Session 3: The Setting Son

## The Setting Son

The party uncovered Doru, Father Donavich's son, living in the basement of the church. Once freed from his imprisonment, Doru immediately attacked and a fight ensued, which ended with Doru dead. The party discovered a mirror which had been housing the wizard, Eustace, who offered the party rest at his home and explained what he knew about Barovia and Strahd. He explained that the nature of Barovia is cyclical, and he himself has been stuck in the cycle for some time and hopes the party will finally be the ones to break it and free Barovia from the curse of Strahd.

## Synopsis

### The Vampire Spawn

After V unlocked the trapdoor, Bogdan said his blood has no appeal so he went down the trapdoor stairs. There was no source of light in the basement except for the candles from the church peeking through the floor.

Sitting up against one of the walls on the opposite end of the room was a small wooden chest without a padlock keeping it shut. Bogdan knocked on the chest and asked “hello? Child? Are you in there?”

As Bogdan descended down the steps, V noticed a flash of movement on the stairs and felt the hairs on the back of their neck raise and heard a shaky voice say “it’s been so long. Finally, I can have a good meal.” Before them was Doru, a gaunt and pale figure with stringy hair, who then immediately lunged and attacked V.

Menyn attempted to cast blindness/deafness on the vampire and said “Sharp-toothed creature, trapped within, have thine eyes made dull and dim” and then gave V inspiration.

Bogdan’s shadow, which was previously by the door, walked closer to V. Then Bogdan took the place of the shadow version and attacked the vampire. However, the vampire bit V again, drank her blood, and V fell unconscious.

The vampire swiped at Bogdan then grabbed V’s body and began climbing up the wall toward the window. Bogdan was able to slash him with his rapier and said “you can learn to fight it. You can be better.” Bogdan climbed up the wall after the vampire to attack him and attacked with his both his own rapier and his shadow form.

Menyn healed V and upon waking up they immediately stabbed the vampire in the neck with their shortsword, which pierced out through the other side. However, the wound healed up quickly after the sword was removed.

Menyn said “Threats loom large, but are brought small- Smash the bastard through the wall!” and cast Thunderwave on the vampire, which also freed V from the vampire's grasp.

The vampire, mad at being attacked, went after V again and knocked them out once more. Menyn once again cast Healing Word on them and brought them back into the fight.

The vampire was then frightened enough to try and escape out the window, but Seril pulled out her pepperbox and shot him, managing to finally kill him.

When the vampire died, the father, who had been hiding, emerged to see his son's body. He knelt down beside the dead vampire and began to cry, “my boy, my sweet baby boy”.

Seril approached V asking if they were alright and V said they were fine but refused to let Seril see their neck where they had been bitten. Seril, seeing V's panic, eventually backed off.

Bogdan, struggling with V being covered in blood, had to keep himself away from them. His eyes flashed red when he looked over at them. In order to control himself, he stomped his feet, closed his eyes, and focused on breathing.

### Eustace

As Ireena exited the church to go check on the father, V noticed that she had a broken hand mirror in one hand.

Outside, the father cradled his son’s body. Menyn asked him about the Night Mother and souls and moving on. The father then explained it’s the Morning Lord who helped souls move on, and he had hoped the Night Mother would alleviate the sickness in his son but She ignored his prayers. He explained he knew his son was dangerous and that was why he kept him in the basement; hoping he wouldn’t hurt anybody.

Menyn then said that while he understood, he believed the father was only holding onto something that looked like his son. “This thing was a scar on the memory of him.” He said the father should let his son go to the Morning Lord.

The father then explained a wizard, a man of arcane study, came to Barovia about a month and a half ago and rallied the youth of the town, including his son. They attempted an attack on the castle, but failed. In the aftermath, his son had been turned.

Menyn then asked if the father could help with a funeral of their own. Ireena approached and asked Donavich to provide her father’s final rites. The father said he already had to perform one, might as well perform two. Menyn said “let it be in remembrance than a sadness of passing.” The father asked if her brother could bring their father’s body to the church to perform last rites.

Ireena still held the broken hand mirror in her hand as she spoke to the father. Menyn asked to see the mirror. The mirror had an inscription on it which read “Eustace”. Menyn said the name “Eustace” and then there was a crashing, thumping sound, followed by an old man’s voice saying “oomph”. Behind Menyn stood an old, crooked man wearing a loose overcoat and a puffy shirt with the buttons undone. He got up off the ground and said “goddammit it's good to be out of there.” He then reached into his pocket, mumbling “give me a moment” and pulled out a pipe. He then promptly began smoking.

After a moment, he explained he had been stuck in the mirror for a while. He asked for the mirror back, which Menyn gave to him, then confirmed that his name is Eustace.

Eustace then asked where “the old man” is, and reiterates “the priest”. When Menyn explain he went inside to perform funerals, Eustace asked if they killed the priest. Eustace further explains that father tried to trap his son in the mirror in order to give him more time, but instead ended up trapping Eustace instead.

Seril pulled the father aside to offer condolences for his loss with sincerity, and apologized for being the one to land the killing blow. The father was appreciative of her words then went to the body to begin preparing it.

Bogdan went down into the basement and kicked the chest he had noticed earlier. The chest then made a clattering sound, as if glass was in it. He opened the chest and found four vials, two with clear liquids, one with a slightly yellow viscous liquid, and the last, a deep red liquid with the viscosity of water. He pocketed them and then carried them upstairs.

Eustace then walked in and gave the priest the stink eye, while still smoking his pipe. Menyn then introduced Eustace to everyone and Eustace waved and acknowledged everyone.

