In the beginning, townspeople become lethargic or irritable, but as time goes on their shapes will begin to change. Growths appear on limbs, additional eyes might grow out of their heads, and hands turn to claws as this takes over. The first few adventures have your party dealing with low-level threats, as your average goblin ambush leads the party to the town of Phandalin. Once there, they'll encounter the Redbrand ruffians and learn the secrets of the lost mine and the gang terrorizing the town. Triboar Trail? Try “Tutorial!” The earliest encounters offer a taste of everything, letting you and your players become comfortable with both the rules of D&D and the three pillars of adventure. Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk is something that Wizards of the Coast really seem to be describing as a labour of love, arguing that this is visible in the artwork, the layout of the book, and the care and attention they're giving to the remaster of a 2014 classic. The inception of the story was apparently driven by a desire to preserve Phandelver as a hardcover book, and it's something they hope will look fantastic on players' shelves for years to come. Most Read

Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk is a Level 1-12 adventure. The first five levels are an update to The Lost Mines of Phandelver, and the following seven levels of the experience are a new adventure continuing the party's relationship with the town of Phandalin as strange otherworldly effects start taking hold. With a clear link to the famous Dungeons & Dragons villain Vecna, the obelisks and their role in a new DnD multiverse become clearer. Players can read the updated dossier on Vecna on D&D Beyond, which explains that Vecna has often traveled between worlds or realms. Indeed, in the D&D Direct showcase, WotC announced that Vecna would get his own book in 2024. Any good D&D campaign can comprise bits and pieces of other ideas. Phandelver and Below The Shattered Obelisk present many great ideas and story beats that can be used in a one-shot or your homebrew campaign. Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk Review - Not Quite Sure What It Wants To Be | TechRaptor

Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk manages to remind players why The Lost Mines of Phandelver is one of the best adventures for new players. With a healthy mix of combat, investigation, and getting lost in the small area Phandalin players get to experience a quintessential high fantasy adventure.

Take time to learn exactly what an obelisk is and its purpose. Not only are they central to this adventure, but they can be used to completely change the trajectory of this adventure or your own custom homebrew adventures. From the press event alone, it’s not clear how extensive the changes to NPCs are. Only one example was shown – new art reveals that Phandalin’s DnD Druid, Reidoth, is now a woman. There is always an option to just start with the new content halfway through the game, though there's a chance you won't have those same connections with the NPC of the world.For many trying out Dungeons & Dragons for the first time with 5th edition, or coming from previous editions, chances are you started in the same place: Phandalin. The Lost Mines of Phandelver was for so long the 5e starting adventure, but now with our hands on Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obeliskwhat are our thoughts on this new adventure? Because these adventures are continuations in each chapter, it's better to take certain elements, ideas, and story beats and use them in your campaign. This means looking into some of the following: Behind The Scenes Action The adventure continues to focus on Phandalin and its surrounding areas, but as new dungeons are explored and leads are followed up on, the adventure shifts into creepier territory.

Although Wizards of the Coast are keeping things a surprise for us, it's clear that something terrible is going on underground. This "something" involves corrupting magic coming from the depths, that seeps upwards. Because it's strongest at source, it's there that It not only mutates monsters, but also corrupts players thanks to an optional "corruption" mechanic that is featured in the book. This mechanic is largely flavour but it adds immersion, bringing the existential threat directly to the players directly in an unavoidable way. What makes for powerful moments in an adventure? How does a new player experience those events? Here are a few tips we’ve gathered that will help level up your adventure in Phandalin. Forma Connection WithGundren Artist: Scott Murphy Plus, there’s all that brand-new content in the final two-thirds of the book – including new DnD monsters and corruption mechanics that warp the familiar town of Phandalin. Plot hooks setting up the rest of the DnD campaign have also been woven into the original adventure. Hamon says the goal was to channel nostalgia for Phandelver while also offering fresh new 5e encounters. Drag & Drop over 175 illustrated handouts into the virtual tabletop, depicting heinous five-headed hydras and stunning landscapes to set the sceneIt goes without saying that Phandelver and Below has appeal for fans of the original starter set. This is a chance to relive what might have been your first-ever D&D adventure, after all. Many of the tweaks are cosmetic or focus on moving Phandelver on from its starter set status, removing the more obvious DM advice –but the heart of the campaign remains. A major aspect of the original release that has been removed, is the beginner verbiage that was included in the Starter Kit adventure. New DMs won't find this version of The Lost Mines as helpful, explaining to the DM what rules they'd need to understand themselves or be able to explain to their players. A New Quest For The Shattered Obelisk The events of the first chapter provide a taste of each of the pillars of adventure: exploration, social interaction, and combat. Not only does this provide a chance for any given player to shine early on, but it also establishes what both a player and DM might expect in a typical adventure, and how to navigate aspects of each pillar. Use these as learning opportunities!

A great option for whether you're running a plague or undead infestation in your own campaign. Taking cues from how the transformations happen to NPCs and players in stages perfectly displays the beginning of a devastating plague in your campaign.If you choose to do this, have hints of things going on underneath the surface. Talking to the townsfolk should make your players aware that not everything is as it seems, even with a current quest going on. Player Transformations Despite these teething problems, Phandelver and Below does a lot right. It balances classic D&D tropes with creative surprises excellently – yes, there are Mind Flayers, but not as we know them. Almost every recognizable monster you meet has a secret twist, and the new creatures introduced are unique in the most horrible ways possible. Following the trail to its end leads to the Cragmaw goblin hideout, the first real “dungeon” ripe for exploration! With the goblin ambush and traps behind them, are your players ready to put those rules to use in their favor? Perhaps they are well-equipped now to move with Stealth, to ambush any unsuspecting foes, or to set traps of their own.