TEXT: TITLE RIGHT SIDE
  1
  Waterdeep 
  Faction Adventures
  
  WATERDEEP: FACTION ADVENTURES 
  CREDITS 
  Crafted by Paul Metzger  @metzpaul
  Some artwork © 2015 Dean Spencer, used with 
  permission. All rights reserved. 
  Some maps by Dyson Logos.
  Some artwork © 2011 Billiam Babble / Inked 
  Adventures. All rights reserved.
  Some artwork © 2006 Bradley K McDevitt.
  Some artwork © 2020 Paul Metzger.
  Some artwork Paulus Potter (Dutch, 1625 - 
  1654). Public Domain.
  Some digital images courtesy of the Getty's 
  Open Content Program.
  Some artwork courtesy Wizards of the Coast 
  Dungeon Masters Guild Creator Resources.
  Page background and watercolor splashes 
  designed by lifeforstock / Freepik.
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of 
  the Coast, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Eberron, 
  the dragon ampersand, Ravnica and all other 
  Wizards of the Coast product names, and their 
  respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the 
  Coast in the USA and other countries.
  This work contains material that is copyright 
  Wizards of the Coast and/or other authors. Such 
  material is used with permission under the 
  Community Content Agreement for Dungeon 
  Masters Guild.
  All other original material in this work is 
  copyright 2018 - 2020 by Paul Metzger and 
  published under the Community Content 
  Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild.
  First edition. May 4, 2020. 
  FOREWORD 
  About three years ago it was my turn to DM a 
  campaign for my gaming group. One adventure I 
  came up with was particularly well received. I ran 
  it again with a different group of friends, and they 
  also loved it. 
  I was familiar with DMsGuild at the time, so I 
  resolved to publish. After another year of hard 
  work and (mostly) procrastination, I released the 
  adventure as a pay-what-you-want title.
  My hope for It’s a Zoo in There! was simply that 
  some gaming group out there might have fun 
  playing an adventure that I created. 
  I was blown away by the results.
  I don’t remember the exact pace of things, but I 
  do remember the excitement of texting my friends 
  with the 🚨  emoji. 50 downloads! 100! 200!
  At the time I’m writing this, that ﬁrst foray has 
  nearly 4000 total downloads, with over 10% of 
  people actually voluntarily paying me money for it. 
  It’s an “electrum” best-seller, getting close to 
  earning (perhaps by the time you read this is) a 
  “gold metal”.
  At the time I ﬁnally published, I had just 
  started DMing Waterdeep: Dragon Heist. Chapter 2 
  has simple (and disappointing) adventure hooks 
  for each of the factions. I had already run an 
  adaptation of the ﬁrst adventure featuring Jarlaxle 
  (who became a staple in my campaign – I even 
  painted a mini for him!) when my DMsGuild 
  success ﬂoored me. I knew what I had to do.
  A week later I published my second adventure, 
  Scrying into his Handkerchief. People bought it. I 
  got (mostly positive) feedback from people who 
  were actually playing it. I was hooked.
  Although I’ve branched out into other D&D 
  products, most notably sidekicks related 
  supplements, these Waterdeep: Dragon Heist 
  faction adventures bring me the most joy. I’m 
  proud to present them here with actual layout and 
  art in a title I hope I will be able to soon append: 
  “Volume 1”. 
  1
  WATERDEEP
  
  TABLE OF CONTENTS 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  2
  3
  10
  27
  45
  58
  70
  Scrying Into His Handkerchief
  The original mission requires that the characters steal a noble’s handkerchief and 
  give it to a tieﬂing girl down by the wharf. Scrying Into His Handkerchief 
  answers the questions: Which noble? Why him? Where can we ﬁnd him? What 
  happens if we get caught? Who is the tieﬂing girl, and why are we giving the 
  handkerchief to her?
  It Got Under His Skin
  The original mission sends the adventurers to camp in a ﬁeld with a ten percent 
  chance of encountering a scarecrow. It Got Under His Skin transforms the 
  mission into a haunting mystery to be solved. In addition to defeating the 
  scarecrows, will the adventurers ﬁnd how the constructs were created? Will they 
  take down the shadowy cult spreading discord in Undercliff? What will be their 
  fate when they face down the powerful demon hunting an ancient secret?
  Dung Work
  The original mission has the characters guard Dungsweepers as they work for a 
  tenday, followed by one combat encounter. As the mission states, “it’s boring”. 
  Dung Work is anything but boring, with interesting encounters throughout the 
  historic Trades Ward happening every day!
  All in a Dray’s Work
  The original mission has the characters ﬁnd a talking horse to obtain 
  information. All in a Dray’s Work explains just how this horse can talk, and the 
  adventurers really do have to ﬁnd her - she’s gone missing! 
  Grave Concerns
  The original mission has the adventurers spending a tenday’s nights in the City 
  of the Dead waiting to run into a handful of skeletons.  Grave Concerns expands 
  the mission into an adventure exploring a tomb teeming with undead, laced 
  with magical obstacles, and a segue to the Dungeon of the Mad Mage.
  It’s a Zoo in There! 
  The adventure that started it all! It’s a Zoo in There! offers multiple paths of 
  exploration leading to a chilling ethical dilemma with multiple endings 
  depending on the choices your players make. 
  
  SCRYING INTO HIS HANDKERCHIEF 
  ADVENTURE 
  BACKGROUND 
  The adventurers have recently attained a bit of 
  notoriety in Waterdeep, causing the eccentric 
  haberdasher J.B. Nevercott to take interest. He 
  issues a simple challenge to test the party’s 
  mettle: obtain a personal item from a certain 
  young Waterdhavian noble; perhaps his 
  handkerchief.
  In truth, J.B. Nevercott is a false identity of the 
  drow swashbuckler and secret lord of Luskan, 
  Jarlaxle Baenre. He is attempting to forge a 
  relationship with the current Open Lord of 
  Waterdeep, Laeral Silverhand. His spies have of 
  yet been unable to breech her inner circle, but 
  they report that a young noble with political 
  ambitions of his own, Regnet Amcathra, recently 
  rose through the ranks to become one of her 
  closest advisors.
  An orphan Tieﬂing girl named Advertence 
  lives in homeless squalor near the wharf, her face 
  baring only scar tissue where her eyes once were. 
  When cultists worshipping Asmodeus ripped her 
  eyeballs from their sockets in a twisted ritual, 
  they unwittingly bestowed a powerful blessing 
  from the archdevil upon her: uncanny powers of 
  divination. Far from blind, she has thus far eked 
  out a meager existence on the street as a fortune 
  teller. 
  Her own fortune is about to change. Jarlaxle 
  has ascertained the possibility of her true nature 
  and seeks to test her as he is similarly testing the 
  adventurers. If she is able to use the personal item 
  taken from Amcathra to scry upon the young 
  noble, thus learning Laeral Silverhand’s secrets, 
  he will incorporate her into his shadowy cabal of 
  drow mercenaries, the Bregan D’aerthe.
  If the adventurers are able to deliver 
  Amcathra’s handkerchief to Advertence, Bregan 
  D’aerthe might have further work for the party: 
  Breaking into newspaper ofﬁces. Guarding 
  prisoners. Ignorantly executing innocent men. 
  Stuff like that.  
  Waterdeep: Dragon Heist Factions 
  This adventure is based on the 1st Bregan D’aerthe 
  mission (for 2nd level characters) on page 34 of the 
  hardcover campaign Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.  
  Rather than limit the Bregan D’aerthe missions to drow 
  or particularly unscrupulous characters, I suggest that 
  Jarlaxle approach any non-lawful character. He need 
  not reveal anything about his organization to them in 
  order to engage their services as outlined in the 
  chapter.  
  Since the characters won’t be learning anything 
  interesting about the Bregan D’aerthe faction by 
  completing this particular mission, it would also be a 
  ﬁne introductory mission for another non-lawful faction 
  like the Zhentarim or the Xanathar’s Guild (or maybe 
  even Force Grey). Contrive a different alter ego for 
  your antagonist to replace J.B. Nevercott. 
  This adventure gives the characters a chance to 
  explore a bit more of Waterdeep that I had a great 
  time learning about from old source material like     
  FR1 - Waterdeep and the North, City of Splendors, 
  and Ed Greenwood’s fantastic Volo’s Guide to 
  Waterdeep. 
  This adventure could also be used to introduce a  
  shady benefactor in any campaign setting. 
  OVERVIEW 
  The adventure consists of these sections:
   Are You Daring Enough? Under the guise of 
  potential benefactor J.B. Nevercott, Jarlaxle 
  challenges the party to obtain Regnet Amcathra’s 
  handkerchief.
  Finding the Way. The characters determine 
  who their target is and where they can ﬁnd him.
  The Gentle Mermaid. Gambling, drinking, and 
  pilfering. Perhaps a back-alley ﬁght to cap things 
  off.
  The Virtue of Advertence. If the characters 
  were able to obtain the handkerchief, they deliver 
  it to the tieﬂing girl and receive a glimpse into 
  their future – but not before dealing with a more 
  unseemly side of the Dock Ward.  
  3
  WATERDEEP
  
  ARE YOU  
  DARING ENOUGH? 
  After Jarlaxle Baenre (under the guise of J.B. 
  Nevercott) makes contact with the characters and 
  engages in some small talk and ﬂattery, he offers a 
  challenge:
  “I value bravery and quick thinking. With my 
  connections, I could become a valuable patron.” He 
  smiles a sly grin and you see a twinkle in his eye. 
  “Humor me one simple test. I dare you to do 
  something wild!” 
  “Nevercott” ( “Please, Call me J.B.” ) directs the 
  characters to pilfer a personal item being carried 
  by the young nobleman Regnet Amcathra, 
  preferably his pocket handkerchief.
  As a further test of their fortitude, the 
  handkerchief should be delivered to a hideously 
  deformed tieﬂing girl who lives in a crate on the 
  corner of Net Street and Dock Street.
  Jarlaxle tells the party that Regnet is known to 
  socialize and gamble most nights at the Gentle 
  Mermaid, a luxurious spot near his family’s villa.
  The rationale Jarlaxle gives for the strange 
  request is twofold. First, he shares a jocular 
  relationship with Regnet and would relish in 
  waving the stolen handkerchief in Regent’s face 
  upon their next meeting. Second, such an assault 
  on a noble is at least a minor crime, raising the 
  stakes in testing of the party’s bravery.
  Asking Jarlaxle exactly who Regnet Amcatrha 
  is and where he resides, or where the Gentle 
  Mermaid is located draws is scorn. “Perhaps I 
  thought too highly of you,” he derisively remarks.
  If the party asks compensation for competing 
  this bizarre task, Jarlaxle gives them 50 gp upfront 
  (“I suppose you’ll have expenses… like game and 
  drink”) for the pleasure of showing up Regnet, 
  but not without ﬁrst feigning offense at the mere 
  prospect of his patronage not being reward 
  enough.
  He further instructs that he requires complete 
  discretion. If the adventurers are caught in the act 
  he will consider it a test failed and disavow ever 
  having met the party.
  FINDING THE WAY 
  Mission in hand, the adventurers now need to 
  locate the Gentle Mermaid and ﬁnd Regnet 
  Amcathra.
  Yeah, I know stuff. Anyone who has spent the 
  majority of their life in Waterdeep knows that the 
  Gentle Mermaid is an exquisite gambling parlor 
  situated just west of the High Road, bounded by 
  Sulmoor and Hassantyr’s Streets (no check 
  required). Otherwise a character who as lived in 
  Waterdeep at least a year has probably at least 
  heard of it, requiring a DC 10 Intelligence 
  (History) check to recall the same information.
  The Amcathras are no less famous, but the 
  details of their family and abode are less widely 
  known. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  4
  Regnet Amcathra
  
  A character familiar with some history of 
  Waterdeep can recall the following information 
  with an Intelligence (History) check:
  • DC 10. The Amcathras are known for their 
  businesses in horses, cattle, wine, and 
  weaponsmithing.
  • DC 15. The family has a large villa on the east 
  side of the High Road between Hassantyr’s and 
  Tarnath Streets; and an estate in Undercliff. 
  Their coat of arms shows silver crescents on a 
  blue ﬂame against a red backdrop
  • DC 20. Regnet is the youngest son of the 
  family patriarch Mourngrym Amcathra. Regnet 
  recently married Galinda Raventree, who hosts 
  Waterdeep’s annual costume ball. 
  • DC 25. Regnet Amcathra is the silent ﬁnancier 
  partner of the Deep Delvers adventuring 
  company.
  If any of the characters has the Waterdhavian 
  Noble background, they make the check at 
  advantage. Their roll is automatically at least a 
  (modiﬁed) 20 if they themselves are of House 
  Amcathra. 
  I can ask around. If the characters didn’t 
  happen to remember what they needed to know, 
  someone else might be able to help them out.
  Volo has all of the above information above and 
  happily shares it with the party. He waxes 
  nostalgic about the Gentle Mermaid and wonders  
  aloud if the spicy sausage rolls are as good as 
  ever. The players are advised to show up in their 
  ﬁnest garb and with plenty of gold in hand. 
  Volo has never heard of a “J.B. Nevercott” and 
  ﬁnds the whole endeavor juvenile and distasteful, 
  though he doesn’t try to dissuade the characters 
  (“but don’t expect me to visit when they have you 
  working Amendsfarm!”). 
  As they part ways, Volo amends “Mind you 
  don’t draw the Death Card!”, chuckling. If 
  pressed he just mutters to himself. “A whole 
  generation lost. I really must update that 
  guidebook!”
  Anyone else the characters ask have the same 
  chances outlined above to recall the information. 
  For each person asked about Regnet Amcathra 
  there is a 20% chance that rumor of the characters’ 
  interest gets back to Regnet’s bodyguards (a roll 
  of 1-4 on 1d20). If so, run the encounter “Not so 
  Gentle Outside the Mermaid” when the party 
  leaves the Gentle Mermaid.
  If the party is asking someone they have not yet 
  become friendly with for the information, this 
  chance increases to 40% (1-8 on 1d20), and even if 
  that person knows the information a DC 10 
  Charisma (Persuasion or Intimidation) check is 
  required for them to share it with a stranger.
  How many villas can be nearby? The players 
  might know where the Gentle Mermaid is and 
  recall they were told the Amcathra’s villa is 
  nearby. If they wander the neighborhood, they 
  ﬁnd the villa after 1d4 hours. 
  In addition to its location, any character who 
  knows they are walking past the Amcathra’s villa 
  along the High Road also takes note of the 
  Amcathra family coat of arms.
  Find a way to say yes. Reward your players’ 
  creative methods of ﬁguring things out, or barring 
  that, ﬁnd a creative way of telling them what they 
  need to know. 
  THE GENTLE MERMAID 
  The Gentle Mermaid, a huge balconied and 
  turreted 4-story stone structure, occupies the 
  entire interior of the city block on which it is 
  located. It reeks of wealth, if not sophistication 
  and taste. The interior is lushly decorated with 
  carpets and tapestries on nearly every surface. In 
  addition to being magically lit, the interior of the 
  building is also magically heated and cooled, 
  providing a welcome comfort no matter which 
  season your campaign takes place.
  Weapons are not permitted inside the Gentle 
  Mermaid, so characters will be expected to check 
  any they are carrying with the coatroom 
  attendant. As the parlor is protected by a number 
  of bouncers and two powerful wizards, guests are 
  not searched for or even asked to remove any but 
  openly worn weapons.
  Any person not wearing ﬁne clothes is turned 
  away per the establishment’s dress code. A 
  character may still gain entry with a DC 12 
  Charisma (Persuasion) check, but even on a 
  success they will draw sideways looks and snide 
  remarks from the other patrons and any Charisma 
  5
  WATERDEEP
  
  checks made inside the establishment will be at 
  disadvantage.
  In addition to the relatively high house rake in 
  all games of chance, 1 gp is charged upon taking a 
  seat at a table. The guest is immediately poured a 
  tall ﬂute of chilled sparkling wine and offered 
  exquisite snacks from silver platters intermittently 
  served table to table by attractive servants 
  dressed in impeccable livery.
  LOCATING  
  REGNET AMCATHRA 
  Regnet is playing Eights Bluffs at a large table near 
  the center of the room, and he’s on a hot streak. 
  Several other young nobles have just busted out 
  of the game when the characters arrive, leaving 
  enough open seats at the table for the party to join 
  him. 
  Flying the Family Flag. If the characters are 
  aware of the Amcathra family colors and crest, 
  Regnet is easy to spot. In addition to sporting the 
  latest Waterdhavian high fashion, he wears an 
  ostentatious silver-fringed red cape embroidered 
  with a blue ﬂame containing three silver crescent 
  moons.
  Where Everybody Knows His Name. Regnet is 
  well known at the Gentle Mermaid. If a character 
  simply asks of him they will be directed to his 
  table. His body guards take notice of the 
  characters’ interest if they do so. Run the “Not So 
  Gentle Outside the Mermaid” encounter when 
  the characters leave the Gentle Mermaid.
  No Shortage of Gossip. Any character looking 
  for clues as to the identity of Regent will overhear 
  Myrna Cassalanter and Elise Urmbrusk gossiping 
  while pointing towards him on a successful DC 12 
  Intelligence (Investigation) check. “Can you 
  believe he married that tart Galinda?”, one asks. 
  “Oh, I know,” the other commiserates, “You are so 
  much prettier. When I saw you two dancing at the 
  Moonstar Ball I was sure you’d bagged him.” 
  Dice Game: Eights Bluffs 
  Eights Bluffs is the popular poker-like game that 
  Regnet spends most of his gambling time at the 
  Gentle Mermaid playing. The rules are similar to Texas-
  Hold’em: 
  Each player antes 2 of the table minimum bet, one of 
  which goes to the house. At the Gentle Mermaid, the 
  table minimum on the main ﬂoor is 1sp. The table 
  maximum is always 8 times the table minimum. 
  Each player rolls 4d8 in secret. The privilege of betting 
  ﬁrst goes to any player choosing to reveal the highest 
  rolled d8. If nobody reveals an 8, then the opening 
  number moves to 7, then 6, and so on. 
  If nobody is willing to reveal an opening number, the 
  round is forfeit and all ante goes to the house. 
  If more than one player reveals the same opening 
  number (e.g. two 8s), they can choose to reveal 
  another die. If neither player does so, their ante is 
  forfeit and they are removed from the round and 
  opening play continues as though that number had 
  not been revealed. 
  Checking, betting, raising, and folding occur as in 
  most poker games. A raise must always be of at least 
  the table minimum, and the total bet per player in any 
  one round of betting can not exceed the table 
  maximum. 
  After the ﬁrst round of betting, the house openly rolls 
  2d8. A second round of betting follows. The house 
  again openly rolls 2d8 with a third round of betting 
  after. The same opening bettor determined in the ﬁrst 
  step is allowed to open each round of betting. 
  Now a total of 8d8 per contestant have been rolled. 
  Each player reveals their secret 4d8. 
  After one ﬁnal round of betting, any remaining players 
  may re-roll any number of their original dice. 
  The winner is determined by the largest straight, then 
  set. For example, 3-4-5-6-7 (a straight of 5) beats 
  88888 (a set of 5). A set of 5, however, beats a run of 
  4. In the event of a set or run the same size, the 
  highest number prevails (i.e., 8-9 beats 7-8 and 99 
  beats 88). 
  In the event of a tie, the pot is split by those players. 
  Any dice not used in the straight or set are irrelevant.  
  The game is popular with the young nobles of 
  Waterdeep because it is high variance, and skills in 
  card counting give no advantage. Any edge in the 
  game is pure deceptive prowess, and losses can simply 
  be attributed to bad luck. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  6
  
  STEALING THE 
  HANDKERCHIEF  
  Regnet Amcathra is a gregarious young man, and 
  a little bit drunk. When the characters locate him, 
  he is happy to make new acquaintances and 
  invites them to join him at Eights Bluffs. Have the 
  characters roll Wisdom (Insight) checks. A 10 or 
  higher reveals that Renet is a genuinely friendly 
  fellow. If the party’s investigation has drawn the 
  attention of Renet’s bodyguards, they also notice 
  that the human and tieﬂing sitting at Renet’s right 
  hand eye them suspiciously.
  Hand in His Pocket. A character who can get 
  close to Regnet can nab his handkerchief with a 
  successful DC 12 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) 
  check. If caught, Regnet mistakes the action for an 
  overtly sexual gesture - something he’s 
  uncomfortably welcoming of. Despite being a 
  married man, Regnet is plenty amorous and 
  doesn’t have a strong preference towards any 
  speciﬁc gender. Regnet’s bodyguards take notice 
  however. If the characters didn’t already have 
  their attention, they do now. If the characters are 
  caught a second time, a bodyguard nods and the 
  characters ﬁnd themselves suddenly 
  unceremoniously ushered outside by two burly 
  bouncers each. Proceed directly to “Not So Gentle 
  Outside the Mermaid.”
  The Hooded Death. Soon after the party is 
  seated a Regnet’s table, a middle aged man at a 
  table nearby draws the Death Card foreshadowed 
  by Volo. Screams ring out from shocked guests as 
  a wraith (MM 302) appears from the card drawn 
  and promptly lops the man’s head off with its 
  scythe. Two archmages (MM 342) materialize and 
  subdue the smoky shade with explosive magical 
  spells. One then places the poor victim’s head 
  back on his shoulders, mutters and incantation, 
  and the man is good as new. The other calls out, 
  “Next hour, drinks on the house! All house antes 
  go to the winner!” A band that wasn’t there a 
  moment ago begins to play lively music. After a 
  minute it’s like nothing horrifying ever happened. 
  Hopefully one of the characters grabbed the 
  handkerchief during this distraction. If so, the DC 
  12 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check is made at 
  advantage.
  A Clever Ruse. There are any number of other 
  ways the characters might attempt to obtain 
  Regnet’s handkerchief. A sneezing ﬁt, bloody 
  nose, spilled wine, etc. Regnet is a gentleman and 
  won’t hesitate to provide aid. If your players 
  come up with a creative or entertaining solution, 
  award inspiration as well as the handkerchief.
  NOT SO GENTLE OUTSIDE 
  THE MERMAID 
  Run this encounter only if the party attracted the 
  attention of Regnet’s bodyguards. The encounter 
  occurs when the characters leave the Gentle 
  Mermaid, either having achieved their objective 
  or having been tossed from the establishment.
  A tieﬂing man and human woman you recognize from 
  Regnet’s table approach you in the back alley of 
  Gentle Mermaid. “The lot of you are up to something 
  ﬁshy,” the tough looking woman says. “Yeah”, adds 
  the tieﬂing, “we don’t take kindly to those who pry 
  into Master Regnet’s business”. 
  Drakius and El’odis are Regnet’s bodyguards 
  (use the stats for bandit captain on MM 344). 
  Rennet Amcathra is serial philanderer, a secret the 
  discreet and loyal pair of bodyguards go to great 
  lengths to protect. Avoiding attention from the 
  city watch is part of this mandate.
  The adjusted difﬁcult rating for this encounter 
  is 1350XP, making it potentially deadly for a party 
  of ﬁve 2nd-level characters. 
  If the party engages in combat and is defeated, 
  they wake up 1d4 hours later in an alley off of 
  The Breezeway in the far eastern part of the Field 
  Ward; bruised, bloody, and stripped of any 
  weapons and any possessions of value, but stable 
  at 1 hp. Not all is necessarily lost, however. If a 
  character successfully obtained Regnet’s 
  handkerchief, it remains safely tucked away in the 
  character’s pocket.
  If the characters are victorious, remind them 
  that they have just committed a serious crime and 
  may want to do something about the evidence. 
  The party can explain their way out of a ﬁght 
  with a successful DC 18 Charisma (Persuasion) 
  check. If your players concoct a convincing story 
  rather than simple denial, allow the check to be 
  made at advantage.
  7
  WATERDEEP
  
  VIRTUE OF 
  ADVERTENCE 
  The tieﬂing girl Advertence lives in a crate just 
  tucked into Keel alley at the corner of Net Street 
  and Dock Street. Formerly containing a shipment 
  of rum, the crate is just large enough for the 9 year 
  old girl to comfortably sleep inside. Aside from 
  two threadbare blankets, the crate appears empty. 
  1d4 copper nibs and a bright green feather are 
  hidden a hole dug under a loose board in the back 
  corner of the crate. 
  The girl spends her days sitting atop the crate, 
  earning her dinner by telling the fortunes of 
  passers-by. The fact that she can shout 
  descriptions of the passing strangers despite 
  being obviously blind attracts enough customers 
  to keep herself fed.
  YOU BRAZEN  
  LITTLE URCHIN! 
  The characters reach Advertence just in time to 
  overhear her ﬁnish telling a fortune before two 
  swarthy human women. “You shouldn’t say that 
  about him,” the young girl says to the rougher 
  looking of the pair. “After all, he seems to please 
  that one plenty… and frequently.”
  “You brazen little urchin!” the woman roars, 
  making contact with a ham-ﬁsted swing that 
  knocks the poor orphan from her crate.
  Margot (the violent one) and Amée (thugs MM 
  350) are part of an all female crew of marins from 
  the Dragon Coast whose ship is currently docked 
  in Waterdeep Harbor. When the characters come 
  to Advertence’s rescue, two more of the marins’ 
  crew, Sedilla and Dorian, join the ﬁght on the 
  third round of combat. Remind the players that 
  the Dock Ward is still in Waterdeep proper and 
  they probably should attempt to subdue, not kill 
  the attackers.
  After the end of the sixth round of combat, the 
  City Watch appears to break things up. If the ﬁght 
  doesn’t go that long they show up moments after. 
  Advertence tells the story of her rescue, 
  including descriptions of her attackers and 
  saviors. Sargent Barnwell isn’t surprised by this 
  occurrence. He’s quite familiar with the homeless 
  girl on his beat and the trouble she invites, and he 
  doesn’t care for her or her supernatural powers. 
  He grufﬂy thanks the party for intervening, and 
  then he and his men go about their business.
  When the characters give Advertence the 
  handkerchief, she replies in a monotone voice: 
  “He’s not who you think he is.” She points out 
  towards the harbor where The Eyecatcher, 
  Jarlaxle’s ﬂagship, is moored among many others. 
  “The dark man lives out there”.
  Advertence doesn’t seem interested in 
  discussion of any kind and quickly grows bored 
  of the adventurers and and curls up in her crate.  
  She calls after the party as they leave. “You’ll be 
  inside when it happens, but others will die. Too 
  bad the wood man strayed from Gond.” 
  (Granting a clue for chapter 3 of Waterdeep: 
  Dragon Heist). 
  The following day Jarlaxle visits Advertence, 
  and she leaves with him to become his personal 
  diviner. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  8
  Advertence
  
  REWARDS 
  The adventurers earn 1 renown with Bregan 
  D’aerthe, although at this point they know 
  nothing of the organization beyond “J.D.”
  Jarlaxle visits the party the following day, 
  gloating of how bewildered Regnet was when he 
  produced the forgotten handkerchief. He awards 
  the party an additional 50 gp as a “deposit 
  towards future endeavors,” and as an additional 
  token of appreciation an eight-sided Charlatan’s 
  Die (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything 136), which 
  he assures you (with a wink) “has never been in 
  the possession of Regnet Amcathra.”
  What if they failed? 
  If the characters are unable to deliver Rennet’s 
  handkerchief to Advertence, Jarlaxle/“J.B.” writes 
  them off as failures and they never hear from him 
  again. They might still go see Advertence however. If 
  they go within 2 days of being issued the mission, they 
  arrive as the scene above unfolds and could still 
  receive Advertence’s vague augury regarding the 
  nimblewright. Without the handkerchief to trigger the 
  thought, she tells them nothing about Jarlaxle. If more 
  than two days pass, Advertence and her crate are 
  gone. 
  Roleplaying Advertence 
  Advertence is the young tieﬂing girl’s chosen virtue 
  name, meaning “the process of turning ones attention 
  to something”. She has no idea what her given name 
  is or who her parents are. 
  Her ﬁrst memory is as a toddler, the searing pain of her 
  eyeballs being gouged from her face turning to a 
  vision of a ﬁery, many faced monster shouting “No! It 
  has seen me, you fools!” 
  Beyond that, she has never know a life outside of her 
  crate near the wharf. Amidst all manner of dangers,  
  she has never been seriously harmed or fallen ill since.  
  Though her eyes are missing, she possesses blindsight 
  out to 120 feet. One with her divination skill could live 
  lavishly were it focused. She does not aspire to be a 
  fortune teller; it is a byproduct of circumstance. A few 
  times a day she sees something in a passer-by and 
  shouts out to them. Usually it earns her a few coins; 
  often it earns her a slap across the face. 
  Advertence approaches everything in a slow, cautious 
  manner, and her monotone manner of speech reﬂects 
  that. She is clever, capable, and resourceful when 
  needed, but she has yet to break out of the pattern of 
  her life. 
  Ideal: “I know I see things as they are, and others 
  deserve to know what I see.” 
  Bond: “This crate, this alley, this corner is my home.” 
  Flaw: “This is the life I am destined to live forever. I 
  accept it and hope for nothing better” 
  9
  WATERDEEP
  
  IT GOT UNDER HIS SKIN 
  ADVENTURE 
  BACKGROUND 
  The demon lord Graz’zt is concerned by the 
  archdevil Asmodeus’s rapidly growing power in 
  Waterdeep. Unable to gain a foothold inside the 
  city proper, Graz’zt set his sights on the adjacent 
  rural area of Undercliff.
  A young human named Basil Mureal worked 
  as a guard at the labor-prison Amendsfarm, the 
  perfect occupation for a cruel man who never 
  exhibited the constitution or work ethic for 
  farming. When the charismatic Graz’zt 
  approached Mureal with an offer of making those 
  around him his lessors who would bow in 
  respect, Mureal immediately set his heart to 
  serving Graz’zt without even giving a second 
  thought.
  Graz’zt instructed Mureal in a dark ritual 
  turning a simple hammer used in construction 
  into a powerful magic weapon. At the dark lord’s 
  command, Mureal used the hammer to murder 
  three prisoners, trapping their spirits inside the 
  weapon. He then set the tool yet again to 
  construction: three scarecrows, each animated by 
  a spirit captured from Mureal’s victims.
  Waterdeep: Dragon Heist Factions 
  This adventure is based on the ﬁrst Emerald Enclave 
  mission (for 2nd level characters) on page 35 of the 
  hardcover campaign Waterdeep: Dragon Heist. 
  While the Emerald Enclave is a great ﬁt for the  
  mission explored in this adventure, it could also be 
  issued by any of the factions. A hook for each faction 
  is included in the ﬁrst section of the adventure.  
  If your campaign takes place in summer with the 
  Asmodeus worshipping Cassalanters as the villians, 
  fear not. Nothing the demon lord Graz’zt 
  accomplishes will interfere with chapter 6 in the 
  campaign book. 
  Although this adventure takes place in the farmlands 
  east of Waterdeep, it could easily be adapted to any 
  rural setting in your campaign. 
  With the scarecrows set to their immortal task 
  of terrorizing those in Undercliff who would 
  openly support Waterdeep’s power, Graz’zt 
  turned to constructing his next tool: a relic from 
  the Blood War representing a victory against the 
  archdevil army. Intoxicated with the power 
  already bestowed on him and hungry for more, 
  Mureal naively agreed to become a vessel for the 
  demon, completely destroying all semblance of 
  the man in the process.
  His babau demon now summoned to the 
  material plane, Graz’zt turned it to the task of 
  ﬁnding long forgotten tunnels in the cliff which 
  led into the city of Waterdeep. If he can establish a 
  presence in the city, he will take the opportunity 
  to sow chaos and undermine Asmodeus in any 
  way he can.
  OVERVIEW 
  The adventure consists of these sections:
  Faction Hooks. A faction of your choosing asks 
  the adventurers to investigate the rumors of a trio 
  of scarecrows which have come to life and are 
  terrorizing Undercliff.
  Scarecrows come to Life. At a point in the 
  adventure of your choosing, the enchanted 
  scarecrows reveal themselves and attack the party.
  Under the Cliff. On the way to Undercliff 
  Village, the party encounters a lynch mob.
  Blow to the Head. The characters investigate a 
  triple homicide at the labor-prison farm, just as 
  inmate tension boils over.
  Out of His Skin. The home of Basil Mureal 
  reveals dark secrets left behind.
  A Few Bad Apples. Mureal’s disappearance 
  doesn’t stop his cult from meeting. Which side of 
  the ambush will the characters ﬁnd themselves 
  on?
  Digging In. The adventurers confront a demon 
  in a cavern hidden in Waterdeep cliff. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  10
  
