TEXT: TYRANNY OF DRAGONS
  An Expansion for Rise of Tiamat for 10th and 11th level characters
  By Alexander Winter
  Frozen   
    Castle
  
  CREDITS
  TYRANNY OF DRAGONS
  Frozen   
    Castle
  Designer: Alexander Winter
  Development: Scott Fitzgerald Gray
  Editor: Scott Fitzgerald Gray
  Art Director & Graphic Design: Marc Radle
  Interior Artists: Marcel Mercado, Bryan Syme
  Cartography: Jared Blando
  Producer: Wolfgang Baur
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, 
  and all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of 
  Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries. 
  Kobold Press, Open Design, and their associated logos are trademarks of Open Design. All proper 
  names (characters, place names, new deities, etc.), dialogue, plots, story elements, locations, 
  characters, artwork, sidebars, and trade dress are copyright Open Design. 
  The Kobold Press logo is a trademark of Open Design and is used by permission.
  This work contains material that is copyright Wizards of the Coast and/ or other authors. Such 
  material is used with permission under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters 
  Guild. All other original material in this work is copyright 2016 Open Design. 
  www.koboldpress.com
  
  3
  3
  he loss of Skyreach Castle in Hoard of the 
  Dragon Queen was a major setback to the Cult 
  of the Dragon, but still only a setback. The cult 
  is determined to retake the castle and claim Tiamat’s 
  lost treasure buried in its frozen walls and cloudstuff 
  vaults, but they aren’t the only ones. Blagothkus the 
  cloud giant is still the master of Skyreach, and he has 
  gone to the hall of his cousin Brunvild, ice lord of 
  Uldoveld, for the resources to repair and reoccupy the 
  castle. At the same time, the party is dispatched by the 
  Council of Waterdeep to reclaim some of the stolen 
  treasures lost when the castle fell. 
  This episode assumes that Skyreach Castle was 
  brought to ground in Hoard of the Dragon Queen, 
  either in a controlled descent or a crash after its 
  controls failed. In the most likely outcome of that 
  adventure, the giant spirit that controls Skyreach Castle 
  guided the fortress to the Miklos Glacier, far into the 
  frozen North. 
  If you did not play Hoard of the Dragon Queen, assume 
  that Skyreach Castle was crashed by another group of 
  adventurers who died in the fight against the cult. If you 
  did play the previous adventure but Skyreach Castle 
  and the cloud giant Blagothkus did not meet the fate 
  assumed here, adjust this episode as needed. 
  “The Frozen Castle” can also be played as a standalone 
  adventure for a careful party of 10th level characters, or 
  a more reckless party of 11th level characters.
  ALLIES OF CONVENIENCE
  “The Frozen Castle” is meant to be a get-in/get-out 
  scenario, built around locations offering both 
  environmental hazards and deadly creature encounters. 
  For the episode to be a success, the characters need to 
  ally with a group that can provide shelter, help them 
  repair the damage done during the crash, and fill out the 
  crew needed for Skyreach Castle to fly once more. 
  The most helpful possible allies—but perhaps not the 
  most obvious—are the giants Blagothkus and Brunvild. 
  Although giants rarely support alliances with the tiny 
  races of Faerûn, both leaders rage against the idea of 
  the dragons gaining ascendance. If these leaders can 
  be convinced that the party is strong enough to aid the 
  giants, both can make valuable contributions to the 
  final encounter against the forces of Tiamat. 
  If the characters do not seek out the giants, a clan 
  of dwarves in the remote colony of Mkoz can also 
  repair and crew the castle, if given appropriate time 
  and incentives. As well, an arcane naturalist studying 
  a colony of yetis in the mountains can repair some 
  of the damage to Skyreach Castle, and the yetis can 
  make a serviceable crew if properly trained. As a more 
  desperate measure, the party might recruit the orc 
  servants of the giants, who could be induced to rise up 
  against their masters and serve the characters. They are 
  of no help in repairing the flying castle, however, and 
  make a dangerously unpredictable barbaric crew.
  THE MIKLO S 
  GLACIER
  The Miklos Glacier is a towering ice shelf tucked into a 
  crook in the Spine of the World Mountains. From a low, 
  solitary peak known as Promontory, the glacier extends 
  forty miles to the south before falling off as a sheer cliff.
  TRAVEL ON THE GLACIER
  Characters without adequate cold-weather gear, 
  provisions, and magic can be easily thwarted in any 
  attempt to traverse the Miklos Glacier. Even on the 
  sunniest days, the temperature rises above 0 degrees 
  Fahrenheit only in the afternoon, giving characters 
  only 4 hours of safe travel time. Any creature on 
  the glacier at any other time must make a DC 10 
  Constitution check every hour or suffer one level of 
  exhaustion. Creatures without adequate protection 
  automatically fail this check. 
  Spells such as protection from energy or Leomund’s 
  tiny hut can prove invaluable to characters dealing with 
  extreme cold. If no character has access to such magic, 
  the leaders of the Council of Waterdeep can make 
  scrolls available to the party.
  Thick snow cover on the glacier makes any location 
  that isn’t sheltered into difficult terrain. Without some 
  means of traversing difficult terrain, characters can 
  move only 5 miles per day, assuming they move only 
  when the temperature is above 0 degrees. That increases 
  to 10 miles per day with snowshoes and 15 miles per day 
  with skis. Over each hour of travel, there is a 30 percent 
  chance that visibility is lightly obscured by blowing 
  wind and snow. This has no effect on travel time, but 
  should be rolled for during random encounters.
