Main

“In my opinion, a dragon such as yourself is too majestic to have a master.” - Rydel

“Alas, I was born to serve.” - Alcar

Key Developments and Revelations

• Passing the gate into Beskhe, Alistair tries to find information about Varo Caldwell

• The guards lead the party into the castle after Alistair presented himself as a dignitary for the Redgrave house

• The Crownprince and his sister arrive in the plaza, exposing Alistairs lies

• Rydel reveals their true intentions and Eldoril invites the party inside the castle

• Rydel’s and Aurelius get an explanation for what happened to their father and the whole party is invited to stay in the castle

• Johan reunites with the party and everyone prepares for the Feast in the evening

• Rydel visits the dragonpits and gains an insight into how the Alcarinde noble family treats their dragons

• During the Feast the party gets to meet the Emperor and Empress

• Next dawn, Rydel and Aurelius are fetched to attend a council meeting

• The plans of Setmerun to invade Hesca and expand into the Unbound Expanse

Full Session Notes (sari)

Alistair has send Johan a message, asking if he’s alright after the information the party got about Loflein’s warplans. Johan responds saying that he’s okay and that there is something coming up for him later.

After arriving in Beskhe, Alistair takes the lead on asking around for Varo Caldwell. A storeowner directs him towards the guards at the gate so Alistair pretends to have a message to deliver to Varo Caldwell representing the Redgrave house from Epithon. He presents a medaillion that isn’t of the Redgrave but the guards seem non the wiser. One of them goes to fetch more, understanding that Alistair has noble business in the city and should be treated as a foreign dignitary. With the group of guards surrounding them, the party is then lead to deeper into the city until they arrive in the plaza infront of the castle.

Shortly after two blue dragons join them, on their backs they carry one elvish man with blue hair and one woman with white hair who resembles Aurelius. The man introduces himself as the Crownprince Eldoril and asks Alistair to repeat what he had told the guards to him. If there is a message for Varo Caldwell he will want to hear it as well.

Alistair tries to talk his way out of the situation but then Eldoril reveals that Varo Caldwell has been exiled in Setmerun, which leads to Alistair then saying that the group has a disagreement to settle with Varo and apologizes for the false pretenses he presented. Eldoril commands the guards to search the party.

Rydel then exclaims to be the son of Varo and introduces himself and Aurelius. Eldoril doesn’t know where to find Varo but continues to invite the party further into the castle. Inside he then shares that they are family. Eldoril has seen Aurelius when he was a child, but before there is any misunderstanding, they are not brothers but 2nd cousins. His father, the Emperor, is Varo’s cousin. He also explains the reason for Varo’s exile:

Varo and his brother Alwyn were disillusioned with the ways how the Emperor and his family were running Setmerun, openly being against slavery and the nations notions. First he had allowed Alwyn to flee with Rydel and then a few years later he sent Aurelius away. He appearantly wanted to keep them away from how children are raised in Setmerun, especially if they are part of the noble family. Abducting a noble child like that is a crime and Varo was essentially labeled a terrrorist. Now he is known for his bouts of violence. A few have tried to apprehend him but Varo has killed many. The last time he was seen has now been a couple of weeks ago.

Eldoril then invited the party to stay within the castle and announces that a Feast will be prepared to honour the return of Rydel and Aurelius. After a short discussion Syphax is brought to one of the towers on castle grounds, as it is uncommon for the dragonriders to ‘parade’ their dragons around constantly.

Rydel and the party then decide to take a look at the dragonpit where the rest of the dragons are being held. After everyone was informed who Rydel was they are allowed in without further comments. Rydel notices that there are only chromatic dragons held in the cages, most of them being of blue color. Further down he finds the dragons of the Emperor and Empress. One of the dragonkeepers invites them to feed the dragons and Rydel gets the opportunity to have a short chat with the dragon of the Emperor called Alcar (Dawn). Alcar says that he is not imprisoned but may leave if he choses so, he just choses to obey. He also says that theres only few visits from the other members of the noble family and Rydel asks him if he knows of Varo’s whereabouts and if not of Varo’s then maybe of his dragon.

