Counter Ben - Frostgrave: tales of the frozen city

This electronic edition published in 2015 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

First published in Great Britain in 2015 by Osprey Publishing,

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You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

Transferred to digital print on demand 2015

First published 2015

1st impression 2015

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Print ISBN: 978-1-4728-1553-8

PDF e-book ISBN: 978-1-4728-1554-5

EPUB e-book ISBN: 978-1-4728-1555-2

C ONTENTS

F OREWORD

Its hard to say exactly where ideas come from. In the case of Frostgrave, the Frozen City, it began with my search for a suitable setting for a fantasy skirmish wargame I was writing for Osprey. I had many discussions about it with the games editor, Phil Smith. We knew that it needed to be someplace exotic, some place that had a bit of inherent magic. We discussed all the classic possibilities lost desert cities, vast temple complexes in the jungle, even an underground world. All of these have long traditions in fantastical fiction, but were discarded for one reason or another.

I cant remember who first mentioned the idea of a frozen city, but once it was out there, my imagination couldnt let go of the idea. A few years ago, I booked a romantic weekend getaway for me and my wife to Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. With its incredibly preserved medieval old town and its large Russian Orthodox churches, I figured it would be a wonderful place to visit. In my enthusiasm, however, I failed to do the proper research and booked the trip in February, when the average temperature is -10 Celsius. As it turned out, the temperature never got that high during our trip...

It snowed about a foot the night we landed in Tallinn and turned that beautiful, medieval city into something truly magical. True, we could only see it in short bursts, exploring in wonder, until our freezing fingers and numb faces forced us into a coffee house. Because of the snow, the city was quiet and seemed empty, almost as though it had frozen over and been forgotten.

Well, Im not saying that Frostgrave is based on Tallinn, exactly, but I am sure that trip had a profound influence on my creation of the Frozen City. Now, with the game released, I hope people will find a similar enchantment in the setting and tell their own stories of adventures amongst the ruins.

Its amazing to see this collection of stories based on something I created, and to read tales set in Frostgrave that I could never have imagined. Hopefully, this collection is only the beginning and we will all see many more stories of the Frozen City.

T HE LEGEND OF FROSTGRAVE

Long ago, the great city of Felstad sat at the centre of a magic empire. Its towering spires, labyrinthine catacombs, and immense libraries were the wonder of the age and potions, scrolls, and mystical items of all descriptions poured forth from its workshops. Then, one cataclysmic night, a mistake was made. In some lofty tower or dark chamber, a foolish wizard unleashed a magic too powerful to control. A storm rose up an epic blizzard that swallowed the city whole, burying it deep and leaving the area as nothing more than a vast, frozen wasteland. The empire was shattered and its magic faded. As the centuries came and went, Felstad passed from history to legend and on into myth. Only a few wizards, clinging to the last remnants of magic knowledge, still believed that the lost city had ever actually existed. But their faith was rewarded.

After a thousand years, the fell winter has passed. The snows have receded, and Felstad has been uncovered. Its buildings lie in ruins, overrun by undead creatures and magic constructs, the legacy of the empires experiments. It is an evil, dangerous place. To the few hardy souls who inhabit the nearby villages, the city has acquired a new name Frostgrave and is shunned by all right-thinking people. For those who seek power and riches, however, it is an unparalleled opportunity, a deadly maze concealing secrets of knowledge long forgotten...

THE BARGAIN

Matt Ward

Markos risked a glance around the flank of the pillar, into the ruined cloister. Reinharts twitching corpse lay half-hidden in a bloodstained snow drift, the spear that had taken his life still lodged in his chest. A dozen skeletons stood around the body, shreds of barrow-garb twitching in the wind.

The midnight wind grew in pitch. It whistled through the gaping holes in the roof, driving gusts of snow across the cloister and rattling the few surviving stained glass windows.

Damn Reinhart, anyway! Hed been supposed to scout the monastery before signalling the rest of the company to follow. Now the captain and his men were dead, and Markos was alone. All because Reinhart hadnt paid attention.

That wasnt true, Markos knew that. Reinhart had been a perfectly competent sword-hand, a veteran of twenty expeditions. No, it wasnt fair to blame him, but Markos wasnt feeling particularly fair. Cold, frustrated, and more than a little afraid, but not fair.

Markos risked another glance around the pillar. As one, the skeletons turned to look in his direction, a dozen fleshless heads swivelling towards the pillar.

Draga! Theyd follow him all across the city now theyd noticed him Markos had seen it too many times before. Press on to the temple, or flee to safety? That was the question. There was no choice, not really. It might be weeks before he could round up enough hirelings to attempt another expedition, weeks in which someone else might find the place. Of course, Markos had no idea how hed defeat the guardian alone...

Markos reached into his pocket and closed a hand around the ruby amulet. He felt the warmth of its magic melt away the cold, and a little of his fear. It was all hed been able to recover before the temples guardian had driven him away. It had been his touchstone ever since. He could even have sworn that the amulet was alive, after a fashion. If he could just unlock its secrets... And there were others like it in the temple. He had to get back there. He just had to.

Markos scrabbled in the snow with his free hand, numbed fingers seizing on a fist-sized lump of rock. Holding tight, he let the magic well up inside him, and sent it flooding through his fingers. At once, the rock began to glow. Markos smiled. Sometimes the simplest spells were the best. He counted to three and stepped out from behind the pillar.

Here, catch!

Markos lobbed the rock. The lead skeleton stared blankly at it, then disintegrated as a deafening explosion shook the cloister. Markos saw two more blown apart by the shockwave, heard fragments of bone clacking off the walls. The others were knocked off their feet. Theyd be on their feet soon enough, but every delay was welcome.