Among the snow-capped peaks and wind-swept valleys of the Sword Mountains, there once was a mine famed for its riches and magical power. Centuries ago, calamity destroyed the mine, and knowledge of its location faded into time unremembered among the short-lived races of Faerûn.

There are those who spend their days searching for the forgotten places of the world. Among them are a trio of Dwarven brothers: Gundren, Tharden, and Nundro Rockseeker, who have toiled among the hills and valleys of the Sword Mountains for many years in search of the long lost mine of legend: Wave Echo Cave.

Tell me, friends: if you had spent years of your life in the sole pursuit of rediscovering a site of antiquity fabled for its legendary riches and arcane power, and then found it, what would you do?

Would you stand at the entrance to the long lost Wave Echo Cave, gazing upon the culmination of your life’s work through tears of happiness, but not set foot inside the place? Would practical matters like equipment and provisions supersede the desire to dive headlong into your discovery?

I think not. Shovels, pickaxes, and salted pork would likely be the furthest things from your mind.

And so in their excitement, the brothers Rockseeker hastily plunged into their exploration of Wave Echo Cave, only to find that three Dwarven miners were no match for the dangerous denizens that had taken up residence in the caverns over the centuries. Fortunate to escape with their lives, the brothers agreed that mercenaries were needed to clear the mine of the threats lurking within Wave Echo Cave.

When the characters meet Gundren Rockseeker, the dwarf has been in Neverwinter for a tenday, searching for mercenaries to brave the dangers of the mine. He has been unsuccessful thus far. When he meets the characters, Gundren speaks plainly about the task at hand, explaining that he and his brothers were swarmed by stirges, and then watched as the dead rose up out of the piles of bones littering a guard room, knitting into the forms of skeletons that drove he and his brothers from the mine.

That the characters are being tasked with clearing the caverns of dangerous denizens is clearly stated, and Gundren is prepared to offer a substantial reward for that service. What the dwarf is more than a little secretive about is the nature of their discovery.

So, as far as the characters know, they are being hired to clear out an abandoned mine of its monstrous inhabitants. Deliberately left unsaid: the abandoned mine is, in fact, a long lost site of legend, Wave Echo Cave.

In addition to hiring their swords, Gundren has tasked the party with taking a wagonload of mining supplies to Phandalin on their way to Wave Echo Cave, which their patron will guide them to once they meet him in Phandalin. Gundren does not divulge the actual name of or the location of the mine to anyone, for fear of other claimants. He generously pays each member of the party 10 gp to cover their travel costs for the three day journey to Phandalin.

This minor tweak to the Meet Me In Phandalin adventure Hook may help to place more urgency upon locating and rescuing Gundren Rockseeker when he is taken by the Cragmaw goblins at the start of the adventure.

The hope is that characters will take an active interest in the fate of their benefactor if the adventure begins with the understanding that the opportunity for a very large financial reward ends the moment Gundren Rockseeker’s life ends.

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