Frostburn

[IronWolf]

Marrow-chilling conditions, deadly hazards, and other dangers threaten explorers of frostfell environments. Whether traveling through polar regions and frozen mountaintops to ice-glazed dungeons and the Ice Wastes of the Abyss, a wintry grave awaits those who venture forth unprepared.

This supplement for the D&D game explores the impact of arctic conditions and extreme cold-weather environments on every aspect of game play. Along with rules for adapting to, navigating through, and surviving hazardous cold-weather conditions and terrain, Frostburn also includes new spells, feats, magic items, prestige classes, and monsters associated with icy realms.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Frostburn is a new direction for WoTC as it’s an all-purpose environmental sourcebook. This makes it different than a Forgotten Realms of Eberron campaign setting book and even different than the Complete series. Weighing in at 224 full color pages, Frostburn is priced very fairly at $34.95, where most d20 companies don’t have the weight to publish at full color for that price.

Like many WoTC sourcebooks, there is material here for DMs and players. Material focused for player use includes new races, feats, spells, psionic powers, and prestige classes. Some of these races aren’t brand new, but rather, variants on standards like snow elves and glacier dwarves. Others however, like the Neanderthal and uldra, are built from the ground up. One nice feature is that the book notes that there is some overlap between some of the ideas presented here and in other books and notes that when such overlap occurs, such as with the Forgotten Realms and its artic dwarf, to use the setting specific version.

For the Neanderthal, while strong and hardy, they are clumsy and less intelligent than others. They master primitive weapons and have skill bonuses to several skills essential to survival as well as environmental tolerance and while considered human for all effects related to race, are illiterate unless they start off as wizards. Surprisingly, they are a zero level race. Not powerful enough really to be modifier, but easily abused for those looking for a power hitter.

The uldra on the other hand, are small fey creatures who are physically weak, but hardy with great wisdom. They have both darkvision and low-.ight vision, in addition to knowledge (nature) as a class skill with innate Cold Resistance. This cold core of theirs allows them to add frost to their weapons to inflict a little extra damage, in addition to several spell like abilities related to cold. They are a level adjustment +1 though.

For those wondering how their characters will survive or how native core classes are adapted, they’ve included new options. For example, barbarians add their trap sense bonus against the natural hazards of the environment while clerics have several new deities they can follow while sorcerers and wizards get new familiar choices like artic foxes and ravens.

For those looking for new feats, some of these are meant to help characters survive the environment like altitude adaptation, a feat providing a bonus to saving throws against the effects of altitude while others are meant to augment a spellcaster’s cold based spells like Cold Focus, providing a +1 to the DC of all saving throws against spells cast with the cold descriptor and it stacks with Spell Focus and Greater Spell Focus. I found that there were enough feats here to add variety to characters but some may feel that some are too powerful like Piercing Cold, a Metamagic Feat that allows cold spells to damage creatures resistant or to a lesser extend, immune to cold.

In terms of PrCs, I was surprised to see the Cryokineticist, a psionic based PrC. It’s a pleasant surprise to see the Expanded Psionics Handbook supported here.They are similar to the Soul Blade in that they don’t gain psionic power points, but rather, special abilities focused on a particular field, in this case, cold based powers like Glacial Ray or Bolt of Cold. Those looking to really max out an arcane spellcaster with the whole going native thing, have the Frost Mage, a spellcaster who continues to gain spells per day in addition to numerous special abilities. Perhaps a tad too powerful in that it gains spell abilities every level.

Prestige classes include brief background notes, full game mechanics, including requirements, class skills and class features, and sample characters. As always, I’m on the fence about sample characters are I find them useful in a time crunch, but at the same time, think they take up too much space.

The material offers a nice spread. Those interested in the new races may want to build them up using specific PrCs. For example, a Neanderthal fits perfectly into the Primeval class, a fighter-barbarian based PrC with good BAB and Fort Save and special powers relating to it’s feral state. For the Uldra, the Rimefire Witch fits into their background as this is a divine spellcaster that continues to advance and gains certain ice based abilities like Ice Skate, where the Witch can conjure ice skates or Iceberg, a powerful spell introduced in the book.

With new races, feats and PrCs out of the way, we still have outfitting options. This includes new weapons, spells, and psionic powers. Some of the weapons are based on the primitive state of weapons in such a cold climate like the Goad, a pole with a heavy stone mounted at the end or the Iuak, a machete style blade made of bone or stone.

I enjoyed the new exotic materials. The different types of ice, Blue, Rimefire and Stygian, add new depth in terms of options that the GM can add to his game without just adding new magic items. For example, Rimefire Ice can be made into any weapon that could be made out of wood and deals extra cold damage even as it glows in a 20-foot radius.

