1

The courageuos, charismatic, cultivated

and clever Count Corric presents:
10 winter themed
encounters & 5 maps

Contents
Introduction...............................3

A present danger..........................4

Look whooo's here......................5

-The owlbear's den.............................6

Better your own copper than

another dragon's gold.................7 A chilling touch........................14
-Broken Bones...................................15

The cold dark..............................8 A giant('s) problem.....................16

-Sanctum of eternal winter..................9

Every labyrinth has its

minotaur....................................10 Wrath of the snowmen................17
-Melting snow...................................18

The yeti's howl..........................11 Small events..............................19

-yeti's lair.........................................12

Man's best friend........................13 Monsters...................................20

CCCC | Table of contents

2
Introduction
"Greetings fellow adventurers!
'Tis I, Count Corric Breggard, the one and only. Scourge of kings
and dragons, seducer of princesses and hero of the four
kingdoms. Count of Treehill. Most famous gnome in the world.
Surely, you must have heard about my incredible deeds and
my most wonderful adventures!
What do you mean you've never heard of me!?
I... uuhm assure you that the name "Corric" is uuhm... feared
by evil creatures and revered by those who I've helped. Yes!
Many have been saved by me, the hero of the four kingdoms.
I have recently returned from my journey to Ragnaran, the
island north of the dangerous Esnium realm. I found shining
treasure, hidden secrets and strange creatures on that frozen
island. Most importantly however, I have new tales to tell.
Ranging from narrowly escaping the den of a dangerous
owlbear to a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with a gold dragon.
The tales I will tell you are uniquely profound and
extraordinarely intriguing. That you may hear about them is a
priceless treasure in and of itself. Just sit back, grab a drink and
make yourself comfortable. Let your mind be filled with
wonders and inspiration, for Count Corric will tell you stories
that couldn't have been dreamt up by a beholder.
Who the imp is you ask? Oh that's just Alvyn. My most loyal
companion and best of friends. Don't let the scary-looking
horns and barbed tail deceive you. For Alvyn is kind and pure
of heart. He was given to me at a young age by a merchant, the
most magical merchant around.
Now, let me tell you about my
Chilling Confrontations in Cold Climates."

Using the encounters

On these very pages, Dungeon Masters will find 10 ready-to-
use winter themed encounters and 5 fully illustrated maps.
The encounters were designed for levels 1-4 but are scalable
to higher levels. Each of the encounters tells a small
miniature story. You can use these encounters in your games
to surprise and delight your players. They can be used as
random encounters during travel or as the beginning of a
brand new adventure.
Anything is possible! So, don't be afraid to change and
improve the encounters with your own personal spin on it.
Each encounter comes with a brief intro for the DM and a
description that's meant to be read aloud or paraphrased for
the players when the encounter begins. When an encounter
has a relevant map, it can be found on the next page. Count
Corric has also been sure to leave notes of his experience
with some of the characters or locations described in the
encounters, these can be found in the green text blocks.

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 A betrayal most foul
A present danger A few minutes after the characters have left Crilag's roadside
shop, the purchased presents start to act weird. They seem to
Just three friendly goblins wearing Santa hats giving away move on their own, unwrapping their own packaging and
wrapped presents practically for free, nothing suspicious turning on their new owners.
about that. Don't mind the bloodstains on some of the The presents turn into Tiny Mimics (see Monsters on page
presents, that's just left over decoration from Halloween. 20) and attack their buyers.
Those presents definitely wouldn't try to murder the party or
something... Resolution
Losing the fight.
You hear the sound of small bells ringing, further up the road
The mimics will not kill the characters but leave them
you see an old wooden wagon. The wagon is opened on one unconscious. When they wake up, they'll find most of their
side, revealing an assortment of carefully wrapped presents. coin and valuable items missing, along with the presents and
In front of the cart a sign with red letters reads: Crilag's roadside shop. They'll find a note from the goblins
"cRiLAg'S sHoP oV mAgiX gIfTz" saying: "hAHa wE WOn, bYe ByE"
Behind the sign, three goblins wearing red Santa hats are Winning the fight.
dancing in excitement. The tallest and oldest goblin is wearing
If the characters manage to defeat the mimics, they'll
encounter the goblins as they are about to collect their
fine blue robes and has glasses, while the other two are
victims' valuables. The goblins apologize and return the coin
wearing torn and spent clothing. The well-dressed goblin payed for the presents, wanting to avoid any conflict.
makes a small bow and begins to speak: They explain that they've never received gifts from anyone
"I welcome thee, kind travelers. To my shop of exquisite and wanted to retaliate against the cold world that never gave
items. Qinral! Get us something to drink! them anything.
Here everyone will find something to like. Our assortment If the characters give the goblins a gift (anything from a
consists of magical weapons, equipment, clothing and a few stick to a golden bracelet, it's the thought that counts) they'll
surprises. Even the poor won't be unsatisfied, for my prices are
start dancing in excitement and invite the characters over to
their cave. Here they'll offer them food and a special reward:
as exquisite as my items. Me and my brothers; Zos and Qinral,
a Gem of Brightness (page 171 DMG).
make sure that every object here is in proper condition and
functions properly. So, what will it be?"
The smallest goblin, Qinral, offers you something to drink
while Crilag makes an elegant hand gesture pointing you to "After I beat their surprise presents, they explained
the wrapped items. the situation. Whole thing turned out to be a big
misunderstanding. I was given a most interesting
gift by these goblins and we had some tea. I am
Time to go shopping still penfriends with Crilag, his letters are
The presents available for purchase include (but are not unintelligable but it's the thought that counts."
limited to):
A sword in purple wrapping paper, giving off blue light.
An unwrapped helmet, feeling a bit colder than normal.
A winter coat in green wrapping paper, every now and
then a soft growl can be heard from it.
A morning star, poorly wrapped in white wrapping paper.
The spikes sticking out are still bloodied.
A silver staff smelling like union.
A dagger that seems to move when it thinks nobody is
watching it.
A completely normal wooden wand, wrapped in red
wrapping paper.
Every item costs 5 silver pieces. Crilag will eagerly try to
make the character buy some of the items and is even willing
to give them a small discount, for he is counting on making a
profit anyway.
After the party is done looking around, Crilag thanks them
for their time and bussiness and tells them farewell.
A character that makes a succesful DC 15 Wisdom
(Insight) check notices that the goblins might not be telling
the full truth. If a character mentions that the items are
suspiciously cheap, Crilag insists that his bussiness model is
without flaw and he's giving them a discount

