Death House
APPROACHING THE HOUSE:
The worn, muddy road leads you around a bend revealing an iron fence. It's rusted frame encloses a large 4 story house and a few other dilapidated sheds beside it. Next to the entrance of the fence, you notice a young boy and girl clinging to each other. The girl shouts to you asking for help! "Please, you have to help us! Our parents and baby brother still inside our house with the monster. Our parents managed to lock the monster in the basement but they haven't made it out yet. Please help them!"
- Rose and Thorn say that they won’t go back in the house until they know the monster is gone. They can be convinced to wait in the portico (area 1A) while the characters search the house. Although they appear to be flesh-and-blood children, Rose and Thorn are actually illusions created by the house to lure the characters inside. The children don’t know that they’re illusions but vanish if attacked or forced into the house.
- The children died of starvation centuries ago after their insane parents locked them in the attic and forgot about them. They were too young and innocent to understand that their parents were guilty of heinous crimes. Their parents told them stories about a monster in the basement to keep the children from going down to the dungeon level. The “terrible howls” they heard were actually the screams of the cult’s victims.
RUNNING THIS LOCATION
1. Entrance
A rusted wrought-iron gate reflects the moonlight in a sinister green. It's hinges shriek as it swings openly in the wind. Oil lamps hang from the portico ceiling behind it, flanking a set of oaken doors. Inside they foyer, a shield emblazoned with a coat-of-arms (a stylized golden windmill on a red field), flanked by framed portraits of stony-faced aristocrats. Another set of double doors leads into the Main Hall.
2. Main Hall
You enter into a warm interior illuminated by a black, marble fireplace and flanked by a a sweeping, red marble staircase. Mounted on the wall above the fireplace is a longsword (nonmagical) with a windmill cameo worked into the hilt. The wood-paneled walls are ornately sculpted with images of vines, flowers, nymphs, and satyrs. The decorative paneling follows the staircase as it circles upward to the second floor.
- Characters who search the walls for secret doors or otherwise inspect the paneling can, with a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check, see serpents and skulls inconspicuously woven into the wall designs.
HAUNTING:
As you walk around the main hall, you hear a collection of subtle noises. First, a muffled screaming coming from the floorboards below you. Then, the soft crying of a baby above you. Finally, the sound of clinking glass, laughter, and muffled conversation can be heard from the room to the North West door.
3. Den of Wolves
This oak-paneled room looks like a hunter’s den. Mounted above the fireplace is a stag’s head, and positioned around the outskirts of the room are three stuffed wolves.
HAUNTING:
You can't shake the feeling that you are being watched in this room. You notice that the stuffed wolves have shifted their positions. One of their mouths are agape forming a fierce snarl.
TREASURE:
- The oak table in the middle contains: cask of wine, two carved wooden goblets, a pipe rack, and a candelabrum.
- East Cabinet (Locked DC 15 Dex Check): heavy crossbow, a light crossbow, a hand crossbow, and 20 bolts for each weapon.
- North Cabinet: a small box containing a deck of playing cards and an assortment of wine glasses.
TRAPDOOR
4. Kitchen and Pantry
A tidy kitchen with a work table, shelves and an oven. The door directly in front of you appears to lead to a pantry. It's shelves are stocked full of all sorts of food. Behind the door you came in is a manually operated dumbwaiter. It is a 2'-0" wide stone shaft. That appears to go up to the floors above. Hanging next to the dumbwaiter is a tiny brass bell attached by wires.
- All the food in the pantry appears fresh but is extremely bland.
- A Small character can squeeze into the elevator box with a successful DC 10 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. The dumbwaiter’s rope-and-pulley mechanism can support 200 pounds of weight before breaking.
TREASURE:
- 3 Knives, a rolling pin, cast iron pan (12in)
5. Dining Room
A beautiful dining room with a large mahogany table surrounded by eight elegant chairs that sit below a crystal chandelier. The table is garnished with a delicious looking feast flanked by resplendent silverware that dazzle in the candle light. A marble fireplace has a mahogany-framed painting of an alpine vale above it. This room's wall paneling is carved with images of deer among the trees.
- A successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check, see twisted faces carved into the tree trunks and wolves lurking amid the carved foliage.
- Red silk drapes cover the windows, and a tapestry depicting hunting dogs and horse-mounted aristocrats chasing after a wolf hangs from an iron rod bolted to the south wall.
- The silverware tarnishes, the crystal cracks, the portrait fades, and the tapestry rots if removed from the house.
HAUNTING:
- A PC that eats from the feast must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom save, or else be compelled to stuff themselves with food. After the PC has filled their gullet for a full minute, the glamor upon the banquet vanishes, revealing it to be rotted, foul meats infested with maggots and stale breads stuffed with weevils. At this point, the compulsion upon any affected PCs falls, leaving them poisoned for 1 hour.
6. Upper Hall
Unlit oil lamps are mounted on the walls of this elegant hall. Hanging above the mantelpiece is a wood-framed portrait of a Family: Mother, Father, and two smiling children. Cradled in the father's arms is a swaddled baby, which the mother regards with a hint of scorn. Standing suits of armor flank wooden doors in the east and west walls. Each suit of armor clutches a spear and has a visored helm shaped like a wolf’s head. The doors are carved with dancing youths. You feel a cold draft coming down from the upper floor of the red marble staircase as it continues its upward spiral.
- The Family: Gustav and Elisabeth Durst with their two smiling children, Rose and Thorn.
- Wall Paneling: a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check reveals that the youths aren’t really dancing but fighting off swarms of bats.
HAUNTING:
The smell of blood, and the sobs and muffled gasps of a woman in pain emit from the first room from the stairs.
7. Servants’ Room
An undecorated bedroom contains a pair of beds with straw-stuffed mattresses. At the foot of each bed is an empty footlocker. Tidy servants’ uniforms hang from hooks in the adjoining closet. A dumbwaiter in the corner of the west wall has a button on the wall next to it.
- Pressing the button rings the tiny bell in area 4A.
- The mattresses are clean at first glance but, if they return from the 3rd floor to sleep here, they find it riddled with bugs.
8. Library
You've found the Library. Red velvet drapes cover the windows, exquisite mahogany desk and a matching high-back chair face the entrance and the fireplace, above which hangs a framed picture of a windmill perched atop a rocky crag. Situated in corners of the room are two overstuffed chairs. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves line the south wall with a rolling wooden ladder.
The desk has several items resting atop it:
- an oil lamp, a jar of ink, a quill pen, a tinderbox, and a letter kit containing a red wax candle, four blank sheets of parchment, and a wooden seal bearing the Durst family’s insignia (a windmill).
- The desk drawer is empty.
- A tattered piece of sheet music lies on the desk. It is titled “Song for Elizabeth.”
- A handwritten, partially burnt note sits beside it; it reads “Bulwarton’s words can open the way.”
- (The red-covered fake book that opens the secret door is titled “An Architect’s Art,” and is written by Archibald Bulwarton.)
- history
- warfare
- alchemy.
- First-edition works of poetry and fiction.
- The books rot and fall apart if taken from the house.
HAUNTING:
One of the books on the shelves is titled “The History of (PC’s Name).” If read, it provides a narration of the PC’s entire life. The final page reads: “[He/She] pulled the book down off the shelf and began to read, unaware of the creature that watched [him/her] from the shadows. Slowly, the beast began to creep forward.” The next page is blank, save for a bloodstain two-thirds down. A search of the room evidences no indication of any other creature.
