Zhentarim

This faction is comprised of nobles who are involved in the underworld of Neuhafen. Most work via agents and aliases, advancing their agendas when diplomatic means fail. A splinter group led by a mage named Manshoon has taken more aggressive action, increasing the organization's footprint significantly, to the dismay of most of its members.

---

The Doom Raiders try to contact evil-aligned or morally ambiguous characters. A flying snake with a parchment tied about its body visits one character in the dead of night. The message reads:

“Want to be part of something big? Speak to Davil Starsong at the Yawning Portal.”

— messge

If the characters seek out Davil, Yagra Stonefist greets them and leads interested parties to a table in the center of the Yawning Portal's taproom, where her boss waits with drink in hand.

Davil Starsong

Davil Starsong is the characters' primary contact in the Black Network, at least initially. Over drinks, he shares the following information:

• Davil is a retired adventurer. He and his adventuring companions joined the Zhentarim a few years back. They help people in need. (More specifically, they provide loans, mercenaries, and other services.)
• Another Black Network gang has recently infiltrated the city and tried to take over the Xanathar Guild. They failed, setting off a war in the streets. Davil and his colleagues want to end the violence and restore the peace.

Davil offers membership in the faction to interested characters, then assigns them their first mission (see the Zhentarim Missions table). Subsequent mission briefings are written on scrolls and delivered by flying snakes.

Tashlyn Yafeera

After the characters complete two missions for Davil, he is arrested by the City Watch and held in Castle Waterdeep while he waits to be questioned by the Lords of Waterdeep about the Black Network's operations in the city. The characters continue to receive missions, but they come from Tashlyn Yafeera. Characters first become aware of this change when they receive their next mission briefing, since it's written in a different hand.
If the characters want to speak with Tashlyn directly, Yagra can arrange a meeting in the City of the Dead or some other quiet place. By the time the characters see her, Tashlyn has learned the following information:

• The rumored leader of the renegade Zhent faction is Urstul Floxin, a known Black Network assassin.
• A warrant has been issued for Urstul's arrest, but his current whereabouts are unknown. Even magical scrying has failed to reveal his location.
• The botched kidnapping of Renaer Neverember won't sit well with Urstul. He might try again. (Tashlyn doesn't actually believe this, but she knows that Renaer has ties to the Harpers and might share information of interest with the characters.)

Weeks after his arrest, Davil is released from custody once the Lords of Waterdeep are satisfied that neither he nor his associates are responsible for the recent violence.

Zhentarim Missions

Party Level	Mission Brief	Mission Requirements and Reward
2nd	"Someone is killing elf and half-elf sailors in the Dock Ward—three dead so far, each one decapitated by a blade in the dead of night. Look into it, will you? Methinks the City Watch could use a little help."	Characters who spend three consecutive nights loitering around the docks spot Heldar, a drunk half-elf sailor (bandit), leaving the Muleskull Tavern (on Ship Street in the Dock Ward). Characters who follow Heldar can save him from Soluun Xibrindas, a renegade drow gunslinger. Soluun hides in the shadows, blade drawn, waiting for the half-elf to stumble by. Spotting him before he strikes requires a successful DC 18 Wisdom (Perception) check. Soluun flees if reduced to half his hit points or fewer. Reward: Each Zhentarim character gains 1 renown. If Heldar survives Soluun’s attack, each character receives 50 gp.
3rd	"There’s a shop in the Trades Ward called Weirdbottle’s Concoctions. The gnome who runs it is a friend of ours named Skeemo. He’s made some potions of mind reading for a client. Pick up the potions and deliver them to the God Catcher, one of the enormous statues in the Castle Ward. Give the potions to the lady in the purple cloak, and keep the tip."	Skeemo Weirdbottle has placed four potions of poison in a small silk-lined coffer. The potions look, smell, and taste like potions of mind reading. Awaiting delivery near the God Catcher is Esvele Rosznar, the Black Viper. She wears a hooded purple cloak and is seated in the back of a hire-coach. She exchanges the coffer for a black velvet pouch, then orders her driver to depart. The coach delivers Esvele to her estate in the Sea Ward. Reward: Each Zhentarim character gains 1 renown. Esvele’s pouch contains 15 pp, which the characters can keep.
4th	"Waterdeep’s richest halfling family, the Snobeedles, is offering 500 gold pieces for information leading to the safe return of a missing family member named Dasher Snobeedle. Those dragons sure would look good in our coffers! Investigate and see what you can learn, but don’t get in any trouble. The City Watch already has it out for us."	Any character who spends at least three days asking pertinent questions and pursuing leads in the Southern Ward or the Dock Ward can, at the end of that time, make a DC 18 Charisma (Persuasion or Intimidation) check. On a success, the character convinces some tight-lipped halflings to arrange a meeting with Dasher. The meeting is scheduled to occur at highsun in Waymoot the next day. Dasher shows up to hear what the characters have to say, but he has no intention of going home. He recently joined a gang of halfling wererats called the Shard Shunners (so named because they detest silver) and has since become a wererat himself (see area Q12 of the Xanathar Guild hideout for halfling wererat statistics). The Shard Shunners are his family now. Reward: Each Zhentarim character gains 2 renown.
5th	"Skeemo Weirdbottle has betrayed us! The little worm has been feeding information to our enemies. He must be eliminated. Make it look like an accident."	Skeemo Weirdbottle manages to stay one step ahead of the characters. As they approach his shop, they see him ride off in a dray with five other passengers and a driver (all commoners). If Skeemo realizes he’s being followed, he casts fly and takes to the air. If the effect is dispelled or the characters maintain pursuit, he casts greater invisibility on himself and uses crowds to cover his escape. If the characters fail to nab him, he takes refuge in Kolat Towers (see the Winter Wizardry add-on). Reward: Each Zhentarim character gains 2 renown if Skeemo is eliminated without implicating the Black Network. In addition, characters who snatch Skeemo’s satchel find that it holds his spellbook (containing all the spells he has prepared), a potion of mind reading, and 150 gp in a silk coin purse.