| Session Date | May 27, 2023 |
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| Starting Location | |
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| Player Characters | |
| Base XP Gained |
4778 50000 bonus |
| Player Notes | ZZ's Notes |
The party entered a parley with the Petty Dwarf, Kavatch. He said he knew the party was there to end the Fimbulwinter and he was willing to make a deal with them to that end. Essentially, he would tell them where to go and how to do it in exchange for something he wanted. The party was skeptical but asked if he would submit to a detect lie spell. He was incensed at this and said he didn’t trust the party to not ensorcel him into aiding them without reward. But, with some coaxing he finally relented with a huff. ZZ cast the spell from a scroll and the parley continued.
He told them that the Ice Wizard would kill him if he knew he was even just talking to them. He had not reported their presence to him, either. Indeed, the ice Wizard was in a deep rest after expending his power on intensifying the Fimbulwinter and repelling the party’s aerial “attack” on the palace. Still, he claimed with certainty that the Ice Wizard could easily kill them all in a fight. He did admit that his plan was extremely dangerous to the party, but far less so that simply blundering around the palace. In exchange for his information, he wanted the party to help him kidnap Bridgit, the ice Wizard’s daughter. The party was none too happy at doing such an act and spent some time debating the morality of putting the weird sorceress into the Dwarf’s hands. Hans also pointed out that it would certainly make the Ice Wizard an even more bitter foe in the future. For his part, Kavatch feared Bridgit’s spellcasting and believed the party could neutralize that.
With Hans polymorphed to resembled Kavatch, the party returned the way they’d come, briefly investigating a heavy curtain blocking the wide hall to the north. In the Ice Imp barracks, Hans was sure to be loud and obnoxious. It appeared some of the Imps realized something was amiss, but he berated them into silence and that seemed to suffice. They reached the stairs back to the palace and made their way back down without incident.
Back in the palace, they headed to the stairs they believed would get them to the central tower but ran into a robed figure coming the opposite direction. It was a heathen Druid and he seemed none too pleased to see (false) Kavatch. There was clearly some underlying tension as the Druid patted his scimitar and said he’d love for the Dwarf to give him a reasons to cut him in half (again). Hans’ reaction did not seem to suffice to him and the Druid grew enraged, shouting that he knew the Dwarf had sent a “false message” to Bridgit in his name and the he was “going to pay dearly for it.” Before Hans could react, the Druid cast hold person on Hans and paralyzed him. The Druid gloated that he could at last kill the Dwarf and make him disappear. None would even know, or probably care.
But, of course, Hans was not alone. ZZ now cast hold person back at the Druid with success, much to his utter shock. With ZZ now visible, the held Druid was clearly much surprised and angered. The party bound and gagged the Druid and dragged him to a nearby room to better interrogate him. This they accomplished with an ESP potion taken by Sirius. The Druid, named Deimos, was exceptionally angry more so than scared. It was clear he strongly believed that Kavatch had betrayed the Ice Wizard to Dwarves and had snuck a party of invisible ones into the Palace to overthrow the Ice Wizard. His certainty crumbled, however, when ZZ revealed the head of the real Kavatch and told the Druid that he’d been slain and they were impersonating him in an effort to end the Fimbulwinter. The party suspected that a Druid would not be happy with the Fimbulwinter and it turned out to be the case. The Druid was loyal enough to the Ice Wizard but felt the Fimbulwinter was overkill for his anger. He clearly hated Dwarves and could care less of they died, but acknowledged what an imprecise form of revenge it was.
The party now turned the conversation with Deimos toward what came next. Essentially, they began to suggest that the Druid help or at least not hinder their plans, alluding to their ability to get to the Ice Wizard’s cauldron, which Deimos confirmed was the source of the Fimbulwinter. The party’s plan was to destroy the cauldron, all the while pinning everything on the perfidy of Kavatch. His attempted kidnapping of Bridgit and the word of the Druid would provide overwhelming “evidence” of his guilt. Deimos reluctantly agreed, not wishing to betray the Ice Wizard but clearly conflicted about what he was doing. He went as far as confirming that the cauldron must be broken, either by blunt force or tossing it from the tower roof to the ground far below. With the cauldron gone, the Ice Wizard would be unable to renew the Fimbulwinter and would also find his air defenses much reduced, better allowing an aerial escape for the party. It would take decades to rebuild a new cauldron, if ever. In pledge of his support, he admitted ot the party he carried a potion of flying and told them to take it.
