I'm assuming some knowledge of the Strahd campaign.
One of my players accepted the dark gift of the Corpse Star in the Amber Temple, because they want to use its power to raise the long dead corpse of Sergei, Strahd's brother. This is an astoundingly good idea, but I'm not sure I can do it justice, and I can't see online that any other group has done this. What would the effect on Strahd be? How would you play it? It sounds like a great idea for a finale but I think it needs a bit of thinking.
My players have (correctly) assumed that Sergei will be buried somewhere in Ravenloft, and may be heading there soonish for Strahd's dinner invite. They've done most of the plots so far and have the Tome, the Ally, and the Sunsword.
Strahd supposedly loved his younger brother Sergei, but his jealously and anger ultimately drove him to kill Sergei so that he could have Tatyana. I would expect that Strahd would be momentarily surprised by his brother being brought back to life and ultimately enraged by the fact. Sergei would be one of the only individuals that Strahd would view as being a potentially threat to finally winning Tatyana, and he's not likely to allow Sergei to live again.
How would a DM play out such an encounter? I would probably have Strahd be surprised (maybe giving him the stunned condition) for a round or two as he processes the unexpected situation. After that, he would probably concentrate most of his attacks on killing Sergei first. Strahd is still extremely intelligent and a brilliant strategist, but I would play him as less so if Sergei is alive in the room with him. Something like that would probably leave him temporarily unhinged... Not stupid, per se, but definitely less calculated as his rage supersedes his self-control.
If I recall correctly, the Dark Gift of the Corpse Star is the ability to cast Resurrection once, not True Resurrection. Since Strahd is roughly 429 years old, that would reasonably make his brother Sergei ineligible for Resurrection. (Though as DM, you can reward your players for creativity as you wish.)
There are many narrative risks of bringing back Strahd's brother, chiefly of which is that it takes the spotlight away from our party of heroes. The Righteous brother risen from the dead to fight his corrupted sibling is a much more cohesive narrative. It also disrupts another questline that the players may explore.
However, if you decide to follow that path, I agree with Javier that the impact on Strahd should definitely be emotional. I just watched the finale of Critical Role campaign 2, and Matt used an interesting mechanic that would apply here (Technically a spoiler):
The players were able to use their Bonus Action to attempt to remind the BBEG of their past using escalating Persuasion/other checks. If successful, the BBEG would lose a legendary action for that round.
This is great because it has a very satisfying impact without being too impactful.
Personally, I would not let the players bring Sergei into the final encounter unless there is a serious chance of a TPK. Maybe he can empower the Sunsword, or fight off a horde of evil creatures as the party makes their approach, but considering how important he is to the narrative, it can easily make things complicated. If he does follow into the final conflict, maybe Strahd's first turn is spent killing Sergei (No statblock for Sergei that I'm aware of), but the process of doing so acts like being poisoned with Radiant energy, preventing regeneration for a couple of rounds. (This conveniently overlaps with their other resources, so it shouldn't noticeably unbalance the encounter.) [Spirit lingers as a cheerleader for a while before leaving to reunite with Tatyana.)
The Corpse Star specifically lets you raise dead anyone who's died, no matter how long ago. That's why Kasimir wants to use it to raise his 400 year long dead sister.
Ah, right. The Dark Gift operates based on Resurrection, but removes the time requirement. So, yeah, if you intend to make Sergei's remains discoverable, then that should work as long as the soul is "Free and Willing".
Your players have a neat idea! There are a couple of ways you might play this.
The first option could lead to a grand battle between Strahd and Sergei, because Strahd is jealous. Although he loved Sergei, Strahd loves himself more. If Sergei comes back to him, I can see Strahd being torn between remorse and sorrow, but also wanting to preserve his own interests-- his kingdom, his castle, his choices. "I've defeated you once, brother, I am prepared to defeat you again..." Besides, after 300 years, Strahd may have made peace with his actions, and he doesn't want Sergei around as a reminder of his failure to win Tatyana's love. This option could really make Strahd even more vengeful against your party.
