Erven's insight into Bert's discussion of Vecna.  (Is he pulling my leg?  Is this the truth about Vecna?  Have I heard wrong?)

Insight :  14 

"Ok, I believe you Bert.  What do you think about all of this?  Do you pray to someone, follow the teachings and direction of a God, or is the library your deity?  Tell me what _you_ think.  You are starting to convince me... maybe I'm looking at this wrong."

Bert masterfully lays it out for all to hear, having had time to reflect on his knowledge about deities and this particular deity.  His words are forceful and persuasive and what he says seems to ring true. 

"While I respect and do my best to honor them I would not say that I truly worship the gods. Although as a scholar of many fields Ogma may claim me as one of his own." Bertolt pauses and takes another long drag from his pipe, putting it out so as not to waste the small amount he has to smoke.

"My thought is that all of us are very different people that for the time being need to put our misgivings to the side and focus on surviving this maddening place. Despite the fact he serves a god I do not see aligning myself with, Sho has so far not given me a reason to mistrust him. If he has my back then I am more then willing to have his."

Erven has all weapons stowed as Bert requested, crosses his legs criss cross apple sauce, listening to the scholar.  He seems to be hanging on every word, urging him on.  "So, if we work with Sho, that doesn't... make us bad, ehm, evil, right?  I mean, if he started to make things rise out of the ground, that would be another story.  But... I haven't seen him do anything like that.  I know that he has protected us... I never seem good enough for him, he's always yelling at me, but.. maybe you're right.  Say, have you heard of anyone else who follows Vecna?  Maybe they're not _all_ bad."  The elf is scratching his head and goes on listening intently to Bert.  

Talion's laughter can be heard in the corridor, "Not my best, but flattery is always welcome!" he says to Sho, before he appears at the door, and hears Vecna mentioned by the elf. Don't mention his name!

"Don't..." He is about to give voice to the rest of his thought when some of the other words register. Maybe they're not _all_ bad. He stops and looks from the elf, then to the scholar and back. He stands there silent, his mind working overtime. The elf, sitting at the scholar's feet, seeming relaxed, attentive. The old man has worked a miracle. Finally he stirs. He smiles weakly at them both from the doorway, then continues, "...don't monopolize Bertolt...I'd like his help in the other room." He nods to Bert, "When you are free, of course."

Shaking his head, he walks over to his chest, and drags carries it from the mimic room and into the bedroom, then examines the foot locker while he waits for Bert.

(( Is the foot locker nicer than his chest? Bigger, smaller? Is there a cupboard? Tables? Drawers? etc

He will give the room a cursory look, but is waiting to help Bert properly investigate the other parts of the room: the alcoves, bed etc.))

(( Edit: if/when the search is done, Talion settles down to take a short rest... ))

The foot locker is longer than the chest you’ve been hauling around and about the same height. 

You search around the room and the places where the Dursts burst forth from.  Amid the dirt and debris, you find a couple gold amulets inscribed the GD and ED...

Bertolt nods to Tali9n as he can only offer a shrug toward the question of the mortality of those that serve the Whispered One. He will follow him into the room, using the help action to assist with investigating the room.

Note: You also found the following in the search:

This room contains a large wood-framed bed with a rotted feather mattress, a wardrobe containing several old robes, a pair of iron candlesticks, and an open crate containing thirty torches and a leather sack with fifteen candles inside it.....

Whoever wants to search, please roll for it!  If you're helping or expect help, just put in parenthesis who is helping or who you're helping!

Perception: (Bert helping Talion): 15 (passive 14/19)

Investigation: (Talion helping Bert): 21 (hope that's ok) (passive 15/20)

(( Advantage is supposed to be +5 for passive, not sure if that applies here ))

No problem. After investigating fully, you manage to find a block of incense that is usable and not spoiled by the damp. You also find a ledger similar to the ones you found upstairs. This one has names on it and dates - and all have check marks against them. The second last entry is a group of 4 names, circled, with bloody x’s next to them, and the words “We didn’t know, we didn’t know.”

Then there is a black line of charcoal. The next and last entry is a group of five names, YOUR names.....

When Bert stands up, Erven looks up, nodding, thinking.  He stands and gathers himself, starting to look around the room, helping Talion and Bert in the usual fashion.  He is interested in the ledger.  “Look!  They planned to trap us in here.  Fiends!  But yet we live to fight another day!”  He looks around, talking to whoever is in the room.  “Once everyone is rested enough, we should head downstairs.  Does anyone understand that chanting?”  His hands move and fiddle with the various objects around the room.  Occasionally with a high frequency tremor of the left hand, it goes away when he relaxes.  

As Talion helps Bertolt with the book, he curses, "Mother of a goatless whore! If ever we doubted it, we now know someone planned to do this to us.."