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Look whooo's here
An unfortunate event places the characters in the midst of an
owlbear's den. The owlbear is in hybernation and waking it
will surely enrage the monster. Only with cautious
movements and stealth can a confrontation be avoided.
However, the greedy may find this impossible.
Suddenly, the floor beneath you begins to crumble and you fall
for 20 feet into an underground cave. The cave is not empty.
Camp beds, racks of weapons, a small cooking pit, torches and
some supplies show evidence of human activity.
On the far right, you see some sunlight coming out of an
opening; an exit. In front of you, a lower part of the cave
(about 15 feet down) is littered with rocks, rusty weapons and
skeletons. On the far side of the lower part, a large monster is
snoring on top of an old tapestry. Snow white feathers cover
the thick, shaggy coat of its bearlike body, and its head looks
like that of an owl. Close by the monster, you see the glimmer
of a large pink pearl and many gold pieces. Closer to you, a
small wooden chest sits behind a large rock.
On the left, you see a rotten wooden bridge, leading over
the lower part of the cave and to the exit. Two wooden targets
are standing on a small ridge on the right that also leads to the
exit. The owlbear seemed to flinch when you fell but is still
snoring loudly with closed eyes.
You can find the map (The owlbear's den) on the next page.
Escaping
Leaving the cave the way they came in is impossible because
the hole 20 feet above their heads has slippery edges thanks
to the ice and snow. Leaving the cave through the entrance
without alerting the Owlbear won't be easy. An owlbear has
keen hearing and the slightest misstep may cause it to awake.
Every time a character performs a risky action and fails any
relevant Dexterity (Stealth) checks; add 1 (or more) to the
Awakening counter, roll a d6 and add the Awakening counter
to the outcome. If the outcome is a 6 or higher, the owlbear
awakes and attacks the characters. Risky actions may include
(but are not limited to):
Falling down into the lower part of the cave. (Moving there
is a risky action unless a character passes a succesful DC
15 Dexterity (Stealth) check).
Touching the owlbear
Grabbing the coins or pearl next to the owlbear.
Dropping, breaking or moving an item.
Making an attack.
Opening the chest with brute force.
Stomping , shouting or casting a spell that requires a
verbal component.
The wooden bridge.
Due to old age, this wooden bridge's planks are beginning to
rot. A character who succeeds on a DC 12 Wisdom
(Perception) check notices that the bridge might not be safe
to walk on.
If a Medium or larger creature tries to walk on the bridge,
it will break right in the middle. The bridge will also break if
two Small creatures try walking on it at the same time.
Any creature standing on the bridge must make a DC 15
Dexterity saving throw or fall 15 feet down into the lower part
of the cave.
The ridge.
The stone cavern walls are icy and slippery, making it hard to
hold onto something while walking on the ridge.
The two wooden targets are rotten and will crack or break
when grabbed. A character that succeeds on a DC 12
Dexterity (Acrobatics) or Strength (Athletics) check can safely
walk to the exit.
The barriers.
These two wooden barriers were built to keep intruders out
of the cave. Now they stand in the way of the characters
escape. The wooden barriers have an AC of 12 and 14 hp.
They can be moved out of the way safely with a succesful DC
18 Strength check.
Resolution
If the characters manage to escape without alerting the
owlbear, it wakes up and howls just as they are leaving the
cavern.
If the characters did wake the owlbear and escaped the
cavern, the owlbear will stop pursuing them if they go more
than 100 feet away from the cave entrance.
Treasure. The chest behind the large rock is locked and
can be opened by a character that makes a succesful DC 12
Dexterity check using thieves tools or who has the key. The
key can be found on the neck of a skeleton next to the
owlbear. The chest contains two small golden bracelets
(worth 25 gp each) and a Potion of Healing.
The treasure that can be found on the tapestry by the
owlbear contains: a pink pearl (worth 100 gp) and 32 gp.
"So there I was, standing no less than a feet from
the enormous beast. Rapier in one hand, a big pink
pearl in the other. Then the beast awoke, I dropped
the pearl and ran faster than a quickling. The
owlbear was howling and tried to grab me with its
claws, which to be fair isn't an overreaction given
that I came into his cave unannoucned while he
was sleeping. I hate it when people do that.
I do miss my cozy home back in Treehill..."
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 The owlbear´s den
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Better your own copper
than another dragon's
gold
A mysterious magical blizzard puts the character on the clock
to solve and complete a dragons wicked riddles and
challenges. However, the dragon has no evil intentions and is
only playing games. But his rewards are no joke.
A freezing cold strikes and blinds you. In the blink of an eye,
the calm weather seems to have changed into a terrible
blizzard. An enormous winged reptile figure appears above
you, its wings spanning around you. A booming and
demanding voice speaks louder than the blizzard:
"Congratulations young heroes!
The legendary, mighty, sharp-minded and witty dragon
Teldru has selected you for his next series of challenges.
Pass and you will be well rewarded with gold and treasure.
Fail and you will die a horrific death for my amusement!"
The cold begins to hurt you, as the dragon descends and
lands in front of you. He looks at you with a curious smirk and
begins the challenges.
A cold-blooded challenge
Teldru is a Young Copper Dragon. A dedicated trickster but
no evil being. He is a powerful spellcaster that likes drama
and suspense. Every winter, he chooses a new group of
travelers to compete in his winter challenges.
The characters are placed in a magical, 30 by 30 foot dome
enclosed by a magical barrier. Everything in the dome is dim-
light. The characters will have to solve riddles, complete
tasks and amuse Teldru to escape.
The magical blizzard will put the characters on a literal
clock. Every minute the characters must make a DC 15
Constitution save, taking 1d6 cold damage on a failed save or
half as much on a succesful one. To simulate this effect, you
can use an actual timer at your table, adding to the suspense.
This encounter has no specified length and can be
lengthened or shortened (changing the damage per minute
and number of challenges accordingly) to the DMs liking.
Here are a few riddles and challenges to get you started:
Riddles:
"It has a copper head and a copper tail but no body. What
is it?" Answer: A copper coin.
"Towns without houses, forests without trees, mountains
without boulders and waterless seas." Answer: A Map.
"A thief once sought to steal from a magical vault guarded
by an iron Golem, but did not know the passcode. He
watched an apprentice approach to learn his secret. The
Golem spoke 'Twelve' and the apprentice replied 'Six' and
was admitted. The Thief, being clever, waited to see if the
passcode changed the next day; the Golem spoke 'Six' and
the apprentice replied 'Three' and was admitted. The next
day, the Thief approached confidently; the Golem spoke
'Ten' and the Thief replied 'Five', but was crushed by the
Golem's fists. What should the Thief have answered?"
Answer: Three (Number of letters in the word "ten").
Challenges:
Dozens of burning coals (magically kept hot) appear on a
5 by 10 foot patch of ground. Teldru says "One of you must
take of your shoes and walk over the burning coals!"
Actually walking over the burning coals deals 2d10 fire
damage. Possible solution: Putting a blanket on the coals
and running over them completes the challenge without
dealing damage.
A small frog appears in the middle of the dome, hopping
around rapidly. Teldru says "You must grab the frog and
kiss it!" Possible solution: Casting sleep on the frog.
Teldru says "Make me laugh!" Possible solution: The
sorcerer casts Fire Bolt while the barbarian farts, creating
a small explosion.

