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TABLE OF CONTENTS
How to Use This Supplement ..................................................2 Homer's Hospitable Hearth ................................................ 61
Running Encounters .............................................................3 Homer's Hovering Hovel ................................................... 62
Sample Storylines ............................................................4 Hounds of Ill Omen ........................................................... 64
Skill Challenges ...............................................................5 Ice Haulers ......................................................................... 64
Encounter Index ...................................................................6 Ice, Ice Baby ...................................................................... 65
Encounters ...............................................................................9 In the Lair of the Dracolich ............................................... 66
A Clash of Earth and Sky .....................................................9 Into the Blizzard ................................................................ 68
The Altar of Mother Night ................................................. 10 The Isejotun Exile .............................................................. 69
Army of the Damned ......................................................... 10 Keep Lukewarm! ............................................................... 69
At the Mountains of Madness ............................................ 12 Krampusnacht .................................................................... 70
At World's End................................................................... 15 Lamenter of Levistus ......................................................... 70
Aurora Arcana.................................................................... 16 The Last Windbender ........................................................ 71
Avalanche! ......................................................................... 16 Like Tongues to Ice ........................................................... 71
Barbegazi Skater ................................................................ 18 Living Blizzard .................................................................. 72
Bark of the Wereseal .......................................................... 18 Mammoth Corpse .............................................................. 72
The Beast of Butchery ....................................................... 19 The Mammoth Merchant ................................................... 73
Bereaved Shield Guardian ................................................. 20 Man Overboard! ................................................................ 74
The Brass Adventists ......................................................... 20 Manavik Under Fire........................................................... 74
Catch of the Day ................................................................ 22 March of the Damned ........................................................ 75
The Creeping Igloo ............................................................ 23 The Mimigloo .................................................................... 76
The Crystalline Tavern ...................................................... 24 Mirage Arcane ................................................................... 76
Cultists En Route ............................................................... 25 New Menzoberranzan ........................................................ 77
Cycle of Carnage................................................................ 26 Nightfall ............................................................................. 78
Darfellan Messiah .............................................................. 26 Obelisk-Bound Couatl ....................................................... 78
Deadliest Catch .................................................................. 27 On the Eve of Dire Winter ................................................. 79
The Deadmarks .................................................................. 28 The Penguinwere ............................................................... 81
Death's Due ........................................................................ 29 The Poacher's Nightmare ................................................... 82
Devil's Pass ........................................................................ 30 Preserved Forevermore ...................................................... 83
Doom of the Dawner Party ................................................ 31 Rudolph the Red-Blooded ................................................. 84
Drop It Like It's Hot ........................................................... 33 Sea Elf Vikings .................................................................. 86
The Dullahan...................................................................... 33 Sacrifice for the Storm ....................................................... 84
Edge of Disaster ................................................................. 34 The Scorch Baths ............................................................... 86
Elven Slavers ..................................................................... 36 Shrine of Vaprak ................................................................ 88
Endangered Hiker .............................................................. 37 Sick Ranger ....................................................................... 89
Flight of the Ivory Elk........................................................ 38 Skoldheim .......................................................................... 89
Forer-Slag! ......................................................................... 39 Snow Bulette...................................................................... 91
Forge of the Frozen Wastes ............................................... 40 Spelljammer Derelict ......................................................... 91
The Fortress of Solitude ..................................................... 41 Spring Weird...................................................................... 93
Frost Giant Raiders ............................................................ 41 Storm of the Century ......................................................... 93
Frostfell Rift ....................................................................... 43 Survivors' Cache ................................................................ 94
Frosthenge .......................................................................... 43 Temple of the Frostmaiden ................................................ 95
Frosty the Snowman .......................................................... 45 Thelgrym's Watch .............................................................. 96
The Fruits of Despair ......................................................... 45 There's Always a Bigger Bird ............................................ 97
The Glacial Garden ............................................................ 47 The Thing .......................................................................... 98
The Glacial Prison.............................................................. 48 Thirty Days of Night.......................................................... 99
Glacier Dwarf Warband ..................................................... 50 Tomb of the Mythic Smith .............................................. 100
Global Warming................................................................. 52 Traveler's Respite ............................................................ 102
Grandma Got Mauled by an Owlbear ................................ 53 Tundra Halfling Travelers ............................................... 103
Greatfather Winter's Fiefdom............................................. 53 Uldra Cattle Rustler ......................................................... 104
Greatfather Winter's Wrath ................................................ 55 Urskan Pilgrim ................................................................. 105
Grove of the Reclusive Druid ............................................ 56 Worg Sleds ...................................................................... 106
Hag Summit ....................................................................... 57 Wounded Sled Dogs ........................................................ 106
Hailstorm ........................................................................... 59 Appendix A: Creature Index ................................................ 107
Hardboiled ......................................................................... 60 Appendix B: Bestiary .......................................................... 108
Heroes of the Ice Age ........................................................ 60 Appendix C: Effects ............................................................ 116

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 DAERDAN'S TALL TALES: 101 ARCTIC ENCOUNTERS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR HOW TO USE THIS SUPPLEMENT

Daerdan "the Yarnspinner" is quite the unusual raconteur. Tall Tales features over one hundred encounters, many further
When we, his publishers, asked for biographical information, fleshed out through a handful of variants. The majority of these
such as whence he hailed, he replied, "From the proud land of encounters focus on the Combat pillar of 5E, but Exploration
none of yer gods-damned business! And another thing—!" and Social encounters are also heavily featured in this tome.
We have thus had to fill in the blanks, so to speak. Daerdan Lower tier encounters are can be inserted into your session,
seems to be a crass dwarf approaching a venerable age. He whereas higher tier encounters are designed to be dropped into
claims to be "sandwiched" between two centuries. We estimate your campaign. These high-level encounters provide plot points
him to be approximately 270 years old. Divinations to confirm and boss fights that you can integrate into your campaign with
such have seemingly failed, as have all other attempts to verify minimal foresight.
his past and certainly his tales. For all we know, he could be a This edition of Tall Tales features arctic encounters, making
shapechanger, a fiend in disguise—jury's still out. All we know it perfect for a campaign set in the frozen north or Icewind Dale:
for certain is that he's spent centuries as an explorer, storyteller, Rime of the Frostmaiden.
and, as he insists, "one heap of a coward." Daerdan the Yarnspinner. Despite this supplement's name,
Nonetheless, we at Wake House have published Daerdan's Daerdan is but a framing device. You're under no obligation to
litany of tales. This publication concerns his days in the frozen follow implications in his quotes or even include him at all—
wastes, to which he had been exiled to—and willingly returned although it would be comical for the adventurers to wrap up an
to after said exile ended because, and we quote, "It was warmer encounter, hit the tavern, and find a dwarf spinning a yarn about
there than amongst my own people." their tale (having already inserted himself in the story and even
Daerdan swears his tales are true, no matter how tall the tale. taking credit for their heroism).
We at Wake House could not justify the expense of truth serum Monsters. This product features creatures from the Monster
nor other magics to verify his claim. Someone at one point—an Manual, Volo's Guide to Monsters and Mordenkainen's Tome
intern, actually—suggested less… savory methods, but this idea of Foes. See Appendix A for the page number of a creature's
was scrapped. At any rate, whether these tales are fact or just entry in their respective manual. Appendix B includes several
shoddy fiction, we hope you enjoy Daerdan's Tall Tales. new creatures or creatures found in other official campaigns. A
monster's name appears in bold text to indicate its statistics.
CREDITS Items & Spells. This product also features items from both
Designer: Wyatt Trull the Dungeon Master's Guide and Xanathar's Guide to Every-
Editor: R. Frank Hickey thing. Likewise, many spellcasters utilize spells from the latter
Cover Illustrator: Dean Spencer (© Dean Spencer) manual. Page numbers are included when relevant. Spells and
Interior Illustrators: The following artists' work is featured in items are italicized.
this supplement (in order of appearance):
• Dean Spencer WHAT IS "THE ARCTIC"?
• Brian Brinlee This supplement conveniently lumps all wintry and frigid areas
• Brett Neufield into one: "the Arctic." In your campaign, the Arctic may just be
• Indi Martin © 2017 a country painted white by winter; it might be a mountain range
Cartographer: Dyson Logos or just a lifeless tundra. While some encounters do require the
adventurers to be in the frozen wastes far to the north (or south)
LEGAL of proper civilization, they are nonetheless versatile.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, Whenever the supplement mentions "the Arctic" defer to the
the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon appropriate region in your own campaign. As you may find,
Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast there aren't even references as to whether the Arctic is in the
product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the
Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their distinctive
Northern or Southern Hemisphere.
likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected
under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or
unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited
SETTING AGNOSTICISM
without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast. This supplement operates without any assumption to the setting
©2016 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. of your campaign, whether it's in the Forgotten Realms, the
Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Boéchat 31, 2800 Delémont, CH. world of Eberron, or a world of your own design. References to
Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge,
Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK
other characters or civilizations can be or reworked with ease.
Deities. Several deities are mentioned in this setting, most
hailing from the Forgotten Realms setting. They can easily be
adapted to your setting. These deities include:
• Auril, a cruel and sadistic goddess of winter.
• Amaunator, a god of light and justice
• Shar, the goddess of darkness also known as Mother Night.

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NEW RACES AND CIVILIZATIONS ENCOUNTER TYPES
This supplement features new people and civilizations found in Encounters are further divided into the following categories:
Heroes of the Arctic by Wyatt Trull (that's me) to better fit the Character encounters are centered upon an iconic individual.
arctic, wintry theme: The encounter can, effectively, occur in any location. Because
Darfellan are the survivors of genocide waged by the sahuagin. the Arctic is normally an inhospitable place, individuals are
Their glossy skin is black or blue, and utterly hairless, earning rarely sedentary. This edition of Daerdan's Tall Tales features
them the name "orcafolk." many more character encounters than other iterations.
Frost gnomes, or barbegazi in their native tongue, are graceful Mountain occur at high altitudes or mountain ranges. Steep
athletes fond of skiing, tobogganing and bandy. drops and precarious footing are slow, invisible killers.
Glacier dwarves have taken to ice just as their distant kin have Polar encounters feature the lands of endless winter: the vast
taken to snow and metallurgy. Through admirable handiwork plains of snow and ice that crown the northern- and southern-
and clever spells, they can carve weapons, utensils, and entire most areas of the world.
strongholds from glacial ice. Polar night encounters are both a geographical and chrono-
Snow elves are scorned across the Arctic. At best, they're bitter logically-mandated event. Near the world's poles, half a year
isolationists indifferent to the plights of others; at worst, can go by before the Sun is truly seen again. While the Sun is
they're would-be conquerors that bedevil other folk until at below the horizon, the Arctic is cloaked in twilight. The length
last they can muster the force to wage war. Unlike other of a polar night is determined by how far one is from a pole.
elves, they see Nature as something to be conquered through Settlements in these areas are strategic or valuable in nature:
wizardry, not bonded with through druidism. gold, mithril, or religious significance usually justify living in a
Tundra halfings are cheerful folk full of wanderlust. As a rite twilit realm for so long. Notably, polar nights allow creatures
of passage, the young travel across the region to drink in the of the Underdark to roam the surface uninhibited.
sights and meet other halflings. Sea encounters occur along chilly coastlines or on the frigid
Uldras are mischievous but good-hearted arctic fey that seas. They universally feature frigid water, a hazard described
consider themselves guardians of the natural world. in Appendix C.
Urskans are an ursine folk whose culture revolves around Taiga encounters take place in coniferous forests consisting
metallurgy and utilitarianism. of pines and spruces. These lands are the most hospitable—and
the most dangerous. Wood is a vital resource in the arctic, as
are fruits and vegetables. Many tribes or actors will travel south
RUNNING ENCOUNTERS (or north) to a taiga for timber. Taiga forest floors feature very
In its most basic form, an encounter happens to the adventurers. little vegetation and are mostly free of roots and bushes.
The adventurers, however, can happen across other characters Tundra encounters feature vast plains and hills cursed with
or locales. Every encounter revolves around one of the three permafrost and very little vegetation.
Pillars of D&D: Combat, Exploration, or Social Interaction. Urban encounters are centered around settlements, be they
Thus, running an encounter requires more foresight on your part outposts, towns, tribal camps, or cities carved from glacial ice.
than just a die roll. Many feature Skill Challenges (see below) It takes a village to live in the Arctic; without advanced magic
in addition to their preexisting themes. or technology, few can weather ceaseless winters for long. You
The hundred-and-one encounters in this encounter can't be can expect populations of fifty or more.
boiled down to a single table; they include characters, loot, and Volcanic encounters feature hot springs, geysers, and, as the
events that can't be kept at such a small scope. name suggests, volcanoes. It is a misconception to believe that
an active volcano or hot spring cannot exist in a polar region.
ENCOUNTER TIERS See Mount Erebus in Antarctica or the onsens in Japan's Nikkō
Encounters are designed with a party of four adventurers in National Park. These areas are highly coveted by arctic tribes
mind, with the expectation that few to no NPCs are available to and settlements, who consider warmth a treasure all its own.
assist them. These encounters are ranked in tiers: These areas of places of extreme heat (see Appendix C).
Tier I encounters are best described as "one-offs" or "pit Weather are unique in that focus primarily on the Arctic's
stop" encounters that you can plant into the adventure. They can most esteemed killer: cold weather.
be incorporated into a larger plot. These encounters are built to
challenge a 1st to 4th level party.
Tier II encounters are built for 5th to 9th level adventurers.
These encounters feature greater threats to ordinary folk.
Tier III encounters feature mythic or otherworldly creatures
of CR 8 to 13, who are often accompanied by minions. They are
designed for 10th to 14th level adventurers. Of this supplement,
Tier III encounters best fit the description of a "one-shot."
Tier IV encounters are balanced for a party of four 15th to
20th-level adventurers. These titanic events are best used as plot
points and penultimate (or ultimate) acts of your campaign.
They are often precipitated by lower tier encounters of a similar
theme, such as a cult's efforts to summon an elder elemental.

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SAMPLE STORYLINES Alas, no mortal spellcaster can channel Fyar's dire winter
spell. The wizard requires the assistance of his deity's daughter,
Many encounters in this supplement form a sample storyline, an empyrean named Beldara who lies imprisoned somewhere
with one often precipitating another. Using these, you can mash in the depths of the Arctic. Beldara is the daughter of Auril, a
together a quick storyline for your campaign, changing names cruel goddess of winter worshipped by Fyar himself. The arch-
around as you see fit. These storylines are: mage hungers for destruction and fame; he has no expectation
to survive dire winter, but believes Auril herself will welcome
ARMY OF THE DAMNED him into her frigid afterlife, where he will live eternally as an
The Flayed Queen, an undead sovereign defeated so long ago architect of icy destruction.
the world has forgotten her, has awakened. From her glacial Encounters related to this storyline include:
prison the death knight has psychically marshalled the dead • Mirage Arcane
and desperate to her cause. Her Cult of the Newly Dead is busy • Like Tongues to Ice
raising corpses all across the Arctic. If the queen has her way, • Frostfell Rift
the world will be united under her tattered banner. • Temple of the Frostmaiden
To be freed, the queen's agents must learn the magical • On the Eve of Dire Winter
incantation that will shatter her prison. She is served chiefly by
Cis'tudh, the lich leader of the Newly Dead, and Fionys, her ETERNAL NIGHT
deathlock mastermind. While Cis'tudh searches for the key to A secretive order of outcasts known as the Forsworn intend to
the queen's prison, Fionys must guard the phylactery to her plunge the Arctic into an unending polar night. These pariahs
master's draco-lich mount. consist of drow, shadar-kai elves that have fallen out of favor
The following encounters are associated with this storyline: with the Raven Queen, and worshippers of Mother Night (also
• March of the Damned known as Shar, the goddess of darkness), all led by the exiled
• Tomb of the Mythic Smith drow matron mother Yasne Illiwan. Bested, but not broken,
• In the Lair of the Dracolich Yasne escaped the Underdark with her most faithful servants;
• Frosthenge, in which Cis'tudh plunders the tomb of the wizard if she has it her way, she will carve out a kingdom of darkness
that bound the Flayed Queen—but secretly left an incantation on the surface that can rival her homeland's greatest fiefdoms.
that would free her. To secure an eternal night, the Forsworn must forge a lasting
• The Glacial Prison, in which Cis'tudh attempts to liberate the connection to the Shadowfell. Their best hope is to bend a portal
Flayed Queen. to the Feywild, using its framework to channel the Shadowfell's
• Army of the Damned, in which the Flayed Queen finally darkness into the world.
marches upon the living The encounters related to this sample storyline are:
• The Altar of Mother Night
DARK SISTERHOOD • Hounds of Ill Omen, in which the Forsworn send shadow
Three bheur hags prey upon the Arctic and its wayward people, hounds to eliminate the adventurers or sow chaos.
sowing sorrow and anarchy wherever they can. For years now • At World's End (see the On the Eve of Eternal Night section)
they've opposed joining forces, but the Aurora Arcana event, • Nightfall, in which Yasne's ambition catapults her beyond the
which they take as an omen, convinces them otherwise. The Shadowfell and into the Negative Plane itself, releasing a
adventurers have but one opportunity before the hags seal their nightwalker into the Material Plane.
pact in a Ritual of Binding. If the hags survive, they torment the
Arctic or add their magical might to the factions described in This storyline heavily features creatures and lore detailed in
the other sample storylines. Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes. See pages 58-61 for details on
The following encounters are associated with this storyline: the shadar-kai and the Raven Queen.
• Frosty the Snowman, The Penguinwere, and Rudolph the Red-
blooded, which feature the hags' periodic minions
GLOBAL WARMING
• The Creeping Igloo and The Fruits of Despair, which feature Cultists of Elemental Evil seek to drown the world and rule over
Granny Yrsula whatever landscape still stands above the tide! The Cult of the
• Traveler's Respite, featuring Lone Miyareth Crushing Wave and the Cult of Eternal Flame have finally put
• Greatfather Winter's Fiefdom, featuring Greatmother Winter aside their eons-long feud to melt the polar ice caps. If these
• Hag Summit, in which the hags strike their covenant in a ritual madmen are successful, the Crushing Wave cult will rule the
swollen seas and while the Eternal Flame cultists roast the left-
This sample storyline features bheur hags. For hag lore, see over land.
Volo's Guide to Monsters pages 52-62. To melt the icecaps, the cults must make their way to Mount
Erebys, an arctic volcano whose crater can serve as a gateway
DIRE WINTER to the apocalyptic depths of the Plane of Fire. From that inferno
A single madman may engineer the world's downfall. Withrens the cultists intend to conjure a phoenix.
Fyar, a CE human archmage, has devised a calamitous spell The following encounters are associated with this storyline:
that can plunge the world into a premature ice age, destroying • Cultists En Route
crops around the globe and plunging the world into chaos. • Edge of Disaster
• Global Warming
This storyline features the Cult of the Crushing Wave and the
Cult of the Eternal Flame, who are featured in the Princes of the
Apocalypse campaign.

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THE ORDNING OF MIGHT CHALLENGE DIFFICULTIES
The treacherous frost giant Rowthor hungers for power over Difficulty Successes DC Example Encounters
his kin, but he lacks the strength to defeat Jarl Grisbos in single Easy 3 10-14 Man Overboard!
combat. Instead the cur strikes an accord with Vaprak, the most Medium 5 14-18 Drop It Like It's Hot
reviled god in the giant pantheon and patron to ogres and trolls. Hard 8 18-22 Avalanche!
Vaprak grants Rowthor his rage (turning the giant into a frost Insane 10 22-25 Into the Blizzard
giant everlasting one), who challenges Grisbos' right to rule. • Failure is not a wall; failure represents dawdling or struggling.
Without outside intervention, Rowthor murders Gribos and While consequences might be doled out for each individual
starts a brutal regime that the Arctic cannot tolerate. failure, the challenge continues until three have been accrued.
The following encounters are associated with this storyline: Failing a Skill Challenge might entail lost lives, an escaped
• Shrine of Vaprak target, destruction of the adventurers' ship, or failing to stop
• Forer-Slag! an eldritch ritual.
• The Isejotun Exile
• Frost Giant Raiders
RULES
• Skoldheim The rules throughout a Skill Challenge are constant:
• All players roll initiative, but aren't bound by it. By having a
STORM OF THE CENTURY turn order, it helps them think ahead.
Cultists of Elemental Evil intend to bury the Arctic under the • The DM describes an obstacle, hazard, or event necessitating
wrath of a living storm—an elder tempest. To summon the the adventurers' interference, like a sailor falling overboard,
elder elemental requires the sacrifice of a creature that truly a raging fire, or a gushing wound. The player then suggests a
embodies the essence of the storm. The most befitting creature skill, tool, or spell; if appropriate, they roll against the DC
in the region is a storm giant quintessent whose perpetual you set—which is fluid within a set limit; every obstacle in
storm surrounds its mountaintop lair. Travelers all across the the same challenge can have a different DC within that limit.
Arctic know of the giant's presence and use that distant storm • Once a player has applied a skill towards an obstacle, they can
as a landmark—so when that storm disappears, it does not go no longer use that same skill for the rest of the challenge. This
unnoticed. is to spur creativity and prevent the rogue from using his +11
Without intervention on behalf of the adventurers, the cultists Dexterity (Acrobatics) check to trivialize or circumvent the
of the Black Earth and Howling Hatred manage to invade the entire Skill Challenge.
giant's lair, bind it at an altar of their own making, and sacrifice • Variant: Proficiency Only. Under this rule, a character can
the noble her to summon the tempest. only apply a skill they're proficient in towards an obstacle.
Encounters related to this storyline include: This is to highlight a character's expertise and make their
• Thelgrym's Watch, in which the cults have stolen a glacier selection of skill proficiencies matter more. It is only
dwarf outpost to serve as their base of operations. recommended you use this rule with parties that have a wide
• Sacrifice for the Storm and diverse repertoire of skills, otherwise players might find
• Storm of the Century, in which the tempest is let loose on the themselves powerless and frustrated by what can seem like
Arctic. an arbitrary rule.
• Tool proficiencies are legal to use in a Skill Challenge,
This storyline features chapters of elemental cults: the Cult of provided they logically apply towards an obstacle. This
the Black Earth and the Howling Hatred. For more details on ability check is often in an Intelligence check using the
these cults, see the Princes of the Apocalypse campaign. character's proficiency bonus, though other ability scores
might apply. For example, an Intelligence (carpenter's tools)
SKILL CHALLENGES check can be used to identify that a spar supporting a mast is
This supplement makes heavy use of Skill Challenges, a relic damaged and due to fall. A Wisdom or Strength (carpenter's
from 4th Edition that has yet to be officially made in 5E. Skill tools) check might be used to quickly fashion a support for
Challenges, as the name attests, are designed to test a character the spar so that the crash is staved off until later (such as when
through their skills and creativity, not their combat prowess. the Skill Challenge ends).
A Skill Challenge boils down to these tenets: • Magic is also legal, provided the spell used can logically apply
• The characters encounter a series of obstacles that can't be to the situation. Whenever a spell of 1st level or higher is cast
solved solely through combat, but by utilizing their skills. that can logically best an obstacle, the check automatically
Only one character makes an ability check for an obstacle. succeeds, as the character has just expended a vital resource.
• The goal of a challenge (think of it as a montage) is to reach • Cantrips can also be used, but since they cost no resources, a
X number of successful checks before hitting three failures. spellcaster must succeed on an ability check using their
X is determined by the challenge's difficulty. spellcasting ability (adding their proficiency bonus) against
• Skill Challenges are about collaborative, creative storytelling. the DC of the obstacle. Like a skill, that same cantrip can't be
You present the obstacle to your players and allow them to used again throughout the challenge.
suggest solutions utilizing skills. When they can't, however, • Variant: Higher Difficulties. Under this variant, spells of 1st
come up with one of their own, you can call for ability checks level or higher can only automatically succeed in Easy Skill
relevant to the obstacle. The Skill Challenges in this tome Challenges. At Medium difficulty and up, they too require an
always include several suggestions. ability check using that adventurer's spellcasting ability, with
their proficiency added. However, unlike cantrips, the same
spell can be used repeatedly, if applicable, even if you use the
"One and Done" rule described above.

5
ENCOUNTER INDEX
MASTER INDEX
Encounter Category Tier Description
A Clash of Earth and Sky Mountain 1-2 Two warring elementals risk bringing down an avalanche.
The Altar of Mother Night Mountain 2 A shadar-kai exile prays to Shar, the goddess of darkness.
Army of the Damned Polar 4 An army of the dead marches upon the living.
At the Mountains of Madness Mountain 4 An ancient silver dragon guards a city of hibernating star spawn.
At World's End Polar/Polar Night 1 or 4 Portals linking the North and South Pole open during the solstices.
Aurora Arcana Weather 1 The aurora exhibits strange sigils perceptible only to spellcasters.
Avalanche! Mountain 1-2 This encounter provides the framework for an avalanche.
Barbegazi Skater Polar/Tundra 1-3 A frost gnome ice skater is being chased by a worm-like horror.
Bark of the Wereseal Sea 2 A fearsome lycanthrope guards the pinnipeds of the Arctic.
The Beast of Butchery Tundra 4 Yeenoghu has somehow been summoned to this world!
Bereaved Shield Guardian Polar/Tundra 2 A shield guardian tirelessly guards the cold corpse of its former master.
The Brass Adventists Character 1-3 A selfish adventuring party seeks gold, glory, and power in the Arctic.
Catch of the Day Taiga/Tundra 3 An aboleth preys upon ice fishers from beneath a frozen lake.
The Creeping Igloo Character 2 The magical, mobile lair of a bheur hag is a dire sign for the Arctic.
The Crystalline Tavern Tundra/Urban 1 The Crystalline Tavern offers warmth, news, and insight to the Arctic.
Cultists En Route Sea 2 Cultists of Elemental Evil cross the sea to gather for a foul ritual.
Cycle of Carnage Tundra 1 A gnoll is busy birthing more of its foul ilk through a bloody ritual.
Darfellan Messiah Sea 1 An ominous darfellan infant has been born. What say the elders?
Deadliest Catch Sea 1-3 Crabbers have fished up something far, far above their paygrade.
The Deadmarks Mountain 2 A dybbuk has rearranged corpses that hikers rely on to navigate a pass.
Death's Due Mountain 2 A revenant stalks the money-grubbing guide that doomed his party.
Devil's Pass Mountain 1-2 An unseen horror haunts the site of a tragedy.
Doom of the Dawner Party Mountain 1 Migrants trapped in the mountains have resorted to cannibalism.
Drop It Like It's Hot Mountain/Polar/Sea 1 A fire genasi plummets from above and through the ice!
The Dullahan Character 1-3 A headless rider has abandoned greener lands to reap colder souls.
Edge of Disaster Volcanic 3 Cultists are summoning a phoenix to melt the polar icecaps!
Elven Slavers Tundra 1-3 Elven slavers march their newfound trophies back home.
Endangered Hiker Character 1 A hiker has run into a perilous issue… again.
Flight of the Ivory Elk Taiga 1 Winter wolves chase a white elk.
Forer-Slag! Mountain 2-3 Two frost giants battle it out for the title of jarl.
Forge of the Frozen Wastes Volcanic 1-2 Azer smiths provide well-needed metallurgy to the Arctic.
The Fortress of Solitude Polar 3 A bitter aasimar hero broods in his fortress, awaiting the world's end.
Frost Giant Raiders Tundra/Urban 2 From within a howling blizzard sounds a frost giant's horn…
Frostfell Rift Polar 2-3 A portal to the Plane of Ice spits out elementals and planar influence.
Frosthenge Tundra 1 or 3 Glacial menhirs offer enlightenment to those who meditate there.
Frosty the Snowman Character 1 A malevolent snow golem haunts the Arctic.
The Fruits of Despair Polar Night 1 Meenlocks terrorize a mining town draped under polar night.
The Glacial Garden Mountain 2 A medusa haunts a mountain pass, turning victims to ice.
The Glacial Prison Mountain/Urban 3 An undead sovereign awaits the day of her liberation.
Glacier Dwarf Warband Tundra 1-3 Clan Aurora has sent Her warriors to battle!
Global Warming Polar/Urban/Volcanic 4 A phoenix threatens to melt the polar icecaps and drown the world!
Grandma Got Mauled A beloved crone has gone missing, seemingly mauled by an owlbear…
Taiga/Urban 1
by an Owlbear but this green hag is anything but innocent.
Greatfather Winter's Fiefdom Polar 3 Rock gnomes toil under an archfey tyrant obsessed with Yuletide.
Greatfather Winter's Wrath Character 3 Greatfather Winter has taken to the skies to rain hell on the world.
Grove of the Reclusive Druid Taiga 2 A peaceful druid is warding her lair with druid grove spells.
Hag Summit Mountain 3 Three bheur hags are forming a coven at the expense of a child's life.
Hailstorm Weather 2 Galeb duhrs born from ice plummet from the sky!
Hardboiled Volcanic 2 Remorhaz eggs broil within a hot spring.
Heroes of the Ice Age Tundra 2 Three animals are on a quest to deliver a human infant back home.
Homer's Hospitable Hearth Polar/Tundra 1 A Mordenkainen's magnificent mansion offers respite to all travelers.

6
ENCOUNTER INDEX
MASTER INDEX
Encounter Category Tier Description
Homer's Hovering Hovel Tundra 1-3 The retired adventurer Homer Erendalias labors in his stolen tower.
Hounds of Ill Omen Polar Night 2 Shadow mastiffs fresh from the Shadowfell are out for blood.
Ice Haulers Sea 1 An ice hauling ship has come under attack by sahuagin.
Ice, Ice Baby Polar/Tundra 1-2 A frost giant toddler has been separated from his mother.
In the Lair of the Dracolich Sea 3-4 The dracolich Krarthelos slumbers in his honeycombed iceberg.
Into the Blizzard Weather 1-2 This encounter provides the framework for contending with a blizzard.
The Isejotun Exile Character 2 An exiled frost giant plots to overthrow his new, treacherous jarl.
Keep Lukewarm! Polar 1 Two travelers are sheltering from the cold in a dire moose's belly.
Krampusnacht Urban 1 Foolish teenagers have summoned the evil fey Krampus to this world.
Lamenter of Levistus Mountain/Polar 1 For his failure, a warlock must languish in ice, unable to die.
The Last Windbender Polar/Sea 1 A young air genasi has been found frozen in ice.
Like Tongues to Ice Polar/Tundra 1 A wizard has laid an antipathy/sympathy spell on a metal rod.
Living Blizzard Weather 2 A blizzard propagated by living spells harries travelers.
Mammoth Corpse Tundra 2-3 A dead mammoth is a fortune of fur, meat, and bone—the perfect trap.
The Mammoth Merchant Character 1-2 A wanted wizard spends his retirement hawking wares.
Man Overboard! Sea 1 This encounter provides the framework to a rescue a sailor.
Manavik Under Fire Urban 2 For their insolence, the snow elves have come to raze Manavik.
March of the Damned Polar/Tundra 2 Undead hordes gather to heed the call of their distant master.
The Mimigloo Polar 1 An evolved mimic has become the ultimate arctic predator.
Mirage Arcane Polar/Tundra 1 A mirage arcane spell disguised a perilously thin frozen lake.
New Menzoberranzan Mountain/Taiga 2 Clueless drow fugitives have founded their own settlement.
Nightfall Polar Night 4 A nightwalker fresh from the Shadowfell is scouring all life it finds.
Obelisk-Bound Couatl Polar/Polar Night 1-2 A warmth-shedding obelisk houses an innocent prisoner.
On the Eve of Dire Winter Mountain 4 The day of liberation has come for an evil empyrean.
The Penguinwere Character 1-2 An elevated penguin masquerades as an ordinary man.
The Poacher's Nightmare Character 3 A sadistic archdruid has vowed to protect the Arctic's wildlife.
Preserved Forevermore Polar/Sea 1-4 There is no telling what bygone creatures can be found frozen in ice…
Rudolph the Red-Blooded Polar/Taiga/Tundra 1 A patronized, sentient reindeer revenges himself on his old bullies.
Sacrifice for the Storm Mountain 3 Cultists of Elemental Evil are sacrificing a storm giant to their master.
The Scorch Baths Volcanic 2 Firenewts running a hot spring resort face an otherworldly predator.
Sea Elk Vikings Sea 2-3 The seas belong to vikings!
Shrine of Vaprak Mountain/Tundra 1-2 An ogre shaman anoints a troll pilgrim for its sacred quest.
Sick Ranger Tundra 1 A dying halfling's mammoth mount seeks friendly folk to help its rider.
Skoldheim Mountain 3 From their bleak stronghold, the frost giants terrorize the Arctic.
Snow Bulette Mountain 2 A bulette has found snow to be the perfect medium for hunting.
Spelljammer Derelict Polar 2 A spaceship has crashed deep into the Arctic.
Spring Weird Volcanic 1 A corrupted water weird kills those that visit its hot spring.
Storm of the Century Weather 4 An elder tempest ravages the Arctic!
Survivor's Cache Character 1-3 Arctic Samaritans have left a cache for wayward travelers.
Temple of the Frostmaiden Polar 3 A cleric of Auril tends to her wicked flock.
Thelgrym's Watch Tundra 1-2 A glacier-carved fortress is ignorant to the cultists lurking just outside.
There's Always a Bigger Bird Tundra 2 There's always a bigger bird.
The Thing Polar 3 An alien horror has been unearthed from the ice.
Thirty Days of Night Polar Night 2 A vampire and her ilk invade a town during the polar night.
Tomb of the Mythic Smith Tundra 2 A necromancer is raiding the tomb of a legendary smith for corpses.
Traveler's Respite Mountain 2 A bheur hag masquerades as a doddering innkeeper.
Tundra Halfling Travelers Taiga/Mountain 1 Tundra halflings full of wanderlust are hiking through the Arctic.
Uldra Cattle Rustler Mountain/Urban 1 An animal-loving fey has "liberated" a flock of sheep.
Urskan Pilgrim Character 1 An urskan pilgrim battles a yeti.
Worg Sleds Polar 1 Taxis or raiders—there's no end to a goblin's creativity.
Wounded Sled Dogs Polar 1 Bloodied hounds whimper in the wake of a wyrmling's attack.

7
 POLAR ENCOUNTERS
ENCOUNTERS BY CATEGORY 2d20 Encounter Tier Focus
The encounters are further divided by category. For encounters 2 At World's End 1 or 4 C/E
that focus on more than one of the Three Pillars, abbreviations 3-6 Barbegazi Skater 1-3 Combat
are used, with "C" referring to Combat, "E" Exploration, and 7-8 Bereaved Shield Guardian 2 Combat
"S" for Social. The order in which these letters appear does not 9-10 Drop It Like It's Hot 1 Skill Chall.
suggest that one is more important than the other. 11 The Fortress of Solitude 3 Social
12-14 Frostfell Rift 2-3 Combat
CHARACTER ENCOUNTERS 15 Global Warming 4 Combat
d20 Encounter Tier Focus 16 Greatfather Winter's Fiefdom 3 Exploration
1-4 The Brass Adventists 1-3 C/S 17-18 Homer's Hospitable Hearth 1 Exploration
5-6 The Creeping Igloo 2 Exploration 19-20 Ice, Ice Baby 1 Social
7 The Dullahan 1-3 Combat 21 Keep Lukewarm! 1 Social
8-9 Endangered Hiker 1 Exploration 22 Lamenter of Levistus 1 Social
10-11 Frosty the Snowman 1 Combat 23 The Last Windbender 1 Exploration
12 Greatfather Winter's Wrath 3 Combat 24-26 Like Tongues to Ice 1 C/E
13 The Isejotun Exile 2 Social 27-28 March of the Damned 2 C/E
14-15 The Mammoth Merchant 1-2 Social 29 The Mimigloo 1 Combat
16 The Penguinwere 2 Combat 30 Mirage Arcane 1 Exploration
17 The Poacher's Nightmare 3 Combat 31-32 Obelisk-Bound Couatl 1-2 Exploration
18-19 Survivor's Cache 1-3 Exploration 33 Preserved Forevermore 1-4 Exploration
20 Urskan Pilgrim 1 Social 34-35 Rudolph the Red-Blooded 1 Exploration
MOUNTAIN ENCOUNTERS 36 Spelljammer Derelict 2 Exploration
2d12 Encounter Tier Focus 37 Temple of the Frostmaiden 3 C/S
2-3 A Clash of Earth and Sky 1-2 Combat 38 The Thing 3 C/E
4 The Altar of Mother Night 2 C/E 39 Worg Sleds 1 C/S
5 At the Mountains of Madness 4 C/E 40 Wounded Sled Dogs 1 Combat
6 Avalanche! 1-2 Skill Chall. POLAR NIGHT ENCOUNTERS
7 The Deadmarks 2 C/E d6 Encounter Tier Focus
8 Death's Due 2 C/S 1 At World's End 1 or 4 C/E
9 Devil's Pass 1-2 Combat 2 The Fruits of Despair 1 C/S
10 Doom of the Dawner Party 1 C/E 3 Hounds of Ill Omen 2 Combat
11 Drop It Like It's Hot 1 Skill Chall. 4 Nightfall 4 Combat
12 Forer-Slag! 2-3 Exploration 5 Obelisk-Bound Couatl 1-2 Exploration
13 The Glacial Garden 2 Combat 6 Thirty Days of Night 2 Combat
14 The Glacial Prison 3 Combat
15 Hag Summit 3 Combat SEA ENCOUNTERS
16 Lamenter of Levistus 1 Social d12 Encounter Tier Focus
17 New Menzoberranzan 2 Social 1 Bark of the Wereseal 2 Combat
18 On the Eve of Dire Winter 4 Combat 2 Cultists En Route 2 C/S
19 Sacrifice for the Storm 3 Combat 3 Darfellan Messiah 1 Exploration
20 Shrine of Vaprak 1-2 C/E 4-5 Deadliest Catch 1-3 Combat
21 Skoldheim 3 C/S 6 Drop It Like It's Hot 1 Skill Chall.
22 Snow Bulette 2 Combat 7 Ice Haulers 1 Combat
23 Tundra Halfling Travelers 1 Social 8 In the Lair of the Dracolich 3-4 Combat
24 Uldra Cattle Rustler 1 C/S 9 The Last Windbender 1 Exploration
10 Man Overboard! 1 Skill Chall.
11 Preserved Forevermore 1-4 Exploration
12 Sea Elf Vikings 2-3 Combat
TAIGA ENCOUNTERS
d8 Encounter Tier Focus
1 Catch of the Day 3 Combat
2 Flight of the Ivory Elk 1 Combat
Grandma Got Mauled by an
3 1 Exploration
Owlbear
4 Grove of the Reclusive Druid 2 Exploration
5 New Menzoberranzan 2 Social
6 Rudolph the Red-Blooded 1 Exploration
7-8 Tundra Halfling Travelers 1 Social

8
TUNDRA ENCOUNTERS
3d10 Encounter Tier Focus ENCOUNTERS
3-4 Barbegazi Skater 1-3 Combat The encounters are presented alphabetically:
5 The Beast of Butchery 4 Combat
6 Bereaved Shield Guardian 2 Combat
7 Catch of the Day 2 Combat A CLASH OF EARTH AND SKY
8 The Crystalline Tavern 1 Social Mountain Encounter, Tier I-II
9 Cycle of Carnage 1 Combat Thunder cracks out across the mountainside as a rogue earth
10-11 Elven Slavers 1-3 Combat elemental battles it out against a fuming air elemental. If left
12 Frost Giant Raiders 2 Combat unchecked, their bout may birth an avalanche.
13 Frosthenge 1-3 Exploration As the adventurers mount the trail, the air elemental hurls its
14-15 Glacier Dwarf Warband 1-3 C/S opponent into a rockface 120 feet away from the nearest party
16 Heroes of the Ice Age 2 Exploration member. When it approaches to slam its foe, the earth elemental
17 Homer's Hospitable Hearth 1 Exploration grapples it. The two are entangled and sail through the air,
18 Homer's Hovering Hovel 1-3 Social crashing right before the adventurers, which allows them a
19 Ice, Ice Baby 1 Social chance to attack the elementals before they wreak further havoc
20 Like Tongues to Ice 1 C/E on the environment. The elementals will ignore these mortals
21 Mammoth Corpse 2-3 C/S until they meddle in the duel. If the adventurers do decide to get
22 March of the Damned 2 C/E involved, roll a d6 at the start of each of the elementals' turns to
23 Mirage Arcane 1 Exploration determine their behavior for the round. Consult the table below.
24 Rudolph the Red-Blooded 1 Exploration Difficulty. The elementals' hit points vary depending on the
25 Shrine of Vaprak 1-2 C/E difficulty you run this encounter at:
26 Sick Ranger 1 Exploration • As a Tier I encounter, the air elemental has 45 hit points left,
27 Thelgrym's Watch 1-2 C/S and the earth elemental has 50.
28 There's Always a Bigger Bird 2 Combat • As a Tier II encounter, the air elemental has 70 hit points left,
29 Tomb of the Mythic Smith 2 C/E and the earth elemental has 85.
30 Tundra Halfling Travelers 1 Social
Avalanche. If the elementals are not slain within two rounds,
URBAN ENCOUNTERS they will trigger an avalanche—either by hurling themselves
d8 Encounter Tier Focus into the mountainside, or through the echoes of elemental fury.
1 The Crystalline Tavern 1 Social Contrary to popular belief, a loud but otherwise mundane noise
2 Frost Giant Raiders 2 Combat cannot trigger an avalanche, but the thunder of elemental blows
3 The Glacial Prison 3 Combat certainly can.
4 Global Warming 4 Combat If the avalanche occurs, combine the Avalanche! encounter
Grandma Got Mauled by an with A Clash of Earth and Sky.
5 1 Exploration
Owlbear
A CLASH OF EARTH AND SKY
6 Krampusnacht 1 Combat
d6 Elemental Disposition
7 Manavik Under Fire 2 Combat
1-2 The elemental focuses on its nemesis.
8 Uldra Cattle Rustler 1 C/S
3 The elemental spares one Slam attack for a mortal.
VOLCANIC ENCOUNTERS The elemental turns all its fury on a meddlesome
4
d6 Encounter Tier Focus mortal for the remainder of the round.
1 Edge of Disaster 3 Combat 5 The elemental hurls its nemesis far away.
2 Forge of the Frozen Wastes 2 Social The elemental grapples its nemesis and launches
6
3 Global Warming 4 Combat itself off a cliff or up the mountainside.
4 Hardboiled 2 Exploration
5 The Scorch Baths 2 C/S IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
6 Spring Weird 1 Exploration
When running this encounter, your goal is to provide the party
WEATHER ENCOUNTERS slim opportunities to attack the elementals during an otherwise
d6 Encounter Tier Focus cinematic combat. You do not want the elementals to get locked
1 Aurora Arcana 1 Exploration down on the ground with the adventurers.
2 Hailstorm 2 Combat
3-4 Into the Blizzard 1-2 Skill Chall.
5 Living Blizzard 2 Combat
6 Storm of the Century 4 Combat

9
 THE ALTAR OF MOTHER NIGHT
Mountain or Polar Encounter, Tier II
Far from the light of the sun, a shadar-kai apostate prays not to
the mysterious Raven Queen, but rather to Mother Night—a
goddess of darkness. In the Forgotten Realms campaign setting,
this deity is none other than Shar, the Dark Lady. This heretic,
a gloom weaver, is an agent of the insidious Forsworn, a
society of drow, shadar-kai exiles and other admirers of the
night. These outcasts are conspiring to cloak the Arctic in a
perpetual polar night where they are free to run their own
wicked schemes far away from any scrutiny. ARMY OF THE DAMNED
Shrine. Within an ice cave, far from prying eyes, is a statue Polar Encounter, Tier IV
of a cloaked woman wielding twin daggers. The statue has been The sun has finally set for the living. Freed from her prison, the
chiseled from black ice that seems to swallow any nearby light. Flayed Queen has marshalled the undead and begun her march
The entire cave lies in darkness in homage to Mother Night. A upon civilization. Her numbers swell with every battle along the
character that succeeds on a DC 15 Religion check ascertains way as her necromancers raise the fallen. There is no sating this
that the statue depicts Shar (or "Mother Night") a goddess of tyrannical death knight; the queen will not rest until all the
misfortune that the broken-spirited pray to for a reprieve. world rots beneath her banner.
Likewise, the elf's holy symbol (a black disk encircled with a This encounter is the titanic culmination of the Army of the
purple border) can be identified as Shar's icon. Damned storyline. For it to occur, the lich Cis'tudh or another
Priestess. A blighted, gray elf maiden dressed in a dark cloak of the Flayed Queen's champions must have freed her from her
and veil prays before the statue. Her skin is deathly pale, and prison (see The Glacial Prison). Cis'tudh isn't present for this
her features are corpselike. Despite her grim appearance, she encounter, if she survived The Glacial Prison at all, as she is
has a strange and unsettling beauty to her, almost as if she were leading the Newly Dead cultists in some other fell purpose.
a cadaver that has been painted for a funeral. She murmurs in The Damned. The undead number in the thousands. Were it
Elvish, "Darkness quench the sun. Darkness swallow the moon. not for the immense will of the Flayed Queen, the undead would
We are nothing but the night." disperse and menace settlements all over the Arctic. Completely
This shadar-kai is known as Narwyn, and she does not take lacking in discipline, they are an "army" in name only. This
kindly to intruders. Paranoid, she suspects that the adventurers undead swarm consists primarily of zombies and skeletons but
are agents of a holy order sent to thwart the Forsworn's plans. also includes specters, wights, and wraiths as well as cultists,
On her first turn, she beckons at the nearby shadows, which cult fanatics, and necromancers—all traitors to the living—
amass into 1d3+1 shadow mastiffs. who ride upon warhorse skeletons.
Shadow Crossing. Mother Night does not abandon her faith- You can use any of these undead for this encounter or choose
ful. If Narwyn is reduced to 21 hit points or fewer, the statue to also feature rarer creatures such as beholder zombies.
animates. The glacial maiden brings her daggers together in a The Sovereign. The world has forgotten the undead tyrant at
stabbing gesture, spawning a rift to the Shadowfell, through the head of this horde. The queen wears scraps of armor and a
which Narwyn can escape. Her shadow mastiffs dissolve once hood over her exposed bones; she also wields a scythe etched
she has left this plane of existence. in glowing orange runes. (Her statistics, however, remain the
Roleplaying Narwyn. The elf is an utter fanatic of the dread same no matter her armor and weapon.)
goddess. To die in her service is a great honor—but one she Roleplaying the Queen. Although she has been freed from
can't afford right now, if she is to play her part in the Forsworn's her icy prison, the Flayed Queen is no less cold. Her dreadful
agenda. She speaks only in Elvish, seeing all other languages as and suffocating presence can be felt miles away by beasts, men,
inferior. and undead alike, as if a cold and heavy weight has fallen over
You can voice Narwyn through the sample dialogue below: them. Outside of combat, she moves slowly but with purpose.
• "Our Lady of Loss take you!" Her voice has an ethereal echo that saps the hearts of mortal
• "We are nothing but the night!" men. Even in the heat of battle, she remains stern and dignified,
• "This world will be cloaked in the cold love of Mother Night. never losing herself to emotion—for she has none.
Pity that you won't be there to feel it." You can voice the queen with the sample dialogue below:
• "This world has had its chance; now is an age for the dead."
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN • "In the end, there is only Death."
This encounter foreshadows the Eternal Night storyline. If you • Spoken as she hurls a Hellfire Orb: "This end is too quick for
intend to run it in your campaign, it is in your best interest as a you."
DM for Narwyn to survive the encounter; when near death, she • Spoken as she parries a blow: "Death cannot be thwarted."
attempts to flee to the Shadowfell. Thereafter, the Forsworn • Spoken as she casts banishment: "Know the weight of utter
become aware of the adventurers, in which case they send out isolation as I have."
the shadow mastiffs described in Hounds of Ill Omen. • Spoken as she casts destructive wave: "Even your broken body
will be of use to me."

10
 Steed. The Flayed Queen rides Krarthelos, the adult white • The necromancer drops a cloudkill on the adventurers if they
dracolich described in In the Lair of the Dracolich. In the cold are clumped together and don't seem to be maintaining the
skies above, she surveys her army. distance from the horde. Otherwise, she casts Bigby's hand
If Krarthelos is not present—such as if he were recently slain on her first turn.
or had his phylactery destroyed—the Flayed Queen is instead • Fionys hurls Grave Bolts at the queen's targets and reserves
mounted on a nightmare that has the following changes to its her spell slots and reactions for counterspells.
statistics: • The Vanguard rides forth to harry the adventurers' backline
• It has 104 hit points possible. with longbow shots.
• It counts as undead and its flames are a ghostly blue.
• It has immunity to cold damage instead of fire damage, and it DEATH FROM ABOVE
confers resistance to cold damage to whomever rides it. If Krarthelos is alive, or if the Flayed Queen is forced to take to
Although the nightmare can fly, the queen only takes to the the air with her nightmare steed, run the following encounter.
air to avoid danger, survey the most distant flanks, or to simply Positioning. The Flayed Queen keeps her steed at an altitude
revel in the sight of her dutiful minions. of 100 feet above the ground, allowing her cultists and archers
The queen's steed determines her tactics, minions, and the site to fire at the party. The sheer immensity of her will allows her
of her battle with the adventurers, as described below: to ignore up to 100 falling damage each day.
Minions. There is no hiding the conflict above. As the queen
BEFORE THE DEAD battles the adventurers in the sky, her minions from below assist
If the Flayed Queen leads her army from the ground, she rides her. Initially, this includes:
upon her nightmare steed. If the adventurers stage a terrestrial • A necromancer that really regrets not preparing the fly spell
battle, she obliges. If they take to the sky en masse, she resorts this morning. He hurls his spells from the ground.
to the tactics and minions described in Death from Above. • A skeletal archer (that has resistance to piercing damage,
Positioning. The queen rides 300 feet ahead of the horde, her vulnerability to bludgeoning damage, and immunity to both
most exalted champions at her side (see Minions). Provided the poison damage and the poisoned condition).
adventurers don't maintain this distance, they have up to ten • Her steed: the nightmare or adult white dracolich.
rounds to defeat her before being swarmed by the undead. Additionally, the following aerial minions arrive (in the order
Minions. Three riders accompany the queen, each astride below) on the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth round of combat,
armored warhorse skeletons with 36 hit points and AC 20. flying towards the adventurers.
They are: • One wraith if Krarthelos is present and two if not.
• Fionys, a deathlock mastermind whose patron is none other • Two will-o'-wisps if Krarthelos is present or 1d3+1 if not
than the Flayed Queen herself. • 1d4+3 skeletal aarakocra (they have resistance to piercing
• Nathalia Delgada, the queen's most devoted necromancer. damage, vulnerability to bludgeoning damage, and immunity
• The Queen's Vanguard, an otherwise nameless sword wraith to both poison damage and the poisoned condition).
commander that lacks the Call to Honor ability. • Fionys, the deathlock mastermind, who is concentrating on
Additionally, on the third, fifth, and seventh round of combat, a fly spell to get her to the battle.
the following creatures intervene (in the order below), having Tactics. The queen and her forces employ the tactics below:
raced ahead to serve their dreadful master: • The Flayed Queen rides upon Krarthelos and uses a compelled
• 1d3 wights astride warhorse skeletons duel spell to force a foe to fight her on the dracolich's back.
• Two ogre zombies • Krarthelos rends at creatures not upon him. His Claw attacks
• A wraith and two shadows can reach virtually anywhere on his body if he twists around;
Tactics. The Flayed Queen and her minions use the following however, doing so may endanger the Flayed Queen.
tactics: • The nightmare takes the Dodge action to keep the queen air-
• The Flayed Queen is fearless, knowing that she can't truly die. borne.
She fights with wild abandon and shows no mercy, finishing • The necromancer below must resort to using Bigby's hand,
off fallen foes. She does not anticipate further challenges this circle of death or chill touch spells; none of his other prepared
day and does not reserve any of her spell slots for later. spells can reach targets 100 feet away.
• The queen devotes her concentration to hold person and smite • The undead archer focuses on aerial mounts or spellcasters.
spells. While concentrating on a spell, she casts destructive • The will-o'-wisps approach under the cover of invisibility to
wave or makes longsword attacks. gain advantage on their first Shock attacks.
• On her first turn, the queen casts a 4th-level hold person spell, • Fionys reserves her final spell slot (the first being used for fly)
targeting three foes. On her next turn, she hurls a Hellfire Orb on a counterspell against the adventurers. Thereafter, she
at these paralyzed foes, as they automatically fail Dexterity hurls Grave Bolts; a character restrained by the bolts falls if
saving throws. they aren't held aloft by magic (see Flying Movement on pg.
• The nightmare makes Hooves attacks if the adventurers stand 191 of the PHB).
their ground. If it must continue spiriting the Flayed Queen,
it takes the Dodge action.

11
THE QUEEN DEFEATED AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS
If she is slain, the Flayed Queen's soul is banished to the Glacial Mountain Encounter, Tier IV
Prison and her influence over the undead shatters. In the sudden
It is a place of madness. A place time has forgotten, and men
vacuum, all skeletal beings in the horde crumble to dust, as the
have avoided. A place the gods cannot touch, and the mortal
dark energies that once sustained them are snuffed out. Now
mind cannot comprehend. It is a city of strange architecture that
freed from the queen's hold, the spirits are laid to rest. Corporeal
confounds visitors, a city shunned by all beasts and monsters. It
undead, however, remain animated, but with no master to guide
is a place permeated with evil so ancient that only the most
them. The horde soon scatters, with wights taking command of
fringe scholars could even name the creatures that once infested
undead platoons. The queen's living minions attempt to flee,
it. And never mind the elder evils who were once worshipped
and all across the region, the surviving sects of the Newly Dead
in its halls…
splinter off to pursue their own dark agendas. If Cis'tudh is still
Its name is forgotten—and it's better left that way.
active, she swears vengeance against her queen's murderers.
This nameless city is closed off from the world by mountains
The site of the Flayed Queen's defeat becomes a memorial
and the ancient silver dragon guarding it intends to keep it that
composed of the countless armor scraps worn by the crumbled
way—for the world itself might fall to ruin if the star spawn
skeletons. While stray undead continue to menace the region,
slumbering below are awakened. Unfortunately, mortals are
and hedge necromancers rise up to practice their own dark craft,
ever curious and determined to plunge into the corners of the
the Arctic is nonetheless spared from an undead apocalypse.
map that reads "here there be dragons." Recently an expedition
arrived to explore the mountains; its disappearance invites
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN suspicion from abroad. The adventurers may be just one of
Armies are narrative tools meant to provide tension and up the many parties to investigate or otherwise stumble upon the area.
stakes. They aren't meant to be tackled by players—and if they Alternatively, the Aurora Arcana encounter may signal that the
are, it's better to simply narrate cinematic battles than getting star spawn are soon to awaken, compelling the adventurers to
bogged down with dice. When you run this encounter, your enter the city.
concern is getting the adventurers to the Flayed Queen and her
lieutenants. While in the sky, you're spared from having to THE WATCHER
include undead minions (except for the aerial reinforcements A gravely silver dragon named Fernyxis guards the city from
described in Death From Above). If the Queen is forced to land, his nearby mountaintop lair. The dragon tolerates no visitors
consider running the Mob rules described on pg. 250 of the and attacks anyone who ventures too close to the mountains.
DMG; otherwise, a stray minion makes an attack against an Alas, Fernyxis isn't omniscient; intruders can evade detection
adventurer at both the start and end of a round. by entering through the caves if they manage to sense and dispel
one of his numerous, permanent alarm spells. A dispel magic
spell renders it inert for 1d6 hours.
Fernyxis can be seen patrolling the skies; identifying him as
a silver dragon is an easy task. However, a character that makes
a DC 14 Arcana check recalls that silver dragons are gregarious
and friendly. They almost never guard a site of evil and instead
prefer to mingle with mortals. They discourage thieves and
would-be dragon slayers through words, not force; and they
don't concern themselves with rooting out evil in the world—so
why is one guarding this otherwise nondescript mountain range
so ferociously?
Roleplaying Fernyxis. The dragon is morose; there is no light
in his life sans the dim torch of duty. As the latest guardian in
an ancient lineage, he has been groomed since birth to defend
this city—whose name even the dragons will not speak—from
all outside forces. Isolation and ascetism have made him bitter
and laconic.
At the start of Fernyxis's tenure, he would spare explorers that
roamed too close to the mountains, but he soon learned that
news of a dragon's lair rouses thieves, heroes, and villains of all
stripes, many of whom ventured into the city and came close to
waking the star spawn below. The dragon has since abandoned
his principles lest the world suffer for them.
Slaughtering the expedition (see below) was the final blow
against Fernyxis's heart; he can't spare a handful of mortals just
after killing four dozen. His first message to the adventurers is
strafing the area with a blast of frigid breath.
The Drake's Lair. Fernyxis lairs in a mountain cave with a
commanding view of the southern approach to the city. To
dissuade thieves, Fernyxis has no treasure in his lair.

12
 The city's streets are lifeless, blanketed by snow and ice—but
in the vaults below, star spawn slumber, awaiting the day when
their distant masters—the Elder Evils who lurk beyond the stars
and below the earth—bid them to not to destroy all life, but only
make it stranger.
The streets are lightly obscured by a perpetual fog, while a
thicker shade heavily obscures the city at an altitude of 100 feet.
Better Not Seen. The city predates history but has seldom
been discovered by outsiders—but not thanks to any defenses
left by its citizens or laid by wise explorers. Except for the fog
cloaking its streets and its remote nature, nothing at all prevents
outsiders from finding it. No illusion cloaks it, no spell forbids
mortals from entering. Rather, the mortal mind instinctively
ignores the city and scours it from one's memory. Throughout
history, thousands have flown over the city or seen it from the
cave mouths linking it to the outside world, but almost every
single person—be they man, beast, or dragon—has forgotten
the city or outright ignored it.
Forcing one's mind to view and comprehend the city requires
a successful DC 22 Intelligence saving throw. Characters that
succeed on this saving throw must later succeed on a DC 30
The region outside Fernyxis's lair is warped by his magic (see Intelligence saving throw to remember the city at all. A creature
Regional Effects in his statistics) but this magic doesn't affect that fails this saving throw but is still compelled to enter the city
the valley in which the city is in; its own strange magic negates acts normally but forgets the city's existence after they leave—
his. The city is approximately five miles long, and so Fernyxis if they manage to leave.
can alter the weather out to one mile from the opposite side of Inscrutable evil permeates the city. Visitors inherently know
the mountain. that something here is wrong, and it's not just the architecture
or the way the sky seems to take on a strange green shade when
THE EXPLORER'S CAMP seen from the ground. Visitors can sense a growing cancer far,
An expedition was mounted earlier this season to map out the far beneath the earth—and they can't shake the feeling that it is
most remote regions of the Arctic. The enterprise consisted of aware of their presence.
explorers, cartographers, and scholars alike, all desperate to go Architecture. The city was built not for mortal minds and its
where few men have been before. Each week, the expedition citizens enjoyed non-Euclidean architecture that shouldn't be
would confirm its safety through sending spells sent to their possible with normal masonry. Ordinary folk are disoriented
distant colleagues—and as days passed, those sending spells just from looking at its structures, which undulate to upwards
grew more erratic. The casters cited "unearthed beings" and "a of 100 feet in height.
dead city." About two weeks ago, the expedition fell silent; no The city is multi-tiered; arches connect many structures at
message was sent or received, suggesting two possibilities: the multiple levels and stairs spiral upwards with no guard railings.
resident wizards are dead or have traveled to another plane of Temples. The city's grandest structure are temples dedicated
existence where divination spells cannot be received. to ancient gods that only the greatest experts of the occult can—
Fernyxis destroyed the expedition. In one last ditch effort to and dare—name. The most prominent entity is represented by
spare himself from committing mass murder, the drake warned an eight-fingered hand with a fanged maw in its palm. With a
them away, warned them not to dig or to probe the caves. They successful DC 22 Arcana check, a character can identify this as
did not listen—and when some of the "beings" they unearthed the icon of Moander the Returner, an elder evil of rot and decay.
began to unstiffen, the dragon had no choice but to slaughter A character that succeeds on this check must also succeed on a
them all. The bones of their camp still lie at the foot of the DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or succumb to a form of Short-
mountains, heaped in ice and snow. Term Madness (see App. C).
Searching the ruins of the camp reveal up to forty corpses, Catacombs lie beneath each temple, stuffed with mummified
consisting of humans, gnomes, elves, and a goblin. Casting corpses of strange alien beings. Every catacomb ends with a
speak with dead on a corpse reveals that the dragon attacked massive stone slab inscribed with harmless but disturbing runes.
them, that the explorers found a city nestled in a valley within A slab can be moved with a DC 25 Athletics check. Moving a
the mountain range, and that they found "strange beings we slab grants access to the vaults beneath the city (see below).
believed to be corpses" in the caves. Resting. Creatures that sleep (naturally, or by a sleep spell)
in the city must make a DC 20 Intelligence saving throw upon
THE CITY ABOVE waking up, taking 18 (3d8) psychic damage on a failure, or half
This unnamed city stands in an enclosed valley surrounded by as much damage on a success. On a failure, a creature also
forbidding mountains. A perpetual fog hangs above its streets, develops a form of Long-Term Madness (see Appendix C) and
out from which creep the tallest rooftops like weeds in other- doesn't gain the benefits of a long rest. Their dreams are haunted
wise blighted soil. The city can only be accessed through flight by nightmares of the Far Realms and whispers from some entity
or caves that even the Underdark's greatest horrors avoid. beneath the earth assuring them that it shall one day return to
reduce this world's inhabitants to madness.

13
 D

B C

THE VAULTS BELOW

Countless chambers lie beneath the city, accessible
from above through the city's catacombs. Were their • A star spawn larva mage clad in a robe of stars (DMG pg.
inhabitants dead, they too could be considered catacombs, and 194) floats before the statue in Area B. If awoken, it rouses
explorers are likely to confuse them for such. Within these all other star spawn in the chamber. Attempting to steal the
vaults, star spawn slumber en masse, awaiting their thunderous robe also disturbs it.
return to the world above. All creatures within these vaults are • Area C is streaked with sickening shades of yellow and green
in stasis; they do not need to eat or sleep while hibernating, and thanks to a rift swirling between the pillars. Non-aberrations
they do not age. Taking any damage causes a creature to wake that linger here for more than a minute must succeed on a DC
up, as does a loud noise (such as a scream or thunderclap spell). 22 Wisdom saving throw or take 22 (4d10) psychic damage
Map. Every chamber complex is identical; hundreds of them and succumb to a form of Indefinite Madness (see Appendix
lie beneath the city with every exit sealed. Refer to The Phoenix C). A creature takes half as much damage on a success and
Diadem above. Every square if 5 feet. A chamber complex has does not succumb to madness. A creature can attune to this
the following features: area as if it were a magic item; a character that does can cast
• Every chamber is sealed by a massive stone slab that requires divination, contacting an entity of the Far Realms.
a DC 25 Athletics check to move. • The pool in Area D is filled with gray slime, out from which
• Stars on the map represent statues dedicated to Moander, the loom petrified humanoids eerily similar to humans but with
elder evil who fathered these star spawn. The mortal mind brutish brows; a legend lore spell confirms them as ancestors
can't withstand the sight of these statues and is compelled to to modern humans. Within the pool slumbers a star spawn
look away, or simply ignore the statue. Characters that behold hulk and 1d4+2 star spawn grues.
a statue, willingly or not, take 3 (1d6) psychic damage. Star
spawn are immune to this effect.
THE AWAKENING
• A 40-foot-deep pit gapes in Area A, at the bottom of which No creature in the cosmos, mortal or divine, knows when the
slumbers an oozing shambling mound (it counts as an ooze, star spawn are due to awaken. The answer even eludes deities
and its Engulf and Slam attacks deal acid damage). of knowledge and fate. Slaying them now may be the world's
• The chambers adjacent to Area A each contain a star spawn only hope for survival—but, as Fernyxis worries, waking them
grue and 1d4 creatures with the statistics of nothics. The prematurely may just spark an apocalypse that the world isn't
northwest chamber's creatures are slowly being dissolved ready for. Intruders that wake the creatures had better eradicate
into a soup to nourish the star spawn when they awaken. all therein, lest the survivors marshal their kin and get started
on the future they were promised by Moander.

