An adventure for five 1st-level heroes.

The heroes begin in the town of Wend on the night before Highharvesttide, an annual feast and holiday celebration. The local inns are full for the night, and the heroes find shelter in the stable of the Nightmare’s Bridle, a ramshackle tavern on the outskirts of town.

When the relics they carry sense the presence of Death House, however, the heroes are led through Wend’s rainy streets and into the house’s waiting threshold.

Once inside, the heroes are trapped and told that a monster will hunt them down once it awakens. They have six hours to find it first and either appease it with a suitable sacrifice—or kill it. As they explore the house, they come to learn the house’s lurid history, as well as the true identity of the beast that lurks beneath.

If the heroes kill the monster, the house begins to collapse, forcing them to flee or be lost in the rubble. Upon emerging, they find that their surroundings have changed, transporting them to the darkened land of Barovia.

A1. Wend

A1a. The Nightmare’s Bridle

If one or more of your heroes are using the Barovian Relics hook, read the following text. Otherwise, proceed to #A2. Death House below.

Invite the heroes to describe each character's appearance and countenance, how they’ve positioned themselves, and how they’ve arranged their belongings.

When the heroes have finished introducing themselves, read:

One by one, the heroes’ relics then react as follows, in the following order.

• Stone Crest. The crest emits a low hum and smells of pine needles and earthy soil, which both grow stronger when the crest is moved toward Death House.
• Broken Blade. The blade emits a high-pitched hum and begins to tremble violently, spinning like a compass needle in the direction of Death House.
• Dragon's Scale. The scale burns icy cold, one end glowing with a bright, silver light in the direction of Death House.
• Sunrise Medallion. The medallion shines with a warm, golden glow, emitting rays of bright light in the direction of Death House.
• Amber Shard. The shard glows with amber light and tugs its cord in the direction of Death House.
• Wolf's Tooth. The tooth lengthens, glowing with silver moonlight, and tugs its cord in the direction of Death House.
• Crumpled Page. The ink on the page glows with amber light, the runes reshaping themselves into a map that shows the page's location—and an arrow that guides toward Death House.
• Tattered Banner. The sound of war-drums fills the air, and the banner blows in an unseen wind in the direction of Death House.
• Electrum Coin. The coin lands on its edge and begins rolling across the muddy cobblestones in the direction of Death House.
• Angel's Feather. The feather is swept away by an unseen wind, its barbs glimmering with golden light as it twirls through the streets toward Death House.
• Raven's Feather. The feather is swept away by the wind, its shadow seeming to dance in the air, as it twirls through the streets toward Death House.
• Wanderer's Scarf. The scarf is carried away by the wind, its patterns shifting and turning in the air as it whirls through the streets toward Death House.

If the heroes give chase, read:

This is Death House.

A2. Death House

If one or more of your heroes are using the Lost in the Mists hook, read the following text. Otherwise, proceed to #A2a. The Arrival below.

A2a. The Arrival

Entrance

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 1.

Read all heroes the following text:

Any heroes who began with the Barovian Relics hook can now see the heroes who began with the Lost in the Mists hook, and vice-versa. (If any of the heroes’ relics flew or rolled to Death House—as with the wanderer’s scarf or the electrum coin—they land on the house’s threshold, just beyond the portico.) The street is otherwise deserted.

The entrance beyond the portico is otherwise as described in Entrance (p. 212):

Features of Death House

• Ceilings are 2 squares above the floor.
• The whole house is magical, mostly because it's powerfully haunted. Most things in the house, however, are real, and not illusory—the magically conjured food in the dining room, for example, is mundane once it is on the table, and can be eaten normally.
• A void elementalist might sense that the house's magic can make the past real again, and that the house is not fully in the world the heroes came from—something like a mage's tower, where the inside is bigger because it's a pocket dimension. (From the outside, the front door leads into the pocket dimension of Death House; from the inside, the front door leads out into Barovia. Crucially, this means that a void elementalist looking at the front door from outside the house can't tell that the house will transport the heroes to Barovia.)

Main Hall

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 2.

When the heroes pass through Death House’s threshold, any Barovian relics they carry cease to be active. (For example, the sunrise medallion ceases to glow.)

The main hall is largely as described in Main Hall (p. 212) but now contains a grandfather clock, which is placed in the circular space at the base of the stairs.

Instead of a longsword, the portrait of the Durst family from Upper Hall (p. 213) now hangs above the fireplace. In the portrait, Thorn is holding a smiling doll wearing a yellow lace dress. A plaque beneath the portrait reads: Mr. Gustav and Mrs. Elisabeth Durst, with their two children, Rosavalda and Thornboldt.¹ The decorative paneling follows the staircase as it circles upward to the second floor.

Shortly after all of the heroes enter the main hall, the front door slams shut, extinguishing all lights in the house. The sound of the rain outside completely vanishes, leaving the house eerily silent.

Bloody letters then begin appearing on the southern wall, just above the marble staircase. They read as follows:

The grandfather clock then strikes six o’clock.

A hero who opens any outside-facing door or curtain in Death House, or who exits onto any balcony, finds that the exterior of the house has been surrounded by thick, fleshy tendrils. Although the tendrils can be damaged, more grow back swiftly to replace them, sealing the heroes inside. A hero who inspects the tendrils finds that they appear to be extruding from beneath the house.

