Euthia: Cruel Frost Designer Diary (Part II): New Heroes and Ice Monsters
Hello again, heroes! If you’re curious about the upcoming final chapter of Euthia (launching tomorrow on Kickstarter!), Cruel Frost, you’ve come to the right place.
Designer Tadeáš Spousta is sharing details on gameplay and game design in these designer diaries. If you missed Part I, you can find it here.
Before we dive into Part II, a reminder to follow the Kickstarter if you haven’t already. You don’t want to miss the launch!
Oh, and one more thing. If watching videos is more your style, you can check out a playthrough of the real-live Cruel Frost demo on Meet Me at the Table:
Over to you, Tadeáš!
New Heroes and Ice Monsters
Last time, we talked about the new Ice Claws module and upgraded trade experience Cruel Frost adds to the core game. In today’s diary, it’s time to meet (some of 👀) the new heroes and enemies you’ll face.
New Heroes Arise
We’ve already teased Zaphyrii in a lot of the pre-launch material, so we’ll start with a hero we haven’t seen much of yet: Arlan, Hammer of Judgement. (Although, you may recognise him from the Story Trailer!)
Arlan, Hammer of Judgement
Shadows hang over Euthia like creatures waiting to devour their prey. Yet, ordinary human kindness and good deeds can penetrate the darkness, shining as a beacon of hope.
Originally a devout believer on the path to enlightenment, Arlan was kidnapped as a young lad by a group of kobolds and presumed dead. When, one day, more than two years later, he returned to the ministry of St. Raymond's Church.
A prisoner in the kobold encampment, Arlan had been biding his time, growing in age and strength. When a large group of hunters left the camp to raid, now 18 years old, Arlan seized the opportunity and fought his way free.
From that day, Arlan wished to become a warrior not only to defend himself, but to protect the people, so no one would be taken as he’d been. In just a few short years, word of Arlan’s valor, devotion, and faith had spread, and Arlan was permitted to join the sacred circle of paladins.
Arlan’s specialization comes from the blessings of the goddess Shii, which he gains from various abilities. With these abilities, he can use and transmute the blessings to his advantage in battle.
His forte is training in blunt weapons, often combined with the use of a shield and his favored armor, which he received for saving a village from an orc attack.
Arlan is always on the move, helping the common folk without hesitation. But, like any paladin, he has a long-term mission that follows him on his travels, as well as his unbreakable faith.
Zaphyrii, Storm Caller
If you’ve read Part I, you’ll remember Zaphyrii was the narrator who introduced us to the story of Cruel Frost. Now, let’s meet Zaphyrii herself!
After months of traveling, the Ice Clans finally arrived at the arranged meeting place and convened the council. This time, not one person hesitated or tried to deny the threat.
The truth was undeniable, now the ice storms had begun to swallow the land. None could predict how fast the endless winter approached. And so, together, they began to plan.
In the midst of the meeting, lightning illuminated the sky, a loud crack of thunder striking over the lake. All fell silent as a tall, orcish figure emerged from the mist. The council guards were quick to arms, hands to hilts, but a wise elder held up a hand to stay them.
Zaphyrii had once belonged to one of the Ice Clans, but had left her people — despite the threat of exile — to grow the magic that lived inside her. Sadly, because of her origins, she had been rejected by the very scholars she sought to learn from, and turned away from the halls of knowledge.
For decades since, she sought other ways to develop her talents in other ways… even turning to darker means. It wasn’t until a dangerous encounter with Maeldur, a powerful mage of the Order of Fire, that she found the answer.
Sensing her strong but uncontrolled magic, Maeldur spared Zaphyrii’s life, and helped her find the training she needed to harness and wield her power. Zaphyrii would soon become one of the most feared lightning shamans in the land, even to the Ice Council — but they knew that in these dire circumstances, they needed all the help they could get.
As a lightning shaman, Zaphyrii wields the power of lightning, energy, and the element of weather as her alter ego.
She’s able to gather immense energy with which to conjure the most powerful spells — and, despite their destructive force, she can recharge and prepare herself for more spells.
To recharge, however, she needs her amulet and ring, which allows her to store the power of the element. She’s learned some spells from Maeldur, but invokes them in her own way, always relying on herself and her vibration.
(I don’t want to spoil too much, but let’s just say Arlan and Zaphyrii won’t be the only new heroes we meet as we explore Cruel Frost. 👀)
Now we’ve met two of our new heroes, it’s time to face some monsters…
Monsters of Ice
Euthia is a vast land. For many years, its furthest corners have been plagued by frost and ice, making them unlivable for all except the clans who’ve adapted to the cold.
(Lucky for us, the clans will share that knowledge in the Ice Claws module, helping your heroes to survive the freeze.)
It’s taken many years to discover the source of the ice scourge. At first, the Ice Clans thought it was the result of failed magic — an attempt to combine chaos and ice gone terribly wrong. After all, they’d encountered such monstrous results in the past…
But, after discovering a clutch of seemingly endless ice spiders, they began to suspect a lair was hidden deep within the mountains, from which these creatures would crawl.
Rumors of a guarded cave entrance started to rapidly spread. Then, in his carelessness, a local mercenary provoked and led an Ice Keeper right to the mercenary fortress, where two of their strongest warriors had fallen. Now, all were deathly afraid.
The Spider Queen has many minions. At first glance, some may look the same, but their strength can vary, depending on the enchantment and connection with their Queen.
This enchantment, as well as frostbite (covered in Part I) adds a new level of challenge to fighting minions. But every battle you win will bring great rewards!
Reign of the Spider Queen Scenario
Finally, we’ll take a look at one of the new Cruel Frost scenarios! For those new to Euthia, the game is played in a series of (infinitely!) replayable scenarios.
Kevin Outlaw of Always Board, Never Boring put it well: “When you set up a scenario, you’ll know your destination, but your journey will be different each time you play.”
This is because of the modular map generation and opportunities to make different choices you’ll have each time you play.
The core box alone includes 11 scenarios, with a further 7 added in Fierce Powers & Crawling Shadows (as well as a dedicated set of scenarios and play modes just for solo and co-operative play). Cruel Frost, too, will include multiple new scenarios.
In Reign of the Spider Queen, you’ll embark on an epic journey to weaken—or even defeat—the mighty Spider Queen. This scenario is on the same level as Banishing of Brasath from the core game (the mightiest of the dragons!), but the experience is unlike any other.
Your mission is to find a way to progressively weaken the Spider Queen, using powerful relics guarded by the magic of the ice minions.
With a little luck, you’ll be able to fight off or even kill the Spider Queen… but not without great sacrifice. Each relic has only limited power, and its strength weakens with each use.
And, of course, the Spider Queen won’t simply let you find the relics needed to kill her. Her minions and the ice storms she conjures will follow wherever you go…
But don’t worry too much. Before you embark on such a dangerous quest, we recommend gaining experience in the Ice Council Favor scenario, as well as (spoiler) other scenarios we’ll be discovering in the Kickstarter unlocks as we adventure through Cruel Frost!
That’s all for today, heroes. If you’d like to know more about Cruel Frost, you’ll find several videos on YouTube. I’ll also be sharing more details in the Kickstarter updates as we unlock new content, so make sure to check back daily on the campaign.
And if you have any questions in the meantime, you can find me in the Discord or the Facebook group.
The Kickstarter is launching TOMORROW, heroes. Remember to follow the page to get notified!
