[IC] Expedition to Castle Ravenloft

[truemane]

Rue Dhampir Barbarian 8/Fighter 2 AC: 17 HP: 121/128 PP:16 PIv: 11 PIs: 16 Rage: 3/4 (LongnRest) Empowering Bite: 4/4 (Long Rest) Second Wind: 1/1 (Short Rest) Action Surge: 1/1 (Short Rest) The balcony: A sculpted stone railing encloses this long balcony, which overlooks Ravenloft's chapel. Two ornate thrones stand side by side in the center of the balcony, covered with dust and strung with cobwebs. The thrones face away from the double doors that give access to the balcony; Sitting on them, two decomposing corpses wore the remains of silk and velvet dresses, once expensive pieces of garment befitting the nobles enjoyed a prestigious view of the chapel. Her face wrinkling in distaste, Rue approached the bodies and inspected them carefully, but with little reverence. She had no interest in gold or jewels or any other marker of wealth, but she knew her compatriots might value such things. Yikkol waves to Rue, points at the doors, and mimes an opening gesture. “Rue, I think these wooden stairs down here lead directly to the balcony up there. Could you open the doors and check?” Rue, out of view of the chapel, knocks on the floor twice to show she heard, and then goes to the doors and tries to open them, one at a time. If they open, she does. If they do not, she forces them.

Spoiler: OOC

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Just in case:
Break open left door: Strength 19/Athletics 27
Break open right door: Strength 6/Athletics 14

[The Commander]

Lord Zinro Varanash

Zinro kept close to Herbert as the party descended down the stairs. He decided to keep Dot attached to Yikkol for the time being, in case he needed to cast a spell on her through his Familiar. As they descended, Zinro kept a close eye and ear out for further trouble. He idly rubbed the wound in his shoulder as they marched.

Spoiler

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Perception Check, if needed: (1d20+5)[22]

[dangelo]

The creaky wooden staircase climbed to the balcony through a secondary access. From there, the double doors lead to a grand hallway that mirrored the size and position of the corridor of the statues below.

Down below, the south access staircase spiraled into darkness.The newformed fellowship formed a straight line and descended into the depths of Castle Ravenloft, watching every step, ears open for danger, still alert from the discharge of adrenaline that had been the first fight. Finally, the staircase ended at the bottom of the castle, revealing a low-ceiling catacomb immersed in shadows.

Buried deep beneath the keep of Ravenloft lie ancient catacombs, with arched ceilings supported by wide, hollow columns that double as crypts. Cobwebs hang limp in the musty air. A thick fog clings to the floor, which is covered in putrid waste. The black ceiling is moving.

Spoiler: OOC

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Who is heading in first? What is your formation when exploring? Do you have a light source? Who's carrying it?
If you decide to explore the catacombs, please roll Perception and (if you want) Stealth.

[TaiLiu]

“I can go on ahead a few paces,” Yikkol said, whispering. “The rest of you can follow behind. But stay alert. I reckon we’ll have to deal with another trap before long. Servants and baths my green arse…”

With some concern, she glances at the cobwebs on the floor and then at the moving ceiling. Then she begins to move ahead, carefully avoiding most of the waste, spiderwebs, and anything else that could make noise.

• Yikkol heads in first. Maybe 20 ft ahead of the party to scout ahead. No light source, just 60 ft of Darkvision.
• Perception: (1d20+10)[29].
• Stealth with Supreme Sneak: (1d20+12)[25] or (1d20+12)[19].

[Dr.Samurai]

Asha Astral Elf Armorer Artificer AC: 23 HP: 103/103 THP: 10/10 PPer: 16 PInv: 19 PIns: 12 Conditions: Immune to Surprise, Adv on Init, Necklace of Adaptation Concentrating: Guidance Yikkol creeps forward ahead of the group to scout, Asha whispers, Be careful, as she departs. He takes a position at the front, and touches Herbert's shoulder as he does. Crystals along Asha's armor light up briefly as energy is imparted to Herbert to assist him. Spoiler: Rolls Show Asha's Perception - (1d20+6)[20] Asha's Stealth - (1d20+6)[25] (Disadvantage from Heavy Armor is negated by Advantage from Boots of Elvenkind) Guidance for Herbert - (1d4)[3]

[Waistcoatwill]

