Curse of Strahd Solo Run (IC)

[RandomWombat]

"If we get going now? I think we can manage."

Gweyir points to the southwest of the gate, towards the hills. "To avoid moving through the gate into the open fields, we can use the hills as cover."

[Prehysterical]

Kellon lifts the child and carries him in his arms. "Then let's not waste any time."

[RandomWombat]

Together, their group begins making their way west. The earth heaves ahead of them in great mounds. The collapsed watchtower lies at the base as they travel around it, like a wounded beast curled up on the ground. Narrow ditches and trenches lead between the hills, often blocked by thorny bushes whose seeds have funneled down to the bottom. Spider moves with great ease through the uneven terrain, scuttling ahead and peering around to blaze the trail for its friends.

Behind, Kellon trudges with the child in his arms, and Gweyir takes up the rear, carefully brushing away any tracks his talons have left behind in the dirt.

On the opposite side of the hills, the western forests rise up to greet them at the edge of the agricultural fields. Moving into the forest puts them under cover of the canopy, and of the rows of trees, as they move south of the Bonegrinder. Along the way they pass by the corpses of a pack of wolves, killed by spears and arrows which have since been pulled free. The animals were left out to rot, and not taken as food, perhaps killed as part of a culling effort.

And the last light of the sun, already shrouded by the clouds and canopy, fades. They are left in darkness. And the Spear of Light will make them all the easier to spot if left to light the way.

"I think it's about time to split up," Gweyir says, crouching behind a tree and whispering to Kellon. Spider senses them stop and turns around to huddle as well.

[Prehysterical]

It is rough going and Kellon hates traveling in the woods almost as much as being underground. Kellon reluctantly forgoes the light of the spear, much as he is tempted to illuminate the darkness. He joins the tiny council behind the tree. "Aye, I agree. Spider, be very careful. If you are at risk of being seen or getting caught, just run. Do not be a hero."

To Gweyir, Kellon instructs, "Lass, I need you to be my eyes. I can't see in the dark and I can't be running into trees with the boy."

[RandomWombat]

Spoiler: OOC

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To keep from having things simply happen offscreen, I'll be running Spider's half of the night alongside Kellon and Gweyir. And you'll have control of Spider for it.

Think of controlling Spider a bit like playing a point and click adventure game, or typing action prompts into an old text adventure. Spider will generally behave as Spider does, with you giving directions.

Here are Spider's stats for rolls, and control of Spider's token has been given on the new map.

"I'll be the most careful spider ever!" the arachnid declares as it scurries away, vanishing into the dark. Gweyir reaches out and pats Kellon's shell to let him know where she is, while his eyes are utterly blind and still adjusting to the dark.

"Keep a claw on my shoulder and follow me. If I tap twice on your finger, it's to let you know to stop so you don't run into me."

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Crawling out of the dark and comfortable woods, Spider's eyes take in the surroundings of the whirligig that they call the windmill. Spider has emerged near some green, rowed gardens full of juicy vegetables granny Morgan is growing. Spider wonders if vegetable juice tastes as good as meat juice.

The big spinning whirligig leans forward and to one side, like a big wobbly flower in the wind. Spider sees rocky walls and dirt-decorated windows on the upper floors. A wooden platform that looks really good for cobwebs encircles the windmill above a trapdoor in the wall leading into a people nest inside. The top of the whirligig is open to the air, with the stick that holds the whirly petals standing up in a shadow against the shiny moon.

Near the whirligig, on a nearby hill, there are four big rocks poking up tall into the sky, but not as far as the moon like the petals on top of the whirly nest. Black birds with shiny feathers circle above it too far to catch and eat. And one of them might be the bird girl so Spider doesn't want to eat her by accident.

[Prehysterical]

Kellon silently follows Gweyir's command and places a claw gently on her shoulder.

Spoiler: Spider Senses, Tingling!

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Focus on the mission. Get closer to the whirly thingy.

[RandomWombat]

With Kellon holding onto her shoulder, Gweyir inches forwards. The going is slow, with Kellon careful not to trip on any roots or snags and drop the boy on the ground.

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Inching closer to the back of the whirligig nest, Spider scuttles up to the wall and listens for noises from inside. Spider can feel the vibrations from talking voices in the hairs of its legs, but cannot understand the words. It sounds loud and angry.

