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Burr nods and begins checking all the unexplored rooms on the ground floor starting with the northwest one first....

 Burr feels fine and has no need to rest, though he's happy for his more battered companions to do so while he looks around.

Perception- 11

Soren tries to find a safe corner in the winery where he can look out a window in the direction the blights outside had been in case they advance.  He settles down for a short rest and examines the staff, trying to determine its purpose (and how to counter/negate it) without actually using the item.

He imagines for a moment becoming corrupted and insane as the dark druids had been and shudders.

At some point, feeling revulsion as he does, he searches the bodies of the corrupted druids.  He also recovers as many of his shot arrows as he can.

(Is the winery still shrouded in mists as Giles said?  Can we make out any sign of the blights still out there?  See Perception checks by Soren and Nettle in post 1194.  Also, any response from the rafter ravens to Soren's Speech of the Woods query in the spoiler towards the bottom of the post but above my signature?  Soren figures the ravens seem to be allies of the Martikovs and may know the lay of the land.)

Mid-way through the hour, Nettle begins to fade away back to the fey realm,  (one hour duration would be over) but Soren uses his second Wild Shape to keep her present, regaining both uses of Wild Shape at the end of the short rest.

Soren, the winery is indeed still shrouded in mist.  Outside, shapes can still be seen ambling through the fog, though none appear to be converging on the winery.  The blight creatures seem either unaware that you have attacked the druids, or uncaring of that fact.  Those few you can see within 30-50' of the winery seem content to wander the grounds, dragging torn and uprooted vines with them.

The ravens confirm their willingness to carry a message to the Martikovs, if you have a message for them to deliver. 

The druids seemed to have only rags and clothing, made of deer skins, antlers and bones.  Each had a staff, and the woman in the Fermentation room had a waterskin filled with a thick, viscous liquid.

Regarding the staff:

 [We still need to know if Giles and Zefla are searching or resting for this hour.]

Burr spends an hour working his way around the winery building, making sure there are no more hidden foes.

0.  Bare hooks line the walls of this storage room.  Shelves to the south hold several pairs of stained wooden sandals with oversized soles.  Both doors to this room hang open.  The one to the west is fitted with iron brackets and leads outside into the fog and rain. Lying on the floor next to it is a five-foot-long wooden beam.  While some of the doors here look to have been smashed open, this door looks to have been opened intentionally.  You suspect that once the winery was breached by the Druids, the Martikovs must have used this exit to flee.  You notice that a patch of thorny, unusual vines hang down over the outer exit.  You don't like the look of those vines....