"Teldru liked me so much he wanted to keep me!

The dragon took me to his lair and created a small
home for me. I stayed there for a few weeks, a
vacation of sorts. We laughed, told stories, and
played pranks on poor travelers. His scales were
like shining gold! I think, maybe it was Copper? Or
bronze? Something like that.
He kicked me out after I broke some magical
mirror I found in his hoard. Suddenly I had
"Unleashed dark forces upon the mortal world!",
probably a big overreaction. I'm sure breaking that
mirror didn't have any big ramifications..."

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 Resolution The ritual
Teldru will heal any damage done to the characters by the Three Drow females named Diloyss, Qithra and Sahrae are
storm or challenges. Depending on how well the characters each performing a ritual over a cauldron. Each round at
did, Teldru will reward them with special prizes. iniative count 20 an Ice Mephit spawns at the pentagram if
Here are some examples: any Drow are still alive.
The characters will need to disrupt the ritual at all three
Rewards cauldrons if they hope to prevent the curse of Eternal Winter.
Initial prize Twist If any of the Drow is still standing within 10 feet of a
cauldron after five rounds, the ritual is complete and the
An abundance of
shining gold pieces.
After 1 hour, the gold pieces
change into rusty copper coins.
curse sealed.
A small piece of coal The piece of coal magically Resolution
begins to burn when the
command word "ouch" is spoken. The five peasants that were killed as sacrifices for the ritual
may have come from a nearby village or hamlet.
A small wooden frog The statue changes its position
statue and expression when it thinks
Curse of Eternal Winter. A blast of dark magic erupts
nobody is watching. from the pentagram. Each character within 30 feet of the
pentagram takes 7 (2d6) cold damage and must make a DC
A treasure map of the The marked "X" changes 16 Wisdom save or be cursed. If a target is cursed, their hit
local area positions every hour. point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the cold
A silver helmet When the helmet is put on, the damage taken. In addition to that, a target gains vulnerability
wearer can only speak Draconic to cold damage. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a
for 1d6 hours. long rest but the vulnerability remains until cured with a
Two potions. One The potions do the exact Remove Curse spelll or similair magic.
labelled "Diminution", opposite of what their labels say. The surrounding area in a range of 1 mile around the
the other "Growth". tower is cursed with eternal winter. Forever frozen, nothing
in its frozen ground will grow and life will dissappear.
The cold dark
Ages ago, the souls of three evil drow mages were "So I found these crazy ladies, singing in some
imprisoned in a magical mirror. Recently however, this mirror weird new music style over a green symbol. I
started dancing to it but they didn't seem to like
was shattered, releasing the evil spirits back upon the world. that at all. When I left, I saw a big magical
Now the spirits have found new avatars and are performing explosion. Haven't been there since, place gives
an arcane ritual to create an eternal winter. me the chills..."

A loud screech, a pained cry. To your east you see greenish

flashes of light through the clouded sky...
As you approach what look like old ruins, you see two
bound peasants get stabbed by two figures in cloaks a bit
further up the mountain. They fall over next to a pentagram.
This arcane symbol is emitting the greenish light. Behind the
pentagram, a third cloaked figure stands on top of a tower, the
last intact structure around. Ladders on the right and left give
access to the tower.
In front of you, you see two wooden bridges over an eight-
foot wide mountain river. One of the bridges is broken but the
other looks sturdy. A large stone stairway leads further up the
mountain, next to it three more corpses lay on the ground.
The cloaked figures seem to perform some sort of ritual
over black cauldrons, chanting ominously in Undercommon.
They turn to you below and ready their magic. Roll Iniative!

You can find the map (Sanctum of eternal winter) on the

next page.

