Session 083

# Approaching the Rime Citadel

**Age of the Wolf, Year 5, Autumn, Laelun Toil 2, Day 9**

*Their short sojourn in the Freehold over, the party meets at the new temple of Fireforge, and then heads into the mountains. With the goat maiden Laerad in the lead, the party reaches the base of the mountain where the frost giant stronghold is located. As they approach the path that leads to their enemies, they are locked in a desperate battle with five massive frost worms.*

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## Player Characters Involved

* King Nygäär the Fey Blooded Rogue/Fighter/Crusader played by Dana
* Esbjörn Fireforge the Fire Giant Blooded Barbarian/Cleric/Surtr's Chosen played by Greg
* Heiða the Dread Necromancer/Crusader/Valkyrie played by Justin
* Vindr Skreevarson the Mongrel Blooded Human Scout/Ranger/Cleric played by Donnie
* Jor the Emberwrought the Giant Blooded Human Transmuter/Beguiler/Human Paragon/Ultimate Magus played by Jason
* Irrian the Shadowborn the Human Shadowcaster played by Koski

## Regrouping and Heading North

After three days, in which time Esbjorn was able to finish some long-delayed forging, the party regrouped, ready to head north and face the frost giants. The heroes met at the partially erected temple of Fireforge, the first of its kind in all of Seron. In addition to his forging, Esbjorn had been busy shaping stone and writing runic inscriptions into a newly erected stone pillar:

***Behold, the first temple to the illustrious god known as Fireforge, usurper of Surtr, master of Muspelheim, champion of Seron and jarl of clan Surtshellir until his ascension. Erected in the 5th year of the Age of the Wolf, IHR (in human reckoning).***

The heroes admired Esbjorn's (somewhat premature) temple, and then briefly discussed their next moves. As they made ready to depart to face the frost giants, they decided that they would bring the goat maiden Laerad with them. That decision ensured that the giants would not see them coming, as Laerad knew all the secret paths through the mountains. Esbjorn handed Vindr the magical bow he had improved for him, and Vindr nodded warmly, eager to use it against his enemy Fang Li. The heroes then departed, using Irrian's shadow walk spell to get them close to the Rime Citadel.

Stepping out of the shadowlands, the party found themselves high in the mountains, a familiar magical snow blowing twenty feet above their heads. They knew this would prevent magical flight, and they turned to Laerad to lead them the final few miles to their destination. Before departing, they had their slave Harald, who they had brought with them, contact the frost giant king Ístr Icesjel with the magical mirror. At the party's direction, Harald falsely reported that the party was continuing their move south to regroup in the Freehold. Everyone was surprised when they heard that the frost giant king was planning an attack on the Freehold, set to commence in the next day or two. The party briefly discussed returning, but ultimately they judged that they had time to make it back to the Freehold after they had finished their attack on the frost giants. Nygaar sent a quick message to Kettel using a sending stone, and they continued on. That decided, Laerad led them unerringly through the mountains to their destination.

## The Frost Worms Attack

Finally, the heroes reached the foot of the mountain they sought:

*As you approach the mountain, you make your way through a sparse and icy landscape, devoid of life and containing only groups of gnarled and dead trees. A cold rain and snow mix begins to fall, limiting your visibility as the magical storm swirls above you. Looking higher into the mountains, you see the outline of the Rime Citadel perhaps a quarter of a mile away. A strange unnatural wind howls around the citadel and the surrounding area and blows the snow into your faces. The path to the stronghold looks like a formidable climb, and you know that this area is usually heavily guarded. Squinting your eyes, you can you barely make out the slippery approach to the fortress, made up of steep stairways covered in a sheen of glistening ice.  As you stand and peer about you warily, you suddenly feel the snow-covered ground beneath your feet begin to shake. You hear a low rumble, as if the earth itself is making noises far below you.*

As the heroes made ready to begin the long climb, the earth below them seemed to rumble once more. Suddenly, four massive forty foot long white worms burst from the earth and snow, ready to attack. One of the creatures sounded a strange high-pitched trilling sound, and a number of the heroes' companions were momentarily fascinated by this magical call. As the party scrambled to react, casting a number of spells to include a magical spell of protection from Jor that turned all his fellow's skin scaly and dragon-like, the three remaining worms each unleashed a devastating breath attack of blistering cold that enveloped the party. As some of the party's weaker companions beat a hasty retreat, the imp Droog dropped dead and lifeless from Esbjorn's shoulder, his susceptibility to cold freezing him solid in seconds.

Meanwhile, Nygaar, Heida and Esbjorn charged forward, intent on wreaking vengeance. Heida called out to the heroes, directing their line of attack and affording them the opportunity to gain additional territory on the battlefield. Esbjorn erupted in rage; he swung his mighty vorpal blade at one of the worms, succeeding in decapitating the six foot thick neck in one stroke. Unfortunately with that strike the worm immediately turned to solid ice, and exploded into shards of flesh and ice in every direction. Nygaar nimbly dodged the explosion, as he had dodged all three breath weapons, but he recognized what he must do. He attacked a second worm, waiting until it was near death before turning his blade to the blunt side and incapacitating the beast. Amazingly, it worked, and the creature slumped down in front of him without exploding.

The wizards Jor and Irrian positioned themselves to use their magic, with Irrian erupting a fireball in the midst of the worms to devastating effect. The wolf Vungar recklessly charged and attacked one of the worms, while Vindr began firing his arrows at one beast and then the next. Suddenly, a familiar face appeared north of the battle. It was Fang Li, and she shouted out to Vindr that they had not yet faced the actual worm. True to her word, Fang then pointed a slender finger at one of the creatures, and a thin green ray shot out and turned the worm to ash and dust, disintegrating it instantly. Momentarily confused, the party looked around, ready for anything. Unfortunately for Esbjorn, this is when the Eldritch frost worm chose to strike, rising up from below the ground and engulfing Esbjorn in it's massive maw. Esbjorn's giant frame disappeared into the mouth of the beast, who made the other four worms look small, as it burped and turned towards the rest of the party.

Heida once again used her battlefield prowess to order her companions into more advantageous positions, and then used her seidr to drain a portion of the larger frost worm's strength. Irrian had the same thought, and used his dark shadow magic to sap the health of the large worm. The party watched as the beast noticeably withered as it was infused with shadow stuff. Harald, meanwhile, had recognized a path to Valhalla and out of slavery. Nygaar had given him an axe to redeem himself, and he charged across the battlefield intent on dying. The Eldritch worm granted Harald his wish, lashing out and biting the disgraced ranger and unceremoniously swallowing his mangled corpse. Esbjorn, squeezed inside the massive beast's gullet, watched with disgust as the body of Harald slid by him. Intent to escape at once, Esbjorn activated his cape of the mountebank with a word, and he was instantly transported out of the worm and back onto solid ground. Two worms remained, one large and one small, and the heroes made ready to end the battle once and for all.

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