Combatting the Long Dark: I - Ice Witches

[Sham404 464]

Combatting the Long Dark: I - Ice Witches

The following text is both an informative piece, and an advisory guide, on the nature of Ice Witches and how to fight them. It is no doubt incomplete, as it is based on the experiences of one man against this enemy.

 

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Contents

1. Prelude

2. Environment

3. Creature

4. Abilities

5. Conclusion

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SECTION I - Prelude

          The Red Faith often uses symbolism of fire and flames, with our tenets often making reference to them in one way or another. The Flamebrands wielded by our Keepers and the flame they maintain in their temple hold further importance to our faith. It follows, therefore, that one of the servants of the Long Dark should be a creature that makes use of and manipulates ice, snow, and the cold - The Ice Witch. Also known as Frost Witches, these foul beings are likely to be found in our homeland of Norland, given our settlement of the Northern climes of Nyrheim, where snow abounds for the Witch to make use of.

 

SECTION II - Environment

          The environment of our homeland gives the Ice Witch an advantage in resisting our efforts to fight them, as their magic and nature allows them to make use of the snowy landscape both in combat, and in hiding. The exact origin of these creatures remains unknown to me, and we shall go on to discuss what unnatural abilities they do possess, but given the rarity of their attacks, and the fact that they lack a distinct presence in any mortal realm, we can assume that somewhere out in the cold wilderness they have a lair or home, protected by their foul magics and hidden among the ice. It can also be assumed that the power of the Witch gives them a resistance to the debilitating effects of a freezing environment. This presents a difficulty when fighting the Ice Witch, as hunting for and destroying their lairs should be our ultimate goal, but it is made almost impossible by the aforementioned factors of magical defence and of inhospitable environment.

 

SECTION III - Creature

          My first encounter with an Ice Witch was in Morsgrad, where I came across what seemed to be a regular Norlandic woman, standing in the square beneath the Ashwood tree. On noticing my approach, her human form seemed to melt away, changing her appearance to reveal the true evil that hid beneath. This new form was clearly one of dark origin, for she had unnatural white hair, grey skin, and adorned with unnaturally blue jewelry. Further I could see within her mouth sharply pointed teeth akin to those of a wolf, suggesting to me that the Ice Witch has a taste for the flesh of descendants and other mortal races. When we look at these factors combined, we can assume that the Ice Witch makes use of her ability to change appearance to attract and prey upon lone people, or to infiltrate society and do the same, as this one did attempt with me. It remains unclear if the Ice Witch can take any form, or only specific ones.

 

SECTION IV - Abilities

          Aside from their ability to change form, I identified a few other capabilities of the Ice Witch in my encounter. As mentioned before, the Witch has power over ice and snow, and so the first power I will discuss is their ability to freeze a being in place. After revealing herself to me, the creature tried to engage me in conversation, while she weaved dark magic to entice the snow to freeze around my feet, and make it impossible for me to move. It took a few moments for the magic to take hold, and though I made an attempt to evade it, ultimately my feet were frozen in place. As any warrior knows, mobility is vital to victory, and as we go on to discuss, the abilities of the Ice Witch seem to capitalise on the enemy being unable to move or evade. Thus when in combat or hunting an Ice Witch, ensure to close the distance quickly so that they can not ensorcel the ice to freeze you in place.

 

The next ability I witnessed was the creation of a weapon. As my feet were frozen in place, the Witch began to create a spike formed of ice, which she promptly launched in an attack at me. I deflected the spike with my weapon, though given the appearance of it, and it’s magical origin, I expect that my armour would not have been capable of resisting it. Thus remember that the magic of an Ice Witch may be capable of defeating even an armoured man should they have the opportunity to use it, and a hunter should take efforts to make sure they do have that opportunity.

 

As further inhabitants of Morsgrad began to take notice of the attempts of this Ice Witch, she began to flee. To ensure her destruction I threw my weapon at her, impaling her upon the greatsword up to the hilt. Here we see the third noted ability, when the Witch simply pulled my weapon out of her torso with only a grimace of pain. No blood spilled from the wound, however there was a slush of ice and snow that escaped in its place. We can identify then that the Ice Witch is a being apparently composed of ice and snow, not only with power over it. So, when anticipating conflict with an Ice Witch, bring sources of fire with you - torches, fire cocktail, or similar weapons which should be effective against their frozen nature. Further, it seems they are highly resistant to wounds that would kill or cripple a mortal being, so when using a melee weapon you should aim to sever limbs or go for killing blows such as the head. It is entirely possible that the Ice Witch has no organs at all within their body, and so targeting them is a fruitless endeavour.

 

When the Ice Witch is defeated, burn what remains of the corpse. In my case, once the head was severed much of the body collapsed into slush. As much of this as possible should be collected and burned upon the pyre, to ensure as little trace of the dark creature remains as possible. Given the nature of the dark, we have yet to confirm whether the Ice Witch truly remains dead, as it is well known that servants of the Long Dark practice spells which corrupt the proper order of life and death.

 

SECTION V - Conclusion

          In closing, when fighting an Ice Witch keep in mind that they have an advantage in frozen environments, their magic works best at range, and that you should use fire when possible. When not possible, aim to sever limbs, not target organs. When the Witch is defeated, destroy the corpse and remain vigilant, as we can not guarantee that they will not return.

 

Written by Edric Vildr, nicknamed ‘Witchslayer’

Edited May 3, 2021 by Sham404

[𝙻𝚞𝚟 XO 3062]

((hmmmm... honestly, i applaud you! Gonna put more here, later.))

[MunaZaldrizoti 5674]

Amid her travels, an ancient monarch emitted an amused hum at the oddly-detailed guide.

 

"Hmm...I suppose we shall have to teach the girls some new tricks."

[King_Kunuk 888]

While looking through old scrolls of long forgotten texts, Meahrir Dovian, scholar of the Eterna Library of Haelun'or raises a brow as his green eyes pierce the words of the text.

"Most fascinating... a first hand encounter with these horrid creatures? I should try to find this man, as well as document this into a text so my kin can better fend themselves from such unsavory beasts."

He then stores the paper away, and continues to sift through old scrolls