Malcolm and the Baron
Malcolm is the protagonist of DREADMOOR, whose search for a safe haven for his family may yet shape the fate of the Submerged Lands. At the end of the story content currently available in Early Access, the road ahead will take him to Sludge-Bet and deeper into the Baron’s schemes. In his journal, Malcolm writes that Sludge Bet is a major settlement near Deep Water and that he should make a trip there to find out whether it is safe or not and move his family to Sludge Bet. Early in the prologue, after leaving the Church Settlement, the quest Precious Junk directs him to use the hook to retrieve his Chest from the water and place it in the boat’s wheelhouse.
Across the region, Gill has occasionally mentioned some Baron, a ruler who brought everyone to heel, ruined and robbed them all, and built Sludge Bet upon the ashes. A warning note titled An Appeal to Reason states that the Baron’s people provide fuel, lucrative contracts, parts, and Essence. During the Big Hollow chapter, story tasks require you to answer the Baron on the radio, contact the Baron on the radio once the Essence batch is ready, and kill the dam-building beaver so the Baron opens the gates.
Gill and Bozur at Betsy & Sons
The first traders encountered in the Slough are Gill and Bozur. In his journal, Malcolm describes them as an odd couple as peculiar as their shop, noting that Gill talks a lot and Bozur is remarkably tight-lipped, despite him being human or at least more human. Malcolm had to open a tab with them in order to get some Essence, promising to pay them back and then see how they can help each other.
Their shop, Betsy & Sons, is a general store walking on giant crab legs, and attacking it would be asking for trouble. They have a fuel pump, a thresher for fish processing, some crafting benches, and a bed, making it a serviceable pit stop. Processing fish in the Grinder yields valuable ingredients, and upgrades for weapons, fishing gear, and tools are installed at the Upgrades table in Betsy & Sons.
Players also trade with the pair for boat parts and quest deliveries, including when you sell predatory fish to Gill and Bozur and buy a 
Carburetor from Gill and Bozur. Later in the campaign, you head for the trading post in Big Hollow, tell Gill and Bozur what you learned about the Essence recipe, and deliver the fish to Gill and Bozur. Meanwhile, an appeal from the High Fathers to the Baron demands that the building formerly known as Betsy & Sons be transferred into the possession of the church community because the original owners are gone and there are no heirs of sound mind.
John the Fifth: The Engineer
Boat repairs and module upgrades involve John the Fifth, known as the Engineer. An invoice note advises anglers to visit the Engineer because no one can advise you on repairing the motorboat better than he can. Conversely, Keeper Lilo’s note at the Throat complains that the machinery is old and that the engineer pays more attention to the bottom of his glass than to repair requests.
When you first visit his shop, the quest objective asks you to check if the Engineer is awake, repair the moonshine still, and tell John the Fifth that you have fixed the still. Doing so grants the Dry Dock Key, which smells of machine oil and alcohol and opens the door to the Dry Dock. After cleaning and repairing the hull, you talk to the Engineer about upgrading the boat, tell John the Fifth that you installed the 
Upgraded Engine, find John the Fifth at the Big Hollow trading post, and tell the Engineer about the repaired tuning forks.
Father Matthias, Jacqueline, and Estelle
Father Matthias is described in a Drying Fort note as a pathetic fugitive hunted by his accomplices who once followed the High Fathers around like a lost puppy. When an afflicted woman was brought in and fed growths of Blight, infected blood, and raw Essence, only Matthias remained by her side, fed her, and cared for her before they both disappeared on the same day. Another note recounts that Matthias led survivors to the abandoned Drying Fort and begged, threatened, bargained, and appealed to the Spinner of Flesh for their relic cross. Players use the Matthias key to open several locks on Matthias’s Island, give the fish they caught to Father Matthias, and tell Matthias that the Hymn to Ugliness is ready.
In Big Hollow, players sail to the grotto of the singer Jacqueline and step onto the pier to talk to Jacqueline. In a letter to Madam Wu, Jacqueline explains that she left the stage in Sludge Bet after the Baron took an interest in her, hoping to keep her stargazer Uno out of trouble while asking Wu to keep an eye on Junior. Quest objectives task you to bring Jacqueline 
Swamp Lily flowers and predatory fish, use the Dressing Room Key that opens the door to Jacqueline’s dressing room, and open the river gates with Jacqueline’s key to search the Observatory for Uno and Junior.
Later in the Essence storyline, players contact Estelle on the radio during the quest The Healer and tell Estelle what they heard on the recording of Adeha’s songs. Glossary lore notes that the renowned healer Estelle once managed to turn a 
Bonescar into a living piece of bone during her experiments, and her signed note explains that standard Essence must be balanced with fat from large, heavy, and rare fish so that sleep is no longer required after injections.
