First things first, I'm never going to get tired of this icy campaign setting.
It's been out for months now, but I have been loving the Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden adventure module. In case you missed it, it's a 5th edition adventure set in the forgotten realms far in the frigid North above the Spine of the World.
Do you need to know any of that in order to enjoy this? Nope. I didn't.
I've used pieces of adventure modules before, but I've never gotten a hardcover copy to run straight through. Even from the earliest description of this adventure I knew I wanted to run it with people. Check out the description and tell me you don't want to march straight into this chilly nightmare zone:
In Icewind Dale, adventure is a dish best served cold.
Beneath the unyielding night sky, you stand before a towering glacier and recite an ancient rhyme, causing a crack to form in the great wall of ice. Beyond this yawning fissure, the Caves of Hunger await. And past this icy dungeon is a secret so old and terrifying that few dare speak of it. The mad wizards of the Arcane Brotherhood long to possess that which the god of winter’s wrath has so coldly preserved—as do you! What fantastic secrets and treasures are entombed in the sunless heart of the glacier, and what will their discovery mean for the denizens of Icewind Dale? Can you save Ten-Towns from the Frostmaiden’s everlasting night?
Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden is a tale of dark terror that revisits the forlorn, flickering candlelights of civilization known as Ten-Towns and sheds light on the many bone-chilling locations that surround these frontier settlements.
Players can go about trying to stop the Frostmaiden and put an end to the perpetual night, or they can stumble upon other quests. Some may be as simple as clearing out a mine full of kobolds, but others might involve stopping a cult bent on destruction!
Back in September, there was a special online D&D Celebration event where people could play in the setting before its released. The event would run multiple tables simultaneously and would all affect the greater narrative of the day's events. I jumped at the chance and made what has since become one of my favorite characters, Jeremy Dyer.
Jeremy was a method actor studying for his upcoming role in what will surely be a hit play, Icy World, Icier Heart where he plays a handsome rugged frontiersman that's handsome. He ventured to this sub-zero setting to absorb as much as he could in order to really sell the role. Whenever he'd introduce himself he'd say "Hi, I'm Jeremy Dyer, you've probably heard of me" (and I would quickly follow up out of character with "you guys haven't...")
This adventure had everything:
Talking woodland critters led by a walrus named Mother Tusk
Talking a barbaric nomad tribe into stopping their raids by converting them to veganism
Riding the D&D equivalent of Chocobos
A crazy climactic battle against two-headed giants!
That last fight ended up having my favorite D&D moment EVER. Let me set the scene:
There a huge battle where multiple adventuring parties saving woodland critters, sabotaging the invading horde, or straight-up fighting giants!
Our party had just taken down one of the two giants we were up against. Our warlock and one of our fighters were down, our rogue and other fighter were in bad spots. It was my turn. It was all up to Jeremy.
I cast Healing Word on our downed Warlock. We had become good friends throughout the day's adventure. "Hey Arthur, you're going to want to see this," I say cockily as I'm taking out one of my daggers that's clearly never been used. I flip it in my hand and chuck it.
Throughout this whole sequence, I'm clearly not as hype as my character is. I'm saying things like "oh man, this isn't going to work" and "man, this is a bad idea."
As I'm about to roll, I let them know "I have a negative 1 for this."
Our DM tries to reassure me that it's ok, I can use either my Strength or Dexterity. That's when I lay it on them that BOTH are negative. "What are you?" she asked.
Without missing a beat I look at all of them and say, "I'm an actor" as I release the dagger, and make my roll.
It hit.
2 points of damage.
Our DM: "....Jeremy...how do you want to do this?"
OUR PARTY GOES WILD!
I felt so awesome. Jeremy had no business being in The North from Game of Thrones, let alone fighting giants, but he was the one that finished the big bad of the day. He was badass. He was the ultimate actor.
As soon as the adventure was release to I grabbed myself a copy and have been running games for my friends and other groups. It's so amazing seeing different people tackle the same situations in so many different ways. I'm waiting for one of them to stumble upon Jeremy as he wonders the tundra. He's going to be delightfully annoying.
If you or someone you know wants to get in on a session set in Icewind Dale, I still have seats available for one of my Saturday sessions.
If you're looking for an adventure to run with your friends (or enemies), I'd strongly recommend you get a copy of Rime of the Frostmaiden.
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