Page 205 - Curse of Strahd_Neat

setting. He was afflicted with werewolf lycanthropy after
winning one of Kiri l's despicable contests. Wencensia
has been tasked with training this newest member of
Kiri l's pack. Casting a greater restoration spell or a re­
move curse spell on Kellen ends his lycanthropy. ZULEIKA ToRANESCU
I
Z6. KIRIL's CAVE

At the back of this cave hangs a curtain made of
I human skin.

When home, Kiri I Stoyanovich sleeps here in wolf form.
Behind the ghastly curtain of stitched flesh is a
10-foot-high, 10-foot-wide tunnel with rough-hewn stairs
leading up, interspersed with landings. The tunnel ends
at a secret door, beyond which lies area Z8. The secret
door is easy to spot from inside the tunnel (no ability
check required).

Z7. SHRINE OF MOTHER NIGHT
each occupied cage can be knocked or lifted off, allow­
ing the cages to be opened. The children are in shock.
Rough-hewn stairs lead down to a torchlit cave and a Those who are set free don't wander far from the char­
bizarre sight: wide-eyed children stand behind wooden acters for fear of being eaten by wolves and werewolves.
bars and stare at you in terrified silence. The cave holds The corpses hanging on the wall behind the statue
six wooden cages, their lids held shut with heavy rocks. are two Barovian adults, a man and a woman, killed by
the pack and presented as offerings to Mother Night.
Two of the cages are empty, and each of the others holds The werewolves consider the feasting maggots to be em­
a pair of frightened children. blematic of Mother Night's "feedings." When the flesh of
A crude wooden statue stands between the cages. It these corpses has been eaten away, the pack searches
bears the rough likeness of a wolf-headed woman draped for new offerings to take their place.
in garlands of vines and night flowers. Piled around
TREASURE
the statue's base is an incredible amount of treasure. The treasure piled around the base of Mother Night's
A woman in shredded clothes kneels before the statue. statue includes:
Behind the statue, two maggot-ridden corpses hang from 4,500 cp, 900 sp, and 250 gp (all coins of mintages
iron shackles bolted to the wall. foreign to Barovia)
Thirty 50 gp gemstones and seven 100 gp gemstones
Twelve pieces of plain gold jewelry (worth 25 gp each)
The ceiling here is 20 feet high. The statue is a crude de­ and a finely wrought gold cloak-pin inlaid with shards
piction of Mother Night. Kneeling before it is a werewolf of jet (worth 250 gp)
in human form named Zuleika Toranescu, who is the An ivory drinking horn engraved with dancing dryads
wife of Emil (see chapter 4, area K75a). Believing her and satyr pipe players (worth 250 gp)
mate to be dead by Strahd's hand, she prays to Mother • An ornate electrurn censer with platinum filigree
Night for guidance, hoping that the goddess might (worth 750 gp)
hold enough sway over Strahd to persuade him to free
her beloved. Anyone who steals from Mother Night is cursed. The
Kiri] has ordered Zuleika to guard the prisoners. If werewolves know this, and thus don't go out of their way
the characters rescue Emil and return him safely to Zu­ to guard the hoard.
leika, she gladly releases the children. If the characters Any creature that takes treasure from this pile is
confirm that Emil is truly dead, either by their hand or haunted by horrible dreams every night lasting from
Strahd's, she still might let the prisoners go if the char­ dusk until dawn. The curse affects only the creature that
acters help her deal with Kiri! Stoyanovich, whom she did the pilfering and isn't passed on to anyone else who
blames above all. Zuleika sees the characters as the an­ might come into possession of the item. Returning a sto­
swer to her prayers and asks them to kill Kiri! when he len item to the treasure pile doesn't end the curse.
returns from his latest hunt (see "Leader of the Pack" in A creature cursed in this way gains no benefit from
the "Special Events" section below). finishing a short or long rest at night (resting during the
Each of the eight children imprisoned here has AC day works normally, since the curse is dormant from
10, 1 hit point, and no effective attacks. To determine a dawn to dusk). A greater restoration or a remove curse
child's age in years, roll ld6 + 6. The rocks piled atop spell cast on the creature ends the curse on it. The
curse on the creature also ends if it leaves Barovia.

CHAPTER 15 I WEREWOLF DEN