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In remixing Dragon Heist as a dynamic campaign, it becomes necessary for the DM to be able to respond dynamically to the players’ actions. As I mentioned in the description of the Faction Outposts, the DM needs to be actively playing each faction. Response teams are the other half of that equation, providing small, proactive units for each faction that can be deployed as necessary.

These response teams are your primary proactive nodes for Dragon Heist. If you’re unfamiliar with the use of proactive nodes, they’re discussed as part of Advanced Node-Based Design. The short version is that the proactive nodes are the ones that come looking for the PCs. (As opposed to, say, the lairs and the outposts, which the PCs are most likely to go looking for.)

A few examples of what you can use response teams for:

• Competing onsite with the PCs during the Eye Heists (see Part 4), seeking to seize the prize before they can. (Or take it from them after they’ve gotten it.)
• Sent as negotiators to the PCs.
• Attempting to steal the Stone and/or Eyes from the PCs (break-ins at Trollskull Manor, attempted muggings on the street, etc.).
• Waylaying the PCs on their way to the Vault.
• Interfering with the PCs’ efforts to remove the gold from the vault.

But, ultimately, you’re thinking about what the factions know and thinking about how they would respond and then you’re going to use the response teams to do that.

GM Tip: If you’re new to this sort of thing and struggling to come to grips with it, there are a couple of things you can do.

First, take 5 minutes between sessions to think about what each faction is going to do next. Some of those things won’t affect the PCs; some will. Make a list of those and when they’ll happen: Gorath will come to Trollskull Manor at 5pm on the 10^th. Souun Xibrindas will target one of the PCs for assassination with a sniper team at 10am on the 11^th. And so forth. You can do the same thing during a mid-session break. Eventually, you’ll be able to do it in real-time while playing.

Second, as you’re ready to make that transition, make a simple list of the response teams. Stick it to your GM screen as a Post-It note or otherwise keep it handy. When you feel a need to respond to what the PCs are doing, glance at the list and go. You don’t have to keep all this information in your head simultaneously: Make cheat sheets.

COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE: Awhile back I designed skill guidelines for counter-intelligence — if you’re asking questions about certain people or organizations, there’s a real risk that they’ll find out that you’ve been asking questions. Those guidelines were designed for 3^rd Edition, but you shouldn’t find it too difficult to adapt them to 5^th Edition.

Once the PCs know that they’ve gotten themselves tangled up in a Grand Game, you may also want to tell the players about the counter-intelligence procedures. Partly because it’ll give them the opportunity to guard their own intelligence-gathering efforts, but more importantly because it will give them the opportunity to perform counter-intelligence: When the factions are trying to figure out who the PCs are or who they’re working for or what they’re up to, if the PCs are vigilant they may catch wind of that. And that may provide an alternative avenue for investigation (usually taking them to one of the Faction Outposts).

BREGAN D’AERTHE RESPONSE TEAMS

Bregan D’Aerthe’s response teams all follow a common profile:

• 1-2 drow gunslingers (DH p. 201)
• 4-8 drow (MM p. 126)

One of the drow gunslingers is likely to be one of Jarlaxle’s lieutenants (DH p. 201-202):

• Fel’rekt Lafeen
• Krebbyg Masq’il’yr
• Soluun Xibrindas

Later in the campaign, you might have a team with all of the surviving lieutenants show up for a climactic battle.

Note that Fel’Rekt is also the lieutenant leading the Bregan D’Aerthe team at Gralhund Villa (see Part 2). All of them have quarters on Jarlaxle’s ships.

FEL’REKT LAFEEN

• A Recommendation for Materiel: A note written in silver ink on black paper. “Regarding the need for alternative sources of materiel, make contact with Grinda Garloth of Mistshore. Use all caution and do not reveal your true heritage, as she is allied with the beholder and that poses certain risks for us now. – J”

KREBBYG MASQ’IL’YR

• Sealed Letter to Fenerus Stormcastle. A simple missive addressed to “Fenerus Stormcastle, of Quill Alley” thanking him for his service. It is written in silver ink on black paper and signed “J”. It is attached to a velvet pouch containing 100 gp.

SOLUUN XIBRINDAS

• Carries a bloodstained playbill from the Seven Masks Theater, belonging to a performance of Blood Wedding which took place several nights earlier. (In the play, according to the playbill, a young woman is brought to a castle by a count, only to fall in love with his younger brother, a man of faith. Her betrayal eats away at the jealous count. He murders his brother on his wedding day and pursues the bride, who hurls herself off the castle battlements in despair. The count is cursed by the gods and transformed into a creature of darkness, damned to live in his castle and feed on blood.)
• GM Note: Soluun has taken to attending plays at the Seven Masks Theater and then stalking and murdering elven and half-elven members of the audience after the show.

CASSALANTER RESPONSE TEAMS

If the PCs have agreed to help the Cassalanters, then the Cassalanters will generally be fairly passive in their activities. (The PCs are their agents in the field.) If the PCs request assistance from them, however, the Cassalanters might dispatch Seffia Naelryke and her team (either to gather intelligence and deliver it to them, or to fight at their side).

If the PCs turn down the Cassalanters, then the whole shape of the campaign will shift:

• Imps summoned at the Asmodean Shrine will try to keep the PCs under constant surveillance, keeping the Cassalanters apprised of what the PCs are doing and learning.
• Add Seffia’s team to the Eye Heist at Xanathar’s. They’ll be aiming for the same goal.
• Willifort Crowelle will attempt to assassinate Jarlaxle. He’ll fail, but a few days later he’ll target the PCs in a similar attempt. This may prompt Jarlaxle to reach out to the PCs and propose an alliance against the Cassalanters.

SEFFIA NAELRYKE: Seffia is a loyal Asmodean cultist. She lives at the Converted Windmill outpost with Arn Xalrondar.

• Seffia Naelryke (cult fanatic, MM p. 345)
• 2 spies (MM p. 349)
• 1 veteran (MM p. 350)
• 1 invisible imp (MM p. 76)

Seffia’s Letter: Seffia carries a letter from Lord Cassalanter. It reads: “Seffia—Lady Ammalia and I are both deeply moved by what your ritual accomplished. It speaks to your true faith in the power of our Master, and you have clearly been blessed by him. As you suspected, we did, in fact, find Neverember’s Third Eye in the crypt of Lady Brandath. Thank you for all that you have done. — Lord Victoro”.

• GM Note: This is a prized possession for Seffia and she keeps it with her at all times. She will cry out with anguish and rage if it is taken from her.

WILLIFORT CROWELLE: “Willifort” is supposedly the elderly tiefling valet of the Cassalanters. In truth he is a doppelganger and their most trusted lieutenant. Willifort might approach the PCs disguised as a friend or ally in order to pump them for information; or he may try to burn the PCs’ bridges by disguising himself as one of them and doing something to piss off powerful people. And when the Cassalanters definitively need a problem solved, Crowelle is the one they’ll send in with a team of demonic enforcers.

• “Willifort Crowelle” (doppelganger, MM p. 82)
• bearded devil (MM p. 70) or 2 cult fanatics (MM p. 345)
• 3 cultists (MM p. 345)

XANATHAR RESPONSE TEAMS

GORATH: Gorath is the leader of a small team of duergar. His team is sent in one when someone needs to be taught a lesson.

