Captain Nemo

Medium humanoid (human), Lawful Neutral

Armor Class: 16 (deep sea clothing and cloak) Hit Points: 138 (18d8 + 54) Speed: 30 ft., swim 60 ft.

Skills: Perception +8, History +10, Investigation +10, Survival +8 Senses: Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 18 Languages: Common, Aquan

CR: 12 (8,400 XP)

Actions

• Nautilus Cutlass. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) slashing damage.
• Nautilus Pistol. Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range 40/120 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) piercing damage.
• Ethereal Attack. Captain Nemo’s attacks can strike ethereal and incorporeal creatures as if they were corporeal.

Legendary Actions

Captain Nemo can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time, and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Captain Nemo regains spent legendary actions at the start of his turn.

• Ethereal Strike. Captain Nemo makes a Nautilus Cutlass or Nautilus Pistol attack.
• Oceanic Insight. Captain Nemo uses his legendary action to gain advantage on his next Perception, Investigation, or Survival check.
• Commanding Presence. Captain Nemo can use his legendary action to issue a command, granting an ally within 30 feet advantage on their next attack roll or saving throw.

Abilities

Equipment

• Deep sea clothing and cloak
• Nautilus Cutlass
• Nautilus Pistol
• Map of uncharted ocean regions
• Notebook filled with observations of marine life

Magic Items

• Nautilus Helm: This helm grants Captain Nemo the ability to breathe underwater, grants him a swim speed of 60 feet, and allows him to cast Water Breathing once per day.

Lair Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Captain Nemo can take a lair action to cause one of the following effects:

• The water in the immediate area ripples, granting Captain Nemo advantage on his next attack roll.
• An ethereal mist envelops Captain Nemo, granting him resistance to all damage until the start of his next turn.
• Captain Nemo’s presence commands the sea life, causing aquatic creatures within 60 feet to become friendly towards him for 1 minute.

“Not a mistake has been made in the working. But we cannot prevent equilibrium from producing its effects. We may brave human laws, but we cannot resist natural ones.” A brave and brilliant man, an inventor of the highest caliber, explorer of the deep blue, and anti-imperialist hero: Captain Nemo!

D&D 5E – Mythological Figures: Captain Nemo | EN World | Dungeons & Dragons | Tabletop Roleplaying Games

When I was a wee little fellow I read a pocket edition of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea at least a dozen times, and while I can scarcely remember the other characters in that book Captain Nemo still stands out. If you haven’t read it yet here it is for free on Project Gutenberg. You won’t learn very much about him in that book (although he is definitely awesome throughout) aside from his hatred for imperialism, that his family is gone, and of course that he’s a truly brilliant inventor who crafted his own (very large) submarine.

In another book (The Mysterious Island) it’s revealed that Captain Nemo is indeed royalty (the Prince of Dakkar and son of the Hindu raja of Bundelkhand), given a Western education and touring Europe before he lost his family and kingdom in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Afterward he embraces science and constructs the Nautilus, traveling across the globe and recovering sunken treasure (some of which goes to help rebellions like the Cretan Revolt despite claims to have no interest in worldly affairs). Sometimes they save castaways and other folks left to the mercy of the open sea. Eventually he dies of old age while on board his ship which they sink into Dakkar Grotto (in the southern Pacific Ocean on Lincoln Island).

Note: GMs keen to include the Nautilus in a more tangible way than as stage dressing can use the statistics for a Scarlet Marpenoth from Dragon Heist with the following changes: Gargantuan (230 feet by 30 feet), crew capacity 25, passenger capacity 50, Travel Pace of 58 miles per hour (460 miles per day), Strength 22 (+6), Con 20 (+5), it loses the Activate Electrified Hull action and gains a Prow melee weapon (6 + pilot’s proficiency bonus to hit, 8d6+6 piercing damage), Armor Class 25, Hit Points 400 (damage threshold 20), it can only turn a maximum of 15 degrees in a round, and Speed (water) 200 feet.

Captain Nemo
Medium humanoid (human), lawful good inventor (gunsmith) 9
Armor Class 17 (imbued breastplate)
Hit Points 49 (9d8+9)
Speed 30 ft.

Saving Throws Con +5, Int +9
Skills Arcana +9, History +9, Investigation +9, Nature +9, Perception +1 (advantage)
Senses passive Perception 16
Languages English, French, German, Hindu, Latin
Challenge 9 (5,000 XP)

Background: Scholar. Acumen or fate gently nudges Captain Nemo toward the answers to his questions. When he fails to recollect or discover more about a subject of lore, he knows where or whom can give him that information (usually from an athenaeum, library, institute of higher learning, another scholar, or mystical creature). The lengths to which he must go to acquire this information and the feasibility of doing so is entirely at the GM’s discretion.

Brilliant Suggestion (5/Long Rest). Captain Nemo can use his reaction when he or another creature he can see within 30 feet makes an ability check or saving throw, gaining +5 bonus.

