 10m miles across	Betelgeuse

Shape

In real life, most major celestial bodies are spherical. with the exception of smaller bodies like asteroids. But in Spelljammer, the universe is filled with a variety of worlds of all different improbable shapes. You are just as likely to find flat planes, cubic worlds, or oblong watery seas.

Type

All worlds also have a type class. This is determined by what element the world is primarily composed of.

Type	Explanation
Fire	A star or similar body that provides light and heat.
Earth	A mostly terrestrial world, made of solid earth.
Water	A world composed mostly of vast sea or ice.
Air	Worlds of gas and air, with little to no land.

The type of a celestial body doesn’t necessarily determine the only element present on its surface. Many Earth worlds still possess vast liquid oceans, Water worlds often sport islands of rock. and occasionally, Air worlds will be home to similar islands that drift in the winds. However, a world’s type describes what the majority of its content is, and what general sort of world it is.

Example Bodies: Earth and Jupiter

To demonstrate how celestial bodies are categorized, let’s at the real planets of Earth and Jupiter.

Earth is a typical category E spherical Earth world like most campaign settings are. Average in size, it represents the baseline for how big a world should be. Though it is primarily covered in oceans, its most significant feature is its continents, earning it the Earth type.

Jupiter is a category G spherical Air world. It is immense in size, and not a good choice for restocking your air envelope. Indeed, Jupiter’s atmosphere is always fouled. Having no land or water and beset by constant storms, Jupiter is a textbook Air planet.

 

The Wildspace System

Now that we have an understanding of celestial bodies, let’s put them together in a Wildspace system. Wildspace systems generally follow a similar structure, with celestial bodies moving in orbit around a Primary object.

The Primary

Every Wildspace system has a celestial body that acts as the Primary. The Primary is situated in the center of the system, and all other bodies in the system sit in orbit around it, In most systems, the Primary is simply the system’s sun, providing light and warmth to the worlds in orbit around it.

However, this isn’t always the cace. In Greyspace, the world of Oerth acts as the Primary of its system, with that world’s sun orbiting around it. In other systems, like Doomspace, there is no sun at all, merely a black void at the center, threatening to swallow anything that comes close.

Orbiting Bodies

All other significant celestial bodies in a system move in orbit around the primary. Generally. these orbits are ring-shaped, but more fantastical orbits can exist.

Every orbiting body is situated at a specific orbital distance from the Primary. This distance is on the order of hundreds of millions of miles. For the sake of simplicity, assume this distance remains constant. It should only vary in the case of worlds with exceptionally elliptical orbits.

Moons of a larger world also have an orbital distance from their parent world. This distance only matters for trips the world and its moon. Otherwise, for simplicity, treat their orbital distance from the Primary as the same.

 

Example Systems

The following are short examples of three existing Wildspace systems: Realmspace, home of the Forgotten Realms, Greyspace, home of the world of Greyhawk, and Krynnspace, home to the Dragonlance setting. Each example lists the worlds in that system, a summary of their info, and their Orbital Distance from the Primary.

 

REALMSPACE

The Sun. Category H (Fire). Primary.

Anadia. Category B (Earth). 50 mil. miles.

Coliar. Category C (Air). 100 mil. miles.

Toril. Category E (Earth). 200 mil. miles.

Karpri. Category D (Water). 300 mil. miles.

Chandos. Category F (Water). 400 mil. miles.

Glyth. Category E (Earth). 1 ,OOO mil. miles.

Garden. Category A (Earth). 1 , 200 mil. miles.

H’catha. Category C (Earth). 1 ,600 mil. miles.

Astral Sea. 3,200 million miles.

 

GREYSPACE

Oerth. Category E (Earth). Primary.

Kule. Category B (Earth). 10 mil. miles.

Raenei. Category D (Earth). 30 mil. miles.

Liga (Sun). Category C (Fire). 100 mil. miles.

The Grinder. Asteroid Field. 200 mil. miles.

Edill. Category C (Air). 400 mil. miles.

Gnibile. Category C (Air). 600 mil. miles.

Conatha. Category C (Water). ,OOO mil. miles.

Ginsel. Category C (Earth). 1,500 mil. miles.

Borka. Category A (Earth). 2,000 mil. miles.

Greela. Category E (Earth). 3,000 mil. miles.

The Spectre. Category B (Earth), 4,000 mil miles.

Astral Sea. 8,000 million miles.

 

KRYNNSPACE

The Sun. Category H (Fire). Primary.

Sirrion. Category D (Fire). 30 mil. miles.

Reorx. Category D (Earth). 50 mil. miles.

Krynn. Category D (Earth). 100 mil. miles.

Chislev. Category E (Earth). 300 mil. miles.

Zivilyn. Category F (Air). mil. miles.

Nehzmyth. Category C (Earth). 900 mil. miles.

Stellar Islands. Category A (Earth). 2,000 mil. miles.

Astral Sea. 4,000 million miles.

 

These three example Wildspace systems form the Radiant Triangle, one of the most traveled regions of Wildspace. They also represent three broad types of system. Krynnspace’s worlds are all clustered close together, all but one within a journey of ten days- Realmspace’s worlds are spread out more, and offer plenty of pit stops for adventurers. Greyspace is staggeringly huge, and demands extreme journeys to fully explore.

 

Travel in Wildspace

Travel in Wildspace is altogether not unlike travel on the ocean. For the most part, it consists of long journeys of days or weeks across the void of space. These journeys can be uneventful, but more likely than not, a ship of travelers may face threats and hazards in space.

Calculating Travel Time

Across long distances, spelljamming ships universally travel at a fixed speed of 100 million miles per day. This makes calculating the length of a journey relatively easy.

To determine the distance between two locations in Wildspace, you must first determine each location’s orbital distance. Once you do, you must then determine if the destinations are close or distant.

A close destination is on the same side of its orbit as your starting location. To determine the journey’s length, subtract the orbital distance of one location from that of the other. The remaining distance is the distance between them. For example, if your starting location is at an orbital distance of 200 million miles, and your destination orbits at 1,000 million miles, then you must travel a total distance of 800 million miles to reach it, roughly eight days of travel.

Likewise, a distant destination is on the end of its orbit, on the far side of the Primary relative to you. To determine the journey’s length, instead add the orbital distances of both locations together. The total is the distance between them. For example, if your starting location is at an orbital distance of 200 million miles, and your destination orbits at 1,000 million miles, then you must travel a total distance of 1,200 million miles, roughly twelve days of travel.

 

Going Planetside

Of course, for most crews, you don’t spend all your time in space. Eventually, you have to settle down on solid land (or on the sea, depending on what you’re equipped for)

Taking off and Landing

And when you go planetside, your ship must land. The type of ship you are piloting determines what situations you can land in (described in the Astral Adventurer’s Guide).

The size of a body is important for determining how long it takes to reach orbit or land on a planet. The larger a body is, the longer it takes to escape its gravity well ranging from several minutes on smaller boddies to nearly an hour or more for larger worlds.

The following table presents how long it takes to reach orbit after setting off from a celestial body. This is also the time necessary to fly from orbit to the surface. Taking off and landing require the same amount of time, generally.

Type	Explanation
A	Ten minutes
B/C	Twenty minutes
D	Thirty minutes
E	Fourty minutes
F	One hour
G	Two hours
H	Four hours
I	Eight hours
J	Sixteen hours

These times assume the spelljamming vessel is leaving the celestial leaving in a straight line. If the spelljammer travels at a gentler angle, or spends time doing other tasks in the air, it will take longer to complete the journey. Additionally, when taking off from a planet, the ship’s spelljammer must first “warm up” the helm, focusing their mind and preparing for flight. This process takes 10 minutes, during which the spelljammer must remain seated in the helm and perform no other activities.