Secret Door
9. Secret Room
This secret room contains bookshelves packed with tomes describing fiend-summoning rituals and the necromantic rituals of a cult called the Priests of Osybus. The rituals are bogus, which any character can ascertain after studying the books for 1 hour and succeeding on a DC 12 Intelligence (Arcana) check. A heavy wooden chest with clawed iron feet stands against the south wall, its lid half-closed. Sticking out of the chest is a skeleton in leather armor. Close inspection reveals that the skeleton belongs to a human who triggered a poisoned dart trap. Three darts are stuck in the dead adventurer’s armor and ribcage. The dart-firing mechanism inside the chest no longer functions. Clutched in the skeleton’s left hand is a letter bearing the seal of Strahd von Zarovich, which the adventurer tried to remove from the chest. Written in flowing script, the letter reads as follows:Another letter is found amongst the shelving:My most pathetic servant,I am not a messiah sent to you by the Dark Powers of this land. I have not come to lead you on a path to immortality. However many souls you have bled on your hidden altar, however many visitors you have tortured in your dungeon, know that you are not the ones who brought me to this beautiful land. You are but worms writhing in my earth.You say that you are cursed, your fortunes spent. You abandoned love for madness, took solace in the bosom of another woman, and sired a bastard son. Cursed by darkness? Of that I have no doubt. Save you from your wretchedness? I think not. I much prefer you as you are.Your dread lord and master,
The Key to Rose and Thorn's room (area 20) is folded inside of this letter.My dear Dimov,I must confess, my nights as of late have been sleepless. The child’s wails these past several evenings have kept me awake , haunting these halls like a ghost. Margaret does her best, but other clouds yet trouble my dreams.My beloved Elisabeth, I am sure, feels it too, for she tosses and turns in our bed and awakes with her forehead slick with sweat. O’er the past several congregations, I have become suspicious of the ambitions of the others. Their dark murmurs worry me, and though I know that a shadow ought not fear a blacker night, I cannot but fear for the extent of their plotting.If anything happens, you are to be steward of our parents’ house, and caretaker of my children. Keep Rose and Thorn safe, and dear Walter close to your breast. Should the worst come to pass, you shall be all they have left.Your loving brother,Gustav
TREASURE:
The chest contains:- 3 blank books with black leather covers (worth 25 gp each)
- 3 spell scrolls (bless, protection from poison, and spiritual weapon),
- The deed to the house, the deed to a windmill, and a signed will. The windmill referred to in the second deed is situated in the mountains east of Vallaki (see chapter 6, “Old Bonegrinder”). The will is signed by Gustav and Elisabeth Durst and bequeathes the house, the windmill, and all other family property to Rosavalda and Thornboldt Durst in the event of their parents’ deaths.
10. Conservatory
Gossamer drapes cover the windows of this elegantly appointed hall, which has a brass-plated chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Upholstered chairs line the walls, and stained-glass wall hangings depict beautiful men, women, and children singing and playing instruments. A harpsichord with a bench rests in the northwest corner. Near the fireplace is a large standing harp. Alabaster figurines of well-dressed dancers adorn the mantelpiece.
- Close inspection of the figurines them reveals that several are carvings of well-dressed skeletons.
- As Mad Mary lost herself to grief, Lancelot left his house in order to search for Getruda. He wandered into Death House, and was trapped in the conservatory when the house shut the door behind him.
HAUNTING:
If a PC plays the “Song of Elizabeth” found on the desk in the library on the harpsichord in this chamber, the conservatory fills with ghosts that dance about the room to the tune of the melody.
You begin to play a beautiful melody that bounces around the corners of the room. A gust of wind fills the room, erupting the fire in the fireplace. The room begins to glow a soft orange as the shapes of many figures appear. In pairs of two, they dance around to the rhythm of the music. As you gaze around, you notice two figures standing off to the side of the fire place, glaring back at you. They look the the Man and Woman from the picture in the hallway. Their eyes meet yours with a chilling impression. Just then, the harpsichord's strings snap violently. The music stops, the ghosts disappear and you hear a grinding sound coming form above.
- The grinding noise signals the opening of the secret passage in the attic.
- If the PCs exit the room without playing the harpsichord, the sound of “Song of Elizabeth” can be heard faintly through the doors until the room is re-entered.
11. Balcony - ENCOUNTER -
As you round the top of the staircase, you cant help but look down and see the floors below through it's open center. In front of you is nothing like you have seen previously in the house. This floor is covered in dirt and cobwebs. Cracks in the floorboards, walls, and ceilings have bugs skittering in and out of them. A suit of armor covered in cobwebs stands before you with two doors on the left and a hallway on the right. Oil lamps are mounted on the oak-paneled walls, which are carved with woodland scenes of trees, falling leaves, and tiny critters.
- This suit of animated armor attacks as soon as it takes damage or a character approaches within 5 feet of it. It fights until destroyed.
- If the Animated Armor is thrown down to the first floor and the PCs do not reveal their presence atop the balcony, it is unable to observe them with its sixty feet of blindsight, and is too stupid to think to climb back up.
- The ANIMATED BROOM OF ATTACK begins banging on the closet door (room 14) and joins combat on the beginning of the 3rd round.
- Characters who search the walls for secret doors or otherwise inspect the paneling can, with a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check, notice tiny corpses hanging from the trees and worms bursting up from the ground.
Secret Door
12. Master Suite
The double doors to this room have dusty panes of stained glass set into them. Designs in the glass resemble windmills. You smell a foul scent coming form this room.You enter the room to reveal a large bedroom. A figure hangs before you next to the bed, its neck gripped tight by a noose. It's pale, green skin reflects the moonlight as it's long tong hangs down past its warped jaw. Dagger like fingers extend below the knees. A small piece of parchment is clutched in its right hand, held tight by rigor mortis.
- If the letter is removed, it reads:
My Beloved Children,I wish I could do what all fathers do and tell you that monsters aren’t real. But it wouldn’t be true.Life can create things of exquisite beauty. But it can also twist them into hideous beings. Selfish. Violent. Grotesque. Monstrous. It hurts me to say that your mother has turned into one such monster, inside and out. And I’m afraid the disease that afflicted her mind has taken hold of me as well.It sickens me to think what we’ve put you through. There is no excuse. I only ask you, though I know I have not the right to do so, to try and forgive us. I despise what your mother has become, but I love and pity her all the same.Rose, I wish I could see you blossom into a strong, beautiful woman. Thorn and Walter, I wish I could be there for you. But I can’t. This is the only way.Goodbye.
- A DC 13 Wisdom (Medicine) check reveals that Mr. Durst has been dead for no more than a few hours. This is another manifestation of the house’s curse, and not actually correct.
TREASURE:
- The jewelry box on the vanity is made of silver with gold filigree (worth 75 gp). It contains three gold rings (worth 25 gp each) and a thin platinum necklace with a topaz pendant (worth 750 gp).
- It contains a letter that reads:
My Dear Mrs. Petrovna, Your advice on dealing with the unwanted fiend in my home is quite good advice indeed. Tonight's ceremony will proceed as planned when the moon is at its highest peak - without, of course, the attendance of Mr. Durst. I must agree with you that, with the assistance of such a remarkably innocent subject, the results of our proceedings may be far improved. “Innocent," of course, is not quite the term I would use. If nothing else, I am relieved that I shall soon no longer have to suffer the harlot’s insufferable presence each time we must pass through her quarters to our meeting-space. We shall be well rid of her indeed. My Thanks, Mrs. Elisabeth Durst
13. Bathroom
This dark room contains a wooden tub with clawed feet, a small iron stove with a kettle resting atop it, and a barrel under a spigot in the east wall. A cistern on the roof used to collect rainwater, which was borne down a pipe to the spigot; however, the plumbing no longer works.14. Storage Room
Dusty shelves line the walls of this room. A few of the shelves have folded sheets, blankets, and old bars of soap on them. A cobweb-covered broom of animated attack (see appendix D) leans against the far wall; it attacks any creature approaching within 5 feet of it.15. Nursemaid’s Suite - ENCOUNTER -
Dust and cobwebs shroud an elegantly appointed bedroom (area 15A) and an adjoining nursery (area 15B). Double doors set with panes of stained glass pull open to reveal a balcony (area 15C) overlooking the front of the house.There are three ways to run the encounter with the nursemaid, each varying with her emotional and spiritual state: Hostile, Alien, and Friendly.
