Ice Queen's Realm

The Ice Queen's Realm is a dungeon branch that appears in EvilHack, and consists of three levels with fixed maps. All three levels are no-teleport levels, with undiggable floors and walls

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Generation

The Ice Queen's Realm is accessed via a magic portal that can always be found on the floor above Medusa's Island.

Description

A source of cold resistance is required to travel safely within the levels - similar to Gehennom, entering without any source of the resistance will cause your hit points to slowly deplete. Various cold-resistant monsters are generated on each level, and their corpses should be enough to obtain full 100% resistance if you lack a ring.

First level

The first level is set in the midst of a frozen river that winds through a dark forest mostly comprised of dead trees, though some live trees are also present.

Map

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The portal is set in the southeastern region, and the down stair in the northwest. Nearby is the corpse of an archeologist named Carl the Excavator; on the same square is a fedora and a novel named "The Adventurer's Journal". Both items are uncursed.

Four frost salamanders patrol the icy river, and a quartet composed of goblin outriders and their captain are generated just outside of a ring of dead trees around the stairway. Within the ring of trees, a snow golem guards the staircase down. Nine other random monsters are placed around the map at level creation. There are additionally an axe and battle-axe, as well as a crystal chest, randomly placed on the map, as well as five bear traps and three spear traps.

The icy river is "composed" of many frozen pools. The dead trees surrounding the stairway cannot be phased through, and must be chopped down or otherwise removed to gain access.

Second level

The second level is a vast icy plain, with a gorge running through the middle of it. There is only one path across the gorge, which is heavily defended by several monsters.

Map

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The stairway from the first level leads out into a narrow passage that connects the two cliffsides, with the Abominable Snowman placed in the middle of the pass - it stands in front of a spiked pit, with a spear trap behind the pit. A trio of revenants is generated a short distance from the up stair, just in front of a bear trap.

Further south is a saber-toothed tiger, which is generated next to the corpse of a wizard named Tim the Enchanter; there is a cornuthaum and a random spellbook on top of the corpse, both of which are uncursed. Four frost salamanders are generated at the marked locations above; a frost giant and a mastodon are generated near the down stair; and 12 random monsters are randomly placed around the level.

Third level

The third and final level is the treasure zoo-filled castle of the Ice Queen, who awaits within the innermost room alongside her loyal guardians.

Map

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The stairway from the second level is placed in the southwest of the 'courtyard' outside the castle. All of the castle's doors are locked, and iron bars can be seen on the 'watch towers' of the castle. A woolly mammoth, a frost giant, and a saber-toothed tiger are generated just outside the entrance; blocking the doors are a pair of spear traps. Ice trolls are stationed in the 'watch towers', each generated with 100 orcish arrows and an orcish bow (both uncursed).

Three unlit treasure zoos are present within the castle, which is structured so that you must pass through at least two of them. Iron bars within each of the "side" zoos connect them to the foyer, patrolled by a pair of snow golems. Four ice devils are stationed outside and within the easternmost room, which is a temple of Moloch and has an aligned priest of a random race tending to the altar; this priest is implied to be the cause of the evil curse upon the Ice Queen.

Kathryn the Ice Queen and her pets Bourbon and Ozzy await beyond the foyer in the center-most room of the castle; next to Kathryn is a grave for Koa, and each of the dogs generate in front of a fountain (their "water bowls"). Kathryn is generated hostile, while Bourbon and Ozzy are peaceful, but will become hostile once you attack Kathryn. Defeating Kathryn the Ice Queen turns her into Kathryn the Enchantress, rendering her and her pets peaceful unless you are an Infidel - an Infidel that defeats the Ice Queen has 75 turns to leave before she attacks them.

A crystal chest is placed in each corner of the room; the lower-right crystal chest has 3 apples, 3 oranges, 3 potions of acid, and an uncursed saddle along with some barding - there is a 20% chance of spiked barding being generated, and an 80% chance of barding of reflection. The barred cage in the west end of Kathryn's room holds a pegasus that is generated peaceful and asleep, with 4 piles of 2000 zorkmids inside; a pegasus egg has a ¹⁄₅ chance of being generated underneath the sleeping pegasus on its marked square. The marked square also has a crystal chest holds the Bag of the Hesperides; there is also a 10% chance of a magic marker appearing inside the chest. The guaranteed acid in the crystal chest can be used to melt iron bars.

The Adventurer's Journal

The novel found on the dead archeologist in the first level a source of hints describing various aspects of the branch and its inhabitants.

First entry

While exploring the Dungeons of Doom, I stumbled upon a magical portal, 
transporting me to an inhospitable, frigid wasteland.  It looks as if   
the forest here died ages ago... so many dead trees.  The freezing cold 
is unbearable - I must find a means to keep myself warm, or I may freeze
to death.                                                               
                                                                       
There is a frozen river nearby, perhaps it leads somewhere?  I shall    
investigate, and may Quetzalcoatl protect me.                           
                                                                       

Second entry

So many strange and exotic creatures in this dead forest!  All of them 
adapted to the extreme conditions here.  I thought salamanders prefered
only the extreme heat of the lava caves... who knew?  And I swear to   
whoever may read this, I have seen the largest cat anyone has ever laid
eyes on.  As big as a warhorse, and its fangs were the size of swords, 
Quetzalcoatl as my witness!                                            
                                                                       
My intellect tells me to turn around and leave this place immediately, 
but my gut tells me I am on to something much more important.  I will  
continue my explorations.                                              

Third entry

I have searched this forsaken forest for nearly three days, and finally     
I believe I have found a way forward.  I stumbled upon a thicket of dead    
trees to the northwest whilst fleeing from yet another pack of hungry       
winter wolves.  In a last-ditch attempt to save myself, I chopped my way    
through the thicket, which revealed a small clearing.  In this clearing     
was a path leading out of the forest.  As I was about to make my way        
through, I caught a glipse of something huge moving towards me.  I couldn't 
quite make out what it was, it seemed as if it blended right in with the    
surrounding snow.  I ran for my life and hid, and only now have I dared to  
venture out and try for the clearing again.  May the Luck of the Grasshopper
be with me!                                                                  

Fourth entry

I have left one place of immense danger, only to stumble into another place
even more dangerous than the first.  The dead forest has given way to an
utterly barren icy plain, with a deep gorge running through the middle of it.
A very narrow ice bridge connects this side to the other, but I fear I
cannot cross.  Some enormous monster guards this ice bridge; I dared not get
close enough to find out what this immense creature might be.  I fear I may
have to turn back, otherwise I could very well die in this godforsaken place.

Fifth entry

This may be my last entry, but I pray to Quetzalcoatl that it is not.  I am
attempting to make my way back to the magical portal that transported me
here, but I am pursued at every turn.  The terrifying undead creatures that
inhabit this place are relentless, and their very touch paralyzes you with
fear.

Whilst fleeing, I stumbled across the corpse of another adventurer,
a powerful wizard.  His journal described a castle that resides even further
in, beyond the ice bridge that I did not cross.  He made mention of a powerful
sorceress that lives in this castle, and she is the one responsible for this
never-ending winter that afflicts this land.  She is guarded by extremely
vicious monsters, and he went on to mention that she had in her possession
some sort of prize that was beyond the wealth of even the most powerful kings.

Tempting to be sure, but I wish to live.  I will return to this realm and seek
out these riches.  I just need to make it out of this place alive first...

Messages

You hear a howling wind.
You hear an eerie, ominous wail.
You hear someone singing "Do You Want to Build a Snowman".

The portal to the Ice Queen's Realm is present on the level.

Origin

To be written.