This information is intended for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.
At a Glance
A vast subterranean complex of tunnels and chambers, found beneath Waterdeep. Halaster Blackcloak rules here, relying in part on a mythal-like system of spells he created to manage the dungeon and its occupants.
There are many entrances to Undermountain, including portals from Myth Drannor and probably a dozen other old cities. Even within Waterdeep there are more than a handful of doors both magical and not. There’s the Long Dark Stair, the Blue Mermaid Passage, and the Dungeon of the Crypt, as well as various dark tunnels in the sewers that are easily accessible from anywhere in the city. The most widely known and most often used, however —the “front door” of the dungeon— is the dry well in the Yawning Portal.
Levels and Sublevels
It can be difficult to imagine all these levels in three dimensions, so here’s a handy profile map.
- The Citadel of the Bloody Hand is not a level so much as an attic. It’s accessible via the Falling Stair on level 1. Unfortunately for the curious, the Falling Stair also leads to the dungeons of Castle Waterdeep, so visitors are not allowed up the stairs without verifiable credentials.
- The Dungeon Level (level 1)
- The Storeroom Level (level 2)
- The Sargauth Level (level 3) features the River Sargauth, obviously enough, but also grants access to Skullport.
- The Farms Level (level 4)
- The Shaft is not really a level
- The Maze Level (level 5)
- The Seadeeps (level 6)
- The Wyllowwood (sublevel)
- The Lost Level (sublevel)
- Trobriand’s Graveyard (sublevel)
- The Slitherswamp (sublevel)
- Muiral’s Gauntlet (sublevel)
- The Troglodyte Warrens (sublevel)
- The Obstacle Course (sublevel)
- Maddgoth’s Level (sublevel)
- The Crystal Labyrinth (sublevel)
- Arcturiadoom (sublevel)
- Vanrakdoom (sublevel)
- The Runestone Level (sublevel)
- Shadowdusk Hold (sublevel)
- The Caverns of Ooze (level 7)
- The Terminus Level (level 8)
- The Mad Wizard’s Lair (level 9)
Sources
- Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting [11836] (3e) page 179
- Magic of Faerûn page 48
- Ruins of Undermountain II [1104]
- Ruins of Undermountain [1060]
- Living Forgotten Realms — The Xaeyruudh Campaign rejects most 4e Realms material, but this brief description of levels is helpful, and it’s a simple matter to ignore everything that happens after 1365
Passing Mention
Other Resources
Disclaimer
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