1. The sliding wooden doors are chained shut from the inside, and the smaller door is barred shut from the inside.  You can peek through a gap in the sliding doors to see what is beyond.  Resting on a flagstone veranda are three five-foot-diameter wooden tubs, their insides stained with grape juice.  Each tub has a short ladder bolted to its side and a catch basin tucked underneath.
2. Rows of 13 empty barrels fill this room. A narrow stone staircase spirals upward in the southwest corner, leading to the 2nd floor hallway.
3. Strips of iron and wood lie in neat piles on the floor of this workshop, the walls of which are lined with tools. Two worktables stand against the east wall.  The exterior door here is barred shut from the inside, still holding firm.
4. Loading Dock, described previously.  There is a wagon here, currently loaded with 3 barrels marked 'Purple Grapemash No. 3.'
5. Stables.  There is no sign of what became of the animals kept here.
6. Fermentation Room, described previously.  Now full of dead blights and druids.
7. A dirty window in the south wall allows dim light to enter this room. Wine bottles are manufactured here, as evidenced by the tools lying about, the wooden rack full of freshly blown glass bottles along the south wall, the hearth built into the southwest corner, and the barrel of sand standing next to it. A staircase descends underground, and between it and the rack of bottles stands a barred exterior door.
8. In this chamber are a desk, a chair, a tall wooden cabinet, and a strange contraption that takes up most of the northern end of the room.  The contraption standing near the north wall is a printing press, which Davian Martikov uses to make wine bottle labels. The ink is made from wine and stored in bottles in the cabinet, along with pieces of parchment and jars of glue.
9. Two pairs of bunk beds occupy this room. Against the west wall rest four identical footlockers.  The footlockers contain clothing but nothing of value.
10. Two pairs of bunk beds occupy this room.   A few toys are scattered about. One of the toys seems to resemble a child’s wooden rocking horse, except that the horse is black with wild eyes and has painted orange flames where its mane, tail, and hooves should be. Carved into the wooden nightmare is the name “Beucephalus” and, in smaller lettering, the slogan “Is No Fun, Is No Blinsky!”
11. Combination Kitchen and Dining Room, described previously.  This room appears ransacked, with the shelves and drawers turned out and the small stove smashed.  A table with 8 chairs dominates the room.  The table itself is covered with piles of aromatic, funky-smelling mushrooms.
12. This room contains a four-poster bed, its headboard carved in the likeness of a giant raven.  The bed is messy and befouled as though a wild animal had been sleeping here.  A soft black rug covers the floor between the bed and the door. In the corners of the south wall stand two slender wardrobes with a tapestry of a church hanging on the wall between them.  The tapestry is rent as though cut by claws or daggers.  Beneath the tapestry sits a handsomely carved rocking cradle. To the north, under a window, is a plain desk and chair.  Other furnishings include a wooden chest and a freestanding mirror in a wooden frame.  The mirror has a spiral smeared on it in a strange dark substance that looks like... yep, its feces.  The wooden chest is locked.  The wardrobes contain both men and women's clothing.  On the desk are writing implements and a heavy book.  Some of the pages have been ripped out and strewn out upon the floor.  There is a hidden door on the NE wall that connect to the winch room.
13. This room is where barrels are lowered down onto waiting wagons.  A large winch sits in the center of the room, over an opening to the loading dock below.
14. The upper catwalk the surrounds the Fermentation Room.
15. Wine Cellar.  Wooden pillars and beams support the ten-foot-high ceiling of this ice-cold cellar, which is split in two by a five-foot-thick brick wall.  A thin mist covers the floor.  Each half of the cellar features an eight-foot tall wooden partition that doubles as a wine rack.  The western rack stands empty, but the eastern one is half filled with wine bottles.

    Against that wall in the eastern portion of the cellar rest three frosty barrels containing Purple Grapemash No. 3, a fact that is emblazoned on each barrel’s side.  A single bottle of Purple Grapemash No. 3 lies on the flagstone floor in the western half of the cellar.  The wine rack in the eastern half of the cellar holds forty bottles, the labels of which show that the wine is the winery’s Red Dragon Crush.

Burr is pleased to find no lurking blights or druids, though he makes sure to mention the hanging vines to Soren hoping there is some fire he can bring to bear on them.

He is saddened by what has been done to an otherwise charming looking family home....and angered by the state of the stables....

He leaves everything where it is, though part of him wants to begin cleaning the worst of it....he lingers over the wooden Nightmare but does not say the name....just in case Barovia is being Barovia.

He ambles back to see if the others have finished resting...

Before Soren begins to rest and before Burr goes wandering, Giles reminds all of them that the spell that he used to enshroud their approach will expire at the end of an hour, so there is no time to rest or wander for an hour if additional quiet investigation is wanted outside of the current building under its secrecy.  If the decision is to stay and rest however, he’s fine with that too.  Giles does not need to rest.  He is interested in exploring the bedroom, but as he walks through with Burr, he picks up the bottle of grapemash #3 in the cellar and puts it in his backpack.  

He wishes to investigate the mirror with the feces swirl, he pulls aside the rug on the floor to make sure nothing underneath and he looks under the bed, as it seemed to be where he heard the Druid with the staff come from.  Most of his attention is on the desk, the book and pages strewn, he starts to read them.  From time to time, if there are any windows, he peers out to look for any unusual activity outside or anyone approaching.  He points out the locked chest but leaves that to Zefla and her talents.

Investigation : 17

Soren does not know how the ravens will convey a nuanced message to Davian and his cohort such as "we have cleared the winery... you may approach, but be wary of the corrupted blights still lurking in the mist."  After all, only the four of them and Nettle remain to benefit from Giles' Pass Without Trace.

