# Welcome to Phandalin *Source: Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk, p. 5* Nestled on the northern Sword Coast, between Neverwinter Wood and the Sword Mountains, is the town of Phandalin. Centuries ago, Phandalin was a thriving settlement with deep ties to its neighboring communities. But then bandits overran the town, and Phandalin lay abandoned for centuries. Only in the past few years have settlers built a new village on the ruins of the old. These townsfolk hope to grow Phandalin through hard work, camaraderie, and the shared purpose of building a lasting home. Threatening their efforts and their survival are bandits, brigands, and monsters.  ## Threats from Below Unbeknownst to any townsfolk, three mind flayer fanatics lurk deep underneath the town and plot a chilling course. The fanatics worship Ilvaash, a godlet in the Far Realm, who is determined to reestablish a mind flayer empire on the Material Plane. Ilvaash wants this empire to stretch across Toril's surface, starting with Phandalin as its capital. (For more information about Ilvaash, see chapter 8.) The mind flayer fanatics have discovered pieces of a shattered obelisk of great magical power, left over from the mysterious Netherese empire that once occupied part of this region. After retrieving the remaining fragments, the fanatics plan to infuse the reconstructed obelisk with Ilvaash's unholy energy and turn Phandalin's population into mind flayers loyal to their evil godlet. This plot is a complex affair, but the mind flayers beneath Phandalin have many allies. As petty bandits vie for control of Phandalin, the fanatics' allies quietly search for pieces of the shattered obelisk. How successful those allies are—and whether Phandalin's heroes can stop the will of an evil godlet—is exactly what you're about to find out! ## About This Book *Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk* is a Dungeons & Dragons adventure optimized for four to six characters. The player characters are the heroes of the story. This book describes the villains and monsters the heroes must overcome and the locations they must explore to bring the adventure to a successful conclusion. This adventure presents Phandalin, the surrounding region, and the Underdark below, as a campaign setting in which you can base adventures of your own. All pertinent details about the setting are covered in this book, with room to add new locations and villains of your own design. ## Adventure Summary This adventure is split into two halves: - **A Lost Mine.** Chapters 1–4 reimagine the beloved adventure Lost Mine of Phandelver, originally published in 2014 with the D&D Starter Set. The heroes begin chapter 1 at 1st level and end chapter 4 at 5th level. - **The Obelisk.** Chapters 5–8 chronicle the mind flayer fanatics' plot against the townspeople of Phandalin. The heroes begin chapter 5 at 5th level and end chapter 8 at 12th level. ### Lost Mine of Phandelver When this adventure dawns, the characters embark on a simple mission to Phandalin, whether it's helping a dwarf patron or following another prompt (see the "Adventure Hooks" section). The mind flayer fanatics' activities beneath Phandalin are invisible for most of this book's first four chapters. If your players don't wish to delve into themes of unseen horror, evil fanatics, or malevolent elder entities, you can easily end the adventure at the conclusion of chapter 4. If you do, replace the psionic goblins in chapters 1–4 with [goblins](/Rules/Source/bestiary/fey/goblin-warrior-xmm.md) from the "Monster Manual", and end the adventure once the characters defeat Nezznar. (The "What's Next?" section at the end of chapter 4 provides more information if you're using this option.) There's no need for the heroes to return to Phandalin and thus kick off the events of chapter 5 and beyond. A summary of each of the first four chapters follows. #### Chapter 1 Summary The adventurers are on the road to the town of Phandalin when they stumble into a goblin ambush. They discover that the goblins (who belong to the Cragmaw band) have captured the characters' friend—a dwarf named [Gundren Rockseeker](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gundren-rockseeker-pabtso.md)—and his escort, a human warrior named [Sildar Hallwinter](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/sildar-hallwinter-pabtso.md). The characters must deal with the ambushers and then follow their trail to the goblins' hideout. There, they can rescue Sildar and learn from him that Gundren and his brothers previously discovered a famous lost mine. Sildar knows only that Gundren and his map of the mine have been taken somewhere called Cragmaw Castle. #### Chapter 2 Summary After arriving in Phandalin, the characters find it terrorized by the Redbrands, a gang of miscreants led by a mysterious figure called Glasstaff. The Redbrands try to run