• 4 duergar (MM p. 122)

KORGSTROD UXGULM: If Gorath is taken out, Korgstrod is sent out from the Xanathar Sewer Hideout (see Outposts) to send a stronger message.

• Korgstrod Uxgulm (duergar, MM p. 122)
• 3 duergar
• half-ogre (MM p. 238)
  • Orb Confectioners’ Note: The half-ogre carries a note which reads, “Orb Confectioners. Say: ‘Eight small eyes.’ ‘Around an ocular cake.’”
• gazer (DH p. 203)

NOSKA UR’GRAY: Noska, a shield dwarf, is another of Xanathar’s enforcers.

• Noska Ur’gray (DH p. 213)
• 6 bugbears (MM p. 33)
• gazer (DH p. 203)

A DIRECTIVE FROM N’ARL XIBRINDAS: The first or second Xanathar response team the PCs encounter should carry A Directive From N’Arl Xibrindas, instructing the leader of the response team to get “properly outfitted” by Grinda Garloth. (If it’s the second response team they’ve dealt with, it might specify that “these gutter-scum upstarts already took out [insert name here], so you’ll want to make sure you’ve got something a little extra to deal with them.”)

• This team has a potion of healing, potion of greater healing, and a +1 weapon. (They were, in fact, outfitted by Grinda.)

ZHENTARIM RESPONSE TEAMS

Manshoon’s response teams consist of:

• 1 lieutenant (Vevette, Urstul, or Agorn)
• 3-4 thugs

All of Manshoon’s lieutenants carry pass-amulets to Kolat Towers (see Part 4), but will attempt to destroy them if it looks as if they are being captured. (Except Agorn, that feckless weasel, who will attempt to barter it for his own life.) They leave their teleport rings with Sidra Romeir when journeying outside Kolat Towers. (If they’re slain by the PCs, Sidra will give them to Kaevra; see Part 4E.)

TO THE INTERROGATION HOUSE: Any Zhentarim response team sent to attack the PCs will have been instructed to take them as prisoners to the Zhentarim Interrogation House. If questioned, they’ll be able to point the PCs in the direction of the house in Brindul Alley in the Trade Ward.

VEVETTE BLACKWATER: When she was a young girl, Vevette was abused by her mother. A Zhentarim agent came to her when she was twelve, put a blade in her hand, and asked if she wanted to take control of her life. She did. And she’s been in the Black Network ever since.

Vevette’s past manifests itself in a deep streak of cruelty and ruthlessness, but to most outward appearance she is a charming bon vivant. She has fiery red hair with two streaks of brilliant platinum, which can actually glow in the dark on her command.

Stats: CE female Tethyrian human swashbuckler (DH p. 216)

Notes:

• Vevette carries Seffia Naelryke’s Visiting Card. It gives Seffia’s address as “the Windmill on Coachlamp Lane”. (GM Note: Seffia approached Vevette in order to open a discrete line of communication between the Cassalanters and Manshoon, but her overtures were rebuffed. After their experiences with Xanathar, the Zhentarim suspected a trap.)

AGORN FUOCO: Agorn made such a good impression on Manshoon that he was elevated quickly through the ranks of the organization, but his life was full of disappointment otherwise. He has not achieved the fame he craved nor earned the wealth he felt he was entitled to. He has adopted the Zhentarim credo that power comes to those who deserve it. In fact, he believed it so much that he murdered his own mother in order to “escape” her poverty. He has come to see the Black Network as a new family of sorts.

Agorn is a hollow coward. When engaging with the PCs, he will generally send the thugs under his command to attack while he remains at a safe distance. If his men are being slaughtered, he will bravely run away as quickly as possible in order to save his own worthless hide. As noted above, he will offer up his pass-amulet to Kolat Towers in exchange for his own life.

Agorn is friends with Amath Seccent (see Yellowspire in Part 3B: Faction Outposts), but he will gladly sell her out, too, revealing the existence of the teleportation circle in Yellowspire.

Stats: NE male Turami bard (DH p. 195)

Notes:

• Agorn carries a Report to Agorn Fuoco. “Korgstrod Uxgulm’s outfit is based out of the Orb Confectioners’ on Rising Ride just off Caravan Court. Not sure how the backroom can fit them all, but there’s no question that Xanathar’s duergar come in and out of there on the regular.”

URSTUL FLOXIN: Urstul is a thuggish man who notably leads both the Zhentarim attempt to capture Dalakhar (and gets blown up for his trouble) and their operation at the Gralhund Villa. If he survives the latter, he can crop up later leading a response team.

Stats & Background: DH p. 216

Notes:

• Urstul carries the Directive to Urstul Floxin: “Any prisoners taken from the other players of the Grand Game should be delivered to Avaareen in Brindul Alley. – By Order of the Zhentarim”

DESIGN NOTE

Vevette Blackwater and Agorn Fuoco are supposed to appear in Appendix B of Dragon Heist. As far as I can tell, however, they’re missing in action, so I’ve provided more detailed backgrounds for them here.

Note that the Zhentarim response teams are generally weaker than the response teams from the other factions. This probably means the Zhents won’t be taken as seriously by the PCs as the other factions, but it also makes them a good selection if you want to or need to hit the PCs when they’re already weakened.

Also check out the “Secret Simulacrum” option on page 162 of Dragon Heist for another Zhentarim response option.

To Part 3D: Other Response Teams

Go to Part 1

XANATHARIAN OUTPOSTS

TERASSE ESTATE (Castle Ward, Elsambul’s Lane): The Terasse Estate is a modest rowhouse residence in the Castle Ward which is secretly owned by Xanathar. It is occupied by a Xanatharian operative named Keln Trigos, a tiefling priest (MM p. 348). Keln sometimes provides healing services to injured Xanatharians, but the house is more notable because it’s a designated gladiatorial gathering point: Those who wish to attend the gladiatorial combats in Xanathar’s Lair must go to one of these gathering points (there are several throughout the city, some heading through the sewers to X1, others following the route described below) in order to be escorted, as a group, to the games (and back).

Area 1 – Front Door: Those coming to the Terasse Estate must give a specific knock and an accompanying pass-phrase to be given entrance. There are two different combinations, one for healing services (“I heard the red hand was hot”) and another for the gladiatorial gatherings (“the bawdy star shines bright tonight”).

Area 2 – Dining Room: Those here for gladiatorial gatherings are brought together in this room for light socializing and the enjoyment of various delicacies placed upon the table. (Roasted bulette with rare Shou Louan spices. Rothé carpaccio with vargouille head cheese.)

Area 3 – Kitchen: A large rug of reddish scales covers the floor here. This can be thrown back to reveal a trap door with a narrow staircase leading down to an underground dock. Those heading to the gladiatorial gatherings will be blindfolded before being led down the stairs, and the blindfolds will remain in place until the boat arrive at another secret dock in the caverns near Skullport. This dock connects to a passage which intersects the one leading from Area X4 of Xanathar’s Lair to the Guts & Garter in Skullport.

Area 4 – Storeroom: Trigost’s larder and healing supplies.

Area 5 – Upper Landing: An ancient tapestry on the wall depicts a heavily stylized beholder with several humanoid figures of various races bowing in obeisance before it.