- HOSTILE: When the PCs open the door to the nursery, they see the back of a young woman wearing a homely dress and a bonnet. If disturbed, the specter slowly turns toward the PCs, revealing the face of a terrified, skeletal young woman whose flesh falls off in chunks to reveal the specter beneath. If the PCs approach, she warns in a whisper: “Don’t wake the baby. The baby is sleeping.” If a PC threatens or approaches the bundle containing the “baby,” the specter attacks, relenting only when all PCs have fled her chambers, or when the character that disturbed her “baby” has been killed or knocked unconscious.
- ALIEN: When the PCs open the door to the nursery, they see the back of a young woman wearing a homely dress and a bonnet. When the door is opened, she holds a finger to her lips and whispers, “Hush. The baby is sleeping.” If a PC approaches the crib in the nursery and opens the bundle inside, the nursemaid’s specter vanishes. A PC that then views the mirror sees the image of the nursemaid looking back at them. The reflection perfectly follows the PC’s movements; however, the nursemaid’s eyes can still blink on their own. If a PC asks her for help in locating Walter or the basement, she smiles and steps aside, leaving the mirror blank. Alternatively, when the crib is approached, the nursemaid scoops up the bundle in the crib and exits the nursery, passing through the mirror and the closed secret door there.
- FRIENDLY: When the PCs open the door to the nursery, they see the back of a young woman wearing a homely dress and a bonnet. If approached with hostility, the specter vanishes in fright. If approached with kindness or respect, however, the nursemaid’s specter introduces herself as Margaret. She is withdrawn and shy, and does not fully understand how or why she died. She is confused, and frequently jumps between awareness and ignorance of her own state of undeath, sometimes in the same sentence. She speaks fondly of Mr. Durst, but avoids mentioning their affair out of a sense of propriety. If a PC asks her about her relationship with Mr. Durst or her parentage of Walter, she smiles sadly and informs the party that it is “not her place to speak of such things.” She adores Rose, Thorn, and Walter. While she does not speak ill of Mrs. Durst if asked, she is clearly uncomfortable and fearful of the lady of the house. When the PCs finish their conversation, she scoops up the “baby” in her arms and informs the PCs that she’s taking him to play with his older brother and sister. Margaret then walks through the mirror into the attic; a moment later, the secret door clicks open, revealing the hidden passageway. Margaret does not appear again.
Secret Door
16. Attic Hall
This bare hall is choked with dust and cobwebs. Locked Door The door to area 20 is held shut with a padlock. Its key is kept in the library (area 8), but the lock can also be picked with thieves’ tools and a successful DC 15 Dexterity check.17. Spare Bedroom
This dust-choked room contains a slender bed, a nightstand, a small iron stove, a writing desk with a stool, an empty wardrobe, and a rocking chair. A smiling doll in a lacy yellow dress sits in the northern window box, cobwebs draping it like a wedding veil.18. Storage Room
This dusty chamber is packed with old furniture (chairs, coat racks, standing mirrors, dress mannequins, and the like), all draped in dusty white sheets. Near an iron stove, underneath one of the sheets, is an unlocked wooden trunk containing the skeletal remains of the family’s nursemaid, wrapped in a tattered bedsheet stained with dry blood. A character inspecting the remains and succeeding on a DC 14 Wisdom (Medicine) check can verify that the woman was stabbed to death by multiple knife wounds. If the characters disturb the remains, the nursemaid’s specter appears and attacks unless it was previously defeated in area 15.Secret Door
19. Spare Bedroom
This web-filled room contains a slender bed, a nightstand, a rocking chair, an empty wardrobe, and a small iron stove.20. Children’s Room
The door to this room is locked from the outside (see area 16 for details).A puff of dust falls from the lock as you hear a 'clicking' noise. As you slowly open the door, its hinges painfully groan. The room inside is sparsely lit by the moonlight revealing a child's room with two beds. A chest overflowing with toys sits in the middle next to a Doll house. Everything is covered in cobwebs. Laying next to the doll house are two small skeletons wearing tattered but, familiar clothing. The smaller of the two cradles a stuffed doll that you also recognize.
- The toy chest contains an assortment of stuffed animals and toys. The dollhouse contains small dolls that depict tiny, twisted molds of any characters and creatures currently visible in the house. The dolls are made of painted resin. Any character looking inside the dollhouse while in Rose and Thorn’s room can see the appropriately-placed dolls of all living creatures within the manor. Characters who search the dollhouse and succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check find all of the house’s secret doors, including one in the attic that leads to a spiral staircase (a miniature replica of area 21).
ROSE AND THORNE
As you begin inspecting the doll house/toy chest, you see that there is a figure behind it. A small pale, spectral boy stands up, his face blush from crying runs away to his bed in the corner. Sitting there, a young girl embraces him while looking at you. "What are you doing in our room" she asks.
The boy holds up his stuffed animal and begs his sister to fix it. She places her hand over the toy and casts a mending spell to fix the large tear in the teddy bear.
- They are small and scared, yet innocent children
- The ghosts are Small and lawful good.
- They have 35 (10d6) hit points each.
- They lack the Horrifying Visage action.
- They speak Common and have a challenge rating of 3 (700 XP).
- The children don’t like it when the characters disturb their toys, but they fight only in self-defense. Unlike the illusions outside the house, these children know that they’re dead. If asked how they died, Rose and Thorn explain that their parents locked them in the attic to protect them from “the monster in the basement,” and that they died from hunger. If asked how one gets to the basement, Rose points to the dollhouse and says, “There’s a secret door in the attic.” Characters who then search the dollhouse for secret doors gain advantage on their Wisdom (Perception) checks to find them.
It worked! Uncle Dimov snuck into our room again, but this time I was ready and shocked him bad. I hope he never comes back!
- If the PCs attempt to discuss this incident or an Uncle Dimov with Rose, she instantly clams up. If Thorn is asked about his uncle, he shrinks in on himself and falls silent, Rose hugging him while glaring daggers at the PC responsible.
- The way to the basement but, "aren't supposed to go down there". Can be convinced to show them and they will point to the doll house.
- Rose thinks that their mother might have taken Walter to the basement. She askes the players to save their baby brother and their parents and defeat the monster once and for all.
- They offer the PC's to stay in their room if they are worn out. The children will protect them from the evil that is the house.
POSESSION
As you begin to leave, the children look at you worriedly. "Please don't leave us here, not like mama did!" You blink and the children are right in front of you, arms stretched as if they are about to hug you. Just then, their hands go into you and you feel the cold embrace of a tiny hand, desperately seeking the warm embrace of another soul. The child's frail voice begs you to take them with you, what do you want to do?
The children fear abandonment. If one or more characters try to leave, the ghost-children attempt to possess them. If one of the ghosts possesses a character, allow the player to retain control of the character, but assign the character one of the following flaws:
If the party lays the children’s spirits to rest, each character gains inspiration (see “Inspiration” in chapter 4, “Personality and Background,” of the Player’s Handbook).
- A character possessed by Rose gains the following flaw: “I like being in charge and get angry when other people tell me what to do.”
- A character possessed by Thorn gains the following flaw: “I’m scared of everything, including my own shadow, and weep with despair when things don’t go my way.”
- You can now speak to your respected passenger in your own head.
- A character possessed by the ghost of Rose or Thorn won’t willingly leave Death House or the dungeon below it. Both ghosts can be intimidated into leaving their hosts with a successful DC 11 Charisma (Intimidation) check made as an action.
