Jeremiah steps onto the lift last, looking intently around. ‘Let’s see what’s above...’ he says, hand dropping to his scimitar in preparation of trouble, his eyes tracing the magical auras around them.
The lift rises, powered by your hurtful sacrifice. As you ascend to the second floor, what you see is unusual, but not entirely unexpected. Dust and cobwebs fill this room, the wooden floor of which is badly rotted and partially collapsed. Debris is littered everywhere, as if this place has been ransacked and desecrated. You are detecting a small pinpoint of magic somewhere in the rubble.
The walls of this level are completely covered in dried blood, as if something immense and organic exploded in this room, it's original form long faded. It still smells badly here, and at some point, something was going on in this tower. The floors are heavily worn.
A perception check can help you find what is pinging off magic.
You find what appears to be a pelvic bone, covered in dried blood.
COXAL OF JAENA, THE PROSTITUTE Popular among the bishopric, Jaena Sayers seduced and corrupted the will and vow of chastity of many in the priesthood, but her immunity ended when the Brotherhood arrives and her ashes fell to the ground. Anyone who carries this bone around gets +1 to any rolls involving seduction.
Aside from debris, wall to wall dried blood, and the evidence of something terrible happening here, you may, if you wish, proceed to the third floor.
Jimmy just knows that he's the life of the party already, so he has no need for the bone either. Pointing to Hera, through a stifled laugh, he announces "Give it to her ... she's the pious hot one!" He then gives Hera a seductive wink, then follows up with an insane laugh, and continues up to the third floor.
Time and the elements have all but destroyed this chamber, leaving a gash in the northwest wall and slimy red mildew on the walls. Like the floor below it, there is evidence of bloodshed everywhere on this floor, but no bodies. Debris, like broken chairs and tables, litter what areas of the floor which are still stable. The wooden floor is completely rotted and has begun to fall away in places. Off in a corner, detect magic finds something once more.
What is most odd is that lit candles are still aflame on this floor in many places.
In the corner underneath some debris is a long bone, Jeremiah.
FEMUR OF KERPO, THE BOUNTY HUNTER Kerpo, nicknamed "the Daring," was a feared bounty hunter at the service of the bishopric of Barovia. Kerpo had a cherished motto: "Get rid of everything and you'll have nothing to lose." He lost to the Brotherhood. The player who keeps this on his person gains, once per day, advantage on one attack roll against an enemy that hasn't attacked yet in combat.
To ascend to the fourth and final floor, you know what to do.
The layout of the candle don't mean too much, but something, at some point, was revered here in this place. They appear to be candles used for reverence, not necessarily for light.
THE FOURTH FLOOR
The lift raises and you enter a scene unlike any other. This floor appears to be small church, or shrine, dedicated to an object against the far wall. The smell here is nearly unbearable. Leaves, dead and withered, lie all over the floor. Tied to an altar with what appears to be her own intestines, is, what you believe to be, Sacarra. Her body is naked, deformed, splayed open, and beaten beyond all recognition, as if the wounds of thousands were bestowed upon her. Someone has clearly desecrated this tower and this level, but even so, you are in the presence of a once mythical saint. To this day, even though she is dead, she still bleeds from her wounds.
You find, easily, among the dead, dried leaves, the Three Marks of Refuge. As someone picks each one up, you all bear witness to a story behind the mutilated deformed woman.
THE FIRST MARK Sacarra spent her childhood in a village in Barovia which lined a route that church prisoners, condemned for their crimes and sins by the Dark Lord, frequently traversed. From the window of her room, she could see how these prisoners climbed a hill in a line so that, when they reached the summit, they would be ready for the punishments and physical tortures reserved for them until they died by the hands of the Brotherhood.
THE SECOND MARK Hearing the distant cries of the damned day and night turned Sacarra into such a compassionate person that she devoted all her time to praying for those punished. So much did she pray for them to be freed from their pain and suffering that she dared ask the Affliction that the physical pain they were suffering be passed on to her.
THE THIRD MARK The wounds of lashes, cuts and blows received by the condemned began to appear on Socorro's body, and still she prayed for them, despite all that pain transferred to her, thus freeing the condemned from their suffering. So many injuries and so much pain were transferred to her that her body began deforming and drowning completely in wounds and bleeding bruises, but without causing her death. Her cries were so deafening that news of this miraculous event soon spread around the land. The Brotherhood, by the Will of the Dark Emperor, ended her torment for all eternity.
