Session 5 - Further on the Svalich Road

General Summary

Simon is not here today

• We investigate the place the undead was detected
  • Ariah looks for marks or tracks, but doesn't see anything
  • Damia stands and looks at her notes, but doesn't investigate
  • Richard also investigates, but doesn't find anything either
  • He uses divine sense, and feels it coming from below him
  • We decide to dig it up. Damia Enlarges a spoon and gives the new shovel to Richard
  • He uncovers a rotten face. The corpse doesn't react
  • Jonathan touches it, and the ring tells him that it has been dead for years
  • Ariah can't do anything for it if it has already turned, so we decide to bury it again and leave it be
• We pack up the camp and continue along the road
  • The order is Damia and Richard, then Jonathan and Ireena, then Ariah at the back
  • Damia keeps getting cobwebs in her face, while the rest of us easily avoids them
  • We get to a small bend in the road, and Damia gets completely stuck in cobwebs as she steps on something
  • We're swarmed by spiders the size of heads
  • The whole ground is covered in spider webs, making it rough terrain
  • Damia manages to tear herself free
  • We're killing the spiders fairly easily, when a giant spider approaches from behind
  • Damia twins a Catapult and deals good damage, but doesn't deter it
  • Richard tells Ariah not to heal him, as he will do it to himself later
  • Ariah Inflicts wounds and Spiritual Weapons the giant spider to death (Her Spiritual Weapon is a flogging whip)
  • Richard Lay's on Hand himself (+12 hp) and Jonathan (+2 hp)
• We move on, and Damia lets Richard walk a few steps in front
• We've walked upwards a bit in height, and enter a clearing with a view into the valley
  • 
  • Along the river is flames and the vistani camp
  • We're standing on a bridge over(?) a waterfall
  • It is starting to get dark, and time for camp
  • It is a crossroads with a sign. Over the bridge: Vallachi. East: Teser Pools (?) and West the way we're coming from
  • Ariah doesn't see anything threathening beneath the bridge (it is very far down), and the bridge seems very old but solid
  • She doesn't think the gargolyes will come to life either
  • Damia casts an extended Mage Armor on herself
  • Richard casts Divine Sense, and doesn't feel anything
  • On the other side of the bridge, the sign points to tser pools(?) and Vallaki
  • We decide to camp in the forest near the road
• We set up camp
  • Richard tells Ireena that he should have the last shift, as he had trouble seeing last night. She has dark vision
  • Damia gives Richard her Ring of Regeneration, but he want's Ireena to have it instead.
  • Damia gets angry and gives it to Jonathan instead
  • The watch order:
    • Jonathan and Ireena
      • Goes peacefully (No active pc's in this one)
    • Damia
      • Tries to identify her cloak, but fails
      • Cleans up the cobwebs from earlier
      • Otherwise goes fine
    • Ariah
      • She sees a silhouette riding over the bridge, and fog seeping in
      • He is wearing silver armor and holding a spear and a banner
      • He looks straight at Ariah, and nods when she says 'good evening'
      • Then the horse goes up on it's hind legs, showing undead ribs
      • The figure points with his sword towards Ariah and then towards the west
      • She hears something tink on the bridge, and sees a black candle with some metal at the bottom
      • She prays to Ilmater to warn her of danger and goes to pick it up
      • As she comes closer, she feels a void inside, which reminds her of the attack on Bowshot. The close she gets, the brighter the wick burns
      • She uses a long stick to throw it into the river
      • Then starts her ritual
    • Richard sees something gold on the riverbed, but otherwise it goes quietly
• When everyone is awake Ariah tells them about the skeleton rider and the evil artifact
  • Richard tells us about the gold in the water
  • Ariah performs her ritual again
  • We refill our waterskins, and Ariah casts Purify Food and Drink on it
  • We then look for the golden stuff
  • Ariah and Damia sees some small glittering things in the water, towards the stoned further into the river
  • Ariah sees old footprints on the beach
  • Damia uses Gust to push the glittering stuff into the air and out of the water. Golden coins fly into the air, before falling back into the river
  • Damia uses Detect Magic to see if they're magical. There is no magic from that area
  • Damia tries to get Richard to go into the river with a rope, but since she refuses to go herself we leave the coins be and she has to promise to not whine about prices in the next shop we reach
  • As we're walking back over the bridge, Damia notices that the gargoyles are magical
  • We get over the bridge fine, and continue walking. As Ariah is the last to cross the bridge, she has to roll a wis save (rolls 14)
• We reach a new set of gates, that remind us of the gates with the wolves
  • 
  • A signpost says that Vallaki is through the gate, and castle Ravenloft is to the north-east
  • Ireena says that this is the West Gate of Barovia. She has never seen it closed
• We continue, and follow the road to the top of a mountain, with a good view of Castle Ravenloft
• Damia asks Ireena about the rebellion
  • Her father didn't allow Ireena to join
  • They stormed the castle, and got inside since the doors were open
  • None of them got back out
  • Richard mentions Strahd's name, and has to roll a wis save
  • Ireena says she can help us get an audience with Strahd(?? or other nobles?) after she gets to Vallaki, since she is a noble and has connections
  • It was the Mad Mage that lead the people into the rebellion
  • Richard asks how you become a vistani. Ireena says that Madam Eva told her that you could become an honorary vistani, but not get their powers
  • The vistani are mostly neutral, but there are bad ones like the Three Sisters of Barovia
• Four hours after the gate it starts to get dark again
  • We come to an old windwill on a hill
  • 
  • There is fog around us
  • We head to the windmill to look for shelter tonight
  • Before we do, Damia remembers that the Durst's had a windmill as their symbol
  • We walk closer so Richard can use Divine Sense
  • As we get closer Damia and Richard starts smelling something strange, familiar and comforting
  • Richard smells the pies and notices that it is the same smell
  • Damia wants to cast Detect Magic on it, but Richard doesn't think we should get closer
  • As they're arguing, we hear the sound of a small wagon coming from behind us

Plan

Stop Damia from going to the probably enchanted windmill. Don't get seen by the person in the wagon. Keep in mind that the windmill is the symbol of the Durst's

Report Date

23 Jul 2022