27 - 1/2/25 : Breaking the Ice

We bow to she who wears the crown; Let the world shiver with dread. Clad in winter's whitest gown, her snow enshrouds the dead.   Her fury sheds but frozen tears as gray clouds issue forth. Her wind across the wasteland shears, bringing blizzards from the north.   Ice-kissed flowers caught mid-bloom, beauty kept in all its grace. Summer's gone to its silent tomb, stilling in her cold embrace.   All the world in winter's white, sheathed in sleet and ice. Set upon never-ending night, she conjures paradise.   Behold her everlasting rime, see how it covers all; Weep not for those she traps in time behind her glacial wall.   Sovereign of Summers Lost, General of Winter's War; Long live the Queen of Cold and Frost. May she reign forevermore.  

Poem found within the Codicil of White

  Presented with the four trials of the Frostmaiden, the Lonesome Few elected to begin with the Trial of Cruelty. After passing the door, they found themselves separated into two groups in a large, icy cavern; Alith and Melfina on one end, Ranga and Veszaltyrr on the other.   Alith and Melfina were approached by a wounded winter wolf and her children. The wolf spoke in common, and pleaded with the adventurers to save her from a hunter that sought to slay her and her pups. Alith tried to convince the wolf to leave for greener pastures and let them take care of the hunter, but the wolf refused, wishing to witness the demise of her tormentor.   Ragna and Veszaltyrr were approached by a starving human hunter, bundled up in winter clothes that had been torn and damaged. The hunter explained that the winter wolf was the only living game for miles around in the harsh winter, and that he had lost the rest of his hunting party pursuing his quarry. He asked that the two help him slay the beast, else his tribe would go without food.   The two parties met in the center of the cave, accompanied with their would-be allies. Upon realizing that they would have to make a choice in the conflict between the wolf and the hunter, the party agreed to instead let the two fight on their own without their interference. The wolf and hunter tore into each other, both succumbing to their wounds after a quick yet brutal struggle. The Trial of Cruelty ended as the party was transported back to the Grimskalle dungeon, and a snowflake indentation on the trial's door (as well as the words of Orizana's ghost) confirmed that the party had passed.     Next was the Trial of Endurance, which saw the party appear at the foot of a mountain so tall that it confused the senses to perceive. A glimmer at the mountain's peak confirmed that the The party tied themselves together with rope and then began to ascend, letting Ragna take the lead while Alith provided support at the end of the chain.   The ascent proved brutal, and although Ragna, Veszaltyrr, and Alith managed the early climb with only minimal difficulty, Melfina quickly found herself tiring out.   As the party ascended, a rumble signalled the falling of an avalanche directly onto their location. Thinking fast, Melfina summoned a gust of fierce wind and threw the avalanche off course, saving the party. She then attempted to use dimension door to skip the climb and teleport directly to the peak; her spell quickly backfired, transporting her and her alone back to the base of the mountain.   Ragna continued with fierce determination, but even his ample muscles began to give out as the climb seemed more and more infinite. As the end seemed close, Ragna saw that the peak of the mountain and the glimmer above it grew more distant before his very eyes. Finally, Ragna's grip gave out, and the party fell from the mountaintop.   Where impact should have occurred, the party instead found themselves back in Grimskalle, another snowflake indicating that they had displayed sufficient Endurance to pass. However, Melfina had been marked with a glowing, red snowflake that floated above her head, indicating that she alone accrued one failure.     The third trial transported the party to a lonely campfire, the sole light during a night of impenetrable darkness. Barely able to see farther than a few feet in front of them, the party began to guess at what the objective of the trial was as snow fell from the blackened sky.   After some deliberation, Veszaltyrr guessed that the Trial of Isolation would require them to leave the safety of the campfire and the company of others. To test his theory, he bade the party farewell, turned about, and began to walk into the endless darkness. Ragna and Alith soon followed suit in their own directions, while Melfina remained at the campfire; after all, she was still isolated with all her companions gone.   The journey through the darkness proved daunting, with the complete blackness confounding the senses and eroding the nerves. Ragna and Alith managed to keep their nerves at bay, preserving against the journey into the endless nothingness while focusing on their own thoughts. Melfina's safe haven near the campfire was soon snuffed however, as the fire suddenly went out and shrouded her in darkness just like her friends.   Although it was a struggle, Melfina managed to keep a hold on her sanity as she lost a sense of time's passage. Once her mind was steeled, she found herself out of the trial back in Grimskalle, where her companions awaited. Another snowflake indicated a third victory, leaving one final trial before the Lonesome Few.     The fourth and final trial placed the party in a lonely and desolate cabin. La Saia's voice explained the nature of the trial before them, introducing four members of a barbarian tribe, and then stating that only one would survive the coming winter; it was up to the party to decide which of the four would be preserved.  