  FACTION HOOKS 
  Every Waterdeep faction has reason to send the 
  party on this adventure, and each has some sort 
  of aid to offer.
  If your campaign is outside of Waterdeep, use 
  the examples below to create your own unique 
  hook.
  EMERALD ENCLAVE 
  The Emerald Enclave abhors the evil and 
  unnatural. When rumors that a trio of scarecrows 
  are terrorizing Undercliff emerge, the Emerald 
  Enclave taps their newest recruits to investigate.
  A familiar white cat with a small roll of paper 
  tucked into its collar waits for the adventurers. It 
  speaks: “Rumor from the farms to the east is of  
  three ﬁeld scarecrows come alive. If there’s truth 
  to it, Anselm Griggons, the proprietor of The 
  Harvest Home inn in Undercliff Village will know 
  as much as any man. If things are as we fear, you 
  may well need this scroll to help protect you.”
  The scroll is a shillelagh (PHB 275) spell scroll 
  that is written in druidic with a phonetic 
  translation underneath, allowing any character 
  who can read common to cast it.
  BREGAN D’AERTHE 
  Jarlaxle Baenre knows that devil worship has 
  been spreading among the nobility in Waterdeep. 
  He’s curious to ﬁnd out if there is any connection 
  to the rumor of supernatural evil in the outlying 
  farmland. 
  He visits the characters in disguise as their 
  benefactor “J.B. Nevercott”, and asks the party to 
  look into the matter out of concern for the 
  smattering of his customers who reside in 
  Undercliff Village, which he describes as a 
  “delightfully quaint” place. Of its residents he 
  advises “the Underfolk are a backward people, 
  but mostly harmless.” He warns any characters 
  not human or halﬂing to brace themselves for 
  some soft bigotry, and further recommends that 
  any dragonborn, half-orc, tieﬂing, or monstrous 
  race characters may prefer to stay home; or at the 
  very least wear a cloak with a hood.
  FORCE GREY (GRAY HANDS) 
  Ever vigilant Vajra Safahr is frustrated that the 
  City Guard never seems to take threats from 
  outside the walls of Waterdeep seriously. Since 
  she knows the Underfolk to stir up fantastic 
  stories, she’s not inclined to put Force Grey’s 
  resources to the task of investigating until she can 
  verify the veracity of the tales. She summons the 
  party via sending to Blackstaff tower to assign the 
  mission. 
  Safahr warns the party that they may ﬁnd their 
  weapons less than fully adequate if they do 
  encounter possessed constructs. She has a magic 
  weapon (PHB 257) spell scroll ready for the party, 
  and cautions they only use it in the face of a dire 
  situation.
  HARPERS 
  Mirt sends the adventurers a paper bird inviting 
  them to join him at the Yawning Portal. When the 
  characters arrive, Mirt buys a round of drinks and 
  shares the rumor of three scarecrows animated 
  and terrorizing nearby farms. He expresses some 
  skepticism, noting that “Underfolk are prone to 
  spreading such tall tales.” Mirt asks that the party 
  travel to The Harvest Home in Undercliff Village 
  and investigate. The inn’s owner, Anselm 
  Griggons, is loosely afﬁliated with the Harpers.
  LORD’S ALLIANCE 
  The ongoing gang war between the Zhentarim 
  and the Xanathar’s Guild is stretching Jalester 
  Silvermane’s resources to the breaking point. 
  Working late into the night, he hastily delegates 
  the alleged animated scarecrows to the 
  adventurers, scribbling on a piece of paper “Trio 
  of scarecrows alive and terrorizing Undercliff? 
  Go. Report Back. -Silvermane”. The note is 
  delivered the next morning by a young courier 
  girl.
  11
  WATERDEEP
  
  ORDER OF THE GAUNTLET 
  Savra Belabranta arrives at Trollskull Manor at the 
  crack of dawn. “An opportunity to vacate evil!” 
  She shares the rumor that three scarecrows have 
  been animated and terrorizing Undercliff, and 
  gives the characters a vial of alchemist’s ﬁre (PHB 
  148). “You burn their wretched bodies, Tyr shall 
  forever burn their wicked spirits!”
  ZHENTARIM 
  When the Doom Raiders heard rumors of three 
  scarecrows animated and terrorizing Undercliff 
  their suspicions immediately turned to 
  Manshoon. A ﬂying snake arrives delivering a 
  scroll reading, “Trio of scarecrows come alive in 
  Undercliff. Determine if work of Manshoon. If 
  help needed, reliable Zhents known to water at 
  Tankard Times in Undercliff Village.”
  SCARECROWS  
  COME TO LIFE 
  Scarecrows are a common sight in Undercliff. 
  Nearly every ﬁeld the party comes across has one 
  or more standing watch. Point at least one cluster 
  of three out as the characters pass by a farm on 
  the way to Undercliff Village. These remain 
  completely motionless and upon inspection seem 
  harmless.
  Make scarecrow sightings mundane. Perhaps 
  have one in the distance move, only to have been 
  knocked over by the wind. Consider making your 
  players paranoid at every sighting, or lull them 
  into complacency. 
  The three scarecrows animated by Basil Mureal 
  sense that the characters are dangerous allies of 
  Waterdeep and have set their sights upon the 
  party. 
  The adventure provides suggestions as to when 
  the animated scarecrows might attack, but 
  ultimately it’s up to you to when they make their 
  appearance. 
  SCARECROW ENCOUNTER 
  The scarecrows may wait for the characters to 
  approach, having put themselves en route to an 
  objective. If the characters are close by, the 
  scarecrows might attempt to sneak up on the 
  party. Either way, as soon as the characters are 
  within 30 feet, they begin combat with their 
  terrifying glare, and then move into close range 
  making claw attacks. Check to see if the 
  characters are surprised when the combat begins. 
  All three scarecrows focus their attacks on the 
  weakest character and will ﬁght to the death. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  12
  
  UNDER THE CLIFF 
  Dozens of farms are dispersed along Undercliff 
  Way, the long road winding through the open 
  rolling prairie east of Waterdeep, connected to the 
  High Road at both the north and south where it 
  leaves the city. 
  Describe the environment based on the season 
  your campaign takes place in. Spring sees 
  workers plowing and sowing the ﬁelds, cattle 
  graze under the hot summer sun, tall rows of corn 
  and barley stand ready for autumn harvest, and 
  the harsh winter cold reveals a barren wasteland 
  covered in snow.
  The Political Climate in Undercliff 
  The city of Waterdeep has made a spectacular 
  recovery in the short time since the Sundering. Under 
  Laerel Silverhand’s leadership, most noble families 
  have regained their wealth, and the standard of living 
  for all but the poorest of Waterdeep’s residents has 
  been steadily on the rise. 
  Most Underclifftens, as they refer to themselves, feel 
  left out of this prosperity. They feed the city, yet live 
  hard agrarian lives ﬁlled with manual labor and few 
  amenities. They hear the citizens of Waterdeep refer 
  to them as “Underfolk” and mock their slow nasal 
  accent. They return contempt in kind, deriding even 
  laborers in the city as “elites” up on a mountain of 
  riches who have no understanding of what it means to 
  live as a “real” citizen of the north.  
  Graz’zt found it easy to tap into this resentment and 
  form a small cult serving his goal of undermining 
  Asmodeus. Although the number dedicated to 
  outright demon-worship is few and secretive, their 
  political ideology based around the racial superiority 
  of humans and halﬂings (the vast majority of 
  Undercliff’s population) and extracting economic and 
  cultural revenge against the city is quickly becoming 
  widespread.  
  THE LYNCH MOB 
  As Undercliff Village is coming into the view in 
  the distance, the party notices a large group of 
  people gathered near a lone oak tree just off the 
  side of the road.
  A terriﬁed looking tieﬂing man sits sideways 
  on an unsaddled horse. The noose tied around his 
  neck is attached, with little slack, to a large branch 
  of the tree overhead.
  Vance Lifften (LE human male cult fanatic 
  armed with a shortsword rather than a dagger) 
  sits in the saddle of a horse next to the 
  condemned tieﬂing, ﬂanked by three thugs 
  (MM350). All four men are human. The angry 
  mob before them is a 70/30 mix of humans and 
  halﬂings, all males. 
  Lifften is the leader of the Graz’zt worshipping 
  cult, The Merciless Order of the Six Fingered 
  Hand, but no one present is aware of this fact. 
  Although he possess dark magic, he won’t risk 
  betraying the secret by casting spells. A pair of six 
  ﬁngered gloves are hidden in is back pocket.
  Lifften is currently whipping the mob into a 
  frenzy. When the party approaches, they hear the 
  tail end of his speech:
  “…and monsters make more monsters! Y’all seen 
  what’s been going on lately. The elites up top in the 
  city encourage this wickedness to ﬂourish, but not 
  down here in the heart of our land!”  
  The speech is followed by a few shouts from 
  the crowd, e.g.  “death to the monster!”
  13
  WATERDEEP
  Vance Lifften
  
  Lifften sees the characters approaching as his 
  speech wraps up and nods to his henchmen, who 
  move in opposite directions to ﬂank the party. He 
  notices that a character is dragonborn, drow, half-
  orc, tieﬂing, or any monstrous race unless they 
  have are wearing a hood and make a successful 
  DC12 Charisma (Deception) check; or have 
  employed magic or a disguise kit to hide their true 
  race (no check required). 
  If he spotted a character of one of those races, 
  Lifften shouts out, “Well lookit here. It’s our lucky 
  day! Seems we gonna have us some double (or 
  triple etc as warranted) justice!” His henchmen 
  charge towards the party with the goal of 
  capturing any characters of those races. The angry 
  mob engages in combat at mentality level 3. 
  A party seen to be comprised of only socially 
  acceptable races won’t be attacked unless they 
  physically interfere with the lynching. 
  The characters might try persuading the lynch 
  mob not to hang the tieﬂing. They won’t convince 
  Lifften, but they may turn the sentiment of the 
  crowd. When a character makes an argument in 
  favor of sparing the tieﬂing’s life, have them 
  make a Charisma (Persuasion) check. The check is 
  made at advantage by a cleric or paladin invoking 
  the name of a god, but at disadvantage by any 
  character who is a not a human or halﬂing. This 
  check is contested by one of the same from Lifften 
  (+2), who presents these arguments, in order:
  • “This thing is a demon, not a man!”
  • “Who knows what other nightmares it will 
  create with its dark magic? The scarecrows are 
  surely just the beginning!”
  • “How could Chauntea rightly bless the 
  harvests of those who tolerate this evil?” This 
  check is made at advantage.
  The mob mentality level starts at 3, which is its 
  maximum. When the characters win a contest, 
  reduce the level by one. If Lifften wins, increase it 
  by one. 
  After three rounds of argument, Lifften tires of 
  the debate and smacks the rump of the adjacent 
  horse, sending it running and the tieﬂing 
  dangling. 
  If the party attempts to save the tieﬂing’s life, 
  combat ensues. Note the current mob mentality at 
  the beginning of combat. If the tieﬂing isn’t freed 
  from his noose, he dies from suffocation at the 
  end of the ﬁfth round of combat.
  When rescued, the tieﬂing identiﬁes himself as 
  Falados. Emigrating to Waterdeep with just the 
  clothes on his back, he was jumped by the man on 
  horseback and his thugs. Falados expresses utter 
  dismay at what just occurred - his decision to see 
  out a new life in Waterdeep was driven by an 
  understanding that his kind were accepted there. 
  Falados won’t come right out and say it, but 
  hints more than once that he wishes the party to 
  escort him to Waterdeep. If they refuse, he takes 
  off running towards the River Gate.
  If the characters don’t intervene, they watch the 
  innocent man choke out his last breath. The 
  crowd peacefully disperses and the tieﬂing’s 
  corpse is left to dangle from the tree.
  Angry Mob 
  Armor Class: 9 (unarmored) 
  Hit Points: 4 (1d8), damage threshold 4 (same)  
  Speed: 30 
  Reach: 5 
  The mob occupies a 40 foot diameter circle. Any 
  creature size medium or smaller can occupy a space 
  inside this circle, but it is considered difﬁcult terrain.  
  Mob Mentality Levels 
  Level 0. Placated. The mob gawks as combat 
  proceeds, but takes no actions or reactions. 
  At levels higher than 0: any hostile creature that ends 
  its turn in the mob’s reach must make a DC 14 
  Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. The mob 
  will take any number of reactions during a round of 
  combat to make a single opportunity attack against 
  any creature that leaves its reach. 
  Level 1. Riled. The mob makes a single shove attack 
  (+5) against each enemy in reach, attempting to knock 
  prone. If the target is already prone, it is also grappled 
  (escape DC 14). 
  Level 2. Angry. Same as level 1, but the mob also 
  makes an additional kick attack against any grappled 
  creature, +5 to hit, damage 1. 
  Level 3. Frenzied. The mob moves towards the 
  nearest enemy and makes a single stab attack, +0 to 
  hit, damage 2 (1d4) against each enemy in reach. 
  The mob taking 4 or more damage from a single 
  attack indicates that one of the commoners (MM 345) 
  comprising it has been killed. The remaining 
  commoners immediately take their reactions to ﬂee. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  14
  
  HARVEST HOME INN 
  The heart of Undercliff Village is the Harvest 
  Home Inn. It’s the largest building for miles, built 
  at an angle following a curve in Main Street at the 
  center of the village. The expansive tap room and 
  dining hall on the main level serves as the social 
  center of Undercliff, and the second story is split 
  between six spacious guest rooms and a private 
  residence.
  The owner, Anselm Griggons, is middle aged 
  human with ﬁery red hair and a beard to match. 
  Born and educated in Waterdeep, he spent about 
  a decade adventuring before “retiring” to settle 
  down in the country. Much of the inn’s success 
  can be attributed to Anselm’s wealth from his 
  previous career allowing it to operate without 
  making a proﬁt.
  When the characters arrive, Anselm is standing 
  behind the bar reading a broadsheet. A character 
  who examines it will notice that it is an edition of 
  the Waterdeep Wazoo dated more than a tenday 
  ago. 
  When the characters inquire about the 
  scarecrows, a teenage halﬂing boy sitting at the 
  bar, eating a delicious smelling bowl of stew, 
  interrupts before Anselm can get a word in. “I 
  seen it myself, sirs, Taller than any of ye, with a 
  great big rotting punkin’ for a head! Chased me 
  along the main road for a quarter mile before I got 
  far enough ahead and it turned to go after a heifer 
  instead. I just kept runnin’ all the way home!”
  Anselm veriﬁes that he has heard a number of 
  similar stories and believes them to be true. “I 
  started hearing these tales ﬁve or six days ago 
  with three distinct variations. The pumpkin 
  headed one young Wessel was chased by, one 
  with a burlap sack over its head, and another clad 
  in bright red rags. The stories started about the 
  same as those murders up at Amendsfarm. Seems 
  like hell of a coincidence.”
  All Anselm knows about the murders is that 
  three inmates are said to have bashed each others 
  (“…or their own? Could have been a suicide pact 
  I suppose”) heads in with rocks. 
  If a character associated with the Harpers 
  reveals they were sent by Mirt and shows Anselm 
  their harp pin, Anselm gives them a scroll of 
  heroism (PHB 250). He cautions that a few stories 
  of scarecrow encounters included feeling 
  paralyzed by fear upon looking at one.
  Anselm has rooms for rent if the characters 
  wish to say. At only 10 sp including meals it’s an 
  exceptional value for the level of comfort. 
  If the characters spend the night out of doors at 
  some point during the adventure, that could be a 
  good opportunity to run the encounter with the 
  animated scarecrows
  TANKARD TIMES TAVERN 
  Directly across the street from the Harvest Home 
  is a ﬁlthy drinking establishment that owes its 
  continued existence merely to the fact that 
  Anselm Griggons doesn’t tolerate the behavior of 
  its patrons in his own establishment. No matter 
  the time of day, the customers in Tankard Times 
  are foul mouthed, rude, prone to ﬁghting, and 
  very drunk.
  The proprietor, Bartholomew Ender, embodies 
  the place. He serves elves and dwarves only 
  grudgingly, all the while making antagonizing 
  remarks about “pointy ears” and “beard ladies”. 
  Other races are outright banned from the 
  premises. 
  Two Zhents, Morlan Frost and Dirk Starnag 
  (human male thugs) practically live here. The 
  don’t have any direct association to the Doom 
  Raiders or Manshoon, but sell their services as 
  mercenaries to anyone willing to pay them 3 sp a 
  day each. They only work as a pair and if either of 
  them has any loyalty at all, it’s only to the other. If 
  things take a turn for the worse, they are quick to 
  abandon their charge.  
  15
  WATERDEEP
  
  BLOW TO THE HEAD 
  The prison-labor farm Amendsfarm sits just north 
  of the cliff, near Waterdeep’s North Gate. 
  Criminals sentenced to hard labor (see The Code 
  Legal W:DH 222) work off their debt to society in 
  its ﬁelds and orchards. Most of the prison is very 
  low security, as the population are primarily  
  serving short sentences for theft of various 
  severity. Although many easily escape, for most it 
  is not worth permanent exile from Waterdeep. 
  A small subset of the prisoners are serving 
  longer sentences for serious crimes such as 
  murder or participating in the slave trade. These 
  inmates are more heavily guarded, and reside in 
  barracks in a walled off section of the northwest 
  end of the prison. 
  This higher security area is where Basil Mureal 
  worked as a guard and found his three victims. 
  Six days ago he had the opportunity alone with 
  them in one of the bunkhouses, each in restraints 
  after a hard days work in the orchard. Mureal 
  bashed in the skull of each prisoner with the 
  rounded end of his hammer, then ﬂed home to 
  stash the weapon. He returned with three large 
  rocks, dabbed them in blood and brain, released 
  the corpses from their manacles, and ran to his 
  superior to report that the prisoners had killed 
  one another in some sort of altercation.
  ENTERING THE PRISON 
  The party is greeted at the main entrance to the 
  prison by a halﬂing guard named Dandel 
  Fatrabbit. They inform the characters that 
  yesterday was visiting day, and the party will 
  have to come back next tenday. 
  When told that the characters are there to 
  investigate the recent murders, Dandel 
  immediately escorts a party afﬁliated with the 
  Lord’s Alliance or Force Grey to the warden’s 
  ofﬁce. Otherwise a successful DC 14 Charisma 
  (Persuasion) check or a bribe of at least 5gp is 
  required lest the party is turned away. If the check 
  fails, Dandel not-so-subtly asks for the bribe by 
  making a pointed cough while jingling the coin 
  purse on their belt. 
  INVESTIGATING  
  THE MURDERS 
  Amendsfarm’s warden, Emmeline Crater, is in her 
  ofﬁce when the party arrives and is happy to 
  accept them. She secretly has serious doubts 
  about Mureal’s story and suspects that he 
  murdered the prisoners. Crater hopes she can 
  pass off responsibility for the outcome of an 
  investigation onto the adventurers. The Fraternal 
  Order of Peacekeepers demands loyalty to fellow 
  ofﬁcers above all else, even if a crime has been 
  committed. In a case involving a prisoner, not 
  siding with a guild member would be especially 
  unthinkable. If the characters somehow manage 
  to search her desk, they ﬁnd a letter to the warden 
  of Repenttoil labor-mining prison along the 
  Triboar Trail in the Sword Mountains to the north. 
  It commends Mureal’s service and recommends 
  him for a transfer and promotion - the guild’s go-
  to approach for dealing with this sort of situation.
  Crater calls the high security supervising 
  ofﬁcer, Villhelm Price, into her ofﬁce to answer 
  the party’s questions. Price, along with Mureal, is 
  a ranking member of the Graz’zt worshipping 
  cult, but he has no direct knowledge of the 
  murders or Mureal’s recent actions. He has a very 
  low opinion of the prisoners he guards and has 
  taken Mureal’s explaination at face value. If the 
  adventures cast suspision on Mureal during their 
  investigation he becomes increasingly testy and 
  defensive of his friend.  
  Speaking to Mureal. Basil Mureal has been put 
  on paid leave for a tenday following the incident, 
  which is standard procedure. Price hasn’t seen 
  him since the incident, but suspects that Mureal is 
  home at his cottage, recovering from the trauma 
  of coming upon the grisly scene. Price is happy to 
  give the party directions to Mureal’s home, which 
  is covered in the section below, Out of His Skin.
  Amateur Coroners. If the characters wish to 
  inspect a body, they are in luck. Two of the 
  victims were from Waterdeep and are presently 
  interred among family in the City of the Dead, but 
  one man hails from Baulder’s Gate, and his body 
  awaits transport. Price shows the characters to a 
  storage shed containing a pine box containing the 
  corpse, liberally packed in salt.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  16
  
  A successful DC 14 Intelligence (Investigation) 
  check reveals that the the single deep puncturing 
  blow that bashed in the man’s skull and brain was 
  made by a blunt, rounded instrument probably 
  no more than 3 inches in diameter.
  Speak with dead or other magic requiring the 
  deceased spirit have no effect, as the man’s spirit 
  is now animating a scarecrow.
  The Crime Scene. The 20 by 30 foot bunkhouse 
  where the murders took place has sat vacant and 
  untouched since the bodies were removed. Aging 
  and due for replacement the following year 
  anyway, it is slated to be demolished. A character 
  succeeding on a DC 12 Intelligence (Investigation) 
  check notices that bloody footprints appear both 
  out towards and in from the building’s entrance, 
  which Price supposes is from the bodies being 
  removed. A successful check also reveals that 
  blood splatters appear only on the eastern wall of 
  the building.
  WHAT A RIOT! 
  Tension has been mounting in the high security 
  area since the murders. Most prisoners have 
  known one another for a long time and formed a 
  tribal relationship, if not friendships. The 
  prisoners are convinced that Mureal, who 
  constantly mistreats them in minor but 
  unnecessary fashion, is responsible for the 
  murders.
  The situation turned ugly while the party was 
  investigating. Called lazy and prodded along by 
  the tip of a guard’s spear, one prisoner snapped 
  and snatched the weapon.
  The characters hear shouting from the 
  unfolding standoff. The guard is grappled by a 
  prisoner, hands restrained behind his back. The 
  guard’s spear is pointed menacingly at his 
  midsection, wielded by the man who hand taken 
  it from him, and three more hardened prisoners 
  (use the statistics for veteran, only weaponless 
  and unarmored, AC 11) stand in solidarity behind 
  them. Four guards stand in a cluster ﬁfteen feet 
  away, spears drawn.
  The characters catch the tail end of the spear 
  wielding prisoner shouting “…sentenced to labor, 
  not death!”. The guard held hostage takes the 
  appearance of Price and the party as an 
  opportunity to break free. He brings a foot up into 
  the groin of his captor, who falls prone. The guard 
  is rewarded with a spear to the midsection, and 
  then all hell breaks loose.
  Realizing that their participation in the 
  insurrection will be punished by death, the 
  prisoners ﬁght until all the guards are dispatched, 
  then attempt to ﬂee the prison. They ﬁght through 
  the adventurers as well, but aren’t concerned with 
  killing the party unless the adventurers stand in 
  the way of escape.
  OUT OF HIS SKIN 
  The past tenday was the most eventful of Basil 
  Mureal’s sad life. Of the all the members of the 
  Graz’zt worshiping cult he and his friends 
  christened The Merciless Glove of the Six Fingered 
  Hand, the demon lord had chosen him. As 
  instructed, Mureal enchanted his ball-peen 
  hammer and used it to kill the three prisoners. 
  Using the same hammer, he constructed three 
  scarecrows animated by the prisoners’ spirits. 
  The day after unleashing his scarecrows on 
  Undercliff, Basil Mureal received another edict 
  from the Dark Lord. Graz’zt offered Mureal the 
  opportunity to become an immortal being in 
  exchange for his mortal body. Mureal jumped at 
  the opportunity and performed the ritual Graz’zt 
  prescribed. At high moon, Mureal’s muscles, 
  bones, and viscera scrambled, transforming into 
  the babau demon. The babau’s horn and tail 
  sliced though Mureal’s human skin, 
  which sloughed off into a heap on 
  the ﬂoor as the demon emerged. 
  The babau climbed the wall to the 
  lone window above and 
  disappeared into the night in search 
  of the lost tunnels in the 
  cliff connecting 
  Waterdeep to 
  Undercliff.
  17
  WATERDEEP
  The Demon Emerges
  
  BASIL MUREAL’S COTTAGE 
  Mureal’s cottage is about a mile south along the 
  same road as Amendsfarm. It is small, consisting 
  of a single 20x20ft room containing an iron stove, 
  dining table, and writing desk. A ladder leads up 
  to a loft in the peak of the building, which 
  contains Mureal’s bed, a small dresser, and the 
  home’s only window. Across the dirt road stand 
  three scarecrows. The adventurers easily locate 
  the cottage from Villhelm Price’s directions and 
  description. 
  Trapped Door. The door to Mureal’s cottage is 
  locked. It can be opened with a successful DC 10 
  Dexterity check with thieves tools or forced open 
  with a successful DC 15 Strength (Athletics) 
  check. 
  Before undertaking his transformative ritual, 
  Mureal placed two vials of alchemist’s ﬁre (PHB 
  148) on a shelf above the door, looped with twine 
  tacked to the inside of the door. When the door is 
  opened, the vials are pulled from the shelf and 
  break open on the ﬂoor, splashing the sticky 
  substance over a 10 foot radius circle centered in 
  the middle of the doorway. Any character in the 
  area must succeed on a DC 14 Dexterity saving 
  throw or be splashed by the ﬂuid and set on ﬁre.
   A character on ﬁre this way takes 1d4 at the 
  start of each of its turns until it can make a 
  successful DC 10 Dexterity check to extinguish 
  the ﬂames. 
  The trap also sets the cottage ablaze. The 
  characters can easily extinguish the ﬁre, but if 
  they don’t the structure will burn to the point that 
  no useful clues can be found after 5 minutes. 
  Consider this opportunity for the animated 
  scarecrows to attack.
  Any character who looks through the window 
  at the peak of the building can spot the trap, no 
  check required. The trap can be disarmed from 
  inside the cottage with the door still closed with a 
  successful DC 5 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check. 
  On a failure, the vials drop to the ground as 
  though the trap had been triggered. 
  Ritual Leftovers. Any character who looks 
  inside the cottage immediately notices a pile of 
  pink skin matted with blood lying in the middle 
  of chalk drawn circle. Written around the circle in 
  Abyssal are the words “As Glasya spilled His 
  blood shall I too become”. A character who can 
  read those words or has them translated can make 
  an Intelligence (History) check. A result of 15 or 
  higher reveals that this is a reference to the story 
  of the babau demon on page 136 of Volo’s Guide to 
  Monsters. The character is also aware of the 
  babau’s damage resistances, its ability to create 
  magical darkness, its weakening gaze. 
  Investigating the shed skin reveals that it was 
  sliced from the inside as though with two serrated 
  blades; one originating at the top of the skull and 
  the other at the tailbone. Moving the skin reveals 
  a chalk drawing of a six-ﬁngered hand. 
  Laying just to the side of the circle is a ball-
  peen hammer (see sidebar, Mureal’s Ball-peen) 
  caked in dried blood an encrusted with bits of 
  wood and straw. Any character proﬁcient in 
  arcana immediately gets an uneasy feeling when 
  they look at it.
  Search for a Few Minutes. A search of Mureal’s 
  cottage reveals exactly the mundane items one 
  would expect, and nothing of value. The pocket of 
  Mureal’s jacket, which is draped over a chair, 
  contains two six ﬁngered leather gloves with a 
  small carrot placed in the sixth ﬁnger, next to the 
  pinky ﬁnger.  
  On the writing desk is a leather bound journal 
  with minutes chronicling the meetings of The 
  Merciless Glove of the Six Fingered Hand. The 
  meetings have convened an hour after sundown 
  on the same day each of the last tendays. The last 
  entry (a handout is included at the end of this 
  adventure) is dated a tenday ago tomorrow, and 
  is included as handout for your players on the last 
  page on this adventure. If the players ask about 
  the other pages of the journal, it’s mostly the same 
  sort of stuff. Meeting #9 marks the last time the 
  cultists heard “THE VOICE”, which instructed 
  them to focus their efforts on ﬁnding a tunnel lost 
  in the walls of the cliff. Prior references to “THE 
  VOICE” are missives on the superiority of 
  humans and halﬂings, and the dangers of the 
  other races and the city above that tolerates them.
   In reading the meeting minutes for meeting 
  #14, the characters should learn that the location 
  of the meetings is a derelict barn at the Snobeedle 
  Orchard and Meadery. If the players don’t glean 
  this fact, their characters can with a successful DC 
  10 Intelligence (History) check.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  18
  
  The characters might also note that Basil 
  Mureal is cult’s secretary, and the initials of the 
  vice president, V.P. matches Villhelm Price of 
  Amendsfarm. They may not have found out his 
  name when the character encountered the 
  lynching, but president V.L. was the ringleader, 
  Vance Lifften.
  Mureal’s Ball-peen 
  Weapon (light hammer) 
  You gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made 
  with this magic weapon. 
  When Mureal’s Ball-peen is used to kill an evil-aligned 
  humanoid, its spirit immediately manifests itself on the 
  material plane as a dretch (MM 57), which appears to 
  burst from the corpse of the victim. The dretch is 
  hostile to all creatures except the wielder of Mureal’s 
  Ball-peen. Roll initiative for the dretch, which has its 
  own turns. The dretch pursues and attacks the nearest 
  non-demon to the best of its ability.  
  Construct of Evil (Requires attunement by an evil-
  aligned character) 
  When a character attuned to Mureal’s Ballpeen kills an 
  evil-aligned humanoid with the weapon, they may 
  choose to capture the spirit rather than having it 
  manifest as a dretch. If they do so, they may later 
  spend 1 hour using the hammer to construct a 
  scarecrow (MM 268), binding it with the spirit 
  captured. 
  A FEW BAD APPLES 
  The Snobeedle Orchard and Meadery is located 
  off to the east side of Undercliff Way, just shy of a 
  mile north of Undercliff Village. The orchard, 
  planted with various varieties of apples, plums, 
  cherries, peaches, and apricots, is synergistic with 
  the large bee colony which provides the 
  meadery’s honey.
  The season your campaign takes place can add 
  some ﬂavor to the location. For example: spring 
  buds and bees, summer workers pruning, fall’s 
  abundant harvest, a taproom packed full of bored 
  wintering farmers. 
  THE DRINKING HALL 
  The Snobeedle cousins are attentive hosts to 
  guests in their expansive drinking hall, which is 
  sized to accommodate human-size guests. In 
  addition to the famous mead, the drink menu 
  contains no less than seven varieties of cider. 
  Wine and ale are noticeably absent from the list as 
  they are not produced on site. The selection of 
  food is limited, but quite delicious. The 
  Snobeedles bake large quantities of soft white 
  bread in house, which is served with honey and 
  wide array of jams, all of which can also be 
  purchased by the jar in a small gift shop.
  Humans and halﬂings are warmly welcomed 
  by all, elves and dwarves less so but still treated 
  politely, and “undesirable” races noted earlier in 
  the adventure are tolerated but given a passive-
  aggressive cold shoulder. Characters of those 
  races make Charisma checks at disadvantage 
  inside the drinking hall.
  The hall is usually quite busy, and if the 
  adventurers take the time to visit or simply 
  evesdrop, they hear two popular topics of 
  conversation (no check required):
  • The scarecrows. The adventurers don’t hear 
  an actual ﬁrst hand account, but many second 
  or third hand stories with increasing levels of 
  embellishment. The common thread seems to be 
  that there are three animated scarecrows. One 
  dressed in tattered rags, another with a burlap 
  sack with slashed eye holes over its head, and 
  one whose head is a giant pumpkin
  • Murders at Amendsfarm labor-prison. The 
  consensus seems to be that three dangerous 
  convicts got in a quarrel and murdered each 
  other, though at least one halﬂing posits that it 
  could have been a guard responsible (“and I 
  don’t blame him if it was! Imagine the stress of 
  having to control those wretched men!”) There 
  is also a general sentiment that the prison 
  shouldn’t exist where it is. It competes with the 
  local farms who don’t have free labor, and why 
  should the lives of their families be threatened 
  by the criminal element produced by the city? 
  19
  WATERDEEP
  When the ball-peen kills a 
  baddie, this adorable little 
  stinker falls out
  
