Noticing Aoufie has a lead on Donovan, she catches up to try and help him figure out what to do next. "We can't let him get away. This doesn't make sense at all, why would he attack Ireena and lock us in?"
She looks around for any animals that may have seen Father Donovan...
"Thank you, Kora, for the help. Father Donovan left the village and to where I do not know, but I feel we should find out." says Aoufie and he waits to see if Kora's efforts bear fruit.
Zathon shrugs at Kora's praise, "It's the least I could do."
Inside of the priest's room he grows annoyed at the lack of motive discovered. He roots around for a bit anyway, opening up the desk and drawers to look for anything else of interest. After that he walks back outside, understanding that his siblings have gone separate ways. He heads back to Ireena's home to prepare for the night ahead.
Scouting out the trees of near the sagging edifice that was once known as a church, Kora spots a few crows huddled near one another up in the boughs of a gnarled oak standing proudly nearby. They crouch atop a wide branch as they huddled together in an effort to stay warm and dry in the slight downpour besetting the land.
As Kora and Aoufie are busy with the birds, Ismark gingerly picks up his sister from the ground, carefully cradling her limp, but living body in his arms. With a determined expression, he begins making his way through the forlorn streets of Barovia towards his besieged home.
Once inside, he turns to those that follow him and says, “Than you helping us. You have helped when no one else has.” He gives you each a grateful smile and the continues, “I’m going to go lay her down. We don’t have much food in here, so I unfortunately cannot offer you any dinner. Dusk will soon be upon us, so if you have any business in town, you will want to be done with it soon.”
He turns his head and looks towards the coffin in the living room that contains the corpse of his father. “Well have to bury him tomorrow morning before we leave.”
He nods his head in closure. “I’ll see you when you come back to rest.” With that, he begins making his way up the creaky stairs that lead to the second story of the mansion with careful steps.
As Ismark disappears above, you find yourself wondering what will you do with the few hours of light you have left. Try to find Father Donovan before dusk takes the land? Purify what remains of the church? Maybe discover more about the dispirited village you find yourselves in? Have that conversation with your siblings that Anthony suggested? So many things to do!
With everyone back at Ismark's home, Jared waits for his siblings to settle in. He does look over the corpse in the other room, checking in his limited way if it will spring back to life and attack. Jared refuses to touch it, for whatever reason. "Did he mention just how he knows it's this Strahd that is after his sister?" he asks. "If the priest tried to kill her, and the townsfolk shun her and won't help, why's it got to be the Lord of this land and just not someone they ticked off in town?" he asks, not knowing anything about it all. "I've been lost in my own head for a bit so I am asking in case I missed something."
Akyan is relieved when Zathon and Anthony rush over to aid the woman and are able to stabilize her. He had been a shocked at the poison's reaction to Kora's attempt at healing, but doesn't remark on it out loud. Seeing that Ireen is safe, he retreats and attempts to help locate Donovan.
Investigation (11) to see if Akyan was able to find anything interesting as he wanders around with Kora.
While waiting for the others to return from hunting Donovan, Anthony takes stock of the home's defenses. Seeing if there's anything that can be done since it seems the homes have all been under siege and Jared suggested it. Speaking quietly so as not to alert Ismark hopefully, won't hear, "He seemed to have seen him charm her and drink from her at least twice. I think Zathon would have noticed if she were already... compromised. Like Doru. I'm not sure we can stop this vampire from taking her if he's determined to be honest."
Walking into the home Zathon scans for anywhere that might need to be boarded up before nightfall, then he hears his siblings talking."I would have sensed something amiss, yes."
Kora quickly casts speak with animals on herself, not wanting to take the time for the ritual with them hoping to catch Donovan, and looks to the crows.
"Excuse me birds black as night, we are looking for a disheveled man, one who has appeared to have lost his way. We believe he has run from the church through here but we need assistance in finding him, have you seen this man?" She'll continue to describe him if necessary.
As Anthony and Zathon look about the house, he doesn’t find anywhere that’s lacking protection. Looks like Ismark and Ireena have sealed this place up tighter than a jar of Rhea’s homemade jam. If you’re feeling adventurous, you suppose you could rig a few simple traps in front of some of the windows.
Casting her spell, Kora calls up to the birds. A couple of crows take to the air with frantic wingbeats in surprise, cawing in alarm as they flit away. Much to your relief, three crows stay behind, and they pear down at her with curiosity gleaming in their beady eyes.
