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Cruel Summer: An expansion for Waterdeep: Dragon HeistClick to magnify
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Cruel Summer: An expansion for Waterdeep: Dragon Heist

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PLEASE NOTE: THIS SUPPLEMENT REQUIRES WATERDEEP: DRAGON HEIST

Cruel Summer is an extension to Waterdeep:Dragon Heist which continues the Summer story arc and the tale of the Cassalanters, with lots of emphasis on mystery solving, investigation and intrigue.

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After the Cassalanter's Founders' Day celebration ends in death and destruction, their twin children are found to be missing! Waterdeep is in an uproar, the Cassalanters aren't talking and it falls to the party to solve the mystery of the childrens disappearance. Could it be connected to the sinister new faction taking root in the city? Who is the stranger whose corpse was left behind in the twins' bedroom? Is there a link to the surprisingly vicious Noble Council of Soapmakers?

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  • Fully illustrated and professionally edited
  • Designed for a 5th level party, but easily adapted
  • 2 new factions and 5 new NPCs
  • 4 new fully-keyed and mapped locations
  • Links to elements of the Spring, Fall and Winter arcs
  • Gives the party a shot at saving the Cassalanter twins
  • Includes a zip file of the art files and high-res versions of the maps
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Reviews (7)
Discussions (5)
Customer avatar
Anna B January 31, 2020 12:07 am UTC
PURCHASER
Hi! Annoying question if you have the time to respond:
Our next session starts just after the Gentleman in Red's arrival. Exciting!! Meaning combat with mouther/negotiations/chaos is about to ensue. Was wondering if you have any advice:

I'm a bit at a loss as to how the Gentleman making a new deal with someone other than the Cassalanters frees him from his agreement with the Cassalanters. I think I could see how an example of a deal would be "Get me out of this ring by killing those cultists and I'll help you [insert life goal here]," because that doesn't conflict with the Cassalanter deal, but is there another way I should be going about this? A way the Gentleman can make a new overriding deal that would mean he no longer has to turn the twins to lemures-- AKA a way to save the children that doesn't violate his contract? And do you have an example of such a deal?

Cheers! Thanks for the great adventure! Some of my players really liked the Seekers when they met them and...See more
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Douglas S January 31, 2020 3:20 am UTC
CREATOR
Wow, glad to hear your group is enjoying it! As far as Asmodeus and his bargain, I probably didn't express my idea quite as clearly as I could have. The basic idea is that the Cassalanters still lose, and he gets the kids souls- but after that, he's not required to turn them into Lemures if he doesn't want to. Once he claims them, he's free to trade them back to the party if they negotiate that as part of their deal, or keep their bodies and souls in the Nine Hells until the party completes a task for him- it's all down to how much leverage the party has when they start negotiating (meaning how well they deal with the cultists and the gibbering mouther).

Asmodeus is in a bit of a bind when he falls into the seeker's trap-having the Gentleman get trapped is a minor setback to his schemes, but humiliating in the eyes of his potential rivals in the Nine Hells. He wants to come out on top of his exchange with the Seekers, and if he has to trade the two young children in order to do it, he'll gladly restore...See more
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Anna B February 03, 2020 12:34 am UTC
PURCHASER
Ah, I see! Yes, that helps a lot. Though if that's the case I don't fully understand why he is obligated to turn the children to lemures in the first place-- leading Thalia to kill them and bind him.

So would you recommend he first (telepathically) promises a character something they personally desire in exchange for getting him out of the circle (via fighting the Seekers)? And then it's up to them if they want to try to negotiate for the children's souls instead? Then perhaps he tries to offer both the kids souls and the personal goal in exchange for freeing him AND a "minor favor"? Does that sequence of events sound right? Or is he more likely to try to require both help & a minor favor just for the children?

And another one: He can, from the circle, Bolster (via legendary action) the PC's in their fight against the seekers, right?

Thanks so much for your help!
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Douglas S February 03, 2020 4:45 am UTC
CREATOR
You're absolutely right about the first part, I suppose you can think about it this way: he made a deal with the Cassalanters, and if he changes the terms of that deal to save his own skin he loses face. That makes him sort of "honer-bound" to turn the kids into Lemures (that's his Lawful side). If, on the other hand, he turns around and uses them as bargaining chips in a better deal,one that happens to lead to the downfall of his enemies, he hasn't sacrificed his principles to save his own butt.

As far as Asmodeus' approach regarding your PCs, how is your party coming into the final ritual? Have they infiltrated the cult, are they prisoners being forced to run the ring, or are they storming the place? Ideally (for Asmodeus) the party will need his help just as much as he needs theirs. In that case, in their telepathic chats Asmodeus would downplay the danger is avatar is in and really emphasize how much peril the party faces.

And yes, he can Bolster the PCs in their fight-...See more
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Anna B February 03, 2020 4:57 am UTC
PURCHASER
Cool cool. So the Lemures bit is basically what's expected of him, and would make him look best, so he'll do it with no other choice, but he's not legally bound by the contract to transform them.