  INVITATION FROM A CULTIST 
  If the characters didn’t ﬁnd out about the cult 
  meetings from the journal in Basil Mureal’s 
  cottage, they are instead approached by a male 
  halﬂing named Quentin Snobeedle. A member of 
  the cult, Q.S. has identiﬁed the party as a threat 
  and attempts to lure them into an ambush at the 
  derelict barn.
  Blond of hair and beard, both sparse and 
  poorly groomed, Q.S. is one of the many halﬂing 
  cousins who run the meadery. He doesn’t have a 
  proper ownership role, however, and never really 
  ﬁt in with the cheerful demeanor of the rest of the 
  family. As a bit of an outsider even among his 
  own kin, Q.S. found a subculture with deﬁned 
  enemies and promises of power very appealing. 
  If the characters tried to rescue the tieﬂing 
  being lynched, Q.S. was in the crowd. He 
  approaches the party congratulating them on 
  their bravery. If the characters left the tieﬂing to 
  hang, Q.S. was in the Harvest Home and 
  overheard the party inquiring about the 
  scarecrows. In this case, he approaches the 
  characters with a suspicion of the source. 
  In either case, Q.S. invites the party to visit the 
  meadery on the evening of the cult meeting. He is 
  a gracious host inside the drinking hall, and 
  contrives an excuse to lead the party out to the 
  derelict barn in the hour after sundown. 
  The tactics on encounter sheet A assume that 
  the cultists aren’t expecting the adventurers. In 
  the case that cultists get to spring an ambush, the 
  tactics are mostly the same with a few exceptions.  
  The cult fanatic will cast shield of faith prior to 
  the start of combat, allowing him to deploy his 
  spiritual weapon a round earlier. While the 
  cultists are ready with their scimitars, they remain 
  untrained and undisciplined ﬁghters.
  TRACKING DOWN THE CULT 
  If the party arrives at the meadery with the 
  intention of seeking out the derelict barn, it’s not 
  hard to ﬁnd (see Derelict Barn, below). The 
  Snobeedles allow anyone to wander around the 
  property as they please. In the late summer into 
  fall, the outdoors is full with customers carrying 
  sacks of freshly picked fruit. 
  If the characters inquire about cults or demons 
  inside the drinking hall, they are met with pure 
  skepticism. Such perversion must be rampant in 
  the city, of course, but surely not down in this 
  more civilized area. There is one exception, 
  however. On a successful DC 16 Wisdom 
  (Perception) check, a character notices that 
  Quentin Snobeedle has gone even paler hearing 
  demons or cults mentioned, and is showing 
  visible signs of nervousness.
  If the party confronts Q.S., it’s clear that he’s 
  hiding something. A successful DC 10 Charisma 
  (Persuasion) check is enough to get something out 
  of him. He stammers out an unconvincing lie 
  about having overheard outsiders from the city 
  talking about scarecrow animating rituals in the 
  basement of the Harvest Home in Undercliff 
  Village. A character expressing doubt can 
  determine that the halﬂing is not being truthful 
  with a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Insight) check.
  Q.S. is weak spined without his friends around 
  to back him up. If a character threatens the 
  halﬂing, have them make a DC 14 Charisma 
  (Intimidation) check:
  • On a success, Q.S. turns on the cult in an 
  attempt to save his own skin: “Look, I didn’t 
  want to have anything to do with it! Tye (Tye 
  Tosscobble, T.T. from the meeting minutes) 
  roped me into it. You can’t tell my cousins. The 
  family business would be devastated!” Q.S. 
  informs the characters when and where the cult 
  meeting will soon be taking place, and agrees to 
  help the party in any way they ask. A successful 
  DC 18 Wisdom (Insight) check reveals that he 
  has steadied his resolve to bend to which ever 
  side is going to come out on top, and won’t 
  hesitate to betray the party.
  • On a failure, Q.S. feigns offense, “My family 
  welcomes all who wish to enjoy our hospitality, 
  but I personally will not tolerate such rudeness. 
  Good day!”. Q.S. leaves to go about his duties 
  and makes sure catch the other cultists prior to 
  the meeting to warn them of the party’s 
  presence. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  20
  
  DERELICT BARN 
  One of the original structures built decades ago 
  by the Snobeedle family still stands at the 
  northeast edge of the property, adjacent to an old 
  plot of apple trees which have long since stopped 
  producing fruit. 
  The barn is 40 feet wide by 80 feet long, though 
  the rear 30 feet has caved in and is completely 
  unusable. The 20 by 20 foot wide opening in the 
  front sits open to the world, the doors long ago 
  having rotted off their hinges. Numerous halﬂing-
  sized openings are visible in the rotting lumber 
  that makes up the barn’s side walls.
  A rickety ladder leads 20 feet up to a 15 foot 
  deep loft above the door spanning the barn’s 
  entire width. Both are dangerous after decades of 
  neglect. Any creature traversing either during its 
  turn must make a DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) 
  check as they do so. On a failure, the entire 
  structure collapses under their weight and they 
  fall with it to the ground, taking 2d6 bludgeoning 
  damage and landing prone among the debris.
  The barn offers a number of places to take 
  cover, including a wheelless wagon with a broken 
  axel and numerous large hay bales (which are 
  dangerously dry and can easily burst into ﬂames). 
  Rusty old shovels, hoes, and other farming 
  tools are scattered around the edges of the bar, 
  which could be used as improvised weapons.
  A dozen or so milking stools, all capable of 
  supporting sitting weight, are arranged in a circle 
  in the middle of the barn’s usable area.
  When the cult is meeting, the interior of the 
  barn is dimly lit by candles safely placed inside of 
  glass jam jars.
  96 MERCILESSLY GLOVED 
  FINGERS 
  Shortly after dusk the cult members, all wearing 
  six ﬁngered leather gloves with a carrot playing 
  the role of the digit of the extra ﬁnger inside, 
  arrive at the barn for the meeting. Just enough 
  candles are lit to provide dim light through the 
  interior of the barn, yet not draw attention from 
  the outside. 
  Vance Lifften, who lead the tieﬂing lynching at 
  the beginning of the adventure, is a cult fanatic 
  (MM 345) and leader of the 7 cultists (MM 345) 
  remaining now that Mureal is no longer among 
  them. The cult fanatic is clearly identiﬁed as the 
  leader by the fancy vestments he wears, 
  compared to the simple black robes of the other 
  cultists.
   If Lifften has been killed, make Villhelm Price 
  (of the prison) the cult fanatic instead. If both men 
  are dead, choose another cultist to play the role. If 
  it was necessary to move on to understudies, 
  reduce the number of cultists accordingly. Note 
  that Q.S. is included in their ranks, and his role 
  may have changed depending on his interactions 
  with the adventurers.
  Don’t forget that if an evil cultist is killed by 
  Mureal’s ball-peen during the encounter, a smelly 
  dretch (MM 268) will burst from the dead cultist’s 
  corpse!
  Cultists Ambush. If the party didn’t ﬁnd out 
  about the meeting from the clues in Mureal’s 
  cottage and are instead being lead to the barn by 
  Q.S., a lookout warns that the party is 
  approaching. The cultists position themselves to 
  ambush the adventurers, and the cult fanatic 
  prepares for the ﬁght by casting shield of faith. 
  Make a single Dexterity (Stealth) check for the 
  cultists. This sets the DC for being noticed by the 
  adventurers as they enter the barn. If the DC is 
  higher than a character’s passive Wisdom 
  (Perception) score (-5 due to disadvantage 
  because of the dim light), they are surprised and 
  can’t move or take actions or reactions during the 
  ﬁrst round of combat. If a character indicates that 
  they are actively looking for danger as they enter 
  the barn, have them make a Wisdom (Perception) 
  check (at disadvantage due to the dim light) 
  instead.
  Characters Ambush. It’s ﬁne if the party 
  decides to storm the barn while the meeting is 
  taking place, but they may also decide to plan an 
  ambush. Each character can successfully hide 
  with DC 8 Dexterity (Stealth) check. 
  If Q.S. is on to the party, he arrives with the rest 
  of the cult on high alert, and they can’t be 
  surprised. They undertake a thorough search of 
  the barn, locating the nearest character lying in 
  wait (no check required) and then engage in 
  combat.
  21
  WATERDEEP
  
  Otherwise, the cult arrives as a group and 
  begins to light the candles scattered throughout 
  the barn. The characters observe one cultist 
  excitedly whispering to the cult leader and 
  pointing at a piece of paper in his hand. 
  If the party waits as the meeting proceeds, it 
  goes along the same lines as the previous meeting 
  minutes would suggest. Basil Mureal’s absence is 
  is noted, and sympathy is expressed about the 
  terrible tragedy he had to witness at the prison. 
  The cultist with the map triumphantly announces 
  that he has located the tunnel, to rousing cheers. 
  A quasit (MM 63) is summoned, which promptly 
  polymorphs into a bat and ﬂies from the barn. 
  Social Hour is especially celebratory. If the 
  characters waited this long, their patience is 
  rewarded. All of the cult members get drunk 
  enough to suffer the poisoned condition, imposing 
  disadvantage on their attack rolls and ability 
  checks.
  Developments. If the party defeats the cultists, 
  they ﬁnd the hastily drawn map of the cliff, with 
  an arrow pointing to a spot behind a wooded area 
  slightly north of where the last guard tower 
  marks the end of the city wall before Cliffwatch to 
  the south. “Tunnel! crazy dark” is scribbled on the 
  paper.
  DIGGING IN 
  Although transformed from Basil Mureal’s 
  innards, there really isn’t anything left of the man 
  in the babau demon. The creature’s thoughts 
  extend only as far as achieving its objective: 
  locating a long lost tunnel in the cliffside which 
  leads to the city of Waterdeep above. 
  After crawling out the window of Basil 
  Mureal’s cottage, the babau scoured the cliffside 
  nonstop for two days before it found the heavily 
  obscured and caved in opening, seemingly 
  intentionally ﬁlled in with rocks ranging in size 
  from rubble to boulders. Shrouded the whole time 
  in magical darkness, the babau tirelessly 
  continues excavation. 
  MY SWEET BABAU 
  The babau (VGtM 136) demon presents a possibly 
  deadly challenge to adventures who attempt to 
  slay it. However, it is singularly focused on 
  excavating the tunnel and ignores anything not 
  actively standing in its way of accomplishing its 
  work. If combat goes poorly, the characters can 
  easily escape.
  After about 20 feet, the 5 foot diameter tunnel 
  opens up into a roughly 40 foot wide by 60 foot 
  deep natural cavern. The cavern is littered with 
  numerous 5 ft diameter boulders which can 
  provide 3/4 cover to a medium sized creature. 
  A 15ft sphere of magical darkness emanates 
  from a point on the far end of the cavern, where 
  the babau is currently excavating. It attacks if it 
  senses hostile creatures approaching.
  EPILOGUE 
  If the adventurers return to Waterdeep alive and 
  report what they learned about the scarecrows to 
  the faction that assigned the adventure, they gain 
  1 renown, or 2 renown if they also defeated the 
  scarecrows. 
  Anslem Griggons visits the party at Trollskull 
  Manor two days later to personally thank the 
  characters for ridding Undercliff of the scarecrows 
  (and the cult and babau demon, if applicable). As 
  a (former) fellow adventurer, he’s impressed with 
  how they handled themselves and presents a 
  reward of 100gp from his own personal fortune. If 
  the party was able to slay the babau demon, he 
  also presents a gift from his adventuring days, a 
  periapt of health (DMG 184).
  Anslem shares that word of the character’s  
  deeds has spread through Undercliff, and a 
  popular drinking song detailing their 
  accomplishments has caught on in his taproom. 
  He notes that there’s been a marked change in 
  attitude about city folk, and if the party contained 
  any “undesirable” races, he seems optimistic that 
  those attitudes are slowly changing as well.  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  22
  
  23
  WATERDEEP
  The Babau
  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  24
  The Merciless Glove of the Six-Fingered Hand. 
   
  Meeting #14 Minutes. 
  Rollcall. 
  Oﬃcers Present: V.L., President, V.P., Vice President, B.M., Secretary, M.E., Treasurer  
  Members Present: T.T., Q.S., I.P., G.G. 
  Recruits Present: N.G. 
  B.M. Reads minutes of meeting #13. Minutes approved by unanimous consent. 
  M.E. Reports cash on hand 9 sp. Reminds all that ale does not magically appear at these 
  meetings on its own. Passes the hat. 
  V.L. Thanks Q.S. for continued use of derelict barn at meadery for meetings. Seconded by all. 
  V.L. Inquires on attempts locating tunnel.  No success reported.  
  Q.S. Moves to attempt summoning. V.L. seconds. V.P. objects as it has not been successful since 
  we last heard THE VOICE in meeting #9. Motion approved 5-3. 
  Demon successfully summoned. Demon bites N.G. Demon emits retch inducing green gas. 
  Demon killed by V.L. Barn temporarily evacuated. 
  Meeting resumed.  
  V.P. posits successful summoning a blessing. Oﬀers thanks, asks that THE VOICE appear to give 
  guidance. No appearance made. 
  N.G. shares oatmeal cookies baked by mother. Declared delicious by unanimous consent. 
  V.L. moves to induct N.G. as full member. I.P. seconds. Motion approved 7-1. 
  Social hour. 
  V.L. moves to adjourn. V.P. seconds. Motion approved 9-0.
  
  25
  WATERDEEP
  
  DUNG WORK 
  ADVENTURE 
  BACKGROUND 
  The Trades Ward crew of the Dungsweepers’ 
  Guild consists of eight hearty souls who toil dawn 
  till dusk sweeping dung, collecting refuse, and 
  emptying the chamber pots of those lacking direct 
  access to the sewers.
  The Brunos brothers make up four of the crew, 
  and are about to leave on holiday for a tenday to 
  attend their youngest sister’s wedding in 
  Baulder’s Gate. This puts the Guild in a bit of a 
  bind - there aren’t enough surplus personnel to 
  ﬁll that large of a vacancy for that long of a time, 
  but guild regulations make hiring temporary 
  replacements a nightmarish impossibility. 
  Fortunately, there are always loopholes to be 
  exploited. Due to their ever-presence in the 
  streets, nearly every organization in Waterdeep 
  owes the Dungsweepers’ Guild some sort of 
  favor. When called upon to help sort out the 
  Guild’s temporary labor problem, the Lords’ 
  Alliance (or another faction of your choosing) 
  arranges to engage adventurers to “protect the 
  crew from the ongoing Zhentarim / Xanathar’s 
  Guild gang war.”
  Although grueling work, cleaning the streets of 
  the Trades Ward doesn’t turn out to be as boring 
  as one might imagine. Not a day goes by without 
  something interesting going down the the 
  bustling streets near the City of the Dead. 
  Will the adventures rise to the challenges 
  occurring during their tenday laboring with the 
  underclass? If they do, the Guild may come to 
  view them as “good dung”, a status of 
  brotherhood. 
  The Dungsweepers’ Guild may be looked 
  down upon as ﬁlthy laborers, but they hold far 
  more power than most Waterdhavians would 
  ever expect. The Dungsweepers cover every street 
  and alley in the city every day and know all the 
  dung going down in the city, making them an 
  invaluable source of intelligence. 
  Waterdeep: Dragon Heist Factions 
  This adventure is based on the ﬁrst Lords’ Alliance 
  mission (for 2nd level characters) on page 38 of the 
  hardcover campaign Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.  
  The Lords’ Alliance is most likely to issue this mission, 
  but any faction could owe the Dungsweepers’ Guild a 
  favor. Force Grey, the Harpers, and the Order of the 
  Gauntlet are particularly good ﬁts. 
  This adventure gives the characters a chance to 
  explore the Trades Ward of Waterdeep. The locations, 
  NPCs, and events in the adventure are largely drawn 
  from FR1 - Waterdeep and the North, City of 
  Splendors, and Volo’s Guide to Waterdeep. 
  RUNNING THE GAME 
  There are two ways to present the tenday of work 
  with the Dungsweepers’ Guild:
  Board Game. Give your players some spicy 
  meta fun by presenting the tenday of adventure 
  as a cooperative board game. Each day the 
  players roll dice to advance around a game board, 
  determining the locations encounters take place. 
  A scoring system of “good dung points” is 
  introduced, there is a mechanic for manipulating 
  the days’ events, and players are rewarded for an 
  additional layer of strategic thinking. At the end 
  of the adventure, the party might earn a valuable 
  reward from the Dungsweepers’ Guild in 
  addition to faction renown
  Traditional Play. The adventure provides short 
  encounters for each of eighteen unique locations 
  in Waterdeep’s Trades Ward. Pick those that are 
  interesting to you and ﬁt your campaign, or roll 
  behind the screen to choose. Suggested 
  encounters featuring D&D’s past are highlighted, 
  and random tables are provided for rolling a 
  single encounter each day, or morning, midday, 
  and evening encounters.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  26
  
  ADVENTURE 
  INTRODUCTION 
  The adventurers are drinking with Volo at the 
  Yawning Portal when Jalester Silvermane (or a 
  representative of the faction of your choice) sits 
  down to join them.
   “Just the folks I’ve been looking for. I’ve got 
  some important work for you,” Jalester says with 
  feigned enthusiasm.
  He goes on to explain that because of the 
  ongoing Zhentarim / Xanathar’s Guild gang war, 
  the Lords’ Alliance has offered protection to the 
  Dungsweepers Guild. The party is to meet the 
  Trades Ward crew at Muleskull Tavern on Ship 
  Street in the Dock Ward at six bells every day for 
  the next tenday, starting tomorrow morning.
  Silvermane isn’t telling the whole story, which 
  the characters can ascertain with a successful DC 
  10 Wisdom (Insight) check. He won’t provide any 
  further information, however, insisting that the 
  Dungsweepers’ Guild will ﬁll in all the details.
  Volo seems amused, but he’s also optimistic 
  about the party’s prospects. After Silvermane 
  downs his ale and excuses himself to move on to 
  other business, Volo offers his advice.
  “Don’t look so glum, friends,” Volo begins. “I 
  doubt the work will be nearly half as boring as it 
  sounds. The Trades Ward is a bustling place full 
  of interesting comings and goings. It’ll do you all 
  good to get to know that part of our ﬁne city 
  better. If it gets dull, you can always make a game 
  of it.”
  “The Dungsweepers,” Volo continues, “may 
  not be the most intelligent, or cultured, or… 
  pleasant smelling. But they’re a good lot. They 
  work hard and play hard. You’ll enjoy their 
  company.”
  “Plus the Guild holds a lot more power in the 
  city than you might imagine. They have men on 
  every street every day. You could say they’re all 
  up in everyone’s dung,” Volo concludes with a sly 
  wink.
  MULESKULL TAVERN 
  When the characters arrive at six bells the next 
  morning, they are greeted by the guildmaster, 
  Zulgoss Helberad. 
  Helberad explains that in addition to 
  “protecting” his guild members, the party is more 
  so ﬁlling in for the four Brunos brothers on the 
  Trades Ward crew who are traveling to Baulder’s 
  Gate to attend a family wedding. He doesn’t want 
  to get into the politics of it, but explains that this 
  sort of arrangement is fairly common for ﬁlling 
  short term vacancies without running afoul of 
  Guild law and city regulations.
  Helberad goes on to introduce the party to the 
  Dungsweepers they will be working with for the 
  next tenday.
  Cole Ehksit, the foreman, is a cheerful dusty-
  blond human man in his late 30s. He promises to 
  go easy on characters (“for the ﬁrst couple days at 
  least”) and enthuses about how he’s looking 
  forward to drinking with them back here at “The 
  Mule” this evening.
  Jasper Streetclear is a young halﬂing with 
  bright eyes and a ﬁrm handshake. He proudly 
  announces that he is a ﬁfth-generation member of 
  the Dungsweepers’ Guild.
  The ﬁrst thing you notice about Faith, even 
  before her tieﬂing heritage, is the number of holy 
  symbols she is adorned with. From Chauntea to 
  Tyr, she seems to have all her bases covered. A 
  character proﬁcient in Religion will notice that all 
  of the holy symbols reﬂect good-aligned gods. 
  Kamlann is the oldest of the group, a human 
  man with greying hair who doesn’t say much. He 
  answers questions with a nod or a shake of the 
  head, and performs his duties diligently.
  They don’t share this information now, but he 
  rest of the crew noticed a change in Kamlann’s 
  personality a few months ago. He was never an 
  especially friendly guy, and it hasn’t impacted his 
  work, so nobody has made anything of it. 
  Unbeknownst to the Dungsweepers, Kamlann 
  was killed and replaced by the doppleganger 
  (MM 82) known as Ptola. 
  27
  WATERDEEP
  
   
   
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  28
  Morning - West of the City 
  W1 	
  Monastery of the Sun
  W2 
  Theln Lane
  W3
  Dripping Dagger 
  W4
  Mhair’s Tower 
  W5 
  Rejviik’s Mortuary 
  W6
  Gondalim’s
  Midday - South of the City 
  S1
  Spendthrift Alley 
  S2
  House of Cleanliness 
  S3
  Unicorn’s Horn
  Lunch Break 
  S4
  Felzoun’s Folly 
  S5
  Court of the White Bull 
  S6
  Brindul Alley 
  Evening - Under the High Road 
  U1
  Golden Horn 
  U2
  Virgin’s Square 
  U3
  The Bowels of the Earth 
  U4
  The Plinth 
  U5
  The Grey Serpent 
  U6
  Caravan Court
  W1
  W4
  W2
  The Cofﬁnmarch
  Lamp Street
  Andamaar’s Street
  City 
  of the 
  Dead
  The High Road
  The High Road
  River Street
  Waterdeep
  Way
  Irimar’s Walk
  Selduth Street
  W3
  U6
  W5
  S1
  Ironpost Street
  S2
  S3
  S5
  S4
  S6
  U5
  U4
  U3
  U2
  U1
  Winter Path
  Burnt Wagon Way
  Street of the  Tusks
  The Wide Way
  Nethpranter’s Street
  Salabar
  Street
  Sahtyra’s Ln
  Buckle Street
  Wagonrace
  The Way of the Dragon
  Snail  Street
  Soothsayer’s Way
  Simple’s St
  Scroll St
  Telshambra’s St
  W6
  THE TRADES WARD 
  The Dungsweepers work their way from north to south through the Trades Ward: the area to 
  the west of the City of the Dead in the morning, south of the cemetery in the middle of the day, 
  and ﬁnishing the day with the areas south of the High Road and River Street. 
  Each point of interest has a brief description you should share with the party as they pass by 
  it on their ﬁrst day of work. 
  DRINKING TIME! 
  After a hard days work, the party is invited 
  (expected) for drinks back at Muleskull tavern. 
  
  COOPERATIVE BOARD GAME RULES 
  OBJECT 
  Collect good dung points as you work with the 
  Dungsweepers’ Guild in Waterdeep’s Trades 
  Ward. At the end of your tenday’s work, if you 
  and your companions have earned enough 
  points, the Dungsweepers’ Guild will deem you 
  “Good Dung!” and your party gains a special 
  reward in addition to faction renown.
  GAMEPLAY 
  Start the game by placing a token or miniature 
  representing your entire party on Trollskull 
  manor in the top row of the game board and mark 
  that you are currently on day 1 of the tenday.
  The entire adventuring party takes turns as a 
  group. At the beginning of each turn, roll 3d6, and 
  then move that number of spaces as you traverse 
  the Trades Ward sweeping dung, collecting 
  refuse, and emptying chamber pots. 
  The space you land on represents something 
  interesting happening as you pass that location. A 
  short encounter occurs as you are accustomed to 
  in a normal D&D session. Depending on the 
  outcome of the encounter, individual characters 
  and/or the party as a whole may gain or lose 
  good dung points. 
  Continue taking turns until you have worked 
  the streets of the Trades Ward for 10 days.
  SPECIAL SPACES 
  After a dice roll, you may pass certain special 
  locations on the game board. Your token still 
  lands on the space indicated by the dice, but you 
  must ﬁrst resolve the special space.
  Lunch Break. Lunch break, between Unicorn’s 
  Horn and Felzoun’s Folly isn’t actually a space, so 
  don’t count it in your dice roll. Every day at 
  around highsun, the Dungsweepers like to stop at 
  Felzoun’s Folly for lunch (an encounter only 
  happens if you land on that space). Food and ale 
  total 1 sp per person (the four Dungsweepers plus 
  the adventurers), and the Dungsweepers expect 
  their “protectors” to pick up the tab. If nobody 
  pays, each character loses 1 point. Otherwise, the 
  character who buys lunch earns 1 point. 
  Muleskull Tavern (night). The Dungsweepers 
  work hard and drink even harder. At the end of 
  the workday the characters are expected to join 
  the Dungsweepers at Muleskull Tavern in the 
  Dock Ward and consume far too much alcohol.
  Any character who joins in the festivities earns 
  1 point, but must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution 
  saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion. 
  Drinking until the wee hours of the morning 
  doesn’t allow for a good night’s sleep, so any 
  character who does so may only beneﬁt from a 
  short, not long, rest as they pass Trollskull Manor.
  Unless the party landed on this space, any 
  character may decline the invitation. They don’t 
  earn a point but may beneﬁt from a long rest 
  when passing Trollskull Manor.
  If the party landed on this space, they got 
  caught up in a big Dungsweeper shindig that was 
  impossible to resist. Each character must succeed 
  on the saving throw or suffer exhaustion. Move 
  the party’s token directly to Muleskull Tavern 
  (morning). The characters do not visit Trollskull 
  Manor and cannot beneﬁt from a rest.
  Trollskull Manor. Passing through Trollskull 
  manor allows the characters to beneﬁt from a 
  short or long rest, depending if they drank at 
  Muleskull Tavern. An individual character may 
  choose to say at Trollskull Manor instead of 
  progressing with the rest of the party (see Missing 
  Work).
  Landing on this space means the festivites 
  ended up back at your place. The merrymaking 
  did 5 gp of damage (in supplies consumed as well 
  as literally), but the Dungsweepers had a great 
  time! Each character receives 1 point and 
  everyone beneﬁts from a long rest.
  Muleskull Tavern (morning). Passing the tavern 
  in the morning collects everyone for the day’s 
  work ahead. Advance the day counter by one.
  Landing directly on this space means you 
  showed up early and excited to get to work! Each 
  character earns 1 point. 
  29
  WATERDEEP
  
  LOLLYGAGGING 
  Once per day the party can choose to stop on a 
  space they pass over instead of the one indicated 
  by the dice. During the course of the game you 
  might learn that something in particular will 
  happen at a certain location on a certain day. 
  Lollygag to make sure you land on the spot you 
  desire, but remember that you can only do it one 
  time each day.
  MISSING WORK 
  An individual player might miss all or part of a 
  day of work, either due to injury or simply not 
  showing up that day. Either way, they beneﬁt 
  from an additional long rest. They may not rejoin 
  the rest of the party until the following morning. 
  The Dungsweepers require a minimum of two 
  characters to assist in the day’s work. If at any 
  point there are not at least two characters 
  sweeping dung, the game is over and no faction 
  renown is earned.
  Injury. If at any point during the day a 
  character is reduced to 0 hp, death saving throws 
  are not necessary as the Dungsweepers are 
  capable in ﬁrst aid and will stabilize any character 
  who falls unconscious. However, Guild 
  regulations require that any character injured in 
  such a way must spend the remainder of the work 
  day resting at home.
  Not Showing Up For Work. Any character who 
  passes by Trollskull Manor may elect to stay there 
  instead of going to work the next day. Doing so 
  allows them to beneﬁt from a (possibly second) 
  long rest, but they also lose 1 point. 
  A character may not skip work two days in a 
  row. Well, they can… but if the do the game is 
  over and no faction renown is awarded.
  Death. In the highly unlikely event that a 
  character dies the game immediately ends. The 
  Guild isn’t accepting any liability - that’s the 
  faction’s problem. 
  ENDING THE GAME 
  The game is over at the end of the tenth day. On 
  this night only, the adventurers may invite the 
  Dungsweepers to a celebration at Trollskull 
  Manor  at a cost of 20 gp. If they do, each 
  character earns 1 point towards the ﬁnal tally.
  Winning the Game. The party is deemed Good 
  Dung if they have have accumulated:
  • At least 8 points per character, and
  • A total of at least 10 points x the number of 
  characters (e.g., 50 points required for a party of 
  5 characters)
  Reward. If the adventurers turn out to be Good 
  Dung, the Dungsweeper’s Guild will use its 
  surprising power to help the party (See Special 
  Favors, DMG 229). Any any point in the next year, 
  the party may go to Muleskull Tavern and ask the 
  Dungsweepers’ Guild for information on a 
  speciﬁc person, place, or rumor in Waterdeep. 
  After 1d10 days, a Dungsweeper contacts the 
  party with accurate information.
  “Losing” the Game. Characters who made it 
  through ten days of dung sweeping earn 1 
  renown with the faction who ordered the mission. 
  Anyone who spent at least a couple nights 
  drinking at Muleskull Tavern is a friendly 
  acquaintance of members of the Dungsweeper’s 
  Guild.
  TIPS 
  • Watch out for exhaustion. Drinking at 
  Muleskull tavern is an easy (and probably 
  necessary) way to earn points, but suffering 
  levels of exhaustion will inhibit your ability to 
  deal with the days’ encounters.
  • Many encounters are for a single character to 
  resolve. Pay attention to who is best suited and 
  who needs points.
  Exhaustion 
  The effects of levels of exhaustion are cumulative. A 
  long rest reduces your level of exhaustion by 1. If a 
  character reaches level 5 they must recuperate at 
  Trollskull Manor. 
  1 
  Disadvantage on ability checks 
  2 
  Speed Halved (no impact outside combat) 
  3 
  Disadvantage on attack rolls and saving  
   
   
  throws 
  4 
  Hit point maximum halved 
  5  
  Speed reduced to 0 
  See the sidebar on PHB 291 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  30
  
  31
  WATERDEEP
  Lunch Break
  Morning - West of the City of the Dead
  W1 
  Monastery 
  of the Sun
  W2 
  Theln 
  Lane
  W3 
  Dripping 
  Dagger
  W4 
  Mhair’s 
  Tower
  W5 
  Rejviik’s 
  Mortuary
  W6 
  Gonadlim’s
  Midday - South of the City of the Dead
  S1 
  Spendthrift 
  Alley
  S2 
  House of 
  Cleanliness
  S3 
  Unicorn’s 
  Horn
  S4 
  Felzoun’s 
  Folly
  S5 
  Court of 
  the White 
  Bull
  S6 
  Brindul 
  Alley
  Evening - Under the High Road
  U1 
  Golden 
  Horn
  U2 
  Virgin’s 
  Square
  U3 
  The 
  Bowels of 
  the Earth
  U4 
  The 
  Plinth
  U5 
  The Grey 
  Serpent
  U6 
  Caravan 
  Court
  Drink! 
  Muleskull Tavern 
  (night)
  Sleep? 
  Trollskull Manor
  New Day 
  Muleskull Tavern 
  (morning)
  Day:  ①  ②  ③  ④  ⑤  ⑥  ⑦  ⑧  ⑨  ⑩
  
  RANDOM DAILY ENCOUNTERS 
  SINGLE ENCOUNTER PER DAY 
  ADDITIONAL RANDOM ENCOUNTERS 
  MORNING, MIDDAY, AND EVENING ENCOUNTERS
  * Featured encounter at this location
  d20
  Location
  1
  W1 - Monastery of the Sun
  2
  W2 - Theln Lane
  3
  W3 - Dripping Dagger
  4
  W4 - Mhair’s Tower
  5
  W5 - Rejviik’s Mortuary
  6
  W6 - Gondalim’s *
  7
  S1 - Spendthrift Alley *
  8
  S2 - House of Cleanliness
  9
  S3 - Unicorn’s Horn
  10
  S4 - Felzoun’s Folly
  11
  S5 - Court of the WhiteBull
  12
  S6 - Brindul Alley*
  13
  U1 - Golden Horn*
  14
  U2 - Virgin’s Square
  15
  U3 - Bowels of the Earth
  16
  U4 - The Plinth
  17
  U5 - The Grey Serpent*
  18
  U6 - Caravan Court
  19-20
  Roll twice, ignoring this result
  D8
  Encounter
  1
  Drunk man taking a dung in the street
  2
  Pack of 1d4+2 mastiffs
  3
  Child caught kicking over chamber pots
  4
  1d4 swarms of rats
  5
  A trash barrel on ﬁre
  6
  2d4 stirges
  7
  A mocking noble
  8
  1 crocodile crawled up from the sewer
  D6
  Location
  Morning
  1
  W1 - Monastery of the Sun
  2
  W2 - Theln Lane
  3
  W3 - Dripping Dagger
  4
  W4 - Mhair’s Tower
  5
  W5 - Rejviik’s Mortuary
  6
  W6 - Gondalim’s *
  Midday
  1
  S1 - Spendthrift Alley *
  2
  S2 - House of Cleanliness
  3
  S3 - Unicorn’s Horn
  4
  S4 - Felzoun’s Folly
  5
  S5 - Court of the WhiteBull
  6
  S6 - Brindul Alley*
  Evening
  1
  U1 - Golden Horn*
  2
  U2 - Virgin’s Square
  3
  U3 - Bowels of the Earth
  4
  U4 - The Plinth
  5
  U5 - The Grey Serpent*
  6
  U6 - Caravan Court
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  32
  