“Greetings, woman as pale as the moon,” one of them responds in its rough caw of a voice. It dips its beaked head in a nod as it continues, “We have seen a man of your description, but all here have lost their way. He is one of many.” Apparently, the crows here are a bit more intelligent than the deer you talked to earlier.
“We can show you where he stumbled off to,” another crow caws helpfully.
”But be warned,” chimed the third. “Not is all as it seems here. That man has lost more than what you may think.”
The murder of crows perched up in the tree gaze intently down upon you, awaiting your decision.
Kora smiles at the curious birds, "I bet you all have some stories. I would love to hear them if you want to tell. But in the meantime, yes, we would like you to show us where he stumbled off to, thank you for the offer."
She turns back to her companions. "I'd say the three of us can handle one old priest, and we probably can, but this whole not all is what it seem here... oh wait ha! you didn't hear what the crows said." She chuckles a bit at herself then continues, "They have seen Father Donovan and they can show us where he stumbled off to. They warn us, not all is as it seems here and that the man has lost more than what we may think."
"I don't really want to lose the man... I want to move." she tells Aoufie and Akyan.
While Ismark was occupied, Anthony took the opportunity to voice a couple of concerns. "Look, I really think we need to all try to get on the same page about a couple of things. Like what we are willing to tell people as we're trying to track where Aoelwyn has been. And... what we're going to do about.." He glances up stairs where Ireena and Ismark are. "If we find out that their enemy is an enemy of Azalin."He hoped he wouldn't have to say more with the risk of being overheard.
While they waited, he snooped a little, not in the interest of taking anything that didn't belong to him, but looking for hints as to what kind of people they were dealing with. Was it straightforward, or was there more going on?
((the adds are the same, so perception or insight 16 as he does kind scan of the house, besides the obvious 'under siege and barely getting by' vibes. ))
Akyan, not finding anything significant through his own search, nods to Kora. "If they can lead us to him, then let's follow."This whole situation has left the drow even more frustrated then he had been upon stumbling into this place. On top of that he can feel a cold anger rising in his gut. Why had he felt sorry for that blasted priest? The vampire spawn had more humanity left in him then it's father. The sorry creature had begged for death, while the priest had poisoned an innocent woman. Donovan must face the consequences of his actions.
"Why do we have to tell anyone anything?" Jared asks. "I thought we were looking for this Van Ritchen or whomever. That's who Mum said to look for. Why's anyone else's business on what we're doing?"
"That's true, there's no reason to tell people what we're after unless its absolutely needed. This place is.. suffocating with evil. Letting anyone besides the lot of us know our plans is asking for trouble." Zathon says in response to Jared.
Anthony nodded. "Couldn't agree more." Hopefully the others would as well. Aoufie was trusting. Although, Fathe Donovan might have taken care of that. They didn't seem to have picked up on his hinting about Ireena. This was going to be a mess. If leader if this place wanted her, that meant other people would too. She was...marketable. Which meant, at some point, they were going to be put in a position of having to choose between what was convenient for them and being decent people. And there were six of them. It only took one being on different wavelength to throw everything off.
Putting those thoughts out of his head, the big man tried not to be idle. This place had him on edge to the point where he was thinking about cracking open a coffin to make sure the guy inside was as dead as they'd been told.
"I agree let's follow your newfound friend and find out what Father Donovan is up to" says Aoufie ready to continue onward and ready to follow the crows.
The crows nod in consent and then take to the sky, cawing loudly as they do. The trio of dark birds begin zipping towards the mountainous west, and they don’t slow their flight for you. To keep up, you’re forced to sprint after them, racing amongst the raindrops that crowd the streets of Barovia.
They take you to the edge of town, and one of the birds swoops down and lands in front of you. “He went this direction, to the foothills of the mountains. I didn’t pay attention to where he went after this, but humans aren’t quick, so he probably didn’t get far.”
You spot a pair of human tracks a bit away from the muddy path. You see that there are indeed gently rolling hills that lead to the towering mountains in the not-so distant distance. The hills are bare except for meadow grass, occasional dots of flowers, and small spindly shrubs.
As Anthony takes assessment of the house, it matches the story that Ismark and Ireena painted. The house was once fine, but a month of siege has definitely taken its toll. The many holy symbols around the room speak to the silent faith of the people who lived here. You piece together that it seems like most Barovians are a religious and a tad bit superstitious lot.
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DM- Azalin's Doom
DM- Surviving the Unsurvivable
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Noticing Aoufie has a lead on Donovan, she catches up to try and help him figure out what to do next. "We can't let him get away. This doesn't make sense at all, why would he attack Ireena and lock us in?"