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Sanctum of eternal winter
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Every labyrinth has its
minotaur
Zarkan Thunderfoot, legendary athlete now in his old age has
never stopped training and trying to improve. His enormous
size is only matched by his pride. His kobold coach
challenges the characters to compete against Zarkan in a
series of games. Promising to give them his most valuable
possesion, his magic crown, if they win.
Before you, you see an interesting scene happening. A six-foot
tall minotaur with huge horns, wearing a bronze crown, is
shooting at wooden targets with his bow while ice skating on
a frozen lake at a high speed. At the edge of the lake an old
Kobold is cheering the minotaur on. When the kobold notices
you, he stops cheering and walks over to you.
With a creaky, old voice he speaks:
"You dare watch the legendary Zarkan Thunderfoot!?
His strength is greater than any ogre, his shots more
accurate than even the high elves, his ice skating rivals the
best of the halflings and his knowledge more profound than
that of wizards.
All thanks to the training I gave him, I; coach Alonso!
If you dare challenge him, by coming to his very training
grounds, then be warned: he will not refuse. You've come to
challenge him for his crown! Let's settle this then!
I'll allow you a few moments to prepare yourself."
The kobold walks away while minotaur begins stretching
and swatting the air. Over by the lake, you see a few pair of ice
skates, six bows and some arrows. It seems that voluntarily or
not, the winter games are about to begin.
The games
The minotaur will allow for two different characters to
participate in each match. He does not allow the use of magic
in these games, any who want to try have to do so undetected.
Archery while ice skating.
Three wooden targets are placed at the edge of the frozen
lake. Each character will be outfitted with a shortbow and ice
skates. The goal is to hit all three targets with as few misses
as possible, making a circle on the frozen lake after each
shot. Before every shot, the participant must make a DC 15
Dexterity (Acrobatics) to keep their balance, giving
disadvantage on the attack roll when failed. If a participant
fails by 6 or more, he/she falls down and can't shoot at all this
round. The wooden targets all have an AC of 20. Zarkan has a
+3 bonus to Acrobatics and a +5 to hit with his shortbow.
Rolling stones.
The goal of this game is to push a large round stone up a
small hill faster than your opponent. Doing so requires three
consecutive succesful DC 20 Strength (Athletics) checks.
When failing a check, the stone rolls all the way back down.
Zarkan has a +8 bonus to Athletics and will make many
overconfident remarks during this game.
Test of knowledge.
The last game requires a sharpness of mind and profound
knowledge of the world. Taking turns, each participant can
ask the other a question relating to Arcana, History, Nature or
Religion. The first participant to get two wrong answers loses
the match. The DC for each question is random (2d10 + 5).
Zarkan has a +6 bonus to history and a +2 bonus to the other
skills.
Here are some example questions and answers:
Question Answer
"What does a Pegasus eat mostly?" "Cloudgrass"
(Nature)
"Which god do the Goblins follow?" "Maglubiyet"
(Religion)
"Who won the winter games of Kelan, "Zarkan
13 years ago?" (History) Thunderfoot"
"What component is needed for the "An eyelash
magic spell: Invisibility?" (Arcana) encased in gum
arabic"
The resolution
The Crown. If the characters manage to win two or more
games, Zarkan congratulates and gives them his magic
crown. After losing he decides to retire and go home to his
family. His crown has the following properties:
Crown of Zarkan
Wondrous item, rare (requires attunement)
You gain a +1 bonus to AC and saving throws while
wearing this crown. In addition, immediately after you use
the Dash action on your turn and move at least 20 feet, you
can make one melee attack as a bonus action that deals an
extra 1d6 bludgeoning damage.
"Ofcourse I won the winter games. Zarkan seemed
to be pretty okay with it, probably glad he could
retire. The kobold on the other hand looked very
angry, he looked kinda red.
I hope he never finds out I lost that magic crown
of theirs, dropped it somewhere in a Dwarven
mine. Which reminds me of another story..."

