This monastery finances most of the Winter Sects' operations on both sides of the ocean by providing a place of seclusion where accomplished artisans, wizards and warriors may retreat to perfect their craft. To this end the temple runs a sideline business of providing rare materials to their guests and others who are willing to pay. Hu-Su usually goes out to procure the dangerous items.
For three obvious reasons, only known and accomplished artisans, wizards, and warriors are accepted. The first is that the monastery has an inventory of just about any rare item or component an artist or wizard may require. The second reason is that such services are very expensive - neophyte artists and wizards could not afford it. The third reason is that fledgling artists, wizards, and fighters would not survive the journey to the monastery.
Hu-Su, one of the Winter Sects' few masters, oversees the operation of the monastery. The monastery has 10 of Hu-Su's students.
The caretaker of the temples' minyan is the priest Sapori and his 20 acolytes. Together they maintain the monastery and cater to the guests.
The monastery is guarded by Tagoni-Soki and his retinue of soldiers. Tagoni-Soki is a masterless samurai (ronin) who befriended Hu-Su and has found the monastery a suitable home.
Winter's Retreat, named after Hu-Su's monastic sect, is located 100 miles East by North-East of Elsie's Spire. It is a large well defended, relatively inaccessible fortress, high in the mountains. There is no real trail, except the trail that starts at the base of the mountain upon which it sits.
It is difficult to get to and flying to it is harder since the winding mountains form no apparent pattern upon which airborne creatures can orient themselves. Certain aerial creatures discourage flight -- more on this later.
The forbidding terrain not-withstanding, the privacy of the monastery is assured by the perils of the overland trail. In particular, it sits between two large populations of Giants and Trolls. Though the fortress relatively impregnable, the unfortunate result is that in order to reach the monastery a battleground between giants and trolls must be traversed.
The leader of the giants is Groldingikkm, a cruel and vicious Giant with a magical axe and armor. The leader of the trolls is a large two-headed troll who has an arm band that protects him from fire. His name is Gakrand.
In addition to the Giants and Trolls there lives an Ancient Dragon high in the mountains. He tolerates the situation because the stalemate between the giants and trolls makes it near impossible for anything else to reach his lair. Furthermore the monastery occasionally lures travelers with treasure who sometimes do not take the samurais' offer of an escort -- much to their dismay. The dragon will not usually kill them though, preferring to let the trolls and giants take the blame.