Rime of the Frostmaiden: Horror

Right now there are several discussions of problems with some elements of Rime of the Frostmaiden going around various social media outlets. Since I am running the adventure I decided to provide my thoughts and ideas on how to address some of the issues that have been brought forth. The issue I will address in this post is How to Bring the Horror.

How to Bring the Horror

I have heard complaints that the adventure is not really a horror adventure. I disagree, but it is true that the horror of this adventure is more existential than direct… what I mean by that is that the horror comes from the isolation, lack of resources, extreme cold, and danger of the environment, and the actions it forces from the people who live in the region.

In a case like this, you have to let the PCs see and experience the horrific things that are happening and give them a chance to do something about the issues. Here are some things you can do to make this happen:

1. Paint a vivid picture. One of the most difficult thing for DMs to do well, especially in the time of VTTs with great images, is to use verbal descriptions to paint a picture of what the PCs are seeing. It is important to use descriptions to add to the ambiance of the places the PCs find themselves visiting. Do not let the image or map displayed on the VTT to tell the entire visual story for the players. Give them descriptions that highlight the conditions in Icewind Dale – dilapidated floors and roofs, snow and ice-packed lanes, lanterns that run out of seal oil, creaky cobblestones, creaky frozen lakes, and howling wind, just to name a few.
2. Use your voice softly. The last point was about great verbal descriptions, but not tone of voice. This is also not about using a funny voice. When you want to build suspense and danger, speak more slowly and quietly. A funny thing happens sometimes when a person speaks softly – everyone gets quiet and tries to listen. To do that, people get more vigilant, lean in, and sometimes hold their breath… it provokes an edge-of-your-seat feeling. Don’t overuse this effect, but definitely use it.
3. Show despair. Have the PCs see a human sacrifice being stripped and tied to a pole outside of one of the towns. Show the sacrifice’s family crying and mourning. If they want to intervene it should have devastating consequences… any or all of the following could happen: the town turns on them and runs them out, Auril shows up, Sephek murders the person they saved, they draw a new sacrificial victim and put that person out (now that person’s family hate’s the PCs), etc.
4. Show death. Have them discover bodies in the snow and ice when/if they ever get lost traveling outside of town. Have the NPCs mention their loved ones who have been killed by the weather or creatures in the area since Auril’s Rime began.
5. Feel the cold. Have the PCs suffer the effects of cold if they are outside for more than 18 hours, even if they succeed on the suggested con saves to stave off cold effects. At some point, unless the PC has immunity to cold, they WILL suffer and that should be something they become constantly wary of.
6. Feel the food scarcity. Require the PCs to eat more food if they are outside for more than 12 hours per day. It takes many more calories to support and maintain body mass and to maintain body heat in extreme cold so the PCs need twice as much food. This is compounded by the fact that food is scarce, so the party might have to eat that winter wolf that just attacked them. Make sure they know about that opportunity.
7. Hear it from NPCs. Show the despair, disappointment, and depression of the people of Ten Towns. Do this in conversations; when the party is looking for rumors or trying to find out what is happening in a town. Don’t make everyone happy-go-lucky… instead, have them show irritation and exasperation with respect to what they have to do to survive. I do think one of the places where the book lets the reader down is that it doesn’t explicitly state the despair that arises when people die in horrific ways while performing what were previously daily activities. It strongly hints that the population of Ten Towns is less than previous years, but it doesn’t make it clear that the eternal winter and darkness is causing death and despair at accelerated rates. It certainly doesn’t reflect the effects of that in the NPCs as much as it could.
8. Awakened animals are also worried. Play on the weirdness of the awakened animals in the setting. These animals are just as distraught as the humanoids in the region – it’s okay to show that. They can be confused, upset, worried about death…
9. Foreshadow strangeness. Play on the weirdness that is to come – read ahead in the book and be ready to use that information. For example, look at the black cabin (pp 116), the frost giant jarlmoot (pp 137), and the stuff in the caves of hunger (pp 227 specifically), and work those things into the rumors the party hears as they move around Ten Towns and complete quests. You can also add information about ghosts with lanterns walking on the lakes, still-beating hearts of ice trolls (pp 294), strange invisible creatures leaving footprints in the snow, and the ever-present sound of crying babies in the snowbanks around town. Be creative, be creepy, let there be things that have no explanation but just create an atmosphere of fear.
10. The Unknown is scary. Have the party see coldlight walkers (pp 284), or evidence of them, whenever they go out. Make them difficult to discern, play up the unknown aspects of them and let it build up in 2 or 3 non-combat encounters before just having a fight. Let the party feel the weirdness and assume a dangerous element to these things.
11. Predators are extra hungry and will lure you in. Any creature that might ambush a party (crag cats on page 285 and yetis come to mind) by using a lure (a human-like scream or cry) should absolutely be heard often and close by anytime the party is outside. The party should never know if it is a creature or human crying, and if they investigate, it should be creepy.
12. Darkness is scary. Don’t forget that it is dark for all except 4 hours a day unless there is a full moon. Make this fact count – darkness is scary for humanoids, even those with darkvision are in a precarious position when it is dark outside. Camps should feel creepy and enclosed. Towns should be pitch black with points of light from lanterns or torches highlighting just a few larger buildings or main streets.

Alright, that’s all I have for you today! We have now finished a session 0 and sessions 1 & 2 of my Rime campaign – I’ll fill you in on some houserules and changes in my next few posts. If you want to watch session 1 and 2, they can be found here: Endless Night RotF session 1 and Endless Night RotF session 2.

You can support my work by checking out my latest DMsGuild release – it’s called The Creed of Auril and contains information on the Church of Auril and descriptions of cult beliefs, behaviors, membership, and rationale. It also has 16 new spells, 2 new magic items, 6 new NPC/creature statblocks, and over 12 detailed ways to add cultists and cult activity to the area. The product is $4.99 on the DMs Guild and you can purchase it by clicking here: The Creed of Auril

You can also support me and my co-creators by purchasing Scientific Secrets of Icewind Dale – new and challenging creatures and lore for your arctic D&D game: Scientific Secrets of Icewind Dale on the DMsGuild

Until next time, I wish you good gaming!

 ~DMSamuel