• Injury Reports: A logbook hanging on the wall here records those who have been treated here. The names listed are clear pseudonyms designed to keep the patrons of this house of healing anonymous. One recent entry, however, notes, that a particular wound from an arrow was the result of “incautious observation of the windmill on Coachlamp Lane”. (GM Note: This refers to the Converted Windmill, a Cassalanter outpost.)

Area 6-7 – Master Suite: This is Trigos’ bedchamber, with walk-in closet.

• Desk: Trigos has a variety of expensive stationaries and writing utensils for performing his correspondence, but he also hs a burn-pot that he obviously uses to destroy that correspondence on a regular basis. One recent bit of correspondence he hasn’t had a chance to reply to yet, however, is Instructions for Gladiatorial Weaponry: “The shipment of special weapons that X requested will be sent by Grinda Garloth in Mistshore. See that they’re bundled up and sent along with the next audience procession. -Ahmaergo” (GM Note: If it becomes notable, this is simple a bunch of vicious-looking oddities — many of them foreign weapons from distant lands — destined for the gladiatorial combats.)

Areas 8-10 – Sick Rooms: These bedrooms are used by Xanatharian agents who come to Trigos for his healing arts.

• An Ill Man’s Note: On the bedside table of a Xanatharian agent there’s a note which reads: “Orb Confectioners. / Eight small eyes. / How would you like those arranged? / Around an ocular cake.”

GRINDA GARLOTH: Just use the base description of Mistshore (see Dragon Heist, p. 65), ignoring all of the seasonal variants. Grinda is allied with Xanathar, working primarily as a black market armorer: Xanatharian agents can come to Grinda and get outfitted with high quality equipment. Grinda also freelances, renting her equipment (and Xanathar’s equipment) to third parties.

Area D2: Grinda’s chest contains:

• 500 gp
• A Note Regarding Gladiatorial Weaponry: “Xanathar wants the full bundle of weaponry delivered to Terasse’s house of healing on Elsambul’s Lane no later than two days from now so that it can be sent down to headquarters with the next gladiatorial audience. Don’t be late! He’s looking forward to seeing some exotic gutting. -Ahmaergo” (GM Note: If it becomes notable, this is simple a bunch of vicious-looking oddities — many of them foreign weapons from distant lands — destined for the gladiatorial combats.)

Area D3: Grinda has a wide assortment of mundane arms and armor (including several single-shot pistols). At any given time, she also has 1d4 pieces of magic arms and armor (roll on Table F, DMG p. 146), and 1d4 miscellaneous magic items (roll on Table A or B, DMG p. 145)

XANATHAR SEWER HIDEOUT, TAKE 2: The Xanathar Guild maintains a number of sewer hideouts throughout Waterdeep. This one is a duergar operation run by Korgstrod Uxgulm. Use the Autumn version of the Cellar Complex (see Dragon Heist, p. 86).

Orb Confectioners (Southern Ward, : The sewer hideout can be accessed from the cellar (Area B1) of the Orb Confectioners, a shop specializing in sweets fashion like eyes (smallcakes, sweatmeats, sugar plates, candied nuts).

• Passphrase: Those asking for “eight small eyes” are asked, “How would you like those arranged?” They are to answer, “Around an ocular cake.” If they do so, they are escorted to the basement stairs.

Area B7 – Mechanical Beholder: Mixed in with the other material in this room is a letter.

• On the Delivery of a Mechanical Beholder: “X is outraged that you bungling incompetents couldn’t get his piece de triumphe working for the Shipwrights’ Ball! If it isn’t seen swooping over the Feasts of Leirun, he’ll have your guts for garters! See that it’s delivered to Terasse’s house of healing on Elsambul’s Lane by the ninth of Tarsahk or be prepared to pay for it with your heads! -Ahmaergo”

Area B8: Remove the stairs up.

Area B9b – Korgstrud’s Room: The chest at the foot of his bed is a mimic. The coffer in a secret compartment under the bed (DC 13 to find) contains 500 gp and Correspondence with N’arl Xibrindas.

• Correspondence with N’arl Xibrindas: “Korgstrod—It is very important that this be kept in stricted confidence. Only you, me, and X know of the smokepowder. It must be brought to the Staircase of Eyes on the night of the 1^st at precisely the stroke of eleven. Use disposable muscle. I will mark the sewer tunnels west of your hideout with a red eye to guide your men. – N’arl Xibrindas.”
• GM Note: N’arl’s guildsign leads to Area X1 of Xanathar’s Lair (the secret entrance). See Part 5B: Finding Floon for guidelines on following guildsign. Due to its age, this guildsign requires DC 15 checks to follow and the final check is DC 17 because N’arl deliberately tried to destroy the symbols nearest Xanathar’s lair. If the PCs fail three times before succeeding, it indicates that time and/or N’arl have done too much damage and they’ve lost the trail.

ZHENTARIM OUTPOSTS

ZHENTARIM INTERROGATION HOUSE (Trade Ward, Brindul Alley): Avareen Windrivver (LE female Illuskan human spy) and Zorbog Jyarkoth (NE male Turami human thug) maintain this combination safe house / covert interrogation center.

• Use the Map for house L1 on p. 62 of Dragon Heist.

Front Room: Avareen and Zorbog live here. A nest of three black flying snakes (used by the Zhents for sending messages) nest in a corner near the ceiling.

• Avareen carries a pass-amulet for Kolat Tower (see Part 4).
• As the PCs are exploring the house, a flying snake arrives with A Directive to Zorbog. Signed by “Manshoon”, it exhorts Zorbog to “gather the usual gang” and kidnap “Fenerus Stormcastle, who lives on Quill Alley”, a “known associate of these new meddlers in the Grand Game”. Zorbog is to squeeze Fenerus until he reveals everything he knows about these new participants.

Backroom: The backroom has a rack and several other instruments of torture, along with an arcane circle painted on the floor in the corner. Currently strapped into the rack is Ott Steeltoes, a shield dwarf wearing a leather skullcap stitched with fake beholder eyestalks. Ott is a Xanatharian agent captured by the Zhentarim.

Rescuing Ott:

• Ott: “They kept asking me about where Xanathar kept the Eye! I don’t even know what that is!”
• Ott: “I knew Xanathar would send someone to rescue me! … You’re not with Xanathar? Well, thank you for saving me! We could use a few more good people like you right now with what those filthy Zhent bastards are doing! I could take you back to HQ and make some introductions if you’d like to sign up!”
• Or maybe the PCs can convince him they are Xanatharian agents and have him lead them back to Xanathar’s lair. Ott managed to resist torture for a long time, but in his immense gratitude he makes some errors in judgment.

YELLOWSPIRE (Castle Ward): Use the Winter version of the Old Tower (see Dragon Heist, p. 79). It is occupied by Amath Seccent (LE female Mulan priest), a Banite priestess allied with Manshoon, and her four acolytes.

• Seccent is friends with Agorn Fuoco (see Part 3C: Response Teams), and he may also be found visiting here.
• GM Note: The permanent teleportation circle in Yellowspire is one method of accessing Manshoon’s lair.
• GM Note: If the Gralhunds are still active in the Grand Game, one of their agents, Chirada, may be keeping Yellowspire under observation from a small apartment across the street. (See “A Missive from Castle Ward” in Area G12 of the Gralhund Villa.) Alternatively, following Chirada’s advice, the Gralhunds may be mounting an expedition to raid Yellowspire, access the teleportal, and try to find the Second Eye.