- A ghost reduced to 0 hit points can reform at dawn the next day. The only way to put the children’s spirits to rest is to put their skeletal remains in their tombs (areas 23E and 23F). The children don’t know this, however.
DEVELOPMENT
21. Secret Stairs
A narrow spiral staircase made of creaky wood is contained within a 5-foot-wide shaft of mortared stone that starts in the attic and descends 50 feet to the dungeon level, passing through the lower levels of the house as it makes its descent. Thick cobwebs fill the shaft and reduce visibility in the staircase to 5 feet. The secret door and shaft don’t exist until the house reveals them, which can happen in one of two ways: The characters find Strahd’s letter in the secret room behind the library (area 9). The characters find the replica secret door in the attic of the dollhouse (area 20). Once the house wills the secret door into existence, characters find it automatically if they search the wall (no ability check required). Characters who descend the spiral staircase end up in area 22.DUNGEON FEATURES
- The dungeon level underneath Death House is carved out of earth, clay, and rock. The tunnels are 4 feet wide by 7 feet high with timber braces at 5-foot intervals. Rooms are 8 feet tall and supported by thick wooden posts with crossbeams. The only exception is area 38, which has a 16-foot-high ceiling supported by stone pillars. Characters without darkvision must provide their own light sources, as the dungeon is unlit.
- As the characters explore the dungeon, they see centuries-old human footprints in the earthen floor leading every which way.
22. Dungeon Level Access
The wooden spiral staircase from the attic ends here. A narrow tunnel stretches southward before branching east and west. Ghostly Chanting From the moment they arrive in the dungeon, the characters can hear an eerie, incessant chant echoing throughout. It’s impossible to gauge where the sound is coming from until the characters reach area 26 or 29. They can’t discern its words until they reach area 35.23. Family Crypts
Several crypts have been hewn from the earth. Each crypt is sealed with a stone slab unless noted otherwise. Removing a slab from its fitting requires a successful DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check; using a crowbar or the like grants advantage on the check.23A. Empty Crypt
The blank stone slab meant to seal this crypt leans against a nearby wall. The crypt is empty.23B. Walter’s Crypt
The stone slab meant to seal this crypt leans against a nearby wall. Etched into it is the name Walter Durst. The crypt is empty.23C. Gustav’s Crypt
The stone slab is etched with the name Gustav Durst. The chamber beyond contains an empty coffin atop a stone bier.23D. Elisabeth’s Crypt
The stone slab is etched with the name Elisabeth Durst. The crypt contains a stone bier with an empty coffin atop it. A swarm of insects (centipedes) boils out of the back wall and attacks if the coffin is disturbed.23E. Rose’s Crypt
The stone slab is etched with the name Rosavalda Durst. The chamber beyond contains an empty coffin on a stone bier. If Rose’s skeletal remains (see area 20) are placed in the coffin, the child’s ghost finds peace and disappears forever. A character possessed by Rose’s ghost when this occurs is no longer possessed (see also the “Development” section in area 20).23F. Thorn’s Crypt
The stone slab is etched with the name Thornboldt Durst. The chamber beyond contains an empty coffin on a stone bier. If Thorn’s skeletal remains (see area 20) are placed in the coffin, the child’s ghost finds peace and disappears forever. A character possessed by Thorn’s ghost when this occurs is no longer possessed (see also the “Development” section in area 20).24. Cult Initiates’ Quarters
A wooden table and four chairs stand at the east end of this room. To the west are four alcoves containing moldy straw pallets.25. Well and Cultist Quarters
A 4-foot-diameter well shaft with a 3-foot-high stone lip descends 30 feet to a water-filled cistern. A wooden bucket hangs from a rope-and-pulley mechanism bolted to the crossbeams above the well. Five side rooms once served as quarters for senior cultists. Each contains a wood-framed bed with a moldy straw mattress and a wooden chest to hold personal belongings. Each chest is secured with a rusty iron padlock that can be picked with thieves’ tools and a successful DC 15 Dexterity check.TREASURE:
26. Hidden Spiked Pit
The ghostly chanting heard throughout the dungeon gets discernibly louder as one heads west along this tunnel. A successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check reveals an absence of footprints. Characters searching the floor for traps find a 5-foot-long, 10-foot-deep pit hidden under several rotted wooden planks, all hidden under a thin layer of dirt. The pit has sharpened wooden spikes at the bottom. The first character to step on the cover falls through, landing prone and taking 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage from the fall plus 11 (2d10) piercing damage from the spikes.27. Dining Hall
This room contains a plain wooden table flanked by long benches. Moldy humanoid bones lie strewn on the dirt floor—the remains of the cult’s vile banquets. In the middle of the south wall is a darkened alcove (area 28). Characters who approach within 5 feet of the alcove provoke the creature that lurks there.28. Larder
This alcove contains a grick that slithers out to attack the first character it sees within 5 feet of it. Any character with a passive Wisdom (Perception) score under 12 is surprised by it. A DC 17 Wisdom (perception) check allows a PC to determine its presence before entering. The alcove is otherwise empty.29. Ghoulish Encounter - ENCOUNTER-
The ghostly chanting heard throughout the dungeon is noticeably louder to the north. In front of you, the stench of death envelopes your noses. Something nasty is up ahead. A decomposing body perhaps? As you get closer you hear a scratching noise as decomposing hands erupt from the ground below. 4 disgusting figures begins climbing out of the ground, ROLL INITATIVE!
- When one or more characters reach the midpoint of the four-way tunnel intersection, four ghouls (former cultists) rise up out of the ground in the spaces marked X on the map and attack. The ghouls fight until destroyed.
- The ghouls spend their first turn climbing out of the ground.
- The mindlessly repeat any or all of the following phrases as they attack the PC's: "Beautifu. We're so beautiful"; "Nothing can hurt us"; "We are perfect. We are immortal"; and "Help us live forever."
30. Stairs Down
It’s obvious to any character standing at the top of this 20-foot-long staircase that the ghostly chants originate from somewhere below. Characters who descend the stairs find a locked door (the key is tied around Mrs. Durst's neck in area 34). Past the door is area 35.31. Darklord’s Shrine - ENCOUNTER -
This room is festooned with moldy skeletons that hang from rusty shackles against the walls illuminated by candles placed all around the room. Their shadows scorched into the walls behind them with soot marks stretching across the floor towards the statue. A wide alcove in the south wall contains a painted wooden statue carved in the likeness of a gaunt, pale-faced man wearing a voluminous black cloak, his pale left hand resting on the head of a wolf that stands next to him. In his right hand, he holds a smoky-gray crystal orb.
- A character that approaches the orb can hear many voices whispering: "His gaze burns upon us"; "The Darklords eyes are always watching"; and "He is the Ancient, He is the land".
- Once they touch the orb, Strahd know of their intrusion into his realm and can scry on that specific PC.
- The room has exits in the west and north walls. Chanting can be heard coming from the west.
- The statue depicts Strahd, to whom the cultists made sacrifices in the vain hope that he might reveal his darkest secrets to them. If the characters touch the statue or take the crystal orb from Strahd’s hand, five shadows form around the statue and attack them. The shadows (the spirits of former cultists) pursue those who flee beyond the room’s confines.
- The skeletons on the wall are harmless décor.
As you touch the crystal orb, the candles begin to flicker violently. A slight breeze can be felt and you notice the skeleton's shadows come to life. Their dark forms begin flying around the room. ROLL INITIATIVE!
- While the shadows spend their first round beginning to attack they say: "Begon from this place!"; and "Look not upon us".
