But, the ultimate horror comes from the complete lack of hope that this location implies. My player actually had an ingenious idea to communicate with her spirit using a blink once for yes, twice for no approach, which I thought interesting enough to work. Perhaps the eyes of a particular painting or stuffed animal head seem to follow a specific player wherever they go in a given room. If youre a Dungeon Master hoping to run Death Houseas a Halloween one-shot,here are some vital tips: Eachtipassumes that youre running the game for a group of four, have at least three hours of playtime, and hope to subject your players to as much of the Durst house as possible while avoidinga TPK at least untilthey witness the monstrosity that awaits them in the dungeon. The smoke worked great as a way to keep them moving. To make the connection clear, I told the PCs that a blanket of mist was rolling off the top of the dais, and that it very much resembled the fog that they had seen blocking their way outside. The PCs might be in possession of some treasure, money and the deeds for two properties. This is not a fight encounter. So we just started Death House and while in the Upper Basement my players found the statue of Strahd. (If youre feeling generous, or really want your players to see the entirety of the house in a quick Halloween night of gaming, you could even run it at 3rd level.). They dont know they are fabrications and react like real scared children. Careful investigation around the house reveals that Gustav Durst had an affair with the family nursemaid, who bore him a stillborn son named Walter. This video discusses the death house dungeon encounter disasters that you want to avoid in the curse of strahd adventure for dungeons & dragons 5e. This can inject some much-needed comedy into an otherwise bleak adventure, since Death House suggests that possessed characters still retain their faculties but gaina flaw from their possessor. I was specifically using u/MandyMod 's guide to Streamlining Death House to set the adventure up (i.e. Depending on your group, and how roleplay heavy they are. Death House comes with a beautiful map, but for a quick Halloween game, its faster to avoid all of the deliberations that occur whenever players see a selection of rooms for them to explore. This kept them panicked, tense, and on their toes. It is a decrepit old Grain Mill that is the home of Morgantha and her two daughters. Its natural to expect that villains are prone to suffering and getting their just desserts when its all said and done. Almost parallels Death house. If they arent seizing the chance to be heroes, appeal to their love of coin and youll have all the hook you need. register a sa forums account here! Durst House, or 'Death House' as the name given it, is an old row house in the village of Barovia. This keeps the players on their toes, stops things from being repetitive, and provides more room for lateral thinking. Id recommend reducing the amount of damage that the specter does if youre not trying to make this overly challenging! Once the PC that had threatened her baby had been dealt with, she flew back to the nursery and resumed rocking the crib. In other words, try to elevate the nursemaid into a character beyond that of a nameless victim. Luke is a list writer for TheGamer, based in the UK. Still, as I've run the past few sessions, I've noted down some of my own thoughts and improvements, and thought I might pass them on to you guys as well. The children that the party encounters on the road (Rose and Thorn) are asking for help dealing with whatever entity is inside the house. There's a disappointing truth to Death Housethe prologue to Curse of Strahdand it's that it's alternative ending "The Cult is Denied" is just a dull series of rolls.Each character rolls against poisonous smoke. Thunk me later! Id greatly recommend also checking out my article on running horror in your own D&D 5e games! Did you like this guide? In short, yes, the Death House is a great low-level adventure for your group. Its the Durst Mansion or, if the kids are talking, our home. Nobodys going to eagerly go rushing into something called the Death House. They will close up on them leading them to the Village of Barovia. Add some emotion to the childrens request. The way this adventure works. Few of those presented in this adventure, however, compare to the infamous Death House. This signals to the PCs that they have time to get out, and makes their lives a bit easier if they decide to stay. 34. Hey dude, where are letter 2 and 3 in death house? She deserves more development, especially in a stripped-down Death House emphasizing the evil nature of the Dursts. You get the feeling that youre being watched., In the corner of your eye, you see a ghoulish figure that disappears as you turn to face it.. You might also use less-intimidating artwork for the twins. The Companion dives through every chapter of Curse of Strahd and incorporates Wyatt Trull's mithral-bestselling module, The Wedding at Ravenloft as the campaign's climax. Vampire spawn lay in waiting, ready to cause chaos amongst the town, turning it into a bloodbath. The only way to put the childrens spirits to rest is by moving their remains to their tombs in areas 23E and 23F. Running Curse of Strahd. 