Foaming Mugs
The characters can pick up this quest if they start the adventure in Bryn Shander or shortly after they arrive in town. It begins when the characters learn about a group of shield dwarves who were forced to abandon a sled loaded with iron ingots, which they were transporting from the mines at the base of Kelvin’s Cairn. The ingots belong to the Battlehammer clan and are stamped with the clan’s iconic symbol, a foaming mug. The dwarves ask the characters to retrieve the sled and deliver the ingots safely to Blackiron Blades, for which each character will receive a gemstone as payment. Characters who complete this quest also earn a 10 percent discount on goods bought at Blackiron Blades—a little thank-you from the establishment’s grateful owner.
Complications arise when goblins find the sled before the characters do. The characters must either fight the goblins or finagle the ingots from them using guile or stealth. To further complicate matters, the goblins have a wagon pulled by hungry polar bears. The bears aren’t fussy about what they eat, so clever characters might think to turn them against the goblins.
The three dwarves work in a mine located in the valley at the base of Kelvin’s Cairn. This mine is owned and operated by Clan Battlehammer, and it provides most of the iron for the smithies in Ten-Towns. The dwarves wear cold weather clothing. Only their eyes are visible. Treat them as commoners who speak Common and Dwarvish; being dwarves, they have darkvision out to a range of 60 feet and resistance to poison damage. They carry ice picks (1d4 piercing damage) instead of clubs. Each dwarf is briefly described below:
If the characters slay the dwarves and take the pouch of gemstones that Hruna carries on her person (see “Treasure” below), witnesses report them to the town militia, leading to their arrest unless they flee Bryn Shander at once. Korux can cover the expense of equipping the party with snowshoes if the characters are too cheap to pay for the snowshoes themselves. If the characters refuse the quest, the dwarves leave in a huff and do not trouble the party again. They spend a couple days searching in vain for others to help them before returning home.
Ask the players what their characters do during the blizzard, which lasts for 2d4 hours. They can stop and wait for the blizzard to pass, or they can press on. If they don’t stop and wait, they could lose their bearings and veer off course—or worse, they could become separated.
The corpse belongs to Oobok the dwarf. The yeti that killed him ate his arms and most of his internal organs before leaving with poor Oobok’s severed head. Both Oobok’s tracks and the yeti’s tracks were erased by the wind. The tracks that are present were left by goblins. Characters who inspect the tracks around the corpse can, with a successful DC 10 Survival (Wisdom) check, determine that they are fresh (made in the past hour) and belong to a half-dozen Small humanoids wearing snowshoes. The tracks lead south. Characters who follow them for a half-hour catch up to the goblins, who are hindered by the sled they’re hauling.
These goblins were rolling across the tundra when their advance scout, a trained hawk, spotted the abandoned sled. The one-eared goblin boss, Izobai, sent six goblins forth to seize the sled and its cargo, while she and two goblins stayed behind to guard the wagon and keep an eye on the two polar bears that pull it. At the start of the encounter, the characters are 120 feet behind the sled, and the goblins’ wagon is 120 feet farther still. The goblins hauling the sled are too distracted to notice they’re being followed, so the characters have surprise. The sled weighs 300 pounds, and the iron ingots add another 600 pounds of weight to it. A single goblin can push or drag 240 pounds, so it takes at least four of them to move the sled. If they come under attack, the goblins take cover behind the sled and retaliate with ranged attacks. On the goblins’ first turn in combat, one of them blows a horn to alert Izobai, who climbs to the roof of the wagon with a lit torch in one hand and her hooded hawk perched on her other arm. From this perch, she watches the battle unfold. If she spots enemies within 60 feet of the wagon, she orders the two goblins inside the wagon to shoot arrows at these enemies through gaps in the wagon’s walls. These two goblins have three-quarters cover. If five or more goblins are killed, or if Izobai is killed or captured, the remaining goblins are willing to negotiate a truce, though it’s up to the characters to initiate the negotiations. The goblins are prepared to give up the iron ingots in exchange for their lives and freedom. The prolonged winter has made the goblins as miserable as everyone else in Icewind Dale. If the characters act kindly toward the goblins, by offering them a blanket or some other gift, the goblins give up the sled and the ingots and allow the characters to be on their way. The goblins hail from the fortress of Karkolohk. Their job is to scour the tundra for food and treasure, as well as creatures to enslave, but they are cold and eager to return home. Izobai fights only in self-defense. If defeat seems inevitable, she uses her torch to set fire to the wagon and flees into the tundra with her hawk, her treasure (see below), and any goblins in the vehicle. The wagon contains goblin beds made of straw; they ignite quickly, turning the vehicle into a raging inferno by the start of Izobai’s next turn. Freeing the Bears. A character who succeeds on a DC 12 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check can approach the polar bears without aggravating them and use an action to free one of them from its harness. On a failed check, both bears are hostile toward that character for the rest of the encounter. A freed polar bear does not attack the character who released it, but all other creatures on the battlefield are fair game. It would sooner eat a goblin than anything else, given how badly the goblins have treated the bears. The goblins run away from a freed polar bear as fast as they can. Treasure. Izobai carries two Potions of Animal Friendship and a sealskin pouch containing 13 sp, 25 cp, and a bone whistle (1 sp). The other goblins each carry 1d6 cp in sealskin pouches.