Enchanted Firearm. At the end of a long rest, Captain Nemo can use woodcarver’s tools to turn a rod, staff, or wand into an enchanted firearm. He can only modify one magic item at a time using this feature. Captain Nemo deals an extra 1d8 damage with any inventor spell he casts using this item.

Imbued Items. At the end of a long rest Captain Nemo can touch up to 3 nonmagical objects, turning them into magical objects containing one of the following abilities. If it requires attunement, Captain Nemo is automatically attuned to it unless he decides otherwise. The object retains this ability indefinitely or for 5 days following his death. When Captain Nemo imbues a fourth item, the effect ends on the oldest use of this feature.

• Armor Protectives: A creature gains resistance to a type of damage (acid, cold, fire, force, lightning, necrotic, poison, psychic, radiant, or thunder) while wearing this armor.
• Auto-Ammunition: A creature gains a +1 bonus to ranged attack and ranged damage rolls made with this weapon. It never needs to be reloaded.
• Improved Defense: A creature’s AC increases by 1 while wearing this item.
• Improved Weaponry: A creature gains a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this weapon.
• Mechanical Enchantment: The item duplicates the effects of eyes of the eagle.
• Mechanical Enchantment: The item duplicates the effects of gauntlets of ogre power.

Minor Artillery. Captain Nemo can use an action and either smith’s tools or woodcarver’s tools to craft a Tiny or Small cannon (AC 18, hit points 45; immune to poison, psychic, and all conditions) in an unoccupied space within 5 feet, choosing whether or not it has legs. He can only do so once between long rests, or by expending a spell slot of 1st level or higher, but can never have more than one minor artillery cannon at a time. Casting mending on a cannon restored 2d6 hit points. It lasts for 1 hour, until he uses an action to dismiss it, or until it is reduced to 0 hit points.
On his turn, if Captain Nemo is within 60 feet of it he can use a bonus action to fire his minor artillery cannon. If it has legs, as part of the same bonus action he can command it to walk or climb up to 15 feet. While within 60 feet of it, Captain Nemo can use an action to detonate the minor artillery cannon, destroying it. Creatures within 20 feet of it make a DC 17 Dexterity Saving throw or take 13 (3d8) force damage, or half as much on a successful save.

• Abjurative: Energy flows outward in a 10-foot radius, granting 14 (2d8+5) temporary hit points to creatures in the area.
• Fire: Flames spit out in a 15-foot cone adjacent to the cannon. Each creature in the area makes a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw or take 13 (3d8) fire damage, or half as much on a successful save. The fire ignites any flammable objects in the area that aren’t being worn or carried.
• Force: Captain Nemo makes a ranged spell attack against a creature or object within 120 feet of the cannon, dealing 13 (3d8) force damage on a successful hit and pushing the target up to 5 feet away.

Minor Inventions. Captain Nemo uses an action to touch a nonmagical object, working on it with his tinker’s tools or other artisan’s tools. It gains one of the following properties until he spends an action touching it to end the effect:

• It sheds bright light in a 5-foot radius and dim light for an additional 5 feet.
• It stores a spoken message up to 6 seconds long. Whenever a creature manipulates the object, it emits the spoken message loud enough for creatures as far as 10 feet away to hear it.
• It continuously discharges a scent or plays a nonverbal sound loud enough for creatures as far as 10 feet away to hear it.
• It displays a visual effect on one surface (as many as 25 words, simple illustrations, or a mixture of both).

Captain Nemo can affect up to 5 number of objects at the same time, ending the effect on the oldest use of this feature when he exceeds his maximum.

Never Without A Toolbox. With 1 hour of uninterrupted work and using tinker’s tools, Captain Nemo can craft a set of artisan’s tools in an unoccupied space within 5 feet. He may do so during a short or long rest. Captain Nemo can only have a single set of artisan’s tools crafted using this feature at a time.

Spellcasting. Captain Nemo is a 9th level spellcaster that uses Intelligence as his spellcasting ability (spell save DC 17; +9 to hit with spell attacks). He requires a set of tools he’s proficient with to use this feature, one of his imbued items, a minor artillery cannon, or an enchanted firearm. Captain Nemo has the following spells prepared from the inventor’s spell list:

• Cantrips: light, message​
• 1st-level (4 slots): expeditious retreat, feather fall, grease, longstrider, shield, thunderwave​
• 2nd-level (3 slots): enhance ability, heat metal, scorching ray, shatter​
• 3rd-level (2 slots): fireball, haste, protection from energy, revivify, wind wall​
• Tool Mastery. When Captain Nemo makes an ability check that uses a tool kit, he gains double his proficiency bonus (total +8).

ACTIONS
Imbued Scimitar. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d6+5) magical slashing damage.

Auto-Ammunition Rifle. Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, range 80/240 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8+4) magical piercing damage.