Sa

m
pl
e
fil
e
 e
fil
e
pl
m
Sa

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Eberron, the dragon ampersand, Ravnica
and all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast in the USA
and other countries.
This work contains material that is copyright Wizards of the Coast and/or other authors. Such material is used with permission
under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild.
Some artwork © 2015 Dean Spencer, used with permission. All rights reserved. All other original material in this work is
copyright 2020 by Anthony Vardakas of Dungeon Influence and published under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon
Masters Guild.
 Introduction

T
he Frozen Mountains of Kam'Arag & the The Recruitment
Eternal Frost is a classic, one-shot adventure
that can easily be adjusted for any group or If the characters haven't visited the inn by night time, they
setting. This book aims to provide the notice that many are heading for the inn to learn more about
Dungeon Master with the tools required to run the quest, even though most of them don't plan to participate.
the adventure smoothly, while also giving them By that time, the inn is packed with people. (there is no sign
a lot of room for improvisation. of the wizard yet)
The heroes are about to go on an exploration adventure in Inn

e
the frozen mountains, in search of a magical gate, in the Suggested music: Peter Crowley - The Silver Dragon Inn
company of a powerful wizard and some other adventurers.
About an hour later at the inn, the old bartender stands on
"Once upon a time, an evil goddess of winter tried to unleash the bar and shouts this message.

fil
an eternal frost upon the world. Many brave heroes united, and
with the help of some powerful frost giants, managed to "Your attention ladies and gentlemen, someone wishes to
banish the goddess behind a magical gate in the mountains. speak with you about an adventure!".
The years passed, and the heroes asked from the giants that
live for centuries, to defend the gate when they are gone." As the bartender finishes his sentence, his voice and form
begin to change to that of a middle-aged man that is wearing
a cloak painted with weird symbols and is holding a long
Beginning the Adventure wood-crafted staff with a red gem at the tip.
The characters arrive in a small town or village in the north. The Adventure
The weather is cold and windy. The first thing that they

Adventure Hooks
e
notice is the severed head of a powerful beast that is
displayed on the gates of the settlement.
"Welcome adventurers. This time I have a special adventure
that requires your help. Oh yes, sometimes even powerful
wizards need some help. I seek some knowledge that's hidden
behind a sealed gate in the frozen mountains. As you've seen
pl
There are four hooks that can slowly lure the characters into on the posters, if you follow me and survive the adventure, you
the adventure: can pick a magic item of your choice from my collection when
we return. And yes, you can even pick my magic staff if you
1) Head of the beast: If the characters ask about the head on wish! The mountains will be cold and it'll take us at least
the gates, the residents of the settlement mention that several days to return! Make sure that you prepare well! If your
"Kalathos, the powerful wizard of the town single-handily group has what it takes, meet me here tomorrow at noon. In
defeated the beast that was terrorizing our town for months!" the meantime, enjoy your beer!"
m

2) Posters: Posters of a quest in the mountains can be

spotted all over the settlement: (see appendix A) As Kalathos finishes his sentence, his form and voice begin to
change to that of the bartender again, and all drinks are
"Join me, adventurers, on this quest, and win a magical item of
magically refilled.
your choice from my wizard tower! Our mission will be to
The characters can spend the night at the inn if they wish.
unlock a sealed gate in the mountains! Meet me at the inn
tonight! - Kalathos"
Sa

3) Streets: People on the street are discussing the quest that

is mentioned on the posters. Everyone appears to love the
powerful wizard. A few groups of adventurers can also be
spotted discussing the quest. The characters can overhear
them talking about some cool magic items that the wizard
has in his possession.

4) Inn: If the characters visit the inn before it becomes

dark, they notice that other groups of adventurers and
some other strong-looking individuals have gathered at
the inn already.

INTRODUCTION
2
 Preparation The Frozen Mountains
The night passes. The heroes can spend the morning Kalathos mentions that the group's destination is the highest
exploring in the city, gathering supplies, and information peak of this enormous mountain, and gives a map of the
about the frozen mountains. region to a member of the party that he believes could
navigate everyone to the top of the mountain (see appendix
Ideas you can focus on B). Snow begins to fall, as the journey begins.
Winter equipment (clothes, snow goggles, etc)
Mountain equipment (rope, tent, etc) History of the Region
Food & water supplies Suggested music: BrunuhVille - Northwind
Gathering information about the mountains
Mini encounter with another group As the group travels through the snow-capped mountains,

