Durst Manor
After a brief encounter with Strahd in the last session, my players arrived in the Village of Barovia where they were led to a manor by two sobbing children. The children, Rose and Thorn, told the party that their baby brother was alone in the nursery upstairs. I decided to run The Death House after being inspired by MandyMod and DragnaCarta’s campaign guides, you may see some of their ideas here.
As the party entered the main hall of Durst Manor, they heard the muffled sound of light conversation and laughter coming from a nearby door. One of my players investigated, and upon opening the door watched as floating sets of glasses and silverware fell to the table, and the room fell silent. As this happened, another of my players discovered sinister figures hidden in the otherwise innocent looking wall carvings. At this point, the party was a bit on edge and decided that making a beeline upstairs to find the missing baby would be the best course of action.
Heading upstairs, the party began to search the study for clues as to what may be going on, when they were interrupted by the screeching of metal as the suits of armor behind them began to animate. The suits moved to shove and grapple the party, and one of the suits nearly managed to throw a player down the nearby staircase.
While the party struggled to hit their heavily armored foes, they eventually triumphed, but were badly injured. After the fight, my players returned to finish searching the study. They discovered an iron key, and a hidden chamber which held a letter from Strahd that helped to explain the Durst family’s situation.
Meeting Mr. Durst and the Nursemaid
With the key in their possession, the party continued up to the third floor of the Durst Manor. With the main staircase ending here, they were fairly confident the missing baby would be on this floor. Entering the double doors, the players found a large master bedroom covered in cobwebs, in the corner a man dressed in fine clothing hung from a noose. A nearby note revealed that this man is Rose and Thorn’s father, and that he was sorry for what their mother had become. As a player read the note aloud, the man’s eyes opened to watch, but otherwise did nothing.
With no sign of the missing baby in the master bedroom, the party moved to investigate the other bedroom on the third floor. As they entered the room, they were met by a plainly dressed older woman sitting on a bed. She lifted a finger to her lips and whispered:
“Shh, you’ll wake baby Walter, I just put him to bed.”
After speaking, the woman turned to stare at herself in a nearby mirror on the wall. As one of my players moved towards her, they noticed that there was no reflection of the woman in the mirror. The party rushed into the nursery, hoping to grab the baby and leave, but found only a blanket in the crib. As the players turned back, the nursemaid was no longer sitting on the bed, but was instead standing in the mirror, sobbing. Through her tears, the nursemaid spoke:
“Mrs. Durst, I swear to you, the baby is not his.”
After speaking, the figure of the nursemaid vanished, and the mirror shattered. Through the cracks, one of my players noticed a hidden staircase going up to the attic. Compared to the lower floors, the attic was much less decorated, and filled with dust. A heavy iron padlock held one of the nearby doors shut, which the party unlocked using the key they had found earlier. Inside, they found two small skeletons huddled together wearing tattered but familiar clothing.
Upon seeing this, my players all rolled Charisma saving throws as the ghosts of Rose and Thorn attempted to possess them. The ghosts were successful, and two of my players gained new flaws which made one of them bossy, and the other spineless. In the bedroom was a large dollhouse, inspecting it revealed there was a secret door in the attic storage room.
Various furniture filled the storage room, as the party entered the chamber, one of my players got distracted by a large wooden trunk. Opening the lid, they found human bones wrapped in blood covered sheets. Suddenly, a familiar voice shouted, coming from the open door behind them:
“You will not harm Walter, Mrs Durst, not while I still live!”
Standing in the doorway was the nursemaid covered in stab wounds and blood. After she shouted, she slammed the door, leaving the party alone in the storage room as the hidden door clicked open.
Descending Deep Below
Following a hidden staircase down into the Durst Manor’s dungeon, the party all began to hear a faint chanting. As they explored the dungeon, they uncovered empty tombs for various members of the Durst family. My players possessed by the ghosts of Rose and Thorn shared a bittersweet moment as they discovered their empty coffins.
Moving deeper into the dungeon, the party came across a holding cell, the walls lined with shackled skeletons. In the center of the chamber was a wooden statue of the man they had met in the last session, Strahd Von Zarovich. The statue’s raised hand held a smokey crystal orb, as one of my players removed it, they were all ambushed as several ghouls burst out from the walls. Weakened by earlier encounters, one of my players got knocked unconscious, forcing the party to fight through the ghouls to stabilize them. Thankfully, the party made short work of the ghouls, and the player survives to fight another day.
Before heading further downstairs, the party decide to investigate the cult leader’s quarters, which consisted of a bed, some crates, and an unlocked footlocker. As one of my players opened the footlocker, a ghast who’s figure eerily resembled the portraits of Mrs. Durst leapt out from under the covers and attacked. She addressed the possessed players as Rose and Thorn, and taunted that they would never be put to rest. Unfortunately for Mrs. Durst, the party ganged up on her and dispatched her quickly. After looting some treasure from the footlocker, the possessed players deduced that their possession might end if they properly buried Rose and Thorn. They returned upstairs to gather the children’s remains, and upon sealing them in their coffins, felt the possession finally end.
The Death House
As the party descended further downstairs in the Durst Manor’s dungeon, the chanting became clearer:
“He is the Ancient. He is the Land.”
They enter a partially flooded chamber with smooth walls and a bloody stone altar. Upon entering, a portcullis closed behind the party, sealing them inside, and the chanting changed:
“One must die! One must die!”
Unsurprisingly, none of my players volunteered to be sacrificed. Instead, one of my players reached for their monster hunter’s pack and produced some holy water, and a holy symbol. Using these items, the player was able to stop the chants. Suddenly, a large, disfigured flesh monster began to rise from a pile of refuse at the back of the chamber. One final chant rang out in the room:
“The end comes! Death, be praised!”
The monster moved and attempted to grab the nearby players, all while crying out with the voice of a human baby. Eventually, the monster was able to completely swallow one of my players, on the inside they saw the corpse of baby Walter. After a lengthy battle, the party defeated the monster and freed the player inside.
With the Death House defeated, giant cracks began to form in the walls, as the ritual chamber began to shake and collapse. The party quickly moved to reopen the portcullis that was trapping them inside, and were able to force it open with some remarkable athletics. In the next room, the shadows of a dozen cultists stood, blocking their path. Using acrobatics, the party was able to weave their way through the crowd.
On their way back through the dungeon, the ghosts of Rose and Thorn returned one final time, and guided the party to a hidden ladder leading to the first floor of the manor. Upon arriving upstairs, the party found themselves in a room they hadn’t explored, the Den of Wolves. The seemingly fake wolves in the room leapt from their stands, and circled the players. Using animal handling, they calmed the wolves for long enough to leave the room.
Finding themselves back in the main hall of Durst Manor, the players dashed towards the front door. With the main gate finally unlocked, they burst through the doors and onto the street. Behind them, the house continued to collapse, as a crowd of worried, but relieved villagers began to form around the party. One of them introduced themselves as the village leader, and offered to buy my players a wine at the nearby tavern. This was all the party needed to hear after what they had been through, so they set off with the young man. Looking back towards the now destroyed house a final time, one of my players noticed a strange raven with blue tipped wings, watching them.