Spoiler: Spider Perception

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Cute little spiders have already made cobwebs in the cracks of the wood ring! Spider asks them in its quietest of voices if they know anything about the old lady and her babies. The little spiders say that the old lady strips the skin off of the bones of her prey and sets it out for the wolves to eat. The spiders sometimes nibble and it's got lots of juice. She lays the teeth out in the circle of big rocks.

[Prehysterical]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Spider friends are so helpful! But Kellon said to try and hear what the mean old lady might be saying. She sounds angry... Time to find an opening where Spider can listen.

[RandomWombat]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Climbing up the side of the very tall nest, Spider approaches the windows covered with decorative dirt. The dirt is very nice because it makes Spider harder to see. There are three ladies inside. They are purple and grey and one of them is wearing a decoration made out of goat horns on her head. Their dresses have been used for dinner by tasty moths.

One of them looks a lot like granny Morgan but her skin is purple and very dry like lizard shells. She is speaking loudly at the other two ladies and angrily, but not angry at them.

"-let them walk away with our merchandise. Bella sweetums, go and get the scrying pool ready."

"So it shall be done, mother dearest," the lady with the curly horn hat says in a very serious voice as she goes down the stairs to the lower parts of the purple lady nest.

"And Offalia, my wonderfully rotten heart of hearts. Did you two get the latest batch of pastries in the oven while I was gone?"

"As you bade, mother. The boy was sufficiently fattened. The lard should make this batch look scrumptiously moist and fresh."

Talking about moist fresh food makes Spider salivate bits of venom down its fangs. But Spider remembers the bad old lady is making food out of people meat which is not nice or good at all.

[Prehysterical]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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So, the bad ladies are there and it sounds like they will be looking for Spider's friends. Are there any children in the people nest?

Perception: (1d20+6)[22]

[RandomWombat]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Spider cannot see any signs of human children in this room. There is a big thingy in the middle of the room that is turning at the same time as the whirly petals. To take a look around Spider climbs up higher and looks at one of the very tip top windows. Inside is a human sleeping nest. One of the wooden webs that humans use to climb stretches up from the floor to the ceiling where there is a wooden trapdoor that goes up.

In the corner near the stairs is a pile of children sized clothes tossed on the floor. Literally many crates are stacked on top of each other, many of them empty. There are little holes in them so Spider can see inside. Not all of them are empty. Spider can see a human eye peeking out of one hole. It looks scared and full of salt water like when humans cry. The crates have little trapdoors on the front that have locks on them.

[Prehysterical]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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There is no helping the little humans, not while the ladies are still in the whirly thing. Spider goes back down to listen to the women. On his way down, he looks to see what the path to the front door looks like.

[RandomWombat]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Crawling around to the front of the nest, Spider peers down at the trapdoor. A dirt trail leads downhill to a wider dirt trail, where granny Morgan's cart is resting. It is empty now and the woven covering is tucked under some wooden boxes to keep the wind from blowing it away.

Only one lady is in the middle level of the nest now. She is using a patch made out of tanned hide to knit shut a hole in her dress. The tanning smells fresh, Spider can smell it's stinkiness from outside the cracks in the window.

Spider feels vibrations below of people walking around, but the bottom of the nest has no windows.

[Prehysterical]

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Spiders have plenty of practice in being patient. Spider repositions back to the back of the whirly thingy and waits for the other two ladies to come back up from the lower place.

[RandomWombat]

Out in the woods, Kellon and Gweyir progress steadily on. Gweyir taps on his finger and stops, going quiet. "****. I think somebody's trying to scry on us, but I warded it off." As if on cue, Kellon feels a tingling sensation at the back of his neck. The feeling of being watched from behind. But forewarned, with force of will he dispels the attempt, a shudder running through his spine and then settling as it is banished.

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Circling back around, Spider remains perfectly still and silent and waits. Then Spider hears a frustrated shriek from below and the sound of liquid sloshing and spilling. Vibrations from angry stomping footsteps come up the stairs and Morgan stops short of the top, looking up at Offalia.