14
 AT WORLD'S END SHADAR KAI TRAITS
Polar or Polar Night Encounter Tier I or IV The shadar-kai are the elves whose ancient exodus to the Shadowfell
has left them and their children forever changed. Every shadar-kai
At the very epicenter of the North Pole shines an orb of celestial character has the following traits:
light—a portal linked to the planet's South Pole. Those who • A shadar-kai elf has darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
enter the portal's alabaster light are brought to an icy expanse • They have advantage on saving throws against being charmed and
of the Feywild. The expanse is ten miles long and hemmed in magic can't put them to sleep.
by glacial cliffs that drop into a frigid sea. An aurora dances • They have resistance to necrotic damage.
above, strung up between twin pillars of light that pierce the • Once per long rest, they can use a bonus action to teleport to an
unoccupied space they can see within 30 feet. Until the start of
sky. The expanse is pocked by glaciers and patches of ice,
their next turn, they have resistance to all damage.
making it a dangerous hike for the careless. Those who survive
the trek and exit from the opposite portal emerge at the opposite
On the day of the solstice, as travelers march to a fresh start
end of the material world, thus sparing them months or even
on the opposite end of the globe, the Forsworn invade the portal
years of travel across the globe.
under cover of darkness. They consist of:
Alas, these portals are but a seasonal convenience, appearing
• Yasne Illiwan, a disgraced drow matron mother that founded
only during the summer and winter solstices. Travelers eager to
the Forsworn to create her own kingdom of darkness on the
circumnavigate the world will make biannual pilgrimages to the
surface. Although she is still faithful to Lolth, her evil deity,
portals, either arriving by their lonesome or choosing to travel
the drow has cozied up to Mother Night (also known as Shar,
in vast groups. Migrants, merchants, and refugees alike rely on
the goddess of darkness in the Forgotten Realms) that many
the portals to escape the North or South. This frigid expanse is
of the Forsworn worship.
not without its perils, however. Capricious fey haunt the pass as
• A number of exiled shadar-kai elves: a soul monger, 1d3+1
the solstices draw near, eager to ensorcell mortals and bring
shadow dancers, the gloom weaver Narwyn (if she survived
them back to their own demesnes in the Feywild.
The Altar of Mother Night), plus 2d6+2 cult fanatics (see the
Travelers. During the solstices, refugees and travelers gather
Shadar-Kai Traits sidebar).
at the poles. They typically consist of 2d10+10 commoners,
• 2d6+2 drow, three drow elite warriors, a drow mage, Soryn,
guarded by 1d3 veterans and 1d6+4 tribal warriors. Other
Yasne's drow favored consort, and the drow house captain
unique individuals (adventurers and the like) are likely to take
Vhondryl, Yasne's lover and champion.
advantage of the portal. Although it has happened only a few
times throughout history, a nation might send its army to the The Forsworn must close the opposite portal so that its power
portal to invade another nation on the other end of the globe. flows to its twin. To do so, they must escort Soryn there, where
Notably, a tribe of 3d10+10 aarakocra utilize the portal to he casts a 5th-level dispel magic spell to temporarily close the
migrate twice a year, traveling to the North Pole on the summer portal for up to five minutes. Soryn must concentrate (as if on a
solstice and the South Pole on the winter solstice. The tribe is spell) to keep the portal closed, otherwise it roars back open.
led by Chieftesss Oorra An'kel, an aarakocra with a Wisdom While it's closed, Yasne must cast a modified gate spell at the
score of 16 (+3) and a Strength score of 15 (+2). The tribe has original portal using an action. The portal becomes permanently
learned the hard way that they can't trust other travelers and affixed to the Shadowfell if Yasne concentrates on her spell for
refugees to behave; they are perpetually wary of others and one minute. Her spell fails if the opposite portal opens again in
choose to fly away from danger rather than confront it. the meantime. If successful, she links the Shadowfell to the
Fey Predators. On a good day, the expanse is haunted by only Material Plane, allowing its darkness to seep into the world.
a handful of fey. During the summer solstice, 1d6+4 satyrs (one Creatures within the Feywild have one minute to escape back
of which wields satyr pipes (see the Monster Manual) await into the Material Plane (either by reopening the opposite portal
travelers in the pass, promising good cheer and good times to or by diving into the dying light of the nearer portal).
whomever accompanies them deeper into the Feywild. During Escorts. Once they enter the Feywild, the Forsworn divide
the winter solstice, 2d4+3 darklings prey upon travelers after themselves into the following groups:
dark. On either solstice, a pack of 1d6+3 yeth hounds menace • Soryn, three drow elite warriors, half the drow, the drow
hikers. Occasionally, an archfey comes to offer impressive mage, and the soul monger depart for the opposite portal.
individuals his or her patronage. Soryn has prepared wind walk instead of chain lightning to
get him and up to nine companions to the other side of the
ON THE EVE OF ETERNAL NIGHT expanse.
Polar Night, Tier IV • Yasne, Vhondryl, half the drow, and the remaining shadar-kai
The Forsworn, the secretive order of outcasts seeking to drape remain at the original portal. The Forsworn consider Soryn
the Arctic in an eternal polar night, intend to pervert this portal. expendable, but not Yasne, trusting that, should they fail, the
The Shadowfell surrounds the mortal world just as the Feywild order can rise again later, should she survive.
does; some scholars claim they are mirrored opposites. By Yasne's Demise. If Yasne is successful, the Shadowfell portal
altering the portal's magical properties, the Forsworn can link groans open with such force that it draws her into the realm's
the portal to the Shadowfell, allowing darkness to seep into the most dismal parts. In moments, she's hurled into the Negative
mortal world unabated. Plane itself; if not for Lolth's favor, she would surely die. Alas,
For more details on this secretive order, see the Eternal Night her entry into that fell plane releases a nightwalker into the
sample storyline. If this encounter occurs at the North Pole, the Material Plane. The surviving Forsworn escape back into the
event occurs on the winter solstice; if "the Arctic" is the South mortal world, rejoicing—that is, until the nightwalker snuffs
Pole, it occurs on the day of the summer solstice. them out. See the Nightfall encounter for details.

15
 AURORA ARCANA
AURORA ARCANA d6 Color Spellcasting Ability
Weather Encounter, Tier I 1-2 Alabaster Intelligence
Once again, the Arctic is graced by the soothing light of the 3-4 Orange Charisma
aurora. Characters who have never seen the aurora before gain 5-6 Azure Wisdom
Inspiration, which they must use within the next seven days.
Individuals who have beheld the aurora before can also gain
Inspiration if they succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw. AVALANCHE!
Although it is no less inspiring, tonight's lights are different. Mountain Encounter, Tier I-II
Characters with the Spellcasting or Pact Magic feature notice The avalanche is the most iconic danger of mountain travel. An
sigils dancing in the light. Any seer can recognize this as an avalanche can wipe away trees, destroy buildings, and slaughter
omen promising imminent upheaval. The sigils stand in sharp countless souls. You can run this in addition to many of this
contrast to the aurora, both in color and movement: the aurora supplement's other encounters, such as A Clash of Earth and
trembles eastward and the sigils seem to push against the flow Sky, Snow Bulette, or Forer-Slag!
of light. To non-spellcasters, nothing seems amiss; the aurora Avalanches occur when the force exceeds the strength of the
looks as it ordinarily does. snowpack upholding it. Contrary to popular belief, avalanches
As this spectacle unfolds, certain spellcasters in the region are are not triggered by mundane sound, but they are triggered by
empowered (as determined by the color of the aurora arcana; erosion, rainfall, storms, rockfalls, and even something as
see the table above). Until dawn, these spellcasters can add their simple as the snow melting from sunlight. Avalanches may also
spellcasting ability modifier to the damage rolls of their spells. be triggered by magic—a shatter or thunderwave spell, or the
If the aurora arcana's color is azure, clerics of the light divine thunderous blows of an elemental being. A traveler shouting in
domain are especially invigorated; they can reroll any 1s they the mountains will not cause an avalanche, but a careless mage
receive when rolling the damage dice of spells that deal radiant can with a stray spell.
damage.
Lore. A character that succeeds on a DC 14 Arcana check RUNNING AN AVALANCHE
recalls that the aurora arcana is an omen awaited by many. Avalanches aren't always deadly, but this encounter concerns
Some take it as the implicit approval of the gods; others regard only those that are. Consider the following:
it as the opportunity to rewrite their own destinies. Amongst the Size. An avalanche's lethality is determined by its size. When
glacier dwarves, it is a grim omen; to the snow elves, it marks creatures come into contact with an avalanche, they must make
a new era; the darfellan believe it signals the conception of a a DC 15 Strength saving throw, taking the damage described
messiah, whom they eagerly await; and tundra halflings see it below on a failure, or half as much on a success. On a success,
as a miracle to celebrate with hastily-thrown festivals. a character manages to swim with the avalanche, staying within
1d6 feet of the surface.
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN • A Small-sized avalanche typically covers 150 to 650 feet and
The aurora arcana is an omen awaited by many—and it might reaches the end of the slope it began at. It inflicts 11 (2d10)
be the event that triggers some of the more disastrous affairs of bludgeoning damage to creatures it overtakes.
your campaign. If you're using any of the sample storylines • A Medium-sized avalanche usually covers 700 to 1,000 feet
provided in this supplement, or linking it to other encounters, it and can continue traveling on flat terrain for up to 150 feet.
can mark a dramatic shift or victory. For example: It inflicts 22 (4d10) bludgeoning damage to creatures caught
• It may herald the birth of the darfellan messiah (see Darfellan in its grasp. It also can destroy small buildings and rip away
Messiah). all but the mightiest of trees.
• It may signal to the hags of the Dark Sisterhood storyline that • A Large-sized avalanche covers 3200 to 6500 feet and can
now is the time to put aside their reservations and form a continue traveling on flat terrain for up to 150 feet. Creatures
coven, in which case Hag Summit occurs. caught in its grasp take 33 (6d10) bludgeoning damage. The
• It may herald the return of the Flayed Queen, or the death of avalanche can also destroy most buildings, and even level
her jailor (see Army of the Damned and The Glacial Prison). entire sections of forest.
• It may signal that the star spawn described in At the Mountains Speed. An avalanche's foremost tide moves forward 40+3d10
of Madness are due to awaken. feet every round at initiative count 15 (losing initiative ties). A
• It may be the sign that Masra (of Temple of the Frostmaiden) character that is overtaken by the avalanche must attempt the
needs to throw her lot in with Withrens Fyar, the architect of Strength saving throw described above.
the Dire Winter storyline. Obstacles. Depending on the size of an avalanche, characters
in its path may resort to obstacles to escape it. A character that
is within 10 feet of the avalanche's tide must succeed on a DC
10+1d6 Dexterity saving throw to reach the obstacle. With a
DC 13 Nature or Survival check, a character can determine if
an object will hold up to the avalanche. For example, a tree can
withstand a Small-sized avalanche, but not a Medium one. A
character can climb the tree or hold onto it to avoid being swept
up by the avalanche.

16
 Buried Survivors. It is incredibly difficult for the ordinary AVALANCHE SKILL CHALLENGE
person to free themselves from an avalanche once they've been Size Difficulty DC Successes
buried. Once the snow settles, it becomes as dense as concrete. Small Easy 10-14 3
Most folk have no choice but to wait for rescue, making oxygen Medium Medium 14-18 5
and the cold their chief concerns. A character typically has only Large Hard 18-22 8
1d10+5 minutes of oxygen available to them. Consider these:
• A buried character that succeeds on a DC 20 Strength check • An Investigation check can be made to determine which way
can dig through 1d6+4 feet of snow. is up and to create a pocket of air to breathe.
• A character that succeeds on a DC 12 Survival check recalls • An Acrobatics check can be made to free one's limbs from the
that they should dig a small pocket near their face for oxygen. crushing snow.
On a success, they increase their oxygen supply to 4d10+10 • An Insight check can be made to calm oneself or gather their
minutes. wits, allowing them to think clearly.
• By being submerged in snow, a creature is exposed to extreme Rescue. Characters that aren't buried under snow can rescue
cold, even if they're wearing heavy furs or other cold weather others. The risk here represents rescuing all characters before
gear. They must make Constitution saving throws against they run out of oxygen or freeze to death.
extreme cold every 10 minutes, instead of every hour. Only • A Perception check allows a character to detect someone. A
creatures with resistance or immunity to cold damage do not failure delays finding another character by 1d6 minutes.
need to make saving throws against extreme cold. • An Athletics check can be made to dig a character out of the
• A character that detect a buried character with a successful DC snow. Having a shovel or similar implement adds a +2 bonus
14 Perception check (except while in a Skill Challenge). to their ability check. A failure also costs a character another
1d6 minutes before they realize they've failed the task.
AVALANCHE SKILL CHALLENGE • An Investigation check can allow a character to map out where
You can run an avalanche as a Skill Challenge. The avalanche's and when the avalanche would have taken them. A failure
size determines the difficulty. This Skill Challenge is ran after means a character wasted 1d4 minutes attempting to map out
the avalanche occurs but elements of it occur before or during someone's path or followed a false trail.
the avalanche. • A spell of locate creature or locate object allows a character
Preparation. This phase represents identifying the avalanche to find their target quickly.
before or while it occurs. Characters can antecedently attempt Aftermath. If all characters are rescued from the snow but the
these ability checks to determine whether their character was party has yet to succeed or fail the challenge, the Aftermath
prepared for the avalanche or if they reacted accordingly to the phase begins, which represents taking measures to avoid hypo-
danger. Typically, a character can only attempt one of these, thermia, collecting belongings, or avoiding confusion.
and once one or two of the party members have, no more • An Insight check allows a character to recognize where they
Preparation ability checks can be made. Suggestions include: stand in the changed landscape.
• A Survival check recalls the necessary precautions one must • Through an Investigation check, a character can map out the
take to survive an avalanche, such as "swimming" along the avalanche's path of destruction, which may inform them of
surface, hiding behind appropriate obstacles, and digging out what was buried or destroyed.
a pocket of air if one is buried. • A Survival check allows a character to determine how far off-
• Through an Investigation check, a character may possess the course the avalanche pushed them.
wherewithal to leave signs that indicate where they've been
buried, such as a bright scrap of cloth or a weapon.
• A Nature check can identify avalanche-prone areas by slope IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
and the consistency of local snowfall. Like a shipwreck, an avalanche is another opportunity for your
• A Perception check allows a character to detect the avalanche campaign's story, not an end. You can use it to kill off additional
just as it occurs in the distance, by either sight or sound. characters, separate the adventurers, interrupt a battle, or shake-
• An Acrobatics check can be made by a character that was hit up the plot. It should never be used with the intent of actually
by the avalanche to maintain their balance, possibly riding on killing the entire party.
the avalanche's surface, or remaining on an obstacle that they
used to weather the tide.
Survival. Characters that are buried by the avalanche are in
the Survival phase and must take measures to withstand the
extreme cold and limited oxygen while waiting for rescue, or to
free themselves.
• A buried character that succeeds on a DC 20 Strength check
can dig through 1d6+4 feet of snow. This counts as a success
for the skill challenge, but not a failure. If the character frees
themselves from the snow, they can partake in Rescue-related
ability checks. Once one party member has succeeded on this
type of ability check, it no longer counts as a success if other
characters succeed on it later.
• A spell dealing fire damage, such as produce flame or burning
hands, can melt snow.

17
 BARBEGAZI SKATER BARK OF THE WERESEAL
Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier I-III Sea Encounter, Tier II
The barbegazi (or "frost gnomes" in Common) are fond of icy A wereseal haunts the frigid coastlines and ice floes. Unlike
slopes and vast, frozen expanses where they can pursue their other lycanthropes, wereseals are not inherently evil; many just
own strange passions—skiing, bandy, and other sports arctic wish to live in peace among walruses or seals, free from the
folk consider decadent and foolhardy. The gnome that the party suspicions of ordinary men.
encounters, as they cross a frozen lake or expanse of ice, is busy While at sea, traveling along the coast, or crossing ice floes,
skating at extraordinary speeds. As they soon learn, the gnome the adventurers encounter a wereseal, who is already engaged
is fleeing from a young remorhaz, remorhaz, or purple worm in some other activity.
(determined by whether you run this encounter at Tier I, II or Roleplaying the Wereseal. Born as Amaruq ("grey wolf"),
III, respectively). the ordinary human fell prey to a wereseal's vicious bite as he
Frantic Skater. Rasmorn Murnig was out practicing for his and his brethren were hunting seals along the coast. For all his
warren's annual skating competition when he first felt a tremor life, Amaruq believed the dark tales spun by his people—tales
echo out through the ice. Like the dedicated athlete he is, he that claimed he would a become monster destined to slaughter
dismissed it to focus on honing his toe loop maneuvers. Soon, his family and betray his tribe. Wishing to spare them from such
a creature burst from the ice; were it not for his extraordinary a fate, Amaruq abandoned his wife and children to find peace
talent as a skater, the gnome would've been in the beast's jaws. at sea. He has since come to consider his pod of lion seals as his
Rasmorn is a LG bandit with the following changes: new family. Although Amaruq is now confident in his ability to
• He reads, writes and speaks only Gnomish. control his curse, he fears that he has been gone too long—that
• He is Small and has a speed of 25 feet. his family may be dead or even revile him. This is his greatest
• He has darkvision out to a range of 60 feet. sorrow, and it eats at him every day.
• He has advantage on all Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma Amaruq has his moments of weakness; whenever he has a foe
saving throws made against magic. at his mercy, he must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw
• He has resistance to cold damage. to ignore the urge to kill them.
• He can move across icy surfaces without needing to make an Treasure. Amaruq carries a spear and wears a parka when he
ability check. Additionally, difficult terrain composed of ice is on dry land. He also has a mask carved from walrus ivory (50
and snow doesn't impede his movement. While moving down gp). He wears this mask whenever he is in his true form, as he
slopes of ice or snow, he has advantage on Acrobatics checks fears retaliation against his family, should he be recognized.
to maintain his balance.
• He wears a pair of skates of permanent, sculpted ice, which AGAINST MEN
are worth 100 gp each, or 250 gp for the pair. The wereseal is protective of his newfound kin, the walruses
The party first sights the gnome in the distance; his beard is and seals of the Arctic. Intolerant of seal hunters, Amaruq can
coated in ice. A successful DC 13 History check identifies him be found terrorizing men. He mainly uses his spear, wishing to
as a frost gnome and the strange shoes he's wearing as "skates." avoid spreading the curse of lycanthropy. Survivors flee back
As the barbegazi skates towards them, they hear his alarmed home to spread word of the wereseal that has forbidden hunting
shouts. A character that speaks Gnomish that succeeds on a DC pinnipeds. A bounty has been put out, promising glory and gold
12 Perception check understands that he's shouting, "Ice worm! (100 gp's worth in walrus ivory) to whomever slays the beast.
Ice worm! Run!" Amaruq might attack the adventurers if they near the territory
A character that succeeds on a DC 14 Insight check feels a of his sea lion pod, or if he considers them a threat.
tremor echo out from the ground and successfully interprets it At Sea. The adventurers encounter a boat of two shellshocked
as a huge creature burrowing through the ice. That creature soon tribal warriors who warn them of the wereseal hunting in the
bursts from below, showering the scene with a hailstorm of east. Three of their brethren were slain by the beast and another
icicles. Without their intervention, Rasmorn is doomed to die in drowned in the frigid sea.
the beast's belly. On Shore. 1d4+2 tribal warriors are advancing on seals on
If Rasmorn is slain, he professes his thanks in Gnomish and the shore. As they approach, Amaruq assumes his hybrid form
leads them to his warren, where his clan treats the party to a and attacks.
meal of cold noodles and roasted caribou. Provided the party
can communicate with them, the barbegazi also offer to teach AGAINST BEASTS
the adventurers how to skate. A promising student that succeeds The wereseal preys upon the same creatures his namesake does.
on both a DC 15 Acrobatics check and DC 17 Performance Unlike an ordinary seal, however, the lycanthrope can also prey
check is rewarded with a pair of skates of the nimble dancer on killer whales. The adventurers find him ravaging a whale
(see the sidebar). while in his hybrid form or feeding on it in the water. With a
successful DC 14 Nature check, a character recalls that orcas
prey on seals—so how is one eating a whale? Should they come
SKATES OF THE NIMBLE DANCER to investigate the corpse, Amaruq attacks.
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement) Amaruq may also have led his pod of sea lions to the whale's
While you're moving on ice and wearing these skates, you have corpse, allowing them to ironically dine on their chief predator.
advantage on ability checks to maintain your balance and saving
throws made against being knocked prone.
Additionally, this magic item has 3 charges. It regains 1d3
expended charges daily at dawn. While you're on ice, you can
expend a charge to take the Disengage action as a bonus action.

18
AGAINST MONSTERS
The wereseal cannot tolerate other predators in his waters and
actively seeks out chuuls, merrows, and other aquatic horrors.
Because he, like true seals, hunts penguins, Amaruq might also
encounter a penguinwere (a jackalwere variant described in
The Penguinwere).
Under this variant, the adventurers encounter the wereseal as
he battles against some watery monster. While the battle occurs
in the water, the wereseal remains in his seal form. The party is
given a front-row seat to a monster impotently clawing at what REINFORCEMENTS ARRIVE
seems to be an ordinary seal. Its attacks leave only light grazes The world's premiere heroes (or the next best thing) arrive mid-
that the seal shrugs off. combat. On the fourth round of combat, an archmage teleports
Treasure. The monster may carry treasure: into view. The identity of this wizard is up to you; you can use
• A chuul carries an uncommon magic item, which it intends to Homer Erendalias of Homer's Hovering Hovel as a default. The
bury in a cache designated by its ancient aboleth masters. It archmage already lacks a 1st, 3rd, and 7th level spell slot (used
clutches a ring of warmth, an eversmoking bottle, or a cloak for mage armor, fly, and teleport spells) and uses a 9th-level
of the manta ray (DMG pg. 193, 168, & 159, respectively). spell slot as an action to summon his allies:
• A merrow is adorned in 1d6+2 bracelets and pendants of gold, • A reluctant N human blackguard named Sytal Foebreaker
each worth 20 gp. It also carries a trident of warning (see pg. • A NG drow shadowblade named Nivvia Rhomduil
213 of the DMG). • A LG high elf war priest named Wraneirosa
• A penguinwere may carry a hag eye if it serves the bheur hag Tactics. The heroes quickly add their power to the party's,
coven described in the Dark Sisterhood. See MM pg. 177. using the following tactics.
• On his first turn, the archmage casts disintegrate at 8th-level
THE BEAST OF BUTCHERY (96 (15d6+40) force damage). On his second turn, he casts
Tundra Encounter, Tier IV wall of force to contain Yeenoghu (which the demon later
counters with dispel magic), which ends the wizard's fly spell.
The Arctic's gnolls have been blessed with the presence of their Yeenoghu's gnolls quickly swarm the wizard to break his
creator, Yeenoghu, the Beast of Butchery. Just how the demon concentration.
prince has been allowed into the mortal world matters little; the • On his first turn, Sytal casts blinding smite, dealing 13 (3d8)
abomination must be slain, lest his rampage sunders the Arctic. radiant damage on Yeenoghu.
Yeenoghu's arrival has set off magical sensors and alarms all • On her first turn, Nivvia Shadow Steps onto Yeenoghu's back
over the world, but it will be some time before diviners interpret (or casts darkness on a chunk of his armor if the battle occurs
these signs and alert the world's heroes. With the adventurers in bright light). Her following turns are spent plunging her
already in the Arctic, it falls to them to defeat the demon—or at shadow blades into the demon's nape.
least hold him off until reinforcements arrive. • On her first turn, Wraneirosa casts flame strike, dealing 14 fire
Origins. Fiends cannot simply wade into the Material Plane; and 14 radiant damage; Yeenoghu is immune to fire damage,
they must be summoned, and conjuring a demon prince requires however. On her second turn, she casts guardian of faith and
great magic indeed. While the summoning of a demon prince is charges Yeenoghu. On her third turn, the priest casts spiritual
a campaign unto itself, you can quickly determine the identity weapon.
and purpose of the summoner from these options:
• A nagpa who will loot the corpse of civilization for forbidden The Brass Adventists. Alternatively, you can utilize the Brass
and arcane knowledge after Yeenoghu has finished his tour Adventists, an adventuring party described in the encounter of
of destruction. the same name. By this point, they are a Tier III party. They've
• A drow matron mother cast gate and bid Yeenoghu into this answered the call not for altruism, but simply because they too
world so that Lolth, his demonic adversary, can infringe upon are citizens of the world and cannot afford a demon prince to
his territory in the Abyss while he rampages across the run rampant. Their resident wizard, Rogthun, uses a spell scroll
Material Plane. The matron mother may or may not have to teleport his comrades in. They employ the following tactics:
escaped from the scene of the summoning. • Rogthun casts fly on himself on his first turn. His second is on
• A warlock of the fiend found a candle of invocation (see pg. a 5th-level magic missile spell. Ascertaining that the demon
157 of the DMG) capable of summoning demons. is immune to fire and cold damage, he continues casting the
• A misguided planetar and its angels sought to duel the demon same spell until he runs out of spell slots.
prince but were not up to the task. Seeking equal footing, the • Huell, wielding a +1 greatsword, valiantly charges Yeenoghu.
foolish celestial summoned him to the Material Plane. • Mornelia casts erupting earth on her first turn, blight on her
second, and tidal wave on her third. Her later turns are spent
Facing the Beast. As Yeenoghu rampages across the Arctic, casting healing word spells.
gnolls all over the region flock to feed on his leftover kills. The • On his first turn, Russyl summons a yeth hound with conjure
Beast of Butchery is accompanied by a flind, two mutated fey. Until his concentration is broken, he continues casting
shoosuvas with a flying speed of 40 ft. each, and two gnoll eldritch blast. After the spell is broken, he follows up with
hunters that fire off arrows from Yeenoghu's shoulders. You hold monster.
can draw upon any number of gnolls to fill out the battle; their
horde is only minutes away.

19
THE BEAST BUTCHERED THE BRASS ADVENTISTS
Yeenoghu does not go quietly into the night. When slain, the Character Encounter, Tier I-III
demon makes three final Flail attacks before being banished
Some are born legends; some are destined to save the world.
back to the Abyss where he regenerates. His earthly body must
Not the Brass Adventists, a selfish adventuring party currently
be burned, and the ground hallowed by a hallow spell within 24
roaming the Arctic. Some would describe them as evil, others
hours, otherwise the area is permanently corrupted by demonic
as opportunists. All who've met them would agree that they're
energies. Demonologists can take advantage of this newfound
utter bastards in search of their next reward.
corruption to summon fiends or open portals to the Abyss.
The Brass Adventists can be encountered virtually anywhere,
Additionally, gnolls that feed on Yeenoghu's corpse—and the
acting as the foils to your adventurers. They may snake a reward
beasts will come, making a dark pilgrimage from all over the
out from under them or wind up in the same dungeon. They may
continent—swell and explode, creating 1d6+4 more gnolls,
cross paths at a hot spring or share a drink at the tavern. They
who can then feed on Yeenoghu's corpse. One single gnoll can
may be on the same quest the adventurers are, in which case it
create a horde if allowed to dine upon its creator's sacred flesh.
becomes a race to see who can finish it quicker. They might
even be tasked by a hag to retrieve a seemingly insignificant
BEREAVED SHIELD GUARDIAN item that will later cause great harm to the Arctic.
Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier II Goals. The Brass Adventists are motivated by gold, glory,
A bulky, gray figure in the distance roams in a cyclical pattern, and power. Although they're selfish and err towards evil, they
making no effort to hide. As one draws closer, they see that it is are not inherently inclined to throw their lot in with some of the
a metallic knight of sorts—a construct. A successful DC 14 more destructive factions of the Arctic. They themselves would
Arcana check identifies it as a shield guardian, a construct suffer should the plans of Withrens Fyar succeed, for example,
created specifically by wizards for protection. Every guardian, and would likely oppose him—or just leave the Arctic entirely.
as this ability check recalls, is bound to an amulet. Whomsoever Tactics. The Adventists are, first and foremost, opportunists.
wears that amulet exercises complete control over the construct, They fight only when they must and prefer ambushes to open
making it an extraordinary find by scavengers. Fortunately for conflict. Most of their engagements are handled by Russyl's deft
the party, the amulet and its creator are right under their noses. hands and silent steps.
The shield guardian is making a circuit around a fixed point; At Higher Levels. The Brass Adventists can level up along-
in other words, it's patrolling the area as if to guard something. side your adventurers to further challenge them. By running this
It only pauses when it detects a nearby creature; sure enough, encounter at Tier II or III, the Adventists have new and better
this point is proven when a bird passes by. The guardian tenses statistics, making them comparable foils for the party.
up as this happens, locking its eyeless gaze on the creature; it
resumes its patrol after the bird leaves. After a minute of careful
HUELL BRADSHAW: HUMAN WARRIOR
study and a successful DC 13 Insight check, the character Words are Huell Bradshaw's weapons. This formidable human
realizes that the construct was likely given orders to patrol this warrior learned long ago that a well-placed lie can win the day
area and is thus guarding something of great importance. more often than well-placed steel. Huell has fought three wars:
If the adventurers approach the area, the construct attacks. one as a reluctant conscript, and two as a smiling sellsword.
Dead Wizard. The guardian's master and creator is dead, Huell has, secretly, founded the Adventists twice now. The first
buried beneath a week's worth of snow. A little digging reveals Adventists perished in a dungeon crawling with undead. To his
the ash of a campfire, a collapsed tent, and the wizard's corpse. credit, Huell stayed by his companions' side until the bitter end,
A DC 13 Medicine check reveals he died to hypothermia. The for he considers loyalty in the face of danger to be the greatest
wizard's icy demise is likely owed to a sudden blizzard, be it ideal a person can have.
mundane or the one caused by the Living Blizzard encounter.
The wizard is curled up in a fetal position with the control
amulet around his neck. Rigor mortis and ice have made the
corpse unpliable, to say the least. Outside of combat, the corpse
can be easily lifted, and the amulet removed. To retrieve the
amulet in one swift motion during combat requires a DC 14
Strength check made as an action.
Sudden Adversity. In the aftermath of their encounter with
the shield guardian, the adventurers are attacked by a frost
salamander (or a remorhaz, if you so wish), which has been
drawn to their heat. The creature bursts from below.

IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
Be aware that, should the adventurers successfully retrieve the
wizard's amulet, they'll have complete control over the shield
guardian. This construct adds immense firepower to the party—
which may just be your way of rounding out a low number of
players or justifying even deadlier encounters.

20
 The Adventists' second generation began when Huell met the Change Shape (2/Day). As an action, the druid magically
kenku, Russyl. His silver tongue has kept this dysfunctional polymorphs into a beast with a challenge rating of 1/2 or less
family together these last two years. and without a flying speed. It can remain in this form for up
Statistics. Huell is a LE human veteran with a Charisma of to 2 hours. The druid can choose whether its equipment falls
16 (+3) and a +5 bonus to Deception and Persuasion. He wields to the ground, melds with its new form, or is worn by the
a rapier instead of a longsword (+5 to hit, 7 (1d8+3) piercing new form. The druid reverts to its true form if it dies or falls
damage on a hit) as well as a buckler, raising his AC to 19. unconscious and it can revert to its true form using a bonus
Roleplaying Huell. Huell is trapped between his selfishness action on its turn.
and his loyalty. He's most delighted when both traits line up. He While in a new form, the druid retains its game statistics
sees himself as the Adventists' father and leader; in his mind, he and ability to speak, but its AC, movement modes, Strength
is the glue that holds everything together, and the voice that puts and Dexterity scores are replaced by those of the new form,
to rest all arguments. He feels at his most impotent whenever and it gains any special senses, proficiencies, traits, actions,
he fails to wrangle the party, whenever his words fail, and and reactions (except class features, legendary actions, and
whenever he cannot dominate others in an argument. In another lair actions) that the new form has but that it lacks. It cannot
life, Huell may have become a hotheaded lawyer. speak or cast its spells while in this form.
You can voice Huell with the following sample dialogue:
• "You don't leave a brother behind." ROGTHUN: OUTCAST ORC
• "Glory has no use among the dead." Exiled from his tribe, Rogthun crossed paths with the fledgling
• "Ask the dead where honor got them." Adventists in the wild. Seeing the benefit of an alliance, the four
• "I am what I am." cleared cultists out of a dungeon and split the reward. After
• "The world is ours, if we're only willing to take it." being paid, Rogthun simply asked, "What's next?" He has been
• "As long as we're true to each other, the world can smoke it." with the Adventists ever since.
At Higher Levels. At Tier II, Huell becomes a champion Statistics. Rogthun is a LN orog with an Intelligence of 14
with a Charisma of 16 (+3) and +6 bonuses to Deception and (+2) and the Spellcasting trait:
Persuasion. At Tier III, he also has a +1 greatsword. Spellcasting. Rogthun is a 2nd-level spellcaster. Intelligence
is his spellcasting ability (spell save DC 12, +4 to hit with
MORNELIA: ELVEN DRUID spell attacks). He has the following wizard spells prepared:
Nature is the cudgel with which Mornelia intends to cow the Cantrips (at will): fire bolt, mending, minor illusion
world. This druid is by far the most wicked of the Adventists; 1st level (2 slots): burning hands, disguise self, shield
even Huell is hesitant to speak to her flippantly. Roleplaying Rogthun. Rogthun is a silent, broody orc. His
Statistics. Mornelia is CE elven CE druid with the following penchant for arcane magic is both the source of his pride and
changes to her statistics: greatest shame: feared for his potential, his treacherous uncle
• She can read, write, and speak Common and Elvish. and warchief banished him from the tribe. His spellbook, a tome
• She has advantage on saving throws against being charmed of stitched leather, is his constant companion. He can be found
and magic cannot put her to sleep. practicing his spells with the same fervor of a warrior—for one
• She has darkvision out to a range of 60 feet. day, he swears, he will return to the Splitskull tribe to depose
• She has a movement speed of 35 feet. his uncle and restore his honor.
• She can attempt to hide when lightly obscured by foliage, mist, At Higher Levels. Starting in Tier II, Rogthun completes his
heavy rain, falling snow, and other natural phenomena. studies, becoming an illusionist. In Tier III, he becomes an
Roleplaying Mornelia. There are few that will ever earn the outright mage. In both iterations, he has the following changes
wicked druid's gratitude or appreciation; the jury's still out on to his statistics:
the Brass Adventists, whom Mornelia sees only as useful tools. • He has 42 (5d8+20) hit points and wears plate armor (AC 18).
This changes at Tier II, however, after she has spent more time • He has a Strength of 18 (+4), a Constitution of 18 (+4) and a
with them. While she doesn’t change her stripes completely, she Charisma of 12 (+1).
now considers the Adventists as her adopted family. • He has a +5 bonus to Intimidation and a +2 bonus to Survival.
At Higher Levels. Mornelia grows in power at later tiers. As a mage, both these bonuses increase by an extra +1.
Augment her statistics in the following ways: • He has darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
• Her Wisdom increases to 16 (+3) and then 18 (+4) in Tier III, • As a bonus action, Rogthun can move up to his speed toward
which raises her spell save DC to 14 and then 15. a hostile creature he can see.
• Her hit points increase to 55 (10d8+10).
• Her proficiency bonus increases to +3.
• Her Spellcasting trait improves, and she gains Change Shape
as an ability (and starting in Tier III, she can change into a
CR 1 beast or lower).
Spellcasting. Mornelia is an 8th-level spellcaster. Wisdom is
her spellcasting ability (spell save DC 14, +5 to hit with spell
attacks). She has the following extra druid spells prepared:
3rd-level (3 slots): call lightning, erupting earth, tidal wave
4th-level (3 slots): blight, wall of fire

21
 THE BRASS ADVENTISTS' LOOT CATCH OF THE DAY
The Adventists vacillate between poverty and wealth. They always Taiga or Tundra Encounter, Tier III
have, collectively, 4d12+30 gp, 7d8+35 sp, and 12d8+40 cp. Russyl
always squirrels away an extra 2d4 gp and 1d10 sp. Perched upon a frozen lake is an ice shanty—a portable shed
Additionally, there is always a chance the Adventists have an used for ice fishing. The shanty is old, but well-built. Characters
uncommon magic item: one at Tier I, 1d3 at Tier II, and 1d4+1 at that analyze it and succeed on a DC 12 Intelligence check with
Tier III. It may be a +1 wand of the war mage, which Rogthun and carpenter's tools can confirm it is of fine craftsmanship and
Russyl may fight over; it might be a cloak of elvenkind that Mornelia lightweight in its design. Although it appears to be safe, inside
insists is her birthright; it may be a pair of bracers of archery that and out, this shanty is actually a clever trap devised by an
Huell reluctantly uses, despite his hatred for archery.
aboleth lairing below the lake.
Every item collected by the Adventists is an opportunity for your
adventurers to gain a shiny, new treasure. While fishermen sit in the shanty, the aboleth Ulyn swims up
to the ice hole. With a slender tendril, it pulls a victim below
the water, infects it with its foul disease (see its Tentacle attack)
RUSSYL: KENKU SCOUT and enslaves it. Those infected with Ulyn's disease also become
When Huell Bradshaw found Russyl, the kenku was begging adapted for environments of extreme cold, allowing them to
for coins and words on the street. The inveigler promised him join their master below without freezing to death.
riches and "entire paragraphs" of words he could mimic. Shanty. The ice shanty is a 10-foot-wide, 10-foot-long, 15-
Roleplaying Russyl. Much of Russyl's vocabulary consists of foot-tall cabin on skis. Benches line the walls inside, and a 5-
cuss words and inspirational quotes from Huell, spoken in his foot-diameter hole is cut into the floor, exposing a similar-sized
very voice—much to Huell's delight. hole in the ice below. There are three fishing poles in the cabin,
You can use the following sample dialogue to voice Russyl: two of which are leaning against the benches; the third is on the
• "Into the breach, you bastards! Into the breach!" floor, as if it fell or a fisherman dropped it.
• "The world is ours, if we are only willing to take it." Missing Persons. The lake and shanty are an hour's trek from
• "Stand with me and I will stand by you." a settlement or outpost (use Manavik of Manavik Under Fire or
• "There is no power greater than loyalty; it is a force that has Irdning of Krampusnacht). It doesn't take long for the party to
upheaved entire nations." hear about the 1d4+3 people that have gone missing, most of
• "Hey, pretty mama." whom are fishermen or friends thereof.
• "Enough of your mimicry, Russyl!" Minions. Ulyn has three enslaved minions in the settlement,
who are under orders to subtly lead others to the lake. They are:
At Higher Levels. At Tier II, Russyl strikes an accord with • Mitchel Calder, a LE human spy, who, if he suspects the party
the Queen of Air and Darkness, becoming a warlock of the will investigate the lake, volunteers to lead them there him-
archfey with the following changes: self to ensure they fall prey to his master's influence.
• He has a Strength of 10 (-1) and a Dexterity of 16 (+3). • Gregaros Shoemaker, a LE human veteran and high-ranking
• He has a +2 bonus to Perception (and a passive Perception of constable that silences all but the most persistent gossipers
12), +5 bonus to Stealth, and a +5 bonus to Sleight of Hand. from mentioning the lake and missing persons.
• He understands Auran, Common, and Sylvan but can only • Geoffrey of Quale, a LE human enchanter, so far the aboleth's
speak through the use of his Mimicry trait (see kenku). most prized minion. His role is to bring his peers to the lake
• In the first round of combat, Russyl has advantage on attack every day so that Ulyn can enslave the trio for yet another 24
rolls against any creature it surprised. hours.
Tactics. With his newfound magic, the warlock is fond of
summoning a yeth hound with a conjure fey spell. Thereafter, ULYN: JEALOUS TYRANT
Russyl blasts at foes from afar with eldritch blast spells. The aboleth is a jealous tyrant that can't abide freedom amongst
the "lesser races." All will be united under its banner one day
when the seas swallow the world as they did in ancient times.
Ulyn has a healthy fear of adventurers, having been slain by
heroes half a dozen times before and only chooses to attack in
overwhelming odds; it knows the deep price of underestimating
mortals.
You can voice Ulyn with the sample dialogue below, which
is delivered through its telepathy. Remember that once the
aboleth makes telepathic contact with a creature, it learns that
creature's greatest desires; Ulyn is sure to leverage that against
a person.
• "Know that your freedom is but a curse… A curse I will rid
you of."
• "I will shelter you from the cold… I will shelter you from the
world itself."
• "I am your yoke, your past, your future."
• "I was old when your ancestors crawled forth from the sea."

22
 Tactics. Ulyn is a merciless force that subjugates all it can
and kills whomever it can't. The lake counts as its lair and "LA"
THE CREEPING IGLOO
refers to its lair actions. In battle, it uses the following tactics: Character Encounter, Tier II
• Do not neglect Ulyn's Legendary Actions and Lair Actions! It is a structure that haunts the Arctic; it can be found lurking in
• Despite coveting the adventurers as its newest disciples, Ulyn the bowels of a boreal forest; it might be perched upon the out-
is ready to kill those it must and enslave any survivors once skirts of town; it may be the only refuge in a blizzard. There is
they're weakened. no place in the Arctic that Granny Yrsula's creeping igloo can't
• If Ulyn cannot drag anyone into the lake through the shanty's go. The bheur hag that lairs in this enchanted structure goes
ice hole, it or its minions begin to break through the ice, wherever men and women have yet to succumb to despair. Like
creating 1d4+3 holes with a diameter of 5 to 15 feet. Minions all of her foul ilk, the hag delights in watching mortals resort to
may clamber out onto the ice; they have no fear of the frigid grim measures to stay alive.
water. Ulyn never leaves the water, knowing it's at a severe The "Creeping Igloo" is feared throughout the Arctic; those
disadvantage if beached. who glimpse it flitting across the horizon or sitting on the vista
• With a reach of 10 feet and a +5 bonus to Athletics checks, are forced to confront the grim rumors that permeate the region.
Ulyn can easily grapple foes from afar and drag them under- Many say the hag offers charms, magic, and other solutions to
water. Minions also shove or drag creatures into the water. those desperate or dumb enough to bargain with her.
• Assume that Ulyn has no more uses of its Enslave ability today Enchanted Igloo. Granny Yrsula's igloo is a 15-foot-radius
if his three minions in town are still under its sway. hemisphere. The walls are a foot thick. Yrsula can reshape the
• If its enslaved creature is about to be freed or killed, Illuun igloo as an action to add or remove artificial windows or replace
targets it with a Psychic Drain LA to regain hit points. the doorway with a wall of snow. The igloo is magical; it has
• Using a LA, Ulyn casts phantasmal force, disguising holes in an AC of 13, a damage threshold of 5, immunity to cold, poison,
the ice. A creature under that spell always rationalizes why and psychic damage, and resistance to all other damage types.
things don't pan out and will still consider the illusion real. Every 5-foot section has 25 hit points; once reduced to 0, the
• Ulyn flees when reduced to 40 hit points; its tail whips against section melts, possibly allowing creatures entry into the igloo.
the ice below the shanty, causing the structure to crash right Locomotion. When Yrsula speaks the command word "Uir,"
through the ice, leaving a jagged hole in the surface. meaning "take flight" in Auran, the igloo levitates ten feet off
Minions. Ulyn is served by a number of minions below the the ground and exudes a frigid cloud teeming with floating,
lake, their bodies diseased and their minds tattered by constant daggerlike ice shards. The igloo gains a movement speed of 40
exposure to the aboleth. All human minions are afflicted with feet and floats 10 feet off the ground. It can move across uneven
the aboleth's disease and cannot stay out of water for too long. terrain, up or down stairs, slopes and the like, but it can't cross
These minions are: an elevation change of 10 feet or more.
• 1d4+1 chuuls that have answered Ulyn's ancient call. While animated in this way, the igloo's floor becomes solid.
• 1d4+2 mad human tribal warriors armed with only their fists It can hold up to 1,000 pounds, otherwise it floats gently to the
(+3 to hit, 2 bludgeoning damage). They're better off using ground and becomes immobile. A bheur hag can direct the igloo
the Help action or dragging weak characters to the water. Do with her graystaff (no action required). The igloo can turn, but
not neglect to use their Pack Tactics trait. it cannot flip upside down or perform similar maneuvers.
• A mad human berserker armed with a spear (+5 to hit, 1d8+3 Creatures within the 30-foot-diameter, 10-foot-tall cylinder
piercing damage). below the igloo are subjected to a cloud of daggers spell (spell
save DC 14; see PHB, pg. 222).
Wards. The hag has warded her lair with the following spells:
• An alarm spell placed upon the entranceway alerts Yrsula to
intruders if she's within 1 mile of the igloo. See PHB, pg 211.
• If three 5-foot-sections of the igloo are destroyed, a Snilloc's
snowball swarm is cast (save DC 14) at the attacker, if they
are in range. See XGE, pg. 165.
• When a creature attempts to take one of Yrsula's possessions
from the igloo, 1d4+1 snowmen animate (use the statistics of
scarecrows with immunity to cold damage and vulnerability
to fire damage). They attack all intruders but don't slay them
unless commanded to by Yrsula. Yrsula can use a reaction to
animate the snowmen if she's within 100 feet of the igloo.
Once a snowman is destroyed, it cannot be animated again
for another 24 hours.

GRANNY YRSULA
As ugly as she is wicked, all who look upon Yrsula immediately
know her for what she is—a hag. Her flesh is blueish white, the
color of a frozen corpse, and her teeth could carve ice and her
nails are black daggers. Yrsula is a sadist; nothing warms her
heart more than to see suffering, desperation, and misery in the
world. She has haunted the region for decades. An industrious
sleuth can trace her involvement to many of its great tragedies.

23
 GRANNY YRSULA'S REGIONAL EFFECTS THE CRYSTALLINE TAVERN
If Granny Yrsula has been empowered during the Dark Sisterhood Tundra or Urban Encounter, Tier I
storyline, the following Regional Effects may surround her lair (to a
range of 1 mile), even while it is moving. Carved from a glacier, the Crystalline Tavern sparkles in the
• Birds, rodents, snakes, spiders, or toads (or some other creatures glow of the setting sun. Built by a glacier dwarf frost mason, it
appropriate to the hag) are found in great profusion. remains an important waystation in the Arctic. Travelers come
• Beasts that have an Intelligence score of 2 or lower are charmed by to escape the chill and share news both small and dire. It has
the hag and directed to be aggressive toward intruders in the area. weathered two dozen years and thrice as many blizzards. Tislyn
• Strange carved figurines, twig fetishes, or rag dolls magically Aurora is the tavern's current mistress.
appear in trees.
The tavern sports many warming beverages, alcoholic or not,
• Small avalanches of snow intermittently fall, blocking a path or
burying intruders. A buried creature is restrained and must hold heated up by their resident halfling's prestidigitation spells.
its breath until it is dug out. Human-sized blocks of ice appear, Map. Refer to the map below; every square is 5 feet.
containing frozen corpses. These corpses might break free and Kennel. Behind the tavern is a kennel for sled dogs. At any
attack as zombies, or their spirits might attack as specters. point, 2d12+16 mastiffs are penned inside. 1d10+4 dog sleds
• Blizzards come without warning. A blizzard occurs once every are neatly lined up along the northern wall.
2d12 hours and lasts ld3 hours. During a storm, creatures moving
overland travel at half normal speed, and normal visibility is STAFF
reduced to 30 feet. The Crystalline Tavern is staffed by three people:
• Roads, paths, and trails twist and turn back on themselves, making
Mistress Tislyn, a NG glacier dwarf veteran. Up until four
navigation in the area exceedingly difficult.
years ago, she was a respected warrior. Were it not for her
treacherous brother, she would be next in line for the throne of
Roleplaying Yrsula. The hag is cantankerous and cruel; she Clan Aurora. By pinning an embarrassing defeat at the hands of
spits barbed words meant to derail even the most confident of the gnolls on her "poor leadership," he ensured the favor of his
heroes. She smiles relentlessly and hums an ugly tune that only mother and her councilors. Now, while Tislyn tends bar, Gloyn
she finds pleasant. stands poised to inherit control over the clan.
Yrsula rarely resorts to violence; she would rather let others As a glacier dwarf, Tislyn has the following racial traits:
go with an emotional scar. Visitors are allowed to shelter in her • She can read, write, and speak Common and Dwarvish.
igloo—if they're so desperate—but only if they give her a drop • She has darkvision out to a range of 60 feet.
of their blood, which she freezes and incorporates into the • She has advantage on saving throws against poison and has
igloo's walls. "I will save this one for later," she says ominously. resistance to poison damage. She is always naturally adapted
Bargainer. Yrsula loves to make a bargain, parking her igloo for extreme cold.
on the outskirts of town to attract the desperate and depraved. • She knows the ray of frost cantrip. Once per long rest, she can
Like any other hag, her help is nothing but a slow, ironic poison also cast both ice knife (spell save DC 10) and flame blade
that will come back to bite the bargainer later. She often offers (the blade is forged of ice and deals cold damage). Her spell-
meat to the starving, firewood to the cold, and hope for the casting ability for these spells is Intelligence.
desperate. Her later victims shouldn't be surprised to learn that
Ricfyr, a LG tundra halfling commoner, oversees the kennel.
the meat was humanoid, the firewood the bones of a crucial
He has an unquenchable passion for hounds, many of which
waystation, and the hope a twisted a prophecy.
tower over him. He never goes anywhere without Oliver, his pet
mastiff. Ricfyr dreams of policing the Arctic with a cavalry of
DARK SISTERHOOD halfling dog riders and dog sledders, but he is in sore need of a
For years now, Yrsula has ignored or refused invitations to form
master to train him in the ways of war.
a coven with Lone Miyraeth and Greatmother Winter, the other
As a tundra halfling, Ricfyr has the following racial traits:
two hags described in the Dark Sisterhood storyline. If she does
• He reads, writes, and speaks Common and Halfling.
agree and the Hag Summit encounter occurs, Yrsula's power
• He is a size of Small with a speed of 25 feet.
grows—regardless of whether her newfound sisters survived—
• He has advantage on saving throws against being frightened.
granting her Regional Effects that surround her creeping igloo.
• Whenever he rolls a 1 on an attack roll, ability check, or saving
She enjoys all options if her sisters are alive (even if they're not
throw, he can reroll the die, but must use the new roll.
present), 1d3+1 if one is still alive, and 1d3 if they both
• He can cast prestidigitation and create bonfire. Wisdom is his
perished. See the sidebar above for these effects.
spellcasting ability for these spells.

24
 Milly Lightfrost, a NG frost gnome chef (a commoner with
a +4 bonus to cook's utensils). She is seldom seen and more
often heard cursing the state of the vegetables she gets here in
the Arctic. Tislyn calls her cooking "a magic all its own."
As a frost gnome, Milly has the following racial traits:
• She reads, writes, and speaks Common and Gnomish.
• She has darkvision out to a range of 60 feet.
• She is a size of Small with a speed of 25 feet.
CULTISTS EN ROUTE
• She has advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma Sea Encounter, Tier II
saving throws against magic. Through the ice floes travel boats rowed not by oars but the
• She has resistance to cold damage. manic gestures of magi, who are manipulating the very tide to
• She can move across icy surfaces without needing to make an propel them across the sea. These sailors belong to cults of
ability check. Additionally, difficult terrain composed of ice Elemental Evil: the Cults of the Crushing Wave and Eternal
and snow doesn't impede her movement. While moving down Flame. These two cults have warred for eons, with battles being
slopes made of ice or snow, she has advantage on Acrobatics waged between chapters and sects across countless worlds and
checks to maintain her balance. planes. Two chapters, however, have put aside their differences
and come together to summon a phoenix that will melt the polar
PATRONS icecaps. For more details, see the Global Warming storyline.
On any given day, 2d6+3 patrons are enjoying a warm brew at The cultists found here on the frigid seas are on their way to
the tavern. Notable patrons may include: Mount Erebys, a volcano deep in the Arctic that can serve as a
• The Brass Adventists, an adventuring party described in the portal to the Plane of Fire.
encounter of the same name. The cultists number forty in all and are spread out across ten
• A human spy of the elemental cults involved in the Global keelboats. Their ranks consist of twenty cultists, ten crushing
Warming or Storm of the Century storylines. The spy is here wave priests, six crushing wave reavers, and four eternal
to collect intelligence for his distant masters. flame guardians, led by Galen Tutbra, a CE human eternal
• Daerdan the Yarnspinner, a crass dwarf bard (with advantage flame priest and his lieutenant Nyraga, a CE silver dragonborn
on saving throws against being poisoned and resistance to dark tide knight that patrols the area on the back of a killer
poison damage) fond of sharing tales to drunk patrons. whale (see his Bonded Mount trait). As a dragonborn, Nyraga
• Withrens Fyar, a CE human archmage and architect of the has the following racial traits:
Dire Winter storyline. A character with a passive Perception • He has resistance to cold damage.
score of 14 or higher notices he wears a glass snowflake on a • He has the following action option:
silver chain. With a successful DC 13 Religion check, a Draconic Breath (1/Day). Nyraga unleashes a blast of frigid
character identifies this as the holy symbol of Auril, a cruel air. Each creature in a 15-foot-cone must succeed on a DC 14
goddess of winter. Constitution saving throw or take 7 (2d6) cold damage. On a
success, a creature takes half as much damage.
RUMORS AND NEWS Roleplaying the Cultists. Nyraga has his orders: deliver the
By carousing with the tavern's staff or patrons, the adventurers
cultists to the shore, after which Galen Tutbra will lead them to
can pick up rumors and news, possibly linking them to many of
Mount Erebys. Nyraga must then head back to warmer lands to
the encounters in this supplement. Notable rumors include:
escort the next influx of cultists. Their superiors do not tolerate
• A headless dog sledder has been sighted across the Arctic.
failure, so neither leader is looking for a fight. When the cultists
Where she stops, a man is due to die. See The Dullahan.
spot the adventurers, either on the shore, the ice, or in their own
• Thelgrym's Watch has fallen! Clan Aurora has sent a warband
vessel, Galen Tutbra sends up a flare of fiery magic to hail them.
to recover the watchtower. See Glacier Dwarf Warband and
Galen Tutbra speaks on behalf of the cultists, insisting that
Thelgrym's Watch.
they are but simple pilgrims who have bonded with elemental
• A frost giant toddler was seen roaming the wastes alone. See
spirits. Contest his Deception check with a character's Insight
Ice, Ice Baby for details.
check. If a battle breaks out, Galen aims a fireball spell at the
• Clan Aurora recently slaughtered a gnoll warband. However,
adventurers' vessel and orders the cultists to flee. Nyraga holds
if even one gnoll manages to escape, it might spawn more of
the line as the cultists retreat.
its foul ilk through demonic rituals. This is precisely what is
A tortured or intimidated cultist (DC 14) reveals that they are
to occur in the Cycle of Carnage encounter.
heading towards the volcano, Mount Erebys—but only Galen
• Travelers should steer clear of "The Pike," a useful landmark.
and Nyraga are aware of the cults' calamitous agenda.
Those that look upon it get the sudden urge to lick the pike,
Ships. These boats are similar to keelboats but can hold up to
freezing their tongues to its metal shaft. See Like Tongues to
ten passengers. Each boat is manned by a crushing wave priest
Ice for details on this encounter.
that uses elemental magic to propel the craft, raising its speed
• A troll has been seen wandering the frozen wastes. Additional
to 5 mph. Ship statistics can be found on pg. 119 of the DMG.
rumors related to this include: the frost giants of Skoldheim
Treasure. The ships are stocked with enough provisions to
having a new jarl and, later, more vicious raids conducted on
feed and clothe forty people for ten days. The Crushing Wave
smallfolk settlements. See the Ordning of Might storyline for
cultists harvest fish from the sea while in transit and the Eternal
details on these encounters.
Flame cultists cook them. Galen Tutbra carries an elemental
• The dead have risen and are marching deeper into the Arctic—
gem (red corundum) (see DMG pg. 167), which allows him to
for reasons no one knows. See the March of the Damned
summon a fire elemental.
encounter and Army of the Damned storyline.

25
 CYCLE OF CARNAGE DARFELLAN MESSIAH
Tundra Encounter, Tier I Sea Encounter, Tier I
The adventurers come upon a macabre scene: scattered limbs, There is a superstition amongst the darfellan that great upheaval
scarlet snow, and a gaggle of arctic hyenas. Parkas and packs is at hand whenever a child is born completely blue or white.
lie discarded, all weapons and treasures ignored by the lone Years ago, on the eve of their genocide at the hands of sahuagin,
gnoll fang of Yeenoghu conducting the ghastly rituals needed the birth of such a child was initially considered a great omen
to spawn more of its foul ilk. If it is not interrupted, the many promising a golden age for their people.
hyenas feasting upon its victims will bloat up and explode in a Now, a new child has been born in the Arctic, and her coming
shower of gore. It is from those ruined corpses that new gnolls has been heralded as the start of a new age. Darfellen all across
clamber out of, ready to paint this world red in the name of their the region now flock to the village of Akilu's Folly to see this
demonic lord, Yeenoghu. possible messiah for themselves. Superstitious as ever, and for
Foul Ritualist. The gnoll is the sole survivor of a slaughtered good reason, these travelers have taken to the seas in special
warband that fell to the glacier dwarves of Clan Aurora. Despite kyal—distinctive boats the darfellan fashion for pilgrimages.
their heroism and sacrifices, the dwarves failed to eliminate the Each kyal is carved with decorative fins draped with kelp.
last gnoll. Unfortunately for them, and the region, one survivor As the adventurers ply the sea or roam the coast, they catch
is all it takes to spawn a new horde. sight of six kyal with five darfellan apiece oaring between the
The gnoll has already begun its ritual; by when the party finds ice floes. One kyal containing five NG tribal warriors passes
it, the hyenas must feed for two more rounds to birth the gnolls. close by enough for the two parties to have a conversation.
If either the gnoll or the 2d4+2 hyenas are slain, the ritual fails. Ulirak, the oldest of the warriors tells them in Common, "Great
If they survive until the end of the second round, the hyenas change is at hand; our messiah has been born, and with him has
explode, and out from their guts crawl a number of gnolls equal come a tide of vengeance. Be warned: the darfellan will at last
to the number of hyenas that survived until then. have our day in the sun."
The hyenas, for their part, use their actions to feed on viscera. Ulirak is unique in that he can cast the produce flame cantrip
Demonic Spawn. The gnolls are unarmed and unarmored (+1 to hit). Charisma is his spellcasting ability for this spell.
(AC 11). Therefore, they can only make Bite attacks. Although
there are weapons lying nearby, the gnolls are too fresh to life
to know how to wield them. The gnolls also spawn with only
11 hit points apiece. They swarm the party with no concern for
their wellbeing or shortcomings.
Cycle of Carnage. If even a single gnoll survives the fray and
escapes, it is blessed by Yeenoghu, becoming a gnoll fang of
Yeenoghu. It then devotes itself to spawning yet another war-
band by gathering arctic hyenas to feed on its future victims.
The adventurers have this one chance to spare the Arctic from
such carnage, otherwise the cycle repeats.
Treasure. Whatever ambitions this amateur adventuring
party nursed have been forever snuffed out. They consist of a
human warrior, an elf archer, a dwarf priest, and a half-orc
wizard, all dressed in cold weather gear—furs, parkas, and the
like. The following can be scavenged from their corpses:
• A longsword, a shortbow, twelve arrows in a quiver, a yew
wand, and four daggers.
• A holy symbol of Dumathoin (a dwarven deity of secrets
whose icon can be identified with a DC 12 Religion check).
• A spellbook containing the following spells: burning hands,
grease, identify, snareXGE, shield, and Tenser's floating disk.
• Two sets of hide armor and one set of leather armor.
• A total of 8d6+23 gp and 12d4+20 sp.
• A potion of healing, clutched in the half-orc wizard's hand.
• Four explorer's packs with 2d4+7 rations and 5d10 + 20 feet
of rope altogether.
• An alabaster mask, worn by the dwarf priest, worth 15 gp.

IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
This edition of Tall Tales has a heavy focus on arctic gnolls. If
your version of the Arctic lacks hyenas you can have this breed
of gnolls be based upon wolves or even foxes. These feral beasts
still worship the demon lord Yeenoghu, and their statistics
remain the same.

26
 Darfellan Traits. The darfellan have the following changes
to their statistics:
DEADLIEST CATCH
• The darfellan have a swimming speed of 40 ft. Sea Encounter, Tier I-III
• The darfellan can hold their breath for 10 minutes. Fishermen prowling the frigid seas have pulled up a wonder—
• The darfellan have advantage on ability checks and saving or horror. This encounter has several variants, described below.
throws made to escape grapples. Additionally, you can run the Man Overboard! encounter if any
• While the darfellan are underwater and not deafened, they members of the crew fall overboard.
have blindsight out to 30 ft. Ship. Chronomancer is a fishing vessel famed throughout the
• The darfellan speak Common and Darfellan, a multisyllabic Arctic. It counts as a sailing ship, but only requires a crew of
language with harsh, authoritative tones. twelve to operate and can only hold up to eight passengers.
Crew. Chronomancer's crew has one of the deadliest jobs in
AKILU'S FOLLY the world. While sailors face peril all over the world, the icy
Should the adventurers wish to visit Akilu's Folly themselves, touch of the Arctic's sea can kill men in a matter of minutes. If
the darfellan direct them to the village—a grim, skeletal haunt snow crabs were not so treasured in warmer lands, perhaps the
if there ever was one. The village is on a forbidding coastline crew would find more sensible waters to ply. Alas, the gold is
that prevents all but the most skilled sailors from laying anchor. too good to pass up. The crew mainly consists of human
The village and its visitors are quiet and wary; the seers have commoners with proficiency with vehicles (water).
yet to determine whether this child's birth is an auspicious omen The crew currently numbers eleven; they lost Mr. Obrien to
or the death knell of the darfellan. The air is thick with tension; an early grave last week. They're a sullen lot on a good day, but
it will be another day until the seers declare their interpretation. today's episode has animated them. As the winch hauled up the
Until then, the darfellan speak low, and busy themselves with day's special catch, many a crewman speculated that they may
fishing or shoring up the village's defenses. More pilgrims have found treasure; one doomsayer, Mr. Whary, promised that
arrive by the hour until Akilu's Folly seems fit to burst. Even this would be the ship's ruin.
Etiran Emeris (see Ice Haulers) is present, either with Ranger Captain. Chronomancer has seen four captains in her time,
anchored offshore or by his lonesome. the latest being Grol Shorttusk, an orc (with a Wisdom of 17
In the meantime, the adventurers can make themselves useful (+3) and an Intelligence of 14 (+2); he speaks Common, Orcish,
by helping out with fishing, repairing wilting huts, and other and Dwarvish). He is a tough but fair overlord respected and
tasks. What the darfellan lack in coinage they more than make feared by his sailors. More cautious than daring, he's reduced
up for with, food, shelter, pelts, scavenged pearls (worth 15 gp crew casualties by fourteen percent since assuming command
each) and jewelry (25 gp in worth) fashioned from walrus ivory. two years ago.
Since the darfellan are self-sustaining isolationists, they have The Adventurers. The party may encounter Chronomancer
little use for such baubles. while in their own ship or while they're on the coast. They may
On the following eve, the darfellan seers (priests devoted to have hitched a ride on the ship or hired it to spirit them across
the Whale Mother, the darfellan deity) step out from the lodge, the Arctic's ice floes.
brandishing the infant. The most scarred seer declares, "For too
long have we suffered in obscurity, we, the sole survivors of a ARCTIC MERMAID
genocide. No more. No more! The Whale Mother has shown us Tier I
her favor once again, and we say in one voice that this child Chronomancer catches a female merfolk in its net; the poor
marks the Great Age! Tonight, the tide of vengeance ebbs back woman has been hauled up from the shallows. Below the sea,
into the sea—and with it, us! The sharks will know of us and she's acclimated to the cold, but as the sharp winds assail her,
they will fear, for war is at hand, and this time, it is they who she risks developing hypothermia. This particular merfolk only
shall bleed!" speaks Aquan.
The gathered darfellan, now numbering in the hundreds, roar The crew believes the age-old myth that a captured mermaid
with approval and take to the sea to announce the launch of a can and must grant a wish; even Captain Shorttusk is partial to
new crusade against the sahuagin. In the coming months, news such a fable. Unless the adventurers convince the crew to let her
of the darfellan's resurgence spreads across the Arctic, the sea, go (requiring a DC 16 Persuasion check), they throw her in the
and greener lands. ship's hold, emptying a barrel of ale and filling it with salt water.
While in the net, the merfolk is restrained. The net can be cut
by dealing 3 points of slashing damage, or by using an action to
attempt a DC 17 Strength check, causing the rope to burst on a
success. If freed, the merfolk expresses her gratitude with a nod
and returns to the frigid sea. Later, if the adventurers are at sea
and under assault by aquatic menaces such as sahuagin or
merrows, a force of 2d4+2 merfolk intervene on their behalf
and attack their foes below the waves.

