Warning: Spoilers below for the adventure, Menace of the Icy Spire.
The icy figures emerging from the frozen flames are clearly not arriving for a picnic. A battle begins and rages across the various rooms of the first floor. More of the figures pop out of the frozen flames and some larger (and more dangerous) ice creatures descend the stairs leading to the second floor. During the battle, it is determined that the frozen flames are actually portals to Elemental Chaos and definitely not something that the players want to enter. The party’s arcane types also determine how to close the portal and do so (but not before some more of the creatures emerge). In the end, the party prevails.
The party explores the first floor a bit. There is a large dining room, a sitting room, kitchen, pantry, and servants’ quarters. Everything is frozen and not easily salvageable. The pantry has a number of jars with pickled eels. Two bodies are found under the covers of the beds in the servants’ quarters. Both are frozen with a look of fear upon their faces. The travel and battles to and within the tower have taken their toll upon the party and so they hole up in the kitchen (the most defensible room) to sleep and rest (i.e., take an extended rest).
In the morning, the party heads up the stairs to the second level. The whole level looks to be some sort of magical lab. There is a large summoning circle, some bookshelves, and a worktable. The circle looks to be related to summoning and to enhance the arcane power of anyone standing within it. There is also 10′ by 10′ “disk” on the floor that is somewhat reminiscent of a Tenser’s Floating Disk. It is determined that it is a levitation platform as well as how to trigger it.
Crowding onto the platform, it is triggered and up goes the party to the third level. The platform rises into a smaller room with some bookshelves, an empty fireplace (i.e., no frozen flames this time), and a table with a couple of brass candlesticks on it. The books on the shelves, unlike those on the levels below, are not frozen even though the tops of the shelves and the other objects in the room are covered with otherwise ever present rime. A set of double doors leads out of the room.
The doors lead to a room that looks like the quarters of the master of the tower…Draigdurroch’s perhaps? It is not, however, vacant. A couple of wraith like figures, cloaked in dark, voluminous robes and a couple of sallow-skinned figures with sunken eyes of pure darkness and clad in black robes move forward to engage the party. Early in the battle, another person…a Shadar-Kai…enters the fray as well. Unlike the icy motif that has dominated the rest of the tower and its inhabitants, these creatures are clearly shadow/necrotic oriented; they are also identified as having a connection to Netheril and Shar. Although the party defeats this group, the Shadar-Kai is moments away from activating the levitation platform and escaping before falling to the party’s attacks.
Checking out the defeated dark creatures, the party discovers a parchment with a strange writing identified as Iokharic script (the script used for both Draconic and Netherese…needless to say, it is not the Draconic language). Checking out this floor of the tower, the party also discovers a secret room containing a desk as well as some basic supplies (i.e., food) in a backpack, a bedroll with some heavy furs, and another levitation disk. The party finds a couple of traps (one on the desk and one on the bookshelf in this level’s entry room) and they do it the hard way (i.e., set them off). The desk contains a journal…Draigdurroch’s journal.
The journal’s entries begin with Draigdurroch’s arrival in the area, the construction of the tower in honor of Asmodeus, Draigdurroch’s theory that the ruins of the Netherese city of Karse lie beneath the Dire Wood as well as his early contact with the scattered fragments of the dead god Karsus and his efforts to forge an eldritch pact with Karsus. He also makes a passing note that the “ridiculous faeries” who live in the Dire Wood sent an emissary with a warning not to tamper with the demigod. Draigdurroch’s response was to blast the emissary to cinders. “Let them feel the fire of Asmodeus, and soon the fury of Karsus as well,” he writes in the final entry of his journal,“They claim that they will punish me for my actions if I do not heed their warnings. THEY will punish ME? How laughable!”
A ritual is cast (Comprehend Languages) in order to read the parchment found on the Shadar-Kai as none of the party is able to read it. Once the ritual is complete, Ruben is able to read the parchment. It reads,
Bairwin,
When the ritual at Draigdurroch’s is complete, return to Rivenroar. The preparations for the initial raid are nearly complete and Sinruth should recover the necessary items from Everlund soon. Bring whatever seems valuable from Draigdurroch’s as well…especially anything related to Karse.
Other than Everlund, one of the sister cities of the Silver Marches/Luruar, and the mention of Karse in Draigdurroch’s journal, the names are not familiar to the party. None of them have heard of or recall hearing of Sinruth or Rivenroar, whoever, whatever, or wherever those persons, things, or locations may be. However, it is clear that the best interests of the Gem of the North and her sisters (aka Everlund) are not really represented in this note.
With that, we end the session.
