I received a request from a reader for the deck plans for the Sea Ghost. They came directly from AD&D module U1: The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh. Here they are, below. I do not have a template to print, cut, and trace, but it was pretty easy to draw these plans out by hand with the help of a ruler.
The Sea Ghost is a pirate ship detailed in Advanced Dungeons and Dragons module U1: The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh. The ship plans in that module are quite detailed, and even include cross section and rigging diagrams.
I’ve built her from scratch out of 3/4″ polystyrene insulation board. The top two layers (main and cargo decks) are double stacked. The bottom layer (bilge) is single layer. It is scaled to the standard D&D scale of 1″ = 5′, so upper decks are each 7.5′ high. She is 90′ long, not counting the prow. After rough-cutting each deck’s shape, the layers were glue together, and the sanded down with a belt sander to the proper shape. Holding all the layers together, I then rounded the hull with the sander so that the layers all transitioned smoothly rather than stepping from layer to layer. Hull and decks were painted with acrylics (including a 1″ grid pattern) and then details added, including hatch, mast, rudder handle, prow, anchor winch, crow’s nest, mains deck doors, portholes, railings, and lanterns.
The details took a long time. The main shape of the boat and the bulk of the painting was completed with just a couple hours of work. All the little fiddley bits probably took another 10-15 hours.
