Founded by Calishite settlers who appreciated beauty, Termalaine is widely regarded as the most picturesque town in Icewind Dale, spreading out from the shore of Maer Dualdon and bordered on the north and west by tall pines. Its buildings incorporate carvings of wizards, homunculi, tigers, and smiling djinn.
For most visitors, the enchantment of the town is dispelled as soon as they feel the icy claws and teeth of the cold wind sweeping down from the north, shearing through their layers of clothing. Termalaine was built in the path of this dreadful gale, which continues well past the town to harry fishers on the southern half of the lake.
In addition to fishers, shipbuilders, and scrimshanders, Termalaine is home to miners who harvest gemstones from a cavern complex set into a low hill north and east of the settlement. Their efforts are hampered by creatures from the Underdark that occasionally find their way up into the mine. Whenever such creatures are discovered, the mine is sealed off and the townsfolk wait until a band of sellswords or adventurers can be hired to clear it out.
Termalaine in a Nutshell
Friendliness ❄❄❄Services ❄❄Comfort ❄❄❄
Available Quest
“area A Beautiful Mine”.
- Population 600.
Leader
Oarus Masthew (lawful good half-orc scout) was declared speaker after a close and contentious election. The child of half-orc adventurers, he was adopted by Shaelen Masthew, the previous speaker, who retired from her leadership role but still lives in Termalaine. Oarus is bright, with a sharp sense of humor, but he has political enemies in town and lacks the full support of the town militia.
Militia
Termalaine can muster up to 50 soldiers (use the tribal warrior stat block) and 4 Veteran.
- Heraldry The open-mouthed head of a fish at the bottom of a sky-blue field, its jaws parted as it swallows a large rose-pink oval. The oval is a tourmaline, symbolic of the town’s gem mining.
Sacrifice to Auril
Warmth (see “area Sacrifices to Auril").
- Rivals Bremen, Lonelywood, Targos.
Overland Travel
Snow-covered paths connect Termalaine to Lonelywood and Targos, its closest neighbors. Travel times in the Overland Travel from Termalaine table assume that characters are on foot; mounts and dogsleds can shorten these times by as much as 50 percent.
Overland Travel from Termalaine
| To | Travel Time |
|---|---|
| Lonelywood | 2 hours |
| Targos | 4 hours |
Locations in Termalaine
The following locations are marked on map 1.18.
The Blue Clam
Dockside tavern
The fishers of Termalaine typically finish their days here, seated on benches near one of the building’s long hearths to warm their feet while they fill their bellies with spiced chowder. Beautiful works of scrimshaw are hung on the walls.
Vernon Braig (neutral good half-orc commoner), the Blue Clam’s owner and chef, knows some of the hunters and trappers in Lonelywood, and occasionally a sled comes down the north trail with a sack of hares or a haunch of moose, courtesy of one of Vernon’s friends. On those nights, the Blue Clam’s hearths are full of roasting meat, and the patrons stay later and sing louder, enjoying the good times while they last.
Characters who loiter in the tavern are likely to hear a rumor or two, which you can determine by rolling on the Ten-Towns Rumors table (see “area Ten-Towns Rumors").
The Eastside
Inn
The Eastside is where most visitors in town stay. What looks from the outside like separate houses turns out to be a single structure with rooms connected by underground passages, with cozy guest accommodations in the cellar.
The innkeeper is Marta Peskryk (lawful good human commoner), a willowy teenager who spends much of her time tending to her bedridden father, Clyde, a retired fisherman and noncombatant. As she performs her daily chores, Marta sings the following song to herself:
Ahead of winter’s wind she came—
The lovely woman with no name;
Draped in a fur-lined cloak of red,
To the icy lake she fled;
The wind pursued her all the same—
As sure as night she’s dead.
