PEOPLE WE MET
Yonvich and his sons, Yonvi, Sven, and Yenva (book peddlers), Gadof Blinsky (toy maker), Piccolo (monkey, Blinsky’s pet), Piersym Rawley (silversmith), Claudia Belasco (Headmistress of St. Andral’s Orphanage), Henrik van der Voort (coffin maker), Guard (watch commander, staying at the Inn), Emma (orphan girl), Milivoj (currently incapacitated),
SYRREN’S AWFUL JOKE
The travelers are thinking about what adventure to pursue first, when the two wiley members of the group begin a game. Syrren agrees that he will purchase his friend Thaldir a pint if he can successfully repeat all of the words in past tense. So they begin…
Feather…feathered
Tar…tarred
Straw…strawed
Uh oh! Thaldir has earned his pint, but caused quite a stir in the tavern with his accidental declaration of the name of the devil (whispered) S-T-R-A-H-D.
The bar maid comes over and tells them they’ll need to keep that kind of talk to themselves. If they know what’s good for them, she tells them, they will also need to register with the guards. Of course, our late-night wanders have neglected to register. The bar maid summons one of the guests of the tavern to help them.
TOWN REGISTRATION & QUESTIONS
He makes sure that they register, as long as they don’t speak of the lapse in security to anyone. The guard asks them to declare all of their weapons, which the group does grudgingly. He also tells them of the “Wolf’s Head Jamboree” festival which is just ending. There’s another festival that will come soon after this one, called “The Festival of the Blazing Sun.” The guard says that the festivals help keep the devil at bay.
Thaldir asks the guard if he has encountered Granny and her pies around town. Syrren even draws a photo of the old hag, and Aydin can’t resist talking about the fact that the secret ingredient in her baked goods is the blood of the innocents. The guard doesn’t seem to recognize the name or the pies, but he agrees to be on the look out for Granny and her daughters. As he leaves to “reprimand” his negligent guards and march them off to the stocks for a few days,
Syrren is able to persuade him to be more lenient. The guard gives them their properly signed papers, and they each put them in their packs.
Thaldir continues to look out for his young charges, making sure they finish their hardy breakfast of bacon and other assorted meats. Danica comes over to talk with the group. They ask questions about the toy shop, in particular,
Gadof Blinsky, the shop owner. The group is told that Blinsky lost his wife in a tragic fishing accident. A storm was “a brewin’” and she was swept away. Though he tried to find her, he could not. Since the couple never had any children of their own, he pours all of his love and affection into the children of Vallaki. He is well-loved in the town. He even provides gifts for the children at the orphanage.
As they talk with Danica further, they learn that the orphanage is run by a woman named Claudia, who is described as stern but fair. It seems that many of the children get adopted and join happy families in the town. Satisfied, the group sets off to find the toy store and purchase some baubles and gifts.
YONVICH AND SONS
As the group enters the shoppe owned by Yonvich and his three adult sons – Yonvi, Sven, and Yenva, they see an amazing selection of books. The friendly shopkeepers are able to provide them with the maps they need. Yonvich seems very nervous when the traveling group asks about magical books.
They learn that Yonvich and Sons are under strict orders to turn any magical volumes over to the Burgomaster, who gives them to the “devil.” This is only way the town is able to keep him at bay. There is one very old volume in the shoppe that interests Syrren. It’s called “Stories from Barovia: A Collection of Legends & Fairy Tales” (There’s a Rapunzel – like story that is the longest in the book.) and was written by Rudolph van Richten. Inscribed inside the front cover it says, “Owned by Vasilli von Holtz” and it has a line scratched over it to indicate it was sold. The book was a mere 13 copper, and Syrren hoped to buy it, but Aydin beat him to the punch. What a wonderful surprise when Aydin hands the gift-wrapped book to his arch-nemesis-turned-frenemy Syrren.