Spells include new cleric domains cold and winter. Spells are broken up by class then level while arcane spells also have a further breakdown by school. Spells have a nice range of levels, but most of them are lower level. For example, there are eight 3rd level cleric spells and only two 9th level cleric spells or how there are ten 2nd level spells for arcane spellcasters and only three 9th level spells.

Some of these are old variants like Wall of Coldfire, where instead of taking fire damage you take cold damage or others like Flesh to Ice, where you turn the target into ice instead of stone. Others are utility spells like Ease of Breath, providing a bonus to resist altitude sickness or Snow Walk, where you can walk across snow without leaving tracks or scent.

In terms of psionics, we have a few new toys for both psionics and psychic warriors as well as one for the kineticist. These include abilities like Energy Flash where a touch deals 7d6 points of chosen energy damage to Mind Over Energy, where a psychic warrior uses a 6th level power to gain immunity to a chosen element type.

While the section on magic items doesn’t take up a lot of space, there are some nice options like Figurines of Wondrous Power like the Basalt Glyptodon or the Diamond Ice Toad, that add new options. Others are like toys that you’ll want to equip important NPCs with like the Minor Iceheart, a small chunk of ice infused with power that can produce a few ice based effects like Ray of Frost. Unfortunately, while they list the gold piece cost, they don’t include caster cost in terms of gold or experience points, which is sloppy for WoTC as they should be setting the standards in ease of use.

Now while GMs can use all of that information, there are details not focused on augmenting players. The start of the book for instance, deals with all of the hazards that can be inflicted on players. These range from mundane matters of survival to magical hazards. Several locals that are considered Frostfell, any area dominated by ice, snow, and cold, are noted. For example, the 113th and 23rd layers of the Abyss are considered Frostfeel, are certain parts of the Elemental Planes of Air and Water. It’s a nice section that expands upon the tricks a GM has to foil his characters.

For me, my favorite section is the Monsters of the Frostfell. There are numerous challenges here for characters of various levels. These range from new Dire Animals like the Dire Polar Bear, to other ‘old’ animals like the Megaloceros (think really big dear with huge horns), Smilodon (good old Saber-Toothed Tiger), and Woolly Mammoth. Of course no frozen land could be complete without some new undead like the Entombed, a medium sized undead encased in a giant sized suit of ice, almost like a mecha of ice. Another undead, the Yuki-On-Na, looks to be from Eastern lore as it’s a spirit of with a mercurial nature. Another oddity is that the Vodyanoi is no longer a relative of the Umber Hulk but rather, a fey creature.

Another set of tools are the locations, Delzomens Iceforge (EL 5) and Icerazer, an Icebert City. The first is a set of locations including overland map and up close map that the GM can use as a quick adventure, while the latter is a city with overview map and several areas detailed, but most not mapped. These include the Icerazer Palace, a place only for the powerful, as numerous giants and other dangerous creatures make their home there, to the Town Hall with its watchers.

Illustrations in this book are a step in the right direction. Artists like Dan Scott and David Griffith, the latter a long time artist in the d20 field, having work in a Wizards of the Coast book. David Griffith lends the book a nice look as he does several PrCs and handles the weapons and other areas. His Tigerskull Club shows why a Neanderthal with such a weapon would look so vicious. The bad news is that others who are not quite so loved like Dennis Crabapple are also present.

One of the unexpected benefits of this package are the perforated sheets for ice hazards. We have sheets for Razor Drifts, Ice Palace, Crevasse, and Ebony Lake. These are heavy cardstock pages meant to be cut in two as each page has two ice hazards. Full game details are on the back of the card with solid illustrations on the front page.

On the other hand, they overdid it on the encounter tables. We have over twenty pages of encounter tables. Sure, the tables have a lot of utility as they include creatures from the official books like the Monster Manual II, Monster Manual III and Fiend Folio, and a substitution list for those who don’t own those books, but still, over twenty pages?

Overall I enjoyed Frostburn. It’s given me more options to add onto my arsenal. It adds options for players and provides locations for GMs to get into the game as soon as possible. The wide berth of material and support for psionics is a nice touch. I would’ve like to seen the encounter tables cut down and perhaps more locations added, like a castle for the Knights of the Iron Glacier, or perhaps a few racial substitution levels for the new races since it’s unlikely they’ll get their own sourcebooks latter but I’m enjoying using the book and trying to figure out all the places in the Forgotten Realms I can add the material.

 

[Messageboard Golem]

By John Gigsby, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine Rack

Initiative Round
Frostburn is a Dungeons & Dragons supplement from Wizards of the Coast. This 224-page full-color hardcover by Wolfgang Baur, James Jacobs, and George Strayton has wrap-around cover art by artist depicting a frost giant menacing the iconic characters Regdar, Lidda, and a mounted friend I don’t recognize. It features interior art by Steven Belledin, Mitch Cotie, Ed Cox, Steve Ellis, Jason A. Engle, David Griffith, David Hudnut, Dana Knutson, Doug Kovacs, Dennis Crabapple McClain, Dan Scott, and Sam Wood. Frostburn retails for $34.95.