If asked about the song, Marta recounts the following tale. Fifty years ago, a mysterious woman in a fur-lined red cloak stopped at the Eastside on her way to Lonelywood. Because the woman was alone and frightened, the innkeepers—a pair of retired adventurers who happened to be Marta’s grandparents—tried to console her. The woman gave them a ring as payment for their hospitality. Not long afterward, a howling wind burst into the inn and tossed the woman about like a rag doll. The innkeepers intervened, giving the woman time to escape. The evil wind battered Marta’s grandparents unconscious before resuming its hunt. That was the last anyone saw of the woman.
Treasure
Marta wears the mysterious woman’s ring (which she has inherited) around her neck on a chain. It is a
A Beautiful Mine
The characters can pick up this quest if they start the adventure in Termalaine or shortly after they arrive in town. As they trudge through the streets, they see a young boy standing on a box, yelling about various local happenings, including the recent evacuation of workers from a nearby mine that has been overrun by kobolds. A reward of 50 gp is offered to anyone who can rid the mine of the pesky dragonlings.
When the characters investigate, they discover that all is not what it seems. The kobold leader has been possessed by a ghost, and a grell has infiltrated the mine, setting the kobolds on edge. The characters can either try to parley with the kobolds and get them to leave the mine peacefully, or they can rid Ten-Towns of their presence permanently and try to deal with the grell on their own.
A Minor Issue
Darmo Mazlu, a human boy, stands on a box and yells out the latest news to passersby, most of whom ignore him:
A boy wrapped in heavy winter clothes shouts the news of the day as people pass by. When you approach, the boy cries, “The gemstone mine is closed because of monsters! Speaker Masthew is offering fifty gold to anyone who clears it out!”
If the characters express interest, Darmo tells them they can find the town speaker, Oarus Masthew, at the Blue Clam. The boy also has some information about the mine, including its location. He doesn’t know much about the history or the particulars of the mine, but he knows it’s important for Termalaine and its closing means a significant loss of income.
The characters can make the half-hour trek to the mine without visiting Oarus, or they can go to the tavern to see the speaker. If the characters decide to ignore the quest, the mine remains closed for several weeks before the kobolds mysteriously vanish, enabling the miners to return. After the mine reopens, it isn’t long before workers start disappearing one by one—victims of the grell.
Getting the Quest
When the characters arrive at the Blue Clam, read:
Outside the tavern, you see two bundled-up humanoids talking to one another. When they see you, one waves to you in a friendly manner, then says, “You seem entirely too prepared for trouble. Are you here about the mine?”
The town speaker, Oarus Masthew (lawful good half-orc veteran), explains that a group of kobolds crept into the mine a few days ago, entering from the surface and forcing the miners to abandon their jobs. No one was killed, but the kobolds are too dangerous for the miners to deal with. He also reveals that a human miner went missing a few days before the kobolds showed up, prompting other miners to fear that a monster must have crawled up from the Underdark. Oarus thinks it’s possible that the miner fell down the central shaft, which is deep enough that his body would never be found.
One piece of information that Oarus fails to mention is that he ordered the town militia to clear out the mine three days ago. The militia refused to deal with the problem for what amounts to political reasons. Senior officers in cahoots with Speaker Naerth Maxildanarr of Targos are determined to oust Masthew as town speaker and replace him with one of their own in a special election. They’re convinced that the closing of the mine and the resulting economic woes will turn Masthew’s political supporters against him.
Approaching the Mine
The entrance to the mine is in the woods northeast of town. The characters can follow a trail from Termalaine and be there in 30 minutes. When they arrive, the area around the opening appears devoid of life:
The entrance to the gem mine is an open tunnel in a hillside. Empty carts are parked near the entrance, next to which a crude wooden sign has been propped up. Written on the sign in charcoal are the words “Kobolds only!” in Common.
The words are written in more elaborate calligraphy than would be expected from a kobold.
Mine Features
The mine’s meandering tunnels have 7-foot-high ceilings. Wider areas tend to have higher ceilings, the average being 12 feet. The mine has no light sources.
The most prominent feature of the mine is a wide vertical shaft that descends thousands of feet into the Underdark. This shaft predates the mine, and efforts to seal it off have been unsuccessful. It was by this route that the grell invaded the mine in search of food.
