Rime of the Frostmaiden – Your Top 12 Questions Answered!

Choosing your next D&D 5e campaign is a big decision. Before you dive into it or spend the money on the resource, it’s really helpful to have a good idea of what you’re getting into. You might be considering Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden and have a few questions about it. This guide aims to answer the most common questions about Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden, from someone with experience DMing it!

Is Rime of the Frostmaiden Fun?

A dark and eery forest lake

If you’ve run any DnD games, then you probably know that how fun any campaign turns out depends in large part on your group. With the right group of people, most modules can be fun. That said, Rime of the Frostmaiden has many exciting features that make it an excellent adventure to play. Lots of these features can be modified or just used as they come with your group.

For most of my players, they’ve got a real kick out of the secrets. These are character backstory points that you can randomly assign to players. Some of them are small and just add flavor, and some can add real benefits for the players. I’ve given each player one big secret and one flavor secret in the campaigns I’ve run. That way, everyone feels fairly done by. But, I suggest giving out the secrets early on in character creation as it can significantly impact backstory and character design.

What are the Themes in Rime of the Frostmaiden?

One of the exciting things bout Rime of the Frostmaiden is that there are many different themes all packed into one adventure. The first couple of chapters are primarily about exploration in a desolate and bleak environment. But as the story progresses, there are some added sci-fi elements and even the potential for time travel.

Some sections do have slight horror movie vibes to them. However, you can decide how much you want to lean into them based on your group. Nothing is so baked in that you can’t change it to suit your needs.  

When Does Rime of the Frostmaiden Take Place?

As written in the book, the story takes place in 1489 DR, or later. But, the exact date isn’t important. You can easily change the time and, honestly, even the world it’s set in to suit your needs. 

Is Drizzt in Rime of the Frostmaiden?

Based on the dates in the book, the story takes place about 100 years after the events of R.A. Salvatore’s novel The Crystal Shard. This was the book that introduced Drizzt Do’Urden to the Icewind Dale. So Drizzt isn’t in the story. However, he is mentioned in the story and is a vital part of one of the character secrets: a nice little easter egg.

Where Does Rime of the Frostmaiden Take Place?

Rime of the Frostmaide is set in Icewind Dale. On a map of Faerun, that’s the very northern edge of the continent. During the adventure, the players will be able to explore the whole region, not just the towns but also the outlands. 

Where Does Rime of the Frostmaiden Start?

The story begins in Ten Towns. Because the story’s beginning is open-ended, you can choose any of the ten towns to start with. Each place a quest that players can pick up. You can also choose from two starter quests to encourage your players to explore the other towns a little more.

One of the advantages of having so many starting points is that if the dice are against you and you end up with an early TPK (total party kill), you can start with new characters from a different town.

Illustration of a curved bridge with snow

How Long Does Rime of the Frostmaiden Take?

Rime of the Frostmaiden is not a small campaign. It consists of seven chapters, which is nothing on Curse of Strahd’s 15 but, the first two chapters are sprawling. How long it will take will depend on how you structure the game, if your players want to attempt every quest, and how often they get sidetracked. For most groups, there are easily 70 hours of playtime involved. 

How Many Sessions is Rime of the Frostmaiden?

Rime of the Frostmaiden is really well divided into manageable chunks. It just depends on how long your sessions run. Since most folks usually aim for three-hour sessions, you should expect Rime of the Frostmaiden to take between 20-30 sessions to complete.  

How Many Players is Rime of the Frostmaiden For?

Rime of the Frostmaiden is aimed at 4-6 players. If you run with a group of 6, you may want to adjust the encounters a little. Otherwise, the players are likely to roll right through the fights without much challenge.

What Level Does Rime of the Frostmaiden Go To?

The first chapter is aimed at players levels 1-3. The final chapters are for player level 9+. If you want to run it to higher levels, modifying some of the encounters would be pretty straightforward. You may need your players to be at least level 10 to complete the story with a smaller group.

How Hard is Rime of the Frostmaiden?

For players, Rime of the Frostmaiden is possibly not the easiest of campaigns. There are many threads to weave together, and it can be a dauntingly large world for absolutely new players. However, with some thoughtful DMing, it’s possible to make it an enjoyable game for any player level.

Is Rime of the Frostmaiden Easy to DM?

The honest answer is yes and no. The info is really well organized, and it’s quick and easy to prepare for each session you’ll be playing. There is enough information to make it easy to get going, and you can use as much as you want.

On the other hand, there are a few things about the organization of the story that make it a little more challenging to run. However, with a bit of early preparation and planning, these are things you can overcome. My advice is to add more foreshadowing of the events later in the story; this will give players a reason to keep moving through the story. Also, keep in mind that although the adventure is named for the Frostmaiden, she’s not the last chapter. So you might want to plan how you’re going to keep your players invested after her chapter is done. 

Planning out the whole arc and considering how you’re going to sprinkle adventure hooks throughout will help you keep your game moving and your players engaged. It’s true of most campaigns you’ll run but especially so for Rime of the Frostmaiden. Once you’ve got that sorted, it’s plain sailing and a lot of fun!