Bori shudders at the architecture around them, every negative feeling about sedentary dwelling confirmed a thousand fold. He tries ti stay as quiet as possible. He even reaches out to the stone beneath their feet, urging the spirits to guide Nethis and soften her the sounds of her awa scraping the floor.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Perception
(1d20+5)[16] Or (1d20+5)[22]
Stealth Bori
(1d20+5)[19]
Stealth Nethis with Guidance
(1d20+3)[16] Plus (1d4)[1]

[J-H]

Spoiler

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perception (1d20)[20] plus mods
tealth (1d20)[9] plus mods and guidance. Think base -1 and disadvantage (1d20)[13]

[truemane]

RUE

Still feeling more than a little self-conscious about how easily she lost control of herself during the fight and exposed her heritage, Rue kept to the periphery of the group. As they narrowed to single file, she would either stick to the back or move to the front, whichever seemed the most useful (and she would do whichever she was asked, were she asked).

Once in the catacombs, she picked her way around, dropping sometimes to all-fours, moving slowly and silently.

Spoiler: OOC

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Perception: (1d20+6)[21]
Stealth: (1d20+7)[26]

[dangelo]

[Stealth check successful]

Thousands of bats slept on the ceiling of the catacombs, forming a blanket of darkness that stretched all over the stone surface. Up ahead, a group of ten Barovians gathered around a tomb, joining their efforts to bust it open and steal whatever's inside.They were all armed and equipped for battle, but none of them looked like real warriors.

They don't seem to notice you.

[The Commander]

Lord Zinro Varanash

Seeing the people ahead of them, Zinro stopped and whispered: "How did they get in here? And how are they still alive? This feels like a trap. I could could cast Fireball from here, dispatch them all at once; although the bats might take flight at such a loud noise."

[Dr.Samurai]

Asha Astral Elf Armorer Artificer AC: 23 HP: 103/103 THP: 10/10 PPer: 16 PInv: 19 PIns: 12 Conditions: Immune to Surprise, Adv on Init, Necklace of Adaptation Concentrating: -- I'd be remiss to kill them in cold blood, Asha whispers in reply, Could be that Strahd toys with all visitors to his castle, including the grave robbers, and that's why they've been allowed to make it this far. Should we approach them?

[Waistcoatwill]

Bori

Are these tombs? Six below, that's even more disgusting than burial in the ground! The spirits of the dead must be very jealous here, they'll have ghosts haunting them before they know it!

Bori's hands twitched nervously as he weighed up theur options.

I could try talking to them, being friendly? I doubt I can talk them out of getting themselves cursed, but I getting them to let us past shouldn't be too difficult...I hope.

[TaiLiu]

Seeing the people ahead of them, Zinro stopped and whispered: "How did they get in here? And how are they still alive? This feels like a trap. I could could cast Fireball from here, dispatch them all at once; although the bats might take flight at such a loud noise."

I'd be remiss to kill them in cold blood,[/COLOR] Asha whispers in reply, Could be that Strahd toys with all visitors to his castle, including the grave robbers, and that's why they've been allowed to make it this far. Should we approach them?

Bori's hands twitched nervously as he weighed up theur options.

I could try talking to them, being friendly? I doubt I can talk them out of getting themselves cursed, but I getting them to let us past shouldn't be too difficult...I hope.

"Good idea," Yikkol whispers, joining the group again briefly. "I reckon you're the best talker amongst us.

"While you do that, I'll take a look around these tombs and see what I can learn. If any of you can see in the dark, you may join me."

She disappears again and heads off into a far corner to search for any signs of the Architect's Guild. Later, she'd be forced to admit that this was a desperate attempt. Her mother's bones were likely in an unmarked grave—if she were lucky.

[dangelo]

"It's no good! It won't budge!" Cried one of the Barovians. The middle age man let go of the heavy crowbar he had been using to bust the crypt open, his voice echoing through the catacombs.

"Hand it over! Keep watch while I try." Another took his place. The entire group seemed hesitant, yet desperate enough to be robbing cursed graves.

Spoiler: OOC

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Your stealth rolls were good enough that you can slink to the side and explore the rest of the room (even the ones who didn't roll Stealth can follow along stealthily, tho you must cut the lights for that to work). Will update Owlbear since characters with Darkvison had great Stealth results.

[dangelo]

It took Yikkol several minutes to read the inscriptions under the faint glow of a candle, hiding the flame with her body while lurking deep in the shadows. None of the grave robbers noticed as she crawled from crypt to crypt, scouting the way to make sure it was safe for her colleagues, but also pursuing something of personal interest.

