Ep. 8: The Feast
DnD Curse of Strahd Recap — Mar 26, 2021
Days Spent in Barovia:
- Aashuri & Therean: 5
- Jihyo: 371
Milivoj’s Confession
Last session, our party of three: Jihyo the half-elf fighter, Therean the half-elf bard, and Aashuri the aasimar sorcerer had just vanquished the cruel demon that had possessed eight-year-old Felix. Unfortunately, Felix was killed in the encounter.
The party was concerned about the impact it would have on the other children if they saw his body, so carefully and cautiously they informed the head of the orphanage, Headmistress Claudia Belasco. As Aashuri went to speak with Ms. Belasco, Aashuri noticed Arabelle speaking to two ravens at an open window. It was also notable that Milivoj was awake and looking significantly healthier than before. Ms. Belasco was devastated to learn of Felix’s death. However, she accepted that the heroes had no choice in the matter, and she resolved to tell the children the truth about what happened.
With Milivoj awake, the Jiyho and Aashuri decided to question him indirectly on the missing bones of St. Andral. Milivoj spoke like a snippy and moody teenager. Rather than beat around the bush, he answered honestly that he stole St. Andral’s bones for a man named Henrik van der Voort, who is Vallaki’s coffin maker, to make up for lost wages after Milivoj started missing work due to falling ill from the curse. He used the money to pay two wolf hunters named Szoldara and Yvgenia to track down the missing orphans, Lazlo, Hans, and Franz. Milivoj confessed that regrets his actions and hopes that the party will be able to find the bones. In order to reconsecrate the hallowed grounds, Milivoj instructed that they will have to place the bones on the stone slab of St. Andral’s inside the crypt of the church.
The Coffin Maker’s Shop
The party followed the lead and proceeded toward the Coffin Maker’s Shop. On their way, they noticed that although it was only afternoon, the sky appeared darker and more cloudy than usual with threats of a storm coming. There appeared to be more garlands and decorations on the street buildings, but they could over hear people speculating about the weather and it’s potential impact on the festival in the coming days. Some people were seen hiding their dour expressions and words when Vallakian guards passed by, but resume whisper among themselves about their unhappiness with the Baron.
Upon arriving at the shop, the party could see the building appeared closed and dark. All of the window shutters were closed up tight, and a deathly silence surrounded the establishment. Circling around the building, they found a backdoor which was locked shut. Therean attempted to pick the lock on the door, and with Arabelle’s guidance, the door swung open.
Searching through the ground floor, they came upon Henrik van der Voort, an incredibly reticent dead-eyed loner who refused to answer any of the party’s questions about himself, his shop, or about the bones of St. Andral. Patience cut short, Jihyo and Aashuri intimidated the man, forcing him against the wall with a dagger to his throat. The man’s hand trembled and he confessed that the bones were hidden upstairs.
Aashuri detected divination and abjuration magic on the door leading to the second floor. However, when she pushed open the door, no apparent traps set off. Jihyo and Aashuri investigated the second floor while Arabelle and Therean remained on the ground floor to keep an eye Henrik, whom they bound up with rope and tied to a chair. While Jihyo investigated Henrik’s bedroom, Aashuri explored a dusty storage room filled with wooden crates and planks of wood. Using her mage hand, Aashuri tentatively opened the lid off one of the crates in the corner of the room.
The Feast of Vallaki
Lifting the lid revealed the presence of one vampire spawn hidden in the crate. Immediately, 5 other vampire spawns also burst forth from the other crates in the storage space. Hearing the noise, Jihyo rushed in the from the other room, and Therean darted upstairs to assist. Startled, Aashuri attacked the nearest vampire spawn on sight, but within a few moments all the spawns managed to escape the second floor room. Using their strength, they forcefully pulled the metal grates covering the windows and broke through the glass to reach the street. With ravenous ferocity, the monstrous spawns rushed through the street like wild lions and began to feast on every civilian they encountered.
The party rushed into the chaotic street. Vallakians all around could be seen screaming and running for their lives. Some clutched their dead family and friends, while others crowded doorways trying to force themselves indoors into businesses and homes. Therean spotted two young men, whom he recognized as Lady Wachter’s sons, defending a woman and trying to fight off a spawn. Therean assisted the young men in their battle by casting hold person on the spawn they faced, while Jihyo and Aashuri chased the spawn they spotted carrying a sack in his arms, which likely contained the sacred bones. Jihyo managed to catch up to the fleeing spawn and grappled him to the ground. Taking the sack from him, she tossed it over to Aashuri behind her. However, before Aashuri could take the sack, another spawn snatched the sack away and dashed down the street. Although they party successfully landed several blows on the fleeing spawn, they were not able to bring her down. It appeared as though all the vampire spawns were resistant to most of their attacks and were also regenerating after every wound they received.
The Tale of St. Andral
The darkened sky flashed with lightning and what appeared to be a speck of orange flame in the distance quickly grew into the shape of Strahd von Zarovich riding a horse wrapped in orange flames and descending from the stormy sky. Strahd’s nightmare alighted in the center of the street. The vampire spawn rushed to him with the sack containing St. Andral’s bones. Taking the sack, Strahd greeted the party and leisurely spoke with Aashuri as though he was simply passing by. Aashuri demanded to know what Strahd wanted with the people of Vallaki. Rather than answer plainly, Strahd began to tell a story.
Long ago, before he was turned into a vampire, Strahd was once a mortal man. A few treacherous men attempted to kill him. Once he became a vampire, Strahd hunted the men. He tracked them down to the home of a man named Andral, who helped to shelter the men and refused to give them up to Strahd. Somehow, Andral was also able to resist all attempts to charm him into allowing Strahd to enter the house. The men lived out the rest of their lives under Andral’s protection. For this heroic act, the grounds of Andral’s home became hallowed grounds that no dark creature could ever enter or touch.
Strahd frankly stated that he had no care at all for the weakling fools of Vallaki and he did not believe these people deserved compassion or any heroes to save them. Effortlessly, Strahd produced a magical flame in his hand, disintegrating the bones of St. Andral into ash.
Despite Aashuri’s obvious rage, Strahd professed his feelings of affection and desire for her once more. Unperturbed by her angry rebuff, Strahd turned away and disappeared from Vallaki.
Following the instructions of their master, the vampire spawns attacking the town immediately fled and headed into the wilds. Only the spawn which Jihyo had grappled, and the spawn which Therean had paralyzed remained. The sky no longer looked as dark as before, but it started raining and the steady flow of water began to burn away the vampires. Jihyo interrogated the spawn in her grasp, but he only stated that he would do anything for Strahd, and becoming Strahd’s servant was the best thing that ever happened to him. Callously, Jihyo let the remaining spawns burn in the water until dead.
Aashuri dragged Henrik the coffin maker out into the street and forced him to spill information on why he stole the bones. Henrik stated he was approached by a man named Vasili von Holtz who promised Henrik good business if he carried out this task.
In the chaotic aftermath of the vampire feast, blood could be seen staining the cobblestone streets everywhere. People were crying and wailing at the horror and loss of their family and friends. The Vallakian guards seemed to lack clear direction on how to handle the situation. Some who fought with the vampire spawn could be seen helping citizens up, while other angrily called for arrests for all the civilians that could be seen crying or upset. However, it appeared that Nikolai and Karl were displeased to see such abusive authority and argued with the guards over their treatment of the civilians.
Worried that they would have to confront the guards, the party searched for a way to escape their notice. Fortunately, they spotted Ernst Larnak, servant of Lady Fiona Wachter, gesturing for them to follow him down a darkened alleyway.
Next Episode: (9) Lady Fiona Wachter
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