When Tilly continues to ask about books that seem to be on the forbidden list, the group looks across the volumes on the shelves. Tilly settles on purchasing a journal, but she can’t afford the one that is 50 gold pieces. She strikes a bargain for the journal and some calligraphy tools, along with a few less expensive journals. She ends up getting the lovely journal for 23 gold pieces and a few songs during the The Festival of Blazing Sun to draw in customers.
BABES IN TOYLAND
Next, they venture to the toy store across the street from the Inn, where they are greeted by a round man with a monkey on his shoulder. The monkey, named Piccolo, isn’t for sale (much to Tilly’s disappointment). Piccolo sticks his tongue out at Tilly and quickly scampers over to take some food from Aydin’s hand. Aydin inquires about some small toys for the children traveling with them. The group also hopes to find a gift for Annabelle, in the event that she is found alive.
The toy master, Blinsky, starts pointing to all of the macabre-themed toys in the place, and a carousel with wolves chasing children in place of painted horses catches Tilly’s eye. Syrren inquires about a doll that looks like it was crafted in his image. Izek Strazni is the collector of these dolls and requests that a new one be made for each festival. Syrren requests to have one of his own made. Tilly wants to get one made of the “devil” himself, as she envisions poking pins in it. Aydin, Syrren, Thaldir, and Term get dolls of themselves. The price tag is 20 copper for a doll.
Any mention of silver seems to make for an awkward conversation, but when one of the adventure party asks about silver this time, Blinsky slyly steers them to a shop called Thimdul’s Armaments. The shop is a front for a man named Piersym Rawley, who deals in illegal silver.
Aydin thanks the shopkeeper for his assistance and requests that Blinsky pick out toys for two boys and two girls. The gifts total of 36 copper. Aydin decides to pay for his doll now and gives Blinsky 45 copper to cover everything. Thaldir gives Blinsky 20 copper for his doll. Tilly and Term also pay for their dolls on the spot. While paying, Blinsky says that he was visited by a man wanting two zombie dolls. That same man lost his wife in a suspicious fishing accident just a couple of days later. Blinsky says it is strange for a fisherman to buy toys when he has no children of his own.
FORGING AHEAD
The adventurers head out swiftly for a quick convo about the potential hazards of having dolls in their likeness, but agree not to worry and keep the dolls close. They head into the shop of Rawley, where they ask for axes to be made for the children. Aydin hopes to get a silver weapon forged for himself, but the cost is a little steep at 100 gold for the smithing. Term tries to offer his dynamite smithing skills for a discount, but Rawley isn’t interested. Term decides to buy a shield at 5 gold, and he asks Rawley about this “master craftsmanship” that allows him to charge so much for making amazing weapons. Rawley hails from Waterdeep but he is trapped here in Vallaki, like so many. He tires of the festivals.
Tilly asks about Vasilli von Holtz and Rawley says that the man of whom she speaks is a nobleman. Meanwhile, Thaldir continues to negotiate with laser focus on the items he hopes to purchase. Rawley divulges more about living in the town – the strange things, the festivals, the people who disappear or die.
He says that Strahd was once killed by a group of wizards called the “Red Mages.” Even when they thought they had defeated him, he rose again. Though Rawley enjoyed talking to the brave wanderers, he still didn’t fully trust them. He wouldn’t permit them to see the secret book volumes he harbored, but he did agree to forge weapons, for a price.
Thaldir left a deposit of his remaining 20 silver pieces, the silverware, and a promise to return for his silvered weapon in 5 days. (In total, the silvering of Thaldir’s weapon will cost 95 gold) He agrees to also trade in jewels and silver, when Aydin approaches him about a bargain for the weapon he wants.
When Term offers amber, Rawley becomes very upset. “That amber is evil! The spirits inside it are angry. It corrupts the spirit of the person who holds it and claims them entirely after two weeks. I suggest you take it out of town and toss it far away.”
