# ✧ Episode 15 - Assassins in the Garden **Date:** Tuesday, 20th January, 2026 **Location:** [[Waterdeep]] North Ward **Notes**: as written by [[Kozu Marphanis]] ## Session Summary - Another day in [[Waterdeep]], another mess to clean up. That's what we do, I suppose - The Mighty Hands, cleaning up the city's problems one investigation at a time. Today started simple enough, but by the gods, it didn't end that way. - Our afternoon began at the Hall of Justice, concluding the Blackviper investigation by reporting to [[Savxra]] of [[The Order of the Gaunlet]]. With that side quest wrapped up, we turned our attention to more pressing matters: the mysterious fireball at [[TheManor]] and the hunt for the Stone of Golorr. Our leads pointed us to a [[Zhents]] villa in the North Ward, where we split into two teams for the assault. - What should have been a straightforward infiltration turned deadly when Martyn and I were ambushed by a "gardener" wielding daggers. The fight was brutal - I took 15 hit points of damage before we managed to drop the assassin with a crossbow bolt between his eyes. Meanwhile, our companions discovered something equally disturbing inside: dead servants, a mysterious jet-black horse named Maladar, and eight gold bars hidden in the saddlebags. This is bigger than we thought. ## The Morning's Business - The afternoon sun hung low over Waterdeep as we made our way to the Hall of Justice. It was around 4pm, early spring in the season they call "Claw of Sunsets," and the clear skies did nothing to ease the weight of our current predicaments. We had two threads to pull on: the mysterious fireball that exploded outside [[TheManor]] - our headquarters - and the hunt for the Stone of Golorr, that accursed map to [[Dagult Neverember]]'s infamous dragon hoard. - But first, we had a side quest to wrap up. The Blackviper case. - [[Fredoku]], [[Dolous]], [[Iz]], and I entered the Hall of Justice while [[Martyn Littlewood]] stayed outside to keep me company. Well, that's what he said anyway - "keeping Kozu company" - though I suspect he just wanted to avoid the stuffiness of temple politics. Can't say I blamed him entirely. Inside, we met with [[Savxra]] from [[The Order of the Gaunlet]] and delivered our findings: the infamous thief known as the Blackviper was actually one of the Cassalanter twins, the evil one who wore a mask to hide her disfigurement. - [[Savxra]] thanked us and offered the temple's assistance should we need it in the future. A useful contact to have, though I always wonder what strings come attached to such offers. ## The Temple of Gond - Our investigation into the fireball led us to the Temple of Gond - also known as the Inspired Hands - located in the Sea Ward district. They're the ones sponsoring the Day of Wonder parade in about six months. Interesting timing for a fireball incident, don't you think? which happened outside our [[TheManor]] but decided to focus on the more pressing matter: the Stone of Golorr. ## The Villa Assault - By 5:30pm, the sun was beginning its descent, painting the North Ward in shades of amber and shadow. Our intel pointed us to a villa controlled by the [[Zhents]] - that gang of smugglers and black market dealers who seem to have their fingers in every dark corner of this city. - [[Dolous]] sent his familiar Lumenir ahead - the hawk-formed spirit gave us eyes on the building. The villa had a stable in the back, a walled perimeter, and gates at the front. Standard defensible position, but nothing we couldn't handle. - Or so I thought. - [[Martyn Littlewood]] and [[Kozu Marphanis]] took point at the front of the grounds. Kozu knocked first - professional courtesy and all that. The sound of fighting echoed from within. Interesting. I banged harder, putting some authority into it. "City Watch here!" I bellowed, hoping to startle whoever was inside. - The fighting stopped. Silence fell. - Then I felt it - a sharp, searing pain in my back. 15 hit points worth of daggers finding the gaps in my leather armor. I spun around to find the gardener, of all people, standing there with two blood-dripped blades. A gardener. With that kind of blade work. - This was no gardener. - Martyn reacted instantly, his spear finding the assassin's torso for 8 points of damage. But the bastard wasn't done - he struck Martyn with some kind of necrotic spell, draining the life from him. I could see Martyn's face pale, but he's tougher than he looks. He called upon his warlock powers, and dark tentacles erupted around the assassin - Arms of Hadar, dealing 12 points of crushing, void-touched damage. The "gardener" looked bloodied, barely standing. - I disengaged 20ft and downed my healing potion, feeling the warmth spread through my veins, knitting flesh and restoring vitality. Then I drew my crossbow, locked eyes with the assassin, and squeezed the trigger. The bolt flew true, striking him directly between the eyes. He dropped like a sack of potatoes. - Martyn and I exchanged a look. Without a word, we both reached the same conclusion. - "Let's get the fuck out of here," I said. - We dashed back to the front gate and pressed ourselves against the garden wall, catching our breath. "That was close," Martyn muttered, and I couldn't help but agree. Too close. ## Meanwhile, at the Back Door - While Martyn and I were having our little dance with death, [[Iz]], [[Dolous]], and [[Fredoku]] had taken the sneakier approach around back. They'd made their way to the coach house and found the backdoor. - Iz, ever the practical one, simply sawed off the handle. Inside, they found a well-maintained stable with a jet-black horse. Beautiful creature, really. There was a young stable boy asleep in the hay who began to stir at their entrance. - The horse had a nameplate: "Maladar." High-quality horseshoes, expensive saddle bags, and - most interesting of all - four gold bars, each weighing 5 pounds, tucked away in those bags. This was no ordinary horse. This was someone important's ride. - They moved from the stable into the main house, entering through what appeared to be a guardroom. [[Dolous]], ever cautious, stealthily opened the door on the right side of the room. - What he found made even his seasoned stomach turn: a servant's room with two dead humans on the ground. Fresh kills, by the look of it. - Whatever was happening in this villa, we'd walked into something bigger than a simple [[Zhents]] hideout. ## Reflection - As I sit here now, writing this account, I can't help but feel we've pulled on a thread that's going to unravel into something far more dangerous. The Stone of Golorr, the [[Zhents]], dead servants, and enough gold to buy a small estate - these pieces don't add up to a simple smuggling operation. - [[The Mighty Hands]] have their work cut out for us. And somehow, I suspect that "gardener" was just the beginning. --- ## NPCs & Locations Encountered - [[Zhents]] villa in the North Ward - [[Savxra]] of [[The Order of the Gaunlet]] - Temple of Gond (The Inspired Hands) - Sea Ward - The mysterious horse "Maladar" - Dead servants (identity unknown) - The "gardener" assassin (deceased) ## Loot & Discoveries - 4 gold bars (5 lbs each) from Maladar's saddlebags - Intelligence on the [[Zhents]] villa layout ## Active Investigations - Source of the fireball at [[TheManor]] - leads to [[Temple of Gond]] - Hunt for the Stone of Golorr - [[Dagult Neverember]]'s dragon hoard map - The Blackviper case (RESOLVED - reported to [[Savxra]]) ___ ## ⚡︎ Tags #dnd #sessionnote #storyline #combat #zhents #investigation #waterdeep #kozu #villa-assault #stone-of-golorr #blackviper