My players have snuck in, Located Object'd Elzerina's necklace to find the children to be upstairs, and phantasmal forced their way past the Vrock to sneak upstairs and peek into what was going on in the "Smoking Room." The monk ran in and tried to get a jump on attacking them but fell through the center of the room. Knowing they were about to be in trouble, Thal&Mal summoned Asmodeus. So now the monk is down in the ring and the rest of the party is just outside the balcony, technically as of yet unseen (though definitely expected to be there). Love the idea of having Asmodeus play up the fact that they are in more trouble than he is. Thanks!! :D I'll let you know how it goes.
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Douglas S February 03, 2020 5:12 am UTC
CREATOR
That's brilliant- I'm looking forward to hearing how it turns out!
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Anna B February 07, 2020 8:20 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Woooo! A success!!

Conveniently, the very first person up in initiative offered to make a deal with the gentleman in exchange for the children's souls. The Gentleman didn't even have to bring it up. And the Gent was able to negotiate for a minor favor + freeing from the circle in exchange for helping the party defeat the cultists + passing ownership of the kids' souls. The catch is this minor favor comes with up to 5 declines the PC can use to put off the favors. And it is worded as a "reasonably minor" favor, so the PC is convinced he can legally deny anything he doesn't consider "reasonably minor," and he says that to him a minor favor is just lending a neighbor some sugar. So we'll see how that goes. But also this player is taking an indefinite break from the game so it may never come to fruition anyway. But I think a pretty solid end to the arc and a good deal for Asmodeus! :D

Thanks again for the fun conclusion to Waterdeep!!
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Customer avatar
Douglas S February 09, 2020 5:16 pm UTC
CREATOR
That's marvelous, Anna! Honestly, sometimes it feels like I write these things and throw them into the void, so it's been a special thrill to see how something I wrote added to a your group's enjoyment of our favorite game. Thanks for keeping me updated!
Customer avatar
Dennis C November 17, 2019 5:03 pm UTC
PURCHASER
I really like this adventure -- I'm going to use it in my campaign where all the PCs are members of the City Watch. Any chance we can get high resolution versions of the maps suitable for roll20?
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Customer avatar
Douglas S November 18, 2019 2:30 pm UTC
CREATOR
Thanks Dennis! I'll need to dig in the hard drive of my late lamented laptop to see if I can find the original maps- how high resolution would you need?
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Dennis C November 23, 2019 6:31 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Something that would fit the roll20 VTT where each map square is 70x70 pixels.
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Customer avatar
Dennis C November 23, 2019 7:05 pm UTC
PURCHASER
A Players version of the maps, without the room numbers or secret doors on them, would be very useful as well. Also, the module seems to be missing an entire floor for Fantomel's Soaps and Lathers. Areas B4, B5, B6, aren't shown anywhere on the map.
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Douglas S November 23, 2019 11:57 pm UTC
CREATOR
Oh wow- I can't believe I missed that! Let me see if I can get a revised version posted tonight.
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Customer avatar
Douglas S November 24, 2019 6:58 am UTC
CREATOR
Updated version has been posted, along with higher-res versions of the maps (one came from a DMs Guild Map Pack, so it looks pretty rough at high-res). Please let me know if they help.
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Customer avatar
Dennis C December 08, 2019 7:13 pm UTC
PURCHASER
These are fantastic! Thank you so much! This adventure turned out to be just what I needed for my campaign. My players are loving it so far.
Customer avatar
Anna B October 04, 2019 1:12 am UTC
PURCHASER
Hi! I'm wondering about the fate of Jagdar Chergoba. The Adventure Background says they "trapped Jagdar, and Malietta stole his form," etc, but where is the real Jagdar now? Tied up in the bathhouse or the tower? Killed? Forgive me if it is indeed somewhere in the text, I could not find it. Would also love if you come out with a searchable version of the PDF. Currently only the titles of the sections up in searches.
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Customer avatar
Douglas S October 04, 2019 2:10 am UTC
CREATOR
Hi Anna- thanks for checking out my adventure! As far as Jagdar, there are a few hints he was forced to "run the ring" when Malietta was done with him (his name is among those etched in the cell wall beneath the bathhouse), but there's no reason you couldn't have him kept alive in the tower- rescuing him could help the party fill in some details in time to try to save the children. A searchable PDF is an excellent idea! I'm elbow-deep in a new project right now, but I'll make that my next priority!
Customer avatar
Sid S May 08, 2019 10:03 pm UTC
PURCHASER
I looked closer at the full-size preview and decided I can work this in without issue. Purchased!
Customer avatar
Sid S May 08, 2019 9:32 pm UTC
PURCHASER
This looks great! Can it work okay even if you're already towards the later half of the adventure? My PCs are just getting the Stone and getting ready to seek out the 3 keys. I've been trying to figure out a way to save the kids and this looks like just the ticket!
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Customer avatar
Douglas S May 08, 2019 10:12 pm UTC
CREATOR
you beat me to it Sid! Yes, it will work fine towards the latter half on the adventure- technically it could even work after the party has gotten their hands on the gold, but it's better if you can drop some hints about the additional factions ahead of time. Thanks, and enjoy!
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File Last Updated:
May 16, 2022
This title was added to our catalog on April 04, 2019.