  W1 MONASTERY 
  OF THE SUN 
  A four story temple adorned with a huge mural of 
  a golden sun, the Monastery of the Sun is home to 
  the Order of the Sun Soul. The mural also features 
  a road traveling into the sun, a pair of eyes 
  surrounded seven stars, and the face a beautiful 
  red haired woman. Proﬁciency in Religion or a 
  successful DC 12 Intelligence (Religion) check 
  identify those as the symbols of  Lathander, 
  Selûne, and Sune, respectively.
  MAN KNOWS HIS DUNG  
  Abbot Hanor notices that among Faith’s many 
  holy symbols are Lathandar and Sune. The abbot 
  begins proselytizing to her on Amauntator being 
  the one true god of Light comprising all three of 
  Lathander, Selûne, and Sune. Faith looks 
  confused.
  A single character who engages Abbot Hanor 
  can earn 1 point on a successful DC 14 
  Intelligence (Religion) check (a cleric or paladin 
  who worships one of those gods automatically 
  succeeds) or DC 16 Intelligence (History) check. 
  YOU GUYS  
  SOUND LIKE DUNG 
  Abbot Hanor has decided to spread the word of 
  Light through music. He has assembled a group 
  of singers and musicians who are outside the 
  monastery performing an ode to Amauntator. 
  They aren’t very good, and judging by the looks 
  from passers-by they’re doing more harm to their 
  cause than good.
  A musically minded character can pull dung 
  together and earn 1 point with a successful DC 12 
  Charisma (Performance) check.
  W2  THELN LANE 
  This out of the way alley connecting Andamaar’s 
  Steet and Irimar’s walk is where the 
  Dungsweepers take the ﬁrst of many short breaks 
  throughout the day. Jasper ﬁlls the large bowl of 
  long pipe with halﬂing leaf and passes it around. 
  It makes the dull work a lot more tolerable. 
  CHEATING PIECE OF DUNG 
  Cole spots the current boyfriend of a former lover 
  pulling the rope ladder up to the window of one 
  of Theln Lane’s “hard currency girls” behind 
  himself. Cole asks someone to climb up there and 
  teach that dungbird a lesson.
  Unless the character has a climb speed, scaling 
  the brick building requires a successful DC 12 
  Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. Upon reaching the 
  window the character spies the man engaged in 
  something beyond PG-13. The man’s trousers are 
  within reach of the window, and a parchment 
  detailing the beyond PG-13 services available sits 
  atop a stool nearby. 
  Simply stealing the man’s pants earns the 
  character 1 point. If the character slips the piece of 
  incriminating evidence into a pocket with a 
  successful DC 14 Dexterity (Stealth) check, they 
  earn 2 points instead. If caught, the woman 
  shrieks and the man curses, but it’s not to late to 
  grab the trousers and run!
  CATCH THAT LITTLE DUNG! 
  A human boy (commoner MM 345) of perhaps 11 
  years old interrupts the Dungsweepers’ respite 
  yelling out “Hey! Stinky men!” and throwing a 
  few rocks, one of which grazes Kamlann’s arm, 
  before running away. 
  Kamlann roars, “Catch that little dung!” Use 
  the rules for Chases on page 252 of the Dungeon 
  Master’s Guide. The player who catches the little 
  punk earns 1 point and the satisfaction of doing 
  the job they were supposedly hired to do.
  The boy claims that he was paid by the 
  Xanathar’s Guild to attack the Dungsweepers. An 
  interrogation including a successful DC 8 
  Charisma (Intimidation) check reveals that the 
  man who paid the boy had the ﬂying snake of the 
  Zhentarim tattooed on his wrist.
  33
  WATERDEEP
  What Abbot Hanor 
  lacks in pitch he makes 
  up for in loudness
  
  W3 DRIPPING DAGGER 
  Even in the middle of the morning, laughter rings 
  out from the taproom of this old 4 story inn. The 
  signboard is scarred with weapon marks. Jasper 
  explains, “it used to be full up with daggers folks 
  would throw into it. Then some no-good grabbed 
  one to stab a lady, and the City Watch made poor 
  Filiare take ‘em all down.”
  GOLD TALKS, DUNG WALKS.  
  The proprietor of the Inn of the Dripping Dagger, 
  Filiare, notices the adventurers and offers them 
  mercenary work at the very generous price of 5 
  gp per day. When the party declines, he offers 
  them a 1 gp bounty per ﬁghter they can send his 
  way within the next 3 days.
  If by day __ (today +3) any mercenaries were 
  referred to Filiare, the characters can later return 
  to claim their reward. The Dungsweepers expect 
  half, but each character earns 1 point
  IN DEEP DUNG 
  A muscled human man with a hawklike face 
  nervously approaches the Dungsweepers in the 
  street. “You guys know things, right? Do you 
  know anyone with the Harpers you could 
  introduce me to? Discreetly?”
  “Get lost, dung for brains,” Cole scolds, and the 
  man turns dejectedly to return to the inn.
  If a character engages him, Aluar Zendos 
  explains that he fears that he just stepped in 
  dung, ﬁguratively. A few days ago Aluar bought a 
  magic sword from a seedy looking character in 
  Spendthrift Alley. When he got back to his room 
  to examine it, the sword started singing! Aluar 
  has heard that a singing sword is made only for a 
  Harper and worries about the kind of trouble he’s 
  going to be in when the Harpers ﬁnd out he 
  acquired one. 
  A character who knows Mirt could miss work 
  for a day trying to track him down. They’ll ﬁnd 
  he’s hanging out at the Bowels of the Earth this 
  tenday.
  If a character returns to Aluar, who rents a 
  room  at the Dripping Dagger, with an invitation 
  to visit Mirt, Aluar rewards them with 20 gp. 
  Splitting it with the Dungsweepers earns the 
  character 1 point.
  W4 MHAIR’S TOWER 
  The only mage’s tower in the Trades Ward is just 
  to the west of the city of the dead. It has oval 
  shaped front door is crafted from mithril and 
  copper. Cole says he’s heard rumors that it is 
  connected magically to Blackstaff Tower. He’s also 
  heard rumors that the tower is just a decoy for 
  thieves and doesn’t actually exist.
  WOW, SHE’S OLD AS DUNG 
  Time sensitive - before 8th-day. 
  An old crone is wandering aimlessly in the area 
  around the wizard tower, begging passersby to 
  help ﬁnd her cat.
  If the party agrees to help, they are able to 
  locate the cat with a successful DC 10 Intelligence 
  (Investigation) check. Finding the cat is a good 
  dead that goes unrewarded.
  A successful DC 12 Intelligence (Arcana) check 
  reveals that the cat is a wizard’s familiar. Upon 
  learning of this conjecture, the crone winks and 
  encourages the party to return on 8th-day. Then 
  she and the cat suddenly vanish.
  WHAT A DUNG SHOW 
  Time sensitive, 8th-day only. 
  Dozens of amateur (as judged by the quality of 
  cantrips half-successfully going off all around) 
  magicians are gathered at the foot of the tower. 
  A petite woman with long, glossy black hair 
  and piercing blue eyes materializes before the 
  tower. Mhair Szeltune announces that the 7th 
  Annual Amateur Wizarding contest begins!
  Any character not already registered with the 
  Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors can 
  participate. A character who found the crone’s cat 
  (Old as Dung, above) sees Mhair brieﬂy turn into 
  the crone and wink at them as before, inviting 
  them to show these kids a thing or two. 
  Otherwise a character who is a known wizard can 
  pass themself off a lowly dungsweeper with a 
  successful DC 12 Charisma (Deception) check.
  Casting a quality, non-destructive cantrip is 
  enough to win the contest and the prize - a ring 
  that allows the wearer to cast Unseen Servant 
  (PHB 284) once per day. If the character gives the 
  ring to the dungsweepers, they earn 3 points. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  34
  
  W5 REJVIIK’S 
  MORTUARY 
  The Dungsweepers’ Guild holds the traditional 
  right to “glean the sweepings”, and Rejviik’s 
  Mortuary is the Trades Ward Crew’s bread and 
  butter. It’s amazing what a corpse comes in with 
  that doesn’t make it into the casket (and that’s 
  after the morticians take their pick!)
  THAT’S SOME SCARY DUNG!  
  The party is collecting bins of trash in an alley 
  when the back door of the mortuary is ﬂung open 
  and a halﬂing runs out chased by a mummy (MM 
  228).
  If the party defeats the mummy, each character 
  earns 1 point. If the party retreats, the mummy 
  chases the halﬂing back into the mortuary. The 
  characters hear agonizing screams and then 
  nothing more.
  The halﬂing, Nora Sunmeadow, is Rejviik’s 
  apprentice. She was preparing the body of the old 
  Mulhorand man per the exact instructions 
  dictated by his will. 
  TURNING DUNG INTO GOLD 
  Most days the trash outside the Mortuary doesn’t 
  yield anything worth turning over to Zulgoss 
  Helberad, but occasionally the Dungsweepers 
  strike pay dirt. Today’s load of refuse is much 
  larger than usual and looks promising.
  Have each character make a Wisdom 
  (Perception) check as they paw through the 
  refuse. On a 16 or higher they ﬁnd something 
  valuable and earn 1 point. On a 19 or higher they 
  ﬁnd something really good and earn 2 points 
  instead. 
  W6 GONDALIMS 
  This inn is a favorite of the Trades Ward crew. Not 
  because any of them could ever afford to stay 
  there, Jasper explains, but because the 
  proprietress, Shulmeria Gonadlim, has revived 
  her grandfather’s tradition of saving the leftovers 
  of the leftovers (after the servants have eaten) for 
  the Dungsweepers as they pass by midmorning.
  DUNG JUST  
  KEEPS COMING BACK! 
  Featured Encounter. 
  A perfectly good wooden door, spare a huge 
  blood stain, stands in the alley beside the inn next 
  to barrels of trash. “Oh, not this dung again,” 
  mutters Jasper. He turns to the party, “Uh… one 
  of you carry that door to the wagon.”
  When a character approaches the door, the 
  blood stain transforms into the poltergeist 
  (specter variant MM 279) of Princess Shaerglynda 
  of Tethyr, who was murdered in the inn 
  generations ago. 
  Pinned to the kitchen door door by the sword 
  that did her in, the princess’s blood drained out, 
  leaving behind a crimson stain. 
  The door has been replaced dozens of times 
  over the years, but each time the princess’s spirt 
  ﬁnds it way back to the place of its death and the 
  blood stain begins spreading again. 
   The characters each earn 1 point when the 
  poltergeist is defeated, but the spirt will no doubt 
  ﬁnd its way back to the inn and begin a fresh stain 
  on the new kitchen door. 
  DUNG HAPPENS 
  The characters overhear a conversation from the 
  balcony of a second story room above. “…it 
  started singing Cherlrigo’s Darkness and suddenly 
  I couldn’t move. It ﬂoated over and snatched 
  away the magic key I had just purchased at 
  Spendthrift.”
  “Oh you poor dear,” another voice replies. “We 
  shall steer far clear of Brindul Alley for the 
  remainder of our visit!”
  If the characters defeat the Hand That Sings in 
  Brindul alley, they also recover a mystery key (XGE 
  138).  
  35
  WATERDEEP
  Just when the 
  undertaker thought 
  she had it all 
  wrapped up
  
  S1 SPENDTHRIFT 
  ALLEY 
  Street vendors in stalls and carts sell a wide array 
  of merchandise here, the variety of which can’t be 
  found in any store.
  DUNG JUST GOT 
  UNCOMFORTABLE 
  Featured Encounter
  Included in the bustling market is a barrel-topped 
  wagon from which ﬂamboyantly dressed humans 
  with exotic facial features are hawking shawls 
  and coats crafted from pure white wolf pelts.
  A old woman sits on a stool near a crate 
  shufﬂing a worn deck of cards. She spots the 
  Dungsweepers and calls out to them. “You who 
  keep the city free of stench and disease. The cards 
  ask that I bring you to them so they may reveal 
  secrets!”
  “I think she’s Vistani!” Faith gushes. “Their 
  gods grant them powerful divination magic. 
  C’mon guys, we have to ﬁnd out what they 
  know!”
  Zarya Dimitrova asks a steep price for the 
  telling, one whole gold dragon. Cole is outraged, 
  but Faith is adamant. The Dungsweepers can’t 
  afford this extravagance, but it one of the 
  characters volunteers to pay they earn 1 point.
  The old woman begins the reading, ﬂipping 
  over ﬁve cards from her tarokka deck in 
  succession: 
  “The ﬁrst card tells of your bond,” she says, 
  revealing the ﬁve of coins, Guild Member. Zarya 
  chuckles. “No surprises so far, I imagine”
  “This card tells of your role,” she nods to Cole 
  and reveals the one of stars, Transmuter. “You are 
  blind to chaos to come.” Cole grunts, clearly 
  unimpressed.
  She reveals the two of glyphs, the Missionary 
  as she gestures towards Faith. “You are favored 
  by goodness to share its message with others.” 
  Faith is beaming. 
  “I sense that your presence reﬂects more than 
  just yourself. Your family perhaps?” She points to 
  Jasper before turning over the two of swords, the 
  Paladin. “Your diligence in your work spans 
  generations, does it not?” Jasper nods, mouth 
  agape.
  “And you.” Nodding to Kamlann she turns 
  over the seven of stars, the illusionist. “Ah, you 
  are not what you appear to be,” she concludes 
  with a furrowed brow. 
  The back of the next card on her deck is much 
  more elaborate than the others. “How ominous. 
  The High Deck wishes to make an appearance. It 
  presents a warning of great importance.” Zarya 
  turns it face up revealing the Marionette, and her 
  eyes grow wide. She turns towards Kamlann 
  while making a gesture as though creating a ward 
  of some kind. “A being of great power, a spy is 
  among you. Beware the seven of stars! Begone 
  with you. Away from my vardo, away from my 
  family!”
  The Dungsweepers’ reaction depend on what 
  has transpired in the game so far.
  No Evidence for That Crazy Dung. Unless there 
  has been some other evidence that Kamlann is not 
  who he claims (like being caught red handed at 
  the Unicorn Horn), the Dungsweepers don’t put 
  much stock in the fortune telling. 
  “Well that was a waste of time and gold. Bat 
  dung crazy old woman,” Cole concludes. 
  Kamlann laughs the whole thing off. Jasper was 
  amazed that the fortune teller knew of his family, 
  but shrugs it off as he comes around in defense of 
  his friend. Faith, on the other hand, is suspicious 
  and keeps Kamlan at arm’s length from here on.
  Dung! The Jig is Up! If the doppelganger (MM 
  82) Ptola fears that he’s been found out (e.g. he 
  has previously been spotted in another form), 
  Kamlann shouts in a voice clearly not his, “Curse 
  you old woman! When your time comes may the 
  Raven lose its course!”. He transforms into an 
  aarakocra (MM 12) and takes to the sky.
  If the characters attack, Ptola engages in 
  combat only if they manage to force him down to 
  the ground. If they do so, he ﬁghts to the death 
  and reveals no secrets. If Ptola is defeated, each 
  character earns 2 points. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  36
  
  S2 HOUSE OF 
  CLEANLINESS 
  The Launderers’ Guild is the arch-rival of 
  Dungsweepers’ Guild. Not professionally, of 
  course, but in the area of darts leagues and trivia 
  nights. The two factions also have a long standing 
  history of juvenile practical jokes.
  HEHE, CHECK  
  THIS DUNG OUT 
  Cole has the perfect prank to get those stupid 
  Launderers. He’s been eating beets and boiling 
  down and saving the bright red juice. He asks for 
  a volunteer the Launderers won’t recognize to go 
  inside and dump the jar of beet juice into the 
  guild’s soap barrel. 
  A character can easily gain entry to the House 
  of Cleanliness provided the player gives some 
  sort of plausible reason to the guild member who 
  opens the door. Sneaking the beet juice into the 
  soap barrel undetected requires a successful DC 
  11 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check. If the 
  character can get out of the guildhall without the 
  Dungsweepers getting caught, they receive 1 
  point.
  GONNA BEAT THE  
  DUNG OUTTA YOU 
  A small human wearing an impeccably clean and 
  starched pink jumpsuit enters the street to 
  confront the Dungsweepers.
  “We know you did this! Which of you is going 
  to settle things the old fashioned way?” 
  After a character volunteers, the man yells, 
  “Heros! Get out here!” A brute standing nearly 7 
  feet tall with arms the size of tree trunks emerges. 
  He looks plenty menacing in his pink jumpsuit.
  The ﬁstﬁght (unarmored and unarmed) goes 
  until a ﬁghter falls unconscious. The character 
  gets 1 point if defeated, 3 if they pull off a victory.
  37
  WATERDEEP
  HEROS 
  Medium humanoid (human), neutral good 
  Armor Class 12 
  Hit Points 17 (2d10+6) 
  Speed 30 ft. 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  18 (+4) 
  15 (+2) 
  16 (+3) 
  8 (-1) 
  10 (+0) 
  8 (-1) 
  Skills Athletics +5  
  Languages Common 
  ACTIONS 
  Punch. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. 
  Hit: 6 (1d4+4) bludgeoning damage.
  Heros Became even more 
  intimidating when he changed 
  into his brawl’n kilt
  
  S3 UNICORN’S HORN 
  At a prime location, the corner where the High 
  Road turns North instead of continuing into 
  Waterdeep Way, sits the most disgustingly 
  opulent inn in the city. Disgusting in terms of the 
  taste of the decor, that is. 
  LOOKING INTO SOME DUNG 
  The Dungsweeper’s Guild was asked to keep tabs 
  on a wealthy gnome merchant named Unvera 
  Oomtrowl visiting from Neverwinter.
  The Dungsweepers enlist the characters help in 
  digging through the trash bins for clues. The 
  character with the highest result on their Wisdom 
  (Perception) check (provided it is higher than 12) 
  earns 1 point by ﬁnding evidence that Oomtrowel 
  is dissatisﬁed with the accommodations at the 
  Unicorn’s Horn and plans to / has moved 
  (depending on the day this is discovered) to the 
  Grey Serpent for the later half of her stay, starting 
  on 6th-day.
  SOME HIGH QUALITY DUNG  
  Dependent on being issued the goods-fencing missing 
  by Haerlit Thomm at Felzoun’s Folly. 
  “Arrogant Dunghead wouldn’t even talk to 
  me,” Cole fumes after being turned away by 
  Quendever Ilistrym, the Inn’s proprietor. He looks 
  down at his dung smeared coveralls and smirks. 
  “Maybe it’s to do with how I’m dressed?”
  A character who can get cleaned up and look 
  sufﬁciently aristocratic can gain an audience with 
  Ilistrym to move the hideous piece of heirloom 
  furniture, earning 1 point. If they are able to 
  negotiate a better price with a successful DC 14 
  Charisma (Persuasion) check, the Dungsweepers 
  pocket the extra proﬁt and the charter earns an 
  additional point.  
  S4 FELZOUN’S FOLLY 
  Sweeping dung all morning works up an 
  appetite! The food and ale at Felzoun’s Folly 
  come cheap and in large portions, making it the 
  daily lunch spot of the Dungsweepers. Over the 
  years they have cultivated a good relationship 
  with the owner, Felzoun Thar, a bristle-beared 
  dwarf who arranges mutually beneﬁcial side 
  work.
  NEED TO MOVE SOME DUNG 
  Felzoun Thar and Haerlit Thomm use the bustling 
  tavern as a front for fencing stolen merchandise, 
  and the Dungsweepers often serve as a go-
  between for the illicit transactions. Thomm’s 
  speciality is ﬁne furnishings, and he’s found a 
  piece that would be perfect for questionable taste 
  of Quendever Ilistrym, proprietor of the 
  Unicorn’s Horn Inn.
  STOLE SOME STOLEN DUNG 
  “Jasper!” Felzoun Thar shouts into the street. “I 
  need yer help with something. Bring your cart 
  round back of the bar.”
   When the characters arrive in the back alley, they 
  see a terriﬁed looking halﬂing tied to a chair in a 
  small shed adjacent to the tavern’s rear entrance. 
  “This little piece of dung,” the dwarf roars, “had a 
  simple delivery to make, but instead he decided 
  to steal from me. Now I got a magic sword gone 
  missing and if a certain somebodies ﬁnd out 
  about it I’m up dung creek without a paddle. 
  Fastfoot here ain’t talking, but maybe a little bath 
  will change his mind. Roll that camber pot barrel 
  over here!”
  Thar instructs two of the larger characters to grab 
  the halﬂing by the feet and dunk him headﬁrst 
  into the barrel of excrement waiting to be be 
  dumped down the next available sewer grate. If 
  the characters comply, they each earn 1 point. 
  If no one is willing to assist in the disgusting 
  interrogation technique the each character loses 1 
  point as Cole and Kamlann take on the chore. 
  Either way, the Harol Fastfoot relents before 
  hitting the sewage. “Alright, I confess,” the 
  halﬂing cries. “I unloaded it in Spendthift Alley to 
  some human. Said he had to go back to his room 
  at the Dripping Dagger to get the gold.”
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  38
  Felzoun Thar’s 
  self-image
  
  S5 COURT OF THE 
  WHITE BULL 
  Named for the tavern destroyed in a mage battle, 
  which in turn was named for an albino bull born 
  on the same spot, the Court of the White Bull is 
  now primarily an open air livestock market - so 
  there’s plenty of dung to sweep. Signs reading 
  “Warning: Magic Prohibited” are posted near the 
  entrances to the area. 
  Don’t explicitly disclose this to the players (if 
  they ask, their character is aware on a successful 
  DC 14 Intelligence (History) check), but magic 
  used in the Court of the White Bull generally has 
  the opposite effect intended. Additionally, roll 
  once on the Wild Magic Surge table (PHB 104). 
  DUNG’S GOTTEN 
  OUT OF HAND!  
  A wild horse for sale apparently wasn’t as broken 
  in as the rancher had claimed, as is evidenced by 
  it charging around the square, wrecking havok. 
  A character can get the horse back under 
  control and earn 1 point with a successful DC 16 
  Wisdom (Animal Handling) check. If they fail, let 
  the others have a shot at it. If nobody manages to 
  calm the horse down, it knocks over the refuse 
  cart, costing each character who failed 1 point.  
  DUNG JUST GOT 
  STUCK UP THERE 
  A trio of gnome cowboys are tugging at a rope 
  that seems to have gotten tangled in the branches 
  of the only tree in sight. 
  Boddynock Pilwicken explains that he was just 
  about to lasso a runaway calf when his horse got 
  spooked. He was thrown off balance and lassoed 
  a tree branch instead. Luckily his brothers Zook 
  and Pallabar were able to chase the calf down on 
  foot and wrestle it into submission, but now they 
  can’t get the lasso down.
  The tree has been completely stripped of low 
  hanging branches and its bark, so climbing it 
  requires a successful DC 14 Dexterity (Acrobatics) 
  check. 
  The character rescuing the lasso earns 1 point 
  as the gnomes invite the entire crew to polish off a 
  bottle of gnomish throatburn with them. The 
  whisky lives up to its name. 
  39
  WATERDEEP
  Illustration painted 
  moments before disaster
  
  S6 BRINDUL ALLEY 
  The crescent shape of this alley allows one to be 
  out view from Sorn Street and River Street, 
  making it a discrete spot for a mid-afternoon 
  smoke break.
  ARE YOU SEEING  
  THIS DUNG!?   
  Featured Encounter
  While the party is busy emptying trash bins in 
  Brindul Alley, a spectral, animated, severed 
  human hand with a mouth in its palm appears 
  from behind a crate about 50 feet down the alley 
  and begins singing over and over a little ditty 
  beloved by schoolchildren believing themselves 
  clever, but absolutely despised by the 
  Dungsweeper’s Guild:
  “Stinky men, have no class 
  Clean what comes from a donkey’s butt
  Stinky men, down on their luck 
  Drink ‘till they don’t give a care
  Stinky men, wish they could quit 
  ‘Cos they walk around covered in dung!”
  The Hand That Sings attempts to steal the 
  valuables of anyone charmed by its song and 
  focuses its bite attack on whoever who tries to 
  stop it. If the party defeats the hand, each 
  character receives 1 point. 
  BRO, EVERYONE CAN  
  SMELL THAT DUNG 
  A halﬂing with long greasy hair appears around 
  the corner, exaggeratedly snifﬁng at the air. He 
  pulls out a pipe of his own and ﬁlls it with leaf, 
  and extends it by way of inviting himself to join. 
  Callus Copperkettle is a pretty mellow guy, and 
  the dungsweepers enjoy chatting with him. As the 
  break is ﬁnishing up, Callus asks “Has Zulgoss 
  heard anything concrete from Starsong about 
  hiring?”
  Have each character make a Wisdom (Insight) 
  check. If they have dealt with the Zhentarim the 
  name Starsong sounds familiar and they make the 
  check at advantage. 
  On a 15 or higher, the character realizes that 
  Copperkettle is trying to pry information he 
  maybe shouldn’t have. Warning the 
  dungsweepers earns 1 point.
  Otherwise, they assume Callus is asking about 
  getting a job. Cole discloses that Starsong wants 3 
  men before the end of the tenday. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  40
  THE HAND THAT SINGS 
  Small ooze (living spell), chaotic neutral 
  Armor Class 13 
  Hit Points 27 (5d10) 
  Speed 0 ft., fly 40 ft. (hover) 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  10 (+0) 
  10 (+0) 
  10 (+0) 
  10 (+0) 
  10 (+0) 
  16 (+2) 
  Skills Performance +5  
  Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing 
  from nonmagical weapons 
  Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened, 
  exhaustion, frightened, prone 
  Senses blindsight 100 ft (blind beyond this radius), passive 
  Perception 10 
  Languages only performs songs. Can perform songs in any 
  language it can hear, but doesn’t understand any spoken 
  language. 
  Challenge 2 (450 XP) 
  ACTIONS 
  Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 
  10 (3d6) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) poison damage. 
  Haunting Song. As a bonus action on its turn, the hand sings a 
  song in the language it most recently heard spoken. Every creature 
  within 100 feet of the hand who can understand that language 
  must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be charmed 
  until the song ends. The hand must take a bonus action on 
  subsequent turns to continue singing. It can stop singing at any 
  time. The song ends if the hand is incapacitated.  
  While charmed by the hand, a target is paralyzed. Whenever the 
  target takes damage from a source other than the hand it can 
  repeat the saving throw. A creature can also repeat the saving 
  throw at the end of each of its turns. If a creature’s saving throw is 
  successful, the effect ends on it. 
  A target that successfully saves is immune to the hand’s song for 
  the next 24 hours. 
  
  U1 GOLDEN HORN 
  The Golden Horn Gambling Hall is known for its 
  dim lighting, plush red decor, titillating 
  entertainment, and high house edge.
  DUNG JUST GOT WEIRD 
  Featured Encounter
  The party is cleaning outside the Golden Horn 
  Gambling House when the usually demure 
  Kamlann anounces that he’s going around to the 
  back entrance to “take care of some personal 
  business”. The Dungsweepers understand that 
  Kamlann is friends with the doorman on this 
  shift, and often takes advantage of the 
  opportunity go drop a dung in luxury. 
  Kamlann is actually the doppleganger Ptola, 
  one of whom’s identities is Senya, a glamorous 
  human female courtesan who works some nights 
  at the Golden Horn. 
  The character with the highest passive 
  Perception notices Senya leave the rear entrance a 
  few minutes later and transform into Kamlann. 
  If confronted, Kamlann begs the character not 
  to betray his secret. If the character agrees, they 
  earn 1 point.
  If the character tattles, Kamlann protests: “Well, 
  that’s the stupid dung I’ve ever heard!”. The 
  Dungsweepers rise to his defense, and the 
  character loses 1 point.
  If at any point during the rest of the adventure 
  the character can prove that Kamlann is a 
  doppleganger (e.g. the fortune telling in 
  Spendthrift Alley), that character earns 3 points.
  DUNG LUCK 
  A drunken and dejected looking human is sitting 
  on the ground in the alley, rolling a six sided die 
  over and over, cursing after each roll.
  Stowe Kastik sees the crew and holds up the 
  die. “Magic cheater die. 5 shards and it’s yours. I 
  can’t ﬁgure out how they made it work, but they 
  ﬂeeced me good with it. At least I managed to 
  snag it on my way out. C’mon. I’m ﬂat broke and 
  need to eat tonight.”
  Casting detect magic reveals the die is indeed 
  magical. Identify reveals the gesture needed to 
  control the number this charlatan’s die rolls.  
  U2 VIRGIN’S SQUARE 
  So named for lore that virgin men and women 
  were sacriﬁced to dragons on the site, Virgin’s 
  Square is now known as a place where 
  mercenaries advertise their services.
  DUNG AIN’T WHAT IT SEEMS 
  The plaque beneath a statue of stocky man with 
  with a scarred face and eyepatch reads “Blazidon 
  One-Eye, Beloved Patron of Virgin’s Square 
  Mercenaries”. He probably looked a lot better 
  before the pigeons got to him. “What a disgrace,” 
  says Cole. Man deserves better than to be 
  memorialized in bird dug.” He hands the nearest 
  character a mop from the cart.
  The statue has been replaced by a mimic 
  (MM220). The party is surprised when the mop 
  sticks to the statue, and a giant mouth appears the 
  near the statue’s waist and attempts to bite the 
  character. If the party defeats the mimic, each 
  character earns 1 point.
  OH DUNG! 
  THAT’S A DRAGON!  
  Three men wearing black ropes occupy the center 
  of the square and are being given a wide berth - 
  because they have a black dragon wyrmling (MM 
  88) on a chain leash! Suddenly the wyrmling 
  spins around, spitting some sort of ﬂuid from its 
  mouth. It splashes each of dragon cultists, and 
  their bodies melt into piles of goo. 
  The wyrmling starts running wild around the 
  square as even tough looking mercenaries run 
  screaming. If the party can defeat the wyrmling, 
  each character earns 1 point.
  How cultists have a baby dragon inside a city 
  protected by Ahghairon’s dragonward is beyond the 
  scope of this adventure.
  TAKING CARE  
  OF SOME DUNG 
  Dependent on W3 Dripping Dagger, “Gold Talks, 
  Dung Walks”
  If the characters visit Virgin’s Square after being 
  asked by Filiare to recruit soldiers for hire, they 
  are easily able to ﬁnd 1d8+1 mercenaries up for 
  the job.
  41
  WATERDEEP
  
  U3 BOWELS 
  OF THE EARTH 
  This old stone tavern is a favorite haunt of 
  adventurers of all stripes, and is even rumored to 
  be a hangout of the resurgent Shadow Thieves. 
  ALREADY DUNGFACED 
  A portly, well dressed man with an impressive 
  mustache comes staggering out of the tavern and 
  learns on a character to steady himself.
  If a character knows Mirt, he’s even friendlier 
  than usual. If asked to meet with Aluar Zendos 
  from the Dripping Dagger, Mirt happily agrees.
  Mirt asks the characters, somewhat 
  embarrassed, “I seem to ﬁnd myself in no 
  condition to get home under my own power. 
  Could I trouble you to ﬂag down a hire-coach and 
  lend me the fare? I seem to have drank or 
  gambled away all the coin on my person. I will be 
  conducting business here all tenday, and when 
  you return I shall repay you double. Plus it never 
  hurts to have a [hic] Masked Lord of Waterdeep 
  in your debt!”
  A character can easily ﬂag down a hire-coach 
  on Snail Street. The trip to Mirt’s home in the Sea 
  Ward costs 4 sp.
  If the characters return to the Bowels of the 
  Earth, Mirt repays 8 sp as promised, and also 
  buys the entire crew a round of drinks, which 
  earns the indebted character 1 point.
  DUNG EATING GRIN 
  The signboard hanging over the inn features an 
  elaborately painted pile of manure skewered by a 
  spade. As you approach, four schoolchildren are 
  lobbing handfuls of dung at it, most sailing far 
  astray of the target.
  “Lemme show you how it’s done,” Cole says 
  with a laugh. He grabs a spade and uses it to ﬂing 
  a pile of dung towards the sign, which sticks just 
  below the word “Earth”. He hands the nearest 
  character the shovel. “No reason we can’t have a 
  little fun on the job. Give it a go.”
  The object of this game, nearly as old as the 
  signboard itself, is to stick dung to where the pile 
  of manure is painted. Allow each character one 
  shot, making a ranged attack with the spade as an 
  improvised weapon. The player with the highest 
  attack roll, so long as it is 16 or higher, made the 
  best shot and earns 1 point.
  U4 THE PLINTH 
  The needle-like tower rising six stories into the 
  sky is a place for all to worship any gods they 
  please. Faith practically grew up here, sheltering 
  out the long cold Waterdeep winters in its 
  warmth.
  THE DUNG  
  SOME FOLKS WILL TRY  
  “Heads up! Another sacriﬁce incoming!” shouts 
  Jasper. Sure enough, the characters look up to see 
  a dark haired woman ﬂing herself from the top of 
  the tower six stories above. The characters need to 
  think fast before the woman becomes work for 
  them to clean up. 
  Using magic such as feather fall or levitate is the 
  safest approach. By the time the woman hits the 
  ground she’s going to do 6d10 bludgeoning 
  damage. What ever action the characters take, 
  remember they have less than two seconds to 
  execute it so set the DC accordingly.
  If the woman is saved, she tells the party her 
  story. Taweret is the youngest daughter of spice 
  traders from Mulhorand who commanded she 
  sacriﬁce herself to Nephthys in hopes of a safe 
  journey home. She takes her survival as a blessing 
  from her god, and vows to stay in Waterdeep 
  spreading her tale of miracle. The character who 
  saved Taweret gains 1 point.
  TALKING DUNG 
  A middle aged human stands outside the Plinth, 
  hurling insults at every god he can remember to 
  name. Everyone hears him yelling his grievances: 
  a tornado spawned of out summer storms, 
  destroying his home and farm and killing his 
  entire family. Faith is horriﬁed by the scene.
  The City Watch will show up to arrest the 
  blasphemer soon which will only make his 
  wretched life worse. A character can successfully 
  intervene and earn 1 point with a DC 16 Wisdom 
  (Religion) or DC 12 Charisma (Intimidation) 
  check. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  42
  