She looks around for any animals that may have seen Father Donovan...
Perception 17
He nods, "I know. I'll do what I can while you guys are getting sorted."
"Thank you, Kora, for the help. Father Donovan left the village and to where I do not know, but I feel we should find out." says Aoufie and he waits to see if Kora's efforts bear fruit.
Zathon shrugs at Kora's praise, "It's the least I could do."
Inside of the priest's room he grows annoyed at the lack of motive discovered. He roots around for a bit anyway, opening up the desk and drawers to look for anything else of interest. After that he walks back outside, understanding that his siblings have gone separate ways. He heads back to Ireena's home to prepare for the night ahead.
Scouting out the trees of near the sagging edifice that was once known as a church, Kora spots a few crows huddled near one another up in the boughs of a gnarled oak standing proudly nearby. They crouch atop a wide branch as they huddled together in an effort to stay warm and dry in the slight downpour besetting the land.
As Kora and Aoufie are busy with the birds, Ismark gingerly picks up his sister from the ground, carefully cradling her limp, but living body in his arms. With a determined expression, he begins making his way through the forlorn streets of Barovia towards his besieged home.
Once inside, he turns to those that follow him and says, “Than you helping us. You have helped when no one else has.” He gives you each a grateful smile and the continues, “I’m going to go lay her down. We don’t have much food in here, so I unfortunately cannot offer you any dinner. Dusk will soon be upon us, so if you have any business in town, you will want to be done with it soon.”
He turns his head and looks towards the coffin in the living room that contains the corpse of his father. “Well have to bury him tomorrow morning before we leave.”
He nods his head in closure. “I’ll see you when you come back to rest.” With that, he begins making his way up the creaky stairs that lead to the second story of the mansion with careful steps.
As Ismark disappears above, you find yourself wondering what will you do with the few hours of light you have left. Try to find Father Donovan before dusk takes the land? Purify what remains of the church? Maybe discover more about the dispirited village you find yourselves in? Have that conversation with your siblings that Anthony suggested? So many things to do!
DM- Azalin's Doom
DM- Surviving the Unsurvivable
With everyone back at Ismark's home, Jared waits for his siblings to settle in.
He does look over the corpse in the other room, checking in his limited way if it will spring back to life and attack.
Jared refuses to touch it, for whatever reason.
"Did he mention just how he knows it's this Strahd that is after his sister?" he asks. "If the priest tried to kill her, and the townsfolk shun her and won't help, why's it got to be the Lord of this land and just not someone they ticked off in town?" he asks, not knowing anything about it all. "I've been lost in my own head for a bit so I am asking in case I missed something."
Akyan is relieved when Zathon and Anthony rush over to aid the woman and are able to stabilize her. He had been a shocked at the poison's reaction to Kora's attempt at healing, but doesn't remark on it out loud. Seeing that Ireen is safe, he retreats and attempts to help locate Donovan.
Investigation (11) to see if Akyan was able to find anything interesting as he wanders around with Kora.
While waiting for the others to return from hunting Donovan, Anthony takes stock of the home's defenses. Seeing if there's anything that can be done since it seems the homes have all been under siege and Jared suggested it. Speaking quietly so as not to alert Ismark hopefully, won't hear, "He seemed to have seen him charm her and drink from her at least twice. I think Zathon would have noticed if she were already... compromised. Like Doru. I'm not sure we can stop this vampire from taking her if he's determined to be honest."
Walking into the home Zathon scans for anywhere that might need to be boarded up before nightfall, then he hears his siblings talking. "I would have sensed something amiss, yes."
Kora quickly casts speak with animals on herself, not wanting to take the time for the ritual with them hoping to catch Donovan, and looks to the crows.
"Excuse me birds black as night, we are looking for a disheveled man, one who has appeared to have lost his way. We believe he has run from the church through here but we need assistance in finding him, have you seen this man?" She'll continue to describe him if necessary.
As Anthony and Zathon look about the house, he doesn’t find anywhere that’s lacking protection. Looks like Ismark and Ireena have sealed this place up tighter than a jar of Rhea’s homemade jam. If you’re feeling adventurous, you suppose you could rig a few simple traps in front of some of the windows.
Casting her spell, Kora calls up to the birds. A couple of crows take to the air with frantic wingbeats in surprise, cawing in alarm as they flit away. Much to your relief, three crows stay behind, and they pear down at her with curiosity gleaming in their beady eyes.