After ten minutes have passed the vessel may lift off from the ground and the spelljammer may pilot it into the air. This process is only necessary when taking off from bodies of Category A or larger size. Taking off from a smaller body, such as the Rock of Bral requires no charge-up period.

Inclement Weather

Local weather at a planet or other celestial body can make taking off and landing more difficult, and it makes the task generally take more time. the weather tables in the Dungeon Master’s Guide to determine local weather, and . then use the following table to modify the local Time to Orbit.

Weather Effect	Time Modifier
No wind	x1
Light Wind	x1.5
Strong Wind	x2
No precipitation	x1
Light rain or snowfall	x1.5
Heavy rain or snowfall	x2

For example, if the vessel attempted to touch down on a category E planet during a storm (heavy rain + strong wind) it would take roughly two and a half hours to safely navigate to the surface and find a suitable location to land.

 

Difficulty Landing and Crashdown

Sometimes landing is a difficult task. If a ship is experiencing strong winds when attempting to land or is currently involved in a stressful situation (such as a battle) the ship’s spelljammer must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw to land. On a failure. the ship crashes down. A ship also crashes down if it attempts to land without the appropriate landing gear, if its landing gear was damaged at the time of landing, or if it strikes the surface without making an attempt to land.

A ship that crashes down takes damage as if it collided with a gargantuan object or creature. In addition, it is unable to lift off from the surface of the celestial body or other object it crashed down onto. The spelljammer remains stuck in its location until sufficient repairs have performed on it. These repairs can performed by a bosun and crew (three successful uses of the Repair officer action) or by hiring local artisans, requiring 3 days of work at a cost of 60gp (see “Repairs”). These repairs also restore HP to the ship’s hull and weapons, as normal.

 

Wildspace Hazards

Space travel can be filled with danger if a crew isn’t careful. Much like sailing a groundling ship, the officers and crew must contend with a number of hazards, both external and internal in order to keep ship life running smoothly. In addition to the hazards faced by a groundling crew, the following hazards exist in Wildspace.

Every hazard is resolved with a group check, and the DC is randomly determined from an accompanying table. Each officer listed for the hazard may contribute with a check. If a listed officer’s check isn’t made, it counts as a failure against the group check. The crew may also make a check, rolling a d20 + its quality.

Group Checks

To determine how a ship fares against these hazards, each threat requires the ship’s officers and crew to make a special group check. The description of a hazard specifies which officers can roll to contribute to the group check. That description also states what ability check an officer makes. Even if the officers make different ability checks, their successes and failures contribute to the one group check.

Additionally, all the non-officer members of the crew make a single check, a d20 roll modified by the crew’s quality. The success or failure of all these checks—both the officers and the crew—determines the result of the group check.

While each hazard lists the officers assigned to participate in a group check, anyone can attempt an officer’s check in a pinch, with two exceptions: First, only the captain can make checks associated with the captain’s role; no one else can take the captain’s place. Second, only one character can attempt an officer’s check; they can’t receive help.

Once all the checks related to the group check have been rolled, the ship’s success or failure is determined. Hazards offer four levels of success or failure determined by the results of the ship’s group check. A total success or a total failure occurs when every roll in the group check is a success or a failure, respectively.

 

Asteroid field

Asteroid fields can be a great danger to a spelljamming crew. Without deft navigation and coordination, the ship may collide with the rocks, or attract something worse.

 

Asteroid DCs

DC	Description
10	Sparse asteroids
15	Average asteroid field
20	Dense asteroid field
25	Extremely dense asteroid field

 

Asteroid Checks

Officer	Check
Spelljammer	Intelligence (air vehicles)
Captain	Intelligence (air vehicles)
Navigator	Wisdom (Nature or navigator’s tools)

 

Asteroid Results

Result	Description
Total Success	The ship avoids the asteroids completely, and the crew’s quality increases by 1 for 1d4 days.
Success	The ship avoids the asteroids completely.
Failure	The ship collides with an asteroid, taking 4d10 bludgeoning damage.)
Total Failure	The ship collides with an asteroid, taking 8d10 bludgeoning damage, and the commotion attracts an asteroid spider or other dangerous threat hiding in the area

 

Asteroids and Other Debris

The hazard to the left describes an asteroid field, but you can also use these mechanics for similar fields of debris in space. Maybe the ship finds itself flying through the wreckage of a larger vessel or even the remnants of a battle that took place long ago. In such a case, a total failure might attract more fitting threats. Perhaps you’ll find a crew scavenging the wreckage, or a forgotten crew of vampirates. Or maybe whoever is responsible for the wreck is still there, and not happy to see you.

Crew Conflict

Sailors can be a rough-and-tumble bunch, and cramming them into a ship’s confined quarters leads to inevitable rivalries, feuds, and petty crimes. If resentments among the crew grow too strong, the officers must step in and set things right, lest they risk mutiny or worse.

Each day a ship spends dealing with a crew conflict requires those aboard to make a group check. The check’s DC is randomly determined or chosen from the Crew Conflicts DCs table. The captain, first mate, and cook each make an ability check, as shown on the Crew Conflict Checks table. This check takes the place of any other activities that the officer might undertake that day, representing their contribution to placating the crew. If no one makes the check for a particular officer, a failure is contributed toward the group check.

Even though the crew is causing trouble, some members help the officers, and thus the crew still contributes a roll to the group check. Roll a d20 for the crew, using its quality score as a modifier to the roll, and compare that check to the DC.

Determine how many of the group’s checks succeeded—the officers’ and the crew’s—then consult the Crew Conflict Check Results table.

Crew Conflict DCs

DC	Description
10	Minor scuffle or petty theft
15	Brawl involving several people, theft of a valuable
20	Large brawl resulting in several injuries, theft of a prized item
25	Murder, serious brawl involving most of the crew

Crew Conflict Checks

Officer	Check
Captain	Charisma (Intimidation)
First mate	Charisma (Intimidation)
Cook	Intelligence ( brewer’s supplies)

Crew Conflict Check Results

Result	Effect
Total Success	The crew’s quality score increases by 1 for 1d4 days and the hazard ends.
Success	The hazard ends.
Failure	The crew’s quality score decreases by 1.
Total Failure	The crew’s quality score decreases by 1, and the crew immediately mutinies.

Fire

A fire at sea can turn a ship into a burned-out hulk, its crew slain or forced overboard.

If a fire erupts aboard a ship, its officers and crew must make a group check to coordinate efforts to extinguish it. The check’s DC is randomly determined or chosen from the Fire DCs table. The group check represents 5 minutes of work. The captain, first mate, bosun, and surgeon each make an ability check, as shown on the Fire Checks table. If no one makes the check for a particular officer, a failure is contributed toward the group check. Also, roll a d20 for the crew, using its quality score as a modifier to the roll, and compare that check to the DC.

Determine how many of the group’s checks succeeded—the officers’ and the crew’s—then consult the Fire Check Results table.

Fire DCs

DC	Description
10	Small, contained fire, equivalent to an oil lantern
15	Dangerous flame, equivalent to a large campfire, or multiple, smaller fires ignited at once
20	Intense fire with significant chance to spread, equivalent to a bonfire
25	Sudden, pervasive flames, such as from igniting a hold filled with flammable cargo

Fire Checks

Officer	Check
Captain	Intelligence (water vehicles)
First mate	Charisma (Intimidation)
Bosun	Strength ( carpenter’s tools)
Surgeon	Intelligence (Medicine)

Fire Check Results

Result	Effect
Total Success	The fire is extinguished with nothing beyond cosmetic damage.
Success	The fire is extinguished, but the hull and 1d3 other random components take 6d6 fire damage.
Failure	The hull and 1d3 other random components take 6d6 fire damage, and the fire continues. Make another set of checks.
Total Failure	The crew’s quality score decreases by 1 due to injuries, while the hull and 1d3 other random components take 6d6 fire damage. The fire continues. Make another set of checks.

