M2S16

## Hell to Pay

Riotous mobs burn down Vallakovich Manor.

“
*-Mephisto... dinner!*
”
— Fiona Wachter before setting her hound on the party.
**Hell to Pay** was the 16th session of the Strahdborne campaign. In this session, the party hallowed Vallaki anew, protecting it from the foul magics of Strahd, while a riotous mob and a familiar invader lay waste to the town.

## Summary

### A Matter of Sinners

The party, already suspicious of Fiona Wachter (and reasonably so), parlays with the invading Vistani force. The Vistani are in Vallaki for two reasons: to discern who or what is responsible for the death of the mystic child, Arabelle, and to take advantage of the riotous mob to loot and plunder to get filthy, rich, and filthy rich.

### Double-crossing the double-crosser

As the Vistani began to pillage the town, Thalia approached Arrigal and the leaders and convinced them of her theory that Lady Fiona Wachter was ultimately responsible for Arabelle's death, due to the demonic haunting of the orphanage where Arabelle was last seen and Wachter's masks seeming to be demonic in nature. The Vistani are convinced and accompany the party to attack the Wachterhaus, though Arrigal's brother is bewitched into killing himself by Lady Fiona. As the Vistani attack the Wachter guards and Aellen attempts to infiltrate the house from a side window, Lo-Thak Thunder Steps himself and Thalia up into Lady Fiona's room. This proves to be a mistake, bringing them face to face with the lady's demon familiar Mephisto, now a massive hellhound.

## NPCs

* Casimir Velikov, Voghul in Elvish. A member of the Dusk Elf mercenary band, "Twilight," who in the days of yore accepted the service of the Dragons to defend the valley of Barovia against Strahd and his armies. The ancient enemy of the Owlguard, he now seems to be an ally of Aellun's.
* St Andral: his protection once again seems to be staying the vampiric menace, though after the events of the last few sessions it seems there won't be much left to protect.

## Quests

### Ongoing

* **Chaos is a Ladder (Everyone):** Determine the future of Vallaki.
* **No Dark Deed Goes Unpunished (Everyone):** Investigate the Orphanage and get to the bottom of Arabelle's murder. Interrogate Hans, Lazlo, and Franz about Arabelle.
* **Treasures of Yore (Everyone):** Recover the other two gems of the Wizard of Wines.
* **Under New Management (Everyone):** Investigate the coven of hags at Old Bonegrinder mill.

### The Deck of Fate

* **The Fount of Knowledge (Everyone):** Discover the source of knowledge below the guardian of a garden.
* **The Symbol of Hope (Everyone):** Claim the holy symbol by finding the tomb of a great wizard with a famous staff.
* **The Blade of Light (Everyone):** Wield the sunlight blade in the den of wolves near the moonlit lake.
* **The Shadow of Barovia (Everyone):** Defeat Strahd. Optional: Suplex Strahd.
* **The Moon (Aellun):** Find the place filled with bones, for the clues you seek lie there.
* **The Headsman (Gromash):** Find the fortress within the fortress, which contains the treasure you seek.
* **The Phantom (Lo-thak):** Find the location of the one who gave birth to evil, for she is the key to your goals.
* **The Balance (Thalia):** Discover the whereabouts of Lautrec and Gascarde.

## Quotes

Thalia: "How injured is everybody?" (Esemeralda reattaches her arm)

Arbrek: "I've known many a master engineer to lose a limb or two." Esmeralda: "Only a limb or two?" Arbrek: "Long as they don't lose their beard, they're fine."
Arbrek: "Aye, a pity I hadn't lost any of mine." Thalia: "Correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't it be a sign of the craft to not lose a limb?" Arbrek: "OF COURSE NOT!"

(Sees the inn is burning) Arbrek: "Oh no... think of all the undrunk alcohol!" Thalia: "Is drinking all you care about?" Arbrek: (Solemnly nods) "Oh wait, it's wine, never mind."

Thalia: (About Barovians) "Ugly of souls, ugly of body."

Aragal: "Only a fool would trust an outsider in Barovia." Thalia: "Many would say the same of the Vistani."

(Seeing the Casimir's ears have been lopped off) At least he's not a pointy eared bastard, so he's got that going for him at least! Arbrek: (Wondering) This is a great philosophical debate.

## Reflections

* **Character name:** Reflection.
* Arbrek: "Looks like things are going well. The spineless mayor is dead along with his henchmen. I would commend the usurper because she at least committed to doing something with her power, but it seems the position of townmaster may be incompatible with a long life. Perhaps the Vistani will have better luck. Maybe a council will only shorten each of their lives by a fraction. And what to make of the elf with no ears. Can he be a pointy eared bastard if he has none? Can a Dwarf be a Dwarf without a beard? Perhaps his character will show whether he is an elf or something else entirely. This reminds me of a legend of an elf who was so unlike his people he gained the respect of the Dwarves and became one himself. I doubt anyone today could match the rigorous standards the ancestors held, but perhaps his character will make him something that he was not born into."
* **Aellun:** "With all that's happened tonight, there should be a hundred thoughts running through my head. Certainly, the past hour has brought up enough memories - the sunworshippers of old, dragon followers, devilish brokering, magics that control one's body and soul - yet none of those are clamoring for the front of my mind. Certainly, they are all important things that I will have to contend with, lest disaster arise from complacency, but each of these is secondary to the task at hand. In the midst of this chaotic tumult, things are changing too rapidly to force through a given plan. Decisions will have to be made and abandoned moment by moment in order to survive and see Vallaki restored to some semblance of order. I can only hope we can all keep us this pace."
* Thalia: "By Roulan, I need to stop letting my fellows make the plan. I leave them alone for a few days and they've gone around and started a revolution for the wrong people! Was I the only person who didn't fall for Lady Wachter's sob story, or who realized that siding with Strahd's biggest worshipper was a bad idea? Perhaps my years of service in the Roulan High Watch may have left me misinformed, but if your plan is to rally the people and march them up to Castle Ravenloft chanting, "Do you hear the people sing", you start by *not* putting enemy sympathizers in charge! At least now we have a chance to undo the damage, now that we've restored St Andral's bones and can now remove Lady Wachter and her cult. After that we can choose....wait, what's that growling? OH ROULAN, Why did I let my fellows make this plan?!"

## 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 ·