I used point buy for my stats.
I was going to say that Obed looking for answers about his patron would be sufficient to lead him to look for the water temple, but then I saw the adventure hook about a destroyed ship, so I am going to work Shatterkeel’s Trail into the background.
Also, if we are to pick a faction, I'll just say that Obed has encountered and worked with the Zhentarim in his fevered wanderings. I would say the Emerald Enclave, although he has a
different focus from the druids and rangers wanting to protect the forest, but they probably wouldn't trust his weird love of the sea.
The following info is mostly already in the spoiler box above, but condensing it a little:
Obed Olmstead
Male half-elf warlock sailor
Obed Olmstead still has the open, boisterous joy of a sailor, though he also frequently has dark moods, especially when he thinks about how long he has been away from sea. Even in his moods, though, Obed comes off less sour and unapproachable and more interesting and dangerous. He becomes desperate, almost hysterical, when he finds a potential lead in his search for knowledge of his love, and he can turn violent when denied. To him, his unpredictable moods and tantalizing darkness are just reflections of the sea that he's embraced.
Obed grew up as a poor wharf rat, and once he was able to convince a ship's crew to take him on, he has not left the sea. He has served on many different vessels, as he cared less about the work and more about just being out in the open water. To him, that was pure freedom, more valuable than love or wealth. One day, a massive freak storm whipped up out of nowhere and summarily destroyed the ship he was on. While he was slowly sinking in the water, debris and corpses around him, passing in and out of consciousness, he had a vision of a being in the shape of a woman but with a vast darkness around and below her. She touched his mind and he next woke up on shore. Now with strange powers manifesting within him, Obed is on a quest to find this great being, his savior, his love, and join her again.
Obed carries a haunted look of a man wasting away. Though still his body still carries the strength and bulk of a sailor, it has seen better days. He's less toned and he's starting to grow a little beer belly. His face is still handsome, but in a more grizzled and brooding way. Dark circles never seem to leave his gray eyes, and his black hair and short beard are already seeing light streaks. His hair is long enough to cover the slight point of his ears and curls when wet. His hands are calloused heavily, and no matter how drunk he gets, Obed's legs remain steady. Across his chest is a line of circular scars.