A2b. The First Floor

Cloakroom

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 2.

A hero who investigates the cloakroom adjoining the Main Hall can observe an envelope poking from the pocket of one of the cloaks. The envelope, which is addressed to Lady Lovina Wachter, contains an invitation. It reads:

Den of Wolves

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 3.

This room is largely as described in Den of Wolves (p. 212). As the heroes enter this room, read:

If the heroes proceed, read:

The discarded toys are small, plush gray wolves, whose threadbare coats show evidence of heavy mending and patchwork. Clumsy stitchwork on their stomachs reads ROSE and THORN, respectively.

The lock on the east cabinet can be picked with a Medium Agility test. In addition to its other contents (a heavy crossbow, a light crossbow, a hand crossbow, and a quiver of ammunition for each weapon), the east cabinet contains a quiver of Silvered Ammunition mixed in with the other bolts.

The north cabinet is unlocked and holds a small box containing a deck of playing cards and an assortment of wine glasses. The north cabinet also contains a mounted piece of child's needlework that depicts a boy and girl holding the hands of a young woman, alongside clumsily stitched words that read FOR MISS KLARA. The young woman's face has been slashed and cut out.

The first time that no heroes are looking at them, the three taxidermied wolves move. When the heroes next look at them, the large gray wolf is standing beside the smaller brown wolf, and the first gray wolf has turned its snarl toward the others.

A hero who examines the wolves can make a Reason or Intuition test. (A hero with the Nature skill automatically learns the Tier 2 result without having to roll.)

Trapdoor

A trapdoor is hidden in the southwest corner of the floor. It can't be detected or opened until the characters approach it from the underside (see #Hidden Trapdoor). Until then, Death House supernaturally hides the trapdoor.

Dining Room

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 5.

Heroes that approach this door can hear the muffled sound of a lively dinner feast, including clinking glasses, quiet laughter, and distant conversation. If the heroes open or knock on the door, however, the room falls silent, leaving only the stillness and the cold grandeur of the room beyond.

This room is largely as described in Dining Room (p. 213). When the heroes enter it, read:

A hero who partakes in the food suffers no ill effects. The silverware tarnishes, the crystal cracks, the portrait fades, and the tapestry rots if removed from the house.

Kitchen and Pantry

This scene corresponds to Appendix B: Area 4.

This room is largely as described in Kitchen and Pantry (p. 213). When the heroes enter this room, read:

If the heroes inspect the cookware, they find that the largest kitchen knife is missing.

Dumbwaiter

The dumbwaiter is as described in Kitchen and Pantry (p. 213). A character of size 1S or smaller can squeeze into the dumbwaiter without making a test; creatures of size 1M or larger must succeed on a medium Agility test to squeeze into the dumbwaiter. The dumbwaiter's rope-and-pulley mechanism can support the weight of one hero before breaking.

Pantry

A hero who enters the pantry finds that one of the shelves contains a set of beautiful decorative plates painted with pictures of windmills. One of the plates appears to have been knocked off of the shelf and lies in shattered pieces on the floor, leaving an empty spot in the row of plates.

A few inches behind the empty spot on the shelf sits an antique copper pot, its lid slightly ajar. Peeking out from beneath the lid is the cork of what appears to be a bottle of wine.

A hero who opens the pot finds it to contain a bottle of wine, a folded piece of delicate lace, a vial of a brownish dried powder, and a bouquet of wilted sunflowers tied to a small scroll of parchment.

• The wine's label shows that it is from the Wizard of Wines winery and provides the name of the wine: Champagne du le Stomp. (A hero that drinks the wine finds it to have turned to vinegar, as though it has magically aged centuries in mere moments.)
• The piece of lace bears the initial "K" sewn onto one corner.
• The brown powder has a strange smell.
• The parchment scroll reads: "For the light of my life. —G."

A2c. The Second Floor

Upper Hall

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 6.

This room is largely as described in Upper Hall (p. 213). When the players enter this room, read:

Servants’ Room

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 7.

This room is largely as described in Servants’ Room (p. 213). When the heroes enter this room, read:

The basket contains a man's laundry, including fine suits, tunics, neckties, pants, and stockings. However, a single, much-smaller woman's slip appears to have been mixed in with the rest.

Dumbwaiter

The dumbwaiter is as described in #Kitchen and Pantry.

Conservatory

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 10.

Heroes that approach this door can hear the faint sound of a harpsichord playing from beyond the doors. If the heroes open or knock on the door, however, the music falls silent.

This room is largely as described in Conservatory (p. 214). When the heroes enter it, read:

The Harpsichord. A hero who inspects the harpsichord finds that one of the keys appears to be permanently pressed in the "down" position. A hero who investigates the interior of the harpsichord finds the cause: a rolled-up piece of parchment tucked beneath one of the strings.

The parchment is a piece of handwritten sheet music for the harpsichord titled Waltz for Klara. If the sheet music is played on the harpsichord, read:

A hero who inspects the fallen figurines finds that the toppled figurine has cracked across its face, arms, and torso, and depicts a young and slender female dancer. The shattered figurine has broken into dozens of pieces, and appears to have once depicted a comely, older man. A third, female dancer figurine remains defiantly standing atop the mantelpiece where all three once stood.

