Ep. 1: Trouble in Village Barovia
DnD Curse of Strahd Recap — Jan. 15, 2021
Days Spent in Barovia:
- Aashuri & Therean: 1
- Jihyo: 367
The Burgomaster’s Mansion
Last session, Aashuri and Therean left the Blood on the Vine Tavern with Ismark, whose sister Ireena died long ago, and whose father died recently. Ismark offered to let them stay over at the Burgomaster’s mansion. Upon entering, they saw the coffin of the late Burgomaster, Kolyan Indirovich, sitting in the foyer. Ismark planned for his servant Dalvan to assist him in carrying the coffin to the church, but since Dalvan is dead, Ismark requested for the heroes to help him instead.
(Start Here if you missed the beginning of the story)
While looking around the mansion, Aashuri found a portrait of Ireena Kolyana and was unnerved to discover that they both shared the same face.
Aashuri stayed in Ireena’s former bedroom, which contained many books, including one about the history of religions in Barovia. Aashuri learned of the three pagan goddesses called the Fanes that the original people of the valley worshiped, as well as the later faiths: Morninglord and Mother Night. After eating some dream pie they had purchased from Granny Morgantha, Aashuri and Therean slept through the whole night with wonderfully pleasant dreams.
Father Donavich and the Church
They proceeded to deliver the coffin to the church in the morning, but not before Ismark informed them that the priest has a son locked in the undercroft of the church. The young man, Doru, was turned into a vampire spawn by Strahd himself a year ago, and hasn’t fed since. When they arrived, they could hear Doru screaming and crying from his hunger.
They met the priest Donavich, and a half-elf named Jihyo who worked at the church. Jihyo, who had been staying in the village for over a year, was quite excited to finally meet others sharing her fate of being trapped in Barovia. Jihyo explained she had been traveling and had fallen asleep while camped out during her journey, only to awaken in the strange misty land of Barovia. Therean and Aashuri relayed that their journey into the valley occurred the same way.
As everyone helped with the funeral outside, Jihyo spotted two men at the edge of the cemetery, one of whom was a dark skinned elf. When the elf approached, the sound of a thousand people screaming could be heard in everyone’s minds. The elf handed Aashuri a letter before retreating. The letter was written by Strahd, and to Aashuri’s shock and disgust it professed Strahd’s affection for her. It read:
Dearest Aashuri,
It is with great honor and pleasure that I make your acquaintance, although the current circumstances do not permit me to be as bold as I would like without encroaching on the lines of propriety.
I write to you to profess a simple thing: I find that you are beyond beauty as a river in a spring flood is to a drop of water. You are the sky and earth, air and music, sunlight without shadow. You are perfection.
May we get to know each other better as you spend your days here in Barovia exploring the glory of my domain.
Your lord,
Strahd von Zarovich
Aashuri burned the letter.
Eager to leave the wretched village as soon as possible, they gave assurances to Father Donavich that they would find a way to help his son Doru. Grateful for their kindness, Donavich provided some items for the party’s journey. Ismark insisted the party make their way to the walled city Vallaki, past the Tser Pool where Madam Eva was rumored to reside.
The Scarecrow
Proceeding along the road, crossing the River Ivlis, the party encountered an animated scarecrow as it captured and ate a raven. Another raven attempted to save its friend, but was unsuccessful. The heroes intervened. The scarecrow was unsurprisingly susceptible to fire.
Vision at the Gallows
Moving forward, the heroes spotted empty gallows along the road. After passing it, they looked back only to see corpses hanging from the nooses. Aashuri briefly saw herself among the dead before the vision faded.
Tser Pool
Determined to push on, the party reached the Vistani encampment at Tser pool where they were graciously ushered in to eat and drink. Therean happily embraced the hospitality of their hosts while the other heroes remained wary. The colorfully clothed Vistani told jokes and stories and took great interest in the heroes. One notable story told of a powerful mage who fought against Strahd, but the mage was defeated and he fell into the River Ivlis. The mage was not seen again.
Therean asked the Vistani if they knew of three women named Alenka, Mirabel, and Sorvia. At the mention of the three women from the Village of Barovia, the Vistani at the encampment went silent. The older Vistani spat on the ground and declared the women to be “Mortu”. They advised the party to stay away from filth like that.
Once the sky became fully dark, Madam Eva summoned the party to her tent.
NOTES ON VISTANI WORDS:
- Vistana — Singular word for Vistani.
- Giorgio — Someone who is not a Vistana. A general term for outsiders.
- Mortu — An outcasted Vistana. Exiled/banished for crimes against Vistani.
- Mortio — An outsider that harmed Vistani and became their enemy.
- Rema — Kindness breeds kindness and hate breeds hate. Another word for Karma.
- Remanio — A Vistana who left the tribe, cut from the threads of fate.
- Vani — A Remanio who is returned to the Vistani; a term loosely meaning, “someone brought back from death.”
Next Episode: (2) The Tarokka and the Windmill
— — — — — — — — — — —
Wanna Play DnD With Me?
If you are interested in joining one of my games, you contact us or join our Discord server.
