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The Blue Fire of Endurance
On the outskirts of Solstice Isle our heroes fought The Endurance — a Chillbringer, an Aspect of the Frostmaiden. While his body was destroyed, his heart remained, and Fern cut it out and placed it within their bag of holding. Pushing forward to Grimskalle, the party contended with frostmourn remnants of the once proud giants of Vassavicken. Soon they found themselves at the Gateway to the Four Winds, where Auril's trials began. Materializing near Reghed Glacier, perhaps in a dream, they were taunted by Bjornhilde of the Tiger Tribe before being guided to a dark crack in the ice. Within, they experienced Isolation.

Solstice Island

#battle #TheChosen Crank tossed a ghoul's head at the hulking yeti's silhouette. The creature picks it up and began tossing it in a game of catch. AN OFFERING... FROM DEFILERS? When pressed for his name, the creature replied THE ENDURANCE. The head was hurled back wreathed in cold magick. Soon, clashing in a melee, the party recognized The Endurance as the nearly nude man kneeling before the Cold Crone that they saw in the Frostfell portal under Kuldahar. The grappler had unearthly strength, but was bested in a six on one brawl.
#TheChosen When Vellynne attempted to speak with the corpse of The Endurance, she realized he was not in fact deceased. Through lacerations of the giant body, they saw his heart, unusually small for a giant, pulsing and beating with blue fire. Fern cut it out and noted she was unable to simply damage it. That is, the heart of blue fire was magical. She placed it within their bag of holding.
#TheRimeoftheFrostmaiden Outside the walls of Grimskalle, Sopo grew reluctant to proceed. He talked about the restless spirits of Vassavicken's once proud giants. When pressed about Auril, he noted that the Cold Crone would fly on Iskra the Roc at night, conjuring during the aurora. Though night neared, she may still be on the upper floors of the fortress.
#battle #TrialsOfTheFrostmaiden Tetro and Gadget were ready to push towards Grimskalle. The journey up icy steps took the party through the remnants of a frost giant walled city. Here, they witnessed signs of a sharp and sudden battle, and deaths due to perhaps poisoning. The skeletal remains reanimated as they party repelled and then fled from frostmourn giants, who groaned their wishes for a true death. Dashing inside the doors of Grimskalle fortress, Vellynne sealed the enormous passage with an arcane lock.
#TrialsOfTheFrostmaiden Ukuma the Walrus was scooting about on the smooth icy floors of the basement of Grimskalle, at the center of the passageways known as the Gateway to the Four Winds. She wanted fish, but there was no fish to be had. The passageways led to four trials, one after each tenet of the Frostmaiden. A north passage led to the tomb of Vassavicken, said the walrus. The southern passage was magically sealed shut. Only frost druids who truly embodied the cold could open those doors.
#TrialsOfTheFrostmaiden Vellynne Harpell entered the trial of Isolation. Crank soon followed. A blink of the eye later, they were in the middle of the tundra with glacier ice ahead of them and a small band of Reghed nomads at its foot. The remainder of the party followed. Tetro noted the aurora was out, and while marching forward took note of the stars to determine they were by his accounts near Reghed Glacier. Gadget noted that above their heads floated a translucent snowflake - the symbol of the Frostmaiden.
#TrialsOfTheFrostmaiden Vellynne Harpell entered the trial of Isolation. Crank soon followed. A blink of the eye later, they were in the middle of the tundra with glacier ice ahead of them and a small band of Reghed nomads at its foot. The remainder of the party followed. Tetro noted the aurora was out, and while marching forward took note of the stars to determine they were by his accounts near Reghed Glacier. Gadget noted that above their heads floated a translucent snowflake - the symbol of the Frostmaiden.
#TrialsOfTheFrostmaiden Approaching what they now could see was the Tribe of the Tiger, Oona sized up the gruff woman seated centrally and aiming the party back. This was Queen Bjornhild, the once mother of Oona who discarded her as a child. Whether Bjornhild recognized the barbarian now grown, she did not reveal. Bjornhild spoke boldly to the approaching adventurers as well as to her clan, harking the arrivals of Auril, as she had forseen. She pointed them to a dark fissure in the glacier where Isolation existed. The party moved forward, Oona as well without a word. Bjornhild announced they would meet again, and then they would see who truly held Auril's blessing.
#TrialsOfTheFrostmaiden ISOLATION. The party entered the crack in the ice. A tight squeeze grew into an anxious procession in total darkness. While first near to one another, soon each member was alone, tumbling through slush and freezing water, clawing at embankments as blind waters threw them through the cracks. Soon they saw a faint blue hall of crystalline ice and a thousand reflections within it. Here they faced themselves, in true isolation.

XP

Total XP: 30500

1000 ~ #Solstice COMPLETE

Loot

Heart of Blue Fire ~The Endurance ~ Fern
Hag Eye Potion ~Anise Chiselbone ~ Crank