Alcar says that the only thing he knows for sure is that the Emperor has felt a great deal of rage when Varo has left the noble family and taken his crystal dragon with him. The name of the crystal dragon is Ethor (Heart). He then also confirms that there have been copper dragons within the dragonpit before but the last time he has seen one has been decades ago. When Rydel asks if the name of the copper dragon was Nirlilah and Alcar says yes. That is how Rydel confirms that the dragon he has bonded with before, the mother of Syphax was indeed Alwyn’s dragon.

Rydel says his goodbyes to Alcar, leaving with the comment that a great dragon like him should not have a master but Alcar says that he has been born to serve. When they leave Rydel understands that the screeches of the dragons inside are from fear than anything else.

Back in the castle the party is surrrounded by servants trying to take their clothes and weapons off to be washed and shined. They then seperate the group as Aurelius and Rydel will have their rooms in the noble chambers while the others have rooms assigned in the guest chambers. The measurements of everyone is taken for their gowns before they are left to prepare for the Feast on their own.

At some point Rydel hears a knock at his door and Eldoril asks him to come with him to the gate as an orc has appeared at the gate who carries the same medal from Stillmoon like the rest of them do. Rydel takes off in a sprint and finds Johan who has been held by two guards on each side. Johan at seeing him takes off in a sprint as well and tackles Rydel into a big hug. Rydel then leads Johan back into the guest chambers and gets everyone out of their room. Johan starts to cry when he sees Kani and breaks down with her and Alistair wrapped up in a tight hug. The tearful reunion goes on for a while before Varoth also joins and introduces himself to Johan. They catch up a bit before Johan asks for a small tour of the castle.

Shortly after Alistair takes Kani and Johan into his room to help prepare them for the Feast with the help of Sanctuary.

Rydel in the meantime has gone to find Aurelius, who he finds standing infront of a tree inside a big hall. They talk about their father with Aurelius still clearly being resentful for Varo keeping him away from this life. Even though he eventually enjoyed people cheering his name in the fighting pits, his life could have been better in Setmerun. Now, with the many lifes he has taken he can’t be a good person anymore. Aurelius thinks he finally has found their rightful place where they belong but Rydel disagrees. He doesn’t think he belongs with the nobility and that he is already with his family. Good things have happened to him already, and he lists Kani along with the group.

The brothers then have a short discussion about the possibility of staying ending with Rydel storming off. In the hallways he runs into Kani who has already been dressed for the Feast but fled the room when Alistair took out his makeup.

Rydel tells her that Aurelius has decided to stay. Kani says that she has been worried for him since they arrives in the castles. With the many revelations she was worried that he might lose himself in all of it. Even if her worries are unfounded for him, because Rydel knows who he is and what he wants it might not be as easy for someone like Aurelius who is still young. Aurelius has been a fighter all his life, he didn’t get the opportunity to find out who he is yet and staying in a place like that might manipulate him into becoming something he will not like. Aurelius needs Rydel by his side.

Rydel gives Kani a kiss and tells her to meet at the Feast, then he goes back to where he left Aurelius. He admits that he was wrong and that they might have better chances at changing Setmerun when they stay together. He says that he will stay. When Aurelius asks if they are going to let the Emperor know at the Feast, Rydel says that they need to find Varo first and ask their questions. He will tell the Emperor and the group of their intentions of staying after they have dealt with their father.

The Feast begins and the party meets the Emperor Aranian Alcarinde and the Empress Sylvari Alcarinde. Greetings are exchanged before everyone sits at the table to enjoy the Feast. Emperor Aranian invited Aurelius and Rydel to attend the council meeting the next dawn and says that they might be able to draw out Varo now, when they announce the return of his sons. He announces that if they manage to apprehend Varo, he will give him a fair trial.

The Emperor then says he is able to emphasize with their struggle, as he had gone against his father himself as well. His father, the previous Emperor was a cruel man and had a different idea of ‘justice’. They dethroned him but when the time for the final strike came, Aranian couldn’t bring himself to kill his own father.

Rydel then shares that they have been looking for shards as well, with the struggles the world is facing right now they have to become stronger. Eldaril and Ysarael then present their weapons with dragonbone hilts and the Emperor says that they have one more but that Varo has taken that shard with him.