Still, he sends the dark birds, along with Nettle.  He decides to have Nettle perform the "wide circle" flying pattern to signify that Davian can approach, trusting them to notice the blights in the vineyards on their own.  All the better if Giles decides to go with them, seeming the least in need of a short rest.

To his companions, he grimaces.  "This staff is pure evil.  The remnant of a now-cursed wooden shard which once impaled an ancient vampire.  It is tied inextricably to the blights and likely to the corruption of the dark druids as well.  I believe we should destroy it.  Burr, being the strongest of us, should break it into splinters over his knee and we should burn the remnants.  We really should destroy all the staves, burning them with the druids' corpses."

Part of Soren's psyche gibbers in abject fear, remembering Neverwinter Wood.  No!  No fire.  Please, anything but that... but he ruthlessly shuts it away.

(Sorry, its been real busy IRL and I'm just squeezing this in...)

Zefla rests in the #9 bedroom as got some damage in this fight and doesn't want to deal with anything more as this world was so unpredictable.  Letting the others search, she rests.  Then helps Giles with the locked chest.

Short rest rolls:  12 hps

Sleight of Hand:  24

Nodding after the discussion that ensues, Giles agrees to take on the task.  “I believe that I have still a good bit of time to make it there and then back, I know this spell and can cast it again if necessary.  Let me get him and bring him back here to decide our next steps.”   Giles goes out the way that they originally came in, agreeing to Nettle’s surveillance from above, and he makes his way back to Davian.  

“A number of Druids, I think 4 of them, we cleared out of the winery building, killed a number of their foul blights made out of wood and vines.  The path is clear, I have magical cover to hide you and your people and bring them back to the winery.  From there, we can decide how to eliminate the remaining blights in the yard, you can assess what they have done and how to get this winery operational again.  Come, with me!”  During the duration of pass without trace, he can designate who is included in the spell and he includes Davian and his associates, increasing their stealth to be able to get back to the building.  

((Stealth : 21 if needed))

[The timing of this is a little wishy-washy, but basically this is what plays out next...]

Giles examines the master bedroom.  Much of the damage done here - the smeared spiral on the mirror, the torn tapestry - look to be juvenile vandalism, defacing the furniture and decorations of the room.

The book, torn apart, looks to have been a ledger and shipping manifest.  It tracks wine deliveries going back nearly 30 years.  Customers are abbreviated with letters and simple short hand.  Over the last few years, the most common customers have been 'BW', 'BV', 'K' and 'VIST' with each of those receiving multiple shipments of wine each month.  There are perhaps a dozen other customers identified, with some receiving as little as a single shipment.  Examining further, it looks like 'BW', 'BV' and 'K' were never charged for wine, while all other customers were charged varying rates... the highest surcharge appears to have been assessed to 'VIST.'

Examination of the room complete, Father Giles leads a squadron of ravens and an owl back out of the winery and across the mist-shrouded vineyard.  It is slow going, but he is once again able to evade detection from the blight monsters roaming the fields.  He eventually reaches the thicket on the edge of the property where the Martikovs have taken shelter.  Some of the younger men are elated to hear of your victory, though Davian still looks concerned.  Despite your assurances of the protection of your stealth magics, he is reluctant to take the children back through the fields while monsters are about, or to leave them here while the adults venture out to deal with the last of the blights.

Zefla, recovered from the worst of her injuries, examines the chest in the master bedroom.  The lock yields to her pick without complaint, and she opens it to examine the contents.  Inside are sacks of coin.  A quick count shows 50 gp, 270 ep (each electrum coin stamped with a profile of a sharp-featured man and the name 'Strahd von Zarovich'), and 350 sp.

Back inside, Soren hands the staff over to Burr.  [Assuming Burr would not object to trying to destroy it?]  Taking the black, spongey wood staff in two hand, the burly fighter brings it down across his knee.  At first it flexes, trying to hold itself together... and then it snaps.  The staff splinters and cracks with a thunderous recoil.  Burr is forced off his feet and Soren has to shield his eyes from flying splinters.   A dark cloud emerges and its wood releases a terrible, inhuman scream.  You feel an inhuman presence pass through your bodies. 

