Session 07 — The Proclamation

A horrifying fast-moving zombie emerges during the siege, slaughtering defenders and requiring desperate measures to defeat. As the party catches their breath, hoofsteps announce the arrival of Rahadin, Strahd's warlord and right hand. His psychic proclamation shakes the party to their core, and his cryptic greeting to Ismark reveals a terrible truth: the Burgomaster is dead, and the village's leadership has shifted forever.

Pre-Session Recap

The party rested at Ireena Koljanovich's home after discovering Father Donovich's journal with vampire vulnerabilities. They returned to defend the barricade during a siege, encountering increasingly dangerous undead waves. A gelatinous creature killed multiple defenders including Bildrath, and the party is physically and emotionally exhausted. The siege continues, and Strahd's vengeance shows no signs of stopping.

Session Summary

Opening

The party reconvenes at Kolyan Anderovich's Manor to defend against the next wave of undead. Ria wakes late from sleeping, missing the first half of the initial combat. A fast-moving pale zombie emerges that is far more dangerous than any undead they've previously encountered. The creature unleashes a necrotic miasmatic explosion as its special ability, dealing tremendous damage and knocking numerous defenders prone.

Ria rejoins with a punctured lung (suffering disadvantage on athletics and acrobatics checks) and an additional lingering injury called "Tenuous Grip on Life" (requiring one fewer failed death saving throw before death). The combat is chaotic. Ria casts Magic Missile at the creature but struggles with her injuries. Aleric jumps from the roof (taking 5 damage) and throws alchemist's fire, missing. Daisy crashes through the barricade with her weight (taking 4 damage), then uses Turn Undead on the zombie, causing it to fail spectacularly. The creature becomes unable to approach within 30 feet of her and can only use Dash or Dodge actions.

However, a town guard attacks the turned zombie, breaking the turning. The zombie then unleashes multiple devastating attacks. Aleric faces complicated movement dynamics around the fire bottles he's thrown. After more concentrated fire attacks and multiple fire bottles, the creature finally dies, reduced to nothing but a skid mark on the ground. Ismark helps Aleric strap his shield onto his back due to Aleric's numb left arm.

Middle

As the party catches their breath and helps Ismark check on screaming children, hoofsteps squelch through mud. From the western road emerges a cloaked man on an ash gray horse with shadowed eyes, accompanied by a dozen shambling undead. Ria casts Dancing Lights, illuminating the figure.

The lights reveal a tall, lithe man of dusky complexion: long black hair past his neck, a light cloak with white fur trim, supple black leather gloves, deep blue tunic trimmed in bronze beneath tough leather armor, a curved saber at his belt, and scimitars strapped to his back. His ears taper to elven points; he has a long, wicked scar across his forehead and lines marking his age. His dark brown eyes hold quiet awareness and a casual, almost predatory gaze, and his lips are pulled back in a thin, perpetual frown. This is Rahadin, warlord of Strahd.

As Rahadin approaches, Ria receives a brutal psychic attack: a dull roar that escalates into a cacophony of a thousand voices pleading, suffering, and dying—the screams of thousands of people this creature has killed. She makes a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw, rolling a natural 20 and taking only 9 damage (half of 18). The physical pain is described as the worst headache she's ever experienced.

Rahadin slowly rides through the village's defenders and delivers a cold proclamation in Common: "Time's scarcely passed seven days. This people rose in awful rebellion against Strahd von Zarovich, Count of Barovia, Master of Castle Ravenloft, and Protector of the Balinok Mountains. For this treasonous act, this settlement has been met with righteous punishment, so that its inhabitants might learn the weight of their defiance. Witnessed by the eyes of the dead and damned, this price has been extracted in blood, common and noble alike. Let it be known that on this day, the mercy of Strahd von Zarovich extends once more unto those who return to their fief and field, while those who continue in their folly shall be swept away as chaff before the wind."

He then searches the crowd for someone specific, eventually riding toward Ismark. He inspects Ismark briefly and states coldly: "Please, accept my congratulations on your new position. And my condolences on your loss." He then turns his horse and departs with his zombie horde.

