Phandelver Notes

Part One – The Lost Mines of Phandelver

The party was hired to go to Phandalin – to protect a shipment of supplies related to the rediscovery of an ancient forge
They found their employer had been abducted and rescued his partner from some goblins on the way.
Found that the town of Phandalin was under the thumb of some bandits – the Redbrands
Once the Redbrands had been ousted from the area, it turned out that the thugs had been a deterrent and their removal encouraged the baddies to attack. The party came back to a town invasion by armies of goblinoids.
After an intense battle the town, led by the party, was victorius. There was much cost.
The party quickly left for Neverwinter to pursue some rumours, have some contacts.
After some hijinks they went to Thundertree, and killed a small dragon
They found a secret entrance to Wave Echo and entered
Wave Echo was a long harrowing crawl with many ups and downs which culminated in a massive multi-stage battle, where the forge re-ignited, the caves came alive, the Black Spider turned into a Drider, etc. There seemed to be some aura of Lloth present, as well as Morodin. There had also been an avatar of a god that the characters met (he appeared as an old travelling merchant in the caves), so it became obvious that for some reason the gods were present/interested in this area.
The party killed the Black Spider but the Cavern started to self-destruct and there was an escape sequence that they narrowly survived.

Part Two – The War Approaches

After exiting the Cavern, a little over a week later (they did several things on the way), the party went back to Phandalin, which they had left in dire shape after the massive battle with the invading hordes. The people were cleaning it up
There is a spirit of rebuilding and things are coming along
The party had news of Cragmaw castle and that Gundren Rockseeker was hostage. Heddtirria has been having dreams that her childhood friend, a half ogre, is also imprisoned there.
Sildar tells them that Grol is not working for the Black Spider but someone bigger. He and his crew have discovered an evil alliance of some sort.
They get to Cragmaw and find it is a massive warcamp. Basically a smaller version of Isengard in Lord of the Rings. Many evil creatures, something is definitely afoot.
They enter the keep, rescue their friends, kill King Grol. They find some correspondence from a variety of bigwigs from the evil alliance. The words point towards the Dark Council and give a bit more info
They head back to Phandalin
Intermission: There is a weird side-quest where they end up in the Fey Wild and when they come back it is a month later (to their surprise)

They get back to find that things haven’t returned to normal. More evil hordes have been appearing, so more time has been spent building fortifications (ditches, stockades, etc) than repairing the town.
Also, rumours of a great discovery (Wave Echo Cavern) has led many fortune seekers to Phandalin so the population has massively swelled and there is a tent city surrounding it. These are craftspeople, merchants, workers, etc. They don’t know what is going on but it is rumoured to be a great opportunity (the magic item forge).
The party tells no one that they destroyed the forge of spells
The party meets with Sildar, who they have maintained a relationship with. They discuss what is going on with him and Garak, the Hunter’s friend who had some info (which is why he was captured). He tells them: Iggwilv is rumored to have amassed a magical hoard of unsurpassed value, a trove of such fame that scores of adventurers have perished in search of it.
See “The Dark Council” tab for Sildar’s information

Part Three – The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth

There is a cavern rumoured to exist that was once inhabited by the legendary archmage Iggvilz/Tasha. Though Iggwilv is long gone, she is rumored to have amassed a magical hoard of unsurpassed value, a trove of such fame that scores of adventurers have perished in search of it.

The party is tasked with finding it, and the magical wonders that lie within. They want to arm the forces of good but also keeps these items out of the hands of forces of evil.

Ernault is also trying to obtain, or find information about one of Tasha’s famed books – the Demonomicon

Part Four – …

Part Four? Gauntlgrym? Waterdeep? The Dark Council itself?

The Tone of the World

The Sword Coast has crossed the line from “troubled” to “unstable.”

Not open apocalypse, but the sense that authority is fractured, truth is hard to verify, every region believes someone else is about to fall. People are tense, jumpy, and increasingly desperate. Food shortages, misinformation, and sudden violence are doing more damage than armies – which is exactly what the Dark Council wants.

Sildar: “This is no longer a war you can point at on a map. It’s a sickness—one that spreads faster than armies march.”

Regional Updates (Since Leilon)

What has been happening in various places around the Sword Coast since the time when the party was in Leilon.

Phandalin & the Triboar Trail

Phandalin is holding, but only barely.
The tent city has grown even larger—now including armed mercenary caravans, hedge wizards, and “investors.”
Food prices have doubled in a week.
There are rumors of counterfeit spell-forged items appearing – dangerous, unstable things that explode or curse their wielders.
Someone in town is buying up grain and iron quietly.

Waterdeep

Waterdeep is functionally compromised, but not openly fallen.

