STEAL MY NPC!

I have an interesting and high utility D&D 5E NPC for you to use in your game today.

Captain Phoebus, the captain of the City Watch in Waterdeep, is a charismatic and commanding human male with connections to the city’s most elite guards and resources. He’s also part of an underground vampire fan club and is engaged to none other than famous performer Parri.

Let’s get to know Captain Phoebus.

If you need an engaging NPC to add to your fantasy TTRPG or Dungeons & Dragons campaign, we’ve got you covered. Welcome to the “Steal My NPC” series, where we contribute our favorite NPCs from our tabletop games for you to steal, modify, and adapt to your own world and campaign.

Have a beloved NPC you want to add? Find our contact info in the footer. We’d love to feature them!

Disclaimer: All opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links. At no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.

Meet Captain Phoebus

Captain Phoebus is named after the complete jerk of the same name in Victor Hugo’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” If you haven’t read it, it’s very different from the Disney movie. (Much darker and full of terrible people.) Over time, the Captain has become a lovable, endearing NPC who is nothing like his namesake.

He was named off the top of my head, when my players asked for the Captain’s first name in their initial meeting and I wasn’t prepared. I have since come up with a much better system for preparing NPCs, if you’re interested.

Captain Phoebus is one of the few NPCs that did not began as a random card pulled from the Deck of Stories (Amazon link).

Alignment

This NPC is aligned true neutral with a bias toward neutral good. He is not lawful, despite being the Captain of the City Watch. He will bend or break rules as necessary to achieve his own goals or help those in need according to his own moral judgements.

Though he leans more towards good than neutral, some of his hobbies involve deals with evil creatures, especially vampires. He has no qualms about helping these nefarious beings in order to progress his own personal goals, which I will get into below.

NPC Prep Time

Prep for this NPC is largely personal preference. Consider how you’d like his voice to sound, and any mannerisms you’d like to produce when speaking for him. I like to tilt my chin up a bit and give him a little more of a regal stature. I also make my voice a little louder, deeper and with a commanding inflection.

I can’t do really excellent deep voices since I am female, but my players get the idea. Captain Phoebus speaks with confidence and has a commanding presence. He likes to give speeches and since he is the Captain of the City Watch, everyone will listen to him. I provided a sample for you below.

Speech Afficionado

When my players saved his beloved Parri from mortal danger, Captain Phoebus gave a speech to the people of Waterdeep, proclaiming their heroism. I had this read aloud by Eleven Labs using the free “Josh” voice. I didn’t write this speech; ChatGPT did, though I did edit it quite a BIT.

If you’re interested in using ChatGPT as an assistant Dungeon Master, I highly recommend it. I have some guidance on it for you here.

The basic idea is that you want to feed the AI a list of bullet points on what to include in the speech, give it some context, and give it a tone. Then, see what happens and adjust from there.

A Sample Thank You Speech

As Captain of the Guard of Waterdeep, it is my duty to protect this city and its people. And Parri, my beloved, is the most precious of them all. I stand before you today with a heart overflowing with gratitude and admiration. Thanks to the heroic efforts of a group of brave adventurers, my beloved Parri has been rescued from the clutches of her kidnappers and returned to safety.

Words cannot express the depth of my gratitude to these brave souls, who risked their lives to save Parri and bring her back to us. Their selflessness, bravery, and unwavering commitment to justice embody the very spirit of Waterdeep. To these adventurers, I offer my sincerest thanks and my eternal admiration. Your heroism will not be forgotten, and your actions will serve as a beacon of hope and inspiration to all who call Waterdeep home.

I urge all of you to join me in celebrating the courage and valor of these adventurers, the Mindslayers, and to honor them as the true heroes they are. May their bravery inspire us all to stand up for what is right and just, and to never give up hope in the face of adversity. Thank you, brave adventurers… nay, friends, from the bottom of my heart.

Captain Phoebus Character Overview

Let’s take a look at Captain Phoebus’ appearance and personality details.