Playing Waltz for Klara also causes the bookshelf—not the door behind it—in the #Library to swing open, exposing the locked secret door beyond. (The scraping sound is the sound of the bookshelf scraping against the floor.)

Library

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 8.

This room is largely as described in Library (p. 213-14). When the heroes enter this room, read:

The Desk. A handwritten note sits atop the desk. It reads:

The top drawer of the desk now contains a number of receipts for candles, daggers, and incense, rather than the key to #Children’s Room.

If the first hero to search the library did not find the fake book, another hero can do so with a medium Intuition test; if this also fails, the heroes can spend an additional twenty minutes searching the room to find the secret door.

The Secret Door

The secret door in this room has two components. First, a hero must pull on the switch as described above. Doing so causes the bookshelf to swing forward, revealing a blank wooden wall behind it.

Once the bookshelf has been moved, the heroes can see a small panel made of dark wood behind it, built into the wall at approximately chest level. A small hollow niche, jagged and irregular, lies at the panel's center and emanates a faint amber glow.

The door cannot be opened unless the amber shard from the #Master Suite is placed into the niche. The secret door then swings open, allowing the heroes to enter the #Secret Room.

Unless the secret door is propped open, springs in the hinges cause it to close on its own.

Secret Room

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 9.

This room is largely as described in Secret Room (p. 214). When the heroes enter this room, read:

Close inspection reveals that the skeleton belongs to a human who triggered a poisoned dart trap. Three darts are stuck in the dead adventurer's armor and ribcage. The dart-firing mechanism inside the chest no longer functions.

The chest no longer contains the deed to Old Bonegrinder. Additionally, change Strahd’s letter to read as follows:

The heroes do not recognize the name "Strahd von Zarovich."

A2d. The Third Floor

As the heroes ascend the spiral stairs to the third floor, remind them that they can see down the center of the staircase all the way to the bottom floor.

Balcony

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 11.

This room is largely as described in Balcony (p. 214). When the heroes enter this room, read:

The Animated Armor triggers when any hero steps within 1 square of it. When triggered, the Animated Armor attempts to push the heroes over the railing.

A creature that is pushed over the edge of the balcony falls two stories, or 4 squares, and takes 8 damage and lands prone (reduced by the hero's Agility as normal).

Secret Door

If detected by an Intuition test as above, the secret door pushes open easily to reveal a cobweb-filled wooden staircase leading up to the attic.

Master Suite

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 12.

When a hero first approaches this door, read:

This room is largely as described in Master Suite (p. 214). When the heroes enter this room, read:

The Bed. A hero that approaches the bed can see that a large, bloodstained kitchen knife has been driven into one of the pillows.

The Jewelry Box. The jewelry box is empty of valuables. Instead, it is filled with grain, with an amber shard resting in the center of the box. (This amber shard is the unique key to the secret door in the #Library.)

A roll of parchment is half-buried in the grain beside the shard. If unfurled, it reads as follows:

See Elisabeth's Amber Shard in #Ritual Chamber below for more information about the amber shard.

The Balcony. A hero that exits the bedroom onto the balcony sees only a wall of fleshy tendrils encompassing the exterior of the house. The tendrils are as described in #Main Hall.

Dumbwaiter

The dumbwaiter is as described in #Kitchen and Pantry.

Bathroom

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 13.

This room is as described in Bathroom (p. 215).

Storage Room

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 14.

This room is largely as described in Storage Room (p. 215). When the heroes enter this room, read:

When a hero first approaches within 1 square of the animated broom, it attacks with surprise as soon as they avert their eyes or turn away, thwacking them once upside the head and dealing 2 damage. It then immediately returns to its initial position—now cobweb-free. The broom has 3 Stamina. On its future turns, if for some reason the heroes haven't destroyed it, the broom continues to attack any hero not looking at it who remains within 1 square, but does not take opportunity attacks against heroes that move away.

Nursemaid’s Suite

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 15.

This room is largely as described in Nursemaid’s Suite (p. 217). When the heroes enter it, read:

The Bed. A hero that removes the covers from the bed finds that there is nothing beneath them. Instead, the hero only finds a bloodstained mattress and crude hand-and-foot restraints made from barbed wire nailed to the four posts of the bed frame.

The Doors. A hero that exits the bedroom through the stained-glass doors and onto the balcony sees only a wall of fleshy tendrils encompassing the exterior of the house. The tendrils are as described in #Main Hall.

The Book. The book is a cobwebbed copy of a raunchy romance novel titled Blue-Blooded Lips. It tells the story of a peasant woman's romance with a wealthy duke.

The Nursery. The door to the nursery is closed. A hero who approaches the door hears a young woman's quiet humming. (A hero who has previously read or heard the song in the #Conservatory recognizes the melody as Waltz for Klara.)

If a hero enters the nursery, the humming abruptly cuts off. Read:

The object is a severed human finger with several pieces of flesh stripped from it. Tiny toothmarks can be seen around the wounds.

The name "Walter" has been lovingly carved into the head of the crib.

The Mirror. The nursemaid’s specter does not appear in this room. Instead, when a hero approaches the mirror, the nursemaid’s spirit appears as an apparition in the glass.

