D&D 5E - The Rise of Tiamat

D e a t h o f a M a s k e d L o r d
Though the leadership of the Cult of the Dragon could
not have realized it, one of the key events in the fight
to thwart Severin’s plans was the cult’s assassination
of Arthagast Ulbrinter, a Masked Lord of Waterdeep
and husband of Remi Haventree of the Harpers. News
of Arthagast’s recent murder has spread across the
Sword Coast, and has galvanized opposition to the cult
in Waterdeep.
In her grief, Remi Haventree has sworn to destroy the
cult and the threat it presents to the Sword Coast. She
has been instrumental in bringing the factions together
for this Council of Waterdeep, setting up the potential
for alliances that the adventurers must now complete.
T h e D r a a k h o r n S o u n d s
Shortly after the crash or capture of Skyreach Castle,
operatives of the Cult of the Dragon sounded the
Draakhorn at the distant Well of Dragons. An ancient
magic relic, the Draakhorn is being used by the cult to
summon chromatic dragons to their dark cause.
As the characters are arriving in Waterdeep, read or
paraphrase the following.
A sudden shift in the wind brings with it a strange sense
o f unease. The feeling is akin to the drop in air pressure
before the approach o f a deadly storm, or faint tremors
felt from a landslide or earthquake far away. You’re not
the only ones who have noticed. The city around you
goes unnaturally quiet suddenly. No dogs bark, no birds
squawk. Even the street vendors have gone silent.
The silence lasts only a moment before the normal
sounds of Waterdeep return to mask the unexplained
sensation. If the characters get to a quiet place, they
notice the disturbance again, like a rumbling almost too
faint to hear. As well, subtle changes in the behavior of
animals can be noted. Dogs are nervous and on edge,
horses are skittish, cats are more feral than usual, and
rats gather in large, bold packs. Sensitive N P C s are also
affected, becoming nervous, fearful, and impatient.
During the first session of the council (or earlier if
the characters make efforts to investigate the strange
phenomenon), the adventurers are approached by
Dala Silmerhelve—a Waterdhavian noble. Read
or paraphrase the following when the characters
speak to Dala.
“The disturbance that's been sensed across the Sword
Coast is the Draakhorn— an ancient device whose
sounding alerts dragons across Faerun that great events
are unfolding. It's impossible to say what the sounding
means, but the dragons hear it clearly and will eventually
answer its call. ”
Lady Silmerhelve learned this from her family’s secret
benefactor, an ancient bronze dragon named Nymmurh.
She knows a little more about the Draakhorn, but she
waits to reveal it until she attends the first council
meeting. She flatly refuses to tell anyone the source of
her knowledge if asked. This makes Ulder Ravengard,
King Conneerad, and Ontharr Frume suspicious, but
others take the secrecy in stride. If Lady Silmerhelve is
treated poorly, it might affect how Nymmurh interacts
with the characters in “Metallic Dragons, Arise.”
F i r s t Se s s io n
Having accepted the invitation to the council meeting,
the adventurers are received at the Lords’ Palace.
Make the introduction to the City of Splendors and
the Lords’ Palace as detailed or as simple as fits your
campaign style.
Once inside the Lords’ Palace, the party is escorted
to the secret council chambers by Leosin Erlanthar.
The outer galleries are packed with nobles engaged in
heated debate, and the guards are wearing livery from
city-states across the North.
Although Erlanthar is not invited to the council
discussions, Remallia Haventree has informed him
of the agenda and the reason the party has been
summoned. He advises the characters that though the
factions are all nominally committed to stopping the
Cult of the Dragon, none of the delegates have made
substantive pledges yet.
Too much mistrust still burdens the factions, and not
enough is known about the situation. Erlanthar thinks
the leaders need someone to show them the right path—
heroes who w ill lead the forces of the Sword Coast
with certainty into the coming darkness. He believes
that the adventurers have a chance to be those heroes.
However, he explains that each faction w ill weigh every
word the characters say and scrutinize every one of
their decisions. What pleases one group might anger
another, and it w ill be incredibly difficult to make all
parties happy.
F o l l o w - u p : H o a r d o f t h e D r a g o n Q u e e n
Once introductions are made, Dagult Neverember
summarizes the situation if the adventurers did not play
through Hoard o f the Dragon Queen. This includes the
plan to summon Tiamat, increased dragon raids led by
the cult, the treasure collection system, the crash or
capture of Skyreach Castle, and the importance of the
wyrmspeakers and dragon masks to the cult.
If the party played through the previous adventure,
Dagult explains that the council has heard reports
from Ontharr, Leosin, and other witnesses, but that the
delegates wish to hear from the heroes at the center of
recent events. (At this point, use Neverember to also fill
in any information the characters did not gather during
Hoard o f the Dragon Queen that you deem important.)
Most of the factions recognize that Skyreach Castle
needed to be stopped, and they are happy if the castle
was crashed. However, some members of the Lords’
Alliance think it unconscionable that such a resource
would be destroyed, intentionally or otherwise. These
dissidents believe it would have been better for the
characters to have waited for reinforcements, then
attacked to secure the castle (regardless of how
unrealistic that plan might have been).