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Toward the City of Splendors
Overview
19th of Kythorn (June), 1358 DR, Year of Shadows
Only a few days after liberating the village of Snowmantle from the grip of the Zhentarim, the Ashaba Heroes, eating their supper at the Old Skull Inn, keep hearing of many rumors that the gods of the Realms have fallen to the surface of Toril, roaming the lands in the form of avatars. Also, it seems that magic has become very unstable and very dangerous to use lately...
This period of time is known as the Avatar Crisis. The story is told in a series of novels called the Avatar Trilogy. The 3 books are titled Shadowdale, Tantras and Waterdeep. I've read all of them and they are my favorite books of all-time for the Forgotten Realms. Here are the descriptions behind each of the books, so you can get an idea of what goes on in this extremely important period for the Realms:
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Shadowdale
The gods walk the Realms. Banished from the heavens, they now roam the world, from Tantras to far-off Waterdeep, seeking to regain their full powers. Malevolent Bane, power-hungry Mystra, and Helm, guardian of the heavens, all know the lost Tablets of Fate are the key. Possessing a mysterious amulet, four heroes, desperate to escape the dark elements of their pasts, find themselves drawn into this high-level power struggle, sought after by the fallen deities and their minions. But time is running out for the heroes - and the Realms. Caught in the crossfire, nature itself revolts: strange, deadly creatures stalk the land, and even magic becomes unpredictable. The heroes must find the sage Elminster, the only mortal who may know the secret of the tablets. And the search begins in Shadowdale.
Tantras
Elminster has been murdered. Now Midnight and Adon, who saved the Dales from the evil god Bane in the Battle of Shadowdale, have been sentenced to death for the murder. But chaos has taken hold of nature and magic since the gods were exiled from the Planes, and the heroes are the only ones who know the location of the first Tablet of Fate, which can save the Realms from the fallen gods. Even as the heroes escape, Bane and his ally, Myrkul, God of Death, set in motion a plot to steal the Tablets of Fate for themselves. The heroes face deadly assassins, nightmarish creatures, and violent storms on their way across the Dales, but the worst threat of all is unexpected - one of Midnight's friends has joined Bane and the forces of Zhentil Keep.
Waterdeep
Who will be the new gods? The God of Strife is dead, destroyed in his attacks on Tantras, and Midnight and her allies have recovered the first Tablet of Fate - one of a pair of artifacts that will return the gods to their former glory and save the Realms from the fallen deities' wrath. To complete their quest, though, the heroes must travel across the world to Waterdeep, City of Splendors, and even pass into the Realm of the Dead. But both Cyric and Myrkul, God of Death, want the Tablets of Fate for their own dark ends, and they will stop at nothing to capture Midnight - even if it means the destruction of the Realms.
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So, at the end of the Avatar Crisis, the gods Bane, Myrkul, Bhaal, Torm and Mystra were destroyed. The mortal Cyric took over the portfolios for the 3 evil gods, Bane, Myrkul and Bhaal. Torm, for his noble death in defending Tantras from Bane, was restored by Ao. As for Mystra, her portfolio was taken over by the mortal named Midnight. Of course, I've left out many details about this epic. If you want to know more, check this site out or read the trilogy of books.
So anyway, later in that day, Lord Mourngrym Amcathra along with very well-dressed young man meet the Ashaba Heroes at the Inn. Mourngrym presents his nephew, Regnet Amcathra, who is visiting from Waterdeep, the City of Splendors. The Lord explains that the noble of Waterdeep must return to the City as soon as possible. Elminster had promised Mourngrym to teleport Regnet to Waterdeep a few weeks ago but the old mage seems to have disappeared from the surface of the Realms. Also, with the recent rumors concerning the fallen gods and the unstable and dangerous nature of magic, Mourngrym is hesitant to ask another mage to teleport Regnet to Waterdeep...
Unwilling to risk the life of his nephew, Mourngrym asks the Ashaba Heroes if they can escort Regnet back to Waterdeep. He says that he's ready to supply anything the adventurers will need for the long voyage. Also, Regnet is very enthousiastic at the prospect of exploring the Realms with the Ashaba Heroes. Unable to resist such an offer, the adventurers accept Mourngrym's request.