You feel a wave of power wash over you being in the presence of the Three Marks. As you collect them, they serve no mechanical benefit, but you do gain a level if you kneel and genuflect by her corpse - asking for forgiveness for your sins in serving the Dark Emperor. Scattered throughout the room in various offering plates are Rosary Beads.
Ember of Holy Cremation And so the march was sung, as a small group of parishioners walked in procession to the graveyard in Barovia town. The prayer was repeated over and over again along the way, turning their voices into a hypnotic whisper, murmurous and unrhythmic. Upon arrival at the burial ground, everything fell silent. When, with each shovelful from the undertakers, the soil dropped cold onto the coffin, Ireena Kolyana, rumored to be the daughter of the deceased, threw in a hot ember that gleamed on its way down into the pit. The dirt continued to cover the hole but, to everyone's astonishment, the ember could still be seen, glowing under the frosty soil. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains +1 to AC permanently.
Tuir's Scorched Bead The horrifying flames consumed Tuir's body as he cried out in unbearable pain. But these were not ordinary flames: they were the flames of the Affliction. The flames burned him to ashes and, before the eyes of the Brotherhood, the flames brought him back, time after time, in unparalleled torture. Burning and burning again. Screaming and screaming again. Tuir, the son of the bonfires, knew what his penance was going to be. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains +1 to any spell damage, permanently.
Painted Wood Bead We call this pilgrimage route The Trail. Our wagons have always passed through here, and the tracks have gotten deep enough to even unearth the chalky sand that lay hidden under the thick forest, such that if one could see it from above, it would look like a long ochre line crossing the woods. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains the ability to never become exhausted ever again.
Embers of a Broken Star I found it! It's the light of the star! What they were saying is true. Something was shining in this frozen darkness. The light of the star was calling us... It wanted to get out... It wanted to return to the heavens, but now it won't be possible, for now it's mine. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains +1 to Initiative, always.
Pelican Effigy May our chest full of cuts bleed. For when it spills red, it will feed the hungry. Let it bleed. For when it pours upon this land of the dead, it shall be blessed in the eyes of the Affliction, and those who rest here shall live on the other side of the Dream, on the Way of Eternal Processions. Let it bleed. Whoever installs this Rosary bead has the ability, once per long rest, to half the damage inflicted upon you.
Hera kneels over Sacarra's corpse and spends a great deal of time repenting for the sins that she committed during the time that she was in service to Strahd. When she finishes, she claims the Ember of Holy Cremation.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Xenophon: Topaz Dragonborn Fighter (ixi's Dragon of Icespire Peak)
Ingrid, holding the third mark is awash with the Saint’s story. She prostrates herself before the altar, very uncharacteristically to her usual stoic self. “This was truly a saint unblemished by Strahd’s stain.”
She will rise after spending some time meditating on the Saint’s sacrifice. She will look over at the rosary beads, “I feel drawn to this broken star. It makes me think of the heavens.”
Jeremiah steps onto the lift last, looking intently around. ‘Let’s see what’s above...’ he says, hand dropping to his scimitar in preparation of trouble, his eyes tracing the magical auras around them.
SECOND FLOOR
The lift rises, powered by your hurtful sacrifice. As you ascend to the second floor, what you see is unusual, but not entirely unexpected. Dust and cobwebs fill this room, the wooden floor of which is badly rotted and partially collapsed. Debris is littered everywhere, as if this place has been ransacked and desecrated. You are detecting a small pinpoint of magic somewhere in the rubble.
The walls of this level are completely covered in dried blood, as if something immense and organic exploded in this room, it's original form long faded. It still smells badly here, and at some point, something was going on in this tower. The floors are heavily worn.
A perception check can help you find what is pinging off magic.
4
Ingrid is plagued, unable to get the imagery out of her head of angels slowly being melted and deformed by black poisonous affliction.
Corinne Hemlock: Dhampir courtesan and dusk huntress
Kraig Bronzeaxe: Dwarven archaeologist and guerilla archer
Oh goodie, more of these: 13
Stella Diamant, Human Rogue 17 (Swashbuckler), The Exploits of Misfit Company
Kat, Medtech, Cyberpunk: Red
Shi, Changeling Bard 4 (College of Spirits), Tyrant's Grasp
Dani, Human Artificer 9 (Armorer), Skulls and Starships
DM, Project Point (Teams Scimitar and Longsword)
Everything Else!
Jeremiah walks towards the signal...
Perception: 16
You find what appears to be a pelvic bone, covered in dried blood.