  T
  
  44
  The glacier can be accessed from the west by way of a 
  pass in the Spine of the World Mountains, or by scaling 
  the ice cliffs in the south. The western pass runs close 
  to the orc village of Broken Tusk, and that approach is 
  likely to draw the orcs’ attention.
  RANDOM ENCOUNTERS
  The seemingly barren expanse of the Miklos Glacier 
  is home to a variety of deadly creatures. While the 
  characters are traveling across the glacier, roll a d20 
  every six hours. On a roll of 18–20, an encounter 
  occurs. Roll on the table to determine the specifics.
  Miklos Glacier Encounters
  D8
  RANDOM ENCOUNTERS (DAY)
  1
  A herd of elk or caribou
  2
  2d8 orc hunters
  3
  2d6 winter wolves
  4
  1d6 frost giants
  5
  A caravan of dwarves headed to or from Mkoz
  6
  An abandoned tent, its owner missing
  7
  1 remorhaz
  8
  1 polar bear
  D4
  RANDOM ENCOUNTERS (NIGHT)
  1
  2d6 winter wolves
  2
  1d6 frost giants
  3
  1d2 remorhazes
  4
  A hungry yeti family; not hostile if food is offered
  ADVENTURE 
  LOCATION S 
  This part of the adventure is a sandbox-style episode 
  in which the characters can explore different areas, 
  interact with different NPCs, and choose their own 
  best course for success. The characters’ objective is to 
  reclaim Skyreach Castle and arrange an alliance with a 
  faction that can help them escape with it. This section 
  details various locations on or near the Miklos Glacier 
  and the NPCs and creatures the adventurers might 
  meet there.
  1. BROKEN TUSK
  This orc village is situated near the western pass 
  leading to the glacier through the Spine of the World 
  Mountains. The Broken Tusk orcs came to this area 
  nearly fifty years before in great numbers, plundering 
  the holds of the dwarves of Mkoz. However, when the 
  frost giants came and slew the orcs’ leaders, the great 
  jarl Brunhild (father of Brunvild) took command of 
  the orc clans. 
  Broken Tusk’s population fluctuates between two 
  hundred and seven hundred orcs, all loyal to the giants. 
  The orcs make regular raids against Mkoz, though they 
  have so far failed to breach its defenses. Left to their 
  own devices, they would have long since moved on to 
  easier pickings, but the giants keep them focused on 
  the dwarven stronghold for their own ends.
  Many orcs are increasingly unhappy with the 
  giants’ leadership, but Brunvild, the current jarl, has 
  successfully quashed all challenge and rebellion. Some 
  orcs suspect that the giants are behind the occasional 
  disasters that strike Broken Tusk, from surprise dwarf 
  attacks to increased predation by remorhazes.
  The Broken Tusk orcs hate outsiders. Anyone 
  approaching the village and not accompanied by a 
  giant or atop a remorhaz will be attacked on sight. 
  If the characters come to the village in the company 
  of a giant, charm an orc into vouching for them, or 
  devise some other means of detente, the orcs show 
  little interest in any offer except weapons and armor. 
  What little steel they have has been stolen from the 
  dwarves—or, more usually, given to them by the giants 
  who received it as tribute from the dwarves.
  Many orc warriors are retainers at Uldoveld. If the 
  giants agree to aid the party, orcs will be brought along 
  as combat fodder to spare unnecessary giant losses. 
  Gru-Nar Bloodhandle, Broken Tusk Chieftain
  The Broken Tusks reckon their tribe’s beginning with 
  the great warlord Gru-Nar Bloodhandle, and every 
  chieftain since has claimed his name and title. The 
  current Gru-Nar was the strongest of the warriors that 
  survived the most recent assault on Mkoz. He hates the 
  frost giants even more than the dwarves, but knows 
  that the giants will kill him at the first sign of dissent. 
   Gru-Nar knows that as long as Brunvild lives, 
  the orcs will never be free. If the adventurers were to 
  slay the frost giant jarl, the orc chieftain will commit 
  his people to the characters’ cause. Though the orcs 
  can contribute nothing toward repairing Skyreach 
  Castle, they can provide a sturdy crew—but only with 
  promises of destruction and regular plunder to come. 
  
  5
  5
  If Gru-Nar comes to a bad end before the end of this 
  episode but needs to reappear, another orc claims the 
  title of Broken Tusk chieftain, and adds the Gru-Nar title 
  to his own. Each future Gru-Nar has a virtually identical 
  outlook to his or her predecessor, though successive 
  leaders are even less friendly toward non-orcs.
  2. MKOZ
  A clan of dwarves established this mining outpost and 
  stronghold atop the Miklos Glacier. From deep tunnels 
  beneath the ice, they extract iron, precious metals, and 
  gems. The dwarves of Mkoz have developed an uneasy 
  truce with the giants, knowing that the giants keep the 
  number of orcs at Broken Tusk under control. They 
  also permit trade caravans to travel between Mkoz 
  and larger dwarven settlements without harassment—
  as long as the dwarves provide tribute of sapphires, 
  silver, and steel. When the giants decide that tribute 
  is insufficient, they unleash the orcs’ fury, but only 
  enough to keep the dwarves in their place. 
  Mkoz is home to some 500 shield dwarves led by 
  Durro Thuldoun, a grim and distrustful warrior. 