Captured Kobolds
Characters who capture a kobold in the mine can, without an ability check, learn some or all of the following information in the course of an interrogation:
- “Trex led us here. He has wings like dragon!”
- “Trex smart! He speaks like human who knows a lot. He don’t speak Dragon no more.”
- “Trex says miners want their mine back. Trex wants something better in return.”
- “Trex says we be safer in town. There’s food in town!”
Mine Locations
The following locations are keyed to map 1.19. The mine is made up of three levels, the deepest of which is level 3. The boxed text in these locations assumes the characters can see what’s around them.
M1. Tool Room
Rough-hewn steps descend 60 feet before ending just north of this chamber.
Racks holding picks and hammers are nailed to the walls of this small cavern. The floor is covered with rock dust and tracks.
Any character who examines the tracks and succeeds on a DC 13 Wisdom (
M2. Gem Deposits
The floor in the east end of this dusty cave is five feet higher than in the west end, with a rocky ridge separating the two areas except for slopes on either side. Picks and shovels lean against the ridge. Small gem deposits in the ridge and the walls of the cave gleam seductively.
Treasure
If a character using a miner’s pick spends an hour chipping away at the walls, roll percentile dice and consult the Mining Discoveries table to determine what, if anything, the character unearths. The tourmalines found in the mine are translucent gemstones that come in different colors, including pale green, blue, pink, red, brown, and black.
Mining Discoveries
| d100 | Discovery |
|---|---|
| 01–80 | Nothing |
| 81–95 | Pebble-sized tourmaline (1 gp) |
| 96–99 | Acorn-sized tourmaline, flawed (10 gp) |
| 00 | Acorn-sized tourmaline, unflawed (100 gp) |
M3. River Cavern
Characters hear the sound of rushing water as they approach this cave.
An underground river flows through the far side of this cavern, which is supported by a natural stone pillar near the water’s edge. Between you and the river are two halfling-sized gray rodents with long tails and beady eyes. They rush to attack as soon as you notice them.
The two Giant Rat are aggressive, giving chase if the characters run away.
Underground River
Thermal vents keep this river of fresh water from freezing. The river exits the cave through a 2½-foot-wide fissure in the south wall, gaining speed as it moves through the narrow passage toward area M5. Any Medium or smaller creature that wades into this fissure or starts its turn there must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw or be swept away by the current and dropped into the shaft that plunges thousands of feet into the Underdark. Such a fall is fatal.
M4. Processing Room
The floor of the western tunnel from area M1 is 7 feet higher than the floor of the cavern it leads to. The ledge can be easily climbed in either direction. Use the boxed text to describe the cave’s other features:
Benches and tables are set up as workspaces where miners clean any gemstones they find. Gravel and pebbles are strewn on the ground. Scattered across the floor are a few hammers, picks, and broken lanterns.
The miners were forced to leave this area in a hurry when the kobolds showed up and drove them out.
Treasure
If the characters search the cave, they find a small figurine of a dog carved out of rock, with two pebble-sized tourmalines for eyes. It was made by a miner while on break. The figurine is worth 10 gp.
M5. Underdark Shaft, Level 1
Wooden planks and struts form a walkway along the wall of a seemingly bottomless vertical shaft. A narrow waterfall cascades down the northeast wall, and the sound of rushing water is loud in the confined space.
Characters using
Kobold Saboteurs
The cascading water drowns out the noise made by two Icewind Kobold (see area appendix C) that are clinging to the underside of the walkway. These kobolds, named Scorp and Thwip, are using saws to weaken the wooden struts so that the walkway will collapse if a creature weighing more than two kobolds tries to stand on it. These kobolds need another day to complete their sabotage; until then, the walkway is safe.
The characters can’t hear the kobolds, but if they look underneath the planks, they can see the kobolds working away cheerily. If a kobold takes damage while clinging to the underside of the walkway, it loses its grip and falls down the shaft to its death.
