An Urban Chronicle of Loss, Deception, and the Long Road to Destiny within the City of Splendors
Beneath the looming towers of Waterdeep—the City of Splendors, jewel of the Sword Coast—fortune and ruin walk hand in hand when the Dragon Heist is involved. This is a tale not of lords or legends, but of those who enter the city’s gates with nothing but sorrow, secrets, and the scraps of their former lives.
When young Zarek Brightlamp stepped toward Waterdeep’s mist-drenched gates, he bore more than the weight of his pack. A tiefling raised by a wandering bookseller, Zarek arrived on the cusp of manhood, only to see his world go up in flames. His guardian, Alexander Brightlamp, slain under shadowed circumstances, left behind a cryptic whisper: “The Actor… Roach.” With nothing but the scorched remains of a past life and a box of unanswered questions, Zarek was thrust into the chaos of Waterdeep’s outermost slum—the Field Ward.
In this fetid ward of overcrowded hovels, unspoken laws, and looming despair, Zarek dons false faces, dodges watchful eyes, and learns quickly the price of trust. It is a place where coins vanish faster than warmth, and the difference between a meal and a mugging lies in a single poorly chosen word. His first days in the city are not marked by triumph, but by betrayal, hunger, and the bitter sleet of Uktar, the month of rotting.
Yet even here, in the dregs of Waterdeep, destiny flickers. A name, a clue, a glimmer of purpose—Meloon Wardragon. And though hope is buried beneath the grime of Twelvedog Court and the watchful scowls of the City Watch, Zarek Brightlamp endures. For every tale of splendor, and the Dragon Heist, begins somewhere in the gutter.
A Chronicle of Fog, Filth, and Forgotten Names in the City of Splendors
In the fetid alleyways of the Field Ward, where the cobbles run slick with nightsoil and the scent of tanner’s vats clings to every breath, fate stirs amidst the refuse. Here, beyond the shining spires and noble banners of Waterdeep Proper, the gods seem to have turned their gaze—or merely blinked.
Welcome to Down and Out, the unfolding journal of Zarek Brightlamp, a fallen acolyte and keen-minded investigator, and Alley Yaeldrin, a streetwise spellcaster with secrets deeper than the harbor. One seeks justice for a murdered guardian. The other seeks safety, sanctuary, and something worth calling home.
But the City of Splendors has no kindness for the weak. Monsters do not always hide in sewers or tombs; they drink in taverns, they wear stolen faces, and they whisper in strange tongues in the shadows of broken theatres. Here, among bloodshot thugs and corrupt watchmen, Zarek must sharpen his mind and steel his will—not just to avenge, but to survive.
And then there is Alley—brilliant, reckless, and too young for what the world demands of her. With her uncanny magic and unshakable courage, she is yet the spark that lights a greater fire… or draws a darker eye.
Together, they chase whispers through gutters and ghost-haunted inns, from the rotting eaves of the Almondine’s Delight to the dubious safety of the Scrap’d Rafter. They have little coin, fewer allies, and almost no chance.
But sometimes, that’s enough.
Waterdeep: Down and Out is a tale of mystery and survival, told day by day in the margins of the City of Splendors—where hope flickers like candlelight, and even a gutter rat can cast a long shadow.