Waterdeep?s ?official? thieves? guild was
crushed long ago and its remains driven
from beyond the North into the lands of
Amn. This does not mean that thievery and
crime does not exist in the City of Splendors,
for in the shadows it thrives in hundreds
of small independent operations. The
major advocate and support of these operations
is the Beholder Xanathar.

Xanathar makes his home in a opulent
chamber that hidden behind a secret door
leading from the sewers of Waterdeep. His
main chamber has yet to be located by the
forces of Law, and, indeed, few know of his
very existence in the city. Rather than operating
a strict Thieves? Guild, Xanathar
works everything with freelance thieves,
operating through third parties in order
prevent the freelance agents of revealing
his whereabouts, if caught. Xanathar is a
collector of information from the surface
world, again through trusted third parties,
by which he makes his plans. It is said that
Xanathar has the best knowledge of the
sewers and their entrance both into the
major citadels and into Undermountain as
well.

Xanathar is served has a central ?Four
Councilors? who meet with him regularly.
They in turn deal with other underlings,
who do not even know of Xanathar's existence
or the fact he is a Beholder. Slan Thurbel
is his mercenary leader, a 6th level
fighter who arranges crimes of violence.
Slink Monteskor is Xanathar?s bookkeeper
and gatherer of information?he has a network
of snitches scattered throughout the
poor sections. Ott Steeltoes is a renegade of
Ironmaster, a one-eyed dwarven pirate who
is a 5th level fighter and thief. Shindia
Darkeyes is a half-drow thief of 7th level,
and Xanathar?s personal favorite. She is also
a master at blackmail and extortion, her
information coming from the darker festhalls
of Waterdeep and its more stylish parties.
In his lair, Xanathar keeps a pair of
charmed intellect devourers, and a winglet
of six gargoyles for local defense.

Xanathar?s abode is said to be reached by
a number of trapped passages, which only
the four know the correct passage. Other
interlopers are kept as pets briefly, wrung
dry for information, then dispatched (for
Xanathar?s appetite is enormous). The series
of chambers in Xanathar?s lair contains a
number of treasure vaults and libraries
(with information by Slink written in a
code). Xanathar itself reclines in a clear
glass tank of scented water when not planning
criminal activities.

Xanathar is a creature of pleasures?it
enjoys finely-prepared foods (Steeltoe?s
domain), scented oils, and spiced southern
tobaccos and herbs. It is confident of both
its power and its secrecy from the Lords,
and is willing to go to great lengths to maintain
that secrecy. Operatives who begin to
wonder who is giving the final orders get a
midnight visit from Slan?s ritual slayers.
Xanathar is sure that the Lords would
destroy the cellars stone by stone to find out
where its lair is, if they knew where it exist-
ed. Xanathar?s Libraries keep extensive track
of the abilities and weaknesses of the Mages
of Waterdeep.

Xanathar?s greatest defense is his secrecy.
?If they do not ask the right questions, they
do not get the right answers? is its comment
on spellcasters seeking evil in the city. In
addition to non-detection defenses in lair,
Xanathar makes sure that his operation cannot
be considered a true ?Thieves? Guild,? so
he may chuckle over the Lords, secure in
their knowledge that no such organization
exists, while Xanathar grows rich on their
lack of knowledge.