Another option could be redemption-focused. Strahd is overwhelmed by seeing his beloved brother, and he regrets what has happened and seeks forgiveness. "Welcome to immortality, brother. In 300 years, I have not found the companionship that I have sought. There is no truer friend than a brother..." Having Sergei around may give Strahd a chance to meet his other goal: to find a successor for his kingdom. But maybe Strahd has unfinished business that he needs your players' help with to be truly at peace before he can entrust Barovia to a successor. [Insert new quest here: destroy the Amber Temple so that its evil powers are stopped, wipe out Argynvostholt so that Ravenloft is safe, etc.]
Whatever you decide, there are a lot of different directions that could be fun for you and your players with this plot!
I don't know if this is CoS lore or if it was just my DM's, but the sunsword was once Sergei's. Maybe if he gets resurrected and given the sunsword it could become inconceivably powerful in his hands. Plus that would be be some sweet RP between Sergei and the PCs giving him the sword.
Good call, it *was* Sergei's. It's half destroyed now (hence it not having a blade just a ... lightsaber..), but yeah why not make it more powerful in the original owner's hands?
Cheers Zosma! Yeah, I imagine if it all works, that Strahd will likely discover Sergei with the adventurers inside Ravenloft. That's kind of what I was thinking - Strahd is torn between sorrow and begging for forgiveness, and fear and hate that he has to deal with a worthy adversary again.
Just to play devil's advocate, can Sergei be raised? Ultimately the mists would need to allow it, and after 400 plus years would Sergei leave his afterlife to be trapped for eternity in Ravenloft? Not that he would know that.
This is a horror based game so maybe some part of Sergei would come back but not recall what all happened? Or the shock of find out your brother chased your love off a cliff, and became a vampire, could cause him to crack.
If I recall Sergei was a sweet nice guy, not a warrior like Strahd, so Strahd would wipe the floor with him, after the above mentioned several round of Strahd being off his game which I agree with.
Anyways I think the idea is a great one but wanted to show a different view point, good luck.
I'm assuming some knowledge of the Strahd campaign.
One of my players accepted the dark gift of the Corpse Star in the Amber Temple, because they want to use its power to raise the long dead corpse of Sergei, Strahd's brother. This is an astoundingly good idea, but I'm not sure I can do it justice, and I can't see online that any other group has done this. What would the effect on Strahd be? How would you play it? It sounds like a great idea for a finale but I think it needs a bit of thinking.
My players have (correctly) assumed that Sergei will be buried somewhere in Ravenloft, and may be heading there soonish for Strahd's dinner invite. They've done most of the plots so far and have the Tome, the Ally, and the Sunsword.
Halp
Strahd supposedly loved his younger brother Sergei, but his jealously and anger ultimately drove him to kill Sergei so that he could have Tatyana. I would expect that Strahd would be momentarily surprised by his brother being brought back to life and ultimately enraged by the fact. Sergei would be one of the only individuals that Strahd would view as being a potentially threat to finally winning Tatyana, and he's not likely to allow Sergei to live again.
How would a DM play out such an encounter? I would probably have Strahd be surprised (maybe giving him the stunned condition) for a round or two as he processes the unexpected situation. After that, he would probably concentrate most of his attacks on killing Sergei first. Strahd is still extremely intelligent and a brilliant strategist, but I would play him as less so if Sergei is alive in the room with him. Something like that would probably leave him temporarily unhinged... Not stupid, per se, but definitely less calculated as his rage supersedes his self-control.
If I recall correctly, the Dark Gift of the Corpse Star is the ability to cast Resurrection once, not True Resurrection. Since Strahd is roughly 429 years old, that would reasonably make his brother Sergei ineligible for Resurrection. (Though as DM, you can reward your players for creativity as you wish.)
There are many narrative risks of bringing back Strahd's brother, chiefly of which is that it takes the spotlight away from our party of heroes. The Righteous brother risen from the dead to fight his corrupted sibling is a much more cohesive narrative. It also disrupts another questline that the players may explore.