Concealed Door
Characters searching the room for secret doors find a concealed door in the middle of the east wall with a successful DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check. It’s basically an ordinary (albeit rotted) wooden door hidden under a layer of clay. The door pulls open to reveal a stone staircase that climbs 10 feet to a landing (area 32). Treasure The crystal orb is worth 25 gp. It can be used as an arcane focus but is not magical.32. Hidden Trapdoor
The staircase ends at a landing with a 6-foot-high ceiling of close-fitting planks with a wooden trapdoor set into it. The trapdoor is bolted shut from this side and can be pushed open to reveal the den (area 3) above. Development Once the trapdoor has been found and opened, it remains available to characters as a way into and out of the dungeon level.33. Cult Leaders’ Den - - ENCOUNTER -
The door in the southwest corner is a mimic in disguise. Any creature that touches the door becomes adhered to the creature, whereupon the mimic attacks. The mimic also attacks if its takes any damage.- If the mimic is attacked at range by a wary or alerted PC, it flees, vanishing around the corner and reappearing as a door, chest, or longsword elsewhere in the dungeon.
34. Cult Leaders’ Quarters - ENCOUNTER -
This room contains a large wood-framed bed with a rotted feather mattress, a wardrobe containing several old robes, a pair of iron candlesticks, and an open crate containing thirty torches and a leather sack with fifteen candles inside it. At the foot of the bed is an unlocked wooden footlocker containing some gear and magic items (see “Treasure” below). One ghasts (Elisabeth Durst) is hidden in cavities behind the earthen walls, marked X on the map; she burst forth and attack if someone removes one or more items from the footlocker. The ghasts wear tattered black robes.- Unlike the ghouls, Mrs. Durst retains the ability of speech. She has retained her memory, but has completely succumbed to her own dark whims. She wears a tattered, once-beautiful red dress, and she wears gold earrings and a golden necklace around her neck. Her lips and gums have gone black with rot, and her smile shines with madness. At this point, she bears only a vague resemblance to her own portrait.
- Mrs. Durst has gone completely insane. She is arrogant to an extreme, and shuns her dead husband, calling him a lecherous traitor who deserved his death. She speaks unkindly of Walter and the nursemaid, and writes off Rose and Thorn as “bothersome nuisances.” She is vulgar to a fault, and speaks in a hissing, gurgling voice.
- Should the players ask her what she did to Walter, she invites them to descend further into the basement and “see for themselves.”
- If reduced to half hit-points, Mrs. Durst commands the PCs to leave, and defensively backs herself into the corner.
TREASURE:
- Characters searching the footlocker find a folded cloak of protection, a small wooden coffer (unlocked) containing four potions of healing, a chain shirt, a mess kit, a flask of alchemist’s fire, a bullseye lantern, a set of thieves’ tools, and a spellbook with a yellow leather cover containing the following wizard spells:
- 1st level: disguise self, identify, mage armor, magic missile, protection from evil and good
- 2nd level: darkvision, hold person, invisibility, magic weapon
35. Reliquary
The ghostly chant emanating from area 38 fills this room. Characters can discern a dozen or so voices saying, over and over, “He is the Ancient. He is the Land.” The cult amassed several “relics” that it used in its rituals. These worthless items are stored in thirteen niches along the walls:- A small, mummified, yellow hand with sharp claws (a goblin’s hand) on a loop of rope
- A knife carved from a human bone
- A dagger with a rat’s skull set into the pommel
- An 8-inch-diameter varnished orb made from a nothic’s eye
- An angelic feather
- A folded cloak made from stitched ghoul skin
- A cracked egg containing the remains of a skeletal infant dragon
- A wooden figurine of a black knight bearing the emblem of a rose
- A hag’s severed finger
- A 6-inch-tall wooden figurine of a mummy, its arms crossed over its chest
- An iron pendant adorned with a devil’s face
- Severed raven talons
- A small chunk of amber resin that exudes an evil aura
36. Prison
The cultists shackled prisoners to the back walls of alcoves here. The prisoners are long gone (their bones litter the floor in area 27), but the rusty shackles remain. Secret Door A secret door in the south wall can be found with a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check and pulls open to reveal area 38 beyond. Treasure Hanging on the back wall of the cell marked X on the map is a human skeleton clad in a tattered black robe. The skeleton belongs to a cult member who questioned the cult’s blind devotion to Strahd. Characters who search the skeleton find a gold ring (worth 25 gp) on one of its bony fingers.37. Portcullis
This tunnel is blocked by a rusty iron portcullis that can be forcibly lifted with a successful DC 20 Strength (Athletics) check. Otherwise, the portcullis can be raised or lowered by turning a wooden wheel half-embedded in the West wall of area 38. (The wheel is beyond the reach of someone east of the portcullis.) The floor around the portcullis is submerged under 2 feet of murky water.38. Ritual Chamber - BOSS BATTLE -
The chanting stops as you peer into this forty-foot-square room. The smooth masonry walls provide excellent acoustics. Featureless stone pillars support the ceiling, and a breach in the west wall leads to a dark cave heaped with refuse. Murky water covers most of the floor. Stairs lead up to dry stone ledges that hug the walls. In the middle of the room, more stairs rise to form an octagonal dais that also rises above the water. A blanket of mist is rolling off the top of the dais beneath the alter, it behaves very similar to the mist outside the house. Rusty chains with shackles dangle from the ceiling directly above a stone altar mounted on the dais. The altar is carved with hideous depictions of grasping ghouls and is stained with dry blood. A small, white bundle is visible atop the altar. When approached, it resembles the size and shape of an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes. It instead contains a rusted, serrated dagger painted red with dried blood.
- The cult used to perform rituals in this sunken room. The chanting heard throughout the dungeon originates here, yet when the characters arrive, the dungeon falls silent as the chanting mysteriously stops.
- The water is 2 feet deep. The ledges and central dais are 5 feet high (3 feet higher than the water’s surface), and the chamber’s ceiling is 16 feet high (11 feet above the dais and ledges). The chains dangling from the ceiling are 8 feet long; the cultists would shackle prisoners to the chains, dangle them above the altar, cut them open with knives, and allow the altar to be bathed in blood.
- Half embedded in the east wall is a wooden wheel connected to hidden chains and mechanisms. A character can use an action to turn the wheel, raising or lowering the nearby portcullis (see area 37).
- The hole in the west wall leads to a naturally formed alcove. The half-submerged pile of refuse that fills it is a shambling mound, which the cultists dubbed Lorghoth the Decayer. It is asleep but awakens if attacked or if the characters summon the cultists but refuse to complete their ritual (see “One Must Die!” below). A character standing next to the mound can discern its true nature with a successful DC 15 Intelligence (Nature) check.
“One Must Die!”
The chanting rises once more as thirteen dark apparitions appear on the ledges overlooking the room. Each one resembles a black-robed figure holding a torch, but the torch’s fire is black and seems to draw light into it. Where you’d expect to see faces are voids.“One must die!” they chant, over and over. “One must die! One must die!”
- The apparitions are harmless figments that can’t be damaged, turned, or dispelled.
- Characters on the dais when the cultists appear must sacrifice a creature on the altar or face the cult’s wrath; characters can ascertain what must be done with a successful DC 11 Intelligence (Religion) or Wisdom (Insight) check. To count as a sacrifice, a creature must die on the altar. The apparitions don’t care what kind of creature is sacrificed, and they aren’t fooled by illusions.
- If the characters make the sacrifice, the cultists fade away, but their tireless chant of “He is the Ancient. He is the Land,” echoes again in the dungeon. Strahd is aware of the sacrifice, and Death House now does nothing to hinder the characters (see “Endings” below).
- If the characters leave the dais without making the sacrifice, the cultists’ chant changes: “Come, Demon! We awaken thee!” A small earthquake shakes the foundations of the house above, sifting dirt and dust from the ceiling above. Before you, in westernmost alcove, the dirty water filling the chamber ripples as something moves beneath the surface. A host of bones, flesh, and disparate body parts come together from the water, collecting into a massive, shifting heap of gore. Thick tendrils of waste wriggle from it, reaching for nearby surfaces. You can see the tendrils’ grip on the walls tighten with crushing force. As the enormous thing crawls towards you, you see bodily remains of humans buried in its putrid body. ROLL INITIATIVE!