Upstairs, Zefla hears the roar and scream as she covets the shiny coins.

Outside, as Giles tries to convince Davian that the wise move is to relocate to the safety of the winery, he and the Martikovs and the assembled fowl hear the scream from across the vineyard.  There is a shockwave that emanates from the winery, dispersing the mists as it races across the fields.  As it passes by, it reveals the blights hidden in the fog.  There are dozens... perhaps as many of a hundred of them.  But as the pressure wave passes by, each of them withers and collapses where it stands into piles of twisted brown twigs and vines.

The way back to the winery is clear and the need for stealth becomes less pressing.  At the same time, with the fog dispersing, the damage to the vineyard becomes more obvious.  Looking across the terraced landscape, row upon row of grapevines and their trellises have been torn down and uprooted.

A mixture of relief and shock holds the Martikovs in silence as they walk with Father Giles back through the ruins of their fields, toward the winery.

Burr comes unsteadily to his feet with a wide grin, " That felt good.....we destroyed it.  We actually achieved something."

" Soren. We need to find out where that ritual will be held. We need to stop it!!"

Zefla looks at the coins hungrily, but realizes that they are probably the collection of the winery not the corrupt druids and begrudgingly closes the chest leaving the spoils inside.  The scream unnerves her though and she starts running down the stairs back to the other two and sees the mess of the staff.

"What... what was that?!  And there is a ritual?" 

The Martikovs return to the winery, led by Giles.  They slowly take stock of the damage to their home.  

The children are led to an upstairs bedroom where one of the men sits with them and reads them stories, while most of the other adults begin dragging the remains of the druids and the blights, or picking up the wreckage in the kitchen.

The old man, Davian, is silent as he tours the interior of the winery, examining what has been damaged and what has been more or less untouched.  At last he gathers with the four of you near the loading dock.  "Hmph.  Its a right mess.  But I must give credit where it is due... you clobbered those filthy bastards.  I have to ask... have you fought their like before?  The boys and I... we ain't no slouches.  Yet those mad druids drove us from clean out of our home.  How did you manage to overpower them so quickly?"

Soren looks stunned at the blast from breaking the staff, then glances out the window at the receding mists and destroyed blights in the vineyards.

Part relieved, part aghast, he explains to Zefla, "That was Burr, as I asked, breaking the 'vampire staff' one of the dark druids bore.  Destroying it seems to have ended the blights.  At least the ones outside in the vineyard.  I wonder now if we should have taken it with us and broken it at the ritual site."

He waits until Giles, Nettle, the ravens and Davian and his crew all return to avoid having to reiterate things to each new person that asks.  Soren then matter-of-factly and honestly recounts the battle against the four dark druids, 15+ twig blights, 4 needle blights 2 vine blights, with input from Zefla and Giles for their part that Soren did not see.  He becomes melancholy when he speaks of Thorn's contribution and death, then discusses what he has learned of the dark druids, their planned ritual tonight, and the staff that Burr just broke.  (See the following hyperlinked posts for what he recounts).

Post 1159 - paragraph 2
Post 1167 - paragraphs 3 through 5 (Soren's "bluff")
Post 1169 - paragraph 2 through 5 AND spoiler between
Post 1203 - spoiler just after "Regarding the staff:"

"These corrupted fanatics betray everything," Soren declares bitterly in conclusion.  "Everything we druids should stand for in Silvanus' wild domain.  Burr is right.  We must stop the ritual as soon as possible, ideally before it starts, or they will come again, bolstered by something far worse:  whatever vile greater abomination they summon tonight.  I was unable to glean where the ritual is taking place.  Davian, did you have any indication where these druids and blights came from?  And might you be able to spare one or two of your lads, perhaps ones handy with a ranged weapon, to assist us?"

Davian listens to the summary of the battles and Soren's concerns about what the druids are planning next.  He dismisses the rest of his kin to get back to work cleaning up the winery, and he steps out into the fields with the four of you.  It is still raining softly.

