Neverwinter Nights
Summary
Neverwinter Nights (NWN) is a third-person role-playing video game that takes place in the fantasy realm of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting, using game mechanics based on the Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition rules. The game's engine was built with an internet-based model for hosting a massively multiplayer online game (MMOG), enabling players to run their own game servers. The goal was to establish a potentially limitless framework for a large-scale multiplayer experience. The title was inspired by the original Neverwinter Nights online game, which was the first graphical massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), running from 1991 to 1997 on AOL.
Storyline
The adventure begins with the player character, guided by Lady Aribeth, tasked with retrieving four mystical beings—the dryad, intellect devourer, yuan-ti, and cockatrice—collectively known as the Waterdhavian creatures. These creatures are essential in creating a cure for the Wailing Death, a deadly plague ravaging the city of Neverwinter and prompting a strict quarantine. With the assistance of Fenthick Moss, Aribeth’s romantic interest, and Desther, Fenthick’s companion, the PC successfully gathers the creatures. However, their efforts are interrupted by shadowy assassins linked to a cult responsible for spreading the disease. As the cure is prepared, Castle Neverwinter is suddenly attacked by Desther’s forces, who betray the group. He steals the completed cure and flees the castle, pursued by the PC and Fenthick. When they catch up, Desther is quickly subdued in a brief fight and condemned to be burned at the stake. Fenthick, who was unaware of Desther’s treachery, is sentenced to death by hanging. The PC reunites with Aribeth and begins the search for the cult behind the plague and the assault on Neverwinter. With the aid of Aarin Gend, the city’s spymaster, the PC uncovers the diaries of deceased cult members and letters from a man named Maugrim, leading Aribeth to believe the cult’s base is in Luskan. Aribeth heads to Luskan ahead of the PC, who departs after a final conversation with Gend. Upon reaching Luskan, the PC hears troubling rumors that Aribeth has aligned herself with the cult. These suspicions are confirmed when she is discovered in a meeting with Maugrim and Morag, the Queen of the Old Ones. The cult is seeking a set of powerful magical artifacts known as the Words of Power. The PC retrieves all but one of the Words, which remains in the cult’s possession. They later learn that the Words can open a portal to a hidden realm within the Source Stone, where Morag and the Old Ones reside. The PC confronts Aribeth, and depending on the approach, she may surrender or must be defeated. The PC then fights Maugrim for the last Word before using all the Words to enter the Source Stone and face Morag in battle. After defeating her, the PC escapes as the inner world collapses in on itself.