- This chant rouses the Flesh Mound and prompts it to attack. It pursues prey beyond the room but won’t leave the dungeon. It can move through tunnels without squeezing and completely fills its space. At the start of the shambling mound’s first turn, the chant changes again: “The end comes! Death, be praised!” If the shambling mound dies, the chanting stops and the apparitions vanish forever.
- When the Dark Power accepted Mrs. Durst’s final sacrifice, Walter was transformed into a terrible monster: a vessel for the cult’s hatred, arrogance, and depravity bound within an innocent babe. If the PCs refuse to make the requested sacrifice, the cult is angered, and summons Walter. If the PCs make the requested sacrifice, the cult chants victoriously, and summons Walter anyway. Either way, your players should feel as though they have just made a grave error.
- Once a PC has seen or learned of Walter’s existence, if that PC is aware of the circumstances of Walter’s birth and death, that PC may make a DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana) or DC 15 Intelligence (Religion) check to learn the source of the curse upon Death House. A PC that succeeds on this check learns that the spirit of a murdered infant, unwanted by a parent, can incite a powerful curse upon its household, tormenting its killers and chaining their souls to the place of its death. The only way to remove the curse upon Death House, this PC learns, is to bury Walter’s corpse at sunrise beneath the threshold of the dwelling. The same can be said for its siblings.
Running the Skill Challenge
SKILL CHALLENGE FEATURES:
- Once the challenge begins, swarms of maggots begin to bleed from the walls, floor, and ceiling of any room that the PCs take refuge in, filling the room completely within 3d4 rounds. Note that only the doorways to Areas 12 and 15 have the scythes mentioned in the module.
- Roll initiative upon beginning the skill challenge; on 3 failures, the slowest adventurer is left behind. On 5 failures, the slowest two adventurers are trapped while their companions make it to safety. If the characters achieved 4 successes before 3 failures, all make it out—worse for wear, and forced to carry in their hearts this hellish night forevermore.
- The skill challenge begins as soon as the party defeats or decides to flee the Mound in the basement. The rooms of the house are modified in the following ways:
RULES OF A SKILL CHALLENGE
- Players never know the number of successes necessary to win the challenge, but it is always weighed against three failures.
- Skills can only be used once per each character. If Rendar the barbarian uses his +8 Athletics to leap a chasm, he cannot use Athletics again to lift a boulder later in the challenge; he must find a different solution with a different skill. Other characters, however, can still use Athletics for obstacles.
- Movement doesn't matter; don't bother tracking it.
- Cantrips can be used, but an issue arises in that they're infinite. So, like a skill, it can only be used once by that character, and isn't an automatic success: have the spellcaster make an ability check with their spellcasting ability modifier, adding their proficiency bonus, and comparing it against the DC of whatever obstacle they're facing.
- Spells of 1st level or higher are automatic successes, so long as they can logically be used to surpass an obstacle is an instant success.
- Tool checks can be in lieu of skills if a character is proficient in them. Just attach it to the appropriate Ability Score and make the ability check.
38. Ritual Chamber
As the PCs move to flee, the portcullis slams shut. On a failure, the adventurers wallow in indecision or struggle to force it open, eventually escaping at the cost of 1 failed check.- The following skills are suggested for surmounting this obstacle:
- Athletics can be used to force open the portcullis or unjam the wheel. (Moderate DC)
- Thieves'-, or Tinker's tools can be used to assess the damage to the wheel and manipulate its gears to unjam the portcullis. (Moderate DC)
- Insight or Investigation can be used to recall or rationalize that the nearby corridor to Area 36, the Prison, might have a secret door. (Hard DC)
- Perception can be used to spot the hidden door to Area 36, the prison, providing another means of escape from the chamber. (Moderate DC)
26. Hidden Spiked Pit
- There is no mandatory obstacle here, but a trap that might not have been previously encountered by the adventurers. Run it as-is in the Death House module: a DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check is necessary to notice the trap. The first character to step on the trapped section falls prone and takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage, plus 2d10 piercing damage from the spikes. The pit is 10-feet deep.
- At your discretion, this can serve as an obstacle. A player might request—scream out, even—for the chance to stop a character from falling into the pit. If so, it counts as a success or failure for the skill challenge; otherwise, treat this area as a non-obstacle. Some skill checks suggested by the players might include:
- Carpenter's- or Woodcarver's tools can be used to notice how rotted the planks are and understand it to be unsafe before all is lost. (Moderate DC)
- Sleight of Hand can be used to snatch at the falling character's belt, or snatch at the edge, preventing their own fall. (Easy DC)
- Acrobatics may allow a character to divert their momentum into a leap, landing safely on the opposite side. (Moderate DC)
25. Well & Cultist Quarters
- The room has become heavily obscured by an unnatural black fog. In the well, a skeleton has been roused from its slumber, and grapples the last character that moves through this chamber.
- Acrobatics or Athletics can be used to break the grapple. (Easy DC)
- Insight can be used to recall one's steps, if the characters explored this room beforehand. (Easy DC)
- Perception can be used to navigate the darkness, hear the skeleton before it strikes, or find its victim. (Moderate DC)
27. Dining Hall
Screams rend the darkened depths. Screams for mercy, for help, for a quick end. You come across a man chained to the wooden table, thrashing, screaming. A gash runs the length of his belly, from which blood pulses out to the beat of his heart! How or where he came from doesn't matter, but in the distance, you hear them: the cultists, chanting, hungering! Can you silence him before those ravenous cannibals come upon you?
- A ghost of Death House's red past has been made flesh once again, and mad babbling threatens to draw the ghostly cultists upon the adventurers. He has the statistics of a restrained commoner with 1 hit point remaining and is bound by chains.
- If the characters linger here, five cultists (shadows) arrive in 2 rounds and descend upon the man if he yet remains. If freed, he stumbles down the darkened corridors, babbling madly before fading from being. If slain, he does not die quietly.
- Athletics can be used with a weapon to break the man's chains, while thieves' tools can unlock them. (Hard/Moderate DC)
- Deception or Persuasion can be used to deceive the man into calm. (Moderate DC)
- Medicine can be used to dress his wounds, if the character has a healing kit with 1 action. (Moderate DC)
- Spells that restore hit points (healing word, cure wounds) can be used to heal the screaming man. (Automatic Success)
3. Den of Wolves
- Death House has animated the stuffed wolves in the den and flooded the room with blinding smoke. The wolves have the statistics of a wolf but with vulnerability to slashing, piercing, and fire damage; their Bite attack deals 1 piercing damage; and they do not need to breathe.
- Animal Handling can be used to subdue the wolves; the long-lost spirits of the beasts still obey such primal laws of nature. (Moderate DC)
- Stealth can be used to slip past the wolves undetected. (Easy DC)
- Levelled Spells (Automatic Success) or cantrips (DC 13 - Moderate) such as minor illusion or animal friendship can be used to distract or subdue the wolves .
21. Secret Staircase
Running up the stairs you begin stepping on a bunch of bugs. The floors and walls are covered with swarms of infant spiders. Behind you from the stairs below, giant spider limbs can be seen rounding the corner. The person in the back suddenly gets trapped by the spider and entangled in its webs. it begins to pull you down the stairs. What do you all do?
- A PC that fails here loses time struggling against the spider.
- Animal Handling or Intimidation can be used to scare off the spider, especially if fire is used or an attack is made. (Moderate DC)
- Athletics can be used to wrench the character out of the web or to keep the spider from dragging the character away. (Moderate DC)
- Levelled Spells (Automatic Success) or cantrips ( DC 8 - Easy) can be cast to subdue the spider or burn the web (e.g., animal friendship, produce flame, and firebolt).