  The dwarves do not open their halls to strangers, 
  for they know the giants are devious and cunning. If 
  the characters were to slay Gru-Nar or Brunvild, the 
  dwarves become a great deal friendlier—especially if 
  the adventurers prove they have the support of Mithral 
  Hall (by way of the writ received in the “Council of 
  Waterdeep” episode). The markets of Mkoz can provide 
  any goods from the Player’s Handbook.
  Even if the adventurers gain leave to enter Mkoz, 
  however, enlisting the dwarves to help repair Skyreach 
  Castle is a challenge. The dwarves will not leave their 
  halls unless their frost giant foes are dispersed. The 
  only way that happens is if the characters kill either 
  of the giants Blagothkus or Brunvild. If the dwarves 
  are successfully enlisted, they can provide fifty able 
  workers to crew Skyreach Castle, and their clerics can 
  purge the castle’s controls of the giant spirit within (see 
  Hoard of the Dragon Queen).
  
  66
  3. ULDOVELD
  Uldoveld is the mead hall of Brunvild, a powerful 
  frost giant jarl and the chief chieftain of the Broken 
  Tusk orcs. Uldoveld is built out of ice on a low hill and 
  enclosed by an ice stockade. The hall is large enough 
  to house several hundred frost giants, but only a 
  dozen frost giants and two dozen orcs are presently in 
  residence, attending to Brunvild.
  Dozens of smaller ice structures and temporary 
  huts stand outside the great mead hall, many housing 
  hill giants and ogres that have come to Uldoveld 
  at Brunvild’s request. Nearly a hundred giants are 
  currently camped here, along with fifty orcs busying 
  themselves with tasks the giants don’t care to do. 
  Blagothkus
  If the cloud giant Blagothkus survived Hoard of 
  the Dragon Queen, he has come from the Skyreach 
  Castle crash site to seek 
  Brunvild’s aid in getting 
  the castle airborne once 
  more. Fortunately for the 
  characters, Blagothkus 
  pays little attention to 
  humanoids. He doesn’t 
  recognize the characters as 
  those who assaulted his castle unless they 
  reintroduce themselves. 
  Blagothkus supports the Cult of the Dragon, but 
  only as a means to uniting all giants against 
  the dragons. He believes that only when the 
  giants have a strong enough foe to fight 
  will they earn back the love of their god 
  Annam, father of the giants. However, even 
  though the cloud giant has reservations 
  about helping the dragons, he is even less 
  interested in helping humanoids.
  Brunvild
  The frost giant Brunvild is a legendary 
  warrior, whose wild beard is knotted 
  with the skulls and bones of humanoids 
  that intruded upon his lands. Also woven 
  into his beard is a silver bracelet set with 
  a complex pattern of stylized horses and 
  lions. Brunvild and his brother Storvirk 
  wore matching bracelets in their beards 
  as trophies. Storvirk disappeared many 
  years ago while hunting a dragon; his remains and the 
  matching bracelet can be found in Arauthator’s iceberg 
  in the Tyranny of Dragons: Hoard of the Dragon Queen 
  episode “The Sea of Moving Ice.”
  Brunvild hates all dragons, and he has no faith in 
  Blagothkus’s idea of aiding the cult as a means of 
  uniting giantkind. He is thoroughly evil, however, and 
  has no interest in or sympathy for the fate of Faerûn’s 
  humanoids if Tiamat returns. He views humanoids 
  as little better than animals, using them if convenient 
  and ignoring them the rest of the time—but destroying 
  them if they present a threat. 
   In that same vein, though, Brunvild has a certain 
  respect for the best among the puny races, in the way 
  a rider holding the whip might admire a magnificent 
  warhorse. If the frost giant can find a way to put such 
  a beast to work for him, he will—and that’s how he 
  perceives the characters if they approach him. See 
  “Convincing the Giants,” below, for more information.
  
  7
  7
  4. GLAZHAEL’S RETREAT 
  Glazhael is the white dragon charged with protecting 
  the treasure the cult was transporting aboard Skyreach 
  Castle. It is likely that Glazhael escaped during Hoard 
  of the Dragon Queen, simply flying away in the face 
  of danger and the castle’s crash. He then followed the 
  descent of the castle before flying south to send word 
  of its location to the cult. (If Glazhael was killed in the 
  previous adventure, replace him with another cult-
  allied dragon that was passing over the glacier when 
  Skyreach Castle fell.)
  When Glazhael returned, he brought back a squad 
  of cultists on his back. They have since been joined by 
  more cult reinforcements, leaving nearly two dozen 
  cultists presently camped within sight of the crash site. 
  The cult has also approached the Broken Tusks about 
  an alliance against the giants, offering them the chance 
  to raid in richer lands to the south. See “Showdown,” 
  below, for details.
  While the cultists plan their assault, the dragon has 
  taken up residence in a fissure at the base of Miklos 
  Glacier. This location likely won’t factor into the 
  episode, though the characters might see the dragon 
  flying in the distance from time to time, scouting the 
  castle and activity at Uldoveld.
  If Glazhael notices the adventurers as they traverse 
  the glacier, he might take the opportunity to attack if 
  the party is camped in the open. However, the dragon 
  will flee quickly if the fight goes against him.