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The yeti's howl
A terrible blizzard forces the characters to seek shelter in a
presumably abandoned Dwarven mine. Only to find recent
bodies killed by a large beast, upon entering. After hearing a
loud howl that closes the entrance behind them, the
characters find out that they are not alone...
A terrible blizzard has been plaguing your travel for over an
hour, seemingly getting worse and worse. Your body feels
cold, some of you can't even feel your toes. Luckily, you find
an old and small mine. Judging from the architecture, it's a
Dwarven mine.
Two huge open doors made out of stone have dwarven
guards carved into them. This is the entrance, leading
underground. The mine seems to be abandoned.
Upon entering, you notice two dead dwarven bodies. Their
wounds seem to indicate that they were killed by a large beast,
not long ago. Behind them a door lays broken on the ground.
Only moments later, a loud thundrous howl coming from
deep down the dark mine shaft, shakes the ground and ceiling.
Outside, you hear rocks and snow falling along with a loud
"BANG". The huge stone doors are closed, trapping you in the
mine. Further down into the dark, you hear footsteps echoing
in the distance. It seems that you are not alone...
You can find the map (Yeti's lair) on the next page.
The dark mines
An old Yeti attacked these mines a few hours ago. He killed
all but one of the miners. The surviving miner; Travok
Stoutale, is wounded and has crawled to the office.
The foundry.
The broken down door leads to the foundry. A large forge sits
next to a bellows and a few sacks of coal. A mine cart full of
Ïldrock, a mineral known for its magical capabilities. Spell
casters will feel a strong magical aura inside these caverns,
doubling the duration and dealing an extra 1d6 damage per
spell slot of a spell cast within these caverns. A single piece of
Ïldrock can be used as a spellcasting focus.
The office.
The door to this chamber is locked but can be opened by a
character who makes a succesful DC 20 Dexterity check
using thieves' tools. A small desk, dresser, a few cabinets and
carpets decorate this room. A small metal chest containing
two golden bars (worth 50 gp each) and a Driftglobe is
locked and can be opened by a character who makes a
succesful DC 20 Dexterity check using thieves' tools or who
has the key. Travok, the surviving dwarf, currently has the key.
Travok is bleeding on the ground and unable to walk. If he
sees or hears the characters walking through the mines, he
willl scream "HELP! HELP!", hoping that they will save him.
The mines.
Wooden tracks with a few mine carts on them run from the
foundry to the office through the dark mines. The only light
here is coming from the few torches placed and the natural
Ïldrock. The yeti has already heard its prey and is scouring
the caverns, coming from the top right. Here large bones
(from an ox), two human skeletons and a mostly intact corpse
lay, all victims of the Yeti. A bloodtrail on the tracks leads to
the office, from here Travok is calling out for help.
The exit.
Far down into the mines, light shines through a small
opening. A medium or smaller creature can squeeze through
here, using an action. (Meaning that the Yeti can not).
Resolution
If the characters did not save Travok, they can hear him
scream as they leave and the Yeti smashes Travok's skull.
If the characters did save Travok and escaped without
killing the Yeti, the humble dwarf thanks them and gives
them three small Moonstones (worth 20 gp each).
If the characters did kill the Yeti, Travok gives them the key
to the chest in the office.
"Another blizzard! Can you believe that? Almost
like I'm making all of this up... Which I am most
certainly not. Back to the story.
I had almost escaped those godsforsaken mines
when I heard some dwarf feller crying out.
Following my natural hero's instinct I went to save
him, caught a glimpse of the Yeti while doing so.
Luckily, my imp friend Alvyn distracted the
monster long enough for us to escape. The dwarf
gave me a few gems for my trouble."
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Man's best friend
A wounded Winter Wolf is slowly bleeding out in the cold
snow. A group of hunters and a forest druid, both dangerous
parties, are arguing over who should take this rare animal. As
tensions rise, the characters are asked to resolve the
situation. Through combat or diplomacy, the characters can
resolve the negotiations. The two sides seem to be exact
opposites but maybe a compromise can be made...
Just off the road, a red bloodtrail clashes with the white snow.
The bloodtrail leads to a white wolf the size of a small bear, its
pale blue eyes staring helpless at you. The young winter wolf
has been hit by an arrow and caught in a bear trap, bleeding on
the ground. It has dragged the bear trap through the snow
before finally collapsing against a rock. You hear a soft whisper
through the air, as if from the Winter Wolf; "help me...".
Next to the wolf, four figures are arguing. A purple Half-Orc
wearing torn, green and brown clothes is speaking loudly:
"I am Dorn, guardian of the forest. The winter wolf you are
trying to kill belongs to me, as do all creatures here. Leave now
or face my wrath!"
Three humans, all wearing leather armor, some carrying
longbows and shortswords, look confused and scratch their
head. The shortest but widest man speaks up:
"Listen pal, I don't know about that "guardian of the forest"
stuff but we've got a royal document stating that we can hunt
here. These are not your lands Orc. Look we won't overhunt
this area but we've been tracking that white wolf for weeks. Its
fur will fetch a pretty penny and our family back home has got
to eat. The wolf is coming with us."
Both parties notice you and turn their heads. Both claiming
to have rightful ownership of the wolf and asking for your help.
The conflict
A Half-Orc Druid named Dorn (CN) and three Scouts named
Bardon, Devin and Owyn are arguing over who should take
the young Winter Wolf, both claiming to be in their right. The
young pup however, does not want to go with either.
The characters will need to pick one of the two sides in the
conflict or make a compromise.
Druid
Dorn and his clan have lived in this area and have
protected it and its wildlife for centuries. He despises
hunters, believing them to be cruel and the root of
destruction. He sees the hunters as trespassers and will
use lethal force to scare them off if he needs to.
A character who makes a succesful DC 15 Wisdom
(Insight) check learns that Dorn has other intentions; he
knows that the Winter Wolf is a powerful creature, he
hopes to train this pup and use it to wage war on humans.
To get the characters on his side, Dorn will promise them
two Potions of Healing for their trouble and try to
convince them that the hunters are evil. He also promises
to heal the winter wolf.
Hunters
Bardon, Devin and Owyn Woodfall are brothers. They
have been tracking a special creature rumoured to be in
this area for a three weeks. Now, they have finally caught
this "winter wolf".
Each of the brothers has a wife and children, who are
depending on their return with a succesful bounty. The
Woodfall brothers have already found a buyer in their
home town, willing to pay 200 gp for the white pelt.
To get the characters on their side, the brothers show
them the royal document. It does indeed state that the
Woodfall brothers are permitted to hunt in this area. They
will plead that their family is depending on them. In
addition, they promise to give the characters 50 gp of their
profit for their trouble if they help deal with the Half-Orc.
Resolution
If the characters ally with Dorn, the hunters will fight until
two or more of them are heavily wounded. Dorn will heal the
winter wolf pup with herbs and take it with him. Training the
winter wolf and using it for devious means. Rewarding the
characters with the two Healing Potions he promised.
If the characters ally with the hunters, Dorn will fight until
he is heavily wounded. The hunters will kill the Winter Wolf
with an arrow through the heart and sell his pelt in their
home town. Giving the characters their promised gold pieces
the next time they see them.
Compromise
The characters might also suggest a compromise. Maybe
suggesting that neither the hunters nor the druid take the
Winter Wolf pup but giving both parties something to
compensate. A character who succeeds on a DC 18
Charisma (Persuasion) check and promises both parties
something to compensate convinces them to accept peace.
The hunters require at least 60 gold pieces (in worth) to
accept peace. Dorn might be convinced to accept peace with
either a magic item, powerful weapon or rare herb.
If the characters did make a compromise and helped the
Winter Wolf, the creature might choose to follow the party as
a companion. Use the normal Wolf stats for the Winter Wolf
pup with these changes: 21 HP, large size, the Snow
Camouflage feature, the cold damage immunity, an Int score
of 7, a Neutral Evil alignment and the ability to speak
Common using very basic words like "hunger!" or "danger!".
"I felt sorry for the snow wolf or something, so I
tried making peace. Gave the hunters those gems I
found back in the mines and gave the druid a few
herbs my grandmother gave me for my journey.
The wolf followed me for the rest of my journey,
eventually gave it to my grandmother. That old hag
always wanted a puppy. She named it Rudolf.
Like she always said; all's well that ends well"
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A chilling touch
Life is way too short, especially for a king. King Maccus was a
good king, helping his people wherever he could. On his
deathbed, he made a pact with Orcus to gain eternal life.
He thought that cheating death would be a virtue but after
centuries, boredome has taken its toll on the Wight king. He
lazily sits on his throne in his ruined castle, waiting for some
amusement to excite him and his undead guards.
You hear the sounds of battle. Close by a ruined castle, three
zombies and a paladin are fighting. He chops the first in half
with his longsword, making the zombie's upper half fall over in
the snow and his lower half run away. The second tries to
scratch the paladin but the hero counters and thrusts his
sword into the undead creature. The last zombie tries to flee
but the paladin uses holy light to turn the corrupt being to ash.
"Ah, adventurers. Allow me to introduce myself; I am Elrik
the Dauntless. But there is no time for small talk!
In this very ruined castle, a terrible being plans to destroy all
of civilization and turn the world to chaos. We must not waste
any time. Come with me brave warrios and help me destroy
this lord of the undead! TO BATTLE!!!"
The warrior runs off to the castle, hoping you follow him...
Inside the broken down castle, you see a pale, lifeless
humanoid with white hair and a rusted golden crown sitting on
a large throne, he seems bored and exhausted.
Elrik rushes to him, sword drawn; "Prepare to be destroyed
by the might of my god unholy abomination!!!"
The undead lord grabs the paladins head as he comes within
range. Within mere moments the paladin's soul is pulled from
its body, leaving only a corpse in plate armor. The undead lord
turns to you and speaks with its visible jaw bone;
"Pfff, BORING! Please tell me you haven't come here to
"destroy the unholy abomination", I swear those paladins
comes here every other week. How about something to drink
and some entertainment! Excite me and be rewarded!"
An eventful night.
Here are some examples of things that might amuse and
excite king Maccus. Depending on how well the characters
do, he will reward them with treasure from his hoard.
The bard telling a story about how the characters got
together and their first adventure. (Requiring a succesful
DC 15 Charisma (Performance) check, Maccus will fall
asleep on a failed check.)
The fighter and monk doing an epic sparring match with
at least three succesful hits.
The wizard creating a show with his magic illusion spells.
The rogue climbing on the altar and doing a back flip
while blindfolded. (Requiring a succesful DC 15 Dexterity
(Acrobatics) check, falling and taking 1d6 bludgeoning
damage on a failed check).
The druid summoning an army of squirrels and
performing a reenactment of a famous battle.
The barbarian drinking over 2 gallons of ale within a
minute. (Requiring a succesful DC 15 Constitution check,
falling unconscious for 2d10 minutes on a failed check).
Resolution
If the characters killed King Maccus and his undead, his
treasure is theirs to take and the frozen castle grounds are
safe once more.
If they did stay for the party, King Maccus rewards them
and asks them to visit again sometime. It was a night he will
not soon forget.
"I found King Maccus to be a most fascinating
figure. He told me he knew my grandmother from
way back. Boy, that king had some incredible
stories. Can't imagine what it's like to be walking
the earth for as long as he has, seeing all your loved
once go. Pretty sad when you think about it...
But, I found his Skeleton servants to be pretty
humerus. (Get it?). On with the tales!"

