Written by: Alex LeFort
If you've been looking for a formidable foe for a cold session for your players, you might be wondering how to run a remorhaz encounter. Check out our guide, and a fantastic ice and snow map to use for a remorhaz fight.
In the heart of the icy expanse lies a predator as ancient as the frostbitten wilderness —the remorhaz. This colossal beast, often likened to a serpentine dragon, thrives in the arctic's harsh climes. Its chitinous body glimmers with an otherworldly sheen, hues of chilling blues and whites masking the infernal furnace that rages within. The remorhaz is a creature of paradox, embodying the icy facade of its home while harbouring an internal heat so intense that the snow around it melts, revealing the scorched earth beneath its belly.
The “Arctic Expedition - Blood Trail” provides a treacherous canvas for a remorhaz encounter. The creature could feature as a random encounter during overland travel, or the party may have been explicitly requested to find a ship that went missing during its polar exploration. Either way, the party is eventually greeted by a grisly scene—a ship lodged in the ice, scattered provisions, and the surrounding snow streaked with blood. Nearby snowmelt is a sign of the remorhaz’s presence; it has dislodged the ship that was previously locked into the ice of a frozen lake.
The moment the party gets close enough to the ship to investigate the scene, the remorhaz strikes, bursting forth from beneath the ship and bearing down upon the group. Running this scenario includes the potential for several environmental effects:
- The ship is damaged in the aftermath of the remorhaz’s ambush of the party. Its mast is fractured and will collapse in 1d3 rounds, dealing 10d10 bludgeoning damage to any creatures caught in its path.
- The remorhaz uses its burrow speed to dive beneath the ice and then emerge beneath the feet of a party member. If the party member is standing atop the frozen surface of the lake, this plunges them into the water below. For every round a party member spends in the lake, they take 1d8 cold damage and must make a successful DC 10 Constitution saving throw or gain one level of exhaustion.
- If any party members attempt to take cover in the ship, or alternatively, if the remorhaz waits for the party to enter the vessel before it attacks, it attempts to drag the ship underwater over three rounds to make the party easy pickings.
- The intense heat of the remorhaz meeting the cold air as it moves through ice and snow creates thick clouds of steam. These clouds can obscure vision, creating heavily obscured areas. The remorhaz’s senses are not impacted by the obscurity.
Generally, you want to avoid running a single unmodified creature statblock against the party if you’re looking to create a challenging encounter. You can add a second remorhaz to this encounter or consider the following modifications to the existing remorhaz statblock to create an engaging fight:
- New Ability: Steam Burst (Recharge 5-6): As a bonus action, the remorhaz can release a scalding burst of steam from its body in a 15-foot radius. Each creature in that area must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, taking 14 (4d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
- New Ability: Icy Spill (2/day). When the remorhaz takes more than 30 damage in a single turn from a creature within 5 feet of it, it can use its reaction to unleash a freezing burst of icy enzymes. The attacker must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or take 18 (4d8) cold damage and have their speed reduced by 10 feet until the end of their next turn due to the numbing cold. On a successful save, the creature takes half as much damage and does not suffer the reduction in speed.
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