There’s mention of several past heroes in both Lost Mine of Phandelver and Dragon of Icespire Peak. For all intents and purposes, they’re basically just names to attach to a location or an item, and don’t amount to much beyond flavoring the game with an Intelligence (History) check. That is, unless you have a Dungeon Master who likes to tug at every thread (cough).

• There’s Aldith Tresendar, a landed knight who built his seat in Phandalin. To this day, the ruins of his hall (Tresendar Manor) overlook the town of Phandalin. It was said that he fought with a famous blade at the time – an enchanted longsword named “Talon.” The knight gave his life in the defense of Phandalin in 951 DR, when the town was destroyed by, presumably, the same orc hoard and mercenary wizards who destroyed Wave Echo Cave.
• There’s Palien, who leaves a bit more to the imagination for a Dungeon Master who enjoys adding their own lore to the game. Palien was famous enough to have a statue of his likeness erected in Thundertree’s town square, but the module doesn’t provide any details of his deeds beyond mention that he “defeated several monsters in the Neverwinter Wood when Thundertree was first founded.” What’s that mean? A green dragon? Owlbears? A flumph? Here’s your chance to dream up some folklore. As an aside, I love that the game designers built in a DC 20 Strength check to knock his statue down. Eat it, Palien!
• There’s Tergon, a human hero of Neverwinter who lived 500 years ago. There’s almost nothing about The Terg in LMoP’s lore, other than he commissioned Dragonguard (an enchanted breast plate with a gold dragon motif worked into its design). My guess is he was a dragon slayer, or was hoping to be a dragon slayer. Whichever it was, he did it without Dragonguard, since it remains in Wave Echo Cave at the time Lost Mine of Phandelver is told.
• And then there’s Lady Tanamere Alagondar. First and foremost, she is of the royal line of Alagondar, former rulers of Neverwinter. Her enchanted (and unnamed, wtf) dragon slaying sword is interred with her at the Dragon Barrow in Dragon of Icespire Peak. Of the four heroes mentioned in either adventure, she has the most interesting story by far, as she slew Azdraka, a green dragon who terrorized the High Road over a century ago, losing her life in the deed. If any of these heroes would have a book written about their deeds, it would be Lady Alagondar. She was not only of the noble class, but of royalty as well, meaning her family had the means to commission such a publication. And she is among the few in Faerûn have actually slain a dragon. A book is a nice start, but she needs a story, or a song, or a sonnet, or something.

If a player chooses this book as a trinket, ask them if they want the contents of the book to detail a hero presented in the lore of either adventure, and then hand waive the Intelligence (History) checks associated with any lore about the hero. Or better yet, just give them all of the lore for the hero up front, and then allow them to shine when they share what they know with their party at the appropriate time.

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