  5. PROMONTORY PEAK
  A werebear named Dalo lives on this lonely mountain, 
  shunning all visitors. He turns the characters away 
  if they approach him, saying they’d best get back to 
  civilized places before they get themselves killed. If 
  the characters are injured or obviously ill prepared 
  for exploring the glacier, Dalo begrudgingly lets them 
  stay in his cave lodgings. He doesn’t ask questions 
  and expects the same. He can provide cold-weather 
  gear and food, but only if the characters agree to 
  immediately return to civilization where they won’t get 
  themselves killed.
  If the adventurers’ relationship to the Emerald 
  Enclave comes up, Dalo is more receptive. Delaan, 
  the order’s Waterdeep delegate, has visited Dalo often, 
  though he hasn’t seen the ranger in many years. He is 
  more willing to let friends of a friend stay the night, 
  though, and if the adventurers speak of their mission, 
  Dalo gives them the lay of the land.
  Dalo dislikes the dwarves of Mzok, seeing them as 
  greedy. He dislikes Allac at the yeti colonies because he 
  views the wizard as meddling in the natural order. He 
  hates the orcs and giants, and ends up chasing Broken 
  Tusks off his mountain every once in a while. Though 
  he will not join the characters on their mission, he can 
  provide a detailed description of all the locations in 
  this episode.
  6. YETI COLONIES
  The yetis of the Miklos Glacier have dwelled here 
  for generations. A few years ago, an eccentric human 
  wizard named Allac came to the glacier to study 
  remorhazes, but he quickly changed his focus when 
  he discovered the yetis living in rough settlements, in 
  contrast to the bestial lifestyle of most of their kind.
  The yetis live in small family units or in solitude. 
  Allac moves between familial groups, entrancing them 
  with his magic to overcome their reclusive nature and 
  hostility. He tends their wounds with his healing skill, 
  and the yetis have come to view him as something of 
  a guardian spirit. Though he has shared with them the 
  secrets of fire and tools, the yetis have taken only to 
  building and using stone hammers, which they use to 
  crack bones for their marrow.
  The yetis hunt caribou and other animals that come 
  onto the glacier, but will attack orc hunting packs if 
  game is scarce. Orc patrols make it a priority to kill any 
  lone yeti they see.
  Allac
  Allac is a 9th-level chaotic good wizard with a great 
  white beard and wild hair down to his waist. The 
  furs he wears are white ermine, which combine with 
  his beard and hair to give him something of the 
  Helping Hand
  If the players don’t have a solid grounding in the long 
  history of enmity between giants and dragons in 
  Faerûn, one of the giants summoned to Uldoveld is 
  a chaotic good storm giant named Oromis. Oromis 
  takes it upon himself to declare the characters 
  members of his personal entourage, granting them 
  a measure of status among the other giants. He 
  explains the complex history of giantkind and the 
  giants’ ancient hatred of dragons, and summarizes 
  the divisions among the giants regarding what 
  should be done about Tiamat’s return. This should 
  give the players a sense of the diplomatic options 
  available to them as they seek the giants’ aid.
  
  88
  appearance of a yeti himself. He claims to have learned 
  a great deal from the yetis, but any conversation with 
  Allac shows that the solitude of the glacier has taken its 
  toll on his mind.  
  The wizard is happy to help the party by performing 
  the necessary repairs to Skyreach Castle, but he wants 
  a favor in return. Having tried and failed to prevent 
  the yetis from hunting orcs, he seeks a way to stop 
  the orcs from killing yetis in retaliation. He wants the 
  characters to plant a remorhaz egg in the orc village, 
  then somehow alert the giants to this. The giants prize 
  such eggs and forbid the orcs from possessing them, 
  fearing that the orcs might train remorhazes to fight 
  against them. The discovery of an egg in Broken Tusk 
  would bring the giants down on the orcs harshly, 
  driving them from the glacier.
  With Allac’s help, thirty yetis can be trained to crew 
  Skyreach Castle. They have few demands beyond 
  food and humane treatment, although they are not a 
  disciplined crew.
  7. REMORHAZ MATING GROUND
  A series of gradually rising hills define the northwest 
  edge of Miklos Glacier. This area is a remorhaz mating 
  ground, featuring dozens of the creatures burrowed 
  deep into icy lairs where they guard their eggs. Each 
  burrow is home to a mated pair of remorhazes, one 
  of which goes out to hunt and bring back food while 
  the other keeps the eggs in the lair warm. If an egg is 
  exposed to the frigid cold of the glacier for more than a 
  minute, the remorhaz within the egg dies.
  A remorhaz lair is tunneled into drifting snow and 
  the glacial ice beneath, making it difficult to find. A 
  lair’s entrance constantly fills up with snow, though the 
  remorhazes know instinctively where to burrow down 
  again. Finding a lair entrance requires a successful 
  DC 22 Intelligence (Investigation) check, after which 
  four hours of digging are needed to reach the main 
  lair beneath the ice. Characters who follow a hunting 
  remorhaz back to its lair and wait for it to burrow 
  through the snow automatically find the lair.
  Once in the ice, a lair tunnel descends sixty feet at 
  an angle before opening into a wide chamber. One 
  remorhaz is always in the lair; both remorhazes are 
  present 20 percent of the time.
  A remorhaz egg is a blue-gray sphere three feet 
  across and weighing two hundred pounds. The 
  writhing insectoid shape of a growing remorhaz can 
  be faintly seen within it. If exposed to extreme cold for 
  more than one minute, the young in the egg dies. A 
  remorhaz egg must be kept in proximity to significant 
  heat, such as that emitted by an adult remorhaz.