I sometimes wonder if it is coincidence, but then I think, “No, it can’t be.” The only believable answer is that the RPG industry is a fraught with espionage as any other major corporation. How else can you explain similar products being released within a few months of each other? It seems only a few weeks ago that I picked up a copy of Frost and Fur (see my review of that product) from Monkey God Enterprises, and now here I am doing another review of an artic survival manual. But of course, it is really just the result of cocentric development and timing of the releases. Anyhow, I digress...

A frostfell is a region dominated by ice, snow, and extreme cold. This area may be a small as a single dungeon chamber or as large as an entire plane. I mention that only because you’ll hear the word a lot in this review (and within the text of Frostburn). The product opens with an introduction that reveals that tidbit, as well as some ideas of how Frostburn may be put to use in your campaign.

The first chapter describes elements of the frostfell, from conditions of extreme cold to the hazards and features of such. Frostfell environments are greatly varied, and each is detailed herein. High altitudes can be a frostfell environment, as can (obviously) polar reaches and winter conditions. But what about an ice age? Wouldn’t that qualify? Sure it would, and it’s detailed in this product! And then there are the effects of the dire winter (an epic spell presented in Frostburn) and the mysterious (and dangerous) lands of eternal ice, where supernatural effects such as the coldfire and ebony ice are commonplace.

Other places can be regions of frostfell as well. Arctic locales may have natural or shaped snow or ice caverns, and certain dungeons may have been altered through magic to present a frostfell region. Even the planes may offer up icy adventure. At least two layers of the Abyss and three layers of the Nine Hells fit the description, and there are places on the elemental planes of air and water that could easily be considered frostfell.

Though the Dungeon Master’s Guide offers some advice for extremes of temperature, altitude sickness, and avalanches, Frostburn takes it further. Here you will find detailed rules for the effects of extreme cold, temperature variations due to altitude, nightfall, and wind chill, frostbite, hypothermia, getting lost in frostfell conditions, breaking through ice on frozen lakes or rivers, lighting conditions, snow blindness, and whiteouts. There are new poisons and traps, ranging from the mundane to the magical, and unique terrain, each with its own features (including dungeon terrain). Then, too, there are supernatural dangers as well. Supernatural hazards are largely confined to regions of unnatural cold, created by forgotten magics or deific influence. Here, adventurers risk facing dire weather (such as acid sleet, death hail, or rust flurries), diseases such as coldfire ruin and creeping frost, magical terrain like acid slush or negation snow, or supernatural manifestations such as the beautiful (and deadly) rimfire.

Frostburn introduces two new races, along with four new human cultures and four variants of traditional player character races (half-orcs and half-elves remain unchanged). Glacial dwarves, snow elves, ice gnomes, and tundra halflings are basically the ‘stock‘ races with some minor adjustments to better suit the setting. The Neanderthal and the uldra are new to the setting; the Neanderthal being a primitive human variant, and the uldras small fey that dwell in the arctic wilderness. (It seems to me that the uldra were described in an issue of Dragon magazine several years back; a quick check of my index reveals that they were featured in issue #36 and that the ones presented here are quite similar. Gods, I’m old!)

The existing character classes are largely unchanged, save for minor modifications. A list of arctic familiars for wizards and sorcerers native to this region (or summoning a familiar while visiting) opens new options. There are nine “new” deities presented (actually, two are borrowed from the Forgotten Realms, two are taken from Greyhawk, and a third is described in the Book of Vile Darkness) for clerics to choose from. There are no new base classes, but several prestige classes have been offered.

The cloud anchorites are monastic recluses who seek isolation to perfect themselves. Though not exclusively monks, most have at least a little monk in their background. Cryokinetics are masters of cold psionic energy, and disciples of Thrym are devotees of the frost giant lord (most of whom are, of course, frost giant, through the class is not exclusive to such). The frost mage is a wizard who eventually becomes a creature of frost himself, the frostrager is a barbarian whose battle rage infuses his fists with shards of ice, while the Knights of the Iron Glacier are an order dedicated to bringing order to the frostfell. A primeval is a warrior who has tapped his racial memories to forge a bond with an ancient creature, the rimefire witch bonds with the mysterious rimefire eidolon, the stormsinger uses music to control weather conditions, and the winterhaunts of Iborighu seek to bring upon the world a neverending ice age. Each prestige class is accompanied by a sample character that utilizes the class.

There are 32 new feats in Frostburn, most of which are, obviously, best suited to the arctic terrain. All but two are general feats, with six being added to the fighter’s bonus feats list; the remaining two include Craft Skull Talisman (an item creation feat) and Piercing Cold (a metamagic feat). Still, feats such as Cold Focus (which makes cold spells more potent than normal) and Mountaineer (representing a gift for mountain climbing) are useful even outside of the frostfell.

