waterdeep dragon heist

Sea Maidens Faire

jarlaxle Baenre's seafaring carnival travels up and
down the Sword Coast in three ships. The Eyecatcher,
jarlaxle's flagship, is ostentatious. Mounted underneath
it is the Scarlet Marpenoth, a submarine of Lantanese
design. The second ship, the Hear/breaker, is primarily
used to transport performers, s trange creatures, and
wagons. The third ship, the Hellraiser, transports musi-
cians and decorative floats. The Heartbreaker and the
Hellraiser are presently docked. while the Eyecatcher is
anchored in the harbor.
All three ships are crewed by drow who are magically
disguised to appear human. Despite their disguises, the
drow still have the SunHght Sensitivity trait.

APPROACHING THE SHIPS

The Heartbreaker and the Hellraiser are docked across

from each other at the same pier in the Dock Ward. The

characters need only walk up a ramp from the pier to

a reajl on either ship. The pier is so busy that no one

takes notice of the characters until they are on a vessel.

jarlaxle's flagship is anchored in Deepwater Harbor, a

mile away from his other ships. To reach the Eyecatcher,

the characters must travel there by using another vessel,

by swimming, or by flying. If the characters approach

in a vessel known to the crew. such as a rowboat from

another of jarlaxle's ships, the characters arouse no

suspicion until they are seen on deck. The crew of the

Eyecatcher crew sends word to jarlaxle immediately if

the characters approach in an unknown vessel.

If the characters approach the Eyecatcher in an un-

derwater vehicle, such as Grinda Garloth's apparatus

of Kwa/ish (see chapter 4), the character piloting must

s ucceed on a DC 12 Dexterity (Stealth) check to keep

the vehicle from being spotted by the crew of the Scarlet

Marpenoth. If the characters approach by swimming,

each of them must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity

(Stealth) check to avoid being spotted by the crew of the

Eyecatcher.

CREWS

The characters can learn valuable information by inter-

rogating crew members and carnival performers.

SHI P CAPTAINS

Although Zardoz Zord Uarlaxle Baenre) commands the

Heel, each ship has its own captain: a Bregan D'aertbe

drow mage disguised as a slender, well-dressed human.

These captains know of jarlaxle's plans. They communi-

cate with each other and with jarlaxle by way of sending

spells, which they prepare instead of fly.

Velgos Ephezzrin captains the Hellraiser in the guise

of a human named Fergus Crabwater. He enjoys wine a

little too much, and characters have advantage on Cha-

risma checks made to interact with him during a meal.

Tylan Ilueph captains the Heartbreaker as a human

named Klarr Besham. He's a humorless taskmaster

whose tarantula familiar is always on his shoulder.

Llorath Pham captains the Eyecalcher as a human

named Tarwind Arryhook. He loves games of chance

and can't res ist a good wager.

CHAPTl!R 7 I MAESTRO'S FALL

A successful DC 15 Charisma (Deception or Persua-

sion) check and the mention of Zardoz Zord's name is

enough lO gain an audience with a ship captain. If the

characters capture one of the captains and succeed on

a DC 15 Charisma (Intimidation) check, they learn the

following information by asking the right questions:

• "The Sea Maidens Faire and all its ships are under
  the command of Captain Zardoz Zord of Luskan." (A
  ship captain won't divulge Zord's true identity unless
  magically compelled to do so.)


• "Zord has a cabin aboard the Eyecatcher and spends a
  lot of Lime there with Margo Verida and Khafeyta Mur-
  zan, two of the Faire's star performers."


• "A year ago, the Sea Maidens Faire visited the island
  nation of Lantan, where Zord acquired a submarine
  called the Scarlet Marpenoth. The submarine is
  mounted underneath the Eyecatcher."
  "Zord has operatives searching for an artifact called
  the Stone ofGolorr, which leads to a place called the
  Vault of Dragons." (For security, the captains aren't
  kept informed as to the mission's progress.)


• "Zord has drow spies in Waterdeep- Fel'rekt Lafeen,
  Krebbyg Masq'il'yr. and Soluun Xibrindas. All carry
  Lantanese firearms."


• "Our disguises are powered by a magical figurehead
  fixed to the fore of each ship."

SAILORS

The Eyecatcher, the Heartbreaker, and the Hellraiser

are crewed by twenty sailors each: three drow elite

warriors (mates) and seventeen drow, all magically dis-

guised as s lender humans while aboard their vessel. All

are loyal members of Bregan D'aerthe, and all know that

Zardoz Zord isjarlaxle Baenre in disguise. They know

nothing about the Scarlet Marpenoth or jarlaxle's plans.

The crew has orders not to fraternize with strangers

or guests. Characters who question crew members can

learn the following:

• "Zardoz Zord is master of the Sea Maidens Faire. If
  you want to meet him, talk to a ship captain." (A sailor
  won't divulge Zord's true identity unless magically
  compelled to do so.)


• "The Sea Maidens Faire is based out ofLuskan."

CARNIES

Most of the carnival performers and workers are human

commoners trained to perform a handful of tasks or

stunts. (Performers have proficiency in the Performance

skill.) They're kept in the dark about most things, but

they're not oblivious. With a successful DC 10 Charisma

check, a character can cajole or trick a carny into reveal-

ing one of the following pieces of information:

• "Zardoz Zord uses magic to get from the Eyecatcher
  to the other boats. I've never seen him in a rowboat."


• ·'The sailors communicate with each other using
  odd hand signals." (Members of Bregan D'aerthe use
  Drow Sign Language.)


• "All the sailors have an aversion to sunlight:'


• ''Have you noticed the sailors have the slightest hint of
  an Elvish accent?"


• "All the crew members are men. Very odd."