M2S5

## The Lord of Barovia

Count Strahd, the Lord of Barovia, achieves an important victory against the party.

## Continuity

### Next session

Session 6

“
*I don't think a cure wounds will fix that...*
”
— Aellun as Strahd kills and turns Lautrec.
**The Lord of Barovia** was the 5th session of the Strahdborne campaign. In this session, Strahd played a strong hand against the party: he incapacitated Ismark, gained Lautrec as an ally, and turned Irina into a vampire.

## Summary

The party collects itself after the ambush. The battle has left most Vistani and wolves dead. Aellun lays Stanimir to rest, as he has fallen to lycanthropy.

Ismark emerges with his sister: she is dead. As the Vistani prepare to burn the bodies of the slain, Count Strahd makes his appearance. To the horror of all, he is intent on turning Irina into a vampire. When Ismark resists, he is forced into magical slumber.

Arbrek, Gromash, and Lautrec resist Strahd, and a one-sided battle ensues, with Strahd easily overcoming the party. Strahd sees potential in Lautrec, and grants him the blood. As Lautrec rises with, he embraces his new powers and willingly joins Strahd. Lautrec and Strahd defeat the party (except Lo-thak, who is smart enough to stay out of it).

After this victory, Lautrec and Strahd sadistically force Ismark to observe as Irina is baptized into undeath as a vampire. Despite Ismark disobeying Strahd's command, the Count does not wish to kill his "future brother-in-law." Strahd instead punishes the burgomaster's son by cutting off his feet, leaving Ismark a broken cripple.

Their victory achieved and the party broken, Strahd, Lautrec, and Irina return to Ravenloft. The party, battered and broken, slowly crawls to Tser Pool encampment, where they hope to find shelter and reprieve after the harrowing events of the day.

## NPCs

* Ismark Kolyanovich: Strahd breaks Ismark in body and mind as punishment for defying his orders (and for his own sadistic pleasure).
* Irina Kolyanovich: Irina perishes. Strahd raises her from death as a vampire.
* Strahd von Zarovich: The Count deals a devastating blow to the party

## Quests

### New

* **A Throw for the Ages (Everyone):** Suplex Strahd.
* **With Friends Like These... (Lautrec):** Leverage your newfound position to accomplish your aims.

### Ongoing

* **Under New Management (Everyone):** Investigate the coven of hags at Old Bonegrinder mill.
* **The Deck of Fate (Everyone):** Find Madam Eva's people. Find Madam Eva and obtain a reading of the future.

### Completed

* **A Dangerous Journey (Everyone):** Listen to Ismark's proposal. Escort Ismark and Irina in their journey to Vallaki. Irina has been turned into a vampire.

## Quotes

“
*My life is spent, but I'll spend the last of it* standing*, not on my knees.*
”
— Aellun.

“
*"Tell me, how dare you to hope to escape when your pursuer is the ancient and the land?"
"This is why we live underground..."*
”
— Arbrek's response to Strahd.

“
*Don't take the piss, old man!*
”
— Lautrec to Aellun.

“
*"I know the blood of your people tastes like cheap filthy ale."
"I take offense to that!"
"I take offense to the quality of your blood."
"We are in agreement on that."*
”
— Strahd and Arbrek.

“
*"And I hope to make you the happiest woman in all of Barovia."
"Well that won't be hard to do considering how miserable you've made the rest of this country!"*
”