New equipment and magic items abound, from the ice axe and sugliin (a polearm comprised of caribou antlers) to the staff of winter and the instant igloo. Essentials such as crampons make crossing ice much easier, while alchemical items like whale grease serve as a measure of defense against the cold. There are new exotic items and even a selection of new vehicles (and magical augmentations for such). A sidebar details the effects of extreme cold on equipment. Hope that your PC’s aren’t too attached to those swords, scrolls, and potions that they brought with them.

Frostburn offers 100 new spells and a selection of five epic spell seeds that are sure to both benefit and harass your PCs. Two new domains for clerics are described; cold and winter, and there are two new components; coldfire and frostfell. Coldfire is a supernatural substance unique to certain areas of the frostfell, while the frostfell component requires that the caster be standing in a frostfell site. I think that my favorite spell (omitting the epic level seeds) is iceberg, which simply causes a massive block of ice to drop from the sky onto a spot selected by the caster. 20d6 crushing damage and the creature is buried in snow and must make a DC 25 Strength check to free itself or else be dug out by others. It’s not exactly subtle, but it gets the job done.

Frostfell has its share of new monsters to offer as well, from the horse-like branta to the yuki-on-na (imported directly from Oriental Adventures and adapted to 3.5). There are plenty of Pleistocene animals, such as the dire polar bear, the wolly mammoth, and the smilodon (that’s a saber-toothed tiger, don’tcha know?), as well as arctic version of goblins, ghosts, and spiders. The yeti (also from Oriental Adventures) are present, along with a number of unique beasties that are sure to keep your characters on their toes. Most interesting of all are perhaps the frost giants. Frostfell presents three variations on the “standard” frost giant; the frost giant mauler, the frost giant spiritspeaker, and the frost giant tundra scout.

Finally, Frostburn offers two well-detailed sample locations that can serve as adventure sites. These two locales are fully described and could easily be used as is for an impromptu adventure if a DM just wanted to drop a group of unsuspecting characters into the frostfell. Delzomen’s Iceforge describes a dungeon sheathed in the mysterious blue ice, while Iceraver is a devil-haunted city that floats atop a massive iceberg. A table of 20 adventure ideas is also provided for frostfell campaigns.

An appendix provides detailed encounter tables for different types of terrain, for encounter levels 1 through 16. Encounter levels of higher than 16 should not be delegated to random rolls and instead offer some singular encounters that might serve as ideas for expansion. Following the appendix is a quartet of terrain cards designed for use with the D&D Miniatures game. Each has a different frostfell environment (razor drifts, ice palace, crevasse, and ebony lake) and provides rules for standard D&D play, as well as D&D Miniatures effects.

Critical Hit
Though there is plenty here that is to like, I think the things that came across strongest for me are the monsters. It’s rare that I say that, but in this case, it’s true. I love some of these creatures, especially the entombed (an undead corpse encased in ice that makes it the size of an ogre!) and the chilblain (it can freeze you in your tracks, literally!). Those, along with old favorites like the yeti and the frost folk (known as frost men in the original Fiend Folio), make this one book I can’t wait to use!

Critical Fumble
The one thing about Frostburn that left me cold (pun intended) are the encounter tables. They take up 26 pages and, while I admit that they are useful, I take exception to the idea that every EL between 1 and 16 is provided for. Any DM worth his or her dice can adjust an encounter to suit their party, so this is a waste of space that could have been used for more monsters, more showy goodness, or even a few more inserts. I’d rather have seen a list of possible encounters, or even a table for each type of terrain (but not divided by EL), with the rest of this space devoted to other things. In fact, this really could have been reserved as a web supplement and the space used for other things.

I would also like to have seen the frost giant culture expanded on a little more. Three new kinds of frost giants are offered, but they serve as little more than variety. Here was an opportunity to build up the culture and place of these beings in a D&D campaign, and it was missed. Maybe some of the space devoted to the appendix could have been used for this purpose instead.

Coup de Grace
I have to say, between this book and Frost and Fur, I’m very tempted to dig out my old Dragon magazine that detailed ice age adventuring (I think it was issue #68) and set up a campaign. I love winter, myself, and the opportunities for adventure in an arctic environment are just overwhelming, especially when you have a book like Frostburn to help you out. For DMs running campaigns set in the arctic or for those looking to throw their players a real curve, this product is highly recommended. Spells, monsters, magical items, and rules for the hazards unique to this environment make this a winner! As a plus, much of what is found here can be easily adapted to other genres or even other game systems entirely!

It is a WotC product, so there is no Open Game Content, but that doesn’t detract one whit from the usefulness, so don’t let that influence your decision. The artwork is top-notch, as I’ve come to expect from Wizards, and it seems as though this one was actually edited. I noticed relatively few editing errors this time around.

To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments that the reviewer will respond to, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.