Area O2 – Ground Level: A crumpled note has been carelessly tossed to one side.

• Crumpled Note: “Seccent—I have nothing but contempt for what you have done. I don’t know what foul rites you hope to perform, but the more traditional rites of Brindul Alley would have surely wrung any information this broadsheet publisher might have had. Nonetheless, Manshoon’s word is my command, and so I present to you Shan Chien. May you choke on him. – Avareen”

USING THE OUTPOSTS

These Outposts are fairly flexible in their utility. The DM should be actively playing each faction, and these outposts are some of the tools they can use while doing so. (No different than playing a PC and using their equipment list.) Structurally speaking, however, they’re primarily designed to be pit stops or side quests for the PCs as they head for each faction’s Lair (see Part 4), allowing them to gather intelligence (including, for example, the actual location of hidden lairs and/or the means of accessing them).

Here are some ways to use the Outposts:

• If the PCs want to find a faction by doing general research, point them at the Outposts first. (The Outposts contain clues that point to the Lairs.)
• In some cases, the Outposts will also include vectors accessing Lairs that are difficult to access. (For example, the teleportation circle in Yellowspire or the gladiatorial audience caravans leaving from the Terasse Estate.)
• The PCs are invited to meet with a faction. (This is particularly true for Jarlaxle’s theater, for example.)
• The villains have kidnapped a friend or ally of the PCs. They’re being held in one of the Outposts and the PCs need to either rescue them or go to the Outpost and pay their ransom.
• Villainous operations targeting the PCs or other factions will be based out of the Outposts, giving the PCs an opportunity to track or backtrack them. (For example, a Xanathar raid targeting Jarlaxle’s ship might be based out of Grinda Garloth’s, perhaps even with the Apparatus of Kwalish coming into play.)

From the very beginning of the campaign, keep an eye out for opportunities to point the PCs at the Outposts from unusual angles. For example, maybe they go looking for a supplier of magic armor. Send them to Grinda Garloth’s. Or maybe they’re sent to Fenerus Stormcastle as someone who can help them unravel some guild trouble. Even if these opportunities don’t immediately lead the PCs to investigate these Outposts, it opens the door for them to be reincorporated later when they crop up as part of the Grand Game.

Also refer to Part 5: Clues and Timelines to see the revelation lists which will result in the PCs moving between and through the Outposts.

USING THE CASSALANTER OUTPOSTS

Because the PCs may end up working for the Cassalanters, the use of their Outposts deserves some special consideration.

If the PCs don’t agree to help the Cassalanters, the dynamics of the Cassalanters’ involvement in the campaign will completely change. This is discussed in more detail in Part 3C: Response Teams.

On the other hand, if the PCs agree to help the Cassalanters, then the Cassalanters are generally going to want to keep them at arm’s-length from the rest of their operations. (They recognize that the risk of outing themselves as devil-worshippers and losing the PCs’ support is too high.) In this scenario, the PCs may be able to follow clues from some of the other factions to Cassalanter operations and figure out that something isn’t right, but the odds are low.

The DM, therefore, needs to make a decision: Do they want to make it likely that the Cassalanters will get away with it and pull one over on the PCs? Or do they want the PCs to discover what kind of alliance they’ve made half-way through the Grand Game?

If it’s the former, simply do nothing: With the PCs working for them, the Cassalanters probably don’t have to do anything to get what they want. And they’re smart enough to sit back and do exactly that.

If it’s the latter, have the Harpers or a similar organization tell the PCs that they’ve discovered evidence of devil-worshippers active at a site in the North Ward and send the PCs to investigate the Asmodean Shrine: Once there, they have fairly good odds of discovering evidence that implicates the Cassalanters.

Go to Part 3C: Response Teams

Go to Part 1

As you may have already ascertained, this remix is simply tossing out most of Chapter 4: Dragon Season from the original campaign. The original sequences no longer work with the more dynamic, multi-faction approach we’re using for the remix, and I’m simply not that interested in these sorts of pre-scripted, linear, and often railroaded sequences.

We’re still going to take advantage of some of the raw material in Chapter 4, however, to create a number of Outposts for each faction. (In some ways you can think of this as sort of taking the best version of each location from the campaign.)

BREGAN D’AERTHE OUTPOSTS

FENERUS STORMCASTLE’S HOUSE (Trade Ward, Quill Alley – Dragon Heist, p. 63): Fenerus Stormcastle was the founder of the Blood Hawk Posse, a gang of horse-riding brigands that, to this day, harries travelers on the road to Amphail. When he was drummed out of the gang after a botched raid, Fenerus “retired” to Waterdeep and joined the Guild of Chandlers and Lamplighters. He supplements his income by spying for the city of Luskan and providing his contacts with information on the political climate in Waterdeep, as well as juicy bits of news overheard on his nightly rounds through the Trades Ward.

Since the Sea Maidens Faire arrived in Waterdeep, Fenerus has also been acting as a message drop for Bregan D’Aerthe. Fenerus collects messages from various covert drops and brings them back to his house, where they are collected by Krebbyg Masq’il’yr and taken back to Jarlaxle’s ship.

Questioning Fenerus: Although he’s supposed to be a cut-out, Fenerus once followed Krebbyg after Jarlaxle’s lieutenant picked up the messages and knows that they’re being taken to the Sea Maidens Faire.

Following Krebbyg: Krebbyg comes to collect messages from Fenerus once every 1d3 days. If the PCs stake out the house long enough, they may also be able to follow him to the Sea Maidens Faire.

Messages: The PCs may be able to capture several messages. These are written in code, requiring an Intelligence test (DC 16) to decipher. (The check is made with advantage if they speak Drow.) The contents of these messages will vary depending on when, exactly, the PCs come to Fenerus’ house. Possibilities include:

• Information unrelated to the Grand Game, most likely revolving around attempting to identify Masked Lords, gain blackmail material over them, and/or diplomatic assessments of their support for Luskan joining the Lords’ Alliance.
• A report from the Gralhund Villa observation team: “Watchpost established in the manor south of the Gralhund Villa. We have identified members of the Black Network onsite. We have also observed gazers in the area, although we have not yet determined which beholders’ dark dreams they’ve sprung out of. – Fel’Rekt Lafeen”
• “Westra Moltimmur is demanding three additional dresses for Sapphiria’s Booty. Considerable expense. Rongquan Mystere may need to put in an appearance.” (A little research can quickly identify these names as referring to the Seven Masks Theater, see below.)
• “The Council of Musicians, Instrument-Makers, & Choristers refuses to withdraw their objection to the Sea Maidens Faire as a public entertainment. But I’ve resolved the matter by getting license from the Jesters’ Guild. We only need to make payment to them with claim that we are employing a guild entertainer, even though we’re not. The guilds in this city are even more rotten than those in Luskan.”
• “Nimblewright delivery completed to Bowgentra Summertaen. We have eyes up in the Watchful Order.” (Summertaen is the leader of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors, a guild for wizards and sorcerers in Waterdeep.)

SEVEN MASKS THEATER (Dragon Heist, p. 75): Use the description of the Autumn version of the theater from the original campaign. Jarlaxle owns this theater under the false identity of Rongquan Mystere. One of the dressing rooms is kept empty as a safe house for D’Aerthe agents in trouble. Jarlaxle will also use the theater as a “neutral” meeting place with other factions (including the PCs).