COXAL OF JAENA, THE PROSTITUTE
Popular among the bishopric, Jaena Sayers seduced and corrupted the will and vow of chastity of many in the priesthood, but her immunity ended when the Brotherhood arrives and her ashes fell to the ground. Anyone who carries this bone around gets +1 to any rolls involving seduction.
Aside from debris, wall to wall dried blood, and the evidence of something terrible happening here, you may, if you wish, proceed to the third floor.
Steel your hearts, heathens.
Jeremiah offers the pelvic bone to whoever wants it. He’s not interested in it.
Jimmy just knows that he's the life of the party already, so he has no need for the bone either. Pointing to Hera, through a stifled laugh, he announces "Give it to her ... she's the pious hot one!" He then gives Hera a seductive wink, then follows up with an insane laugh, and continues up to the third floor.
Last to know and first to be blamed...
As a free action, can I regret my life choices?
Shiara isn't interested either, but nods in agreement with Jimmy's suggestion as she heads for the third floor.
Stella Diamant, Human Rogue 17 (Swashbuckler), The Exploits of Misfit Company
Kat, Medtech, Cyberpunk: Red
Shi, Changeling Bard 4 (College of Spirits), Tyrant's Grasp
Dani, Human Artificer 9 (Armorer), Skulls and Starships
DM, Project Point (Teams Scimitar and Longsword)
Everything Else!
THE THIRD FLOOR
Time and the elements have all but destroyed this chamber, leaving a gash in the northwest wall and slimy red mildew on the walls. Like the floor below it, there is evidence of bloodshed everywhere on this floor, but no bodies. Debris, like broken chairs and tables, litter what areas of the floor which are still stable. The wooden floor is completely rotted and has begun to fall away in places. Off in a corner, detect magic finds something once more.
What is most odd is that lit candles are still aflame on this floor in many places.
Jimmy looks at the pattern of the candles - are they set up in some sort of religious arrangement, perhaps for some sort of ritual?
Religion: 7
OOC: Nope. Just someones birthday candles, apparently.
Last to know and first to be blamed...
As a free action, can I regret my life choices?
Hera uses Divine Sense to see if these missing bodies aren't wandering around as undead before heading to the corner where Jeremiah detects magic.
"The marks can't be much further now."
Xenophon: Topaz Dragonborn Fighter (ixi's Dragon of Icespire Peak)
More
In the corner underneath some debris is a long bone, Jeremiah.
FEMUR OF KERPO, THE BOUNTY HUNTER
Kerpo, nicknamed "the Daring," was a feared bounty hunter at the service of the bishopric of Barovia. Kerpo had a cherished motto: "Get rid of everything and you'll have nothing to lose." He lost to the Brotherhood. The player who keeps this on his person gains, once per day, advantage on one attack roll against an enemy that hasn't attacked yet in combat.
To ascend to the fourth and final floor, you know what to do.
Jeremiah looks over to Ingrid, Hera and Jimmy. ‘I think this is best for one of you..?’
He then looks at the layout of candles, to see if they make any sense...
Arcana: 3
Religion: 13
Ingrid picks up the femur. “This will aid me in our hunt.”
she then goes to the lift with her knife, ready to keep moving at a word.
Corinne Hemlock: Dhampir courtesan and dusk huntress
Kraig Bronzeaxe: Dwarven archaeologist and guerilla archer
Hera nods at Ingrid, and cuts herself as well, activating the lift.
Xenophon: Topaz Dragonborn Fighter (ixi's Dragon of Icespire Peak)
More
Shiara joins in the bloodletting to ascend with her ritual knife.
Stella Diamant, Human Rogue 17 (Swashbuckler), The Exploits of Misfit Company
Kat, Medtech, Cyberpunk: Red
Shi, Changeling Bard 4 (College of Spirits), Tyrant's Grasp
Dani, Human Artificer 9 (Armorer), Skulls and Starships
DM, Project Point (Teams Scimitar and Longsword)
Everything Else!
The layout of the candle don't mean too much, but something, at some point, was revered here in this place. They appear to be candles used for reverence, not necessarily for light.
THE FOURTH FLOOR
The lift raises and you enter a scene unlike any other. This floor appears to be small church, or shrine, dedicated to an object against the far wall. The smell here is nearly unbearable. Leaves, dead and withered, lie all over the floor. Tied to an altar with what appears to be her own intestines, is, what you believe to be, Sacarra. Her body is naked, deformed, splayed open, and beaten beyond all recognition, as if the wounds of thousands were bestowed upon her. Someone has clearly desecrated this tower and this level, but even so, you are in the presence of a once mythical saint. To this day, even though she is dead, she still bleeds from her wounds.
