Here are five backgrounds from the pregens in the adventure. Use as you wish, if you wish, but post what you are stealing so you don't double up on one hook. First come first serve!
Background 1
Your family is no stranger to wealth, power, and privilege. In the glory days of Neverwinter, your parents were the count and countess of Corlinn Hill, a large estate located in the hills northeast of the city. But Mount Hotenow erupted thirty years ago, devastating Neverwinter and erasing Corlinn Hill from the map. Instead of growing up on an estate, you were raised in a small but comfortable town house in Waterdeep. As an adult, you stand to inherit a meaningless title and little else.
Personal Goal: Civilize Phandalin. You were meant for more than being a ruler of nothing at all. Rebuilding Corlinn Hill is impractical, thanks to the volcano. But in the last three or four years, hardy settlers have been rebuilding another ruin near the city: the old town of Phandalin, which orcs sacked five centuries ago. Clearly, what Phandalin needs now is a civilizing influence—someone to take the reins and bring law and order. Someone like you. You’re not the only one with such ideas. A knight named Sildar Hallwinter recently set out for Phandalin in the company of a dwarf named Gundren Rockseeker. They plan to reclaim an ancient mine and restore Phandalin to a civilized center of wealth and prosperity. Since your goals align, Hallwinter should be willing to assist you.
Background 2
Trained as a soldier on the island of Mintarn, you traveled to Neverwinter as part of a mercenary company that serves as both
army and city watch. You grew disillusioned with your fellow soldiers, who seem to enjoy their authority at the expense of the people they’re supposed to protect. Everything came to a head recently, when you disobeyed an order and followed your conscience. You were suspended from active duty, though you kept your rank and your connection to the mercenaries. Since then, you have devoted yourself to your deity.
Personal Goal: Teach the Redbrands a Lesson. You’ve heard that Daran Edermath in the town of Phandalin is looking for people of courage and principle to teach some bullies a lesson. These thugs, the Redbrands, have been throwing their weight around in Phandalin, much as your compatriots did in Neverwinter. Putting a stop to their villainy is a worthy goal.
Background 3
The town of Phandalin is built on the ruins of an older settlement, vacant for five centuries until some hardy settlers set about rebuilding it some years back. Drawn by stories of gold and platinum in the nearby foothills, you came to Phandalin as well, not to earn a living, but to prey on those who struck it rich. You joined a gang calling itself the Redbrands and made some decent coin as a burglar, enforcer, or fence. But you must have made an enemy among your fellow Redbrands. Someone set you up. On that person’s word, the head of the Redbrands—a wizard called Glasstaff —tried to have you killed. You escaped, barely alive and thanking Tymora, the goddess of good fortune, for your luck. You fled Phandalin, almost penniless and with only the tools of your trade to your name.
Personal Goal: Get Your Revenge. Someone in the Redbrands nearly got you killed, and you sure would like to know who it was. And then you’d like to take your revenge—on that person, on Glasstaff, maybe on all the Redbrands. And you just got a tip that might help you: someone named Halia Thornton also has it out for the Redbrands. She lives in Phandalin, which means showing your face to the Redbrands who still want you dead.
Background 4
You have spent your life dedicated to Oghma, all-seeing god of knowledge, and spent years learning the lore of the multiverse.
Personal Goal: Reconsecrate the Defiled Altar. Through visions delivered in your trances, your god has called you to a new mission. A goblin tribe has made its lair in an ancient ruin now called Cragmaw Castle, where they have defiled a shrine once sacred to Oghma. Now dedicated to the vile goblin god Maglubiyet, the altar is an offense to Oghma that must not stand. You’re sure Oghma has greater things in store for you if you can complete this quest. In the meantime, your visions suggest that Sister Garaele—a priest of Tymora, the goddess of luck—can aid you in the town of Phandalin.
Background 5
Your parents lived in the prosperous village of Thundertree, east of the city of Neverwinter and at the edge of the Neverwinter Wood. But when nearby Mount Hotenow erupted thirty years ago, your parents ed, carrying you in your infancy. Your family drifted from village to village around the region, finding work as servants or laborers where they could. You’ve spent the last few years in Neverwinter as a porter and laborer at the city’s bustling docks. But it’s clear to you and everyone around you that you are destined for much more. You stood up to an abusive ship captain once, so other dockworkers look up to you. Someday, you’ll come into your own. You’ll be a hero.
Personal Goal: Drive Out the Dragon. The ruins of Thundertree call to you. Your family and their friends once lived in prosperity there, and now they’re reduced to menial labor. The ruins are haunted by ash zombies, and rumor has it a dragon has made its lair in the Old Tower, but those are problems a hero can solve. Slay the dragon, or drive it out, and you’ll prove—to yourself and everyone else—you’re a real hero, destined for greatness.