29. Dress Up This October With This Month's Free Subscription Perks! Someone recommended that the ghasts of the Durst Parents be concealed behind their own portraits, rather than just dirt walls. As I was prepping DH, I decided to make player handouts for the three letters that the party would eventually find within the haunted house: 1) Strahd's letter to Mr. Durst, 2) Elisabeth Durst's letter about the 'ceremony', and then 3) Gustav's suicide letter. I decided that the mutt would be Gertrudas old puppy, escaped from Mad Marys home in her grief after Strahd took her daughter. my article on running horror in your own D&D 5e games! Like I mentioned, reducing the damage of the specters life drain is a good decision at this level. This subreddit serves as a helpful place for anyone running the Curse of Strahd module for D&D 5e. Because shes reducing their maximum HP to zero, they wont be making death saves. Youll find little elements that serve to foreshadow events to come. 25. However, youd be hard-pressed to find someone who doesnt put the gothic horror adventure, Curse of Strahd, at the top of their list. Don't just drop the players in front of the children, make them go trough the initial adventure hook and trough the Gates Of Barovia. But, this is Strahd's home, and the battle will not be easy. Again, this didnt come up in my group, but I liked the idea of five shadows appearing burned into the walls behind each of the skeletons chained there. These two made invaluable contributions to the session. Death House rebuilds itself if burned down. 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. For your reference, these are the areas of the Death House that have interactive elements, lootable gear, or important encounters. What font did you use for Strahd when you were making these? Consider liking our Facebook page. If you already have level 3 players you can jump right into the action of Barovias encounters. (Quick side note: stop them from immediately going to the Bonegrinder. This is a difficult fight too. Barovia becomes a tomb for all who end up there. Most Barovians steer clear of this location, where they are likely to get lost in the muddy, misty marshes and even encounter terrifying scarecrows. Both DeiGratia and Abuget can be downloaded over at www.dafont.com. Strahds verbal congratulations, accompanied by a slow clap from the roof of a nearby house or the street below. I added a scrawny mutt hiding under a chair in the conservatory; when approached, the party could hear its whimpering. Consider also reducing the number of ghouls and/or shadows in the Dungeon Level. Death House is a classic haunted house tale, starting with two ghostly children pleading for help outside. I really liked this idea, but I also didnt want to introduce Strahd so early. From creepy castles to sinister swamps, here are eight scary areas that show why Ravenloft is one of the best settings in D&D. This is a list of important bits of information, important locations and specific advice to run the different locations in the Death House. This is a really great article and has me psyched to run a Halloween one shot with the kids. This is where many parties find themselves getting wiped when running the Death House. Full Guide to Warlock Pact Boons in D&D 5e, The Legend of the Peasant Railgun in D&D 5e, Attack of Opportunity in D&D 5e Explained, Best Druid Spells By Level: A Top 10 List, I Had an AI Make a D&D Character (and it got really weird! Or just go to r/curseofstrahd (unless you are my players). When Death House is rejected, it gets mad. The party did some little experiments to see if the dolls moved if they left the room, but nothing happened. Where the Death House really stands out is its use of theme. What is it? ! Its important to note that after exiting this place, its unlikely that the adventurers will visit it ever again. Oooh this is actually really neat, love the little modifiers you added. You can start with Mad Marys encounter (page 44). 2023 Wizards. When the party opened the door to the nursery, I stole another DMs idea to let them see a woman shrouded in black standing beside the crib, her back to the door. Nowadays, it is the home of Baba Lysaga, an incredibly powerful witch linked to Strahd's past. This probably explains why he loves story-driven games so much. So what purpose is there behind being a good person then? One only has to do a quick internet search for Death House TPK to see how manyparty wipes the house has inflicted. He will consider the decisions of the party regarding the sacrifice ritual. At the very least, lower their hit points a bit. Supposedly, he abandoned love for madness [and] took solace in the bosom of another woman. What of the nursemaids point of view? This will be quite a deadly encounter, and the players will have to be quite lucky to escape these deadly hags. So theres a certain level of are we going to play D&D? here. 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.. Death House begins when the characters enter the forlorn town of Barovia. If you start at level 2, Id say have them level up to 3 before they proceed into the Dungeon Level. You want this to be fun, scary, and challenging. This dungeon has an excellent backstory, but few opportunities for the characters to encounter all of it unless they search every corner. Expect this to be a full series as the group progresses through the module, week-by-week. Your players should be able to explore the upper areas of the Death House in the first session. Its almost as difficult and disturbing as the Old Bonegrinder in the same adventure! Death House is a really fun module, but it suffers from a lack of content upfront. Rose and Thorns parents would surely be happy to pay the party for saving them! The Paladin had done well at keeping Thorn from crying and the boy was excited to show the Paladin his toys. Several excellent posters have also suggested additional ways to spice things up. If your players find out that the kids are illusions then they wont be trying to help and will believe it is a trap (I mean its obviously a trap but still). We called it "The Curse of the Murderous Mansion.". 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. Luke also has a board game obsession, plays a bunch of D&D, and makes silly videos on YouTube. Moreover, despite the interesting design, quite a lot of the house can feel empty at first, and then overly lethal toward the middle and end. 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. (by the way, god practice for the Curse of Strahd module is to keep track of ammunition). 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