Fog

Fog on land is usually an inconvenience, but at sea it can prove disastrous. Decreased visibility makes navigation more difficult and can cause a vessel to crash.

A group check determines how the officers and crew manage through one day of fog. The check’s DC is randomly determined or chosen from the Fog DCs table. The captain and quartermaster each make an ability check, as shown on the Fog Checks table. If no one makes the check for a particular officer, a failure is contributed toward the group check. Also, roll a d20 for the crew, using its quality score as a modifier to the roll, and compare that check to the DC.

Determine how many of the group’s checks succeeded—the officers’ and the crew’s—then consult the Fog Check Results table.

Fog DCs

DC	Description
10	Light fog
15	Moderate fog
20	Heavy fog
25	Very heavy fog

Fog Checks

Officer	Check
Captain	Intelligence (water vehicles)
Navigator	Wisdom (Nature or navigator’s tools)

Fog Check Results

Result	Effect
Total Success	The fog has no effect on navigation, and the crew’s quality increases by 1 for 1d3 days.
Success	The fog has no effect on navigation.
Failure	The fog slows the ship, reducing its travel pace and speed by half for the day.
Total Failure	The fog slows the ship and disorients the crew, reducing the vessel’s travel pace and speed by half for the day and causing it to move in a random direction.

Infestation

Provisioning a sea journey is challenging, particularly when allocating what to pack for the voyage. A rat infestation or an outbreak of even a minor illness can spell disaster at sea. This type of hazard covers illnesses, infestations, spoiled supplies, and other troubles that wear away a crew’s health.

Each day a ship spends dealing with an infestation requires those aboard to make a group check. The check’s DC is randomly determined or chosen from the Infestation DCs table. The captain, first mate, surgeon, and cook each make an ability check, as shown on the Infestation Checks table. This check takes the place of any other activities that the officer might undertake that day. If no one makes the check for a particular officer, a failure is contributed toward the group check. Also, roll a d20 for the crew, using its quality score as a modifier to the roll, and compare that check to the DC.

Determine how many of the group’s checks succeeded—the officers’ and the crew’s—then consult the Infestation Check Results table.

Infestation DCs

DC	Description
10	Minor bug or rat infestation, common cold
15	Persistent bug or rat infestation, stomach ailment or typical flu
20	Serious bug or rat infestation, contagious flu or spoiled food
25	Overwhelming bug or rat infestation, lethal plague

Infestation Checks

Officer	Check
Captain	Intelligence (water vehicles)
First mate	Charisma (Persuasion)
Surgeon	Intelligence (Medicine)
Cook	Constitution ( cook’s utensils)

Infestation Check Results

Result	Effect
Total Success	The crew’s quality score increases by 1 for 1d4 days, and the hazard ends.
Success	The hazard ends.
Failure	The crew’s quality score decreases by 1.
Total Failure	The crew’s quality score decreases by 1, and the distraction caused by the crisis forces the ship to move at half speed that day.

Storm

Winds and towering waves toss ships like bath toys. Snowstorms batter vessels venturing too far north. Hurricanes consume whole armadas. More common and deadlier than most sea monsters, storms claim more ships than any other threat on the high seas.

Each day a ship spends involved in a storm requires those aboard to make a group check. The check’s DC is randomly determined or chosen from the Storm DCs table. The captain, first mate, bosun, and quartermaster each make an ability check, as shown on the Storm Checks table. This check takes the place of any other activities that the officer might undertake that day, representing their contribution to keeping the ship afloat. If no one makes the check for a particular officer, a failure is contributed toward the group check. Also, roll a d20 for the crew, using its quality score as a modifier to the roll, and compare that check to the DC.

Determine how many of the group’s checks succeeded—the officers’ and the crew’s—then consult the Storm Check Results table.

Storm DCs

DC	Description
10	Heavy gale
15	Strong storm
20	Typical hurricane
25	Overwhelming hurricane

Storm Checks

Officer	Check
Captain	Intelligence (water vehicles)
First mate	Charisma (Intimidation)
Bosun	Strength ( carpenter’s tools)
Navigator	Wisdom (Nature or navigator’s tools)

Storm Check Results

Result	Effect
Total Success	The ship survives unscathed. The crew’s quality score increases by 1 for 1d4 days.
Success	The ship survives unscathed.
Failure	The ship’s components each take 4d10 bludgeoning damage. The crew’s quality score decreases by 1. The ship struggles, moving at half speed that day.
Total Failure	The ship’s components each take 10d10 bludgeoning damage. The crew’s quality score decreases by 2, and 10 percent of the crew is washed overboard and lost. The ship is blown off course and struggles to recover its bearings, moving in a random direction.

Solar Flare

One moment, you find yourself on an uneventful voyage through space. The next, your ship is engulfed in the flames of a hot sun, erupting from the star’s surface. While the navigator and spelljammer work to avoid the flare, the captain and crew work to prevent any outbreak of flames.

Solar Flare DCs

DC	Description
10	Distant, minor, or expected flare
15	An average flare with reasonable time to react
20	An unexpected or especially damaging flare
25	Extremely sudden or powerful flare

 

Solar Flare Checks

Officer	Check
Spelljammer	Intelligence (air vehicles)
Captain	Intelligence (air vehicles)
First Mate	Charisma (Intimidation)
Navigator	Wisdom (Nature or navigator’s tools)

 

Solar Flare Results

Result	Description
Total Success	Theflare is avoided entirely, and the crew’s quality increases by 1 for 1d4 days.
Success	Any damage from the flare is superficial or avoided
Failure	The flare causes a fire. Immediately resolve a Fire hazard.
Total Failure	The flare causes excessive damage. Treat as a reult of Failure on a Fire Hazard.

The Stars Beyond

When a vessel moves the edge of a Wildspace system, it enters the Astral Here, they leave the Material Plane behind and sail across an endless ocean of stars. Many voyages will spend the vast majority of their time crossing the Astral and most travelers of the stars are familiar with its infinite, pastel skies.

 

Life in the Astral Sea

In the Astral Sea, creatures can live forever. This has obviously encouraged many to permanently move to the plane, braving the risk of terrifying monsters for the chance of life everlasting. The following rules affect creatures on the Astral Plane.

Eternal Youth. Creatures on the Astral Plane do not age. Upon leaving Wildspace, a creature’s natural aging is paused, and it can not die of old age. The creature begins aging as normal if it leaves the Astral Plane.

Without Hunger or Want. While on the Astral Plane, a creature does not require food or drink, and can breathe comfortably outside an air envelope, their lungs filled as if by magic. The Astral Sea is not truly filled with air, and so it does not replenish a ship’s air envelope. Air envelopes continue to degrade over time.

Travel by Thought. A creature doesn’t need a vessel to travel through the Astral Sea. In this realm, a traveler has the option of propelling itself by thought alone. The more intelligent a creature is, the faster it can move. A creature that chooses to move in this fashion can move in any direction at a flying speed in feet equal to 5 × its Intelligence score.

 

Worlds of the Endless Sea

Like Wildspace, the Astral Sea is populated by celestial all across it. Unlike those planets, moons and suns of the worlds of the Astral Sea take more fantastical forms.

Wildspace Systems

Wildspace systems are situated in the Astral Plane, and drift across it like corks in water. The majority of journeys through the Astral Sea are between such systems. and the routes taken shift as the systems drift through space.

Astral Dominions

Where the Astral Sea overlaps with the Outer Planes, the gods constructed astral dominions. These magnificent palaces float within the sea of stars, and act as a bridge the Astral Sea and the god’s domain on their plane of residence. For example. Moradin’s dominion of Dwarfhome acts as a bridge to Solania, the fourth layer of Mount Celestia, and Gruumsh’s dominion of Nishrek links the Astral to the plane of Acheron.