15. Nursemaid’s Suite
When the PCs enter this room while fleeing the house, read the following:As you rush towards the door, you hear woman shout out, "Tell me to push, one more time, Inala! One more time, I swear to the Morninglord!" but her curses are quickly consumed by cries of pain. You perk into the room: women crowd around a young girl laying in the bed, her feet up. Her face twists with pain while a midwife says, "The baby's coming, but - Gods, it's ankles first!" The balcony—the only way out of this accursed manor—lies nearby, and with frustrated horror, you see that the door has been replaced with bloodied scythe blades that seem to spin even quicker whenever the girl's contractions rage.
- The memories of the past have come alive: while Elisabeth fumes with mute disdain in the Master Suite, the nursemaid is giving birth to the bastard Walter. Several assistants crowd the room while the baby is crowning—but he's coming out ankles-first. The scythe-blades spin so long as the nursemaid is in labor, spinning faster and faster during her contractions. To escape the manor, the adventurers must make it through that doorway.
- If the party does not make an ability check for this obstacle, they accrue a failure, and each creature that passes through the doorway must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or take 2d10 slashing damage. Regardless, they pass through the doorway and onto Area 15C, the Nursemaid's Balcony.
- Acrobatics or Investigation can be used to make it through the doorway unscathed; the adventurer making the check takes a leadership role in guiding his or her companions through the blades. This check is made only once for all characters present. (Moderate DC)
- Insight can be used to gauge when the nursemaid's contractions are about to begin or end. (Moderate DC)
- Medicine can be used to assist in the birth: Walter is coming out ankles-first, posing significant risk to the him and the mother. The scythe-blades stop spinning altogether if this ability check succeeds. (Hard DC)
15C. Nursemaid’s Balcony
- Death House has put all its remaining energy to afflict its prey with a powerful phantasmal force spell (no saving throws required). The balcony has grown into a cliff that drops to a thousand feet below (an eerily accurate representation of the Tser Falls of Barovia). Only with courage, skill, or acuity can the adventurers conquer the illusory cliff without destroying their minds in the process.
- If no skills or spells are applied, the characters accrue a failure and each creature that simply leaped must make a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or take 2d6 psychic damage and wakes to find itself mewling at the foot of the Durst Manor an unknown amount of time later. On a success, a creature takes half damage. No matter the check made, scaling the cliffs takes less than a minute, but feels as if it took an hour.
- Acrobatics, Athletics or Survival can be combined with tools such as rope or a climbing kit to scale the cliff, leading others down. (Moderate DC)
- Arcana can be used to understand the powerful phantasmal force spell at work, that their psyches stand to be torn apart if caution is thrown to the wind; that perhaps the best way to survive is to play along. (Moderate DC)
- Investigation can be used to shatter the illusion by harnessing the strength of the mind. (Hard DC)
- Spells that slow or affect flying, such as feather fall; or that would imbue creatures with courage, such as heroism can be used to conquer the illusion; both put the characters' psyches at rest, tricking their subconsciousness believing all will be well. (Automatic Success)
12. Master Suite
- The memories of the past have come alive; on the eve of Walter's birth, the Dursts are engaged in a cold war. The suite is as cold and unforgiving as their marriage; while Gustav paces the room, Elisabeth fumes in mute disdain at her vanity. Every so often the two burst into a new round of arguments—and the scythes spin ever faster.
- Not quite ghosts, yet not quite illusions, the Dursts are representative of the emotional carnage of the manor. The scythes on the doorway are connected to the two's temperament. And to escape, the party must make it through those scythes.
The master suite has grown deadly cold: a well-dressed man paces the room while a woman stares at herself in the vanity, her eyes scornful as if to wonder why she wasn't enough for her husband. You recognize the Dursts alive and in the flesh—how or why doesn't matter. The two fall between bouts of silence and explosive rage, arguing over Gustav's infidelity. You look to the corner of the room, to the balcony, that sweet, sweet balcony, the gate to getting the hell out of this accursed manor—and in the doorway spin rusted scythe-blades. You look back: Elisabeth is glaring at you, and she snarls, "Servant! Get out! Get out! Come back only when the bastard's been born!" You notice with mounting frustration that while Elisabeth snarls at you, the scythe-blades spin pick up speed, spinning ever quicker.
- If the party does not make an ability check for this obstacle, they accrue a failure, and each creature that passes through the doorway must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or take 2d10 slashing damage. Regardless, they pass through the doorway and onto Area 12C, the Master Balcony.
- Acrobatics or Investigation can be used to make it through the doorway unscathed; the adventurer making the check takes a leadership role in guiding his or her companions through the blades. This check is made only once for all characters present. (Moderate DC)
- Insight can be used to gauge Elisabeth or Gustav's emotions, finding the best possible moment to make the leap. (Easy DC)
- Persuasion can be used to calm the Dursts, even if for a moment. (Moderate DC)
12C. Master Balcony
- Death House has put all its remaining energy to afflict its prey with a powerful phantasmal force spell (no saving throws required). The balcony has grown into a cliff that drops to a thousand feet below (an eerily accurate representation of the Tser Falls of Barovia). Only with courage, skill, or acuity can the adventurers conquer the illusory cliff without destroying their minds in the process.
- If no skills or spells are applied, the characters accrue a failure and each creature that simply leaped must make a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or take 2d6 psychic damage and wakes to find itself mewling at the foot of the Durst Manor an unknown amount of time later. On a success, a creature takes half damage. No matter the check made, scaling the cliffs takes less than a minute, but feels as if it took an hour.
- Acrobatics, Athletics or Survival can be combined with tools such as rope or a climbing kit to scale the cliff, leading others down. (Moderate DC)
- Arcana can be used to understand the powerful phantasmal force spell at work, that their psyches stand to be torn apart if caution is thrown to the wind; that perhaps the best way to survive is to play along. (Moderate DC)
- Investigation can be used to shatter the illusion by harnessing the strength of the mind. (Hard DC)
- Spells that slow or affect flying, such as feather fall; or that would imbue creatures with courage, such as heroism can be used to conquer the illusion; both put the characters' psyches at rest, tricking their subconsciousness believing all will be well. (Automatic Success)
11. Balcony
The door to the bathroom bulges outward, and then explodes into splinters. A flood of filthy water crashes out, threatening to push the PCs away from the stairs.
- Athletics can be used to stand one's ground and resist the flood; other adventurers can brace themselves against the character or angle themselves so that he or she takes the brunt of the flood. (Moderate DC)
- Nature or Survival can be used to call on past experiences or knowledge of flash floods, allowing a character in that split second to take necessary precautions (hang on the other side of the balcony, leap for a nearby door, et cetera). Characters with the Outlander background have advantage on such a check. (Moderate DC)
- Sleight of Hand can be used to snatch at the balcony or the oil lamps mounted on the wall before being swept away. (Easy DC)
6. Upper Hall
The suits of armor that were once motionless come to life with a crimson gleam from their eyes. They form a line with their spears facing towards you, making it clear they dont want you to pass. What do you do?
- The suits of armor have been animated by Death House but are not true suits of animated armor. For the purposes of potential combat, they have an AC of 12, 5 hit points each, immunity to poison and psychic damage, and -1 to Strength. Each suit can make a spear attack (+2 to hit, 1 piercing damage) against targets within 5 feet; these attacks might be made with advantage (and melee attacks made against with disadvantage) depending on if any attackers are below them on the staircase.
- Athletics can be used by a character wielding a shield or similar protection to charge the ranks, hoping to topple the statues. On a failure, they may be speared up to four times. (Moderate DC)
- Acrobatics can be used to leap to the other end of the spiraling staircase. (Moderate DC)
- Blacksmith's tools or Investigation can be used to ascertain the formation's weaknesses, for without men behind the armor, they have significantly less strength. Characters with the Soldier background have advantage on such a check. (Moderate DC)
4. Kitchen & Pantry
- As a character makes their way in or out of the dumbwaiter, the oven spits a column of fire.
