Hrothgar Hardmantle, Ramarcus the Red, and Sister Poppy arrive in the town of Phandalin after hearing rumors of some “bad things” happening in the area. They visit the Stonehill Inn, where they meet the proprietor, Toblen Stonehill. Toblen explains some uneasiness among the townsfolk based on recent sightings and reports of orcs coming from the mountains to attack caravans and isolated villagers. He also tells them a bit of his past; Toblen (a human) was raised by dwarves and always wanted to be like them. Hearing about the work being done to rebuild Phandalin, he, along with his lifelong friends Dazlyn and Norbus (both dwarves) moved to the area. However, Toblen soon realized he wasn’t cut out for the mining and excavation work his friends were more naturally inclined towards, and instead decided to fulfill another need in Phandalin by opening his own inn and taphouse. He asks the party to check in on his friends, who he hasn’t heard from in a couple weeks and should be working on excavating a site nearby. The rumors of orcs in the area make him unsure of their safety, and he offers them free lodging in the town and 50 gold pieces if they find Dazlyn and Norbus and report back.
Next, the adventurers visit Barthen’s Provisions in search of any documents of arcane importance for Ramarcus. Barthen tells them he has nothing of the sort, but directs them to Adabra, an alchemist who has taken up residence in a nearby windmill on Umbrage Hill. The party travels the short distance to Umbrage Hill, where they find a manticore attempting to break down the windmill door and Adabra crying for help from a window.
The adventurers engage in conversation with the manticore, who explains that he is called Manny and that he was driven from his home by a dragon. He and his partner have had some trouble hunting in this new locale, and Manny injured one of his paws while trying to hunt. He is hungry and hurt, and asks the party for either food or a means to acquire food; however, the conversation goes stale as Manny eyes the party members as potential food themselves.
The party manages to defeat the manticore and save Adabra, who offers them each a potion of healing in exchange. In his continuing search for arcane knowledge, Ramarcus asks the alchemist if she has any books or scrolls. She provides him with a scroll of acid splash which is of no use to herself. The adventurers inquire about the rumors they’ve heard about trouble in the area, and she tells them about how, several weeks prior, she spotted a glistening white dragon “the size of an elephant” flying through the high clouds in the distance. She offers some explanation for how she came to Umbrage Hill, being the descendant of some of the dwarves who died defending Phandalin from an orc invasion centuries prior. The party investigates the nearby burial cairns, but find that the markings have been worn away with time and that there is nothing of interest in the area.
The adventurers rest in the windmill; Ramarcus pores over his spellbook and his newly-acquired scroll, Hrothgar sharpens and polishes his blades, and Sister Poppy channels her ki and meditates.