Dead Gods

The Astral Sea is a graveyard Floating through it are the immense, and nigh unrecognizable corpses of forgotten deities. Many Astral natives have turned these remains into outposts. One notable example is Tu’narath, a githyanki city built on the corpse of a six-armed god.

 

Navigating the Cosmos

Navigating the Astral Sea is not quite as straightforward as it is in Wildspace. Where you can count on the worlds of Wildspace to follow predictable paths, the realms of the Astral Sea are constantly shifting. Though it’s easy to find your path, it’s not always easy to know if that path is safe or deadly,

 

Intuitive Navigation

The Astral Plane’s magic makes navigation easy, if you’re know what you’re looking for. All creatures innately know the most direct route to their destination through the Astral Sea. All they must do is visualize where they want to go, and the route becomes clear to them. This is called Intuitive Navigation, by most spacers.

Intuitive navigation will get you to your destination, eventually, but when dealing with the Prime Material spheres, it’s not reliable. More often than not, a navigator will simply find themselves drifting into the nearest Wildspace Sphere, unless they’ve been to the world that they’re targeting before. It also doesn’t reveal how far away the destination is or how perilous the trek through the astral sea is. Distances are deceptive on the astral plane, and subject to change. A trip from Realmspace to Greyspace using intuitive navigation may take a few weeks on your first trip, and several months on your second.

Following the Route

But of course. navigation is more than just knowing where your destination is. Though you might know where you’re going, the plane neglects to inform you of any dangers or obstacles that lie between you and your target. Follow it directly, and you may make a massive mistake, sailing into space controlled by a dangerous foe. encountering monsters, or being swept up in the dangerous psychic wind

Proper navigation in the Astral Sea involves predicting these threats and finding the fastest path without encountering them. For every week spent traveling in the Astral Sea. the navigator must make a Wisdom (Survival) check to avoid becoming lost. The DC for this check is dependent on the navigator’s familiarity with the target system.

Somewhat Familiar (Visited before) Vague Destination (‘Nearest githyanki outpost’)

Somewhat Familiar (Visited before) Vague Destination (‘Nearest githyanki outpost’)

Familiarity	DC
Very Familiar (Home system)	10
Somewhat Familiar (Visited before)	15
Unfamiliar (Known, never visited)	20
Vague Destination (‘Nearest githyanki outpost’)	25

 

On a success, the vessel continues on its journey as normal. On a failure, they instead encounter a threat. The DM can feel free to introduce any threat that makes sense for the situation, or you might roll on the Astral Sea Encounters table (treat the attitude roll as an automatic result of 1 (hostile). The time wasted is calculate by a roll of 5d10 days, the navigator must then begin the journey anew, and all progress is lost.

Encounters can still happen even on a successful check, of course. But a party that succeeds on its checks is unlikely to encounter threats like psychic winds, dangerous fleets, or terrifying beasts, and when it does encounter potentially dangerous creatures, may make an attitude roll as normal finding friendly or neutral adventurers or wildlife.

Travel Time

Travel time varies wildly on the Astral Sea. Journeys can take anywhere from a dozen to several hundreds of days, depending on how close or far your destination and starting location are from each other at the time of departure. To quickly determine a travel time, roll 10d12 . The result of the roll is the number of days needed to make the journey.

 

Navigating the Flow

The Astral Sea is filled with currents of Aether that can be ridden and sailed, just as they can be in Wildspace. This phenomenon is known as the Flow. Just as a navigator plots his course based on the movements of the stars of his homeworld, reliable navigation points can be found in the Astral Sea. These points of light are deliberate, manned outposts containing a Beacon Arcane, a device that is tethered to it’s nearby system by powerful magic.

Most seasoned spelljammers chart their course by the beacons, and chart the flow of aether rather than relying on pure intuitive navigation. This flow can be reliably navigated by someone with the appropriate charts and tools, and most importantly, the destination can be reliably reached in a predictable amount of time, whether or not the spelljammer has been to his destination before.

As long as the navigator has a set of Aether Charts, he can chart a course to his destination. Encounters, of course, can happen along the way. Aether Flows are heavily trafficed areas, and are prime targets for pirates and other hazards.

 

Astral Hazards

Like Wildspace, the Astral Sea is laden with dangers- These hazards, however. are of a more magical variety, consistent with the mystical forces that lie within the plane, Use the Hazards rules, as described above and in Ghosts of Saltmarsh, for the following hazard

Psychic Wind[–]

Across the Astral Sea, psychic winds envelope travelers and their ships. assaulting them with wayward thoughts that threaten to drive them mad.

 

Psychic Wind DCs

DC	Description
10	Distant, minor, or expected flare
15	An average flare with reasonable time to react
20	An unexpected or especially damaging flare
25	Extremely sudden or powerful flare

 

Psychic Wind Checks

Officer	Check
Spelljammer	Intelligence (air vehicles)
Captain	Intelligence (air vehicles)
First Mate	Charisma (Intimidation)
Navigator	Wisdom (Nature or navigator’s tools)

 

Psychic Wind Results

Result	Description
Total Success	The ship avoids the psychic wind, and the crew’s quality increases by 1 for 1d4 days.
Success	The ship avoids the psychic wind.
Failure	The ship is swept up in the psychic wind. Resolve a psychic wind encounter. The crew does not suffer mental effects, only player characters and officers.
Total Failure	The ship is lost in the wind for hours. As a failure, but the crew’s quality also decreases by ld4.

 

The psychic wind has two kinds of effects: a location effect and a mental effect. A group of travelers journeying together suffers the same location effect. Each traveler affected by the wind must also make a DC 15 Intelligence saving throw. On a failed save, the traveler suffers the mental effect as well. Roll and consult the Psychic Wind Effects tables to determine the location and mental effects.

Psychic Wind, Table 1

Psychic Wind, Table 2

 

Astral Environs

In addition to the Wildspace Environs, which are for the most part just as present in the Astral Sea, a number of unique features exist in the silvery void This section covers some of those features that can be found on the Astral Plane.

Color Pools

Color pools are tears in the fabric of the Astral connecting the plane to the Material Plane, the Ethereal Plane or one of the Outer Planes. These two-dimensional gateways appear like colorful shimmering portals that one can fly directly into. Upon entering a color pool you are ejected onto the plane it connects to.

Finding a color is easy. All you have to do is visualize the plane you wish to go to, and the path will become clear to you. But if you want to know your exact destination. you’ll need to work a little harder. Astral navigation (see “Navigating the Cosmos”) does not reveal the exact destination of a chosen color pool only the plane it leads to. In order to find where it leads, you’ll need to physically travel there and gaze into the shimmering colors, discerning the images within to what lies beyond.

Finding the right color pool is a matter of chance. Locating the correct one takes  d4  x 10 hours of travel.

Random Color Pool

 

Planar Conduits

A planar conduit is a mystical tunnel that connects two planes across the multiverse. Most of these cymduits run across the Astral The souls of the dead travel along these conduits to reach their afterlife in the Outer Planes, and they can be used to travel instantaneously between planes, if you can find them.

Conduits connecting the Astral or Material Planes to an Outer Plane only lead to that plane’s first layer. Unlike color Ikjols, it is possible to locate a specific conduit leading to a desired destination using Astral navigation, However, once you arrive, the entrance to the conduit will be entirely invisible. The only way to discern it is through the use of truesight.

If you have the means to find them, conduits can be a very reliable way to travel between planes. But their complete invisibility makes them incredibly difficult to pin down. Many conduits connect to in Wildspace, or out in the Astral Sea itself, and for crews that can find them, they function as useful near instantaneous gateways across the multiverse.

 

The Living Sea

The Living Sea is a cautionary tale among Astral travelers about the dangers of misusing color pools. Some centuries ago, a wizard using a color pool to scry on its destination made a grand mistake. His folly caused the pool to open, and the ocean located on the other side began to pour endlessly into the Astral Sea.