Malcolm Brizzenbright: We’ll also transplant Brizzenbright’s Ghost from the Winter version of the Theater (see Dragon Heist, p. 76). He’s the founder of the Seven Masks Theater, but has been dead for over thirty years.

• He knows that “Rongquan Mystere” is a fake identity, and he’s anxious that his theater not be used for nefarious purposes.
• He can identify the dressing room being used as a safe house.
• He once saw “Rongquan” speaking with drow in the lobby during a performance of The Mad Mage’s Seven Riddles. They mentioned something called the “Sea Maidens Faire”.

Area P6 – Stage Manager’s Office: Amongst the other papers dealing with theater work is a Letter Regarding Fenerus Stormcastle’s House. Directed simply to “J”, it warns him that, “There have been strange eyes fixed upon the house of Fenerus Stormcastle and flights of black snakes have been seen flocking the skies of the Trades Ward. Greater care should be taken when messengers approach the house, and we may want to find an alternative asset. I leave it to your judgment whether or not Fenerus himself should be warned. -K”

• GM Note: “J” is Jarlaxle Baenre and “K” is Krebbyg.

CASSALANTER OUTPOSTS

ASMODEAN SHRINE (North Ward, Aveen Street): From the outside, this appears to be a nondescript residence. The entire interior of the house, however, has been converted into a shrine dedicated to Asmodeus. The Cassalanters discovered the ancient Hell cyst (see Area 8) below the house, bought the property, and installed members of the cult.

Area 1 – Summoning Circle: Demonic sigils have been painted onto the floor to form a summoning circle. Tapping into the power of the Hell cyst, the circle can be used to summon 2 imps once every nine days.

Area 2 – Styxian Shrine: Intertwined figures of demons and devils twist about the columns in this room, a visceral depiction of the savage brutality of the Blood War. At one end of the room there is a small font of reddish-gray stone that extrudes from the wall. The cistern is half-filled with grayish water, enchanted to act as the water of the River Styx. Those drinking from it must succeed at a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or lose all of their memories for 8 hours. (The cultists consider this a test of their faith and a sacrament.) On the wall above the font, the symbol of Asmodeus has been painted on the wall in blood.

Area 3 – Demonic Statues: Two large demonic statues – one depicting a kyton (chain devil) and the other a bezekira (hellcat) – face off against each other.

Area 4 – Chapter House: Huge, writhing tentacles seem to erupt from an arcane circle on the far side of this room, but it’s just a disturbingly lifelike statue given the semblance of life by an animate object spell (50 hp, AC 10, +6 to hit, 2d20+2 damage, Str 14, Dex 10). The tentacles are fastened to the floor and only attack a target within 10 feet if given a command by one of the cultists; otherwise they just writhe artistically.

Two cots are lined up against the wall. A long trestle table runs down the middle of the room with benches to either side.

Under the cot is Arn’s Book of Worship: This text with a stylized goat’s head drawn in blood upon its plain brown cover, contains a number of “high prayers” to Asmodeus and the description of a number of banal demonic rites of worship. On the inside back cover, in simple handwriting, one can read, “This book belongs to Arn Xalrondar, of the Windmill upon Coachlamp Lane.”)

Area 5 – Demonic Jelly: Three large wooden kegs. A mysterious amber jelly within them acts like a potion of hill giant strength if rubbed over the body (6 doses per keg).

Area 6 – Mirror of the Fiend: A large mirror with an obsidian frame carved with demonic sigils stands at the far end of this chamber. Anyone seeing themselves reflected in the mirror is bathed in purplish flames which deal 1d6 damage per round to most creatures, but heal 1d6 damage per round for fiends.

• Noble Sigil: On the back of he mirror is carved a small rune. A DC 13 Intelligence (History) check reveals that his is a Waterdhavian noble sigil; a practice that was once common in Waterdeep, but which died out over a century ago. A DC 16 check identifies this specific rune as indicating that the mirror belonged to the Cassalanter family.

Area 7 – Passage of the Nine Hells: The plaster walls of this long hallway are completely covered in a mural seamlessly depicting the Nine Hells – the desolate wasteland of Avernus; the malefic green skies of Dis; the endless rotting bogs of Minauros; the magma-ridden valleys of Phlegethos; the frozen sea of Stygia; the cyclopean basalt of Malbolge; the endless, maze-like ruins of Maladomini; the serrated glaciers of Cania. At the far end, above the arch leading to the descending stairs, is depicted the Malsheem, the Citadel of Hell, in Nessus, the Ninth Circle of Hell.

Area 8 – The Hell Cyst: The entire lower level of the shrine is clearly much, much older than the house above it. The walls were once covered in bas relief, but the stone has worn away and the carvings have become unrecognizable.

In a niche one end of the cramped corridor, the extrusions of stone seem to reach out from the wall and almost cradle a glowing ball of hellish red light which floats in midair.

Those who dare to lean close to the ball will discover that – at a distance of a few inches or so – they can actually peer into it (or perhaps, more accurately, through it). Doing so is like peering through a heavily distorted lens into a volcanic hell. (The Hell cyst is actually a pin-prick of Hell co-located onto the Material Plane. There is no way to traverse or communicate through the event horizon of the cyst, but the cyst is nevertheless a literal manifestation of Hell on Earth and can be used as the focus for a number of demonic rites.)

ASMODEAN SHRINE – ADVERSARY ROSTER

Questioning Cultists: Successfully questioning the cultists will reveal that rituals are held at a site beneath the Cassalanter Villa. The fanatics will report that their contact there is Willifort Crowell (which might lead the PCs to believe that the Cassalanters are unaware of what’s happening in their own home); the wizard knows better and may be made to reveal as much.

Instructions from Lord Cassalanter: The apprentice wizard carries a note from Lord Cassalanter instructing that the next pair of imps to emerge from the summoning circle should be dispatched to perform surveillance on the Sea Maidens Faire, which he believes to have become of particular importance as a result of recent intelligence which has come into his posssesion. (The note might mention the PCs by name here if they were the source of this intelligence; otherwise he names Willifort Crowelle.) “The imps should report back to me directly at the villa.”

CONVERTED WINDMILL (Southern Ward, Coachlamp Lane): Use the description of the Summer version of the Converted Windmill (see Dragon Heist, p. 88). It’s used as an apartment by Arn Xalrondar (LE male Tethyrian human) and Seffia Naelryke (LE female Tethyrian human), both cult fanatics.

Area W7 – Secure Apartment:

• A note can be found under the bed. It reads: “Meeting Ches 17^th, the shrine on Aveen Street”.

Area W8 – The Room of Rituals: A pentagram has been painted on the floor in blood. At the points of the pentagram are five black globs of wax — the remains of burned candles — and there’s a variety of writing in charcoal surrounding the pentragram. There is a desk alone one wall, covered in a mass of papers.