The dinner progresses until the Emperor and the Empress take the first dance for the night.

Ysareal invites Rydel for a dance as well, and Eldoril asks Kani.

Eldoril teases Kani with her relationship with Rydel, saying that she might as well get a dragon when she joins their royal family. He knows that they are dear to each other and with them not married yet she should maybe keep an eye on him. He hints at Ysarael wanting to make a move on Rydel and Kani at first trying to contain herself laughs it off but then decides to get to Rydel for a dance.

When Kani tries to sneak her way between the two of them though Ysarael takes over and leads Kani away. She flirts like a madman making Kani completley flustered.

Rydel who seems unbothered asks the Empress for a dance instead.

In the meantime Alistair rizzes his way into dancing with Eldoril and they have a nice little conversation where for the first time someone has heard of the Darkheart name when Alistair introduces himself. Eldoril remembers the Darkhearts from the reports they keep of the Feywild. He says that they even have a pathway into the Feywild within the castle and that the family sometimes has vacations in there. He prefers the desert and its heat over the green and lush landscape of the Feywild anytime though.

Eldoril then tells Alistair about what they have written down of the Darkheart and their disappearance. Alistair might as well be the last surviving member of the family. he also says that the Darkhearts have had a lot of power in the Feyrealm and that if his return is announced there might be a few that would die of a heart attack.

Shortly after Kani thanks Ysarael for the attention but that Rydel is very different from them all. She expresses her hopes that Rydel will stay true to his heart while they are here before going to find Rydel. She tells him about what they talked about and that Eldoril’s comment about marriage has made her think about their future. She realized that she wants a future with him. Rydel promises again that as long as they stay together everything will work out. He then asks her if she wants to leave, excuses himself from the Empress and Emperor and from the siblings before leaving with Kani.

Alistair has went to Johan again, catching up a bit before getting them some drinks. They leave after a bit of conversation.

Varoth has excused himself from the Feast soon as well, taking a stroll around the castle. He takes a few notes and sketches of the place before finding a temple dedicated to many different gods. He leaves with a prayer to Helm.

The next morning Rydel gets woken up by a knock at his door. A servant has come to fetch him to attend the council meeting. Rydel asks if there’s a certain dresscode but the servant just says that he can choose what to wear and if he wants to wear his armor he can for sure make an impression with it. Aurelius joins him on the way and as they enter the room they take note of around twenty people present besides the royal family.

One of the advisors talks about the preparations for the invasion of Hesca being ready in less than a month. Due to the situation in the world Setmerun has a certain urgency to take control of areas and secure them. Additonally to that they believe to be in their right as Hesca is on land that is rightfully theirs.

Rydel questions their intentions but the Emperor explains that they only intend to secure the area and not rule over them in tyranny like his father had wanted to.

the advisor continues to update the royal family on their expeditions into the unbound expanse and the issue they encountered with ‘The Cannibal’. They will continue to secure the area with the help of smaller towns who have agreed to ally with them. Rydel says that he has seen the Cannibal on their travel to Setmerun.

The Emperor asks Aurelius and Rydel to reveal themselves in an official announcement, so that Varo can be apprehended and brought to face his trial.

After the advisors have left Rydel and Aurelius also are told that they will be trained further by the royal family. Aurelius will also be brought to the dragonpits and allowed to pick a dragon. Syphax and Rydel will be trained by Eldoril and his dragon Vorathor. Ysareal and her dragon Azurastril will accompany Aurelius.

Eldoril then offers his shard to Rydel to try out and when Rydel takes it he feels a surge of power and an immediate connection to the sword. Eldoril then takes his weapon back saying that he will get his own when they take it from his father. Then they leave to the dragonpits for training.

DATE: 17/03/2024

In-game Date Start: 24th of Calor, 959 A.D.

In-game Date Finish: 25th of Calor, 959 A.D.

Players Present

• Jeremy (Lavender/Alistair)

• Oskar (Luro/Myxi)

• Rasmus (Rydel/Malevor)

• Sari (Gabrielle/Kani)

• Sydney (Sanctuary)

• King?!?!?!?! (Johan!??!?!??!)