M6. Bucket Lift
A wooden pulley system has been constructed around a large hole in the floor. A bucket big enough to hold a humanoid is held up by thick rope. Three alcoves next to the lift contain wooden boards and mining equipment.
The bucket lift is used for hoisting miners and ore between levels 1 and 2. It’s controlled by using a crank inside the bucket or the crank on the side of the pulley system. The bucket can hold one Medium creature or two Small creatures at a time. It runs from here to area M7, 15 feet farther down, and back again. It takes 1 minute for the bucket to be lowered or raised.
M7. Bucket Lift Landing
The mechanism creaks as the bucket lift descends to the floor of a small cave where two dusty tunnels lead in opposite directions.
Characters who search for tracks in the dust and succeed on a DC 10 Wisdom (
M8. Grell Lair
A hole in the west side of this chamber opens into the central shaft, letting in the sound of the waterfall. The floor in the north end of the cave is five feet higher than in the south end, with a rocky ridge separating them and a slope on either side leading to the top of the ridge. The walls above the ridge gleam with gem deposits.
Floating near the 15-foot-high ceiling is a grell. A character who has a passive Wisdom (
Treasure
If a character using a miner’s pick spends an hour chipping away at the walls above the ridge, roll percentile dice and consult the Mining Discoveries table (see area area M2) to determine what, if anything, is found.
M9. Hungry Kobolds
A table and chairs are set up in this area to create a space for the miners to take breaks. On top of the table, two kobolds are poking a giant rat with their javelins to make sure it’s dead. The kobolds screech loudly as they notice you.
Two Icewind Kobold (see area appendix C) named Grek and Smol rush to attack when the characters enter the cave. If either one is injured, they immediately have a change of heart and flee through the tunnel to the north that leads to level 3.
M10. Underdark Shaft, Level 3
The tunnel’s downward slope ends where it opens onto the center shaft. A wooden walkway extends from this opening and then runs westward to another tunnel in the rock. In front of you, a large bucket like the one you saw earlier dangles from a taut rope that stretches southward across the shaft and is connected to another wooden platform 15 feet away.
Looking down, the characters see nothing but darkness. Characters using
Bucket Shuttle
This rope-and-pulley mechanism is used to transport miners and ore between the two platforms. A crank mounted to each platform allows the bucket to be shuttled from one side to the other. A person inside the bucket can forgo the cranks and pull themselves across by tugging on the suspension rope. The bucket is large enough to hold one Medium creature or two Small creatures. It takes 1 round for the bucket to cross the gap between the platforms.
Dealing 5 acid, fire, or slashing damage to the rope causes it to snap. If the rope is cut, the bucket and its contents fall down the shaft, likely gone forever. A character in the bucket when the rope breaks can grab one end of the severed rope with a successful DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, thus averting certain death.
M11. Kobold Tunnels
Lurking in this dusty tunnel are three skittish kobolds. One of them carries a threadbare satchel and wears a fake pair of dragon wings made of thin wood and tattered white cloth. This kobold immediately raises its hands in surrender, saying in Common, “We mean you no harm. Please don’t hurt us.”
Two of these three Icewind Kobold (see area appendix C) are nervous bodyguards named Vott and Zurk. The one wearing the fake wings and doing the talking is Trex, the leader of the group. If one or both of the kobolds from area area M9 fled from there, they lurk deeper inside the tunnel behind Trex and his bodyguards.
Trex is possessed by a ghost, though the characters won’t know this until the ghost shows itself (see “Janth’s Ghost” below). Speaking in fluent Common, Trex explains that he and his fellow kobolds sought refuge in the mine after being chased out of the foothills of Kelvin’s Cairn by a yeti. The miners got scared and ran off before Trex could explain that the kobolds meant no harm. As long as Trex is possessed by the ghost, he has an impressive vocabulary and speaks only Common.
If the characters engage Trex in conversation, he makes a proposition:
“The everlasting winter has made the wilderness unsafe for my kind, and the preternatural cold dulls our wits. Please, we only want a place to stay so we can keep out of this horrible weather. We can work, and we won’t cause trouble. Termalaine would be richer for having us.”