• The Ritual – DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana): The ritual performed here was a form of weak demonic divination, similar to a legend lore or contact other plane spell, but more like a weakly amped up Ouija board or similar parlor trick. The runes indicate that this ritual was performed in an effort to find something associated with “Neverember”, “the wealth of Waterdeep”, “Golorr”, and “that which has been lost to the waters of Lethe” (although the latter appears to be more of a symbolic representation rather than a literal one).
• Desk: At the center of the drift of miscellaneous papers is a map of Waterdeep. Strange lines of blood criss-cross the map in bizarre patterns, but one location within the City of the Dead has been picked out from the pattern and circled in black charcoal. Accompanying writing identifies this as the “Brandath Crypt”.
• GM Note: This ritual, performed by Seffia, identified the Brandath Crypt as the hiding place of one of the Eyes. It actually only worked, however, because the Vault is actually hidden below the Crypt (making it a much more powerful locus for the conceptual anchors of the ritual), although Seffia didn’t realize that.

Got to Part 3B: More Faction Outposts

This is something of a belated announcement, but as of December 10th, 2018, I am now the RPG Producer and Developer at Atlas Games. (You can tell it’s the real deal because I have a staff bio and everything.)

As the RPG Producer, I’ll be taking the reins on Atlas’ award-winning games like Feng Shui, Over the Edge, Unknown Armies, and Ars Magica. I’ll also be producing and developing all new RPGs, some of which I hope to be sharing with you much sooner rather than later.

What does this mean for the Alexandrian and Technoir and my other ongoing, non-Atlas RPG projects? Very little, actually. I’ll be able to continue working on the Alexandrian and my other projects outside of Atlas business hours, and I intend to do so. That doesn’t mean there won’t be any effect, though: My writing on the Alexandrian, for example, is often heavily influenced by the games that I’m currently running and playing at my own table. Since I’ll be spending a good chunk of my first six months here getting up to speed on Feng Shui, Over the Edge, and Unknown Armies by reading everything every published for them and also running one-shots and mini-campaigns (since nothing replaces actually getting a game to the table), you probably shouldn’t be too surprised if you see me referencing them more in my examples play, Thoughts of the Day, and the like.

In any case, I’m very excited by the opportunities I’ll have at Atlas Games to continue pushing the boundaries of what RPGs are capable of, and I hope all of you can share in that excitement as we begin this journey together.

Go to Part 1

In Chapter 3: Fireball, an explosion kills nearly a dozen people in Trollskull Alley not far from the PCs’ front door. Their investigation takes them to Gralhund Villa, which is described in Part 2 of this remix.

WHAT HAPPENED:

• Dalakhar was attempting to meet with Renaer Neverember at Trollskull Manor. He was being tracked by the Gralhund, Zhentarim, Cassalanters, and possibly others.
• A small team of Zhentarim agents led by Urstul Floxin attempted to waylay Dalakhar as he came down Trollskull Alley.
• The Gralhund nimblewright, observing the scene from a nearby rooftop, used a necklace of fireballs to launch a fireball which kills Dalakhar and most of the Zhentarim agents, with the exception of Urstul Floxin (who barely survives, but is incapacitated).
• The Gralhund nimblewright jumped off the roof, dashed forward, rifled through Dalakhar’s pockets, and took the Stone of Golorr. It then ran off, returning to Gralhund Villa.

MOTIVATION: A core problem in this scenario is that (a) the PCs are not strongly motivated to investigate the explosion, (b) they are explicitly encouraged to NOT investigate the explosion, but (c) if they don’t investigate the explosion, the rest of the campaign doesn’t happen.

My recommendation is simple: Kill someone they care about in the explosion.

Who you choose to kill is going to be heavily idiosyncratic to your campaign. It’s really difficult to predict exactly which NPCs are going to resonate most strongly with the players during actual play. Honestly, it’s just as likely to be some random person that you improvised off-the-cuff. But here are a couple of possibilities:

• Renaer Neverember. As described below, he arranged with Dalakhar to meet at Trollskull Manor. In this scenario, however, Renaer spotted Dalakhar on the street as they both arrived, approached him, and they were both killed in the explosion. (If you go this route, I recommend having a note from Dalakhar in Renaer’s pocket for the PCs to discover that will cover at least some of the information Renaer would otherwise impart.)
• One of the Three Urchins (see Part 3). If it’s not a deal-breaker for your group, introducing the cute little urchin kids and then killing one of them is virtually guaranteed to set the PCs on the warpath.

STRUCTURE: Generally speaking, this investigation will break down into three phases.

• First, the questioning of witnesses to the explosion. The primary revelation here is that a nimblewright was responsible.
• Second, finding and investigating known owners of nimblewrights. The primary revelation here is that they’re being purchased from Captain Zord of the Sea Maidens Faire.
• Third, either speaking with Captain Zord (aka Jarlaxle) or performing a heist (see Part 4B) to retrieve his customer information. If they perform the heist, they might also stumble across the crystal ball Jarlaxle is using to spy through the nimblewrights. Either way, the information will lead them to the Gralhunds.

THE CRIME SCENE: The crime scene is described on p. 44 of Dragon Heist.

• Add black flying snake tattoos to the Zhentarim corpses.
• Tracking the nimblewright? Physically tracking the nimblewright is not really feasible, its trail being quickly obliterated in the crowded streets of Waterdeep.
• Speak with dead? See p. 46 of Dragon Heist, but tweak answers to fit revised continuity where necessary. The key revelations from Dalakhar is that he was carrying the Stone of Golorr, what the Stone does (although he doesn’t know it’s been blinded), that he stole it from Xanathar, and that he was coming to meet Renaer. The key revelations from the Zhentarim is that they were seeking something that Dalakhar was carrying, they worked for Urstul Floxin, and they came from Yellowspire (see Part 3: Faction Outposts).

REMINDER!

During this investigation…

Don’t forget to have Renaer show up at the scene of the crime, probably 15-30 minutes after the explosion. When he does so, he’ll be able to tell the PCs:

• That he had arranged to meet with Dalakhar at Trollskull Manor. The gnome had sent him an urgent message requesting the meeting and Renaer chose Trollskull Manor as the location.
• That Dalakhar was an agent working for his father.
• That his father had assigned Dalakhar to “keep an eye on me. He would skulk around and I would see him everywhere.” A few weeks ago, though, he abruptly disappeared and Renaer doesn’t know where he’s been. (If the PCs ask, it happened just before Renaer was kidnapped by the Zhentarim.)
• That he doesn’t know what Dalakhar wanted. “His message simply said that he was carrying something valuable for my father, was unable to deliver it, and was hoping that I could help.”

Don’t forget to have the Cassalanters contact the PCs and ask for their help in saving their children. It’s strongly recommended that this occur before they reach the Gralhund Villa.

PHASE 1: QUESTIONING WITNESSES

There’s generally three types of witnesses:

• Those who didn’t see anything, and merely relate their personal experience. (Heard a huge explosion, rushed into the street. Saw a friend immolated in front of their eyes and the heat of the flame on their face. All their windows blew out. Et cetera.)
• Those who saw the nimblewright throw a bead from a necklace of fireballs. (Variation: As described on p. 45, young Martem Trec recovered the spent necklace from where it fell in a rain barrel after the nimblewright tossed it away.)
• Those who saw the nimblewright approach Dalakahar’s body, take something from it, and run away. If the PCs inquire about which direction it went, the answer is between two buildings and heading east. (Variation: Some people may have also seen the nimblewright leap down from the roof from which it launched its attack.)

Which witnesses saw which events doesn’t really matter. The key revelation is that a nimblewright was responsible for the attack.