  8. ELEMENTAL VENTS 
  In ancient times, a wizard came to explore the glacier 
  but was overwhelmed by the cold. In a panic to 
  prevent freezing to death, he attempted to conjure a 
  fire elemental, but a strange wild magic effect caused 
  him to instead create a series of elemental vents within 
  the glacier. Fire and water elementals emerge from the 
  vents at regular intervals, roaming the area for a day or 
  two before fading away as new elementals are spawned. 
  The elementals attack if threatened, but they leave the 
  characters alone if they are ignored.
  These magical vents have restorative and protective 
  properties against the glacial cold. Any creature that 
  enters an elemental vent can spend Hit Dice as if it had 
  taken a short rest, and gains the effect of a protection 
  from energy (cold) spell for 1 hour. The adventurers can 
  rest here without tents or magic if they so choose.
  9. THE FALLEN CASTLE  
  When Skyreach Castle crashed, it left a massive crater 
  in the glacier. Splintered ice spikes and bits of stone are 
  strewn about in the snow, along with cloudstuff that 
  has solidified into ice and frozen the castle fast. The 
  same cloudstuff continues to spread across the snow, 
  creating a blinding blizzard around the ruins. Most of 
  the lower courtyard was crushed by the impact, but the 
  upper courtyard and iceberg core were preserved. 
  If the cloud giant Blagothkus survived Hoard of the 
  Dragon Queen, he survived the crash as well, but was 
  forced to travel to Uldoveld in search of a new crew 
  and the resources to repair the castle. Four ogres that 
  survived the impact have been left behind as guards. 
  The white dragon Glazhael and its cultist allies have so 
  far refrained from attacking the castle because of the 
  siege weapons in the upper courtyard, which Glazhael 
  is unwilling to face without more cultist backup. 
  The treasure from Hoard of the Dragon Queen is still 
  inside, as are any other treasures the party didn’t loot.
  Repairing the Castle
  Four things must be done to get Skyreach Castle flying 
  again, although only the first three are absolutely 
  necessary. The castle must first be dug out of the iceberg, 
  leaving it free to rise. The steering tower must then be 
  taken over, either with or without the cooperation of 
  its giant spirit. Once the castle is excavated and under 
  control, its levitation magic must be repaired. Finally, a 
  crew is needed to defend the castle as it flies.
  
  9
  9
  Digging Out
  The cloudstuff of the walls has filled the impact crater 
  and frozen the castle in place. The ice must be dug out 
  faster than it forms, requiring the labor of at least thirty 
  medium or fifteen large creatures working over the 
  course of a week. A team of ten water or fire elementals 
  can also do the job if they can be summoned. Because 
  cloudstuff continually forms ice, even after the castle 
  is dug out, it will be completely buried again in one 
  month if it does not take to the air.
  Controlling the Castle
  At the heart of Skyreach Castle is the spirit of the last 
  giant to die within its walls, which guides the fortress 
  and controls its propulsion and buoyancy. Because 
  the castle was crashed at the hands of humanoids, 
  it is difficult at best to gain the spirit’s cooperation, 
  even if the adventurers were not directly involved. If 
  Blagothkus was killed in Hoard of the Dragon Queen, 
  he is the resident spirit, and he absolutely refuses to 
  engage with any humanoids. 
  If Blagothkus lives, his wife Esclarotta is the resident 
  spirit. Though she is equally unwilling to help the 
  party, she hates the dragons much more than her 
  husband. If the characters explain the struggle against 
  Tiamat and succeed on a DC 22 Charisma (Persuasion) 
  check, she grants them possession of the castle. 
  Addressing her in Giant adds a +3 bonus to this check. 
  If the characters manage to win Brunvild as an ally, 
  success is automatic.
  If the characters cannot convince the spirit to help 
  them, flying the castle is harder. Damage to the 
  controls in the steering chamber means that anyone 
  can manually operate the command runes that fly the 
  Controlling the Castle
  Touching one of the glowing runes in the steering tower issues a specific command to the spirit controlling 
  Skyreach Castle’s flight. There are eighteen command runes.
  Veil. Foggy cloudstuff materializes around the castle. 
  After one minute, all creatures and objects in 
  outdoor areas within 100 feet of the castle are heavily 
  obscured, and all creatures and objects in indoor 
  areas are lightly obscured.
  Unveil. Foggy cloudstuff engulfing the castle dissipates. 
  Lightly obscured areas become clear in 1 round, and 
  heavily obscured areas become lightly obscured for 1 
  minute, then become clear.
  Storm. The clouds around the castle darken and churn, 
  becoming rumbling thunderclouds over a period 
  of 1 minute. Until then, the calm rune cannot be 
  activated. Once the thunderclouds have fully formed, 
  the creature that activated the storm rune can use 
  its action while standing in the steering chamber to 
  target one creature it can see with a lightning bolt. 
  The bolt has a range of 1,000 feet and can target one 
  creature or unattended object. A creature targeted 
  by the bolt must succeed on a DC 14 Dexterity 
  saving throw or take 22 (4d10) lightning damage. An 
  unattended object targeted by the bolt simply takes 
  the damage (no saving throw).
  Calm. The thunderclouds around the castle abate over 
  a period of 1 minute. During this time, the storm 
  rune cannot be reactivated.
