Whether you’re running a special holiday-themed oneshot or chugging along with your normal campaign this month, here are a few NPCs you can sprinkle in to add some wintry flair!
Note: the stat blocks that appear in this post were made on the Homebrewery. The CR for each creature is an estimate; use your discretion when designing encounters for your own group.
Glasia Merrelo
Glasia is a statuesque eladrin with winter-blue features, her skin glimmering like snow in sunlight. She embodies the archetypal elven distance, but nevertheless, her stories pull quite a crowd. After travelling the Feywild and Prime Material for centuries, Glasia has plenty of material to captivate her audience.
Personality traits
I know a story relevant to almost any situation.
I preserve what I have. Better to be hungry today and have food for tomorrow.
Ideal
Beauty. When I perform, I make the world better than it was.
Bond
I have a family, but I have no idea where they are. One day, I hope to see them again.
Flaw
My needs come first. In winter, all must watch out for themselves.
Glasia Merrelo might be found…
… in a warm tavern, enthralling her audience with a story of winters past.
… travelling through the forest, on her way to the next town.
… searching through snowcapped mountains, pursuing a rumor about a Feywild crossing.
You can use the Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes stat block for winter eladrin, which puts Glasia Merrelo at CR 10. If you’d like to make Glasia Merrelo more like the PCs, you can instead stat her up as an eladrin with bard levels. These stats would be appropriate for a lower-level campaign:
Fen
Fen is a nilbog wearing a brightly-colored robe at least one size too large. He was once an ordinary member of a large company of goblinoids until he was possessed by a trickster spirit. After he became separated from his group, Fen was content to spread mayhem from town to town, never staying in one place for too long.
Personality traits
The best way to get me to do something is to tell me I can’t do it.
I’ve never sat still a day in my life, and I’m not about to start now.
Ideal
Freedom. Chains are meant to be broken, as are those who would forge them.
Bond
I live to spite those who tried to restrain me.
Flaw
I am easily distracted by shiny things, from loose change to glittering jewels.
Fen might be found…
… sabotaging a holiday festival in a small town—dousing a bonfire, overturning market stalls, etc.
… stealing his way through a residential district, taking whatever catches his fancy.
… entertaining a small audience with his capers, until he goes just a bit too far.
Fen uses the nilbog stat block from Volo’s Guide to Monsters, but if you’d like to make him a more challenging encounter, give him some levels in rogue. F
Shard Needlewit
Shard is a stocky water genasi, wearing heavy armor and a sword to match. Her skin is dark blue with patches of lighter pigmentation, like ice floes on the ocean. Shard is a mercenary searching for leads on her brother’s murder, which happened a year ago.
Personality Traits
I’m confident in my own abilities and do what I can to instill confidence in others.
I face problems head-on. A simple, direct solution is the best path to success.
Ideal
People. I’m committed to the people I care about and don’t bother with ideals.
Bond
I would do anything to find the man who killed my brother and exact revenge.
Flaw
Once someone questions my courage, I never back down no matter how dangerous the situation.
Shard Needlewit might be found…
… questioning a local innkeeper, asking if they’ve seen a certain individual pass through.
… deep in a dungeon, carrying out a job to make some money.
… protecting a caravan of merchants as they travel on the road.
Shard Needlewit is a veteran, so you would add the water genasi racial features to the veteran statblock.
If you’d like to adjust her CR, you could also stat her up like a player character with levels in fighter.
Nordak Frosthall
Nordak Frosthall is a strong-looking dwarf with dark hair and a long beard. He often rides atop his beast companion, a reindeer named Calvin (use the Elk stat block, except its size is Medium). In his travels across the frigid northern lands, Nordak often finds himself helping out travelers who aren’t as comfortable in the wilderness as he is.
Personality Traits
If someone is in trouble, I’m always ready to lend help.
I have a lesson for every situation, drawn from observing nature.
Ideal
Self-Knowledge. If you know yourself, there’s nothing left to know.
Bond
I protect those who cannot protect themselves.
Flaw
My temper has its limits, and it takes me a long time to cool back down after something upsets me.
