I have just started running CoS proper after what was originally going to be death house one shot.
I had the players meet madam eva who done her reading with them during which it was revealed Arabella was their help. I chose her over the golem as I liked the idea of a little girl helping in the fight against the big bad.
Anyway the book has little information on her and how she can actually be used in this regard. As she is a descendant of madam eva I was thinking of making her a cleric also but with a lower CR. She would naturally have all the vistsni features also.
Would love to hear idea's from dms who used her on how they went about it. I can see my.players returning her to her father's camp and losing her, In which case I will have a new reading done at some point. But on the off chance they don't, please help.
The minimal benefit of a helper is their Inspire action, and presumably that's what Arabella would do. There are several options (Donavich, Stella Wachter, Nikolai Wachter, Ireena Kolyana, Pidlwick II, Clovin Belview, Arabelle) who have no significant abilities.
On another thread, it was recommended to have Anabelle's help be material, rather than actually joining the party. For example, having Anabelle lead the party to a valuable magical item.
However, she could also act as type of ex Machina, where she she shows up at unexpected moments to help the party in unexpected ways. Maybe she gets visions or is possessed by a mysterious powerful entity, so when the party is struggling, she appears in a dazzling display of cosmic power before collapsing on the floor. (Saves the party, but essentially triggers a mini-escort quest to get her home safely.)
With this option, you don't need to bother with a character sheet. Leave her as a Commoner, but tack on a couple of Nova options and jot down a description of the aftermath.
On another thread, it was recommended to have Anabelle's help be material, rather than actually joining the party. For example, having Anabelle lead the party to a valuable magical item.
However, she could also act as type of ex Machina, where she she shows up at unexpected moments to help the party in unexpected ways. Maybe she gets visions or is possessed by a mysterious powerful entity, so when the party is struggling, she appears in a dazzling display of cosmic power before collapsing on the floor. (Saves the party, but essentially triggers a mini-escort quest to get her home safely.)
With this option, you don't need to bother with a character sheet. Leave her as a Commoner, but tack on a couple of Nova options and jot down a description of the aftermath.
I will look at this some more. Maybe have her shed some light on the cryptic clues given by madam eva or something.
In my game Ireena was the helper but they freed her :) ... so I had Esmerelda tag along with the party. However, if needed I was going to have the spirit of Tatyana show up in the final battle against Strahd and distract him. Anything that uses Strahd's action for a turn or two will greatly benefit the players.
In this case, I would probably use Arabelle as a spooky little girl who is innocent but seems to know more than her years or experience would imply. In battles, other creatures don't seem to notice her, she comes out with spooky and off the wall comments, perhaps talks to ghosts and mutters to herself - and her role in a fight against Strahd would be to distract him. Perhaps she sees Strahd across the room and calls out "Papa!" running towards him - leaving Strahd with an image of the child that might have been if the situation with Tatyana had worked out differently.
P.S. You are correct though that the book gives little or no guidance on exactly what sort of help can be offered by the prophesied helper.
Fellow DMs
I have just started running CoS proper after what was originally going to be death house one shot.
I had the players meet madam eva who done her reading with them during which it was revealed Arabella was their help. I chose her over the golem as I liked the idea of a little girl helping in the fight against the big bad.
Anyway the book has little information on her and how she can actually be used in this regard. As she is a descendant of madam eva I was thinking of making her a cleric also but with a lower CR. She would naturally have all the vistsni features also.
Would love to hear idea's from dms who used her on how they went about it. I can see my.players returning her to her father's camp and losing her, In which case I will have a new reading done at some point. But on the off chance they don't, please help.
The minimal benefit of a helper is their Inspire action, and presumably that's what Arabella would do. There are several options (Donavich, Stella Wachter, Nikolai Wachter, Ireena Kolyana, Pidlwick II, Clovin Belview, Arabelle) who have no significant abilities.
On another thread, it was recommended to have Anabelle's help be material, rather than actually joining the party. For example, having Anabelle lead the party to a valuable magical item.
However, she could also act as type of ex Machina, where she she shows up at unexpected moments to help the party in unexpected ways. Maybe she gets visions or is possessed by a mysterious powerful entity, so when the party is struggling, she appears in a dazzling display of cosmic power before collapsing on the floor. (Saves the party, but essentially triggers a mini-escort quest to get her home safely.)
With this option, you don't need to bother with a character sheet. Leave her as a Commoner, but tack on a couple of Nova options and jot down a description of the aftermath.
I will look at this some more. Maybe have her shed some light on the cryptic clues given by madam eva or something.
I never got the chance to use her, but I'll give you what I had in my DMs notes:
In my game Ireena was the helper but they freed her :) ... so I had Esmerelda tag along with the party. However, if needed I was going to have the spirit of Tatyana show up in the final battle against Strahd and distract him. Anything that uses Strahd's action for a turn or two will greatly benefit the players.
In this case, I would probably use Arabelle as a spooky little girl who is innocent but seems to know more than her years or experience would imply. In battles, other creatures don't seem to notice her, she comes out with spooky and off the wall comments, perhaps talks to ghosts and mutters to herself - and her role in a fight against Strahd would be to distract him. Perhaps she sees Strahd across the room and calls out "Papa!" running towards him - leaving Strahd with an image of the child that might have been if the situation with Tatyana had worked out differently.
P.S. You are correct though that the book gives little or no guidance on exactly what sort of help can be offered by the prophesied helper.
Arabela helps even if the players return her to her father. Some vistani will help them with supplies and can even help in the final battle.