Looking again at the second last entry, he tries to make out the names "Maybe it was only the Dursts doing it... and these names are significant to this Strahd. Servants of his, perhaps." He holds onto the book, intending to show it to the others.

(( He will keep the book. But also try to remember the names in the second last entry ))

When they find the gold bracelets, Talion just stares at them, reluctant to even touch them. Using his magic, be he places them in a clear corner of the room and asks Bertolt if he is able to sense anything corrupt or magical about them. "Since that sword... and even the cloak...I fear anything we touch may try to control us" he says quietly.

While/if Bert does that, he also gathers the items from the other room ((chain shirt etc)), as well as the candles, candlesticks, incense and torches for Bert to check.

When Bert is finished, Talion places the incense in his pack, and before leaving the room he gathers the leather bag of candles and the torches, asking Bert if he wants to put the in his bag, also suggesting the foot locker might be useful. He also asks Bert to store the other items ((chain shirt etc)), if he is able.

(( If the bracelets pass based on Bert's assessment, Tali Pon suggests Bert takes them as well. If he doesn't, Talion does...))

(( Crossed posts ))

If/when Ervan goes to fiddle with the gold bracelets, Talion watches, torn between saying something, or just watching. Common sense wins. "I wouldn't touch them if I were you." he says urgently. "Even the simplest things here possibly carry a curse. Go sharpen your sword or something, it only left a red mark on Sho's throat. Must be blunt."

Sho eyes the book as Talion showed him. His lips part slightly as he silently reads the scribed names. He gives a look to Talion. "How do you feel to be chosen?" He asks.

If their names are in any sort of order, Sho makes note of them.

Erven looks up quizzically at Talion, nods and says "Hmm, yeah, you're right.  Huh.  Good eyes Talion."  He looks for something that would function as a whet stone and sits down, starts to calmly sharpen his rapier.  He does grab a couple of torches, and puts them in his pack.  

Quote from WhiteByakko >>

Sho eyes the book as Talion showed him. His lips part slightly as he silently reads the scribed names. He gives a look to Talion. "How do you feel to be chosen?" He asks.

Talion grins, "Hah! Just like any other day. I was chosen at birth." He seems quite pleased with himself for a moment, before his attention is drawn to the book again, "What I really want to know about this, though, is who did the choosing? Were we chosen by the Dursts as victims, or this Strahd as a means of vengeance?"

Noticing the dates besides the names, Talion scrolls back to the first page to see how long this has been going on. Handing the book to Bert again, they look at the first few pages to see if there is any idea who is doing the summoning or why...

Quote from Ereshion >>

Talion grins, "Hah! Just like any other day. I was chosen at birth." He seems quite pleased with himself for a moment, before his attention is drawn to the book again, "What I really want to know about this, though, is who did the choosing? Were we chosen by the Dursts as victims, or this Strahd as a means of vengeance?"

 Sho stares at Talion for a second, remembering the similar conversation they had not a long moment ago. "Gifts, right?" he says. 

"The Dursts didn't strike me as picky eaters. But they weren't always ghasts. Remember the dead guy along the trek? He was invited by a letter, written by Lady Durst, before what happened to her." He tilts his head, "We were different." 

Talion looks up from the book, "Yes, gifts. They were all gifts to something that the Durst's worshiped. The letter made it clear that it wasn't this man Strahd, though."

As Sho's last words sink in, Talion nods, "Strahd wasn't happy with them. Perhaps the last group were sent by Strahd, and when that didn't work, he 'sent' us? I'd like to know how long this has been going on, and how long ago the Dursts became trolls. Or whatever you called them."

(( @DM: Add that to the list: any sign in the book of a change in the writing style, or an interruption, that might indicate the time that the living hosts became dead hosts? ))

The ledger is filled with names and dates - a quick count would give you the names of 200+ people going back some 75 years.  The writing style is rather elegant and sure - it's definitely written by someone who knows what they're doing with an ink and quill.

You find a bit of charcoal in the same area.

During your short rest, you look at the collection of scrolls, obviously magical.  Each scroll takes an hour unless it is "confirmed" by someone else, in which case the time to identify it is cut in half.  Hope it makes sense.  Basically, you're looking at 2-3 hours if you want to identify them all, which you do - see below.

Sho - he knows one of the scrolls is protection from evil and good (confirmed by Onyx and Talion) and another is hold person (confirmed by Bertolt and Talion)
Bertolt - he sees a identify scroll, a disguise self scroll, an invisibility scroll
Erven - you recognize a scroll of darkvision and a scroll of magic weapon

Bertolt - as the only one proficient in arcana, please roll to see if you can identify (no help) what is on the remaining two scrolls are...