Shocked, the group decides to dispose of the amber, and they each offer up their bags to Rawley for inspection. Rawley seems to genuinely like the group. He asks if there is a name for this collection of heroes.
Upon seeing the drinking horn in Thaldir’s bag, Rawley realizes that his friend, who owned it, must certainly be dead. It turns out that Rawley is a dwarf, and that he is a rarity in Barovia. As an outsider, the community is slow to trust people like him.
Aydin asks about the Baron (Vargas Vallakovich). This brings an angry look to Rawley’s face. Rawley emphasizes how much he hates the Baron. As they continue negotiations and to ask about what he knows of the town, Rawley agrees to trade jewelry they took from the hags.
These are worth 25 gold pieces (150 gold pieces) for each item, which, in addition to the 45 gold pieces in their collective coffers, provides ample gold for a silvered war hammer for Thaldir and a silver great sword for Aydin (who now finds himself weaponless for the next few days).
Rawley assures them that he will register their weapons properly, as well. The “toy” axes for the children will be ready later today, so the group will have to return to pick them up.
LITTLE ORPHAN ADVENTURERS
High on their success at negotiating new weapons, the crew makes the short walk to the orphanage. Tilly begins to hold court with the little ones by launching into a full puppet production, when she’s approached by an older woman with a bun on her head. She asks what Tilly is doing, and introduces herself as Headmistress Claudia Belasco.
She says this is a difficult time at the orphanage because of the fact that her charges are not safe. They’ve just had one child die, and the caretaker has fallen ill. Thaldir offers his services as a healer, so Headmistress Belasco leads them inside.
Tilly enters a great room filled with children’s voices – quickly descending into chaos. Thaldir is led back to a small room with a pallid man lying in a bed. He has blood and bile on his lips and doesn’t appear to be conscious.
Tilly manages to get the children to listen and sing along with her. They gather around her while she plays and tells stories.
Meanwhile, despite his best efforts, there is no sign that Thaldir can help Milivoj (the children call him “Milly”). He casts one spell after another, to no avail. Aydin dons makeshift protective gear and examines the man for bite marks. No sign of a bite. No clue to what might have caused this condition. Thaldir and his compatriots have lots of questions, but Headmistress Belasco is not comfortable saying more in front of the children that have wandered into the hall. She invites them into her office.
As they discuss the death of the young orphan Cedric, she hands them a locket that he was wearing when he died. It’s a silver locket with an “x” etched in the top. She suspects that Felix may have known something about what happened, but no one has seen him. The Headmistress tells them the sad tale of Felix, who was found in a pool of his parents blood when he was very small. The murder was never solved.
Tilly comes into the room and asks if they can talk to Felix. She offers to help deal with the coffin maker and arrangements while Headmistress Belasco locates Felix. She and Thaldir go to attend to Little Cedric’s body. Thaldir offers a few prayers over the body, as Tilly signs the necessary paperwork. The coffin maker/undertaker, named Henrik van der Voort, says that this is the first such death he has seen. When he arrived to get the body, the boy was white as a sheet – as though he had been frightened to death.
Henrik goes on to say that Cedric appeared to have thrashed around, and Headmistress Belasco confirmed that he died after many nights of terrors. He and the other children had been experiencing them a lot more lately. The children are scared and sad about Milivoj’s illness, casting a melancholy mood over the whole orphanage. Milivoj is a favorite of the children, having grown up in the orphanage himself, and they are worried he will suffer the same fate as young Cedric.
With a request to go and talk to Emma and 16-year-old Fanya about the strange happenings at the orphanage, this caring band of tender-hearted warriors continues the investigation.
JOIN US NEXT TIME …
When we resume this quest next time, will they find the answers they seek?
What killed Little Cedric? What secrets does the locket hold?
Where is Annabelle? Will she like her present?
Who will confront the Baron (Burgomaster) and end his festival addiction?
Whatever comes, these happy, hardy travelers will stay the course and won’t rest until they’ve defeated the devil himself!