  Alarm. A noise akin to a howling wind alerts all 
  non-deafened creatures in the castle.
  All Clear. A noise akin to a loud whisper signals an 
  end to danger.
  Anchor. The castle holds position on the ground or in 
  the air. The castle remains stationary despite winds, 
  storms, and so on.
  Cast Off. The castle is no longer anchored.
  Drift. The castle drifts on the wind, effectively under 
  no one’s control.
  Home. The castle returns to its place of origin in the 
  Spine of the World Mountains.
  North, South, East, and West. The castle moves in 
  the specified cardinal direction. Touching two 
  runes simultaneously can move the castle in other 
  directions; for example, touching the north and east 
  runes at the same time moves the castle northeast.
  Rise. The castle ascends at a rate of 10 feet per round.
  Sink. The castle descends at a rate of 10 feet per round. 
  If it comes into contact with the ground, it lands.
  Spin. The castle rotates gently clockwise, completing 
  one full rotation in 1 minute.
  Widdershins. The castle rotates gently 
  counterclockwise, completing one full rotation in 
  one minute.
  
  10
  10
  CONVINCING 
  THE GIANTS
  The giants are more receptive to a humanoid alliance 
  than the characters might expect, and are probably the 
  easiest potential ally to convince. Most of the giants 
  who want to help the dragons do so only from the 
  perspective promoted by Blagothkus, and they are a 
  clear minority among giantkind.
  If the characters attempt to negotiate an alliance with 
  Brunvild, he scoffs at the idea at first, saying that only 
  other giants may enter into an alliance with giants. For 
  characters who insist that they are worthy, he offers 
  a choice of three challenges: choosing a champion to 
  wrestle a giant, imbibing a horn full of spirit mead and 
  awaiting a vision in the bitter cold, or stealing a coveted 
  remorhaz egg. If the characters complete the challenge, 
  they not only earn the giants’ respect but are given 
  giant names—treated not just as worthy allies, but as 
  spirit giants born into small but mighty frames.
  Wrestling a Giant
  If the characters choose to wrestle a giant, a large ring 
  is cleared in Uldoveld. Hundreds of giants show up to 
  watch a brave and stupid humanoid be crushed by the 
  giant’s champion, Ulfgar Stonehand.
  To win the contest, the character’s champion must 
  successfully grapple a frost giant for 2 rounds. The 
  giants jokingly give the character a handicap, allowing 
  him or her 3 rounds to escape a grapple. Anything 
  goes in the fight, meaning that the giant might beat a 
  restrained character mercilessly—or even to death. 
  The strength of even an average giant makes this an 
  unfair contest, but the giants don’t care. Ulfgar doesn’t 
  take the fight seriously to start with, allowing the 
  character to pin him for 1 round and laughing before 
  easily escaping. He will pin a character for 2 rounds, 
  beating him or her mercilessly for the duration, only to 
  let the character escape to try again. This game continues 
  until Ulfgar loses the fight or kills the champion.
  The most straightforward means to even the odds 
  in this fight is to cast enlarge/reduce to increase the 
  size of the party’s champion. No one else can cast 
  magic on the character, but anything a champion 
  can do is permissible as long as it does not involve 
  a weapon or a wand. An eldritch knight or a robust 
  spellcasting character could use enlarge/reduce, or a 
  cleric or paladin could use command to order Ulfgar 
  to grovel for successive rounds. Alternatively, a wizard 
  watching from the side might attempt to stealthily cast 
  a suggestion spell under the guise of taunting Ulfgar, 
  causing him to “rest for a minute.” Because the giants 
  castle. However, doing so successfully requires a DC 
  20 Intelligence (Arcana) check, and the spirit considers 
  this an act of hijacking. A failed check locks out the 
  controls for one day. A character who speaks Giant 
  receives a +3 bonus to this check.
  Even if the characters can assert control over 
  the spirit, the castle needs constant control from 
  a knowledgeable operator to maintain course and 
  altitude. Each change of operator requires a new 
  Intelligence (Arcana) check, and without an operator, 
  the castle begins drifting. If the characters are hijackers, 
  the spirit puts the drifting castle into free fall and lets 
  it plummet back to the ground. Any creature on the 
  castle when it hits takes falling damage. Moreover, 
  the damage to the castle from a second fall requires 
  months of specialized magical repairs and tens of 
  thousands of gold pieces to fix. 
  Magical Repairs
  The magic that levitated Skyreach Castle was damaged 
  in the crash. Repairing the damaged castle requires three 
  castings of control weather and levitate over five days, 
  combined with a successful DC 18 Intelligence (Arcana) 
  check made each day. On a failed check, the complicated 
  ritual is extended by another day. If the adventurers do 
  not have these spells, they must rely on allies. 
  Because the giants built the fortress, Blagothkus, 
  Brunvild, or Oromis (see the “Helping Hand” sidebar) 
  can repair the damage. Alternatively, Allac is a powerful 
  mage with mastery of both required spells. The dwarves 
  of Mkoz have no wizards and no cleric powerful 
  enough to cast control weather, but if given two months 
  of time, they can engineer mechanical repairs to 
  augment what remains of the castle’s magical flight 
  systems. In all cases, the services of these NPCs require 
  diplomacy and favors on the part of the adventurers.
  Finding a Crew
  Having crewmembers on board isn’t strictly necessary 
  for the operation of Skyreach Castle, as even a single 
  character can operate the controls in the steering 
  tower. However, without proper defenses, a determined 
  airborne enemy can easily take control of the castle. 