You can find the map (Broken bones) on the next page.
A surprise to be sure...
1d6 Zombies and 1d6 Skeletons arise from their graves in
the middle of the throneroom. Some dancing or playing
music, others serving drinks and snacks.
King Maccus (a Wight) hopes to have some interesting
company this evening, he is bored to death (literally) and
wants to get to know the characters. He will even reward the
characters with treasure if they amuse and excite him.
If the characters however, decide to attack Maccus, he will
be dissapointed but use force to defend himself and his
home. When combat begins, every round on iniative count 20
1d4 new zombies will arise. Maccus will make sarcastic
remarks during combat, emphasizing his dissapointment.
Treasure. Next to the throne, an abundance of treasure is
stored. It includes: 63 gp, 236 sp, two copper chalices with
silver filigree (worth 25 gp each), a golden bracelet (worth
30gp), a Potion of Fire Breath and a Wand of Secrets.

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Broken bones
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A giant('s) problem
Blibar, dread of the north is a mighty frost giant. He rivals
even the dragons in power and is notorious for destroying
human settlements. Currently however, he is engulfed by a
deep sadness. His pet tiger named Karl has gone missing.
Finding Karl is a task much more appropriate for a small
humanoid. Luckily Blibar found a few of those.
From behind a hill, an enormous figure appears. Its footsteps
trembling the ground beneath your feet. A 21 foot-tall pale
gray figure carrying a great axe the size of a small house in his
left hand stands before you. Frozen tears can be seen on his
face. He yells as he grabs one of you with his right hand and
lifts your friend high up in the air.
"AAAAAAA!!! You, small mans. Me Blibar, me big sad.
Find pet Karl or Blibar crush your tiny friend tiny skull.
Karl be orange. Karl be small. Karl be me cat. Karl be sweet...
Here me home. Karl gone for hours.
You find now and bring to me!"
The giant begins crying again as he shakes your captive
companion. The giant points with his axe to a small cave
inside the hill, presumably where he lives...
Karl may not be friendly when he comes down, depending
on how the characters got him down. This may result in
combat and/or Karl chasing the characters down.
Resolution
If the characters return Karl to Blibar, the frost giant will stop
crying and be overjoyed. He will free the captive companion
and reward the characters with Boots of the Winterlands
and Keoghtom's Ointment which he looted from a traveling
merchant, as a way to say thank you.
"The frost giant was most rude. Not only did he
take Alvyn captive, the big fellow didn't even offer
me something to drink. Anyway, I tried rescuing his
cat. I only found out the cat was rather large when I
was in the tree with it.
It's how I got this scar on my left arm, looks
pretty cool right? I convinced the cat to eat the
meat I kept in my bag instead of well, me! Well,
until the meat was all gone...
Eventually the devilish being chased me around
and I led him to Blibar, they were so happy.
Hero of the four kingdoms and helper of giants,
should add that to my title..."

Inside the giant's cave:

The home of the frost giant is primitive and littered with
looted ale barrels and half-eaten sheep. The lifestock that is
alive is kept in cages and a royal rug serves as the giant's
sleeping place. A 5-by-8-foot bed next to the rug has orange
hairs on it and smells like a large animal sleeps on it.