The spirit resembles a pale, skeletally thin young woman, with all of her fingers and toes removed, her eyes sewn shut, and her lips and teeth torn from her mouth. Countless knife-thin scars line her entire body, including the flesh around her wrists and ankles, and her hair has been carelessly hacked to stubble.

Though its appearance is disturbing, heroes observing the spirit feel that it is simply observing them with shy curiosity.

The spirit can neither speak aloud nor exit the mirror. However, it shows no hostility toward the heroes, and can answer basic questions by nodding or shaking its head. It knows everything that the nursemaid did in life. It shows fear at any mention of Mrs. Durst’s name, sorrow at any mention of Mr. Durst’s, melancholic fondness at any mention of Rose or Thorn, and despair at any mention of Walter.

If the heroes ask the spirit for aid in reaching the basement or finding the “monster,” the spirit steps aside—vanishing from sight—and the secret door behind the mirror slowly swings open. The spirit does not return.

The secret door pushes open easily to reveal a cobweb-filled wooden staircase leading up to the attic.

A2e. The Attic

Attic Hall

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 16.

This room is largely as described in Attic Hall (p. 215). When the heroes enter this room, read:

The opening door leads to the #Spare Bedroom.

The padlock on the door to the #Children’s Room can be picked with a medium Agility test.

Spare Bedroom

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 17.

This room is largely as described in Spare Bedroom (p. 215). The doll from Children’s Room (p. 215-16) can be found here. When the heroes first enter this room, read:

The heroes can recognize the doll as the same doll that Thorn was holding in the family portrait in the #Main Hall.

The music box contains a rusted, bloodstained skinning knife as well as the key to the padlock on Rose and Thorn's bedroom door.

The music box also contains two curled-up pieces of parchment. The first parchment shows a basic floor plan split into three rectangles labeled QUARTERS, SHRINE, and ALTAR. QUARTERS and SHRINE are connected at the top by a single line, and at the bottom by a double line, which connects both to ALTAR. The second parchment contains a list of unfamiliar names beneath the word RECRUITMENT.

As the heroes exit the room, the rocking chair begins to rock softly and the music box opens and begins to play. The sound of motherly humming floats through the air for two measures, but grows off-key and distorted before coming to a violent, screeching halt. The rocking chair then stops rocking.

Children’s Room

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 20.

The door to this room is locked from the outside. The key can be found in #Spare Bedroom.

This room is largely as described in Children’s Room (p. 215-16).

The dollhouse only contains rooms within the house itself and does not depict the dungeon levels below.

Rose and Thorn

If either the dollhouse or the toy chest is disturbed, the ghosts of Rose and Thorn appear in the middle of the room.

The children don't like it when the characters disturb their toys, but they fight only in self-defense. They know that they're dead. If asked how they died, Rose and Thorn explain that their parents locked them in the attic to protect them from "the monster in the basement," and that they died from hunger.

In life, Rose was a budding wizard who discovered a small spellbook in her father’s library, and took great care in copying a few Arcane Tricks (as in the perk) into her diary.⁴

As the ghost children speak with the heroes, Thorn levitates one of his toys into the air, which falls. Rose swiftly uses her Arcane Trick to magically catch the toy and safely lower it to the ground. If her use of magic is remarked upon, she shyly shares her diary’s location, which can be found hidden in the cobweb-covered pillowcase on her bed.

In addition to her cantrips, Rose’s aged and faded diary also contains entries regarding her studies, her friends, her younger brother, her nursemaid (“Miss Klara”), and arguments between her mother and father. (Rose doesn't know anything about the content of those fights.)

Rose knows the way down to the basement, but “isn’t supposed to go down there.” If the party convinces her to show them the way, she points them toward the dollhouse, revealing the secret entry. In exchange, she asks the heroes to take her and Thorn's bones with them when they escape, burying them in the garden outside.

When the secret door in the dollhouse is revealed, Thorn shyly asks the heroes if he and Rose can accompany them downstairs to aid them, and attempts to possess a friendly hero if permitted. When Rose or Thorn attempts to possess a hero, describe it as “a child’s tiny hand, desperately seeking the touch of another soul.”

If one of the ghosts possesses a character, allow the player to retain control of the character, but assign the character one of the following flaws:

• A character possessed by Rose gains the following flaw: "I like being in charge and get angry when other people tell me what to do."
• A character possessed by Thorn gains the following flaw: "I'm scared of everything, including my own shadow, and weep with despair when things don't go my way."

A hero possessed by Rose temporarily gains the Arcane Trick perk, while a hero possessed by Thorn temporarily gains the Invisible Force perk. (These perks go away once the possession ends.)

Storage Room

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 18.

This room is largely as described in Storage Room (p. 215). When the heroes enter this room, read:

Under the sheets is a lot of old furniture (chairs, coat racks, standing mirrors, dress mannequins, and the like).

A hero who opens the trunk finds the skeletal remains of the nursemaid's body.

A hero inspecting the remains feels a cold breath on their shoulder and the unshakeable sense of being watched. Meanwhile, if another hero has previously uncovered a nearby mirror from its sheet covering, that hero can see an apparition of Elisabeth Durst within the mirror staring at the hero near the chest. Once observed, the apparition swiftly vanishes.

Secret Door

A secret door in the east wall appears only when certain conditions are met; see #Secret Stairs.