- Any characters in the room must make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw to clamber into the dumbwaiter, working the rope-and-pulley before being scorched.
- On a failure, a creature takes 1d6 fire damage, but continues upward. The explosion shakes the entirety of the manor.
1B. Entrance Foyer
To your horror, you discover that the front doors are slowly becoming bricked up—and behind them, the doors to the Main Hall begin to swing shut.
- Characters can make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw to hurl themselves into the Main Hall before the doors swing shut.
The mahogany hall doors behind you slam shut with ominous thunder. You look about the room, desperate to escape—and when you look toward the exit, you see the bottom third of the front door has been replaced by brick. Defying all logic, the wood has melded into the rows of moldy brick. You blink—and to your mounting horror, in that span of a second, more of the door has been converted. You keep your eyes wide open so as not cast away your chance at breaking down the door... That's when a fetid cloud of filth rolls in, stinging your eyes and drawing tears. The walls are brittle now, rotten. The wallpaper hangs in slivers, and from behind the plaster, a flood of rats bursts onto the floor, crawling across your feet and scratching at your flesh.
- A PC that attempts a skill check in this room must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw, or the rats’ stench causes them to falter, giving them disadvantage on their check.
- Athletics or combat spells can be used to break through the rotten, brittle walls (Easy DC the bricked-up front door (Hard DC or the stuck hallway doors. (Moderate DC)
- Nature, Intimidation, or Animal Handling can be used to keep the rats away. (Moderate DC)
- Perception or Investigation can allow a PC to see a weak point where the bricks have become weak and crumbling. (Moderate DC)
1A. Entrance Gate
- This challenge takes place only if one or more of the PCs are still possessed by the spirits of Rose and Thorn. As the PCs approach the iron gate, the ghosts struggle with the PCs for control of their bodies, and beg and plead for the PCs to stay behind.
- Athletics can be used by an unpossessed character to force a possessed PC over the threshold. The possessed PC must succeed on a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw or take 1d4 psychic damage as the spirit is violently torn from their body. (Hard DC)
- Persuasion or Intimidation can be used to coax the spirits from their unwilling hosts. (Easy DC)
- Arcana or Religion may allow a character to draw on their reserves of magic or faith, respectively, forcefully dispelling the intrusive soul. (Moderate DC)
Aftermath of Escape
If any PCs were trapped inside Death House, Norganus, the Finger of Oblivion appears to them as if in a dream.The trapped PCs find themselves dragged through the front doors of Death House, their legs and ankles seized by shrieking spirits and hissing ghouls. Just before they cross the threshold, a tall, dark shadow with indistinguishable features appears before you. In a soft, hissing voice in says: "Take my hand". A inky black void is extended to you, dripping a foul, inchorous ooze from its fingertips. "Your potential shouldn't be wasted here, I promis to free you from these 'unquiet dead'".
- If the PCs take his hand and accept Norganus’ dark gift, they awaken in the tall grass in front of the house.
- PCs that have been resurrected this way gain the Touched By the Mists Trait, which leaves them tainted by Norganus’ evil touch. Cats hiss and milk sours at their approach, and they detect as evil-aligned undead to divination magic.
- These traits remain until the character receives a remove curse spell. Moreover, any such PCs marked by Norganus specifically gain one of the following Dark Gifts:
- The character’s eyes melt away, leaving empty sockets. He or she has disadvantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks, but gains blindsight out to a range of 60 feet. The character is blind beyond this distance.
- The character’s skin is cold and clammy to the touch. The character gains resistance to cold damage and vulnerability to fire damage.
- At night, the character can spend 1 hit die to move through solid objects as though they were difficult terrain. A character who ends his or her turn inside an object takes 5 (1d10) force damage. The character counts as an undead creature for the purpose of spells and effects such as turn undead.
History
An old, abandoned town house located outside the Gates of Ravenloft along the Old Svalich Road owned by the Durst family that lived there decades ago. Durst family was an upper class family in Barovia around the time Strahd came to town. However, Mr. Durst had a bit of a fling with the nanny that accidentally produced a bastard baby. Mrs. Durst became insanely jealous and vindictive, convinced that her growing age was the reason for her husband’s adultery. She began her own little cult to try and find the secret to immorality and youth, dragging her husband along with her. They would lure travelers off the street and newly hired servants to sacrifice them on the altar in the basement. However, nothing ever worked.
Each time Mr. and Mrs. Durst would perform these sacrifices, they would lock their children in their room to protect them. This was an honest attempt to spare Rose and Thorne’s innocence.
Only a few months after Walter was born, Mrs. Durst completely lost her patience. She murdered the nanny and took Walter to the basement and sacrificed him without Mr. Durst’s knowledge. Because of the atrocity of this act, she attracted the notice of a Dark Power that cursed the entire house. Mrs. Durst and some of the other cultists present at the time were finally granted their immortality... by being turned into ghouls and ghasts. Mr. Durst, upon seeing what his wife had done, was overcome with guilt and grief and hanged himself in the basement. With no adults left to remember them, Rose and Thorne starved to death in their room.
However, this last sacrifice created more than just some undead in the basement. It also turned Walter into a horrible monster that the players will have to face in order to free the house of its curse.
DEATH HOUSE FEATURES:
- Death House is aware of its surroundings and all creatures within it. Its goal is to continue the work of the cult by luring visitors to their doom. Various important features of the house are summarized here.
- The house has four stories (including the attic), with two balconies on the third floor—one facing the front of the house, the other facing the back. The house has wooden floors throughout, and all windows have hinges that allow them to swing outward.
- The rooms on the first and second floors are free of dust and signs of age. The floorboards and wall panels are well oiled, the drapes and wallpaper haven’t faded, and the furniture looks new. No effort has been made to preserve the contents of the third floor or the attic. These areas are dusty and drafty, everything within them is old and draped in cobwebs, and the floorboards groan underfoot.
- Ceilings vary in height by floor. The first floor has 10-foot-high ceilings, the second floor has 12-foot-high ceilings, the third floor has 8-foot-high ceilings, and the attic has 13-foot-high ceilings.
- None of the rooms in the house are lit when the characters arrive, although most areas contain working oil lamps or fireplaces.
- Characters can burn the house to the ground if they want, but any destruction to the house is temporary. After 1d10 days, the house begins to repair itself. Ashes sweep together to form blackened timbers, which then turn back into a sturdy wooden frame around which walls begin to materialize. Destroyed furnishings are likewise repaired. It takes 2d6 hours for the house to complete its resurrection. Items taken from the house aren’t replaced, nor are undead that are destroyed. The dungeon level isn’t considered part of the house and can’t repair itself in this fashion.
Long/Short Rests:
It is impossible to get the rested benefit from this house. 1 point of exhaustion might occur from sleeping in this house. If the PC's take a rest in any of the rooms, read below:- A PC hears rats scrabbling up and down the spaces between the walls.
- A PC hears footsteps descending from the attic and stopping outside of their door before moving away to the library. Soon after, a grinding noise can be heard coming from the library (the sound of the secret door).
- A PC hears maniacal laughter echoing from far below the House.
- A PC experiences a false awakening, wherein they wake to see that one of their friends has been replaced by a ghast, which is slowly creeping toward another PC. If the PC stays still, the ghast slices open its victim’s throat, and the PC watches their friend bleed out before waking up.
- A PC overhears a whispered argument about parentage. A pleading female voice in the PC’s right ear swears that “it isn’t his.” A cold female voice in the PC’s left ear scoffs, and says that it doesn’t care.
Parent Location
