From the Rime to Vecna

.The current tale.

Out of the Frozenfar, a small group of adventurers have come. Merida, paladin of Bahamut, with her trusty steed Samaxe. Her mystical war hammer is that of the fallen warrior Gauthak imbued with fragments of the slain avatar of the Frost Maiden. Dayjumper, the golliath warrior whose enchanted battleaxe is also imbued with fragments of the slain avatar of the Frost Maiden. Namel, battle priest of the dwarven god of battles, wielding a flaming battleaxe. Hjolgram, dwarven ranger, guide, and tracker.  Teu, fey elven bard. Rathmir, aasimar hero and servant of the dawn. Avarice, evoker of the Arcane Brotherhood. Veridian, silver dragon wormling rescued as an egg from the very nest of Iskra, roc companion of the Frostmaiden.

South into warmer lands this group travels seeking to find a way to make a better life now that the rime is thwarted.

The previous tale.

North, of the Spine of the World, and west, of the towering Reghed Glacier, is a frigid expanse few dare to explore, let alone inhabit. This icy land of windswept tundra recently became locked in a perpetual, dark winter without reprieve. Auril the Frostmaiden, the divine embodiment of winter's fury, has withdrawn to this cold corner of the world to live among mortals. Further, she has cast a terrible spell over Icewind Dale, to the detriment of most of its denizens.

Each night before midnight, Auril takes to the sky on the back of a white roc and weaves her spell, which manifests as a shimmering curtain of light-a beautiful aurora that illuminates the night sky and fades before dawn. This powerful magic prevents the next day's sun from rising above the horizon, turning midday into twilight and trapping lcewind Dale in winter's dark embrace, with no sunlight or warmth to melt the snow and ice. Each casting of the spell leaves the Frostmaiden weakened, with just enough divine power left to barricade the mountain pass with blizzards and churn the Sea of Moving Ice with blistering winds. Such measures discourage travelers from approaching or leaving Icewind Dale, further isolating the region. Icewind Dale has thus been trapped in a different reality from the rest of the world, for though the sun never rises over the dale, it continues to rise everywhere else.

The people of Icewind Dale know Auril's wrath when they feel it, and they have a name for the unending winter she has inflicted on them. They call it the Everlasting Rime. No one understands why the Frostmaiden has imposed her will in this way or why the other gods refuse to challenge her. This prolonged winter, which has gone on for more than two years, threatens to doom not just the flickering lights of civilization known as Ten-Towns but also the indigenous flora and fauna that need sunlight and the change of seasons to survive. Not all creatures are discouraged by what has transpired north of the Spine of the World.

Despite the presence of Auril's blizzards and other deterrents, visitors still come and go.