27
KING CRAB When the conch is rubbed, the marid emerges in a dazzling
Tier I display of otherworldly power; the music from the conch grows
The crew hauls up a chuul; as they hotly debate whether this louder, the seas stiller, and the wind ceases to howl. Using a
"king crab" is edible, the creature cuts through its nets and lands tongues spell, the genie announces, "Free at last, free at last,
on the deck, prone. The crew scramble to arm themselves, free! At! Last! Tell me, my mortal benefactor, what is it you
which takes 1d4 rounds. Meanwhile, the chuul runs riot on the desire most in this world? Your wish is my command!"
crew. Only the adventurers and Captain Shorttusk are ready to A character that succeeds on a DC 16 Arcana check identifies
tackle the beast. the elemental as a genie, specifically a marid. They also recall
Treasure. Chuuls are driven to collect magical artifacts for that marids are haughty, self-styled nobles less malevolent than
their long-lost aboleth masters. This chuul possesses a cloak of their distant kin. Lastly, they recall that a genie is freed from its
the manta ray (see DMG pg. 159) that it took from a slain earthly prison if it grants a wish. Appealing to the Shah allows
adventurer. The beast was on its way to bury it, following the it to escape.
instructions it was given eons ago, before the crew hauled it up Once the Shah hears the mortal's wish, the harp music takes
from the seafloor. on a sinister tone, betraying the genie's sadistic nature. It twists
the mortal's wish, no matter how selfless or endearing it is. As
THE ELEMENTAL GEM these events unfold, the marid detaches itself from the conch
Tier II and takes to the air. With an exalted cry, the marid declares that
The crew hauls up a small coffer containing nothing but a few the world will once again feel its wrath. It then disappears into
pieces of gold and an elemental gem (emerald) (see DMG pg. a cloud of vapor.
167). The closest crewmate, Mr. Hickey, goes to snatch up the
gem. If an adventurer is standing next to Hickey, contest their THE DEADMARKS
initiative rolls. If Hickey is successful, he grabs the gem and Mountain Encounter, Tier II
accidentally taps into its magic, summoning a water elemental
It is known only as the Breach—a mountain pass so cold and so
as if by a conjure elemental spell.
remote that only the dumb and daring pass through. The Breach
Mr. Hickey revels in his newfound control of the elemental
is deadly enough to give frost giants pause. The air is thin and
but being the idealistic and kindhearted fool that he is, he simply
the cold biting. It is only by the corpses of past climbers can the
has the creature collect more crabs from the seafloor, so his
living prevail. These frozen corpses, some decades old, serve as
crewmates don’t have to risk their lives setting and retrieving
landmarks for those that must navigate the Breach. Even with
traps. Later, he has the elemental perform tricks.
them, many an explorer has succumbed to altitude sickness or
A character that analyzes the gem or watches the elemental's
the unearthly cold. Now they must contend with another hazard:
summoning can make a DC 17 Arcana check to ascertain that it
animate dead. A dybbuk—a fiend fond of violating corpses—
was summoned by a conjure elemental spell. The DC is reduced
now haunts the pass and moves corpses around to lure hikers,
to 13 for characters that have that spell on their class's spell list.
who rely on these grim landmarks, to their doom. Just how the
This character recalls the duration of the spell and that, if the
fiend was beckoned into the mortal world remains a mystery.
caster loses concentration on the spell, the elemental becomes
Environment. The Breach is a place of extreme cold and high
hostile and is free to rampage across the Material Plane until the
altitude (see Appendix C) with an added danger: for every hour
hour since it was summoned was elapsed.
a creature spends traveling through it, they must succeed on a
If Hickey is not warned by these facts, he loses concentration
Constitution saving throw or take a level of exhaustion. The DC
on the spell when a rogue wave smashes into the ship. He loses
is initially 14, but subsequent saving throws cause it to climb to
his footing and crashes into the deck; the elemental breaks free
17, 20, 23, 26, and, finally, 30. The DC increases regardless if
and attacks the crew.
the creature succeeds or fails its saving throw.
CONCH OF THE BOUND MARID Navigating the Breach and emerging from the other side takes
1d4+2 hours. A successful DC 15 Survival check reduces this
Tier III
to 1d4 hours, or three hours if one utilizes the Deadmarks. With
The crew hauls up a lute-sized conch etched in swirling colors
a result of 20 or higher, the travel time's reduced to 1d3 and two
and strange symbols. A character that reads Primordial or
hours, respectively. A party can only attempt this check once.
Aquan can decipher these runes, which read "Rub the conch but
With the dybbuk moving the corpses, however, travelers can't
twice; and that which is bound within will grant your greatest
rely on all Deadmarks, as 1d4+4 have been tampered with. By
wish." (The verses rhyme in Aquan.) Soft harp music emanates
analyzing a corpse and succeeding on a DC 14 Investigation
from within the conch.
check, a character can determine whether a corpse has been
The conch is the earthly prison of the insidious Shah of the
tampered with, proving it can't be trusted. For every failure,
Waking Waters, a marid capable of granting a single wish (as
travel is delayed by 1d6 x 5 minutes.
in the wish spell; see the sidebar on pg. 146, MM). The genie
was bound to the conch seventy years ago by Homer Erendalias,
the human archmage described in the Homer's Hovering Hovel
encounter. Once the Shah has granted the conch's wielder a
wish, it is free to chart its own course through the world. Its first
objective is to track down Erendalias and punish the wizard for
his audacity.

28
 The Deadmarks. The corpses of the past are preserved by the
extreme cold. Before the dybbuk's machinations, the corpses
DEATH'S DUE
were arranged in the order below: Mountain Encounter, Tier II
• An orc war chief that marks the beginning or end of the trek. Sick, starved, and mad, a lone survivor of a failed trek shambles
• A dire wolf known as "the Mangled Alpha." The dybbuk has across the adventurers. Stricken with snow blindness, the man's
moved it towards a precipice 200 feet above the ground; it vision can only be restored with a lesser restoration spell. Until
likes to animate the corpse and push travelers off the edge. then, he can see only blurs and has disadvantage on Perception
• A frost gnome scout (the corpse is Small, with a speed of 25 checks reliant on sight. He blubbers incoherently for aid; should
feet, advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saves the adventurers choose to shelter him, they earn the scorn of the
against magic, darkvision to a range of 60 feet and resistance revenant hellbent on exacting his revenge upon the survivor.
to cold damage). Survivor. Lansford Hastings is an opportunistic human scout
• A hobgoblin devastator nicknamed "the Graceful Loser," for and author of The Emigrant's Guide to the Arctic, a tome that
he was first found kneeling in the snow, his staff laid across the adventurers may be familiar with. Hastings's experience is,
his knees, seemingly at peace with his death. however, overblown and almost fictitious. He makes his living
• A human bandit captain clad in bright green boots curled in by leading travelers through treacherous terrain or promoting
a small limestone cave; this corpse marks the half-way point paths he himself has established. His chief concern is profit, not
of the trek. safety. Indeed, his rushed decisions and his ill-conceived trails
• A human master thief in a crimson cloak; this corpse marks have been the misfortune for many a traveler. There is much
the first (or last) quarter of the trek. The dybbuk has placed blood on Hastings's hand, but so far he's escaped justice. That
the corpse underneath a ledge prone to rockslides. If a ends today.
character comes within 10 feet of the corpse, the dybbuk flies Hastings' latest failure has cost nine lives. His charges were
up to push rocks into motion. Characters near the corpse must weary, sick, and wounded. Frequent accidents and delays had
succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or take 11 (2d10) already cut into Hastings's bottom line; he had provided much
bludgeoning damage. of the gear and rations for the trip and hoped to recycle the
• A slain yeti with the broken haft of a spear protruding from its leftovers into the next one. Moreover, he was running late for
stomach who marks the last third (or first) of the trek. his next party. Desperate to end this disappointing trip, he took
• A human cult fanatic bearing a holy symbol of Shar, a deity the party through a treacherous path no mortal has any business
of darkness at the center of the Eternal Night storyline. The trekking through—a path prone to avalanches, one of which
symbol is a black disc with a purple border worth 25 gp. A consumed the party. Hastings just barely escaped with his life
DC 13 Religion check identifies it as Shar's symbol. but has spent much of his strength on surviving thus far.
• "The Frog," a grung elite warrior that somehow survived all Roleplaying Hastings. Lansford Hastings is little more than
of the Arctic just to be brained by a stray stone that fell from a moneygrubbing backpacker that has turned the wilderness
above. This corpse marks the end (or beginning) of the trek. into a business. He is a self-serving liar that never admits fault
The dybbuk can possess any of these corpses, per its Possess or accepts blame for not even the most brazen mistakes. Even
Corpse ability. They have been rearranged randomly. worse, he's a coward concerned only with his life and his wallet.
The Fiend Strikes. If the adventurers don't fall for the fiend's You can voice Hastings with the sample dialogue below:
tricks, the dybbuk sheds all pretenses and possesses a corpse to • "From lands green to white to craggy, the name 'Lansford
attack. Until the fiend is destroyed in its true form, it continues Hastings' is associated with trailblazing and hasty guidance
to flee from corpse to corpse. With its Incorporeal Movement through otherwise awful terrain."
trait and a flying speed of 40 feet, pinning down the fiend is a • "When one has my experience and success, you attract slander
Herculean task. and jealousy like flies to night soil."
• "Mountains, tundra, great plains barren of life and rich with
salt—you name it, and I've mastered it. Entire generations of
folk have been born from my expertise and fine guidance."
• "Wolf Cook, Les Shroud, Ned Stafford—I've met all those
guys." (This is in reference to Bear Grylls, Les Stroud, and
Ed Stafford, all famous survivalists.)
Treasure. Hastings has little left to his name; his possessions
are buried beneath an avalanche. He has a coinpurse with 2d4
+6 gp, 1d6+11 sp, and 1d10+4 cp. A dagger is the only weapon
he has left to his name.

29
THE REVENANT: JUSTICE BEYOND DEATH DEVIL'S PASS
It was by no accident that the hikers died, but sheer and willful Mountain Encounter Tier I-II
ignorance with a dash of incompetence. Time and again, the
Devil's Pass is a convenient but shunned hiking trail that snakes
dragonborn Tyragos warned Hastings that his pace was too
through the mountains. It can shave days off a trek in summer
hasty, that they were ill-equipped for the journey, and that the
and almost two weeks in winter—but to take this route is to
path he had chosen was too arduous for the party. Alas, the
surrender yourself to the malicious spirit that reputedly haunts
guide did not listen, concerned only with his payday. His
the pass. If this inscrutable creature does not bedevil hikers, the
negligence cost nine lives—and Tyragos has returned from the
spirits of the dead will certainly pick up the slack.
dead to ensure Hastings is the tenth.
Devil's Pass is famous throughout the region; foreigners that
Tyragos can track Hastings no matter where the bastard goes.
succeed on a DC 13 History check recall the following tale;
Removing himself from the spilled avalanche took him three
locals know it by heart. Ten years ago, nine hikers fell prey to
days, even with his undead strength. Now that the revenant has
some unknown force in the pass that compelled them to tear
been freed, he finds Hastings 1d4 hours after the party meets
their way out of their tents (if the horror did not already tear its
him. He accepts no quarter and expects none himself. He
way in) and flee the campsite. Investigators concluded that six
wounds and even slays the adventurers if they shelter Hastings
hikers died from hypothermia, but three others succumbed to
or get in his way. After his initial attack, he declares, "This cur
physical trauma. One corpse had a fractured skull, another's
has slain nine and countless more with his negligence and
chest was crushed, and the third was missing his eyes. One
greed! Justice that was not found in life will be meted out in
woman, who perished to the cold, was missing her tongue. No
death!"
external wounds associated with the bone fractures were found.
Hastings, for his part, recognizes Tyragos, understands that
This infamous night has since been named Dyatlov's Doom
the dragonborn has come back from beyond the grave to slay
(named so for Igor Dyatlov, leader of the hikers).
him, and shouts, "Slander! This foul creature is the seed of all
Since this dark day, few have had the courage or stupidity to
our woes! Cut him down, lest he grow ever more powerful on
cross the Devil's Pass. Those that have not perished therein
my soul!" Hastings also flees at the first opportunity.
emerge… stranger.
Statistics. As a blue dragonborn revenant, Tyragos has the
The Devil. An unseen force preys upon the pass. Determine
racial traits below. Additionally, he is wearing hide armor (AC
its nature from the variants below.
14) instead of leather armor.
The Dead. Devil's Pass has claimed over fifteen hikers; the
• He has resistance to lightning damage.
nine most famous victims have risen as specters that haunt the
• He has the following action option:
pass. From the bones of their infamous campsite, these spirits
Draconic Breath (1/Day). As an action, Tyragos unleashes a reenact their doom. Their screams echo out across the desolate
lance of necrotic energy in a 5-foot-wide, 30-foot-wide line. pass as they burst from where their tents once stood and run.
Creatures in the line must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity Creatures that watch this spectacle incur their wrath.
saving throw or take 11 (3d6) necrotic damage on a failure, The Trek. The Devil's Pass takes roughly 2d6 hours to hike
or half as much damage on a success. through, or 2d4 if the hikers succeed on a DC 15 Survival check.
Tactics. Tyragos relies on a nighttime ambush to surprise the
adventurers. He paralyzes Hastings with a Vengeful Glare, if he THE BEAST'S DEN
can catch the cur in his line of sight. A monster has made the Devil's Pass its home and preys upon
those that happen into its web. Choose one of the following:
Avian Horror. A hook horror exiled from the Underdark
nests in the pass. It hunts at night, preying upon animals and
hikers alike. Its nest is in a nearby cave, strewn with the bones
of its many victims. Among its treasures are a spear of warning
(DMG pg. 213) and a gold pendant worth 25 gp.
Cursed Arcanist. The nothic once known as Tes'karin spends
his filthy days pondering the secrets of magic and devouring
critters whole. On a steel strung across his torso is a spellbook
containing all the spells contained in a diviner's statistics.
The Widow. For her vanity and deceit, an elven maiden was
struck with the banshee's curse. It was here in Devil's Pass that
she finally withered into undeath and now she haunts it as a
banshee. The cave she slumbers in is decorated with the many
appealing treasures she has stolen from hikers over the years: a
gold bracelet (15 gp), 1d4+2 gems (20 gp each), and a small
painting of a cathedral and village under a starry night. The
painting was stolen from Waterdeep three years ago and is
worth 2,500 gp to an educated buyer. A character identifies it
as a missing work of the famous painter, Vincent van Gnome.

30
MADNESS CALLS DOOM OF THE DAWNER PARTY
Madness lies at the heart of Dyatlov's Doom—madness induced Mountain Encounter, Tier I
by a black obsidian obelisk better left alone. The most curious
After abandoning their homes in the hopes of a better life, a
hikers investigated a glacial cave and emerged… stranger. They
party of pioneers has been trapped by a cruel and early winter.
did not disclose what they found to their friends, as if they had
With their cattle already dead, they've had no choice but to feast
forgotten its existence.
on their dead to survive. Such an atrocity attracts the attention
The Maw of Madness. An illusion spell disguises the glacial
and admiration of Yeenoghu, the demonic father of gnolls, who
cave to creatures not meant to find the obelisk—although
has offered the most unrepentant cannibals power and
whether fate, one's bloodline, a deity, or some eldritch horror
camaraderie, if only they continue to kill and feast in his name.
determines who is worthy is unknown. The illusion can be
As the pioneers' mountain cabins are consumed by paranoia,
discerned with a DC 15 Investigation check. One random
despair, and treachery, the Father of Gnolls' new cultists gather
adventurer is lucky enough to perceive the cave.
the strength to eradicate the last of their brethren.
The obelisk yet remains in the glacial cave—but the cave
The Dawner Party. The Dawner Party, named so for their
only seems to appear to certain individuals. A creature that
early departure and their heart-nursed hopes, struck out several
touches or reads the tablet gains inspiration but must also
months ago. The pioneers believed they'd make it through the
succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, the
mountains before winter arrested the land; they were wrong.
seed of madness is planted within the soft soil of its mind. When
For all their initial good cheer and well-crafted plans, the party
the character next sleeps, they succumb to a random form of
was plagued by frequent setbacks, poor decision-making, and
Short-Term Madness (see Appendix C) and are compelled to
even poorer leadership. By winter, they were still only halfway
bring any person they can to view the obelisk—by force, if
to their destination—and trapped in the mountains. The passes
necessary. They gain the following Bond: "I must share this
are still impregnable; there is no game left to hunt, no rations to
grandeur with others." A spell of greater restoration or remove
eat. With so many already dead from sickness and hypothermia,
curse rids them of this compulsion.
one desperate soul suggested cannibalism.
WILD MAGIC The Dawner Party initially numbered eighty-seven pioneers,
consisting of several families and a splattering of adults. By
Under this variant, the Devil's Pass is prone to outbursts of wild
winter, they had lost twenty-seven to sickness, accidents, or in-
magic. On the night of Dyatlov's Doom, a litany of spells was
fighting. Since then, they've been reduced to forty, and are now
unleashed upon the unfortunate hikers:
divided across three shoddily made cabins. Two cabins are only
• A phantasmal force spell caused the initial panic, taking root
an hour from another; the third is almost an entire day's trek in
in the mind of 1d4 hikers.
the snow. Eighteen commoners live in the first two cabins; the
• Magic missile spells fractured bones and poked out eyes.
farthest cabin is inhabited by sixteen cultists, two berserkers,
• An outburst up higher in the mountains caused katabatic winds
one cult fanatic, and three commoners (who have been
to form and batter the hikers.
reduced to living cattle). Each of these cultists has been granted
For every hour the adventurers spend in the Devil's Pass, roll Yeenoghu's demonic boon (see the sidebar).
a d10. There is an aggregate 10% chance that a Wild Magic Cabins. Each cabin is 20 feet wide, 15 feet high, and 50 feet
Surge occurs (see PHB pg. 103) within 1d10 x 10 feet of the long. They have no roofs; oxhides and canvas stretch across the
adventurers. Once a surge has occurred, this aggregate chance ceiling instead. Likewise, they have no doors or windows, only
resets to 10%. a large opening. Every cabin is equipped with a fireplace; wood
is abundant, but even frequent fires cannot keep the chill at bay.
The pioneers have been forced to remain inside for days or even
weeks at a time, making the cabins filthy places enjoyable only
She said that once she laid by rats, if they were to winter here.
her eyes upon it, her hand
followed with a mind of its BREEN CABIN
Six LG commoners huddle for warmth in the most westward
own. She heard nothing in cabin, all of whom are suffering from two levels of exhaustion.
her head but silence—a They consist of two children, three adults, and the patriarch of
the Breen family (who has a Wisdom of 16). Although all his
silence that screamed and sons and daughters are now dead, Elder Breen has managed to
thundered and promised her keep his five fellows from dying. When the Dawner Party began
that all would be well in the to cannibalize their dead, the Breen family abstained, as did
world if she only shared this many
of this cabin's inhabitants. Of those still alive, only
Gregris Pike (a NG human) willingly ate flesh; he also fed the
hope with others firsthand… meat to his two toddlers.
The adventurers first encounter the Breen Cabin, seeing a
young man (Lemuel) clamber up a snowbank on the side of the
cabin. He cuts away a bit of the oxhide that serves as a roof;
looking both ways, he quickly gobbles it down. When he sees
the adventurers, he shouts, "Saviors! The gods have delivered
us! Elder Breen! Elder Breen!" He then darts into the cabin.

31
 Elder Breen explains the situation but is hesitant to admit that DEMONIC BOON: YEENOGHU
the Dawner Party resorted to cannibalism. All the pioneers are Ability Score Adjustment: Up to a +4 bonus to Strength and
visibly emaciated; he avoids answering how they have survived Dexterity, with an equal penalty to Intelligence and Charisma
so far. He begs the adventurers for food, but only eats if all Signature Spells: Tasha's hideous laughter (1st level), crown of
others are fed first. His next priority is to convince the madness (2nd level), fear (3rd level)
adventurers to gather up the survivors and lead them from the Yeenoghu's followers grow more violent and insane with each
pass; starved, they cannot make the journey without help. If the passing day, embracing cannibalism as gnolls do. His most devoted
adventurers agree, he warns them of "the camp" down the path. followers gain the Gnashing Jaws action and the Rampage trait. Cult
"They have resorted to… darker methods to survive," laments leaders also gain the Aura of Bloodthirst trait.
Breen, looking away in shame. Gnashing Jaws. Melee Weapon Attack: bonus to hit equal to this
With a successful DC 14 Insight check, a character can suss creature's proficiency bonus plus its Strength modifier, reach 5 ft,
out that the pioneers are hiding something: that Gregris ate one target. Hit: 1d4 + the creature's Str. modifier as piercing damage.
human flesh and fed it to his children to survive. He too is Rampage. When this creature reduces a creature to 0 hit points with
ashamed of his actions and believes he—but not his children— a melee attack on its turn, it can take a bonus action to move up to
half its speed and make its Gnashing Jaws attack once.
is destined for the Nine Hells for his crime.
Aura of Bloodthirst. If this creature isn't incapacitated, any creature
with the Rampage trait can make its Gnashing Jaws attack as a bonus
GRAVES-REED CABIN action while within 10 feet of this creature.
Lying just an hour east (or twenty minutes, if the snow and wind
abate), the Graves-Reed Cabin has but twelve survivors left: These cultists are all human. They have knives and axes at
nine humans (six adults and three children) and three dwarves their disposal but delight in using their Gnashing Jaws attacks
(the Graves, a mother and her young sons). Each of these (granted by Yeenoghu's demonic boon). The berserkers rely on
commoners are suffering from one level of exhaustion. their greataxes, primarily, whereas Kesebryn basks in the magic
The survivors are on the verge of madness. Each and every bestowed upon him by the Beast of Butchery; he also has the
one of them partook in cannibalism to survive, but they have Aura of Bloodthirst trait and signature spells described in the
thus far resisted Yeenoghu's promises and demands. Just last sidebar above, in addition to the spells included in his statistics.
night, the cannibal cultists raided the cabin for three fresh Eight cultists descend upon the adventurers when they first
victims (Amandis Murt and her two children). arrive, raving and howling in lunacy. Foam flecks their mouths
So desperate and mad and ravenous, the survivors overwhelm and they seem impervious to the cold. The remaining cultists
the adventurers with daggers and makeshift clubs when they lair within the cabin. If the adventurers make towards the cabin,
first arrive. If a character, adventurer or not, goes unconscious, they have a chance to save Amandis Murt and her two children
the survivors begin to cut and tear away at their flesh, stuffing before they're devoured. The three have been bound by rope
the meat into their mouths. Only the dwarf mother, Mistress while Kesebryn leads his cultists in a foul ceremony to honor
Graves, and her sons abstain from this violence, who cower in Yeenoghu. If his plans go uninterrupted, the innocents will be
the corner. The survivors can be cowed with a successful DC roasted alive.
13 Intimidation check, after which they howl with despair.
In the aftermath, Mistress Graves explains that the survivors AFTERMATH
here, even her and her children, ate the dead. "But we refused If Yeenoghu's fledgling cult is not slaughtered, they overrun the
the call of the infernal being," she says, "the Beast of Butchery, other cabins and ration their meat until spring. By then, they've
the father of gnolls… We were strong. Those down the pass completely lost their minds and stitched gnoll-like patterns into
were not; they have embraced the demon. When they ran out of their mutilated flesh. They become gnolls in their own right,
corpses, they came for ours; and when ours were gone, they had mimicking the beasts' tactics and raids. Given time, many folk
no qualms taking living cattle. Young Amandis and her children in the region believe an actual gnoll warband is running amok.
were stolen just last night." Meanwhile, Yeenoghu sends visions to the nearest gnoll tribe,
guiding them to the cult to make this red nightmare a reality.
CANNIBAL CAMP If the adventurers approach the snowed in mountain passes,
Down the pass lies a camp of tents erected around another pine- they may discover a gnarled rune carved into the cliff (requiring
log cabin. Traveling to or from the camp requires a successful a successful DC 14 Perception to spot). With a successful DC
DC 15 Survival check made over the course of 1d4+4 hours. 15 Arcana check, it is identified as a rune of transmutation
On a failure, travelers are delayed by an additional 1d4 hours. magic—specifically a rune of storms, suggesting that someone
If they fail the check by 8 or more, they get lost. engineered this dire situation in the first place.
The camp has become an abattoir all its own. Screams echo
out at all hours—from cannibals and captives alike—only to be IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
snuffed out by the unrelenting wind. Sixteen cultists and two The spellcaster or being responsible for the string of blizzards
berserkers are led in bloody rituals by a cult fanatic named that trapped the Dawner Party might be a bheur hag, such as
Kesebryn, who earned Yeenoghu's favor when he murdered and Granny Yrsula (see Creeping Igloo), Auril, an evil goddess of
ate the young son of another pioneer. These bizarre rites are winter, or Withrens Fyar, the archmage involved in the Dire
conducted only to appease their own madness; Yeenoghu cares Winter storyline.
not for their adulation or sacraments. Whenever they have no
more corpses to desecrate and devour, these lunatics mutilate
their own flesh instead. The fresh snow around the camp is
stained a faint red by the frozen blood underneath.

32
 • A shape water cantrip to freeze the water underneath Velvyn,
DROP IT LIKE IT'S HOT possibly causing the block to rise to the surface with her body
Mountain, Polar, or Sea Encounter, Tier I placed upon it.
As the adventurers cross a frozen lake or ice floes, a shadow • A spare the dying cantrip to stabilize Velvyn once she can
darts across the snow-white ground: a giant eagle. Its shriek breathe again. Similarly, a healing spell can awaken her.
pierces the otherwise fearsome wind, and as the beast rolls, a • A shatter spell to break ice, possibly opening up a more direct
red blur smashes through the ice—a fire genasi, screaming all path to Velvyn below the ice.
the way down. If the party doesn't act, the genasi will drown If the party saves Velvyn, she expresses shock and suspicion
below the ice—if she even survived the fall at all. upon waking. Her first instinct is to cast a 2nd-level charm
The genasi lands 20 feet away from the party; roll initiative, person spell to placate these strangers. She calms down with a
as there is very little time to save her. successful DC 13 Persuasion check.
The Genasi. Velvyn Spire is a NG fire genasi bard. She With no idea where her companions are, Velvyn decides to
fancies herself a celebrity. Ignoring the warnings of her party's stick with the party for a while—at least until they return to
resident druid, she snuck off to a giant eagle's nest while the civilization or the going gets too hot. Although her magic, wit,
others made camp. She was determined to convince the eagle— and daring are appreciable, the genasi quickly proves to be an
through spells of animal friendship—to spirit her (emphasis on amusing liability; she is but a slave to her careless whims, after
her) and her companions across the Arctic. all. This episode with the giant eagle is just the latest in a series
Velvyn is gregarious, and brims with confidence. Despite her of extraordinary—some would say "extraordinarily dumb"—
fiery heritage, she manages to convince most folk to give her stunts. It's as her companions always say: "One of these days,
the benefit of the doubt—and when they won't, she isn't above Vel, you're gonna get yourself killed."
a well-timed charm person spell.
Statistics. Velvyn is a bard with the following changes: IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
• She speaks Primordial, has darkvision to a range of 60 feet,
and has resistance to fire damage. Velvyn is a useful companion to add to your adventuring party.
• She can cast produce flame. She can also cast burning hands Whenever you find her to be too cumbersome to continue
once per day. Constitution is her spellcasting ability for these including, she slips away in the dead of night or is separated by
spells (spell save DC 11, +3 to hit with spell attacks). yet another of her reckless escapades.
• She knows the animal friendship spell instead of sleep.
• She wears leather armor instead of a chain shirt, and a ring of THE DULLAHAN
protection (AC 14). Two potions of healing hang from her Character Encounter, Tier I-III
belt; the third shattered with the fall.
There is a rider in the Arctic, a wayward reaper, to whom the
The Fall. There is no guarantee that Velvyn survives the fall. souls of men are forfeit. In greener countries, this black rider
Dropped from 50 feet, she takes 5d10 bludgeoning damage at would be called the Dullahan, and why she has left them for the
the start of the encounter. There's no way to determine if she is dismal Arctic is anyone's guess. Here in the land of unending
even alive once she goes below the ice; the adventurers will winter, she has abandoned her traditional black steed for a dog
have to operate on the faith that she can be saved. sled pulled by hounds of ill omen. Legends claim that where the
The Water. Velvyn fell through the ice and into frigid water, Dullahan stops, mortals are doomed to die. Should she come
the effects of which are described in Appendix C. With a +1 to across the adventurers, this superstition will surely be proven.
her Constitution, she can survive only for 1 minute before she The Dullahan is on a mission to deliver the unfortunate into
must make DC 10 Constitution saving throws. On a failure, she Death's clutches. Every so often, she receives a vision of one
takes a level of exhaustion. such mortal and tracks them down with her Vengeful Tracker
Velvyn is also drowning; the fall knocked the air out of her trait. She knows only the quarry's face and name and cares not
lungs and the sudden shock of cold water prevented her from for anything else, even if given the information. Her purpose is,
taking in a breath. If she is not removed from the water by the in her mind, divine.
start of her next turn, she is reduced to 0 hit points and begins Statistics. The Dullahan has the statistics of a revenant. She
to die. She cannot regain hit points or be stabilized until she can carries her head with her; it is a size of Tiny. Any damage it
once again breathe. receives is transferred to her body and vice versa. She carries a
Skill Challenge. Saving Velvyn is a Medium Skill Challenge. whip fashioned from a human spine (+7 to hit, reach 10 ft.,
The party must accrue five successes before they accrue three 1d4+4 slashing damage on a hit, plus an extra 4d6 if she has
failures (DCs 14-18). Suggested ability checks include: sworn vengeance against the target or if they are "due" to die).
• A Perception check to track Velvyn through the ice. Living Head. The Dullahan carries her pale head in the crook
• A Constitution check to resist the sudden shock of plunging of her left arm. Its auburn hair is matted with blood and black
into cold water, if a character dives in to save her. with rot. Its grin stretches from ear to ear. When the Dullahan
• An Athletics check to drag her back to the surface, lift or push speaks, it comes from the head's torn lips. All the Dullahan's
her out of the water, or to get oneself back onto the ice. senses come from the head, which magically communicates her
• An Acrobatics check to avoid falling into the water. perceptions to the body. The head and body are simultaneously
• A Medicine check to resuscitate Velvyn. one being in two parts.
• A Medicine, Nature, or Survival check to recall that she only
has about half an hour to warm up before suffering complete
bodily shutdown.

33
 To separate the Dullahan's head from her body, a character
must succeed on a grapple check against the Dullahan. Any
EDGE OF DISASTER
creature holding her head immediately counts as a creature that Volcanic Encounter, Tier III
she has sworn vengeance against, rendering them vulnerable to From the summit of Mount Erebys, cultists of Elemental Evil
her Vengeful Tracker trait and other abilities. While its head is conspire to link the volcano to the Plane of Fire. From its fiery
30 or more feet away, the body has blindsight out to a range of heart, the fools intend to bid a phoenix into this world—unless
30 feet and it can still hear noise, despite having no ears. the thwarted now by the adventurers. Now is the hour of their
Minions. The Dullahan's sled is pulled by a minimum of four greatest accomplishment, and—if they can pull it off—their
hounds, the statistics of which are determined by the difficulty last. The elemental force with which the phoenix enters this
this encounter is ran as. These creatures do not require air, sleep, world rips apart Mount Erebys and cracks glaciers as far as a
food, drink, or warmth. hundred miles away. The chances for anyone on the summit to
• As a Tier I encounter, four wolves pull the sled. Alternatively, survive the eruption are next to zero.
eight mastiffs pull it. These hounds count as monstrosities The cultists belong to a joint enterprise made between the
instead of beasts and are neutral evil. Cults of the Crushing Wave and the Eternal Flame. See the
• As a Tier II encounter, the sled is pulled by four death dogs. Global Warming storyline for details on these apocalyptic fools.
• As a Tier III encounter, the Dullahan has cowed six winter Mount Erebys. This active volcano is a stark contrast to the
wolves into her service. frozen wastes that surround it. The upper half of the summit is
Sled. The Dullahan's sled is decorated with macabre trophies: black with ash and soot. The Eternal Flame has long considered
ever-burning candles stuffed in skulls, cloaks fashioned from this place sacred, as it is, like most volcanoes, meta-physically
skin, rails carved from bone, and more. close to the Plane of Fire. Over the years, they have dug out
chambers with sweat, magic, and fanatical determination.
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN Map. See the map to the left. Every square is 5 feet. Mount
Erebys has the following features:
The Dullahan is a force of nature, a hand of fate, almost. She • With exception for the cult complex, the mountain is an area
should be first introduced in your campaign from a distance— of extreme heat (see Appendix C).
a dark rider whose grisly appearance is only discerned when she • At the bottom of Erebys's 600-feet-deep crater smolders a lake
and her hounds pass by the party. Perhaps she is on her way to of lava. Creatures that fall into it first take 20d10 bludgeoning
slay someone important to the party; if they oppose her, the damage from the fall (as lava is effectively a solid surface for
Dullahan hounds the adventurers throughout the campaign. She all but the densest creatures and objects). Creatures that come
cares not for their cause and swears allegiance to none of their into contact with the lava for the first time on a turn, or start
nemeses; she exists only to revenge herself upon such fools their turn on it, take 55 (10d10) fire damage.
before continuing her grim mission. • 2d4+4 magmin lounge in the lava below (when they aren't
tormenting cultists, whom they have no allegiance towards).
• Toxic fumes poison the air. Creatures that linger at the crater
must succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be
poisoned for the next 10 minutes. Magical wards purge toxins
from the air inside the cult's chambers.
• The crater's slopes are pitted with frequent handholds, which
creatures can use to climb with a DC 10 Athletics check.
• The crater and cult chambers are dimly lit, the former by lava,
the latter by ambient magic.
• The cult chambers are kept at a toasty 90 degrees Fahrenheit
by magical wards engraved upon the walls. Eternal Flame
cultists are quick to remind complainers that it can be much,
much warmer. The temperature is maintained by runes that
are carved into every chamber; a dispel magic spell ends this
effect, raising the temperature to 700 degrees and making it
a place of extreme heat (see App. C).
• A camp has been struck on Erebys's southwest summit where
cultists live, sticking in the band of warmth between the ash
and snow.

34
CULT OF THE ETERNAL FLAME CULT OF THE CRUSHING WAVE
The Cult of the Eternal Flame basks in Mount Erebys's scalding The cultists of the Crushing Wave were understandably happier
heat. The most fervent among them consider it a holy site. They at sea and in the Arctic proper. Here, they are miserable voyeurs
whittle away the days until the summoning ritual by discussing awaiting the world's destruction. With nothing to contribute to
how they will rule the ashes of the world. While their Crushing the summoning ritual, they were assigned to patrol the hallways
Wave peers pout, they are abuzz with anticipation. That they as the Eternal Flame cultists focused on their work. Perpetual
may perish when Mount Erebys spits out a phoenix has never heat and boredom have taken their toll; the guards have grown
even crossed their minds. lax in their duties.
Leadership. The Eternal Flame is led by Abbot Ignatius, a Leadership. As the summoning ritual approaches, the cult's
fire genasi archmage who is just as mad and cunning as his greatest members are away, ready to direct the inevitable flood
distant peers that run other Eternal Flame chapters. The genasi that will occur when the phoenix melts the polar icecaps. In
has faced scorn and scrutiny all his life; when the Eternal Flame their absence, they have left the water genasi conjurer Jacksyn
cult offered him a home, he was quick to take it. Decades of Seabastard in charge.
dogma have ensured that Ignatius—once a teenager desperate Seabastard has the following changes to his statistics:
to find a place where he belongs—is committed to bringing the • He has a swimming speed of 30 ft. and can breathe both air
world to its knees. and water.
Ignatius has the following changes to his statistics: • He has resistance to acid damage.
• He has darkvision out to a range of 60 feet. • He can cast shape water and, once per day, create or destroy
• He has resistance to fire damage. water. Constitution is his spellcasting ability for these spells.
• He can cast produce flame and once per day, burning hands. • He can read, write, and speak Common and Primordial.
Constitution is his spellcasting ability for these spells. Desperate to prove himself to his superiors, Seabastard roams
• He can read, write, and speak Common and Primordial. the halls to remind his colleagues that "the Archomentals are
• He wears a mantle of spell resistance (DMG pg. 180), which watching; shape up." They pay him little heed.
grants him advantage on saving throws against magic. Members. The Crushing Wave has left only a skeletal crew
• He wields a staff of fire (DMG pg. 201). here to ensure the plans they've sacrificed so much for actually
• On the day of the ritual, so long as the Searing Sultan is within come to fruition. They consist of 1d6+8 crushing wave reavers
100 feet of Ignatius, he has a flying speed of 20 feet and can and 1d4+2 crushing wave priests. They have also summoned
hover. 1d3+1 water elementals that obey their commands.
• He doesn't have a 9th-level spell prepared, for he knows none.
Instead, he is busy mastering the gate spell, which he will use THE SUMMONING RITUAL
to summon the phoenix. By when the summoning ritual is On the day of the ritual, Ignatius is ritually bathed in scalding
ready, he has practiced enough with gate to have it prepared, water by his most trusted attendants. Without him, there is no
but his spellwork is faulty (see below). He also has investiture phoenix and no rising sea levels. His survival, up until he casts
of flame and feather fall prepared instead of detect magic and gate, is crucial to the Eternal Flame's success.
detect thoughts. Unless the cults are aware of any outside threats, such as the
Ignatius has spent decades preparing for this ritual and can't adventurers, Ignatius is most vulnerable during his bath, which
shake the shadow of doubt. Doubt torments his every waking occurs in his chambers (the area marked "A" on the map). Only
moment, claiming that he's nothing more than a failure. Why the flamewrath guards him.
else can he not master the gate spell? If the cults are aware of imminent threats, they guard Ignatius
Members. Ignatius's brutal second-in-command is an efreeti with a retinue three eternal flame guardians, an eternal flame
known as the Searing Sultan (or the Shah of Suffering, if the priest, and the flamewrath. In this dark hour, they don't even
genie described in The Fortress of Solitude was released). He is trust their Crushing Wave colleagues. While Ignatius is being
equally devoted to the destruction of this world. His lash has prepared, the efreeti readies the summoning ritual.
kept even the most dissident cultists in line. Cultists that come Precautions. Ignatius has prepared feather fall and casts fly
to their senses and disavow the Eternal Flame are fed to Mount as a contingent spell (as part of contingency) in case he falls
Erebys by the sultan. during the ritual. By when he leaves his chambers, he's also cast
The Eternal Flame's ranks consist of: mind blank and mage armor. Therefore, he has already
• Twenty cultists, most of whom act as messengers, servants, expended a 1st-, 3rd-, 6th-, and 8th-level spell slot.
or attendants. The lucky few get to participate in the rituals The Ritual Begins. The Cult of the Eternal Flame gathers on
that maintain the cults' wards. Few cultists sleep in the cult Mount Erebys's rim to participate or bask in the ritual—which
complex; many camp on the summit of Mount Erebys, in the only puts greater pressure on Ignatius. The Crushing Wave cult
warm border of ash and snow. expands their patrols within the volcano and without, with Sea-
• 2d6+5 eternal flame guardians and 1d6+4 eternal flame bastard floating between the crater and the summit to ensure
priests, who patrol the summit in pairs. The priests are also that nothing goes awry.
responsible for maintaining the complex's wards. Ignatius must perform his ritual above Erebys's very heart.
• A human flamewrath whose personality was scoured when Thanks to the Searing Sultan's inscrutable magic, Ignatius has
he was invested with elemental power. He guards Ignatius at a flying speed of 20 feet and can hover. This magic dies with
all times, never leaving his side. the genie. Ignatius's contingent fly spell will save his life, but at
the cost of his concentration.

35
 ELVEN SLAVERS
Polar Night or Tundra Encounter, Tier I-III
Tyranny is almost a byproduct in a land as unforgiving as the
Arctic, and humility is a trait oft forgotten by insular elves.
While traveling, the adventurers encounter a line of prisoners
watched over by elven slavers. You have two chief variants to
choose from in this encounter:

DROW SLAVERS
Polar Night Encounter, Tier I-III
Fresh from the Underdark, the dark elves have come to reap the
surface world of its rewards. Successful in their mission, they
are leading their prisoners to an abandoned dwarven home once
ravaged by an umber hulk. The creature is long gone, but its
passage to the surface was found by the drow, who use the home
as a staging ground for raids on the surface world.
The drow are led by the vicious Lybreena Tanor'thuin, whose
statistics are determined by this encounter's difficulty. As a Tier
I encounter, she is a drow elite warrior; at Tier II, she is a drow
house captain; at Tier III she is a drow priestess of Lolth, for
her mission (far more important than raiding the surface world
It only takes one action to cast gate, and the phoenix answers for slaves) could not be entrusted to anyone but one of Lolth's
Ignatius's call in 1d10 rounds, but much of the archmage's ritual chosen hierophants. On her way back, she raided an outpost for
is spent hedging his bet, so to speak. His (and the eternal flame slaves to curry favor with her betters.
priests') sacred gestures are mainly for show, although they do Likewise, the purpose of the raid and its finer details change
help soften the elemental powers at play. with the chosen difficulty this encounter is ran at:
The Ritual Awry. Should Ignatius be slain prematurely or Tier I. The drow consist of 1d4+3 male drow and Lybreena.
lose concentration on his gate spell before the phoenix enters Their mission was simply to raid the surface for supplies and
the world, the portal to the Plane of Fire implodes. All creatures settlements. In addition to their captives, they've amassed 3d10
within the crater, on its rim, or in the cult complex must make + 40 gp, 5d10+60 sp, and goods that are difficult to produce in
a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. A creature takes 27 (5d10) the Underdark, such as beef, venison, and cabbage (grown to
force damage on a failure, or half as much on a success. great sizes thanks to a long arctic summer). They've also taken
The Ritual Complete. If the phoenix enters this world, the 1d4+1 cows, which they'll have to sedate later.
force of its entry causes Mount Erebys to erupt. The shockwave Tier II. The drow consist of 1d4+3 drow and two drow elite
surges inwardly and causes the volcano to shake with fury. All warriors, and Lybreena, all of whom are female. Their mission
creatures on the ground must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving was to arrest a fugitive drow mage named Narisril Rhomdagh.
throw. On a failure, a creature is knocked prone. In 1d4 rounds, Narisril had the honor of being selected as his house matron's
Erebys erupts. All creatures inside the crater or on its rim when newest consort. Not in the mood to become a tortured sire of
this occurs must make a DC 22 Constitution saving throw, several children, the mage escaped to the surface two weeks
taking 27 (5d10) bludgeoning damage on a failure, or half as ago. With almost no survival skills of his own, he left an
much on a success. They must also succeed on a DC 20 obvious trail for Lybreena to follow. Narisril is at the head of
Dexterity saving throw, taking 55 (10d10) fire damage on a the column, being whipped and disparaged by the drow. He has
failure, or half as much on a success. been gagged, with pegs driven between his fingers to inhibit
The air within 500 feet of the crater becomes heavily spellcasting. He has 12 hit points and 1d4 1st-level spell slots
obscured and toxic; all creatures therein must succeed on a DC remaining. If freed from his bonds, he turns on his captors until
15 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 hour. an opportunity to escape presents itself.
Assume that all cultists die in the blast, with the exception of Tier III. The drow were sent to recover a magical item from
the Searing Sultan. If the adventurers survive, proceed to the the adventurers that stole it in the first place: a handheld mirror
Global Warming encounter. that allows the viewer to contact one of Lolth's yochlols. They
consist of 1d4+3 drow, two drow elite warriors, a drow mage,
and Lybreena. The adventurers are all dead; disappointed she
could not bring such mighty heroes back as broken slaves, she
took out her frustrations on a nearby settlement.
If Lybreena's life is threatened, she uses an action to smash
the enchanted mirror, summoning a yochlol into the world. The
demon is likely to kill her for such insolence, and her superiors
are certain to punish her as well, but those are small risk to pay
when faced with certain death. The yochlol is banished back to
the Abyss after 1 minute.

36
 Shackles. The drow shackle their prisoners with manacles of As snow elves, they have the following racial traits:
iron, which require a successful DC 20 Strength check to break; • The elves speak Elvish, have darkvision to a range of 60 feet,
a DC 20 Dexterity check to escape from; or a DC 15 Dexterity and have an extra +2 bonus to their Perception checks and
check with thieves' tools. The manacles have 15 hit points. passive Perception scores.
Captives. The drow's captives consist of 2d6+5 commoners • The elves have advantage on saving throws against being
of assorted races, mostly humans, plucked from nearby villages. charmed, and magic cannot put them to sleep.
A bruised human druid is gagged, with pegs driven into his • The elves have advantage on Stealth checks to remain hidden
fingers. A DC 13 Investigation check is enough to ascertain that in snowy terrain.
the man must be a spellcaster, as no other prisoners have been • They each know three transmutation spells on the wizard spell
disabled in such a manner. The druid, Nenvolm, has only two list: one cantrip, a 1st-level spell and a 2nd-level spell. They
1st level spell slots left and has goodberry and cure wounds can cast the latter two spells once per day. Typically, a snow
prepared instead of animal messenger and speak with animals. elf knows gust, shape water, catapult or jump.
If freed, he grants the party up to ten goodberries. Treasure. The elves recovered little treasure from their raid,
as labor and knowledge are more valuable than gold. Arandon
SNOW ELF SLAVERS carries a spellbook with all the spells prepared in his statistics
Tier II and a ruby of the war mage (see XGE pg. 138) stolen from the
Desperate to bring all of the Arctic under their iron regime, the dwarves.
snow elves are faced with expanding their presence throughout
the region. Yet the Arctic is a perilous land and local rulers will
require safe seats of power. Without easily portable stone and ENDANGERED HIKER
timber, the elves have no choice but to carve strongholds from Character Encounter, Tier I
ice. Only the glacier dwarves have the skill, knowledge, and The adventurers encounter an endangered hiker while traveling.
magic necessary for this task. They cannot ask the dwarves to This encounter has several variants, allowing you to run it
further their empire, nor would they even if they could. Instead, multiple times. It's encouraged that you run it with the same
the elves raid the dwarves for slaves, hoping that the survivors recurring character if you wish to strike a comedic tone or use
are, or can learn to be, frost masons. a familiar face. Regardless of the character's identity, they have
The enmity between the elves and glacier dwarves stretches the statistics of a NG scout with an explorer's pack and, usually,
back eons. The elves hold that the dwarves stole the secrets of ten rations. By default, the hiker is a male human.
glacial magic from elvish ruins and destroyed the runes on their Roleplaying the Hiker. Wolf Cook is a seasoned hiker that
way out. The dwarves claim that the elves have less legs to some would liken to a wilderness survival expert. Despite his
stand on than a seal; frustrated, the elves insist that they have as expertise, he can still find himself in tricky situations from time-
many legs as a remorhaz. Neither side has admitted fault, and to-time; such is the nature of the wild. He is an otherwise
no clans or kings have forgiven their enemies. humble, well-intentioned person who holds that the wilderness
Shackles. The snow elves shackle their prisoners with glacial is too unforgiving for people not to help each other. If Wolf
manacles. The manacles numb the hands and wrists but don't Cook encounters someone in need, he rushes to their aid, heed-
cause frostbite. The manacles cannot be unlocked or escaped less of his own wellbeing.
from. They have 12 hit points, vulnerability to fire damage, and
can be broken with a DC 16 Strength check. AVALANCHE AFTERMATH
Captives. The elves are leading a line of 2d10+10 glacier A simple accident on the hiker's behalf has caused a Small-sized
dwarf commoners back to the Citadel, their icy fortress. One avalanche (see the Avalanche! encounter) while he was skiing
of these dwarves, Farkyl, is a frost mason master, well known off-piste to escape a warband of gnolls terrorizing the region.
among the dwarves here and already at the Citadel. All it takes He cannot point out the gnolls' whereabouts; he doesn't even
is one tortured dwarf to give him up. Farkyl knows his kin, and know whether they followed him—although they have.
all the Arctic, will suffer if he aids the elves—and they'll surely In the avalanche's aftermath, 1d4+2 gnolls and a gnoll flesh
milk his expertise by way of torture, coercion, and hostages. gnawer come bounding down the slope, howling in hunger.
The frost mason has decided that suicide may be the only means
of delaying the elves' expansion. OWLBEAR ATTACK
Elves. The snow elves suffered several casualties during their The hiker darts past the adventurers, offering but one warning:
recent raid on the dwarves. The elves do not abandon their own; "Run!" Behind him roars a frenzied owlbear, who bounds after
the wounded are shuffling alongside the column or are being him. Bundled in the hiker's arms are two owlbear eggs, whose
dragged in sleds. A force of 1d4+2 apprentice wizards, 1d6+4 price on the black market runs from 300 to 1,000 gp each.
guards, 1d3 veterans, and an archer, are spread evenly along The hiker, if confronted, insists he stole the eggs to eat, not
the column. The elves are led by the LE mage, Arandon. sell—and rooting through his pack reveals that his rations are
Additionally, two scouts keep an eye for trouble; one is half a indeed gone. If the eggs are placed gently on the ground, the
mile ahead of the column, the other half a mile behind. owlbear ceases her attack. If not, she continues chasing them.
At this point, she associates the adventurers with the hiker, and
will maul them if given the chance. Otherwise, a character
holding the eggs who succeeds on a DC 22 Animal Handling
check calms the beast.
Statistics. The owlbear has white fur and feathers, granting it
advantage on Stealth checks made to remain hidden in snowy
terrain.
37
RAPPELLING GONE WRONG FLIGHT OF THE IVORY ELK
The hiker faces a deadly drop in the mountains. Determine the Taiga Encounter, Tier I
party's geographic relation to the hiker.
Through the trees darts a white flash of light; a character that
From Above. If the adventurers are on the high ground, they
succeeds on a DC 14 Perception check gets a good look at it: a
find evidence of a dead man's anchor—a survival technique in
white giant elk. Almost every individual has heard tales that
which a rappeler anchors themselves to an object dug into the
the existence of an alabaster elk heralds great upheaval in the
snow. As a hiker rappels laterally, their weight is leveraged
world: the birth the kings, the fall of dynasties, the return of
against all the snow between them and whatever object used as
forgotten evils, and more. Other fables claim that only the death
an anchor. Even an object as small as a canteen can anchor a
of such a majestic beast that triggers such great events. As if to
full-grown man clad in packs and gear. A DC 13 Survival check
promise such a tumultuous future, lupine howls echo across the
identifies the dead man's anchor accordingly.
forest as 1d4+2 winter wolves bound after the elk.
The issue at hand, however, is that the hiker has run out of
The wolves quickly surround the elk, but that majestic beast
rope half-way down the cliff and now must decide whether to
doesn't go down without a fight. The adventurers are presented
cut himself loose. If the adventurers detect him (with a DC 14
with an opportunity to intervene.
Perception check) or know to follow the ropes, they can assist
Roleplaying the Wolves. The wolves can speak Common and
in pulling him up. It takes a combined Strength score of 30 to
Giant; they are the worgs of the frozen wastes. They hurl insults
pull the hiker up, otherwise a DC 18 Athletics check is required.
and threats at the adventurers:
Down Below. If the adventurers are on the ground below the
• "More meat for the feast!"
cliffs, they see the hiker rappelling down the cliffside. Alas, he
• "There is a place for prey as foolish as you—between fangs."
has anchored himself off a sharp rock whose edges have frayed
• "We shall settle for you."
the rope. As he descends, the rope snaps and the hiker hurtles
to the ground 40 feet below, possibly taking up to 22 (4d10) FIRBOLG DRUID
bludgeoning damage. An adventurer below the hiker and within
If the elk is saved, the beast guides the adventurers to a nearby
10 feet of his drop can attempt a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw.
cave overgrown with life, despite the cold. This hovel is home
On a success, they catch the hiker; both characters take 5 (1d10)
to a firbolg druid; to outsiders, he addresses himself as "Balfir."
bludgeoning damage. On a failure, they miss the hiker, who
A character fluent or familiar with Elvish recognizes this as a
crashes into the hard ground. A feather fall spell also saves him.
common elven name. If asked, the druid explains that his people
YOU'RE ON THIN ICE have little use for names, and only use them when treating with
outsiders.
As the party passes nearby, the hiker attempts to cross a frozen
Statistics. As a firbolg, Balfir has the following racial traits:
lake. The ice soon gives way and he plunges into the cold water
• He speaks Common, Elvish, and Giant.
below. Thanks to howling winds, a DC 15 Perception check is
• He can communicate in a limited manner with both beasts and
required for an adventurer to hear the crack of ice and his
plants, though he has no ability to understand them in turn.
alarmed shout. The seasoned hiker drew in a breath before he
• He can cast detect magic and disguise self once per day; his
plunged into the water, but the shock has driven the air from his
spellcasting ability for these spells is Wisdom
lungs. For the effects on frigid water, see Appendix C.
• Once per short or long rest, he can use a bonus action to turn
With a Constitution of 12, the hiker has only one round to
invisible until the start of his next turn, or when he attacks,
surface, lest he suffocates. On his first turn, he attempts a DC
damages, or forces a creature to make a saving throw.
14 Perception check to find the hole to the world above (no easy
task in a wintry, cloudy land). If he succeeds, he surfaces for Roleplaying Balfir. Firbolgs avoid outsiders as a rule, so it
air. If not, he begins to die. The hiker can pull himself out of the should come as no surprise that Balfir is a cautious and twitchy
water if he succeeds on a DC 18 Strength check; otherwise, fellow; he has more experience with beasts than other people.
another creature must succeed on a DC 15 Athletics check to He considers greed to be the greatest fault of mortal men, for
drag them from the water. his kin are taught only to ever take what they need and nothing
more. Characters that ask him for more than he provides are
gently asked to leave his hovel.
As a druid and a firbolg, Balfir has a deep and profound bond
with Nature and her creatures. For saving the elk, he considers
himself personally indebted to the adventurers. He has little to
offer other than ten goodberries (as in the goodberry spell, see
PHB pg. 246), and 1d4+1 rations consisting of nuts and berries.
Additionally, if any of the adventurers are druids, Balfir leads
them in a sacred ritual during a short rest. Afterwards, the druid
can prepare three extra druid spells for the next 24 hours.

38
 FORER-SLAG! THE ADVENTURERS
Mountain Encounter, Tier II-III The adventurers have entered a situation they've no business in.
They risk capture (as a gift for the victor, or merely as slaves),
Thunder booms as the adventurers trek through a mountain
being crushed underfoot by celebrating giants, or being buried
pass. This thunder isn't produced from the heavens above, but
by an avalanche caused by a stray boulder. For this encounter,
the mighty mammoth-tusk-horns of the frost giants. Their cries,
decide where the adventurers are in relation to the forer-slag
"Forer-Slag! Forer-Slag!" echo out across the mountain. The
and the clan's witnesses, who stand on other peaks and plateaus
horns, the cries, the thunder of their very footfalls—altogether,
to watch the duel from afar. Choose one of the scenarios below:
it sounds as if they are a titanic band of musicians
Avalanche! The duelists are hurling boulders at one another.
Forer-Slag. Meaning "chieftain-battle" in the Giant tongue,
Rowthor's attack misses, but Vaprak's blessing has made him
a forer-slag is a ritualistic duel, a custom of the frost giants, who
so strong that his boulder smashes into the summit the party is
value strength above all other virtues. Only the mighty may lead
on, causing an avalanche. See the Avalanche! encounter.
the clan; when one's honor and strength are doubted, an upstart
Errant Boulder. Instead of striking the peak, the boulder
warrior challenges their superior to battle. To refuse a forer-
careens towards a random adventurer (+6 to hit, 29 (4d10+7)
slag challenge is a great dishonor; to survive but not win is an
bludgeoning damage on a hit).
even greater one. Those that are shown mercy are likely to be
Crushed Underfoot. 1d3 frost giants block the path forward,
exiled from the clan. Any giant is allowed to challenge another
stomping in outrage or approval of the duel. If the adventurers
individual, even the clan's jarl—but there is no yielding in a
attempt to pass through, they must avoid being stomped on.
forer-slag; two giants roar, but only one lives.
Each character must succeed on a DC 15 Acrobatics or Insight
The Thunder Today. Jarl Grisbos has been challenged by the
check to pass through; on a failure, they are knocked prone and
upstart Rowthor, whose honor was impugned last year—but
take 11 (1d10 + 6) bludgeoning damage. The giants are so pre-
Rowthor cares not for honor, only power. The jarl's disrespect
occupied with the forer-slag that they don't notice the party
is just the pretense to this forer-slag. Today, the two shall battle
unless the adventurers harm them.
it out before the clan's eyes.
Umbrage. Any characters that fail a DC 13 Stealth check are
Jarl Grisbos is a legendary frost giant warrior in the twilight
noticed by the giants, who take umbrage with their trespassing.
of his life; his people live up to 250 years and he's pushing two
If the adventurers don't turn back, these 1d4 frost giants attack,
centuries. Under his leadership, Skoldheim—the clan's home
with a 75% chance that they spare any characters that yield or
and stronghold—has prospered. Many consider Grisbos a
are knocked unconscious; Skoldheim is always in need of good
tough-but-fair jarl whose strength is necessary to guide the clan
slaves, after all.
through these trying times. His detractors claim the jarl has
Alternatively, the giants decide to present captured characters
gone soft and it is time for him to give up the mantle. There is
to the duel's victor.
no shame in peacefully abdicating the throne, after all.
Vaprak's Rage. The adventurers wind up in the sight of the
Rowthor is a deceitful cur that has made a pact with Vaprak
enraged Rowthor, whose bloodlust cannot be quenched. After
the Destroyer, the patron deity of ogres and trolls, and the most
defeating Grisbos, this frost giant everlasting one has 49 hit
reviled god in the giant pantheon. Frost giants that appeal to the
points left; he attacks the party. They might be down the path
Destroyer may be sent a troll (a pilgrim guided by Vaprak) to
or even above Rowthor on a ledge. In the case of the latter, the
devour. Those that feast upon its putrid flesh are endowed with
seismic disturbances of the giants' duel weakens the ledge,
great, supernatural strength, becoming frost giant everlasting
causing them to slide down into the giant's reach; alternatively,
ones. To embrace Vaprak's power is a death sentence in frost
Rowthor hurls a boulder on his first turn, severing the ledge
giant society. If Rowthor's secret is found out, he will be slain
from the mountainside.
by his peers, no matter his status among the clan. Alas, those
who fail to continue honoring Vaprak are cursed with troll-like THE ORDNING OF MIGHT
deformities that are not so easily hidden.
This is the second encounter of the Ordning of Might storyline.
Rowthor is secretly one of these abominable giants, bereft of
Should the adventurers eliminate Rowthor now, they spare the
any deformities; however, if Rowthor is reduced to 0 hit points
Arctic from a brutal overlord. If they do not, Rowthor ascends.
but regenerates, he grows a second head (see his Extra Heads
Rowthor's regime is a bloody one. He exiles his old rivals and
trait). Assume that, barring intervention on behalf of the
detractors from Skoldheim, forcing them to roam the Arctic.
adventurers, he defeats Grisbos, crushing the giant's skull with
With no clan of their own, these giants are forced to raid settle-
a boulder. The jarl does not die quietly, nor with dignity,
ments (although they had no qualms with such raids before).
bringing great dishonor upon himself and his legacy. Much of
Some may conspire to overthrow Rowthor, already suspecting
the clan falls silent, watching as Rowthor continues to bludgeon
that the giant has struck an accord with Vaprak. See The
Grisbos's corpse. Thereafter, Rowthor shouts in Giant, "Let all
Isejotun Exile for details.
who doubt my right to rule step forward now for forer-slag!"
Rowthor, for his part, must also continue to appease Vaprak
with frequent sacrifices, lest tumors and other deformities
manifest, revealing his pact with the Destroyer. Frost giant raids
begin to ravage the Arctic in unprecedented numbers. See Frost
Giant Raiders encounter for details.

