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The Coldglass Tower - AI-generated fantasy Quest

The Coldglass Tower

Quests
5 scenes · about 3.5 hours · 3 encounters

The Coldglass Tower

A dead mage's tower holds the one relic Phandalin needs, and something inside wants it carried out.

Read aloud

Toblen Stonehill spreads a hand-drawn map across the inn's counter. The ruined mage tower above the trail is said to hold magic that could turn aside a dragon's freezing breath, but the last three people who went looking for it never returned. He offers coin for anything useful and asks you to bring back the tower's brass survey plate, if you find it.

Run the session

Scene
1/5
A Map and a Warning
Objectives
0/3
Objectives
A complication

Cheat sheet

Objectives

  1. 1Find a safe route into the mage tower.
  2. 2Recover a relic that can help the party withstand Cryovain.
  3. 3Recover Mira's missing brother's survey plate.Optional

The clock

Each time the party takes a short rest inside the tower, roll a d6. On a 1, an additional wandering threat arrives or a nearby ward activates. After two short rests, Malrec becomes aware of the party's exact location and prepares his offer in the reliquary.

Scenes

  1. 0:00A Map and a Warning
  2. 0:30The Ridge of Broken Stone
  3. 1:05The Fallen Vestibule
  4. 1:50The Astral Lens
  5. 2:40The Reliquary of Coldglass

Cast

  • Toblen StonehillQuestgiver
  • Mira WrenWitness and ally
  • Malrec, the Ashen RemnantAntagonist

The hook

Set the scene

Toblen Stonehill hires the party in the Stonehill Inn. Mira Wren, a nervous local mapmaker, provides a rough route to the tower and explains that her brother vanished while surveying its approach. At the ridge, the tower's upper floors are exposed to the sky, and a pale blue pulse occasionally flickers from a lower window. Characters can scout the entrance, examine boot tracks, or proceed directly to the fallen vestibule.

How Toblen Stonehill asks

Toblen approaches the party at the Stonehill Inn after hearing they are willing to take on dangerous work.

Rumours

Roll a rumour

1“The old tower was built by a mage who could freeze rain in midair.”
2“A brass plate bearing a surveyor's seal vanished with a local mapmaker's brother.”
3“Blue light has been seen in the tower windows on nights when the air is clear.”
4“A trader claims the tower's treasure includes a charm against dragon breath, though no one can name who first told the story.”

Scenes

about 3.5 hours

  1. 0:00

    30 min

    socialThe table is here

    1. A Map and a Warning

    The Stonehill Inn in Phandalin, with the tower ridge visible on a map spread across the table.

    The party meets Toblen and Mira, learns the practical stakes, and gets the choice to accept the optional survey-plate search.

    NextMira provides directions to the ridge. The party can buy supplies in Phandalin before traveling to the tower.

  2. 0:30

    35 min

    exploration

    2. The Ridge of Broken Stone

    A rocky ridge above the Triboar Trail, with ruined stonework, scree slopes, and a broken tower wall.

    The party navigates a steep approach, spots signs of recent scavengers, and chooses whether to enter through the obvious rubble or search for an alternate opening.

    NextTracks and a cold blue glow lead to the western vestibule.

  3. 1:05

    45 min

    combat

    3. The Fallen Vestibule

    The tower's collapsed ground floor, where broken furniture and old defensive statuary choke the entrance hall.

    The party clears the entry hall and learns that the tower's dead and constructs still defend its old passages.

    The Fallen Vestibule

    NextA carved star map points toward an upper observatory and a sealed stairwell descending to the reliquary.

  4. 1:50

    50 min

    combat

    4. The Astral Lens

    A circular chamber beneath a broken glass dome. The orrery's moving rings project a route to the vault when aligned.

    The party crosses the observatory's unstable floor, fights its guardians, and can examine the orrery to discover how the tower's cold wards work.

    The Astral Lens Chamber

    NextAligning the orrery opens the stair to the warlock's reliquary; a DC 13 Intelligence (Arcana) check or careful experimentation reveals the solution.

  5. 2:40

    60 min

    combat

    5. The Reliquary of Coldglass

    A buried vault containing the frostglass prism, a reflective black pool, and the mirror that anchors Malrec's will.

    Malrec offers a bargain, then fights to keep the party from taking the prism. Characters can attempt to destroy the mirror anchor during or after the battle.

    The Warlock's Reliquary

    NextThe party can return to Phandalin with the prism, pursue further exploration of the tower, or decide the fate of Malrec's anchor.

Behind it

What people believe

The Coldglass Tower is a ruined mage's stronghold on a ridge near Phandalin.

Background

Long before Phandalin was rebuilt, the mage Avarra Voss raised a narrow tower on a ridge above the Triboar Trail.

The stakes

Without an advantage against Cryovain's cold, Phandalin's defenders may not survive a direct confrontation.

Encounters

3

  • The Fallen Vestibule

    Combat

    A rubble-choked entry hall with two waist-high stone counters, a broken staircase, and a narrow side passage. The rubble is difficult terrain.

    Foes

    • 2 ghouls

    • 1 animated armor

    ComplicationA toppled statue blocks the safest route. Moving it takes a combined DC 13 Strength check; failure makes noise that alerts the remaining guards.

    ScalingFor a three-character level 3 party, use 1 ghoul and the animated armor with reduced hit points. For a level 5 party, add 1 ghoul. The animated armor is a standard D&D 5E creature; the ghouls are standard creatures.