  See “Showdown,” below, for details.
  
  11
  11
  are implicitly cheating by offering this unbalanced 
  challenge, the characters should have no problem with 
  needing to cheat to win. 
  Spirit Mead
  This challenge is for the entire party. The giants brew 
  a thick, almost doughy beer called spirit mead. The 
  characters must drink this exotic alcohol and expose 
  themselves to the elements as part of a spirit journey 
  to prove their worth. The characters will receive a 
  collective vision if they are favored by the gods of 
  giantkind—or they will freeze to death if they aren’t.
  Spirit mead is made with hexed yeast that causes 
  hallucinations and visions. Characters who imbibe it 
  are poisoned for 4 hours. While out in the cold, they 
  blunder about in random directions and might be 
  challenged by random encounters. Though they are 
  allowed weapons for this challenge, they aren’t allowed 
  any armor or cold-weather gear. Fortunately, the spirit 
  mead increases physical hardiness, so that the characters 
  don’t need to make Constitution saving throws against 
  cold weather while under the effects of the mead. 
   This challenge focuses on storytelling, as the 
  characters must impress the giants with the experience 
  of their spirit journey. Allow the players to stretch their 
  imaginations about what the characters see in their 
  vision, even as you prompt them with imaginative 
  ideas of your own. Below are some examples of the 
  sorts of things the characters might experience. 
  Pindalpau-pau, Mother of Reindeer. The characters 
  move through the ice until they come across a herd 
  of reindeer—including one twenty-foot-tall specimen 
  that approaches the characters. The creature speaks 
  in a soothing voice, telling the characters that she 
  is Pindalpau-pau, mother of reindeer, and has 
  embraced them in the herd.
  The characters watch as icy, crystalline humanoids 
  step out of the reindeer’s mouth as she speaks. The 
  figures grow and change, taking on the forms of the 
  adventurers but carved of ice and reborn of winter. 
  Each character develops a distinctive frost burn on 
  his or her body that resembles an ancient Giant rune 
  meaning “birth.”
  Thrym, God of Ice. As the adventurers wander across 
  the glacier, they see Thrym, the giant god of cold and 
  lord of the frost giants. As he leaps across the land, 
  he brings his mighty ice axe down with a thunderous 
  
  12
  12
  crack. Everywhere the blade touches, great splinters 
  begin spreading through the glacier, erupting in deep 
  and mighty chasms that open to a black, bottomless 
  abyss. The giant god lands close to the characters, 
  knocking them to the ground and rending the glacier 
  open. A small shard of the axe splinters off to land 
  near the adventurers as a perfect piece of clear blue 
  ice, which the characters can bring with them as 
  proof of their vision.
  The Snow Fox. As the characters wander in the 
  wastes, a croaking sound warns them of the approach 
  of a dozen ice toads, carrying a litter bearing a 
  creature whose white hair flows over the litter to the 
  ground. When the toads set the litter down before 
  the adventurers, they see an ancient yeti that opens 
  the fur of its beard to reveal a sleeping fox pup. The 
  characters then hear a voice in their heads that they 
  know to be the fox, telling them of the ancient giant 
  kingdom of Ostoria and of the giants’ war with the 
  dragons. It declares the characters spirit-heirs of 
  a long-dead giant warrior named Salakko—each 
  of their souls a fragment of his larger giant soul. 
  It is their duty to lead the giants in the current 
  incarnation of the ancient war. When the story is 
  told, the fox, the yeti, and the toads turn to ice and 
  melt away.
  Steal a Remorhaz Egg
  The giants covet remorhaz eggs, and they raise 
  and train young remorhazes as mounts and guard 
  creatures. A giant who brings an egg back from the 
  remorhaz mating ground is considered a strong and 
  worthy member of the tribe. See that area, above, for 
  more details. 
  Returning with even one egg suffices to complete 
  the challenge, but stealing two eggs is even more 
  impressive. If the characters can somehow bring back 
  one egg each, the exploit will become a legend among 
  the giants.
   SHOWDOWN
  Once the characters have made their alliances on the 
  Miklos Glacier, they are able to undertake repairs to 
  Skyreach Castle. Just as those repairs are completed, 
  however, the Cult of the Dragon convinces the orc leader 
  Gru-Nar to betray the giants and join the cult in taking 
  the castle, enticed by a promise of freedom for the 
  orcs and the ability to raid the rich lands of the south. 
  Gru-Nar assembles his people quietly to escape the 
  giants’ notice. Then a combined force storms the castle. 
  Gru-Nar commands 200 orcs, which fight alongside 
  20 dragonwings, 3 dragonsouls, and the adult white 
  dragon Glazhael. If the party earlier allied with the 
  duplicitous Gru-Nar, the chieftain can assemble a 
  force of only 100 orcs. In that event, however, the cult 
  engages the giants in a temporary alliance to prevent 
  their mutual enemy from escaping with the castle, 
  bringing 15 frost giants to the fight. 
  These creatures work in 7 warbands of 20 to 30 
  orcs each directed or advised by 2 dragonwings, plus 
  possibly 1 or 2 frost giant. The dragonsouls each 
  command 3 warbands and the dragon fights on its 
  own, supporting others. 
  Consult and adjust the maps of Skyreach Castle 
  in Hoard of the Dragon Queen for use in this final 
  encounter.