"Both of the damned thieves have resisted the scrying. We've no choice but to go find them ourselves, get down here." Turning around quickly she stomps back downstairs to the lower nest. Offalia puffs air out of her face from between her lips and tosses her needle on the floor, leaving the stitching half done. She walks down after her mother out of sight and Spider can feel the vibrations of a door opening.

[Prehysterical]

Kellon stops like a ship's anchor behind Gweyir when she taps his claw. That feeling of being spied upon, in darkness where he can't even see... He finds himself very grateful of Gweyir's warning. In a very low voice, Kellon asks, "How in the bloody Hells did you even what that was?"

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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Morgan sounds very unhappy... Whatever they tried, it didn't work, and now it sounded like the ladies were going to go look for his friends. Maybe if they leave tonight, they can sneak in and help the human children.

Spider watches and observes, noting what direction the ladies are going in. If they come around to see the back of the whirly thingy, he shifts position so as not to be seen.

[RandomWombat]

"Some of the higher druids of our Circle had similar magic," Gweyir answers, peeking out from behind the tree to look in the direction of the edge of the woods. "Let's just say I used to sneak out a lot."

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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"Take wing, my pretties! We sweep the countryside tonight!" Morgan laughs. It's a violent, hacking laugh, like a wolf choking from poison constricting its airways. Spider peers curiously around the edge of the nest. The three ladies are straddling sticks with a bunch of hay stuck to one end.

One of the ladies looks back right at Spider, and Spider freezes in place. It's Bella, the one with horns. She points up, "Mother! Something's watching us."

Morgan looks back and glares at Spider with mean, nasty eyes. But she looks away like a predator who is not hungry enough to be bothered. "It's just a wild spider, girl, don't be daft. Ignore it. Maybe it will eat one of those pesky wereravens!" Another violent laugh like a choking wolf, and Morgan jumps off of the ground. Then she starts flying, completely without wings! The other two jump after her and they fly up into the sky to the east like a flock of birds. They go towards the big wall of stone blocks, and Spider titters to itself knowing they're going the wrong way. Silly ladies.

[Prehysterical]

The situation is far from safe, but Kellon just can't resist this particular joke. "Oh, a little problem with midnight rendezvouses and a saucy lad, eh?"

Spoiler: Spider Vision

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If all three of the mean ladies are gone, Kellon and Gweyir will want to know. Spider goes to find his friends, wondering what a 'wereraven' is...

[RandomWombat]

Gweyir snorts out a stifled laugh and kicks backwards, jabbing Kellon in the leg. Not that it does much to his scaled tree trunk. "Typical sailor talk. Y'think druids care about that? They'd have just told ma to go wild and be prepared for the consequences. Nah, went exploring and poking around cities at night. Didn't like us mixing with the civilized folk too much, we might catch the concrete cooties."

As they chatter, a small voice from nearby causes Gweyir to jump and grab at her sword. But it's only Spider. "I'm back! The purple ladies flew away into the sky, but they went the wrong way. Silly ladies."

"Purple ladies?" Gweyir asks.

"Yeah. All covered in bumps like frogs. Granny Morgan was with them but she turned purple too."

Spoiler: Kellon Religion

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A coven of unnaturally strong witches who look like warty old women? This sounds like a coven of hags, not of witches. Kellon is only familiar with Sea Hags, but knows there are other kinds. Despite their appearances, they are not mortal folk, but fiends or fey depending on the kind.

[Prehysterical]

"Hags," Kellon growls in disgust. "An entire coven of them. Would not want to fight them all at the same time." He had referred to Morgan as one earlier pejoratively, but it seems like it was all too literal.

"So, you say they flew away? Was it all of them? Were there any children still alive?"

[RandomWombat]

"Yup! All three flew away. There were small humans in trapdoor boxes at the top of the spinning nest," Spider chirps, turning to start leading the way back. Gweyir guides Kellon along the way, though the nearer they get to the edge of the forest the less necessary it becomes. The full moon is up in the sky now, and it provides enough light to see the terrain, if not fine details.

Spider leads them up onto the windmill hill. A garden of ingredients and reagents lay nearby, well-tended, its soil stinking of death and likely fertilized by rotting remains. Looming above them is a dilapidated stone windmill, most of its wooden vanes warped and stripped bare, with shoddy patchwork to hold it together that appears to be made up of leather tanned from human skin.