  • The Astral Lens Chamber

    Combat

    A round observatory with a cracked glass dome, a waist-high brass orrery, and a 10-foot pit beneath a broken floor section. Characters can cross the pit by jumping or use the orrery as cover.

    Foes

    • 2 ice mephits

    ComplicationEach time a character touches a rune, the frost-marked floor flashes. A character who fails a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw falls prone and slides 10 feet toward a pit.

    ScalingFor a level 3 party, use 1 ice mephit. For a level 5 party, use 3. Ice mephits are standard D&D 5E creatures. The rune hazard is a custom feature and deals no damage by itself.

  • The Warlock's Reliquary

    Combat

    A rectangular vault with four stone pillars, a raised dais, and a mirror-black pool. The pool is difficult terrain and its surface reflects a clear image of whoever looks into it.

    Foes

    • Malrec, the Ashen Remnant, a custom spectral spellcaster

    • 2 skeletons

    ComplicationMalrec can offer a character a vision of victory against Cryovain. Accepting the vision grants advantage on one check made in the room, but the character must then succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened of Malrec until the end of their next turn.

    ScalingFor a level 3 party, Malrec has 22 hit points, can use his frost bolt twice, and there is 1 skeleton. For a level 4 party, use the listed version: Malrec has 32 hit points, frost bolt three times, and 2 skeletons. For a level 5 party, Malrec has 40 hit points, frost bolt four times, and 2 skeletons. Frost bolt is a custom ranged spell attack dealing 2d6 cold damage, reduced to 1d6 for the level 3 version. Malrec is an adventure-specific custom creature, not an official D&D 5E stat block.

Cast

3

  • Toblen Stonehill

    QuestgiverQuestgiver

    WantsWants Phandalin's defenders to survive Cryovain and is willing to finance a dangerous expedition.

    “If a relic in that tower can keep one of you standing when the dragon breathes, then bring it back. I will pay for the chance.”

  • Mira Wren

    Witness and ally

    WantsWants to recover her missing brother's survey notes and prevent further deaths near the tower.

    “The stones are listening. If you hear your name from a wall, do not answer it.”

  • Malrec, the Ashen Remnant

    Antagonist

    WantsThe surviving will of the warlock Malrec wants a living bearer for the tower's cold-binding focus, so he can escape his ruined prison and regain power.

    “The dragon is merely the newest claimant. Give me the key, and I will teach you how to make winter kneel.”

How it ends

Rewards

Experience: Award experience appropriate to the party's level for defeated creatures and completed objectives. As a milestone option, count the expedition as a major step toward the next level if the party retrieves the prism and returns to Phandalin.
Gold: 60 gp total from Toblen for the prism and survey plate, plus approximately 75 gp in mixed coins and trade bars found in the tower.
In the story: The party gains a concrete tool and useful information for the campaign against Cryovain. Toblen can arrange to have the prism mounted in a shield or pendant without changing its properties.
Standing: Phandalin's residents regard the party as protectors. Toblen can introduce them to local leaders and offer safe lodging. If they recover Mira's survey plate, she provides maps of nearby trails and gains a lasting ally.

Items

  • Frostglass Prism, a custom wondrous item. While carried, it can be used once per day as a reaction when its bearer takes cold damage to gain resistance to that instance of cold damage. The prism cannot be used again until the next dawn.

  • Potion of healing, standard D&D 5E item.

  • Spell scroll of protection from energy, standard D&D 5E item; the spell requires concentration as normal.

  • A silvered dagger and a pouch of 25 gp.

On a win

The party leaves the tower with the frostglass prism, a useful cache of magic, and a route back to Phandalin.

What it leaves open

The prism's surface sometimes reflects a dark figure standing behind its bearer, even when no one is there.
A surviving ward inscription names a second tower ruin somewhere in the Sword Mountains.
Mira's recovered survey plate shows a hidden trail leading toward a place where Cryovain was recently seen.

If it fails

The expedition is abandoned or the party cannot overcome the tower's hazards.
The party retreats or is forced out before claiming the relics. Mira can guide them back to Phandalin, but the tower's monsters remain and Malrec repairs one ward before their next attempt.
The party leaves the focus behind or makes a bargain that lets Malrec take it.
Malrec escapes through the tower's old scrying mirror with the cold-binding focus. Cryovain remains a threat, and Malrec may later appear as an independent rival seeking the dragon's power.
The party repeatedly triggers the tower's structural hazards or ignores a warning sign.
A character is caught in a collapsing passage and loses equipment or is separated from the group until rescued. The party can still complete the adventure, but must spend time and resources on the rescue.

Complications (d6)

  1. 1A cracked ward releases a wave of numbing chill. Each character in the exposed area must make a DC 12 Constitution saving throw or have their speed reduced by 10 feet until the end of their next turn.
  2. 2A ceiling slab drops into the passage, dividing the group. A character can clear a narrow route with a DC 13 Strength check, or find a side route with a DC 12 Investigation check.
  3. 3A crawling hand snatches one unsecured small object and retreats into a wall crack. It can be caught with a DC 12 Dexterity check or tracked to a nearby dead end.
  4. 4A false whisper imitates Mira's voice and calls from a sealed room. The sound is an illusion; opening the room releases a cloud of choking dust and reveals no speaker.
  5. 5The tower's remaining light gutters out for one minute. Creatures without darkvision have disadvantage on sight-based Perception checks, while a faint blue glow marks the nearest active ward.
  6. 6A hungry carrion crawler has followed the party's scent through a broken vent. It attacks the last character in the marching order, then tries to drag its prey toward its nest.

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