"Get out"
- Durnan
Durnan is the founder and proprietor of The Yawning Portal, and perhaps one of the oldest still-breathing mortals in Waterdeep. A former adventurer who descended into Undermountain centuries ago and returned not only alive but filthy rich, he used that wealth to build a tavern around the very pit he survived.
He has not aged visibly in decades. Rumors abound that he has drank from a divine font, wears time-slowing enchantments, or simply refuses to die until Halaster Blackcloak himself does. Durnan won’t confirm any of them. He just wipes a mug and watches the door.
Though he rarely demonstrates them, Durnan is:
Gruff, terse, and unimpressed by everything
Possesses a dry wit and a legendary zero-tolerance policy for fighting in the bar (unless it’s funny)
Deeply protective of the Portal's neutrality—he will eject faction agents who step out of line
Has quietly helped Harpers, Order of the Gauntlet, and even the Hype Squad—always off-record
Bonnie, his changeling barmaid, is believed to be one of the few he trusts implicitly
Has denied multiple Lordship offers from Waterdeep, stating “If I wanted to rule a city, I’d rule the one beneath us.”
May have a long-standing understanding with Laeral Silverhand
Carries a ledger of names: those who went into the pit and never came back. He reads from it once a year.
There are few constants in Waterdeep. The Watch can be bribed. The Lords wear masks. But Durnan? Durnan never leaves the bar. Because he knows if he does, something worse might crawl out of that hole.