I generally start my games at level 3. Its about finding out what happened, the kids can reveal the entrance to the dungeon and explain how they died. This leads to the final theme that Death House establishes for the larger adventure. She can potentially one-shot any member of the party each turn with her Life Drain ability. They will sing to wake up Lorghoth the Decayer, a Shambling Mound hiding in the southernmost alcove. 38. Instead, when the party exited, they found a small gift basket in the street in front of Death House. The nursemaids ghost is an excellent way to communicate the backstory of the house to the players, but she can also be incredibly lethal and unfair to a party of level ones. 2023 Elven Tower Cartography. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. The go-to source for comic and superhero movie fans. It's all important, because it also teaches the players to pay attention to the environment. But be warned: few who enter are fated to leave. Keeping level 1 characters alive is no small task, and "Death House" monsters have high armor classes and hit hard. Honestly, few spooky things should have an explanation. Secret Room.- Theres a letter by Strahd here. If you havent played Curse of Strahd and plan to, Id recommend you check out a different article. All the latest gaming news, game reviews and trailers. https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDBehindTheScreen/comments/7hmosm/lessons_from_running_curse_of_strahd_the_feast_of/, Place a tattered piece of sheet music on the harpsichord in the conservatory, another DMs idea to let them see a woman shrouded in black standing beside the crib, her back to the door, only attack those that approached the crib or threatened her baby, the image of the (human) nursemaid appeared in the glass, describe it as feeling like a childs hands, searching desperately for a warm embrace.. Yeah, adding the Dursts is a good idea. The way this adventure works. If you already have level 3 players you can jump right into the action of Barovia's encounters. Third. The best was when the team with Scooby, Velma, Shaggy and Fred ended up down stairs and came across a table covered in a Thanksgiving dinner and the turkey was a mimic. Honestly, the story behind the adventure is incredibly grim and might be off-putting to some groups. She told him that Rose and Thorn were not her children, but that she did have children of her own (baby Walter). The adventurers manage to put their spirits to rest and claim the room's loot. The Curse of Strahd Companion is your comprehensive guide to running 5th Edition's greatest and grimmest campaign. You can let them know something is coming with smell and sounds. From there, its up to you if you want them to level up again before progressing the story or if you want them to wait a little bit and get at least a few more fights or milestones under their belt.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'tabletopjoab_com-leader-2','ezslot_22',137,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tabletopjoab_com-leader-2-0'); Pay special attention to describing the various things that the party can find and interact with. Awesome article! They may come to Barovia expecting to be heroes, but the things that they will do and sacrifice for the sake of their own survival throughout the adventure will haunt them for the rest of their lives. Moreover, there are a lot of things that the party can miss (e.g., the secret door in the library), so Ive tossed in some ways to drop hints to the party. Luke also has a board game obsession, plays a bunch of D&D, and makes silly videos on YouTube. Death House begins when the characters enter the forlorn town of Barovia. Even just traveling around Barovia can be a spooky experience. Also theres a will bequeathing these properties to the Durst children. Dungeon m. AboutPressCopyrightContact. I provided their flaws through PM, and both had a blast roleplaying it. introduction to the bleak and despair-filled land of Barovia. Nothing will prepare your players for what lurks inside. Copyright Since I've warned you already about spoilers, I'll state it up front: to avoid the house turning against the PCs, a creature has to die at the sanctum in the basement. Absolutely do not show the party the image of the children in the book. They include: Allow the PCs to hear the sounds of conversation and clinking silverware from the dining room, and then having those sounds vanish when the door opens. Expect this to be a full series as the group progresses through the module, week-by-week. You can really play on this unease to build up tension within the party, building it up until they are constantly on edge. How to Play Ravenloft in a Single Night. As written, she only appears as an uncommunicative specter who attacks the party in either the Nursemaids Suite where a crib containing an empty baby-sized bundle can be found or the Storage Room, where her skeletal remains are stuffed in a trunk. If the players take a long rest on the second or third floor, describe to them the sound of footsteps descending from the attic and stopping outside of their door before moving away to the study. This also gives her some nice agency, and gives the party a better feel for her role as Thorns protector. As adventurers reach the top of the attic, they will find themselves in an aggressive place, they house is trying to kill them (page 220). Alternative to Death House Pt 2. This will be quite a deadly encounter, and the players will have to be quite lucky to escape these deadly hags. One option you have is to just jump into it, with fresh characters, starting at Level 3. This kept them panicked, tense, and on their toes. However, that feels a little ham-fisted. The most important is the silvered shortsword in 25E (page 218). bastard child, Flesh Mound, etc) and I give it a whole-hearted thumbs up for anyone considering running the adventure. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'tabletopjoab_com-box-4','ezslot_8',128,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tabletopjoab_com-box-4-0');The infamous Death House serves as a type of introductory mystery/dungeon to the Curse of Strahd adventure module. Unbricking the windows also allows you to let the PCs know immediately that the fog has gone away, letting them know from the start that they can finally escape for real. Now, railroading isnt a bad thing, especially for a newer group. It is designed like this. If an entire army of Knights could not defeat Strahd, what hope does your party have? The party will attack them. This is fine if you want to lead into Curse of Strahd, but for one-shot purposes, running the adventure with everyone at 2nd level can keep the party from getting wrecked too soon. The nature of D&D 5e is that it is almost hilariously easier to die at lower levels than it is at higher levels even as tougher enemies appear. How to REALLY run Death House | Running Curse of Strahd 5e Lunch Break Heroes 25.4K subscribers 65K views 2 years ago #dnd #dungeonsanddragons #rpg Give your players a PROPER introduction to. Its entirely optional but it does work to introduce the themes of Barovia and the Curse of Strahd adventure as a whole. As written, the plot hook is simply that there is a monster in the house. This is a list of important bits of information, important locations and specific advice to run the different locations in the Death House. 31. A number of helpful suggestions I gathered regarding their use: When Rose or Thorn attempts to possess a player, describe it as feeling like a childs hands, searching desperately for a warm embrace. Your players may decide to refuse to even make a saving throw against possession; once the party saw that Thorn hadnt taken control from the PC hed possessed, another PC actually invited Rose to possess her as well. Curse Of Strahd is one of the best campaigns for Dungeons & Dragons. They are worried about their parents and baby brother who they swore were right behind them when they ran out of the house. If the PCs damage anything (the chairs, the wallpaper, etc.) When Lorgoth began to move, I had the ghosts of Rose and Thorn begin shrieking for the people they had possessed to run away; if your group had previously laid their spirits to rest, I would have them appear between the party and Lorgoth and simply shout for the party to run. All this can be achieved in 6-10 hours of playing. This probably explains why he loves story-driven games so much. Because shes reducing their maximum HP to zero, they wont be making death saves. Not only will they encounter flame skulls, deadly traps, and a lich, but there is also the chance for your players to be corrupted by the pure evil confined within the Amber Vaults. Give little clues or observations that are simply meant to unnerve the players. Death House says the children know theyre dead, so run with that concept. Its possible to have been a good person who now lives a life of fear and misery as a result of another persons evil actions. "Death House" will run your player characters through levels 1-3 if they survive. Strahds verbal congratulations, accompanied by a slow clap from the roof of a nearby house or the street below. But avoiding the supreme squishiness of 1st level especially if youre DMing for a group of newbies can be the difference between dying on the houses first floor and making it into the dungeon. Give the party a chance to rest and level up (if they started at level 1) before they work their way to the Dungeon Level.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'tabletopjoab_com-leader-1','ezslot_12',135,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tabletopjoab_com-leader-1-0'); In the Dungeon Level, the party will encounter a Grick and several undead. Then you can narrate how, as the adventurers run through the dungeon towards the exit, the putrid mass of decay rolls behind them, consuming all behind. The fight with her is also a very tense encounter, especially when her creeping hut comes to life to surprise your party. Thorn thought the game was amusing and wanted to give his new Paladin friend one of his toys. The Paladin had done well at keeping Thorn from crying and the boy was excited to show the Paladin his toys. He's a postgraduate from Bournemouth University, having studied Scriptwriting. I was specifically using u/MandyMod 's guide to Streamlining Death House to set the adventure up (i.e. As written, the nursemaid is not only a lethal character who could potentially destroy a 1st- or 2nd-level adventurer with fewhit points with her Life Drain ability, but shes also a horror trope the cast aside, wronged woman who returns as a vengeful ghost. Id greatly recommend also checking out my article on running horror in your own D&D 5e games! This subreddit serves as a helpful place for anyone running the Curse of Strahd module for D&D 5e. While frightening at first, it quickly loses its charm. 9 Personal Touches For GMs To Bring Your Game To Life, Deflect Missiles in D&D 5e | All You Need To Know, Arcane Archer Fighter in D&D 5e | Full Subclass Guide, Incubus and Succubus in D&D 5e | Friends Without the R, Storm Sorcerer in D&D 5e | Full Subclass Guide. 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