When you are some distance from the building, he continues.  "Aye.  I know where they are.  But first, there is more that you should know about this place.  This Vineyard is called the Wizard of Wines... not 'cause its a catchey name.  Many years back, it was run by a real mage.  You," he says to Soren, "must recognize how grey and sunless this land is.  Yet the vines here grow strong and fast, producing more grapes than we can mash.   Its not just good groundskeeping... the ground itself is enchanted."

"... Was enchanted."  He walks to an area of upturned earth, where it looks like the Blights had been digging.  He points into the hole, where you can see the soil has an unnatural green tint, with shimmering flecks in the soil.  "Once, there were three seeds planted here in the vineyard.  They were marvelous to behold... about the size and shape of a pinecone, but made of green gemstone.  They glowed with an inner light, bright as a torch.  By their power, the fields always produced and the winery was able to share its bounty with the struggling souls of Barovia."

"A generation ago, one was taken from us by the vile witch, Baba Lysaga.  Even with only two, we were able to struggle on.   Now, the druids have stolen the last seeds.  One, we saw them give to the mountain clans.  They took it back to their stonghold up above the pass, no doubt.  The other seed, the druids kept for themselves.  They took it with them west, to a bluff called Yester Hill.  They conduct black rites there in worship to the blighted land and the Darklord Strahd.  Whatever this ritual is you heard them speak of, I am sure they plan to use the seed in some way.  They hate us and have attacked us before, but never like this.  They came for the seed... it is at the root of their dark designs."

He levels his gaze at you.  "You have done a good thing for us, here.  But... it will not matter if those seeds aren't recovered.  I've got 6 barrels ready, which I will send to Vallaki along with word that you four are responsible for their safe arrival.  After that, the wine in the vats should be ready in a few days... we might get another dozen barrels there.  That will be it, though, if the seeds aren't returned.  These vines, those that haven't been uprooted, with wither and die and the vineyard will be no more."

"We could manage with at least one, I think, though it would be best if both could be returned to the ground.  If you're already thinking about paying those druids a visit, please find the seed they stole and bring it back to us."

"As far as help... I can't send the boys.  They have children, and I'm much too old to play father to a batch of orphans.  But we have friends here.  I will send word and see if I can get you some aid.  I can't promise anything, exactly, but I will let it be known you are taking the fight to Yester Hill."

Soren listens intently, trying to make sense of the situation.  At two different points during Davian's speech, the druid opens his mouth as if to speak, then closes it again.  Now that he is not in the heat of battle with the corrupted druids and the blight abominations, he reflects on how daunting the task seems.

"So we are to advance westward to this Yester Hill.  Locate the seed, bring it back, and slay as many in the pack of dark druids as we can in the process, ideally disrupting whatever vile ritual they have planned for tonight.  I wonder if they have more blighted creatures serving them or another staff such as the one we just destroyed.  Yet even if we are successful, you would only have one seed.  It would require a separate hunt up the pass to wrest the second seed from the mountain clans, and yet another to reclaim the third from the witch, Baba Lysaga.  And speaking of witches..."

Soren pauses uncertainly.  "Three days ago, we rescued a little girl from, as you say, a 'vile witch' who had convinced the parents in the town of Barovia to sell their child for pastries the witch bore in her cart (where she also hid the child).  At the time, we knew not her power.  Since then, she has cursed our dreams, first mine two nights back, and Burr's last night, rendering us unable to rest and sapping our vitality.  Her name is Morgantha and we have been told she lairs at the windmill with other witches.  Is Baba Lysaga one of this pack?  How many powerful witches infest this land?"

As if afraid of the answer he might receive, Soren continues quickly:  "Also, please sample and ensure the purity of any wine you plan to deliver if you can.  We witnessed the dark druids befouling all parts of the winery, including possibly some of the wine itself.  Truly they corrupt every part of nature."

Burr brightened considerably, they had a task, defined goals and at least a couple of them seemed achievable.

Burr nodded to Soren, waiting for his questions to be answered.....he wanted to go now to this hill.

Giles nods as Burr says this, trying to follow what lies next for them on this path.  “How long does it take to reach this Yester Hill from here?  I don’t want to get caught out and alone in these lands at night.  I’m ok to travel whenever you are..”. He looks over at Zefla to judge how wounded she is as well as Burr and Soren. 

