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Session 14: Die Well, Friend

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“Die well, Sister.” - Arani

Key Developments and Revelations

  • Hearing battle noises the party runs after the retreating troupes of the Stormwatch Dutchy

  • The party enters the camp and finds Esme with Taman, the son of Arric Darrow

  • Arani and Esme catch up, while Aelthar talks with Mika

  • The party follows the troupes of the Stormwatch Dutchy in their retreat

  • After a conversation about their motives for joining the war, Arani and Esme have another heated conversation

  • Early in the next morning, the party joins the troupes in another attack against the Myridon Army, expecting to find Harman on the battlefield.

  • As everyone is about to retreat Harman shows up and Mika refuses to leave

  • Mika dies, Alexei is able to recover her body and the party flees

  • Thalia manages to revivify Mika

Full Session Notes

After the fight, the party returns to their rest. Arani squatting behind a tree while everyone gets ready to sleep, asks the Hidden Lord about Garcius. The Hidden Lord says that Garcius is a disappointment to all Celestifel because of what he did.

By the end of the rest, they hear noises of a fight occurring where they knew the camp of the Myridon army was. Assuming that Esme has led her troupes into another attack, they start running after them as they retreat. As they run Mika asks Arani about the Hidden Lord and she gives her a short history lesson about Garcius and the Merging 9 years ago. The conversation leads to a discussion of what is good and what is evil among the party members.

They pursue Esme on her direwolf and the troops of the Stormwatch and witness three other soldiers in Stormwatch armor stealthing along. As they catch up to them, Arani approaches them openly and asks them to be let through to meet her sister. The soldiers let them through, but when Mika passes she notices the glimmer of an illusionary spell and starts attacking them immediately. They reveal themselves as Assasins of Myridon and the party kills them.

Arani cuts off one of their heads to take with her and use it as proof for the Stormwatch that they are allies but drops it after being called out by Mika and Aelthar. Alexei takes their armor instead.

The party reaches the camp, the soldiers at the entrance are more reluctant to let them pass than the three assassins before and don’t believe Arani when she claims to be a sister to Esme. Alexei with her charm convinces them instead that Alexei is Esme’s sister instead and they let them through. Arani leads to find Esme’s tent, not stopping for nothing until they reach the middle of the camp where Esme’s tent is set up. In front, another soldier tries to stop them and when Arani pushes him out of the way Esme’s direwolf reacts but quickly calms down again when it smells Arani’s hand. She bursts inside to find Esme and Taman at the table in a conversation. The initial reluctantly happy surprise turns cold when Aelthar also enters the tent and Esme realizes that Arani is there together with the rest of the Crimson Cloud. Aelthar and Mika join in on the conversation trying to explain to Esme that they might still be able to change Harman’s mind about the whole thing as he was the only one hesitating in the attack, but Esme only considers him to be her enemy, and the survival of her troops above everything else, even if there is a bigger plan behind all of this. Mika leaves disappointed.

Arani is surprised at Esme’s reaction and they start to talk. Esme reveals that she found a new home and a new family with the Stormwatch Dutchy. She loves her siblings, but she found something just as important with the Stormwatch and she cares for the safety of her soldiers. Esme will stay with the army.

Arani is heartbroken over the fact that Esme was able to move on from her family and from what happened 9 years ago at the Order of Ambers. Esme still invites Arani and the Crimson Cloud to join them in their attacks against Myridon. They surely need their help and their goals align for now. Arani leaves and Aelthar tells Esme to at least visit the siblings with Arani when this is over.

Outside Aelthar talks to Mika, who is sitting on top of wooden crates. She is confused and seems a bit lost about people going to war and seeing their enemy as nothing else but inhuman. Everyone only cares for themselves and seems blind to the fact that they are hurting actual people. She doesn’t understand why everyone hides their true intentions and lies. Aelthar tries to help.

Together again, there is a short reluctant discussion if the party should join the Stormwatch armies or if they should find another way to reach Harman. Aelthar takes the lead and directs the party to join the march and after a bit of hesitation, all of them follow.

During the march, the party discusses their motives and paths that eventually lead to them joining the Myridon army and the war with Aelthar finally revealing that he just wants to make his parents proud and that making a name for himself during the war was the best way to do so. He was a bounty hunter before that, so while he joined the army as a mercenary he still considers himself a bounty hunter first before a soldier. Alexei says that she joined because war is lucrative and it’s her chance to be freed after everything is over.

Arani seemed unclear, just sure that her goal now is to find her siblings again and reunite her family. The war and the people fighting in the war were never something she actually cared about. Aelthar offers an open ear for Arani if she needs to let out some steam after her conversation with Esme and then tells her to find Esme when they are at camp and have another conversation as siblings. Also to figure out what exactly Esme’s plan is in this losing battle. Arani asks him to join as damage control.