However, if you decide to follow that path, I agree with Javier that the impact on Strahd should definitely be emotional. I just watched the finale of Critical Role campaign 2, and Matt used an interesting mechanic that would apply here (Technically a spoiler):
The players were able to use their Bonus Action to attempt to remind the BBEG of their past using escalating Persuasion/other checks. If successful, the BBEG would lose a legendary action for that round.
This is great because it has a very satisfying impact without being too impactful.
Personally, I would not let the players bring Sergei into the final encounter unless there is a serious chance of a TPK. Maybe he can empower the Sunsword, or fight off a horde of evil creatures as the party makes their approach, but considering how important he is to the narrative, it can easily make things complicated. If he does follow into the final conflict, maybe Strahd's first turn is spent killing Sergei (No statblock for Sergei that I'm aware of), but the process of doing so acts like being poisoned with Radiant energy, preventing regeneration for a couple of rounds. (This conveniently overlaps with their other resources, so it shouldn't noticeably unbalance the encounter.) [Spirit lingers as a cheerleader for a while before leaving to reunite with Tatyana.)
The Corpse Star specifically lets you raise dead anyone who's died, no matter how long ago. That's why Kasimir wants to use it to raise his 400 year long dead sister.
Good advice! Thanks very much!
Ah, right. The Dark Gift operates based on Resurrection, but removes the time requirement. So, yeah, if you intend to make Sergei's remains discoverable, then that should work as long as the soul is "Free and Willing".
Your players have a neat idea! There are a couple of ways you might play this.
The first option could lead to a grand battle between Strahd and Sergei, because Strahd is jealous. Although he loved Sergei, Strahd loves himself more. If Sergei comes back to him, I can see Strahd being torn between remorse and sorrow, but also wanting to preserve his own interests-- his kingdom, his castle, his choices. "I've defeated you once, brother, I am prepared to defeat you again..." Besides, after 300 years, Strahd may have made peace with his actions, and he doesn't want Sergei around as a reminder of his failure to win Tatyana's love. This option could really make Strahd even more vengeful against your party.
Another option could be redemption-focused. Strahd is overwhelmed by seeing his beloved brother, and he regrets what has happened and seeks forgiveness. "Welcome to immortality, brother. In 300 years, I have not found the companionship that I have sought. There is no truer friend than a brother..." Having Sergei around may give Strahd a chance to meet his other goal: to find a successor for his kingdom. But maybe Strahd has unfinished business that he needs your players' help with to be truly at peace before he can entrust Barovia to a successor. [Insert new quest here: destroy the Amber Temple so that its evil powers are stopped, wipe out Argynvostholt so that Ravenloft is safe, etc.]
Whatever you decide, there are a lot of different directions that could be fun for you and your players with this plot!
I don't know if this is CoS lore or if it was just my DM's, but the sunsword was once Sergei's. Maybe if he gets resurrected and given the sunsword it could become inconceivably powerful in his hands. Plus that would be be some sweet RP between Sergei and the PCs giving him the sword.
Good call, it *was* Sergei's. It's half destroyed now (hence it not having a blade just a ... lightsaber..), but yeah why not make it more powerful in the original owner's hands?
Cheers Zosma! Yeah, I imagine if it all works, that Strahd will likely discover Sergei with the adventurers inside Ravenloft. That's kind of what I was thinking - Strahd is torn between sorrow and begging for forgiveness, and fear and hate that he has to deal with a worthy adversary again.
Just to play devil's advocate, can Sergei be raised? Ultimately the mists would need to allow it, and after 400 plus years would Sergei leave his afterlife to be trapped for eternity in Ravenloft? Not that he would know that.
This is a horror based game so maybe some part of Sergei would come back but not recall what all happened? Or the shock of find out your brother chased your love off a cliff, and became a vampire, could cause him to crack.
If I recall Sergei was a sweet nice guy, not a warrior like Strahd, so Strahd would wipe the floor with him, after the above mentioned several round of Strahd being off his game which I agree with.
Anyways I think the idea is a great one but wanted to show a different view point, good luck.
I seem to remember in the book "I, Strahd", that Sergei's body disappeared. But ultimately it is up to you.