  U5 THE GREY SERPENT 
  Newly constructed in the years since the second 
  Sundering, the Grey Serpent perhaps the most 
  luxurious and comfortable inn in all the 
  Tradesward - with prices to match! It is rumored 
  to be named for its late founder’s ability to 
  polymorth at will into a giant snake. Apprentices 
  of the Launderers’ Guild clean clothes for the 
  wealthy clientele on site. 
  WE AIN’T  
  TELLING YOU DUNG 
  6th-day or later only. Dependent on learning the 
  gnome Unvera Oomtrowl’s plans in at S3 Unicorn’s 
  Horn “Looking Into Some Dung”.
  The party arrives as three Launderer’s Guild 
  apprentices (commoners MM 345) are out back 
  taking a break to smoke some halﬂing leaf. As the 
  characters approach they overhear: 
  “That gnome up in the penthouse suite has to 
  be the most generous tipper ever. It was only two 
  shirts, but the coin she gave me was bigger than 
  two months wages!”
  “No surprise she can afford it,” another 
  apprentice remarks, “I heard she was in town 
  setting up a deal to… Oh, I thought I smelled 
  something coming.”
  The Launderers aren’t friendly with the 
  Dungsweepers, and if the characters have 
  successfully pulled off a prank at the House of 
  Cleanliness they make ability checks to interact 
  with the Launderers during this encounter at 
  disadvantage. A successful DC 22 Charisma 
  (Persuasion) or DC 18 Charisma (Intimidation) 
  check is required to talk the information out of the 
  apprentices. A bribe of at least 3 gp would do the 
  trick, as does non-lethal violence.  
  DUNG SURE HAS CHANGED 
  Featured Encounter
  The former proprietor of the The Grey Serpent, 
  Orlpiir Hammerstar, is alive but not well. He 
  managed the curse of lycanthropy (see MM 207) 
  for decades before ﬁnally being driven mad about 
  2 years ago. Since then he has remained 
  exclusively in serpent from, only emerging from 
  the cellar of the inn to hunt once every 20-30 days.
  The wereserpent lurks near the refuse barrels 
  waiting for a humanoid sized meal. Make a 
  Dexterity (Stealth) check for the wereserpent. Any 
  character with a lower passive Perception score is 
  surprised during the ﬁrst round of combat. If 
  unnoticed, the wereserpent will wait until a 
  character is within 15 feet before attacking. 
  If the wereserpent is defeated, it transforms 
  into a tall and lithe human man with a prominent 
  beak nose. The characters each earn 1 point, and 
  the Dungsweepers help dispose of the corpse.
  43
  WATERDEEP
  WERESERPENT (SERPENT FORM) 
  Medium humanoid (shapchanger), chaotic evil 
  Armor Class 14 
  Hit Points 33 (6d8+6) 
  Speed 30 ft. 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  10 (+0) 
  15 (+2) 
  12 (+1) 
  11 (+0) 
  10 (+0) 
  8 (-1) 
  Skills Skills Perception +2, Stealth +4 
  Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and 
  slashing from nonmagical weapons that aren’t silvered 
  Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 12 
  Languages — 
  Challenge 2 (450 XP) 
  ACTIONS 
  Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 
  10 (3d6) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) poison damage. If the 
  target is a humanoid, it must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution 
  saving throw or be cursed with wereserpent lycanthropy. 
  In his heyday, Orlpiir took 
  down a hill giant who wandered 
  into his back alleyway
  
  U6 CARAVAN COURT 
  The day’s work for the Trades Ward 
  Dungsweepers ends where the Southern Ward 
  Crew began. Despite the twice daily attention the 
  square is always covered in dung from the 
  nonstop around the clock comings and goings of 
  caravans.
  WE EARNED THIS DUNG 
  Yet another caravan pulls into the courtyard and 
  stops near where crew is currently sweeping 
  dung. Two dragonborn – caravan guards judging 
  by how heavily armed and armored – waste no 
  time. One has already pulled down a couple of 
  packs and broken into a bottle of whisky by the 
  time the other one cornered the caravan leader, 
  who is presently counting out their pay.
  “That was one hells of a slog,” says the green 
  scaled guard. “But worth it. Let's go get us 
  something pretty”. 
  “Dung yeah,” replies his blue scaled friend. 
  “Not the sleazy cash up front girls in Theln lane 
  neither.    Some classy ones at the Golden Horn.” 
  They exchange what would best be described as a 
  high ﬁve and then saunter west onto Sahtyra’s 
  Lane while passing back and forth the quickly 
  draining bottle of liquor.
  Have the characters make a Wisdom 
  (Perception) check. They have all learned where 
  to ﬁnd some beyond PG-13 commerce in the 
  Trades Ward. On a 16 or higher they noticed that 
  Kamlann looked uncomfortable for a moment 
  when the Golden Horn was mentioned. 
  If a character confronts Kamlann about it, he 
  admits that he has friends at the Golden Horn 
  and doesn’t like hearing the place spoken about 
  the way the dragonborn did. A successful DC 18 
  Wisdom (Insight) check gives the character the 
  impression that there’s more to it, but the 
  typically tight lipped Kamlann won’t say 
  anything more on the subject.
  GOING APE DUNG! 
  A cart of forge-bars from Citadel Adbar being 
  unloaded by a pair of stout dwarves has brought 
  a pair of stowaways to the city. Two imps (MM 
  76) who had taken the form of rats scurry out and 
  polymorph into their true form, generating a 
  scene of chaos.
  Defeating the imps earns each character 1 
  point. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  44
  The entire time he battled caravan raiders, 
  Drogobjörn was focused on things beyond PG-13
  
  ALL IN A DRAY’S WORK 
  ADVENTURE 
  BACKGROUND 
  Maxeene Rhiosann had a long and illustrious 
  career with the Council of Musicians, Instrument-
  Makers, and Choristers. An opera singer famous 
  throughout the North, she also taught voice at the 
  New Olamn bard college and was long the Lady 
  Voice of the Council. In retirement she now pulls 
  a dray in the streets of the Castle Ward.
  Maxeene is secretly afﬂicted by a very rare 
  form of lycanthropy. On her ﬁnal tour of the 
  Sword Coast, Maxeene met and fell in love with 
  another aging performer, an actor who was in a 
  very famous vaudeville show. In a ﬁt of passion 
  one night she was bitten by her beau, Jaques 
  Horsemann, and she too became a werehorse.
  Aside from an uncontrollable urge to gallop 
  freely on nights of the full moon, Maxeene 
  suffered no ill effects of the curse and chose to 
  embrace the condition she shared with her lover.
  The couple enjoyed three happy years together 
  in a small cottage on the edge of the Misty Forest 
  before tragedy struck. Jaques suffered from ﬁts of 
  depression common to those of the creative 
  professions and passed due to consumption. 
  Maxeene returned to Waterdeep and, as a long 
  time member of Those Who Harp, rededicated 
  herself to the organization. Wishing to keep her 
  lycanthropy a secret, she approached the Harper 
  Mirt in horse form and the two arranged for her 
  to act as a spy on Waterdeep’s busy streets.
  Gathgaer Milomynt, an evil slave trader, is 
  fanatic in the church of Shar. He believes Selûne’s 
  twin is the origin of all lycanthropy and has made 
  werebeast research his life’s work. 
  Gathgaer’s efforts led him to Jaques, and in 
  turn Maxeene. After polite invitations to meet him 
  were turned down, Gathgaer decided to take 
  matters into his own hands. 
  Now imprisoned by Gathgaer behind silvered 
  bars, Maxeene awaits her forced transformation at 
  the next full moon in three days time.
  OVERVIEW 
  The adventure is divided into the following 
  sections:
  Foal’s Errand. The characters are tasked with 
  locating a talking horse who has been collecting 
  intelligence on Zhentarim operatives.
  Mare Could She Be? Maxeene has disappeared, 
  but her home and ofﬁce yield clues to her 
  abductors.
  A Colt Following. Gathgaer and his minions 
  are holding Maxeene prisoner deep below his 
  home. Will the party succeed in rescuing her?
  Waterdeep: Dragon Heist Factions 
  This adventure is based on the ﬁrst Harper mission (for 
  2nd level characters) on page 37 of the hardcover 
  campaign Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.  
  Although Maxeene’s background makes this an ideal 
  adventure to originate from the Harpers, any other 
  faction might know of the horse spy and enlist the 
  characters to contact it for intelligence on a rival 
  organization. 
  In a campaign set outside of Waterdeep, Maxeene 
  could be a spy anywhere horses are put to work. 
  45
  WATERDEEP
  Maxeene in her 
  preferred form
  
  FOAL’S ERRAND 
  In the ﬁrst part of the adventure, the characters 
  are assigned the mission of ﬁnding a talking horse 
  that has been gathering intelligence on Zhentarim 
  operatives. If you are using this adventure as the 
  ﬁrst Harper faction mission for Waterdeep: Dragon 
  Heist (39-40) and the characters have not yet met 
  Mirt, a special adventure hook is provided.
  MIRT AT THE OPERA 
  The characters are relaxing at Trollskull manor 
  when a bird comes shooting in through an open 
  window and ﬂutters about the taproom. As it 
  slows, it becomes apparent that while indeed a 
  bird, it is not a living creature. The “bird,” 
  constructed from a thin sheet of paper and folded 
  in an origami-like manner, drops at the feet of a 
  good-aligned character and unfolds itself, 
  transforming in a wrinkled page reading:
  “Young Renaer sings your praises nearly as sweetly 
  and loudly as the opera he has purchased tickets for 
  you to attend this evening. Dress in your formal best 
  and arrive at the Lightsinger Theater in the Sea Ward 
  by twenty bells. At intermission, a gentleman by the 
  name of Mirt awaits your introduction in Private Box 
  C.” 
  A character of the noble background possesses  
  a set of ﬁne clothes, which the other characters 
  should aspire to as well. Any character not so 
  dressed will be denied entrance to the opera. 
  Come See the Softer Side of Aurora’s. Since 
  there isn’t time to obtain custom couture, the 
  Aurora’s Realms Shop outlet on The High Road 
  just south of Tarnath Street is a good place to ﬁnd 
  off the rack formalwear at discount prices. A set of 
  ﬁne clothes there runs between 12 and 18 gp 
  depending on the level of embellishment desired, 
  and Aurora’s is more than happy to begin a 
  customer relationship by extending credit of up to 
  20 gp.
  The Fall of Tiamat. Although perhaps not 
  everyone’s taste, the opera is well performed. 
  Intermission comes just as the Cult of the Dragon 
  is about to raise the Dragon Queen from the Nine 
  Hells. 
  When the characters reach Private Box C, they 
  are greeted by a portly, well dressed gentleman 
  with an impressive mustache who introduces 
  himself simply as “Mirt.” 
  In addition to the interaction described under 
  the heading “Mirt” on page 38 of Waterdeep: 
  Dragon Heist, Mirt issues the mission as described 
  below (“Hoof You Heard There’s a Spy?”). As the 
  opera is about to resume and the characters head 
  back to their seats, Mirt adds:
  “You know, I once had a good friend by the name 
  Maxeene who sang this very opera at this very theatre. 
  Such a coincidence is surely the work of Tymora. I have 
  faith that Renaer has set us upon a wonderful 
  friendship.” 
  ALTERNATE HOOK:  
  FACTION REPRESENTATIVE 
  AT THE YAWNING PORTAL 
  Any organization in the city may have learned of 
  the Harper spy and be interested in learning what 
  intelligence has been gathered. This example 
  utilizes Jalester Silvermane of the Lords’ Alliance, 
  who could easily be substituted by a faction 
  representative of your choosing.
  The characters are enjoying drinks at the 
  Yawning Portal when Jalester Silvermane pulls a 
  chair up to the table and motions to the barmaid 
  to bring another round.
  After engaging in bit of smalltalk, Jalester looks 
  nervously around the crowded tavern before 
  leaning into the table and speaking in hushed 
  tones from behind his mug of ale.
  HOOF YOU HEARD THERE’S A SPY? 
  The agent issuing the mission describes the task 
  at hand:
  “The Harpers have been gathering intelligence from 
  an unlikely source. A very special horse by the name of 
  Maxeene eavesdrops on every passenger in the dray 
  she pulls in the streets near here. Find out if she’s 
  located any Zhent operatives and report back. I know 
  it sounds incredible, but I’m not horsing around here. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  46
  
  AS DRAYS GO BY 
  Every dray driver in Waterdeep has heard of 
  Maxeene, the horse famous for leading herself to 
  work every morning and back home on her own 
  in the evening. If the characters inquire a driver, 
  they learn that the dray Maxeene pulls is decked 
  out in the blue and purple of the castle ward. 
  The party can ﬁnd Maxeene’s dray within an 
  hour of searching. It’s plodding along slowly with 
  a driver shouting at it “C’mon Applejack! Get 
  moving!”
  When the party inquires about Maxeene, the 
  driver is happy to engage them. Wilbur Post is a 
  short human with a thick Dock Ward accent. He 
  has the following information about Maxeene to 
  share:
  • About six months ago he was 
  approached by a rotund old woman who 
  identiﬁed herself as Mrs. Horsemann. The 
  woman offered the services of her mare for 
  2 sp per day. “I thought it was too good to 
  be true. It must cost her more than that to 
  keep Maxeene stabled. I guess she just felt 
  the old girl needed the exercise.”
  • The following morning the mare found 
  its own way to the dray and waited to be 
  hitched. At the end of the day when 
  unhitched it went home on its own. It has 
  done so every work day since.
  • Wilbur once followed Maxeene to her 
  home on Nag Street in the Dock Ward. The 
  horse opened the gate to her stable 
  underneath Mrs. Horsemann’s modest 
  apartment and closed it behind herself.
  • Maxeene failed to show up for work 
  yesterday and today, leaving Wilbur stuck 
  with Applejack to inadequately do the job. 
  Wilbur went by Mrs. Horsemann’s 
  residence yesterday evening but neither she 
  nor Maxeene were there.
  MARE COULD SHE BE? 
  In this section of the adventure, the party learns 
  of Gathgaer’s interest in Maxeene and the 
  location of his potions shop. Wererat henchmen 
  have ransacked Maxeene’s home and are on the 
  way to do the same to her ofﬁce at the bard 
  college.
  HOUSE AND STABLE 
  Nag Street, a short lane off of The Way of the 
  Dragon in the far southeast corner of Waterdeep, 
  consists of a row of small apartments all elevated 
  above their private horse stables underneath. The 
  adventurers easily locate the Maxeene / 
  Horsemann residence from Wilbur’s directions. 
  LANDLORD’S DAUGHTER 
  When the characters investigate the horse stable 
  (which might happen before or after they 
  investigate the residence above), Tia Nag-Y’ferent, 
  the landlord’s teenage half-elf daughter 
  approaches.
  “Widow Horsemann’s not here. Haven’t seen her nor 
  Maxeene past two days. Strange thing. She always 
  tells Papa when she goes traveling.” 
  If the characters inform Tia that the apartment 
  above has been broken into, the girl is distraught 
  and vows to ask her father to call in the City 
  Watch.
  In conversing with Tia, the characters can learn 
  the following:
  • Widow Horsemann occasionally travels 
  to visit friends at the Misty Forest or leaves 
  for a day or two on other errands, but 
  always informs Tia’s father beforehand.
  • Widow Horsemann hardly ever goes out, 
  but she is a kindly old woman. Those on the 
  block frequently hear her beautiful singing 
  in the early evening hours.
  • Tia rarely sees the horse Maxeene. She 
  knows it pulls a dray, but it must also go 
  somewhere at night because she’s never 
  seen it asleep in its stable.
  • Widow Horsemann used to be a 
  professor at the New Olamn bard college 
  and has mentioned having an ofﬁce there.
  47
  WATERDEEP
  
  BURGLED APARTMENT 
  A wooden staircase leads ﬁfteen feet up to the 
  door of the residence above the horse stable 
  underneath. The door is ajar and shows signs of 
  having been forced open.
  The one room apartment has a kitchen and 
  dining area separated by a low wall from the 
  living and sleeping area.
  Nobody is currently in the apartment, but it 
  shows signs that it was ransacked and a physical 
  struggle occurred. Characters who investigate 
  discover:
  • The glass front of a display case has been 
  smashed in. It clearly contained many 
  items, but the only thing remaining is a 
  matching pair of daggers each crafted from 
  a single solid piece of metal (silver). The 
  twin daggers sit on their display stand, 
  undisturbed.
  • A strongbox next to the writing desk sits 
  open. Inside are four trays. The top tray is 
  completely empty. The tray below it 
  contains one stray 1 ep electrum sword coin 
  minted in Silverymoon. The third tray 
  contains 100 gp worth of silver coins — all 
  stacked neatly, most Waterdeep shards, but 
  a few piles of silver coins of other currencies 
  as well. The bottom tray contains only 7 
  scattered copper nibs.
  • Papers are scattered across the writing 
  desk. Most are pieces of sheet music or 
  notes on various operas, but a successful 
  DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check uncovers 
  two letters written in masculine looking 
  handwriting. Both are from Gathgaer 
  Milomynt inviting Mrs. Horsemann to visit 
  his potion shop on Leera’s Alley. The ﬁrst is 
  dated two tendays ago and is quite polite. 
  The second is dated 5 days ago and is less 
  polite. (Player handouts are provided at the 
  end of the adventure.)
  • The plush rug covering most of the ﬂoor 
  in the living area is bunched in places and 
  generally disheveled. A character making a 
  successful DC 10 Wisdom (Survival) check 
  notices marks from high heeled shoes and 
  men’s boots. A 14 or higher also reveals the 
  marks of clawed hands and faint hoof 
  prints. 
  HORSE STABLE 
   The horse stable beneath the apartment is 
  remarkably clean. A character making a successful 
  DC 10 Wisdom (Animal Handling) concludes that 
  it’s as though the stable is never actually used. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  48
  My Dear Mrs. Horsemann, 
  I hope the evening ﬁnds you well. By way of introduction, my 
  name is Gathgaer Milomynt , Faerûn’s foremost authority on 
  lycanthropes and lycanthropy. For obvious reasons, we must become 
  acquainted. I await your visit at my abode and dispensary of potion 
  upon Leera’s Alley on the next evening of your convenience.  
  Admiringly, 
  Gathgaer
  Mrs. Horsemann, 
  I write with disappointment that you have thusfar declined 
  my invitation. As I know you value my conﬁdence regarding 
  our shared interest, I ask, neigh, demand your patronage at my 
  dispensary at Leera’s Alley within days. I trust that upon your 
  prompt attendance we shall become fast friends. 
  Expectantly,  
  Gathgear
  A polite letter
  A less polite letter
  
  PROFESSOR E-MARE-ITUS 
  Tia Nag-Y’ferent is correct that the Widow 
  Horsemann maintains a small ofﬁce in the 
  basement of New Olamn. Decades ago Maxeene 
  Rhiosann was a distinguished professor at the 
  bard college, and the institution allows the retiree 
  to mane-tain a presence there.
  New Olamn rests against the city’s western 
  wall, northwest of Blackstaff Tower, and can be 
  reached by climbing The Cliffride from Julthoon 
  Street. When the characters arrive, a bespectacled 
  receptionist asks their business. She doesn’t know 
  who Mrs. Horsemann is, but if they ask of 
  Maxeene the woman replies:
  “Oooh! Professor Rhiosann must be expecting you 
  then. She’s hardly ever in, and I didn’t notice her 
  arrive, but two other gentlemen were just asking on 
  her as well. Her ofﬁce is on the lower level, room B7.” 
  Remy and Rizzo Krysa were directed by 
  Gathgaer to search Maxeene’s ofﬁce for any 
  information regarding her rare lycanthropic curse.
  The wererat brothers arrived at New Olamn 
  shortly before the adventurers and forced open 
  the door to Maxeene’s ofﬁce. They are in human 
  form and are ransacking the place when the 
  characters arrive.
  Remy and Rizzo transform into wererat hybrid 
  form, brandish their shortswords, and warn the 
  characters to mind their own business. If the party 
  persists the wererats attack.
  The wererats attempt to ﬂee as soon as they are 
  damaged by a silvered or magic weapon or a spell 
  attack. If they are unable to escape the ofﬁce, they 
  transform into giant rat form and attempt to hide 
  under the instrument-laden bureau on the back 
  wall of the ofﬁce.
  Developments. If either or both wererats are 
  captured it doesn’t take much to get them to rat 
  out their master. With a successful DC 10 
  Charisma (Persuasion) or DC 7 Charisma 
  (Intimidation) check a character can learn the 
  following information:
  • Gathgaer Milomynt is holding a large 
  older woman named Maxeene Horsemann 
  behind silvered bars in his underground 
  workshop. Gathgaer is convinced she is a 
  werehorse, but she denies it and has not 
  changed form. Gathgaer is waiting for the 
  full moon three days from now to force the 
  issue.
  • Gathgaer’s primary business is capturing 
  hapless commoners who come to buy 
  potions and selling them into slavery in 
  Skullport. 
  • Gathgear is a priest in the Church of Shar, 
  and the goddess grants him powerful 
  magic.
  • The wererats come and go from 
  Gathgaer’s abode via a small hole gnawed 
  into the base of the structure, hidden behind 
  a crate in the back alleyway. While in giant 
  rat form, they can crawl up the crawlspace 
  to the residence on the upper level, or down 
  through a narrow tunnel dug deep into the 
  ground connecting to Gathgaer’s workshop. 
  49
  WATERDEEP
  Ratman 
  Krysa
  
  A COLT FOLLOWING 
  Having uncovered evidence that Gathgaer 
  Milomynt is responsible for Maxeene’s 
  disappearance, the party investigates his abode in 
  this ﬁnal section of the adventure.
  MILOMYNT’S FINE POTIONS 
  Gathgaer resides on Leera’s alley in the Dock 
  Ward, not far south of the Yawning Portal. A sign 
  above the door reads “Milomynt’s Fine Potions” 
  and features paintings of colorful bubbling 
  concoctions. 
  Secret Rathole. Hidden behind a crate in the 
  alley is a small hole which has been chewed into 
  the side of the building. The crawlspace inside 
  can be climbed 20 feet up to an opening in 
  Gathgaer’s living quarters. A steep tunnel winds 
  down 50 feet before opening into the lair below. 
  The entire area is considered difﬁcult terrain.
  A small creature can move through this area. A 
  medium creature can do so only with a successful 
  DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check each time they 
  attempt to move up to their movement speed. 
  Main Level. The main level of the structure is a 
  shop crowded with glassware. A successful DC 10 
  Intelligence (Arcana) check reveals that it is 
  mostly unsuitable for brewing potions and is 
  merely decorative. A sturdy, hand-painted sign on 
  the counter reads “Customers, proceed down to 
  Magical Brewing Sphere below,” and has an 
  arrow pointing to a door to the right. A narrow 
  staircase on the leftmost side of the room leads up 
  to a residence above.
  Residence. The single room contains an 
  unmade bed, a half open wardrobe with two sets 
  of red and black robes hanging inside, and an 
  unemptied chamber pot. A hole about two feet in 
  diameter appears to have been chewed in the wall 
  beside the bed.
  Going Down. The door indicated by the sign is 
  unlocked and opens into a steep narrow staircase 
  which goes down 20 feet before turning back at a 
  landing and going down another 20 feet.  The 
  passage then proceeds 10 feet to an unlocked 
  door. The entire area is dimly lit by slow burning 
  oil lanterns.  
  “MAGICAL  
  BREWING SPHERE” 
  The door opens into the inside of a 40 foot 
  diameter sphere made of polished stone. A 10 ft 
  wide ledge juts out a foot, and adjacent to the 
  door are what appear to be the teeth of a large 
  gear. At the bottom of the sphere, 20 feet ahead 
  and below, sits a table arrayed with a variety of 
  colorful bubbling potions and a brass orb. An 
  identical door, gear, and ledge sit on the opposite 
  wall of the sphere, 40 feet away. The sphere is 
  magically lit throughout with dim light, the 
  source of which is unknown.
  The table is afﬁxed to the sphere, and the 
  bronze orb and potions on it are adhered to the 
  table as well. The potions are in fact empty glass 
  bottles, with illusion magic giving them their 
  bubbling vibrantly colorful appearance. 
  A character getting within 5 feet of the bronze 
  orb or the door at the opposite side of the sphere 
  triggers the trap. See the complex trap description 
  - Electriﬁed Sphere of Plopping. 
  Developments. Depending on how the party 
  deals with the trap, one of the following may 
  occur:
  Door Opened. If the sphere is rotated back to its 
  original position, the doors on either side open to 
  passageways. The door on the far side leads to 
  another stairwell which descends again 30 feet to 
  an unlocked door opening into Gathgaer’s lair.
  Falling Through Opening. If the sphere rotates 
  and a character falls or jumps through the 
  opening which has moved to the bottom, they 
  drop 20 feet and take 2d6 bludgeoning damage as 
  they fall prone in the slave cage in Gathgaer’s lair. 
  Characters Stranded. If the characters 
  destroyed both gears they may be stranded in the 
  sphere with no way out. A party equipped with 
  with pickaxes or similar mining tools could break 
  through the stone after 6 hours of work. However, 
  after about 30 minutes Gathgaer ascends the 
  staircase from his lair to ﬁnd the door blocked. 
  The gears magically reform and the sphere spins 
  rapidly to its original position. The door opens 
  and Gathgaer and his wererat henchman engage 
  the party inside the sphere.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  50
  
  TRAP: ELECTRIFIED  
  SPHERE OF PLOPPING 
  Complex trap (level 1-4, dangerous threat). 
  A door opens into the inside of a 40 foot diameter 
  sphere made of polished stone. A narrow (1 foot 
  deep), 10 ft wide ledge is at this point on the side 
  of the sphere (henceforth referred to as the “right” 
  side), at a 90 degree angle to the point on on the 
  sphere’s bottom, upon which sits a 10 foot wide 
  by 5 foot deep table housing a bronze orb ﬂanked 
  by fake potions. A 20 ft. diameter circle at the top 
  of the sphere reveals that this inner sphere is 2 
  feet thick and sits tightly inside an enclosing 
  sphere made of the same polished material.
  Directly across the sphere, 40 feet away, is a 
  similar ledge and door, with the teeth of a 1 foot 
  wide by 5 foot tall gear to the left. The door is 
  locked, and can be opened with a successful DC 
  15 check with thieves tools. The entry door has an 
  identical gear to its left as well.
  Trigger. The sphere begins moving and the 
  bronze orb begins charging when a creature gets 
  within 5 feet of the the door on the left end of the 
  sphere or 5 feet from the orb on the table at the 
  bottom of the sphere.
  Initiative. The gears rotating the sphere act on 
  initiative count 20 and the bronze orb releases 
  lighting energy throughout the surface of the 
  sphere on initiative count 10.
  Active Elements. The gears on the side of either 
  doorway rotate the sphere in place. The bronze 
  orb atop the pedestal releases lighting energy into 
  the inner surface of the sphere.
  Gears (Initiative 20). The gears move, rotating 
  the sphere 5 feet counterclockwise (i.e., during the 
  ﬁrst round the entry door to the “right” moves up 
  and the opposite door moves down). The tunnels 
  which were behild the doors on either end are in 
  ﬁxed space, so they are now hidden behind the 
  stone walls of the sphere.
  Bronze Orb (Initiative 10). The orb makes a 
  high pitched whine which grows by two octaves 
  over one second before releasing a burst of energy 
  that covers the surface of the sphere’s interior. 
  Every creature in contact with the surface when 
  the energy is released takes 4 (1d8) lightning 
  damage. Creatures wearing non-metal armor are 
  resistant to this damage, but creatures wearing 
  metal armor are vulnerable to the damage. 
  Dynamic Elements. Gravity works against 
  creatures in the sphere as it rotates.
  Steep Walls. As the sphere rotates underfoot, 
  creatures inside it rotate as well and gravity 
  impacts any creature without a climb speed. 
  A creature who starts its turn further than 20 ft 
  from the bottom most point of the sphere (on a 
  grid, speciﬁcally a lighly shaded square) is on a 
  moderate slope and can remain there only on a 
  successful DC 12 Dexterity saving throw. On a 
  failure, they move 5 feet closer to the bottom of 
  the sphere, treating that movement as difﬁcult 
  terrain (i.e. 10 feet of movement).
  A creature who starts its turn further than 25 ft 
  from the bottom most point of the sphere (on a 
  grid, speciﬁcally a darkly shaded square) is on a 
  steep slope and must make a DC 14 Dexterity 
  saving throw. On a success they may move 5 feet 
  towards the bottom of the sphere and repeat the 
  save as above. On a failure they fall prone at the 
  closest point within 20 feet of the bottom most 
  point of the sphere.
  Rotating Hole. The 20 ft. diameter circle 
  opening at the “top” of the sphere, opposite the 
  pedestal, is rotating towards the bottom. 
  Underneath in the containing rock is a matching 
  20 ft. diameter hole. Any creature who starts its 
  turn in this area that is within reach of the edge 
  may take their action to grab on and avoid falling 
  with a successful DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) 
  check. Otherwise the character falls through the 
  hole.
  Visualizing a Sphere 
  A three dimensional area can be a difﬁcult thing to 
  express. Even if you aren’t playing on a 5 ft grid, a 
  visual aid might still be useful. Consider cutting out the 
  20 foot wide strip at the bottom of the map and 
  taping the edges of “open hole” at the far left and 
  right points (0°) together. You can then physically 
  rotate the loop to demonstrate the sphere’s rotation.   
  51
  WATERDEEP
  
  Countermeasures. The gears moving the sphere 
  can be manipulated. The bronze orb can be 
  disabled and its energy blasts avoided.
  Gears. The gears can be disabled or destroyed. 
  Once disabled, they can be used manipulate the 
  sphere’s rotation as desired.
  Disabling the Gears. A thin but sturdy object can 
  be wedged in a gear to stop it from moving with a 
  successful DC 10 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) 
  check by a character within reach. If something is 
  instead thrown, a ranged attack (AC 14) with a 
  similar object is required. A lance or sturdy 
  improvised weapon is sufﬁcient, but an arrow or 
  crossbow bolt is not. 
  If both gears have a sturdy object wedged in 
  them when they act on initiative count 20, the 
  characters hear a mechanical grinding noise as the 
  mechanism turning the gears ceases to function.
  If only one gear is wedged, the sphere does not 
  rotate on initiative count 20, but it does exert force 
  on the object that might break it. Roll 1d20, +2 or 
  -2 if the object is more or less sturdy, respectively, 
  than a short sword. On a 10 or higher item 
  remains wedged in the gear until the following 
  turn. On a roll lower than a 10 the item is 
  destroyed and gear turns freely on the following 
  turn unless tampered with.
  Destroying the Gears. The gears have AC 14 and 
  15 hit points, damage threshold 5, and are 
  vulnerable to bludgeoning damage. If a gear is 
  destroyed, it is also considered wedged (see 
  above). If both gears are destroyed the mechanism 
  is disabled as above, but cannot be manipulated, 
  possibly stranding the characters (see 
  developments, below).
  Manipulating Rotation. Once the rotating 
  mechanism has been disabled, a gear which has 
  not been destroyed can be used to move the 
  sphere either clockwise or counterclockwise as 
  desired by 5 feet with a successful DC 14 Strength 
  (Athletics) check.
  Bronze Orb. The orb can be disabled, and the 
  burst of energy can be avoided.
  Disabling the Orb. As an action, a character may 
  attempt a DC 14 Intelligence (Arcana) check. A 
  successful check reduces the amount of damage 
  done by the energy burst by 2 (to a minimum of 
  1). A second successful check disables the orb 
  completely.
  Avoiding the Energy Burst. A creature who can 
  hear the orb charging and knows that an energy 
  burst is imminent may use their reaction to jump 
  at the moment the energy is released. If they do 
  so, they take no damage on a successful DC 10 
  Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. If at any point no 
  creature is in contact with the surface of the 
  sphere, the lack of weight allows the sphere to 
  rotate an additional 5 ft.
  Developments. Depending on how the 
  characters deal with the trap, they could end up 
  falling through the opening, successfully righting 
  the sphere and leaving through the second door, 
  or ﬁnding themselves stranded in the sphere. 
  These outcomes are detailed under “Magical 
  Brewing Sphere” above.
  Playing on a Grid 
  Because trigonometry doesn’t exist in the world as 
  mapped by 5 ft squares, this sphere has a diameter of 
  40 feet and a circumference of 80 feet when placed on 
  a grid. 
  When the sphere rotates counterclockwise, 
  immediately shift each character’s token to the right.  
  The area along the bottom of the map of this area 
  shows a 20 foot wide strip along the center x axis of 
  the sphere as though it were unrolled. Place a token in 
  the center of this strip to indicate the current bottom 
  of the sphere. When the sphere rotates 
  counterclockwise, move the token to the left. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  52
  A
  B
  C
  R
  A = B = C 
  Circumference = 4r 
  Your Euclidian geometry has no power here!
  