The Living Sea still exists, and slowly expands as the beyond it ever still through the color pool. This spherical mass of water is filled with aquatic life. ranging from the simple fish. sharks and whales, to the inteligent locathah, sahuagin, and perhaps, if old campfire tales are to be believed aboleths. The most intelligent of these creatures realized long ago that they were not confined to the water, and left to explore the Astral Sea itself.

Some the latent psychic energy that permeates the Astral Plane has bestowed a consciousness upon this peculiar mass of water. This theory is what has earned it the “Living Sea” moniker.

Dominions and the Outer Planes

Astral dominions are unique in that they exist on two planes simultaneously. On the god or pantheon’s home plane, they sit within their realm, where the god(s) rule and watch over their divine servants and their mortal subjects. On the Astral Plane, they sit on great floating islands drifting through the skies, and are visible from all directions shimmering like stars.

Because they sit on both planes at once, they act as an easy way to travel between the Astral Sea and the Outer Planes. A spelljamming ship could make port at the dominion of Arvandor, and upon stepping through the gates, find themselves on the plane of Arborea This bypasses the need for spells like plane shift or other magic to travel between the two planes. However, your ability to travel through in this way is contingent on the gods willingness to grant you passage.

Spelljamming is an ancient art, one integral to life in space. At the center is the spelljammer, or helmsman, who acts as both a pilot and a battery, and propelling a ship through space.

Speed

Astral Adventurer’s Guide pg 17

Most mundane vessels have relatively static speeds, the rate they can move primarily defined by their shape. environment, or fuel source, A spelljamming vessel is different, and a ship can travel at wildly varying speeds.

Spelljamming Speed

Over long journeys, all spelljamming vessels can travel at a speed of million miles day, or roughly 4 million miles per hour. At this speed a vessel can only travel in generally straight lines, and must decelerate to flying to turn. A vessel automatically decelerates when within 1 mile of significantly large objects. or within the air envelope of another object or world.

Flying Speed

In more tactical situations, a vessel travels at a much slower flying speed At this a vessel is much slower, but can maneuver and turn in much the same way as a mundane sea vessel.

Unlike a mundane ship, the flying speed of a spelljamming ship is determined by the helm used to pilot it, and the capabilities of the spelljammer themselves. Flying is based on a ship’s Spelljamming Rating (SR), or Ship’s Rating (see “Spelljamming Helms”) To calculate the flying speed of a spelljamming vessel multiply its current SR by 200 ft round or by 20 miles per hour.

They’re All the Same Speed?

In classic Spelljammer, all vessels had the same speed of SR x 500 yds/minute. This made adjudicating combat easier, as spelljamming ships battled on a grid of 500 yd hexes. A similar abstraction is used here to speed up calculations.

If you’d prefer, you can use the ships’ listed speeds in the Astral Adventurer’s Guide and modify them to fit these rules. Under this variant, a ship’s flying speed is equal to SR x 10 x the speed listed in the ship’s statblock. For example, a Bombard has a flying speed of SR x 350 feet per round This makes your choice of ship slightly more important than it would be otherwise.

Piloting the Vessel

A spelljamming ship is driven not by its crew, but by a single individual called its or helmsman. The spelljammer draws on magical prowess and mental focus to control the vessel, treating it like an extension of their own body.

The following rules apply to a ship’s spelljammer.

Attunement

Operating a requires attuning to the helm, as one would attune to a magic item. The creature attuned to a ship’s helm acts as its spelljammer. The vast majority of helms require the attuned creature to a spellcaster.

Abilities

While attuned to a helm, a svwlljammer receives the benefits of the spe/ljamming helm magic item (Astral Adventurer’s Guide, pg 22)

Concentration

A spelljammer must focus to use the helm of their ship, as if concentrating on a Normal concentration rules apply. and the helmsman must also sit in the helm (or perform a similar action, if your helm isn’t chair-shaped) If a ship’s spelljammer loses concentration, they lose the ability to control the ship until they use an action to (see the “Helm Down!” sidebar)

Additionally, a spelljammer can feel damage to the ship’s hulL MCBt of this damage is dull and easy to ignore, but especially damaging blows can pierce their focus like a white hot. stabbing pain to the chest. If a scwlljamming ship takes more than double its damage threshold in damage in a single attack. the ship’s helmsman must roll to maintain concentration (DC — 1/4 damage or 10, whichever is higher) On a failure, the spelljammer loses concentation.

 

Helm Down!

The worst disaster a ship can face is losing its spelljammer. Unless they are quickly returned to their duties or replaced, a ship can find itself dead in the water, so to speak, unable to do more than drift through the stars.

If a ship’s spelljammer loses concentration on the helm or is incapacitated, they lose control of the vessel as described above. In addition, the ship’s SR drops by 1 for each round spent without a spelljammer. Ifthe SR hits O in this way, the ship stops moving. These penalties cease if the spelljammer uses an action to regain concentration and reassert control over the ship ‘s helm.

Otherwise, a ship continues to move without its spelljammer. If it’s been moving, it continues moving in the direction, at the same speed (or the highest SFed it can reach, whichever is slower.)

 

Spelljamming Helms

A helmsman is nothing without their helm. A spelljamming ship’s helm is a magical device used by the spelljammer to pilot the ship. Many varieties of helms exist across the Astral Sea. A number of them are listed below.

Each helm has a number of features unique to it. Additionally, each one determines your Ship’s Rating, used to determine the vessel’s speed (see “speed”, above)

Standard Helm

The most common form of spelljamming helm across the Astral Sea, a standard helm typically takes the form of an ornate chair, upon which the spelljammer sits while operating the vessel A standard helm function as the spelljamming helm magic item. with the following changes:

Ship’s Rating. A ship with a standard helm has an SR equal to half the spelljammer’s level or CR. rounded up. For example, a seventh level character provides an SR of 4.

Power Drain. An individual spellcaster can operate a standard helm for 12 hours without issue. For each additional hour, the spelljammer must make a Constitutuion saving throw. The DC is 10 +1 for each additional hour past 12 hours.

On a failed saving throw, the spelljammer suffers one level of exhaustion. and their concentration is broken. They can’t concentrate on piloting a sik41jammer until their level of exhaustion is reduced to zero.

Series Helm

Invented by mind flayers, series helms are popular among that possess innate spellcasting abilities. With only one a helm is weak, but multiple helmsmen can attune to a single helm, increasing their collective m».ver. A series helm function as the spelljamming helm magic item, with the following changes:

Ship’s Rating. A ship with a series helm has an SR equal to the number of creatures attuned the helm.

Power of the Mind. In addition to creatures that possess innate may attune to a series helm. This counts racial features that provide spells.

Our Minds as One. Up to nine individual creatures may attune to this helm, instead of merely one. Each one shares the benefits of this attunement and may control the ship.

If a series helm’s spelljammers are in disagreement, this can hinder their ship’s ability to maneuver properly. Mind flayers, the inventors of the helm, do not suffer this issue, as their hive mind ensures they are always on the same page.

Pool Helm

Also invented by the mind flayers, a pool helm is powered by a collection of immature tadvxjles. This leaves the mature mind flayers free to perform other tasks on the ship, while the elder brain directs the ship’s path. A pool helm function as the spelljamming helm magic item, with the following changes:

Ship’s Rating. A ship with a pool helm has an SR of 5

Chained to the Hive. A pool helm can only be operated by mind flayers. BecauM? it is powered by tadpoles, the presence of an elder brain is required to direct the vessel’s movement.

Forge

The early dwarves of Wildspace were not particularly inclined towards spellcasting, and ch0M: to employ other methods when building their first helms. Forges work their magic in a unique way, converting the collective creative energy of dwarves into TX»wer• for the ship. A forge function as the spelljamming helm magic item, with the following changes:

Ship’s Rating. For every 1 dwarves that work atyjard the ship, a forge ship’s SR increases by 1. Faster ships must accommcxlate more space to the forge.