Subbed Characters

• Everyone was present.

Completed Quests

• Get to Beshke

Obtained Quests

• Find Varo

Locations Visited

• Beskhe

  • Dragon Pit

  • Royal Palace

Important NPCs Interacted With

• Crown Prince Eldoril

• Princess Ysarael

• Emperor Aranian

• Empress Sylvari

Wall of Shame

• Sari - 2 min

• Sydney - 3 min

• Jerm - 7 min

• King? - 7 min

• Oskar - 8 min (I dont do the walk of shame, i strut)

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Example

“We’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto!”

Key Developments and Revelations

• After resting with the caravan, woke up in a strange land, full of eerieness, malice and fog.

• On finding a path and following it, they come to the Gates of Barovia.

• Here the party meets Strahd Von Zarovich for the first time. He insinuates that he knows everyone in the party except for Sunny.

• They follow the path, see a group of buildings, then beyond that a larger village overlooked by cliffs and a castle on it.

• Making their way to the group of buildings, the fog seems to follow them, and Kronkus & Sunny get lost in it momentarily, with their being some time dilation happening whilst in there.

• Making it to the hamlet, they find all but one of the buildings empty and dark. Two children rush to them, saying there’s a monster in their house, and that their parents are keeping it at bay in the basement, and their baby brother is upstairs.

• The party move into the house, finding that this seems to belong to the Durst family. Moving into a main room, they hear the sounds of a party from beyond a nearby door.

• Opening the door, all lights in the house go out, no people are in the room beyond. The front door and gate close and lock on their own. A wolf growls from somewhere in the dark.

Last Time, in Barovia…

Arrival in Barovia

• The party joined the caravan heading out of Daggerford. Each one joined for a different reason, and none knew the others.

• On the first night, the caravan rested early, having been delayed from its set off by a latecomer to the caravan.
  The latecomer, Marko, had setup a campfire with food and drink, and one by one offered, convinced or cajoled the party to join him at his fire.

• The night was spent with everyone learning little bits about the other, drinking, eating, and being merry. Late, Marko crawled under his wagon for sleep, and invited the party to rest by his warm fire, which they did.

• When they awoke, they were not in the same place. The wagon, Marko, even the caravan itself was gone. No tracks or signs of movement in the immediate surroundings. It was if they had been picked up and placed here.

• All of their possessions were gone as well, bar a few items that were kept close to them while they rested.

• Taking stock of this new land, they found it eerie, almost dripping with maliciousness. There is a thick fog, swirling as if with a life of its own. The trees seem different, twisted, gnarled and unnatural. The sun, while present, seems to have trouble penetrating cloud and fog, and does not give much light or warmth.

• While the party is taking stock of their situation, Kronkus finds that the long-silent voices have started whispering to him again.

• Sunny reached out to the Triple-Fish God, and found his connection was muted, but there was a new, strong core in that feeling that’s never been there before, almost certainly connected to the Triple-Fish God.

• Moving around, they find a rutted path leading east/west. Westward leads into a thick wall of shifting fog, east has the fog thinning. They head east for a few hours.

Meeting Strahd

• Ahead, the forest slightly parts, and they come to a huge stone wall, with a large metal gate in the middle. Out of the front of it, a pack of wolves are tearing strips off a very dead body.

• Sunny casts Thunderwave above the wolves, in an effort to scare them. They reel back for an instant before they turn to face the party, almost undaunted by the noise. A larger wolf then snarls and pads towards the party, teeth bared.

• As the large wolf lunges to attack, his is called to heel by a voice. A man appears at the top of the wall, who effortlessly walks down the side of the wall as if were normal, flat ground. As he gets to the ground and walks through the wolves, they let him pass. He also passes the large wolf, ruffling its fur.

• Walking up to the party, he introduces himself as Strahd Von Zarovich, ruler of Barovia, and welcomes them to his land. He acknowledges them as the latest batch of adventurers to be brought here, more pawns in the game.