BONUS CLUE – THE HOUSE OF INSPIRED HANDS: One of the witnesses who saw the nimblewright remembers seeing a similar automaton participating in the Twin Parades yesterday as part of the Temple of Gond’s procession. (Following up on the Temple of Gond will lead to the House of Inspired Hands, see below.)

Option: There’s no reason the PCs couldn’t attend the Twin Parades themselves (see Part 4). If they do, you can describe several impressive processionals participating in the parade, including the nimblewright who was operating a number of wonderous mechanical contraptions. (If you want to force it, arrange for one of the PCs’ faction missions to require action during the parade.)

DESCRIPTION OF THE NIMBLEWRIGHT:

• A construct made of both burnished copper and pale wood.
• Wore a red robe and foppish red hat with a feather.
• A long, stylized Van Dyke beard. (This is unique to the Gralhunds’ nimblewright and may help identify it to Captain Zord later.)
• You can see its clockwork mechanisms constantly whirring and pistoning under its rune-etched skin-plating.

POTENTIAL WITNESSES

• Fala Lefaliir, owner of Corellon’s Crown (Dragon Heist, p. 32)
• Tally Fellbranch, owner of the Bent Nail (Dragon Heist, p. 32)
• Rishaal, owner of the Book Wyrm’s Treasure (Dragon Heist, p. 33)
• Jezrynne Hornraven, client of Vincent Trench (Dragon Heist, p. 45)
• Martrem Trec, 12-year-old boy and friend to the dead halflings (Dragon Heist, p. 45)
• Emmek Frewn, owner of Frewn’s Brews and rival (Dragon Heist, p. 42).
• Shard Shunners, gang hired by Frewn to interfere with the PCs’ business (Dragno Heist, p. 42)
• Ulkoria Stonemarrow, regular at Trollskull Manor (Dragon Heist, p. 42)
• The Three Urchins, particularly if one of them was killed (see Part 3C)

WITNESS – URSTUL FLOXIN: Urstul Floxin obviously survived the explosion, but he was badly hurt and will attempt to leave the area as quickly and surreptitiously as possible. If the PCs respond to the explosion quickly, however, they may have the time to briefly question him (particularly if they immediately move to assist the wounded).

• Somewhat disoriented, Urstul will give his real name if questioned.
• He’ll claim to have come to Trollskull Alley in order to go to (he glances around and points at a storefront) the Book Wyrm’s Treasure. He doesn’t know what happened; there was just a bright light and a lot of heat and he’s pretty sure he was knocked out.
• A DC 13 Wisdom (Insight) test suggests that he’s not being entirely truthful. If pushed, he’ll say, “Look, I must have been hallucinating. But just after the explosion, I could have sworn I saw a mechanical angel of death moving among the bodies. I thought he was going to come for me next, but then it turned and ran away.” (GM Note: Urstul doesn’t actually believe it was an “angel of death”, but he wants to present himself as a confused rube who just happened to be passing by.)

Note: Urstul also has a black flying snake tattoo, but his is located on his left breast and is not visible unless the PCs somehow (and for some reason) strip him down.

THE WATCH ARRIVES: See Dragon Heist, p. 44-45.

DESIGN NOTES

The witness list has been expanded here specifically to reincorporate NPCs the characters may have been interacting with during Chapter 2. Accent the list with any other familiar faces the PCs might recognize, although not everyone in the area should be someone the PCs know.

Note that the in the published version of the campaign Urstul is the one to steal the Stone of Golorr from Dalakhar’s corpse, but in this continuity the nimblewright steals the Stone (and it’s the nimblewright’s trail the PCs will be following). This also means Urstul can still be onsite, allowing the PCs to encounter him face-to-face before interacting with him at the Gralhund Villa.

PHASE 2: ON THE MATTER OF NIMBLEWRIGHTS

Once the PCs have the description of the mechanical man responsible for the attack, the next step is to figure out exactly what it was and where it came from.

RESEARCH: A DC 13 Intelligence (Arcana) can reveal that it was a nimblewright, most likely built by the technomancers of Luskan and based on ancient Calishite designs of the Shoon Imperium. They had not previously been seen in Waterdeep and the Luskan technomancers have been reticent about sharing their secrets. If they succeed at DC 17, however, they learn that Bowgentra Summertaen, Lady Master of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors, is known to have recently come into possession of one.

Following up on the Luskan angle is possible, with a DC 17 Charisma (Investigation) check revealing that the Sea Maidens Faire carnival ships recently came to Waterdeep from Luskan and the performers might know more.

CANVASSING: A DC 13 Charisma (Investigation) check reveals two owners of nimblewrights (see below). For every two points of margin of success, they discover an additional owner.

OTHER APPROACHES: Perhaps the PCs approach their faction for information on the mechanical man. Or they could easily come up with some completely unanticipated idea. If the approach seems plausible, default towards providing them 1-2 nimblewright owners.

THE BONUS CLUE: The bonus clue, described above, will also point the PCs towards one of the nimblewright owners (the Temple of Gond).

DESIGN NOTE

The PCs aren’t meant to find all the owners of nimblewrights here. The intention is for them to trace the nimblewrights to Jarlaxle. If they do so and then steal Jarlaxle’s records of sale, they’ll find a list of all the owners, including those on the list below that they didn’t already identify + the Gralhunds.

(This path is actually more difficult than just asking “Captain Zord” for help – because the PCs have to (a) steal the records and then (b) investigate all the different buyers before identifying the Gralhunds. But it has the advantage of not tipping off Jarlaxle, possibly eliminating an entire faction from the Grand Game.)

The bonus clue will preferentially point the PCs towards the fully developed Temple of Gond from the published scenario. If you want to open things up a bit, give the PCs two owners via the bonus clue. For example: “I think I saw a similar automaton in the Twin Parades yesterday. He was part of the Temple of Gond’s procession.” And then a bystander pipes up, “Hey! You’re right! I’ve seen something like it before, too! It was dueling down at the City Armory!” Or whatever owner you want to evoke.

OWNERS OF THE NIMBLEWRIGHTS

Jarlaxle has sold 9 nimblewrights. His asking price is just 25,000 gold dragons – which is a lot of money, but shockingly cheap as far as constructs go. That’s because he’s selling them at loss. His interest is not in making a profit from selling mechanical constructs: The nimblewrights have clairvoyance crystals built into them, allowing Jarlaxle to use a special crystal ball to capture “records of witness” through the eyes of each nimblewright, which he can review at his leisure. (See “Nimblewright Crystal Ball”, below.) He simply wants to get nimblewrights positioned in as many advantageous households and organizations as possible, collecting intelligence and blackmail opportunities.

TEMPLE OF GOND: The House of the Inspired Hands is described on p. 46 of Dragon Heist. The nimblewright they’ve named Nim has, much to their surprise, proven remarkably adept at interacting with and even creating their mechanical marvels. (He does not, however, have a nimblewright detector.)

• Appearance: Its “hair” consists of multi-layered, overlapping metal feathers.

BOWGENTRA SUMMERTAEN: Lady Master of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors, a guild for wizards and sorcerers in Waterdeep. Her nimblewright is serving as a majordomo-cum-curiosity piece at the Order’s guildhouse.

