Hope

Overview

Hope is a powerful tiefling adventurer active along the Sword Coast and a prominent former member of the adventuring party known as The Magnificent Five (also referred to by local townsfolk as “the Fantastic Five”). Characterized by her towering stature, curved horns, and purplish skin, she originally hails from Beggar’s Nest in the slums of Neverwinter. In her youth, she listened to the tales of old drunks and bards in the city’s alleyways, learning of the ancient Age of Arcanum and the Calamity. Today, she is best known among her former companions for her volatile temperament, fierce combat style, and formidable presence in a fight.

Personality and Personal Quest

Among her companions, Hope has a distinct reputation for possessing severe anger issues. Her allies quickly learn to tread carefully around her, advising others that it is best not to get on her bad side. Despite her volatile nature, her sheer rage—frequently referred to by her allies as “Hope’s Ferocity”—makes her a highly reliable and devastating front-line fighter. When she whips herself into a frenzy, her purplish skin turns almost red, and she becomes an immovable force of pure will, refusing to cave even in the face of overwhelming monsters.

Following her departure from the adventuring party, Hope successfully returned to Neverwinter and paid off her debts.

Journey to Phandalin

Hope was part of the escort party hired by Gundren Rockseeker and Sildar Hallwinter to deliver a supply cart from Neverwinter down the High Road to Barthen in Phandalin. Alongside her companions—the storyteller Farwald, the noble Gilmore, the fairy Nalini, and the curious Erevyn—Hope navigated the untamed wilds of the northern coast.

When the party spotted a possible goblin ambush along the road, where Sildar and Gundren’s horses had been killed, Hope and Erevyn charged directly into the fray. Driven by Hope’s Ferocity and supported by the magic of Nalini and Farwald, they quickly dispatched the attackers. The party tracked the remaining goblins back to their lair, the Cragmaw Hideout.

At the hideout, Nalini scouted ahead while Hope and Gilmore successfully freed several captive wolves, allowing them to escape. As the party pushed deeper into the cavern, they confronted the bugbear chieftain Klarg and his goblin lackeys. While Nalini and Farwald kept the reinforcements at bay with entangling magic, Hope, Gilmore, and Erevyn teamed up to defeat Klarg and rescue the captured Sildar Hallwinter. Following the battle, the party recovered stolen supplies belonging to the Lionshield Coster, discovered an ancient carving referencing the “Pact of Phandelver,” and made their way to Phandalin, where they met local figures such as the retired adventurer Deacon.

Confronting the Redbrands

While in Phandalin, the party decided to investigate a local gang known as the Redbrands. Following information provided by Deacon, Hope and her companions made their way to Tristan Manor, where they first encountered and dispatched several creepy zombies in the dining room.

Moving down into the cellar, the party navigated a secret door to infiltrate the Redbrand hideout. While Gilmore kept several bandits distracted with a poker game, the rest of the party successfully rescued a captive family. When the wizard leader Glasstaff realized he had been locked inside his laboratory, he cried out for aid. As Glasstaff stepped into the hallway, Erevyn shot the staff out of his hand, and Hope, working alongside Farwald and Erevyn, stepped in to help dispatch the wizard before he could inflict further critical injuries on the group.

Later Exploits, Phandalin Residence, and the Berserker Axe

Following the liberation of Tristan Manor, the party was gifted the magical deed of ownership to the manor by Myrna Tristan and Townmaster Harbin Wester. It was during this transaction that the party officially took on the name “The Magnificent Five.”

While residing in Phandalin, Hope put her aggressive talents to use by finding a makeshift fighting ring in the basement of the Sleeping Giant Inn, earning gold through raw physical combat. Later, during the party’s travels toward Conyberry, they freed Gotrek, an ancient dwarf who had been petrified for a thousand years. In a reluctant show of gratitude, Gotrek gifted his powerful Berserker Axe to Hope before heading back to seek shelter at Tristan Manor.

Ambush at the Temple of Ioun

During an evening watch at the ruined temple of Ioun in Conyberry, the party was ambushed by a Green Dragon Wyrmling and three Dragonborn attackers. In the ensuing clash, Hope whipped herself into a frenzy, successfully keeping the wyrmling from flying away and allowing her companions to eventually overcome the deadly assault. Following the exhausting battle, which left several of her companions near death, Hope remained so enraged that she took out her lingering frustrations on the small, mundane objects Farwald had magically summoned during the fight.

The party realized that Hope’s newly acquired axe was cursed. Convincing her to give it up proved to be a dangerous endeavor, requiring intense negotiation and some minor bloodshed, during which she temporarily turned on her allies and nicked Farwald for 11 points of damage. Eventually, the party managed to retrieve the weapon, and Farwald and the gnome academic Dusty successfully dispelled the curse before returning the Berserker Axe safely to her.

Journey to Gnomengarde and the Battle of Wave Echo Cave

Before setting out to find Wave Echo Cave, Hope spent her resting hours at Tristan Manor chopping wood and working out to maintain her physical edge. She subsequently traveled with the Magnificent Five, alongside Gotrek, Dusty, and the monks Jaque and Zoe, towards Gnomengarde to seek aid from the local gnomes.

Upon arriving at Gnomengarde, only Nalini, Gilmore, and Farwald were permitted entry into the settlement. Hope, alongside Dusty, the monks Jaque and Zoe, and Gotrek, remained outside to camp while the others investigated the interior and successfully dealt with a doppelganger threat.

Following Gnomengarde, the party focused on reclaiming Wave Echo Cave and stopping the Spider (revealed to be the Drider Nezznar) from seizing the Forge of Spells. Using a message from Erevyn, who was working undercover inside the Spider’s ranks, the party planned and launched an ambush.

During the chaotic confrontation at the Altar of Lolth, Hope “rushed in and kicked ass.” She held the monstrous half-man, half-spider at bay at the frontline, her rage and anger making her purplish skin turn almost red as she refused to cave. Her fierce will gave her comrades one last chance at victory. The party fought off Phase Spiders and eventually slew the Spider, with Erevyn delivering the final blow. Shortly after the victory, Hope and her companions proceeded to activate the legendary Smelter of Gond and opened the doors to the ancient Forge of Spells. Working together to bypass the final security systems, the party successfully defeated the massive metal Guardian of the Forge to secure the ancient treasures.

Abrupt Departure and Return to Neverwinter

In the autumn weeks following their triumph at the Forge of Spells, the Magnificent Five rested in Phandalin. Seeking her own path, Hope chose to quietly slip away from the group. She left behind a brief note on the dining room table of Tristan Manor, written in scrawled handwriting, which read: “Took my share. Suck at goodbyes. H.”

Hope returned to her old home in the slums of Beggar’s Nest. Having successfully resolved her debts, she found employment as a bouncer at “The Cha-Ching,” a prominent local casino run by the tall half-orc underworld figure Anthony “the Gentleman.” When her former companions later arrived in Neverwinter to investigate a conspiracy within the city’s ruling council, they crossed paths with Hope guarding the establishment’s entrance, finding her firmly ensconced in her new life.