  GATHGAER’S LAIR 
  The underground workshop consists of two 
  rooms. The staircase from the sphere ends at an 
  unlocked door which opens into a 20 x 30 foot 
  room housing two cages made from thick bars 4 
  inches apart. 
  The cage in the southwest corridor of the room 
  is directly below the sphere and currently houses 
  Vonbin Broodﬁst, a dwarf commoner Gathgaer is 
  planning on selling into slavery the following day.
  The bars of the cage in the southeast corner of 
  the room have been silvered, and Maxeene 
  Horseman lies asleep behind them.
  Both cages are locked and can be opened with a 
  successful DC 14 check with thieves tools or 
  broken open with a successful DC 18 Strength 
  (Athletics) check. The key which opens both locks 
  is on Gathgaer’s person.
  A two foot wide opening near the ﬂoor on the 
  east wall leads to the rat tunnel.
   Samuel Powers, a wererat (MM 209) currently 
  in hybrid form stands near a closed but unlocked 
  door on the north wall, keeping an eye on the 
  prisoners.
  That door leads to a 15 x 15 foot room where 
  Gathgaer is currently sitting at a desk working on 
  his manuscript. The room contains a bookcase full 
  of books related to the subject of lycanthropy. Two 
  torture devices are also present, a rack and an iron 
  maiden. Gathgaer is wearing a ring keyed to the 
  latter. When he comes within a foot of the iron 
  maiden a portal opens within it that is connected 
  to a sarcophagus in a room on the second level of 
  Undermountain. From there the slaves he collects 
  are transported to Skullport by acolytes of the 
  Church of Shar.
  When a character ﬁrst enters the lair, either 
  through the door or by falling into the slave cage, 
  combat begins. The wererat takes his ﬁrst turn in 
  combat to open the door and notify Gathgaer of 
  the situtation, who in turn shouts out “Well don’t 
  just stand there, Screech, kill them!” 
  Gathgaer joins combat in the second round. He 
  begins by casting spirit guardians. Gathgaer 
  summons a spiritual weapon in the third round, 
  and on subsequent rounds avoids melee combat 
  and makes ranged spell attacks. If Gathgaer ever 
  feels that he is in a losing position, he ﬂees to the 
  iron maiden, escaping through the portal.
  The wererat attempts to engage in melee 
  combat with a character who isn’t wielding a 
  silvered or magical weapon. His fear of Gathgaer 
  leads him to ﬁght to the death while his master is 
  present, but if Gathgaer falls or escapes, the 
  wererat transforms into giant rat form and 
  attempts to ﬂee via the rat hole on the western 
  wall.
  Developments. With Gathgaer and his henchman 
  defeated, the characters are able to free Maxeene 
  from her cage. Regardless of the evidence 
  presented, she steadfastly refuses to admit that 
  she is a werehorse. 
  If the characters later approach her in horse 
  form, she feigns never having met them, but upon 
  seeing their harper pins reports having dropped 
  off a sun elf and half orc 4 days earlier at the 
  Yawning Portal. The two passengers had talked of 
  spies who inﬁltrated sleeper cells of the 
  Xanathar’s guild operating in the Castle Ward.
  Treasure. Maxeene allows the characters to 
  keep the pair of solid silver daggers, valued at 100 
  gp each. The whereabouts of the other 
  possessions stolen from her home remain 
  unknown; they aren’t in the lair.
  In addition to the ring which opens the portal, 
  Gathgaer wears a ring of protection from 
  lycanthropy. While attuned to it, the wearer of the 
  ring cannot be cursed by lycanthropy from a 
  lycanthrope’s bite.
  Each character who participated in the 
  adventure earns 1 renown with the Harpers.
  Defeat 
  If the characters are defeated by Gathgaer and his 
  henchmen, they awaken without any possessions spare 
  their undergarments in a dark, damp cave in Skullport, 
  stable and with 1 hp. The iron collars around their 
  necks connected to chains embedded in the stone wall 
  are a good indication that they have been sold into 
  slavery. The details of the party’s escape is beyond the 
  scope of this adventure. 
  53
  WATERDEEP
  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  54
  Gathgaer Milomynt
  
  GATHGAER’S LAIR 
  55
  WATERDEEP
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  Calendar By: WaterproofPaper.com         More Free Printables: Calendars  Maps  Graph Paper  Targets 
   
  Bookcase
  Desk
  The
  Rack
  Iron
  Maiden
  Rathole
  Slave
  Cage
  Sphere above
  Silvered
  Cage
  1 square 
  = 5ft
  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  56
  Open Hole
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  Calendar By: WaterproofPaper.com         More Free Printables: Calendars  Maps  Graph Paper  Targets 
   
  180°
  90°
  0°
  270°
  0°
  Ledge
  Ledge
  Door
  Door
  Gears
  Gears
  Orb/Potions
  1 square 
  = 5ft
  Electriﬁed 
  Sphere of 
  Plopping
  Open Hole
  Side View
  door
  door
  Table
  down to 
  slave cage
  Hole at top of 
  inner sphere 
  Opening in 
  enclosing earth
  Topographical
  Top View
  
  57
  WATERDEEP
  My Dear Mrs. Horsemann, 
  I hope the evening ﬁnds you well. By way of introduction, my 
  name is Gathgaer Milomynt , Faerûn’s foremost authority on 
  lycanthropes and lycanthropy. For obvious reasons, we must become 
  acquainted. I await your visit at my abode and dispensary of potion 
  upon Leera’s Alley on the next evening of your convenience.  
  Admiringly, 
  Gathgaer
  Mrs. Horsemann, 
  I write with disappointment that you have thusfar declined my 
  invitation. As I know you value my conﬁdence regarding our 
  shared interest, I ask, neigh, demand your patronage at my 
  dispensary at Leera’s Alley within days. I trust that upon your 
  prompt attendance we shall become fast friends. 
  Expectantly,  
  Gathgear
  
  GRAVE CONCERNS 
  ADVENTURE 
  BACKGROUND 
  In life, the halﬂing warlock Losser Mirklav was 
  lax in dedication to his patron, the timeless insane 
  wizard Halaster Blackcloak. This greatly 
  displeased the Mad Mage, who saw to Losser’s 
  untimely demise and then returned him from the 
  dead as an unthinking, and therefore much more 
  obedient, foul undead minion.
  The deathlock Mirklav now diligently obeys his 
  master’s commands. Recently he has been to 
  provide a steady stream of undead fodder for the 
  ﬁrst level of Undermountain.
  The exhumed graves and pillaged mausoleums 
  haven’t gone unnoticed. Sir Ambrose Everdawn, 
  champion of Kelemvor and protector of the city of 
  the dead, also discovered an ancient monument 
  disturbed and has sent word to druids of 
  Phaulkonmere for assistance. 
  OVERVIEW 
  The adventure is divided into these sections:
  Adventure Hooks. Hooks are provided for 
  each of the factions and for expanding the 
  Mausoleum encounter in chapter 4.
  City of the Dead. The adventurers meet Sir 
  Ambrose to investigate missing remains and a 
  disturbed ancient monument.
  Into the Dark Depths. The undead and their 
  deathlock master await deep below in a tomb 
  shrouded by mysterious magical properties. Will 
  the characters return to the surface victorious, 
  ﬁnd themselves stranded in Undermountain, or 
  join the ranks of Halaster’s undead army?
  Magic Items & Monster Stat Blocks. The 
  magic items and monsters in this adventure are 
  presented here for reference in the order they 
  appear.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  58
  A crypt in the City of the Dead
  
  ADVENTURE HOOKS 
  This adventure might take place as a mission 
  issued by a faction or during the Mausoleum 
  encounter in your Waterdeep campaign. It could 
  be placed in a graveyard in any setting. 
  FACTION MISSION 
  Grave Concerns is based on the second Emerald 
  Enclave faction mission in chapter 2 of Waterdeep: 
  Dragon Heist. Each faction has reason to 
  investigate the happenings in the City of the 
  Dead.
  EMERALD ENCLAVE, ET AL 
  The Emerald Enclave sees the undead as an 
  affront to the balance of life and death and moves 
  to help Sir Ambrose by enlisting the adventurers.
  A raven lands on the windowsill of Trollskull manor and 
  pecks at the glass. Upon being let it, in speaks in the 
  droll voice of Melannor Fellbranch: “Sir Ambrose of 
  Kelemvor reports animation of the undead. This 
  cannot stand. Seek him out at the City of the Dead at 
  once.” 
  Force Grey, the Harpers, the Lords’ Alliance, 
  and the Order of the Gauntlet all share the same 
  altruistic motivation: protection of the city. Each 
  faction reaches out to issue this mission in their 
  typical manner.
  BREGAN D’AERTHE 
  Jarlaxle’s spies have learned of Sir Ambrose’s 
  disturbing discoveries before word has spread, 
  and the drow mastermind moves to beat the other 
  factions to the punch.
  J.B. Nevercott strolls into Trollskull manor with his 
  usual swagger. “Heroes are needed once again, I’m 
  afraid. A client of mine had the family crypt raided. 
  Most dreadful. Please see about helping a knight 
  named Everdawn solve this mystery in the City of the 
  Dead. I’ll see you are handsomely rewarded!” 
  Jarlaxle’s motivation is twofold. He hopes 
  performing a heroic deed for the city will 
  ingratiate himself to Laeral Silverhand. More 
  importantly, his sources have indicated the Dagult 
  Neverember’s vault of stolen Dragons is buried 
  deep under the city. He hopes that Sir Ambrose’s 
  discovery might lead him to it.
  ZHENTARIM  
  Davil Starsong is worried that word of 
  necromancy in the City of the Dead signals yet 
  another escalation of the Zhentarim/Xanathar 
  gang war. Regardless of whether Xanathar’s or 
  Manshoon’s forces are behind things, Davil wants 
  it stopped. However, the Doom Raiders won’t 
  risk putting assets on the job lest their faction of 
  Zhents ends up taking the blame.
  A winged serpent arrives with a message reading: 
  “Necromancy in the city of the dead. Find out if 
  Xanathar or rival Zhents are behind it. Engage the 
  Kelemvor night if you must, but keep the Doom 
  Raiders’ name clear of things. Any spoils are yours to 
  keep”. 
  DRAGON SEASON 
  The encounter chains in chapter 4 of Dragon Heist 
  feature a Mausoleum in the City of the Dead, 
  providing a convenient opportunity to run this 
  adventure. 
  SUMMER & WINTER 
  Sir Ambrose intercepts the party before they reach 
  the mausoleum, and recognizing them as 
  adventurers begs for the characters’ help.
  Although he knows nothing of the Stone of 
  Golorr or the hoard of gold dragons, Ambrose 
  isn’t above forcefully jumping to the conclusion 
  that it must have something to do with the 
  necromancy and disturbed monument he 
  discovered.  
  59
  WATERDEEP
  
  SPRING 
  Sir Ambrose catches the party leaving the 
  mausoleum and ﬁrst assumes the adventurers are 
  his perpetrators. Upon hearing the characters’ 
  explanation, he offers that the key found in the 
  mausoleum must have been dropped by whoever 
  is working beneath the monument. 
  If the characters return without a clue as where 
  to go next, Ambrose suggests the characters 
  inquire about the key at the Metal House of 
  Wonders. If the characters defeat Mirklav, they 
  ﬁnd his hand drawn map to the Converted 
  Windmill.
  Converted Windmill. When he was murdered 
  and turned undead by his patron, Losser Mirklav 
  had been working on building his own army of 
  animated skeletons. Halaster directed the 
  deathlock Mirklov, using its disguise self ability, to 
  continue on in this regard as though nothing had 
  happened. Some of the deathlock Mirklov’s 
  necromancy efforts are still devoted to the project. 
  Halaster plans to march the above ground 
  regiment of skeletons to Undermountain via a 
  ﬂashy show at the Yawning Portal. 
  No changes should be necessary to the 
  Converted Windmill encounter to lead the party to 
  the next encounter in the chain.
  Cellar Complex. Make the following changes to 
  this encounter:
  • Losser Mirklav was a warlock, not a mage, 
  but that’s no longer relevant as he is now 
  undead. If the deathlock Mirklav escapes the 
  adventurers in its tomb lair, it appears here, 
  disguised as its former self.
  • Losser did not have a spellbook.
  • Losser’s apprentices Retchyn and Kreela are 
  human cultists and rather than being killed in 
  area B8 are doing the ﬁghting in area B7.
  • Retchyn and Kreela were in possession of the 
  stone and surrendered it to the kenku. Retchyn 
  possesses the key to area B8.
  • If deathlock Mirklav is here, its sole 
  motivation is to escape back to its lair in the 
  City of the Dead. It attempts to do so without 
  being harmed so as to keep up its disguise. If it 
  is unmasked, it ﬁghts to the death. 
  CITY OF THE DEAD 
  The City of the Dead is a beautiful and well 
  attended city park by day, serene and closed to 
  the public by night. Day or night, it is patrolled by 
  the perpetually sleep-deprived and grumpy Sir 
  Ambrose Everdawn (LG male human knight of 
  Kelemvor) and his yellow faerie dragon 
  companion Stlip. 
  After Ambrose ascertains that the characters are 
  willing to help with his problem, he explains.
  “There’s been an uptick in intrusions and robbery in 
  the past few months. I don’t even like to admit it 
  happens, but really it's not that uncommon. Where I 
  draw the line is at the walking dead.”  
  Ambrose leads the party to a monument 
  consisting of a large boulder resting on seven 
  smaller ones. The large boulder features 
  numerous well weathered but still legible 
  characters representing the number 7 in the 
  common, dwarvish, elvish, draconic, infernal, and 
  celestial scripts. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  60
  Sir Ambrose Everdawn
  
  When he and the party are astride the 
  monument, Ambrose continues. 
  “They say it’s the oldest monument in the City; maybe 
  even older than Waterdeep itself. It used to be solid 
  ground under there, but yesterday I saw a small man 
  and an animated skeleton crawl beneath and never 
  come back out.” 
  The area underneath the large boulder, surrounded by 
  the seven smaller ones, looked normal as you 
  approached, but now that you are closer you notice it 
  looks black. Not like soil, but rather… nothingness. 
  MONUMENT 
  A character can recall that the monument stands 
  for the seven apprentices of Halaster Blackcloak 
  with a successful DC 14 Intelligence (History) 
  check. A character who has lived in Waterdeep for 
  at least 10 years makes the check at advantage. 
  BLACKNESS 
  Any character size Large or smaller can easily ﬁt 
  between the seven small boulders which support 
  the larger boulder ﬁve feet above the ground. The 
  area of blackness covers a 20 foot diameter circle 
  directly under the center of the monument. 
  Magic here conceals and ﬁlls a 15 foot square 
  shaft which extends into the ground an 
  indeterminate distance. This magic also pulls 
  objects downward at a rate of 10 feet per round 
  rather than normal gravity, similar to a gentle 
  river current. The area is otherwise empty 
  breathable air, so the only way to escape the slow 
  pull is with a ﬂying speed or being acted upon by 
  an outside force. 
  Any character who investigates can determine 
  these properties, no check required. The effect is 
  considered to have been created by a 7th level 
  spell for the purposes of dispel magic or similar 
  magic. 
  SIR AMBROSE’S QUEST 
  After allowing the adventurers a moment to 
  inspect the oddity, he implores the party to assist.
  “My vow to Kelemvor demands I keep up my patrol of 
  the City. I beg of you. For the sake of all souls who lay 
  in rest here. Find whatever evil lurks below and 
  vanquish it!” 
  INTO THE  
  DARK DEPTHS 
  Beneath this millennia-old monument to Hallaster 
  Blackcloak’s apprentices, known as The Seven, 
  lies a series of crypts connected to a ﬁfteen foot 
  square shaft. 
  Entombed within these crypts are honored foes 
  of The Seven; adversaries who were deemed 
  worthy of a resting place that would forever 
  haunt their souls with the memory of their defeat.
  Beneath the crypts lies one of the most ancient 
  paths to Undermountain. Halaster has now 
  unsealed this forgotten passageway in order to 
  bring a skeleton army into the the top layer of his 
  massive dungeon.
  DUNGEON FEATURES 
  The following elements are common throughout 
  the dungeon.
  SHAFT 
  The shaft is consumed in magical darkness with a 
  slowed fall as described above. The darkness can 
  only be illuminated with a magical light created 
  by a spell of 2nd level or higher, such as the 
  dimglobe in area 1a. The deathlock Mirklav wields 
  a staff that can reverse the direction of the fall at 
  will.
  STRUCTURE 
  The shaft and crypts were magically carved into 
  stone, leaving smooth ﬂoors, walls, and ceilings 
  throughout. Ceilings are 10 feet high, and 
  doorways 8 feet hight.
  LEDGES 
  Two foot deep stone ledges jut from each opening 
  from the central shaft.
  STONE DOORS 
  Stone doors are carved with two handholds on 
  each side, and can rise into the ceiling above. 
  Lifting a door requires a successful DC 12 
  Strength (Athletics) check. The check must be 
  repeated at the start of each round a character 
  continues to hold open a door. 
  61
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  CRYPTS OF THE SEVEN 
   
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  62
  N
  Map by Dyson Logos
  1a
  1b
  1c
  1d
  1e
  1f
  1g
  1h
  2
  3a
  3c
  3b
  3b
  4a
  4b
  4b
  5
  6a
  6b
  
  GOING DOWN 
  Note the characters’ marching order both in 
  position and depth as they enter the shaft. After 
  descending 30 feet, a character within 10 feet of 
  area 1a notices a dim green light illuminating an 
  opening in the wall of the shaft.
  Along the southern wall of the shaft you see the ﬁrst 
  sign of light since you left the surface. An orb the size 
  of an apple sheds dim green light which illuminates an 
  alcove with a small ledge jutting out. 
  Unless otherwise noted, the areas beyond the 
  shaft are not dark, but not magically so. The 
  openings can’t be seen by a character inside of the 
  magical darkness without an adequate magical 
  light source, but they could be felt by the 
  characters or otherwise cleverly detected.
  1. THE FAILED TWINS 
  This uppermost level of the crypts was designed 
  to be found by looters who would be turned to 
  The Seven’s will, one way or another.
  The twins Intri and Pilnac Evenrise served as 
  bodyguards to The Seven, but constantly 
  quarreled over a magic sword that was their 
  birthright. Eventually the two fought and killed 
  one another over the relic. Their nameless squires 
  were executed and also interred here.
  Spatial Anomaly. Distance and direction are 
  warped in this area, allowing opening 1a on the 
  southern wall of the shaft to be be 90 feet above 
  area 1h on the western wall of the shaft. 
  When a character ﬁrst sets foot in area 1 
  beyond 1a or 1h, they must succeed on a DC 14 
  Wisdom saving throw or become confused. While 
  confused in this way a character is overwhelmed 
  by a feeling of vertigo and has disadvantage on 
  ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws 
  while they remain in area 1. 
  Any character may take an action to investigate 
  the effects of the anomaly. On a successful DC 14 
  Intelligence (Investigation) check, a character can 
  become aware of the nature of the anomaly, which 
  ends the confusion on the character and any 
  others they share the explanation with. 
  1A. INGRESS 
  The green glowing glass orb illuminates a stone slab at 
  the back of the alcove. What appear to be two 
  handholds are carved into the base of the door, about 
  a foot off the ground. As you step into the alcove, you 
  feel a mild wave of dizziness wash over you. 
  Dimglobe. The glass orb emits an eerie green 
  dim magical light in a 10 foot radius. It can be 
  carried or thrown, but if left still it will hover in 
  position. If the dimglobe leaves the crypts the 
  magic dissipates and it becomes an ordinary glass 
  sphere.
  1B. TRAPPED HALLWAY 
  Beyond the doorway is a short hallway which comes to  
  a T. Darkness lies beyond. As you enter the hallway, 
  the sense of vertigo you were feeling suddenly 
  becomes almost overwhelming. 
  The darkness in this area is nonmagical, so the 
  area can be illuminated by a standard light source 
  and darkvision works as normal. 
  Spatial Anomaly. When a character enters this 
  area, they are subject to the effects of the spatial 
  anomaly as described in the beginning of this 
  section.
  Trap. In the ﬂoor ten feet into this area, as the 
  hallway makes a T heading east and west, are a 
  series of six inch diameter holes running from 
  wall to wall. Each hole contains a cylinder made 
  of the same stone as the rest of the structure. The 
  ﬂoor in the space beyond these holes is a pressure 
  plate. 
  The holes and pressure plate can be noticed by 
  a character who is actively looking with a 
  successful DC 16 Wisdom (Perception) check. 
  When the weight of a Small or larger creature is 
  placed on the pressure plate, the stone cylinders 
  instantly rise to the ceiling. These stone bars are 
  spaced wide enough for only a Small or smaller 
  creature (e.g. a gnome or halﬂing) to ﬁt though. 
  The stone bars have AC 17, 25 hp, and are 
  vulnerable to bludgeoning and thunder damage. 
  Triggering the trap alerts the ghouls in area 1e, 
  who move to attack.
  63
  WATERDEEP
  
  1C. THE TWINS’ CHALLENGE 
  Beyond another heavy stone door lies a small 
  rectangular room that immediately strikes you as 
  immaculately clean. The ﬂoors, walls, and ceiling are 
  pristine compared to the aged stone you have 
  encountered thus far. 
  A conspicuous hand lever sits on the northern wall to 
  your right. Prose written in common is chiseled into 
  the western wall directly in front of you: 
  “We await your challenge. Light up and down then 
  again. If we are defeated our treasure is yours to carry 
  on our legacy. Fail and you shall join our ranks in 
  Hallaster’s army.” 
  Lever. The lever on the northern wall resets the 
  trap in area 1b. Filling the ten foot square area 
  between the lever and the door is a very old, very 
  hungry, very patient gelatinous cube. 
  Even though the cube is in plain sight, it takes a 
  DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check to spot it. A 
  character that tries to enter the cube’s 
  space while unaware of the 
  cube’s presence is surprised in 
  the ﬁrst round of combat. 
  Challenge. The prose refers to 
  lighting the pedestals in 
  areas 1d and 1e. The 
  dimglobe can be used to 
  temporarily light each 
  pedestal. As soon as the 
  dimglobe is removed from a 
  pedestal, the light on that pedestal 
  begins to fade and will go 
  completely dark after one round.
  Once all four pedestals 
  simultaneously remain lit in 
  order: one in area 1d, one in 
  area 1e, one in area 1d, one in area 
  1e (up and down then again) the 
  doors to areas 1g unseal and the 
  twins descend to area 1f to take on 
  their challengers.
  The pedestals then remain lit 
  until the twins are defeated or 
  return to their tombs 
  victorious.
  1D. UPPER PEDESTALS 
  Up the staircase and behind the heavy stone door lies 
  a small room housing twin ﬁve foot high stone 
  pedestals, each with a rounded indentation in the top.  
  1E. LOWER PEDESTALS 
  The end of the long hallway opens into a small room 
  containing twin ﬁve foot high stone pedestals, each 
  with a rounded indentation in the top. 
  If the characters didn’t trigger the trap in area 
  1b, two ghouls awaken and attack when the 
  characters enter this area. 
  1F. SWORD OF THE TWINS 
  Stairs descend into a square room ﬂanked by matching 
  staircases on either side. In the center of the room, a 
  gleaming sword with a jeweled hilt is suspended 
  upright about a foot off the ﬂoor. 
  Sword. The object of the twins 
  desire and ultimate cause of their 
  demise is a sword of vengeance. 
  The sword is magically ﬁxed in 
  place and cannot be moved by 
  any means short of a wish 
  spell unless the twins are 
  defeated. If both twins are 
  slain, the sword falls to the 
  ﬂoor with a clatter.
  Twins.  If the lights in areas 1d 
  and 1e have been lit, the twins 
  descend the stairs from their 
  matching tombs on either side of 
  the room. The pair are sword 
  wraith warriors, and will ﬁght 
  to the death. They will not 
  pursue any character out of area 
  1f, however. 
  Tactics. The twins use their 
  Martial Fury feature when they 
  attack. All attack rolls against the 
  twins are then at advantage.
  If the twins are victorious, 
  they return to their tombs to 
  lie in wait for their next 
  challengers. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  64
  Intri and Pilnac Evenrise 
  in death, sword wraith warriors
  
  1G. TWIN TOMBS 
  The staircase ends at a stone door much like the 
  others, but this one has no hand holds. 
  The doors to the tombs only open when the 
  lights in areas 1d and 1e have been lit. No amount 
  of physical force can open them.
  When opened, the tomb is rather 
  unremarkable. Each contains a simple stone slab 
  for the twins to lay on.
  1H. EGRESS 
  Behind this door is a small alcove with an open 
  doorway to familiar blackness. As you reach out into it 
  you ﬁnd that the current now slowly drifts upward. 
  The direction of ﬂow in the shaft has just 
  changed direction as the deathlock Mirklav is 
  traveling from area 6 to area 5. After traveling up 
  the 30 feet over the course of 3 rounds, the 
  deathlock Mirklav enters area 5 and returns the 
  ﬂow of the shaft downward.  
  2. HALL OF ESTEEMED FOES 
  The dead interred here were adversaries The 
  Seven held in the highest regard. They decreed 
  that these select few should lie protected from 
  desecration.
  This hallway curves to the left and out of sight. In an 
  alcove to your right stands a menacing looking suit of 
  armor. As you approach two red eyes light up from 
  within the helm and a voice rings out: 
  “Beyond lie the remains of the esteemed foes, which 
  shall lie undisturbed for all eternity.” 
  The animated armor leaves the alcove and 
  attacks if any of the cofﬁns in the hallway beyond 
  are disturbed. Otherwise it remains motionless, 
  its eyes continuing to glow red until all the 
  characters have left the area.
  Cofﬁns. The eight accessible alcoves each 
  contain a cofﬁn holding the desiccated remains of 
  a humanoid and 2d6 10 gp gemstones. If any of 
  the cofﬁns are disturbed, the animated armor 
  attacks.
  Cave-in. The corridor ends in a pile of rubble 
  and is impassible. 
  65
  WATERDEEP
  Animated Armor
  
  3. ANIMATED ADVERSARIES 
  Fierce warriors defeated by The Seven were 
  animated and left here as punishment upon their 
  souls. Unable to move unless disturbed, they stay 
  frozen in eternal torture.
  3A. SKELETON HALLWAY 
  The three alcoves along this hallway each contain an 
  unusual skeleton standing rigidly upright. Two extra 
  arms have been grafted on, and each of its four hands 
  clenches a rusted scimitar. Gleaming amethyst 
  gemstones are set into the eye sockets, which seem to 
  stare blankly ahead. 
  The three dread skeleton warriors attack only 
  if the gemstones are disturbed. Each of the 
  amethyst gemstones is worth 100 gp.
  3B. MUMMY VAULTS 
  The mummies here were fated to lie in stone 
  sarcophagi until released. The door to the intact 
  vault contains no handholds and can only be 
  opened by using the dimglobe to illuminate the 
  two pedestals in area 3c in a manner similar to 
  area 1 of the tombs.
  The ravages of time have caused the door to the 
  far vault to crumble, releasing one mummy to 
  enter area 3c.
  If the intact vault is opened, the mummy inside 
  spends its action in the ﬁrst round of combat 
  emerging from its sarcophagus.
  Treasure. Each vault contains 2d4 25 gp art 
  objects.
  3C. DARKENED CHAMBER 
  Beyond this door lies darkness that can only be 
  penetrated by magic. 
  If the characters bring the dimglobe through the 
  doorway:
  The dim green light from the orb reveals a short 
  pedestal, behind which sits a stone door bereft of 
  handles. The light seems to have drawn attention, as a 
  linen wrapped form lurches at you from darkness! 
  Unless the party found a way to spot the 
  mummy before it spotted them, the characters are 
  surprised in the ﬁrst round of combat.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  66
  Dread Skeleton 
  Warrior
  Mummy
  
  4. SKELETON STORAGE 
  The skeletons that originally occupied this crypt 
  have been animated and joined by those 
  deathlock Mirklav has stolen from other tombs in 
  the City of the Dead. The skeletons all stand 
  docile, waiting to be called forward.
  4A. ACTIVATION PEDESTAL 
  After a few paces, this hallway splits in two directions, 
  continuing forward and a staircase to the right leading 
  down. In each direction, you see a mass of of 
  skeletons, all standing motionless. Between these 
  hallways sits a ﬁve foot high stone pedestal with a 
  rounded indentation in the top. 
  If the dimglobe is placed on the pedestal, the 
  doors in areas 4b open, and the horde of skeletons 
  begins to march forward in an orderly manner.  If 
  the dimglobe is removed, the light of the pedestal 
  fades after one round and the skeletons once 
  again become inert. 
  If allowed to pass, the skeletons enter the shaft 
  and descend to Undermountain. The skeletons 
  attack any character who stands in their way, but 
  only engage in combat if their path to the shaft is 
  obstructed. 
  4B. SKELETON ARMY 
  Aside from the stairs, every space in these areas is 
  occupied by a skeleton, including the tombs 
  sealed behind doors. They number 24 in total.
  If not activated by the pedestal in area 4a, the 
  skeletons remain motionless, even if attacked.
  5. DEATHLOCK’S WORKSHOP 
  Two stone pedestals are illuminated on either side of a 
  staircase that descends in a small room where a 
  halﬂing is working at a bench strewn with books, 
  parchments, and odd baubles of glass and metal. He 
  turns to look up at you. 
  “Begone interlopers. I have no quarrel with you unless 
  you desire one.” 
  The halﬂing is the deathlock Mirklav, who has 
  used its disguise self ability to appear as it did in 
  life as Losser Mirklav. 
  If the adventurers attempt to reason with the 
  deathlock Mirklav, it takes the opportunity to cast 
  mage armor and issues a ﬁnal warning before 
  engaging the characters in combat.
  “You shall not disrupt the designs of Hallaster 
  Blackcloak! Leave now lest you join the ranks of the 
  army I assemble for him!” 
  Tactics. The deathlock Mirklav takes advantage 
  of the high ceiling in the lower part of this area by 
  casting spider climb in the ﬁrst round of combat to 
  position himself where he can make ranged 
  attacks with his eldritch blast cantrip.
  If the deathlock Mirklav is reduced to half its 
  hit points, it retreats to area 6b. If it still has a 
  climb speed, it reverses the ﬂow in the shaft 
  immediately upon entering it. Otherwise the 
  deathlock Mirklov reverses the ﬂow once it has 
  entered area 6.
  67
  WATERDEEP
  The Deathlock 
  Mirklav
  
  Treasure. The deathlock Mirklov is wearing a 
  cloak of displacement. Its quarterstaff can be used as 
  an arcane focus. The quarterstaff can light any 
  pedestals and reverse the ﬂow inside the shaft, 
  but has no magical properties outside of these 
  crypts. The materials on the workbench could be 
  sold to an expert in necromancy magic for a total 
  of 200 gp.
  6. DEATHLOCK’S QUARTERS 
  The deathlock Mirklav resides here when it isn’t 
  working to carry out Halaster’s directives. 
  6A. ZOMBIE COMPANIONS 
  Upon entering this area you are overwhelmed by the 
  stench of death. The staircase before you leads down, 
  where you hear loan moaning and the shufﬂe of feet 
  dragging on stone. 
  Recently being murdered and reanimated, then 
  continuing parts of its former life disguised as its 
  living counterpart has been stressful for deathlock 
  Mirklav. It has attempted to cope by creating a 
  zombie family of sorts. Six zombies in all reside 
  here, one drooling in each of the small alcoves. 
  They attack any living creature that enters the 
  area.
  6B. DEATHLOCK’S CHAMBER 
  This tiny room contains trinkets from Losser 
  Mirklav’s former life, but nothing of value.
  If the deathlock Mirklav has retreated here, it is 
  hiding and attempts to use the magic of its 
  quarterstaff to keep the door shut and its pursuers 
  out. The DC for opening this door increases to 18.
  Further Retreat. If the deathlock Mirklav is 
  cornered here, it risks provoking opportunity 
  attacks to retreat. Depending on the 
  circumstances of your campaign, you may have it 
  choose to retreat to the surface or continue below 
  to Undermountain. Either way, it attempts to 
  reverse the ﬂow in the shaft on its way; either 
  immediately upon entering the shaft if it has a 
  climb speed from spider climb, otherwise upon 
  exiting the shaft. 
  DOWN TO UNDERMOUNTAIN 
  The shaft extends another 60 feet below area 6, 
  where it ends in the ﬁrst level of Undermountain. 
  A tunnel there connects to area 20 on the map of 
  the Dungeon Level in Waterdeep: Dungeon of the 
  Mad Mage. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  68
  DEATHLOCK MIRKLAV 
  Medium undead, lawful evil 
  Armor Class 12 (15 with mage armor) 
  Hit Points 36 (8d8) 
  Speed 30 ft. 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  11 (+0) 
  15 (+2) 
  10 (+0) 
  14 (+2) 
  12 (+1) 
  16 (+3) 
  Saving Throws Int +4, Cha +5  
  Skills Arcana +4, History +4 
  Damage Resistances necrotic; bludgeoning, piercing, 
  and slashing from nonmagical attacks that aren’t silvered 
  Damage Immunities poison 
  Condition Immunities exhaustion, poisoned 
  Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11 
  Languages Common, Halfling, Sylvan 
  Challenge 4 (1100 XP) 
  Special Equipment. The deathlock Mirklav is wearing a cloak of 
  displacement, which causes creatures to have disadvantage on 
  attack rolls against it. If it takes damage, this property ceases to 
  function until the start of the deathlock Mirklav’s next turn. 
  Innate Spellcasting. The deathlock’s innate spellcasting ability is 
  Charisma (spell save DC 13). It can innately cast the following spells 
  at will, requiring no material components: detect magic, disguise 
  self, mage armor 
  Spellcasting. The deathlock is a 5th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting 
  ability is Charisma (spell save DC 13, +5 to hit with spell attacks). It 
  regins its expended spell slots when it finishes a short or long rest. it 
  knows the following warlock spells: 
  Cantrips (at will): friends, eldritch blast, mage hand 
  1st-3rd level (2 3rd-level slots): animate dead, arms of Hadar, dispel 
  magic, hold person, hunger of Hadar, spider climb 
  Turn Resistance. The deathlock has advantage on saving throws 
  against any effect that turns undead. 
  ACTIONS 
  Deathly Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one 
  target. Hit: 9 (2d6+2) necrotic damage.
  