39
 FORGE OF THE FROZEN WASTES KINGS-TO-BE
Volcanic Encounter, Tier I-II Outraged that the azers refuse to serve them, snow elves arrive
to enslave the smiths. If these would-be-tyrants have it their
The snow has been stained by ash, the air tainted by sulfur, and
way, a permanent outpost will be erected here with the azers
the chill fought with steam. All who pass by this corner of the
confined to their smithy. As beings of living fire, they don't tire
Arctic can see that an active volcano broils nearby. Its snow-
or hunger, making them an inexhaustible engine of war.
capped summit stands in sharp contrast to the magma churning
As is their nature, the snow elves underestimate the azers;
in its crater. Magma runs down a trench into a smithy operating
their initial force consists of a knight, 1d6+4 guards, 1d4 + 2
at its base. This facility, the so-called Forge of the Frozen
scouts, and a bard. They do not intend to harm the azers, only
Wastes, is operated by a band of azers—natives of the Plane of
confine them and turn away other visitors—although it is
Fire that have since been exiled to the Material Plane.
acceptable to maim or slay one elemental to cow the others into
As beings of living fire, the azers need neither food nor rest;
submission. Their orders are to hold the vicinity until further
they wish only to pursue their craft in peace. If approached with
forces and workers arrive from the Citadel (their fortress-city).
respect and ore, a person can leave with smelted goods—nails,
Statistics. The snow elves are all lawful evil; they also have
tools, buckles, and the like. The Arctic's few residents speak
the following racial traits, in addition to their normal statistics:
admirably of these selfless smiths, who provide access to arts
• The elves speak Elvish and have darkvision to a range of 60
of metallurgy they themselves aren't capable of.
feet.
In the years since settling in this corner of the Material Plane,
• The elves have advantage on saving throws against being
the azers have picked up bits of mortal languages (Common,
charmed, and magic cannot put them to sleep.
Dwarvish, Elvish, and Hafling in particular), whereas the locals
• The elves have advantage on Stealth checks to remain hidden
that often entreat with them have learned some Ignan phrases,
in snowy terrain.
such as "thank you" and "nails."
• They each know three transmutation spells on the wizard spell
We Jagged Few. The azers are a dysfunctional family of mis-
list: one cantrip, a 1st-level spell and a 2nd-level spell. They
fits, all jaded or flawed in their own right. They are led by Breun
can cast the latter two spells once per day. Typically, a snow
Khr (see below) and consist of: Magni, who is obsessed with
elf knows gust, shape water, catapult or jump.
unnecessary innovations; the bossy-but-well-meaning Eldryr;
the paranoid Ghan and its sibling, the world-weary Ghin, and, Warmonger. The elves are led by the knight Enialis Nailo,
lastly, the deceitful Syrn, who finds no solace in its exile. an aspiring warrior with noble ties. Nailo glorifies war, calling
Chief Craftsman. A pacifist scarred by the horrors of war, it "the patriot's duty." This is but his first trial in what should be
Breun swore to never forge another weapon. It instead finds a lengthy military career. While he considers the slaughter of
solace in crafting tools, armor, and delicate works of art. Only noncombatants a distasteful blemish on his honor, he only
a great injustice or cataclysm is enough for Breun to break its offers bystanders one opportunity to vacate or turn back from
oath, in which it fashions a flame tongue weapon for a hero the area. Headstrong and drunk on his own delusion of
devoted to righting that wrong or preventing destruction. See grandeur, Nailo first approaches the Forge of the Frozen Wastes
pg. 170 of the Dungeon Master's Guide for this item. and calls out in heavily-practiced Ignan, "Smiths of Fire! We,
You can voice Breun with the following sample dialogue: the spurned, have come for what is ours! Surrender yourselves
• "I came to this world to escape war, not further furnish it." as servant-citizens of the Citadel or perish!"
• "Those that see themselves as kings-to-be have no place at my The azers, for their part, simply shrug and continue to work.
fire, nor at my forge." They only attack intruders. Breun Khr, if present, dismisses the
• "We are pawns in great games, but we must nonetheless be elves out of hand. It would rather die than fashion weapons of
burdened with our choices. Suffer not the soldier that finds war, or tools thereof, but acquiesces for now. The other azers,
solace in obedience." although upset, follow his lead. "They cannot remain here for-
• "Magni, enough with the 'tong extenders,' just walk the extra ever," Breun tells them, "and if they try, they will only wither.
five feet to retrieve the metal yourself." We are living fire; they are but embers in a storm." Breun and
the azers can be convinced to act now with a successful DC 13
Enemies of the Azers. The azers turn away no one but the
Persuasion check; otherwise, it is up to the adventurers to keep
snow elves, who display the same egotism and ambition the
these smiths out of the hands of conquerors.
efreet—the fiery genies that sought to enslave the azers eons
Tactics. The elves position their scouts on snowbanks to fire
ago—did. Over the years, the snow elves' appreciation for the
at any targets while the guards set up a rudimentary camp under
azers' generosity waned and they instead came to expect their
the bard's supervision. Nailo stares at the smithy, outraged that
service. As punishment for such audacity, Breun has banished
the azers haven't even deigned to respond to his demands. Given
the elves, famously saying, "Let them smelt frost and snow."
time, he may fall prey to his pride and attack.
Smiths for Hire. The azers delight in new projects. The party
can commission them to forge weapons and armor (only Breun
refuses to partake in such projects) or other metallic objects. If
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
the party has no raw ore to give them, they can earn credit with The Forge of the Frozen Wastes is your convenient storefront
the azers by dispatching nearby threats (using just about any for characters dependent upon metal, such as high-level fighters
encounter in this supplement). Otherwise, the adventurers may in need of plate armor. It also allows you to spread objects and
earn the azers' favor by thwarting the snow elves in the Kings- tools around the Arctic that locals have no true way of obtaining
To-Be event below. themselves, as advanced, widespread metallurgy is normally
If brought a ruby worth 250 gp or more, as well as five ounces difficult to conduct in such an inhospitable terrain.
of gold, the azers can fashion a ring of warmth over the course
of a week (see DMG, pg. 193).
40
 THE FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE
Polar Encounter, Tier III
Within the Arctic lies a keep chiseled from glacial ice, built not
by the famous glacier dwarves or stolen by the snow elves. Nay,
it was built by a bitter, retired champion of mankind: the
aasimar El-ga, who defended the world decades ago from other-
worldly threats. For his heroism, El-ga knew only the moaning
of selfish citizens and the suffering of lost loved ones. The
former paragon has remained in his fortress ever since,
determined to watch with a father's disappointment as the world
slips further and further into chaos.
Roleplaying El-ga. The aasimar is a broody host; travelers
that appeal to him for shelter are allowed inside the fortress, but
they must weather his tirades on humanity's inability to improve
itself. He calls them "lousy infants that only bite the very hand
that feeds." He openly admits he would rather see the world
burn than help it again. "Duty," as he puts it, "is a self-imposed
curse. In the end, you owe no one anything."
Map. See the map above, the scale of which is 5 feet for each
Once a paragon of all that is good and right, the bitter hero
square. The temperature within its walls is 80 degrees.
has become a shadow of his former self. He lives only for the
Treasure. El-ga has collected several trophies from his old,
day he can return to the world stage to remind people that, had
defeated foes, many of which are magical or valuable. They are
they only been a little more grateful, he would intervene. Until
displayed upon glacial pedestals throughout the fortress. Taking
then, he contents himself with smiting the wicked—monsters
any of these treasures incurs El-ga's wrath. They include:
that stray too close to his lair, or evil guests that happen into it.
• A mind blade (VGM pg. 81) forged from Supremacus the mind
El-ga is thoroughly a sadist, bludgeoning his foes only to heal
flayer; in the hands of any other creature, it is simply a long-
them with his divine powers. He is, tragically, irredeemable.
sword.
Nothing, not even the most selfless of deeds, can convince him
• A wand of wonder (DMG pg. 212) once wielded by Mysteria,
that humans—and all mortals, for that matter—aren't evil, or
an evil sorceress.
worse, lazy creatures that ruin all they touch.
• A helm of brilliance (DMG pg. 173) with two diamonds, one
Statistics. El-ga is a LE aasimar warlord with the following
eight rubies, four fire opals, and twenty-two opals left. The
changes to his statistics:
helm was once worn by The Greater Mind, a psychic villain
• He can read, write, and speak both Common and Celestial.
whose skull El-ga inevitably crushed.
• He has darkvision to a range of 60 feet, and can cast the light
• An efreeti bottle (DMG pg. 167) containing the "Sultan of
cantrip.
Suffering," an efreeti. El-ga makes a habit of drawing out the
• He has resistance to necrotic and radiant damage.
Sultan to whale on the genie with his mighty fists. He alone
• As an action, he can touch a creature and restore 20 hit points
can force the genie back into the bottle.
to them.
• The scattered arms and armor of evil guests that wandered into
• Thanks to his inner divinity, he no longer needs to eat or drink.
the Fortress of Solitude. They are placed near the back of the
Additionally, he can use an action to probe a person's heart;
fortress's hall, as befitting "lesser trophies."
the target, who he must be able to see and be within 30 feet
of, must succeed on a DC 15 Charisma saving throw. On a
failure, El-ga learns their alignment. FROST GIANT RAIDERS
• Instead of wielding a greatsword, El-ga is armed with his fists Tundra or Urban Encounter, Tier II
(+9 to hit, 1d10+5 bludgeoning damage), which count as The very mention of frost giant raiders is enough to rouse a crew
magical attacks. He can use his fists as part of his Weapon of warriors—or inspire a mad abandonment of civilization. The
Attack legendary action. people of the Arctic suffer these raids as often a dog picks up a
• He has the Radiant Soul action: tick; these ticks, however, can hurl boulders and attack amidst
Radiant Soul (1/Day). El-ga releases his inner divine energy. blizzards. Sure enough, when foul weather is on the rise, a town
His eyes glimmer and two luminous wings sprout from his must prepare for an attack. Some settlements will leave an
back. For the next minute, or until he uses a bonus action to offering of ale and steel on the outskirts—but soon learn that
end these effects, he has a flying speed of 30 feet, and once the giants raid not only for material, but to demonstrate their
per turn, when he deals damage with an attack or spell, he can might before both their peers and Thrym, their deity.
deal an extra 20 radiant damage. There are two variants for this encounter, with the following
A Hero's Hospitality. The adventurers are welcome to stay at constants. As the weather worsens into a blizzard, a character
the Fortress of Solitude; El-ga has casks of wine and water, as that succeeds on a DC 14 History check recalls that the giants
well as enough food to feed ten people for a month. Thanks to consider blizzards a gift sent by Thrym, and that they must
El-ga's divine presence, food does not rot in the fortress. answer his call. With this information, they may decide to skip
Inevitably, El-ga determines each of his guests' alignments. town, join in its defense, or hunker down somewhere that the
Should any of them prove evil, even in the slightest, the "hero" giants cannot find them.
attacks. He shows no mercy and drags the bloody affair out for
as long as he can.
41
 THE REAVER'S HORN
Urban Encounter
The isejotun waste no time on subtlety; deceit and subterfuge
are the arts of Memnor, not mighty Thrym, god of the isejotun.
A thunderous horn heralds the giants' arrival, provoking panic
among the townsfolk. Warriors scramble to defend the walls
(provided they have any) and lay caltrops along the street.
A boulder is the first shot loosed in this raid; it crashes into
the settlement's walls or through a villager's roof, crushing or
trapping them inside. With another howl of the horn, the giants
charge. Once an egress has been achieved, the giants' winter
wolves dash inside the settlement; if the giants instead have
young remorhazes, the creatures burrow in from below.
To Battle! The settlement musters up twenty guards, but the
giants make quick work of them. If the adventurers join in the
battle, errant attacks may work to their favor. At initiative count
Weather. The region is being buffeted by a blizzard, causing 20 (losing initiative ties) one of the following effects occur:
the following effects: • An archer looses an arrow at a giant engaging the party (+5 to
• The area and creatures therein are lightly obscured by snow. hit, 1d6+2 piercing damage).
• Strong winds (see Appendix C). • An archer corps looses a volley at the giants, targeting a 10-
• The area is extremely cold and the DC for Constitution saving foot-diamater circle. Creatures within the area, which may
throws made against extreme cold is increased to 15. include adventurers, must make a DC 13 Dexterity saving
Combatants. The raiders consist of the following fighters: throw. On a failure, a creature takes 3d6 piercing damage.
• 1d4+2 frost giants • A veteran joins the fray, taunting a giant in its own tongue.
• 1d3+1 frost giant juveniles (with the statistics of ogres with Enraged, the giant must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving
immunity to cold damage) throw. On a failure, its attack rolls have disadvantage against
• 1d3+1 winter wolves or 1d2+1 young remorhazes targets other than the veteran until the start of the giant's next
turn. An errant punt sends the veteran flying at the end of the
IN TRANSIT round, removing him from the fray.
Tundra Encounter • A thrown boulder smashes into a home's fireplace, starting a
The adventurers encounter the giants in the wilderness before fire. The fire quickly spreads to nearby structures. Creatures
or after their raid. Choose one of the following: that enter the blaze take 5 (1d10) fire damage.
Antecedent. The giants are unharmed and in good spirits. As • A visiting mage looses a fireball at the giants but captures an
they traipse across the tundra, booming laughter and ribald jests adventurer or two in the blast. Each creature in a 20-foot-
can be heard during gaps in the gale above. The raiders believe radius sphere centered on a giant must succeed on a DC 14
themselves mighty and blessed by Thrym himself; they have no Dexterity saving throw, taking 28 (8d6) fire damage on a
reason to be cautious. Characters that understand Giant and failure, or half as much on a success. A hurled boulder soon
succeed on a DC 15 Perception check can piece together their turns that brave wizard into a red smear.
conversation, learning two facts: the first target to be raided, • A giant is wounded as it's about to hurl a boulder, causing it
and that at least three juveniles are being tested today. Juvenile to instead target one of its peers engaging the adventurers (+9
frost giants are notoriously reckless, as they're eager to finally to hit, 28 (4d10+6) bludgeoning damage.
demonstrate their might.
Aftermath. The giants are grimly quiet; a few of their brood Aftermath. Ultimately, the settlement's guards are routed or
were slain or left behind in the raid, and the spoils were not slaughtered if the adventurers don't repel the attack. The giants
worth the cost in flesh. At most, only three giants and a single steal casks of ale, livestock, and steel. They have no use for gold
juvenile made it out alive, along with one beast. The giants are or currency and prefer large gems. Some may steal wagons and
all wounded; assign each survivor with the following hit points: other tools for their slaves back at Skoldheim.
42, 60, and 89. The juvenile has 47 hit points remaining.
The giants also carry the following treasure: THE ORDNING OF MIGHT
• Four stolen pigs or cattle This encounter is related to the Ordning of Might storyline. If
• Timber scavenged from ruined houses, to be burned for the Rowthor has usurped Jarl Grisbos, all future raids are especially
slaves at Skoldheim. vicious, as Vaprak the Destroyer (whom Rowthor must secretly
• A cask of ale carried on one giant's shoulder. appease) demands unprecedented carnage. Rowthor orders his
• 1d4+3 gems worth 250 gp apiece. raiders to prioritize destruction over loot, challenging them to
• Two steel greatswords, a battleaxe, and 40 pounds of errant prove their might. The more ambitious and bloodthirsty giants
metal ripped off forges and buildings. take this opportunity to ascend the Ordning of Might. Giants
• A saddle of the cavalier (DMG 199) that the giant has taken that have already earned their social standing once again take
as a trophy from a slain adventurer; he is unaware that the umbrage with this new jarl's directives.
saddle is magical.

42
 FROSTFELL RIFT FROSTHENGE
Polar Encounter, Tier II-III Tundra Encounter, Tier I or III
The Arctic is already an unforgiving abattoir; it does not need The ancient circle of glacial menhirs known as Frosthenge has
further dangers to creep in from worlds beyond—but deep into been the subject of speculation for generations. It is frequented
the frozen wastes, that is precisely what has happened. A rift to by tourists and pilgrims alike, all devoid of meaning in their
the Frostfell, the Plane of Ice, has opened, bidding elementals lives—even if they do not know it yet. Even the deranged druid
to enter the Material Plane with no master to obey. Sylberos (described in The Poacher's Nightmare) has pondered
The Breach. The rift is a 5-foot-radius portal housed in a 15- his purpose in life from within Frosthenge.
foot-tall, 10-foot-wide framework of black, glacial ice. Shards The monument consists of eight menhirs of black ice streaked
line it like thorns, and the entire structure emanates an unearthly with white veins. Those who meditate within the circle for an
chill. Creatures that start their turn while within 20 feet of the hour or more gain Inspiration—although most would shiver if
rift, or enter within that area for the first time on their turn, must they learned the source of this guidance. Within each and every
succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw. A creature takes menhirs lies a bound demon. Visitors can be influenced by these
16 (3d10) cold damage on a failure, and half as much on a demons through subtly manipulated introspection and sudden
success. epiphanies. A character that succeeds on a DC 22 Insight check
The rift is almost sentient; it can sense the intentions of others realizes that the many emotions they felt or thoughts they had
and will defend itself as best it can. On initiative count of 20 were the result of outside influences.
(losing initiative ties), the rift can perform one of the effects A character under a spell of detect evil and good can sense
below: the fiends' presence, whereas a spell of detect magic can sense
• The rift can cast gust of wind, wind wall (centered on itself), abjuration surrounding the menhirs and transmutation magic at
Snilloc's snowball swarm, or ice knife (+6 to hit). The spell the center of the circle. Additionally, a character that stares at a
save DC for these spells is 14. menhir for 3d10+10 minutes can make out a fiendish face
• The rift can conjure 2d4+2 ice mephits, 1d3 frost elementals pressed up to the ice as if it were glass.
(water elementals lacking both their Water Form and Freeze Myths Galore. Frosthenge remains a source of debate among
traits that also have immunity to cold damage), one water laymen and scholars. Many claim it was a site of peace between
elemental myrmidon or one frost salamander. The rift can't men and elves. Others say it was where the ancient snow elves
use this effect two rounds in a row and it cannot conjure the and glacier dwarves decided to call an armistice. It may have
same set of creatures more than once if this encounter is run been erected by a druid circle; it may be a holy site for a long-
at Tier II. forgotten deity.
Closing the Rift. A spell of dispel magic (DC 15) is the only No matter Frosthenge's origins, it has since become the tomb
means to safely close the rift. To destroy its framework first of Al'ghr A'til, the long-forgotten archmage that imprisoned the
would allow planar energies to seep into the world, causing Flayed Queen (of the Army of the Damned storyline) eons ago.
incalculable damage in the near- and far-future. A character that The wizard secretly served the undead sovereign and dug out a
succeeds on a DC 13 Arcana check recalls this grave warning. tomb beneath Frosthenge where the secrets on how to find and
Once the rift has been closed, the framework becomes ordinary free her would be preserved—and guarded. It was Al'ghr A'til
ice and can be destroyed safely. who summoned and bound demons into the menhirs, perverting
whatever meaning this ancient monument once had.
DIRE WINTER To gain access to the tomb below, intruders must release and
Opening rifts such as these is the modus operandi of Withrens subdue the demons or utter an incantation its architect left
Fyar, the evil archmage featured in the Dire Winter storyline. behind—an incantation known only by the Flayed Queen and
This rift may be his handiwork or it may have been caused by a her servitors. Once either of these conditions have been met, the
planar convergence (an event in which the Inner Planes creep ground opens up to reveal a spiral staircase.
closer to the Material World). To gain access to the tomb below, intruders can resort to one
of the options below:
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN • Utter a special phrase left behind by Al'ghr A'til known only
by the Flayed Queen and her minions.
This rift may be the source of several horrors already featured • By touching a menhir while under a spell of dispel evil and
in your campaign, making it a worthy quest of your adventurers. good spell and banishing the demons whence they came.
The rift can spawn ice mephits, water elemental myrmidons, • By touching a menhir and willingly bidding a demon to come
frost salamanders, and more. forth. This releases 1d4 demons, each of whom appear atop
If frequent rifts form across the Arctic, the adventurers may their menhir. Once a demon is reduced to 25 or fewer hit
be pressed to find out who or what is responsible. You can pin points, it is drawn back into the menhir. All demons must be
this on a myriad of villains: bheur hags, Withrens Fyar, or even defeated for the tomb to open.
an evil deity of winter, such as Auril, the goddess of winter in
the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. Once one of these conditions has been met, the ground opens
up to reveal a staircase that spirals into darkness below.
Bound Demons. Frosthenge's fiends have been imprisoned
for millennia now. Manipulating mortal is their sole form of
entertainment. Repeat visitors who meditate within Frosthenge
run the risk of becoming corrupted or possessed by a demon, as
if by Abyssal Corruption (see the sidebar on the next page).

43
 The demons consist of three shadow demons, two bulezaus, ABYSSAL CORRUPTION
a barlgura, a glabrezu, and a hezrou. The demons can't move Individuals that linger too long within Frosthenge run the risk of
more than 30 feet from Frosthenge and they can't summon other becoming corrupted by its imprisoned demons. A creature that
demons. spends 1 hour or more meditating, resting, or contemplating within
Map. See the map below; every square is 5 feet. Frosthenge must succeed on a Charisma saving throw (DC 10 + the
total number of hours spent in Frosthenge, up to DC 20).
IN THE TOMB OF THE FORGOTTEN MAGUS On a failure, the character, is corrupted. Roll a d10 and refer to
The tomb is cloaked by magical darkness (functioning as a 2nd- the effects below. A spell of dispel evil and good, remove curse, or
similar magic ends this effect.
level darkness spell) shed by black runes scrawled into its walls.
It consists of the following areas: d10 Effect
A. This crypt contains the bones of the laborers Al'ghr A'til Treachery. The character gains the following flaw:
hired (or coerced) to dig this tomb. If a living creature enters 1-4 "I can only achieve my goals by making sure that
this crypt, these bones animate as 2d4+6 skeletons. my companions don't achieve theirs."
B. This crypt contains the bones of Al'ghr A'til's most loyal Bloodlust. The character gains the following flaw:
apprentices who still haunt the tomb. When a living creature 5-7 "I enjoy killing for its own sake, and once I start, it's
enters this crypt, 1d4+3 specters attack. hard to stop."
C. This chamber sports an ornate sarcophagus depicting a Mad Ambition. The character gains the following
wizardly sphinx; it contains Al'ghr A'til's skeleton. The inside 8-9 flaw: "I am destined to rule the Abyss, and my
of the sarcophagus lid is engraved with the incantation that can companions are tools to that end."
release the Flayed Queen. It is written in a long-dead language Demonic Possession. The character is possessed by
that only the most studious linguists would even recall. For a demonic entity until freed by dispel evil and good
details on releasing the Flayed Queen, see The Glacial Prison. or similar magic. Whenever the possessed character
D. Al'ghr A'til amassed much treasure in his life—and then rolls a 1 on an attack roll, ability check, or saving
squandered it. When he entombed himself, all the wizard had throw, the demon takes control of the character and
10
left were his most precious mementos, which are contained in determines the character's behavior. At the end of
this area. The stone slab covering it is engraved with a symbol each of the possessed character's turns, he or she
spell (PHB pg. 280) that triggers the Death effect if a creature can make a DC 15 Charisma saving throw. On a
moves the slab. To move the slab requires a successful DC 25 success, the character regains control until he or she
Athletics check. rolls another 1.
Within the chamber is a single stone chest containing:
• 4d20+40 pp
Al'ghr A'til left one final trap in his meager hoard. A creature
• A pair of boots of the winterlands (DMG pg. 209)
that takes his spellbook or staff of power activates a glyph of
• A staff of power (DMG pg. 202).
warding (DC 17) containing a geas spell cast at 9th-level, which
• Al'ghr A'til's spellbook, which contains the spells described in
instructs them to "release the Flayed Queen and aid Her Grace
the archmage's statistics, plus every wizardly necromancy
in conquering this worthless world." See PHB pg. 245 & 244
spell ever created, as well as summon greater demon.
respectively for these spells.
A character afflicted by the geas spell is soon telepathically
contacted by the Flayed Queen and bid to serve her now in life,
rather than later in undeath.

ARMY OF THE DAMNED

If you're running the Army of the Damned storyline, the party
might visit this area before or after the lich Cis'tudh comes to
unearth the incantation that will free the Flayed Queen. Cis'tudh
bypasses the demons by uttering Al'ghr A'til's entry incantation.
Any undead still in the tomb instinctively obey her commands.
She is not expecting intruders and has brought no other minions.

B
A
C D

44
 FROSTY THE SNOWMAN TOP HAT OF AWAKENING
Character Encounter, Tier I Wondrous item, rare
This top hat is embroidered with felt sigils. As an action, you can
Having found an enchanted top hat, a group of children created place the top hat on a snowman, animating it. While animated in this
a vicious monstrosity that now haunts the Arctic. This creature's manner, the snowman has the statistics of a scarecrow (with
dreadful reputation precedes itself, and yet it can still get the immunity to cold damage and vulnerability to fire damage) with a
drop on unsuspecting passerby. The mightiest heroes know not random alignment and the ability to speak one language of its
to traffic with this snow golem, this "Frosty the Snowman." creator's. Every top hat of awakening houses one consciousness with
In greener lands, Frosty would be defeated by the coming of its own alignment and personality.
The snowman has a will of its own. It regards you as its creator
spring and the melting of winter snow. Not so in the Arctic,
but is under no compulsion to obey you. It may feel indebted to you,
where he has free reign. He has since become a boogeyman in resentful of the life you breathed into it, or compelled to protect you
the minds of the locals. When someone dies a grisly death in from others.
the snow, they attribute it to the snow golem whose retractable The snowman remains animate so long as the top hat of
claws are, if survivors are to be believed, as long as a man's arm. awakening remains on its head. It can be removed while the
In many settlements, building snowmen has been outlawed so snowman is incapacitated; otherwise, the construct's will keeps the
that the dreaded snow golem cannot hide in plain sight. hat firmly attached to its head and a successful DC 15 Strength
Statistics. Frosty has the statistics of a scarecrow but with check, made as an action, is required to remove it.
immunity to cold damage and vulnerability to fire damage. He The snowman's personality, mind, and memories are persistent.
Even if the snowman is reduced to 0 hit points or its hat is removed,
is indistinguishable from an ordinary snowman while motion-
the snowman is, effectively, reborn if the hat is placed on another
less (save for his top hat of awakening). He can also speak inanimate snowman. As an action, the snowman can remove its own
Common. hat and, in that same motion, place it on another inanimate snowman
Roleplaying Frosty. The snow golem is not evil by nature but within 5 feet, transferring its own consciousness. When it does so, it
by choice—and is fond of reminding his victims of that fact becomes another scarecrow with all its hit points.
whilst tearing them limb from limb. The only people he has any
affection for are the children responsible for his dark birth, who
he periodically visits. Frosty makes sure to leave them presents
THE FRUITS OF DESPAIR
whenever he does so, laying them at the doorstep. He also Polar Night Encounter, Tier I
murders those that would harm or otherwise trouble his Rjuk, a mining village, lies in the shadow of two mountains. Its
creators; his first victim was Sally's bully, Jimothy Tharn. The people suffer an annual winter malaise during the four-month-
children—Sara, Billy, and the tiefling girl Sally—are, long polar night. This seasonal depression is a familiar specter
understandably, terrified of him. Billy, however, secretly has with which the Rjukites grapple with, but a recent tragedy has
Frosty carry out his bidding from time to time. compounded their blues into outright despair. Drawn to this
Tactics. Frosty is fond of ambushing lone individuals, be they despair, a unique meenlock bursts in from the Feywild and into
travelers on the road or unlucky fools in a settlement. He looses the mortal world where it has now begun to create a hive of its
his Terrifying Glare on his first turn and follows up with Claw own dark fey.
attacks on subsequent turns. While near death, he races over to The Tragedy. When 6-year-old Oskar and his infant sister
another snowman and, as an action, transfers his magical top Edith went missing, a search party tracked them to the nearby
hat of awakening to the other snowman. Doing so restores him woods. The trail led to an igloo—a curious sight in the forest.
to his hit point maximum. Its walls were decorated in strange sigils, claim the survivors,
Servant of the Hag. Frosty periodically serves the bheur hag who burst inside in time to see Oskar being stuffed into the
Granny Yrsula (see The Creeping Igloo). If she and her sisters mouth of a hag. Six trackers entered that igloo; two emerged,
survived the Hag Summit encounter, then Frosty may carry a and it was without Edith. "The igloo shuddered," say the
hag eye (see MM pg. 177). survivors, "and hovered above the forest floor on a frigid
cloud." Desperate to save the girl, they clambered towards the
TREASURE igloo's entrance but were cut by flying daggers of ice. They
Frosty is fond of taking trophies from his many victims. In returned to Rjuk later that day, empty-handed and haunted.
addition to his top hat of awakening (see the sidebar), he has Little did Rjuk know that its grief could pave the way to even
squirreled away several treasures into his body. The following greater woes. They came together to mourn a senseless tragedy,
items can be retrieved while Frosty is dead or dormant, or as an and from their united anguish came creatures from a realm not
action by a creature that shoves its hand into Frosty’s snowy meant for mortal eyes. From the darkness emerged a special
body (doing so inflicts 1 point of cold damage): meenlock spawned not by fear, but despair. It has been spotted
• 2d12+17 gp, 3d4+5 sp, and 4d6+18 cp numerous times, clinging to the shadows but growing bolder as
• 1d4 firewood, flint, and a fire striker the days went on. Were this a brighter land not held hostage by
• A silver locket worth 25 gp that has an inlaid portrait of a half- polar night, the fey would be confined to its warren by day. The
elf child (presumably, someone's daughter) townsfolk have fallen to fear as well as despair, which only
• A rusty orcish dagger seems to further empower the creature.
• A hacky sack sewn with the initials "J.T."

45
 Foulspawn. The original meenlock was timid at first,
merely clawing at passerby from the shadows and
fleeing when others intervened. Inevitably, it
overwhelmed a lone teenager named Rhynis.
The boy was paralyzed and dragged into an
old gold mine nearby where no one could
hear his screams. The meenlock battered the A B
boy's mind with psychic malice and fear.
When his body and brain and spirit could take
it no longer, he did not die, but was instead
transformed into another meenlock. For more details
on this metamorphosis, see the Telepathic Torment
sidebar (VGM, pg. 170).
Since then, the meenlocks' numbers have C
swelled. While two have already been slain,
six remain. Each new member is an abducted
and broken victim; while children have been
attacked, none have gone missing, suggesting
that the fey can only transform adults. If these foul creatures are
not vanquished, all of Rjuk may one day become meenlocks.
Villagers. Rjuk's people have learned that the fey shun bright
light, and that they can teleport into pools of darkness. Candles THE WARREN
and lanterns are burned at all times in the villagers' homes to When it first burst into this world, the meenlock claimed an old
stamp out any darkness the fey may use to gain purchase inside. mineshaft as its lair—just one of the many gold mines that
No one is allowed outside in groups of less than three. honeycomb Rjuk's mountains. Its gold and iron were mined
Arrival. When the adventurers first arrive to Rjuk, they long ago, and the Rjukites found no reason to seal it off,
encounter three human watchmen: two LG guards and Karl unaware that a brood of 1d4+2 giant spiders moved in. The fey
Urn, a LG veteran (with a Wisdom score of 15 and a +2 bonus have an unsurprising kinship with these creatures, who have
to Survival checks). Urn is a haunted man; it was he who saw managed to adapt to the cold.
little Oskar's death. His only surviving companion has gone Three meenlocks are currently inside the mine; the others are
missing; Urn suspects either suicide or abduction at the hands in Rjuk proper. If the adventurers fight the meenlocks, the other
of the meenlocks. three sense their intrusion and come to their kin's aid. When the
Roleplaying Urn. The "hag-ordeal" has completely broken party exit the mine, the other meenlocks are lying in ambush.
Urn. Before, he was gregarious; now he is sullen and taciturn. Map. See the Wharton Mine map for details on this warren.
His wife, Aldi, hardly recognizes him now. He has spoken only The giant spiders nest in the nothern chamber, but their webs
once of what he saw in the hag's igloo and has yet to recover litter the mine (see Appendix C for the effects of webs). The
from that nightmare. mine has these features:
Urn has a far-off stare; he hardly looks others in the eye. You • Valuables are piled in Area A—the human possessions of the
can voice him with the following dialogue: meenlocks, discarded upon their transformation into fey. The
• "We are infested. Creatures not of this world lurk in the dark, valuables include furs, 2d6+15 gp, a shortsword, six daggers,
eager to add more to their foul warren. Seven of our people a wooden shield, and a small, glowing crystal trinket.
have disappeared; others have been left maimed. We know • Three giant spiders nest in Area B; they protect their eggs at
where they reside, but we lack the courage and strength to all costs. The other three spiders can be found anywhere else.
enter that warren and put an end to the shadow." • In Area C, three meenlocks are tormenting Olvin Ghor, Karl
• "Carry a light with you. Lamp oil is now more valuable than Urn's surviving companion from the hag ordeal. Ghor is a LN
steel. The creatures… darkness is a road they alone can take." human guard. The fey are on the verge of transforming him
• "On the heels of tragedy… fear." into another meenlock. At the end of the next turn after the
• "I have seen one of these foul creatures; they are like gnomes party enters this area, Ghor must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom
or children in stature but resemble insects—with mandibles saving throw, taking 3d6 psychic damage on a failure, or half
and pincers and clawed feet." as much on a success. If he dies to this damage, he becomes
• "We must rid our land of this foul pestilence so that we may another meenlock with full hit points.
mourn in peace."
Karl knows where the meenlocks reside: a branch of an old RJUK: PURGED
mine. He points the adventurers to it. He can be convinced to If the adventurers slay the meenlocks, the villagers grant them
come along with a successful DC 13 Persuasion check. Alas, free room and board for as long as they need. When the party
his demons get the better of him in the warrens. If he falls prey leaves, they do so with an extra 2d6+10 rations, enough lamp
to the meenlocks' Fear Aura, nightmares of the hag-ordeal are oil to last 12 hours, a coil of rope, and 25 gp.
ripped from the back of his mind to the surface. Unless he is If but a single meenlock survives, it bides its time until these
calmed with a successful DC 15 Persuasion check (made as an mighty vanquishers leave. It then creeps out to repopulate its
action), he becomes incapacitated by the trauma until an hour warren once again…
later—if he lives that long.

46
THE HAG THE GLACIAL GARDEN: STATUES
Granny Yrsula, the bheur hag described in The Creeping Igloo, d20 Statue Description
is the foul creature responsible for this havoc. She can be A snow elf whose limbs have been smashed off,
encountered in The Creeping Igloo. Like all hags, Yrsula must 1 condemning him to life as a quadriplegic if his
devour a live child to propagate. In a week, she will give birth petrification is reversed.
to a child that looks exactly like Edith. She intends to return 2 A dwarf with a smile etched into his face.
"Edith" to her grieving parents. In thirteen years, this daughter 3-4 Two humans huddling together in abject terror.
will transform into a hag; Yrsula will watch her childhood with 4 A yeti cowering in fear.
great interest. A gnoll with its right arm raised as if it were about
5
to strike out at a foe.
A human archer pulling back the drawstring on a
THE GLACIAL GARDEN 6
missing bow (see Treasure below).
Mountain Encounter, Tier II 7 A tiefling wizard frozen mid-incantation.
As punishment for his hubris and vanity, Erasmus, once a snow A gnome who was frozen as she attempted to
elf bard, fell prey to the medusa's curse. Cast out from his kin, 8 wrap a scarf around her eyes. The tattered scarf is
he now haunts a crucial pass in the Arctic that supplies him with still in her hands.
many new victims. Whereas other medusas turn their victims to 9 A female dwarf cleric in mid-prayer.
stone, his gaze turns them to ice. Still just as vain as he was in 10 A barbarian beating his chest as part of a war cry.
better days, the medusa hungers for adulation, real or imagined. 11 A human clutching an arrow lodged in his belly.
He is fond of singing to his garden of victims. On a windless A woman with her hands down near her hips, as if
12
day, his angelic voice is carried across the area, intriguing any she were holding on to two children.
approaching travelers. A child that tripped and is looking up at some
13
Erasmus has claimed a crucial area as his territory, the nature absent horror towering over him.
of which is determined by you. It can be a narrow mountain Three dogs, two cowering behind the third, who is
14-16
pass or an underground tunnel—any place where travelers must bearing his fangs.
choose to soldier on through the apparent danger or backtrack A young remorhaz that dug up from underground.
to a safer route. 17 It had attempted to ambush the medusa but caught
The Garden. Erasmus's twenty victims are coated in fresh its gaze instead.
snow. From a distance, they can be mistaken for snowmen. One 18 A snow elf whose face has been pulverized.
would soon realize that snowmen cannot be arranged into such 19 A snow elf reaching for her severed arm.
poses; gravity would cause the figure to collapse. Once near a 20 A snow elf pointing a finger at Erasmus's cave.
statue, it becomes apparent that its not a snowman but an ice After Erasmus strikes, he begins to sing during combat. His
sculpture. By wiping the snow from a statue's face, and voice is lovely, no matter how grievous his wounds. You can
succeeding on a DC 13 Insight check, a character can realize use any of the sample dialogue (in Elvish) below to voice him:
that the statue's near-featureless visage is carved into a vague • "All will love me and despair!"
mask of horror. • "Your last moments will be admiring my voice."
The Statues. The medusa's intact victims number twenty, but • "It will comfort you to know that this is only the beginning."
several more have been destroyed by the elements, intruders, • "More admirers to add to the garden…"
monsters, or even Erasmus himself when he's lost himself to a
fit of rage. You can determine the nature and appearance of the TREASURE
statue a character analyzes by rolling a d20 and consulting the Whenever a creature is petrified (or, in this case, frozen) by a
The Glacial Garden: Statues table. medusa, objects they're wearing or carrying are not. Erasmus
Tactics. Erasmus is armed with a shortsword emblazoned has stockpiled their belongings in his cave. They include:
with elven glyphs. His shortbow displays similar iconography, • Enough furs, coats, and cold weather clothing to clothe thirty
hinting to his origins as a snow elf or suggesting he stole these travelers. Most have been heaped together to make a bed.
weapons from his victims. • 1d6+3 tinderboxes with 2d4+2 pieces of firewood.
When he leaves his lair to attack, Erasmus makes a Stealth • 2d8+3 rations.
check to remain hidden. Contest it with the party's Perception • 2d4+1 explorer's packs with 3d8+12 feet of rope remaining.
checks. Erasmus is interested more in adding new statues to his • 4d6+13 gp, 2d8+14 sp, 4d6+19 cp stored in a burlap sack
garden, but he still requires sustenance, which he cannot gain • A shortbow plus 3d4+4 simple weapons and 1d6+1 martial
from creatures turned to ice. Those he manages to kill without weapons. See chapter 5 of the PHB.
petrifying will become a meal for the next few weeks. • A bronze orb etched in arcane runes.
Roleplaying Erasmus. Admiration is the only warmth that • A petrified mouse.
can soothe the chilblains of Erasmus's exile. He will spare the • A pair of eyes of minute seeing (see DMG p. 168).
adventurers if it nets him a live, captive audience to appreciate
his singing. He laments in his curse, but time and necessity have
twisted him towards evil; he won't give up his murderous ways.

47
 • Planar travel is blocked within the prison, as are all means of
THE GLACIAL PRISON teleporting in or out. The prison can only be entered through
Character Encounter, Tier III the teleportation circle described below.
In the forgotten caverns far, far below the Citadel—the snow • The cavern is so unearthly cold that even creatures wearing
elves' glorious city—the Flayed Queen gathers strength. Her warm clothing or are resistant to cold damage must succeed
whispers can be heard across the Arctic, marshalling the dead on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw every minute or take
and desperate. Her necromantic cult, the Newly Dead, are hard one level of exhaustion.
at work tending to the undead and searching for the key to their • The cavern is filled with frigid, 5-feet-deep water. Creatures
dark mistress's prison. For eons has the queen languished in her that start their turn in the water, or enter for the first time on
prison, watched over by her gynosphinx jailor, Irhemana. The a turn, must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw
sphinx has failed to notice her charge's waxing influence; she or take 13 (3d8) cold damage, or half as much on a success.
has failed to notice the melting ice and the queen's stirring spirit. This damage ignores resistance to cold damage. Irhemana is
She has failed the world itself and has yet to realize it. immune to this damage.
For further details, see the Army of the Damned storyline. Teleportation Circle. A permanent teleportation circle (as in
The Flayed Queen. In ancient days long forgotten, the Flayed teleportation circle, PHB pg. 282) is found in the adjoining
Queen amassed an undead army and marched upon the living. chambers of the cavern, represented by the star on the map. This
Only by the efforts of the realm's greatest heroes was she bound circle is the only way to enter the prison. It has a unique sigil
in a prison devised by the archmage Al'ghr A'til. Unbeknownst sequence that has been recorded scant times in all of history.
to his companions, A'til served the queen in secret and he left The adventurers might discover the sigil in an ancient tome, by
two flaws in the prison: the teleportation circle's sigils can be interrogating a high-ranking Newly Dead necromancer, or by a
divined, and an incantation can be uttered to free the queen. legend lore spell. Additionally, Homer Erendalias has the sigil
The world at large has forgotten the Flayed Queen's dreadful sequence written down in his spellbook (see Treasure in the
saga, with those that still recall her efforts chalking her up to a Homer's Hovering Hovel encounter).
myth. Those same myths suggest she was once a paladin and Black Glacier. Darker than black, darker than the absence of
queen that "usurped" her impotent, late husband and was flayed all color and light, the Flayed Queen's icy cell dominates the
alive by his "valiant" brother… but she did not die, this queen, cavern. With careful observation, a character notices that the ice
and found in Death all the power she was cheated out of in life. is slowly melting. Irhemana is oblivious to this fact and would
The Flayed Queen's true name was lost long ago. Few mortals refuse to believe it even if it were brought to her attention.
have ever discovered her tomb; those that did were ripped apart One can sense a dreadful presence preserved in the ice. With
by Irhemana—and their tortured spirits are the founders of her the Flayed Queen awake, she can fixate her chilling gaze upon
cult, the Newly Dead. Irhemana, proud as she is, did not realize intruders. If she so wills it, the queen can impose a DC 18
that the queen could raise nearby spirits from her prison bound. Wisdom saving throw upon a creature within 20 feet of the ice.
By underestimating the queen, she has sown the seeds of her On a failure, they are frightened for the next minute. The target
own demise—and the world's. is immune to this effect for 24 hours if they succeed. The queen
The Newly Dead. The Flayed Queen's cult labor endlessly to can only do this once every 1d6 rounds. Irhemana automatically
free their master and prepare the army she will use to revenge succeeds on this saving throw if she has 35 or more hit points.
herself upon the living. In her heightened state, the queen can The glacier has 100 hit points, AC 15, immunity to poison,
commune with creatures all over the continent, combing it for psychic, and cold damage, as well as damage inflicted by non-
power-hungry or nihilistic individuals that will serve her in life magical weapons. Creatures that harm it must succeed on a DC
and in death. They are led by the lich Cis'tudh, her most loyal 15 Wisdom saving throw or suffer disadvantage on weapon and
servant. Should the lich find the key to her master's prison (see spell attacks against the ice for the next minute. Only a wish
Frosthenge), she and the cult invade the Glacial Prison to battle spell can cause the glacier to regain hit points.
Irhemana and free the Flayed Queen. Key. When the Flayed Queen was first bound, an arcane
The City Above. The elves have forgotten their sacred oath— incantation was devised to ensure that she could be freed. When
or, at the very least, the very reason why the Citadel was first this incantation is uttered by a creature that is physically within
constructed. As they continue to magically heat their icy city, 10 feet of the glacier, the ice cracks wide enough for the Flayed
the Flayed Queen's glacial prison melts. This is the source of Queen to step out from her ancient prison.
her awakening, and, if she is freed, she will personally thank the Regardless of how the queen is freed, the death knight has
elves by welcoming them into her army of the dead. two levels of exhaustion when she emerges from the ice. If she
is slain and the Glacial Prison is utterly melted, the Flayed
THE PRISON Queen's soul flees to a purgatorial realm until she amasses the
The Glacial Prison is an icy cavern paved with runic flagstones strength to rise again in the mortal world. If the Glacial Prison
that shed a soft, blue light. At the cavern's heart is a chunk of has even 1 hit point left, her soul is imprisoned once again.
glacial ice, blacker than absolute darkness. The entire prison has Map. Refer to the map below, with each square being 5 feet
the following magical properties: in scale. The teleportation circle is marked by the star in the
• The cavern is dimly lit by the runic flagstones. adjoining chamber.
• While in the prison, creatures do not need to eat or drink.
• Creatures and objects in the prison can't be targeted by
divination spells. Per A'til's design, this does not include the
prison’s teleportation circle.

48
THE JAILOR Tactics. Irhemana uses the tactics below; the prison counts as
The sphinx Irhemana perpetually guards the Glacial Prison. She her lair, granting access to her potent lair actions.
was first summoned by a cleric, one of the heroes that defeated • At the first opportunity, Irhemana casts greater invisibility
the Flayed Queen long ago. The exact deity she serves is long using a legendary action.
forgotten. This same deity gave Irhemana two disciples to help • Irhemana casts shield every round, essentially increasing her
watch over the Flayed Queen: the couatls described in Obelisk- AC to 22. Most of her other spells have little use in combat;
Bound Couatl. Years ago, the couatls disappeared; Irhemana, therefore, she spends her spell slots frivolously.
blind as she is proud, assumed they died or deserted their duty. • Thanks to the nature of Irhemana's mission and the prison,
She holds nothing but contempt for the two devotees that now only her first and second lair actions are useful in battle.
languish in prisons of their own.
Irhemana offers no reprieve to creatures that visit the Glacial
THE FLAYED QUEEN
Prison. There are no riddles they may solve or mercy they may Within the black ice lies a skeleton within the ribs of which
appeal to. After a brief lecture, she attacks. Even creatures she glows a malevolent blue light. In her prison, the Flayed Queen
knows to be definitively good-hearted or pious are torn to has not been humbled, only taught the necessity of patience.
shreds: no one may learn of the Flayed Queen's wards or where- Her telepathic whispers are the first chill of winter, caressing
abouts. the spine like a shiver before invading the brain. When the
Roleplaying Irhemana. The sphinx is graceful and poisoned adventurers first enter the Glacial Prison, her dreadful whisper
by arrogance. As a celestial creature, as a servant of the gods, bounces off the cobbles of their simple minds: "And so the
she considers herself infallible. No evidence can convince her rooks arrive to liberate the queen…"
otherwise. No mortal may judge her, a near-divine creature, and Roleplaying the Queen. The Flayed Queen is free from the
she believes that any fool who dares to press judgement against trappings of mortality. Her soul is as black as the ice that houses
her deserves an undignified death. her. All things, living or otherwise, belong to her; every person
You can voice Irhemana with the sample dialogue below: and every corpse is another citizen of her sovereign demesne.
• "My duty is eternal, my record unmarred. The queen has not, Her regal attention is sterile and suffocating; those that attract
and will never, escape my grasp." her gaze come to regret it.
• "I am afraid this is the last sight you will ever see." You can voice the Flayed Queen with the dialogue below:
• "I take no pleasure in this." • "All that is not already mine shall be one day soon."
• "I am ordained by the Will Above! No mortal may judge me!" • "I am justice; I am law; I am undeniable. There is nothing in
this life but death."

49
• "Strike her down and Death itself will crown you. Free me and
rule this world at my side as my champion—or kneel as my
GLACIER DWARF WARBAND
armies crush you underfoot. You will serve me one way or Tundra Encounter, Tier I-III
the other." Clan Aurora has dispatched a warband from its frozen fortress,
• "You are on borrowed time. Serve me and stand forever." but it has fallen prey to the Arctic's perils. This encounter has
• "You are empty inside; I can give you purpose. I can give you several variants, as described below. Additionally, their mission
everything." may be to patrol the region, avenge a loss, take the fight to their
• "You have done your duty a thousand times over. I have seen enemies abroad, or reclaim lost territory (such as Thelgrym's
you, slayer of men and monsters. We are not so different, are Watch; see the encounter of the same name). Their weapons and
we? We both serve Death in our own ways…" armor—notably carved from glacial ice—and are as sharp and
durable as steel.
LIBERATION AT LAST Leadership. The warband is led by Yolgys Aurora, a grizzled
Having discovered the incantation to free her dark master, the champion with an Intelligence of 15 (+2) and Wisdom of 17
lich Cis'tudh teleports into the Glacial Prison with a host of (+3). Yolgys is the brother of Clan Aurora's king, Rolthym. This
undead and her insidious servants: veteran of two wars and countless skirmishes is known among
• A beholder zombie the dwarves as "the Anvil."
• 1d4+2 wights and a wraith If he survived the massacre at Thelgrym's Watch, then the
• A necromancer that has already cast false life as a 4th-level noble Lord Soram is also with the warband (see the Thelgrym's
spell to gain 23 temporary hit points. Instead of dimension Watch encounter) and the warband is devoted to retaking the
door, he has prepared counterspell. glacial fortress.
The Glacial Prison becomes the scene of a pitched battle as Forces. The warband has been whittled down by accidents,
Irhemana fights off these intruders. Barring the adventurers' sickness, and earlier skirmishes. They now consist of 2d10+10
intervention, Cis'tudh falls beneath Irhemana's claws—but not guards, 1d4+1 knights, 1d4+1 scouts, 1d4+1 veterans, three
before freeing the Flayed Queen, who then slays the sphinx. nobles and two priests. They are served by twelve commoners
Chanting command words given to her long ago by Al'ghr A'til, that act as messengers, porters, and cooks; they also care for the
the death knight opens the teleportation circle and escapes to warband's last surviving messenger hawk and their six mules,
the Citadel, where she calls forth the dead and lays waste to the which pull carts laden with rations, supplies, heavy arms,
city, adding the elves' corpses to her army. armor, and ale.
If the adventurers intervene, Cis'tudh distracts the party with These dwarves have the following racial traits:
her minions as she makes her way to the glacier. To free her • They speak Dwarvish, in addition to Common, and have dark-
master, she must utter the key incantation from within 10 feet. vision to a range of 60 feet.
It is up to the adventurers to stop her. Once within range, she • They have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned
can use three actions to utter the incantation in its entirety. She and resistance to poison damage.
is thwarted temporarily by a silence spell. After uttering the • They are naturally adapted for environments of extreme cold.
incantation, the ice begins to crack. In three rounds, the Flayed • They can each cast ray of frost. Once per day, they can cast
Queen enters the fray, forging her longsword from the shattered both ice knife and flame blade (the blade is forged of ice and
remains of her prison. deals cold damage instead of fire damage). They require no
material components for these spells and Intelligence is the
spellcasting ability for these spells.
Gratitude. If the adventurers aid the dwarves in their plight,
they allow the party to accompany them, sit at their fire, and
share in their food and ale, until a time comes when the two
groups must diverge. The warband covers 16 miles a day when
accounting for the wounded, donkeys, or bad weather.

AGAINST THE GIANTS!

Tier III
The warband is facing their ancient enemies: the frost giants of
Skoldheim. The adventurers come upon a battle between these
two forces—a losing battle. Without intervention, the dwarves
will be routed by the remaining 1d4+2 frost giants, 1d4+3 frost
giant juveniles (ogres with immunity to cold damage), and 1d4
+1 young remorhazes.
The giants have crushed the dwarves but aren't unscathed.
They have the following hit points, which you can determine
with a d6, rerolling repeats: 36, 41, 57, 80, 83, and 102. The
juveniles each have 30-45 hit points remaining.

50
 CACKLE FEVER
This disease targets humanoids, although gnomes are strangely
immune. While in the grips of this disease, victims frequently
succumb to fits of mad laughter, giving the disease its common name
and its morbid nickname: "the shrieks."
Symptoms manifest 1d4 hours after infection and include fever
and disorientation. The infected creature gains one level of
exhaustion that can't be removed until the disease is cured.
Any event that causes the infected creature great stress-including
entering combat, taking damage, experiencing fear, or having a
nightmare-forces the creature to make a DC 13 Constitution saving
AGAINST THE GNOLLS! throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 5 (1d10) psychic damage
Tier II and becomes incapacitated with mad laughter for 1 minute. The
The warband is putting down a cancer of gnolls, many of whom creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns,
ending the mad laughter and the incapacitated condition on a
are already red and pregnant with past kills. These beastmen
success. Any humanoid creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of
consist of 2d10+5 gnolls, a gnoll fang of Yeenoghu, four gnoll an infected creature in the throes of mad laughter must succeed on a
hunters, a gnoll pack lord and a leucrotta. The battle is bloody DC 10 Constitution saving throw or also become infected with the
and spread out; the gnolls have driven a wedge in the dwarves' disease. Once a creature succeeds on this save, it is immune to the
formation and are ravaging both sides. A third of a mile away, mad laughter of that particular infected creature for 24 hours.
2d6+4 hyenas are waiting to feast on the corpses of the slain. At the end of each long rest, an infected creature can make a DC
After 1d4 hours, an engorged hyena bursts, and a new gnoll 13 Constitution saving throw. On a successful save, the DC for this
emerges from its shredded belly. save and for the save to avoid an attack of mad laughter drops by
If the gnoll fang of Yeenoghu escapes, this precipitates the 1d6. When the saving throw DC drops to 0, the creature recovers
from the disease. A creature that fails three of these saving throws
Cycle of Carnage encounter.
gains a randomly determined form of indefinite madness (see App.
C for these effects).
CACKLE FEVER
Tier I Deliverance. After 1d6+4 days, frost gnomes arrive: a priest
The warband has been exposed to an insidious, strange disease: escorted by six guards, all of which are fleeing from a yeti. The
cackle fever (see the sidebar). This malady spreads not through dwarf that first sees them over the horizon shouts, "They're
the flesh, but the very mind. See the sidebar for its effects. The here! By the gods, they're h—to arms! To arms, brothers and
dwarves have had no choice but to halt their march and divide sisters! Our deliverers are under attack!" It takes the dwarves,
the warband into three camps: the infected, the exposed, and the as exhausted as they are, two minutes to muster their warriors,
isolated. The priests, who could have cured the disease, already giving the party the chance to dispatch the yeti first. The
died from the malady, their brains torn asunder. gnomes and yeti are on a hill 800 feet away.
The warband has already sent a messenger hawk to a nearby If the priest is saved, it uses lesser restoration spells to cure
frost gnome warren, appealing for healers, as gnomes cannot be cackle fever. At five castings per day, it takes the priest up to
afflicted by cackle fever, for some odd reason. two weeks to cure the infected.
Crackdown. The uninfected camps are grim and silent. No As frost gnomes, these characters have the following racial
jokes, jests, or tales are allowed to be told, for every laugh and traits:
outburst is suspect. The dwarves are sitting before campfires, • They read, write and speak Gnomish.
poking at coals, whittling wood, or polishing armor. Sentries • They are Small and have a speed of 25 feet.
give the camps wide berths as they patrol the area. Should these • They have darkvision out to a range of 60 feet.
scouts encounter the adventurers, they warn, "Beware, friends: • They have advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma
there has been outbreak of a disease most insidious. No jests, saving throws made against magic.
no jokes, and certainly no limericks, are to be told beyond this • They have resistance to cold damage.
point. Those of you skilled in maladies arcana are asked to • They can move across icy surfaces without needing to make
report to Lord Yolgys." an ability check. Additionally, difficult terrain composed of
Sitting Ducks. The dwarves are vulnerable until the gnomes ice and snow doesn't impede their movement. While moving
arrive or the malady dissipates, which takes 1d4+1 and 1d6+4 down slopes of ice or snow, they have advantage on
days, respectively. In the meantime, any number of creatures or Acrobatics checks to maintain balance.
foes may attack the dwarves (including the gnolls described in
the Against the Gnolls! variant). Starting on the second day, a
manticore that lairs five miles away decides to start hunting the
dwarves, starting first with the scouts, then wading right into
the infected camp. The monster is immune to cackle fever and
it can ravage the sick with impunity. Using cloud cover to its
advantage, the manticore drops from the sky to grapple prey,
bringing it back to its lair. If it takes 15 points of damage in a
single round, it must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw
or drop its prey.

51
 GLOBAL WARMING
Polar, Urban or Volcanic Encounter, Tier IV
Together, the Cults of the Eternal Flame and the Crushing Wave
have doomed the world to a new and watery age. They have
summoned a phoenix to this world, using Mount Erebys as its
gateway from the Plane of Fire. Most perished in its fiery birth;
in their arrogance, the cult always assumed that they would be
spared the elder elemental's wrath, as if they could cup such fire
in their hands and remain unburnt. The survivors, the cultists of
the Crushing Wave, are directing a frigid flood towards the sea, THE FLOODS
devastating settlements along the way.
Weakened by the phoenix's thunderous arrival, glaciers around
See Edge of Disaster, the predecessor to this encounter, as
the Arctic are ready to melt. As the elder elemental tours the
well as the Global Warming storyline for details. As described
Arctic, the cultists direct the ensuing floods towards the sea—
above, the cultists are now dead (with exception for the Searing
but not before directing them at a settlement.
Sultan, an efreeti collaborator). However, the Crushing Wave
Cultists. Cultists are scattered across the region in groups of
cult placed the bulk of their numbers elsewhere to help direct
1d6+2 crushing wave reavers, 1d4+2 crushing wave priests,
the floods that will be born from melting ice. The cultists intend
and a mage with control water prepared instead of suggestion.
to crush Arctic settlements on the way to the sea.
Each group also has either 1d3 water elementals or one water
The phoenix's very presence melts snow and ice within 300
elemental myrmidon at their command. 1d6+4 groups are
feet of the elemental. Thanks to the phoenix's legendary cycle
scattered across the region.
of rebirth, slaying the elder elemental only delays the inevitable.
Flooding. The flood harnessed by the Crushing Wave cultists
Unless the egg is banished to another plane or outright removed
can destroy settlements and uproot forests. Huge or smaller
from the Arctic, this encounter is doomed to repeat itself.
creatures that are struck by the flood must succeed on a Strength
THE FIRE FROM MOUNT EREBYS saving throw or take 27 (5d10) bludgeoning damage. A creature
can only take this damage once per round. A creature that is
The phoenix's emergence is heard all across the Arctic; thunder
caught in the flood can move by swimming if they succeed on
cracks out across the region, scarring glaciers and setting off
a DC 15 Athletics check. The flood deals 50 damage to any
avalanches. The very force of its entry can be felt in the bones
structure it strikes.
of beast and men alike; birds take flight and animals flee from
a perceived disaster. In the moments after this shockwave, Mt. THE PHOENIX TRIUMPHANT
Erebys erupts; the eruption causes an earthquake that rocks the
The phoenix tirelessly continues its flight, stopping only when-
Arctic from as far as three hundred miles away. The skies above
ever it wishes to destroy something—a settlement, typically.
the volcano blacken with smoke and ash as the phoenix spreads
For every 1d12 hours the elemental flies across the region,
its wings and, with a thunderous shriek, takes to the air.
enough ice melts to raise sea levels by 1 foot. There is enough
If the phoenix is slain here, much of its damage is contained,
ice in this polar region to increase sea levels by 230 feet.
sparing the world from rising sea levels. Unless attacked, the
Other heroes inevitably rise to the occasion if the adventurers
elemental circles Mount Erebys for several minutes, basking in
don't, but by then sea levels would have risen by 2d12+6 feet,
the destruction it causes. The Searing Sultan too basks in this
drowning coastal cities and sparking mass migrations of people.
carnage, flying in the phoenix's wake.
Nations around the world fall to chaos, allowing sinister forces
Tactics. If the phoenix and efreeti are engaged, they employ
to rise up and accomplish their dark agendas in the absence of
the following tactics:
order.
• On his first turn, the efreeti casts conjure elementals, adding a
fire elemental to the fray. If the battle is in the air, the fire
elemental rides on the phoenix (as if it were solid).
• While concentrating on a spell, the efreeti makes Hurl Flame
attacks. If his concentration is broken, he casts enlarge/
reduce on himself, dealing 1d4 extra damage with his attacks.
• The phoenix weaves through all foes (without provoking any
opportunity attack, thanks to its Flyby trait) to sear them with
its Fire Form trait.
• If the phoenix is slain, the efreeti snatches the phoenix's egg
and attempts to flee (with a plane shift spell if he knows there
can be no reprieve on the Material Plane).

52
 GRANDMA GOT MAULED GREATFATHER WINTER'S FIEFDOM
Polar Encounter, Tier III
BY AN OWLBEAR
Taiga or Urban Encounter, Tier I In the most remote reaches of the Arctic, far from civilization,
lies Greatfather Winter's fabled domain. This Yuletide fanatic
A local green hag masquerading as a sweet, beloved crone has offers respite to all who grace his fiefdom with a visit—that's
gone missing; her village found the iconic tracks of an owlbear what the signs planted throughout the Arctic insist, of course.
leading from her bloodied shawl. Unaware of the true monster Those that live under this tyrant's heel know a much grimmer
among them, the villagers have put out a 25 gp bounty on the life than the one painted by folklore.
owlbear and are asking for volunteers to help search for "Old As the adventurers delve deeper into the frozen wastes, they
Kathrys," whom they believe may still be alive. The party may see a bright stronghold festooned in gaudy, Yule decorations.
encounter the trackers in the forest or enter the village itself. Great herds of reindeer crowd around its walls, sheltering in the
Village. Crook's Den is a village of forty people that sits on many barns littering the otherwise desolate region.
the edge of a taiga. Were it not for the road running through it,
the village would not even appear on any maps. Travelers GREATFATHER WINTER
headed deeper into the Arctic stay in its sole inn to relish An archfey that has succumbed to a strange breed of madness,
warmth and civilization before committing themselves to the Greatfather Winter is obsessed with Yuletide, the annual winter
frozen wastes. Little happens in the village; the crone's festival. Some claim he has become Yule incarnate. His greatest
disappearance, and the discovery of the attack, is all anyone can ambition is to bring peace and joy to the world through gifts and
talk about. So beloved is the hag that many are claiming that the good cheer. To other fey, he is an insane but harmless lord. To
25 gp reward cheapens Old Kathrys, that there is no bounty too mortals, he is a source of annual festivity. To the rock gnomes
high to recover (or avenge) her. under his thumb, he's a merciless despot.
In the Forest. Old Kathrys's blood-stained shawl was found Statistics. Up to and through Yuletide (which occurs during
in a clearing a mile from the village. The first person to discover the last ten days of the year) Father Winter is a spring eladrin.
it found owlbear tracks leading into the woods, but the trail has In the first month of the new year, he loses himself to despair,
gone cold. With a successful DC 14 Survival check, a character assuming the statistics of a winter eladrin. In addition to his
can pick up the trail and follow it to a nearby cave where they normal statistics, he has the following changes:
find Kathrys alive and bewitching the owlbear. • He can cast awaken and plant growth, requiring no material
The green hag sought to subjugate the owlbear but failed. It components, once a day each.
savaged her and only through clever magic did she appear to be • While he has the statistics of a spring eladrin, Greatfather
dead, sparing her from greater harm. The beast brought her back Winter has resistance to cold damage.
to its lair to feed, where she sprang up to perform a ritual that
would bend the owlbear to her will. The creature is mollified Roleplaying Father Winter. The feylord considers himself
while she works her magic; in less than a minute, she completes the ultimate arbiter (with exception for, of course, his darling
the ritual and has permanent control over the owlbear. wife). His judgment is never anything short of impeccable. He
Kathrys is too engrossed in her spellwork to notice passerby, believes all people can change, if given the proper motivation.
suffering a -3 penalty to her passive Perception score. Curiously For the children of the world, coal is the proper punishment, one
enough, she appears unwounded and her robes are unbloodied that is "guaranteed" to shape them into better people. For adults,
(thanks to her Illusory Appearance trait). The hag's magic has "reeducation" is the only method; Father Winter is loathe to kill
no visual elements; it appears that she's dancing in front of a others, except for out of self-defense or at his wife's insistence.
pacified, bored owlbear. Using an action, a character can make Those that betray his trust or ideals, or try to escape his domain,
a DC 20 Investigation check to see through the hag's illusion, are confined to the cells below the keep. "Redemption," the
revealing a wart-faced creature that has been raked by savage feylord is fond of saying, "is attainable by all, given time."
talons. Additionally, a character that watches Kathrys can make Patron. Greatfather Winter is a minor archfey patron. He has
a DC 13 Insight check to realize she is performing a spell; with already patronized his eight favored reindeer.
a DC 13 Arcana check, they ascertain she is bending the beast Treasure. Greatfather Winter never goes anywhere without
to her will. his crystal ball (DMG pg. 159), which he uses to judge children
Attack! By when the party attacks, the hag has only a single from afar. Even while he tours the assembly line, punishes a
round left to complete her ritual, which she must use her action dissident, or holds a celebration, he can't go more than a minute
to perform. The ritual is interrupted if she is incapacitated. If without consulting the orb. His second other great treasure is
she is not slain before the start of the next round, the owlbear is his sleigh of reindeer flight (see the sidebar).
bent to her will. It obeys her telepathic commands and attacks
the adventurers. If Kathrys dies, the owlbear is free from her GREATMOTHER WINTER
grasp, but continues to attack the adventurers. The dark architect of this twisted enterprise, the feylord's wife
Likewise, Kathrys must protect her dark secret. If discovered is an undisguised bheur hag. This "Greatmother Winter" isn't
by intruders, she has no choice but to sic the owlbear on them. responsible for her mad husband's Yuletide obsession, but she
Both Kathrys and the owlbear are wounded; she has 57 hit stoked the coals all the same. When she got here, the feylord
points while the beast has 49. was crafting every toy himself by hand. It was the hag that
recognized Winter's great potential; it was the hag that brought
the rock gnomes; it was the hag that fashioned Winter's sleigh
from the wood of her own graystaff. The brutality, the tyranny,
the terror—all are fruits from the black garden that is "Great-
mother Winter's" heart.
53
 Dark Sisterhood. Greatmother Winter is one of the three hags FATHER WINTER'S REINDEER
involved in the Dark Sisterhood sample storyline. When the trio A herd of two hundred reindeer inhabit Winter's domain. Like
finally agree to meet (see Hag Summit), her departure shatters the gnomes, they are captives. So far north, there is little food
Greatfather Winter. His mind unravels and he decides that for these beasts, except for what the feylord magically grows.
strong words and coal can't right the world—only he can. The Half are awakened reindeer (as in the awaken spell) who speak
feylord abandons his stronghold, and without him it becomes a Sylvan and have Intelligence scores of 10 but otherwise have
cold and skeletal lair. The rock gnomes starve to death once the the statistics of elks.
garden wilts and dies to the cold. In his absence, his enforcers The Awakened. When a reindeer is born, Greatfather Winter
move onto better endeavors. The reindeer flee, free from the may visit its family to cast the awaken spell upon it, granting it
cults of personality centered on the Big Eight, who are taken to sapience and, as he says, the appreciation for all his gifts. Truly,
fly the feylord's sleigh. See Greatfather Winter's Wrath. they become prisoners in his compound. There seemingly is no
rhyme or reason as to which reindeer are awakened. The feylord
FATHER WINTER'S HELPERS graces the offspring of awakened reindeer just as often as he
For over a century now, rock gnomes have toiled under Great- bestows sapience on the calf born to mundane parents.
father Winter's regime. They at first numbered forty-seven, and The Cattle. Although it is taboo to mention it, the reindeer
were brought here from the Feywild. Now they've swelled to a that Greatfather Winter deigns not to awaken are considered as
robust, miserable ninety-four. They are, effectively, emaciated cattle to be later slaughtered. Their pelts are fashioned into coats
slaves in cheerful outfits. They have nowhere to go: so deep into and their hooves, bones, and antlers are incorporated into toys
the Arctic, with nothing more than thin linen uniforms to keep for children. The rock gnomes are carefully fed rations just
them warm, the rock gnomes live and die by the grace of Great- large enough to keep them alive but not enough to give them
father Winter and his wicked wife. The feylord provides them the strength to rebel against the feylord.
warmth and food and purpose. To even frown, let alone voice a This grim truth is a wedge between the awakened reindeer
complaint, is to incur his wrath—reeducation in the frigid cells and the rock gnomes. For their part, the unawakened reindeer
below the keep. Repeat offenders are banished to the frozen live their simple lives, never understanding the abattoir they
wastes with no clothes or sense of direction. were born into. Many reindeer envy this ignorance.
Statistics. Three generations make up the work force. Every Celebrities. Father Winter requires a team of eight reindeer
rock gnome adult and teenager has the statistics of a commoner to pull his sleigh during Yuletide. His current team—"the Big
with a +4 bonus to skill checks made with any artisan's tools. Eight"—consist of Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet,
The gnomes are emaciated; Father Winter only feeds them just Cupid, Blitzen, and Cannibal. Of the Big Eight, Blitzen is the
enough food to keep them alive. cruelest, Vixen the haughtiest, and Cannibal the most terrifying;
Leader. The rock gnomes' unbreakable leader is Selsi Falba. it should come as no surprise as to how this last reindeer caught
She's currently serving out her first term of "reeducation." At Greatfather Winter's attention…
almost 200 years old, Selsi is from the first generation of Father The Big Eight are treated as celebrities, for they alone have
Winter's "helpers." She maintains that only through hope and the ear of Greatfather Winter. The other reindeer do anything to
patience can her people be free—at least until she meets the avoid incurring the feylord's wrath. Any reindeer that fails to
adventurers, after which she insists they immediately slay their obey the Big Eight, or displeases them in any way, is forsaken
cheerful tyrant. by the herd.
The Big Eight have the statistics of Large-sized giant elks
FATHER WINTER'S ENFORCERS that have been patronized by Greatfather Winter, which allows
A despot does not rule without enforcers. Greatfather Winter is them to read all writing and see normally in darkness both
served by unscrupulous individuals devoted to his vision of magical and nonmagical, out to a range of 120 feet.
global good cheer—or, at least, his iron regime.
Belsnickel. This korred remembers a time when Greatfather
Winter was like any other feylord—vapid and without purpose.
Seeing the hag turn him into a force of personality was enough
for Belsnickel to sign on. As a korred, strands of Belsnickel's
beard magically become the same material of the implement
used to cut it off; for example, by cutting his beard with iron
shears, his beard becomes woven iron. Belsnickel is the source
of the operation's wood and metal.
Grentyl. Darting through the factory is a vicious NE sprite
whose true name is known only by Greatfather Winter. The
gnomes refer to him as Grentyl or "watcher" in Gnomish. The
voyeur is always watching, always listening the gnomes remind
each other. Grentyl's only purpose is to identify dissidents for
the feylord to deal with.
Automatons. Forged by the rock gnomes and imbued with
Greatfather Winter's madness, 2d6+3 animated armors keep
order in the feylord's fiefdom. They are led by a helmed horror
that considers itself the son and heir of Greatfather Winter.

