Roster
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Session Overview
The experience as told by Lord Hel Forge
As I awoke from a much overdue nap I had found that our party had met with this sweet fine aged woman who had told us our fortune. To be blunt I understood little of what was meant by the fortunes but I gather we are destined for glorious purpose.
Soon after we bothered to share a meal with the less than desirable but with no better option we joined them, whereupon we partook in a traditional camp game. We each told stories which could be lies, truth or half truth and we had to guess which it was and wager things.
First we learned this Strahd fella isn’t all that bad and is honourable to his word. We know there are no sparrows any more.
From my companions I learnt that Darius’s return one winter crusade was far more shameful than he let on, being bested by snowballs, Gumshal had a brother, cousin Oskar is a man of few words, and Kora believes cousin Oscar is important, which I do find weird, but I digress.
I won the game, getting to keep my cheap sleeping wear but also gained a used magical ring, a spyglass, a few spells, a book about some sort of Dog by this van chap I keep hearing get mentioned (he might be important now I think about it), along with some other trinkets.
After filling up on food I soon felt tired once again and so found myself a lovely big plump bed with a feather blanket and assortment of pillows. Having had a nice 6 hour or so nap I was awoken by the our hosts telling me to come to the fire. When I arrived Darius seemed in need to be cleansed by the lord of light and Gumshal seemed too far gone and almost reminded me of our holy purges I did not too many moons back. After a long debate over the correct way to deal with this unholy occurrence we went back to sleep for 8 hours. Once we awoke madam asked if we could purchase her granddaughter a toy for her 10th name day within 2 days time. we agreed of course. That’s about were we left off but remind to self don’t let Darius near me when I die I’d rather join my lord.
The experience as told by Oskar
So, after the fortune telling, we exited the tent to spend time with the good simple Vistani folk.
As the night wore on, the leader of the caravan requested we play a story telling game, the aim of the game was to tell if the teller was lying, telling the truth or was it a mixture of both. We all had to wager something of value.
Darius told us an amusing tale of being snowballed by children.
Hel Forge as always was rather fanciful with this story of the sword engraved motto being worn down from a positive statement to sin!?
Gumshal told us about the fact he now wields his brother’s axe, who was slain while they together defended a caravan.
Kora, some strange story about encountering a wise man in the woods, who told him I was going to be very important to her?
The other folk around the fire told stories which seemed to be very fanciful. Hel Forge was the luckiest and chose the best in regards the truth of the tales. Upon the completion of the game, Hel Forge retired to sleep in one of the Vistani tents.
There was among the caravan folk a traveller who seemed to be apart from the Vistani. We tried to question him, and he told us great terror followed him in the dark. As this piqued my interest, we pressed him on further details which he was not forthcoming with. He departed and we followed him into the woods far from the Vistani camp.
In a clearing, the fellow climbed in a tree, apparently to wait the night out. As we closed to the tree, shambling figures appeared from the gloom – Zombies!!! Many Zombies who came closer and closer and I fought valiantly until was overcome and fell into darkness…..
Upon waking I healed myself and Darius and found the bloody body of Gumshal. The barbarian had died fighting against the Zombie horde. Kora had managed to evade the Zombies by transforming into a Squirrel and fled into the trees. More menacing figures could be seen approaching the tree and we decided to flee carrying the body of Gumshal with us.
We returned to the Vistani camp whereupon Hel Forge appeared sleepy from his sleeping place. The fortune teller could not assist with trying to revive our fallen comrade and we stood discussing what funeral rites we should perform upon the body when Darius and Gumshal’s bodies where wrapped in what can only be described as demon fire!! Gumshal appeared to revive from this dead state, unbelievable as it was, but he now carries the hideous visage of what can only be a half-orc!!
Darius now sports the face of the demon he had once made a pact with to save a child. I was right to keep an eye on him, he is obviously consorting with the dark kind. I tried to divine if he was evil, but he appears to be Darius still, and only his outward appearance is changed. We will have to keep a much closer eye upon him, to ensure he does not further slip into the darkness.
With the return of Gumshal to life, the Fortune teller gave us another quest, this time to purchase a particular toy from a famous maker in this god forsaken place!! Toys are a small comfort when the warmth of the Sun cannot be felt upon your face. Hel Forge took the quest upon himself along with the money the Fortune teller provided for the purchase of this item.
Additions by Kora Okabark
I have little to add to the stories of my comrades apart from the following.
During the story telling, Eliza sang the Raven song about Lugdana;s Last Fury, a rather wonderful piece of history. It was unfortunately only half true, and where Lugdana’s symbol is now, nobody knows.
Arturi was the man who was followed by the curse of the undead. He told an allegory of a fox, sparrows and rats, and said that it was in fact a true tale. The gist of the story was that the sparrows gave the fox’s cub to a wolf who killed it, because the foxed had not been able to save a sparrow chick’s life. The fox then co-opted the rats to kill all the sparrows. What the tale means I do not know.
The food we had was a good, sturdy rabbit and lentil stew, and no bad word shall be spoken about it. Aside from that, Gumshal ate more than his fair share of meat.
Hel Forge won a book called the Study of the Werewolf’s Curse by Van Richten. This book looks interesting and I must make sure I borrow it off Hel Forge soon. Oddly enough, Arturi was after Van Richten, but that might be explained by the trail of undead creatures following him.
With regards to the unnatural act that Darius performed, the story he tells is that he once rescued a child from a demon by trapping the demon in his own mind, and apparently this now gives him certain powers. What precisely happened I am unsure of, but it is an act against nature and Gumshal surely pays the price by returning as a half orc. Darius is under the impression that his own metamorphosis is temporary, but of that I am not so sure.
The toy maker we are purchasing a toy from for Madam Eva’s great-grand-niece Arabelle’s 9th birthday is called Blintski, of Blintski’s Toys. The toy should be given to Arabelle who lives in a Vistani camp two days further from Vallaki. Eva hints that befriending Arabelle’s family may be a gift in itself.