Undirected. A forge has no spelljammer, and no creature may attune to it. A vessel Ikjwered by a forge is manually piloted by a crew. as a groundling vessel would be. A typical dwarven citadel requires a crew of 30 to pilot it, in addition to those working in the forge.

Because forges require so much space and so large of a crew, they may only be used on the largest of slYlljamming vessels. They are typically only found on the colossal dwarven citadels. Even with their immense size, a citadel can usually only accomodate up to 300 forge workers, for a maximum SR of 3.

Orbus

The orbus is a living helm invented by the One of the many subspecies of they are used to pilot the tyrant ships of their species. An orbus functions as a series helm (see atx»ve) with a permanently attuned Up to five orbii may be installed on a single ship, for a maximum SR of 5.

Lifejammer

A gruesome invention of the ancient neogi, a lifejammer draws on the life force of a (typically unwilling) host. The lifejammer drains the life force of its prisoner, and in turn provides power to the vesseL A lifejammer function as the spelljamming helm magic item, with the following changes:

Shifs Rating. The SR of a lifejammer ship is determined not by its helmsman, but by a creature within the helm. The SR is equal to half the creature’s level or CR, rounded up. For example, a 9th level fighter provides an SR of 5.

Life Drain. For each day spent within the lifejammer, a creature loses ld8 hit points, and its hit point maximum is reduced by an equal amount. This reduction lasts for as long as the creature remains trapped within the lifejammer. If the creature’s hit point maximum is reduced to O in this way, it dies, its life force consumed by the helm.

Other Helms

There are a variety of other helms used across Wildspace and the Astral Sea. There are too many to cover without going on and on. Below are three notable helms that modify the mechanics of the traditional standard helm.

Ki Helm. Ki helms were invented by the monks of Torit and are powered by ki. In addition to the slk’lljammer (who must be a monk) up to eight monks may meditate at the helm’s base. The SR of the ship is equal to the number of monks meditating in this way, including the spelljammer.

Radiant Helm. The radiant helm is favored by the drow, and can only be used by a creature with innate spellcasting. Any creature with innate spellcasting can use a radiant helm, even if they aren’t a spellcaster. and the SR is equal to half the spelljammer’s level or CR, rounded up. A creature that lacks innate spellcasting can’t attune to a radiant helm. “Innate spellcasting” counts racial features that provide spells, such as Drow Magic.

Non-Magical Engine. Some ships are simply powered by mundane engines and thrusters. Such ships Ikjssess a maximum SR of 1, and can not fly at spelljamming These ships must be piloted like a mundane vehicle,

 

The Ship’s Crew

A ship’s spelljammer is just one cog in a well oiled machine. A crew of various officers and crew members are likewise responsible for performing.

Officers

While the crew is made up of general deckhands and laborers, a ship’s officers are tasked with ensuring the most important problems a ship faces are resolved.

Officer	Role	Attribute	Proficiencies
Captain	Issue orders	INT, CHA	Air vehicles, Intimidation, Persuasion
Spelljammer	Pilot the ship	Spell Ability	Air vehicles
First Mate	Maintain morale	CHA	Intimidation, Persuasion
Navigator	Chart the course	WIS	navigator’s tools, Survival
Bosun	Maintain the ship	STR	carpenter’s tools, Athletics
Surgeon	Tend injuries	INT	herbalism kits, Medicine
Cook	Prepare meals	CON	brewer’s supplies,  cook’s utensils

 

Each type of officer is described below, along with the abilities and proficiencies that help a character excel in that role:

• Captain. The captain issues orders. The best captains have high Intelligence and Charisma scores, as well as proficiency with water vehicles and the Intimidation and Persuasion skills.
• The spelljammer’s role in a spelljamming ship’s crew has already explained several times in this dcrument. They act an officer as being one Of the most important members of the crew. Spelljammers primarily rely on their spellcasting Ability modifier, and benefit from proficiency in air vehicles.
• First Mate. This specialist keeps the crew’s morale high by providing supervision, encouragement, and discipline. A first mate benefits from a high Charisma score, as well as proficiency with the Intimidation and Persuasion skills.
• The navigator is responsible for charting the ship’s couurse through space. Without a skilled navigator. a ship might miss its mark by millions of miles when jumping to sirlljamming or may find itself lost in a dense asteroid field or a region of empty space.
• Bosun. The bosun (or boatswain) provides technical advice to the captain and crew and leads repair and maintenance efforts. A good bosun has a high Strength score, as well as proficiency with  carpenter’s tools and the Athletics skill.

• Surgeon. The ship’s surgeon tends to injuries, keeps illnesses from spreading throughout the ship, and oversees sanitation. A capable surgeon benefits from a high Intelligence score, as well as proficiency with  herbalism kits and the Medicine skill.

• Cook. A ship’s cook works with the limited ingredients aboard a ship to make meals. A skilled cook keeps the crew’s morale in top shape, while a poor one drags down the entire crew’s performance. A talented cook has a high Constitution score, as well as proficiency with  brewer’s supplies and  cook’s utensils.

Crew Members

Like a mundane vessel, a spelljamming ship requires a crew of skilled sailors. Functionally, the crew of a spelljamming ship functions identically to the system as described in Ghosts of Saltmarsh. The crew has a quality score, and the number of crew members is defined by its statblock. A spelljamming ship typically requires a smaller crew than a groundling vessel, as many tasks a crew would handle (such as operating the sails or oars) are handled solely by the spelljammer. The following table shows the minimum number of crew members (including officers) needed to operate each vessel in the Astral Adventurer’s Guide. Because spelljamming ships have such small crews, oftentimes officers themselves must assist with crew tasks. If a sik’lljamming ship wants to take full advantage of its wealX)ns, then the officers must take to the deck and help fire them. This differs from a groundling vestæl where the regulars could handle all tasks of that sort while the officers performed more specialized tasks. In space, everyone does their part.

Some vessels are so small, or support such small numbers of crew, that its crew can’t afford to have a full complement of seven officers. In such cases, a ship might lack a surgeon or bosun. or one officer might split their focus between two roles on the ship. Regardless of the specific makeup of the crew. a siwlljamming ship must always have one captain and one spelljammer, and these must be separate officers.

Spelljamming Ship	Ship Class	Crew Members
Blade	Fighter	2
Bombard	Frigate	12
Damselfly	Schooner	9
Flying Fish / Tradesman	Sloop	10
Hammership	Frigate	15
Lamprey Ship	Schooner	15
Living Ship	Schooner	5 (+1 treant)
Man-o-War	Frigate	20
Nautiloid	Sloop	20
Nightspider / Mindspider	Sloop	25
Scorpion	Sloop	12
Shrike	Fighter	11
Space Galleon	Sloop	20
Squid Ship	Frigate	13
Star Moth	Sloop	13
Turtle Ship	Sloop	16
Tyrant Ship	Heavy Frigate	10 (including up to 5 orbit)
Wasp	Schooner	5

Variant: Crew Skill

Normally, a crew starts with +4 Quality. If you’d prefer, you can use an alternate system to determine starting Quality, based on Spelljammer: Concordance of Arcane Space. This system adds the following new rules:

Skill Level. A crew is either green, average, trained, or crack. This determines the crew’s Maximum Quality, and the pay they demand.

Salary. A crew’s salary is the pay in gold that each crew member expects to be paid per week of work Salaries are typically paid at the end of the month. Failing to pay a crew’s salary may cause them to lose quality, and prolonged denial of pay may cause crews to quit or mutiny.
Maximum Qudity. A crew’s quality can’t ever exceed their Maximum Quality. When you recruit a crew, their starting quality is always at maximum.

