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Prison of Ice
Recommended Level: 29-35
Quest Given By: Malah
Location: Frozen River
Difficulty: Moderate
Reward: Rare Class-Specific Item, +10 Resist All
Main Objectives: Rescue Anya
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Preparations:
Once you've reached the Arreat Plateau, go back to town and talk to Malah. She'll give you your third quest, 'Prison of Ice'. Anya, the daughter of one of the slain Barbarian Leaders has gone missing, and it's your job to find her. You'll also notice that Nihlathak, the person responsible for the abduction, is no longer in town, so for the duration of this quest, you won't be able to gamble for new items.
Before you set off, you'll need to keep in mind that many of the monsters you face is this quest will be either highly resistant or immune to cold based attacks. Therefore, it's suggested that if you still have a Glacial Spike Mage from Act III, you should exchange him for an Act V Barbarian. Having an 'Accent's Pledge' shield that adds +43% to all your resistances will also be very helpful here, so be on the lookout for a shield with three sockets.
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| Frozen Creepers have a nasty chilling attack, but provided you're cautious, they'll never surround and overwhelm you due to their lack of speed. |
Once you're ready, step through the Arreat Plateau waypoint found in the previous mission, venture forwards a little more, and you should see the entrance to Crystalline Passage. Your quest begins here.
The Crystalline Passage
The Crystalline Passage is a large underground area of twisting corridors, kind of like a colder version of the caves in Act I. Some monsters worthy of note include:
Stygian Harlots
The first monster of the Succubi class you'll meet is the Stygian Harlot. While these flying creatures hit fast, they are fairly weak. The only thing you should watch out for the various curses that they can employ. To remedy this, it is a good idea to always have your hireling or some minions to take the brunt of the curses, and only charge forward to engage the Harlots after they charge at you.
Frozen Creepers
Don't even try to get a corpse out of these guys, when they die, they'll always shatter. Frozen Creepers aren't a big threat due to their slow movement speed. While they can chill you with their frozen breath, the attack are short ranged and hence won't be a threat to spellcasters. Creeper's are susceptible to fire but are also highly resistant to cold.
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| The Succubi class of monsters can employ various curses, but are fairly weak in terms of hit points. It is best to eliminate them first before anything else. |
Explore the Crystalline Passage thoroughly, there are three landmarks that you'll need to find.
1. Entrance to Frozen River
2. Crystalline Passage Waypoint
3. Entrance to Glacial Trial
While you can find the entrance to Glacial Trial after completing the quest, you'll want to find the waypoint before proceeding to Frozen River; otherwise, you'll have a long to walk from Arreat Plateau later on. Once ready, proceed to Frozen River.
The Frozen River
The Frozen River is another fairly large area, and Anya is located right at the far side. The best way to completely explore this area is the follow the river, as Anya is basically located at one of the ends. The monsters that roam around here include the Blood Temptress, a stronger version of the Stygian Hag. There's also Rot Walkers, but these slow moving zombies should pose no threat. Finally, there's the abominables:
Abominable
These guys are basically the cold resistant version of the Blunderbore you met in Act II. While they are fairly easy to defeat on their own, groups of Abominables make dangerous opponents. Always try to engage these creatures on bridges or other narrow areas, or your character may get stunned by their attack, and never have a chance to strike back. If you have a Barbarian mercenary, you'll need to pay special attention. Once your hireling is stunned, he won't do anything and becomes a sitting target. Unless you're willing to pay the expensive resurrection price repetitively, you'll need to have your finger on the mouse, ready to give your hireling a healing portion or two.
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| Watch out, while Frozenstein may look just like an Abominable, he's a lot tougher. Holding the bridge in order to make sure you never get surrounded in the key to survival. |
When you get near to where Anya is held captive, you'll get a quest prompt saying 'Rescue Anya'. Slow down and beware, especially if you're a spellcaster, the next battle can easily claim the careless.
Rescueing Anya
To Rescue Anya, you'll need to defeat Frozenstein and his army of Frozen Abyss's. Both Frozenstein and his minions look identicle to the Abominables you've fought, but they're much tougher. Approach the bridge to Anya's island cautiously, and let Frozenstein and his minions charge at you. If you're a melee fighter, make sure to engage them on the bridge, so you can kill them one at a time. Always retreat if you run the risk of being surrounded, or their stunning attack could leave you dead in seconds.
Frozenstein himself is a fairly tough fighter, who's immune to cold and can burn mana with each attack. Spellcasters should try and stand well clear of his blows. Once all the monsters are dead, walk up and talk to Anya. Once that's done, cast a Town Portal and talk to Malah, she'll give a special thawing potion. Return to Anya with the Potion and she'll be freed.
Necromancer and Paladin Tip:
Thorn Aura and Iron Maiden work wonders here. Activate the aura or cast the spell and watch the enemy kill themselves while attacking your stunned Barbarian (Just keep feeding him potions).
Sorceress Tip:
Lead the monsters to the edge of a river and teleport to the other side. All your enemies should now be stuck trying to reach you. Cast a few firewalls to finish them off.
Go back to town and talk to Malah then Anya. Both will express their gratitude, and you'll be given a Scroll that'll permanently raise your resistances by 10, plus a Rare Class Specific Item. For example, the Necromancer will get a Rare Shrunken Head, the Assassin a rare Claw etc. Unfortunately, this rare isn't usually especially powerful, and you might end up preferring what you've already got.
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| Anya will be freed in a cloud of blue smoke when you give her Malah's thawing potion. Just like Cain, she doesn't say a word of thanks and disappeared into a town portal. Luckily, you know where she lives. |
Before you Quit
In addition the giving you her reward, Anya will summon a Portal to Nihlathak's temple, which sets the scene for Quest 4. If you plan to end your session soon, don't go through the Portal yet. First take the waypoint back to Crystalline Passage and, if you haven't already done so, find the entrance to Glacial Trial.
Explore the Glacial Trial for another waypoint, this will save you time of having to fight through everything in the Crystalline Passage again. The monsters you face in Glacial Trial are similar to those found in the Crystalline Passageway and Frozen River. You'll meet Snow Drifters (Tougher Abominables), Frozen Horrors (Tougher Creepers) and tougher Maulers. Each can be countered in the same way as their weaker variants. Once you get the waypoint, you're ready to leave the game or continue with Quest 4.
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