Finding Karl
Blibar is crying and not moving until he sees Karl again.
When asked anything by the captive companion, Blibar will
express how cute Karl is and how much he misses him.
Although the characters don't know it yet, Karl is not a
normal "cat" but a Saber-Toothed Tiger. A character who
succeeds on a DC 10 Intelligence (Investigation) or Wisdom
(Survival) check finds rather large animal tracks (footprints
and orange hairs) in the snow leading away from the cave to a
frozen tree. A character who succeeds on a DC 14
Intelligence (Nature) check while analyzing the tracks knows
that these tracks are from a saber-toothed tiger.
Karl has climbed up the tree but is afraid to come back
down. The character can make the tiger come down in a
number of ways, here are some examples:
Saying its name and succeeding on a DC 22 Wisdom
(Animal Handling) check.
Bringing meat or lifestock to the tree and succeeding on a
DC 16 Charisma (Persuasion) check.
Throwing a lasso on Karl and pulling him down by force.
Creating a female saber-toothed tiger with illusion spells
and succeeding on a DC 14 Charisma (Performance)
check to imitate mating sounds.

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Wrath of the snowmen
A half-elf girl is crying out for help, hoping brave adventurers
can save her. Strangely enough, she is not the one that needs
saving. Evilyn Bright is a power spellcaster for an 8-year old,
but lacking control of her abilities. Now, her magic is causing
the snowmen she made to come alive. These snowmen are
alive and outraged at the world that's melting them.
"Help me! Help me!" Suddenly, you hear a girl cry out for help.
A bit off the snowy road, you see a small wooden cabin close
by a frozen river. In front of the house you see a few snowmen
and a grave with flowers on it. The call seems to be coming
from inside the cabin.
The door is open and inside you see a small but cozy home
with two beds, red carpets, a dining table, a few cabinets and a
fireplace. In the middle of the cabin stands a small girl, no
older than 10, with pointed ears, purple eyes but a human
curiosity in her look. She is shooting all kinds of luminous
beams out of her hands, creating magical explosions and
causing stuff to fall on the floor.
"I don't know what's happening!" She yells at you.
Outside, you hear the growl of monsters. The frozen
snowmen are moving on their own! Growing claws from their
branches and turning towards you. You see a burning fire in
their once lifeless eyes. Roll Iniative!
You can find the map (Melted snow) on the next page.
A cool threat
4 Snowmen (see Monsters on page 20) are attacking the
character, they will not harm Evilyn because they see her as
their creator.
A character that succeeds on a DC 20 Intelligence (Arcana)
check can help Evilyn get control of her spells and turn one of
the snowmen back to normal.
While the snowmen are alive, every round on iniative count
20, Evilyn will create random magical effects. You can roll on
this table to determine the effects:
Random magic
d8 Effect
1 A small illusury dragon appears, scolding in Elvish at
the nearest character.
2 Illusory butterflies and flower petals flutter in the air
within 10 feet of Evilyn for the next minute.
3 The palm of Evilyn's left hand sheds bright pink light
for 1 minute.
4 Evilyn casts Levitate on herself.
5 Evilyn casts Levitate on a random character within
30ft.
6 Evilyn teleports a random character within 30ft to a
random location within 30ft.
7 Evilyn blinds a random character within 30ft. for 1d10
minutes.
8 Evilyn casts polymorph, if the target fails the save
he/she turns into a sheep for the duration.
Resolution
When the snowmen are defeated, Evilyn's magic calms down
and she stops panicking. Shortly after, her father; Bran Bright
comes home. He sees the mess and asks what happened.
After hearing what happened he thanks the characters and
explains that magic runs strong in his family but he was
skipped, seems like Evilyn makes up for that. He offers the
characters to stay for dinner, he is making Greenapplepie.
"The evil snowman were no threat for a grandiose
hero like myself, although Alvyn did do most of the
work. He melted the cold creatures with his fire
breath, maybe I should pay him more.
Evilyn turned out to be my grandma's niece's
granddaughter, from my uncle's side, big family
reunion! My dinner at the small cozy wooden cabin
made me homesick.
I remembered my cozy home back in Treehill. It
would be spring soon. And the orchards would be
in blossom. And the birds would be nestling in
hazel thicket. And they would be sowing the
summer barley in the lower fields...
And my grandmother would be baking her
famous Blueapplepie. I remembered the taste of
Blueapplepie with cream. I knew it was time to
return back home."
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 Melted snow
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 A chilling end
Small events Right on the party's path, they find a huge, blue insect-like
moster and three humanoid corpses; a large dragonborn,
Not every journey needs an exhilarating, life-threathening small goblin and female elf. These three humanoids were
encounter. Sometimes, an interesting sighting or small part of an adventuring party, unfortunately they were attacked
obstacle is enough to keep your players engaged. Here are a by a Remorhaz. They managed to slay the beast as their final
few small events that may happen during the party's travel: act but eventually froze to death.
Treasure. Some treasure can be found on the adventurers'
A cold blizzard corpses. They won't have use for it anymore but maybe the
Out of nowhere, a terrible snowstorm appears and plaques characters will. The characters will find 2d4 x 10 gp and
the party's travel. The temprature drops far below 0 degrees some magic items on the deceased adventurers;
Fahrenheit and every creature exposed to the cold must (Using the tables in the DMG) Roll 1d6 times on Magic
make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or gain one level of Item Table A and 1d4 times on Magic Item Table B to
exhaustion. Creatures with resistance or immunity to cold determine the magic items found.
damage automatically succeed on the saving throw, as do In addition to the treasure, a letter from the deceased
creatures naturally adapted to cold climates. Creatures dragonborn's tribe can be found. His family hopes his travels
wearing cold weather gear (thick coats, gloves, and the like) are safe and he will return home soon.
have advantage on the saving throw.
Battle of the beasts
Full moon On a frozen lake close by, two white polar bears are fighting
The dissapearing clouds show a full moon. In the distance, each other. A polar bear cub is watching on the side of the
the party hears what they think are wolves howling at it. They lake. Upon further investigation, the bear cub looks hurt and
can vaguely make out a humanoid in the distance, twisting, is bleeding from its front left paw.
howling and eventually changing into a furred and well- If the characters succesfully to heal the young bear, the two
muscled monstrous form topped by a ravening wolf's head. older bears will stop fighting each other and return to their
The creature runs off out of sight, back to its pack. home with their young. The polar bear cub will lick the
character who healed him in the face and one of the older
Gnome ritual polar bears will gift the characters a large fish, as a way to say
Next to the path, the party sees seven gnomes wearing purple thank you.
luminous robes standing around a large and ancient tree.
They are dancing wildly and seem to be performing some
kind of ritual. Spellcasters will feel a strong magical aura
around this tree. A character who makes a succesful DC 12
Intelligence (History) check finds out that according to
gnome legends, this is the tree of Birth. The place where the
first gnomes coming to the Material Plane made their home.
(gnomes have advantage on this check).
The magical aura causes a special effect for each
character, roll a d10 to determine the effect:
Roll Effect
1: Curse. You have disadvantage on your next ability
check or saving throw
2: Blessing. You have advantage on your next ability
check or saving throw
3: Curse. You take 1d10 necrotic damage
4: Blessing. You gain 2d10 temporary hit points for
2d10 hours
5: Curse. You can only speak Gnomish for 2d10 hours
and grow a thick beard
6: Blessing. You learn two random languages
(determined by the DM)
7: Curse. You can only walk backwards for 2d10 hours
(retaining your normal speed)
8: Blessing. Your jump distance and height is doubled
for 2d10 hours
9: Curse. You gain vulnerability to piercing damage and
feel like you're very cold for 3d10 hours
10: Blessing. You gain resistance to piercing damage and
immunity to cold damage for 3d10 hours