Guest Bedroom

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 19.

This room is as described in Spare Bedroom (p. 215).

Secret Stairs

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 21.

The secret door and shaft don't exist until the house reveals them, which can happen in one of two ways:

• The characters find Strahd's letter in the #Secret Room behind the #Library (area 9).
• The characters find the replica secret door in the attic of the dollhouse in the #Children’s Room (area 20).

Once the house wills the secret door into existence, characters find it automatically if they search the wall (no test required).

This room is largely as described in Secret Stairs (p. 217). However, opening the secret door reveals only a stone slab on the opposite side, inset with a small bronze panel at approximately chest level. A small hollow niche identical to the one in the library lies at the panel's center, emanating a faint amber glow. When the niche is exposed, the amber shard from the #Master Suite glimmers faintly and swings in the air toward it, as though held aloft by an unseen force.

To allow the stone slab to swing open and reveal the hidden stairs on the opposite side, the heroes must place the amber shard into the niche.

When the heroes enter this room, read:

As the heroes descend the stairs, read:

Characters who descend the spiral staircase end up in area 22.

Milestone. Descending into Death House's dungeon level completes a story milestone. When the party exits the secret stairs, award each hero 1 Victory.

A2f. The Basement

Dungeon Features

• The dungeon level underneath Death House is carved out of earth, clay, and rock.
• The tunnels are 1 square wide by 1 square high with timber braces at 1-square intervals.
• Rooms are 2 squares tall and supported by thick wooden posts with crossbeams.
• The only exception is area 38 (#Ritual Chamber), which has a 3-square-high ceiling supported by stone pillars.
• The dungeon is unlit. Heroes carry torches, and can light one as a maneuver. A torch provides a 2 aura of light.
• As the characters explore the dungeon, they see centuries-old human footprints in the earthen floor leading every which way.
• From the moment they arrive in the dungeon, the characters can hear an eerie, incessant chant echoing throughout. It's impossible to gauge where the sound is coming from until the characters reach area 26 (#Hidden Spiked Pit) or 29 (#Ghoulish Encounter).

Family Crypts

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 23.

These rooms are largely as described in Family Crypts (p. 217-18). Removing a slab from a crypt requires a medium Might test.

As the heroes approach the Empty Crypt and Walter’s Crypt, read:

If the heroes enter the Empty Crypt, read:

If the heroes enter Walter’s Crypt, read:

Heroes who have previously read or heard the song recognize the melody of the humming as Waltz for Klara.

As the heroes approach Gustav’s Crypt and Elisabeth’s Crypt, read:

If the heroes enter Gustav’s Crypt, read:

If the heroes enter Elisabeth’s Crypt, read:

If the heroes disturb the coffin, an angry swarm of insects attacks.

As the heroes approach Rose’s Crypt and Thorn’s Crypt, read:

If the heroes enter either crypt, read:

The heroes cannot help Rose or Thorn’s ghosts find peace by placing their remains in their coffins. Neither Rose nor Thorn finds these crypts comforting. Both prefer to leave as quickly as possible.

Cult Initiates’ Quarters

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 24.

This room is largely as described in Cult Initiates’ Quarters (p. 218).

As the heroes move to descend to the Well and Cultist Quarters (p. 218), a sudden splashing sound can be heard—which then quickly subsides.

Well and Cultist Quarters

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 25.

This room is largely as described in Well and Cultist Quarters (p. 218). When the heroes enter this room, read:

The well comprises a 1-square-diameter well shaft with a 3-foot-high stone lip, and descends 6 squares to a water-filled cistern. A wooden bucket hangs from a rope-and-pulley mechanism bolted to the cross beams above the well. The interior of the shaft is covered with an ash-black species of fungi.

If the heroes toss an object down the well and then turn away, they hear loud splashing and tearing sounds coming from below. When they turn back, the object has been torn to pieces, with large parts missing.

Side Rooms

Five side rooms once served as quarters for senior cultists. Each contains a wood-framed bed with a moldy straw mattress and a wooden chest to hold personal belongings. Each chest is secured with a rusty iron padlock that can be picked with a medium Agility test.

In addition to some worthless personal effects, each chest contains one or more valuable items. Remember that Draw Steel doesn't care about individual coins, so no need to track precise amounts; however, all together, the items in the cultist quarters are enough to increase one hero's Wealth to 1.

Replace the silvered shortsword in footlocker 25E with a book bound in grimy black leather. This journal, which is signed by Drasha, contains a list of names and physical descriptions associated with each name. Each entry includes gruesome details describing the victim’s sacrifice, such as “struggled profusely” or “no sedative given,”¹ and ends with the phrase, "Fed to Walter."

Hidden Spiked Pit

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 26.

This room is largely as described in Hidden Spiked Pit (p. 218). If the heroes enter this area from #Well and Cultist Quarters, read:

If the heroes enter this area from #Dining Hall, read:

If the heroes enter this area from #Ghoulish Encounter, read:

The spiked pit trap triggers when any creature of size 1S or larger enters its area.

Dining Hall

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 27.

When the heroes enter this room, read:

Larder

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 28.

This area is largely as described in Larder (p. 218).

The warped remains of Gustav Durst’s flayed corpse are coiled on the ceiling, and the Flayed Corpse drops onto its victim when they enter.