The onion-domed edifice leans forward and to one side, as though trying to turn away from the stormy gray sky. Kellon sees gray brick walls and dirt-covered windows on the upper floors. A decrepit wooden platform covered in cobwebs encircles the windmill above a flimsy doorway leading to the building's interior. Up above the rooftop is open to the air, and the group can see the mechanisms of the mill in a stark silhouette against the full moon. A raven sits on the wooden frame above the doorway and caws, hopping back and forth in agitation.

Past the windmill are a ring of standing stones, above which are more ravens circling in the sky.

[Prehysterical]

Hope leaps in Kellon's heart like a ship cresting a huge wave. The night eye of the gods hangs above, a good omen somewhat tainted by how vulnerable they are. Like the Durst house, this place reeks of evil. Kellon wants to tear it down stone by stone, but the children come first. He eyes the menhir curiously, but remains focused on his objective.

Spoiler: OOC

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Religion on the menhir: (1d20+1)[20]

As they approach the front door of the windmill, Kellon asks Gweyir quietly, "Do you think yon raven is our informant?"

[RandomWombat]

Spoiler: Religion

Show

Kellon can definitely see some carvings upon the stones. There is a certain aura about the place that feels like a holy site, in the way the stones have been carefully arranged and aligned. Whatever sacred significance it once held, the hags have almost certainly defaced or profaned it in some way.

"Could be," Gweyir looks up at the raven and tentatively waves a hand in greeting. The bird's head twitches over to regard them.

"It is I," the bird confirms Kellon's suspicions as they approach, the girls' voice rasping from its throat. It sounds as though she needs to make a conscious effort to talk properly in raven form, despite the bird's natural vocal range.

Peering up at her curiously, Spider asks, "Are you a wereraven? The nasty ladies said they hope I eat up the wereravens. What's a wereraven? Is that like the werewolves Gweyir talked about?" A torrent of questions pour out of its clicking mandibles.

The bird tilts its head to the side and regards Spider. "...We can talk later. You do not have all night, and a creature is loose inside. I am stuck like this until the sun returns, so I cannot offer much help."

Gweyir looks at the bird with some suspicion, with Spider's new revelation. But she approaches the door and listens at it. The flicker of dim firelight can be seen below and around the door frame, and through the cracks in its crude construction. "She's right, something moving around in there. Whoever is carrying the boy should hold back. Want to take the lead, or should I?"

[Prehysterical]

Wereravens... Interesting. Still, they cannot possibly be any worse than the vile child-eaters that inhabit this mill. Kellon puts it out of his mind for the moment.

The news of the creature, however, is less comforting. In response to Gweyir's question, Kellon hands the boy off to her and draws forth the Spear of Light. "I'll go in first."

Before entering the door, Kellon asks the wereraven, "Any idea what that thing is?"

[RandomWombat]

"No. Likely a pet of the coven," she answers from above the door, before looking out east. "I will call out to warn you if they are returning."

Gweyir takes the boy and steps back, allowing Kellon to open the door.

The ground floor has been converted into a makeshift kitchen, but the room is filthy. Baskets and old dishware are piled everywhere. Adding to the clutter is a second peddler's cart, a chicken coop, a heavy wooden trunk, and a pretty wooden cabinet with flowers painted on its doors. Warmth and dim red light issues from a brick oven against one wall, and a crumbling staircase ascends the wall across from it.

In addition to the clucking of the chickens, Kellon hears toads croaking. The sweet smell of pastries blends horridly with a stench that burns the nostrils. The awful odor comes out of an open, upright barrel in the center of the room, next to which stands a portly, grotesque monster with many sharp teeth and wicked claws. Perhaps comically, it is using a mop far too large for it to clean the floor. When it notices Kellon enter, the creature snarls and drops the mop, baring its claws.

Spoiler: Kellon Religion

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The creature is a Dretch, one of the lowliest of demons. A few days ago, Kellon may have seen it as a fearsome foe. After the trials of the Durst house, it seems barely a threat; but those claws could rip a careless warrior open just as easily as a blade.

The ichor in the barrel is swimming with soul larvae, the spirits of evil mortals transformed into wriggling worms. They are used as currency by fiends both infernal and abyssal, and can be shaped into new fiends by greater evil forces.