Getting the Quest
Three frostbitten shield dwarves approach the chracters at the Northlook or in the snow-covered street:Three stocky figures bundled in cold weather garb stumble toward you. They have snowshoes slung over their backs and ice picks fastened to their belts, and two of them have thick beards. The third holds up a gloved hand and says, through a thick wool scarf in a raspy voice, “Well met! I’m Hruna, and these are my friends, Korux and Storn. We need help, and you look capable.”
The three dwarves work in a mine located in the valley at the base of Kelvin’s Cairn. This mine is owned and operated by Clan Battlehammer, and it provides most of the iron for the smithies in Ten-Towns. The dwarves wear cold weather clothing. Only their eyes are visible. Treat them as commoners who speak Common and Dwarvish; being dwarves, they have darkvision out to a range of 60 feet and resistance to poison damage. They carry ice picks (1d4 piercing damage) instead of clubs. Each dwarf is briefly described below:
- Hruna speaks for the group in a voice made raspy by years of smoking. She has lost her right ear and two fingers to frostbite.
- Korux stares in silence and doesn't talk much. He has lost three fingers, two toes, and his nose to frostbite.
- Storn has a terrible fear of white dragons and glaces nervously up at the sky as though he's expecting one to swoop down any minute.
“We’re the survivors of a group of dwarves tasked with delivering a sled of iron ingots to Bryn Shander. A yeti surprised us and killed a member of our group. The rest of us fled as the yeti tore Oobok limb from limb. Now we need someone to go back and get the sled for us. As payment, we offer each of you a gemstone worth fifty gold pieces. The friendship of the dwarves of Icewind Dale can also be a boon in these harsh times. You’ll need snowshoes to make the trip in good time.”
If the characters slay the dwarves and take the pouch of gemstones that Hruna carries on her person (see “Treasure” below), witnesses report them to the town militia, leading to their arrest unless they flee Bryn Shander at once. Korux can cover the expense of equipping the party with snowshoes if the characters are too cheap to pay for the snowshoes themselves. If the characters refuse the quest, the dwarves leave in a huff and do not trouble the party again. They spend a couple days searching in vain for others to help them before returning home.
Treasure
Hruna carries a sealskin pouch that holds six bloodstones (50 gp each). Korux carries 15 gp in a yeti fur-lined leather pouch. Storn carries a rusty iron lock (3 gp) as a good luck charm; he lost the key that opens it.Search for the Sled
If the characters agree to complete this quest, Hruna points them in the direction they must travel—straight toward Kelvin’s Cairn. The sled lies halfway between Bryn Shander and Kelvin’s Cairn, in the middle of the tundra.Blizzard
When the characters get within a couple miles of the sled, a blizzard sweeps down from the north and engulfs them:A blizzard descends on you, reducing visibility to twenty feet. Kelvin’s Cairn vanishes from view as the blowing snow and howling wind engulf you.
Ask the players what their characters do during the blizzard, which lasts for 2d4 hours. They can stop and wait for the blizzard to pass, or they can press on. If they don’t stop and wait, they could lose their bearings and veer off course—or worse, they could become separated.