If the heroes disturb the flayed corpse, read:

The sound of combat attracts the attention of the ghouls in #Ghoulish Encounter, if they haven't already been destroyed. The ghouls join the combat encounter at the start of the second round.

As the ghouls attack, they mindlessly repeat any or all of the following phrases:

• “Beautiful. We’re so beautiful.”
• “We are perfect. We are immortal.”
• “Help us live forever.”

Ghoulish Encounter

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 29.

When the heroes first approach this area, read:

When a hero first enters one of the squares at the entrance of the corridors, six ghouls rise up out of the ground around the intersection and attack. The noise of combat attracts the attention of the flayed corpse in #Larder, if they haven't already been destroyed. The flayed corpse joins combat at the beginning of the second round.

As the ghouls attack, they mindlessly repeat any or all of the following phrases:

• “Beautiful. We’re so beautiful.”
• “We are perfect. We are immortal.”
• “Help us live forever.”

If the heroes continue down the corridor, read:

Stairs Down

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 30.

When the heroes approach this area, read:

Darklord’s Shrine

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 31.

This room is largely as described in Darklord’s Shrine (p. 218). In addition, when the heroes enter this room, read:

A hero that approaches the orb can hear many voices whispering the following phrases:

• “His gaze burns upon us.”
• “The Darklord’s eyes are always watching.”

Additionally, that hero’s shadow begins to writhe and twist, its edges growing tattered and blurred as it lashes erratically across the floor. A hero who touches the orb feels as though a “dark, ancient evil” has suddenly turned its eye upon them.

If the orb is removed from its position, the ashen severed shadows upon the walls begin to stir. Each round, up to two of the shadows “awaken,” swooping across the walls. As they awaken, they murmur and moan the following phrases:

• “Begone from this place!”
• “Look not upon us.”
• “Return the Darklord’s offering!”

Once all shadows have awoken, they attack, with each shadow preferring to target a different hero. If the orb is returned to its place on the statue, the shadows return to their original positions and become dormant once more.

The skeletons on the wall are harmless decor.

Concealed Door

Characters searching the room for secret doors find a concealed door in the middle of the east wall with a successful easy Intuition test. (The consequence for most poor results on tests in Death House is that the heroes take a long time to search, and the clock ticks ever closer to midnight.) It's basically an ordinary (albeit rotted) wooden door hidden under a layer of clay.

Hidden Trapdoor

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 32.

This room is largely as described in Hidden Trapdoor (p. 219). The concealed door can be found with an easy Intuition test. When the heroes find and enter this area, read:

Cult Leader’s Den

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 33.

When the heroes enter this room, read:

There are no monsters here.

Cult Leader’s Quarters

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 34.

When the heroes enter this room, read:

The wardrobe contains several old robes, a pair of iron candlesticks, and an open crate containing thirty torches and a leather sack with fifteen candles inside it. A rotting aroma also emanates from a pair of rotted organs—a half-eaten liver and a gnawed intestine—lying hidden beneath the hems of the robes.

Folded inside the foot locker, on top of its other contents, is the recognizable flayed skin of Gustav Durst. When the foot locker is opened, the skin springs out to attack the nearest creature. The skin has 10 Stamina.

No monsters (other than the skin) attack if a hero removes any items from the foot locker, and there are no hidden cavities behind the walls.

A2g. The Dungeon

Reliquary

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 35.

This room is largely as described in Reliquary (p. 219). When the heroes enter this room, read:

Prison

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 36.

When the heroes enter this room, read:

Portcullis

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 37.

When the heroes approach this area, read:

The wooden wheel that opens the portcullis remains on the western side of the gate (i.e., the side facing the #Ritual Chamber). However, the chain-link mechanism to open the portcullis has broken, preventing the heroes from proceeding without repairing it (e.g., with a medium Reason test using the Blacksmithing or Mechanics skill) or lifting the portcullis by hand with a medium Might test. (If the heroes lift the portcullis by hand and then release it, its weight causes it to shut once more unless propped open.)

Ritual Chamber

This scene takes place in Appendix B: Area 38.

The water is several feet deep and should be treated as difficult terrain for size 1M creatures or smaller. The ledges and central dais are 1 square higher than the floor, and the chamber's ceiling is 3 squares high (2 squares above the dais and ledges). The chains dangling from the ceiling are 1 square long.

When the heroes enter this room, read:

A hero that approaches the altar sees that the words "FEED HIM" are carved into its flat stone surface just below the white bundle, surrounded by several fleshy tendrils inset with human teeth. The tendrils belong to the Flesh Mound, which awakens and attacks if the tendrils are damaged.

The bundle atop the altar is the size and shape of an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes. If unwrapped, the heroes instead find it to hold a rusted, serrated dagger stained red with ancient blood.

The dark shadow in the cave is a Flesh Mound containing Walter’s spirit and remains.¹ It is a swollen, bloated mound of bones, flesh, and gore that seems to breathe as its mass rises and falls. A hero that observes it concludes that it appears to be sleeping.

The cultists' shadows described in “One Must Die!” (p. 220) do not appear when a hero climbs the altar. Instead, the heroes have two choices: sacrifice a living creature on the altar, or attack the flesh mound.

