9: Cold And Dark
“First goddamn week of winter.”
The Thing
Snow is lovely and magical (until it’s been there for days and you have to go to the shops in it) but it comes with the cold and the dark. The cold is inhospitable, we want to stay in and keep warm by the fire. The dark is isolating, and we can’t see what might be out there. Christmas is a time for ghost stories.
Ironic Christmas films like festive horror often isolate characters with the cold (something the top ironic Christmas movie Die Hard doesn’t do, but Die Hard II does) because it provides a hostile environment, low visibility and muffled sound.
Many cultures have monsters that stay in cold places or only appear in winter, from the Abominable Snowman to the Yuki-onna. D&D has Frost Giants and White Dragons and more. Some undead appear only on winter nights and carry the cold with them as well. Personally, I was partway through plotting a book about vampires attacking an oil drilling town above the Arctic Circle when 30 Days Of Night was announced. And the reverse, vampires in games where you play them partying and plotting as they enjoy the long nights.
What would a blizzard summon in your setting?
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