Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk

Dungeons & Dragons, 5th Edition

by Wizards of the Coast

Uncover a new threat to Phandalin in this timeless dungeoneering adventure for the world’s greatest roleplaying game.

Phandelver and The Shattered Obelisk is a high-fantasy adventure that begins in the beloved town of Phandalin as it faces unimaginable danger. Whether the heroes are newcomers to Phandalin or are returning after the acclaimed Dungeons & Dragons adventure Lost Mine of Phandelver , they discover hints of a threat lurking below the town. The heroes soon learn that the cult of a malevolent entity has set its sights on transforming Phandalin into the capital of its evil empire. To save the town from oblivion, the heroes must uncover a nefarious plot and confront the otherworldly cultists directly.

Genres: Dungeons and Dragons, Role Playing Games, Fantasy, Gaming

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2023

About the author

Wizards of the Coast LLC (often referred to as WotC /ˈwɒtˌsiː/ or simply Wizards) is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games. Originally a basement-run role-playing game publisher, the company popularized the collectible card game genre with Magic: The Gathering in the mid-1990s, acquired the popular Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game by purchasing the failing company TSR, and experienced tremendous success by publishing the licensed Pokémon Trading Card Game. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Renton, Washington in the United States.[1]

Wizards of the Coast publishes role-playing games, board games, and collectible card games. They have received numerous awards, including several Origins Awards. The company has been a subsidiary of Hasbro since 1999. All Wizards of the Coast stores were closed in 2004.

Reviews

[Ogre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starts strong, ends fairly poorly. The final battles are badly balanced, and there is a scene at the very end battle where the GM is expected to target and kill rescued prisoners to create a sense of despair (that's a quote) in the player characters , which I consider awful story design.

The new monsters are more or less creative and useful (I do like the psionic goblins), though the magic items are not terribly creative nor are they particularly different from other one in the DMG. Also, though it is nice to have an expansion for the free Lost Mine of Phandelver adventure, not enough was added in my opinion to justify the cost of this adventure book. I'd have preferred a simple and cheaper second half of the adventure, rather than so much reprinting of the original adventure.

It is certainly better than the adventures of late offered by WotC, but it is no Curse of Strahd.

[Gaba Ghoul · Rating 1 out of 5]

doesnt fix the issues of the lmop and just adds new content that is basically irrelevant to the previous plot points. still not a lot of good characters or background info for them basically have to make everything which isn't a bad thing but my group thought it was a slog

[Aaron Lindahl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dont spend the money, better adventures for less are everywhere.

[Pádraic]

Skimmed the early sections that are just a slightly revised version of the original Phandelver adventure; I thought it was boring the first time I read it, and adding psychic goblins doesn't improve anything. Beyond that into the new material, things do pick up, thanks to the delightfully messed up horrors that come with mind flayers and their far realm friends.

But as with a lot of the official 5th edition adventures, it ends up feeling rather more like an amusement park ride. Listen to the guide announcing soon-to-be-visible attractions and remain in your seats at all times. If you're okay with that structure, you might have a good time with this (lots of dungeons and combat though), but personally I think the cornerstone of this medium is choice and consequence, and there's barely any prospect of either here.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a lot of potential that I think was left untouched. With some imagination and time, there are a number of other creatures and whatnot you can insert to foreshadow the mind flayers and far realm. The real weakness is that the hostages taken later have no part in the early story, so it really falls to the DM to find meaningful ways to incorporate them into earlier quests.
Also, this book had a lot more horror elements and some hardcore violent elements. But at the same time, it pulls back and tries to be diplomatic. That is where it fails. It tries to appeal to conflicting tastes and does not succeed.
Still, I think, with some creativity to not run it verbatim, you can cut out the elements that don't suit your table.

[Frizbie Nightshade · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was excited to have something that took lost mines further. I was a bit disappointed. If you already have the starter kit with Lost Mines, Don't buy this book. I discovered that 2/3 of the adventure in this book is included in LM/P. There is some additional lore, but not much else. As far as D&D modules go, this feels more like a reprint than anything else. Since the purchase of the book is $50, vs. The $20 starter kit... I think players get more out of the starter kit.

[Jason Sweeten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good: Clear stakes, growing threat, manageable maps, variation in encounters. It’s a solid one! No moments of “how the hell am I supposed to present this to players.” I look forward to running one day.

Bad: Wish the first few levels weren’t such a lift from Lost Mines… but there enough material out there that a DM could change it up if players have already done that adventure.

[Antony Kuzmicich · Rating 4 out of 5]

I played through the first half of this campaign with my two boys who are 8 and 6. It was very easy to DM and we had a lot of fun. I read through the second half of the campaign, where the campaign travels to the Underdark and it sounded great for an adult group but the horror aspects seemed a little heavy for kids. Overall I’d recommend as a great module for beginner players or DMs.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid adventure. Well planned, but the initial levels are not as compelling as the 2nd half, so could drag a bit until the party begins to move past the red herring “hook”. Lots of unique opportunities for parties not found in other current 5E published campaigns.

[Mewus Hylian · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those who have previously experienced LMOP, I dont think this campaign offers enough novelty. but it's a much better option for newbies. with its horror theme and memorable ambushes, it's definitely a great campaign.

[Kurt Vosper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Information about the Far Realm. Worth a read for fans of the game.

[Luke Lindon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Should be fun to run! I love far realm weirdness and mindflayers!!

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun to play but the added value is limited due to the starter set. Nonetheless fun!

[rhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed running this campaign! Technically still running, but I finally finished all my reading ahead. My party had a great time, but the end does become a bit of a dungeon crawl. I don’t mind it as I made a lot of the encounters RP-able, but others who prefer less variability/ thinking on their feet for how to run encounters vs RP may not enjoy it as much. The balance was good, I didn’t feel like there were huge flaws, and it was easy to run!

[Messorem Animarum · Rating 1 out of 5]

Woke Phandalin, lacking verisimilitude. Play the original, from 2014, for a far superior experience.