 

[John Cooper]

Frostburn
By Wolfgang Baur, James Jacobs, and George Strayton
Wizards of the Coast product number 177580000
224 pages, $34.95

Frostburn is the first in a series of WotC books dealing with different environments (other books in this series include the upcoming Sandstorm and Stormwrack). As evidenced by the title, this one looks at life in the cold environs (called the "frostfell" in this book), whether due to longitude or altitude.

The front cover contains a painting by Sam Wood of a human mounted on a dire stag (a megaloceros, as we'll learn in the monster chapter), charging a feral-looking frost giant. Detail is very nice: I like the skulls woven into the giant's hair and dangling from his belt, and his chain mail is very nicely rendered. Likewise, I enjoyed the megaloceros' barding, and the fact that it has metal spear-tips grafted onto several of its antler-spikes. The artwork wraps around to the back of the book, where we see iconic adventurers Lidda the halfling rogue and Redgar the human fighter. Redgar looks like he's ready to rush into battle, while Lidda seems more preoccupied with just how blasted cold it is. (You can see their breath frosting in the air.) It's a nicely done cover, again a "compromise" between the "painting of an action scene" cover and the "make it look like a magical tome" cover, as Frostburn has the obligatory leather background and inlaid gemstones look that so many WotC books seem to require.

As for the interior artwork, 11 different artists provide 74 color illustrations, 16 monochrome illustrations, and 7 maps/diagrams, plus two half-pages of cardboard tiles for those who play the D&D miniatures game. The artwork is for the most part very good, and there are even two full-page paintings. Best of all, with the exception of the real-world animals like penguins and seals, every monster in the "monsters" chapter is illustrated in full-color, and the pictures very closely match the monsters' descriptions.

Frostburn is laid out as follows:

• Introduction: An explanation of the term "frostfell", ideas on how to incorporate it into your campaign, and a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of the book
• The Frostfell: Frostfell environments, dungeons and cavern complexes, frostfell planes, frostfell hazards, supernatural perils of the frostfell, frostfell traps, and frostfell wilderness and dungeon terrain
• Races, Classes, and Feats: The standard Player's Handbook races and classes in the frostfell, plus two new PC races (the neanderthal and the uldra), and 32 new feats
• Prestige Classes: 10 new prestige classes tied to the frostfell
• Equipment: 11 new weapons, 8 types of gear, 8 alchemical items, 3 types of exotic materials (each a form of magical ice), 4 magical augmentations for vehicles, and 8 vehicles, plus a sidebar detailing the effects of cold on equipment
• Magic of the Frostfell: 2 new cleric domains (Cold and Winter), 101 new spells, 5 new epic spells, 5 new psionic powers, and 22 magic items
• Monsters of the Frostfell: Stats for 55 new creatures (3 of which are templates)
• Adventure Sites: Maps and brief adventures for a dungeon attached to a cave network (Delzoman's Iceforge) and an iceberg city (Icerazer)
• Appendix (Encounter Tables): 26 pages of encounter tables of monsters from this book, the Monster Manual, Monster Manual II, Monster Manual III, and Fiend Folio (with replacements from the Monster Manual for those without the other books), broken down by CR and terrain
• Cardstock tiles:4 locales (crevasse, ebony lake, ice palace, and razor drifts), each a 5-by-7 grid for use with miniatures

It's worth noting that there is no index in the back, but that the Table of Contents in the front is very detailed and will likely do very well as a stand-in.

I'm happy to report that proofreading and editing jobs in Frostburn were for the most part very well done. I didn't note the first mistake until page 18, which was a welcome change from recent reviewing episodes. The only proofreading/editing errors I noticed were comparatively little things: instances of a header not being in bold font, nonstandardized capitalization within a table, a character illustration being annotated with a slightly different name than the one used in the text ("Norrek Neversleep" vs. "Korrek Neversleep"), two instances of a missing word from a sentence, a period missing from the end of a sentence, a missing multiplication sign creating a very deadly spell indeed (as written, it calls for "1d610" points of damage; I'll bet that's supposed to be "1d6 x 10" instead - and if not, I'm having a difficult time visualizing a 610-sided die!), one instance of improper alphabetization (ring of floating should come before ring of the icy soul), an extra closing parenthesis showing up in an Armor Class stat block line, the lack of a space between one sentence's end and the beginning of the next one, an extra space after a slash, and a "38" missing from one of the maps in the back. All in all, nothing too bad, and nothing that's going to ruin your enjoyment or understanding of the material in the book.

As for the material itself, it's functional and it gets the job done, but I felt quite a bit of it seemed very much like filler, and reading through it I got the feeling that the authors were kind of "coasting" on some sections. For example, Chapter 1 has some very nice hazards and traps relating to frostfell environments, and they covered concepts like snowblindness, hypothermia, and frostbite very well, but the magical stuff seemed very "forced" to me. Concepts like "quickslush," "death hail," "acid sleet," "rust flurries," "negation snow," and "lightning ice pillars" seemed to me like the authors just tried grafting every possible damage form onto snow. (I wonder if we're going to get concepts like "electrosand" and "antimagic dunes" in Sandstorm?) None of it struck me as very inventive.