“Greetings, woman as pale as the moon,” one of them responds in its rough caw of a voice. It dips its beaked head in a nod as it continues, “We have seen a man of your description, but all here have lost their way. He is one of many.” Apparently, the crows here are a bit more intelligent than the deer you talked to earlier.
“We can show you where he stumbled off to,” another crow caws helpfully.
”But be warned,” chimed the third. “Not is all as it seems here. That man has lost more than what you may think.”
The murder of crows perched up in the tree gaze intently down upon you, awaiting your decision.
DM- Azalin's Doom
DM- Surviving the Unsurvivable
Kora smiles at the curious birds, "I bet you all have some stories. I would love to hear them if you want to tell. But in the meantime, yes, we would like you to show us where he stumbled off to, thank you for the offer."
She turns back to her companions. "I'd say the three of us can handle one old priest, and we probably can, but this whole not all is what it seem here... oh wait ha! you didn't hear what the crows said." She chuckles a bit at herself then continues, "They have seen Father Donovan and they can show us where he stumbled off to. They warn us, not all is as it seems here and that the man has lost more than what we may think."
"I don't really want to lose the man... I want to move." she tells Aoufie and Akyan.
While Ismark was occupied, Anthony took the opportunity to voice a couple of concerns. "Look, I really think we need to all try to get on the same page about a couple of things. Like what we are willing to tell people as we're trying to track where Aoelwyn has been. And... what we're going to do about.." He glances up stairs where Ireena and Ismark are. "If we find out that their enemy is an enemy of Azalin." He hoped he wouldn't have to say more with the risk of being overheard.
While they waited, he snooped a little, not in the interest of taking anything that didn't belong to him, but looking for hints as to what kind of people they were dealing with. Was it straightforward, or was there more going on?
((the adds are the same, so perception or insight 16 as he does kind scan of the house, besides the obvious 'under siege and barely getting by' vibes. ))
Akyan, not finding anything significant through his own search, nods to Kora. "If they can lead us to him, then let's follow." This whole situation has left the drow even more frustrated then he had been upon stumbling into this place. On top of that he can feel a cold anger rising in his gut. Why had he felt sorry for that blasted priest? The vampire spawn had more humanity left in him then it's father. The sorry creature had begged for death, while the priest had poisoned an innocent woman. Donovan must face the consequences of his actions.
"Why do we have to tell anyone anything?" Jared asks. "I thought we were looking for this Van Ritchen or whomever. That's who Mum said to look for. Why's anyone else's business on what we're doing?"
"That's true, there's no reason to tell people what we're after unless its absolutely needed. This place is.. suffocating with evil. Letting anyone besides the lot of us know our plans is asking for trouble." Zathon says in response to Jared.
Anthony nodded. "Couldn't agree more." Hopefully the others would as well. Aoufie was trusting. Although, Fathe Donovan might have taken care of that. They didn't seem to have picked up on his hinting about Ireena. This was going to be a mess. If leader if this place wanted her, that meant other people would too. She was...marketable. Which meant, at some point, they were going to be put in a position of having to choose between what was convenient for them and being decent people. And there were six of them. It only took one being on different wavelength to throw everything off.
Putting those thoughts out of his head, the big man tried not to be idle. This place had him on edge to the point where he was thinking about cracking open a coffin to make sure the guy inside was as dead as they'd been told.
"I agree let's follow your newfound friend and find out what Father Donovan is up to" says Aoufie ready to continue onward and ready to follow the crows.
Kora nods then looks up to her new friends, "Please, show us where the man stumbled off to."
The crows nod in consent and then take to the sky, cawing loudly as they do. The trio of dark birds begin zipping towards the mountainous west, and they don’t slow their flight for you. To keep up, you’re forced to sprint after them, racing amongst the raindrops that crowd the streets of Barovia.
They take you to the edge of town, and one of the birds swoops down and lands in front of you. “He went this direction, to the foothills of the mountains. I didn’t pay attention to where he went after this, but humans aren’t quick, so he probably didn’t get far.”
You spot a pair of human tracks a bit away from the muddy path. You see that there are indeed gently rolling hills that lead to the towering mountains in the not-so distant distance. The hills are bare except for meadow grass, occasional dots of flowers, and small spindly shrubs.
As Anthony takes assessment of the house, it matches the story that Ismark and Ireena painted. The house was once fine, but a month of siege has definitely taken its toll. The many holy symbols around the room speak to the silent faith of the people who lived here. You piece together that it seems like most Barovians are a religious and a tad bit superstitious lot.
DM- Azalin's Doom
DM- Surviving the Unsurvivable