Background 1
Your family is no stranger to wealth, power, and privilege. In the glory days of Neverwinter, your parents were the count and countess of Corlinn Hill, a large estate located in the hills northeast of the city. But Mount Hotenow erupted thirty years ago, devastating Neverwinter and erasing Corlinn Hill from the map. Instead of growing up on an estate, you were raised in a small but comfortable town house in Waterdeep. As an adult, you stand to inherit a meaningless title and little else.
Personal Goal: Civilize Phandalin. You were meant for more than being a ruler of nothing at all. Rebuilding Corlinn Hill is impractical, thanks to the volcano. But in the last three or four years, hardy settlers have been rebuilding another ruin near the city: the old town of Phandalin, which orcs sacked five centuries ago. Clearly, what Phandalin needs now is a civilizing influence—someone to take the reins and bring law and order. Someone like you. You’re not the only one with such ideas. A knight named Sildar Hallwinter recently set out for Phandalin in the company of a dwarf named Gundren Rockseeker. They plan to reclaim an ancient mine and restore Phandalin to a civilized center of wealth and prosperity. Since your goals align, Hallwinter should be willing to assist you.
Background 2
Trained as a soldier on the island of Mintarn, you traveled to Neverwinter as part of a mercenary company that serves as both
army and city watch. You grew disillusioned with your fellow soldiers, who seem to enjoy their authority at the expense of the people they’re supposed to protect. Everything came to a head recently, when you disobeyed an order and followed your conscience. You were suspended from active duty, though you kept your rank and your connection to the mercenaries. Since then, you have devoted yourself to your deity.
Personal Goal: Teach the Redbrands a Lesson. You’ve heard that Daran Edermath in the town of Phandalin is looking for people of courage and principle to teach some bullies a lesson. These thugs, the Redbrands, have been throwing their weight around in Phandalin, much as your compatriots did in Neverwinter. Putting a stop to their villainy is a worthy goal.
Background 3
The town of Phandalin is built on the ruins of an older settlement, vacant for five centuries until some hardy settlers set about rebuilding it some years back. Drawn by stories of gold and platinum in the nearby foothills, you came to Phandalin as well, not to earn a living, but to prey on those who struck it rich. You joined a gang calling itself the Redbrands and made some decent coin as a burglar, enforcer, or fence. But you must have made an enemy among your fellow Redbrands. Someone set you up. On that person’s word, the head of the Redbrands—a wizard called Glasstaff —tried to have you killed. You escaped, barely alive and thanking Tymora, the goddess of good fortune, for your luck. You fled Phandalin, almost penniless and with only the tools of your trade to your name.
Personal Goal: Get Your Revenge. Someone in the Redbrands nearly got you killed, and you sure would like to know who it was. And then you’d like to take your revenge—on that person, on Glasstaff, maybe on all the Redbrands. And you just got a tip that might help you: someone named Halia Thornton also has it out for the Redbrands. She lives in Phandalin, which means showing your face to the Redbrands who still want you dead.
Background 4
You have spent your life dedicated to Oghma, all-seeing god of knowledge, and spent years learning the lore of the multiverse.
Personal Goal: Reconsecrate the Defiled Altar. Through visions delivered in your trances, your god has called you to a new mission. A goblin tribe has made its lair in an ancient ruin now called Cragmaw Castle, where they have defiled a shrine once sacred to Oghma. Now dedicated to the vile goblin god Maglubiyet, the altar is an offense to Oghma that must not stand. You’re sure Oghma has greater things in store for you if you can complete this quest. In the meantime, your visions suggest that Sister Garaele—a priest of Tymora, the goddess of luck—can aid you in the town of Phandalin.
Background 5
Your parents lived in the prosperous village of Thundertree, east of the city of Neverwinter and at the edge of the Neverwinter Wood. But when nearby Mount Hotenow erupted thirty years ago, your parents ed, carrying you in your infancy. Your family drifted from village to village around the region, finding work as servants or laborers where they could. You’ve spent the last few years in Neverwinter as a porter and laborer at the city’s bustling docks. But it’s clear to you and everyone around you that you are destined for much more. You stood up to an abusive ship captain once, so other dockworkers look up to you. Someday, you’ll come into your own. You’ll be a hero.
Personal Goal: Drive Out the Dragon. The ruins of Thundertree call to you. Your family and their friends once lived in prosperity there, and now they’re reduced to menial labor. The ruins are haunted by ash zombies, and rumor has it a dragon has made its lair in the Old Tower, but those are problems a hero can solve. Slay the dragon, or drive it out, and you’ll prove—to yourself and everyone else—you’re a real hero, destined for greatness.