She quickly noted that the catacombs had 5 exits: The main spiral staircase, a side access at the north-eastern corner, and three special tombs. But it was only at the 19th crypt, starting at the northeasternmost corner and sweeping her way down, that Yikkol held her breath:

It took Yikkol several minutes to read the inscriptions under the dim candlelight, keeping the small flame hidden and sticking to the shadows. None of the grave robbers noticed her as she crawled from crypt to crypt, scouting the way to make sure it was safe for her colleagues, but also pursuing something of personal interest. It was only at the 14th crypt, starting at the northeasternmost corner and sweeping her way down, that Yikkol held her breath:

"Artimus, the Architect of Ravenloft."

The name sounded familiar to her, though she couldn't be sure if Artimus had been a member of her guild or simply associated with it. Either way, this master wizard had lived over a century ago and disappeared mysteriously during his elderly years, leaving no trace.

[TaiLiu]

Maybe this was someone from the guild. Maybe this is a mass grave of all the architects. Maybe… Oh, Fates, please. Please. Please let this trip not be in vain. Please let my mom’s bones be in here.

Yikkol pulls out her own crowbar and begins to pry, ignoring the Barovians nearby.

[dangelo]

The noise of iron scrapping against stone winded through the narrow corridors of the catacombs. The Barovians were making their fair share of noise, allowing Yikkol to work stealthily. In just a few seconds, she managed to drag the stone coffin and release it from its crypt.

Inside, a dead man slept a peaceful sleep. He wore the ruined remains of a suit of armor and carried a sword on his belt. Whoever he was, it didn't match the profile of Artimus.

OOC: Everyone must roll Perception

[TaiLiu]

As her candlelight dances over the face of the armored man, Yikkol's cusses inwardly. Were the names all wrong? Would she have to search all the coffins?

Perception: (1d20+10)[24].

[dangelo]

The sleeping soldier suddenly opened his eyes and raised his claws in the air, hissing loudly. A chill went up the spine of each of the Barovians in those catacombs. Without a word, they all dropped their tools and prepared to run away as fast as possible. Bori, who was making his way to the grave robbers in an attempt to establish dialogue, was privileged with a vantage point: he could see both Yikkol and the grave robbers, however neither could see the other. Rue, a few paces behind, just had a bad feeling about this; Her gut told her something was off, and her instincts revealed to be right from the start. The others were too caught up in the middle of the chaos, and were taken by surprise by the zombie attack.

Spoiler: ooc

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"Without a word, they all dropped their tools and prepared to run away as fast as possible."
/\
This will only happen in the Barovians' round.

Spoiler: combat

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Initiative order: (surprise round!)

Asha 20
Bori 19
Zinro 17
Rue 17
Barovians 10
Yikkol 9
Zombies 9
Herbert 4

[Dr.Samurai]

Asha Astral Elf Armorer Artificer AC: 23 HP: 103/103 THP: 10/10 PPer: 16 PInv: 19 PIns: 12 Conditions: Immune to Surprise, Adv on Init, Necklace of Adaptation Concentrating: -- The sudden noise and reaction from the graverobbers alerts Asha that something is amiss. With the instincts of a centuries old veteran mercenary, he rushes forward to find where Yikkol had gone. He moves toward the group of tomb raiders, but suddenly sees Yikkol to his left being attacked by a zombie. Wait! he calls to the thieves, who are ready to drop everything and run, we can help each other! Spoiler: Turn 1 Show Asha is immune to the Surprised condition. Move - Move forward. Action - Dash.

[Waistcoatwill]

Bori

The halfling begins walking slowly towards the group of barovians, trying to think of an ope ing gambit. Offer them a drink? A corny joke? Offer to help? Then he hears the scrapes coming from Yikkol's direction and the unmistakable tang of undeath.

Boldrei's britches! He sprints towards his ally whilst drawing his faintly glowing blade.

Spoiler

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Dash action to make it to Yikkol's side.

[dangelo]

In the chaos that followed, only three of the Barovians were sane enough to listen to Asha. They remained still, weapons at hand, while the other seven ran for their lives, trampling over one another in a desperate attempt to reach the stairs.

Next: Yikkol

[TaiLiu]

The sleeping soldier suddenly opened his eyes and raised his claws in the air, hissing loudly.