Eustace asked what day it was and how long its been but everyone was confused about his question. To reiterate, he asked how long the party had known each other, to which they explained it had only been a day. Eustace then muttered something along the lines of, "there's still time" but didn’t explain what that meant.

The father told the party that he needed a few hours for the preparation of the funeral and for Ireena’s father’s body to be delivered as well, so Eustace offered to let everyone rest at his house in the meantime. He then left and slammed the door and Bogdan, dry said “What a grand slam for such a small man. He really gave the door the what for." Seril, extremely dry, responded with "Taught it a lesson" Seril then realized she was talking to Bogdan and got annoyed.

Bogdan went outside in search for small creatures but instead saw the pie woman with her cart empty. He once again stomped his feet and ground his teeth, clearly distressed.

In the basement, V managed to wrap the wound on their neck then, aware of Bogdan's hunger, found a mouse. With a quick apology to the creature, they killed it, then took it to Bogdan outside the church. They offered him the mouse and they both apologized to each other rather awkwardly. Bogdan said V had been very kind to him and he’s sorry to make the wrong impression. It had been a while since he’d eaten and he knows its not exactly natural. V apologized for making him uncomfortable, gave him the mouse, then awkwardly hurried away.

Menyn then asked if Eustace had enough preservatives, as he was hungry, but Eustace was already half asleep. Seril poked him and said “you fell asleep grandpa” to wake him up. Eustace then asked if they were all ready to go. When they said they were, he cast minor illusion, which made a map of Barovia. Eustace then started writing something in notebook and explained “we have a good night here but soon, very soon, we must visit the Vistani. It’s very important.” Menyn told him they were headed there anyways, does he want to come with them? Eustace said he would.

Eustace asked if anyone had tried to go home and Seril said “this is my home”. He sighed, then asked if any of them had tried to leave Barovia, to which Seril said “yes”, she had managed to leave, and then became a pirate. Menynaid when he tried to leave he got nauseous and wound up back inside Barovia. Eustace told them they have limited time and need to go to the Vistani as soon as possible and that he’d explain along the way.

As Eustace, Menyn, and Seril talked, Bogdan searched around the graveyard for food. He found a cat but decided not to eat it because it’s a pet, after asking V what they thought, though they weren't helpful. "I wouldn't know, I've never had a pet," they mumbled. They did spy a raven and tried to shoot it but missed. They apologized and he assured them it was okay then asked them if they were alright. They said they were tired and Bogdan said they had lost a lot of blood and needed rest. They then went to catch up with the group and V thanked Menyn for healing them. He was very appreciative since he felt like he wasn’t doing much about the vampire.

Menyn then commented on how he could use a mirror to identify vampires since they don’t have a reflection. Bogdan then explained full vampires don’t cast a shadow so that’s a way to identify vampires as well.

Eustace asked if every was finally ready to go and led them to his house.

As they were walking, Seril sidled up to Bogdan and asked him in a nasty tone if the mouse was good. He said it wasn’t much but he doubted she cared about his well being. She explained she cared if he was hungry and the threat it dealt to them, but then Bogdan said his feeding habits were under control and he only feasts on people when they attack him.

### Eustace's home

Eustace took the group to his home. The building was crooked but homely with a big pizza oven, which served as both his kitchen and heater. A ladder led up to the second floor but it was covered in dust and looked like he hadn’t used it in a while. He then put a pot on the stove to warm up. Once inside, V walked over to a corner, sat down, leaned against the wall, and passed out. Eustace offered some herbs to help them.

Eustace asked if any of them had received a message from Strahd or met him yet. Everyone responded in the negative and he assured them that was a good thing. He then asked how many had been living in Barovia. Seril explained she had been born in Barovia, left, and then returned. He asked if anything had been different but she didn’t understand what he meant. He explained that some people were more stuck here than others, and not to mind him, he’s a crazy old man with his theories. He explained he wasn’t born in Barovia but he’s been stuck here most of his life and has tried to leave. Seril seemed uncomfortable by the conversation. Eustace said the people who spend their entire lives here seem to be empty like they're repeating the process and are just shells.

He explained that he came to Barovia in his early twenties and went through some trials with a group of people. He said that every so often a group appears and he suspected the party is the new group. To this, Menyn explained that Madame Eva said the same.

Eustace said “sometimes things get worse, sometimes they get better, but they mostly stay the same”

Eustace said that the group has to show up at night, since the Vistani travel during the day. So they should probably get moving before it gets too late. He tell them there's also possibly something that they should find along the way, but doesn't explain what.

Eustace then offers a disgusting looking stew but Menyn and Seril gladly ate it while Bogdan declined.

Seril asked what Eustace meant about getting a message from Strahd “yet” and he explained sometimes Strahd sends out letters for help or invitations to parties to entice people into Barovia and to his home. He said Strahd likes to keep tabs on the people of Barovia and watch his pawns play their game. After Seril thanked him, Eustace immediately fell asleep.

With Eustace asleep, Menyn went up the ladder to the second floor to see what was up there. He found a map of Barovia with little dots and strings all over it as well as chains hanging from it with different pieces of paper hanging from the chains. All of the threads and chains led to the name of the location The Amber Temple.

Some of the note cards connected to the Amber Temple included some kind of tome and a bladeless weapon of some sort. Menyn managed to make a mental magic image of the map then headed back downstairs.

## Locations

* The Church of Barovia
* Eustace's Home

## Featured Characters

### The Party

* Bogdan
* Menyn Kaynen
* Seril Dren
* V

### Party Companions

* Ireena
* Eustace

### Mentioned

* Madame Eva
* Strahd