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Session 27: Every Rose has its Thorns

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“Stop pretending to find strength in things you find miserable. You drive a wedge between you and everyone doing things you think seem strong. Not showing weakness, not being vulnerable.

That’s what I do. Because Mika seems incapable of doing that.” - Mika

Key Developments and Revelations

  • The group decides on their next steps

  • Arani has a confrontation with her siblings

  • Mika confronts Esme before going to Arani

  • The group leaves to Myrida Aeca shortly after to accept their pardon

  • The Emperor announces his plans for conquest of Myria and the Ridian Empire Remnants, invited the party into the castle and introduces Nedric and his army of warforged

  • The party gets their reward: Ashington Keep and decide to rest in the city for the evening

  • Alexei pulls Arani aside for a friendly conversation before she leaves to see her family

  • another member of the Enclave gets killed by Khada

  • Alexei gets attacked at the scene of the murder by Khada and witnesses Crickets’ death,

  • Khada escapes

Full Session Notes

Maxi calls for a reunion in the Order of Ambers (now Order of the Lost) Keep, while Arani goes to find Esme and Taman and tries to eavesdrop into their conversation. She can’t make out any clear words but shortly after Esme opens the door clearly upset. Taman also seems upset and tells Arani that he got a message from an old friend and that he will leave the same day to reunite with them.

Arani goes after Esme, tells her that she’s free to go with him if she wants to. Esme denies, saying that she has other responsabilites not only to her siblings but also as a general for the Stormwatch army.

Maxi informs everyone of the happenings in Cretara, telling them about the Abyss spreading and that plans are in motion to close the rift and prevent further destruction. The group then discusses if there might be any connection to what they have seen in Isandor, Selwyn’s plans and the Chained Oblivion and if it will affect them directly. The Hell-Steps are mentioned briefly and they are reminded that Bhogh Dharal is in that area. Whatever bigger plan Selwyn and his group was following, they might be able to find clues there.

Mika gets excited about the possibility of passing through Glitterdeep on their way there. Arani notes that the Devil’s might have some answers for them as well, as they have guarded the rift to the scab dungeon and the armor of the Hidden Lord as well. Aelthar says that they are enemies and shouldn’t be trusted to help them out. Thalia also mentions that her soul has been tortured by devils or demons while she was dead so she’s not keen on getting close to any of them again.

The group decides to go to Myrida Aeca for now and Aelthar says he wants to get cleaned up before that. They will meet again in 20 minutes and Mika takes the time to talk with Moardra. He admits he never met anyone who’s like Mika and that she will find her place, sooner rather than later. She asks hims about the gods and who they are, and if they will have some answers for her that others couldn’t give her yet. Mika wonders what it would take to get them from the gods. Moardra listens before encouraging her to keep on trying and goes back inside his cave.

Back in the Keep, Arani has a conversations with her siblings. She wants to plan for getting Mother back but notices Kaelen’s unusual lack of confidence. When she confronts her about it Kaelen admits that she didn’t recognize Arani on the battlefield. When she killed Ephraim she saw more fiendish being in Arani than anything else. While everyone experienced the same pain that she did, nobody of the siblings have become as cruel as her. She fears that the Hidden Lord and his darkness might have influenced her more than she might know. Arani asks her if they are afraid of her because of it and while nobody confirms it nobody denies it either. Everyone but Esme are unable to meet her eyes and when Arani says that she became the way she is, to survive, Esme calls her out on calling that brutality her strength when it is weakness.

One after another the siblings leave the room with Kaelen and Rehael being the last. Mika returning from the cave of the giant heard the end of Esme’s speech and goes after her. She says that her honesty didn’t have to be that brutal and that Arani needs her help. Esme lashes out at Mika saying that she doesn’t need to hear that from Mika and if she wants to help Arani she can do so herself, before slamming the door in Mika’s face.

Mika goes to Arani’s side and Arani asks her if she can talk to the other. The other Mika drops some wisdom, saying that she should allow vulnerability, even if she is scared of it.

In the hallway Thalia catches Aelthar and asks him if he’s decided what to do about his brother. Aelthar says that he will go after him when they are done dealing with the things at hand. The group leaves to Myrida Aeca, joining the Emperors adress with Aelthar, Mika and Thalia standing in front of the crowd after they were led to a podest. Alexei and Arani decide to follow shortly after, wanting to trust in the decision of the others.

