🔦🎭 NPC Spotlight: Jovren Quill, Harbormaster of Tides End

Behind the Die by Charlie Stayton

“Every ship tells me a story — it’s my job to write the ending.” – Jovren Quill

Jovren Quill is the meticulous but weary Harbormaster of Tides End, a seaside settlement where many adventurers begin their journeys. With a ledger always under his arm and ink-stained fingers, Jovren ensures every ship, cargo, and passenger is accounted for. Yet behind his tidy recordkeeping lies a man who knows too many secrets of the sea.

Lore & Role in the World

• Jovren is a half elf in his late seventies with thinning grey hair, a perpetual squint, one bad eye, and a limp from an old accident on the docks.

• He prides himself on order, but sailors know him as someone who occasionally “misplaces” paperwork — for the right price.

• Jovren secretly fears the ocean, ever since a salvage mission in his youth nearly claimed his life. He has never spoken of what he saw beneath the waves.

Rumors & Hooks

1. A ship has vanished mid-voyage, but Jovren still receives mysterious dock fees in its name.

2. He holds a sealed chest that arrived without a crew or ship — no one knows who delivered it.

3. Jovren insists a storm will come tomorrow, though the skies are clear. “The sea tells me,” he says.

Quick Stat Block (D&D 5E style)

• Jovren Quill – Skilled Commoner (Neutral)

• AC 12 | HP 45 | Speed 30 ft.

• STR 10, DEX 12, CON 16, INT 14, WIS 14, CHA 13

• Skills: History +5, Insight +4, Perception +5

Abilities 

• Harbormaster’s Eye. Jovren can identify any ship's origin, class, and recent weathering with a 10-second glance. Grants advantage on Investigation or History checks related to ships or ports.

How to Use Jovren

Jovren is an excellent quest-giver for exploration arcs. He’s the one who knows when ships don’t return, when caravans fail to arrive, or when something strange washes ashore. PCs may see him as a fussy bureaucrat at first — but he may be the only one holding the thread to their next great voyage.