Closing

Following Ismark, who releases a wordless cry of anguish, the party finds the manor's front doors blown off their hinges. Inside the main room, they discover the Burgomaster's unmoving form surrounded by a red pool of blood, a long, elegant slash across his chest, his glassy eyes staring unseeingly at the ceiling. Nearby, Ireena lies crumpled beneath a boarded-up window, its ragged curtains drifting in cold wind.

Ismark falls to his knees, cradling his father's head in his hands. Aleric checks on Ireena and determines she is alive but unconscious, pale, and weak. The party realizes that Strahd's "promotion" comment to Ismark meant he is now de facto leader of Barovia, and the "loss" referred to his father's death. They begin to process the catastrophic losses of the evening: the Burgomaster dead, Ireena critically wounded, the village devastated, and Strahd's direct interest in them now known.

Key Events

• The Fast Zombie Assault — A horrifying fast-moving pale zombie emerges and causes massive casualties
• Daisy's Turn Undead — The zombie fails spectacularly, unable to approach within 30 feet of her
• The Zombie's Final Defeat — After concentrated fire attacks and multiple fire bottles, the creature is incinerated
• Rahadin's Arrival — The warlord of Strahd appears with a dozen undead thralls
• The Psychic Attack — Ria experiences a thousand screaming voices; only her natural 20 saves her from worse damage
• Rahadin's Proclamation — The warlord delivers Strahd's message of punishment and conditional mercy
• The Cryptic Greeting — Rahadin congratulates Ismark on his "new position" and "loss"
• The Burgomaster's Death — Kolyan Anderovich is found dead with a long slash across his chest
• Ireena's Critical Wounding — Ireena is found unconscious and badly wounded beneath a boarded window

Decisions Made

NPCs Encountered

Locations Visited

Combat & Encounters

Combat Breakdown — The Fast Zombie Siege

Phase 1: Initial Emergence and Setup

• The pale, fast-moving zombie emerges during the wave-based siege at the Kolyan Anderovich's Manor barricade
• Ria had been sleeping late and misses the first half of combat, rejoining with disadvantage on athletics and acrobatics from her punctured lung and the permanent lingering injury "Tenuous Grip on Life" (requires only 2 failed death saving throws instead of 3)
• The creature displays terrifying supernatural abilities, moving with unnatural speed and agility

Phase 2: Party Response and Early Engagement

• Ria casts Magic Missile at the creature but struggles with her injuries, unable to land decisive blows
• Aleric jumps down from a 30-foot roof to the barricade below, taking 5 damage total (4 bludgeoning, 1 piercing from spiked wood defenses); throws alchemist's fire but the attack misses due to poor targeting
• Daisy crashes through the barricade with her massive minotaur weight (estimated three times Aleric's body mass), dealing structural damage; takes 4 damage from the collision but maintains her footing
• Daisy immediately uses Turn Undead on the zombie, calling upon her divine power; the creature rolls catastrophically—a 0 on its saving throw—and becomes a turned undead, unable to approach within 30 feet of her and restricted to only Dash or Dodge actions

Phase 3: The Breaking and Counterattack

• A town guard, during the chaos of combat, attacks the turned zombie, breaking the turning effect through direct engagement
• The zombie, now free of the turning effect, unleashes devastating counterattacks:
  • One instant-kill slam attack against the same guard, killing him outright
  • A 15-damage hit against Parriwimple (the merchant's nephew), nearly killing him in a single blow
  • A narrowly missed second slam attack against Parriwimple, who survives only through luck and positioning
• The zombie's necrotic miasmatic explosion ability detonates, dealing tremendous damage to multiple defenders and knocking numerous townspeople and guards prone
• Bildrath is killed during this phase (mentioned as a known casualty from earlier waves)
• Aleric becomes numb in his left arm from the zombie's supernatural attack, reducing his ability to equip or use his shield effectively