Laws are being enforced selectively.
Dock Ward and parts of the Trades Ward are effectively under curfew.
Noble houses are accusing one another of treason.
Grain imports are “delayed due to inspections.”
Disappearances are increasing – especially among minor officials.

The army the party saw marching south has not yet attacked Waterdeep, but is camped on the outsjirts. The city is being softened before the blade falls.

Sildar: “If Waterdeep falls, it won’t be to fire and steel. It will fall to paperwork, hunger, and fear.”

Neverwinter

Neverwinter is actively resisting, but at a cost.

Riots were crushed violently – by Neverwinter’s own forces.
Martial law in some districts.
The river trade is disrupted.
Lord Neverember is alive, but isolated.
Spellcasters are being “registered” for public safety.

Gauntlgrym

What’s known:

There was a major battle.
No clear victor.
Messages from Gauntlgrym stopped abruptly.
Refugees report strange light in the depths and “forge-thunder.”

Rumors conflict:

“The dwarves sealed it.”
“Something else is running the forges.”
“The Dark Council wanted it intact.”

No one knows whether Gauntlgrym is lost, occupied, or something worse.

Baldur’s Gate

Silence is worse than bad news.

No official word.
Merchant ships are avoiding it.
One rumor claims the city has closed its gates.
Another claims the Upper City is thriving while the Lower City starves.

The Dark Council – What They’ve Been Doing

Shifted from preparation to execution
Lost key assets (Forge of Spells, King Grol, Black Spider)
Accelerated infiltration and destabilization

New developments:

They’re relying more on proxy forces (cults, mercenaries, undead).
Their abomination army exists – but isn’t yet at full strength.
They are racing the party to ancient sites now.

Other News

Other things that are happening

Gods/Religion

Temples disagree on what’s happening.
Some priests claim the gods are silent.
Others claim they are too active.

Trade Issues

Caravan guards are charging triple.
Insurance contracts for shipping are common.
Smugglers are suddenly powerful people.

Shadowfell Bleed Reltaed

Animals behaving oddly.
Nightmares spreading in towns.
Duskrime Essence rumors spreading beyond the Council.

Other Schtuff

Other adventuring parties are dead, missing, or turned.
Fake “Heroes of Phandalin” showing up.

The Dark Council

Sildar Hallwinter has imparted information which has been collected from various agents around the Sword Coast

He tells of a nefarious coalition who have united to possibly take control of the Sword Coast (at least). These seem to be quite different and generally uncooperative “people”, that now pool their knowledge and resources, united by their twisted ambitions.

There is evidence not only of amassing a terrible army of abominations, but plans to sow seeds of distrust to weaken the free people’s socially, as well as targetting food production to physically weaken resistance.

Members

Lady Vespera: A sorceress of some sort we believe, but can’t be sure. We don’t know her role

King Grohl [Dead]: Breeding/training/outfitting troops. Grohl abducts people to extract information about forgotten rituals, and forbidden knowledge. Unlocking the secrets of the Shadowfell to gain the ability to transform creatures into monstrous, super-powered versions of themselves.

The party has witnessed elite Hobgolins (Warlords) being subjected to dark rituals. They fought one first hand
A substance called Duskrime has been observed to be the catalyst/material ingredient for the transformation. It has a relation to the Shadowfell
King Grohl was killed, but his camp and related operations remain
It is unclear who leadership has fallen to.

Lord Thalgrim: Sildar knows him. He’s a fallen paladin, doesn’t know his role , but he’s a master of deceit

Archmage Zorvax: known to be a a power-hungry mage, with a bent for weaponizing magic items. Quite possibly seeking the Anvil of Shadows

The Black Spider [Dead]: Tasked with securing the Forge of Spells, in order to imbue weapons and items for the purpose of outfitting the augmented troops

Nefarious Plans

The party doesn’t know the whole plan, but from the information they have collected it seems that the council wants to take over the area. There seems to be a Shadowfell connection, and/or something to do with some gods. There is also a mysterious component call “Duskrime Essence” from the Shadowfell in play. Plans are:

Build an army of abominations.They are converting Hobgoblin Warlords and others into super fighters with enhanced strength, agility and resilience. They use rituals and duskrime essence
Undermine the realm and control production: For some time they have had agents tampering with seeds for crops, poising fertilizers, etc. The goal is to weaken the populace via hunger by wrecking the yield. They have also had agents in governments, slowly replacing valid members and sowing dissent. The goal is to cause infighting and reduce effectiveness. Waterdeep is already basically under control.
Create super weapons: They were going to use the forge of spells, they have also heard of The Alchemist’s Crucible, as well as, the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth. They want to acquire and imbue weapons to give them to their abomination army. There has been a setback from the Forge of Spells breaking.