You Start in a Tavern!
My journey as a Curse of Strahd DM began, as many great adventures do, in a tavern. Specifically, at The Lady’s Luck tavern in the town of Daggerford. I decided on using the Secrets of the Tarokka adventure hook by DragnaCarta, so my players all arrived separately in search of a man dressed in colorful clothing. After discovering that they were all searching for the same person, my players decided to work together and ask around the tavern. They learned from the bartender that a colorfully dressed man had come through recently, bought all of their barrels of wine, and set off to camp outside the forest nearby.
Following this lead, the newly formed party headed towards the forest, and could just make out the flicker of a small campfire. As they approached, they discovered a colorfully dressed man, dancing in circles around his campfire, drinking wine. You may have already guessed, this man was a Vistana, named Stanimir. He instantly hit it off with the party, singing songs and offering them some of his wine. He took a particular shining to one of my players, who had learned in their vision from Madam Eva that they were a long-lost member of the Vistani. If this sounds interesting to you, be sure to check out my article on Creating a Vistana PC for Curse of Strahd.
After spending the night drinking and learning about Barovia, the party agreed to travel with Stanamir to meet with Madam Eva. In the morning, they packed their belongings onto Stanamir’s wagon and began their ride to the gates of Barovia. Along the way, some of my players noticed the chirping of birds go silent for several minutes, when the chirping resumed it was no longer recognizable. Once at the gates, Stanamir regretfully informed that he could go no further, but assured the road would eventually lead to a town. When my players passed through the gates of Barovia, the doors slowly crept shut behind them.
Welcome to Barovia
As the party followed Old Svalich Road through the woods, a thick fog began to form in front of them. On the wind, they picked up on the scent of death, and heard the howls of wolves in the distance. After getting briefly lost in the fog, they stumbled upon a human corpse half buried in mud, tightly clutching a letter. In a scene inspired by High Rollers DnD, when one of my players stopped to pry the letter from his grip, they heard the voice of a man coming from behind them:
“I thought I had sensed new guests enter my land.”
As they turn around, the party came face to face with a tall and handsome man, with pale skin and long dark hair. The man continued:
“I feel introductions are in order, I am Count Strahd Von Zarovich and this is MY kingdom. You all seem tired, so I will forgive your lack of manners. Kneel.”
When he finished this phrase, I told my party they all needed to roll a Wisdom saving throw. Perhaps it was a miracle, but they all failed their saves and each fell to one knee.
“I do so love having guests. Know that this is my land, it obeys my rules, and in time so shall you. Now, with all pleasantries aside, let the games begin.”
Suddenly, the figure of Strahd became enveloped in a swirl of bats and mist, as the sound of wolves grew even louder. It was time to roll initiative. A pack of vicious wolves, led by a pair of dire wolves, descended on the party. The fight went well at first, but after a few lucky rolls, the wolves were able to knock one of my players unconscious. During the heat of battle, another of my players successfully stabilized their new friend, but discovered their skin was ice-cold to the touch, a story for a different time. As the battle died down, my party picked themselves up and found their way back to Old Svalich Road, looking over their shoulders as they went.
A Ghost Town
After continuing to follow Old Svalich Road, the party emerged from the woods and spotted a small town off in the distance. To my player’s surprise, there was no warm welcome waiting for them as they entered the Village of Barovia. They noticed while passing by some homes that commoners were inside peeking at them from behind their curtains.
Once they had briefly wandered the empty streets of the village, one of my players felt the tug of a small hand on the back of their leg. Glancing down, they found a small boy and an older girl looking up at them with tears in their eyes. After calming the boy, the girl spoke:
“There’s a monster in our house, and our baby brother is still in the nursery!”
The party reluctantly agree to help, and are led to the children’s home. After passing the rusted gates, they hear the doors slam behind them, and the children are nowhere to be seen.