A Tale of Two Dragons - Campaign Guide for Players

Campaign Hook

Modules. This campaign connects The Lost Mine of Phandelver starter set adventure with the Dragon of Icespire Peak essentials kit adventure.
Meet Me in Phandalin. The characters are in the city of Neverwinter when their dwarf patron and friend, Gundren Rockseeker, hires them to escort a wagon to Phandalin. Gundren has gone ahead with a warrior, Sildar Hallwinter, to attend to business in the town while the characters follow with the supplies. The characters will be paid 10 gp each by the owner of Barthen's Provisions in Phandalin when they deliver the wagon safely to that trading post.
Personal Goals. Optional backgrounds and personal goals are listed below.

Truths of the World

The Sword Coast
- This is a region of adventure, where daring souls delve into the wreckage of ancient strongholds and explore ruins of long-lost cultures. Amid a wilderness of jagged, snow-capped peaks, alpine forests, lawlessness, and monsters, the coast holds the greatest bastions of civilization, including the coastal city of Neverwinter.
- Known roads may be well traveled, but they aren't necessarily safe. Fell magic, deadly monsters, and cruel local rulers are all perils that you face when you travel. Even farms and freeholds within a day's walk of a city can fall prey to monsters, and no place is safe from the sudden wrath of a dragon.
- Thirty years ago, the eruption of Mount Hotenow completely destroyed the prosperous village of Thundertree and devastated much of the city of Neverwinter. The village still lies ruined and abandoned but Lord Neverember has begun repairing the city to its former glory.
- Large and powerful dragons are known to inhabit the lands far to the north, and occasionally younger and smaller dragons are seen flying south looking for food, loot, or territory to claim.
Phandelver's Pact
- More than five hundred years ago, clans of dwarves and gnomes made an agreement known as the Phandelver's Pact, by which they would share a rich mine in a wondrous cavern known as Wave Echo Cave. In addition to its mineral wealth, the mine contained great magical power. Human spellcasters allied themselves with the dwarves and gnomes to channel and bind that energy into a great forge (called the Forge of Spells), where magic items could be crafted. Times were good, and the nearby human town of Phandalin (pronounced fan-duh-lin) prospered as well. But then disaster struck when orcs swept through the North and laid waste to all in their path.
- A powerful force of orcs reinforced by evil mercenary wizards attacked Wave Echo Cave to seize its riches and magic treasures. Human wizards fought alongside their dwarf and gnome allies to defend the Forge of Spells, and the ensuing spell battle destroyed much of the cavern. Few survived the cave-ins and tremors, and the location of Wave Echo Cave was lost.
- For centuries, rumors of buried riches have attracted treasure seekers and opportunists to the area around Phandalin, but no one has ever succeeded in locating the lost mine. In recent years, people have resettled the area. Phandalin is now a rough-and-tumble frontier town. More important, the Rockseeker brothers—a trio of dwarves-have discovered the entrance to Wave Echo Cave, and they intend to reopen the mines.

Building Characters

Character Creation:
- Anything officially published in a book by WotC.
- Standard Array or Point Buy ability scores.
- Level 1 normal starting equipment.
- These official premade character sheets can be used if desired: https://media.wizards.com/downloads/dnd/StarterSet_Characters.pdf
Write down and share with DM:
- Character Name:
  - Backstory: consider looking at the optional backgrounds below.
  - Motivations: consider looking at the personal goals below.
  - Desired types of magical items:
  - Character sheet link:
Things to consider when building characters:
- 4 H's:
  - History: Character backstory.
  - Heartbreak: A moment that might contribute towards a character flaw.
  - Heroes: Personal, such as a parent, guardian, sibling, mentor, or friend.
  - Hopes: What motivates your character.
- Questions to Ask:
  - Are any of the characters related to each other?
  - What keeps the characters together as a party?
  - What does each character like most about every other member of the adventuring party?

Optional Backgrounds and Personal Goals:

Human Noble Fighter
- Your family is no stranger to wealth, power, and privilege. In the glory days of Neverwinter, your parents were the count and countess of Corlinn Hill, a large estate located in the hills northeast of the city. But Mount Hotenow erupted thirty years ago, devastating Neverwinter and erasing Corlinn Hill from the map. Instead of growing up on an estate, you were raised in a small but comfortable town house in Waterdeep. As an adult, you stand to inherit a meaningless title and little else.
- Personal Goal: Civilize Phandalin.
  - You were meant for more than being a ruler of nothing at all. Rebuilding Corlinn Hill is impractical, thanks to the volcano. But in the last three or four years, hardy settlers have been rebuilding another ruin near the city: the old town of Phandalin, which orcs sacked five centuries ago. Clearly, what Phandalin needs now is a civilizing influence—someone to take the reins and bring law and order. Someone like you. You’re not the only one with such ideas. A knight named Sildar Hallwinter recently set out for Phandalin in the company of a dwarf named Gundren Rockseeker. They plan to reclaim an ancient mine and restore Phandalin to a civilized center of wealth and prosperity. Since your goals align, Hallwinter should be willing to assist you.
Dwarf Soldier Cleric
- I have three cousins—Gundren, Tharden, and Nundro Rockseeker—who are my friends and cherished clan members.
- Trained as a soldier on the island of Mintarn, you traveled to Neverwinter as part of a mercenary company that serves as both army and city watch. You grew disillusioned with your fellow soldiers, who seem to enjoy their authority at the expense of the people they’re supposed to protect. Everything came to a head recently, when you disobeyed an order and followed your conscience. You were suspended from active duty, though you kept your rank and your connection to the mercenaries. Since then, you have devoted yourself to your deity.
- Personal Goal: Teach the Redbrands a Lesson.
  - You’ve heard that Daran Edermath in the town of Phandalin is looking for people of courage and principle to teach some bullies a lesson. These thugs, the Redbrands, have been throwing their weight around in Phandalin, much as your compatriots did in Neverwinter. Putting a stop to their villainy is a worthy goal.
Halfling Criminal Rogue
- Qelline Alderlead, my aunt, has a farm in Phandalin. I always give her some of my ill-gotten gains. My aunt must never know the deeds I did as a member of the Redbrands.
- The town of Phandalin is built on the ruins of an older settlement, vacant for five centuries until some hardy settlers set about rebuilding it some years back. Drawn by stories of gold and platinum in the nearby foothills, you came to Phandalin as well, not to earn a living, but to prey on those who struck it rich. You joined a gang calling itself the Redbrands and made some decent coin as a burglar, enforcer, or fence. But you must have made an enemy among your fellow Redbrands. Someone set you up. On that person’s word, the head of the Redbrands—a wizard called Glasstaff—tried to have you killed. You escaped, barely alive and thanking Tymora, the goddess of good fortune, for your luck. You fled Phandalin, almost penniless and with only the tools of your trade to your name.
- Personal Goal: Get Your Revenge.
  - Someone in the Redbrands nearly got you killed, and you sure would like to know who it was. And then you’d like to take your revenge—on that person, on Glasstaff, maybe on all the Redbrands. And you just got a tip that might help you: someone named Halia Thornton also has it out for the Redbrands. She lives in Phandalin, which means showing your face to the Redbrands who still want you dead.
Elf Acolyte Wizard
- You have spent your life dedicated to Oghma, all-seeing god of knowledge, and spent years learning the lore of the multiverse.
- Personal Goal: Reconsecrate the Defiled Altar.
  - Through visions delivered in your trances, your god has called you to a new mission. A goblin tribe has made its lair in an ancient ruin now called Cragmaw Castle, where they have defiled a shrine once sacred to Oghma. Now dedicated to the vile goblin god Maglubiyet, the altar is an offense to Oghma that must not stand. You’re sure Oghma has greater things in store for you if you can complete this quest. In the meantime, your visions suggest that Sister Garaele—a priest of Tymora, the goddess of luck—can aid you in the town of Phandalin.
Human Folk Hero Fighter
- One day, Thundertree will be a prosperous town again. A statue of me will stand in the town square.
- Your parents lived in the prosperous village of Thundertree, east of the city of Neverwinter and at the edge of the Neverwinter Wood. But when nearby Mount Hotenow erupted thirty years ago, your parents fled, carrying you in your infancy. Your family drifted from village to village around the region, finding work as servants or laborers where they could. You’ve spent the last few years in Neverwinter as a porter and laborer at the city’s bustling docks. But it’s clear to you and everyone around you that you are destined for much more. You stood up to an abusive ship captain once, so other dockworkers look up to you. Someday, you’ll come into your own. You’ll be a hero.
- Personal Goal: Drive Off the Dragon.
  - The ruins of Thundertree call to you. Your family and their friends once lived in prosperity there, and now they’re reduced to menial labor. The ruins are haunted by ash zombies, and rumor has it a dragon has made its lair in the Old Tower, but those are problems a hero can solve. Slay the dragon, or drive it off, and you’ll prove—to yourself and everyone else—you’re a real hero, destined for greatness.
Other Options
- Character Hooks