They reach camp, and Aelthar asks Mika to make food for everyone, before joining Arani in Esme’s tent again.

Arani asks Esme for a conversation among sisters and away from the war and the armies. Esme still reluctant about the whole thing agrees but when Arani asks her in a joke if she and Taman are a thing, there’s a little bit of teasing that was about to break out into hostility before Aelthar stepped in and took Taman outside of the tent.

They catch up a bit, Esme starts to warm up to Arani again as they tread carefully around the topic of the war. But then Arani can’t hold back anymore and confronts Esme about her joining the Stormwatch and becoming a general. She asks her how she could move on so easily away from her family and start to care for other people. Esme tells Arani that she waited for 8 years, joined an adventuring school, and laid low but when the war broke out she joined the Stormwatch troops and started to care for them. Her heart broke the first time she heard about Arani being part of the Crimson Cloud, actively joining the side that was murdering the people she cared about. The conversation turns heated when Arani says that she joined the army to pass the time until it was time for their return. Esme gets angry at that but Arani just doubles down on not really caring for the people of this world as she thinks them responsible for her family breaking apart. This world is the reason why they were torn from their home and then torn from each other after the attack of the Order of Ambers. This is not their home, and none of these people matter to Arani as they are not part of her family. She just wants her siblings back and return home. Esme yells at her that them being different, being born more powerful only is another argument why they should care about weaker people, and at for Arani to get out of her tent. When Arani leaves she tells Esme that in this losing battle, she will probably lose her life. Esme says that she will die gladly knowing that she cared.

Aelthar heard part of the conversation outside and when Arani leaves he sends Taman inside to deal with Esme while he talks to Arani. Arani immediately starts to regret what she had said to her sister but also can’t bring herself to admit that she actually does care even when Aelthar asks her if she cares for the party. Aelthar tells her that they need to stay with Esme and her troupes. They have to help them to have a chance and reach Harman and talk to him.

Returning with the group, they eat the food Mika cooked in silence before lying down to rest.

Early morning everyone is woken up by the troops getting ready for another attack against Myridon. Esme with her direwolf and Taman are at the front leading the attack and the party joins them in the back.

They attack part of the camp and after the initial attack, the Crimson Cloud decides to stay a little bit longer with the hope of getting Harman on the battlefield, but just after they decide to leave the battle as well, Harman arrives.

The party still starts their retreat but Mika stays, demanding an answer from Harman for why he did what he did. In their fight, Harman yells that he has no other choice, and that “he can’t resist it”, confirming Mika’s suspicions.

Arani yells at Mika to retreat but when she doesn’t react she uses her command on her to have Mika flee the battlefield. Before she could do that though, four soldiers surround Mika and use their spears to pin her to the ground. Mika is killed there.

Alexei is able to recover Mika’s body as the rest of the party retreats and runs back to the camp of the Stormwatch troupes.

On the way, Thalia manages to revivify Mika, who goes into a rage. She destroys the trees around her until her rage ends, then she falls to her knees and cries.

DATE: 29/11/2023

In-game Date Start: 20th of Hallowtide, 959 A.D.

In-game Date Finish: 22nd of Hallowtide, 959 A.D.

Players Present

  • Jeremy (Alexei)

  • Oskar (Mika)

  • Sari (Arani)

  • Sydney (Thalia)

  • Trym (Aelthar)

Subbed Characters

  • Jerm played Thalia

Completed Quests

  • Link to completed quests

Obtained Quests

  • Link to quests picked up this session

Locations Visited

  • Stormwatch Camp

  • Myridon Camp

Important NPCs Interacted With

  • Esme

  • Taman

  • Harman

Wall of Shame

  • none omg

,

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

,

Memorable Quotes

The best quotes of the Session:

“What are we?” - Arani, to The Hidden Lord

The entire Good vs. Evil discussion

“10.000 soldiers… that’s at least 12 times the size of Hidden Hope!” - Mika

“I don’t know why she was lying… Esme’s MY sister.” - Alexei

Arani’s conversation with Esme (both of them)

“When all this is over, we can go back to me putting you in jail and all that.” - Aelthar

“I’d like that.” - Alexei

“I’m tired of people lying and scheming and acting like they care…” - Mika

“…and I have a fucking thing in my armor talking to me!” - Arani, on a rant

“Wait, what?” - Aelthar, double taking

“…oh shit” - Arani

“Die well, Sister.” - Arani

“You can resist them, I know you can. You can’t defeat the demons you love to play with.” - Mika’s final words to Harman