Not Curse of Strahd Session 9: Straight to the Castle (and Lots of Skeletons!)
Hey everyone, welcome back to the recap of our thrilling Curse of Strahd campaign! Session 9, as DMWintermute put it, saw our intrepid (and slightly reckless) party go straight for the lion's den – Castle Ravenloft itself!
The session kicked off with a bit of housekeeping, confirming the defeat of Baba Yaga in the previous session. Our heroes also had the ominous glowy gem ripped from Baba Yaga's hut, which apparently came to life and tried to turn them into “raspberry jam”. They also zoomed around in Baba Yaga's giant flying skull, which sounds like the most metal Uber ride ever.
The pressing matters at hand were still the remaining objectives from their tarot reading: locating the Berserker and the Tempter. These were believed to be somewhere within the castle.
Their journey took a dark turn as they arrived at the town of Vallaki, only to find it attacked and in ruins. The gates were wide open, a grim welcome. Even more concerning, they learned from Ismark that Strahd himself had captured Irina and taken her back to the castle.
With Irina in Strahd's clutches, the party decided to forgo any further delays and head directly to Castle Ravenloft. Why wait to be hunted when you can bring the party to the vampire lord?
Their arrival at the castle was eerily anticlimactic. The front doors were closed, but there was no resistance. Inside, the castle felt deserted. However, the silence didn't last for long.
Descending into the castle's depths, the party found themselves in a cold and moist corridor. This led to alcoves containing the skeletal remains of castle guards, who promptly reanimated and attacked. A chaotic combat ensued, showcasing the party's fighting prowess, especially the Rogue who dealt some impressive sneak attack damage.
Further exploration revealed some truly bizarre locations: a dining room made entirely of human bones, complete with bone furniture and a dragon skull above a door. They also encountered Strahd's Chamberlain, Rahadin, in a seemingly normal study. However, this Rahadin was quickly revealed to be an imposter, leading to another swift and decisive combat in the party's favor.
The eerie encounters continued with a shadowy figure appearing briefly. Following a secret door, the party descended into a stairwell where they were confronted by an illusion of Strahd, who taunted them before vanishing.
This led them to the castle catacombs, where they entered a peculiar room. In the center was a burning brazier with colored crystal stones, and above it, a static hourglass with inscriptions. The inscriptions seemed to hint at teleportation tied to placing the stones in the fire, with different colors leading to locations like the “mountain spire,” “Castle's Peak,” and the “Master's tomb”. Given their current objective of finding the Mad Dog's crypt (related to the Berserker card) beneath blackened bones, they considered their options carefully.
Their exploration continued, leading to a hidden trapdoor that sent the Rogue plummeting down a polished black marble slide into a flooded cell. Thankfully, their slippers of spider climbing allowed them to ascend and warn the others.
The session concluded with the party finding themselves in the castle catacombs proper, a vast room filled with bats and a thick fog. This “extremely time-consuming room,” as the DM called it, promises more adventures in the next session.
It was a session filled with unexpected encounters, swift combat, and the unsettling atmosphere that Curse of Strahd is known for. Going straight to the castle definitely upped the ante, and we can't wait to see what horrors and secrets lie deeper within Castle Ravenloft!