Glacier of the White Worm The Glacier of the White Worm was a glacier situated high in the Earthspur Mountains in north Faerûn , lying between the Moonsea , Damara , Impiltur , and the Vast . Geography . The glacier was a great river of ice that weaved between the tallest mountains of the Earthspurs . On the north - west side , it flowed over a high cliff and spilled into the Moonsea . In the east , it flowed into Lake Icemelt , which lay in the mountains between Damara and Impiltur . The ice covered an area of approximately 1200 square miles ( ~ 1040 square kilometers ) . As old histories and maps recorded , it was once a part of the Great Glacier , the much larger icesheet that lay some 400 miles ( 640 kilometers ) to the north . Curiously , the Glacier of the White Worm survived at a much lower latitude than its altitude allowed , suggesting that magic or some other force might be involved . Notable Locations . The Monastery of the Yellow Rose , also known as the Citadel of the White Worm , lay east of the Glacier of the White Worm . Overlooking the glacier , it was built into the rocky side of a jagged mountain peak , one of the tallest in the Earthspurs , and upon a high plateau . Barroch ' s Hold was a citadel located in the Glacier of the White Worm . This was the fabled lair of Barroch , said to be the first great bandit lord of the Inner Sea . Inhabitants . The glacier was inhabited by a great many polar beasts , thanks to its former connection to the Great Glacier . As well as many lesser creatures , there were said to be enormous — and dangerous — snow spiders . Most notably , it was home to a variety of pale , albino remorhaz , which was unique to the region . These " white worms " gave the glacier its name . Herds numbering a dozen or more could be seen roaming the ice . The remorhazes were said to be led by a giant - sized " king " worm that laired in the very center of the ice . Adventurers also reported seeing ( usually in retreat ) unusual remorhazes with heads frilled with long , grasping tentacles . The monks from the Monastery of the Yellow Rose lived near the glacier . Some mountain barbarian tribes lived around the area of the glacier , in particularly the White Worm tribe . Silver dragon s laired in the mountains surrounded the glacier , while red dragon s were also sighted in the area . History . Old maps , such as those made in Year of Oaths Forsaken , −626 DR , showed the Glacier of the White Worm joined to the greater icesheet of the Great Glacier . After they slew Haask , Voice of Hargut , in Ironfang Keep , the assassin , the necromancer , and the warlord were last seen traveling upriver toward the Glacier of the White Worm and lands beyond . By the Year of the Spreading Spring , 1038 DR , the Great Glacier had retreated from the land of Damara . This led to the separation of the Glacier of the White Worm . Rumors and Legends . Unusually , the Glacier of the White Worm lingered on separately from the Great Glacier , much farther south than its altitude warranted . Sages of the 14th century DR theorized that potent cold - based magic or some other force might be the cause of this . Furthermore , they warned of a sinister power at work on or beneath the ice , and that the very safety of Faerûn could depend on discovering the identity and motive of this agency . This might involve determining the true nature and powers of the so - called white worms that tunneled through the ice .