"The Tribe of the Elk faces a fierce winter. The year has been harsh to them, and their future looks bleak. The darkest night of the year brings a chill, and with it I shall claim three of the four lives shown to you."   "Ingrun, an elder and storyteller. In her mind live the lore and sagas of centuries past, and all her students have perished in the winter's wake. For the tribe's history to survive, so must she."   "Jordis, wife of the chieftain. In her womb grows the tribe's future chief, a warrior forced to contend with the bitter winter before his very birth. As the mother passes, so shall the babe."   "Solveig, an experienced hunter in the prime of her life. A master of the bow, her arrows bring the death that provide life to the tribe. Her kills shall feed many, and in the wake of her passing, many shall starve."   "Thora, a child facing the most difficult of her seven winters. For this child of the Elk, life has scarcely begun. The future is unclear; will her survival give the tribe a respected advisor, a powerful warrior? It shall never be known should she succumb to the cold."   "This is the trial of Preservation. I give to you the power of decision, to rule which of these snowflakes shall remain in this world. Together, make your choice."

  After a short discussion, the party agreed to spare Solveig, the tribe's chief hunter, as the spoils from her hunts would feed many mouths and prevent the deaths of many. With this decision made, the remaining three candidates wasted away before the party's eyes, succumbing to the cold in short order.   The Lonesome Few returned to Grimskalle for the final time, with all four trial doors bearing snowflake indentations. Orizana's spirit confirmed the party's success in passing all four trials, a feat that she herself did not manage to accomplish in her life. With this success, the large door to the south was unlocked.  

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  In a chamber beyond the southern door, the party located their prize at long last; the Codicil of White, placed upon a pedestal of ice. Melfina claimed the tome bound in ermine fur and inspected its contents. She found spells, the tenets of La Saia's faith, and several poems and songs. On the last page was inscribed the lyrics to a song known as the Rime of the Frostmaiden, which Melfina quickly realized was the key to breaking the northern glacier and opening a pathway to the hidden undercity of Ythryn.     One final door stood behind the Codicil's pedestal. When opened, it revealed a simple chamber encrusted in ice and swirling fog. This room exuded such potent cold that even Melfina, bearing the Ring of Winter, felt a chill creep on her skin. The party realized that this room was the heart of the Sapphire Isle, and thus was likely the coldest point in all of Lloegyr - a pocket of absolute zero.   A voice spoke to the party as they gazed upon the ultimate cold, urging them to enter and endure the frigid chamber in order to receive the Frostmaiden's blessing; a powerful boon that had once been sought by Ragna's brother Ysmir, whose enthrallment and demise in Lystheim showed the consequences of failing to withstand the rigors of the blessing chamber.   Most of the party debated the risks of courting death for such a blessing, or if they should even attempt to take it at all. Melfina, however, dared to enter the chamber and expose herself to the divine cold at the heart of the Sapphire Isle, hoping to earn whatever empowerment she could.   Even her immunity to cold was overcome by the reality-defying cold within the chamber, and soon Melfina began to falter in the face of such brutal stillness. As she began to succumb to death's cold grip, the Ring of Winter exploded, forcing her and her companions away from the blessing chamber.   Although she had barely survived the blessing chamber's icy rigors, Melfina had been permanently altered by her near brush with a frozen tomb. Her entire body had taken on the likeness of ice, and she realized she no longer needed to breathe. There was no time to examine the peculiars of her new form, however, as the party needed to depart with the Codicil of White before La Saia could return.   Ragna collected Melfina, who remained at death's door, and hoisted her upon their back as the party absconded with the Codicil. As they exited Grimskalle, however, they were met with a daming sight; the shadow of Iskra, the roc of La Saia, flying directly towards them.   The party quickly raced to the Sapphire Island's southern pier, hoping to summon Angajuk via his bell before they could be stopped by La Saia and Iskra. The party avoided both La Saia's flurries of ice and Iskra's attempts to dive at them, and managed to reach the bell after knocking the roc from the sky. However, the whale needed time to arrive, and the party would have to buy this time by surviving La Saia's deadly magics.   La Saia approached in the form of the Cold Crone and summoned a razor sharp blizzard to assail the party. Ragna stood her ground and defied La Saia, daring the goddess to destroy them and her treasured Codicil with them. Alithkav abated the worst of the blizzard with psionic shielding, allowing Veszaltyrr to focus and raise a wall of force that cut off the blizzard. Angajuk arrived soon after, allowing the party to escape in the nick of time.   The Frostmaiden attempted to give chase, but broke off her pursuit after chasing Angajuk into the depths of the Valrua Sea. The long journey back to the mainland began, giving the party time to recuperate.  