the characters out of town, so the characters return the favor and storm the Redbrands' lair. In a hidden stronghold beneath an old manor, they find that Iarno "Glasstaff" Albrek, the leader of the Redbrands, is taking his orders from someone called the Spider—and that the Spider wants the adventurers out of the picture. #### Chapter 3 Summary The heroes undertake several short explorations in the region around Phandalin as they search for more information about the Spider and the lost mine. The clues the characters discovered in Phandalin can lead them to spy on a mysterious wizard at the ruins of Old Owl Well, to seek the advice of a dangerous banshee, to oust a band of marauders lurking at Wyvern Tor, and to investigate the ruins of the town of Thundertree. Several of these leads point to Cragmaw Castle—the stronghold of King Grol, leader of the Cragmaw goblins. Here the characters discover that the Spider is a drow mastermind named Nezznar and that the Cragmaw goblins work for him. More importantly, they recover [Gundren Rockseeker](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gundren-rockseeker-pabtso.md)'s map to the lost mine. Alternatively, they learn the mine's location from one of the other leads they unearthed in the previous chapter. #### Chapter 4 Summary Following the map or the directions to the lost mine brings the characters to Wave Echo Cave. That lost underground complex is overrun with undead and strange monsters. The Spider and his loyal followers are exploring the mines and searching for the legendary Forge of Spells. The heroes have the opportunity to avenge [Gundren Rockseeker](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gundren-rockseeker-pabtso.md) and provide for the prosperity and security of Phandalin by clearing the rich mine of threats, including monsters and the Spider's troublemaking.  ### The Obelisk If your players wish to continue the story past chapter 4, they'll find a tale of ancient magic, a malevolent godlet, and fanatics obsessed with transforming innocents into mind flayers faithful to Ilvaash. After they wrap up chapters 1–4, the characters discover that psionic goblins have committed crimes of vandalism in Phandalin. Investigating the crime scenes reveals that the goblins are searching for pieces of the titular shattered obelisk. Chasing down the goblins reveals their connection to a sobering plot against Phandalin. The characters learn that mind flayers who serve Ilvaash are behind this plot. These mind flayer fanatics are renegades who hope to reconstruct and harness the power of the obelisk. Using the obelisk to focus wicked Far Realm power, the mind flayer fanatics plan to enact a ritual to transform Phandalin's townspeople into mind flayers. The characters must follow the mind flayers into their Underdark stronghold and then into the Far Realm if they hope to save Phandalin from certain doom! Summaries of the final four chapters follow. #### Chapter 5 Summary When the heroes return to Phandalin, they find that more goblins have been wreaking havoc. These villains, the Sawplee goblins, have kidnapped townsfolk and destroyed key landmarks. It's up to the characters to investigate. Once they collect enough clues, a visiting dwarven sage named [Gwyn Oresong](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gwyn-oresong-pabtso.md) can help them track these goblins to their base of operations: an old duergar mining outpost called Zorzula's Rest inside a mountain near Phandalin. There, the Sawplee goblins work at the behest of their leader, a psionic goblin who calls himself [Ruxithid the Chosen](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/ruxithid-the-chosen-pabtso.md). To keep the town safe, the characters must travel to Zorzula's Rest, defeat Ruxithid, and rescue the kidnap victims. Once they do, the heroes discover that Ruxithid was in psychic communication with a much more powerful force that seeks to destroy Phandalin. The force, three Far Realm–influenced mind flayer fanatics, instructed the goblins to retrieve obelisk pieces. The characters rescue some of Phandalin's kidnap victims, but it's clear that others—as well as more obelisk pieces—await them elsewhere in the Underdark. #### Chapter 6 Summary Armed with knowledge from Ruxithid's lair, the heroes race against forces allied with the mind flayer fanatics to retrieve three shattered obelisk pieces. One piece lies in Talhundereth, an ancient dwarven temple that fell to mind flayers centuries ago. The second lies in the Crypt of the Talhund, below Talhundereth. The third lies in Gibbet Crossing, an abandoned Underdark crossroads. Soon, the characters discover that a mind flayer named [Qunbraxel](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/qunbraxel-pabtso.md) is coordinating the fanatics' obelisk retrieval efforts. The characters confront [Qunbraxel](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/qunbraxel-pabtso.md) in Gibbet Crossing. The remaining kidnap victims, however, are still unaccounted for.  #### Chapter 7 Summary Once the heroes defeat [Qunbraxel](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/qunbraxel-pabtso.md), they learn that its fanatic overlords are based in an Underdark location called Illithinoch. Once a stronghold for the long-fallen mind flayer nation, Illithinoch is a massive complex the mind flayer fanatics have turned into a shrine to Ilvaash. The characters must travel to Illithinoch and face its dangers to stop the ceremorphosis ritual. They come across rifts to the Far Realm that hint at the power the fanatics are harnessing. Meanwhile, corruption falls over Phandalin like a shadow. The characters find the fanatics' ritual space, only to discover that the mind flayers have fled into the Far Realm to complete the ritual's final stages. #### Chapter 8 Summary After opening a gateway to the Far Realm, the heroes follow the mind flayer fanatics to the Briny Maze, the terrifying home of Ilvaash. Thwarted but not defeated, the Ilvaash fanatics seek to harness power directly from this unholy creature, who is a descendant of Ilsensine, a mind flayer god. The characters must navigate the fleshy realm's labyrinth to reach the mind flayers and interrupt their ritual. The difficulty of doing so depends on how many pieces of the obelisk the fanatics have retrieved. Regardless, once the fanatics are defeated, a refraction of the godlet (detailed further in the adventure) surfaces to challenge the characters. ## Running the Adventure To run this adventure, you need the fifth edition core rulebooks ("Player's Handbook", "Dungeon Master's Guide", and "Monster Manual"). > [!readaloud] > > Text that appears in a box like this is meant to be read aloud or paraphrased for the players when their characters first arrive at a location or under specific circumstances, as described in the text. ^00f The "Monster Manual" contains stat blocks for most of the creatures encountered in this adventure. The remaining stat blocks can be found in appendix A, as indicated in the text, or in the encounters in which they appear. When a creature's name appears in **bold** type, that's a visual clue pointing you to its stat block as a way of saying, "Hey, DM, you better get this creature's stat block ready. You're going to need it." 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 B. ### Using the Maps This book contains a number of interior maps and a fold-out, double-sided poster map. These elements are further described below. #### Interior Maps Maps that appear in this book are for the DM's eyes only. As the characters explore locations on a given map, you can redraw portions of the map on graph paper, a wet-erase mat, or other surface to help your players visualize locations that might have unusual shapes or features. Your hand-drawn maps need not be faithful to the originals, and you can alter a map's features as you see fit. Nor do your maps need to be painstakingly rendered. You can omit details that are not readily visible (such as secret doors and other hidden features) until the characters are able to detect and interact with them. #### Poster Map The double-sided poster map is meant to be shared with the players. One side of the poster map shows the Phandalin region, including prominent locations in the Underdark where the characters will travel. If the players don't recognize these names yet, that's good! Once they learn in the game where they're headed, they'll realize they've heard of the location and can head in the right direction at will. The reverse side of the poster map has player-friendly maps of the town of Phandalin as well as recurring encounter locations. > [!gallery] >  >  ### Nondeadly Resolutions This adventure is full of encounters in which the characters may wish to fight their foes. However, noncombat or another nondeadly resolution is an equally valid way to resolve many enemy encounters. The characters might knock out enemies, intimidate them into running away, bribe them for information, or otherwise find creative ways to resolve conflicts. Use your discretion, and if the characters are looking for ways to resolve encounters without violence, roll with it if the story allows. ### Using the Story Tracker This adventure uses a Story Tracker, a copy of which is included at the back of the book. The Story Tracker is a note-keeping tool to help you and the players remember important information about the characters and their accomplishments. ### The Forgotten Realms The world of the Forgotten Realms is one of high fantasy, populated by elves, dwarves, halflings, humans, and other folk. The Realms are full of valiant knights embarking upon ancestral quests, shifty rogues prowling urban streets, clerics wielding maces and spells in the service of their