This weekend’s Curse of Strahd session was truly one for the books, as our party finds themselves cornered and makes some interesting decisions…

In these session prep posts, I go over what I did to prepare for my monthly CoS sessions. I also talk a bit about what happened and what I need to prep for next time!

What I prepped:

Recap

Another short recap were we reviewed what happened last session and where they had left off in Castle Ravenloft. The party is dealing with an immediate problem, so the recap just updates them on their present situation.

Reviewed follower abilities

I read back over the followers/retainers section of MCDM’s Strongholds & Followers to make sure we were running them correctly. This helped me remember a few things about follower progression, which was good for the players since their retainers could level up.

Edited Ismark’s stats

The party found Ismark, but he didn’t have any of his normal gear on them. I addressed that by editing his attack and AC to reflect what they had given him post-rescue. I had to do the same for Ireena when they found her this session as well.

What I improvised:

Strahd encounter

The party was able to find their NPC buddies and progress through more of Castle Ravenloft. They got pretty close to the exit. But after dealing with multiple encounters, the party was already pretty worn out by the time they walked into a fight with eight gargoyles. They finished the fight and were dearly in need of rest—but where?

After they talked for a long time, Strahd made his appearance.

He spoke with the party long enough for them to realize that they were cornered. They needed a plan. So, Sirya (our drow rogue) took the tome of Strahd and offered herself and the book in exchange for the rest of the party’s freedom. With an argument like that and a natural 20 in Persuasion, Strahd seemed to agree to this arrangement… for now. And thus the rest of the party was escorted out of the castle.

Lolth’s favor

During the gargoyle encounter, Sirya once again beseeched Lolth, the spider goddess of the drow. It took several checks and some luck, but she did reach her. After warning Sirya that this was the last time she could help, Lolth granted Sirya another one-time use boon. She hasn’t used it yet, but we’ll see what happens!

What I’ll prep for next time:

Party split considerations—outside and inside the castle

So, the party is split up now. Sirya has remained in Castle Ravenloft at the mercy of Strahd. And Kara, Ismark, Ireena, and Korina have been allowed to walk free… for now.

I’ve got to figure out how we’ll pace out the next sessions. Pacing gets complicated when the party is split up, because a one-week travel montage for one side may not work for the other side of things.

Thanks for reading!