Green Crew

Maximum Quality: -5

Salary: 1 gp per week (4 gp per month)

A green crew has no experience in space. These people are entirely unfamiliar with the task of operating a spelljamming ship. The crew’s Maximum Quality increases by 1 for each week the crew spends in space (after 5 weeks, the crew becomes average).

Average Crew

Maximum Quality: +0

Salary: 5 gp per week (20 gp per month)

An crew knows their way around a spelljamming ship, but they aren’t all that special. They might have a bit of sailing experience, and can be found in virtually any major settlement across space. The crew’s Maximum Quality increases by 1 for every 2 weeks the crew spends in space (after 10 weeks, the crew becomes trained).

Trained Crew

Maximum Quality: + 5

Salary: 10 gp per week (40 gp per month)

A trained crew is made up of veterans of past voyages, people who know the ins and outs of space travel. These are people comfortable with operating a ship, and travel in both Wildspace and the Astral Sea Their skill makes them tough to find and hire. The crew’s Maximum Quality increases by 1 for every 3 weeks the crew spends in space (after 1 5 weeks, the crew becomes crack).

Crack Crew

Maximum Quality: + 10

Salary: 10 gp per week (40 gp per month)

A crack crew are masters of their craft, and know everything there is to know about their spelljamming vessel. You can’t hire crack crews, they have to be forged. If a crack crew is moved to a new ship, they lose that innate familiarity, and become merely trained again, until they build up that familiarity once more.

 

As a matter of simplification, an entire crew is assumed to have the same skill level. This reduces the amount of bookkeeping necessary for players and DMs, who don’t need to know if every individual member of the crew is average or green.

The skill level of a crew is determined by the majority of its members. If you lose more than half of your trained crew, and then hire new, average crew members, then your crew becomes average.

Loyalty and Quality

Tracking Loyalty

Keep track of an NPC’s loyalty score in secret so that the players won’t know for sure whether an NPC party member is loyal or disloyal (even if the NPC is currently under a player’s control).

An NPC’s loyalty score increases by 1d4 if other party members help the NPC achieve a goal tied to its bond. Likewise, an NPC’s loyalty score increases by 1d4 if the NPC is treated particularly well (for example, given a magic weapon as a gift) or rescued by another party member. An NPC’s loyalty score can never be raised above its maximum.

When other party members act in a manner that runs counter to the NPC’s alignment or bond, reduce the NPC’s loyalty score by 1d4. Reduce the NPC’s loyalty score by 2d4 if the character is abused, misled, or endangered by other party members for purely selfish reasons.

An NPC whose loyalty score drops to 0 is no longer loyal to the party and might part ways with them. A loyalty score can never drop below 0.

An NPC with a loyalty score of 10 or higher risks life and limb to help fellow party members. If the NPC’s loyalty score is between 1 and 10, its loyalty is tenuous. An NPC whose loyalty drops to 0 no longer acts in the party’s best interests. The disloyal NPC either leaves the party (attacking characters who attempt to intervene) or works in secret to bring about the party’s downfall.

Mutiny

A poorly led or mistreated crew might turn against its officers. Once per day, if a crew’s quality score is lower than 0, the captain must make a Charisma (Intimidation or Persuasion) check modified by the crew’s quality score.

If the check total is between 1 and 9, the crew’s quality score decreases by 1.

If the check total is 0 or lower, the crew mutinies. They become hostile to the officers and might attempt to kill them, imprison them, or throw them overboard. The crew can be cowed into obedience through violence, combat, or offers of treasure or other rewards.

When the DM ends the mutiny, the crew’s quality score increases by 1d4.

Crew Costs

The cost for the crew included in the Crew Costs table is  inclusive of everything they require, including income and the cost of food and water for the voyage. (As a result, the extent of crew management is knowing how much the PCs have to pay the crew each month).

Crew Type	Cost per 1 (Day / Month)
Green Crew	1.5gp / 45gp
Average Crew	1.5gp / 45gp
Trained Crew	3gp / 90gp
Crack Crew	3gp / 90gp

 

Stellar Dockyards

Most crews can’t spend all their time on voyages. While some vessels go planctsidc to restock, that isn’t always an option. and some vessels are designed solely for space travcL When landing on a planct isn’t an option, spelljamming crews make port at outposts in space. where they are kept, restocked, and repaired in large, orbital dockyards.

The Structure of a Dockyard

Stellar dockyards are in many ways quite similar to those on the Sea. Vessels are typically moored along long piers that protrude into the empty space, equipped with walkways for the crew to “go ashore” and stretch their legs after a long trip. Being built in space. some outposts can take advantage of the third dimension, stacking multiple piers on top of each other to allow more space for ships.

Most dockyards are operated by a dockmaster or harbormaster, who organizes and keeps ledgers on the vessels that make port there, repairs done, and transactions made. The harbormaster also acts as the primary authority when issues arise, sorting out most disagreements and deferring to higher authorities in cases of serious crimes. Staying in a harbormaster’s good graces is generally a good idea for most crews.

Making Port

Making port is easy for most vessels. The spelljamrner can deftly maneuver the ship into a free space. while the crew tosses down mooring lines for the hands to secure. Once a vessel is secured the crew lowers a gangplank and Steps directly off the deck.

Making port isn’t free, Dockyards typically charge a fee per day to allow a ship to remain at port. Dodging this fee might land you in hot water. An angered harbormaster might go to the authorities, who will be perfectly happy to haul you away, extort you for the unpaid gold, or exile you from the outpost altogether, forcing you and your ship to sail right off. The fee varies from place to place, but is typically never less than 1 sp, and never more than 5 gp, per day spent at port. Payment is expected daily.

While at a Ship’s erew carousing if blowing off steam after a long voyage. For every day spent in the crew’s quality increases by 1, up to it’s current rank maximum.

Repairs

Astral Achenturers Guide, Page 25

While at a port, a spelljamming ship can receive repairs, patching up any damage it sustained on its journey. While a bosun can quickly patch up a ship with the help of the crew, a repair crew will get thc job done faster and more efficiently, at a price. A crew of five workers can repair 10 hit points worth of damage to a ship’s hull and components, at a cost of 20gp day of work. You can hire additional workers to expidite the process. restoring an additional 10 hp per 20 gp on repairs. per day.

This rule completely replaces the corresponding rule in the AAG, Unlike with the base rules, magic can’t used to repair a ship. as the appropriate spells are slow and ineffective to repair anything of on such a large target.

 

Space is a dangerous place, and not everyone is your friend Spelljamming crews are liable to come across friends when sailing the endless sea, but are just as likely to encounter foes instead.

Crew Initiative

All members of a crew share the same initiative. The ship’s spelljammer rolls initiative, using their own Dexterity bonus + the crew’s quality as the modifier to the roll.

Unlike in Ghosts of Saltmarsh rules, the ship does not get its own turn separate from the crew. Instead, every member of the crew (including officers) acts at once. using their individual actions to operate the ship and its components, and fight their opponents.

Side Initiative

On a crew’s turn, any character on the crew can act in any order, allowing for total flexibility. The Spelljammer always gets to act before any other character, as they react the fastest to changes on the ship. Following them, the rest of the characters get to act in any order that they choose. Finally, the crew, at the lowest rung of priority, always gets the last choice of  initiative. 

Having higher priority doesn’t mean you have to act first. The spelljammer can choose to go after every other character in a crew. But having priority allows them to act whenever they please. A spelljammer may interrupt another party member to perform an action first, if they wish.

Splitting your Turn

During a crew’s turn, a member of the crew is free to split up their actions however they please, You don’t have to use your action, bonus action, and movement all at once, and you don’t lose them if you allow someone else to act. For example. you can use your movement to run to the gunwale, wait for the spelljammer to ram the enemy, and then use an action to fire your weapon at the crew. This allows for more flexibility in combat.

Movement on the Grid

A typical combat map is insufficient for space combat, The ships are too big, and the distances are too vast, for such a map to be of any use except when boarding, Stellar combat uses larger, hexagonal grids to lay out the field of battle.