Their first destination is the frontier town of Tilverton. Arrived at the city's entrance, the adventurers are intercepted by a contingent of Purple Dragons, the soldiers from Cormyr. After a misunderstanding with the soldiers, the Heroes and Regnet are thrown in jail...
An old friend comes to visit the Ashaba Heroes while they're imprisonned in the town's jail : Lortus Silversword, the young man who had commissionned the Heroes to go get a beljuril gem in Aghazstamn's Lair. Lortus comes to an understanding with the Purple Dragons and the adventurers are released. Lortus invites the Heroes to his mansion. The Heroes meet Lortus' wife, Nashira, and they can't help but notice that she's wearing a magnificent ring orned with a beautiful beljuril gem.
After a few refreshments, the young noble from Cormyr informs the Ashaba Heroes that they must procure themselves a royal adventuring charter to freely roam the kingdom of Cormyr. However, the only way to procure a royal charter quickly is to get it in the city of Arabel, to the southwest of Tilverton. Lortus proposes a solution to the Heroes. Nashira and him must return to Suzail, the royal capital, for family business. He will hire the Heroes as bodyguards to escort his wife and him to Arabel. Arrived at Arabel, he will pay for their royal charter. Being hired as bodyguards, the adventurers won't need a royal charter to reach Arabel. The Heroes accept Lortus' proposition.
The trip from Tilverton to Arabel is very interesting. Not withstanding an attack by brigands, the adventurers are witness to an incredible and frightening scene. When they reach Gnoll Pass, the adventurers meet up with Elminster. Being cryptic as usual, he envelopps the Heroes inside a magical prismatic sphere and brings them up high into the air. The adventurers witness a titanic confrontation between the Goddess of Magic, Mystra and the Guardian of the Heavens, Helm. The two gods battle right in front of the Heroes eyes and 4 other people that are on the surface (the heroes from the Avatar Crisis). When the battle is over, Mystra has been destroyed by Helm and the adventurers float back to the surface, in Gnoll Pass. Elminster, a tear in his eye, enters a magical portal of light and disappears before Regnet can ask him a little favor...
The next morning, en route towards Arabel, the adventurers meet a group of about 20 mercenaries, men and women, led by a man named Thurbrand. He says he's looking for a group of 5 persons, three men, one woman and a young girl. He says that the three men are named Kelemvor, Adon and Cyric and that they are wanted for questionning by Arabel authorities. The Ashaba Heroes inform Thurbrand about the group of people they noticed the day before. He thanks them for their help and the mercenaries leave, towards Shadowdale...
Arrived at Arabel, the adventurers get their royal adventuring charter with the help of Lortus. The young noble and his wife bid farewell to the Ashaba Heroes and wish them luck in their further adventures. Their next destination : the village of Eveningstar. Arrived there, the Heroes hear about rumors of a black dragon that is terrorizing the small village of Tyrluk, to the west of Eveningstar. A 5,000 gold pieces reward has been offered to whomever slays the dragon. Regnet begs the Heroes to consider the townsfolk of Tyrluk. Always ready to accept a challenge, the adventurers decide to travel to Tyrluk and investigate.
The adventurers eventually manage to discover the dragon's lair and they also discover that a Cult of the Dragon cell is at the origin of the recent attacks against Tyrluk. The Ashaba Heroes destroy the black dragon and his Cult of the Dragon allies and they receive the reward of 5,000 gold pieces by bringing back the dead dragon's carcass to the village.
One hour after leaving the village of Tyrluk, the Ashaba Heroes are envelopped in a magical white light and after coming to their senses, they find out they are less than 3 kilometers from the City of Splendors, Waterdeep!
Note : The DM, having very badly planned the VERY LONG voyage from Shadowdale to Waterdeep and also running out of ideas, decided to teleport the Heroes directly to Waterdeep. Lacking inspiration, the DM turned himself towards pre-written adventure modules.
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