Force Grey

Grey Hands

The Blackstaff, Vajra Safahr, is friends with Renaer Neverember, and word of his rescue quickly reaches her ears. She uses a sending spell to deliver the following short message to one of the characters:

I am Vajra Safahr, the Blackstaff. Come to Blackstaff Tower in the Castle Ward at once. Bring your friends.

— Message

Despite her insistent tone, Vajra doesn't take offense if the character refuses her invitation. A day later, she casts another sending spell and reaches out to a different party member. If she is refused a second time, she doesn't contact the party again until the characters gain a level.

Vajra Safahr

Blackstaff Tower is a fortress and a wizard training academy all in one. From here, Vajra Safahr watches over the city and asserts herself as Blackstaff. Sending spells are her preferred way of communicating with her operatives.
Vajra offers the characters membership in the Gray Hands, a private security force under her command. She doles out missions designed to tax the characters' resources and test their loyalty to Waterdeep. Characters who complete these missions won't gain enough renown to join Force Grey yet, but they will gain something valuable: the Blackstaff's patronage. Vajra continues to take an interest in their adventuring careers, helping out when she can.

Force Grey (Gray Hands) Missions

Party Level	Mission Brief	Mission Requirements and Reward
2nd	“Seek out Hlam, a monk who lives in a cave on the side of Mount Waterdeep. Ask him what he’s heard about threats to the city, but try not to annoy him or overstay your welcome.”	Those who climb the mountainside to reach the cave must succeed on a DC 12 Constitution saving throw or arrive with 1d4 levels of exhaustion. Trying to get Hlam to share information requires a DC 12 Charisma (Persuasion) check. If the check succeeds, he tells the characters, “Evil’s twin hides its face for now. Expect that to change before winter’s end.” (This is an oblique reference to Manshoon.) The characters can descend the mountain safely. Reward: Each Gray Hand character gains 1 renown.
3rd	“A young bronze dragon has taken up residence in Deepwater Harbor. It startled a few sailors recently but hasn’t hurt anyone. Confront the dragon and learn its intentions.”	Vajra gives each character a potion of water breathing to complete this mission. They find a young bronze dragon, Zelifarn, swimming around a barnacle-covered shipwreck at the bottom of the deep harbor. The friendly dragon tries to coax as much treasure as it can from the characters. Those who converse with Zelifarn can make a DC 13 Wisdom (Insight) check. A successful check reveals that the dragon poses no danger to Waterdeep. If no one succeeds on the check, the dragon’s true intentions can’t be gleaned. Reward: Each Gray Hand character gains 1 renown.
4th	“A member of Force Grey has been acting strangely of late. His name is Meloon Wardragon, and his happy-go-lucky demeanor has soured. He’s been hanging around the Yawning Portal more than usual. Observe him for a tenday, then report back to me.”	Characters can befriend Meloon Wardragon or watch him from afar. Each day at dawn, Meloon engages in a telepathic contest of wills with his magic axe, Azuredge, before leaving his room at the Yawning Portal. The axe wants a new wielder, but Meloon refuses to part with it. Characters who observe Meloon during this exchange can ascertain what’s going on with a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check. Reward: Each Gray Hand character gains 2 renown. If the characters rid Meloon of the intellect devourer in his skull, Vajra gives the party a wand of secrets.
5th	“Xanathar is using intellect devourers to take control of Waterdavians in key positions throughout the city. We must deal with this problem at once. Infiltrate Xanathar’s lair and destroy whatever is responsible for creating these creatures.”	The characters must slay Nihiloor the mind flayer. They can stake out a Xanathar Guild hideout and wait for Nihiloor to show up there, or confront the mind flayer in Xanathar’s lair (see the Spring Madness add-on). Reward: Each Gray Hand character gains 2 renown. Every character who participated in the raid receives a potion of resistance. In addition, Vajra covers the cost of any raise dead spells needed to bring back dead characters.