Each PC can start the game being familiar with one of the NPCs in Appendix C (see below)
| Major NPC | Description | Main Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ahmaergo | Xanathar’s majordomo, has a fascination with minotaurs. | Chapter 5 “Spring Madness” |
| Ammalia Cassalanter | The vainglorious lady of House Cassalanter is schooled in the arcane arts. Like her husband Victoro, she worships Asmodeus. | Chapter 6 “Hell of a Summer” |
| Aurinax | Aurinax is a male adult gold dragon who can freely ignore Ahghairon’s dragonward and reside in the city. | Chapter 4 “Dragon Season” |
| Barnibus Blastwind | Barnibus works for the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors, investigating crimes that involve the use of magic. | Chapter 3 “Fireball” |
| The Black Viper | Esvele Rosznar, a brash young noble, has recently adopted the Black Viper’s persona to lead a secret life of crime. Like many other nobles, Esvele gossips about the Black Viper’s exploits to lend credence to the villain’s mystique. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Davil Starsong | Within the Waterdeep division of the Black Network, Davil is accorded the title of Master of Opportunities and Negotiations because he’s good at sniffing out lucrative business deals, and he makes friends easily. | Chapter 2 “Trollskull Alley” |
| Durnan | Durnan is the owner and proprietor of the Yawning Portal. Although he looks like a middle-aged man whose best days are behind him, Durnan has a sharp mind and can still swing a sword when he must. | |
| Fel’rekt Lafeen | Fel’rekt is a male drow who was born female. Unhappy with the treatment of males in his society, he petitioned to join Bregan D’aerthe. Jarlaxle took a shine to Fel’rekt almost immediately, and the young drow has since become one of Jarlaxle’s most loyal lieutenants. | Chapter 4 “Dragon Season” |
| Floon Blagmaar | A native Waterdavian in his early thirties. Handsome one but not very bright. | Chapter 1 “A Friend in Need” |
| Istrid Horn | Istrid is regarded as the Black Network’s Master of Trade and Coin in Waterdeep. The shield dwarf operates an illegal lending operation out of a heavily guarded warehouse in the Dock Ward, offering loans to those in need of coin. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Jalester Silvermane | An earnest man in his mid-twenties, Jalester hails from the distant land of Cormyr, where he earned his spurs working for a mercenary company called the Steel Shadows. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Jarlaxle Baenre | Jarlaxle is a flamboyant, swashbuckling iconoclast. He leads the renegade drow faction Bregan D’aerthe. Jarlaxle infiltrated the city of Luskan, brought a kind of order to its lawlessness, and declared himself its secret lord. | Chapter 7 “Maestro’s Fall” |
| Hlam | This venerable human monk lives in a cave halfway up the side of Mount Waterdeep. Hlam is the grand master of the Order of the Even-Handed, a small monastic group devoted to Tyr. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Hrabbaz | Hrabbaz is a muscle-bound half-orc with a cleft palate who serves the lord and lady of House Gralhund as a bodyguard. | Shapter 3 “Fireball” |
| Krebbyg Masq’il’yr | Krebbyg works closely with Fel’rekt Lafeen, and the two collaborate well despite their disparate alignments. | Chapter 4 “Dragon Season” |
| Laeral Silverhand | Long ago, Laeral ruled a kingdom called Stornanter and held the title of Witch-Queen of the North. She met and married Khelben Arunsun, who would later become the Blackstaff, the Lord Mage of Waterdeep. After Khelben died, Laeral retired from public life. She resurfaced after the Spellplague and the Sundering. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Manshoon | This clone of the ancient archwizard infiltrated Waterdeep years ago and has been hiding out in Kolat Towers ever since, in the city’s Southern Ward. The original Manshoon was one of the founders of the Zhentarim. Evil to the core, he made enemies all across Faerûn, including other powerful spellcasters such as Khelben Arunsun and Elminster. | Chapter 8 “Winter Wizardy” |