Since they did not wish to kill him, and the Druid could simply shapeshift out of any bonds, they released him and went their separate ways. The party took a short staircase down to the main Palace level. They passed into what appeared to be the grand entryway, as it was open to the level above and ornately decorated. They passed north into what had to be the central tower. It was a vast space filled with cold air, 50’ in diameter and rising up a hundred feet or more. The great cylindrical area was dominated by a 60’ high statue of Sedderin, god of winter (a good deity but in this instance with a harsh and even slightly cruel mien about his face). A light snowfall fell from above, though the flakes vanished as they reached the floor. The party ascended a narrow and long spiraling staircase around the outside perimeter to a level above. This proved to be a well-appointed and luxurious room which they speculated might be a place to rest after the long climb. They also found what had to be a guest room, also nicely furnished, but unused at present. A nearby space had stairs going up, but also two Ice Golems. They did not react to the party as Hans was in Bridgit’s form at this point.
The next level was a round room with walls tapering sharply inward as they rose to about 80’ above. There were no stairs up, only a circular pad of ice floating slightly above the floor in the center of the space. Long, narrow windows were spaced around curbing walls, closed with thin but unbreakable ice sheets like glass. The entire edifice was a myriad of blues and white meant to resemble glacial ice. The party stepped atop the ice circle and spoke the command word “glacier” which caused the platform to rise. As the ascended, Sirius could see that the center of the roof above was an illusion – it actually had a hole for the elevator to pass through.
Coming to the level above this found them in what had to be the Ice Wizard’s throne room and/or audience chamber. It also contained great, icicle-shaped windows filled with ice-glass, and presenting a potentially magnificent view to the south (if there was no Fimbulwinter, of course!). After a cursory examination of the statues in the room, the party tried a few doors, unsure exactly which one their directions indicated. They did find an office and a few minor things long those lines but did not waste time doing detailed searches. Finding more stairs, they ascended yet again.
In a smaller room now, Deaglan sensed a secret door which opened to reveal more stairs. These took the party to a room with two more doors. ZZ cast detect magic here and found the entire tower radiated magic, but that the doors particularly did so. A door to the north was the strongest and proved to have a keyhole, so he tried the key they got from Kavatch on it and it opened right up, throwing bright but natural light into their faces.
They climbed to the roof of the tower, which proved to be somewhat domed and covered completely by a thin but smooth layer of ice. A great black cauldron stood at the apex nearby, from which emitted a powerful column of ice and snow far into the sky above, as well as an intense white light. The party remained on the staircase while ZZ slipped ahead without fear of slipping on the ice. He ran a rope around the cauldron and back to the party. Meanwhile a sense of awareness and anger rushed over them – the Ice Wizard was coming.
They now heaved too and began to try to pull the cauldron from its place. It did not want to move and the rope strained mightily. Burt and Jarrik seemed to have particular success in their efforts, while Hans cast strength spells to help and Dane consumed a potion of hill giant strngth. Finally, the cauldron moved. A second effort moved it further but caused the rope to break! ZZ used his haste ability and ran another rope around the cauldron while Mordecai conjured an air elemental to also help. As the effort recommenced, Sirius on alert at the rear of the party saw the Ice Wizard appear at the base of the stairs. He filled the stairs with a wall of fire from a wand but the Ice Wizard riposted with an ice storm that hit most of the party. Sirius tried to slow the Ice Wizard but he shrugged it off. Bu, the party persevered and another pull at last caused the Cauldron to slide enough that gravity took over, and it fell from the tower to palace roof far, far below.
The Ice Wizard looked horrified and exceptionally angry. From nowhere, nine female figures made of frost and snow appeared and attached the party, sensing the heat of even those still invisible. The party now shifted efforts to escape, and began to fly (or jump) out, though not before Deaglan was nearly slain. The fliers dove down fast to get clear of the Ice Wizard’s magic, and also to verify that the cauldron had been broken. It was indeed broken and, to further emphasize it, almost immediately the thick blizzard clouds above began to break into sunshine. With everyone still alive (albeit barely in some cases), the party flew back to the Dwarf city, beaten and battered, but victorious.