54
 H

FATHER WINTER'S KEEP • 9,000 gp, 11,000 sp, and 858 cp, along with nine gemstones
The feylord's stronghold is a unique sight so deep into the Artic, worth 300 gp apiece (including three diamonds).
where strongholds become nearly impossible to build without • An elixir of health and sixteen potions of cold resistance (PHB
the aid of magic. For eleven months out of the year, the keep is pg. 168 & 188).
warm and cheerful, just like its master. Yet in the weeks that • A Quaal's bird feather token (PHB pg. 188), proving that the
follow Yuletide, the halls become frigid to reflect Greatfather bastard could've sent the rock gnomes home at any point.
Winter's transformation into a winter eladrin. • A staff of the woodlands (PHB pg. 204).
Map. For a condensed but fitting map, refer to Guildhall and • Greatfather Winter's sleigh of reindeer flight (see the sidebar).
Temple of the Ancient Masters. The Crypt serves as the dungeon • The bag of holding Greatfather Winter uses to carry presents.
for dissidents; the Guards' Keep is the gnomes' quarters (with
twenty-five four-story bunkbeds built to gnomish dimensions GREATFATHER WINTER'S WRATH
scattered about the chambers). Gnomes toil to build toys in the Character Encounter, Tier III
Main Hall through a unmechanized assembly line. The scale
Distraught by the death or disappearance of his darling wife,
equals 5 feet per square.
Greatfather Winter has decided to right the world through the
Gardens. Outside the keep are gardens that persist in this
only method left to him: violence.
harsh climate solely by Greatfather Winter's will. The feylord
Declaring once and for all that Yuletide has been corrupted
ensures the stronghold has enough food through repeated spells
by selfish mortals, Father Winter has abandoned his stronghold
of plant growth.
in the frozen north, leaving the rock gnomes to wither away. He
Hoard. Greatfather Winter keeps his fortune in the chamber
has rallied eight reindeer to pull his sleigh of reindeer flight (see
marked with a "H" on the map. The door is locked with an
the sidebar) and enlisted four quicklings to fire arrows while he
arcane lock spell, requiring a successful DC 22 Dexterity check
strafes passerby from above.
with thieves' tools to open or DC 25 Athletics check to break
This encounter occurs if Greatmother Winter dies in Great-
down. His treasure includes:
father Winter's Fiefdom or leaves as part of Hag Summit. Lost
to rage and grief, Greatfather Winter has assumed the statistics
of a summer eladrin capable of casting flame arrows (XGE pg.
SLEIGH OF REINDEER FLIGHT 156) thrice per day.
Wondrous item, legendary Reindeer. Provided that none of them were slain previously,
This sleigh is festooned in gaudy paraphernalia. This Large-sized the reindeer are "the Big Eight:" Dasher, Dancer, Prancer,
object is 8-feet-wide, 6-feet tall, and 12-feet-long. When four or Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Blitzen, and Cannibal. Each are Large-
more reindeer are bridled to the sleigh, the creatures and the sleigh sized giant elks that can see normally in both magical and
gain a flying speed of 60 feet. Additionally, any creatures bridled to mundane darkness, out to a range of 120 feet. They can also
the sleigh or riding in it can breathe normally up to elevations of
read all writing. In combat, they take the Dodge action.
30,000 feet. They are also inured against extreme heat or cold.
The sleigh itself can hold up to 500 pounds. If it ever exceeds this If any of the Big Eight were slain prior to this encounter,
weight, the sleigh cannot gain further altitude and descends gently they've been replaced by new reindeer similarly awakened and
to the ground at a rate of 30 feet per turn. The sleigh crashes if it is patronized by the feylord.
being pulled by three or less reindeer. An incapacitated reindeer does
not fall but does not count as one of the reindeer pulling the sleigh.

55
 Quicklings. In his wife's absence, Father Winter appealed to
the Queen of Air and Darkness, ruler of the Unseelie Court of
GROVE OF THE RECLUSIVE DRUID
fey. Delighting in Winter's fall from grace, she sent him four Taiga Encounter, Tier II
quicklings. These fey are bound by a geas spell (PHB pg. 244); For the last year, an orc archdruid has been casting druid grove
they must obey Winter's every command. They are armed with (see XGE pg. 154 and the sidebar) on her forest home, targeting
gaudy longbows and have a near-unlimited supply of arrows. three 90-foot-cube areas. If she can cast the spell once more in
The quicklings are immune to Greatfather Winter's Fearsome an area, the effects become permanent. Her efforts, however,
Presence trait. are threatened by marauding centaurs vassalized by snow elves
who crave to add this magical grove to their demesne.
TACTICS The druid, Wurgotha, is a kind soul who knows that no person
Greatfather Winter is interested only in vengeance; he accepts should seek to master nature. If visitors to her grove would just
no quarter and will hear no parley. From the air, he strafes the ask to hunt, collect firewood, or shelter there, she would oblige.
adventurers, loosing a storm of arrows. If five or more of his She has sworn an oath of pacifism after years of raiding others
reindeer are slain or incapacitated, the sleigh crashes, inflicting with her tribe. To take another person's life, she believes, is to
up to 20d10 bludgeoning damage to Father Winter's forces. compromise her very soul. She is searching for any nonviolent
• Greatfather Winter flies at an altitude of 120 feet so that his solution for the marauders at her doorstep.
reindeer can see the ground. He orders them to pull up to a When Wurgotha detects visitors to her corner of the forest,
maximum altitude of 600 feet if they take heavy fire from she greets them with an owl under an animal messenger spell.
below. The sleigh has a flying speed of 60 feet. The snow owl, speaking in her raspy voice, says in Common,
• The reindeer take the Dodge action while airborne, imposing "Welcome to my woods. I am Wurgotha. Greet me with peace
disadvantage on attack rolls made against them, and gaining and I will do the same. Violence is not welcome in my grove."
advantage on Dexterity saving throws. Do not bother running Wurgotha has an accent common to the orcs of the Arctic.
their turns, as it will only slow down combat. When Wurgotha meets the adventurers, she makes an Insight
• The quicklings act on separate initiatives, making three long- check (contested against a character's Deception check, if any)
bow attacks each (+8 to hit, range 150/600 ft., 11 (1d10+6) to determine for herself if they're wicked. If satisfied with her
piercing damage). To streamline combat, consider using the perception, she offers that they camp in her grove. She offers to
average damage instead of rolling. share her eggs and venison.
• Greatfather Winter is concentrating on flame arrows, adding Statistics. Wurgotha is a LG orc archdruid with the changes
1d6 fire damage to his first twelve attacks. He makes two below:
longbow attacks per turn (+9 to hit, range 150/600 ft., 14 (2d8 • She has darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
+5 piercing damage) plus 4 (1d8) fire damage, in addition to • She speaks Druidic, Common, Orcish, and Sylvan.
flame arrows' extra damage. • As a bonus action, she can move up to half her speed towards
• If the sleigh falls from the sky, it's revealed that the helmed a hostile creature she can see.
horror (if it wasn't previously destroyed) was hiding in the • Once per long rest, when she's reduced to 0 hit points, she can
sleigh. It flies out to meet the adventurers in combat, strafing instead be reduced to 1 hit point.
them from above. • She is a 15th level spellcaster and lacks a 9th level spell slot.
• Greatfather Winter flees if he is reduced to 30 or fewer hit She prepared druid grove and goodberry instead of animal
points or if three reindeer are slain. He cares nothing for the shapes, and firestorm. She also lacks dominate beast, meld
quicklings' lives. The feylord vows to avenge himself on the into stone, and stoneskin.
adventurers at a later date. Roleplaying Wurgotha. Unlike some druids, Wurgotha can
still appreciate the circle of life and devotes herself to keeping
TREASURE the balance in her woods. When too many elk arise, she hunts
Having abandoned his stronghold and fortune, Father Winter them alongside wolves. Erstwhile, she culls wolves whenever
has only a bag of holding, which holds 5d10+30 arrows, 3d10 they risk depleting the forest's wildlife. The extent of her
+20 rations, and four small bales of hay. pacifism only includes other people; she knows that to extend
You can also include a longbow of flaming arrows, if you that to beasts is foolish—at least until hunters grow too greedy.
would rather reward your adventurers with an item for besting The Grove. Wurgotha's grove consists of three 90-foot-cubes
Greatfather Winter. This rare, magical longbow allows the arranged in a loose circle. Each cube has been touched by the
wielder to cast flame arrows thrice per day, regaining expended druid grove spell. Four awakened trees guard the grove; she
uses at dawn. It requires attunement. In this variant, Father has ordered them to spare the lives of others, even if it
Winter casts flame arrows through the bow instead. guarantees her death. Two wind wall spells are in every cube,
one of which Wurgotha stands in while casting druid grove.

56
 DRUID GROVE
You invoke the spirits of nature to protect an area outdoors or underground. The area can be as small as a 30-foot cube or as large as a 90-
foot cube. Buildings and other structures are excluded from the affected area. If you cast this spell in the same area every day for a year,
the spell lasts until dispelled.
The spell creates the following effects within the area. When you cast this spell, you can specify creatures as friends who are immune to
the effects. You can also specify a password that, when spoken aloud, makes the speaker immune to these effects.
The entire warded area radiates magic. A dispel magic cast on the area, if successful, removes only one of the following effects, not the
entire area. That spell's caster chooses which effect to end. Only when all its effects are gone is this spell dispelled.
Solid Fog. You can fill any number of 5-foot squares on the ground with thick fog, making them heavily obscured. The fog reaches 10
feet high. In addition, every foot of movement through the fog costs 2 extra feet. To a creature immune to this effect, the fog obscures
nothing and looks like soft mist, with motes of green light floating in the air.
Grasping Undergrowth. You can fill any number of 5-foot squares on the ground that aren't filled with fog with grasping weeds and
vines, as if they were affected by an entangle spell. To a creature immune to this effect, the weeds and vines feel soft and reshape themselves
to serve as temporary seats or beds.
Grove Guardians. You can animate up to four trees in the area, causing them to uproot themselves from the ground. These trees have
the same statistics as an awakened tree, except they can't speak, and their bark is covered with druidic symbols. If any creature not immune
to this effect enters the warded area, the grove guardians fight until they have driven off or slain the intruders. The grove guardians also
obey your spoken commands (no action required by you) that you issue while in the area. If you don't give them commands and no intruders
are present, the grove guardians do nothing. The grove guardians can't leave the warded area. When the spell ends, the magic animating
them disappears, and the trees take root again if possible.
Additional Spell Effect. You can place your choice of one of the following magical effects within the warded area:
• A constant gust of wind in two locations of your choice
• Spike growth in one location of your choice
• Wind wall in two locations of your choice
To a creature immune to this effect, the winds are a fragrant, gentle breeze, and the area of spike growth is harmless.

THE WOLVES AT THE GATE HAG SUMMIT

At dawn, the woods echo with the thunder of a hundred hooves: Mountain Encounter, Tier III
2d10+5 NE centaurs gallop towards Wurgotha's grove. At their
For years now, three bheur hags haunting the Arctic have toyed
side are three snow elves astride armored reindeers (barded elks
with the idea of forming a coven. Like all hags, they detest the
with an AC of 17). They consist of a knight, an archer, and an
company of others (especially their kin) and prefer to be left to
abjurer wearing a brooch of shielding (see DMG pg. 156).
their own dark devices. The time has come, however, for Lone
The snow elves have the following changes to their statistics:
Miyareth, Granny Yrsula, and Greatmother Winter to unite—
• They are lawful evil or neutral evil.
perhaps because of the Aurora Arcana event, perhaps because
• They have darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
of an outside threat, perhaps even out of fear of a meddlesome
• They have advantage on saving throws against being charmed
adventuring party. There is but one moment to eliminate the trio
and magic can't put them to sleep.
before they bind their magic together into a power greater than
• They have advantage on Stealth checks to remain hidden in
the sum of its parts.
snowy terrain.
As night falls, the hags emerge from the wilderness, heralded
• They each know three transmutation spells on the wizard spell
by sleet storms and a rain of hail. As is customary, each hag has
list: one cantrip, a 1st-level spell and a 2nd-level spell. They
brought a gift for each of her new sisters (see Treasure below).
can cast the latter two spells once per day. Typically, a snow
Map. Refer to the map below. Areas marked with an "X" are
elf knows gust, shape water, catapult or jump.
covered in slippery ice (see Appendix C). The scale equals 5
The centaurs surround the grove in groups of three to five. feet for every square.
The snow elf abjurer casts tongues on himself and shouts, Weather. The summit suffers under the following weather:
"Druid! We of the Citadel have come to welcome you as an • The area is dimly lit by a full moon, and lightly obscured by
honorary citizen of our great nation! Cast your spell, I implore snowfall.
you, and allow this grove to be a beacon of peace and prosperity • Fierce winds howl, imposing disadvantage on Perception
in this magnificent forest!" checks reliant on hearing.
The abjurer, of course, is just as ready to murder Wurgotha.
Minions. The hags must be protected while they perform the
His orders are to ensure that the grove is permanently warded
ritual of binding. To that end, each has brought minions, which
(by force, if necessary) and then betray her. If she does not
patrol the area:
acquiesce, he sends in his centaurs. The elf is cautious and paces
• A yeti and a goliath werewolf (with a +4 Athletics bonus).
the battle out across half an hour, with the centaurs firing arrows
• 2d4+6 animated snowmen (scarecrows with immunity to cold
from the tree line; he himself hurls spells from out of sight. If
damage and vulnerability to fire damage).
the adventurers aren't content to wait out this siege and instead
• 1d4+2 penguinweres (jackalweres able to hold their breath
take the fight to the elves, the abjurer obliges them.
for 30 minutes, and that have a swimming speed of 30 feet
Wurgotha, for her part, believes that warding the grove is a
and are resistant to cold damage).
purpose that extends beyond her. When the invaders attack, she
• A bound peryton that the hags can call upon during battle by
does her best to cast three druid grove spells (each taking 10
using a bonus action; the creature descends from the sky.
minutes). Believing she will be guilty by proxy, she asks the
adventurers to abstain from murder. Wurgotha is willing to
surrender the grove after her spells are cast.

57
 THE WORDS OF BINDING
The Ritual of Binding is, historically, conducted in Sylvan, but the
bheur hags prefer Giant or Auran. The incantations they chant are
detailed below; the verses rhyme better in Giant.
The night is done, the sun draws near
It is not death, but life, we fear
In one breath, we are bound!
As one coven, we are crowned!
Together we three, our fate is spun!
X From this moment, 'til the night is won!

Sacrifice. Like much of a hag's magic, the Ritual of Binding

X is steeped in symbolism. It represents the union of three outcasts
desperate to weather the world's scorn. The ritual can be sealed
only in the blood of another pariah, this one innocent of any and
X X all contempt. The victim the hags have selected is a tiefling girl
named Salilah (or "Sally"). She has done no more wrong than
any other child yet faces daily suspicion and scrutiny due to her
X infernal heritage. Salilah is the coven's unwitting and unwilling
martyr, stolen from her home by Granny Yrsula's minions.
Salilah is a tiefling commoner with 1 hit point and resistance
to fire damage. She has yet to learn how to harness her infernal
Precautions. The hags are more paranoid than ever, knowing
powers. She is bound by silk rope (2 hit points; it can be burst
that tonight, during the ritual, they'll be at their most vulnerable.
with a DC 17 Strength check).
In addition to their minions, the hags have taken the following
Circle of Binding. The Ritual of Binding is performed in a
precautions:
30-foot-radius circle of glyphs carved into the ice coating the
• Lone Miyareth has laid an alarm spell on the summit's climb,
summit. The summit is brightly lit by these glyphs, which emit
which mentally alerts her when intruders approach.
azure light. The air is pregnant with ambient magic. With an
• Granny Yrsula has coated the summit's climb with 10-foot-
action, a character can disrupt a 5-foot-section of glyphs but
square patches of slippery ice (see Appendix C). These areas
doing so provokes an outburst of wild magic centered on that
are marked with an "X" on the map.
section or targeting the character that destroyed it. Roll on the
• Greatmother Winter has positioned herself atop the hill to rain
Wild Magic table (PHB pg. 103) to determine the outburst's
death upon interlopers.
ensuing effect.
Treasure. The hags have each brought a gift for their sisters: Foiling the Ritual. The adventurers have a mere two minutes
• Granny Yrsula has brought a jar that, when broken, unleashes before the ritual is complete. Every second counts as they fight
a cloud of daggers spell (save DC 14), and a cloak of many through the hags' minions, mount the summit, and face off
fashions (XGE pg. 136) sized for a child. against the hags. The ritual is foiled if any of the following
• Greatmother Winter has brought a snow globe containing a conditions are met:
trapped family of shrunken humans; if the globe is broken, • Salilah is killed prematurely or removed from the circle
the humans revert to their original size. She has also brought • Five 5-foot-sections of the circle are destroyed
a 3-foot-long candy cane that functions as an immovable rod • A hag is stunned (preventing her from chanting), slain or
(DMG pg. 175). removed from the circle
• Lone Miyareth has brought two effigies, each fashioned after
So far into the ritual, the hags are free to fight. So long as they
a hero that stayed at her inn (see Traveler's Respite for more
chant their incantations, the ritual continues until its victim
details on these effigies).
must be slain.
Sudden Storm. Swollen with ambient power, the hags have
THE RITUAL OF BINDING greater control over the weather during the ritual. At initiative
One does not enter into a coven lightly; the inaugural ritual cuts
count 20 (losing initiative ties), one of the effects below occur;
deep into a hag's body and soul, leaving jagged scars that might
Greatmother Winter, as the greatest of the hags, chooses the
never heal, especially if the coven is torn asunder and not ended
effect. In her absence, Yrsula chooses.
properly. For bheur hags, this Ritual of Binding is an hour-long
• A smaller sleet storm spell (DC14) affects a 10-foot-high, 20-
affair that can only be conducted under snowfall and a full
foot-radius cylinder until the start of the next round.
moon. At the end of the hour, the hags seal their covenant with
• A strong wind sweeps through the area in a 5-foot-wide, 20-
the blood of an unwilling sacrifice.
foot-long wind. Creatures in that area, other than the hags,
must make a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be pushed back
1d4 x 5 feet.
• The snowfall animates, becoming an ice mephit that strafes
the adventurers with its Frost Breath and subjecting them to
its Death Burst trait if it's slain. If it's not slain, this elemental
harmlessly dissolves at the end of the round.

58
TACTICS HAILSTORM
The hags employ these tactics in combat; they each have a spell Weather Encounter, Tier II
DC of 14 (+6 to hit). Ultimately, the hags are self-serving and
Hail assails the adventurers as they cross through unforgiving
will flee if they believe they are destined to lose this fight.
terrain—but this mundane nuisance is just a precursor to a much
• The hags are limited by their frail sacrifice; they must keep
more insidious threat: galeb duhrs composed of ice that crash
her alive if the Ritual of Binding is to succeed.
from above.
• Greatmother Winter calls the peryton as a bonus action on her
The Storm. Stretching 1d6+6 miles in diameter, the storm is
first turn; it arrives at the start of the second round.
an area of extreme cold and strong winds. Snowfall reduces
• A bheur hag can use their graystaff as a broom of flying, which
visibility to a range of 15 feet and imposes disadvantage on
grants them a flying speed of 50 feet! They mount the staves
Perception checks that rely on sight. Although the storm is non-
to fly above the party, landing only to protect the sacrifice.
magical in nature, its fury has linked it to the Frostfell, the Plane
• On her first turn, Greatmother Winter casts wall of ice to keep
of Ice, allowing elemental influence to seep into the world. A
out the adventurers or enclose Salilah in a hemisphere of ice
character under a spell of detect evil and good or detect magic
so that the hags can unleash area-effects without catching her
can sense this influence.
in the crossfire.
As the adventurers navigate the storm, they are assaulted by
• On her first turn, Granny Yrsula unleashes an ice storm spell,
hail for 1d10+5 minutes. Every minute, a character must make
positioning it not to strike Salilah (if she isn't enclosed in a
a DC 13 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, they take 3
hemispherical wall of ice).
(1d6) bludgeoning damage.
• On her first turn, Lone Miyareth targets a troublesome warrior
Hail Duhrs. While the adventurers are being pelted by hail,
with a hold person spell. The hags then bombard that target
the storm cracks with sudden thunder—not the thunder of
with ray of frost spells (with advantage, if they're paralyzed).
lightning, but rather the cracking of a great glacier. The blizzard
• Yrsula abandons all other tactics to use her Maddening Feast
has earned the favor of the Frostfell itself. This planar influence
action on the first character that dies.
turns the blizzard's ice pellets into 1d3 galeb duhrs that
• If the ritual nears completion, a hag must use an action to slit
plummet from the sky above. These elementals were beings on
Salilah's throat within three rounds, finishing the ritual, after
the Plane of Ice whose consciousness has been ripped into the
which the hags gain the Shared Spellcasting trait described
Material Plane. They retain their personalities and memories,
on pg. 176 of the Monster Manual.
but they're confused and agitated by this sudden turn of events.
Minions. If they were not slain, the hags' remaining minions On the turn that the elementals fall, they benefit from their
intervene; they must, however, contend with the patches of ice Rolling Charge trait. One hail duhr falls on an adventurer,
left by Yrsula. They arrive in clumps: up to half the scarecrows making a Slam attack. If the target fails their Strength saving
in one batch, the yeti by its lonesome, and the penguinweres, throw (as described in its Rolling Charge trait), they are also
led by the werewolf. A group arrives once every 1d4 rounds. restrained, as the galeb duhr falls on top of them. An elemental
also takes 16 (3d10) bludgeoning damage from the fall.
DARK SISTERHOOD: THE HAGS TRIUMPHANT The elementals can utilize their Animate Boulders ability to
If the hags form their coven, they emerge more powerful than create more hail duhrs, which fall from the sky just as they did.
ever before. They gain the Shared Spellcasting trait and, if they Roleplaying the Elementals. Galeb duhrs are neutral at heart.
aren't besieged by other interlopers, take this time to fashion a They did not ask to be reborn into the Material Plane and are
hag eye (described in the Hag entry of the Monster Manual) shocked, afraid, and paranoid. Their initial attack is an accident;
using Salilah's eyeball. The hag eye is then entrusted to Lone the first galeb duhr did not mean to make a Slam attack against
Miyareth's werewolf minion, if he survives. an adventurer, and it certainly didn't intend to crash onto them.
This encounter is the climax of the Dark Sisterhood storyline. If the adventurers do not retaliate, the elementals back down as
If the hags were not slain, they may throw lot in with some of well, apologizing in Terran for the misunderstanding. They then
the factions presented in this supplement, such as Withrens Fyar ask for directions to the "nearest interplanar rift." If the party
or the Forsworn (see the Dire Winter and Eternal Night sample presses their attack, the elementals have no choice but to defend
storylines). themselves. They are too proud to flee, even if wounded.
Homecoming. The elementals are here to stay until they find
the means to return home. They can sense nearby portals to the
Plane of Ice, such as the one in the Frostfell Rift encounter, and
will seek one out. In the meantime, they may roll their way into
the purview of Homer Erendalias, Sylberos, or Withrens Fyar
(see Homer's Hovering Hovel, The Poacher's Nightmare, or On
the Eve of Dire Winter, respectively). Homer will attempt to
send the elementals home, whereas Sylberos and Withrens Fyar
would bend them to their will for their own evil purposes.

59
 Ordning of Might. As the Ordning of Might storyline
HARDBOILED unfolds, Logyr can inform the adventurers of what's going on
Volcanic Encounter, Tier II in Skoldheim:
Steam curls up against the frigid air, promising a warm respite • "Rowthor has challenged Jarl Grisbos to a forer-slag. I speak
to those that follow its ephemeral fingers to a nearby hot spring. no ill of anyone, but I have always believed—personally—
Its banks are warm and lined with stubborn plants that jut out that Rowthor is one of Memnor's ilk." (Post-Shrine of Vaprak
from the freshly fallen snow. A character that succeeds on a DC and pre-Forer-Slag! Memnor is the giant deity of deceit.)
15 Investigation check notes that this would be a perfect place • "Rowthor has triumphed over J—over Grisbos the… the Cur.
for wildlife to shelter, but there are no beasts drinking from its Skoldheim is his now. Those that would not bend the knee
water or snapping up the foliage growing on the shore. were banished to the wastes." (Post-Forer-Slag!)
A predator nests in this area, driving away wildlife. With a • "Our new jarl has decreed that all the Arctic must know of our
successful DC 15 Nature check, a character identifies this as a people's strength. The raids are frequent and, as I hear it from
prime remorhaz nest, as the hot springs are perpetually warm. others, bloody. I know not why we must crush others to lift
Sure enough, a remorhaz has chosen this place as its nest. The ourselves up—but I am one to question Jarl Rowthor." (See
adventurers may find its 1d6+2 eggs in a four-foot-wide crevice Frost Giant Raiders for details; Logyr can, in his ignorance,
two feet under water on the northern shore of the springs. The provide a list of potential settlements the giants intend to raid,
eggs weigh 25 pounds and are Small-sized objects. allowing the adventurers to intervene.)
Copse. A copse of spruces stand at the hot springs' southern
bank, spanning a 25-foot-radius circle, making them an ideal
hiding spot. HEROES OF THE ICE AGE
Mama's Home. The remorhaz mother returns in 5d10+10 Tundra Encounter, Tier II
minutes. Sensing its clutch is about to be born, it has brought a Marching across the tundra is a sight most curious: a mammoth,
dead elk for the hatchlings to later feed on. The creature defends a saber-toothed cat, and a ground sloth carrying a human baby.
her clutch with maternal rage but doesn't pursue characters that The three are delivering the child to his tribe, which headed
flee more than 30 feet from the hot springs. south to warmer lands.
Hatching. The eggs are due to hatch in 1d4 hours, birthing With a successful DC 20 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check,
1d6+2 young remorhazes. the trio can be persuaded into handing over Roshan, the human
child they carry. Should this check fail or not occur, the beasts
FROST GIANT NEST-RAIDER warn off the adventurers through aggressive gestures, such as
The frost giants have a penchant for taming beasts. No beast is stamping their feet or the mammoth trumpeting from its trunk.
more tantalizing than the remorhaz. If captured at birth, a giant If the adventurers do not back off, the beasts attack.
can groom these creatures into useful pets. The frost giants of The Trio. For beasts, the trio have remarkable intelligence
Skoldheim spotted an adult remorhaz nesting here months ago and empathy. Although they have not been awakened by magic,
and one has come to raid the nest now that the eggs are close to they still have distinct personalities. They defend the child with
hatching. They have sent Logyr, a frost giant beast tamer, to their lives. These beasts are:
capture the hatchlings. He arrives up to 1d3 x 10 minutes after • A LN, no-nonsense mammoth with an Intelligence of 8 (-1).
the party does, heralded by his thunderous footfalls. • A CG, kindhearted and dull ground sloth (with the statistics of
Roleplaying Logyr. This NG isejotun has but two passions in a baboon). He has an Intelligence of 5 (-3).
life: raising beasts and consorting with "smallfolk." He views • A NG saber-toothed tiger that has only recently given up his
both as a normal person would see a puppy. It is for the first neutral evil ways. He has an Intelligence score of 9 (-1). He
penchant that he has become Skoldheim's premier beast tamer. secretly belongs to the same pack that killed Roshan's mother
Winter wolves, dire wolves, mammoths, remorhazes—Logyr and still hungers for the child.
has bonded with them all. In another life, perhaps he would've The Child. Roshan and his mother were separated from their
become a druid. Being only 80-years-old, there's still time for tribe after an ambush by the saber-toothed tigers. His mother
Logyr to pursue that path, if he had the forethought to do so. leapt off a waterfall and succumbed to injuries—but only after
Logyr is a gentle soul and the isejotun respect strength above handing off Roshan to the sloth and mammoth. The baby is too
all else. If it weren't for his talents as a beast tamer, Logyr would young to realize his mother has died or feel the pain of her
have been abused or banished long ago. Logyr lives in pleasant passing. He can hardly understand Common, let alone speak it.
ignorance, unaware of his kin's most brutal practices. He isn't He has only recently taken his first steps.
even exposed to the vicious training his beasts later receive; his The Pack. Little Roshan is still yet hunted. The malevolent
job is to simply find, deliver, and bond with beasts before they saber-toothed tigers responsible for his mother's death are on
are trained to kill. the prowl for the toddler. They share the same extraordinary
If Logyr discovers the adventurers, he smiles and booms, depth and intelligence of the trio of beasts. Most are neutral, but
"Greetings, small ones!" This is the only Common phrase he the pack leader is evil and sadistic. He demands Roshan's death
knows. The giant politely refuses to allow the party to take any not for hunger, but as vengeance for all his kin that were slain
remorhaz eggs. by Roshan's people. These 2d6+3 saber-toothed tigers ambush
the trio of beasts while in sight of the adventurers. If the party
fails to intervene, the trio is slain, and little Roshan is devoured
by the pack's leader.

60
 The Tribe. Roshan's people are migrating south to escape the
wrath of winter. They consist of about thirty humans: ten tribal
warriors, twenty commoners, and a gaggle of children. Itosh,
Roshan's father, is the tribe's chief. With his mate and son
missing, he is understandably distraught.
The adventurers earn the tribe's hospitality and gratitude for
returning Roshan. They're rewarded with 2d8+4 rations, 1d4+2
saber-toothed tiger pelts, one mammoth pelt, and a perpetual
invitation to sit at the tribe's bonfire, no matter where it burns.

IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
This obvious allusion to the hit-franchise Ice Age, which has
only three movies, is a lighthearted encounter for your party. It
is advised that you precipitate this encounter by introducing the
adventurers to Roshan's tribe earlier. Finding Roshan and his
guardians makes for a pleasant surprise later.

HOMER'S HOSPITABLE HEARTH

Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier I Guests. The following guests might be met in this encounter. If
Stark against the frozen landscape is a freestanding oak door. the adventurers return to the Hearth, a new group might be
Beside it is a sign that reads, HOMER'S HOSPITABLE HEARTH: present, if not a monster.
TRAVELERS WELCOME! • The Brass Adventists, an evil adventuring party described in
Homer is none other than the NG human archmage who has the encounter of the same name.
anchored a permanent Mordenkainen's magnificent mansion • A warband of 2d4+6 orcs and one orog that intend to turn this
spell in this place (see PHB, pg. 261) for travelers to shelter in. mansion into their tribe's new stronghold. They attack anyone
Opening the freestanding door reveals a grand foyer set in an that enters the mansion. They are not irredeemable; Homer
extradimensional space. Beyond that foyer is a warm mansion may allow them to stay here if they promise to give up their
stocked with food and attended to by eager servants. Homer violent ways and rid the Arctic of monsters instead. There is
visits from time to time when he isn't busy researching arcana a 25% chance that the tribe's orc war chief (who may arrive
in his tower. While there, he mingles with guests and restocks in 1d6 days) agrees and honors this arrangement.
the stores with another casting of Mordenkainen's magnificent • Tuksor, the frost giant toddler described in Ice, Ice Baby. He's
mansion. See Homer's Hovering Hovel for details on Homer. busy wrecking vases and furniture and painting the walls with
Map. Refer to Lorean's Manor. Every square equals 5 feet. spilled wine.
Staff. The Hearth is attended to by a hundred servants, all of • A mischievous boggle named Daennis that's trashed the place.
whom are made in Homer's image. They are near-translucent, Monsters. The following monsters may be roosting here by
gaunt old men fond of easy smiles. They refer to themselves by when the party arrives. If no monsters are present at that time
numbers, with "Number 1" being the chief attendant. They have (they may be out hunting in the wastes, for example), evidence
no desires other than to accommodate guests as best they can. of their nesting can be found instead. These creatures found
entry by following other guests inside or have perhaps just
TROUBLE AT THE HEARTH stumbled into it by sheer, dumb luck.
The Hearth is a refuge for all who need it. Its staff and master • A frost salamander craving warmth
(when he's actually there) never turn away guests. The staff, for • A young remorhaz
their part, cannot affect, let alone harm, other creatures. Thus, • A saber-toothed tiger and her litter of kittens (which have the
some troublesome guests overstay their welcome until Homer statistics of cats or panthers, if they're older).
himself deigns to visit the mansion. Monsters are no exception; • 1d6+3 giant spiders and an ettercap
the Hearth is a safe, warm place with food, making it the perfect
lair. Intruding monsters are limited only by the mansion IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
entrance's dimensions (5 by 10 feet). These creatures may arrive
The Hearth can serve as the party's headquarters or become a
after the adventurers do or might already be there.
regular haunt of theirs. Alternatively, your version of Homer
may just cast the spell throughout the Arctic at random or along
trails. Therefore, the adventurers might repeatedly encounter
the mansion as they roam the region.

61
 • The seventh floor is home to a garden
HOMER'S HOVERING HOVEL of cabbage, carrots, rutabagas, and
Tundra Encounter, Tier I-III beautiful but nonmagical flowers. A
Standing tall above the tundra is a shattered tower that, despite thin field of force protects the garden
all laws of nature, has yet to fall. Somewhere between the fifth from the frigid winds and seals in the
and seventh level, the bloody thing isn't even connected, yet tower's magical warmth.
there it still floats, defying gravity. Clearly, this must be the • Homer's two apprentices (see below)
relic of a bygone civilization or the work of an exceptionally live on the eighth floor, brooding
masonry-minded wizard. In truth, it's both, and the wizard that over their genial but tasking master.
lairs here has a fondness for visitors. • Homer lairs in on the top floor in a
Map. Refer to map on the following page. The scale equals 5 riot of tomes and dirty dishes.
feet for every square. • Homer's shield guardian patrols the
upper levels. It's imbued with a fly
THE TOWER spell, which it utilizes to pursue
This structure once belonged to a floating cloud giant fiefdom. invaders.
Although the tower is crumbling, it is inherently magical. It has
the following properties: THE ARCHMAGE
• Thick and perpetual fog heavily obscures a 30-foot-radius The kindhearted NG human archmage
hemisphere centered on the tower's base. that lairs in this tower is anything but a
• The interiors are perpetually warm, except on the fourth and recluse. His studies consume too much
fifth floors, which are exposed to the elements. of his time to be a proper host, as he so
• The front door is unlocked but warded with an alarm spell often laments. This Homer Erendalias
(PHB pg. 211) to alert Homer whenever a creature enters the has a storied history: an adventurer that
tower. Additionally, a magic mouth spell activates and recites retired from a life of peril to teach
the following message: " Hello! Feel free to shelter from the magic at a prestigious university—only
cold, but please remain below the fifth floor! And if you to up and quit despite being granted
intend to murder me, make it quick!" tenure. To hear him tell it, it sounds like
• The tower is warded with a Mordenkainen's private sanctum a modest tale—the ramblings of a
spell; if Homer casts the spell one more time, which he will beloved grandfather. Were one to truly
at dawn tomorrow, the spell becomes permanent. dig into the history books and witness testimonies, they would
• A wizard can attune to the tower, if the tower isn't already learn Homer had a hand in many of the great upheavals that
attuned to another wizard. As an action, that wizard can use rocked the continent in the last century.
an 8th-level spell slot to cause the tower to lift off from the Homer is in the twilight of his life; by all rights, he should've
ground, granting it a flying speed of 90 feet. This benefit lasts died half a century ago, but he's extended his life with potions
for 1d6+2 hours, after which the tower gently descends, of longevity (DMG pg. 188). He's pushing a hundred and thirty
magically embedding its foundation into the ground. now and dares only to drink one more potion (which he has in
• Cloud giants that land upon the tower or enter it can shrink his hoard, see Treasure below).
themselves from Huge to Large, using a bonus action. Roleplaying Homer. Like many geriatric masters of the
Floors. The tower is a mess choked with dust and cluttered arcane, the spark of madness is alive and well within Homer
with debris. Homer only ventures down to greet visitors or leave Erendalias. His is a mind unburdened by discipline and ruled by
the tower. Notable features include: fleeting thoughts. Much to his apprentices' chagrin, he hops
• The first floor's cabinet is stocked with vegetables and nuts. from one fancy to the next. Lunacy has, effectively, made him
When a character opens the cabinet, a magic mouth spell says a fantast.
"Please help yourself, but save some for other travelers!" Statistics. Homer is a NG human archmage that speaks
• The second floor is cluttered with elven fashion magazines, Common, Elvish, Dwarvish, Infernal, Giant, and, for some
multiple editions of Planar Geographic, and several peer- reason, Deep Speech. He wears the control amulet of a shield
reviewed journals concerned with magical theory. Many of guardian, a ring of mind shielding and a robe of stars (DMG
these have been torn to shreds, as if by a magic missile spell; pg. 191 and 194). Instead of detect thoughts, he has prepared
the shredded articles include Homers' articles, each ravaged Mordenkainen's private sanctum.
by another reviewer.
• A freestanding ladder connects the fifth and sixth floors; it was APPRENTICES & SERVANTS
created by a fabricate spell cast by Homer. Typically, it can Homer is far too gregarious to rot away in his tower; likewise,
be climbed without incident, but whenever a strong wind he believes the secrets of the Arcane must be passed on only by
blows against the tower, creatures on the ladder must make a responsible magi. The characters below also inhabit the tower,
DC 12 Athletics check or fall up to 20 feet, taking up to 11 even when Homer is away:
(2d10) bludgeoning damage from the fall. Donella. This NG gnomish transmuter shares her master's
• The southeastern pillar on the seventh floor is warded with an reckless curiosity. As the tower's gardener, her current passion
antipathy/sympathy spell (save DC 17) to dissuade invaders is blurring the lines between wizardry and druidism. She swears
from climbing higher. Those that look at the pillar fall prey that she'll have replicated the fabled plant growth spell by the
to its Antipathy effect. end of the decade. Without her spellwork, the gardens would
wilt and die, no matter how warm the tower is.

62
 As a gnome, Donella has the following racial traits:
• She reads, writes, and speaks Gnomish and as Common.
• She is Small, with a speed of 25 feet, and darkvision to a range 5 13
of 60 feet.
• She has advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma
saving throws against magic.
• She knows the minor illusion cantrip.
• She can speak to Small or smaller beasts.
Grendar. Having broken his oath to see the Arctic under his 4 12
legion's banners, this NG hobgoblin devastator found peace
and redemption under Homer, whose skills in evocation were,
at one point, unmatched. Grendar nurses a noble dream—when
his training is complete, he intends to become a mediator for the
mortal world, brokering peace agreements between kingdoms 3
and civilizations. In his wildest fantasies, he's managed to turn
his warmongering people into noble defenders of the world.
Servants. The tower is cared for through repeated unseen
servant spells cast by Donella.
2 11
TREASURE
The tower is rich not with gold, but with spell components; one
or more copies of a spell component worth less than 500 gp for
a wizard spell of 5th-level or lower can be found in the tower.
Homer also has one potion of longevity and 2d6+4 spell scrolls
of Mordenkainen's private sanctums locked away in a chest
warded with an arcane lock spell. His apprentices can open the
chest normally. The chest sits at the foot of a tapestry on the
ninth floor; thanks to an illusion spell, it is invisible, requiring
a DC 15 Investigation check to discern.
Additionally, Homer's spellbook contains all but 2d6 wizard 10
spells ever known. The spellbook also contains the teleportation
circle sigil sequence to the Flayed Queen's mythic prison (see
The Glacial Prison). The sigil is drawn out on a blank page half-
way through the book. Homer, for his part, purged his memory
with a modify memory spell so he could never be tortured into
giving out the sequence. 9

REVENGE OF THE INHERITORS

Tier III
Homer's always on the move; he did not find this tower, per se,
but "liberated" it from the ruins of a cloud giant stronghold, the
inheritors of which hunger to make whole again. The archmage
warded the tower against divination spells not for privacy, but
to avoid his pursuers. Unfortunately, Homer never believed that
the giants knew his identity—and Homer does leave his tower 8
quite frequently, doesn't he?
Inevitably, 1d4+5 cloud giants locate the tower and set out
to punish the foolish human that dared claim it as his own. Their
arrival is masked by a control weather spell that hurls sleet and
snow across the region. From the gray clouds above, the giants
descend, each having cast a fly spell and bearing a boulder to be
used for their rock attacks. They land on the eleventh floor and 7
announce their presence in Giant: "Our birthright has been
denied for too long! Show yourself, wizard! Today, you face
justice!"
To Arms! The giants don't wait for a response. They quickly
tear off the door and use a bonus action to shrink themselves to
Large (down from Huge). They also call forth their menagerie
of flying beasts: 1d3 perytons, two griffons, and a wyvern.
The beasts run riot indoors. 6

63
 HOUNDS OF ILL OMEN SHADOW MASTIFF OMEGA
Polar Night Encounter, Tier II If you anticipate the shadow mastiff alpha being too weak to truly
threaten your party (which is likely, if they're in the upper bounds of
From the darkest depths of the Shadowfell, the Forsworn have Tier II) then consider upgrading the alpha into an omega. The omega
summoned a pack of 1d4+4 shadow mastiffs led by a shadow is a regular a shadow mastiff alpha with the following changes:
mastiff alpha. This mysterious order reveres Mother Night, a • The omega has 83 (15d8+15) hit points.
deity better known as Shar, the Lady of Loss, in the Forgotten • It is a CR 5 (1,800 XP) with an extra +1 bonus to its Perception,
Realms setting. Their mission is to perpetuate the current polar Stealth, passive Perception score, and the attack and damage rolls
night afflicting the Arctic, as described in the Eternal Night of its Bite action.
• It has an Intelligence of 9 (-1) and a Wisdom of 17 (+3).
storyline. They tolerate no interference, snuffing out would-be
• It has the Terrifying Howl action option, with a DC 14.
adversaries with dark hounds summoned from the Shadowfell. • It has the following Multiattack option:
The adventurers have drawn their ire and must be eliminated.
Multiattack. The omega can bite three times, or it can bite twice
While the adventurers are camping or traveling, baleful howls
and use its Terrifying Howl.
rend the night. These howls sound eerily distinct from that of
normal canines; with a DC 15 Arcana check, a character recalls
a number of otherworldly or monstrous hounds: yeth hounds ICE HAULERS
(fey), hell hounds (fiends), winter wolves (monstrosities), or Sea Encounter, Tier I
shadow mastiffs (from the Shadowfell). As the adventurers clamber over the frozen coastline, they catch
Alas, the howls are merely a distraction. With their attention sight of a brigantine's sails. The ship is anchored off the beach,
drawn elsewhere, the pack alpha and its hounds strike at the its crew dragging blocks of carved ice towards the rowboats on
party's rear, having approached while invisible. These beasts, the shore. These brave sailors are involved in the ice trade. Ice
they see, are ragged hounds wrought from living shadow, is a commodity afforded only by the wealthy in warmer lands;
whose muzzles are fanged with far too many crooked teeth. roaming so far into the Arctic is a dangerous but lucrative
Tactics. The hounds are experienced, otherworldly predators venture. By coating blocks of ice in sawdust, they can insulate
that follow the tactics below: it against warmer climates.
• Two hounds howl from the party's left flank while the others The journey thus far has not been without peril, but the crew
creep in from the opposite side. Contest their Stealth checks has remained relatively safe. They've met darfellan hunters, had
(with a +6 bonus!) to the party's passive Perception, with the close calls with swashbucklers and yetis alike, and have even
possibility of surprising the adventurers. lost a crewmate to the unforgiving sea. Despite these dangers,
• The region is cloaked in twilight, rendering the pack invisible their spirits are still high, and their journey is almost finished.
until they attack, enter bright light, or are incapacitated. Make Little do they know that sahuagin are clambering up the shore
a note of the radius of the party's light source (if any), as the right now to redden the waters in the name of Sekolah, their
hounds become visible in bright light and lose their resistance dread-god.
to physical damage. Most light sources cast bright light out Ship. Ranger is a sailing boat; it requires a crew of twenty to
to a radius of 30 feet; the mastiffs have speeds of 40 feet. be sailed, but a crew of ten can make do with shorter rests and
Remember, only bright light created by sunlight imposes a tough captain. See DMG pg. 119 for the ship's statistics.
disadvantage on the hounds' attack rolls, saving throws, and Captain. Ranger is captained by Etiran Emeris, a NG retired
ability checks. darfellan bandit captain familiar with the Arctic's coastlines.
• The pack favors hit-and-run tactics, relying on their Shadow He values his ship, his crew, and his own life, in that order. Gold
Blend trait to escape detection until they attack again. has little use for the dead, and so he is cautious in his old age—
• The hounds, like their earthly counterparts, focus on the weak a stark contrast to the hot-headed warrior he was in his youth.
and wounded before tackling mightier foes. As a darfellan, he has the following racial traits:
• If the pack's alpha is slain, the pack is likely to retreat, unless • He speaks Common and Darfellan, a multisyllabic language
their prey is already weakened. with harsh, authoritative tones.
• He has a swimming speed of 40 ft.
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN • He can hold his breath for 10 minutes.
It matters not if the adventurers easily dispatch the hounds; they • He has advantage on ability checks and saving throws made
are immaterial and, effectively, infinite. The Forsworn can draw to escape grapples.
upon this rabid legion for as long as their patron deity permits. • While Etiran is underwater and not deafened, he has blindsight
At the very least, the hounds prevent the adventurers from ever out to 30 ft.
achieving a rest. Crew. A crew of eighteen currently mans Ranger, consisting
of eleven commoners of assorted races, each with proficiency
with vehicles (water); and six NG or N bandits. Jonas Hraal, a
NE human bandit, serves as first mate. Loyal to Captain Etiran,
but far too ambitious for his own good, Hraal considers every
calamity at sea a chance for him to rise up in the world.
Four commoners and three bandits are on the ship at the start
of this encounter. Four commoners are rowing towards Ranger
(two apiece, and each boat loaded with ice). Captain Etiran and
his first mate are on the shore with the remaining three bandits,
dragging ice blocks towards the beach on sleds.

64
IN THE NAME OF SEKOLAH ICE, ICE BABY
When the adventurers first crest the ridge and spot Ranger, the Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier I-II
ship is a mile away. With a successful DC 18 Perception check,
Lumbering across the snow is what appears to be an ogre. Its
they notice distant figures clambering up the ship's rigging—
wails are like thunder and it throws tantrums as easily as a dwarf
the sahuagin. Meanwhile, 2d4+3 sahuagin are clambering up
tosses back ale. Upon closer inspection, it is revealed that this
the shore to the unsuspecting crew. They are easily spotted.
behemoth is a frost giant toddler that has been separated from
The party begins this encounter 300 feet away from the crew.
his mother. This toddler has only a marginal grasp of Giant, but
Assume that, if they decide to intervene, they dash to the beach
at the least, he can point to himself and say, "Tuksor."
in one minute, with difficult terrain inhibiting their speed. By
Statistics. Tuksor is, effectively, a Medium-sized half-ogre,
then, one rowboat has been capsized, with three sahuagin and
that can understand Giant and has immunity to cold damage. He
two bandits having been slain in the battle thus far.
is unarmed, but his fists are no less fearsome. He can make Fist
Warning the crew proves difficult; the high winds snatch up
attacks (+5 to hit, reach 5 ft., 1d6+3 bludgeoning damage on a
any shouts as they leave the lips of the observant. Spells of
hit). He also has the following trait:
shatter, skywrite, thaumaturgy, thunderwave, thunderclap, and
similar magic can alert the crew. Otherwise, the adventurers Fetal Rage (1/Day). As a bonus action, Tuksor can throw a
must either wash their hands of the situation or rush into battle, tantrum. For the next minute, he has resistance to slashing,
hopefully in time to make a difference. bludgeoning, and piercing damage. He also gains advantage
Treachery! In the heat of battle, Hraal's ambitions get the on Strength checks and Strength saving throws. During this
better of him. He turns on Captain Emeris just as the day is won. tantrum, his Fist attacks deal +2 bonus damage.
A character that succeeds on a DC 16 Perception check sees the Tuksor's Wild Ride. In the few hours since he was separated
treacherous cur draw a dagger and rush Emeris. If this same from his mother, Tuksor's had quite the adventure for a toddler,
character succeeds on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw, they can which he babbles about in Giant. He's chased after birds (giant
warn Emeris before it's too late. Failing this, Hraal's treachery eagles), hugged a puppy (a dire wolf), and splashed about in a
can be later sussed out with a successful DC 15 Insight check. puddle (a frigid pond). When dwarves (humans) appeared, he
If his treachery is exposed, the crew murders him—unless the hid in a snowbank until long after they left. Now he's hungry,
party intervenes. Hraal's expertise is pivotal for Ranger's ability and although his adventure thus far has been great, he wants to
to make it back home. If they require passage, which Hraal "pet a kitty" (a saber-toothed tiger). He tugs on an adventurer's
promises, they may side with him against the crew. sleeve and babbles, "Let's go!" in Giant until they follow him.
If his attempt on Emeris's life is thwarted, the captain has the
cur imprisoned in the brig. POACHERS
Reward. If the adventurers save the crew, they offer to take Tuksor is being hunted. An amenable frost giant is a promising
the party up or down the coast. Ranger, however, must lick its recruit for any company, warband, or lord. One raised as a slave
wounds in warmer lands; if the adventurers ask to be taken with no concept of its own cage would fetch quite the price. The
deeper into the Arctic, the captain will only take them 2d20+15 strength and size little Tuksor will one day inherit makes him
miles up the coast. If the party asks to be brought closer towards invaluable.
greener lands, Ranger will take them as far as they require if it The "dwarves" that crossed Tuksor's path earlier today were
doesn't divert their course too much. an evil band of adventurers. They're searching for him now that
they've had time to formulate a plan. They intend to sell Tuksor
to even wickeder folk. To lure him in, their resident druid has
shapeshifted into a leopard because "Kids love cats, right?"
The adventurers are described in The Brass Adventists. You
can combine it with this encounter.

HERE COMES BIG MAMA

After 1d4+3 hours, Tuksor's mother, Srusor, tracks down her
child. She assumes the worst at first: that the adventurers have
abducted him and intend to sell him into bondage or, worse, kill
him. She unleashes a thunderous bellow that scares even Tuksor
into running and charges into battle. If the adventurers cannot
converse in Giant, they cannot quell the frost giant.
Tactics. Srusor fights a mother's fury. If she believes Tuksor
is endangered, she fights to her dying breath to save him. If not,
and she is reduced to half her hit points, she surrenders and begs
(in Giant) for her to be taken into bondage instead of Tuksor.
She does not pursue fleeing characters so long as they leave her
child behind.
Mom, Stop! If the party was kind to Tuksor, he babbles to his
mother in Giant, attempting to persuade her from attacking his
new friends. To do so, he must succeed on a DC 14 Persuasion
check made as an action; he has advantage on the check. If he
fails twice, the third check succeeds as he interposes himself
between his mother and the party.
65
 IN THE LAIR OF THE DRACOLICH
Sea Encounter, Tier III-IV
The mighty adult white dracolich Krarthelos lairs in a drifting
iceberg honeycombed with passageways, attended to by kobold
sycophants while he slumbers. The dracolich is the servant of
the long-forgotten Flayed Queen, an undead sovereign whose
liberation is almost at hand (as described in the Army of the
Damned storyline). Krarthelos's phylactery is most vulnerable
while the drake hibernates, but thieves must contend with the
many minions placed here by his distant master.
Weather. The iceberg is at the heart of Krarthelos's Regional
Effects, which he has retained in undeath. As described in the
statistics of an adult white dragon, these effects are:
• Chilly fog lightly obscures the land within 6 miles of the
dragon's lair.
• Freezing precipitation falls within 6 miles of the dragon's lair,
sometimes forming blizzard conditions when the dragon is at
rest.
A
Additionally, the iceberg is surrounded by frigid water and is
1d4+4 miles from the nearest shore. Strong winds often make
nonmagical flight impossible for all but Huge-sized creatures.
Map. Refer to the map above, which is a sea-level cross-
section of the iceberg. Tunnels twist above and below this level.
Krarthelos can carve open new tunnels or fill old ones with ease.
Each square is equal to 5 feet. This area has these features: B
• Krarthelos's hoard is frozen into the ice behind the altar (which
is marked with "A" on the map). See Treasure below.
• Krarthelos slumbers in a chunk of ice marked as "B" on the
map. The ice is translucent, revealing his skeletal figure.
• The entire iceberg is a place of extreme cold.
• The iceberg counts as desecrated ground (see Appendix C). The undead are nothing short of bitter rivals. All were once
Servants. Krarthelos is served by a six-generation old clan of crafty warlocks obsessed with gathering power. All fell under
kobolds, who number forty in total (thirty kobolds, five winged the influence of the Flayed Queen. All found themselves vying
kobolds, two kobold dragonshields and three kobold scale for her favor. Fionys considers her colleagues irredeemable
sorcerers; every kobold has, thanks to Krarthelos, immunity to failures that deserve nothing short of eternal punishment. They
cold damage and the ability to hold their breath for up to 1 hour in turn consider that Fionys ought to be knocked down a peg
at a time). Before he last slumbered, Krarthelos created 2d4+4 and taught humility in the face of failure. Because the Flayed
white guard drakes to patrol the iceberg and its waters. Queen isn't omniscient, the undead can afford to sabotage one
Additionally, the deathlock mastermind Fionys has been another to gain favor with their sovereign. Therefore, many
ordered to guard Krarthelos's phylactery until her master, the deathlocks disobey Fionys (who holds no special power over
Flayed Queen, awakens. Fionys has 1d4+2 deathlocks at her them) or intentionally misconstrue her orders.
disposal; these undead are her failed predecessors. Roleplaying Fionys. Fionys is a paranoid corpse that refuses
to just lie down and let better days go by. She sees threats in
ALL THE QUEEN'S MINIONS every shadow, and believes that she was stuck here only so
As the Cult of the Newly Dead prepares to liberate their distant Cis'tudh (her rival and leader of the Cult of the Newly Dead)
master, Fionys of Gnar has been dispatched to guard Krarthelos could curry more favor with their undead master. So too is
while the dracolich hibernates. This deathlock mastermind Fionys a fanatic; before she died, she found herself in love with
was patronized by the Flayed Queen decades ago and met her the Flayed Queen and the torch of that love has darkened into
end at the hands of enterprising heroes. Death, however, is only obsession in undeath. She does anything in her power to ensure
another opportunity for Fionys to serve her queen. Krarthelos remains unharmed and will even sacrifice herself if
Fionys is not the first warlock of the Flayed Queen—far from need be.
it, actually. Those whose bodies were not destroyed have been Fionys can be voiced with the sample dialogue below:
called on now to serve her again. As the queen's champion, • "My life for Death!"
Fionys commands these 1d4+4 deathlock wights and 1d3+1 • "You have never felt love as rich as I have."
deathlocks. The presence of the undead unnerve the kobolds, • "I will be your end!"
who before now only had to deal with their frozen master. The • "Gods save the Queen."
deathlocks take a sick pleasure in scaring the kobolds; some • "Her will is mine!"
have already been scared to death.

66
 When she isn't berating other deathlocks, Fionys can be found THE DRAKE AWAKENS
on her own. On her first turn, she shouts for reinforcements, Krarthelos has hibernated for sixty years now and is expected
invoking her master's name. At the start of the next round, a to slumber for another forty. However, the liberation of the
deathlock and two deathlock wights arrive. Thereafter, other Flayed Queen or the burst of a loud noise—caused by the likes
reinforcements, such as kobolds and other undead, arrive every of a shatter, thunderclap, thunderwave or even a fireball
1d4 rounds in clusters of 1d4+1. spell—will wake him prematurely. The adult white dracolich
Tactics. Fionys dispatches intruders with ruthless efficiency. bursts from the ice with a skeletal roar. Unless he is defeated,
She roams the iceberg, always on the lookout for invaders. In the dracolich dedicates his early awakening to eradicating his
combat, she and her undead follow these tactics: ancient enemies—the first being Homer Erendalias of Homer's
• On her first turn, Fionys casts darkness on her pendant, for she Hovering Hovel—after slaying any intruders in his lair.
can see through magical darkness. She follows up with a chill Tactics. Krarthelos bursts from the ice in Area A and employs
touch spell (preferring an obvious healer) and then Deathly the following tactics in battle:
Claw or Grave Bolts attacks. • Krarthelos still enjoys his arsenal of Regional Effects and Lair
• On a deathlock's first turn, it opens up with arms of Hadar or Actions in undeath. When he awakens, he seals off exits to
hunger of Hadar. Subsequent turns are devoted to eldritch the iceberg with his third Regional Effect.
blast spells. • As his blessed kobolds are immune to cold damage, Krarthelos
• A deathlock wight opens up with hold person or fear. They can fill the hallways with freezing fog (see his Lair Actions).
close the gap between opponents or widen them with a misty The drake cares little for his servants but understands that
step spell. they have a part to play; likewise, Krarthelos cares not for the
• Ultimately, the undead are trapped between oblivion and a deathlocks.
worse fate: failing their master. A deathlock is likely to flee • Krarthelos burrows through ice to hunt down intruders from
if they're at the cusp of death. When they must answer to their above, below, or laterally.
distant queen, they blame Fionys. • Using a Lair Action, Krarthelos can magically flood portions
of his lair with frigid seawater, choosing one chamber on the
TREASURE map at a time. Creatures within the area must make a DC 15
Krarthelos's hoard is protected by a thick layer of ice, 10 feet Constitution saving throw, taking 13 (3d8) cold damage and
deep. Every 10-foot-section, 1-foot-deep layer of ice has an AC one level of exhaustion on a failure. On a success, a creature
of 15, 15 hit points, and immunity to acid, cold, necrotic, poison takes only half damage. A creature can only gain two levels
and psychic damage. Additionally, the section has vulnerability of exhaustion from this effect.
to fire damage. • If he is close to death, Krarthelos digs for his phylactery and
Although he has ascended to undeath, Krarthelos is still a abandons the iceberg.
white dragon at heart. His hoard consists of ship figureheads,
walrus and narwhal ivory, mammoth furs, and magic items
taken from the broken bodies of those that fell to his wrath long
ago. The drake has little appreciation for conventional wealth
and has scattered 11,000 gp's worth of coins all along the
iceberg's floors so that they glitter like scars. To pick up these
several thousand coins takes 1d6+4 hours. His most valuable
treasures include:
• A horn of blasting (DMG pg. 174) two feet deep into the ice.
Blowing this horn within 1d4 miles of the iceberg awakens
Krarthelos.
• A pair of gloves of swimming and climbing (DMG pg. 172)
six feet deep into the ice.
• A belt of dwarvenkind (DMG pg. 155) seven feet deep into the
ice.
• An instrument of the bards (Canaith Mandolin) (see DMG pg.
176) twelve feet deep into the ice.
• A set of silver dragon scale mail (DMG pg. 165) eighteen feet
deep into the ice.
Phylactery. Krarthelos's phylactery is buried six feet into the
ice and is another 2d4 x 5 feet above this level. It is a fist-sized
black sapphire worth 5,000 gp. As revealed by a legend lore
spell, the phylactery can only be destroyed by the breath of an
ancient silver dragon.

67
 INTO THE BLIZZARD TRAVEL PHASE
Weather Encounter, Tier I-II The Travel Phase is the most dangerous of the two, as it pits the
hikers up against Nature itself—and any horrors that don't mind
Blizzards are the Arctic's most prolific killers, preying on hikers
the storm. Suggested ability checks during this phase include:
and unprepared homesteaders. Whenever the adventurers must
• A preliminary Survival or Nature check determines just how
navigate a blizzard, you can run it as a Skill Challenge, starting
prepared the adventurers are for a blizzard.
at Medium difficulty or higher.
• An Investigation check to suggest tying characters together
Duration. Blizzards are never short affairs and will rage for
with a rope and arranging themselves into columns.
hours or even days on end. Ability checks made to survive the
• A Sleight of Hand check to tie the hikers together with a rope,
blizzard are spaced out across hours or days. A blizzard's length
with Intelligence representing one's knowledge of knots and
is determined by its difficulty:
Dexterity being one's' ability to tie a knot in spite of their
• At Medium difficulty, the blizzard lasts for 1d4+4 hours.
numb hands or thick gloves.
• At Hard difficulty, the blizzard lasts for 2d6+4 hours
• An Athletics check to take point, pushing against the wind;
• At Insane difficulty, the blizzard rages for 1d4+2 days.
stabbing trail markers into the snow; or picking up fallen
Weather. As the blizzard rages, the characters must contend companions.
with the following effects: • An Acrobatics check to maintain one's balance as they cross
• The blizzard's radius is an area of extreme cold (see Appendix ice or snow, or, if the party is linked with rope, when another
C). Starting at Hard difficulty, the blizzard is cold enough to hiker falls or stumbles. Failing this might cause the hiker to
negate the protection afforded by cold weather gear, meaning fall prone.
only creatures with resistance to cold damage are spared from • A Perception check to scout ahead, find lost companions, or
the cold. At Insane difficulty, even creatures with resistance to detect upcoming dangers or features, such as foes or a pass.
to cold damage must also contend with extreme cold. • An Investigation check can determine whether the blizzard is
• The heavy snowfall lightly obscures the area, disadvantaging too strong to travel in.
Perception checks that rely on sight. Visibility is also reduced • During white-out conditions, or while the hikers are on an end-
to 30 feet. At Hard difficulty or higher, the area is heavily less patch of snow and ice, an Insight check can determine if
obscured and visibility is reduced to 10 feet. the hikers are still on course or if they have been traveling in
• The blizzard is a source of strong winds (see Appendix C). circles.
• The blizzard's radius is considered difficult terrain, for the
adventurers must contend with snow and ice all while being SHELTER PHASE
battered by strong winds. No matter how mild a blizzard may be, travelers must stop
Failure. Whenever the party accrues a failure, the character periodically in order to warm themselves up. Shelter, however,
responsible must succeed on a Constitution saving throw, the may be difficult to come by, and when it can't be found, it must
DC of which matches the DC for the Skill Challenge (i.e., 14- be created. The primary objective of this phase is to find or
18 for a Medium Skill Challenge). On a failure, a character create shelter, contend with hypothermia, or a loss of supplies.
accrues a level of exhaustion. Suggested ability checks for this phase include:
Alternatively, whenever the party accrues a failure, you can • A Perception check to find existing shelter, such as a cave, or
pit them against an enemy that doesn't mind the cold. When you to detect any dangers therein.
do so, pause the Skill Challenge, resuming it after battle ceases. • A Survival check to determine how to create shelter, such as
The weather effects described above factor into the battle. by digging a snow cave or constructing an igloo or quinzhee.
Potential enemies include: • An Athletics check to perform the labor necessary to build or
• 1d4+2 ice mephits (Tier I) erect shelter.
• A young remorhaz (Tier I) or a remorhaz (Tier II) • A Survival check can be made to forage nearby; with rapidly
• A frost giant (Tier II) dropping temperatures, hikers require additional calories to
• A water elemental myrmidon (Tier II) survive.
• A yeti (Tier I) or an abominable yeti (Tier II) • An ability check using cook's utensils, which can cover topics
Phases. Contending with a blizzard can be divided into two like correctly rationing food (Intelligence), cooking a meal
phases: travel and shelter. The adventurers will likely start in with numb fingers or catching a mistake before the meal goes
the Travel Phase if they march into the storm or one happens to up in smoke (Dexterity) or if the meal was nourishing enough
swallow them as they're in transit. Depending on the difficulty, (Wisdom).
the party might transition between these phases multiple times. • If the characters are at a high altitude, a Medicine check can
identify and treat altitude sickness; chewing cocoa leaves is
a common folk remedy.
• A Nature check identifies signs of hypothermia, such as para-
doxical undressing or gangrene.