If a creature is sacrificed on the altar, the flesh mound's tendrils accept its corpse and pull it to the mound's lair. There, the mound messily devours it before returning its tendrils to the altar once more. Feeding the mound does not free the heroes, because its hunger cannot be sated.

The flesh mound awakens if attacked. When it does, its subsequent screeching wail causes the earth to tremble, sending the #Portcullis crashing to the ground if it's been opened and damaging the mechanism responsible for opening it.

A creature engulfed by the mound can hear the faint sound of a baby crying at the center of its swollen bulk.

A2h. Escape From Death House

When the flesh mound dies, the heroes can hear the sound of the house’s front door opening far overhead, and the distant thunderstorm beyond.

When the heroes next begin to move toward the exit, read:

The heroes must flee from the ritual chamber to the #Entrance of Death House before the entire structure collapses upon their heads. If they want to escape with their lives, they must engage in a montage test.

This montage test has the following challenges.

The Cult's Return

When the heroes first reach the #Family Crypts or (if they have previously found and opened the hidden trapdoor described in 32. Hidden Trapdoor, p. 219) near the #Darklord’s Shrine, the spirits of the cult arise to stop them. Read:

Heroes can deduce that the cultists are harmless, intangible figments with a medium Intuition test or simply charge through them with a medium Agility test.

Additional Challenges

Falling Debris. Furniture flies about the house, threatening to batter and crush the heroes. Suggested Characteristics: Agility, Intuition. Suggested Skills: Gymnastics, Alertness. Special: This challenge can be attempted twice.

Smoke. Fireplaces and ovens fill the house with poisonous black smoke. Suggested Characteristics: Might, Reason. Suggested Skills: Endurance, Magic.

Crumbling Floors. Walls and floors become rotted and brittle, threatening to give way under the heroes' feet. Suggested Characteristics: Reason, Agility. Suggested Skills: Jump, Architecture.

Scared Children. If possessing the heroes, Rose and Thorn are upset at the appearance of their father and terrified at the state of the house. Suggested Characteristics: Intuition, Presence. Suggested Skills: Empathize, Lead.

Gustav's Ghost

At the end of the first round of the montage, the ghost of Gustav Durst confronts the heroes. Read:

The spirit is recognizable as Gustav Durst. Gustav pleads with the heroes to give up, insisting that Elisabeth will never let them leave the house.

If the heroes attempt to bypass or attack Gustav, a swarm of levitating debris and shrapnel arises around him. He pleads with the heroes again, insisting that he doesn't want to fight them, but that he doesn't know that he has any other choice. If the heroes attack, Gustav summons the shades of dead cultists to fight with him.

The heroes can attempt to negotiate with Gustav to convince him to let them pass peacefully.

If Rose or Thorn are possessing one or more heroes, they can assist with one test during the negotiation, providing an edge.

Negotiation Outcomes

The negotiation has the following outcomes.

If the heroes successfully persuade Gustav to stand aside, he warns them that "her other servants" are lying in wait ahead to block the heroes' escape. "Don't fear them," he says. "Their only power is fear." He then vanishes. Successfully persuading Gustav to stand aside counts as two successes for the montage test.

Interest 5: Gustav is deeply moved by the heroes' pleas, and finds new courage to confront Elisabeth and buy the heroes some time to escape. The heroes earn 1 Victory, gain a success for the montage test, and have a double edge on their next test in the montage.

Interest 4: Gustav is moved by the heroes' arguments and agrees to let them pass unharmed. The heroes earn 1 Victory, gain a success for the montage test, and have an edge on their next test in the montage.

Interest 3: Gustav resigns himself to being trapped in Death House forever, and agrees to let the heroes pass without interference. The heroes earn 1 Victory.

Interest 2: Gustav, clearly despairing, vanishes into the darkness without another word. The heroes' next test in the montage has a bane as Gustav attempts to prevent their escape.

Interest 1: Gustav believes the heroes, though well-meaning, will damn his children to eternal torment; he disappears and aggressively interferes with their escape. The failed negotiation counts as a failure for the montage test, and the heroes' next test in the montage has a double bane.

Interest 0: Gustav believes the heroes selfish and callous, caring only for their own safety above the suffering of all the souls trapped in Death House. Enraged, Gustav summons shades of dead cultists and other servants of the house to attack the heroes. The failed negotiation counts as a failure for the montage test, and the heroes must defeat Gustav in combat before proceeding with the rest of the montage.

Montage Test Outcomes

The montage test has the following possible outcomes.

Total Success: The heroes escape from Death House swiftly and safely, mostly unscathed. The heroes earn 1 Victory each, not including any Victory earned from the negotiation with Gustav.

Partial Success: The heroes escape from Death House, but one of the unquiet spirits of the house throws a bookshelf at the heroes as they run out the front door, dealing 1d10 points of damage to each. The heroes earn 1 Victory each, not including any Victory earned from the negotiation with Gustav.

Total Failure: The house collapses on the heroes. They take catastrophic damage and fall unconscious. Each hero loses 2 Recoveries. If they have only 1 Recovery remaining, they instead lose that Recovery and are weakened until they finish a respite. If they have no Recoveries, they instead are dazed until they finish a respite. When they wake, the heroes find themselves in the Svalich Woods with 1 Stamina each.