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  Melfina remained unconscious for several days, worrying the party that she had succumbed to her exhaustion after all. When she at last woke, it was to the great relief of her master and companions, but it was accompanied with concerns over her permanent alteration by the blessing chamber. Melfina accepted the transformation, happy to have risked her life for power that would help to end the Eternal Winter; though she did mourn the loss of the Ring of Winter, which had saved her life in its destruction.   Given ample downtime on the underwater voyage, Alith returned to deciphering the Unbroken Circle of Zerthimon. With her steeled focus forged in the cold of Grimskalle, she was able to unlock the eighth and final circle.  

Know that a mind divided divides the man. The will and the hand must be as one. In knowing the self, one becomes strong.   Know that if you know a course of action to be true in your heart, do not betray it because the path leads to hardship. Know that without suffering, the Rising would have never been, and the People would never have come to know themselves.   Know that there is nothing in all the Worlds that can stand against unity. When all know a single purpose, when all hands are guided by one will, and all act with the same intent, the Planes themselves may be moved.   A divided mind is one that does not know itself. When it is divided, it cleaves the body in two. When one has a single purpose, the body is strengthened. In knowing the self, grow strong

  Armed with the wisdom of the Unbroken Circle, Alith's psionic potential was unlocked, granting her the ability to unite her mind and body and know herself in the ways of combat, allowing her to strike with preternatural accuracy.   At last, the Lonesome Few returned to the Taiga. Knowing that the final leg of their quest to halt La Saia's Everlasting Rime would soon be upon them, they decided to take a route through the surviving towns of the Taiga on their way north, wishing to bid farewell and well wishes to those they had met on their journeys over the last two months.   In Storm's Call, the party met with Ragna's sisters Sóley and Valdis, inquiring after their well-being. Although they had recovered from their immediate losses in the two weeks since the party first departed for the Sapphire Isle, the scars of battle still showed on their souls, and likely always would. Regardless, they looked forward to receiving Ragna and his friends once the winter was ended.   Thokgrim also wished his friends a glorious journey and a bloody victory against the Frostmaiden. The party noticed that he and his orcs seemed to be preparing for war, which Thokgrim confirmed. It was his intent to not allow the Broken Blade barbarians time to recuperate without a defense being mounted, and thus he planned to move to the northern border of the Snowdrift Flatlands and establish a defensive outpost after the winter's end, hoping to stall any further attempts from King Siegmar to invade the region.   In Honeybrook, the party learned that the mead hall, the town's sole surviving building, was once again operational. Olivessa and several volunteers worked to produce mead for the ailing people of the Taiga, hoping that something as small as a nice cup could help get them through the struggles ahead.   At Camp Daybreak, the Lonesome Few reunited with Dahlia Kaltro, whom they informed of her father Sephek's final fate. Although saddened at his passing, Dahlia was comforted to know that his suffering was at an end. For their aid and support, Dahlia stated that the party was the best thing to ever happen to the Ten Towns, and she shared hopes that they could go fishing once again after all had passed.   The party also bade farewell to Tali, who was stymied by Melfina's transformation. They were entrusted with the silver dragon egg recovered from Grimskalle, which they happily received.   Passing through the three towns bordering the Mirrored Reservoir, the party learned that the Githyanki spelljammer Umitl'a'ikith, captained by Kith'rak Gen'a'as, was no longer hovering above the frozen lake. The githyanki had sent out scouting parties, came into brief but nonviolent conflict with the locals, and then suddenly departed to the north. Alith hoped that this meant the githyanki would assist them in their quest, but she harbored doubts at the possibility.   Finally, the party took to the northern passage across the Sunrise Path, their chocobos carrying them for days across a seemingly endless expanse of snow cast in the lights of the aurora above. They passed by the remains of the Broken Blade's invasion advance camp, and spotted tracks leading back to the tribe's lands in the northeast. The party diverged northwest, and at the end of many days of travel, they finally arrived at the glacier encasing the Lost City of Hollowfaust.   Standing outside the glacier, Melfina opened the Codicil of White and recited the Rime of the Frostmaiden, finding her voice imbued with unnatural volume and beauty as she did so. With each word the ground trembled, and as the final verse was sung, a massive crack formed in the base of the glacier. Through the crack laid a tunnel leading down, paving the path to the forgotten necropolis of Ythryn. The tunnels beneath the glacier were the final obstacle standing between the Lonesome Few and the ancient Hyperborean undercity, where they would find the means to end the Everlasting Rime once and for all.     As the party gathered and prepared to enter the icy tunnels, they witnessed the arrival of the Umitl'a'ikith, which sailed overhead to the other side of the glacier. What part the githyanki serving under Kith'rak Gen'a'as would play in the coming horrors remained to be seen…