68
 THE ISEJOTUN EXILE KEEP LUKEWARM!
Character Encounter, Tier II Polar Encounter, Tier I or II
The frost giant Arvydr is just one of the many detractors exiled As a snowstorm bears down upon them, the adventurers come
by the new jarl of Skoldheim, Rowthor. This new despot seized upon a red sight: the blood of a dead dire moose upon the snow,
control of Skoldheim by slaying Jarl Grisbos in a forer-slag, a and two humans crammed inside its split belly. One is alert, the
ritualistic duel (see the Forer-Slag! encounter, which predates other unconscious. Their names are Na and Leer, respectively,
this encounter). and from within this grisly, makeshift shelter they'll ride out the
Arvydr has no intention to languish in disgraced exile and is snowstorm together.
eager to return home and topple Rowthor. He suspects that the Leer was ambushed earlier while astride his dire moose. Its
upstart has appealed to Vaprak the Destroyer, the patron deity cold corpse can be found by the party a mile away. A DC 13
of trolls and ogres, who offers disaffected frost giants greater Nature check determines that the claw marks on the corpse
strength. Such a sin is punishable by death or exile, regardless came from a yeti. The yeti dragged Leer to its nearby ice cave
of station. If Arvydr can expose Rowthor, Skoldheim will reject to feast, but Leer telekinetically drew his sun blade, sliced off
his regime. To prove his blasphemy, Rowthor must be maimed its right arm, and escaped before succumbing to his wounds and
in public; the cur cannot halt his troll-like regeneration, and this hypothermia. Na went searching for Leer after he failed to
newfound healing factor of his will not go unnoticed. report back to their camp a few miles away.
Arvydr would take the fight to Rowthor himself, but forer- Statistics. Na is a N human master thief armed with a hand
slags can't be issued by exiles, nor can they be issued by proxy. crossbow (+7 to hit, range 30/120 ft., 1d6+4 piercing dmg.)
Arvydr must be restored to his former status and face Rowthor with which he can attack twice per turn, so long as he has a free
in person. Therefore, he must turn to outside help. hand to load another bolt into the weapon. He has expertise with
The party can encounter Arvydr is an ice cave, in the tundra, Insight, granting him a +6 bonus and he makes initiative checks
as he steals cattle from a farm, or in the mountains. If attacked, with advantage.
he does his best to end a battle without the adventurers, seeing Although Leer is a human, he effectively has the statistics of
them as potential tools. He speaks enough Common to insist a LG githzerai zerth. With his sun blade, Leer can attack twice
that they listen to him; failing that, he withdraws from the per turn (+9 to hit, reach 5 ft., 1d8+6 radiant damage on a hit).
conflict, giving the adventurers a chance to do the same. He currently has 52 hit points remaining, after the attack from
Arvydr's Vendetta. A character fluent in Giant or aided by a the yeti.
spell of tongues (or similar magic) can converse with Arvydr, Roleplaying Na. Na is a cocky son of a bitch that nurses a
who explains "the disgrace of Skoldheim." He tasks the party secret soft spot for his close friends but otherwise looks out only
with infiltrating the stronghold to publicly wound Rowthor. He for himself. He is friendly but suspicious; he shoots first and
promises them untold riches—which should prove to be an laments later. Should he perceive someone is about to do him
impressive fortune, as the frost giants are notorious raiders. The harm, he unloads a crossbow bolt in their chest.
party may also be inclined to help if the region is being ravaged Roleplaying Leer. A young lad with destiny thrust upon him,
by increasingly more frequent and savage raids (see Frost Giant Leer sees good in everyone but the most tyrannical individuals
Raiders). If the adventurers prove successful, he rewards them and regimes. If awoken during a conflict, his first instinct is to
with 300 gp, straight from Skoldheim's vaults, and "unfettered engineer a peaceful resolution. The psychic warrior believes all
swine." things in the cosmos are connected by some mystical, meta-
See Skoldheim for details on the stronghold. physical force his dead master called, "the Pressure."
Roleplaying Arvydr. Arvydr is still a frost giant at heart: he Tactics. To suss out their intentions, Na contests his Insight
respects only strength and has no tolerance for deceit. His check against one character's Deception check. He uses an
people have never needed to raise crops or forge delicate tools; action to wake Leer, ordering him to fight. Leer fights only to
they only take. Since his exile, Arvydr has stolen food, ale, and subdue the aggressors and seeks a peaceful solution.
livestock, which he keeps in his cave or carries in his sack. Treasure. In addition to Leer's sun blade (DMG pg. 205) the
Visibly mighty characters can earn Arvydr's respect through duo has together 3d10+4 gp and 1d4+2 rations.
a display of strength. However, the Ordning of Might—which
rules all of frost giant society—dictates that the strongest stands THE YETI STRIKES BACK
tallest. He must demonstrate his own strength; which he does The yeti that ambushed Leer still yet lives in its nearby cave. If
by hurling boulders or wrestling the strongest adventurers. He the adventurers don't take the fight to the creature, the yeti (or
does not intend to harm his opponent, but… a giant weaves abominable yeti, if your adventurers are 8th-level or higher)
destruction everywhere he goes. attacks the party during this encounter. Its right arm has been
You can voice Arvydr with the following sample dialogue: sliced clean off, the wound cauterized; as such, it can only make
• "Memnor's art has no place among the isejotun! Strength alone one claw attack per turn with its Multiattack.
determines a jotun's measure, as it should!" (A successful DC Tactics. The yeti attacks during the snowstorm's fiercest
15 Religion check identifies Memnor as a trickster deity.) chapter, using the wind and snow to cover its advance. Thanks
• "That profaner's regicide will not be forgotten, nor forgiven. to its Snow Camouflage trait, it has advantage on its Stealth
He won, but with whose strength, I wonder? Thrym's… or checks.
the Destroyer's?"
• "You are quite small. The watchers of Skoldheim see only the
drakes and hear only thunder. I suspect you will find purchase
very easily… Just do not get caught."

69
 KRAMPUSNACHT LAMENTER OF LEVISTUS
Urban Encounter, Tier I Mountain or Polar Encounter, Tier I
On Yuletide's eve, celebrants across the Arctic are preparing for Warlocks that fail to live up to their insidious pacts risk being
the annual Krampsnacht ("Night of Krampus") in which a forever tormented and bound to the will of their scorned patron
volunteer hands out coal to bad children while dressed in hairy in the afterlife. Levistus, the imprisoned archdevil and lord of
pantaloons and a crown of antlers. This custom is nothing more Stygia, elevates this punishment to greater heights. Those that
than good cheer, but little does the settlement of Irdning know fail the fiend are imprisoned in ice, kept alive in only the barest
that this year, the true Krampus has entered the world of the of terms, forced to share their patron's own frigid torment.
living—and he's pissed. As the adventurers examine or pass by a glacier, the ice shifts
A Summoning Gone Wrong. Some elders say that Krampus, to hurl up a human. His face is skeletal and his limbs are bound
the true creature, not the caricature painted by mortal men, can within ice, his limp body hanging from a glacial sheet. Should
be summoned through a chant uttered on Krampusnacht. Most the man, Karl Umbrage, a warlock of the fiend ever ask his
folk consider that utter nonsense, but six teenagers have uttered distant patron for mercy, Levistus frees him from the ice—but
the words and performed the rites—and in doing so, they made will raise him as a corpse. Umbrage's goal, then, is to convince
a Feycrossing, a weakening of the borders between this world passerby to free him from the ice, but in the twelve years since
and the Feywild. Krampus was all too ready to set foot into the his imprisonment, he has only been encountered six times; all
mortal world. The fey is hellbent on revenging himself upon all have spurned him. Some did not hear his cries for help; some,
those who ridiculed him, as well as their descendants. Before Levistus informed him, pretended not to. Three found him limp
he can be free to run amok, obtuse fey laws require Krampus to and helpless, but none dared to free him. One woman fed him,
slay his summoners before sunrise—and even after they, or this and for that she was cursed by the archdevil. Rumors spread of
night, have passed, Krampus is under no obligation to return to the "glacial prisoner" throughout the region but such rumors
the Feywild. have died out over the last few years.
Statistics. Krampus has the statistics of a bulezau, although While frozen, Karl is incapacitated and he does not age, nor
he is a fey, not a fiend, and he speaks Sylvan, not Abyssal. does he require to eat, drink, or sleep.
Summoners. Six teenagers (all of whom are commoners) Curse of Levistus. Those that help Umbrage risk Levistus's
beckoned Krampus into this world; without the aid of the scorn. Creatures that speak to the warlock are filled with dread,
adventurers, all are doomed to die. They are: their instincts screaming that doom lies just around the corner,
• Blath Glorydane, who was murdered by Krampus the moment as if they were standing before a great and precarious cliff.
the fey emerged into the mortal world. Creatures interacting with Umbrage must succeed on a DC 10
• Samantha Movutsk, who orchestrated this lunacy. Wisdom saving throw or be frightened for 1 minute.
• Tharryl Spar, a 37-year-old dwarf (considered a teenager by Those that still aid the warlock are cursed by the archdevil.
dwarven standards, and with the maturity to match). As a Until a remove curse spell or similar magic is cast upon them,
dwarf, he has resistance to poison damage and advantage on they can't feel warmth and suffer disadvantage on Constitution
saving throws against being poisoned. He also has darkvision saving throws made against extreme cold. Additionally, while
out to a range of 60 feet. cursed, a creature with resistance to cold damage must make
• Korver Faint-o-Foot, a 15-year-old halfling; although he is not saving throws against extreme cold, as if it weren't resistant to
too bright, he is very brave, and has marshalled the survivors cold damage.
into banding together. Whether they heed him is another Roleplaying Umbrage. The warlock has been trapped in ice
question… As a halfling, he is a size of Small, has advantage for twelve years. He still hungers and thirsts, but it's been years
on saving throws against being frightened, and can reroll a 1 since his needs have been quenched. That he hasn't gone mad
on any attack roll, saving throw, or ability check that he in isolation and ceaseless torment is a testament to his strength
makes. He can also move through the space of any creature of will. His voice, however, is hardly more than a whisper.
larger than him. Above all else, he is desperate; there is no promise he won't
• Malthus, a broody tiefling that considers his plight completely make if it gets him out of the ice.
hopeless. As a tiefling, he has darkvision out to a range of 60 Umbrage first feeds the adventurers a sob story: that he was
feet, as well as resistance to fire damage. He has yet to learn trapped here by a "demon or faerie for reasons beyond [his]
how to tap into his infernal heritage to cast spells. ken." If the party doesn't seem to believe his tale, Umbrage goes
• Beats of a Heart, a tabaxi boy that ran off on his own. Although for broke: "I am a warlock of Levistus, archdevil and Lord of
the others don't yet know it, Krampus is about to murder him, Stygia, punished for not fulfilling his dark will. If I ask for His
if he has not done so already. mercy, I will be cursed to undeath; until then, I must remain in
this wretched ice until someone else deigns to free me. I beg
A VERY KRAMPUS NIGHT you… be that kind soul. Even a beast like me deserves better
The adventurers are on a collision course with Samantha and than this."
Malthus; the former is hysterical; the other has resigned himself If the adventurers refuse to free him, Umbrage then appeals
to his fate but is otherwise coherent. Malthus petitions the for death. Better to die than live in torment forevermore, or
adventurers to battle Krampus but promises no reward—he has worse, to suffer as a corpse under the archdevil's control. If they
no money to speak of and cannot afford for any adults to find leave Karl without killing him, he gives into despair and appeals
out what he and his peers did. to his patron for aid. Levistus snuffs out his life and raises him
Krampus was summoned at dusk and has until dawn to slay as a deathlock. Umbrage retains a degree of autonomy and is
his summoners, lest he be banished whence he came. Assume hellbent on revenge. He tracks the adventurers across the
he has 1d6+4 hours until dawn comes. Arctic, determined to make them beg for the same mercy he did.

70
 GENASI AND AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER
This gratuitous homage to Avatar: The Last Airbender was first
featured in Daerdan's Tall Tales: 101 Seafaring Encounters. It was
considered too perfect for this sequel to not be included.
THE LAST WINDBENDER The Elemental Evil Player's Companion has lore for genasi
Polar or Sea Encounter, Tier I characters. In short, they are born from the union of a mortal and a
As the adventurers pass by a glacier (or iceberg, if at sea), they genie or exposure to an elemental rift. In most settings, they hardly
find a young boy trapped in the ice. His skin is light blue and number in the hundreds, so rare they are. For the purpose of this
encounter, assume that genasi are populous enough to have tribes
tattooed down his limbs and bald head. He can be identified as
and small city-states. t
an air genasi with a successful DC 14 Arcana check; his people,
like all genasi, are rare in the world.
Should a character approach the ice, the air genasi's eyes fling LIKE TONGUES TO ICE
open, glowing with radiant power. The ice shatters in a sharp Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier I
explosion of cold air and glacial shards. The genasi boy's eyes A steel pike pokes out of the snow; travelers use it as a landmark
and tattoos lose their frightening glow as he falls forward. when frequenting these lands, but it has since been turned into
The boy, who can hardly be older than twelve, awakens 1d6 an unassuming trap by the evil archmage Withrens Fyar. Using
hours later. His name is Eeng and he has spent the last century an empowered antipathy/sympathy spell (save DC 15), he
in accidental hibernation. While in the ice, his people have been enchanted the pike so that living humanoids that look upon it
slaughtered by tyrannical fire genasi. When he awakens, he asks from within 60 feet are bewitched into remaining at its side and
the adventurers of his homeland, the air genasi nation of Wind- lick its cold steel, freezing their tongues to the pole. And just
swept. With a successful DC 14 History check, a character can for good measure, Fyar desecrated this ground so that those who
recall the bloody genocide that they suffered a century ago. die here are risen as undead. See Appendix C for the effects of
Eeng's Statistics. Eeng mastered elemental air at the young desecrated ground.
age of twelve. Even more impressive, his powers exceed the See the sidebar for the Sympathy effect of the antipathy/
limitations of his people; he is able to control earth, water, and sympathy spell. Should an adventurer succumb to the spell, the
fire like genasi of other heritages. He has the statistics of a NG party must come up with their own solution to freeing them. As
air genasi martial arts adept with the following changes: described above, the spell also causes the victim to lick the pole.
• He can speak, read, and write both Common and Primordial. Doing so causes the victim's saliva to freeze their tongue to the
• He can hold his breath indefinitely while not incapacitated. metal, inflicting 1 cold damage. To free their tongue, they must
• He can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material either splash a liquid that is above its freezing point on their
components (spell save DC 13); Wisdom is his spellcasting tongue, such as warm or even cold water, or rip away the flesh,
ability for these spells: which inflicts 1 slashing damage.
At will: control flames, gust, mold earth, shape water Past Victims. The pike has claimed the lives of 2d4+4 people.
2/Day: absorb elements, gust of wind, The oldest of them are skeletons, and the most recent ones are
1/Day: fly (self only), erupting earth, levitate, zephyr strike zombies. The undead are compelled to remain in this vicinity
Eeng recuperates with the adventurers for some time, but a (under the snow, in a 20-foot-diameter circle centered on the
hunting party of fire genasi soon find him, either on foot or on pike) and not attack wildlife. Over time, the birds pick the
a sailing ship. Their captain, an exiled fire genasi prince named corpses clean, turning the zombies into skeletons. A third of the
Suko, has been searching for this prodigy for three years and undead are skeletons.
only by capturing Eeng can he redeem himself in the eyes of his The undead wait until dusk to attack people who succumb to
father, Firelord Ozay. the antipathy/sympathy spell unless they are somehow freed
Fire Genasi Statistics. The fire genasi crew consists of from its influence, in which case, they immediately attack. A
twenty commoners, 2d6+3 bandits and a bandit captain with humanoid that dies in this area rises the next dusk as a zombie.
the following racial changes: Characters that carefully observe the birds notice that they are
• They can speak, read, and write both Common and Primordial. not picking grubs or roots from the ground. With a successful
• They have resistance to fire damage. DC 13 Investigation check, the character realizes the birds are
• They can each cast the produce flame cantrip; once per day actually picking flesh from bones that lie beneath the snow.
they can cast burning hands as a 1st-level spell. Constitution Similarly, a character that succeeds on a DC 15 Perception
is their spellcasting ability (+2, +3, and +4 to hit with spell check notices that the snow covers vaguely humanoid shapes.
attacks and DCs 10, 11, and 12 for commoners, bandits, and Current Victims. Those that fall prey to this fell magic cannot
the bandit captain, respectively). willingly move away from the pole until they can no longer see
it. A cloudy night is dark enough for a victim to no longer see
the pole—except during the winter months, when auroras light
up the night sky.
Given these restraints, it's probable that only bystanders can
save victims. As they can't willingly move away from the pole,
any attempts to physically move them require a successful
grapple check. Rendering them unconscious, through nonlethal
damage or a sleep spell, is also effective.
At your discretion, another victim is already present when the
adventurers pass by: a human commoner named Nikolaj. His
tongue is still frozen to the pole and he's been here since this
morning. He waves frantically at passerby and emits desperate,
muffled shouts to get their attention.

71
 ANTIPATHY/SYMPATHY: SYMPATHY EFFECT IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
Duration: 10 Days
As described above, the living spells plague travelers and snow
This spell attracts or repels creatures of your choice. You target
something within range, either a Huge or smaller object or creature in those sheltering in cabins or igloos. If you'd like to keep your
or an area that is no larger than a 200-foot cube. Then specify a kind adventurers inside a cabin for a few days—but still give them
of intelligent creature, such as red dragons, goblins, or vampires. the chance to rid themselves of that merciless weather—you can
You invest the target with an aura that either attracts or repels the run this encounter there instead of while the party's traveling.
specified creatures for the duration. Choose antipathy or sympathy
as the aura’s effect.
Sympathy. The enchantment causes the specified creatures to feel MAMMOTH CORPSE
an intense urge to approach the target while within 60 feet of it or Tundra Encounter, Tier II-III
able to see it. When such a creature can see the target or comes
The scent of fresh blood is on the wind, and stark against the
within 60 feet of it, the creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving
throw or use its movement on each of its turns to enter the area or horizon is a massive mound of fur—a dead mammoth. This
move within reach of the target. When the creature has done so, it creature is a cornucopia of treasures crucial to survival in the
can’t willingly move away from the target. If the target damages or unforgiving Arctic. Its fur, meat, and bones are more valuable
otherwise harms an affected creature, the affected creature can make than gold in these inhospitable lands. The death of a mammoth
a Wisdom saving throw to end the effect, as described below. does not go unnoticed. Predators and scavengers, monsters and
Ending the Effect. If an affected creature ends its turn while not men alike, are on their way to feast… just as the dragon who
within 60 feet of the target or able to see it, the creature makes a dropped this beast from the sky anticipated.
Wisdom saving throw. On a successful save, the creature is no longer Corpse. The mammoth's corpse is a Huge-sized object. To
affected by the target and recognizes the feeling of repugnance or
butcher the corpse completely will take 8d4+16 hours of hard
attraction as magical. In addition, a creature affected by the spell is
allowed another Wisdom saving throw every 24 hours while the labor and would yield nearly 2,000 pounds of edible meat.
spell persists. Several bite marks mar the mammoth. With a successful DC
A creature that successfully saves against this effect is immune to 15 Nature check, a character can identify a mammoth's typical
it for 1 minute, after which time it can be affected again. predators: rocs, remorhazes, and white dragons. A successful
DC 17 Survival check identifies the bites as made by a massive
DIRE WINTER reptile, suggesting a dragon—but where are the iconic marks of
The wizard responsible for this merciless trap is none other than a white dragon's icy breath? Additionally, the mammoth's legs
Withren Fyar, an archmage attempting to usher in the next ice are clearly broken, suggesting it fell from the sky, ruling out
age. He is described in the Dire Winter sample storyline. terrestrial predators.
Beasts. When the adventurers first arrive, 1d4+6 wolves are
feeding on the corpse. They defend it until four have been slain,
LIVING BLIZZARD after which they flee. Likewise, 1d4 eagles are picking at the
Weather Encounter, Tier II mammoth's eyes; the birds flee if threatened. After 1d10 +5
The forecast is as clear as the skies; it is with absolute certainty, minutes, a polar bear comes to feast. Only wary of monsters
that the adventurers can rest easy, knowing there will be no and greater creatures, the polar bear charges the party. If they
snowfall tonight. Yet as the sun dips below the horizon, they do not flee, it fights until it's reduced to a quarter of its hit points.
hear harsh winds on the rise. In the twilight, they fall prey to an Men. After 2d10+5 minutes, human hunters arrive to butcher
animated blizzard—a storm manufactured by living spells. the corpse. They consist of 1d6+2 tribal warriors and 2d6+3
Living Spells. Wrought by the cruel archmage Withren Fyar commoners. Komgluk, a young braggart desperate for status
of the Dire Winter storyline, these animate spells have no other and admiration, claims it was he who felled the beast. In truth,
purpose than to torment the living until their creator marshals all he did was happen upon the corpse while hunting. His lie
them as part of his scheme to trigger another ice age. The spells can be discerned with a successful DC 14 Insight check.
appear as floating, Medium-sized black icicles and consist of a These humans are not selfish; if the adventurers help butcher
living ice storm and 1d4+2 living ice knives, the statistics of the animal, or guard their flank, they promise 2d8+30 pounds
which are described in Appendix B. of meat. However, they claim ownership over the fur and bones,
Cruel Beyond Reason. The living spells take great pleasure as such materials are vital to their way of life.
in tormenting travelers and trapping creatures inside cabins and Drake. The mammoth's killer is clever. 1d4+1 hours later, the
caves. Sharing their creator's sadism, they prefer to drag things white dragon returns, having waited for enough scavengers to
out. They only attack beings with the audacity to brave their gather around the corpse. With its clutch of eggs almost ready
weather. Otherwise, the spells are content to strafe travelers or to hatch, the dragon requires preserved meat for its young. The
linger on their flank to expose them to the bitter cold. dragon (a young white dragon just old enough to reproduce or
Acclimate Weather. A blizzard rages with a diameter of 300 adult white dragon) returns to freeze its prey in ice and deliver
feet, centered on the living ice storm. This area is subjected to them to its lair far to the north.
strong winds and heavy precipitation. Together, these effects
also impose disadvantage on Perception checks reliant on sight
by whipping up the snow. The entire area is extremely cold. See
Appendix C for these effects.

72
 THE MAMMOTH MERCHANT
THE MAMMOTH MERCHANT Goods Price Reference
Character Encounter, Tier I-II Eyes of the eagle 50 gp DMG 168
Known far and wide across the Arctic, the so-called Mammoth Gloves of missile snaring 40 gp DMG 172
Merchant travels between settlements to hawk his wares. His Periapt of wound closure 175 gp DMG 184
true name is unknown, and, to hear it from his own lips, it's Potion of climbing 25 gp DMG 187
better left that way. This retired tiefling wizard would rather Potion of healing 15 gp DMG 187
pawn off his goods in the relative comfort of anonymity than Orb of detection 15 gp XGE 138
invite his old nemeses for a visit. Through a hat of disguise, the Ring of warmth 750 gp DMG 193
wizard manages to masquerade as a human. Ring of water walking 250 gp DMG 193
The Mammoth Merchant rides atop a saddled mammoth that Rope of mending 50 gp XGE 138
pulls a sled of goods. The beast is always surrounded by an Spell scroll (1st-level, wizard) 25 gp DMG 200
entourage of hired guards. Spell scroll (cantrip, wizard) 10 gp DMG 199
Statistics. The Merchant is a N tiefling abjurer wearing a hat Top hat of awakening* 100 gp *
of disguise (DMG pg. 173). He has the following changes to his Wand of pyrotechnics 15 gp XGE 140
statistics: Wand of web 30 gp DMG 212
• He speaks Common, Infernal, Dwarvish, and Elvish. Acid (8 oz) 15 gp N/A
• He can cast thaumaturgy. He can also cast both hellish rebuke Poison (1/2 oz) 15 gp N/A
(DC 11) as a 2nd-level spell and darkness once per long rest. Beer (1 gallon) 10 sp N/A
• He has resistance to fire damage. Honey (1 quart) 5 sp N/A
• He has a +6 bonus to Deception checks. Mayonnaise (1 quart) 8 cp N/A
Roleplaying the Merchant. The Merchant is a cheerful yet Oil (1 quart) 3 sp N/A
paranoid wizard wearing more years than he's truly aged. He Vinegar (1 quart) 2 sp N/A
appears to be in his seventies but is actually only forty-five. Water, fresh (1 gallon) 15 cp N/A
Sometimes he fails to pretend to be old and walks with a young Water, salt (1 gallon) 15 cp N/A
man's stride. He also really hams up his "arthritis" by pretending Wine (1 quart) 10 sp N/A
to be in pain. The wizard always smiles, no matter his mood. * see Frosty the Snowman encounter
You can voice the Merchant with the following dialogue: Storage. The Merchant keeps his greatest wares safe through
• (If asked why he goes by "the Merchant" or what his true name a Leomund's secret chest spell. All other goods are strapped to
is) "My otherwise destitute and insignificant father thought his mammoth, pulled in the sled, or carried by his porters.
we could share the same legacy if we also shared a name. Mundane Goods. The Merchant sells just about any item
Well, I didn't feel like living my life out as 'Eugene.'" from the Adventuring Gear table in chapter 5 of the PHB, and,
• "One man's mayonnaise is another man's grease." to his credit, at the same price they're worth. He also sells furs,
• "That ain't a thunderwave you hear, that's business." venison, mostly accurate maps of the region, and all the liquids
• "Trade is the lifeblood of the Arctic, don't you doubt it. News, that can be produced from his alchemy jug (see the table above).
goods. We have no roads, only routes, and it's this fragile web Magical Goods. The Merchant always has 1d4+1 magical
that keeps honest men true and insular settlements open. No items for sale, as detailed on the Mammoth Merchant Goods
trade, no dialogue, no vigilance." table. With exception to his potions and spell scrolls, assume
Gear. The Merchant is armed with a dagger of warning and the Merchant has only one of each magic item in stock.
a rope of entanglement. Along with his hat of disguise, he wears Haggling. The Merchant isn't married to his prices; this entire
an amulet of proof against detection and location. See pgs. 213, enterprise is just a means of keeping busy in retirement. With a
197, 173, and 150 of the DMG, respectively. He also carries a successful DC 15 Persuasion check, he reduces the price of an
miniature, replica chest for the Leomund's secret chest spell. item by 25%.
Guards and Porters. The Merchant has hired 1d4+2 tribal
warriors, two scouts, an archer, and a gladiator to guard him,
his mammoth, and his four laborers (commoners). The bulk of
his hired hands are human, but his bodyguard is a half-red
dragon veteran named Vraxxis.
Treasure. The Merchant carries 900 gp on him in assorted
currencies. Within his secret chest he has another 3,200 gp. He
also carries a spellbook with all the spells in his statistics, plus
burning hands, disguise self, nondetection, and remove curse.

OPEN FOR BUSINESS

The Merchant is almost always open for business, day or night.
His camps are the exact opposite of subtle, and travelers often
come seeking the warmth of his crew's great bonfires. Thanks
to the Merchant's alchemy jug, he can always make a profit off
wine or beer. Many a thirsty traveler is willing to trade venison
for a cup of ale.

73
 SAILOR'S IDENTITY CAUSE
MAN OVERBOARD! d6 Identity d6 Cause
Sea Encounter, Tier I
1 Captain 1 Rough water
This encounter can be combined with any Sea encounter and it
2 First Mate 2 Intoxication
serves as a template for whenever a character falls overboard.
3 Navigational Officer 3 Pushed!
When running this encounter, consider the following:
4 Important passenger 4 Madness
Frigid Water. An arctic sea can kill a man with its icy touch.
5 Keeper of a secret 5 Compelled by magic
Characters that dive or fall into the sea are exposed to frigid
Deadliest Catch
water, the effects of which are described in Appendix C. 6 Rival or friend 6
encounter
Identity. If the sailor that fell overboard isn't an adventurer,
determine that sailor's identity with a d6. They might be vital to COMPLICATIONS
the crew's wellbeing or to the adventurers' quest. Good-aligned d6 Purpose
characters are sure to rescue even the most inconsequential An otherworldly being—a kraken, morkoth, or even the
characters whereas neutral or evil characters might only be archdevil of Stygia, Levistus—reaches out and promises
motivated by what that person can do or has done for them. to save the sailor. In the case of the latter, the sailor
Cause. If the cause is not related to another encounter, you 1
strikes a deal with a literal devil. For the others, the sailor
can determine the cause with a d6. is later drawn to the sea, doomed to become a deep scion
Complications. Unless this encounter is already paired with even if the adventurers rescue him.
another, roll a d6 to determine any complications in rescuing 2 A killer whale begins circling the sailor.
the sailor. The sailor's clothing is too heavy when soaked and he
Rescue. Saving the crewmate is no easy task. The waters are 3 plunges 20 ft. below the surface. Wisdom (Perception)
choppy, rough, and the wind howls. Run this as an Easy Skill checks made to locate him are made with disadvantage.
Challenge. The party must succeed on three ability checks to A nearby polar bear dives into the sea to attack the sailor
win the challenge. You can suggest or call for any of the 4
or moves to intercept them on another ice block.
following ability checks (DCs 10-14). The sailor does not know how to swim. Any Strength
• As the wind howls and the waters tug at the sailor, a Perception (Athletics) checks for him to swim or another to bear his
check can be made to find him. 5 weight are made with disadvantage. He is also frightened
• Sharks, dolphins, or other marine animals can be staved off until calmed with a DC 14 Charisma (Persuasion) check.
with an Animal Handling check or Intimidation check. This check can count for a Skill Challenge.
• An Athletics check allows a character to navigate the rough An opportunistic penguinwere (see The Penguinwere for
waters, bear the sailor's' weight, or both. 6 the special statistics of this jackalwere) attacks while in
• If the sailor drowns, a Medicine check can resuscitate him. its penguin form.
• A Sleight of Hand check can be made to accurately toss a life-
line or secure one to the deck (Dexterity for the former and
Intelligence for the latter). MANAVIK UNDER FIRE
• A Survival or Nature check recalls that the sailor has to shed Urban Encounter, Tier II
their wet clothes and warm up within half an hour, or they The fortified village of Manavik has long resisted the vile snow
will suffer bodily shut down. elves—and the day has come to put its fortifications to the test.
• A protection from energy spell, choosing cold damage, can Its people have abandoned their farms and homes to seek refuge
shield the character from hypothermia. inside its wooden walls while the elves march onward, torching
or freezing whatever is in their path.
This encounter can be run with the adventurers defending the
outpost from within or without.
The Elven Host. The elves, usually satiated by tribute, have
come to torch Manavik and make clear to the rest of the Arctic
that resistance is a fool's errand indeed. They have brought a
small army of 4d10+20 guards, 1d6+4 veterans, two mages,
1d4+1 knights, a LE evoker, and 1d4+1 apprentice wizards
that are about to get their first taste of war. Each soldier rides
upon an armored reindeer (a barded elk with AC 17).
The elves are led by Torsatra, the evoker. A cruel veteran, she
has honed her craft over countless skirmishes. Like many of the
snow elves, she has been raised to believe that the Arctic must
be brought under heel for her people to have any chance at a
safe and prosperous future. She settles for nothing more than
Manavik's destruction and the execution Jarl, Vilhem Vidik.
The snow elves have the following changes to their statistics:
• Many are lawful evil or neutral evil.
• They have darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
• They have advantage on saving throws against being charmed
and magic can't put them to sleep.

74
• They have advantage on Stealth checks to remain hidden in
snowy terrain.
MARCH OF THE DAMNED
• They each know three transmutation spells on the wizard spell Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier II
list: one cantrip, a 1st-level spell and a 2nd-level spell. They A chorus of ghoulish moans echo out across the region as a
can cast the latter two spells once per day. Typically, a snow thousand corpses shamble through the snow. The worst has
elf knows gust, shape water, catapult or jump. happened: the dead have risen, but for what purpose? What
Map. Refer to the map above. Its fortifications are wooden. insidious call have they answered? To whom do they flock?
Each 10-foot-section has AC 15 and 27 hit points. The village This encounter is a precursor to the Army of the Damned
is surrounded by a frozen mote, making it slippery ice (see App. storyline and demonstrates the growing threat of her return.
C). The motte is considered difficult terrain. The army measures over a hundred corpses, some skeletal,
Defenders. Manavik normally has a population of sixty, with some half-thawed, some fresh. Along the flanks, wights astride
a few hundred more swearing fealty to its jarl from outside its warhorse skeletons herd undead that would otherwise stray
walls in the surrounding countryside. Jarl Vilhem has rallied away whenever they sensed a living creature to devour. With a
sixty commoners to join his garrison of 2d10+30 guards and DC 15 Perception check, a character can make out living
1d10+10 scouts. Vilhem himself is a knight. individuals wading through the dead, clad in robes embroidered
Invaders. The elves are familiar with Manavik and aware of with sigils and symbols of death—necromancers. These dark
its fortifications. Torsatra splits her forces into three platoons. magi are guiding the dead in one direction.
The largest platoon, led by Torsatra herself, storms the bridge Weather. When the adventurers encounter the undead, heavy
with half of all guards, veterans, and knights after she has snowfall lightly obscures the area and the creatures therein. As
fireballed the defenders there. they linger, the snow peters out—allowing the undead to see the
The other two platoons are each led by a mage, who intends adventurers more clearly, provoking some to pursue them.
to breach Manavik's western and eastern walls with fireball Corpsewatcher. Collecting intelligence on this undead army
spells, after which their soldiers (who consist of a quarter of all is crucial to the Arctic's survival. Yesbella Pineheart, a wood
remaining forces) will storm the village. elf scout, is observing the dead from a safe distance. She may
Once the village is taken, Torsatra will level the keep on the choose to reveal herself to the adventurers if she's convinced
hill, cooking the civilians inside. they aren't collaborators. She can share any of the following
information:
MANAVIK SAVED • The undead are referred to as "the Swarm" by settlements and
If Manavik prevails against the elven aggressors, Jarl Vilhem folks aware of the threat, and "utter fables" by those that
recognizes its bravest defenders with gold, glory, or 1d4+1 doubt the dead's existence.
acres of land. The adventurers, if they prove themselves in • Similar congregations of undead have been sighted across the
battle, are rewarded with 40 gp each. Arctic; this is one of the largest seen so far.
• Mortal necromancers have thrown their lot in with the with
undead, forming a cult known as the "Newly Dead."
Interrogating the Dead. The undead, no matter how mindless
they are, can be questioned with a speak with dead spell. Any
corpse can and will explain that they have answered the call of
the Flayed Queen, a death knight imprisoned in a glacier eons
ago. "In due time," one corpse adds, "all will serve the Queen."
The corpse does not know exactly where the Queen is trapped
but is drawn to her will.

HAMMER AND ANVIL

Unfortunately for Yesbella and the adventurers, a new gaggle
of undead are on en route to join the Swarm. In 1d6+2 rounds,
two ghouls and a wight astride warhorse skeleton arrive with
2d10+15 zombies in tow; the nearest six zombies reach the
adventurers on the third turn of combat, with the remainder
reaching them on the sixth. Worse yet, the swarm dispatches
five skeletons and another warhorse skeleton-mounted wight
in a pincer attack made against the living. The skeletons pepper
the living with arrows from 40 feet away. A necromancer
comes later on to raise any of the dead.
The adventurers must cut their way through the dead before
being overwhelmed. As they flee, Yesbella is struck with a hold
person spell cast by a human necromancer from 60 feet away.
1d4+1 ghouls come bounding across the snow, reaching her at
the start of the next round. The adventurers must decide whether
to save Yesbella or flee. While paralyzed, she's dead weight and
requires a DC 13 Athletics check to carry.
If the undead don't reach the adventurers in two rounds, the
necromancers call back their minions to continue their march.
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 THE MIMIGLOO
Polar Encounter, Tier I
As the snow worsens and the day darkens, the adventurers sight
an igloo in the distance. Little do they know that this igloo is a
highly evolved mimic in disguise. This extraordinary predator
has adapted to the frozen wastes in the most ingenious way. The
desperate and cold march right into that white abattoir, hoping
to find warmth and shelter from the merciless cold outside.
The mimic is so advanced, it can suppress its Adhesive trait
so that creatures prostrate themselves in the belly of the beast.
The entire igloo counts as its body, even the floor and the tunnel
leading inside. As an action, the mimic can close the entrance
by moving its malleable flesh over the opening; to a creature
that doesn't succeed on a DC 15 Investigation check, it appears MIRAGE ARCANE
as if a mound of snow has fallen over the entrance. Polar or Tundra Encounter, Tier I
If the mimic is slain, its disguise falters. Creatures inside the The wicked archmage Withrens Fyar has lain yet another trap
igloo must succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw to dart for the denizens of the Arctic: a frozen lake disguised by a spell
outside before the mimic's body crashes down upon them. On a of mirage arcane. Those that look upon this frigid abattoir see
failure, a creature takes 5 (1d10) bludgeoning damage and is nothing more than a copse of pines… and firewood is as gold is
knocked prone. They can then crawl out of the deflated entrance in greener lands. Only characters with truesight can see this
to the "igloo." place for what it truly is; all others are fooled by the spell.
Grim Truth. The igloo's true nature can be sussed out by a Creatures that enter the copse of trees, perhaps to forage or
keen-minded individual. The exterior features the iconic lines shelter from the cold, risk breaking through the lake's thin ice
between snow bricks that make up an igloo, but the interior is (see Appendix C for this hazard). Whenever a creature moves
completely smooth. "Wind" also rattles throughout the igloo, into a new 10-foot-square area, roll a d20. On a result of 6 or
but an observant character will realize that it fits the pattern of lower, they enter a patch of thin ice.
a breathing creature. With a successful DC 13 Investigation Into the Water. Should the ice break beneath a creature, they
check made as an action, a character can intuit they are inside a fall into frigid water (see Appendix C). To clamber back onto
creature masked by illusion or twisted by transmutation magic. the ice is an arduous task. The character must be able to get their
Statistics. The mimic has the following changes to its usual arms (or forelimbs) onto the ice, then make a mighty kick
statistics: (requiring a successful DC 18 Athletics check). Another
• It is a size of Huge with 76 (9d12+18) hit points. character can use their action to pull them out of the water,
• It is a CR 5 creature (1,800 XP) making a DC 15 Athletics check. Thereafter, they must contend
• It has the following Attack options: with the usual effects of extreme cold.
Multiattack. The mimic makes two pseudopod attacks and The Beasts Know Better. It's impossible to know whether
one Bite attack. Withrens Fyar—that prick—cares if animals also fall prey to
Pseudopod. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 15 ft., one his mirage. Several bears, wolves, and reindeer have already
target. Hit: 12 (2d8+3) bludgeoning damage. If the mimic is crashed through the ice and drowned, fooled by the tactile and
in object form, the target is subjected to its Adhesive trait. olfactory elements of the mirage arcane spell. Local beasts now
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. know to avoid the area. A character that can communicate with
Hit: 7 (1d8+3) piercing damage plus 4 (1d8) acid damage. beasts, through a spell of speak with animals or similar magic,
might learn that the pine grove is dangerous.
Undead Accomplice. A sadistic will-o'-wisp has developed a Past Victims. Withrens Fyar cast his wicked spell four days
symbiotic relationship with the mimic. This wicked spirit takes ago and it has already claimed the lives of eight people. If the
immense pleasure in luring in travelers with its false light. The adventurers can somehow survive the frozen depths, they might
wisp, once a washed-up halfling rogue unburdened by scruples, find the following corpses:
speaks Common, Dwarvish, Halfling, and Elvish. Using these • A human woman dressed in furs, wearing an explorer's pack
languages, it whispers to lost travelers, warning that they'll and a silver locket worth 25 gp.
surely die outside in the cold. • A gnoll whose untimely, but deserved, death has spared many
Since the wisp's arrival, the mimic has fed greedily. The spirit from unprovoked carnage.
knows the trails and roads he once traveled in life and guides • An orc wearing a pair of boots of false tracks (XGE, pg. 136).
the otherwise dull mimic towards more frequented areas. It's a • A mountain dwarf clutching his greataxe as if it were the key
win-win situation; the mimic feeds on flesh and the wisp on the to him reaching the afterlife.
suffering of its victims. • A wood elf druid with two goodberries (as in the goodberry
If you include the wisp in this encounter, it shines its light in spell (PHB, pg. 246)) in her pocket.
the colors of a torch or lantern. When close enough to be heard, • A firbolg and goliath; their proximity together suggests they
it whispers, "Night falls and the cold creeps in! There's shelter were traveling companions or enemies locked in battle.
nearby, if you so wish to join me!" It then immediately darts • A centaur with a quiver on his belt with 2d4+4 arrows.
into the igloo and utilizes its Variable Illumination trait to make
it seem as if a campfire has been lit up inside the igloo, causing
it to shine as a beacon in a sea of darkness.

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 MIRAGE ARCANE
You make terrain in an area up to 1 mile square look, sound, smell,
and even feel like some other sort of terrain. The terrain's general
shape remains the same, however. Open fields or a road could be
made to resemble a swamp, hill, crevasse, or some other difficult or
impassable terrain. A pond can be made to seem like a grassy
meadow, a precipice like a gentle slope, or a rock-strewn gully like
a wide and smooth road.
Similarly, you can alter the appearance of structures, or add them
where none are present. The spell doesn't disguise, conceal, or add
creatures.
The illusion includes audible, visual, tactile, and olfactory
elements, so it can turn clear ground into difficult terrain (or vice
versa) or otherwise impede movement through the area. Any piece
of the illusory terrain (such as a rock or stick) that is removed from
the spell's area disappears immediately. Elves. The elves consist of 3d4+10 drow. Having all been
Creatures with truesight can see through the illusion to the raised in the draconian drow society, they are all a shade of evil,
terrain's true form; however, all other elements of the illusion but nonviolent. Their chief concern is establishing a settlement
remain, so while the creature is aware of the illusion's presence, the
safe from monsters and starvation. Once exposed to surface folk
creature can still physically interact with the illusion.
and other settlements, they're sure to realize how unnecessarily
Rage Beyond Death. At your discretion, a poltergeist—the evil drow society is. Given time, the elves can become better
spirit of one of the eight victims above—emerges from below people—that is if their stubbornness and incompetence don't
to attack passerby. It can't, however, use its Telekinetic Thrust kill them first. The drow speak broken and heavily accented
to destroy ice. The enraged spirit is unable to pass onto the after- Common and are delighted to see outsiders.
life; destroying it is actually a mercy, even if it does not know The Settlement. A timber wall snakes around a quarter of the
it. Until destroyed, ravaging the living is its only solace. grounds. Poorly cut lumber is heaped up in a pile that threatens
The poltergeist is bound to the lake; it remains here even after to collapse under a harsh wind. Several half-built projects can
the mirage arcane spell elapses. If Withrens Fyar is slain, the be seen: an extra outhouse, a ditch lined with stones (the sauna),
poltergeist finds the rest it so deserves. and a stage for the future theater. Smoke rises from one cabin,
where shouting can be heard: Caellimar berates his underlings
DIRE WINTER for not being "committed" to "New Menzoberranzan." The elf
This encounter is related to Withrens Fyar, the antagonist of the continues, "I will not compromise my vision for your laziness,
Dire Winter storyline described at the start of this supplement. do you understand?"
This is but one of the many traps he has left around the Arctic, Third Contact. The elves have encountered other surface-
seemingly for other reason than to sow terror and misery. dwellers twice before. To their credit, the drow only briefly
discussed enslaving these outsiders. Ultimately, they decided
that establishing trade relations was a better option than having
NEW MENZOBERRANZAN to feed extra mouths. By when the adventurers encounter the
Mountain or Taiga Encounter, Tier I drow, they are willing to shelter any travelers in return for brief
Desperate to escape the yoke of their totalitarian, matriarchal stints of labor. This exchange of services has been lauded as a
society, a host of drow men have escaped to the surface, where legendary, economical and libertarian breakthrough. "It's like
they can at last be free. The Arctic is a cold and inhospitable slavery," the drow say, "but without the coercion!"
place, but even its brightest months are a softer discomfort than The drow must be taught the ways of tanning, carpentry, and
that of the Underdark. After days of roaming the surface, they fishing. They have the tools but lack the know-how and the
found three empty cabins—waystations for travelers, already humility to admit their ignorance. So far, they've been surviving
furnished with beds, tools, and ale. The drow intend to make a off hunting, but the elk are disappearing. They petition the party
settlement of their own. to teach them such trades; a character with proficiency in such
The drow busy themselves with building additional walls and professions is bribed with venison.
other amenities. Alas, these elves have never worked with wood
and are way in over their heads. More ambitious projects like IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
the sauna, theater, and atelier must be abandoned until the walls This encounter can be a humorous respite from your plot. The
have been completed, but their leader, Caellimar Xiltinn, won't adventurers might also encounter two drow hunting elk in the
see reason. He is obsessed with recreating—and surpassing— forest or running from a polar bear.
the grandeur of Menzoberranzan, the drow city of his birth.
Caellimar's chief critic is the no-nonsense pragmatist Jelaern
Taratar. Jelaern has little influence amongst his peers, however,
for the elves still follow the aristocracy they were born into.
Caellimar rules only because he was the consort of a prominent
drow matriarch. Caellimar's an utter buffoon, but the elves are
too polite, timid, and acclimated to his rule to challenge him.

77
 NIGHTFALL
Polar Night Encounter, Tier IV
As the world tilts away from the sun, polar night unfurls across
the Arctic, allowing dark-dwelling creatures to run amok on the
surface. Now, thanks to mysterious forces, a new creature stalks
the darkness: a nightwalker. This entity is anathema to all life;
its very presence causes nearby plants to wither, snow to gray,
and creatures to convulse as the life is siphoned from their very
bodies. The nightwalker leaves a path of destruction as it wades
through the Arctic; where it walks, the snow thins and dries into
a gray residue. The entity is attracted to life and actively seeks
it out, sparing no passing creature or plant.
Unless the adventurers intervene, the nightwalker will reap
countless lives. They may encounter it in the following ways:
• In the wilderness, siphoning the life from a mammoth (or the
archdruid Sylberos, described in The Poacher's Nightmare).
• In a settlement, as the entity wades in to reap a cornucopia of
crisp, vibrant life.
• As it enters the Material Plane (see Origins below).
Origins. No creature, no matter how insane, willingly bids a
nightwalker into this world; the entity is summoned when a
living creature enters the Negative Plane and does not succumb
to its lethal atmosphere. The accidental conjurer is trapped there
until the nightwalker is destroyed. It may owe its origin to:
• The Forsworn's efforts to enshroud the Arctic in a permanent
polar night; their leader, Yasne Illiwan, was catapulted into
the Negative Plane when she linked the Shadowfell and the
Material Plane. See the Eternal Night storyline and the At
World's End encounter for details.
• A lich that fell into the Negative Plane while researching the
most arcane of necromantic secrets.
• A nagpa attempting to plunder the ruins of a long-dead city
that was drawn into the Shadowfell. A magical catastrophe OBELISK-BOUND COUATL
caused the ruins to slip into the Negative Plane.
Polar or Polar Night Encounter, Tier I-II
• A vampire (of the Spellcaster variant) that sought the counsel
of the infamous skull lords and was banished to the Negative A black obelisk etched in arcane runes floats above the ground;
Plane for his impudence. it radiates light and warmth—enough warmth to melt even the
snow and ice within 20 feet of it, revealing the soil and rock
By slaying the nightwalker, the adventurers release another
beneath. Despite its hospitable properties, this obelisk is a
enemy into this world. At your discretion, this person later visits
prison for a couatl whose time in this world is almost over.
the adventurers to express their gratitude—by eliminating such
Properties. The obelisk radiates bright light in a radius of 30
mighty heroes.
feet and dim light for another 30 feet. Within the bright light,
the temperature is 70 degrees Fahrenheit, which is reduced to
40 degrees within the dim light.
The obelisk hovers a foot above the ground and spins slowly
on its axis. It can't be moved by any force, be it magical or
mundane. A dispel evil and good spell cast upon the obelisk
frees the couatl, who then appears in an unoccupied space
within 5 feet of the obelisk. If the couatl is freed, the obelisk
crashes to the ground and ceases to emit light and warmth.
Divine Prisoner. The couatl, a divine agent created when the
world was young, can telepathically speak to creatures within
30 feet of the obelisk. Her name is Tzua-toca, and she has been
bound within this obelisk for centuries. The divine mandates of
her creator have all passed, leaving her with one purpose: to
serve Irhemana, the gynosphinx jailor of the Flayed Queen, the
undead tyrant described in the Army of the Damned storyline.
The queen's agents abducted and bound the couatl to an obelisk.

78
 Roleplaying Tzua-toca. The couatl has a telepathic voice as
sweet as honey and soft as a breeze; it slips into one's mind not
ON THE EVE OF DIRE WINTER
through the brain, but the heart, filling the creature with gentle Mountain Encounter, Tier IV
warmth. She begins this contact with, "Do not be alarmed. I am Withrens Fyar, the wicked archmage, has at last located the
but a servant of a forgotten god, bound before mortal men, and prison of his deity's daughter, Beldara. The wizard is a faithful,
it is my light that shines upon you. You may call me Tzua-toca, deranged hierophant of Auril, an evil goddess of winter whose
mortal. What name shall I call you?" disastrous favor can change history. Freeing Auril's daughter is
As a couatl, Tzua-toca cannot tell a lie, but she will withhold at the heart of Fyar's plan to freeze the world in a premature ice
information to preserve her identity. If she believes the party is age he lovingly calls "dire winter."
just and right, she confides in them, explaining she was bound For her crimes committed millennia ago, the NE empyrean
by a lich long ago. "And it seems I will be here until I wilt," she languishes in her mountaintop prison, bound by the Midnight
adds. All couatl can sense their demise up to a century before- Sun, a deity of light also known as Amaunator in the Forgotten
hand, and Tzua-toca knows she has less than a year before she Realms setting. She is watched over by three storm giants that
dies. Her only solace is providing light and warmth to weary were guided here by mysterious visions. Beldara has gone mad
mortals; her last hope is to be freed in time to find her long-lost in her isolation—and it's that very madness that Withrens Fyar
lover, the couatl Cua-huia, who was similarly bound centuries intends to use to channel his calamitous dire winter spell. Only
ago. She can sense his presence; he is within 100 miles of her a wish spell can restore her mind and teach her how to perform
obelisk. If the two can be freed, they may bear a child to carry Fyar's calamitous ritual.
on their legacy and serve the lonely Irhemana. Jailors. Beldara's jailors have disappeared or perished over
The Flayed Queen. Tzua-toca and her mate are forbidden to the years. The three storm giants that guard her now do so not
reveal the Flayed Queen's secrets while bound in the obelisk. At out of obligation to the Midnight Sun, but the world itself. Their
most, she can mention the Queen's name and elaborate on her own deity, Annam the All-Father, cannot return if the world is
own relationship with the tyrant. She cannot reveal where her destroyed. They, like other storm giants, obsess over omens that
prison is or shed further light on the Queen's agents. hint at their deity's glorious return. The giants did not come to
Beldara's prison together; each were led here independently by
OBELISK-BOUND LOVER omens that they perceived over the years. There is only one
Tier II thing the giants have in common: all have once been met by
An identical obelisk can be found 4d20+12 miles from Tzua- Withrens Fyar himself.
toca's prison. It contains Cua-huia, her long-lost lover. Like her, The giants began their exodus here thirty years ago, following
Cua-huia can sense his timely demise. Regardless if he is freed omens—omens crafted by Fyar himself through dream spells.
from his prison, the couatl has only a year left to live; he knows Through that spell, the archmage was able to masquerade as a
not how he will perish. His only recourse now is to mate with storm giant matriarch that bid the giants to find "the prison of
Tzua-toca so their children can continue to safeguard the world. Winter's daughter." The giants obeyed, rooting through ancient
The adventurers may find the obelisk deeper in the Arctic— lore inaccessible to Fyar. As they ventured into the Arctic, the
but encounter others who are basking in the obelisk's warmth. wizard followed through scrying spells.
Choose one of the following: Through numerous dream spells, Fyar implanted a command
• The Brass Adventists, the adventuring party described in the in the giants' minds that would turn them to his cause. When he
encounter of the same name. utters "let winter reign" in their presence, the giants must
• A warband of hostile orcs, consisting of 2d6+2 orcs, an orog, succeed on a DC 17 Intelligence saving throw or become
and an orc claw of Luthic who commands two cave bears charmed by him for 1 hour. While charmed, a giant regards Fyar
• An oni masquerading as a weary hill dwarf traveler named as its master and throws itself against his enemies. A dispel
Merryl Maulhands (named so after her mighty fists). magic spell (DC 17) ends this enchantment.
• A gaggle of commoners and 2d4+2 tribal warriors that are Prisoner of Light. Beldara is suspended by glowing chains
building a ring of igloos around the obelisk, just outside the attached to four black obelisks. The chains are forged from the
light. They intend to make this warmth-emitting curio the golden light of Amaunator himself and shed bright light out to
heart and engine of their new home. 10 feet. While suspended, Beldara is stunned by divine power.
• A young remorhaz hiding below the ice. Each chain has 100 hit points, 15 AC, and immunity to cold,
poison, and psychic damage. If two chains are destroyed,
THE LOVERS UNITED Beldara is restrained, instead of stunned. Once all four are
If the couatl are both freed, they quickly perform their mating destroyed, she regains control of herself and wades into the fray.
dance, which is a dazzling display of magic and light. The ritual Map. Beldara's prison is a mountaintop plateau dotted with
takes less than an hour, after which Cua-huia bears a sapphire- four obelisks, at the center of Beldara is suspended 10 feet off
encrusted egg. Within minutes, a new couatl hatches. Creatures the ground. Refer to Stony Hill. "S" marks the starting positions
that watch this amazing event each gain an Inspiration die that of the giants, whereas "X" marks an obelisk and "B" marks the
they must use within the next seven days. position of Beldara. Except for the path winding downward, the
plateau is sat upon nearly sheer cliffs. A creature that falls off
ARMY OF THE DAMNED the edge crashes into the ground 130 feet below, taking up to
If the Flayed Queen's return is imminent, Tzua-toca seeks out 13d10 bludgeoning damage.
her master, the sphinx Irhemana (see The Glacial Prison), Weather. Beldara's prison is a place of extreme cold battered
leaving Cua-huia to watch over their hatchling. by strong winds (see Appendix C).

79
 Fyar's Spells. The wizard has prepared a unique spell list:
1st level (4 slots): feather fall, mage armor*, magic missile,
shield, thunderwave
2nd level (3 slots): mirror image*, misty step
3rd level (3 slots): counterspell, fireball, fly, hypnotic pattern
4th level (3 slots): fire shield*, greater invisibility, ice storm
S
5th level (3 slots): cone of cold, scrying, wall of force
6th level (1 slot): geas, globe of invulnerability, Otiluke's
freezing sphere
X X 7th level (1 slot): prismatic spray
S 8th level (1 slot): Abi-Dalzim's horrid wiltingXGE
B 9th level (1 slot): wish
* already cast upon self
X X Fyar must reserve his wish spell to grant Beldara the power
S to channel his dire winter spell. Beldara must be alive and free
to perform the ritual; therefore, he cannot risk her dying.
Fyar's Precautions. The wizard has warded himself with a
number of spells:
• A mind blank spell cast before the wizard's last long rest, ten
hours ago.
• A contingency spell that triggers an investiture of ice spell
when Fyar is struck with cold or fire damage.
WINTER'S DAUGHTER • A nondetection spell cast four hours ago, costing him a 3rd-
The Frostmaiden is an exacting mother who cannot be so easily level spell slot.
impressed, and Beldara has labored under that cold nature for
millennia. After her first century imprisoned, Beldara accepted
BATTLE BENEATH FRIGID SKIES
her mother's contempt and indifference towards her. The fate of the world is on the line as Withrens Fyar prepares
Roleplaying Beldara. Imprisonment has done little for Bel- himself for his destiny. You (or your players) must determine
dara's sanity. Once a force of relentless fury, hopelessness and when the adventurers arrive on the scene. If they come mid-
isolation has reduced her to an incoherent mess. Given time, she combat, play out a few rounds beforehand with Fyar and his
may recover—but Fyar hasn't the time to wait for that; he will allies versus any non-charmed giants and the chains, with Fyar
restore her mind with a wish spell. Thereafter, she becomes a on the winning end. Alternatively, you can start with one chain
melancholy and wrathful titan obsessed only with suffering and destroyed and another at 47 hit points remaining; the nycaloth
death—just like her mother. is at 99 hit points, one giant is hurling thunderbolts at Fyar and
Masra, while one charmed giant has wrestled its colleague to
WINTER'S CHAMPION the ground.
The faithful are rewarded, indeed. Years of effort and research Tactics. Fyar and his minions use the following tactics:
have finally paid off; Withrens Fyar is at the site of his destiny • Fyar is expecting at least one storm giant to succeed on its
and he is exalting. After Beldara is freed, he immediately casts Intelligence saving throw against his command; hence, he has
wish to impart his dire winter spell upon her; even if he dies prepared fireball and wall of force and stored a banishment
before she can start the ice age, he has fulfilled his purpose. spell in his shield guardian. Fyar is not expecting adventurers
Fyar's Entourage. The wizard did not come alone; Fyar has to meddle in his plot. On his first turn, he utters "let winter
brought his shield guardian (which can unleash a banishment reign" to charm the giants (no action required). After Beldara
spell) and a contracted nycaloth Fyar has already paid. He also is freed, he uses his next turn to cast wish.
has the aasimar war priest Masra at his side (see Temple of the • Fyar is aware that storm giants have resistance to cold damage
Frostmaiden). and immunity to lightning and thunder damage. He targets
Fyar's Gear. The wizard wears a pair of bracers of defense them with fire, necrotic, or force damage.
and a cloak of protection (DMG pg. 157 & 159), increasing his • Masra's priority is freeing her deity's daughter; Withrens
AC to 18. He also wields a circlet of blasting (DMG pg. 158) Fyar's apocalyptic ambitions come second. She is fearless,
that he has specially chosen to combat storm giants. knowing that dying in the service of her deity is the ultimate
honor. She is warded by guardian of faith, cast before she and
Fyar arrived. On her first turn, she protects Fyar with a shield
of faith spell. On her second, she casts sacred flame and
spiritual weapon. She targets an ornery giant with a hold
monster spell.
• The nycaloth focuses on breaking Beldara's chains, as do any
giants charmed by Fyar.
• Once freed, the nigh-insane empyrean recognizes only Masra
as an ally. She hurls Bolts at random targets until her sanity
is restored by Fyar's wish spell.

80
 Divine Intervention. The gods themselves take an interest in
this battle. Auril spares enough of her influence to assist in the
THE PENGUINWERE
liberation of her disappointment of a daughter. The Frostmaiden Character Encounter, Tier I-II
is, however, checked by Amaunator himself. Once each round, It is a creature the world has rarely had the misfortune of dealing
at initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), a deity causes one with; a monstrosity undiscovered by scholars and wizards alike,
of the divine effects described below, alternating between Auril but one they would groan over for years; a corrupted beast given
and Amaunator. A character affected by a protection from evil sapience and a dark mission—the penguinwere.
and good spell has advantage on any saving throw imposed by The penguinwere comes from humble beginnings: it was but
these effects. an ordinary penguin until an otherworldly menace corrupted it
• A character of the deity's choice regains 1d10 hit points. into a sapient creature. Much like a werebeast, it can transform
• A gust of wind spell (DC 15) blows across the mountaintop, into a human, a penguin-human abomination, or back into its
targeting a character of the deity's choice. The spell ends at true form.
the start of the next round. The adventurers might encounter the creature in a settlement,
• A character of the deity's choice gains a +2 bonus to their AC along the coast, or at their campfire. If they're at sea, it may
that lasts until the start of their next turn. clamber up into their boat.
• A character of the deity's choice is targeted with a blindness/ Statistics. The penguinwere has the statistics of a jackalwere
deafness spell (DC 15). with the following changes:
• A character of the deity's choice is affected by a spell of lesser • It has a swimming speed of 30 feet and it can hold its breath
restoration. for up to 30 minutes at a time.
• It has resistance to cold damage.
A DIRE, NEW AGE Servant of the Hag. The penguinwere was corrupted by none
If Beldara and Withrens Fyar defeat the adventurers, the world other than Greatmother Winter, a bheur hag that lairs in the
is soon plunged into an ice age; the empyrean channels Fyar's frozen wastes. The beldam has tasked the penguinwere with
disastrous spell, which would reduce any mortal spellcaster to kidnapping travelers and bringing them to her lair—the festive
ash. The global temperature initially decreases by about five stronghold of Greatfather Winter, the mad Yuletide fanatic.
degrees Fahrenheit, causing famines that rock nations around Persona. Greatmother Winter was too busy to help the beast
the world. The global temperature continues to plunge at a rate craft a persona as a human. All she did was give it a name ("Sly
of 5 degrees a week until it reaches -100 Fahrenheit. Countless Clyde" and teach it how to eat with utensils. It has since had to
innocents die in the chaos, forcing those that survived to flee piece together its knowledge by observing and interacting with
towards the equator. As the world continues to grow colder, all other humans, all of whom regard "Sly Clyde" as a simpleton
hope for a warmer tomorrow is extinguished. In the aftermath, or a paranoid fugitive.
heroes arise to battle the chaos while clerics entreat the gods to You can voice the penguinwere with the dialogue below:
restore balance to the world. • "How do you do, fellow person?" (if preserving the beast's
Inevitably, dire winter is halted and even reversed by the cover is of little concern)
intervention of powerful mortals, beings, and deities—but the • "Spare some warmth for a freezing traveler?"
damage is done, and Withrens Fyar, whether he lives or dies, is • "Boy, that blizzard, right?"
welcomed to Auril's wintry afterlife by the goddess herself. The • "Shiny rocks are the key to a woman's heart."
archmage's part in engineering this disaster is discovered by • "The economy's in brambles, everyone says so." (The word it
numerous divination spells cast by the world's most foremost is looking for is "shambles.")
spellcasters, who subsequently give Fyar the fame he always
Tactics. The penguinwere sticks to coastlines, hiding among
hungered for. Withrens Fyar goes down as one of history's most
other penguins (who only just tolerate its presence), storing its
reviled villains.
human clothes on the beach. It wanders into settlements to pick
up new vocabulary and practice its odd mannerisms. It preys
upon travelers, wandering up to their campfires, appealing to
their mercy. When they lower their guard, the creature attacks.
Defenders soon realize that their weapons glance off it, much
like a lycanthrope.

A ROOKERY OF PENGUINWERES
Given time, Greatmother Winter will be inclined to create more
servants, gaining between 1d4+4 and 2d6+6 penguinweres to
fulfill her dark desires. These twisted minions can then be found
all across the Arctic, acting as messengers, spies, saboteurs, and
collectors of artifacts.
As Tier II encounter, the adventurers encounter a rookery of
1d4+2 penguinweres. If they've earned Greatmother Winter's
enmity, the creatures hide among a flock of penguins, using that
cover to launch an attack on the party. The penguins seem
uneasy; a successful DC 14 Insight check reveals that they're
keeping a wide berth from the disguised penguinweres.

81
 THE POACHER'S NIGHTMARE SYLBEROS'S GAMBITS
Character Encounter, Tier III The archdruid is a menace like no other, using subterfuge just
as often as he does shock and awe. He employs the following
A merciless archdruid has unofficially declared a vast swathe
gambits to ward off or ambush poachers and passerby alike:
of land off limits to poachers and even the most harmless of
Among the Herd. The druid takes the form of a mammoth
travelers—a territory that the adventurers have already entered.
and hides among the herd, waiting for poachers to dare hurl a
Foreshadowing. If you intend to run this encounter, it should
spear at one of the beasts. 1d3 mammoths join him in battle,
be foreshadowed through any or all of these events:
savaging enemies of his choice.
• The adventurers find dead men armed with bows (or firearms).
From Above. An eagle's scream is the party's only warning
Most have been crushed underfoot, as if by a mammoth.
as Sylberos dives down from the skies in the form of a giant
• The adventurers see a giant eagle drop someone from a great
eagle. He is joined by two more giant eagles conjured by his
height. Notably, it doesn't swoop down to pick at the remains.
conjure animals spell. If he is rebuffed, he soars back up to the
• The adventurers hear the crack of thunder on a stormless day.
sky and, like a petulant child, casts fire storm.
The Druid. For centuries, the wood elf Sylberos has done his In Plain Sight. Sylberos stalks the wilderness on foot, hiding
best to protect wildlife. In his youth, he would lay traps for any in plain sight. Through this gambit, he employs these tactics:
poachers that dared hunt in his woods. Later, he would discover • Sylberos cloaks himself in a pass without trace spell to study
his gifts as a fledgling druid, which he considered to be implicit his prey up close. If in a forest, he traverses the woods with a
approval from Nature itself, or perhaps even deities of the wild. tree stride spell.
As his powers grew, so did his callousness towards sapient life. • Sylberos opens up first with a fire storm spell to rain hell on
Towns that constructed dams risked his fury; careless miners his prey; he of course chooses to spare plant life from the fire.
were punished cruelly for raping the earth; trappers were made • Sylberos cuts off his prey's retreat with a wall of thorns spell,
into grim warnings. Sylberos is personally responsible for the cast via his staff of the woodlands.
cratering of the beaver fur trade in a distant corner of the Arctic. The Ivory Elk. Throughout history, the glimpse of a giant,
Manic and insatiable, Sylberos was formally exiled from his white elk in the woods has heralded the birth of kings and other
kin two centuries ago. He cared nothing for their decree; it was omens. To kill such a majestic creature, the legends say, is to
only after adventurers were hired to root him out from the wild provoke great upheaval. Invoking this omen, Sylberos assumes
that the druid was forced to migrate to the Arctic. the form of a white giant elk—and he takes great pleasure in
Statistics. Sylberos is a CE archdruid with these changes: delivering destruction on whatever hunter is foolish enough to
• He can read, write, and speak Common and Elvish. attack such a "mythic" creature.
• He has advantage on saving throws against being charmed and Whalers Beware. When Sylberos is in the mood to swim, he
magic cannot put him to sleep. visits the frigid seas to ravage whalers. He assumes the form of
• He has darkvision to a range of 60 feet. a blue whale (use giant shark statistics) and prepares the tidal
• He has a movement speed of 35 feet. wave spell to pull sailors to their frigid demise.
• He can attempt to hide when only lightly obscured by foliage,
mist, heavy rain, falling snow, and other natural phenomena.
• He can use his Change Shape ability thrice a day and can use
it as a bonus action.
Treasure. Sylberos also carries a staff of the woodlands (see
DMG pg. 204).