Shortly after the image of the Emperor appears and adresses the crowd. He pardons the group and pronounces his plans for war and conquest against Myria and the Ridian Empire Remnants. The crowd cheers before the party is led to the Emperor’s castle to receive their reward. Entering the throne room, the Emperor commands his sevants to set up a dinner and invites everyone to sit.

There were no guards present and Arani asks the Emperor why that might be the case. The Emperor introduces Nedric, a dwarf essential to the war efforts as his constructs - warforged - function as soldiers for the army now. He works in the ‘Emberhand’ Forge.

The Emperor then hands them their reward: a key to Ashington Keep. It’s still under construction but they are free to do with it whatever they want.

The group leaves, Aelthar leading them to an inn with the goal to relax and have a nice evening as a free man. Alexei pulls Arani to the side for a conversation. She asks about Arani’s mood after they have left her alone to talk with her siblings and Arani tells her what has happened. Alexei admits that she also is afraid of Arani when she is blinded by her rage, but deciding on who she wants to be is her choice. She will stand by her but not allow Arani to walk over her and hurt her without giving counter. Alexei says that the love of her mother and her family at the Herd are not conditionally and it shouldn’t be if it meant that they would get hurt. In the end the conversation loosens up a little bit and Alexei shuts Arani off with a kiss before leaving to see her family.

The Bluejay and the Boar tell Alexei about the attacks on members of the Herd and Alexei shares her knowledge that she got from her visions. They tell Alexei about the serial killer Khada, a wood elf who was said to be dead twice already with the 2nd time being Bluejay and Boar who had killed him. That was 120 years ago and now he has returned wearing a cloak of Black Feathers and is now targetting members of the Herd. During their conversation Crickets bursts inside with the info that another member, the Spider, has just been killed.

They leave to the scene of murder, Alexei notices the small entrywound on the body, where a rose has started to grow, just like in her vision. She reaches out to touch and and the stems of the rose wrap arpund her arm. Alexei manages to free herself but cutting the stems sets off the rose and it explodes.

Cricket makes a smart joke about the trap but gets immediately shot in the neck. A rose starts to bloom from the wound and the Boar, Bluejay and Alexei see a man with a mask, black feathers and a gun standing on the roof a bit further up the street. They go for a pursuit and Alexei gets stunned by a shot. Khada manages to escape.

Alexei and Bluejay investigate the spot where Khada had shot Cricket from and Alexei finds an invisible rose set up as a trap. She is able to disarm it, pockets it before she goes to hug Bluejay, asking him to stay and wait for her to get some help.

DATE: 05/03/2024

In-game Date Start: 17th of Calor, 959 A.D.

In-game Date Finish: 17th of Calor, 959 A.D.

Players Present

  • Jeremy (Alexei)

  • Oskar (Mika)

  • Sari (Arani)

  • Sydney (Thalia)

  • Trym (Aelthar)

Subbed Characters

  • Everyone was present.

Completed Quests

  • Get Pardoned

Obtained Quests

  • Link to quests picked up this session

Locations Visited

  • Order of the Lost

  • Myrida Aece

    • Emperor Sauntes’ Palace

    • Bestial Enclave

Important NPCs Interacted With

  • Maxi

  • Moardra

  • The Wanu’s

  • Emperor Sauntes

  • Nedric Berylriver

  • The Herd

  • Khada

Wall of Shame

  • Sari - 6 min

,

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:

“I feel most alive when crushing people below my boot.” - Arani

“And? Your feeling of being alive carries more weight than actual lives?” - Mika

“Stop pretending to find strength in things you find miserable. You drive a wedge between you and everyone doing things you think seem strong. Not showing weakness, not being vulnerable.

That’s what I do. Because Mika seems incapable of doing that.” - Mika

“I feel like I’m losing myself.” - Arani

“Are you losing yourself or turning into someone new?” - Mika

“The difference is that she has no control over the things taking her over, you can control them, impulses might be difficult to control but you can.” - Mika

“I’m not the person to lecture you on morality - I’m sure Aelthar and Thalia will want to do that for you. They probably have something wise to say, and Aelthar will probably sound like an asshole while doing it. What I am going to tell you is that I see you here saying you don’t know who you’re supposed to be and allowed to be - that’s being mortal. you can do whatever you want, whatever brings you and others the most happiness. If you want to be there for your siblings and think they have a point, then maybe you should avoid this.

You can be whatever the fuck you want. You’re not meant to be anything.” - Alexei

“I’m not your mom, I’m not your boss, I’m not your god__. I’m here, and I’ll stand by you.” - Alexei

“Lifes gonna fucking suck anyway.” -Alexei