"Don't concern yourself with Baba Lysaga, or with the seed she stole from us so long ago.  I've heard some of Morgantha and her coven, but they do not venture so far south and west.  This is Baba's territory, and any other witches know well to keep their distance.  The others are but as children compared to Baba.  As much as I would love to have that seed returned, it is a fool's hope.  Let us deal with these druids, at least, and then see what the future holds."

At Soren's mention of corruption of the wine, Davian gets a deeply concerned look and returns to the building.  He checks the barrels and finds them unmolested.  But when he visits the fermentation room and samples the developing wine in the vats, he convulses and spits it out upon the floor, leaning against the wall and wretching.  "Gods be-damned wood devils...".  When he regains his composure, he looks to his concerned kin who have gathered around.  "It's poisoned.  This whole batch is shot."  He balls his fists and his dark eyes gleam with fury.  Then he sighs, seeming to release the anger as a teakettle releases steam.  "Right.  Nothing to be done about it, then.  Thank you for the warning."

Turning back to the matter at hand, he describes the route to Yester Hill.  "It's an old site... it may even predate these druids, though they have claimed it as their own.  If you hurry, the footpaths will get you there in an hour, perhaps a little more.  If you don't delay, you can get there and back here to the Wizard of Wines before nightfall.  You are right to avoid the roads at night, but we can shelter you here this evening.  I suppose it is the least we can do."  

While you make your preparations to depart, Davian sends two of his sons, Adrian and Elvir, to ready the wagon.  Elvir ventures off into the surrounding woods, guided by a pair of ravens, and locates the horses which had bolted during the blight attack.  Adrian, meanwhile, brings the last three barrels up from the basement and secures them to the wagon.  They prepare to depart for Vallaki.

 [After the walk from Vallaki, the fight with the druids, and the subsequent rest and conversation, it is early afternoon.  As an alternative to fighting the druids, you expect you could make it back to Vallaki by nightfall if you left right now.  If you travel to Yester Hill, then afterward you will either need to rest for the night at the winery or walk back to Vallaki in the dark.

Soren and Zefla both short-rested so make sure to hit the short rest button on the character sheets and update them with any regained HP from hit dice, if you haven't done so already.]

"You suppose?"  Zefla mutters under her breath as the man semi offers a place for them to stay after their return from yon hill.  She was going to ask what were they going to get in return for these magic beans they were supposed to fight more dark druids for, but then her party all cheerfully steps up and just offers to do it.  She crosses her arms and scowls at everyone, frustrated at the situation.  Once they got these stupid beans, then what?  They wouldn't be any further to getting home than they are now.

She looks to Soren, "You mentioned having to go back to the church this evening.  It sounds like if we go to Yester Hill, we won't be returning to Vallaki until morning, are you ok with that?  If this ritual is tonight, we really should get moving."

Despite his zeal to stop whatever corrupt ritual the dark druids are planning, Soren can't also help but notice Davian's paucity of gratefulness, just as Zefla does.  He turns to the disgruntled halfling, hands spread in frustration (at the situation, not at her).

"Yes, I told Father Lucien and... the woman we traveled with to Vallaki... that we would return to help them recover... what was stolen.  And now we will not be able to do that.  I think we have to help here because we know this dark ritual to be tonight at Yester Hill, but we do not know that the cathedral is under certain threat tonight.  If any of you think we should go back to Vallaki first instead, now is the time to speak."

Then, addressing Davian again, he continues.  "If all my companions agree, we will go to Yester Hill to seize the green seed of fertility back from the dark druids, disrupt their ritual, and return.  Davian Martikov, I say this with respect to you as pack-leader here.  Spreading the word if any will help us, and allowing us to shelter in your territory if we return is indeed the least you can do.  You ask us to risk our lives for this winery and for this land a second time, for we have already done so taking wounds and losing my spirit wolf - because it must be done, not in return for gold or other city-folk recompense.  You refuse to risk your own kin, yet have no qualms spending our lives.  I can understand that.  Yet I hope we agree that you should not be stingy with your friendship upon our return, for we have been anything but stingy in the aid we provide, freely risking our lives for you and yours."