gods, and wizards plundering the ruins of the fallen Netherese empire. Heroes are scarce, and dangers—be they a dragon's breath or a lich's spell—are plentiful. This adventure takes place in a region called the Sword Coast, where daring souls delve into the wreckage of fallen strongholds and explore ruins of long-lost civilizations. Underground, the history and dangers are just as rich. The Underdark here teems with monsters and the remains of mighty civilizations, as well as unknown horrors. The accompanying map shows the Sword Coast region surrounding Phandalin. Several locations of interest are marked, including Underdark locations key to this adventure's plot. Other parts of the map remain unlabeled, and the adventures that characters find there are yours to design! ## Character Creation Before starting this adventure, consider spending your first game session helping your players create characters. Were the characters born and raised in the Sword Coast region, or do they hail from distant lands? How long have the characters known each other? What might bring them to Phandalin? ### Character Backgrounds The "Player's Handbook" contains "character backgrounds" that are well suited for this adventure. If your players are having trouble fleshing out their characters' backgrounds with details about the Sword Coast region, share the suggestions from the Character Hooks Tied to Backgrounds table with them. **Character Hooks Tied to Backgrounds** | Background | Character | |------------|-----------| | [Acolyte](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/acolyte-xphb.md) | The frontier town of Phandalin is resilient, but organized religious resources are scarce. Your temple in Neverwinter sent you to Phandalin to pray and offer communion with like-minded faithful. | | [Charlatan](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/charlatan-xphb.md) | You've planned your latest get-rich-quick scheme. The townspeople of Phandalin have never heard of what you're selling, and you hope to establish a customer base. | | [Criminal](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/criminal-xphb.md) | You're wanted for crimes in Neverwinter, and perhaps you're exiled from the city. Phandalin is a small bastion of civilization where you can lie low and no one will be the wiser. | | [Entertainer](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/entertainer-xphb.md) | You've spent time in Neverwinter and love performing for audiences, but you need new experiences from which to draw inspiration for your art. Traveling to Phandalin will provide new material for your work, and its watering holes promise eager crowds. | | Folk Hero | You may have humble origins, but you made your name as a hero in the wilds outside Neverwinter. You need new adventures, so you've set off for the frontier of Phandalin. | | Guild Artisan | You learned a useful trade in Neverwinter, but the city is home to too many artisans with that skill. Now, you're heading to Phandalin, where you hope to start a lucrative business. | | [Hermit](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/hermit-xphb.md) | You've spent a lot of time in the wilds outside Neverwinter, but you've always kept a home in the city. You've decided to move somewhere rural, and Phandalin seems like the perfect place. | | [Noble](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/noble-xphb.md) | Your family is based in Neverwinter but owns property throughout the Sword Coast region. You recently inherited a cottage in Phandalin and must inspect the place before you decide to keep or sell it. | | Outlander | You spent your youth with a guardian who lived a simple life in the wilds outside Phandalin, but later you moved to the city. Now an adult, you've decided to return to the area where you feel most at home. | | [Sage](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/sage-xphb.md) | In the academic halls of Neverwinter, you studied the region's historical alliance between Phandalin and its neighbors. The fate of the lost mine of Phandelver has always fascinated you, so you're traveling to Phandalin to discover whether any locals know rumors about its fate. | | [Sailor](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/sailor-xphb.md) | You've sailed ships along the Sword Coast, but a brush with death made you rethink your profession. You're headed to Phandalin to decide what's next. | | [Soldier](/Rules/Source/backgrounds/soldier-xphb.md) | You are a member of the Neverwinter Guard, and you suffered a terrible injury in the line of duty. You healed, but you're not ready to return to work yet. Until you are, you're taking easy jobs protecting merchant wagons headed to Phandalin. | ^character-hooks-tied-to-backgrounds ## Adventure Hooks Players can invent their own reasons for visiting Phandalin, or they can use the following adventure hooks. The character hooks tied to backgrounds also provide characters with motivations for visiting Phandalin. It's recommended at least one character use the "Meet Me in Phandalin" adventure hook below so that the party has a tie to the dwarf [Gundren Rockseeker](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gundren-rockseeker-pabtso.md), who plays a prominent role in chapters 1–4:  - **Meet Me in Phandalin.