Ships are situated on a hexagonal grid Each hex has a side length of 200 ft, and a spelljamming ship fits within one hex, regardless of its size, Other creatures and objects also fit within a single hex. unless they are larger than 200 ft. in a single direction.

On the crew’s turn, a ship can move a number of hexes equal to its SR. For example. a vessel with an SR of 3 can move up to three hexes in a round.

A ship always faces one of the six sides of its hex in combat. Ships can only move forwards and backwards, and a ship moves backwards at half its normal speed. In order to turn, a spelljamming ship can spend 200 ft. of movement to turn towards an adjacent face, In stellar combat. creatures and objects do not occupy their space. Any number of spclljamming ships and creatures may enter the same hex on their turn. When two ships share a hex, they can engage in short-range combat. and can also attempt to ram or board each other.

 

Variant: Weapon Facing

By default, the Astral Adventurers Guide recommends that the facing of a ship does not affect how it Can attack, and Weapons Can be turned to attack any target. IJnder this variant rule, weapons can only fire upon an enemy that they are facing towards. Reference the ship•s map to deterrnine this direction. Most weapons fire in an arc that covers two sides of the ship’s hex. Some weapons, like the bombard’s cannon, are fixed, and may only fire towards one side of the hex.

A weapon in the center of the deck is designed to tum 360 degrees around, and can attack in any direction, but may still be limited by the walls of the ship blocking the enemy. Finally, facing is ignored when firing on an enemy in the same hex.

 

Range in Space

Stellar combat is performed at two ranges: long-range and short-range.

Long-Range Combat

When battles take place over great distances, crews on spelljamming ships need to take advantage of long range armaments. These are used to strike foes from far away, hoping to wear them down before they can approach. Large siege weapons used on spelljamming vessels fire at greater distances in the vacuum of space. For all seige weapon ranges, multiply their short range by 4, and double their long range (as shown on the table below).

 

Weapon	Range	Damage
Ballista	480/960 ft. (2/4 hexes)	3d10
Cannon	1,200/4,800 (6/12 hexes)	8d10
Carronade	400/1,200 (2/6 hexes)	8d8
Eyestalk Cannon	480/960 ft. (2/4 hexes)	10d6
Giant Cannon (Bombard)	600/2,400 (3/6 hexes)	16d10
Heavy Ballista	600/1,200 (3/6 hexes)	3d12
Mangonel	800/1,600 ft. (4/8 hexes)	5d10

 

Additionally, some individual weapons can fire at a long enough range to hit a distant spelljammer. Shortbows, light crossbows and heavy crossbows can all at a distance of 1 hex (>200 ft.), at the cost of disadvantage to the attack roll. Longbows can fire up to 2 hexes away, at disadvantage. The attack is made against the ship’s AC. and on a hit, deals damage to a random member of the crew. 

 

Short-Range Combat

When two spelljamming ships pass within the same hex, their crew members can fire upon each other with their ranged waponry. For the purposes of determining disadvantage and the possibility of attacks, passing ships are considered to 100 ft. apart from each other. At this distance, an attacker can make out a ship’s weapons and individual members Of its crew, and target them.

 

Crashing a Ship

If a ship moves into the space occupied by a creature or an object, the ship might crash. A ship automatically avoids crashing if the creature or object is at least two sizes smaller than it. 

When a ship crashes, it must immediately make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, it takes damage to its hull based on the size of the creature or object it crashed into, as shown on the Crash Damage table. It also stops moving if the object or creature is one size smaller than it or larger. Otherwise the ship continues moving and the creature or object collided with moves to the nearest unoccupied space that isn’t in the ship’s path. At the DM’s discretion, an object that is forced to move but is fixed in place is instead destroyed.

A creature struck by a ship must make a Dexterity saving throw with a DC equal to 10 + the ship’s Strength modifier, taking damage based on the ship’s size (as shown on the Crash Damage table) on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Crash Damage

Size	Bludgeoning Damage
Small	1d6
Medium	1d10
Large	4d10
Huge	8d10
Gargantuan	16d10

If a ship enters a space occupied by another ship, the entering ship may choose to make a ram attack, or attempt to pull asside the ship to execute a boarding maneuver. A Ram attack is handled as a crash, above, with the entering pilot voluntarily failing the Con Save. 

 

Grappeling and Boarding

When two ships share a hex, a crew can attempt to bind the vessels together. When two ships are grappled, they are forced close together, allowing either ly»arding or towing. A ship can be grappled in multiple ways.

Grappling Hook. As an action, a creature can throw a grappling hook across the gap in space, attaching it to the enemy ship. Three grappling hooks are required to grapple a ship, and the snap if the ship esc.apes

Harpoon. A ballista bolt fitted with a heavy chain is fired upon the enemy. On a successful hit. the two ships are grappled but the ballista can’t be used while attached.

Other Methods. A ship can be grappled by other means as well such as a nautiloid’s tentacles.

While grappled the speed of ships is reduced to half the slower ship’s and the two ships are pulled close, to a distance of 10 ft. Both ships’ gravity planes remain in effect. Whichever ship a higher SR can continue moving, and tows the “weaker” ship along with it. The weaker ship can’t move on its own while grappled If the SR ot both ships is equal neither ship can move.

A creature can attack the rope  or chains to try and free their vessel. A grappling rope has an AC of 11, while a chain has an AC of 19. Both possess 10 (3d6) hit points. A rope or chain is severed when it is reduced to O hit points. If all ropes or chains are severed, the ships are freed from each other and may separate.

Boarding

When two ships become grappled any crew waiting upon the gunwale (edge of the ship’s deck) may immediately board the enemy ship. When a boarding party attacks a ship, resolve the encounter using the normal rules for combat. Officers and player characters roll their initiative individually, while members of the crew continue to use the ship’s initiative.

When more than half of a boarding party or defending crew has been slain or otherwise incapacitated the DM must roll a d20 against a DC of 15. modified by the crew’s quality score. On a failure. the injured crew surrenders without a fight. If the two ships are separated when the save is rolled then a defending crew has advantage on this saving throw, while a boarding party has disadvantage.

Fleeing and Pursuit

If there is nothing within 25 hexes of a vessel it can flee. jumping to spelljamming speed (this applies only in space; in air over a planet or similar body, they must first reach a sufficiently high altitude. See ‘Taking Off and Landing” for more information).

A determined enemy can jump to spelljamming shortly afterwards, attempting to pursue. All ships travel at the same speed Of 100 million miles day, so even slower can keep up with a faster quarry at this speed In order to successfully pursue a quarry, the ship’s navigator must successfully use the Navigate action (see below) to track them.

Special Officer Actions

During an encounter, the captain, first mate, and bosun each have access to two special action options: Take Aim and Full Speed Ahead, both detailed below.

Accelerate (Spelljammer)

The spelljammer focuses and propels the ship forwards with all their strength. Roll a d6. The result multiplied by 100 is applied as a to the ship’s until the end of its turn.

Navigate (Navigator)

In addition to the normal use of this action (to avoid getting lost) a navigator may also use it to track a fleeing when pursuing them at spelljamming speed The navigator rolls a 15 Wisdom (Survival) check. They roll at disadvantage if they didn’t see the target jump to speed On a failure, the ship is misaligned and misses the target by millions of miles. On a success, both ships sail towards the same destination.

Take Aim

As an action, the captain, first mate, or bosun directs the crew’s firing, aiding in aiming one of the ship’s weapons. Select one of the ship’s weapons that is within 10 feet of the officer. It gains advantage on the next attack roll it makes before the end of the ship’s next turn.

 

To aid in running adventures where ships engage in combat, undertake precise navigation, or face situations where their various capabilities become relevant, the following section presents new rules and stat blocks for a spectrum of vessels.