Any character who succeeds on a DC 13 Wisdom (
If the characters agree to take the kobolds in the mine back to Termalaine, the kobolds act as their allies.
Janth’s Ghost
In life, Janth Alowar was a neutral human sage who devoted himself by cataloguing the flora of Icewind Dale. He and his guide were killed and decapitated by a yeti in the foothills of Kelvin’s Cairn two years ago, and his restless spirit has lingered. The kobolds happened upon the ghost while searching for shelter during a blizzard, allowing it to possess Trex without the other kobolds' knowledge.
The threadbare satchel carried by Trex once belonged to Janth. It contains clumps of moss, lichen, and shrubbery gathered from the foothills of Kelvin’s Cairn and the surrounding tundra. None of the samples are valuable, but the ghost is very possessive of the collection and won’t give up its satchel without a fight.
Janth’s ghost can be laid to rest by destroying the satchel—its last connection to the Material Plane. The ghost otherwise remains as close to the satchel as possible. If the satchel is taken from Trex and discarded, the ghost forsakes its current host and remains near the satchel, hoping to possess someone else.
If Trex is killed, the ghost appears in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the kobold’s body. On its next turn, the ghost tries to possess one of the characters—preferably one who can take up its satchel.
M12. Fossilized Skull and Psi Crystal
A fossilized skull partially juts out of the east wall of this small cave, five feet off the ground. The skull has larger than normal eye sockets, a curious ridge between the eyes, nothing that would pass for a nose, and four small holes where one would expect to see teeth.
The skull embedded in the wall is that of a mind flayer that came up from the Underdark thousands of years ago. How it became lodged in the stone is anyone’s guess. Any character who examines the skull and succeeds on a DC 16 Intelligence (
Treasure
The crystal shard lodged inside the fossilized mind flayer skull is a
A character who attunes to this psi crystal gains a form of indefinite madness (see theindefinite madness in the Dungeon Master’s Guide). Determine the result secretly, then convey this information only to the character’s player. The madness does not end until the character is no longer attuned to the psi crystal. While the madness lasts, the character can hear a repeating telepathic distress signal put out by an illithid ship that crashed in the mountains and track the signal to its source (see “area Id Ascendant"). The only way to block the signal is by ending the character’s attunement to the psi crystal.
M13. Geode Workface
Sparkling geodes greet you as you enter this cavern. The gems are partially exposed in places, sticking out from the walls like glassy shards. The floor rises near the eastern wall, leaving a natural ridge with stone ramps leading upward on either end.
Treasure
A character using a miner’s pick who spends an hour chipping away at the walls can remove an intact geode worth 10 gp. Up to fifty intact geodes can be acquired in this way.
Returning to Termalaine
If the characters return to Speaker Masthew and tell him the mine is cleared of monsters, he thanks them profusely and explains that he must inspect the mine to verify its safety before they can be paid. He encourages the characters to spend a few days in Termalaine while he conducts the investigation.
If there are no more kobolds in the mine and the grell has likewise been dealt with, Oarus returns to the characters the next day and pays them 50 gp for their services. If Trex is still in the mine and Janth’s ghost wasn’t laid to rest, Oarus returns to Termalaine possessed by the ghost. If the kobolds are gone but the grell remains, Oarus is killed by the grell and doesn’t return, leaving the town without a speaker. If the grell is still in the mine when it reopens, a handful of local miners disappear over the next few days before the decision is made to close the mine for good.
If the characters bring the kobolds to Termalaine, Oarus is initially hesitant to let them stay in the town. After hearing about their willingness to work, he decides to give them a chance and offers them menial jobs. The kobolds, eager to prove themselves, turn out to be good workers. The townsfolk tease them at first, but eventually the kobolds win them over. Janth’s ghost, if it hasn’t been laid to rest, finds someone else to possess, causing Trex to revert to his skittish, much less intelligent self.