I felt the same way about many of the spells, as well. 101 new spells seems very impressive at first glance, until you start noticing the similarities between some of these "new" spells and standard spells from the Player's Handbook. For instance:

FROSTBURN SPELL (PLAYER'S HANDBOOK SPELL)
binding snow (entangle)
cometstrike (meteor swarm)
flesh to ice (flesh to stone)
ice shape (stone shape)
ice slick (grease)
ice to flesh (stone to flesh)
ice web (web)
Leomund's tiny igloo (Leomund's tiny hut)
meld into ice (meld into stone)
numbing sphere (flaming sphere)
obscuring snow (obscuring mist)
wall of coldfire (wall of fire)

Now, that's not to say that there aren't some creative spells in Frostburn that fit in nicely with the environmental topic (animate snow, for instance, allows the druid caster to create the "deranged mutant killer monster snow goons" of "Calvin and Hobbes" fame, and with the ice castle spell you can create your own "Fortress of Solitude," just like Superman), but it was disappointing to see so many spells in which so little effort was apparently put in their creation. (I also noticed the winter's embrace spell description uses the phrase "cling tenaciously" - is anyone else reminded of "Powdered Toast Man" from "Ren & Stimpy" when they hear that phrase? "Cling tenaciously to my buttocks!")

The new magic items were pretty bland for the most part, but I really liked the concept of the skull talismans as an alternative to potions (which, as you'd expect, would freeze in most frostfell environments, making drinking them problematic at best). Not only does it work around an inherent problem with the cold lands (potions freeze), but it also neatly explains why so many monsters run around with human skulls on their belts (or woven in their hair, like our giant friend on the cover).

Of the two new character races, I liked the neanderthal better than the uldra; maybe it's because so much of the "frostfell" environment is so nicely geared towards an "Ice Age" campaign, but the neanderthal seemed like a natural fit. (Plus, it's nice to have a logical barbarian race besides the poor old half-orc.) The uldra was interesting - the option of playing a fey PC might open up some intriguing possibilities - but beyond having druid as their favored class they struck me as pretty much blue-skinned halflings or gnomes.

The prestige classes were pretty well done; I especially liked the frostrager, whose blood becomes freezing cold, allowing all of his wounds to freeze over (which automatically stabilizes him when he's brought down to negative hit points, and makes him immune to wounding effects from swords of wounding and the like). He also sweats ice, giving him a +4 natural armor bonus when he rages. Very flavorful, don't you think? I can't wait to throw some of these guys up against my PCs. I'm not personally a fan of psionics, but it was nice to see a psionics-based prestige class (the criokineticist) and some new psionic powers for those who do enjoy psionics in their campaigns. I also liked the way the Rimefire Witch and Winterhaunt of Iborighu prestige classes are based on rival deities who hate each other; all sorts of built-in plot hooks right there.

The new monsters range from the logical ones you'd expect to find in a book about cold environments (saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths, ice golems, white puddings), to variations on existing monsters (snow golems, three new frost giants, glacier dwarves), to updated-to-3.5 monsters from Oriental Adventures (yeti, yuki-on-na, ice toads), to "what the heck?" creatures like the two-eel-headed manta ray "snowcloaks" and the 8-legged, 3-pincered, 6-tendril/mouthed "shivhad." All in all, it's a pretty good spread (besides the few "what the heck?" monsters), and all are at least appropriate for the frostfell environment. However, quite a few of them had stat errors, as did many of the NPC stats sprinkled throughout the book. (Frostburn came out before WotC hired additional developers to fix the rampant stat block mistakes that has troubled so many of their recent books.) I recommend making the following changes:

• p. 54, Thuu Verrek, halfling monk 6/cloud anchorite 5: As a Small humanoid, Thuu's ki strike damage should be 1d6+3, not 1d8+3 (as it would be if Thuu were a Medium humanoid), or 1d10+3 as it's listed under Full Attack. [Another "mistake" was deleted after an oversight on my part was pointed out.]
• p. 56, Ballarak Shardcraver, dwarf psion (kineticist) 5/criokineticist 2: Attack and Full Attack should list "or +4 melee (1d10/x3, masterwork dwarven waraxe" as an option. "Glacial touch" special attack is called "glacial ray" in the prestige class description. Finally, his last name should be "Shardcarver," as that's what he's called throughout the rest of his text description.
• p. 58, Naush, frost giant disciple of Thrym 4: Greataxe attacks should be at +25 melee, not +26 (+14 BAB, -1 size, +9 Str, +1 Weapon Focus, +2 magic weapon bonus). Likewise, under Full Attack, it should be at +25/+20/+15 melee, not +26/+21+16. Rock attacks should be at +13 ranged, not +14 (+14 BAB, -1 size). Also, there's no need to mention that he'll have fire resistance 10 at 6th level in his description, as he's currently only a 4th-level disciple of Thrym.
• p. 62, Korrek Neversleep, half-orc barbarian 6/frostrager 5: HD should be 11d12+22, not 9d12+18. Average hit points should therefore be 93, not 76. Flat-footed AC should be 16, not 15 (he keeps his Dex mod when flat-footed due to his Uncanny Dodge). When raging, his hit points should be 115, not 98, and his flat-footed AC should be 20, not 19.
• p. 64, Tharakus, human paladin 6/Knight of the Iron Glacier 3: Reflex save should be +5, not +4 (+2 as a paladin 6, +1 as a Knight of the Iron Glacier 3, +0 Dex, +2 Charisma bonus from Divine Grace).
• p. 64, Toecleft, War Megaloceros: AC and flat-footed AC should both be 23, not 26 (-1 size, +8 half-plate barding +1, +6 natural).
• p. 67, Gruth, Neanderthal barbarian 8/primeval 3: Greatclub attacks should be at +18 melee (or +18/+13/+8 melee for Full Attack), not +17 (or +17/+12/+7 for Full Attack) (+11 BAB, +4 Str, +2 magic weapon bonus, +1 racial bonus due to Primitive Weapon Mastery). HD left out the +3 hp from the Toughness feat. Flat-footed AC should be 17, not 16 (Uncanny Dodge allows him to keep his Dex modifier even when flat-footed). In primeval form, his physical characteristics should be Str 32, Dex 16, Con 21, not Str 33, Dex 17, Con 22. (The rule is to take 10 or 11 from the animal's physical characteristics and add that to the primeval's. A dire wolf has Str 25; 25-11=14; Gruth has Str 18; 18+14=32. A dire wolf has Dex 15; 15-11=4; Gruth has Dex 12; 12+4=16. A dire wolf has Con 17; 17-11=6, Gruth has Con 15; 15+6=21.) Reflex saves should be +4, not +2 (+2 for barbarian 8, +1 for primeval 3, +1 Dex). Will saves should be +3, not +1 (+2 for barbarian 8, +1 for primeval 3, +0 Wis). When raging, greatclub attacks should be at +20 melee, not +19; flat-footed AC should be 15, not 14; and Will saves should be +5, not +3.
• p. 69, Skycornice, uldra cleric 9/rimefire witch 10: Speed should be 15 feet, not 20 feet (20 feet base speed as an uldra, but reduced to 15 feet for her full plate).
• p. 113, Branta: The AC line is missing the touch and flat-footed values; they should be touch 11, flat-footed 12.
• pp. 114-115, Chilblain: Tail slap damage is 4d6+9 plus 2d6 cold under Attack, but 4d6+9 plus 4d6 cold under Full Attack. It should be 4d6+9 plus 2d6 cold in both cases. Also, I'm not sure why this creature was given a fly speed, as it doesn't have wings and the creature's description doesn't explain how it flies without them.
• p. 115, Dire Polar Bear: Claw attacks should be at +26 melee, not +25 (+13 BAB, -2 size, +14 Str, +1 Weapon Focus).
• p. 116, Glyptodon: With HD 10d8+33, average hit points should be 78, not 72. Tail damage should be 2d6+5/x3, not just 2d6+5/3. (You need that multiplication sign for it to make sense!)
• p. 118, Smilodon: Claw attacks should be at +7 melee, not +10 (+6 BAB, -1 size, +7 Str, -5 for secondary attack), or else it should have Multiattack as a bonus feat.
• p. 119, Woolly Mammoth: Initiative should be -1, not +0 (it has a Dex 8).
• pp. 121-122, Domovoi: The stats say it has a +4 Level Adjustment; the PC Race section says it's a +2 Level Adjustment.
• p. 123, Glacial Dwarf warrior 1: Grapple attacks should be at +2, not +1 (+1 BAB, +1 Str). Waraxe attacks should be at +2 melee, not +1 (+1 BAB, +1 Str).
• p. 124, Dwarf, Midgard: Under "Magical Items," "+2 chain shirt" should be "+2 mithral shirt."
• p. 126, Ice Weird: This isn't a stat block error, just a conceptual one: as written, an ice weird can control an infinite number of elementals!
• pp. 127-128, Snow Weird: Ditto.
• p. 132, Ghost, 3rd-level human sorcerer: Initiative should be +6, not +5 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative). Also, shouldn't his frigid touch attack be +3 touch, instead of +3 melee? Finally, no Advancement is given; I presume it's "-"
• p. 134, Frost Giant Mauler: Flat-footed AC should be 23, not 22 (he keeps his Dex modifier due to Uncanny Dodge). When raging, his flat-footed AC should be 21, not 20.
• p. 135, Frost Giant Tundra Scout: In the Attack line, rock damage should be 2d6+9, not 2d6+8.
• p. 140, Ice Toad: With HD 5d10+15, average hit points should be 42, not 37. Bite damage (including when it uses its swallow whole ability) should be 2d6+4, not 2d6+6 (it has a +4 Str mod, but since the bite isn't its only natural attack it shouldn't get the 1.5 multiple).
• p. 144, Malasynep Mindmage: Flat-footed Ac should be 15, not 17 (-2 size, +7 natural).
• p. 146, Orc, Snow Shaman: Morningstar attacks should be at +2 melee, not +0 (+1 BAB, +1 Str).
• p. 147, White Pudding: For some reason, the "Speed" line is called "Movement" instead.
• pp. 152-153, Shivhad: The asterisked note for the AC and Reflex save entries states the +6 bonus is included in the stats, but it isn't. On its own glacier, a shivhad should have AC 40, touch 14, flat-footed 38, and Ref +16.
• p. 154, Snow Spider, Large: It has 4 HD, yet Advancement starts with "6-9 HD (Large)."
• p. 159, Urskan: I'm just surprised that a humanoid bear that wears armor and uses weapons is still considered a magical beast and not a monstrous humanoid.
• p. 160, Vodyanoi: It has 5 HD, yet Advancement line reads "7-10 HD (Medium)."
• p. 163, Abominable Yeti: Initiative should be +2, not +1 (+2 Dex).
• p. 164, Yuki-on-na: With 8 HD, she should have 3 feats, not just 2.
• p. 166, Seal: Grapple attacks should be at +2, not +3 (+1 BAB, +1 Str).
• p. 166, Walrus: Base Attack Bonus should be +3, not +2 (as a 5-HD animal). Grapple attacks should be at +10, not +9 (+3 BAB, +4 size, +3 Str). Bite attacks should be at +5 melee, not +4 (+3 BAB, -1 size, +3 Str).
• p. 174, Simulacrum Dire Bear: With HD 6d8+27, for it to have 75 hp it had to have rolled the maximum on each die! (This isn't necessarily an error, just something I wanted to point out.)
• p. 180, Azediel, female harpy rogue 4/assassin 10: Touch AC should be 20, not 19 (+8 Dex, +2 deflection). Flat-footed AC should be 21, not 14 (due to Uncanny Dodge). Also, her title should include the fact that she's a half-fiend!
• pp. 183-184, Narlael, male tiefling cleric 8 of Levistus/thaumaturgist 5: Initiative should be +2, not +1 (+2 Dex). AC should be 26, not 25 (+2 Dex, +8 breastplate with magic vestment spell, +5 heavy steel shield with magic vestment spell, +1 amulet of natural armor). Touch AC should be 12, not 11 (+2 Dex).
• pp. 185-186, Tumakus, male half-orc rogue 7/fighter 7: Grapple attacks should be at +20, not +19 (+12 BAB, +4 Str, +4 Improved Grapple).
• pp. 191-192, Glorkakus, female marzanna rogue 8: Flat-footed AC should be 27, not 25 (due to Uncanny Dodge).
• p. 196, Half-White Dragon Remorhazes: Fortitude DC for the Heat special quality should be DC 19, not DC 18 (10 + 1/2 HD + Con mod, or 10+3+6). Swallow whole internal AC should be 17, not 15 (10 + 1/2 natural armor bonus, or 10+7).