Nordak Frosthall might be found…
… navigating the icy wilderness with ease, willing to lend a hand to any who needs it.
… fending off a monster incursion on a local community.
… trying to convince a member of city guard that Calvin should be allowed inside the city gates instead of left in the stables.
Nordak Frosthall’s stat block looks like this:
Ilex
Ilex is a dryad with bark-like skin, sharp green leaves covering her body, and red berries in her hair. She is polite enough to outsiders, so long as they show the same courtesy to the forest around them. If they do not, she proves to be a staunch protector of her home.
Personality Traits
I judge people by their actions, not their words.
My favor, once lost, is lost forever.
Ideal
Nature. The natural world is more important than all the constructs of civilization.
Bond
The creatures of the forest are precious friends to me.
Flaw
I am slow to truly trust anyone not from these woods.
Ilex might be found…
… guarding a forest clearing for a druid circle’s winter rituals.
… fighting with a group of travelers who were not so cautious with their campfire.
… taking pity on a child lost in the snowy forest, offering them protection from the elements.
Ilex uses the dryad stat block, but if you’d like to adjust her power, you could give her druid class levels (probably Circle of Land).
Ember Runyariel
Ember Runyariel is a fire genasi with ash-gray skin and orange hair. She is an empathetic cleric devoted as much to the common people as to her faith. This devotion drives her to hone her abilities and her understanding in equal measure; she holds herself to high standards.
Note: The deity that Ember follows can be any who has the Life, Light, or even Forge domain in their portfolio.
Personality Traits
Nothing can shake my optimistic attitude.
Though I show grace and understanding to others, I hold myself to exacting standards.
Ideal
Charity. I always try to help those in need, no matter what the personal cost.
Bond
Everything I do is for the common people.
Flaw
I put too much trust in those who wield power within my temple’s hierarchy.
Ember Runyariel might be found…
… investigating a rumor that someone has a plan to sabotage the temple’s winter festival.
… tending to those who seek shelter and asylum within the temple walls.
… leaving town in the early morning after receiving a puzzling vision from her deity.
Ember Runyariel’s stat block looks like this, if you want to use her as a Life domain cleric:
Callas Mithlin
Callas Mithlin is a round-faced high elf who is perhaps a bit young (by elf standards) to be making those important sorts of decisions, but this 47-year-old has already signed away his soul to a timeless archfey of winter. He sports an ostentatious frock coat and eldritch power not his own. Callas’s (and his patron’s) goal is to bring about eternal winter on the Prime Material, but, you know, baby steps.
Personality Traits
Flattery is my preferred trick for getting what I want.
I get bored easily. When am I going to get on with my destiny?
Ideal
Destiny. Nothing and no one can steer me away from my higher calling.
Bond
I sold my soul for knowledge. I hope to do great deeds and win it back.
Flaw
Once I pick a goal, I become obsessed with it to the detriment of everything else in my life.
Callas Mithlin might be found…
… searching for an object of great power within an icy cavern.
… pillaging a small cemetery to create loyal undead servants.
… talking his way into a discount meal at the local tavern.
You could use the fey warlock, deathlock, or cultist stat block for Callas Mithlin, but here’s what I would use:
Evergreen
Evergreen is a tenacious pixie who carries a sprig of mistletoe about as big as she is. She flits from town to town during wintertime.Her central hobby is playing matchmaker and placing mistletoe where there was none before, causing light, magical mischief.
Personality Traits
I laugh at almost every joke, even if they’re bad.
When I set my mind to something, it takes a long time to dissuade me.
Ideal
Happiness. Everyone deserves to have a little fun once in awhile!
Bond
When the forest sleeps in winter, I venture into civilization, but I must return before the dawn of springtime.
Flaw
I don’t always consider that humanoids might have different boundaries than fey.
Evergreen might be found…
… giving her blessing to a recently-engaged couple.
… flying indoors through a window, ready to do her magic.
… stowing away in a traveler’s backpack to escape the winter weather.
Evergreen uses the pixie stat block.
And that’s all! Thanks for reading, and let me know if you end up using any of these!
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