Appearance: Strong, Attractive Human Male

Captain Phoebus wears decorative plate mail all the time. The colors and appearance will be dictated by your preferences and the Captain’s location. Though he has different armor sets for different formal occasions, but will always be dressed in full plate.

Personality: Confident, Neutral, a Little Dense

This NPC walks with confidence and speaks with conviction. He knows what he wants, where to get it, and who can help him get there. He keeps his word and will both award and utilize “favors” as a sort of social currency.

In addition, Captain Phoebus adheres to his own moral code. He leans towards “good” more than “evil,” but ultimately will do what he thinks is best, regardless of law or popular opinion.

Negative Traits

Oftentimes, nobility will corrupt the legal system and he prefers to avoid getting involved. This can manifest as him completely ignoring issues that involve specific entities within the city.

He is not very intelligent. In Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, I put him at a 9.

He is obsessed with tiefling performer Parri and will do anything to garner her positive attention.

Home Life

Captain Phoebus spends most of his time in the barracks, as he is the Captain of the City Watch. He also has a small home in the countryside that he rarely visits. It is maintained by his younger sister, Claudia. She is a widow; her husband was killed by a marauding band of orcs. She runs a small dairy out of the homestead.

Stat Block

Captain Phoebus can be a juiced up Veteran or Guard. He gets two attacks per round and will have an armor class of at least 17. He will also have at least 60 hit points.

Points of Interest

Captain Phoebus has a few additional characteristics you may find interesting. Depending on your group’s preferences, you may want to include all of these, or leave some of them out.

An Unhealthy Obsession

This NPC is smitten with the famous tiefling performer Parri. He uses all of his resources, both socially and financially, to attempt to impress or woo her. He will enthusiastically date her alongside other suitors if the opportunity presents itself.

The Captain will also shirk his duties if it means protecting Parri above other civilians, and has no qualms about this.

Underground Vampire Fan Club

Parri, in her blissful naivety, is obsessed with vampires. She (half) jokingly told the Captain that she would consider marrying him if he became a vampire. He took this to heart.

In an effort to impress Parri, Captain Phoebus joined a vampire fan club.

I let this story point develop over many sessions, as a subplot for my players to watch unravel. It ended in them finding Captain Phoebus in a shady bar outside of the city surrounded by dangerous undead creatures. He was making a deal that was too much for him to handle alone. The prize, of course, would be a vampire turning him undead. And we all know how that goes.

The Deal

If you choose to incorporate this side story/distraction/world-building quest, the deal that Captain Phoebus makes can be anything you’d like. In my game, he agreed to help remove a lich from an old duchy so the “club leader,” an actual vampire, could sit on what he believed was his rightful throne.

My players decided to help with this, since they like Captain Phoebus so much. It was a fun side-quest for them and they got to flex some of their creative combat prowess.

If you like this idea, feel free to grab the tavern battle map and scene image below for setting the mood.

Need a Little More NPC Help?

If you need help setting up NPCs and you’re not sure where to start, I have an article on that.

I also have a guide on how to effectively deliver NPCs, if you want to take a look.

Closing Thoughts

As with any new NPC you present in your game, the commanding presence, the gruff charm, the charisma… it all has to come from you. You know what makes your players laugh with delight or become annoyed with an NPC. Use that to your advantage when acting on behalf of your non-player characters. Use Captain Phoebus’ details as a starting point and have fun with it! I know you will do an awesome job.

Make sure to check out other NPCs up for grabs in The Lorekeep.

Do you have a fun NPC you’d like to share? Has Captain Phoebus arrived to save the day in your game? I’d love to hear about your adventures in the comments below.

Thanks for reading this today. If you enjoyed your time here, please consider subscribing to our newsletter. You’ll get a free Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition compatible character sheet inspired by the Druid class to download and print out, and a notification in your inbox when we publish a new article. Spammers are fed to the false hydra!