Oobok's Remains
When the characters arrive at the location where the dwarves were forced to abandon their sled, read:You crest a snow-covered ridge and see a frozen, dismembered corpse in the gully in front of you. Snow covers some of the gory bits, but the headless torso and severed limbs are visible. You see tracks in the snow all around the corpse, and the telltale grooves in the snow left behind by a sled that has been hauled away.
The corpse belongs to Oobok the dwarf. The yeti that killed him ate his arms and most of his internal organs before leaving with poor Oobok’s severed head. Both Oobok’s tracks and the yeti’s tracks were erased by the wind. The tracks that are present were left by goblins. Characters who inspect the tracks around the corpse can, with a successful DC 10 Survival (Wisdom) check, determine that they are fresh (made in the past hour) and belong to a half-dozen Small humanoids wearing snowshoes. The tracks lead south. Characters who follow them for a half-hour catch up to the goblins, who are hindered by the sled they’re hauling.
Goblins
When the characters find the goblins, read:The creatures you’ve been following appear to be goblins, based on their stature. All six of them groan, grunt, and curse loudly as they haul the bulky sled toward what appears to be a twenty-foot-tall wagon parked in the snow. Harnessed to this conveyance are two roaring polar bears that don’t look happy.
These goblins were rolling across the tundra when their advance scout, a trained hawk, spotted the abandoned sled. The one-eared goblin boss, Izobai, sent six goblins forth to seize the sled and its cargo, while she and two goblins stayed behind to guard the wagon and keep an eye on the two polar bears that pull it. At the start of the encounter, the characters are 120 feet behind the sled, and the goblins’ wagon is 120 feet farther still. The goblins hauling the sled are too distracted to notice they’re being followed, so the characters have surprise. The sled weighs 300 pounds, and the iron ingots add another 600 pounds of weight to it. A single goblin can push or drag 240 pounds, so it takes at least four of them to move the sled. If they come under attack, the goblins take cover behind the sled and retaliate with ranged attacks. On the goblins’ first turn in combat, one of them blows a horn to alert Izobai, who climbs to the roof of the wagon with a lit torch in one hand and her hooded hawk perched on her other arm. From this perch, she watches the battle unfold. If she spots enemies within 60 feet of the wagon, she orders the two goblins inside the wagon to shoot arrows at these enemies through gaps in the wagon’s walls. These two goblins have three-quarters cover. If five or more goblins are killed, or if Izobai is killed or captured, the remaining goblins are willing to negotiate a truce, though it’s up to the characters to initiate the negotiations. The goblins are prepared to give up the iron ingots in exchange for their lives and freedom. The prolonged winter has made the goblins as miserable as everyone else in Icewind Dale. If the characters act kindly toward the goblins, by offering them a blanket or some other gift, the goblins give up the sled and the ingots and allow the characters to be on their way. The goblins hail from the fortress of Karkolohk. Their job is to scour the tundra for food and treasure, as well as creatures to enslave, but they are cold and eager to return home. Izobai fights only in self-defense. If defeat seems inevitable, she uses her torch to set fire to the wagon and flees into the tundra with her hawk, her treasure (see below), and any goblins in the vehicle. The wagon contains goblin beds made of straw; they ignite quickly, turning the vehicle into a raging inferno by the start of Izobai’s next turn. Freeing the Bears. A character who succeeds on a DC 12 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check can approach the polar bears without aggravating them and use an action to free one of them from its harness. On a failed check, both bears are hostile toward that character for the rest of the encounter. A freed polar bear does not attack the character who released it, but all other creatures on the battlefield are fair game. It would sooner eat a goblin than anything else, given how badly the goblins have treated the bears. The goblins run away from a freed polar bear as fast as they can. Treasure. Izobai carries two Potions of Animal Friendship and a sealskin pouch containing 13 sp, 25 cp, and a bone whistle (1 sp). The other goblins each carry 1d6 cp in sealskin pouches.
Concluding the Quest
Three hundred iron ingots are wrapped in thick burlap and tightly secured to the sled with leather straps. Each ingot weighs 2 pounds and is stamped with the foaming mug symbol of the Battlehammer clan. Each ingot is worth 5 sp to a blacksmith. Once the ingots are returned to Hruna and then delivered to Blackiron Blades in Bryn Shander, the characters receive their promised rewards, including the 10 percent discount on goods they buy at the shop afterward.
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