Previous: Conquest
Session 24 & 25: Frozen Waste
Bannor, Chiranjeev, Astaria, and Flerg left three days after they helped capture Smallstone. They were going to meet with Moburu, a sage living in the small town of Riverton. The necromancer Falon Gareth pointed the group towards Moburu as a possible source of information about Hilden's Four, the powerful adventuring group that double crossed the companions, causing them to be cursed by Mathouk.
After a mostly uneventful trip to Riverton the group was quickly able to locate the sage. Moburu runs a small shop specializing magic supplies. The group told him about their mission, he seemed concerned and explained that two of Hilden's Four have a sister living in the area that would probably help the group find her siblings. The following day, the group met with Charlotte McShane. She is a local ranger who turned down the opportunity to join Hilden's group because she is uncomfortable with their lack of morals. When the group stated their intention to gain vengeance against Hilden's Four, Charlotte warned Hilden's Four is a formidable group and she told them everything she knows about them. Unfortunately the information was disconcerting. Charlotte expounded on the dangerous adversaries that Hilden's Four defeated, mountains of gold and gems that they flashed while in the area, and the powerful magic items that they have gained. The group had already decided that they weren't going to attack their formidable enemies, but Charlotte's stories confirmed their initial plan increase their personal power before engaging Hilden's Four.
The following morning as the group was preparing to leave, Moburu approached and asked if they could help him with a problem.
*** SPOILER ALERT ***
The following comes from the Wizards of the Coast adventure "Into the Frozen Waste"
A friend of Moburu lives in a small town called Bethra. His friend, Agarathar, is a druid that trades Moburu rare reagents from the continent of Anaria (a mostly-arctic continent to the far north). Agarathar needs some able adventurers to accompany him on a trip into the Anarian Wastes to deliver some goods to a sorcerer named Zilrus. The trail is treacherous and it will be a dangerous journey. The group agreed and the two days later Moburu teleported the group to Anaria.
The frigid Anarian wind cut into Chiranjeev and Flerg, even through their layers of fur. Astaria had cast a spell to protect herself from the elements and Bannor doesn't feel cold. Moburu bid them adieu and pointed them down the trail to a small village in the distance. The group was just about ready to walk into the town when they heard a commotion. The ruckus came from behind the largest building, there were four enormous wolves attacking several villagers. The group rushed to the aid of the villagers, but they were too late, it had become a battle to avenge the small group of villagers.
The man introduced himself as Agarathar. The group explained that Moburu sent them to accompany him on his journey into the tundra. He seemed exceptionally happy at this news and explained that they could leave in two days.
After two boring, uneventful days, the group boarded Agarathar's small keelboat to head east along the coast to where their journey north would start. Late in the evening of the second day Agarathar was exhausted since he had been steering the vessel for a day and a half. He asked Astaria if she could steer for a few hours while he rested. She agreed and they continued on.
Late that night, the tiny keelboat was attacked by tritons and water elementals. The group was able to defeat the creatures, but not before they had damaged the boat. They were taking on water! Agarathar steered the boat to a cove, hoping to be able to beach the boat for repairs. They were able to get the boat stabilized between some rocks long enough to unload before the waves smashed the foundering vessel into the rocks, damaging it beyond repair.
Fortunately the group was able to save the pack animals and continue on their way with the supplies.
After two day, the group was closing in on their destination when a fissure opened at the group's feet with a hiss. Agarathar fell into the crevasse while a huge worm-like insect creature skittered out of the hole and attacked. The group rushed forward to attack the creature. Bannor hit the creature hard, but the remorhaz leaned forward and grabbed the monk in its maul. The rest of the group hit it hard, hoping that it would drop Bannor. Unfortunately, the creature swallowed Bannor whole then defended itself from the rest of the group. Chiranjeev, Astaria, and Flerg were able to kill the beast quickly, and cut the creature's gullet, releasing an unconscious Bannor.
Astaria healed Bannor and the group pulled Agarathar out of the fissure. Agarathar was injured, but not beyond Astaria's ability to heal. After Astaria healed him Agarathar smiled tiredly and said "You are indeed stalwart companions. I owe you all my life." He looked down at his hands for a moment, then continued. "I must confess, I was not completely honest with you. I was going to Zilrus with our cargo as a ransom. He’s holding my wife there and will not give her up unless he gets what he wants." He glances up as though pleading for understanding. "If something should happen to me, please promise that you will complete the journey for me and rescue my wife. She means the world to me. To reach his fortress, you need only keep going in this same direction and look for steam. When you find him," he pleads, "give him what he wants so that he will release her. Be careful though . . . he’s a liar . . . and not what he seems."
The group continued on to Zilrus' lair, an icy cave system sitting in the center of a steaming, hot spring. Crossing the treacherous bridge extending to the fortress, a group of four steam mephits challenged the group. The group intimidated the mephits causing them to think twice about attacking the formidable group.
Near the entrance to the cave system the group began passing ice sculptures of polar bears, seals, and humanoids in various poses. The floor of the entryway was made from polished ice. Entering the cave with the pack animals in tow, the entry opened into a huge cavern. Standing on a stone dais at the edge of the ice is a tall, lanky man with a drooping white mustache. He is wearing fine clothes that look somewhat tattered with age, and his bright-blue eyes twinkle with intelligence. "I was wondering how long it would take for you to get here," he says. "I’ve been expecting you. I am Zilrus, and this is my home. Did you bring the items that I requested?"
Agarathar stepped forward and said "I brought what you requested, now give me my wife back!"
"What you say is of no consequence now, my friends," Zilrus says with a sinister laugh. "You have brought the items that I have requested. You have also brought yourselves, which was another part of the bargain that I made with the druid. You see, I haven’t eaten in a very long time, and you are my next feast. Getting a decent meal is difficult up here, as you might imagine. Normally I would get to know my guests first, find out what is going on in the world and all that . . . but you took much longer than I expected." He smiles cruelly and snaps his fingers. A terrible roar sounds from one of the adjoining chambers, and a lizardlike beast comes rushing out, snarling and gnashing its teeth.
The frost salamander charged forward and Bannor intercepted it. Zilrus cast two spells, magic missile and cone of cold. Chrianjeev charged the sorcerer, Astaria healed Flerg, then Flerg tried to join Chiranjeev in his assault on the sorcerer. Unfortunately Flerg underestimated the slipperiness of the icy floor and he fell hard. During the melee everyone lost track of Agarathar.
Bannor quickly killed the frost salamander with his blurring fists.
Chiranjeev and Flerg were able to land a couple of powerful blows while withstanding more of Zilrus' spells. Obviously injured Zilrus turned invisible and moved out of melee. Chiranjeev and Flerg chose a direction and swung wildly, hoping to land a blow on the invisible sorcerer. They both missed, but Astaria stepped forward and cast invisibility purge to remove the cloak of invisibility from the fleeing sorcerer. Unfortunately for him, Zilrus was within reach of Chiranjeev and Chiranjeev caught him with a mighty blow from his huge falchion. Dropping the sorcerer to the ground dead. When he died, the sorcerer changed to his actual form, that of an immoth.
The group searched the remainder of the lair, finding Agarathar, and the frozen form of Agarathar's wife. The group figured out that the ice encasing Agarathar's wife was magical and when they melted the ice, his wife was alive. Agarathar used a magical item to communicate with Moburu asking him to retrieve the group from the icy fortress.
Moburu arrived the following morning and teleported Astaria, Bannor, Chiranjeev, and Flerg back to Riverton. The group left to return to Smallstone Keep.