• Appearance: The nimblewright’s head is is featureless – no eyes, no mouth, no nose, no ears, no hair. (This does not impede its senses of sight or hearing.)

LORD LABDAR ADARBRENT: Head of a noble Waterdhavian family who owns the fourth-largest shipping fleet in the city and has strong ties with the Master Mariners’ Guild. His nimblewright stands as a guard in his front hall, replacing the human guard who once stood there.

• Appearance: Its eyes are black onyx and its face is fixed in a permanent, rictused scowl. It wears the tabard of House Adarbrent.

LORD CORIN DEZLENTYR: The wizened, half-elven head of the Dezlentyr family. They first rose to prominence in the 13^th century as caravan masters, traders, and explorers. They own a villa in the Sea Ward ($51 on the 3^rd Edition City of Splendors map). The nimblewright was actually purchased by his headstrong, swashbuckling daughter, Hermione Dezlentyr.

• Appearance: Its right eye is a green gemstone which glows faintly. Hermione has dressed it in traditional swashbuckling gear – the hate, the doublet, and so forth. (This lends it an appearance quite similar to the Gralhunds’ nimblewright, although it lacks the Van Dyke beard.)

HOUSE OF WONDER (TEMPLE OF MYSTRA): Jarlaxle may have gotten a little cocky here. The servants of Mystra obtained the nimblewright in the hope of unraveling the secrets of its construction. They have not done so (at least not yet), but they did discover the clairvoyance crystal and have successfully removed it from their nimblewright. (If you want to complicate things, send a Bregan D’Aerthe response team to reclaim the compromised nimblewright from the House of Wonder.)

• Appearance: Feminine in appearance, dressed in a simple white robe. Silver “hair” has been carved to resemble a bob cut.

MOTHER TAMRA’S HOUSE OF GRACES: A finishing school catering to young ladies of ambitious families located on Mendever Stret in the Castle Ward. Their nimblewright is serving as a housecleaner.

• Appearance: Eight halos of different precious metals circle the nimblewright’s head at strange, intersecting angles.

CITY ARMORY: Located in the Sea Ward ($75 on the 3^rd Edition City of Splendors map), the members of the Armory Guard have a nimblewright who serves as a fencing partner. They appropriated the funds to purchase the nimblewright without really having proper authorization.

• Appearance: Simple, generic facial features, but this nimblewright has additional plates of gleaming metal positioned around its body to resemble a stylized breastplate and greaves.

THE GRALHUNDS: The guilty party.

FACTION MEMBER: A prominent member of one of the factions the PCs belong to. Possibly their direct contact, but it’s arguably more effective to have it be someone they’re not personally acquainted with yet: It will make the outcomes of the investigation less certain, raise more questions in their mind, and have wider-ranging consequences in terms of deepening (or radically changing) their relationship with the faction.

INVESTIGATING THE OWNERS

As the PCs track down and question the owners, their stories and interactions will all be different, but make sure to establish the key revelations:

CORE REVELATION: The nimblewrights were all purchased from Captain Zord of the Sea Maidens Faire. His carnival ships are currently docked at a rented pier.

SECONDARY REVELATION: Captain Zord is selling the nimblewrights for a shockingly low price.

NIMBLEWRIGHT APPEARANCE: It’s important to note during these visits that the nimblewrights all look different from each other. While they share certain key features (a slight, nimble build; construction from thin, curved plates of burnished metal and pale wood; their visible clockwork mechanisms), each is a bespoke creation with distinct, unique features. If you slip up and describe the nimblewrights as all being identical to each other (and, particularly, identical to the Gralhunds’ nimblewright), the PCs will have no way of figuring out who the guilty nimblewright belongs to and their investigation is likely to turn into a muddle.

THE JARLAXLE CONNECTION

Once the PCs have tracked the nimblewrights back to “Captain Zord”, there’s generally three directions their investigation can take.

TALKING TO ZORD: If the PCs simply seek a meeting with Captain Zord, it’s relatively easy to obtain. If they ask him about the ownership of a particular nimblewright, he’ll first want to know why they’re looking for it. His curiosity satisfied, he’ll excuse himself for a few minutes, and then return to tell them that the nimblewright they’re looking for was purchased by the Gralhunds. He can even give them an address.

Easy-peasy. (Except for the part where they’ve inadvertently tipped off Jarlaxle and brought him into the Grand Game.)

ZORD’S RECORDS OF SALE: If the PCs stage a heist to steal Zord’s records of sale, they’ll find the Ledger of Nimblewright Sales in Area J30 of the Eyecatcher (see Part 4B). This ledger records all the current owners of nimblewrights in Waterdeep.

THE CRYSTAL BALL: If the PCs discover the existence of the nimblewright crystal ball (see below), this can be found in Area U4 of the Scarlet Marpenoth (see Part 4B). If PCs stage a heist to access or steal the crystal ball, they can review the records of witness and easily discover that the nimblewright responsible for the fireball was sent by the Gralhunds.

THE NIMBLEWRIGHT CRYSTAL BALL

The nimblewright crystal ball is actually a rare and incredibly powerful crystalmantic artifact that’s not inherently associated with the nimblewrights: It is attuned to specially created clairvoyant crystals, and is capable of not only perpetually scrying through those crystals, but also creating and storing records of witness. Basically, it allows you to not only view “live feeds” from any attuned clairvoyant crystals, you can also review everything those crystals have “seen” in the past.

Jarlaxle and his agents killed the dragoness Asphosis and stole the crystal ball from her horde. The technomancers of Luskan have been creating attuned clairvoyance crystals and building them into the nimblewrights. Thus, the crystal ball is currently capable of seeing out through the eyes of any nimblewright.

STUDYING THE NIMBLEWRIGHTS: The clairvoyance crystals are very carefully hidden deep inside the nimblewrights’ clockworks (and, at least initially, appear to be an integrated part of their operation; they’re not just wedged in there randomly). If several hours can be taken to carefully study a nimblewright (including at least partially disassembling it), a DC 18 Intelligence (Arcana) check will discover the crystal’s superfluous nature and then normal efforts can be used to identify its function.

The attunement between crystal and crystal ball can be traced. A detect magic spell combined with a DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana) check is sufficient to identify that the crystal is attuned to something onboard the Eyecatcher (assuming the trace is followed to the harbor).

DESTROYING A CLAIRVOYANCE CRYSTAL: A clairvoyance crystal is actually quite delicate and will shatter like glass if appropriate physical force is employed.

CREATING A CLAIRVOYANCE CRYSTAL: Players who take possession of the nimblewright crystal ball have a very powerful and versatile tool. Attuned clairvoyance crystals can be scavenged from the nimblewrights (both those “in the field” and also those still located in Jarlaxle’s ships), but if they want to create more crystals, they’ll need to visit Luskan and perform a raid on the technomantic workshops there.

WHAT ELSE CAN YOU SEE? In addition to identifying the Gralhunds’ nimblewright, the PCs can access records from all of the other nimblewright owners. This is a vast body of knowledge that is either banal or essential.

You might even include older records of witness from before the time that Aphosis took possession of the ball. These might be fragmentary and incomplete, but their study could reveal any number of adventure seeds for the PCs.

Perhaps there’s even a very old crystal that remains attuned to the crystal ball and located somewhere within Undermountain.

Go to Part 5D: Backtracking Dalakhar & Kalain