GAME NOTES APRIL 3
WIZARD OF WINES BACKGROUND
Wizard of Wines was created by an unknown mage over 400 years ago. The wizard fashioned three gems, each as big as a pinecone, and planted them in the soil in the WoW vineyards. These ‘seeds’ gave rise to healthy grapevines, even after Strahd’s Curse.
Strahd bequeathed the winery to the Krezkov family. Later, an arranged marriage between the Krezkovs and the Martikov family led the lands being taken over by the Martikov descendants who controlled the vineyards ever since.
The wereravens provide the wine for free to a Barovian represenitive in each town; Blood on the Vine, Blue Water, and Burgermeister Krezkov. They also deliver to the Vistani Camp near Vallaki and Madame Eva’s Camp.
There are three known varietals: Purple Grapemash #3, Red Dragon Crush, and Champagne du le Stomp.
RECENT HISTORY
- Ten years ago, someone stole the Champagne gem. Davian blames his son Urwin for this loss, believing he was negligent. Urwin denies it and this has caused a rift between the two.
- Three weeks ago, another gem was stolen after Baba Lysaga’s scarecrow attacks, and it went to Berez. Wereravens went to Berez but never returned.
- Five days ago, the druids stole the third gem.
- Two Days ago, Druids returned with a horde of Blights and drove the family from their home.
- This morning, Davian and Co ambushed while Gang inside building; Stephania and her teenage son Claudiu are kidnapped by Berserkers and Druids who ambush the wereravens using Pass without Trace, entangle, hold person.
- Without the Gems, wine production will cease after a month
PRESENT MOMENT
FUTURE
- Davian wants Stephania and Claudiu rescued. Long Rest.
- Provides: a wereraven scout for this mission.
- Promises: easy entrance into Krezk, Raven’s knowledge of Barovia (i.e. access poster map), cooperation of all raven flocks.
- Just before the Gang leaves for Yester Hill, a ball of fiery haze can be seen through the fog. They soon realize its Strahd on his Night Mare, Beucephalus. Strahd Stays above 150 feet from the group, only proceeding ahead to Yester Hill if it can’t follow them. He will strike down anything that flies, including ravens and wereravens. If the PCs manage flight towards him, he’ll warn the flying PCs that they are breaching the ceasefire, and he will attack if they continue.
- Reach Yester Hill after 90-minute walk.
- Strahd flies above, dropping a rock/20 minute with messages tied to them, while they travel. No roll for Travel encounters
message 1,2, and 3
“I ONLY WISH TO WATCH AND LEARN.”
“IT’S TALLER THAN A STORM GIANT, AND SMALLER THAN A TARRASQUE.”
“BETTER HURRY! THE CEREMONY STARTS SOON!”
YESTER HILL
Y1 Trail
Y1 “The trail through the thick woods leads to a large hill covered in dead grass crowned by a crumbling stone wall. A tall tree or statue, it’s hard to tell from this distance, stands within this wall. Black Cairns of black rock encircle the hill at its mid-point. A mass of high dark clouds swirls directly above the hill. Lightening periodically strikes the stone wall near the top. West of the hill is a wall of familiar fog, looking like the choking vapor when you entered Barovia around two weeks ago.
“Strahd flies overhead. He drops a rock in front of you that has a message tied to it.”
A PC reads the message
“YOU HAVE THREE AND A HALF MINUTES BEFORE HELL UPROOTS ITSELF. THE TIMER STARTS WHEN YOU FINISH THIS MESSAGE”
Y2 Berserker Cairns
Y2 Two concentric dirt trail form two rings around the midpoint of the hill, interrupted by ten-foot-high black stone cairns. The Blood Spear is no longer in a Cairn. It’s now plunged into the Effigy. If the PCs waste time exploring the trail, then they discover the thirteenth Cairn to their right on the upper trail recently plundered. Other Cairns have only rotted bones.
Y3 DRUID'S CIRCLES
*It takes one minute of sprinting to get to the closest edge of the stone wall. *
“In the circle of stones stands a twisted effigy of wood and vines, resembling Strahd von Zarovich. Embedded where its heart would be is a spear of black iron, continuously dripping with blood, grasped by foul roots permeating throughout the statue. Roots also rise from the ground and are attached to the Effigy. Red & black Magical energy pulses from the roots to the all parts of the Effigy.
On the ground in front of the effigy you glimpse a woman kneeling on the ground, her chin grasped by a figure clad in bloody hides behind her. The bloody figure wears a headdress of twisted antlers and holds a fist-sized gem in front of the woman’s face, whispering in her ear. You can see tears streaking down her face. On the other side of the hill, beyond your field of vision, guttural screaming chants can be heard.
Strahd, ever overhead, follows you from above keeping his distance.”
The Blood Spear of Kavan The druids have discovered the legendary blood spear of Kavan in the tombs in area Y2. Despite their separation from their original tribe, Kavan’s name still rings with power to the people of Yester Hill. The restless spirit of Kavan lingers in his spear, enraged with Strahd’s rule over the land he and his people once roamed freely.