## Reflections

* **Example:** "Example"
* Lautrec: "I...I...I'm awake. Feels like I've been dreaming for so long. The kind of dreams so vivid and involved that when you wake up, it takes a moment to sort out the dreams from reality. Only this time, the dream WAS reality, and what I'm processing is a new one while the old one slips away like a dream. Will I really miss it, though? I doubt it. Day after day of tracking down lowlifes and scumbags, risking my life dragging them in for a few coins. Nothing like the old days when my work made things better for everyone in Roulan. But I've got something better now: I work for Strahd von fuckin' Zarovich now, and seeing as he's the ruler of this land, guess that makes me an officer of the law again! Hell, since Strahd's a count (Baron? King?) I could be something like a knight now. More than a gutter rat like me could have ever dreamed of, back in Roulan! Gascarde you rat, Roulan can keep the likes of you, I can't wait to see your face when I arrive in Strahd's colors to tear your throat out! And I know that's what I'm going to do, that's what this new hunger, this instinct is telling me. I feel like I'm on an adrenaline rush, sensing so much I couldn't before, the hunger urging me to leap and rend and feed. If vampires are dead, how come I've never felt more alive? Don't worry Irina, I think you'll come to like this state of being, even without becoming Queen of Barovia. In fact, I think ALL of my former friends will come around to this. They'll object, just as I did at first. All they need to do is wake up. Wake up and smell the blood..."
* **Lo-thak:** "The cold winds of these woods seem to carry a dark fate for us. After the tragedy that befell us in the wake of the wolf attack, the man Strahd appeared before us. He came for the woman, Irina, but my companions, not content with the losses we had already suffered, decided to stand between the beast and his prey. The results were, well, not pretty. It seems inevitable we will face Strahd again, and it seems even I will need to become much stronger before that day comes if we want any hope of survival."
* Arbrek: “I'll need a lot more ale to recover from this one. And it'll need to be the strong stuff too! Not this water the humans call a drink. You rule this land Strahd, so you know damn well that the drinks here aren't high enough quality to be in my blood! And cheap ale? Bah! No such thing coming from a Dwarf hold. Too much wine has rotted his brain, that's for sure. The arrogance of that man. No doubt it'll be his undoing. Now he has let us leave, probably thinking he can fatten us up for a fight down the road. He seems to relish in the idea of defiance, but he has let us live with knowledge on how he fights. I am sure the elder has seen more about him than I have, so we will need to discuss how to exploit the vampire’s weaknesses. And if I could learn the secrets of Ismark’s blade … The bounty hunter has been slain too. The first one, but it may not be the last. Now Strahd has another puppet. One can hope his soul is intact, but his corpse needs to be destroyed before our job here is finished.”
* Gromash: After a long fight in the dark woods the woods and when everything seemed to be settling down the Strahd apeared the enemy of my friend is my enemy we tried to hold him back to prevent any further damage to Irina and he's brother. I even tried to suplex Strahd but failed miserably not even able to lift him after that all I remember is death calling to my door and somhow escaping it trough Tempus will. with a broken man I carry and it finally seems like we might be able to get some rest to recover from the deadly fight.
* **Aellun:** "I... I... I don't know what to do. Some of us are still standing, but in all other respects, this went about as poorly as it possibly could. Irina, who this was all done for, perished, and worse yet was claimed by Strahd all the same. Her brother's spirit is nearly broken, his legs truly so; he shall never walk again. The Vistani, who freely offered us aid, are dead save for two men. All our resistance did nothing more than earn us Strahd's mirth, and in exchange he took from us... Lautrec. He died as bravely as any man could hope for, fighting till the end, and the vampire took even that glory from him and darkened it forever. You may not have been my student or follower, but I do owe you this, Lautrec. I'll find some way to pierce that heart and end the beast's mockery of your existence, if it's the last thing I ever do... Hard as it may be, I can't let it be the last thing. Strahd has all the cards now, all the cards save one, this strange moon thing I carry in my pocket. The time to strike is not now. We need to lay low and plan to find other options, whether that be through this mysterious Madam Eva, the Vistani, or perhaps the remnants of the Owlguard, however old they may be. I need information, friends... and rest. Yes, rest. I've pushed myself harder than I have in a long time, through two vampires' drains, and I'd be toying with the deadman's noose should I risk a third encounter. I'm sorry friends, but the best way I can look out for you now is looking out for myself, or I won't be much help for the dark clouds that lie ahead. Let your will carry you for now, as I see steeling your eyes."

## Appendix

Strahdborne Sessions
**Chapter 1: The Gates of Barovia**
 Session 1 · Session 2 · Session 3 · Session 4 · **Session 5** · Session 6

 **Chapter 2: The Fall of Vallaki**
 Session 7 · Session 8 · Session 9 · Session 10 · Session 11 · Session 12 · Session 13 · Session 14 · Session 15 · Session 16 · Session 17 · Session 18 · Session 19 ·

 **Chapter 3: The Muster at Krezk**
 Session 20 · Session 21 · Session 22 · Session 23 · Session 24 · Session 25 · Session 26 · Session 27 ·