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 Monsters Tiny Mimic
A few statblocks of creatures that can be found in the Tiny monstrosity (shapechanger), neutral
encounters described in this book.
Armor Class 12 (natural armor)
Hit Points 9 (2d8)
Speed 5ft.
Snowman
Medium construct, chaotic evil
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
Armor Class 11 12 (+1) 13 (+1) 10 (+0) 3 (-4) 10 (+0) 8 (-1)
Hit Points 19 (3d10 + 3)
Speed 20ft. Skills Stealth +3
Damage Immunities acid
Condition Immunities prone
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
Senses darkvision 30 ft., passive Perception 10
16 (+3) 13 (+1) 11 (+0) 6 (-2) 10 (+0) 14 (+2) Languages -
Challenge 1/8 (25xp)
Damage Vulnerabilities Fire
Damage Immunities Cold Shapechanger. The tiny mimic can use its action to
Senses passive Perception 12 polymorph into an object or back into its true,
Languages understands the languages of its creator amorphous form. Its statistics are the same in each
but can't speak form. Any equipment it is wearing or carrying isn 't
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP) transformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.
Adhesive (Object Form Only). The tiny mimic
False Appearance. While the snowman remains
adheres to anything that touches it. A Medium or
motionless, it is indistinguishable from an ordinary,
smaller creature adhered to the mimic is also
inanimate snowman.
grappled by it (escape DC 13). Ability checks made
Fear of Fire. If the snowman takes fire damage, it has to escape this grapple have disadvantage.
disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks until False Appearance (Object Form Only). While the
the end of its next turn. mimic remains motionless, it is indistinguishable
Snow Camouflage. The snowman has advantage on from an ordinary object.
Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in snowy
terrain. Actions
Pseudopod. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach
Actions 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4 + 1) bludgeoning
Branch. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5ft., damage. If the mimic is in object form, the target is
one target. Hit: 5 (1d4 + 3) slashing damage plus 2 subjected to its Adhesive trait
(1d4) cold damage.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft.,
Freezing Breath (Recharge 5-6) The snowman one target. Hit: 3 (1d4 + 1) piercing damage plus 3
exhales a 10-foot cone of freezing air. Each (1d6) acid damage.
creature in that area must succeed on a DC 14 Merge. The tiny mimic jumps into another tiny
Constitution saving throw, taking 7 (2d6) cold mimic within 5 feet of it, destroying the other tiny
damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on mimic and gaining its remaining hit points. A tiny
a successful one. If a character's saving throw is mimic can only merge once per day.
unsuccesful, its speed is reduced by 10 feet for
1d4 rounds.

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The end
"We are now at the very end of my most
fascinating tales. I truly hope you enjoyed them as
much as I did. You may actually be the first one to
sit through them all without falling asleep, aside
from dear Alvyn that is.
My journey to the frozen island Ragnaran made
me realise two things. One, I truly am the most
brave of all heroes. And two, I hate the cold. Never
going back there again, not under any condition!
I hope you have fun on your next adventures and
farewell. The path calls to Count Corric once more.
Say goodbye to Alvyn and I hope I see you again,
you truly are a most fascinating listener. Like my
grandmother always said; all's well that ends well."
Credits
This supplement was written and designed by me:
Cedric Grauwde, TheNaturalTwenty
Amazing cover art by: Riley Sapp, @Ril.Arts
A special thanks to my best friends who proofread the
encounters: Koen, Wessel & Harmen
Follow TheNaturalTwenty
If you enjoyed Chilling Confrontations in Cold Climates,
consider following me on Instagram: @TheNaturalTwenty. I
post DnD memes and homebrew content like encounters,
locations and NPCs.

Thank you
I hope you enjoyed Chilling Confrontations in Cold
Climates. May your players have fun on their adventures!
If you did enjoy it, you can always purchase it again to
support me, I would really appreciate it. Your support helps
me create these awesome products. I would also love to hear
your feedback. You can leave a comment on the DMsguild or
DM me on Instagram.

Also Available:
Mecis' Manual of Magix
Explore a collection of marvelous and mind-boggling magic
items & monsters in this supplement for the world's greatest
roleplaying game, written from the perspective of the equally
marvelous merchant Mecis!

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