Beware the Yule Cat
by Anthony Pryor
You all know the cat of Christmas
— that cat was huge and fat.
No one knew where he came from
nor where he was at.
Night is falling across the frozen plains of the Northlands. It's Yule Eve, but you're tired, hungry, and footsore. Ahead lies the village of Köldhorn — Cold Corners in the Common tongue — where you are sure to find warmth, food, and shelter, especially on this festive night. But upon arrival you find the streets deserted, and the villagers hidden behind locked doors. Soon, you realize that you've inadvertently found yourselves in the middle of a generations-long struggle between the people of Cold Corners and the evil fae troll Grýla, her husband Leppalúði, their sons the mischievous Jólasveinar — or Yule Lads — and worst of all her favorite pet, the fierce Jólakötturinn, better known as the Yule Cat.
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A Village in Peril
He opened his glowering eyes wide,
each like a burning gem
— It wasn’t for the faint of heart
to face them.
Inspired by the beloved works of Icelandic poet Jóhannes úr Kötlum, Beware the Yule Cat is a holiday-themed adventure for 4–6 characters of Tier 2 (Levels 5–6) available in the 5e, Castles & Crusades, and Old-School Essentials rules systems. As the adventurers face the wrath of the ferocious Yule Cat, they must also deal with the cruel pranks of the Yule Lads, who are determined to spoil Yule for everyone. Things go from bad to worse when the party discovers that the Jólasveinar have kidnapped the mayor's infant son, and taken him to their lair on nearby Snow Mountain, possibly bound for Grýla's stewpot! Köldhorn seems bound for a cold, dark Yuletide, but the adventurers may have a chance to make it merry for all.
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Fire and Ice
He roamed, fierce and famished,
in freezing Christmas snow,
chilling every human heart,
both high and low.
The adventure takes the characters from the ice-bound Northlands to the burning lava fields of the Dimmuborgir, and includes:
- Background on the Icelandic legends of Grýla, the Yule Lads, and the Yule Cat.
- Full-color cover and illustrations by Teresa Guido, Adrian Landeros, and Hector Rodriguez.
- A fully-developed northern village and its inhabitants.
- A fierce fight in the streets of Cold Corners, a dangerous journey through wintry wilderness, and a final confrontation in an inhospitable land of lava and fire.
- Stats for all NPCs and monsters.
- Options for every style of play.
- Enemies and allies, all with a Yuletide theme, perfect for holiday gaming.
- Outcomes both grim and upbeat, depending upon the adventurers' actions.
- Content galore, with 60+ pages of Yuletide goodness.
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System Options
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Our 5e versions are compatible with the most recent edition of the world's most popular fantasy role-playing game.
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Frog God Games and Troll Lord Games have partnered to bring you thrilling quests in the Castles & Crusades system. Castles & Crusades is a stripped-down variant of the d20 System by Wizards of the Coast. For those of you who already use this system, Frog God Games is excited to provide this adventure and we look forward to providing more adventures for your gaming table.
If you are not familiar with this rule system, take a look by downloading the complimentary Player's Handbook from Troll Lord Games.
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Frog God Games is excited to join the battlefield-proven rules offered by Necrotic Gnome's Old-School Essentials, based on the classic 1980s Basic/Expert (B/X) rules. We look forward to bringing Beware the Yule Cat to Old-School Essentials.
This will be our first of many high-quality gaming titles published using Necrotic Gnome’s rules. As a company, we continuously publish products inspired by and designed for classic roleplaying systems. We cannot wait to create even more titles under this fine ruleset.
If you are not familiar with these rules, then you are missing out. Old-School Essentials consists of light, easily modified rules which put the focus of play on shared imagination, improvisation, and fun. Do not take our word for it, download a free PDF of the Basic Rules here.
Softcover Perks
Softcover perks will be mailed from our warehouse via the address provided to us from Indiegogo. All three system versions (5e, Castles & Crusades and Old-School Essentials) of this adventure will be full-sized 8-1/2 x 11-inch saddle-stitched books, with 60+ pages of content. We have talked to our local printing company and have been notified about the ongoing industry paper shortage. They currently have the paper in stock for this project; however, with this ongoing shortage, this may affect our delivery dates.
Overseas Shipping
The most cost-effective way for our overseas customers to get their books is by using the print-on-demand format. The print-on-demand books that international customers receive are high quality, but please be aware that they are printed differently than books in the USA, which are saddled-stitched.
We have tremendous love and respect for our international customers, and this is the most efficient method we have found to provide you with books at a reasonable price with reliable delivery times. We have been notified about the ongoing industry paper shortage from our local printer as well as our PoD printers. Please note that this ongoing shortage may affect our delivery dates.
PDF Fulfillment
Contributors have told us that they prefer having their digital rewards in a unified library. For this project, the default PDF distribution will be via DriveThruRPG.com. We use DriveThruRPG's fulfillment tools which will send you an email originating from their site that the PDF has been added.
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If you want your PDF added to your Frog God Games' account library, we are happy to oblige. Please send an email to our Help Desk at help@froggodgames.com with your contribution number, system preference, and the email address associated with your FGG account to add the PDF to your FGG library.
All poem excerpts are from Jólakötturinn (The Yule Cat) by Jóhannes úr Kötlum; © The heirs of Jóhannes úr Kötlum; used with permission.