You find, easily, among the dead, dried leaves, the Three Marks of Refuge. As someone picks each one up, you all bear witness to a story behind the mutilated deformed woman.
THE FIRST MARK
Sacarra spent her childhood in a village in Barovia which lined a route that church prisoners, condemned for their crimes and sins by the Dark Lord, frequently traversed. From the window of her room, she could see how these prisoners climbed a hill in a line so that, when they reached the summit, they would be ready for the punishments and physical tortures reserved for them until they died by the hands of the Brotherhood.
THE SECOND MARK
Hearing the distant cries of the damned day and night turned Sacarra into such a compassionate person that she devoted all her time to praying for those punished. So much did she pray for them to be freed from their pain and suffering that she dared ask the Affliction that the physical pain they were suffering be passed on to her.
THE THIRD MARK
The wounds of lashes, cuts and blows received by the condemned began to appear on Socorro's body, and still she prayed for them, despite all that pain transferred to her, thus freeing the condemned from their suffering. So many injuries and so much pain were transferred to her that her body began deforming and drowning completely in wounds and bleeding bruises, but without causing her death. Her cries were so deafening that news of this miraculous event soon spread around the land. The Brotherhood, by the Will of the Dark Emperor, ended her torment for all eternity.
You feel a wave of power wash over you being in the presence of the Three Marks. As you collect them, they serve no mechanical benefit, but you do gain a level if you kneel and genuflect by her corpse - asking for forgiveness for your sins in serving the Dark Emperor. Scattered throughout the room in various offering plates are Rosary Beads.
Ember of Holy Cremation
And so the march was sung, as a small group of parishioners walked in procession to the graveyard in Barovia town. The prayer was repeated over and over again along the way, turning their voices into a hypnotic whisper, murmurous and unrhythmic. Upon arrival at the burial ground, everything fell silent. When, with each shovelful from the undertakers, the soil dropped cold onto the coffin, Ireena Kolyana, rumored to be the daughter of the deceased, threw in a hot ember that gleamed on its way down into the pit. The dirt continued to cover the hole but, to everyone's astonishment, the ember could still be seen, glowing under the frosty soil. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains +1 to AC permanently.
Tuir's Scorched Bead
The horrifying flames consumed Tuir's body as he cried out in unbearable pain. But these were not ordinary flames: they were the flames of the Affliction. The flames burned him to ashes and, before the eyes of the Brotherhood, the flames brought him back, time after time, in unparalleled torture. Burning and burning again. Screaming and screaming again. Tuir, the son of the bonfires, knew what his penance was going to be. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains +1 to any spell damage, permanently.
Painted Wood Bead
We call this pilgrimage route The Trail. Our wagons have always passed through here, and the tracks have gotten deep enough to even unearth the chalky sand that lay hidden under the thick forest, such that if one could see it from above, it would look like a long ochre line crossing the woods. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains the ability to never become exhausted ever again.
Embers of a Broken Star
I found it! It's the light of the star! What they were saying is true. Something was shining in this frozen darkness. The light of the star was calling us... It wanted to get out... It wanted to return to the heavens, but now it won't be possible, for now it's mine. Whoever installs this Rosary bead gains +1 to Initiative, always.
Pelican Effigy
May our chest full of cuts bleed. For when it spills red, it will feed the hungry. Let it bleed. For when it pours upon this land of the dead, it shall be blessed in the eyes of the Affliction, and those who rest here shall live on the other side of the Dream, on the Way of Eternal Processions. Let it bleed. Whoever installs this Rosary bead has the ability, once per long rest, to half the damage inflicted upon you.
Hera kneels over Sacarra's corpse and spends a great deal of time repenting for the sins that she committed during the time that she was in service to Strahd. When she finishes, she claims the Ember of Holy Cremation.
Xenophon: Topaz Dragonborn Fighter (ixi's Dragon of Icespire Peak)
More
Ingrid, holding the third mark is awash with the Saint’s story. She prostrates herself before the altar, very uncharacteristically to her usual stoic self. “This was truly a saint unblemished by Strahd’s stain.”
She will rise after spending some time meditating on the Saint’s sacrifice. She will look over at the rosary beads, “I feel drawn to this broken star. It makes me think of the heavens.”
Corinne Hemlock: Dhampir courtesan and dusk huntress
Kraig Bronzeaxe: Dwarven archaeologist and guerilla archer