A3. Outside Death House

When the heroes exit Death House, the storm overhead has slowed to a mere drizzle, and the mists around the house have disappeared. Night has long since fallen, and the waning moon is high in the sky.

Most surprisingly, the heroes now find themselves in a dark forest clearing at the beginning of the Old Svalich Road (p. 33), rather than in the streets of Wend. The road travels west. To the east lie dark, endless woods filled with the Mists of Ravenloft (p. 23).

The house then collapses into the earth, leaving a dark and bottomless pit behind. If the heroes still have it, Elisabeth Durst's amber shard then crumbles into dust. The pit vanishes the first time the heroes depart the clearing.

If they’re still possessing the heroes, Rose and Thorn’s spirits end their possessions. The children remark that the woods resembles the Svalich Woods, which once surrounded their home—Barovia. However, the children add that these particular woods are unfamiliar to them, and that they seem to be far from their family's original village.

As the heroes explore their surroundings, they can quickly see the top of an old, ruined stone tower poking up through the treetops. The upper floors of the structure have collapsed, leaving heaps of rubble and shattered timber around the tower's base. There is an open doorway on the ground floor.

The heroes can easily surmise that this ruin appears to be a safe place to spend the night, or even take a respite. Rose and Thorn offer to serve as sentries while the heroes rest, watching the woods and awakening the heroes should any threats emerge.

The night passes without issue. When the heroes awaken the following morning, Rose and Thorn ask the heroes if they can bury their remains before proceeding any further, so that they can finally rest. (The children's spirits will not proceed further into Barovia, instead pleading for the heroes to allow them to rest.) If the heroes bury their remains here, the children’s spirits thank them before vanishing.

The heroes can find the beginning of the Old Svalich Road a short ways through the woods away from the tower. Act I - Into the Mists/Arc B - Welcome to Barovia then begins.

Design Notes: Death House

The Arrival. The illusory Rose and Thorn have been intentionally removed from this version of Death House in order to ensure that the heroes enter the house of their own volition and trust the real Durst children upon meeting them.

The countdown and poem have been added to provide the heroes with a clear sense of direction and purpose while exploring the house, and to prevent the heroes from taking a long rest (and therefore disrupting the balance of subsequent combat encounters) while doing so.

The First Floor. The feast in the dining room has been made intentionally harmless in order to encourage the heroes to trust the safety of Strahd's dinner invitation when they later receive it. Additional clues have been added to convey to the heroes the relationships within the Durst family, including Mr. Durst's affair.

The Second Floor. Clues have been added to ease the discovery of the library's secret room and to convey the depth of Mr. Durst's affair, as well as the nursemaid's pregnancy.

The dog Lancelot, a popular community character, has been intentionally cut from Death House to avoid providing the heroes with an easy sacrifice to make at the altar in the ritual chamber—a sacrifice that is no longer functional (because the cult no longer releases the heroes upon making a sacrifice) and which rings hollow when compared to the campaign that follows it (because Strahd's "hunger" cannot be sated.)

The Third Floor. The nursemaid's specter now serves as a vital tool that allows the heroes to find the attic staircase without undue frustration or delay. Additional clues have been added to convey the fate of Walter, Mr. Durst, and the nursemaid.

The Attic. Clues have been added to convey the nursemaid's fate and the founding of Mrs. Durst's cult.

The Dungeon. Several of the encounters in this area have been changed to reduce the probability of a TPK and to teach the heroes to act cautiously and make wise decisions. In the ritual chamber, the cult is no longer willing to accept the sacrifice of a beast (e.g., Lancelot), foreshadowing that Strahd will not be content with Ireena alone.

Escape From Death House. The original "escape from Death House" sequence has been replaced with a pair of social encounters that reward the heroes for investigating the history of the house, and which serve to foreshadow the characterizations of Sergi von Zarovich, Lady Fiona Wachter, and Strahd's brides and servants in the adventure to come.

This guide has intentionally foregone a popular community addition that places a bottle of wine—courtesy of Strahd—at or near the exit of the house. Strahd is not omniscient, and the heroes' efforts to avoid or foil his spies will prove a recurring aspect of gameplay through the adventure. Moreover, Death House is too far from Barovia proper for Strahd to have obtained and delivered a fresh bottle of wine to its location. A villain is only as evocative as their limitations, and Strahd has many.

Finally, it is an intentional design choice of this guide that the heroes do not encounter Strahd directly until their meeting at the River Ivlis Crossroads, which ensures that their relationship with Strahd before then is built solely on rumor, second-hand knowledge, and superstition. Earlier direct exposure would wholly spoil this effect.

Escape Montage. Draw Steel is a cinematic game, and this is the perfect opportunity for a cinematic escape. Challenges from Reloaded and from the original module have been incorporated into a montage, which is, after all, one of the core mechanics of Draw Steel. The montage should, hopefully, preserve the quick-paced action feeling and smooth the heroes' transition to Barovia.

Negotiating with Gustav. The third pillar of Draw Steel! A negotiation has been added to reward the players both narratively and mechanically for investigating the house and the Dursts' story, and to introduce another core mechanic. If your players are anything like mine, this might be a very quick negotiation, as they'll spend the whole thing yelling at Gustav for being a useless father, husband, and partner.