Page 42 - Curse of Strahd_Neat

CHAPTER 3: THE VILLAGE OF BAROVIA

HE VILLAGE OF BAROVJA IS THE SADDEST OCCUPANTS OF HOUSES IN BAROVIA
place in the land, its residents so terri­ d20 Occupants
fied of Strahd that they rarely venture
from their homes. The village lies in the 1-3 None
shadow of Castle Raven loft, buried under 4-8 2d4 swarms of rats
fog but still unable to hide from the vam­ 9-16 Barovian villagers
pire's sight. 17-20 2d4 Strahd zombies (see appendix D)
Until recently, Strahd had been paying nightly visits
to lreena Kolyana, the adopted daughter of the village RATS
burgomaster. Ireena carries the soul of Strahd's beloved A house infested with rats looks abandoned. The rats
Tatyana and looks exactly like her. Strahd intends to are servants of Strahd and attack if the characters ex­
make Ireena his bride, turn her into a vampire, and lock plore the interior of the house.
her away in the castle crypts for all time.
BAROVIAN VILLAGERS
APPROACHING THE VILLAGE A house of Barovian villagers is home to ld4 adults (LG

When the characters first approach the village, read: male and female human commoners) and ld8 - 1 chil­
dren (LG male and female noncombatants). Characters
who listen at the door hear low, muffled whispers from
Tall shapes loom out of the dense fog that surrounds ev­ within. These villagers aren't interested in speaking
erything. h e muddy ground underfoot gives way to slick, with strangers and never attack first, always fleeing
T
from danger if possible. At night they cower by candle­
wet cobblestones. The tall shapes become recognizable light and keep makeshift holy symbols close at hand.
as village dwellings. The windows of each house stare
out from pools of blackness. No sound cuts the silence STRAHD ZOMBIES
except for mournful sobbing that echoes through the When the characters open a door or a shuttered win­
streets from a distance. dow of a house infested with Strahd zombies, they are
assailed by the stench of death. If the characters dare to
enter, the zombies converge on their location.
The sobbing comes from Mad Mary's townhouse (area
E3). With the exception of areas El and E2, all the
shops in the village are permanently closed, and the un­
occupied shops have been looted of anything valuable.
Claw marks cover most of the walls.
When the fog eventually burns off, Castle Ravenloft
looms over the village, like a lance piercing the sky.

HOUSE OCCUPANTS
If the characters explore a residence other than Mad
Mary's townhouse (area E3) or the burgomaster's man­
sion (area E4), roll a d20 and consult the following table
to determine the house's occupants.

SAME VOICE, SAME FACE, SAME
graceful body, she was Tatyana come
back to life again. I was absolute/}!
witless from astonishment.
-Strahd van Zarovich
in I, Strahd: The Memoirs
ofa Vampire