waterdeep dragon heist

MANSHOON

A clone of the wizard Manshoon, one of the founders of

the Zhentarim, is hiding in Waterdeep. He wants to rule

the city, by claiming the cache of dragons and by using

that wealth to bribe the Masked Lords into making him

the new Open Lord. He also wants to regain control of

the Black Network. Manshoon lurks in Kolat Towers, a

pair of wizards' towers in the Trades Ward. This resi-

dence is described in chapter 8.

Manshoon creates copies of himself using the simula-

crum spell and takes great pains to conceal his identity,

since his success hinges on not attracting the attention

of others who would seek to thwart him before his plans

come to fruition. Manshoon avoids unnecessary con-

frontations with adventurers; only those who enter his

extradimensional sanctum are likely to incur his wrath.

If you choose Manshoon as the villain, the adventure

takes place in the winter.

Seasons

The adventure unfolds in a particular season depending

on the villain you choose at the outset. If you switch to a

new villain midway through the adventure, don't change

the season to match unless the characters take enough

downtime for seasons to change naturally.

SPRING

----------------------

In Waterdeep, early spring tends to be cold and damp.

Misty rain falls for days on end. It's common for fog to

settle at night and last through the day. As the weather

improves, the city attracts more visitors, and the streets

become increasingly crowded as summer approaches.

SUMMER

Summers in Waterdeep are quite comfortable, and it's a

great time for citizens and visitors to congregate outside.

The markets are busier than at any other time of year.

Sometimes, though, warm air pushes up from the south

and settles in the valleys north and east of the city. This

air gets trapped, creating a hot spell that might last days

or weeks. Activity in the city slows to a crawl, since Wa-

terdavians are unaccustomed to such beat.

AUTUMN

Throughout autumn, wagonloads of food arrive in Wa-

terdeep from outlying farms. Without this bounty, city

folk would starve during the winter. Cold, howling sea

winds remind Waterdavians that winter is near.

WINTER

Waterdavian winters are harsh. As snow piles up around
the city and ice fills the harbor, trade grinds to a bait and
the city seals its gates. Citizens willing to brave the cold
still gather in local taverns and festhalls, but few venture
outside the city walls.

FAERO NIAN CALENDAR

The FaerOnian calendar has twelve months that roughly

correspond to the months of the Gregorian calendar. Each

month has thirty days divided into th ree ten-day weeks

(each week is called a tenday). Scattered throughout the

year are five holidays that aren't considered part of any

month. Once every four years, the holiday of Shield meet is

added to the calendar as a leap day immediately following

Midsummer night. Collectively, these days create a cycle

similar to what we have on Earth: three 365 -day years fol-

lowed by a leap year.

Months. The FaerOnian months are Hammer, Alturiak,

Ches, Tarsakh, Mirtul, Kythorn, Flamerule, Eleasis, Eleint,

Marpenoth, Uktar, and Nightal.

Annual Holidays. The annual holidays are Midwinter

(between Hammer and Alturiak), Greengrass (between

Tarsakh and Mirtul), Midsummer (between Flamerule and

Eleasis), Highharvestide (between Eleint and Marpenoth),

and the Feast of the Moon (between Uktar and Nightal).

Running the Adventure

To run this adventure, you need the D&D fifth edition

core rulebooks: Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's

Guide, and Monster Manual. The Sword Coast Adven-

turer's Guide is helpful, but not necessary.

Text that appears in a box like this is meant to be read

aloud or paraphrased for the players when their charac-

ters first arrive at a location or under a specific circum·

stance, as described in the text.

The Monster Manual contains stat blocks for most of

the creatures found in this adventure. AJI the necessary

stat blocks are included there or in appendix B. When a

creature's name appears in bold type, that's a visual cue

for you to look up the creature's stat block in the Mon-

ster Manual, unless the adventure's text instead refers

you to the monster appendix in this book.

Spells and equipment mentioned in the adventure are

described in the Player's Handbook. Magic items are

described in the Dungeon Master's Guide, unless the

adventure's text directs you to an item's description in

appendix A.

ABBREVIATIONS

The following abbreviations appear i n th is book:

hp= hit points

AC = Armor Class

DC -Difficulty Class

XP =experience points

pp - platinum piece(s)

gp =gold piece(s)

ep = electrum piece(s)

sp =silver piece(s)

cp =copper piece(s)

N PC= non player character

LG = lawful good

CG = chaotic good

NG =neutral good

LN = lawful neutral

N -neutral

CN =chaotic neutral

LE ~ lawful evil

CE= chaotic evil

NE= neutral evil

DM =Dungeon Master

INTRODUCTION