  69
  WATERDEEP
  SWORD WRAITH WARRIOR TWIN 
  Medium undead, lawful evil 
  Armor Class 16 (chain shirt, shield) 
  Hit Points 45 (6d8+18) 
  Speed 30 ft. 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  18 (+4) 
  12 (+1) 
  17 (+3) 
  6 (-2) 
  9 (+-1) 
  10 (+0) 
  Damage Resistances necrotic; bludgeoning, piercing, 
  and slashing from nonmagical attacks  
  Damage Immunities poison 
  Condition Immunities exhaustion, frightened, poisoned, 
  unconscious 
  Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 9 
  Challenge 3 (700 XP) 
  Martial Fury. As a bonus action, the twin can make one weapon 
  attack. If it does so, attack rolls against it have advantage until the 
  start of its next turn. 
  ACTIONS 
  Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.  
  Hit: 8 (1d8+4) slashing damage. 
  DREAD SKELETON WARRIOR 
  Medium undead, lawful evil 
  Armor Class 13 (armor scraps) 
  Hit Points 26 (4d8+8) 
  Speed 30 ft. 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  10 (+2) 
  10 (+0) 
  15 (+2) 
  6 (-2) 
  8 (-1) 
  5 (-3) 
  Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning 
  Damage Immunities poison, 
  Condition Immunities exhaustion, poisoned 
  Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 9 
  Challenge 1 (200 XP)  
  ACTIONS 
  Multiattack. The skeleton makes four melee attacks. 
  Scimitar. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.  
  Hit: 3 (1d6) slashing damage. 
  Trapped in Undermountain
  
  IT’S A ZOO IN THERE! 
  ADVENTURE 
  BACKGROUND 
  The Perythia Aldenber Memorial Zoo is testament 
  to modern magic and engineering. Dangerous 
  monstrosities are on display in addition to the 
  mundane beasts one would expect to ﬁnd in the 
  average city zoo. All of the physical barriers in 
  this zoo have been replaced by powerful magic, 
  allowing visitors the experience of walking 
  among the terrifying creatures without visual 
  impediment. 
  Remy Thursten, aspiring thief, stumbled across 
  information leading him to what he believed to be 
  an amazingly powerful and incredibly valuable 
  magical artifact that has long been sitting right 
  under his nose - the crystal powering all of the 
  zoo’s protective magic! With the help of hired 
  mercenaries, he easily gained access to the zoo in 
  the early morning hours and located and 
  removed the power crystal. 
  When the zoo’s magic was disrupted, large iron 
  portcullises fell physically securing the three 
  outside entrances. The interior of the zoo is now 
  completely unsecured, allowing the creatures to 
  move about freely. A pride of manticore has taken 
  to the sky, most ﬂying towards the mountains, but 
  some remaining circling overhead.
  Not having prepared for the results of his 
  caper, Remy now ﬁnds himself barricaded in the 
  zoo’s visitor center, terriﬁed of the monsters 
  roaming free, and desperate to escape with his 
  plunder.
  With the crystal removed, the true source of the 
  zoo’s energy - the spirit of the late Perythia 
  Aldenber - has manifested on the material plane. 
  If she remains unrestrained long enough, her soul 
  may ﬁnally move on to eternal rest. 
  OVERVIEW 
  The adventure consists these sections: 
  Introduction. The adventurers are alerted to 
  the chaos at the zoo and arrive at the main 
  entrance where they meet the gnome Zoomaster 
  Amil Andler with the information and means to 
  restore the zoo’s magic at the visitor center 
  building on the south end of the complex.
  Part 1. Adorable Beasts. The adventurers travel 
  through the habitat of traditional zoo animals 
  who are now roaming about freely.
  Part 2. Amazing Monstrosities. In order to 
  reach the visitor center, the visitors must pass by 
  the habitat of dangerous unrestrained monsters. 
  Part 3. Restoration. The adventurers reach the 
  visitor center and must decide how to handle the 
  thief Remy Thursten and the Spirit of Perythia 
  Aldenber.
  Part 4. Aftermath. Reinforcements have 
  arrived. With either the zoo’s magic restored or 
  the Spirit of Perythia Aldenber released, the 
  characters ﬁnd a way to mitigate the 
  consequences of what has transpired.
  Adventure Difﬁculty 
  The amount of combat in this adventure is largely 
  dictated by the decisions of the players. If they choose 
  to engage in combat with all of the zoo creatures, the 
  number and difﬁcultly of the encounters could prove 
  to be deadly. With care, the characters may avoid 
  combat encounters entirely. If the characters are 
  having trouble, consider adding additional zoo 
  monsters that ﬁght one another (an example of this is 
  included in the manticore encounter). Conversely, if 
  the party is enjoying combat and having too easy of a 
  time, consider increasing the number of monsters, 
  substituting similar monsters (e.g. changing the grick 
  to grick alpha), or simply giving the monsters more hit 
  points. Note that there are only two adult owlbears, 
  but at your discretion they could have any number of 
  cubs. In the event of complete failure, it’s reasonable 
  to believe that the situation would eventually be 
  resolved and the zoo would provide raise dead and 
  restoration from stone services for the party’s valiant 
  effort. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  70
  Although the experience can be frightening, rest assured 
  that our state of the art magical wards and restraints 
  provide complete visitor safety. 
   
   
   
  —Zoo Brochure
  
  WATERDEEP 
  This adventure is written to be adapted to any 
  urban setting in your campaign. A popular choice 
  on the Sword Coast of the Forgotten Realms is 
  Waterdeep, the City of Splendors. 
  In Waterdeep, Perythia Aldenber Memorial Zoo 
  is located in the North Ward, adjacent to the City 
  of the Dead; Perythia’s body buried close nearby.
  As a single-session adventure for low level 
  characters, It’s a Zoo in There! is a great ﬁt for 
  chapter 2 of the hardcover adventure Waterdeep: 
  Dragon Heist. Use the “faction interest” 
  adventure hook. Bregen D’aerthe or the Emerald 
  Enclave probably wouldn’t issue this mission, but 
  Force Grey, the Harpers, the Lord’s Alliance, and 
  the Order of the Guantlet are all good ﬁts. If the 
  Zhents offer the mission, it’s because they suspect 
  Remy Thurston is allied with the Xanathar’s 
  Guild.
  Some boxed text references summertime. If 
  your campaign takes place in a different season, 
  be sure to adjust the descriptions accordingly.
  ADVENTURE HOOKS 
  FACTION INTEREST  
  A faction agent directs a party member to 
  investigate a rumor that an aspiring thief has 
  identiﬁed a great source of magical energy and is 
  planning a heist. The exact nature of this item is 
  unknown, but he has been has been meeting with 
  mercenaries at various pubs in the entertainment 
  district (or the North Ward, if in Waterdeep). As 
  such, the faction is willing to pay for the party’s 
  stay at a comfortable inn near the zoo which 
  caters mostly to tourist families.
  RETURNING THE FAVOR 
  While walking through the city’s entertainment 
  district, the party hears a child shout, “Hey 
  mister! That man took your purse!” After the 
  party has caught the pickpocket and reclaimed 
  their stolen goods the child laments that with that 
  much money she could go to the zoo every day! 
  She wants nothing more than to visit the zoo, but 
  her family can’t afford it. Her mother is willing to 
  let the adventurers host the family as a reward, 
  and the girl is excited to be ﬁrst in line the next 
  morning when the zoo opens.
  71
  WATERDEEP
  A scene from 
  the streets of 
  Waterdeep
  
  INTRODUCTION 
  Set the scene for your players by reading the 
  following:
  It is a half hour before the zoo is scheduled to open on 
  this lovely summer day. In an instant, the scene goes 
  from ordinary to chaotic. The illusion of a stone wall 
  bearing a sign reading CLOSED and details of the 
  zoo’s operating hours dissolves, showing the ticket 
  window and entrance concealed behind it. At the 
  same instant, a heavy iron portcullis falls, barring the 
  zoo’s main entrance. A cacophony of roars and shrieks 
  steadily grows from within the zoo walls, and from the 
  far end the the complex a stream of massive winged 
  creatures shoot directly into the sky. After a moment, a 
  man appears behind the bars, obviously badly 
  wounded. He pulls a lever, and a door within the iron 
  bars swings open. With his last bit of strength, he 
  stumbles outside before collapsing dead in the street. 
  When the party proceeds into the zoo entrance, 
  the character with the highest passive Wisdom 
  (Perception) score is the ﬁrst to notice a wooden 
  stand holding dozens of printed and tri-folded 
  pamphlets containing information and a map of 
  the zoo. 
  A middle aged male gnome recognizes the 
  characters as adventures and runs up to greet the 
  party.
  “You must help us! Chaos! Men with swords! Animals 
  running amok! Luckily the failsafes went into place. 
  The gates materialized and fell as they should. I bet 
  my manticore have ﬂown clear on out of here! There’s 
  still folks trapped inside! You’ve got to help them!” 
  Although clearly distraught, the characters can 
  easily calm the gnome down. When they engage 
  him, he identiﬁes himself as the zoomaster, Amil 
  Andler. He immediately assumes that the 
  adventurers are there to help and entrusts them 
  with a zoo master key. This key opens all doors in 
  the zoo, including the iron gates that now close 
  off the walled zoo from the three outside 
  entrances.
  Zoo Brochure 
  The player handout provides more information about 
  the zoo, including clues about the monsters the 
  adventurers will encounter. Print a copy of the trifold 
  zoo information handout with map on the reverse side 
  for each player. 
  “Even better!” He ejaculates, a brilliant idea having 
  just popped into his head. “You can set this right!”. He 
  runs into a windowed ofﬁce with the shade drawn and 
  reappears moments later hefting a shimmering blue 
  crystal nearly half as large as himself. “The basement 
  of the visitor center at the south end of the complex 
  houses the ﬁeld generator. The crystal down there 
  must have failed. Glad I had the good mind to keep a 
  backup here! Damned magic. If they’d listened to me 
  all those years ago. Always has to be bigger; a greater 
  show! It’s a wonder this hasn’t happened sooner. Any 
  beast that can’t be held back by iron bars don’t 
  belong in a zoo!” 
  The zoo power crystal is about the size of a 
  soccer ball, and surprisingly light and sturdy (AC 
  14, 10 hp, damage threshold 5).
  Encourage the players to take a moment to 
  review the zoo brochure and ask the zoomaster 
  any questions they like. As the party is about to 
  move on, Amil interrupts them.
  “It goes without saying, I suppose, that your safety 
  and the safety of our other staff is the priority. But… 
  could you please…” He trails off as he rubs away the 
  tears welling up in his eyes “… could you please see to 
  the poor beasties as well? If any of them were to be 
  hurt…” He ﬁghts emotion for a moment, then regains 
  his composure. Unbuckling a small scabbard on his 
  belt, he offers a thick wooden wand engraved with 
  glyphs resembling the faces of various animals. “This 
  will help you reign them in. Just point and say “on-ah-
  mot-ah-pee-ah” to talk to them, or “hoo-sa-good-
  boy” to calm them down. We call it the druid wand.” 
  He lets out a sardonic laugh. “The only thing those 
  holier than thou busybodies hate more than this zoo is 
  using their magic to run it!” 
  The druid wand is capable of casting animal 
  friendship (PHB 212) and speak with animals (PHB 
  277). Use a spell caster’s spell save DC or 
  8+proﬁciency bonus for a non-caster. Each spell 
  expends one charge from the wand. It has 6 
  charges remaining. The wand is effective against 
  the beasts in the northern portion of the zoo, but 
  has no effect on the monstrosities further south. 
  Consider how many of these details you want to 
  share upfront. It may be entertaining for your 
  players to discover the effects of the command 
  words on their own, and if you track the number 
  of charges remaining the expected effect may not 
  occur when needed. If the players ask Amil about 
  the wand he happily provides any relevant 
  details. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  72
  
  Roleplaying Amil Andler  
  Amil was the assistant zookeeper when the zoo was 
  originally built, and has been a loyal caretaker as he 
  rose through the ranks to zoomaster. Although he 
  vehemently opposed the zoo’s expansion and the 
  addition of the monstrosities, he genuinely loves all of 
  the creatures he houses. Despite his formal education 
  in the areas of animal and monster husbandry, he is 
  decidedly working class in speech and mannerisms. 
  Before passing through the walls into the zoo, 
  visitors entering through the main entrance are 
  shunted through a small museum showcasing the 
  zoo’s history. As the buildings in the zoo lack 
  windows and are usually magically lit, it is now 
  quite dark, with only dim light ﬁltering in from 
  the outside. If the characters investigate the 
  museum they learn the information printed on 
  the handout. In particular, point out these key 
  pieces of information:
  • The zoo was founded nearly 80 years ago as a 
  memorial to the late niece of a local nobleman.
  • 15 years ago the zoo underwent a major 
  magical transformation doing away with the 
  traditional caged habitats.
  • In addition to the traditional collection of zoo 
  animals, the zoo now permanently houses two 
  owl bears and a pride of manticore. 
  • Other monstrosities are placed on exhibit as 
  they are captured.
  • The center of the zoo houses a gigantic 
  saltwater tank housing a rotating collection of 
  sea monsters. A magically transparent tunnel 
  allows viewing from underneath.
  Zoo Map Scale and Distances 
  Unlike the interior of the visitor center, the zoo map is 
  not on a grid. The map presented to the players is 
  meant to give only a general sense of the zoo’s layout. 
  Use a “theater of the mind” style approach when 
  exploring the zoo. If your group prefers combat on a 
  grid, improvise a battle map based on the descriptions 
  provided. 
  At some point the characters may be ﬂeeing to the 
  visitor center and want an exact distance. The answer 
  then is whatever makes for a good chase. Use your 
  judgement to make for a narrow escape from the 
  owlbears or chuul. The manticore are fast ﬂyers, and 
  will land between the characters and the visitor center. 
  BYPASSING THE BEASTS 
  The characters can choose a number of different 
  routes to explore, including bypassing the beast 
  exhibits and heading to one of the other entrances 
  of the southern side of the zoo. 
  Entering through the west or east gates throws 
  the characters right into the heart of the 
  monstrosities, and both entrances immediately 
  lead to encounters that may prove too difﬁcult for 
  lower level parties.
  Keeping It Simple 
  If you would prefer a more linear approach, a version 
  of the zoo map without the alternate entrances is 
  provided.  
  WAIT, WHERE ARE YOU GOING? 
  If the characters head for a different entrance to 
  the zoo, Amil is a bit confused.
  “Wait, where are you going? You’re not abandoning 
  us, are you? We need help!” 
  Once the characters inform Amil of their plans,
  The gnome rubs his chin in thought, and then replies 
  “Well, it may be quicker, I suppose… But possibly 
  more dangerous. It’s monsters down there, not my 
  adorable beasties. They might get the drop on you 
  before you have the chance to get the drop on them!” 
  He pulls a dagger from his belt which he appears ill-
  trained to ﬁght with. “I’ll take down any swordsmen 
  who come this way,” he says bravely. “You get down in 
  that basement!” 
  If the characters choose to circumnavigate the 
  zoo exterior and enter from the West or East Gates 
  using the zoo master key, skip ahead to Part 2, 
  Amazing Monstrosities. Note the druid wand is 
  only effective against the mundane beasts at the 
  north end of the zoo.
  73
  WATERDEEP
  Amil calms 
  his nerves
  
  PART 1: ADORABLE 
  BEASTS 
  Right as the party exits the museum, they 
  encounter a new friend.
  B1. CAMEL 
  When the characters exit the museum into the 
  zoo, read or paraphrase the following.
  As your eyes adjust to the bright outdoor light of this 
  sunny, pleasant summer day you ﬁnd yourself in 
  courtyard resembling a massive city park more than a 
  zoo. Stone paths wind through various habitats 
  looking unnatural if only for their incongruity. A lush 
  jungle butting up against a sandy desert scene with a 
  small oasis and lone palm tree, for example. Although 
  signage, informational placards, trash barrels and 
  other amenities are apparent, what’s jarringly absent 
  are the bars and cages one would expect in a zoo. On 
  a normal day visitors would be awed seeing the 
  animals up close protected only by invisible barriers. 
  Today is not a normal day, as is evidenced by the very 
  friendly camel nosing near your pockets. 
  The camel (MM 320) is completely harmless. It 
  is attracted to the character with the lowest 
  charisma score and will attempt to follow that 
  character around until frighted away. It doesn’t 
  know anything about what is happening in the 
  zoo other than it is very happy at ﬁnally having 
  the opportunity to forge a close friendship with a 
  visitor. 
  As you venture into the beast exhibit, the path forks in 
  three directions clearly marked by a large sign: 
  West - Owlbear Enclosure. Apes. Black Bear. 
  Rhinoceros.  
  South - Aquatic Stadium. Camel. Elephant. 
  East - Manticore Habitat. Lions. Tigers. 
  Of the animals listed, you can’t help notice the 
  elephant splashing its trunk in a pond a couple 
  hundred feet ahead of you. To the west you hear howls 
  and screeches, and catch a grey streak of a horned 
  animal charging between habitats. No animals are 
  immediately apparent to the east, but you do notice a 
  few of the same winged creatures you saw earlier now 
  circling much higher above. 
  WEST PATH 
  B2. BLACK BEARS & APES 
  Heading west, the characters will ﬁrst encounter 
  two black bears (MM 318) who are agitated 
  because the apes have been teasing them. If the 
  characters are moving stealthily, one of the black 
  bears will notice them if the lowest Dexterity 
  (Stealth) check of the party is 13 or lower. 
  Otherwise the bears roll a perception check at 
  advantage (keen smell) vs the lowest stealth roll 
  the party. If a bear notices the party, it stands on 
  its hind legs and lets out a ﬁerce roar, alerting its 
  partner to their presence. The bears will attack 
  any character who attempts to ﬂee.  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  74
  Angry Bears
  
  The characters do not provoke the bears if they 
  stay on the path and don’t act aggressive or 
  frightened. If a character is acting nervous, have 
  them make a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw. On a 
  failure, the bears notice the character’s fear and 
  attack. 
  If communicated with, the bears will express 
  their frustration with the apes, who have climbed 
  into the trees of their habitat and are 
  intermittently pelting them with rocks. They want 
  nothing more than to exact vengeance on the apes 
  or at least drive them off, and will attempt to 
  convince the characters to assist them in this goal. 
  If the characters drive off the apes, the bears will 
  treat them kindly and may even be persuaded to 
  accompany the characters and protect them.
  As the characters pass the heart of the bear 
  habitat they notice 3 apes (MM 317) on a DC 10 
  Wisdom (Perception) check if they are actively 
  looking. Otherwise they will notice the apes when 
  they attack, throwing rocks. The third ape’s attack 
  does no damage, as it is apparent to the characters 
  that this ape ﬂung not a rock, but its own dung. If 
  hit with dung and not thoroughly cleaned, a 
  character will smell unpleasant, granting other 
  creatures advantage on perception checks to 
  locate them using smell.
  If attacked from the path with ranged weapons, 
  the apes return ﬁre by throwing rocks (and at the 
  DMs discretion, the occasional handful of dung) 
  at the characters. 
  If any of the apes is reduced to half of its hit 
  points, it will retreat to the trees in its own area 
  and the other apes will follow after one round. 
  However, if any ape is killed, the others will 
  descend from the trees and engage the characters 
  in melee combat. If a bear can reach an ape it will 
  engage it in melee combat. 
  If communicated with, the apes express their 
  glee at being able to roam in the trees outside of 
  their own enclosure and are taking joy in 
  antagonizing the bears below. 
  B3. RHINOCEROS 
  Toward the end of the western path, a crazed 
  rhinoceros (MM 336) is charging from about the 
  northwest corner of the stadium to the tip of the 
  owlbear enclosure. It is at the same time very 
  excited and very confused by the chaos that is 
  unfolding. Not knowing what else to do, it runs 
  back and forth on what is already beginning to 
  look like a worn patch of ground. Unless 
  provoked it isn’t inclined to deviate from this 
  path, but if the characters cross the path it will 
  charge at them and attempt to gore them. A DC 12 
  group Wisdom (Perception) check allows the 
  party to determine the timing to safely cross the 
  rhino’s path without drawing its ire.
  The path continues south along the west side of 
  the zoo, towards the owlbear enclosure. The party 
  could also head east to a corner entrance of the 
  aquatic stadium. Both areas are detailed in part 2 
  of the adventure.
  75
  WATERDEEP
  Dung flinging 
  Apes
  
  SOUTH PATH 
  B4. ELEPHANT 
  A large structure to the south is painted with hills and 
  sky, providing an oddly false backdrop to the realistic 
  jungle habitat directly ahead. An elephant stands on 
  edge of a pool of water, splashing and playing, 
  occasionally cooling itself with a spray of water from its 
  trunk. 
  The elephant (MM 322) to the south seems 
  happy in its own habitat. It is interested in what is 
  going on and has been keeping a watchful eye. If 
  the characters inspect it from a distance, a DC 12 
  Wisdom (Perception) check reveals that even 
  while splashing in its pond, it has its eye on them. 
  As the characters approach, the elephant shows 
  signs of increasing nervousness. If the characters 
  get within 60 feet, it trumpets its horn and stamps 
  its feet in warning. If a character gets within 40 
  feet, it charges. The elephant’s habitat is easily 
  passible and large enough that the characters can 
  move around the elephant at a comfortable 
  distance.
  If communicated with, the elephant indicates 
  that it is aware that something has allowed the 
  animals to leave their habitats. It is proud of its 
  home and stands ready to protect it. If the 
  characters head towards the stadium, it warns 
  that there is a dangerous monster there. It has 
  seen countless cows, sheep, pigs, etc led in, never 
  to return.
  The structure providing the backdrop to the 
  elephant’s habitat is the aquatic stadium. The 
  path proceeds directly south and into the the 
  massive building at ground level: the entrance to 
  the underwater glasshall (M3). Signs indicate 
  paths to west and east leading to entrances for 
  stadium seating (M4). If the characters venture 
  towards the stadium, proceed to M2 in part 2 of 
  the adventure. If the characters venture west, they 
  will meet the rhinoceros (B3). If the characters 
  head to the east, they will come upon the feasting 
  tigers (B5).
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  76
  Mr. Elephant
  
  C. EAST PATH 
  B5. LIONS & TIGERS 
  Heading along the eastern path, you ﬁrst notice two 
  lions, in their designated habitat, perched high upon 
  twin rock outcroppings as though ready to pounce. 
  The lions are ﬁxated on something just outside 
  of the characters view. If the characters are 
  moving stealthily, the lions (MM 331) only notice 
  them if the character with the lowest Dexterity 
  (Stealth) check is lower than 13. If the lions notice 
  the characters:
  As you approach, the female lion turns her head to 
  make eye contact, growls loudly alerting her partner 
  who barely gives a glance, and then returns her gaze 
  directly ahead to the south at something around a 
  corner, out of your view. 
  If the lions don’t notice the characters:
  As you cautiously approach, the lions seem not to 
  notice, instead intently ﬁxated on something directly 
  to their south, around a corner and out of your view. 
  The lions are watching two tigers (MM 339) 
  who are feasting on the bodies of two humans: 
  one zookeeper and one thug (MM 350) who was 
  involved in the attack on the zoo. The zookeeper 
  had attempted to stop the thug who was running 
  to leave through the north entrance and was done 
  in by the thug’s rapier. However, this attracted the 
  attention of the tigers, who mauled the thug as he 
  turned to ﬂee.
  The zookeeper is carrying a scroll of hold monster 
  (PHB 251). The thug has a small pouch on his belt 
  containing 8 gp in various coins, and a tattoo on 
  his left wrist just above the cuff. If the character’s 
  aren’t already familiar with the tattoo, A DC 16 
  Intelligence (History) check reveals that this man 
  is a member of a well known band of local 
  mercenaries (if in Waterdeep, this tattoo is either 
  the winged snake symbol of the Zhentarim or the 
  eye of the Xanathar Guild). 
  The lions are motivated by the same thing as 
  the tigers - real fresh meat. However, they are too 
  cowardly to challenge the tigers for their spoils, 
  and instead look on jealously. The tigers are aware 
  that the lions covet their meal and are carefully 
  guarding it. Because of this heightened alert, the 
  tigers make checks at advantage to notice the 
  characters if they are moving stealthily. 
  As the characters come around the corner:
  Rounding a corner you are greeted by a grisly scene 
  that explains the lions’ behavior. Two tigers are each 
  feasting on the corpse of a human, one wearing the 
  torn and bloodied uniform of a zookeeper, the other in 
  clawed open leather armor with a bloodied rapier by 
  his side.  
  When the tigers see the party, they attack. This 
  opening causes the lions to bound down and 
  attempt to drag the corpses away. The lions will 
  ﬁght the tigers for the food while the characters 
  are nearby, but are less interested in engaging the 
  characters unless a particularly advantageous 
  opportunity presents itself. The tigers seem 
  unsure whether to defend their meal or hunt fresh 
  meat, and will attack either the characters or the 
  lions based on proximity. 
  If the characters communicate with the 
  animals, both parties express their strong desire 
  for fresh if not even live prey after a lifetime in 
  captivity. The tigers, however, are far more bold. 
  They would have gone west hunting the other 
  zoo animals had the human feast not appeared. 
  The lions are far more timid, preferring to 
  hopefully snatch away the tigers prey if they 
  became distracted.
  The path continues south along the east side of 
  the zoo, heading towards the manticore exhibit 
  (M5). The party could also head west to the 
  aquatic stadium (M2). Both areas are detailed in 
  part 2 of the adventure. 
  77
  WATERDEEP
  A regular 
  mundane lion
  
  PART 2: AMAZING 
  MONSTROSITIES  
  Part 2 of this adventure ﬁnds the characters 
  moving among dangerous monstrosities that are 
  the feature attractions of the expanded zoo. 
  Depending on the direction the characters 
  approach from they will encounter a different 
  attraction.
  OWLBEAR ENCLOSURE / 
  WEST GATE 
  If the characters circumnavigated the zoo to enter 
  via the west entrance, see “Entering Via the West 
  Gate” (M6) below, keeping in mind the 
  information presented in the rest of this section.
  M1. OWLBEARS 
  If the characters have approached from the 
  northwest :
  As the path turns south, the area to the west abruptly 
  transitions to a dense forest scene. A human ﬁgure lies 
  sprawled on the ground just up ahead, off the right 
  side of the path. 
  A human thug was killed by the pair of 
  owlbears (MM 249), but not before he managed to 
  wound the female, which is now at 31 hit points. 
  The owlbears have retreated and are hiding in 
  some thick bush about 30 feet back from the path. 
  The characters can notice them on a successful DC 
  14 perception check if they are actively looking. 
  If the characters investigate the body of the 
  human, read:
  Deep bloody gashes across the chest of this man show 
  that his leather armor was no match for the claws that 
  had slashed at him. A large chunk of ﬂesh is missing 
  from his upper arm, nearby which a rapier coated in 
  sticky dark red blood lies. A spattered trail of this 
  blood leads into the wooded area to the west. 
  This thug shares the same wrist tattoo as his co-
  conspirator in B5.
  The owlbears are on alert and will rush to 
  attack the characters when they spot them. If the 
  characters are attempting to move using stealth, 
  make a Wisdom (Perception) check for each of the 
  owlbears contested by each character’s Dexterity 
  (Stealth) check. If a character had been struck by 
  ape dung, the owlbears make the check at 
  advantage.
  If the characters have not yet noticed the 
  owlbears, but the owlbears have detected them, 
  add:
  As you look up in the direction of the blood trail, two 
  massive bears with oversized faces of screech owls 
  come charging towards you. 
  The owlbears will attempt to stay near each 
  other while engaging the characters in melee 
  combat and will pursue if the party chooses to 
  ﬂee. If either owlbear is reduced below 12 hit 
  points, or if a single attack against an owlbear 
  deals damage of more than half its remaining hit 
  points, it will emit a piercing screech and the 
  owlbears will use their reaction to disengage and 
  retreat deep into their habitat and hide in the 
  small cave where they sleep. If either owlbear is 
  killed, its partner will ﬁght to the death, focusing 
  its attacks on the character who landed the killing 
  blow. 
  The path proceeds south past the west gate, 
  which is now barred by a protective portcullis. A 
  sign pointing to the southeast advertises the zoo’s 
  visitor center and gift shoppe. Another sign 
  indicates a path leading northeast to the aquatic 
  stadium (M2).
  Near the west gate the character with the 
  highest passive perception score notices scuff 
  marks and small spatters of blood. A pair of 
  gricks have attacked a zookeeper and dragged her 
  body down the hill behind the visitor center. If the 
  characters investigate further, they ﬁnd scuffs and 
  a slithering trail that lead into the fenced off area 
  on the southwest side of the visitor center 
  building. If the characters follow this path, 
  proceed to V10 in part 3 of the adventure.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  78
  
  79
  WATERDEEP
  Owlbear
  
  M6. ENTERING VIA THE WEST GATE 
  If the characters have chosen to enter the zoo via 
  the west gate, they arrive in time to see two gricks 
  (MM 173) attacking a zookeeper named Maya 
  Pashren (F halﬂing commoner) who has already 
  been injured and has 2 hit points remaining.  
  Just beyond the iron portcullis a horrifying scene is 
  unfolding. Two large snake-like creatures  slither 
  towards a halﬂing zookeeper as she screams, running 
  towards safety in a building to the south. One catches 
  up to her and lashes with its tail, spattering blood 
  across the cobblestone path. 
  If the party engages the gricks, the creatures 
  lose interest in the zookeeper and focus on 
  defending themselves from the characters. The 
  owlbears notice the ruckus and enter the ﬁght on 
  the second round of combat. Maya has one scroll 
  of hold monster (PHB 251) and will take the action 
  on her turn to use it against an owlbear if it 
  attacks.  
  If Maya survives, she is profusely grateful to 
  the characters and offers them the scroll if she did 
  not use it. She also knows where the zoo power 
  crystal should be placed and can lead the 
  characters into the visitor center via the back 
  basement entrance (V10). Aquatic Stadium & 
  Underwater Glasshall.
  M2. OUTSIDE STADIUM 
  When adventurers head towards the stadium:
  As you approach the complex you notice two signs. 
  One reads “Now Showing: Chuul” and bears an 
  illustration of a creature with two massive crablike 
  claws standing on four hind legs. The other is painted 
  bright red and says in large letters: “WARNING: For 
  the safety of our visitors, all outside magic including 
  items imbued with magic are prohibited.” 
  The aquatic stadium consists of a massive 
  saltwater tank surrounded by stadium seating 
  rising 50 feet up on both the east and west sides 
  (M4). A stone tunnel runs north-south at ground 
  level through the water (M3). The tank is 
  currently inhabited by a chuul (MM 40). If the 
  characters use magic or are carrying any magic 
  items (including the druid wand granted by Amil 
  Andler) once they are inside the stadium, the 
  chuul detects this using its sense magic ability.
  If the characters enter the tunnel proceed to 
  M3. If the characters enter the stadium from one 
  of the corner entrances skip ahead to M4.
  M3. UNDERWATER GLASSHALL 
  A stone entrance marks the beginning of a tunnel that 
  runs through the heart of this large stadium. Although 
  advertised as being a transparent “glasshall,” with the 
  zoo’s magic inactive it appears as smooth stone tunnel 
  twenty feet wide and ten feel high, domed at the top. 
  You see daylight at the end of the tunnel about 150 
  away, but without magical transparency it becomes 
  very dark as you venture within. It is also noticeably 
  cooler than outside, yet comfortably dry considering it 
  is beneath a vast volume of water. 
  If any of the characters use magic, the chuul 
  attacks immediately. Otherwise when a character 
  carrying a magic item reaches just past the 
  midway point of the tunnel the chuul senses the 
  magic below and attacks. The characters may pass 
  through the tunnel unnoticed if they neither 
  possess magical items nor use magic. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  80
  Chuul
  