Spoiler: Initiative

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The Dretch made it easy for us and rolled a 1, so Kellon and the others can freely act before it.

[Prehysterical]

All other details take a backburner to the dretch on the other side of the room. Kellon levels his spear in both hands, ready to charge. "In the name of the Tempest, I send thee back to the Abyss, demon!"

Spoiler: OOC

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Attack roll: (1d20+6)[23]
Damage: (1d8+4)[11] Magic Piercing damage

[RandomWombat]

The blade drives through the demon's gut like butter, pinning it to the flowery cabinet behind and smearing a spray of hideous ichor across its beautiful paints, staining it the color of an ill bowel movement. Spider lunges forwards and bites into the creature, ripping it open, then spits and gags on the floor as the demon falls limp and dissolves into more of the sickening fluid, much like what is in the stinking barrel.

"Yuckers! Why can't we fight something tasty?"

Spoiler: Combat Log

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Kellon strikes the Dretch for 11 damage.
Spider bites the Dretch for a 16 damage Sneak Attack, killing it.

Combat has ended.

Gweyir steps in behind them, covering her mouth with the hand not carrying the boy. "Ew."

[Prehysterical]

Thankfully, the dretch is sent back to its demon masters in as efficient a manner as possible. Kellon coughs at the foul stench and praises, "Spider, lad, at some point we will sit down and you can eat until you can't even move! Now, hurry lad, where are the children?"

Spoiler: OOC

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Kellon casts Detect Magic
Religion on whether the soul larvae can be purified or exorcised: (1d20+1)[18]

[RandomWombat]

Spoiler: Religion

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There is nothing that can be done for these souls, save the direct intervention of a deity. In their current state they could not even undergo a quest for Atonement.

Casting out his senses, Kellon feels foul magic emanating from the pool of larvae. But he also detects a magical presence in a cabinet.

Morgan's cabinet contains wooden bowls full of herbs and baking ingredients, including flour, sugar, and several gourds of powdered bone. Hanging on the inside of the cabinet doors are a dozen Jocks of hair. Amid various concoctions are three small, labeled containers that hold elixirs. They are labelled 'Youth,' 'Laughter,' and 'Mother's Milk'. Only the one marked as Youth produces an aura of magic.

The wooden crate has several holes in the top and is full of croaking toads, hundreds of them. They are non-magical and appear harmless.

The chicken coop contains three hens and a rooster, as well as a single fresh egg. Spider eyes the chickens hungrily, but restrains itself for now and points a mandible upstairs. "Up this way to the sleeping nest, Kellon!" Taking the lead, Spider ascends the staircase.

They come up to the second floor. The dirt-caked windows allow very little light to enter this eight-foot-high chamber, most of which is taken up by a large millstone connected to a wooden gear shaft that rises through the ceiling in the center of the room. It currently turns slowly, hampered by the patchwork job on the windmill, and has also been outfitted with some handles to allow it to be cranked manually. A stone staircase continues up, toward the sound of a child's crying.

Lastly they arrive at the uppermost floor. In a rotting wooden closet are three crates, stacked one atop another, with small doors and tiny air holes set into them. There is an eye peeking out of one of the boxes, and another one has a girl's loud sobbing coming from inside. Next to the closet is a heap of discarded children's clothing caked in dried blood. A ladder climbs to a wooden trapdoor in the nine-foot-high ceiling. A moldy bed with a tattered canopy stands nearby.

Kellon senses one more magical signature, from beneath to the bed. Pinned down against the floor by small thumbtacks is a Tarokka card with gleaming silver edges. Encircling it are sigils painted in blood. The face of the card depicts a human noblewoman in a dress and corset, hiding half of her face behind a decorative fan, and is dubbed 'The Temptress'.

Spoiler: Arcana

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Kellon isn't sure what the sigils are.

[Prehysterical]

Kellon leaves the containers well enough alone. Instead, he shuts the cabinet and follows Spider upstairs.

Up top, they come upon a sorry sight. Kellon leaves the tarot card alone as well, suspicious of the sigils. Instead, he begins barking orders.

"Spider, get the cages open and get them out. Gweyir, hand me the boy. See what's beyond that trapdoor up top of the ladder."