** You're in the city of Neverwinter when your dwarf patron and friend, [Gundren Rockseeker](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gundren-rockseeker-pabtso.md), hires you to escort a wagon to Phandalin. Gundren has gone ahead with a warrior, [Sildar Hallwinter](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/sildar-hallwinter-pabtso.md), to attend to business in the town while you follow with the supplies. You will be paid 10 gp each by the owner of Barthen's Provisions in Phandalin when you deliver the wagon safely to that trading post. - **Friend of the Harpers.** You've spent much of your life in awe of the Harpers, a secretive organization dedicated to promoting good and preserving history. You've always wanted to join, but you've struggled to gain the group's attention. You're headed to Phandalin, where you hope your good deeds will gain the Harpers' notice. - **Gauntlet Trainee.** You have pledged yourself to the Order of the Gauntlet, a devout and vigilant group that seeks to protect others from evildoers. Before you become a full-fledged member, you've decided to meet your hero, a retired adventurer named Daran Edermath, who was part of the order and has thwarted many local threats. Daran lives in Phandalin in a cottage beside an apple orchard. You plan to visit him and drink in his wisdom before joining the order yourself. ### Starting the Adventure When this adventure begins, the characters are in Neverwinter. Consider telling the characters that they'll all join the same wagon headed to Phandalin, whether it's because they're working for the dwarf [Gundren Rockseeker](/Rules/Source/bestiary/npc/gundren-rockseeker-pabtso.md) (see the "Meet Me in Phandalin" adventure hook above) or they have another reason to go to the frontier town. No matter the characters' motivation, allow them to join the wagon without additional cost, narrating how each character secured passage as needed. If you establish why the characters are traveling together before you kick off the adventure, your later game sessions will go more smoothly. ## Far Realm Influence In this adventure, Far Realm–devoted fanatics seek to transform Phandalin's residents into mind flayers devoted to the evil godlet Ilvaash. Even before the fanatics attempt to finish their ritual in chapter 8, their influence over the town infuses the place with the energy of the Far Realm. The townspeople begin to change in troubling ways. Phandalin's buildings and the surrounding environment also experience a withering that gives the entire town an air of decay. ### Transformation of Phandalin Each time the characters return to Phandalin during the later parts of this adventure, they find the town and townspeople further affected by the Far Realm. The transformations become noticeable in chapter 5 and worsen until the characters' confrontation with the fanatics in the Far Realm during chapter 8. The illustrations in these chapters depict this burgeoning transformation. Use the following descriptions when the characters are in town to add further sinister flavor to the adventure. Each description's effects are cumulative with the previous chapters' effects: - **Chapter 5.** The sky over Phandalin is perpetually gray, and its buildings seem more drab than normal. The townspeople appear tired and wan. - **Chapter 6.** Nearly imperceptible, scaly fungi grow between the cracks in Phandalin's buildings and cobblestones. The townspeople begin to seem unwell. - **Chapter 7.** Invasive, fleshy weeds grow like tentacles along Phandalin's buildings and streets. The townspeople develop strange symptoms. - **Chapter 8.** Phandalin's sky becomes a bright, sickly green color. The fleshy weeds grow thicker and longer, wrapping around buildings and beams like stalks. The townspeople sprout tentacles and become irrationally angry and violent.  ### Character Transformation If the fanatics are successful, the characters might transform into mind flayers (see the end of chapter 8). Characters from outside the region might not be affected by the Far Realm ritual, although these details are up to you. Even if the characters don't turn into mind flayers, they experience increasing change as the fanatics' plot progresses. The following optional rules allow you to track the effects of Far Realm influence on characters. > [!note] > > Player Consent Is Required > > Before you use the character transformation rules presented in this section, check with each player to determine if they are open to their character experiencing physically transformative effects. A player will not miss game benefits if they choose not to use these rules for their character. ^01d #### Stages of Character Transformation As the influence of the Far Realm on a character increases, they begin to change. There are four stages of transformation, each with increasingly extreme effects. ##### Advancement Characters begin at stage 1 at the start of chapter 5. They advance to the next stage at the beginning of each subsequent chapter (stage 2 in chapter 6, stage 3 in chapter 7, and stage 4 in chapter 8). ##### Changes To determine how a character changes as their transformation stage increases, consult the Transformation Effects table. The examples listed under transformations are only suggestions; you can create other transformations of a similar scope. By tailoring a transformation to a character, you can increase players' engagement with the story. Wherever possible, try to make a given transformation unique to a particular character. Given the significance of some of these changes, it's better for the player to give you suggestions regarding a change than vice versa. The effects of changes can happen as often and whenever you wish. This is intended to be fun, not to make players uncomfortable. As a character advances to higher stages of transformation, the effects from the lower stages become more pronounced. For example, whispers become more insistent, or the tentacle becomes larger or another one sprouts. ##### NPC Reactions NPCs and creatures are likely to notice the characters' strange behavior, the changes to the characters' bodies, or any reality-warping effects when the characters are nearby. At your discretion, the attitudes of creatures might change when they notice these mutations, depending on the nature of the change, the personality and background of the creature, and the circumstances of the discovery. ##### Game Effects At your discretion, these transformations might have in-game effects. For instance, the voices that whisper to a character might provide a useful clue. Or a character might hear a telepathic conversation between creatures who speak with their minds. A character might gain advantage on a Charisma check to persuade an Aberration that sees the character's transformations. The possibilities are endless. **Transformation Effects** | Stage | Change | |-------|--------| | 1 | The Far Realm reaches out to the character in one of the following ways, determined by rolling a `dice:d6\|noform\|noparens\|avg` (`d6`): (1) the character awakens from nightmares to an audible, disturbing voice urging them and those around them to go to a particular place or perform a particular act; (2) the character and those around them hear whispers of bizarre conspiracies or nonsense; (3) the character recognizes disturbing words now and then in languages they otherwise don't understand; (4) the character notices strange patterns in everyday items and events; (5) the character discovers unfamiliar objects in familiar places; (6) the character occasionally hears an unfamiliar voice come from their throat when they try to speak. | | 2 | The power of the Far Realm begins to alter the character's body in one of the following unpredictable ways, determined by rolling a `dice:d4\|noform\|noparens\|avg` (`d4`): (1) a body part temporarily moves or turns 360 degrees; (2) the character grows one or more eyes or mouths that are not under their control; (3) the character notices that strange bone protrusions occasionally ripple under their skin; (4) the character sprouts a tentacle that occasionally picks up Tiny objects. | | 3 | Void energy begin to seep into the character's soul in one of the following ways, determined by rolling a `dice:d6\|noform\|noparens\|avg` (`d6`): (1) Aberrations view the character as one of their own; (2) items tied to the Far Realm hum, glow, or vibrate when the character is nearby; (3) the character develops an unwanted craving, such as for raw meat, spoiled food, insects, hair, or fingernails; (4) the character occasionally looks down to discover writing or drawings in their handwriting or style, but that they are certain they didn't create; (5) the character sometimes inadvertently communicates telepathically instead of how they normally communicate; (6) the character sometimes leaves black, sludgy handprints on things they touch. | | 4 | The character's connection to the Far Realm has grown to the extent that they now warp reality within 30 feet of them in one of the following ways, determined by rolling a `dice:d6\|noform\|noparens\|avg` (`d6`): (1) creatures no longer cast shadows; (2) portable objects not being worn or carried change position; (3) mirrors don't show reflections; (4) animals are spooked; (5) perishable food spoils; (6) the temperature increases or decreases. | ^transformation-effects