| Meloon Wardragon | Meloon is a handsome, formidable warrior in his prime, who serves the goddess Tymora and loves a good fight. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Mirt | Once known as Mirt the Merciless and the Old Wolf, Mirt made a fortune and carved out a reputation as an adventurer and philanderer. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Nar’l Xibrindas | Xanathar’s advisor is a nervous and conniving male drow named Nar’l Xibrindas. | Chapter 5 “Spring Madness” |
| Nihiloor | The illithid Nihiloor works for Xanathar, spending its days creating intellect devourers and setting them loose in the sewers of Waterdeep. | Chapter 5 “Spring Madness” |
| Noska Ur’gray | Noska is a ruthless enforcer in the Xanathar Guild. | Chapter 4 “Dragon Season” |
| Orond Gralhund | The Gralhunds are nobles who trade in arms and mercenaries, and whose family motto is “We see both sides.” | Chapter 3 “Fireball” |
| Osvaldo Cassalanter | Ammalia and Victoro Cassalanter traded the soul of their eldest child for power. Stripped of his humanity, Osvaldo was chained up in Cassalanter Villa and slowly transformed into a devil (and an insane one at that). | Chapter 6 “Hell of a Summer” |
| Ott Steeltoes | The dwarf Ott Steeltoes has the nerve-wracking task of tending to Xanathar’s pet fish, Sylgar. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Remallia Haventree | Remallia (Remi to her friends) is the lady of House Ulbrinter and a guiding light for the Harpers in Waterdeep. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Renaer Neverember | Renaer is the estranged son of Dagult Neverember, the former Open Lord of Waterdeep and the current Lord of Neverwinter. | Chapter 1 “A Friend in Need” |
| Saeth Cromley | Saeth Cromley is a retired sergeant of the City Watch, a likable fellow with a sharp, sarcastic wit. | Chapter 3 “Fireball” |
| Skeemo Weirdbottle | Skeemo became the Master of Magic for the Black Network in Waterdeep, setting up a cover in the Trades Ward in the form of a cramped little shop called Weirdbottle’s Concoctions. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Soluun Xibrindas | Soluun is a sadistic, fanatical bully who is fiercely loyal to Bregan D’aerthe, and to Jarlaxle in particular. | Chapter 4 “Dragon Season” |
| Tashlyn Yafeera | Tashlyn is Master of Arms and Mercenaries for the Waterdeep Zhentarim. In this role, she provides armor, weapons, and training to sellswords on the Black Network’s payroll. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Thorvin Twinbeard | Thorvin serves as Xanathar’s chief engineer and trapsmith. He also serves the Harpers as a paid informant, keeping that faction apprised of Xanathar’s plans as well as he can. | Chapter 5 “Spring Madness” |
| Urstul Floxin | Urstul Floxin works for Manshoon, and he is the highest-ranking member of the Zhentarim squad stationed at House Gralhund. | Chapter 3 “Fireball” |
| Vajra Safahr | Vajra is a capable wizard in her mid-thirties, the youngest person ever to hold the position of Blackstaff. As the High Wizard of Waterdeep, she is charged with using all the magic and resources at her disposal to defend the city against threats. Vajra isn’t the city’s most powerful wizard, but she can hold her own. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |
| Victoro Cassalanter | The lord of House Cassalanter is a devilishly handsome half-elf who likes coin and power. He and his wife gained both by cutting a deal with Asmodeus — which involved trading away the souls of their three children. | Chapter 6 “Hell of a Summer” |
| Volothamp Geddarm | The bombastic world traveler Volothamp Geddarm is enjoying some downtime in Waterdeep following a successful book tour promoting his latest work, Volo’s Guide to Monsters. He spends most of his free time in the taproom of the Yawning Portal, reuniting with old friends and mulling over his next book project. | Chapter 1 “A Friend in Need” |
| Xanathar | Xanathar is the name given to the beholder crime lord that lives in the dungeons under Waterdeep. It isn’t the first beholder to claim this mantle, nor will it be the last. | Chapter 5 “Spring Madness” |
| Yalah Gralhund | The lady of House Gralhund is no fool. She has a keen mind and the wisdom to discern friend from foe. She also has a husband who worships her and a house that has the resources of the Black Network at its disposal. | Chapter 3 “Fireball” |
| Ziraj the Hunter | Ziraj is a half-orc hunter who wields an oversized bow that shoots correspondingly large arrows. He is the Master of Assassination for the Black Network. | Appendix B: Monsters and NPC’s |