82
 PRESERVED FOREVERMORE
Polar or Sea Encounter, Tier I-IV
A creature lies perfectly preserved in ice, be it a beast, a person
or a monster. If the adventurers are at sea, the creature is trapped
within an iceberg; if they are not, it's frozen within a glacier.
Select your desired tier and roll a d20 to determine the creature.
This encounter is repeatable. At your discretion, the frozen
creature is still alive (which isn't far-fetched if it's a supernatural
being) and might burst from the ice. If the creature is instead
feeble, imprisoned, or dead, then it serves an oddity found while
traveling through the Arctic, in which case you can roll upon
higher tier tables.
Telepathy. Many creatures featured in the tables below have
telepathy, making them social opportunities with beings that
would otherwise annihilate the adventurers.
PRESERVED FOREVERMORE: TIER I
d20 Creature
1 An allosaurus
2-3 An anklyosaurus PRESERVED FOREVERMORE: TIER III
4 1d3 brontosauruses and 1d4 calves d20 Creature
5-6 A deinonychus 1 A beholder
6-7 1d6+4 hadrosauruses and 2d4+2 calves 2-4 A roc
A CN Neanderthal berserker with a spear with a 5-6 A behir
nearby saber-toothed tiger. It is unclear whether 7 An alhoon
8-10 A narzugon that disappointed Levistus, the arch-
the barbarian was fighting the beast or if the two
had formed a bond. devil. For his failures, he is condemned to the ice
11-12 A mammoth with six sets of tusks for ten centuries. His nightmare is alongside him,
13 A beholder zombie its ghostly flames still flickering in the ice. When
A winged dragonborn berserker, suggesting that 8-9 a creature enters within 5 feet of the narzugon, it
14 makes attempts a DC 25 Charisma saving throw.
modern dragonborn lost their wings over the eons.
2d4+3 primitive, Medium-sized kobolds, which On a success, the ice is shattered; the hell knight
15 suggesting that modern kobolds evolved to be celebrates his freedom by sending the souls of his
smaller than they are now. liberators to the Nine Hells.
16-17 2d4+1 skeletons and 1d6+2 zombies 10 A brass lamp containing a bound efreeti
18 1d4+2 aurochs and 1d3 calves 11-15 An adult white dragon and a clutch of eggs
19 A giant mosquito (a giant wasp) 16 A mage and its shield guardian
20 An adventurer with an uncommon magic item An orthon bounty hunter whose quarry got the
17
better of it
PRESERVED FOREVERMORE: TIER II A death slaad whose control gem is just out of
d20 Creature reach. If a creature touches the gem, the slaad
1-3 A tyrannosaurus rex 18-19
attempts a DC 20 Charisma saving throw to free
4-6 A triceratops itself from the ice.
7-8 1d3 umber hulks 20 An adventurer with a very rare magic item
A human assassin sent to slay Withrens Fyar, the
9-11 archmage featured in the Dire Winter storyline. PRESERVED FOREVERMORE: TIER IV
He failed to get the jump on the wizard. d20 Creature
12-13 1d4+1 girallons 1 A tarrasque
14 A giant ape and 1d4+1 apes 2-8 A dormant ancient white dragon
A CN elven conjurer that made a fatal mistake as A LE solar imprisoned on the Material Plane by
15-16 9-11
to where she was teleporting. its patron deity
17 1d4+1 stegosauruses with 1d4 calves A pit fiend veteran of an ancient infernal invasion
12-15
A chasme; if alive, it can use its Drone feature of this world.
18 16 A kraken
from within the ice.
19-20 An adventure with a rare magic item 17 A dragon turtle
A steel predator that makes a DC 25 Strength
saving throw once a week, freeing itself from the
18
ice on a success. Thereafter, it continues to hunt
down its quarry.
19 A mummy lord and 1d6+2 mummies
20 An adventure with a legendary magic item

83
 RUDOLPH THE RED-BLOODED
Polar, Taiga, or Tundra Encounter, Tier I
The party encounters two awakened reindeer, one wounded and
desperate, the other hellbent on murdering him. This frenzied
reindeer is none other than Rudolph the Red-Blooded; his name
invokes terror amongst awakened reindeer all over the Arctic.
Abused all his life for his glowing tumor of a nose, Rudolph
recently struck an accord with Lone Miyareth, a predatory
bheur hag. Now armed with greater strength and magic,
Rudolph intends to revenge himself on his abusers. His body
count is already in the double digits, and still there are more
childhood bullies and negligent elders to visit.
It quickly becomes apparent that Rudolph is a magical beast.
If his glowing, hideous nose doesn't give it away, his armor and
spells do. If they interfere in his revenge, Rudolph adds the
adventurers to his list of foes. Otherwise, he is content to leave
witnesses to this murder.
Location. If this encounter occurs in a taiga, Rudolph's victim
bursts out of the brush or bounds over a ridge with his aggressor
in hot pursuit. If it occurs in the tundra or polar region, Rudolph
has already caught up, and the two have locked antlers.
Statistics. Rudolph's victim has the statistics of an elk with
an Intelligence score of 10 and the ability to speak Sylvan. He, IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
like Rudolph, was granted sapience by the awaken spell, cast If your adventurers become entangled with Lone Miyareth, they
by Greatfather Winter, a feylord described in the Greatfather are sure to incur the wrath of Rudolph. If you run the Dark
Winter's Fiefdom encounter. Sisterhood storyline, he becomes a thorn in their side.
Rudolph has the statistics of a giant elk with the following At Higher Levels. As Lone Miyareth grows in power, so too
changes: can Rudolph. As the Dark Sisterhood storyline progresses, the
• He is Large, not Huge and is a CR 4 (1,100 XP) creature. reindeer gains the following traits from the warlock of the
• His nose sheds bright light out to a range of 30 feet and dim archfey statblock:
light for an additional 20 feet. • His Charisma score increases to 18 (+4).
• He has an Intelligence score of 10 and can speak Sylvan. • He gains the warlock's immunity to the charmed condition,
• He wears splint armor barding, which raises his AC to 17. plus its saving throw proficiencies.
• He can see in both magical and nonmagical darkness, out to a • He gains its Innate Spellcasting and Spellcasting traits.
distance of 120 feet. • He gains the warlock's Misty Escape reaction.
• He has the following traits:
Spellcasting. Rudolph is a 3rd-level spellcaster. Charisma is
his spellcasting ability (spell save DC 10, +2 to hit with spell
SACRIFICE FOR THE STORM
Mountain Encounter, Tier III
attacks). He regains his expended spell slots when he finishes
a short or long rest. He knows the following warlock spells: To summon the elder tempest they so desperately crave, the
Cantrips (at will): eldritch blast, blade ward Cult of the Black Earth and the Cult of the Howling Hatred must
1st-2nd level (1 2nd-level slot): armor of Agathys, darkness, sacrifice a creature that embodies the most violent aspects of
expeditious retreat, hellish rebuke elemental air—a storm giant quintessent… and they know
just where to find one.
Fey Presence (1/Rest). As an action, Rudolph projects terror A perpetual storm has raged around Wyvernseeker Rock for
into all creatures within a 10-feet-cube centered on him. Each eight years now, becoming an icon of the region and subject of
creature must make a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw. Creatures discussion. If one were to believe the wizard Homer Erendalias,
that fail are frightened of him until the end of his next turn. the storm is centered on the lair of a transcended storm giant.
Servant of the Hag. Although Rudolph owes his awakened "Best to just leave Wyvernseeker Rock to her," he has advised
mind to Greatfather Winter, he has been patronized by the bheur patrons at the Crystalline Tavern and hikers out in the wild.
hag, Lone Miyareth. Between his revenge killings, he does her "She has not left the peak since she came; there is no reason to
bidding. See Traveler's Respite for details on the hag. trouble that which will not trouble you." This advice can be
recalled by a character that has caroused with patrons across
Arctic taverns with a successful DC 13 History check. With a
DC 18 Arcana check, a character recalls the lore surrounding a
"transcendent" storm giant, known by magi as a quintessent. To
escape death, these titans become semiconscious storms.

84
 D E

F
C

A B

Wyvernseeker Rock. This lonely mountain has been the lair Cultists of Elemental Evil invaded the mountain and bound
of many cults or criminal organizations over the centuries, and, Udtha with an imprisonment spell and, through further magic,
true to its name, was the nest of wyverns that have since found contained her elemental power. Just for good measure, she was
a better place to roost ever since the giant's arrival. A dungeon, also struck with a feeblemind spell. Now the cultists work
frequented by these former tenants, is carved beneath the tirelessly towards a ritual that will see Udtha sacrificed to the
mountain, accessible by a cave on its southwest side. archomental Yan-C-Bin, their evil patron.
The Ceaseless Storm. The giantess Udtha has dedicated her Map. See Wyvernseeker Rock above. Its dungeon has the
life to divining the return of Annam the All-Father, the distant following features:
deity of all giantkind. As she neared the end of her natural life, • An alarm spell has been cast in the cave in Area A and F;
Udtha interpreted an omen claiming that, without her, Annam cultists of the Black Earth and Howling Hatred don't trigger
may never return. Whether her interpretation was true or just a the spell. No such spell has been laid on the waterfall in Area
delusion of grandeur, Udtha committed herself into becoming a C…
storm giant quintessent. Now haunting Wyvernseeker Rock, • Area B is the abode of Torrik, leader of the Black Earth cult.
she has no goals other than divining the omens and passing her A tunnel lies behind the southern wall, which is fragile and
wisdom onto other storm giants, who visit the mountain from can be broken after dealing 40 points of bludgeoning or force
time to time. damage to it. The tunnel leads to a cave 1d4+3 miles away.
As described in her statistics, Udtha's presence causes the No one is aware of this tunnel, but its existence can be learned
following regional effects: from a legend lore spell concerning Wyvernseeker Rock.
• High wind blows within 1 mile of the mountain, making it • Area E is abode of El'ophr, the leader of the Howling Hatred
impossible to light a fire unless the location where it is lit is cult. An air elemental habitually guards this chamber.
protected from the wind. • The alcoves of Area D contain a stone of controlling earth
• Snow constantly falls around Wyvernseeker Rock, forming elementals and censer of controlling air elementals.
deep snowdrifts and disadvantaging Perception checks that • A 25-foot patch of yellow mold infests the northwest corner
rely on sight. of Area F; the cultists understandably avoid this area. See the
• Flashes of lightning and peals of thunder crack throughout the sidebar for the effects of Yellow Mold.
day and night. • Udtha is chained in Area C by an imprisonment spell. She has
Elemental Evil. A week ago, the ceaseless storm dispersed— also been stunned by the power of Yan-C-Bin, the Prince of
and the region has gone wild with rumors and speculation. All Evil Air whom the Howling Hatred cultists worship. A 9th-
over this corner of the Arctic, madmen and sages share their level dispel magic spell breaks her bonds and restores her
ludicrous theories as to why the storm abated. Some have mind. If she is freed from these foul spells, she crushes her
suggested that the giant has moved onto more desolate pastures jailors.
or simply passed away; others think something foul is afoot, but
no one is brave enough to investigate Wyvernseeker Rock.
85
 YELLOW MOLD THE RITUAL OF SACRIFICE
Hazard Udtha's death draws near; bound in her true, corporeal form, she
Yellow mold grows in dark places, and one patch covers a 5-foot has been anointed in the oils and painted with ink that depicts
square. If touched, the mold ejects a cloud of spores that fills a 10- just where the cultists must cut her to exsanguinate her. The
foot cube originating from the mold. Any creature in the area must
ritual occurs in Area C, where Udtha is chained. Their forces
succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or take 11 (2d10)
poison damage and become poisoned for 1 minute. While poisoned consist of El'opthr, Torrik (if he wasn't drawn elsewhere and
in this way, the creature takes 5 (1d10) poison damage at the start of slain), three howling hatred priests, two hurricanes, and an
each of its turns. The creature can repeat the saving throw at the end air elemental myrmidon.
of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a successful save. The cultists plunge anointed daggers into Udtha at the start of
Sunlight or any amount of fire damage instantly destroys one the ritual. Roll initiative for the giant; she loses 40 hit points at
patch of yellow mold. the start of each of her turns. Udtha can be healed through spells
but only a regenerate spell can stop her from losing these hit
THE CULT OF THE HOWLING HATRED points and close her wounds.
The Cult of the Howling Hatred revere the most violent aspects When Udtha's reduced to 0 hit points, the ritual is complete.
of elemental air, seeking to spread destruction through cyclones She releases one last titanic breath that cracks with thunder so
and storms. Here at Wyvernseeker Rock, they are on edge—for fierce that all creatures within 100 feet of her must succeed on
if they pull off the ritual, they will reduce the Arctic to a grave- a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or take 11 (2d10) thunder
yard and elevate themselves to legends. If they fail… El'opthr damage and be deafened for the next 5d10+10 minutes. A
has ordered them not to speak of failure, for Yan-C-Bin himself creature takes half as much on a success and is not deafened.
has ordained this quest and will not tolerate doubt. Creatures that are already deaf automatically succeed and take
Leadership. This chapter of the Howling Hatred is led by the no damage.
nagpa El'opthr, an avian outcast that has found in the Howling If El'opthr is alive and within 90 feet of Udtha when she dies,
Hatred the chance to stand tall over all the world. Unlike other he can use his reaction to shape her dying breath into an elder
Howling Hatred leaders, he has no enmity towards the Black tempest, which flies out through the waterfall. Proceed to the
Earth cult, and had no qualms in offering them an opportunity Storm of the Century encounter.
to forever change the world. Throughout the battle, other cultists may storm the chamber.
El'opthr is a 17th-level spellcaster; in addition to his usual Draw upon the remaining forces present at Wyvernseeker Rock.
spells, he has imprisonment and mirror image prepared. No more than 1d4 characters can arrive in a single turn.
Members. The Howling Hatred are few in number; many fell
prey to hypothermia or doubt. Their ranks include six howling IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
hatred initiates, 1d6+4 howling hatred priests, 1d3+1 air
elementals, an air elemental myrmidon and two hurricanes. The Ceaseless Storm's sudden abatement is meant to alert the
When these priests aren't busy preparing for the ritual, they adventurers to the cultists' plot. Rather than directly issuing a
patrol the mountain and its outlying territories using gaseous quest from a nonplayer character, have it mentioned by several
form spells. characters in the days since the cultists invaded. If they fail to
investigate Wyvernseeker Rock themselves, so be it. They will
THE CULT OF THE BLACK EARTH have the chance to redeem themselves through the Storm of the
The Cult of the Black Earth is at home here in Wyvernseeker Century encounter.
Rock, for anywhere free from the sky is their domain. They are
an austere force fond of brutal assaults, not the deceitful tactics THE SCORCH BATHS
their Howling Hatred colleagues employ. Torrik, their leader, Volcanic Encounter, Tier II
keeps them sharp and vigilant. Their role is to patrol the summit
An enterprising firenewt clan has managed to turn hot springs
and outlying territories while the Howling Hatred prepares to
and geysers into a resort frequented by the Arctic's wealthy—
sacrifice the storm giant.
or rather, they did before a frost salamander invaded the hot
Leadership. The duergar despot Torrik Steelshadow leads
this chapter of the Black Earth cult. Torrik is eighteenth-in-line springs. The monster has stolen their home, and, in turn, their
livelihood, to soak in the Scorch Baths.
for the throne of Gracklstugh, a duergar city-state. He has little
The firenewts are flimsy worshippers of Imix, the Elemental
hope of ascending to the throne and must forge a kingdom of
Prince of Evil Fire, who delivered them to the Arctic from their
his own—a kingdom of Elemental Evil lorded over by cultists.
original home in the tropics. Their faith has waned since they
Should Torrik be alerted of interlopers, he heads out to meet
became wealthy; pursuing status and treasure is more fun than
them head-on. Therefore, he may be slain prematurely.
Members. The Cult of the Black Earth is stretched across the kneeling atop hot coals, after all. Those still faithful to Imix
have declared this frost salamander divine justice—that Imix
Arctic, bunkered below the earth. After the tempest ravages the
himself invited a creature from the Plane of Ice to wreak havoc
surface, these cultists will spring up to rule over the bones of
on his apostates.
civilization. Only Torrik's most trusted servants have gathered
A frost salamander is a fearsome creature; six warriors have
at Wyvernseeker Rock, just to ensure the Howling Hatred does
not betray their word. The cultists consist of 1d6+5 black earth already been torn to shreds by the beast. The clan has no choice
guards and 1d4+3 black earth priests. They are also served by but to turn to outsiders to expel the invader. They offer 100 gp
or ten "full packages" (see below), which can be redeemed
1d3 earth elementals. Torrik is always accompanied by a priest
within the next year, for whomever slays the beast.
and a guard.

86
 Populace. The clan consists of twelve firenewt warriors and
twenty-two firenewt commoners (firenewt warriors without SILVER HORN OF VALHALLA
any weapons, the Spit Fire ability, and 5 hit points each). They Wondrous Item, Rare
You can use an action to blow this horn. In response, warrior spirits
also have ten giant striders, which they use as beasts of burden.
from the plane of Ysgard appear within 60 feet of you. These spirits
Imix's Brood. A firenewt warlock of Imix has splintered off use the berserker statistics. They return to Ysgard after 1 hour or
from the clan with another six firenewt warriors and seven when they drop to 0 hit points. Once you use the horn, it can't be
giant striders. While the warlock has not severed ties with his used again until 7 days have passed.
kin, he publicly condemns their avarice and treachery "towards The silver horn summons 2d4+2 berserkers. The berserkers are
the One who delivered us!" He and his ilk normally protest out- friendly to you and your companions and follow your commands.
side the hot springs each day, denouncing their brethren.
The clan has appealed to the warlock, Tethky, to use his great Statistics. All sea elves have the following racial traits:
powers to battle the frost salamander, but he has refused, citing • They have advantage on saving throws against being charmed
this as "divine reckoning." Only a DC 22 Persuasion check can and magic cannot put them to sleep.
convince him otherwise or assuage his critical judgment. • They have darkvision out to a range of 60 ft.
As the days stretch into weeks, Tethky's followers increase • They speak, read, and write Aquan.
until he has full control of the clan. He reinstates worship of • They have a swimming speed of 30 ft. and can breathe both
Imix and dedicates the Scorch Baths to funding their master's air and water.
dark agenda on the Material Plane—specifically the endeavors Living Figurehead. The drakkar's figurehead is carved as a
of the Cult of the Eternal Flame, who are conspiring to melt the horned dragon. On her turn, the captain can animate the figure-
polar icecaps in the Global Warming storyline. The clan will head as an action so long as she's aboard the ship. On that turn,
also shelter these cultists and their allies. the dragon exhales a 60-foot-cone of fire. All creatures in that
The Scorch Baths. Renowned around the Arctic, a day at the area must make a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw. On a failure,
Scorched Baths costs 25 gp per person. For an additional 25 gp, a creature takes 24 (7d6) fire damage, or half as much on a
a customer also gets the "full package:" a scrub, massage, success. This fire ignites flammable objects not being worn or
manicure, and pedicure. Resting at the resort grants a character carried. Once the figurehead has exhaled its fiery breath, it
Inspiration, which must be used within the next seven days. cannot do so again until the next dawn.
Additionally, for every half hour a character rests in the hot Cargo. Fresh from pillaging, the elves have amassed 4d100
springs, they regain a spent hit die. +1,200 gp, 2,600 sp, and 5,400 cp as well as 6d8+4 goats,
2d12+28 casks of mead (worth 25 gp a cask) and 1d8+4 crates
SEA ELF VIKINGS of rare textiles (worth 50 gp a crate). 1d4 +1 potions of healing,
Sea Encounter, Tier II-III a cloak of the manta ray, and a spell scroll of sending can also
be found.
A horn sounds off in the distance and the wind carries Elvish
When it comes time to deliver their spoils back to their
jeers. The infamous sea elf vikings that call these frigid lands
homestead, the vikings simply pitch them overboard while
their home have come for what they're owed: everything. These
above their underwater settlement.
fearsome raiders pillage coastlines without mercy, and honor
combat above all else. LEVIATHAN HUNTING
Ship. The elves sail a drakkar—a longship. See DMG pg. 119 Tier III
for the ship's statistics. Under this variant, the adventurers aren't the target of the sea
Crew. The longship is oared by forty sea elf commoners. Its elves—a sea serpent of old is. The crew has been tracking this
combatants consist of: leviathan for weeks and have finally engaged the beast. The
• Shieldmaiden Sigrunn Hlodvir, a CN gladiator. She carries a party's ship happens across this feverish battle and might be
silver horn of Valhalla (see the sidebar) and captains the ship. compelled to join the fray. They'll have little choice if the
• Ærin Trudsson, an CN enchanter with counterspell prepared serpent attacks their ship as well.
instead of stoneskin. Statistics. The sea serpent has the statistics of a purple worm
• Hallbjorn Ornolfsson, a CN bard working on his epic. with the following changes:
• Orn Iorundsson, a priest of Deep Sashelas (CG), Umberlee • It has a swimming speed of 50 ft. and lacks a burrowing speed.
(NE) or Valkur (LE), if not a deity from the Norse pantheon. • It lacks its Tunneler feature.
• Svinulf Bretakollrsson, a swashbuckler with a Strength score • It can breathe air and water.
of 18 and Dexterity score of 12 armed with handaxes (+6 to
hit, 1d6+4 slashing damage, 20/60 ft.) and an AC of 14. He Aftermath. If the leviathan is slain, Sigrunn Hlodvir shows
can make up to three handaxe attacks per turn. her gratitude by sparing the party's vessel. The skald, Hallbjorn
• 1d6+2 veterans, 2d6+4 bandits and two archers Ornolfsson, promises to immortalize the adventurers in his
• 2d4+2 berserkers (summoned only by the horn of Valhalla) recount of this battle. Sure enough, 1d4 years later, Hallbjorn's
Epic hits the press, but two adventurers have been forgotten and
the others' names are misspelled—and their exploits are stolen
SEA ELF VIKINGS: REPRINT by Hallbjorn, who paints them as lambs cornered by a wolf.
This encounter first appeared in Daerdan's Tall Tales: 101 Seafaring
Encounters. Its themes—vikings, sea leviathans—were deemed too
iconic to not include in this supplement. If you have already ran this
encounter in your campaign, consider changing the names of the
warriors involved, use it as a callback, or showcase the aftermath of
the vikings' last encounter with the party.

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 SHRINE OF VAPRAK VAPRAK'S PILGRIM
Mountain or Tundra Encounter, Tier I-II Tier II
Deep within the Arctic, a frost giant of the infamous stronghold,
Tucked away into an ice cave is a grisly shrine devoted to the
Skoldheim, has prayed to the Destroyer for strength. This giant,
most reviled god of the giant pantheon and patron deity of trolls
Rowthor, hungers to rule Skoldheim, but lacks the fortitude to
and ogres: Vaprak the Destroyer. This effigy is composed of the
take Jarl Grisbos on in single combat. Vaprak has answered this
mutilated remains of both beasts and men. The cave itself has
giant's prayers and is sending a troll for Rowthor to devour. The
been carved with Giant runes. The shrine is tended to by an ogre
troll may cross paths with the adventurers (elevating Shrine of
shaman whose devotion to the Destroyer is rewarded with elk
Vaprak to a Tier II encounter) before, after, or while it visits
and elf meat by visiting trolls.
this shrine.
Runes. Most giants eschew literacy, especially frost giants.
To the Shrine. Knowing that it is about to embark on a sacred
They prefer simple pictographs that tell an easily gleaned story.
mission, the troll avoids conflict on its way to Vaprak's shrine.
The runes carved into the ice cave's interior are no exception.
If it discovers the adventurers, it must succeed on a DC 14
They depict Annam the All-Father, the patron deity of giants,
Wisdom saving throw, otherwise the troll's temper and hunger
presiding over a council of other giant gods—but below them
get the better of it. If the adventurers instead surprise the troll,
is a dark maw rimmed in fangs ready to swallow them whole.
it fights until an opportunity to escape presents itself, which it
This creature is Vaprak the Destroyer.
does in the form of a frigid stream or frozen lake. It might even
Another pictograph depicts the Ritual of the Everlasting One.
hurl itself off a cliff, instinctively trusting in Vaprak to deliver
When a frost giant, whose social position is determined by sheer
it from harm or relying on its regenerative traits to survive. The
strength alone, knows it cannot compete against its betters, it
troll can be tracked to Vaprak's shrine with a successful DC 13
may seek the patronage of Vaprak. The Destroyer sends a troll,
Survival check made over the course of an hour.
guided by a vision quest, to that giant to be devoured. The giant
At the Shrine. If the troll is present when the adventurers find
inherits the strength, rage, and regenerative abilities of a troll.
the shrine, it is being anointed by Drareg. Believing this to be
Alas, such deceit is punishable by exile or death in frost giant
the first of Vaprak's many trials, the two immediately attack the
society, should it ever be discovered. The pictographs depict a
adventurers.
troll pilgrim trekking across the Arctic and marching straight
To Skoldheim. If the troll is encountered after it has begun its
into the belly of an emaciated frost giant. In the next image, the
fatal pilgrimage to Skoldheim, it is under the Dedication effect
giant has swollen to immense proportions and challenged the
of Drareg's ceremony spell. For the next 2d12 hours, whenever
jarl, the frost giant leader, to a duel.
the troll makes a saving throw, it can roll a d4 and add the result
A creature that views these pictographs can understand the
to the save. See XGE pg. 151 for further details on the spell.
story well enough. With a successful DC 15 Arcana check, the
Should the troll make it to Skoldheim, it presents itself to
character relates it to Vaprak and the giant pantheon. They also
Rowthor, who devours it, leading to the Forer-Slag encounter.
recall that, should the giant fail to honor Vaprak after this ritual,
See the The Ordning of Might sample storyline for details.
it is likely to suffer grotesque mutations, such as an extra head,
warts, or tumors.
Shaman. Drareg, an ogre, tends the shrine. He is a calm but
devious cannibal that embodies all of Vaprak's horrid ideals. He
has the statistics of an ogre but with the following changes:
• He has a Wisdom score of 15 (+2).
• He is a CR 4 (1,100 XP) creature.
• He wears a holy symbol of Vaprak: the rotting remains of a
snow elf's skull anointed in blood; thin bones poke out of its
empty eye sockets.
• He has the Spellcasting trait, detailed below:
Spellcasting. Drareg is a 5th-level spellcaster. Wisdom is his
spellcasting ability (spell save DC 12, +4 to hit with spell
attacks). He has the following cleric spells prepared:
Cantrips (at will): guidance, mending, sacred flame
1st level (4 slots): bane, bless, ceremonyXGE, cure wounds,
inflict wounds
2nd level (3 slots): augury
3rd level (2 slots): create food and water
Treasure. The ogre has amassed little wealth in his years, as
he gives away any non-essentials to traveling ogres and trolls.
By when the adventurers arrive, he has twenty-three pounds of
food and twelve gallons of water leftover from his last create
food and water spell.

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 SICK RANGER SKOLDHEIM
Tundra Encounter, Tier I Mountain Encounter, Tier III
The adventurers sight a saddled mammoth roaming the tundra. From their bastion of Skoldheim, the frost giants ravage the
A rope ladder trails down to the mammoth's side. To spot the Arctic. Its location is no secret, but no matter how wide a berth
mammoth's rider from this distance requires a DC 16 Perception travelers give it, the giants still manage to collect their due.
check or a spyglass. On a success, the character spots a halfling These raiders are not interested in tribute, only glory—for only
strewn across the mammoth's massive saddle. This halfling, the strength matters to the isejotun.
mammoth's beloved master, is dying. Without intervention, the Skoldheim was not founded by the isejotun, who are absent
sickness ravaging the halfling will triumph. of masons and even the desire to build. True to their rapacious
The mammoth is acclimated to people. She steers towards the nature, the isejotun stole Skoldheim from the peaceful stone
party if they approach, even trumpeting to get their attention. giants that dwelled within the mountain. That these two clans
With her trunk, she gestures upwards to her rider. were distant kin mattered little to the frost giants, who know
Ranger. Kaylin Tosscobble ventured to the Arctic two years only how to take. To the isejotun of Skoldheim, the massacre is
ago, where she found kinship with an orphaned mammoth calf a distant memory celebrated once every ten years—and as it just
that she named Bigfoot. The ranger communicates with her so happens, the festival, a revelry in the shape of a massive raid,
companion with frequent speak with animals spells. is only a few days away.
A week ago, Kaylin was bitten by a diseased bat in her sleep. Anatomy of Skoldheim. Skoldheim is little more than an
Despite her remarkable luck and fortitude as a Stout halfling, encampment butting up against the mountainside, ringed with
she has come down with a vicious but untransmissible disease. boulders and absent of structures. To understand Skoldheim,
She is currently afflicted with four levels of exhaustion. The one must first understand the life of a frost giant. Consider the
fifth level is due to occur in 1d4 hours; in 2d12 hours, the following:
sickness will kill her. • Frost giants are immune to the cold, so they are unbothered by
Kaylin's malady can be diagnosed with a DC 14 Intelligence even the worst of the Arctic's weather. They have no need for
(Medicine) check. The illness is called Wicked Crumbling and shelter, but their slaves and livestock do.
it is pervasive in warmer regions of the tundra where insects and • The giants can't tolerate anything warmer than the blood of a
disease have not yet frozen. The remedy requires the boiling of freshly slain elk. They would abstain from fire if they didn't
a particular type of lichen that can be collected from the tundra need it for light; therefore, they only light bonfires sparingly
with an herbalism kit. Finding the lichen requires 1d4 hours and and give them a wide berth—a fact invaders can use to hide
a successful DC 12 Nature check; a character that fails wastes from or inhibit the giants.
that time and must repeat the check. The disease can also be • Skoldheim's defenses are nothing more than stacked boulders
cured with a lesser restoration spell. packed with snow and ice. These "walls" are 15-feet-high, as
The Ranger Saved. If the ranger is saved, she is eternally the frost giants, who average 21 feet in height, prefer to look
grateful. She offers to stick around with the adventurers unless out over the walls. Creatures can climb over the walls with
they prove to be evil. Shortly later, she becomes a 5th-level DC 12 Athletics checks; with a climber's kit or a grappling
spellcaster and chooses to learn the lesser restoration spell so hook, a Medium-sized character can easily scale the walls.
that she and her friends won't have to suffer such a wretched • The only crafting frost giants partake in are leatherworking
illness ever again. and bone carving; they have no beds or homes, as they don't
The Ranger Dead. If Kaylin dies, Bigfoot is inconsolable. In need to shelter from the elements. Most giants simply lay
her grief, she makes a single attack against a creature that dares down on the ground to sleep. Mightier giants may have their
approach her, but then backs off. Later, a character can placate own ice caves, which they use to store belongings and the
the mammoth with a DC 14 Animal Handling check. They can trophies of past battles. Skoldheim features vast expanses for
effectively adopt the mammoth with a DC 18 Animal Handling the giants to sleep and rest in.
check, attaining Bigfoot as a companion. However, she will not • The giants use the caves to house their slaves and beasts, who
allow others to ride her until 2d6+3 days have passed. lack their immunity to harsh weather. Most of their treasures,
Statistics. Kaylin is a NG halfling scout with the following such as ale, steel, and gems, are also placed here. The giants
changes: only shelter here from airborne enemies they cannot meet in
• She has a Wisdom score of 15 (+2). battle, such as rocs and dragons.
• She reads, writes, and speaks Common and Halfling. Population. Skoldheim is inhabited by twenty-three frost
• She is a size of Small with a speed of 25 feet. giants, thirty-one frost giant juveniles (ogres with immunity to
• She has advantage on saving throws against being frightened. cold damage) and fourteen frost giant toddlers (Medium-sized
• When Kaylin rolls a 1 on an attack roll, ability check, or saving half-ogres with immunity to cold damage that are not trained
throw, she can reroll the die, but she must use the new roll. to wield weapons). Jarl Grisbos rules Skoldheim, unless he has
• She has resistance to poison damage and advantage on saving been deposed by Rowthor (see The Ordning of Might below).
throws against poison. Beasts. The frost giants maintain a stable of 2d6+3 winter
• She has the Spellcasting trait, detailed below: wolves (which hunt outside Skoldheim). They also have 1d4+2
Spellcasting. Kaylin is a 4th-level spellcaster. Wisdom is her young remorhazes. Unlike the wolves, the remorhazes are not
spellcasting ability (spell save DC 12, +4 to hit with spell permitted to leave Skoldheim without a beastmaster, lest they
attacks). She knows the following ranger spells: slip away into the ice forevermore. Additionally, a manticore
1st level (3 slots): hail of thorns, hunter's mark, speak with known as Lasmus scouts for the giants in return for food.
animals

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 H The slaves are led by Hrondyr, a duergar plucked eight years
ago while he and his kin were enjoying the annual polar night.
Recognizing that he could improve his own conditions by
working with his cruel overlords, Hrondyr challenged the
strongest captives to forer-slags of his own. The giants, reverent
only of strength, rewarded his might with a warmer bed and
better food. Now Hrondyr is consulted on the worth of any and
all treasures or materials brought into Skoldheim. The duergar
speaks fluent Giant and is on a first-name basis with the giants.
The other captives mainly consist of glacier dwarves, snow
elves, and humans, all of them commoners. Most have been
broken by despair and abuse; the adventurers' arrival is viewed
only as another opportunity for false hope.
The slaves are put to work tending livestock (cows, pigs, and
sheep stolen from settlements) and brewing beer. Unbeknownst
P to all of Skoldheim, one slave, a human named Kaulder, sweeps
the cave with a broom of flying (DMG pg. 156).
Treasure. The giants have little in the means of conventional
wealth. They prize steel, alcohol, and large gems, and scorn
currency they can hardly pick up. They prefer rod ("red," which
refers to livestock and slaves). Their meager hoard is marked
with an "H" on the map and contains:
• Six fist-sized rubies worth 500 gp apiece, as well as a diamond
worth 300 gp.
Map. See the map above; every square is equal to 5 feet. This • An elemental gem (emerald) (see DMG pg. 167)
cavern houses the frost giants' slaves and cattle, who would • Twelve pigs, four cows, and nine sheep, which are kept in the
otherwise perish in the cold outside. area marked "P" on the map.
• A brazier of commanding fire elementals (DMG pg. 156)
ON THE OUTSKIRTS
As the adventurers near Skoldheim, any of the events below
THE ORDNING OF MIGHT
may occur: If the Forer-Slag! encounter has occurred in your campaign, on
• The adventurers are attacked by 1d4+2 winter wolves who screen or off, Rowthor, a frost giant everlasting one, has taken
flee if reduced to 25 hit points. The survivors later betray control of Skoldheim. His draconian regime has seen countless
these trespassers' presence to their giant masters. detractors exiled and vicious raids launched.
• Three frost giants are practicing their boulder-hurling near Characters that succeed on a DC 15 Arcana check can recall
the perimeter; one of these rocks sail towards the adventurers that the giants respect only might, and to ignore a challenge is
(+9 to hit, range 60/240 ft., 28 (4d10+6) bludgeoning dmg.). to bring great dishonor upon oneself. Should Jarl Rowthor be
• An attentive sentry that detects the adventurers hurls a boulder challenged publicly, he will have no choice but to answer; his
(see above) and sounds a horn to alert Skoldheim of potential clan already disdains him and he cannot risk falling out of favor.
intruders. If he refuses to battle such lowly creatures, another giant will
• A frost giant accompanied by two frost giant juveniles (see surely challenge him to a forer-slag.
Population above) embarks on a patrol. If the adventurers are Duels are highly ritualized in isejotun society. Spectators are
discovered, the giants attempt to enslave them. The juveniles forbidden to intervene, and duels must have an equal number of
are eager to prove themselves in battle and attack with wild combatants on each side. No giant, however, is willing to fight
abandon. beside Rowthor. With a successful DC 17 Persuasion check, the
• As a blizzard roils across the region, Skoldheim launches 1d3 adventurers can convince the giants to allow them to outnumber
raids. Alternatively, a raid is returning home. If Rowthor is the jarl. After all, such a giant—and a jarl no less—would not
the jarl, 1d4+2 raids are launched. See Frost Giant Raiders. need help against such frail and tiny creatures, right?
Once Rowthor has been reduced to 94 hit points or less, his
THE CAVES OF SKOLDHEIM Regeneration trait begins to visibly heal his wounds. His blood
Skoldheim was carved by stone giants whose bones have long coagulates and dries, his gait improves, and blows against him
been trampled into the dust. These masons took an ordinary strike shallower than before. If he is reduced to 0 hit points and
cave and turned it into a home, full of delicate art and beautiful still regenerates, he grows a second head. There can be no
mosaics. In the three hundred years since their death, the frost hiding his pact with Vaprak the Destroyer now; if even a single
giants have managed to scar, mar, or destroy every piece of art giant is around to witness this, they condemn Rowthor to death.
the giants left behind. The call is taken up by the clan and Rowthor is publicly stoned
Slaves. The frost giants house their stable of slaves here, who as he attempts to flee.
number twenty-two. Sickness regularly takes slaves to an early
grave; before they even have the chance to grieve, the giants
return with another captive. Corpses are thrown to the beasts.
Many of Skoldheim's captives believe that the giants prefer the
high mortality rate so that they can keep the beasts fed.
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 Aftermath. The frost giants wouldn't normally not allow such HIGH JUMPS
strong and useful slaves to walk free from Skoldheim, but they When you make a high jump, you leap into the air a number of feet
are grateful that Rowthor's treachery was exposed. An elderly, equal to 3 + your Strength modifier (minimum of 0 feet) if you move
respected giant named Grondyyal approaches the adventurers; at least 10 feet on foot immediately before the jump. When you make
in Dwarvish (if none of them speak Giant), the elder says, "That a standing high jump, you can jump only half that distance. Either
Rowthor's sins were brought to light will be celebrated for years way, each foot you clear on the jump costs a foot of movement. In
to come. We are grateful, small ones, but you must leave now. some circumstances, your DM might allow you to make a Strength
A moot must be called, and a new jarl must be crowned. Leave (Athletics) check to jump higher than you normally can.
You can extend your arms half your height above yourself during
us to our ways, lest others wonder why you have not been added
the jump. Thus, you can reach above you a distance equal to the
to the stable." height of the jump plus 1½ times your height
Rowthor's death marks the end of the Ordning of Might story-
line. The Arctic can rest easy knowing his vicious raids are a
thing of the past—but not too easy, for soon the isejotun will SPELLJAMMER DERELICT
return to their rapacious ways. Polar Encounter, Tier II
Alone on the otherwise flat and empty ice plains, over a dozen
SNOW BULETTE leagues from the nearest coast, is a shipwrecked sailing ship. Its
Mountain Encounter, Tier II sails are tattered, but its masts are still intact. The ship is slanted
at a thirty-degree angle, its bow buried in the ice, as if it fell
Bulettes are a terror known only in warmer lands, but Evolution from the sky—which it did. This ship is a spelljamming vessel,
is a cruel mistress. A rare breed of these predators have claimed a magical ship that can cruise through the air, space, and even
the Arctic as their territory, with a single one patrolling a range underwater. The spacefarers that crewed this vessel are all dead;
of up to thirty miles. As the adventurers trek across the snowy the corpses have been preserved by the deadly cold. Most died
landscape, this fierce creature is alerted to their presence. upon impact when the vessel crashed from outer space.
Sensing new prey, the bulette bursts from the snow, its jaws This spelljamming vessel model was designed to infiltrate
snapping at the nearest character. worlds not yet involved in spaceflight. It looks like an ordinary
Trees. Among pines and firs is a mighty oak tree that can be sailing ship, except for its beholder figurehead and the strange
climbed. A character that succeeds on a DC 13 Arcana check runes on its hull. The runes are of a language known by no one
recalls that bulettes are excellent leapers, but poor climbers. The on this planet, except for perhaps aliens themselves. A spell of
lowest branches are six feet above the ground, requiring a high comprehend languages reveals the ship's name in its unknown,
jump to reach. To pull oneself up onto the branches requires a native language: Drifter.
DC 12 Athletics check. Afterwards, the character can continue Living Figurehead. When creatures approach within 60 feet
to climb. The oak tree is forty-six feet tall. of Drifter's bow, the beholder figurehead's eyestalks animate,
If the character takes 10 points of damage in a single round, shooting a 5th-level scorching ray spell at creatures within 120
they must make a DC 13 Acrobatics check to maintain their feet of the figurehead (six rays, +8 to hit, 7 (2d6) fire damage
balance. On a failure, they fall out of the tree. on a hit). The figurehead's eyestalks can twist and turn, allowing
Per its Standing Leap trait, the bulette can jump up to 15 feet them to fire at targets anywhere on the ship except behind the
with or without a running start, allowing it to continue ravaging stern. A spell of dispel magic renders the figurehead inert for
creatures in the lower branches. It does not give up on its prey one hour.
that easily, but if the adventurers hurl missiles and spells from Above and Below Deck. The ship's exterior is coated in frost
out of its reach, the beast dives into the ground and flees. and snow. Fourteen orog corpses can be found throughout the
ship. In the Forgotten Realms setting, these orogs were born on
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN H'catha, the furthest planet from Toril's sun. H'catha is a wheel-
This encounter is better implemented as a twist in the story; add shaped world dominated by beholders. A legend lore spell cast
it to whatever encounter the adventurers are already embroiled on a corpse reveals this. A dead beholder's corpse can be found
in. For example, should they be making a getaway from bandits on the aftercastle; two of its eyestalks have been severed and a
or about to ambush cultists, the bulette emerges to foil those harpoon is impaled into its side.
plans. The monster takes no sides and victimizes both the party Sole Survivor. Drifter was captained by a grim beholder by
and their foes indiscriminately. the name of Renght, who died in the crash. Its second mate, a
gauth named Oplvaus can be found in the captain's cabin. The
aberration has been marooned on this planet for the last eight
years and has survived by feeding on Drifter's residual magic.
Oplvaus is beyond insane; in its twisted mind, it believes that
the ship is in port and the crew left with Captain Renght to take
care of some discreet business, leaving Oplvaus in command.
Should it see the adventurers, it considers them new recruits and
barks commands at them in Deep Speech.

91
 Roleplaying Oplvaus. The gauth can only be communicated SPELLJAMMING HELM
with in Deep Speech or through magic (such as a tongues spell) Wondrous item, legendary (requires attunement by a spellcaster)
as the dialect of Undercommon it speaks is not of this world. It This ornate chair is designed to propel and maneuver a ship through
expresses frustration and confusion if the adventurers inquire space.
about the ship's otherworldly origins, asking, "Have you never Passive Properties. The following properties of the helm come into
strayed off-world, sailor?" play even when no creature is attuned to it:
The gauth orders its new crewmates to scrub the deck free of • When placed aboard a vessel weighing between 1 and 100 tons, the
frost, raise the sails ("It isn't as if we even need them; they're a helm generates an envelope of fresh air around the ship while it is
in the void of space (but not underwater). This envelope extends
bloody eyesore now, even," says Oplvaus) and prepare the ship
out from the edges of the hull in all directions for a distance equal
for the captain's return. Any insubordination is punished with in length to the vessel's beam, so that creatures aboard and near
deadly force; it wouldn't be the first time Oplvaus disintegrated the ship can breathe normally in space. The temperature within
a troublesome sailor, and it has no qualms with it now. the air envelope is 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
If a greater restoration spell is cast upon it, Oplvaus becomes • When placed aboard a vessel weighing between 1 and 100 tons, the
lucid enough to explain the ship's doom: as Drifter entered the helm generates an artificial gravity field while the ship is in the
world's atmosphere, the orogs launched a mutiny. In the chaos, void of space, so that creatures can walk on the ship's decks as
Renght was forced off the helm and the landing was botched. they normally would. Creatures and objects that fall overboard
Drifter missed the seas and sailed across the ice; Renght took bob in a gravity plane that extends out from the main deck for a
distance equal in length to the vessel's beam.
control of the helm but was killed before it could land Drfiter.
The ship slammed bow-first into the ice, sparing the area from Active Properties. The sensation of being attuned to the helm is
a newly formed crater. akin to being immersed in warm water. While attuned to the helm,
you gain the following abilities while you sit in it:
Treasure. Casks of ale, water, and lime juice can be found in
• You can use the helm to propel the vessel across or through water
the cargo hold, along with, curiously enough, manufactured and other liquids at a maximum speed in miles per hour equal to
beehives. A chest in the captain's cabin (warded by an arcane your highest-level unexpended spell slot.
lock spell) contains 900 pp in strange, alien currencies as well • You can use the helm to propel the vessel through air or space at a
as a diamond worth 500 gp. maximum speed in miles per hour equal to your highest-level
Captain's Log. The captain's log and the ship's manifesto are unexpended spell slot × 10.
written in a strange language that can only be read by someone • Provided you have at least one unexpended spell slot, you can steer
under a comprehend languages spell. The log describes the trip the vessel, albeit in a somewhat clumsy fashion, in much the same
from H'catha to the asteroid belt and Selûne, Toril's moon. The way that oars or a rudder can maneuver a seafaring ship.
• Whenever you like, you can see what's happening on and around
ship's manifesto details the ship's primary import: honeybees.
the vessel as though you were standing in a location of your choice
Broken Helm. An ordinary helm stands on the ship's after- aboard it.
castle, but it does nothing to steer the ship (as revealed by a DC
Drawback. While attuned to the helm, you cannot expend your own
17 Investigation check). The spacefaring vessel's true helm is a
spell slots.
magical, high-backed ornate chair within the captain's cabin—
a spelljamming helm (see the sidebar).
The spelljamming helm was cracked in the crash and Oplvaus IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
has drained it of its magic. Its properties are betrayed by an It goes without saying that this may be an encounter non grata
identify spell. With 10,000 gp's worth of extremely exotic gems if your setting does not or should not feature spacefaring. If you
and materials, an experienced artificer or another mage can still intend to use this encounter, simply convert it from a space-
repair the helm through forty manhours of labor, restoring the faring vessel to a flying sailing ship empowered by magic.
vessel's spacefaring capabilities.

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 SPRING WEIRD STORM OF THE CENTURY
Volcanic Encounter, Tier I Weather Encounter, Tier IV
The scent of sulfur and clouds of steam shout the presence of Cultists of Elemental Evil—those reckless fools—have doomed
an active hot spring. Its natural warmth makes it an appealing the Arctic to a sentient and sadistic blizzard that will rage
spot for travelers and a crucial locale for a tribe to defend—so ceaselessly against the bonds of the world: an elder tempest.
why is that no beasts or men rest there? This elemental is a force of chaos on its home plane; on the
The hot springs are haunted by a corrupted NE water weird Material Plane, it may just be a death knell for the region.
that has failed its sacred purpose. Once a guardian tasked with This encounter represents the culmination of the Storm of the
keeping this spring free and open for all passerby, it has since Century storyline. The cultists responsible for summoning this
murdered all those who dare enter the springs. If purified, the elder elemental have perished to the tempest's cataclysmic entry
springs once again become a welcome source of warmth and into the mortal world. Some considered it a great honor, others
respite in the Arctic. a sick irony. Only the nagpa El'ophr survived, but he has no
Statistics. In addition to its normal statistics, the water weird interest in protecting the storm. With no master of its own, the
has resistance to cold damage and its Constrict attack also deals elder tempest is free to chart its own path of destruction across
1d6 fire damage. the world.
Befouled Waters. The hot springs and its guardian have been The Storm. Per the tempest's Living Storm trait, it is always
tainted by an otherworldly influence. Choose from the options at the center of a storm 1d6+4 miles in diameter. Characters
below: caught in its storm must contend with these conditions:
• The corpse of a barghest, tanarukk, or gnoll fang of Yeenoghu. • The area is lightly obscured by thick snowfall, disadvantaging
See VGM pg. 123, 186, and MM pg. 163 for the respective Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.
lore on these demonic creatures. • Strong winds impose disadvantage on Perception checks that
• A dark shard amulet (XGE pg. 137) forged in the Nine Hells. rely on hearing and on ranged attack rolls. These fearsome
• The bheur hag Lone Miyareth cursed the waters with her foul winds also make nonmagical flight almost impossible. Flying
magic. A dispel magic spell cast upon the hot springs rids it creatures must land at the end of their turns or fall.
off the corruption. See Traveler's Respite for more details on Characters that analyze the storm, out of sight of the tempest,
this hag. can make a DC 15 Nature check to confirm that it is unnatural.
Cleansing the Pool. The water weird is restored to its original
neutral good alignment if any of the following events occur: 1. INTO THE SENTIENT STORM
• A character casts purify food and drink on the springs while Reaching the tempest's true form is no trivial matter; the party
they are half-submerged in its waters. must brave the blizzard's perils. Alas, the tempest's entrance has
• All 1d8+3 corpses and the source of corruption are removed torn at the borders between this world and the next, allowing
from the hot springs. elementals to seep in from the Elemental Plane of Ice. While
Tactics. The water weird only attacks once a creature enters traveling, the adventurers are harangued by the creatures below;
the hot springs. Because it's invisible while submerged, it has the encounters are spaced 2d10+5 minutes apart and grow in
advantage on Stealth checks; it is likely to surprise the party. severity the closer one gets to the elder tempest. The encounters
Once a creature has been grappled by its Constrict attack, the assume the party travels by land, not air; adjust accordingly.
water weird dives into the water. • 2d4+1 ice mephits strafe the adventurers, each unleashing a
When reduced to 15 hit points or fewer, the water weird takes Frost Breath before fleeing; if they are not slain, they later
the Disengage action to flee into an underwater crevice where accost the party during the battle with the tempest.
the adventurers cannot harm it. • 1d3+1 galeb duhrs formed of ice drop from the sky like hail;
Resting. The spring's reinvigorating warmth and sulfur does they benefit from their Rolling Charge trait while falling. If
wonders for the body and spirit. Characters that spend thirty the adventurers are flying, the elementals attempt to land on
minutes in the water gain the effects of a short rest and regain their vehicle, if one exists; if not, they make attacks as they
one spent hit die. fall past the party.
• 1d3+1 air elementals assail the adventurers; on the second
TREASURE round of combat, a bolt of lightning strikes the area. Creatures
There is little treasure to be found underwater; most victims had within a 5-foot-radius sphere must make a DC 15 Dexterity
already undressed before being drowned by the water weird. save, taking 22 (4d10) lightning damage on a failure, or half
Any belongings they left behind were already scavenged. One as much on a success.
corpse wears an emerald ring carved in the shape of a green • When the party is within a mile to the tempest, they are
dragon worth 50 gp. subjected once to its Screaming Gale legendary action; the
tempest aimed it at other structures and the adventurers are
just caught in its blast.
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN • A water elemental myrmidon forms before the adventurers;
Reclaiming the spring or purifying its corrupted guardian is an it has a flying speed of 30 feet and can hover.
excellent quest for 1st-4th level adventurers. They might hear You can combine this trek with Into the Blizzard, running it
of this "haunted" or "corrupted" spring from other travelers; or as either a Hard or Insane level Skill Challenge.
they might be tasked by a local druid or settlement. Enough
travelers have seen the water weird's victims or survived its
attack to warn others of this dangerous locale.

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2. EYE OF THE STORM
After braving the storm of the century, the adventurers face the
elder tempest; proud and insatiable, the elder elemental cannot
ignore a challenge or audacity. It knows only destruction and
will share that gift with the world.
Living Spells. With a thunderous cry, the tempest imbues the
hail and snow with a fragment of its power. Several living spells
manifest on the rim of a 30-foot-radius circle centered laterally
on the tempest. 1d6+4 living ice knives, one living ice storm,
and 1d4+2 living snowball swarms harass the adventurers. If
the tempest is slain, these spells, which appear as glowing orbs
of ice, are destroyed.
Tactics. Consider these tactics for the battle:
• The tempest doesn't provoke opportunity attacks; like the very
wind it embodies, it slips through the adventurers' ranks. It
can gain altitude without worry.
• Ranged attacks within 1d6+4 miles of the storm perpetually
suffer disadvantage.
• The tempest only descends to the ground while its Lightning
Storm is recharging, or when it can't use its Lightning Strike
legendary action.
• The living spells are the tempest's mythic will made manifest.
Inhabited. The area is inhabited by clever beasts and
They have no concern for their own preservation and only
monsters. Roll a d20 to determine the creature(s).
exist to defend their creator.
There may be signs of the creature's passage or past attacks,
which can be noticed with a successful DC 15 Perception check,
SURVIVORS' CACHE if they aren't covered by fresh snow. To track the creature back
Character Encounter, Tier I-III to its den requires a successful DC 13 Survival check (provided
Arctic samaritans regularly leave behind caches of supplies to tracks exist or other signs can be found, such as bent bushes or
help travelers survive the brutal wilderness. These caches may broken twigs, etc.).
be wrapped bundles marked by an orange flag, or they may be Additionally, there is a 20% chance the cache is still stocked
a crate at the foot of a tree. Some are stocked while others are (see Stocked above), otherwise it has been raided.
empty, for not all who find these supplies are selfless enough to SURVIVORS' CACHE: CONTENTS
take only what they need. Even worse, some beasts and d12 Creature
monsters have learned that these caches, especially the more 1 A whistle made from bone
noticeable ones, bring in weak and distracted prey. 2 1d4 bundles of firewood
Encounter Type. This encounter is categorized as a character 3 1d4 pairs of wool gloves
encounter, even if it has no actual characters present, as it can 5 1d4+2 torches
be used in any arctic environment. 6 Cobbler's tools
7 Cook's utensils
VARIANTS 8 1d3 daggers
This encounter has several variants. Refer to the Survivors' 9 A tent with five pegs
Cache Contents table for the possible items found in a cache, 10 Three empty sacks
the appearance of which is up to you. Additionally, choose one 11 Climber's kit
of the templates below. 12 Healer's kit
Stocked. The cache is almost fully stocked; clearly past
visitors were selfless and mindful enough to take only what they SURVIVORS' CACHE: OCCUPIED
needed. Roll 5d12 to determine the contents, rerolling duplicate d6 Characters
numbers. 1d4+2 bandits with an apprentice wizard (who
1
Raided. The cache has only a quarter or less of its contents. may have cast alarm on the cache).
Roll a d12 to determine the last item, which may be broken. 2 A warlock of the fiend and its imp minion
Occupied. By when the adventurers near the cache, other The Brass Adventists, described in the encounter
3
individuals are already combing through it. Roll a d6 to of the same name.
determine whether the survivors are hostile (1-2), neutral (3-4), 4 A mastiff and 2d4 commoners led by a scout
or friendly (5-6). 5 A druid leaving 1d10 goodberries into the cache
Trapped. Someone, perhaps even those that left the cache, 6 A doppelganger
have rigged it with a simple trap. Roll a d6 to determine the trap,
either placing it in the cache itself or nearby. To notice the trap
requires a DC 10 + 1d6 Perception check or a passive
Perception score of the same value. See Appendix C for the
trap's full effects. Additionally, the cache has been raided.

94
SURVIVORS' CACHE: TRAPPED Temple Properties. Created by the temple of the gods spell,
d6 Trap the temple has the following magical properties:
1 Bear trap (+8 to hit, 1d10 piercing damage)* • The temple's interior is brightly lit, warm, and perpetually
Crossbow trap hidden in a nearby tree or branch, smells of burning incense.
2
triggered by a trip wire (+8 to hit, 1d10 piercing) • The temple is warded against undead, fey, and fiends, who
3 A snare spell (spell save DC 13, XGE pg. 165) must succeed on a DC 15 Charisma saving throw to enter the
4 An alarm spell (PHB pg. 211) temple. Those that succeed are still hindered; whenever they
A tripwire that pulls the cork from a fastened flask make an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check inside the
5 of alchemist's fire, causing an explosion (DC 10 temple, they suffer a d4 penalty.
Dex. save, radius 5-feet, 1d4 fire dmg. on failure). • Creatures within the temple cannot be targeted by divination
A pit trap (10-feet deep, 10-feet-wide) dug near magic.
6 the cache and covered with a snow-covered tarp • Whenever a creature in the temple regains hit points from a
weighted with rocks. spell of 1st level or higher, they gain an extra +3 hit points.
* further pertinent details in Appendix C • Travel through the Ethereal Plane is blocked by the temple's
walls. The temple cannot be dispelled by dispel magic, and
SURVIVORS' CACHE: INHABITED
antimagic field has no effect on it. However, it is destroyed
d20 Creature
instantly by a disintegrate spell.
An opportunistic black bear that can be scared off
1-4 with a DC 13 Animal Handing check. It's more Guards. Two yetis, cowed by Auril's will and reluctantly
interested in the contents of the cache than people. subservient to the clergy, prowl the temple's perimeter. They do
A ferocious brown bear fooled into believing a not attack visitors but instead prevent fugitives from escaping.
5-6 survivor is dead with a DC 13 Deception check. It Most are returned unharmed.
only attacks creatures it perceives to be alive.
A polar bear that can be scared off with a DC 21 INHABITANTS
7 The temple is inhabited by the following people:
Animal Handling check.
A pack of 1d4+3 wolves (if Tier I) with a dire Clergy. Auril's faithful consist of 2d6+4 acolytes, 2d4+2
8-10 priests (with ice knife prepared instead of guiding bolt) and 1d4
wolf alpha (if Tier II).
A snow leopard (a panther with advantage on +3 veterans. These humans are all neutral evil. The priests feed
11 the temple through create food and water spells.
Stealth checks while in snowy terrain).
12 1d3 giant wolf spiders hiding in a burrow. Laity. Those who visit the temple to escape the merciless cold
A polar owlbear (it has advantage on Stealth are pressed into service and forced to worship the Frostmaiden.
15 Dissidents are threatened with naked exile into the wastes. The
checks while in snowy terrain).
16 1d4+1 worgs "laity" consist of 1d8+4 NG commoners of assorted races and
17 A peryton (if Tier I) or manticore (if Tier II) a LG human scout named Isaac, who approaches the party with
18 A troll (if Tier II) or dire troll (if Tier III) his plot to escape. Isaac refuses to leave a single person behind.
19 A yeti (if Tier II) or abominable yeti (if Tier III) Auril's Prophet. The aasimar Masra is the temple's leader and
20 A frost salamander (Tier II or above) creator. She claims to be Auril's "final prophet," a title echoed
by the clergy. She believes that there will soon come a titanic
reckoning that will swallow the world and that Auril has chosen
TEMPLE OF THE FROSTMAIDEN her to play an instrumental part in its design. Masra is an utter
Polar Encounter, Tier III fanatic that believes her own lies. She considers her decisions
Stark against the pale sky and the flat, frozen wastes, where no and actions to be ordained by the goddess and therefore just.
mason could ever build, is a temple. Two pillars mark its open For now, her mission is only to prepare for the Reckoning by
entrance. The temple has no fortifications, no battlements, not collecting more followers and captives. Until that fateful day
even a door, as if all it needs is the favor of whichever deity it comes, she is content with divining self-perceived omens from
is devoted to. That the structure is made from stone should come the Frostmaiden.
as a shock; so deep into the Arctic, such pursuits are nearly None can be allowed to leave the temple, Masra believes, for
impossible without magic, as it was the case here, for the temple they are all soldiers or tools of Auril to be utilized one day.
was created by a temple of the gods spell (see XGE pg. 167). Masra is an aasimar war priest with the following changes:
The temple's walls are decorated with six-pointed snowflake • Masra is CR 11 (7,200 XP)
mosaics of blue, violet, and white. A character can identify this • Masra is a 13th-level spellcaster with two 5th-level spell slots
as the iconography of Auril, the merciless goddess of winter, (instead of one), and one 6th- and 7th-level spell slot. She has
with a successful DC 13 Religion check. Most who pay respects the following additional spells prepared: heal, heroes' feast,
to the Frostmaiden do so out of fear. Her priests spend their time raise dead, and temple of the gods.
warning others to prepare for winter and divining how cruel that • She has darkvision with a range of 60 feet, and has resistance
winter will be. Her truly devoted clergy are almost as evil as the to both necrotic and radiant damage.
Frostmaiden herself. Surely, this bastion in the frozen wastes • Once per long rest, Masra can touch a creature and restore 13
must be inhabited by evil priests. hit points to it.
As the adventurers may learn, all visitors are welcome at the • Once per long rest, Masra can unleash her divine energy. For
temple—but they can never be permitted to leave. The priestess the next minute, she has a flying speed of 30 feet; and once
responsible for creating this temple is two castings of temple of per turn, when she can deal 13 extra radiant to one target
the gods away from making the structure permanent. when she damages it with an attack or spell.
Map. Refer to the map below. Every square equals 5 feet.
95
 H

Auril's Champion. The prophet's will is enforced by Dia Vyl,

a LE human blackguard. Years ago, this paladin was stranded
THELGRYM'S WATCH
in the Arctic after a blizzard separated her from her comrades. Tundra Tier I-II
She considered it divine justice for her fall from grace—for Towering over the tundra is a fortress carved from ice. This
tolerating evil amongst her companions. Slowly that rot took outpost is manned by the glacier dwarves of Clan Aurora. The
hold of her heart… but in the frozen wastes, she found not fort—Thelgrym's Watch—is replete with battlements, arrow
damnation, but acceptance by the Frostmaiden. She has been a slits, and iron doors whose frames are melded into the nigh-
fierce hierophant ever since. indestructible ice. The mere sight of this fortress astounds
newcomers and veterans of the Arctic alike. With a successful
TREASURE DC 14 History check, a character normally unfamiliar with the
The temple's hoard of treasures is marked as "H" on the map. glacier dwarves' handiwork can identify the fort as such.
As Masra could never believe she would be threatened or stolen The dwarves stationed here keep a vigil for gnolls, giants, and
from, the hoard is unguarded. It contains the following: other threats to their homeland. Thelgrym's Watch also serves
• 1,100 gp and 250 pp as a distinct landmark and waystation for travelers, who can
• 1d3 diamonds worth 300 gp and a diamond worth 500 gp camp safely outside the fort's walls and barter with its soldiers.
• A necklace of prayer beads (DMG pg 182) with three beads: By policing this corner of the Arctic, the dwarves ensure that
a bead of curing and two beads of favor. trade and information flows unabated. Visitors are welcome to
Thelgrym's Watch if they present themselves boldly and swear
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN to an oath of nonaggression.
The Frostmaiden demands suffering and penance in the face of Map. See the map below; every square equals 5 feet.
unrelenting winter. Sharing her penchant for sadism, the clergy Leadership. The Thelgrym that founded this fort is long dead,
may conspire with Withrens Fyar, the archmage attempting to but his legacy lives on. Every commander of this fort is referred
induce an early ice age; or the elemental cults attempting to to as "Thelgrym" or "the Thelgrym" for the duration of their
summon an elder tempest to blanket the Arctic in a cataclysmic command. The current Thelgrym is Lord Soram, eighteenth in
blizzard. See the Dire Winter and Storm of the Century sample the life for the throne, who once famously said, "If seventeen of
storylines for details. my betters could just go ahead and die, that'd be grand." Soram
is a crass, callous noble loved by most of his soldiers. He has
volunteered to man Thelgrym's Watch six times, four of which
were under his command. He publicly tells others, "Absence
makes the heart grow fonder and Lady Ketra could use one of
those." His wife's sporadic visits prove to be a tough time for
the dwarves, who oft lament, "I hate it when Mother and Father
fight." The fort's glacial walls inhibit most sound but…
Garrison. Thelgrym's Watch maintains a minimum of twenty
soldiers and a maximum of forty: 1d10+15 guards, one priest,
1d6+2 scouts, one bard, 1d3+1 knights, led by the Thelgrym,
a noble. They maintain an aviary of messenger hawks. Most of
these forces are LG or LN. As glacier dwarves, they have the
following racial traits:
• They speak Dwarvish, in addition to Common, and have dark-
vision to a range of 60 feet.
• They have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned
and resistance to poison damage.
• They are naturally adapted for environments of extreme cold.

96
 IN YOUR CAMPAIGN
This encounter can be featured twice in your campaign. Perhaps
the adventurers first cross the fortress and, in their absence, it
falls to the elemental cult. The reverse can be true: should the
party root out the cultists from their stolen roost, the rightful
owners, the glacier dwarves of Clan Aurora, can return. When
the adventurers next come by, they receive a hero's welcome.