The two adventure locales in the back were nicely done (well, except for the stat blocks of many of the creatures!), and could easily be scaled for a variety of levels (especially since the authors leave much of the treasure up to the DM). It was nice to see so many of the new concepts from the book (new creatures, blue ice, even one of the sample NPCs straight from the prestige class section) used in the adventures.

The Encounter Tables in the back seemed very thorough, and I commend the authors for putting in Monster Manual substitute creatures for those who don't have all of the other WotC "monster" books - doing it this way should please the maximum number of people, because those with all of the books get a very comprehensive set of random encounter tables (tailored not only to Challenge Rating, but also individual terrain types), while those without don't feel cheated. This was an excellent decision, and I hope it remains the standard for the rest of the books in this "environment" series.

All in all, even though the authors managed to capture the "frostfell" material pretty well, there was quite a lot about Frostburn that really disappointed me, and I'm not just talking stat block errors. I really think that this book would have been a better product if they hadn't felt constrained to fill up the page count to a specified level, because a good chunk of the book comes across (to me, at least) as space-eating filler that not a whole lot of time or effort was put into. I wouldn't mind at all if Sandstorm only ended up being, I don't know, 180 pages or something if it meant only putting in the really solid material and cutting out the chaff. I give Frostburn an overall rating of a high "3 (Average)" - it wasn't bad, but it was nowhere near as good as it could (or should) have been.