e
Kalathos asks the group if anyone has been in these
mountains before. When no one replies with a positive
The Beginning answer, he grabs an old-looking book from his backpack and
reads the following:
Suggested music: Peter Crowley - Soul Of The Celts

fil
"Centuries ago, the Mountains of Kam'Arag were green and full
When the group arrives at the inn at noon, they come across
a good number of other groups of adventurers that are there of life. Dwarves, elves, and frost giants used to live together in
for the same reason. Kalathos the wizard offers a shot of a these mountains, peacefully. Hearthforge was the iron fortress
hot alcohol drink before they begin. "Gather, adventurers, of the dwarves, and the town Shandarin was the home of the
around me, the adventure begins!" wood elves that used to live in the mountains. In the
The wizard opens a portal, that teleports everyone to the mountains, an orcish tribe also existed, that built a village on
frozen mountains, one group at a time. the islet of the mountain lake Wasern. The lake was later
known as "Neverwas".
DM Notes
e
Make the wizard seem tired during and after the
teleportation process. The spell requires a lot of
his energy, yet at the same time, the wizard also
tries to fake tiredness to reserve his strength.
Then came the "Eternal winter", a cold winter that was felt all
over the nearby regions. It wasn't eternal at all, since the cold
only lasted for a month. Yet that was the doom for these
mountains, that remain frozen since then."
pl
The magic of the region prevents the use of
long-distance teleportation spells at higher The wizard mentions that the goal of the group is to discover
altitudes. knowledge about the magic that froze the region before
years.

Everyone is teleported to the foothills of a high mountain. DM Notes

Everyone can easily spot that the group is already on a very Any magic user can sense that there are tracks of
high altitude. Even reaching this location would be incredibly
m

unstable ancient magic all over the place, powerful

difficult without that teleportation spell. magic that was cast many years ago, that still hasn't
The weather is extremely cold, and thick snow covers the completely faded.
surface of the land. Kalathos appears to be exhausted from
that teleportation spell that he used earlier. He mentions that
he will need to reserve strength to open the sealed gate.
Sa

3
 Obstacles
Below you can find some obstacles that you can throw at the DM Notes - Shelter options
characters, as well as some events that happen during the If the characters can find a location that's
adventure. You don't necessarily need to use all of the covered with pine trees, they can set up a camp
following ideas. Choose the ones that fit best for the group. there. Kalathos can create a barrier around the
camp, to provide some protection from the
Cold Weather cold.
Each character takes 1d6/8/10/12 cold damage at the end of As the altitude increases, multiple caves can be
each day, depending on their preparation and actions to spotted in the mountains that can be used as a
warm themselves up. shelter.

e
Difficult Terrain - Thick Snow
The thick snow that covers the mountains makes traveling Extreme Cold (dmg.p110)
challenging. The characters move at half speed or at 2/3 As the altitude increases, so does the cold. A creature
speed depending on their preparation and exposed to the cold must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution
abilities/resistances. saving throw at the end of each hour or gain one level of

fil
exhaustion.
Becoming Lost (dmg.p111)
The party's navigator makes a DC14 Wisdom (Survival)
check when you decide it's appropriate. If the check fails, the DM Notes - Checks for cold damage
party inadvertently travels in the wrong direction and You can grant advantage to all constitution saving
becomes lost. The party's navigator can repeat the check throws or add a bonus to constitution rolls made
after the party spends 1d6 hours trying to get back on course. by characters with cold weather equipment.

Splitting Up
If the team appears to have lost its path, some of the
adventurer groups decide to split up. Most of the adventurers Voices in the Head

e
agree that a member of the team that reaches the destination
(the sealed gate on the highest mountain peak) first, gets to
choose the staff of the wizard as a reward at the end of the
adventure.
While the group rests, one of the characters hears a deep,
male voice in their head, speaking the words "Leave, you have
no place here!".
pl
Possible Encounters Along the Way
2d6 Wolves
1x Winter Wolf + 1d12 Wolves
1d4 Yeti
Combat with another team of the group
1x Bheur Hag
2d8 Ice/Air elementals
2d10 Ice Mephits
m

1 Giant Ice/Air elemental

Moral Encounter: Injured or Sick
Adventurers
How will the group handle injured or sick adventurers?
Snowstorm
Sa

A strong snowstorm begins. The temperature seems to be

continually dropping as the blistering wind begins to pick up.
Characters need to succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving
throw or take 1d6 points of cold damage every 10 minutes.
Finding Shelter
When the sun sets, becoming lost and surviving the cold
become difficult obstacles for the group. The characters need
to find shelter to survive from the snowstorm.

OBSTACLES
4