Yikkol stumbles back, reaches for the whip on her belt, and lashes the soldier across the face, attempting to behead it.

• Attack: (1d20+8)[16].
• Damage: (1d4+4)[6] plus (5d6)[15] = 21 slashing.

Boldrei's britches! He sprints towards his ally whilst drawing his faintly glowing blade.

And then she feels her fear suddenly subside. Yikkol turns and sees Bori standing there.

Her words stumble over one another. "I... I thought my mother's bones would be in here. She was an architect. And the crypt said—"

The sound of new hisses interrupts her.

"There's more of them. The treasure! Cover me."

She runs off towards the direction of the east tomb. Perhaps that's where the treasure lay. If they were lucky, the treasure would put these undead to rest—for good.

• Cunning Action: Disengage.
• Move 30 feet away.

[dangelo]

Yikkol's whip cracked loudly, and black blood spilled on the stone floor. The weapon cried fiercely, and the zombie's neck exploded in blood and gore. The head was severed from the body, but - For the Morninglord, now it
moved on its own!

At the same time, the catacombs were filled with the sound of stone dragging on stone. Twelve other crypts were suddenly burst open, their coffins sliding into open space in unison.

Zombie 1 attacks Bori
Zombie 2 moves and attacks Bori
Zombies 3, 7 and 8 move and attack Asha
Zombies 4, 5, 10 and 11 move and attack Yikkol
Zombies 6 and 12 dash towards Yikkol
Zombie 13 dashes towards Bori

Zombie 1 attacks Bori
Bite: (1d20+3)[15] for (1d4+1)[3] (severed head)
Claws: (1d20+3)[19] for (1d6+1)[4]
Claws: (1d20+3)[19] for (1d6+1)[6]

Zombie 2 attacks Bori
Bite: (1d20+3)[22] for (1d4+1)[5]
Claws: (1d20+3)[21] for (1d6+1)[2]
Claws: (1d20+3)[19] for (1d6+1)[4]

---------

Zombie 3 attacks Asha
Bite: (1d20+3)[10] for (1d4+1)[5]
Claws: (1d20+3)[21] for (1d6+1)[7]
Claws: (1d20+3)[4] for (1d6+1)[7]

Zombie 7 attacks Asha
Bite: (1d20+3)[8] for (1d4+1)[5]
Claws: (1d20+3)[22] for (1d6+1)[6]
Claws: (1d20+3)[18] for (1d6+1)[7]

Zombie 8 attacks Asha
Bite: (1d20+3)[5] for (1d4+1)[4]
Claws: (1d20+3)[23] for (1d6+1)[6]
Claws: (1d20+3)[18] for (1d6+1)[3]

---------

Zombie 4 attacks Yikkol
Bite: (1d20+3)[14] for (1d4+1)[3]
Claws: (1d20+3)[15] for (1d6+1)[3]
Claws: (1d20+3)[18] for (1d6+1)[4]

Zombie 5 attacks Yikkol
Bite: (1d20+3)[5] for (1d4+1)[4]
Claws: (1d20+3)[9] for (1d6+1)[7]
Claws: (1d20+3)[16] for (1d6+1)[2]

Zombie 10 attacks Yikkol
Bite: (1d20+3)[11] for (1d4+1)[5]
Claws: (1d20+3)[22] for (1d6+1)[3]
Claws: (1d20+3)[21] for (1d6+1)[7]

Zombie 11 attacks Yikkol
Bite: (1d20+3)[6] for (1d4+1)[2]
Claws: (1d20+3)[21] for (1d6+1)[2]
Claws: (1d20+3)[19] for (1d6+1)[5]

Next: Herbert

[TaiLiu]

Yikkol bobs and weaves through the catacombs, avoiding the zombies' bites but falling pray to their terrible claws and nails.

She spends a reaction to use Uncanny Dodge and takes 19 points of damage. 4 of those points are blocked by her temporary hit points. Thanks, Bori. :D

[J-H]

Herbert Raycraft Human Life Cleric AC: 20 HP: 59/73 PPer: 18 PInv: 10 PIst: 18 Conditions: -- Concentrating: -- Aura: 30' Prot from Evil (Fiends/undead): Such creatures have disadvantage on attack rolls against us, and we are immune to charm, fear, possession by them

Herbert attempts to move past the fleeing Barovians, but in their panic, they foul his path.