• He looks at each member of the party, including the still hidden Wilfyr, attempting to meet their gaze. Those that do, feel drawn into that gaze, with the world around them starting to spin away. There is only Strahd. Strahd doesn’t hold them in this gaze for long.

• He speaks briefly to each member of the party. His speech infers that he knows each of the party members to some degree, or about their past. Except Sunny. Sunny seems to be the enigma to Strahd.

• He warns the party that they will find no rest or success in his lands, that it obeys his command. He also warns them to not meddle in his affairs, and that if they do not, then their stay won’t be unpleasant.

• With that, he turns and strides away towards the gates, swirling his cloak around him and turns into a cloud of bats that then flies through the bars and off into the air beyond. As Strahd leaves, the wolf pack dissipates,into the forest.

• Inspecting the dead body in the road, they find it horrifically mauled. On closer inspection, they find a crumpled, partially torn Kolyan Indirovich’s Letter that Wilfyr takes.

• The party then pushes open the gates, and walk through. The gates closes and locks behind them. Beyond is more forest.

Finding Shelter

• After a little while, the path comes to the top a rise, giving the party a clear view of a Barovian Basin of sorts. In the far distance can be seen a town. Next to that are some cliffs, with an ominous castle at its heights, overlooking the town. About halfway to this town, there seems to be a small group of houses. Seeing signs of civilisation, the party heads down the path into the valley beyond.

• As they’re walking, they notice that the wall of fog is forming up thicker and thicker behind them. Its almost like its keeping pace with them, slowing down and speeding up when they do. Kronkus & Sunny attempt to interact with the fog and walk back into it.

• They lose all visibility, and cannot hear, touch or see each other. They try to leave the way they came, but cannot get out, only walk into more fog. After 10 minutes, both of them exit the fog from exactly the same place that they entered into it. To the rest of the party, they have been waiting for them for an hour.

• Continuing on, the rutted road finally gives way to gravel and stone, as they draw closer to the hamlet of houses. The houses are dark, boarded up, and there are no signs of life. Except one.

• As the party moves between the buildings, the sound of a child sobbing draws their eyes, and they see a small boy and a slightly older girl walk towards them.

• They are wailing, and after being frightened by Kronkus’ approach (due to his unnatural visage) cry that there is a monster in the house, pointing to the lit up house.

• Most of the party dash into the house, while the kids say that their parents are in there, keeping the monster trapped in the basement. They also say their baby brother is still stuck up in his nursery. Sunny tries to convince the kids to come with the party into the house, but they refuse, growing more and more scared of going back inside the house.

• All but Kronkus move into the foyer finding family portraits across the walls, labelled as the Dursts. Kronkus remains outside to try and convince the children to come with them, but they run off. He turns and joins the party in the house.

• As they all step into a large main room, the sounds of a party can be heard coming from another room, from beyond a nearby door. Arkemon retrieves the longsword from above the mantlepiece, and goes back and retrieves the heraldic shield from the foyer.

• Wilfyr finds a door on the opposite side of the room to where the party noises were coming from, and as he approached, heard the growls of wolves coming from beyond it.

• Arkemon warns against opening that door, and instead opens the door that should lead to the party they can hear. As he opens the door, the sounds stop. There is no people in the room beyond. All the torches, fireplaces and candles in the house go out as the party is plunged into darkness.

• Behind them, the gate and door into the entrance to the house close on their own, and lock. And another wolf growls in the distance.

DATE: 13/04/2021

In-game Date Start:

In-game Date Finish:

Players Present

• Adam (Milo)

• Alex (Arkemon)

• Ben (Elgin)

• Chad (Sunny)

• Russ (Delta)

• Stephen (Wilfyr)

Subbed Characters

• Everyone was present for this session.

Completed Quests

• No completed quests

Obtained Quests

• Leave This Land

Places Experienced

• Gates of Barovia

• Barovian Basin

• Durst Manor

Important NPCs Interacted With

• Strahd Von Zarovich

• Rose Durst

• Thorn Durst

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Memorable Quotes

The best quotes of the Session:

“In my opinion, a dragon such as yourself is too majestic to have a master.” - Rydel

“Alas, I was born to serve.” - Alcar

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