The druids of Yester Hill plan to harness this fury, intending to fuel Wintersplinter with Kavan’s soul as a spirit of destruction. They feel Kavan’s fury at their intentions but believe it will only make Wintersplinter stronger. The Blood Spear (see Appendix A) is currently embedded in the heart of the effigy in area Y3, in place of the winery gem.
The prospect of being used in the druids’ vile ritual, effectively being made into an instrument of Strahd worship, chokes Kavan like bile, and he knows it will destroy what is left of his soul. When the characters approach within 60 feet of the statue, Kavan senses their presence and telepathically contacts them.
Telepathically to Yor, Skarther, and Thalion. The Blood Spear speaks.
"You! You are not of my domain, but i can smell your fury against the devil of this land! Tear me from this monster’s heart and wield me against these misbegotten offspring of mine—i want to taste blood again! Don’t let my soul feed this foulness!”
*Moss will receive a very different telepathic message from Strahd. *
“You could be the leader of these Druid savages. I can start by granting you the power of Blood Funnel. You should insist on a private audience with me when we have our dinner. It must be you who asks. I will look suspicious if I ask you.”
When the Gang crests the hill and can see the Gulthias tree
“You see many silhouetted figures dancing amid a copse of trees. A singular tree in the center looms over the rest, pulsing with the same red and black energy as the Effigy. Anyone watching for a few seconds will realize that the two are connected.
“When Strahd appears overhead, these figures stop and point. They start screaming in the guttural Barovian Druidic dialect ‘Búrzum lat dur!’ They continue dancing more intensely than before.”
*The Effigy has the same stats as a Tree Blight, except it regenerates 20HP/round while attached to the Gulthias Tree. Nothing stops this regeneration short of a Wish or dropping the Gulthias Tree to zero HP. *
The druids of Yester Hill have stolen one of the gems used by the Martikov family to give life to the grape vines cultivated at the Wizard of Wines. They know that this gem is precious to the Martikovs and thus want to use it—and their lives—as bargaining chips.
The captive woman is
Stefania Martikov, who was taken hostage along with her son
, Claudiu, in the latest attack on the winery.
Keshgar, a blood druid (see last entry below), is forcing Stefania to watch her son’s blood flow through the tree’s roots and into the effigy in order force her into giving up her family’s secret.
He is taunting her and holding the gem out in front of her, telling her that all of this can be reversed if she simply gives him what he wants. He wants their secret of shape-changing into Ravens and how the gem works. The Druids of Barovia lost their power to shapeshift.
If the ritual in area Y4 is interrupted, the gem becomes Keshgar’s only remaining leverage against the Martikovs. If the characters interrupt this scene, Keshgar immediately attacks.
The blood spear rests in the statue 15 feet above ground. Climbing the Effigy requires a successful DC 13 Strength (Athletics) check, as the roots of the Gulthias tree seem to actively shift out of the grasp of anyone scrambling towards the spear. Tearing the blood spear from the statue requires a successful DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check.
If the party plucks the blood spear of Kavan from the effigy before stopping the druid’s ritual, the ritual can still be completed if the effigy is not destroyed. However, the resulting tree blight will have only half its hit points.
Y4 GULTHIAS TREE
* It takes 30 seconds of sprinting to get from the south opening to the closest edge of the stand of trees. *
“Half a dozen humans, smeared with blood and blue-gray mud, shout a chant of “Lat izh durub, lat izh golg. Ugrûl! Ugrûl! Ugrûl!" at a monstrous black tree coursing with magical energy. They are locking arms and encircling it. Half a dozen more dance around them, swinging their axes in ecstasy. Dripping with sap—or worse—a maw-like hole gapes at the base of the trunk. Inside of it, pierced by dozens of barbs, is a teenage boy who is slick with blood.
“Strahd continues circling from above.
* The Ritual starts two minutes and fifty-four seconds after the Gang reads Strahd’s last message. The Tree Blight starts to uproot itself and walk towards Wizard of Wines after three minutes and thirty seconds. It takes two rounds to uproot. *
The six berserkers attack intruders immediately. The six druids only interrupt their chant if someone tries to breach their ring around the tree. Breaking through their chain requires a contested Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check; the druids have advantage as long as their chain holds.
The boy inside the tree’s maw is Claudiu Martikov. He and his mother were taken captive during the latest attack on the Wizard of Wines. The druids plan to use his blood to fuel their ritual to summon the tree blight, Wintersplinter. See the Druid’s Ritual special even for more information.
DRUID RITUAL
The ritual to animate Strahd’s effigy in area Y3 now takes place at the Gulthias tree in area Y4. This vampiric abomination requires a sacrifice of blood to grant false life to Wintersplinter, funneling it through its roots. Hundreds of baseball-sized sacs hang from the Gulthias tree branches, plumpening with black blood.