  If the chuul attacks:
  Suddenly you feel the entire structure rumble, and bits 
  of stone directly above crumble and fall to the ﬂoor. 
  Apparently something has been alerted to your 
  presence, and it is not happy. 
  On its ﬁrst turn in combat, the chuul lashes out 
  again at the tunnel, causing more rock to come 
  loose and small streams of water burst out from 
  the ceiling above the characters. On the chuul’s 
  second turn, it breaks through the stone and the 
  tunnel ﬂoods with water. The gush of water 
  pushes the characters out of the tunnel and causes 
  2d6 bludgeoning damage on a failed DC 15 
  Dexterity save, or half as much damage on a 
  successful save. 
  The chuul does not enter the ﬂooded tunnel, 
  instead climbing out of its now draining habitat 
  and occupying the seating on the east side of the 
  stadium. If it senses magic from that position it 
  will quickly move to confront it.
  M4. AQUATIC STADIUM 
  Stairs take you up about 40 feet to a stone walkway 
  running north-south and dividing the lower seating 
  from the upper bleachers as you enter this massive 
  outdoor stadium. In the water below you see a large 
  creature who's hideousness the illustration outside did 
  not do justice.  
  The chuul doesn’t realize that anything is amiss 
  and is lazily ﬂoating in its large saltwater tank. If 
  the characters are not using magic and do not 
  possess magic items they can move past 
  undetected with a successful DC 15 Dexterity 
  (Stealth) check. If the chuul notices the characters, 
  it directs its attention to them, swimming as close 
  as it can to their location. However, it has been 
  conditioned to expect the now non-functioning 
  magical restraints and will only attack the 
  characters if they ﬂee or attack it.
  If the characters use magic or are carrying a 
  magic item, the chuul immediately notices and 
  approaches at full speed and attacks.
  MANTICORE HABITAT / EAST 
  GATE 
  If the characters circumnavigated the zoo to enter 
  via the east entrance, see the “Entering Via the 
  East Gate” (M7) below, keeping in mind the 
  information presented in the rest of this section.
  M5. MANTICORE 
  If the characters approached from the northeast:
  As you proceed along the east side of the zoo, the 
  terrain shifts from savanna to a rocky mountain scene. 
  Most of the large winged creatures you saw earlier 
  have taken advantage of their new freedom. However, 
  three remain and are ﬂying lower now, allowing you to 
  see them more clearly. They have the bodies of large 
  lions, massive dragon-like wingspans, spiked tails, and 
  oversized vaguely humanoid looking heads. Now that 
  you have approached their home they seem to have 
  taken an interest and begin diving down towards you. 
  81
  WATERDEEP
  Manticore
  
  The three manticore (MM 213) are 
  approximately 150 feet in the air when they begin 
  their attack on the party. They make tail spike 
  attacks during their descent, at disadvantage the 
  ﬁrst round due to the range. On the third round 
  they land between the party and the visitor center 
  and engage in melee combat. When they do, a 
  basilisk (MM 24) emerges from hiding with a 
  surprise:
  Just as one of the winged lions is about to land, it 
  turns its head and then lets out a terriﬁed roar. 
  Climbing desperately back into the sky, it begins 
  turning slate colored. At about ﬁfty feet in the air its 
  wings slow and then stop beating as the creature 
  rapidly turns to stone. By the time it hits the ground it 
  has become completely petriﬁed and shatters upon 
  impact.  
  The basilisk isn’t particularly interested in 
  joining the ﬁght, although it will continue to lock 
  its gaze with any other creature in the area. If left 
  alone it is happy to spend its turns munching the 
  shattered stone. The remaining manticore are 
  undeterred and continue their attack.
  M7. ENTERING VIA THE EAST GATE 
  If the characters have chosen to enter the zoo via 
  the east gate they see a little boy has been turned 
  to stone by the basilisk’s petrifying gaze. 
  Rounding the easternmost corner of the zoo’s high 
  walled hexagonal shaped exterior, you are surprised to 
  see a statue of a young child placed awkwardly in the 
  middle of the east gate entrance. Drawing closer, you 
  are struck by both the quality of workmanship and 
  oddity of the sculpt. A human boy of perhaps ten 
  years adorned in torn and ill ﬁtting clothing stands 
  mere inches from the iron portcullis barring the 
  eastern zoo entrance. His hands are raised slightly 
  above his head with ﬁngers spread wide, and the 
  expression on his face is one of pure shock, with eyes 
  wide and jaw agape.  
  The boy is Armin Glazboe (human 
  commoner), one of 9 children of poor laborer 
  parents. On days without school to occupy him, 
  he often loiters near the zoo attempting to sneak 
  in among large groups of children. If the 
  characters restore him from his petriﬁed state and 
  return him to his home, his parents are overjoyed 
  and insist that the characters take 6 sp, the 
  entirety of their savings, as a reward. The boy’s 
  mother might also provide the players with a plot 
  hook of your choosing for future adventures in 
  the city.
  When the characters enter the zoo they will 
  encounter the basilisk, which is lurking among 
  rocky terrain about 20 feet to the north of the gate. 
  If the characters are actively on the lookout, have 
  each roll a Wisdom (Perception) check in 
  contested by a Dexterity (Stealth) check for the 
  basilisk. If the characters are not actively on the 
  lookout, only characters with a passive perception 
  score of 16 or higher notice the basilisk. Players 
  who did not spot the basilisk are surprised in the 
  ﬁrst round of combat and cannot avert their eyes 
  to avoid the basilisk’s petrifying gaze. At the end of 
  the ﬁrst round, the manticore notice the characters 
  and join the combat as outlined above. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  82
  Basilisk
  
  PART 3: RESTORATION 
  The far southern area of the zoo is home to the 
  Visitor Center & Gift Shoppe and also serves as a 
  work area for zoo employees. Behind the 
  trapezoid shaped building, the earth slopes down  
  towards the south zoo wall. Four foot tall 
  wrought iron fences span the areas between the 
  building and the entrance gates on the west and 
  east sides. The fences each have a ﬁve foot wide 
  gap in them where graveled paths leads down the 
  hill behind the building. These gaps are signed 
  “Staff Only Area” and are normally protected by 
  the same type of invisible barrier as the zoo 
  exhibits. 
  VISITOR CENTER 
  The interior of the visitor center building is 
  usually magically lit, so it is now completely dark 
  inside the building aside from any sunlight that 
  comes in through the upper or lower level 
  entrances. The ceilings on the main level are 20 
  feet high, compared to a cramped 8 feet on the 
  lower level.
  V1. VISITOR DISPLAYS 
  The main area of the visitor center features 
  numerous freestanding informational kiosks and 
  graphical displays. Large brass doors on the north 
  wall open in from the zoo. The southwest portion 
  of the area is divided by ceiling high panes of 
  glass. A closed but unlocked door to the east leads 
  to an ofﬁce.
  If the characters attempt to enter the building 
  from the north:
  Although the brass double doors to this building are 
  unlocked, they give only a little when you attempt to 
  push them open. Upon this movement they are 
  abruptly pushed back shut. 
  The main entrance is currently barricaded from 
  the inside by a large information kiosk that has 
  been tipped on its side and is being guarded by 
  our villian, Remy Thurstan, who now ﬁnds 
  himself trapped after stealing the zoo’s power 
  crystal. The door can be pushed inward enough 
  to gain entrance by a cumulative DC 30 Strength 
  (Athletics) check by the party (allow the 
  characters to add the results of their checks 
  together). 
  If the characters shout out or otherwise give 
  indication that they are not monsters, Remy will 
  move the kiosk enough to allow entrance. 
  When Remy meets the characters, read: 
  A human guarding the entrance to the visitor center 
  exclaims upon seeing you, “Oh, thank the gods! 
  You’ve got to get me out of here! The monsters are 
  loose!” His dark shaggy hair, sloppily worn baggy 
  uniform, and palpable fear make him a pitiful sight.  
  If asked, Remy will introduce himself as “Gus 
  Stanthur” and produce a story of having run to 
  safety in the visitor center when he saw an 
  owlbear wander outside of its restraints. The 
  baggy uniform Remy wears is embroidered with 
  the name “Gus” and conceals the studded leather 
  armor he is wearing underneath. This uniform 
  was stolen from a hapless zookeeper who Remy 
  had charmed and is now locked in V7, passed out 
  under the inﬂuence of a sleep spell. 
  Now that the characters have arrived, Remy is 
  especially desperate to escape the zoo before his 
  crimes are uncovered. He forcefully attempts to 
  convince the characters to escort to him safety. If 
  the characters instead head to the visitor center 
  basement, he resists accompanying them, voicing 
  concerns that there may be escaped monsters 
  down there (although he is ignorant of the gricks 
  in V6). A DC 18 Wisdom (Insight) check indicates 
  that he’s covering something up. If the players 
  roleplay an interaction where he becomes 
  increasingly insistent and nervous, reduce the DC 
  to 13.
  Since he won’t engage in combat while 
  outnumbered, Remy will accompany the 
  characters if forced (no ability check required). 
  However, he may take a calculated risk to escape 
  if he is about to be found out. 
  A character actively searching the area will 
  locate Remy’s rapier hidden under an overturned 
  kiosk near the door leading to V3. The zoo power 
  crystal is in a rucksack on Remy’s shoulder. 
  83
  WATERDEEP
  
  V2. GIFT SHOPPE 
  A glass walled gift shoppe occupies the 
  southwestern portion of the main ﬂoor of this 
  building. The brass doors on its east side are 
  locked, but can be opened with the zoo master 
  key or successful DC 10 check using thieves tools. 
  A sales desk along the south wall contains a 
  cashbox containing 2d12 gp of various coinage. It 
  is unlocked, but warded with an alarm spell. If the 
  correct command word is not spoken prior to 
  opening the box, the alarm triggers and sprays 
  blue ink in a 5 foot radius. The ink is magical and 
  can only be removed by lesser restoration or similar 
  magic. The ink will dissipate on its own after 10 
  days. On display in the gift shoppe is anything 
  you could want as as souvenir - posters, hats, 
  clothing, plush toys - most in the visage of 
  owlbears or manticore.
  V3. OFFICE 
  The ofﬁce has doors to the north leading to a 
  stairwell down (to V5), and south to a small closet 
  (V4). Neither are locked. Two massive paintings, 
  one of an owlbear roaring ﬁercely and the other a 
  manticore taking ﬂight, sit behind a luxurious oak 
  desk set in front of the angled east wall. The desk 
  doesn’t contain anything useful, but is currently 
  arrayed with correspondence between Amil and 
  Volothamp Geddarm regarding the sad state of 
  negotiations with bullywug tribalists in bringing 
  a froghemoth to the zoo as the next underwater 
  attraction.
  V4. CLOSET 
  This closet is dominated by a coat rack stuffed 
  with surplus uniforms, warm weather gear, and 
  even a few mascot style costumes. At the back of 
  the closet, afﬁxed to the wall, is a metal box 
  labeled First Aid. The box contains a full healers 
  kit, three potions of healing, a scroll of revivify (PHB 
  272), and a vial hand labeled “B. Gullet Oil”. On a 
  successful DC 15 Wisdom (Nature, Medicine, or 
  Survival) check a character can ascertain that this 
  oil restores a creature who has been turned to 
  stone (see basilisk MM 24). The vial contains 
  enough oil for 3 applications.
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  84
  REMY THURSTAN 
  Medium humanoid (human), chaotic neutral 
  Armor Class 14 (studded leather) 
  Hit Points 38 (7d8) 
  Speed 30 ft. 
  STR 
  DEX 
  CON 
  INT 
  WIS 
  CHA 
  11 (+0) 
  14 (+2) 
  11 (+0) 
  13 (+1) 
  8 (-1) 
  14 (+2) 
  Saving Throws Dex +5, Int +4  
  Skills Slight of Hand +5, Deception +5, Persuasion +5 
  Senses passive Perception 9 
  Languages Common, Halfling, Sylvan 
  Challenge 4 (1100 XP) 
  Spellcasting. Remy is an arcane trickster that uses Intelligence as his 
  spellcasting ability (spell save DC 13, +5 to hit with spell attacks. 
  Remy has the following spells prepared: 
  Cantrips (at will): light, mage hand, ray of frost, shocking grasp 
  1st level (4 slots / 2 remaining): charm person, disguise self, sleep 
  2nd level (2 slots / none remain): arcane lock, knock 
  ACTIONS 
  Remy makes two attacks with his rapier, or one spell attack. 
  Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 
  6 (1d8+2) necrotic damage. 
  Ray of Frost. Ranged Spell Attack: +5 to hit, range 60 ft., one 
  target. Hit: 8 (2d8) cold damage and the target’s speed is reduced 
  by 10 feet until the start of Remy’s next turn. 
  Shocking Grasp. Melee Spell Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one 
  target. Hit: 8 (2d8) lightning damage. This attack is made at 
  advantage if the target is wearing metal armor. 
  ROLEPLAYING INFORMATION 
  The “mastermind“ of this operation, Remy Thurstan planned the 
  heist right up until the “getaway” part. He now finds himself trapped 
  for fear of the zoo creatures. His hopes for fame and esteem among 
  his peers is nearly as great as his expectation of profit.  
  Ideal: “The more rich I become, the more renowned I will become, 
  the more rich I will become.” 
  Bond: “Small potatoes aren’t worth bothering with once you’ve seen 
  the big one.”. 
  Flaw: “I never seem to think things through past the part where I get 
  what I want.”
  
  V5. BASEMENT CORRIDOR  
  This long hallway also serves as a clerical area for 
  zoo business. A writing desk in the southeast 
  corner is scattered with papers detailing staff 
  schedules and other mundane zoo business. Most 
  of the north wall of the hallway is ﬁlled with 
  ceiling high wooden shelving containing box after 
  box of similar paperwork. A character 
  investigating the shelving with a successful DC 20 
  Wisdom (Perception) check will ﬁnd a scroll of hold 
  monster (PHB 251) at the top of a box holding 
  documents from the zoo expansion. If the 
  characters are doing more than a cursory search 
  of boxes, allow them to make the check at 
  advantage. A door at the end of the hallway to the 
  west leads to another hallway (V8). A sign on that 
  door reads “WARNING: High Magic Area. 
  Authorized Personnel Only,” but the door does 
  not have a lock. The door on the south wall leads 
  to a large utility room (V6).
  V6. BASEMENT UTILITY 
  This room is used primarily as storage for 
  landscaping equipment. A closed but unlocked 
  door at the far north of the room connects to a 
  hallway (V5). The double doors to the south lead 
  outside behind the visitor center (V10) and are 
  currently a few inches ajar allowing daylight to 
  stream in, illuminating the western half of the 
  room with dim light. Wheelbarrows, carts, and 
  various hand tools are arranged neatly around the 
  room. Unless the characters entered the zoo via 
  the west gate as outlined in part 2 of the 
  adventure, the two gricks (MM 173) that had 
  escaped their habitat in the western area of the 
  zoo are lurking in the shadows on the east side of 
  the room. The door to the northeast leading to V7 
  has no physical lock, but is currently being held 
  fast by an arcane lock (PHB 215) spell. If it seems as 
  though the characters are about to open the door 
  to V7, Remy attempts to ﬂee out of the door to the 
  south to V10.
  V7. MAGICALLY LOCKED CLOSET 
  This large closet is dedicated to the storage of an 
  abundance of zoo signage, as well as few 
  informational kiosks like those on display in V1. 
  An overweight zookeeper wearing only his 
  undergarments and socks named Gus Anderson 
  (NG human male commoner) is sound asleep on 
  the ﬂoor in the northeast corner. He can be roused 
  physically in a manner such as shaking, but even 
  a loud noise is unlikely wake him from his 
  slumber. If the characters speak with him he will 
  nervously claim that the last thing he remembers 
  is a dark haired man walking into the visitor 
  center. A successful DC 10 Wisdom (Insight) 
  check reveals that he is concealing the full story 
  out of embarrassment and fear of losing his job. 
  Gus was charmed by Remy Thurston and led the 
  villain to the power crystal in V9 before being 
  magically put to sleep and locked in the closet. If 
  pressed, Remy breaks down in tears and tells the 
  characters everything he knows if they make a 
  successful DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) or DC 5 
  Charisma (Intimidation) check. 
  85
  WATERDEEP
  Grick
  
  V8. MAGIC ACCESS 
  This hallway is a small museum unto itself, with 
  the east and west walls lined with technical 
  diagrams, blueprints, and portraits of the 
  dignitaries and magicians responsible for 
  construction of the modern zoo. A heavily 
  fortiﬁed iron door stands at the south end of the 
  long hall. It is protected by an intricate lock (DC 
  20 to pick with thieves tools) that can be opened 
  by the master key granted by Amil Andler. Remy 
  Thurston had previously gained entrance to V9 
  using a knock spell. 
  Since Remy removed the zoo power crystal in 
  V9, its ongoing absence has allowed the Spirit of 
  Perythia Aldenber to manifest. If a character 
  bearing a zoo power crystal approaches, she moves 
  incorporeally through the door to confront them 
  in attempt to secure her freedom.
  A shimmering translucent visage of a young girl 
  appears before you and shouts “No! Let the manticore 
  devour villages! I will not be placed back in that crystal 
  cage!”  
  Perythia attempts to persuade the characters to 
  let her spirit rest. If any character attempts to 
  open the door to V9 while a member of the party 
  possesses a zoo power crystal, she attacks. She is 
  not bloodthirsty, allowing the characters to easily 
  retreat. If reduced to 0 hp, she persists as a 
  ghostly ﬁgure who can take no actions, but 
  continues to angrily berate the characters for their 
  actions so long as they remain in V8 or V9.
  The Spirit of Perythia Aldenber  
  The magic of the zoo does not originate from the zoo 
  power crystal, it is merely focused by it. The true 
  source of power is the soul of the zoo’s namesake, 
  Perythia Aldenber. Dead to a tragic illness at age 12, 
  She lay in rest until the zoo expansion. The back of the 
  zoo where the visitor center is located butts up against 
  the graveyard (in Waterdeep, the City of the Dead) in 
  which she was buried. Her uncle, Lord Aldenber, 
  naively agreed that in the new zoo “she will live on 
  forever,” and the power of her essence was focused 
  through the crystal as the source of the zoo’s magic. 
  With the crystal removed, it took only a short time for 
  her spirit to manifest on the material plane. If not 
  refocused by the crystal, she will complete her journey 
  to eternal rest. 
  Perythia doesn’t know how long she will remain on the 
  material plane in spirit form before passing on to the 
  afterlife, but she can feel its draw growing stronger by 
  the moment. Part 4 of the adventure outlines the 
  circumstances under which she escapes to the afterlife. 
  Use the physical description and stat block for wraith 
  (MM 302), except the Spirit of Perythia Aldenber is 
  neutral good and any specters she creates return to 
  their normal form in stable condition if she is reduced 
  to 0 hit points or her spirit leaves the material plane. 
  V9. ZOO POWER 
  The center of this small room is occupied by a 
  pedestal etched of glyphs and runes. It’s obvious 
  that this pedestal houses the zoo power crystal. 
  A cabinet on the east wall of the room contains 
  tools used in the construction and maintenance of 
  magical artifacts, as well as two additional power 
  crystals overlooked by Remy in his pillaging. 
  Although they possess magical properties and 
  would be worth 300 gp to the right buyer, they do 
  not on their own power the zoo’s magic.
  If a power crystal is placed on the pedestal 
  while the Spirit of Perythia Aldenber remains on 
  the material plane, it begins to glow in a soft 
  pulse as the apparition is slowly sucked into it all 
  the while wailing in agony. Further deep whirring 
  and soft booming sounds indicate that the 
  magical infrastructure throughout the zoo is 
  being restored. 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  86
  Undeath hasn’t 
  been kind to 
  Perythia Aldenber
  
  V10. VISITOR CENTER REAR 
  See M6 “Entering via the West Gate” for more 
  information about Maya Pashren. If the 
  characters started at the main entrance and 
  traversed the zoo rather than entering through the 
  west gate, they ﬁnd the female halﬂing in 
  zookeeper uniform lying dead and half eaten just 
  outside the rear entrance to the visitor center 
  lower level, the door which stands slightly ajar. 
  Her remaining exposed ﬂesh is covered in small, 
  round, evenly spaced purple bruises. The 
  removed ﬂesh is severed in triangular bite marks. 
  She was killed and dragged to this spot by the 
  pair of gricks hiding in V6. If the characters search 
  her body they will ﬁnd the scroll of hold monster 
  (PHB 251) tucked in an inside pocket of her vest.
  PART 4: AFTERMATH 
  By the time the characters leave the visitor center, 
  reinforcements in the form of four members of the 
  City Watch (veterans MM 350) lead by Lord 
  Aldenber’s personal guard, Ser Raymond Jace 
  (knight MM 347) have arrived. 
  Ser Raymond and the city watch entered 
  through the zoo’s main entrance and proceeded 
  along the western route towards the visitor center. 
  Any zoo creature along this route (i.e. bears, apes, 
  rhinos, owlbears) not killed by the characters 
  have been subdued and restrained in nets.
  If Remy Thurston was not detained by the 
  characters, he left the visitor center as soon as the 
  monster threat was abated. Ser Raymond, 
  believing Remy to be zookeeper Gus, allowed the 
  thief to abscond from the zoo with his prize.
  Shouldn’t Have Stopped To Thieve 
  If a character is covered in blue ink from trigging the 
  trapped cashbox in the gift shoppe (visitor center V2) 
  they are arrested for theft in addition to any other 
  charges the party may or may not evade. 
  MISSION ACCOMPLISHED? 
  If the zoo’s power has been restored, a jovial Ser 
  Raymond congratulates the characters heartily 
  and offers to escort them to Lord Aldenber’s 
  manor to be personally rewarded. 
  If the characters turn over Remy Thurston and 
  evidence of his guilt (e.g. the testimony of Gus 
  Anderson or Remy’s possession of the pilfered 
  power crystal), the City Watch takes Remy into 
  custody and the characters receive an additional 
  reward.
  TAKE ‘EM AWAY, BOYS 
  If the characters allowed Perythia to remain free 
  and the zoo’s power has not been restored, Ser 
  Raymond assumes that they are responsible for 
  the attack on the zoo and orders them arrested. 
  We Got the Perp. If the characters can produce 
  Remy and evidence that he is the guilty party, Ser 
  Raymond apologies to the characters for the 
  misunderstanding and congratulates them on 
  apprehending the criminal.
  87
  WATERDEEP
  Ser Raymond Jace
  
  Exculpatory Evidence. Even if Remy managed 
  to escape, the testimony of Gus Anderson is 
  enough to convince Ser Raymond of the 
  characters’ innocence. If Gus isn’t with the 
  characters but they bring him up in their defense, 
  Ser Raymond will send his men to fetch him. If 
  for some reason Gus can’t back the characters up, 
  they might still be able to talk their way out of 
  things. If their story is plausible, Ser Raymond 
  will bring them along into the visitor center as he 
  investigates.
  Surrender. If the characters are arrested and go 
  willingly, Amil Andler protests loudly as they are 
  marched through the main zoo entrance. The 
  characters are still taken to jail, but Amil shouts 
  after them that he will testify to their innocence. 
  The characters are released later that evening 
  cleared of all charges.
  Fight or Flight. The characters may choose to 
  resist arrest by engaging in combat, running 
  away, or both.
  Ser Raymond is honor bound to ﬁght to the 
  death, and while he is alive the members of the 
  City Watch don’t dare do otherwise. If Ser 
  Raymond is killed, they ﬂee for their lives. If the 
  characters are defeated they awaken in a dungeon 
  hours later, stable with 1 HP, awaiting execution.
  If at any point the characters under arrest 
  attempt to ﬂee, a chase will ensue. The rules for a 
  chase are on page 252 of the Dungeon Master’s 
  Guide. If caught, the characters guilt is assumed 
  and their punishment especially severe.  
  In the event the characters successfully evade 
  arrest, they remain wanted criminals in the city.
  DUTY CALLS 
  Ser Raymond’s objective is to restore the zoo’s 
  power, and he intends to do so. 
  After speaking with Amil Andler he knows that 
  a power crystal must be placed on the pedestal in 
  V9, and he knows that there are at least four 
  crystals available to him: the original, two 
  backups in V9, and one that Amil gave to to the 
  helpful adventurers who were ﬁrst on the 
  scene.When Ser Raymond learns of the Spirit of 
  Perythia Aldenber, he assumes that it is a trick, 
  not the Lord’s late niece. He will ﬁght the wraith 
  until it is defeated and then place a crystal on the 
  pedestal, restoring the zoo’s magic.
  RESCUING THE SPIRIT OF  
  PERYTHIA ALDENBER 
  Now that Ser Raymond and his men have 
  arrived, The Spirit of Perythia Aldenber is close to 
  moving on to the afterlife and will do so unless 
  Ser Raymond defeats her and traps her soul in the 
  power crystal. 
  If she escapes, placing a power crystal on the 
  pedestal does nothing and restoring the zoo’s 
  power is beyond the ability of the characters or 
  Ser Raymond and his men.
  There are a number of ways the characters 
  might attempt to intervene:
  Force. The characters could engage Ser 
  Raymond and his men in combat in attempt to 
  allow Perythia time to escape the material plane. 
  After six rounds of combat she is able to do so.  
  The consequences of ﬁghting Ser Raymond and 
  his men are outlined above.
  A Lack of Resources. Ser Raymond isn’t is 
  possession of the power crystal he needs, 
  although he knows where to get one. If the two 
  backups in V9, the crystal stolen by Remy, and the 
  one given to the characters by Amil Andler are 
  somehow withheld for Ser Raymond, Perythia 
  will have time to escape to the afterlife. 
  Ser Raymond knows the characters were in 
  possession of at least one power crystal. He will 
  go so far as to threaten execution of a character (a 
  threat he is willing follow through on) if they 
  refuse to hand it over.
  Stalling. The characters might attempt to 
  ﬁlibuster or lead Ser Raymond away from his 
  goal. If Ser Raymond isn’t hostile to the 
  characters, they can delay him with a successful 
  DC 15 Charisma (Persuasion) check. If the 
  characters give him a good reason to take some 
  time consuming action (e.g. searching a different 
  area in the visitor center) the check can be made 
  at advantage.
  If the characters take this approach, 3 successful 
  skill checks delaying Ser Raymond  before he 
  encounters Perythia in V8 give her enough time 
  to escape the material plane.  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  88
  
  Pursuasion. Ser Raymond isn’t a decision 
  maker; he follows orders. Even a silver tongued 
  character is unlikely to change his mind, 
  requiring a DC 30 Charisma (Persuasion) check. If 
  another character helps make the argument the 
  check is made at advantage.
  The characters might try to convince Ser 
  Raymond that Lord Aldenber would be furious if 
  he did anything to harm Perythia. Although he is 
  sure the apparition is a hoax, he is slightly 
  worried about risking his own standing with the 
  lord. If the characters take this approach a DC 25 
  Charisma (Intimidation) check is required instead.
  In either case, if the characters fail one check 
  Ser Raymond is resolute and nothing further can 
  persuade him. 
  PERYTHIA’S SOUL RECAPTURED 
  Unless the characters manage to stop him, Ser 
  Raymond will enter V8 and defeat The Spirit of 
  Perythia Aldenber in combat. He then places a 
  power crystal onto the pedestal in V9, trapping 
  Perythia’s soul and restoring the zoo’s magic.
  Distraction or hoax created by the perpetrator 
  of the crime against the zoo or not, Ser Raymond 
  will report all the details regarding the 
  appearance of a spirit claiming to be the late 
  Perythia Aldenber to Lord Hormance Aldenber. If 
  the characters are in good standing with Ser 
  Raymond and ask to speak to Lord Alderber, he 
  allows them to accompany him to court.
  Although skeptical (and horriﬁed by the 
  possible truth of his beloved niece being 
  tortured), Lord Aldenber will investigate, 
  eventually closing the zoo and laying Perythia’s 
  soul to eternal rest.Rewards
  Depending on the outcome of the adventure, the 
  characters may earn the following rewards:
  CHARACTERS RESTORED ZOO 
  POWER 
  If the characters (not Ser Raymond) restored the 
  zoo’s power:
  • Lord Aldenber awards each character 50 gp.
  • Amil Andler allows the characters to keep the 
  druid wand (Otherwise Ser Raymond removes it 
  from their possession and returns it to the zoo).
  • Additionally, if the characters didn’t kill any 
  of the zoo creatures (or can provide adequate 
  justiﬁcation for having done so) Amil also gives 
  the characters a token of personal appreciation: 
  a marble elephant, a ﬁgurine of wondrous power 
  (DMG 169-170). 
  • If the characters embarked on this mission at 
  the behest of a faction, each character belonging 
  to that faction gains 2 renown.
  PERYTHIA ALDENBER ESCAPES 
  If the characters prevented a zoo power crystal 
  trapping the Spirit of Perythia Aldendber, she 
  instead moves on to the afterlife.
  That night she appears to each character who 
  did not engage her in combat and bestows upon 
  them a charm of animal conjuring (DMG 228, PHB 
  225). She admits remorse over what may come of 
  the zoo, its animals, and any consequence of their 
  escape, but she is eternally grateful to the 
  characters for freeing her.  
  REMY THURSTAN CAPTURED 
  If Remy Thurstan is brought to justice, the local 
  authorities pay the party a 200 gp reward.
  89
  WATERDEEP
  Remy Thurstan brought to justice
  
  DM MAP - ZOO 
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  90
  Perythia Aldenber Memorial Zoo
  N
  Main Entrance  
  & Museum
  West Gate
  Visitor Centre 
  & 
  Gift Shoppe
  Beast Exhibits
  * Not to scale
  East Gate
  Staff 
   Only 
  Area
  Staff 
   Only 
  Area
  Manticore 
  Habitat
  Owlbear 
  Enclosure
  free! 
  ying 
  Aquatic Stadium &  
  Underwater Glasshall
  B1
  B2
  B3
  B4
  B5
  M1
  M3
  M4
  M4
  M2
  M5
  M6
  M7
  V10
  
  DM MAP - VISITOR CENTER 
  91
  WATERDEEP
  V1
  V8
  Scale: 1
  = 5 feet
  Main Level
  Lower Level
  V2
  V3
  V4
  V5
  V6
  V7
  V9
  V10
  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  92
  Adorable Beasts, 
  Amazing Monstrosities 
  In addition to the beast collection of the Old Zoo, 
  PAMZ now features two permanent Monstrosity 
  Exhibits. 
  The Owlbear Enclosure near the west zoo 
  entrance houses the only known owlbear mating 
  pair in captivity. Feedings at noon daily.
  The eastern side of the zoo is home to the 
  Manticore Habitat. Gaze to the sky to witness 
  one of our Pride take ﬂight. 
  View Creatures of the Sea, 
  From Above and Below 
  Our Aquatic Stadium features the largest sea 
  water holding tank in the region, and thanks to 
  the magic in our Underwater Glasshall you can 
  observe monsters of the sea from below as well 
  as above! Attraction changes quarterly. Stadium 
  seats 200. Shows at 10am, 2pm, and 6pm. 
  General stadium admission included, ﬁrst come 
  ﬁrst serve. Reservations required for Glasshall 
  access during showtimes.
  Now Showing: 
  About your Zoo 
  Hormance Aldenber’s Vision 
  PAMZ was founded nearly four score years ago 
  by the late Lord Hormance Aldenber in honor of 
  his beloved niece. Perythia Aldenber enjoyed a 
  keen love of nature and its creatures, and after 
  her untimely demise due to childhood illness 
  Lord Hormance dedicated land and endowment 
  establishing the regions ﬁrst and only capture of 
  interesting creatures for the enjoyment of 
  children of all ages.
  A Modern Marvel 
  As we approach the ﬁfteenth anniversary of the 
  zoo’s grand expansion, PAMZ remains a 
  testament to modern magic and engineering. 
  With the addition of castle style walls, realistic 
  reconstruction of natural habitat, and powerful 
  magics, this zoo oﬀers more than the run of the 
  mill bestiary! Thanks to the cooperation of 
  Wizards throughout the region, our zoo oﬀers the 
  unprecedented experience of walking amongst 
  amazing and terrifying creatures without visual 
  impediment. Although the experience can be 
  frightening, rest assured that our state of the art 
  magical wards and restraints provide complete 
  visitor safety.
  Please Be Considerate! 
  Do not attempt to feed the animals. Place all 
  waste in the receptacles provided. Unlawful and 
  unruly behavior will result in removal from the 
  facility. No outside food or beverages permitted. 
  PAMZ reserves the right to refuse service to 
  anyone. All outside magic is prohibited without 
  prior consent.
  Perythia 
  Aldenber 
  Memorial Zoo 
  CHULL 
  Watch as this relic from the aboleth era devours a 
  different barnyard animal at each showtime 
  feeding.  Be amazed as their giant claws grapple 
  and tentacles poison their prey. Show includes 
  demonstration of chull’s magic sensing prowess 
  courtesy Silver Strand Wizarding Club.
  
  93
  WATERDEEP
  Perythia Aldenber Memorial Zoo
  N
  Main Entrance  
  & Museum
  West Gate
  Visitor Centre 
  & 
  Gift Shoppe
  Beast Exhibits
  * Not to scale
  East Gate
  Staff 
   Only 
  Area
  Staff 
   Only 
  Area
  Manticore 
  Habitat
  Owlbear 
  Enclosure
  Admission 
  Adults : 2 silver 
  Children : 1 silver 
  Children age 5 and younger: free! 
  Family: 5 silver 
  Annual Pass 
  Individual : 2 gold 
  Family : 3 gold 
  Children free with accompanying 
  adult annual pass holder 
  Aquatic Stadium &  
  Underwater Glasshall
  
  FACTION ADVENTURES
  94
  Perythia Aldenber Memorial Zoo
  N
  Main Entrance  
  & Museum
  Visitor Centre 
  & 
  Gift Shoppe
  Beast Exhibits
  * Not to scale
  Staff 
   Only 
  Area
  Staff 
   Only 
  Area
  Manticore 
  Habitat
  Owlbear 
  Enclosure
  Admission 
  Adults : 2 silver 
  Children : 1 silver 
  Children age 5 and younger: free! 
  Family: 5 silver 
  Annual Pass 
  Individual : 2 gold 
  Family : 3 gold 
  Children free with accompanying 
  adult annual pass holder 
  Aquatic Stadium &  
  Underwater Glasshall
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/Paul Metzger/Waterdeep Faction Adventures (Volume 1).pdf