  GRU-NAR’S ASSAULT
  Though Gru-Nar is not a master tactician, the cult has 
  provided him with information detailing the layout of 
  the castle, inspiring him to unleash his assault in three 
  waves. 
  The chieftain relies on tried and true orc tactics 
  for the first two waves—a raiding sortie to gauge the 
  enemy’s strength, followed by a show of force to breach 
  the castle’s defenses. 
  The only access to the upper courtyard is by flying, 
  coming up through the ice stairs inside the iceberg 
  core, or climbing the walls. Because the orcs lack 
  grappling hooks and any means of flying, they try to 
  rush through the iceberg core for the central stairs. 
  Though the stairs are easily defendable, the iceberg 
  core around them is not. It has four separate entrances, 
  including one large enough for an adult dragon, and 
  holding those entrances will be a challenge for the 
  adventurers. Worse, the treasure vault is located in 
  the iceberg core. Though the adventurers might be 
  happy to stand in the stairwell and create a dangerous 
  bottleneck for the orcs’ advance into the upper castle, 
  doing so gives the cult an opportunity to extract the 
  treasure if the characters have not already thought to 
  move it to a more secure location.
  
  13
  13
  The first wave of the attack consists of 1 probing 
  warband, 20 orcs testing the castle’s defenses and 
  determining what traps guard the approach to 
  the lower levels. When half the orcs are killed, the 
  survivors flee back to the main host. 
  The second wave consists of three fresh warbands, 60 
  orcs, 30 of which storm the stairs while another 30 hurl 
  caribou skulls packed with seal blubber and lit on fire 
  over the walls. When half of those orcs are slain, the 
  rest flee back to the host.
  The third wave consists of the remaining orcs—
  approximately 160 if Gru-Nar fights at maximum 
  strength. The cult commits its own forces and Glazhael 
  to this final attack, with all the cultists flying over the 
  walls in a special harness fitted on Glazhael’s back. The 
  orcs fight until the castle lifts off or the host is reduced 
  to half its numbers. At that point, they turn on Gru-
  Nar and the cultists, then head back to Broken Tusk.
  The adventurers can complete repairs during the 
  attack, and the castle regains complete function during 
  the third wave. Assuming that the party has control 
  over the castle’s spirit (see “The Fallen Castle,” above), 
  a character in the steering tower can order the castle to 
  lift off. Doing so carries any onboard enemies into the 
  sky along with the castle, but leaves much of the orc 
  host on the ground below.
  ALLIED FORCES
  If the characters have allies fighting at their side, one 
  giant is equal to eight orcs, one dwarf is equal to two 
  orcs, and one yeti is worth four orcs. Rather than 
  bringing these allied forces into the fray with endless 
  dice rolling, assume that on each turn of combat, the 
  above ratio of allies to orcs die or are incapacitated on 
  both sides. These ratios can be adjusted if you wish to 
  reward the players for sound defensive tactics. 
  Depending on circumstances, you should adjust the 
  strength of the orc horde. If the assault poses no threat 
  to the number of allies the party has gathered, more 
  orcs can arrive from Broken Tusk in the third wave, or 
  a single frost giant might join the fray. 
  Conversely, if the adventurers have committed their 
  crew to defense but are not fighting themselves, the 
  odds might seem impossible in the third wave. In such 
  a scenario, a dispute about division of the treasure 
  might break out among the orcs, who diminish their 
  own numbers in their fury.
  CONCLU SION
  In addition to gaining aid in the quest to claim 
  Skyreach Castle, the adventurers can secure a longer-
  term alliance with one of the factions on the glacier—
  particularly the giants. With a giant alliance secured 
  and the castle under the giants’ control, the factions of 
  Waterdeep can claim the floating fortress as an asset 
  in the final episode. However, the castle remains a 
  possession of the giants, and is not available for the 
  party’s use during the rest of the adventure.
  The dwarves and the yetis are less impressive allies 
  in the eyes of the Council of Waterdeep. Still, claiming 
  Skyreach Castle without the aid of the giants means the 
  adventurers can claim the flying fortress for their own 
  use. This might greatly change the scope of the rest of 
  the adventure, as the characters make use of their own 
  mobile fortress and a small personal army. However, 
  the absence of giant allies means that the death toll for 
  the factions in the final encounter will be higher.
  The characters advance one level at the end of this 
  episode.
  The Party Stands Alone
  If the adventurers have not engaged any allies in this 
  episode, they are unlikely to be able to fend off the 
  assault of the orcs and cultists. In such a scenario, 
  the orcs assemble their host just as the characters 
  complete repairs, allowing the first wave to move 
  aboard before the castle escapes. The cultists then 
  gain access to the castle with an aerial assault on 
  Glazhael, taking advantage of the fact that there are 
  no defenders to scout their arrival or prevent them 
  from making a landing.
  
  HEROES
  TM
  Raven’s 
   Call
  The
  WOLFGANG
  BAUR
  Kobold Press, Midgard, the Midgard logo, Southlands, Open Design, and their associated logos are trademarks of Open Design. 
  heroes
  TM
  BY DAN DILLON
  yxv
  yxv
  ANSWER THE  
  CALL!
  Go on thrilling new adventures with  
  5th edition! Create your heroes and 
  send them on their first-ever mission: 
  to save a village in peril and push the 
  vile trollkin into the sea.
  koboldpress.com
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/Kobold Press/Kobold Press - Frozen Castle.pdf