To power the ritual, the druids have placed Claudiu Martikov inside a large opening in the side of the tree—its sacrificial maw. Once the ritual begins, Claudiu is pierced by spikes that grow from the tree’s bark, which begin to drain him of blood. Throughout the ritual, his blood is funneled into the root system from Wintersplinter to the Effigy. The ritual concludes after six rounds of combat, when Claudiu is drained of his last drop of blood and dies.
While it has a victim, on initiative count 10 (losing all ties) the Gulthias tree sprouts 1d4 - 2 vine blights, 1d6 - 2 needle blights, and 1d8 - 2 twig blights within 60 feet of it (acting on initiative count 20). Starting the fifth round of combat, any creature starting its turn within 30 feet of the tree must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or become poisoned for 1 minute by the mist of black blood bursting from the fruit.
At any time during combat, a character can determine how much time is left in the ritual by succeeding on a DC 11 Intelligence (Nature) or a DC 13 Wisdom (Insight) check.
Freeing the Claudiu requires a successful DC 16 Strength (Athletics) check as an action or dealing 50 damage to the tree in one round.
A creature pushed into the empty maw must succeed on a DC 16 Strength saving throw or become restrained. Each round spent in the maw causes one level of exhaustion. The ritual must begin anew if the tree has no victim for 1 full round. The druids sacrifice themselves to continue the ritual, if necessary.
If the druids successfully complete their ritual, Kavan’s soul is absorbed from his spear (see The Blood Spear of Kavan special event) and Wintersplinter erupts from the wooden effigy in area Y3. It then stalks off to destroy the winery, as written in the mod ule. If it succeeds at that, it will continue on to Vallaki where it will attempt to break through the town’s walls and destroy the Blue Water Inn.
Stopping the Ritual
• All six druids around the Gulthias tree are killed.
• The Gulthias tree is destroyed.
If any of the above events take place, the ritual cannot be completed and the Gulthias tree’s roots detach themselves from the effigy. The druids cannot hold another ritual of this type for approximately one month.
Keshgar Blood Druid
Tactics: 1st Round: Cast wall of thorns to divide party, React with Absorb elements,
If thorns fail, cast wall of fire
Upcast erupting earth, Upcast Flame blade as last concentration
Blood Rage only if using Blood Funnel
Medium humanoid, chaotic evil
Armor Class 14 (hide armor)
Hit Points 130 (20d8 + 50) Speed 30 ft
STR 14 (+2) DEX 14 (+2) CON 12 (+1) INT 10 (+0) WIS 13 (+1) CHA 14 (+2)
Saving Throws Str +5, Con +6, Wis +9
Skills Nature +4, Perception +9, Survival +9
Damage Resistance Necrotic; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing From Nonmagical Attacks
Senses Passive Perception 19
Languages Common, Druidic
Spell save DC 17, +9 to hit with spell attacks
Blood Rage (1/Day). As a bonus action, the blood druid can enter a blood rage. This lasts for
1 minute, until the blood druid falls unconscious, or until the blood druid ends it as a bonus action. When entering this blood rage and at the start of each of its turn while in blood rage, the blood druid loses 5 (2d4) hit points. While in blood rage, the druid can add the number of hit points it lost from the blood rage during its current turn to one damage roll it makes during the same turn.
Ranged Spell Attack: +9 to hit, range 15 ft., one target, Hit: 13 (2d6 + 5) necrotic damage. The target must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or its hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the damage taken. This reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0. The blood druid regains hit points equal to the reduction in the maximum hit points the target suffers as its blood shoots out of a wound or its eyes and into the druid’s mouth. The druid regains hit points equal to half of the damage dealt, rounded down.
Spellcasting. The blood druid is a 15th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (
spell save DC 17, +9 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following druid spells prepared:
• Cantrips: frostbite, infestation, mold earth, poison spray
• 1st level (4 slots): absorb elements, cure wounds, fog cloud, thunderwave
• 2nd level (3 slots): flame blade, hold person, pass without trace, spike growth
• 3rd level (3 slots): call lightning, ERUPTING EARTH, speak with plants
• 4th level (3 slots): blight, confusion, grasping vine, WALL OF FIRE
• 5th level (2 slots): awaken, contagion
• 6th level (1 slot): WALL OF THORNS
• 7th level (1 slot): Regenerate, (UPCAST) ERUPTING EARTH
• 8th level (1 slot): control weather, (UPCAST) FLAME BLADE
Actions Blood Funnel
.
Ranged Spell Attack: +9 to hit, range 15 ft., one target, Hit: 13 (2d6 + 5) necrotic damage. The target must succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or its hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the damage taken. This reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0. The blood druid regains hit points equal to the reduction in the maximum hit points the target suffers as its blood shoots out of a wound or its eyes and into the druid’s mouth. The druid regains hit points equal to half of the damage dealt, rounded down.
the regular sessions and the recaps sound like fun games!