Spoiler

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Athletics (1d20+3)[8]
vs
Cowardly graverobber (1d20)[12] plus mods

[Dr.Samurai]

Asha Astral Elf Armorer Artificer AC: 23 HP: 101/103 THP: 10/10 PPer: 16 PInv: 19 PIns: 12 Conditions: Immune to Surprise, Adv on Init, Necklace of Adaptation Concentrating: -- In the blink of an eye, chaos erupts in the catacombs. Zombies lurch from their crypts with startling speed, and the heroes find themselves separated and surrounded by zombies and frantic Barovians. Asha remains calm, having been in countless scenarios like this. The zombies claw and bite at him, but all save one are unable to penetrate the bionoid armor. One zombie gets a solid strike in, and Asha activates the shield on his arm to repulse the undead away from him. He looks around to reposition, but he is pressed in by the Barovians. He cuts the air with a sharp gesture of his hand, Clear the way! before lashing out with fists at one of the zombies. Spoiler: Turn 1 Reaction Show Repulsion Shield - Immediately after being crit by the zombie, Asha spends 1 charge of the shield to push that zombie away 15ft. Not sure which zombie is the one that struck him so I'll let Dangelo move the token. Spoiler: Turn 2 Show Bonus Action - Defensive Field (gain 10THP) Action - Attack Zombie 3 Attack - (1d20+11)[12] Damage - (1d8+7)[15] Extra Attack - (1d20+11)[28] Damage - (1d8+7)[13] Hit Effect - Zombie 3 has Disadvantage to attack anyone other than Asha until the start of Asha's next turn.

[Waistcoatwill]

Bori

As the undead creatures surround him Bori has flashbacks to the painfully intelligent Karnathi nightmares that tore Nethis apart. He almost reaches a hand out to touch Rue, so glad is he of her proximity. Instead he breaths deeply, calling upon the echoes of Nethis's ancestors that he hoped walked with him even here.

His mask begins to glow and spectral reptilian forms momentarily circle him, raking at the surrounding zombies before fading away once more.

Nethis, stay back you hear, I'm fine! A disgruntled hiss echoes from the bottom. Of the stairs.

Spoiler: Action

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Word of Radiance. DC 16 Con save for all zombies within 5ft of him for (2d6)[8] radiant damage.
Z1 (1d20)[5]
Z2 (1d20)[1]
Z3 (1d20)[13]
Z - head (1d20)[9]

[The Commander]

Lord Zinro Varanash

Zinro was caught off guard by the sudden rush of zombies and the scattering of the Barovians. He couldn't see what was happening and the Barovians were impolitely blocking his route forward. He took a step to the side to see the side passage better and muttered some arcane words. There was a brief pop, as reality bended in on itself, and Zinro vanished; only to immediately reappear on the other side of the Barovians. He quickly moved to see down the line of tombs and let off a bolt of fire at the nearest zombie.

Elsewhere, Dot simply remained attached to Yikkol's leg.

Spoiler

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Move Action + Bonus Action to maneuverer and Misty Step past the Barovians and get line of sight.
Main Action to cast the Cantrip Fire Bolt at Zombie 13: (1d20+8)[10] for (2D10+4)[12] Fire Damage (+4 coming from Potent Cantrip feature)

[truemane]

Rue Dhampir Barbarian 8/Fighter 2 AC: 17 HP: 121/128 PP:16 PIv: 11 PIs: 16 Rage: 3/4 (Long Rest) Empowering Bite: 4/4 (Long Rest) Second Wind: 1/1 (Short Rest) Action Surge: 1/1 (Short Rest)

Still somewhat disquieted (both by her loss control, and her compatriots' reactions), Rue tries to keep control over the powerful rush of her emotions.

She emits a growl and snarl and hurls herself headlong at the moving severed head, without any regard for her own safety. Zombies were bad enough, but if something very weird and very bad were going to happen here, this seemed to her to be the most likely source.

Even without her anger, and without her claws, Rue was a formidable fighter. Her long, thin porcelain-white fingers balled into fists as cold and hard as marble.

She struck the head as many times as necessary.

Spoiler

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Reckless Attack!

Unarmed attack at the Severed Head. If she kills it before she's done, Zombie 1 is her next target. If she amazingly kills both, she'll move to engage Zombie 10 and 11.

Attack 1: 25 to hit for 13 magical bludgeoning damage
Attack 2: 27 to hit for 13 magical bludgeoning damage
Off hand: 24 to hit for 2 magical bludgeoning damage