It did half damage on a miss so he continued to pound the party, hit or miss.Īs Kessell neared 0 hit points he realized he should flee. The combat took on a 3D element as the PCs took to the air to battle the pesky Air Elementals. However, on Kessell’s turn he managed to wrestle control of the adjacent Elementals from the Ice Witch and dispel the other two. Two of the Air Elementals moved in and attacked Kessell as well. The party surrounded the Necromancer, dazing him, slowing him, and knocking him prone. This gave them upward mobility, but reduced their speed to half its normal distance. As they touched the snowflake symbol on the dais they were granted the power of flight. The PCs fled as required and then turned and charged Kessell. The Air Elementals swirled around the room and didn’t attack anyone the first round. Unfortunately for the heroes they were bunched together and Kessell managed to blast them all in the first round, forcing the Barbarian, Warlock and Clipity-clop the Cavalier’s Celestial Steed, to flee on their turn. The winds formed four Air Elementals which she unleashed at the Necromancer and then floated back up through the opening in the ceiling. The Ice Witch summoned the cold winds of the North and they swirled throughout the Temple. His words swayed the Ice Witch, who was already considering breaking any alliance she had with the Necromancer, and she told the PCs they could dispose of Kessell however they saw fit. The Cavalier decided to play the Necromancer against the Ice Witch and made a convincing argument for why she should not trust Kessell. He stepped out to make his presence known but did not take any hostile actions. At this point the PCs noticed the Necromancer, Akar Kessell, hiding behind one of the statues. The Ice Witch made it clear that she expected the entire party to convert or leave. The Paladin and Cavalier were not interested. The Warlock seized the opportunity to try a diplomatic solution and agreed to convert. She took no hostile actions, and instead asked the PCs if they were here to convert to Auril’s faith. She stopped her descent about 40 feet from the ground. Once the PCs started poking around the Temple, the Ice Witch floated down through the opening in the ceiling. (I used six large minis to represent the statues which made the players extra nervous despite their checks to see if they were actually monsters.) With a few good checks they were convinced that the sculptures were harmless. They examined the closest statue to ensure that it wasn’t going to animate and possibly attack them. The PCs preceded cautiously, their lights casting strange shadows around the room as it reflected off of the Black Ice walls, floor, ceiling, and dais. There were no other visible means of ascending to the next level and there was no other furniture or adornments in the room. In the ceiling the PCs noticed a hole the same shape and size as the snowflake symbol on the dais. Set around the dais were six large statues. In the centre of the room was a dais with a snowflake shape carved into it (the symbol of Auril).
With a little skill you can pace the adventure to your needs and get the characters to whatever level you need them to be (within reason.Tower of the Ice Witch Temple of the Storm (Level 2) As far as levels are concerned, it really depends on path the players choose and the number of random encounters you use during travel.
There was honest (and in some cases dishonest) discussion on which lead to follow. For example, we had two tables that played 2 hours a week for 6 months and still hadn't finished.Ī good balance is found between roleplaying opportunities, exploration/travel, and combat. If multiple paths are played through, which is recommended, then the adventure can take quite a while. A party can choose to follow, or ignore, each of the various adventure paths that are introduced. The adventure gives the players a lot of leeway, within the restricted scope of Icewind Dale. The other tables at the store really had fun with it. I ran it for two separate tables and found it a difficult adventure to run in an organized play setting, but that shouldn't affect you any. We had five tables running Legacy of The Crystal Shard for the Wednesday night Encounters program at the FLGS.