TRACKING RENOWN
This adventure includes side quests available only to
characters who join the factions described in th is adven-
ture. You can use the optional renown rules in chapter 1
of the Dungeon Master's Guide to track a character's rank
and ascent within a given faction. The Dungeon Master's
Guide gives names for various ranks within the Harpers,
the Emerald Enclave, the Lords' Alliance, the Order of the
Gauntlet, and the Zhentarim. Rank names for members of
Bregan D'aerthe, Force Grey, and the Xanathar Guild are
given below, with the renown needed to attain each rank.
Bregon D'aerthe Ranks: Orbb (private, 1), Kyorlinorbb
(corporal, 3), Khal'abbil (sergeant, 10), Mallasargtfin (lieu-
tenant, 25), llareth (captain, 50)
Force Grey Ranks: Cray Hand Initiate (1), junior Gray
Hand (3), Senior Gray Hand (10), Force Grey Initiate (25),
Defender ofWaterdeep (50)
Xanathar Guild Ranks: Eyestalker (1). Agent of the Eye
(3), Eye Ray (10), Guild Boss (25), Hand of the Eye (50)join the Watchful Order ofMagists and Protectors might
be denied access to sages, libraries, and other useful
resources.
Guilds charge members monthly or yearly dues that
vary. For simplicity, you can have a guild charge 1 gp per
month or 10 gp for a year's dues paid in advance. A guild
can expel a member for any number of reasons, not the
least of which is failing to pay dues.FACTIO N ME MBERSHI P
A character with the faction agent background (de-
scribed in the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide) must
choose a faction to belong to (see "Factions in Water-
deep" below). Characters without this background can
join factions once they reach the end of chapter 1 of this
adventure.Character Advancement
You can track experience points or simply allow char-
acters to level up when they reach certain points in the
adventure. Ideally, the characters should fall within the
desired level range as they experience each chapter, as
shown in the Suggested Character Levels table.
SUGGESTED CHARACTER LEVELS
Chapter- A Friend in Need
- Trollskull Alley
- Fireball
- Dragon Season
- Spring Madness
- Hell of a Summer
- Maestro's Fall
- Winter Wizardry
Suggested Level
1st-2nd
2nd
3rd
3rd-4th
5th or higher
5th or higher
5th or higher
5th or higherIf you decide to track experience points, you can slow
the rate of advancement by banking XP until you're
ready for the party to level up. Conversely, you can has-
ten level advancement by awarding ad hoc XP for com-
pleting goals, roleplaying well, and surviving or avoiding
deadly traps. Any such award should be no more than
INTRODUCTION
what the characters would earn for defeating a monster
with a challenge rating equal to their level. For example,
a fair ad hoc award for a party of 2nd-level adventurers
would be 450 XP. which is what the characters would
earn for defeating a challenge rating 2 monster.
If you dispense with XP tracking and allow characters
to gain levels as the adventure progresses, use the Sug-
gested Character Levels table as your guide.Factions in Waterdeep
Various factions have roots in Waterdeep, and any char-
acter with the faction agent background (described in
the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide) can choose to be-
long to one of the factions described below, provided the
character meets the faction's prerequisites.
If you're using the optional renown rules described in
chapter 1 of the Dungeon Master's Guide, allow a player
whose character has the faction agent background to
roll a d4 to determine that character's renown at the
start of the adventure. See the "Tracking Renown" side-
bar for more information.
Characters of other backgrounds will have opportu-
nities to join a faction later in the adventure. Any such
character must meet a faction's prerequisites to be eligi-
ble to join it, and the character's starting renown is 0.
Characters who have renown greater than 0 in a fac-
tion can gain its support in times of need by reaching
out to an influential NPC member of that faction. As a
character's renown improves, so does the quality of the
support. A faction might also help non-members who
further its interests. The descriptions of tbe factions that
follow include suggestions for how support from a fac-
tion can manifest.
You decide the extent to which a faction will assist the
adventurers, based on each faction's perception of how
important or valuable the adventurers are. For example,
if the characters earn Laeral Silverhand's trust and her
support of them becomes public knowledge, members
of Bregan D'aerthe might aid the characters so that
jarlaxle Baenre can curry favor with the Open Lord of
Waterdeep.BREGAN D'AERTHE
A character must be a drow, preferably a male, to join
this faction.
Bregan D'aerthe is a company of mercenaries orig-
inally made up of the much-derided and dishonorable
castaways of destroyed drow houses. The group's leader,
Jarlaxle Baenre, is always looking for new members to
fill the ranks, and loyalty is what matters to him most.
Almost all Bregan D'aertbe members are male be-
cause female drow rarely condescend to take orders
from a male. A female drow can earn a place in the
faction by decrying the drow matriarchy and convincing
jarlaxle that she would be an asset to the brotherhood.
jarlaxle employs non-drow operatives as well, none of
whom know they're working for him; such individuals
aren't considered members of the faction.
Bregan D'aerthe is using one of Jarlaxle's legitimate
business enterprises-the Sea Maidens Faire-as a
front in Waterdeep. The Sea Maidens Faire consists of