Frostholm Monastery

Fairlands > Frostholm > City of Frostholm > **Frostholm Monastery**

The Frostholm Monastery, also known as Land's End Monastery, is an Old World building that arrived whole and safe in the mountain above Frostholm. There are six monks who arrived with it, and they are the only permanent residents.

The original monks are all Dwarves, and are not affiliated with any Frostholm House.

## Origins

Before The Storm, Land's End Monastery existed high in the mountains of Faerun, on the far edge of the Spine of the World. It was a place for reflection and meditation, affiliated with no single deity -- an oasis of calm in the wild, barbaric environs of the Spine. A small, alpine valley below it provided all of their limited agricultural needs.

The monks who lived there practiced martial arts, yoga, and deep breathing techniques in relative isolation, unknown even to their nearest neighbors in the Cold Wood. In fact, the maps of Faerun rarely if ever even bother to illustrate the Spine of the World so far north, as it was largely unexplored and considered uninhabitable.

That didn't stop brave or foolish souls from travelling north in search of ore or glory, though. Every few years, a new face would appear -- often a Dwarven prospector lost in the mountains, or more rarely a Barbarian left to die of exposure by his clansmen. Some stayed, as students. Others were healed, fed, and returned to the world, unable or unwilling to speak of the mysterious monks on the mountain. Those few, hearty ones who stayed learned the secrets of long life in harsh climes, and mastered their spiritual energies to devastating effect.

## Legend of the First Brother

No one recalls who the First Brother may have been, or who built the Monastery. It was ancient and forgotten by history long before the extant records were made. It is prehistoric, in the most literal sense.

A local legend told tale of a Dwarven warrior, disgraced and defeated, who journeyed far into the mountains to find a worthy demise. He faced many trials of strength, endurance, and character before summiting the Spine, none sufficient to defeat him. Land's End was waiting -- fully built by master craftsmen of an era lost to time. For what purpose it was designed is a mystery, but the First Brother chose to stay. He meditated for 49 days, and on the 50th day another Brother arrived. Then another.

The Legend of the First Brother has little to recommend itself to historians, but it does make a promise which the remaining Monks hold to be stone-writ truth: **as long as one worthy heart remains in residence, the Monastery will survive.** As such, the Abbot never leaves his post.

The rank of Abbot at Land's End Monastery is a high honor, a great duty, and a life sentence. Once appointed, the Abbot can never return to the outside world again. Having fulfilled this duty for 300 years, it is said that the Abbot will achieve enlightenment and open the way to Shambhala. No known Abbot has fulfilled the prophecy since the days of the First Brother.

Legends are unclear as to whether this tradition promises a literal door to paradise, a mystical awakening of the Abbot's Eternal Spirit, or the coming of a new religious order.

## The Storm

During the Storm, the monks at Land's End -- all Dwarves, though that was more a fluke of timing than by design -- gathered their prayer beads, performed their katas, and settled in to meditate. They focused inwardly, despite the swirling chaos around them, and came to rest unscathed upon the top of a new mountain. It was much lower than their previous perch on the Spine, but the entire Monastery seemed to come over intact.

In keeping with tradition, the Abbot did not leave. The Brothers left only long enough to gather necessary supplies from the valley below. Then, many days after their arrival, new people appeared in the valley all at once. These were the first settlers of Frostholm, brought over by the Wizard Alister in his pocket dimension.

As Frostholm grew below them, the Monks kept mostly to themselves.

## Residents

The current Abbot is Father Boulderstare. His students are:

* Brother Rocksmasher, who welcomes guests and serves meals
* Brother Ledgetester, who prefers to spend his time outdoors
* Brother Skytoucher, who goes into the City when needed
* Brother Peaksitter, who meditates daily on the Monastery roof
* Brother Cliffbreaker, who studies the old texts and keeps records

There are no formal rules preventing women from joining, but it is traditionally not encouraged. When women do study at the Monastery, it is common for them to reside away from the rest of the Monks, climbing many stairs each morning before they pray. However, there have been brief periods when a woman stayed on as Prioress, and trained other females separately. There has never been an Abbess.

## Hidden Lore

Knowledge Local: DC XX

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## DM Only

DM Notes

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