THERE'S ALWAYS A BIGGER BIRD

Tundra Encounter, Tier II
The adventurers sight a wounded mammoth calf (a Large-sized
elephant) on the tundra. The poor creature was savaged by a
clever roc that is hiding just over the horizon or behind a nearby
peak. The bird has engineered a trap for its true prey: a young
white adult dragon.
While the adventurers tend to the mammoth (if they even
bother approaching it), the dragon drops from the sky. It looses
• They can each cast ray of frost. Once per day, they can cast its Cold Breath upon the calf, capturing a random number of
both ice knife and flame blade (the blade is forged of ice and adventurers in the blast. Determine where these characters
deals cold damage instead of fire damage). They require no stand; those that are opposite side of the mammoth gain three-
material components for these spells and Intelligence is the quarters cover. Although the drake's Cold Breath imposes a
spellcasting ability for these spells. Constitution saving throw, instead of Dexterity, grant these
Treasure. Thelgrym's Watch frequently trades with travelers. adventurers a +5 bonus to the check, as the mammoth's body
They have a hoard of 3d100+200 gp, 6d100+250 sp, and 8d100 shields much of the icy blast.
+ 500 cp. They also have up to forty rations for each soldier The dragon is 30 feet above the ground and manages to fly
officially assigned here, plus dozens of casks of mead and ale. another 60 feet before the end of its turn. On its next turn, the
dragon circles around and grapples the mammoth, lifting the
THELGRYM'S RUIN screaming beast into the air. If the dragon takes 30 or more
It is a point of pride among Clan Aurora that no army has ever points of damage before the start of its next turn, it must make
taken Thelgrym's Watch. That streak, however, is due to end. a DC 15 Strength saving throw to hold onto the mammoth. Once
Insidious cultists of Elemental Evil later burrow beneath the fort the dragon reaches an altitude of 100 feet, the roc emerges from
and take it unawares. Much of the garrison is slaughtered, but a the clouds to attack the drake. The drake drops the mammoth,
few brave dwarves fight their way to the aviary to send out one which takes 10d10 bludgeoning damage. A random number of
last messenger hawk to Clan Aurora, notifying them of this red adventurers are beneath its fall; they must succeed on a DC 14
takeover. Lord Soram's fate remains a mystery. Dexterity saving throw or take 22 (4d10) bludgeoning damage
The cultists belong to chapters of the Cults of the Black Earth from the mammoth.
and the Howling Hatred, who are the main antagonists of the There's a 20% chance that the dragon escapes from the roc.
Storm of the Century storyline. The cult requires a foothold in The two soar off in the distance, out of the adventurers' reach.
the Arctic and no stronghold is better than Thelgrym's Watch. The party may later find the dragon's corpse—a valuable find
Using elemental magic, the Black Earth cultists burrow under- for any scale-worker. A character can harvest enough of the
neath the fortress and, with their allies, take it unawares. dragon's scales for a set of white dragon scale (DMG pg. 165)
Leadership. The skeletal garrison is led by the glacier dwarf if they succeed on a DC 20 Survival check. Harvesting the
Ketwyn, who was stationed here in her youth, before she sided scales takes 1d4+2 hours of labor.
against her people—and the world itself. She is a howling
hatred priest with the same racial traits as the glacier dwarves
(see above). She is familiar with Thelgrym Watch's every inch.
As its new commander, she insists upon being referred to as
"Thelgrym," an honor she never before achieved. The cultists
obey, but, much to her chagrin, can't understand the importance
of the title.
Garrison. Just as suddenly as they came, the cults have left.
Eighteen agents were left behind to man the fortress. They
consist of eight cultists, four cult fanatics, three black earth
guards, two hurricanes, and an air elemental myrmidon
conjured by Ketwyn.
Treasure. The cultists have little wealth they didn't steal from
the dwarves. Notably, Ketwyn carries an elemental gem (blue
sapphire) that she can use to summon an air elemental. See
DMG pg. 167 for details on this magic item.

97
 THE THING SLAAD SURVIVOR
Polar Encounter, Tier III Within the ice lies a seemingly dead blue slaad or red slaad
(your choice, see below). Only its upper torso and arms are
The adventurers encounter an alien terror previously frozen in
thawed, reducing its speed to 0 and imposing disadvantage on
stasis below the ice. Like the film of the same name that this
its Dexterity saving throws, as well as granting advantage on
encounter is inspired by, the alien originated beyond the stars.
attack rolls against it. As an adventurer approaches to inspect
Its presence threatens the Arctic, if not the very world.
the corpse, the slaad makes two Claw attacks in an attempt to
You have three variants to use for this encounter:
infect its prey with either Chaos Phage or a tadpole egg—the
MIND FLAYER ASTRONAUTS horrific vehicles of slaadi reproduction.
The creature is identified as a slaad through a successful DC
The mind flayers' galactic empire stretched across the Material
15 Arcana check. The character recalls that these aberrations
Plane when this world was young. As the empire fell to the gith
hail from the chaos of Limbo. With a result of 20 or higher, they
and other rebels, a nautiloid—a mind flayer spacefaring ship—
recall that the blue and red slaadi reproduce through horrific
sought refuge on this world but was attacked in the upper
methods: the former infecting its victim with a disease that turns
atmosphere. The nautiloid was destroyed, but several of its
them into a slaad outright, the latter inserting a miniscule egg
escape shuttles made it to the surface. Most were hunted down
that gestates over the course of three months before bursting
by the gith; some slipped away into the Underdark. One ship,
from the host's chest.
however, crashed in the Arctic, where it was buried under an
Blue. The slaad's touch carries the infamous disease known
avalanche. Those that did not die on impact froze to death—but
as Chaos Phage. Once it takes root in a creature's flesh, it can
not the illithid tadpoles. There in the spawning pool, the
only be purged through magic. A successful DC 16 Medicine
tadpoles were frozen and preserved. An illithid tadpole turns a
check made after a twenty-minute examination confirms that
humanoid into a mind flayer by infiltrating the cranium and
the malady is magical in origin.
devouring the host's brain. See Volo's Guide to Monsters pages
Red. The slaad's touch inserts a miniscule egg into its target's
71-81 for details on mind flayers.
bloodstream. An infected character can, over the coming weeks
Over the centuries, the shuttle—perhaps thanks to geological
and months, sense an alien presence growing within them with
activity or strange directives that the otherwise dead machine
a DC 14 Insight check. The soonest a character can attempt this
still obeys—has inched towards the surface. By when the party
check is after 2d4+4 weeks. On the seventh day of the twelfth
encounters it, it has cracked the ice. Most of the shuttle is still
week, a slaad tadpole bursts from its host's chest, killing them
buried, visible under the ice, but a small section leading to the
instantly.
shuttle's only hatch has been thawed away.
When running this variant, you must determine whether the THE STAR SPAWN
adventurers are the first to find the craft, or if a group of scholars
Eons ago, a meteorite struck the world's crust, flung not from
and magi did so already, in which case 1d4+2 wizards have
the depths of space but the Far Realm itself—a dimension of
become mind flayers who quickly devoured the brains of their
maddening darkness infested with things that should not be.
former colleagues. They haunt the hills and caves nearby. The
The meteorite has been buried for countless years, but by dint
adventurers represent a chance to grow their budding colony;
of recent geological upheavals, the meteorite has been brought
should they stun the adventurers, they are quick to insert a
closer to the surface. Within the rock, a star spawn larva mage
tadpole into their nostril or ear canal. Over the next week, these
has used its psionic powers to slowly carve its way out from
victims become mind flayers.
below. Should the thing escape to the surface, it will enthrall
The Shuttle. The shuttle resembles a cuttlefish. Its interior is
mortals and use them to build a portal to the Far Realm so that
a 20-foot-long, 5-foot-radius cylinder whose walls are inscribed
more of its foul ilk may enter this reality.
with Qualith, the strange script of the illithids. Four chairs with
If the larva mage is slain, it becomes a swarm of insects and
straps hold the rotted remains of illithids, whose decomposition
attempts to escape; if it isn't slain, the adventurers have merely
was halted by the extreme cold until the craft was exposed. An
postponed its dark schemes.
enclosed fish tank once held 2d6+4 mind flayer tadpoles. Most
Additional Star Spawn. You can challenge your adventurers
are dead or still frozen.
by adding more star spawn to the encounter: 1d4 star spawn
grues and a single star spawn mangler, when combined with
the larva mage, can ravage a party of Tier III adventurers.
Meteorite. The meteorite is composed not of stone but of a
greasy, black material. A humanoid that touches the meteorite
must succeed on a DC 15 Intelligence saving throw or succumb
to a form of Short-Term Madness (see Appendix C). Even on a
success, the person is cursed with horrid nightmares for 1d4+3
days; whenever the person sleeps, they must succeed on a DC
13 Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, they do not gain the
benefits of a long rest.
A character proficient with jeweler's tools can create a dark
shard amulet from the meteorite through 1d6+4 hours of labor.
At the end of this period, the crafter must succeed on a DC 15
Intelligence saving throw or gain a form of Indefinite Madness
(see Appendix C).

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 Creatures of the Night. Claudia Orlei is a cunning vampire
THIRTY DAYS OF NIGHT with the spellcasting variant described in the Monster Manual.
Polar Night Encounter, Tier II She is served by 1d3 bandit captains and twenty bandits; all
For one month out of the year, the settlement of Barrow Den have been charmed by the vampire. Claudia is also joined by
experiences only twilight and darkness. While most settlements her harem of vampire spawn:
are founded far from the regions that suffer under polar nights, • Iyana, a half-elf maiden held highest in Claudia's black heart.
the people of Barrow Den consider it the cornerstone of their Obsessed with jewelry, she is adorned with six golden rings,
very culture. Each year, their "Thirty Days of Night" are kicked a necklace, and two ankle bracelets (each worth 50 gp).
off with a celebration. In the inaugural darkness, people chase • Harley, a human whose envy of Iyana burns bright enough to
after "the Sun," a torchbearer whose goal is to make it from the fuel elaborate fantasies involving her murder, which would
end of town to the other without letting the fire go out, all while be framed on Kaiden Glade.
being pelted with snowballs. The event is a time of good cheer • Galphine, a rock gnome (with a size of Small and a movement
for everyone involved. speed of 25 ft.).
A month of darkness invites all manner of wicked behavior • Tryssa, a wood elf botanist with 1d4+1 potions of poison on
and evil creatures, but almost a decade has gone by without her belt (DMG pg. 188). She has already used three to poison
incident. As such, the Night Watch has grown lax—just as the the town's messenger hawks.
vampire Claudia Orlei expected. As the citizenry celebrate the • Kaiden Glade, a human and Claudia's sole male paramour, the
darkness, she and her harem infiltrate Barrow Den with the aim longest—and lowest—of her spawn, to be commanded and
of turning the town into her own personal farm of cattle. abused by her other paramours.
Chronology. When you run this encounter, you must decide
just when the adventurers arrive: during the festival or in the DARKNESS FALLS
aftermath of the vampire's attack. If the party is present for the Without sunlight to inhibit her, Claudia and her brood wade into
festival, they might thwart the undead; if not, they've the chance town, seemingly as participants of the festival. She arranges her
to liberate the town from Claudia's grip. forces in a ring around the town's central square, letting the
Newcomers. Claudia and her ilk have been laying low since festival's torchbearer lead the townsfolk closer. Once she gives
they arrived on the outskirts two weeks ago. They've holed up the word, her bandits and vampire spawn attack; the former
in an abandoned cabin while her bewitched servants infiltrate attacking with hidden daggers, the others with their fangs. The
Barrow Den. As they came in clumps of three or five, they affair is short and bloody.
aroused very little suspicion from the citizenry. They quickly If the adventurers are present, half of them are attacked from
identified the town's most formidable defenders, their aviary of behind by bandits; the others face a vampire spawn. Claudia
messenger hawks, and where the town keeps its steeds. Slowly, herself may intervene for a round or two, lobbing a gust of wind
they've disabled the town, preparing it for their master's attack. or blight spell at the adventurers before busying herself with the
If the adventures carouse or speak with locals, they may hear town's greatest defenders.
any of the following news and rumors: In the first three rounds, the panicked crowd surge through
• About twenty newcomers have arrived in the last two weeks, the square, making it difficult terrain. Additionally, once per
claiming to be travelers or tourists. Their coin is good, but round, there is a 25% chance that an adventurer is trampled by
their attitudes are grim and strange. the crowd or knocked over by a fleeing villager. In either case,
• The aviary's messenger hawks have fallen ill. The aery master the adventurer must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw.
is doing his best to save the brood. On a failure, the character is knocked prone and takes 1d4
• Farmer Jenkins's horses got loose the other day; his son must bludgeoning damage.
have left the gate open again. Aftermath. The attack leaves approximately fifty corpses in
The adventurers can also confront the newcomers, who hang the town square; another sixty are rounded up by the undead to
around the inn and tavern for most of the day. With a successful become living cattle. Many flee into the frozen wastes or make
DC 18 Insight check, a character that spends a minute speaking it into a home, where the undead cannot enter uninvited. Unless
to them leaves with the impression that they're charmed. the adventurers strike the undead down now, Barrow Den is,
essentially, destroyed. If they manage to kill Claudia, her spawn
become free; Iyana, Harley, and Galphine fight to avenge her,
whereas Tryssa and Kaiden leave to chart their own destinies.

LIGHTS IN THE DARKNESS

Several survivors have fled to Saint Anderial, a church devoted
to a god of light. In the Forgotten Realms, this deity might be
Amaunator, otherwise the god is known only as "The Midnight
Sun." Regardless of the deity's true identity, the adventurers can
identify his iconography with a DC 14 Religion check.
The villagers consist of twenty commoners, twelve children,
six guards, two acolytes, and a LG priest named Father Denyk.
In his panic, Denyk has barred the doors and extinguished all
lights to better hide from the undead; therefore, the villagers are
cowering in the dark. Alas, it is only a matter of time before the
vampires and their servitors come knocking…

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 Hallowed Ground. Undead suffer disadvantage on saving
throws while inside Saint Anderial or within 30 feet of its walls.
As the church is hallowed ground, the vampires cannot enter
unbidden. This does not prevent their bewitched servants from
breaking in. The vampires want to preserve as many lives as
they can but can resort to arson to draw out the living. They at
first wait out the survivors, but soon realize Denyk is keeping
his flock fed through spells of create food and water. Claudia
decides to focus on dragging villagers from their homes before
siccing her servants on Saint Anderial. In the meantime, her
servants leave corpses and macabre trophies within sight of the
church to break the survivors' will.
Mad Priest. As the days go by, Father Denyk begins to lose
both his faith and his mind, and with them, his ability to cast
spells—namely create food and water. He begins to scorn his
deity as sadistic or negligent. He can only be assuaged with a
DC 17 Persuasion check; clerics, paladins, and other religious
characters have advantage on the roll. On a failure, he loses his
faith as well as his Divine Eminence and Spellcasting traits. TOMB OF THE MYTHIC SMITH
Dead Rising. Claudia begins to create a host of undead from Tundra Encounter, Tier II
slain villagers. With every passing day, she raises four zombies Dug into the permafrost is the final resting place of a legendary
through an animate dead spell (PHB pg. 212), casting it at dawn smith buried long ago. Its entrance is little more than a staircase
to reassert control over the dead. If the adventurers take the fight leading underground with a portcullis to keep all but the tiniest
to her after dawn, she has already used all her 3rd- and 4th-level beasts out. Within its darkened halls works a necromancer,
spell slots on animate dead spells. whose blasphemous rituals have roused the dead.
Inevitable Conflict. After 1d4+3 days, Claudia loses patience The identity of the buried smith and tomb's architecture are
and orders her remaining bandits to storm Saint Anderial. To determined by whichever of the two variants you choose. The
determine their numbers, subtract 2 plus the number of bandits map and most of its features remain the same.
slain by the adventurers. If the bandits are rebuffed, Claudia has Map. Refer to the map above; every square is 5 feet. The
sets fire to the church, driving the survivors out into the cold. tomb has the following features:
Map. Refer to the map above; every square is 5 feet. All outer • The portcullises leading to Areas A, E and F require a DC 15
doors have been barred shut from within, requiring a DC 22 Athletics check to lift.
Athletics check to break open. Windows are eight feet off the • Secret doors (marked "S") can be spotted with a successful
ground, inhibiting those that would break in that way. DC 15 Perception check.
• Area A can be accessed from the west and east through a Tiny-
sized hole in the wall. The smith's stone coffin is marked by
a star on the map and requires a successful DC 13 Athletics
check to open.
• The alcoves of Area B sport a greatsword and plate armor,
forged from steel or glacial ice, depending on the variant you
choose below. The other two masterpieces were stolen or
destroyed long ago.
• Area E and F contain the bones of the smith's most devoted
apprentices.

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 Necromancer. The high elf Thelamyn plundered this tomb to
practice his dark art in secret. The tomb had few traps, and his
trusty knock spell has triumphed over the rusted portcullises. He
was already discovered by other visitors to the tomb (described
in the variants below), and he was forced to cast circle of death.
During the battle, a warrior knocked the black pearl powder (the
material component for circle of death) from Thelamyn's hand,
scattering it across the chamber. He now lacks the component
for circle of death and can't cast that spell in this encounter.
Thelamyn intends to raise these 1d4+2 visitors (dwarves or
urskans) as ghouls once he masters the create undead spell.
As a high elf, Thelamyn has the following racial traits:
• He has darkvision to a range of 60 feet.
• He has advantage on saving throws against being charmed and
magic cannot put him to sleep. TOMB OF THE GLACIAL ARCHITECT
• He knows the friends cantrip. Intelligence is his spellcasting The tomb is dedicated to Hulnar Aurora, the glacier dwarves'
ability for the spell (DC 15). most revered artificer and master of glacial magic. Six centuries
Treasure. Thelamyn carries a pouch of 2d10+45 gp, a spell- ago, Hulnar was captured by the snow elves, who tortured him
book containing all the spell's he's prepared, and a black glass for twelve years. Not once did he give up the secrets of glacial
orb that serves as his arcane focus, which is worth 50 gp. magic, knowing that to do so was to condemn his kin to a life
under an elven heel. Tragically, Hulnar died in captivity—and
TOMB OF THE FIRST MASTER his death sparked a crusade so bloody, it set the elves back forty
This tomb is devoted to the First Master, the urskan blacksmith years. Surrendering Hulnar's bones was one of the key demands
that pioneered metallurgy among his people in ancient times. made by the dwarves. They soon built this tomb in his honor.
The urskans (an ursine folk described in Urskan Pilgrim) revere A character can recall this tale with a successful DC 15 History
and even worship the First Master as a deity of the forge. Here check; glacier dwarves know it by heart.
he was buried in antiquity, honored by pilgrims each year. No Architecture. The tomb is carved from glacial ice that gives
priests maintain this tomb; the First Master specifically forbade off a soft, azure light, which dimly lights the tomb. The walls
it on his deathbed; in typical utilitarian urskan fashion, he cited can be destroyed; they have an AC of 15, immunity to poison,
the waste of manpower it would be to watch over a crypt. cold, and psychic damage, vulnerability to fire damage, and
Architecture. The tomb is fashioned from stone and banded resistance to all other damage. A 10-foot-section of ice has 50
with decorative strips of iron, which has rusted over. The walls hit points. Doors and portcullises in the tomb have the same
are also decorated with the iconography associated with the statistics.
religion surrounding the First Master. As an obscure deity, this The Dead. Hulnar was not the only frost mason captured by
iconography can be identified by non-urskans with a DC 17 the snow elves; other artificer prisoners of war are buried here
Religion check. as well. In Areas E and F, their bones are stacked in alcoves or
The Dead. Areas E and F contain 2d4+6 urskan skeletons— in coffins. There are enough skeletons here for a necromancer
the First Master's fabled apprentices. These corpses count as to raise 2d6+8 skeletons.
minotaur skeletons if animated by necromancy. By when the The Memorial. Area C is a memorial devoted to Hulnar and
adventurers enter the tomb, Thelamyn has already raised half other artificers. Hulnar's frost mason tools (which consist of
the corpses and set them to patrolling the halls. chisels and hammers carved in runes) are lain on the memorial,
The Shrine. Area C is a shrine to the First Master, decorated preserved under a layer of ice. The snow elves are willing to
with rusted hammers, tongs, and other blacksmithing tools. The pay 500 gp for these tools, falsely believing they can be used to
floor is lined with a great mosaic depicting an urskan working better research glacial magic.
at the forge while warriors clad in his arms and armor hold off
several enemies: a manticore, a dragon, a yeti, and a snow elf. ARMY OF THE DEAD
The shrine is soaked in subtle magic; an urskan character that If you're running the Army of the Damned storyline, the elf is a
prays here for 10 minutes can cast the divination spell without member of the Cult of the Newly Dead, the necromancers and
expending material components, putting them in contact with nihilists that have thrown their lot in with the Flayed Queen, the
the First Master's divine spirit. undead sovereign that seeks to unite this world in death.
The shrine is hallowed ground (as in the hallow spell, PHB
pg. 249), making it a safe place from the undead.

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 TRAVELER'S RESPITE
Mountain Encounter, Tier II C
Traveler's Respite is the region's oldest inn and the artery that
keeps this corner of the Arctic warm and alive. Those cross this
harrowing mountain range would surely die without The
Respite's hospitality. The inn has weathered six generations and
countless blizzards. Whenever it needs repairs or supplies,
nearby settlements send men and food to repay the inn for the
lives it once saved—lives that went on instead to sire children D
and grandchildren that are still alive today. Ownership changes
every few years; the inn is isolated and taxing on the spirit.
Little do regional authorities know that Traveler's Respite has
been taken over by a disguised bheur hag.
The hag can sense when travelers come near the inn. With her
fey magic, she worsens the weather to force the adventurers to
stay at the inn. She charges them a pittance for room and board,
explaining that Traveler's Respite is about saving lives, not B
turning a profit. She charges 2 sp every night they stay—and
she can expect them to stay at least 1d4+1 days if they heed the
threat of her spellwrought blizzard.
Map. Refer to the map to the right for this encounter. Every
square equals 5 feet.
A
LONE MIYARETH
This bheur hag has manned Traveler's Respite for the last year.
So great is her magic that she can cast disguise self at will. Only
through truesight or by catching her asleep can one see her true
form: a pale and emaciated hag with rotten teeth and fingers as THE INN
long as daggers. In her disguise, she presents herself as a frail, Traveler's Respite is a spacious cabin with two floors and a
hunched-over old woman with but tufts of thin hair left to her small cellar (not featured on the map). Notable locations are
head. No matter her form, Miyareth's breath reeks. marked and briefly detailed below:
Miyareth's mask slips off slowly the longer the adventurers A. This living room is decorated in an assortment of trinkets.
stay at the inn, for she wants them to discover her true nature. Roll on the Trinkets table on pg. 159 of the PHB whenever a
It begins with a mole on her cheek, the hairs of which creep character takes a closer look at the cabinet. One notable trinket
outward like a toddler's curious fingers. Then her hair thins even is a sealed, empty jar; if opened, the person nearest to the jar
further, and her hunch becomes less pronounced. Slowly, her recalls the gruesome deaths of all Miyareth's victims.
skin takes on a blue tinge, as if she had been out in the cold for B. Miyareth spends much of her time in this kitchen, baking
too long. pastries and venison meatpies (which she knows adventurers
Roleplaying Miyareth. The hag kills with kindness; she has will suspect of poison; she adds humanoid meat after she has
a knack for worming her way into others' hearts to avoid blame gained their trust) and preparing tea, which she refrains from
and suspicion. She enjoys knitting socks for guests (which she poisoning.
can use for future scrying or locate object spells), braiding hair, C. These guest rooms are furnished with wool duvets. Most
and serving tea. Although she has no oracular powers, or claims sheets are clean, but all have yellowed with age; Miyareth goes
to, Miyareth makes up predictions just to unnerve her guests. to great pains to wash out any spilled blood. She has, however,
Her first prediction is the blizzard she herself conjures. Other missed one sheet stained with a small smattering of old blood.
examples include: The character sleeping in this bed must succeed on a DC 18
• "A blizzard's due, I promise. You get to my age and you can Perception check to notice the blood. If confronted, Miyareth
feel bad weather in your very bones." makes up an excuse—a menstruating guest, a wounded hunter,
• "You remind me much of my niece: hair and smiles all… May et cetera. Contest her Deception check against the party's
you find all the peace she did…" Insight check. If she fails, the opposing character can tell that
• "I was organizing your belongings; this coil of rope is frayed, the woman's faking concern over this discovery, as if it doesn't
my dear. Careful not to fall to your doom." bother her.
• "The last scoundrel I met was hanged for theft. Couldn't keep
his fingers off my pastries either."

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 D. The master bedroom belongs to Miyareth. She has warded
it with an alarm spell that mentally alerts her when someone
TUNDRA HALFLING TRAVELERS
other than herself or Thamul cross the door's threshold. A rug Taiga or Tundra Encounter, Tier I
of smothering is spread before the door; it attacks intruders that The tundra halflings are full of wanderlust, and to embark on a
attempt to leave the room, but only if the closet was opened. trip around the Arctic is considered a rite of passage. Each year,
Inside the closet is a black box containing multiple effigies of typically during the summer months, a village announces a
yarn, wood, and either clipped fingernails, a lock of hair, or red- "Journey" in which volunteers from neighboring villages gather
stained wool. While holding one of these effigies, Miyareth can to form a pseudo-tribe that will tour the region. The tribe camps
cast bestow curse (DC 14) once per seven days, targeting the under the light of the aurora, drinks in the sights, and shares a
person the effigy is modeled after, so long as they're on the same truly unique experience. Following a well-established route, the
plane of existence as her. With every passing night, there is an tribe stops at other tundra halfling villages to trade their labor
aggregate 25% chance that she has created an effigy of a party for lodgings and to stock up on provisions.
member, incorporating their hair, nails, or blood. If these are The entire event is one of good cheer—but the halflings are
found, Miyareth sheds her disguise and all pretense to turn on not fools. They know that the world is a dangerous place, but to
her guests. stand boldly before the shadow is at the heart of their culture.
Cellar. The cellar is accessible from outside. Casks of beer While the youth enjoy the journey, veterans guard the tribe's
and mead line the walls, each weighing 50 pounds. Behind one flanks and elders handle internal disputes.
cask is a freshly mortared wall whose distinction can be noticed The adventurers come upon the tribe—a train of halflings
with a passive Perception score of 14 or higher. Behind this wall arranged into two columns with guards roaming the flanks. This
are the half-devoured corpses of Miyareth's previous victims, particular tribe consists of twenty-two commoners, 2d6+4
numbering eight in all. So decayed, one cannot determine the guards, 1d4+4 veterans mounted on mastiffs, and three elders
race or gender of the corpses. To gain access behind the wall (nobles bereft of arms and armor (AC 11)). They also have six
requires smashing it open with a blunt implement or a pickaxe. mules saddled with their most important gear.
The tundra halflings have the following racial traits:
THE BLIZZARD • They are Small, have a speed of 25 feet, and can move through
Miyareth conjures a blizzard with control weather to trap her the space of any creature larger than them.
guests at the inn—solely to see what sort of people they become • Whenever a halfling rolls a 1 on an attack roll, ability check,
when faced with starvation and isolation. When her magic has or saving throw, they can reroll the die, must use the new roll.
run its course, or when she has grown tired of this experiment, • A halfling has advantage on all saving throws made against
the blizzard ceases. Guests that resorted to evil, or showed just being frightened.
how ugly they truly are inside, are spared. Those that remained • They read, write, and speak Common and Halfling.
good and true earn the hag's scorn; as they rest one final night • A tundra halfling can cast prestidigitation and create bonfire.
at the inn, she attacks. The non-commoners can cast pyrotechnics once per day as
As the days go by, Miyareth stages accidents—a sudden fire, well. Wisdom is their spellcasting ability for these spells.
scalding someone with spilled tea—and grim discoveries, such Variants. When you run this encounter, determine the mood
as rats (which she summoned herself) devouring the last of the and wellbeing of the tribe.
food. She wants only to nudge guests to their breaking point.
GOOD CHEER AND BETTER WARMTH
IN YOUR CAMPAIGN The halflings are in good spirits; either they have only recently
embarked, or they have proven resilient in the face of adversity.
You can be certain that your players will be instantly suspicious
Perhaps they've not even met a challenge at all yet, thanks to
of a lone old woman, assuming her to be a hag or other monster.
their people's otherworldly luck.
Miyareth must lay low for a number of days to earn their trust
In this variant, the halflings welcome the adventurers to their
before she begins to screw with the party. She might call upon
camp, sharing mead and mirth. They're rabid for gallant stories
other minions to ravage, such as the yeti, to shift attention from
or accounts describing distant lands. They're due to reach the
herself.
next halfling village, Snowhollow, in 2d4+2 days if the weather
remains civil. Should the adventurers wish to accompany them
to the village, all the better.
While traveling with the halflings, the adventurers only need
to consume half their usual rate of rations; the halflings are
more than happy to share their food. Each night is spent with
dazzling fireworks and warm drinks (thanks to prestidigitation
and pyrotechnics spells). By when the adventurers part ways
with the tribe, they each gain Inspiration, which must be used
within the next week.

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ON HARD TIMES
The tribe has suffered hard times as of late. The halflings are
sullen, marching quietly to their next destination. The cause of
their misery may be:
• 1d4+3 quicklings are terrorizing the tribe; their antics have
graduated from mischief to debilitating theft. Maps have been
stolen, casks drained, and mules let loose. The fey strike so
fast that the guards have little time to react.
• 1d6+2 darklings and a darkling elder have been visiting the
tribe in the dead of night, stealing curios, trinkets, and works
of art. The fey murdered three guards after being discovered
one night. The meager funeral is scheduled for today.
• A pack of 2d4+4 wolves and a dire wolf have been following
the tribe, picking off scouts and wandering into the camp at
night. Until they are slain, the tribe can find no peace.
• A doppelganger murdered and replaced Amelia Brightheart.
The creature was cursed with an aggressive cancer—thanks
to a hag's hex—that grows whenever it fails to bring misery
and suffering to others. It fled to the tundra after a warband
of glacier dwarves discovered its secret, wherein it found the
halflings. It has been sabotaging the tribe for weeks now by
breaking hearts (in the guise of one's lover), spoiling meals,
and murdering pets. Elder Osborn suspects the presence of a
saboteur, and Amelia's lover, Perrin, suspects something off
about "Amelia."
• Thanks to mismanagement and general greed, the rations have
been depleted. Scouts were sent to forage and hunt but have
yet to return. The slashed corpse of one scout can be found
2d4 miles back. Analyzing the corpse reveals that his heart
has been ripped out; with a successful DC 14 Arcana check,
a character recalls that this is a peryton's modus operandi.
The peryton's nest can be found on a cliffside cave over-
looking the sea or on a distant peak 3d10+15 miles away. The
nest is too high up for the other three scouts to climb down
or jump from. Rescuing them raises the tribe's spirits; writing
them off as dead gives them the closure they need to continue
traveling on meager rations.
Halflings are brave and resilient folk, and this pseudo-tribe of
wanderers is no different. Should the tribe's crisis be solved, the
halflings will bounce back—for adversity is the very stuff of
adventure, and it is adventure that the halflings signed on for.

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 ULDRA CATTLE RUSTLER URSKAN PILGRIM
Mountain or Urban Encounter, Tier I Character Encounter, Tier I
Uldras are the bane of farmers across the Arctic, where a sheep's The urskans are an ursine folk that dwell deep within the Arctic.
wool can mean the difference between life and death. These Metallurgy is at the heart of their religion and culture, and their
diminutive, blue-skinned arctic fey are fervent defenders of the works can rival even the dwarves'. The craft is so entwined with
natural world. They consider few crimes as terrible as "animal their day-to-day lives that every urskan youth is expected to
slavery" and will go to great lengths to "liberate" livestock. apprentice under a blacksmith for a year. No figure is more
An uldra known as Icecap has recently freed a flock of sheep revered in urskan culture than the First Master, who pioneered
from their vile prison, a farm outside Manavik, a small human metallurgy among his people and later ascended to divinity.
settlement described in Manavik Under Fire. Without the Each year, urskan pilgrims pay their respects at the Tomb of the
sheep, the village will either freeze or starve in the depths of First Master (see Tomb of the Mythic Smith). A character can
winter. News of the raid spreads quickly and the jarl puts out a recall this with a successful DC 16 History check.
bounty of 50 gp for whomever returns the flock or brings the Rel'bha Vi'ckagha'la is one of these pilgrims and he has been
cattle rustler to justice. on his own for nearly three weeks now. He was separated from
The flock can be tracked through a successful DC 13 Survival his peers by a sentient blizzard (see Living Blizzard). Trusting
check, which takes an hour. The trail leads to an expanse of hills that they would continue trekking towards the tomb, Rel'bha
the sheep are stubbornly trying to find grass in. Frolicking at the has decided to soldier on by his lonesome.
heart of the flock is Icecap, who considers the sheep his kin and Statistics. Rel'bha is a priest with the following changes:
kith. He bitterly opposes any attempts to return them and is • He has a Strength of 16 (3+), raising his Mace attack to +5 to
willing to die on that hill. hit and 8 (1d6+3) bludgeoning damage.
Roleplaying Icecap. The fey creature is a well-intentioned • His unarmed strikes deal 5 (1d4+3) slashing damage on a hit.
thief who considers animals the greatest jewels of the natural • He counts as one size larger when determining his carrying
world. Like all uldras, he is able to fly into a terrible rage in one capacity and the weight he can push, drag, or lift.
moment and become perfectly calm in the next. Most mortals • He is adapted for areas of extreme cold.
consider this lunacy; the fey consider it a normal trait. • He has advantage on Stealth checks to remain hidden while in
You can voice Icecap with the sample dialogue below: snowy terrain.
• "The name's Icecap; I chose it as a wee boy when I first laid • He can read, write, and speak Urskan, a language composed
eyes on a glacier. It was my third name, after Wolfbrother of syllables and growls (indicated by an apostrophe or dash
and Aurora. What names have you garnered?" when written in another language's script).
• "Respect Nature or be trampled by it." • He wears chain mail and a shield, both of which he himself
• "You're nothing more than executioners! Criminals! Or worse, forged, raising his AC to 18.
bystanders! How can you be so indifferent to the suffering of • He has the following extra spells prepared: elemental weapon,
the innocent, you sickening—" heat metal, identify, magic weapon, protection from energy,
When Icecap sees the adventurers, he offers them a hearty and searing smite.
greeting, speaking in perfect Common. If confronted over the Meeting the Pilgrim. When the adventurers encounter the
"liberation," he flies into a rage and snarls, "These simple folk urskan, he is busy battling against a yeti with 43 hit points left.
don't deserve to live in bondage or die in an abattoir!" Unless Rel'bha himself is at 20 hit points. A successful DC 14 Arcana
he is calmed down with a DC 18 Persuasion check, he attacks. check identifies him as an urskan. As the adventurers watch, the
To his credit, he fights to the bitter end, and, with his dying priest's mace becomes wreathed in fire, causing the yeti to howl
breath, condemns the adventurers as "murderers most foul." in fear (Rel'bha casts searing smite on his turn).
The only peaceful solution Icecap will agree to is sparing the In the aftermath of the battle, Rel'bha greets the adventurers
sheep's execution until they reach old age. He can tolerate their curtly and displays suspicion. A successful DC 14 Insight check
captivity, if their conditions are improved, and he can tolerate grants the following insight: he is not spoiling for a fight but is
shearing their wool. To convince him of this requires a DC 15 ready to oblige the fool that dares try him.
Persuasion check. Treasure. Rel'bha wears a holy symbol made of iron worth
25 gp, as well as 1d4+2 pieces of bronze or iron jewelry each
worth 10 gp. He also has an explorer's pack with 1d4+5 rations.
Roleplaying Rel'bha. Like most urskans, Rel'bha is a grim-
faced utilitarianism with a deep appreciation for metallurgy. He
has been raised to always consider the needs of the many before
the needs of the few (hence why he did not try to reunite with
his companions), as exemplified by the urskhan adage, "If the
tribe is well…"
In rolling Common marked by high- and low-pitched growls,
Rel'bha explains, "I am on my way to pay respects to the First
Master, deity and patron of my people. If you appreciate the
forge and hammer, or wish to gain an appreciation for it, I bid
you to join me." A character recalls the First Master with a DC
16 Religion check.
If the adventurers agree, Rel'bha leads them on a journey that
takes 1d4+1 days. Thereafter, run Tomb of the Mythic Smith.
105
 Sarg has six sleds, each with four worgs and a goblin apiece.
WORG SLEDS Stronger than hounds, a single team can pull a combined weight
Polar Encounter, Tier I of 480 pounds; the sled accounts for 250 pounds; the goblin
Since their discovery of the dog sled, the Arctic's goblinoids averages 70 pounds when clad in heavy furs. A single sled can
have entered a golden age of travel and pillaging. Using worgs, cover ten miles a day.
they can speed across the snow faster than any dog sled. You Roleplaying Worgs. These sapient monsters speak Goblin, as
have two variants for this encounter: well as a language of their own. Evil is in their very nature, but
the promise of profits has convinced them from pouncing on
RAIDERS OF THE FROZEN WASTES customers. They bemoan their working conditions, the weather,
A chorus of devilish shrieks echo out across the snow; over the and their passengers; the goblinoid musher controlling them can
hill bounds a pair of worgs—nay, three pairs of worgs, each understand much of what they say, even when they're snarling
slavering and encrusted with fresh snow. Upon the sled that the in Worg. The musher often answers, "Yeah, yeah, see where
beasts pull are goblinoids: a bugbear and 1d4+2 goblins, all unionizing gets you…"
howling and brandishing shortbows, javelins, and crude lances.
At your discretion, this sled is just one of 1d4 and one bugbear
is a bugbear chief.
Tactics. The goblinoids and their worgs employ these tactics: WOUNDED SLED DOGS
• The worgs pull the sled at a speed of 40 feet; they use the Polar Encounter, Tier I
Dodge action while in combat or the Dash action if they need The wind shifts, carrying canine whimpers. An adventurer that
to close the gap on prey or flee. The sled can only go as fast succeeds on a DC 13 Perception check can hear the frightened
as the slowest worg. beasts, which are huddled beneath a snowdrift two hundred feet
• One goblin must use their action to guide the sled, acting as away. The scene is grim: six mastiffs are lashed to a shattered
the musher. The remaining goblins pepper their foes with dog sled, with another two dead hounds nearby, their intestines
arrows and slings. draped across the snow. Tracks and red smears lead to the east.
• The bugbear wields a lance (+4 to hit, 9 (1d12+2) piercing A person that approaches within 5 feet of a hound is snapped
damage on a hit; has disadvantage if the target is within 5 ft.) at (+3 to hit, 1d6+1 piercing dmg.). A successful DC 15 Animal
that it uses when within 10 feet; otherwise, it throws one of Handling check calms the hounds down, allowing characters to
its 1d4+6 javelins. safely undo their harnesses and inspect their wounds. The dogs'
Treasure. The goblinoids have already pillaged today, but the pelts are coated in light frost; some have been scraped by claws
pickings were meager. Every sled has 2d10+15 gp, 3d8+11 sp, and one has been bitten, but the wound is shallow. A character
and 4d12+22 cp; 2d4+2 rations, and 1d3 random adventurer can bind the wound with a DC 11 Medicine check; on a failure,
packs (see PHB pg. 151). One has also taken a set of cast-off the hound lashes out in pain.
splint armor (XGE pg. 136) from a slain adventurer. Fresh snow is already beginning to fall, giving the party little
time to analyze or inspect the tracks. With a successful DC 14
FERRY OF THE FROZEN WASTES Nature check, a character can confirm they aren't bear or wolf
An innovative band of goblinoids have learned that rather than tracks but reptilian in nature. With a DC 14 Survival check, one
raid the Arctic, they can make an easy profit ferrying across it. can follow the tracks to a nearby ice cave where a white dragon
Signs across the region point towards this "Ferry of the Frozen wyrmling is feasting on a dead elf.
Wastes" in Goblin, Common, and crude Dwarvish runes. The wyrmling is missing a wing, which was severed from an
The enterprise is headed by Sarg Penguin-snatcher, a goblin adventurer last year. Robbed of its birthright, the wyrmling has
boss who can always be found with a wax tablet, upon which taken to trotting across the frozen wastes, ambushing prey from
invoices are spread. On his belt is a coinpurse with 4d6+6 gp, inside snowdrifts or burrowing up from below.
12d8+16 sp, and 4d6+24 cp, all clanging together. He charges The cave is littered with six, half-eaten corpses: a halfling,
25 gp per sled per day, but can be convinced to lower his price three humans, and two dwarves. The wyrmling has piled their
to 15 gp with a successful DC 14 Persuasion check. valuables into one single heap and buried it in snow. To find
Sarg's enterprise is protected by four bugbears and up to six this meager hoard requires a DC 14 Investigation check.
goblins (who account for his mushers). The goblinoids shelter Treasure. The wyrmling's hoard consists of 2d10+16 gp, 3d8
from the cold in a spacious cabin that they've been renovating + 12 sp, and 4d12+21 cp, as well as a holy symbol devoted to
these last four months. Sarg offers a 5 gp discount to carpenters Lathander, a whistle whittled from a gold-colored wood, and a
who lend their expertise and tools to help the goblinoids better driftglobe (DMG pg. 166).
their new home.

106
 APPENDIX A: CREATURE INDEX
The creatures below are featured in this supplement; see their
respective manual for statistics.
Aarakocra............................... MM 12 Deinonychus ...................... VGM 139 Hobgoblin devastator .........VGM 161 Sahuagin .............................. MM 263
Abjurer............................... VGM 209 Dire troll ............................. MTF 243 Hook horror.......................... MM 189 Satyr .................................... MM 267
Aboleth .................................. MM 13 Dire wolf ............................. MM 321 Howling hatred initiate ........... App. B Scarecrow ............................ MM 268
Abominable yeti .................. MM 306 Diviner .............................. VGM 213 Howling hatred priest ............. App. B Scout .................................... MM 349
Acolyte ................................ MM 342 Doppelganger ........................ MM 82 Hurricane ............................... App. B Shadow ................................ MM 269
Adult white dracolich ............. App. B Dragon turtle ....................... MM 119 Hyena ................................... MM 331 Shadow dancer.................... MTF 225
Adult white dragon .............. MM 101 Drow.................................... MM 128 Ice mephit ............................ MM 215 Shadow demon ...................... MM 64
Air elemental ....................... MM 124 Drow elite warrior ............... MM 128 Illusionist ...........................VGM 214 Shadow mastiff .................. VGM 190
Air elemental myrmidon ..... MTF 202 Drow house captain ............ MTF 184 Imp ......................................... MM 76 Shadow mastiff alpha......... VGM 190
Alhoon ............................... VGM 162 Drow mage .......................... MM 129 Jackalwere ............................ MM 193 Shambling mound ................ MM 270
Allosaurus .............................. MM 79 Drow matron mother .......... MTF 186 Killer whale.......................... MM 331 Shield guardian .................... MM 271
Ancient silver dragon ........... MM 116 Drow priestess of Lolth ....... MM 129 Knight .................................. MM 347 Shoosuva ........................... VGM 137
Ancient white dragon ........... MM 100 Drow shadowblade ............. MTF 187 Kobold ................................. MM 195 Skeleton ............................... MM 272
Animated armor ..................... MM 19 Druid ................................... MM 346 Kobold dragonshield ..........VGM 165 Slaad tadpole ....................... MM 276
Anklyosaurus ......................... MM 79 Duergar................................ MM 122 Kobold scale sorcerer .........VGM 165 Solar ...................................... MM 18
Ape ...................................... MM 317 Duergar despot ................... MTF 188 Korred ................................VGM 168 Soul monger........................ MTF 226
Apprentice wizard .............. VGM 209 Dybbuk ............................... MTF 132 Kraken.................................. MM 197 Specter ................................. MM 279
Archdruid ........................... VGM 210 Eagle.................................... MM 322 Leucrotta ............................VGM 169 Spring eladrin ..................... MTF 196
Archer ................................ VGM 210 Earth elemental .................... MM 124 Lich ...................................... MM 202 Sprite ................................... MM 283
Archmage............................. MM 342 Efreeti .................................. MM 145 Living ice knife ...................... App. B Spy....................................... MM 349
Assassin ............................... MM 343 Elder tempest ...................... MTF 200 Living ice storm ..................... App. B Star spawn grue .................. MTF 234
Aurochs.............................. VGM 207 Elk ....................................... MM 322 Living snowball swarm .......... App. B Star spawn hulk .................. MTF 234
Awakened tree ..................... MM 317 Empyrean ............................ MM 130 Mage .................................... MM 347 Star spawn larva mage ........ MTF 235
Azer ....................................... MM 22 Enchanter........................... VGM 213 Magmin ................................ MM 212 Steel predator ...................... MTF 239
Baboon ................................. MM 318 Eternal flame guardian............ App. B Mammoth ............................. MM 332 Stegosaurus ........................ VGM 140
Bandit .................................. MM 343 Eternal flame priest................. App. B Manticore ............................. MM 213 Storm giant .......................... MM 156
Bandit captain ...................... MM 344 Ettercap ............................... MM 131 Marid.................................... MM 146 Storm giant quintessent...... VGM 151
Banshee.................................. MM 23 Evoker ............................... VGM 214 Martial arts adept ...............VGM 216 Summer eladrin................... MTF 196
Bard ................................... VGM 211 Fire elemental ...................... MM 125 Master thief ........................VGM 216 Swarm of insects .................. MM 338
Barlgura ................................. MM 56 Firenewt warlock of Imix .. VGM 143 Mastiff.................................. MM 332 Swashbuckler..................... VGM 217
Behir ...................................... MM 25 Firenewt warrior ................ VGM 143 Medusa ................................. MM 214 Sword wraith commander ... MTF 241
Beholder................................. MM 28 Flamewrath ............................. App. B Meenlock ...........................VGM 170 Tarrasque ............................. MM 286
Beholder zombie .................. MM 316 Flind .................................. VGM 153 Merfolk ................................ MM 218 Transmuter......................... VGM 218
Berserker.............................. MM 344 Frost giant............................ MM 155 Merrow ................................ MM 219 Tribal warrior....................... MM 150
Bheur hag........................... VGM 160 Frost giant Mimic................................... MM 220 Triceratops ............................. MM 80
Black bear ............................ MM 318 everlasting one ................ VGM 148 Mind flayer .......................... MM 222 Troll ..................................... MM 291
Black earth guard ................... App. B Frost salamander................. MTF 223 Minotaur skeleton ................ MM 273 Tyrannosaurus rex ................. MM 80
Black earth priest ................... App B. Galeb duhr ........................... MM 139 Mule ..................................... MM 333 Uldra .......................................App. B
Blackguard ......................... VGM 211 Gauth ................................. VGM 125 Mummy................................ MM 228 Umber hulk .......................... MM 292
Blue slaad ............................ MM 276 Ghoul................................... MM 148 Mummy lord ........................ MM 229 Vampire ............................... MM 297
Boggle................................ VGM 128 Giant ape ............................. MM 323 Nagpa ..................................MTF 215 Vampire spawn .................... MM 298
Brontosaurus ...................... VGM 139 Giant eagle........................... MM 324 Narzugon.............................MTF 167 Veteran ................................ MM 350
Brown bear .......................... MM 319 Giant elk .............................. MM 325 Necromancer ......................VGM 217 War priest .......................... VGM 218
Bugbear.................................. MM 33 Giant shark .......................... MM 328 Nightmare ............................ MM 235 Warhorse skeleton ............... MM 273
Bugbear chief ......................... MM 33 Giant spider ......................... MM 328 Nightwalker.........................MTF 216 Warlock of the archfey ...... VGM 219
Bulette.................................... MM 34 Giant strider ....................... VGM 143 Noble.................................... MM 348 Warlock of the fiend .......... VGM 219
Bulezau ............................... MTF 131 Giant wasp ........................... MM 329 Nothic .................................. MM 236 Warlord.............................. VGM 220
Cat ....................................... MM 320 Giant wolf spider ................. MM 330 Nycaloth ............................... MM 314 Water elemental ................... MM 125
Cave bear ............................. MM 334 Girallon ............................. VGM 152 Ogre ..................................... MM 237 Water elemental
Centaur .................................. MM 38 Githzerai zerth ..................... MM 161 Ogre zombie ......................... MM 316 myrmidon ....................... MTF 203
Champion........................... VGM 212 Glabrezu ................................ MM 58 Orc ....................................... MM 246 Water weird ......................... MM 299
Chasme .................................. MM 57 Gladiator.............................. MM 346 Orc claw of Luthic .............VGM 183 Wereseal .................................App. B
Chuul ..................................... MM 40 Gloom weaver .................... MTF 224 Orc war chief........................ MM 246 Werewolf ............................. MM 211
Cloud giant .......................... MM 154 Gnoll.................................... MM 163 Orog ..................................... MM 247 White dragon wyrmling ....... MM 102
Commoner ........................... MM 345 Gnoll fang of Yeenoghu ...... MM 163 Orthon .................................MTF 169 White guard drake.............. VGM 158
Conjurer ............................. VGM 212 Gnoll flesh gnawer ............ VGM 154 Owlbear................................ MM 249 Wight ................................... MM 300
Couatl .................................... MM 43 Gnoll hunter....................... VGM 154 Panther ................................. MM 333 Will-o'-wisp ......................... MM 301
Crushing wave priest.............. App. B Gnoll pack lord .................... MM 163 Peryton ................................. MM 251 Winged kobold .................... MM 195
Crushing wave reaver ............ App. B Goat ..................................... MM 330 Phoenix ...............................MTF 199 Winter eladrin ..................... MTF 197
Cult fanatic .......................... MM 345 Goblin.................................. MM 166 Pit fiend .................................. MM 77 Winter wolf......................... MTF 197
Cultist .................................. MM 345 Goblin boss.......................... MM 166 Polar bear ............................. MM 334 Wolf..................................... MM 340
Dark tide knight ..................... App. B Green hag ............................ MM 177 Poltergeist ............................ MM 279 Worg .................................... MM 341
Darkling ............................. VGM 134 Griffon ................................. MM 174 Priest .................................... MM 348 Wraith .................................. MM 302
Darkling elder .................... VGM 134 Grung elite warrior ............ VGM 157 Purple worm ......................... MM 255 Wyvern ................................ MM 303
Death dog............................. MM 321 Guard................................... MM 347 Quickling ...........................VGM 187 Yeenoghu............................ MTF 155
Death knight........................... MM 47 Gynosphinx ......................... MM 282 Red slaad .............................. MM 276 Yeth hound ........................ VGM 201
Death slaad .......................... MM 278 Hadrosaurus....................... VGM 140 Remorhaz ............................. MM 258 Yeti ...................................... MM 305
Deathlock ............................ MTF 128 Half-ogre ............................. MM 238 Revenant .............................. MM 259 Yochlol .................................. MM 65
Deathlock mastermind ........ MTF 129 Half-red dragon veteran ....... MM 180 Roc ....................................... MM 260 Young remorhaz .................. MM 258
Deathlock wight .................. MTF 129 Helmed horror ..................... MM 183 Rug of smothering .................. MM 20 Young white dragon ............ MM 101
Deep scion ......................... VGM 135 Hezrou ................................... MM 60 Saber-toothed tiger ............... MM 336 Zombie................................. MM 316

107
 APPENDIX B: BESTIARY
This supplement introduces several new creatures, the statistics • Jagged ice shards fall from the ceiling, striking up to three
of which are detailed below. creatures underneath that the dragon can see within 120 feet
of it. The dragon makes one ranged attack roll (+7 to hit)
ADULT WHITE DRACOLICH against each target. On a hit, the target takes 10 (3d6) piercing
damage.
A white dracolich retains its Regional Effects as well as its Lair • The dragon creates an opaque wall of ice on a solid surface it
Actions in undeath. can see within 120 feet of it. The wall can be up to 30 feet
long, 30 feet high, and 1 foot thick. When the wall appears,
LAIR ACTIONS each creature within its area is pushed 5 feet out of the wall's
On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the dragon takes a space; appearing on whichever side of the wall it wants. Each
lair action to cause one of the following effects; the dragon can't 10-foot section of the wall has AC 5, 30 hit points,
use the same effect two rounds in a row: vulnerability to fire damage, and immunity to acid, cold,
• Freezing fog fills a 20-foot-radius sphere centered on a point necrotic, poison, and psychic damage. The wall disappears
the dragon can see within 120 feet of it. The fog spreads when the dragon uses this lair action again or when the
around corners, and its area is heavily obscured. Each dragon dies.
creature in the fog when it appears must make a DC 10
Constitution saving throw, taking 10 (3d6) cold damage on a REGIONAL EFFECTS
failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. A The region containing a legendary white dragon's lair is warped
creature that ends its turn in the fog takes 10 (3d6) cold by the dragon's magic, which creates one or more of the
damage. A wind of at least 20 miles per hour disperses the following effects:
fog. The fog otherwise lasts until the dragon uses this lair
action again or until the dragon dies. • Chilly fog lightly obscures the land within 6 miles of the
dragon's lair.
• Freezing precipitation falls within 6
miles of the dragon's lair, sometimes
forming blizzard conditions when the
dragon is at rest.
• Icy walls block off areas in the
dragon's lair. Each wall is 6 inches
thick, and a 10-foot section has AC 5,
15 hit points, vulnerability to fire
damage, and immunity to acid, cold,
necrotic, poison, and psychic damage.
• If the dragon wishes to move through
a wall, it can do so without slowing
down. The portion of the wall the
dragon moves through is destroyed,
however.
If the dragon dies, the fog and
precipitation fade within 1 day. The ice
walls melt over the course of 1d10
days.

108
CULTISTS OF ELEMENTAL EVIL
Featured in Princes of the Apocalypse, these cultists are devoted
to the Princes of Elemental Evil. Their statistics have been re-
printed for this supplement and their lore summarized below.
Cult of the Black Earth. Devoted to Ogrémoch, the cultists
of the Black Earth are unyielding in their principles, decisions,
and tactics. They are grave foes of the Howling Hatred cult.
Their unique members are black earth guards and black earth
priests.
Cult of the Crushing Wave. Dedicated to Olhydra, the
Crushing Wave cult haunts the seas, coastlines, and lakes. They
see water not as the foundation of life, but its rightful reaper.
Their ranks consist of crushing wave priests, crushing wave
reavers, and dark tide knights.
Cult of the Eternal Flame. Adherents to Imix the ravenous,
these cultists favor aggressive tactics and ascetic lifestyles to
prove one's devotion. They are fierce enemies of the Crushing
Wave cult. Their members consist of eternal flame guardians,
eternal flame priests, and flamewraths.
Cult of the Howling Hatred. As cunning as their inscrutable
master, Yan-C-Bin, the Howling Hatred cultists favor subtlety
and misdirection. Their members consist of howling hatred
initiates, howling hatred priests, and hurricanes.

109
110
111
112
LIVING SPELLS
Magic itself can be granted a semblance of life by powerful or
resourceful spellcasters (often wizards and sorcerers). A living
spell typically adopts the same alignment as its creator, unless
they specifically shape it not to.
Not all living spells are created by spellcasters; areas soaked
in powerful or wild magic can give rise to sentient spells who
have no other course to chart in this world but destruction.

113
 ULDRA
Uldras are diminutive, blue-skinned arctic fey that come into
frequent contact with mortal settlements. They, like all fey,
experience emotions differently than mortals; uldras are prone
to wild mood swings. An uldra can fly into a rage at a moment's
notice and be calm the next. Mortals tend to regard them as
insane, but uldras consider these mood swings natural and
logical; it's the rest of the world that bottles up their emotions,
they say.
Uldras are fierce protectors of the natural world. They have a
fierce bond with animals and many take it upon themselves to
defend nature and its creatures. Many an uldra has sown terror
among mortals in the name of the natural world.

114
WERESEAL
Living often only in legends, the wereseal is the Arctic's most
misunderstood lycanthrope. It is the boogeyman of many a tale,
an accusation hurled in frigid seaside villages, and a creature
that mortal men eradicate on sight. Unlike werewolves, were-
seals are not inherently malicious and prefer to remain among
walruses and seals, protecting them from natural predators.
They are more akin to the peaceful, distant werebears.
Alas, no two wereseals are alike; they may be evil, good, or
somewhere in between. Generally, they despise ordinary folk
and live among the ice floes or along forbidding coasts. Some
are welcomed by darfellan villages after partaking in skirmishes
against the sahuagin.
Characters as Wereseals. The Monster Manual has rules for
characters afflicted with lycanthropy. The text below applies to
wereseal characters specifically.
The Strength of a character cursed with wereseal lycanthropy
becomes 15 if it wasn't already higher. Attack and damage rolls
for the wereseal's bite are based on the character's Strength. The
character also gains a +1 bonus to its AC while in seal or hybrid
form (from natural armor).

115
 APPENDIX C: EFFECTS
The many effects referenced in this supplement are detailed in FRIGID WATER
this appendix. For details, see the Dungeon Master's Guide. Wilderness Hazard
A creature can be immersed in frigid water for a number of
BEAR TRAP minutes equal to its Constitution score before suffering any ill
Simple Trap effects. Each additional minute spent in frigid water requires the
A bear trap resembles a set of iron jaws that springs shut when creature to succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or
stepped on, clamping down on a creature's leg. The trap is gain one level of exhaustion. Creatures with resistance or
spiked in the ground, leaving the victim immobilized. immunity to cold damage automatically succeed on the saving
Trigger. A creature that steps on the bear trap triggers it. throw, as do creatures that are naturally adapted to living in ice-
Effect. Melee weapon attack: +8 to hit, triggering creature. cold water.
Hit: 5 (1d10) piercing damage. This attack can't gain advantage
or disadvantage. A creature hit by the trap has its speed reduced HEAVY PRECIPITATION
to 0. It can't move until it breaks free of the trap, which requires Weather
a successful DC 15 Strength check by the creature or another Everything within an area of heavy rain or heavy snowfall is
creature adjacent to the trap. lightly obscured, and creatures in the area have disadvantage on
Countermeasures. A successful DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight. Heavy rain also
check reveals the trap. A successful DC 10 Dexterity check extinguishes open flames and imposes disadvantage on
using thieves' tools disables it. Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing.
DESECRATED GROUND HIGH ALTITUDE
Wilderness Hazard Wilderness Hazard
Some cemeteries and catacombs are imbued with the unseen Traveling at altitudes of 10,000 feet or higher above sea level is
traces of ancient evil. An area of desecrated ground can be any taxing for a creature that needs to breathe, because of the
size, and a detect evil and good spell cast within range reveals reduced amount of oxygen in the air. Each hour such a creature
its presence. spends traveling at high altitude counts as 2 hours for the
Undead standing on desecrated ground have advantage on all purpose of determining how long that creature can travel.
saving throws. Breathing creatures can become acclimated to a high altitude
A vial of holy water purifies a 10-foot-square area of by spending 30 days or more at this elevation. Breathing
desecrated ground when sprinkled on it, and a hallow spell creatures can't become acclimated to elevations above 20,000
purifies desecrated ground within its area. feet unless they are native to such environments.
EXTREME COLD MADNESS
Weather Madness can occur in one of three forms:
Whenever the temperature is at or below 0 degrees Fahrenheit, • A character afflicted with short-term madness is subjected
a creature exposed to the cold must succeed on a DC 10 to an effect from the Short-Term Madness table for 1d10
Constitution saving throw at the end of each hour or gain one minutes.
level of exhaustion. Creatures with resistance or immunity to • A character afflicted with long-term madness is subjected to
cold damage automatically succeed on the saving throw, as do an effect from the Long-Term Madness table for 1d10 × 10
creatures wearing cold weather gear (thick coats, gloves, and hours.
the like) and creatures naturally adapted to cold climates. • A character afflicted with indefinite madness gains a new
character flaw from the Indefinite Madness table that lasts
EXTREME HEAT until cured.
Weather
When the temperature is at or above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, a Curing Madness. A calm emotions spell can suppress the
creature exposed to the heat and without access to drinkable effects of madness, while a lesser restoration spell can rid a
water must succeed on a Constitution saving throw at the end character of a short-term or long-term madness. Depending on
of each hour or gain one level of exhaustion. The DC is 5 for the source of the madness, remove curse or dispel evil and good
the first hour and increases by 1 for each additional hour. might also prove effective. A greater restoration spell or more
Creatures wearing medium or heavy armor, or who are clad powerful magic is required to rid a character of indefinite
in heavy clothing, have disadvantage on the saving throw. madness.
Creatures with resistance or immunity to fire damage
automatically succeed on the saving throw, as do creatures
naturally adapted to hot climates.

116
SHORT-TERM MADNESS INDEFINITE MADNESS
d100 Effects (lasts 1d10 minutes) d100 Flaw (lasts until cured)
The character retreats into his or her mind and 1-15 "Being drunk keeps me sane."
1-20 becomes paralyzed. The effect ends if the character 16-25 "I keep whatever I find."
takes any damage. "I try to become more like someone else I know—
The character becomes incapacitated and spends the 26-30 adopting his or her style of dress, mannerisms, and
21-30
duration screaming, laughing, or weeping. name."
The character becomes frightened and must use his or "I must bend the truth, exaggerate, or outright lie to
31-35
31-40 her action and movement each round to flee from the be interesting to other people."
source of the fear. "Achieving my goal is the only thing of interest to me,
36-45
The character begins babbling and is incapable of and I'll ignore everything else to pursue it."
41-50
normal speech or spellcasting. "I find it hard to care about anything that goes on
46-50
The character must use his or her action each round to around me."
51-60
attack the nearest creature. 51-55 "I don't like the way people judge me all the time."
The character experiences vivid hallucinations and "I am the smartest, wisest, strongest, fastest, and most
61-70 56-70
has disadvantage on ability checks. beautiful person I know."
The character does whatever anyone tells him or her "I am convinced that powerful enemies are hunting
71-75
to do that isn't obviously self-destructive. 71-80 me, and their agents are everywhere I go. I am sure
The character experiences an overpowering urge to they're watching me all the time."
76-80
eat something strange such as dirt, slime, or offal. "There's only one person I can trust. And only I can
81-85
81-90 The character is stunned. see this special friend."
91- "I can't take anything seriously. The more serious the
The character falls unconscious. 86-95
100 situation, the funnier I find it."
96-
LONG-TERM MADNESS "I've discovered that I really like killing people."
100
d100 Effects (lasts 1d10 x 10 hours)
The character feels compelled to repeat a specific SLIPPERY ICE
1-10 activity over and over, such as washing hands, Wilderness Hazard
touching things, praying, or counting coins. Slippery ice is difficult terrain. When a creature moves onto
The character experiences vivid hallucinations and slippery ice for the first time on a turn, it must succeed on a DC
11-20
has disadvantage on ability checks. 10 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check or fall prone.
The character suffers extreme paranoia. The character
21-30
has disadvantage on Wisdom and Charisma checks. STRONG WIND
The character regards something (usually the source Weather
31-40 of madness) with intense revulsion, as if affected by A strong wind imposes disadvantage on ranged weapon attack
the antipathy effect of the antipathy/sympathy spell. rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing. A
The character experiences a powerful delusion. strong wind also extinguishes open flames, disperses fog, and
41-45 Choose a potion. The character imagines that they're makes flying by nonmagical means nearly impossible. A flying
under its effects. creature in a strong wind must land at the end of its turn or fall.
The character becomes attached to a "lucky charm," A strong wind in a desert can create a sandstorm that imposes
such as a person or an object, and has disadvantage on disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.
46-55
attack rolls, ability checks, and saving throws while
more than 30 feet from it. THIN ICE
56-65 The character is blinded (25%) or deafened (75%). Wilderness Hazard
The character experiences uncontrollable tremors or Thin ice has a weight tolerance of 3d10 × 10 pounds per 10-
tics, which impose disadvantage on attack rolls, foot-square area. Whenever the total weight on an area of thin
66-75
ability checks, and saving throws that involve ice exceeds its tolerance, the ice in that area breaks. All
Strength or Dexterity. creatures on broken ice fall through.
The character suffers from partial amnesia. The
character knows who he or she is and retains racial WEBS
76-85 traits and class features, but doesn't recognize other Giant spiders weave thick, sticky webs across passages and at
people or remember anything that happened before the bottom of pits to snare prey. These web-filled areas are
the madness took effect. difficult terrain. Moreover, a creature entering a webbed area
Whenever the character takes damage, he or she must for the first time on a turn or starting its turn there must succeed
succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be on a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw or become restrained by the
86-90 affected as though he or she failed a saving throw webs. A restrained creature can use its action to try to escape,
against the confusion spell. The confusion effect lasts doing so with a successful DC 12 Strength (Athletics) or
for 1 minute. Dexterity (Acrobatics) check.
91-95 The character loses the ability to speak. Each 10-foot cube of giant webs has AC 10, 15 hit points,
96- The character falls unconscious. No amount of vulnerability to fire, and immunity to bludgeoning, piercing,
100 jostling or damage can wake the character. and psychic damage.

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