Phase 4: Concentrated Fire and Final Defeat

• Daisy casts Burning Hands, dealing fire damage; the party quickly recognizes the zombie is vulnerable to fire
• Multiple alchemist's fire bottles are thrown at the creature by various party members, with particular focus from Aleric; the bottles create an ongoing conflagration
• The party coordinates fire attacks in multiple rounds, systematically reducing the creature's health through sustained flame damage
• Combat is chaotic around fire placement, with the party (especially Aleric) grappling with virtual tabletop movement and line-of-sight mechanics while managing the fire bottles
• Aleric's positioning becomes complex as the tactical situation evolves around the flames he created
• The zombie finally succumbs to the concentrated fire, reduced to nothing more than a charred skid mark on the ground; the party wants absolute confirmation of its death—"just a pile of dust on the ground"

Phase 5: Aftermath and Injury Assessment

• The party catches their collective breath, assessing the damage to defenders and themselves
• Ismark assists the traumatized defenders and attempts to calm the screaming children trapped in the manor
• Aleric attempts to don his shield but finds his numb left arm prevents effective use; Ismark helps strap the shield to Aleric's back instead as a compromise, allowing him to carry it without relying on his compromised arm

Outcome: Zombie destroyed after desperate combat; multiple defenders killed including Bildrath; townspeople and guards suffer heavy casualties; the party suffers serious injuries (Ria's punctured lung and Tenuous Grip on Life, Aleric's numb left arm).

Combat Breakdown — Rahadin's Arrival and Proclamation

Phase 1: The Arrival

• Hoofsteps squelch through mud as the party helps Ismark check on screaming children in the aftermath of the zombie combat
• From the western road emerges a tall, lithe figure on an ash-gray horse with shadowed eyes
• The figure is accompanied by a dozen shambling zombie thralls, arranged in formation on both sides of his approach
• Ria immediately casts Dancing Lights, conjuring four glowing pink lights to illuminate the mysterious approaching figure
• The lights reveal the figure in full detail: long black hair past his neck, a light cloak with white fur trim, supple black leather gloves, a deep blue tunic trimmed in bronze beneath tough leather armor, a curved saber at his belt, and scimitars strapped to his back. His ears taper to elven points; a long, wicked scar marks his forehead and additional lines mark his age. His dark brown eyes hold "quiet awareness and a casual, almost predatory gaze," and his lips are pulled back in a thin, perpetual frown. This is Rahadin, warlord of Strahd.

Phase 2: The Psychic Attack

• As Rahadin approaches the barricade through the village's defenders, Ria experiences a brutal supernatural assault
• A dull roar escalates rapidly into a cacophony of a thousand voices—pleading, suffering, dying—the screams of thousands of people this creature has killed across centuries of service
• Ria makes a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw; she rolls a natural 20, the most critical of successes
• Even with the natural 20, the psychic damage manifests as 9 damage (half of the base 18), demonstrating the sheer power of the ability
• The physical sensation is described as the worst headache Ria has ever experienced—a crushing psychic pain that momentarily overwhelms her senses
• Despite the severity, Ria maintains her concentration on the Dancing Lights spell (an impressive feat under such pressure); her eye twitches slightly in response, her only visible sign of distress

Phase 3: The Proclamation

• Rahadin slowly rides through the assembled village defenders without breaking pace or making threatening gestures
• He delivers a cold proclamation in Common, speaking with formal, measured authority:

"Time's scarcely passed seven days. This people rose in awful rebellion against Strahd von Zarovich, Count of Barovia, Master of Castle Ravenloft, and Protector of the Balinok Mountains. For this treasonous act, this settlement has been met with righteous punishment, so that its inhabitants might learn the weight of their defiance. Witnessed by the eyes of the dead and damned, this price has been extracted in blood, common and noble alike. Let it be known that on this day, the mercy of Strahd von Zarovich extends once more unto those who return to their fief and field, while those who continue in their folly shall be swept away as chaff before the wind."

• The proclamation establishes that the rebellion began roughly seven days prior
• The message offers a twisted "mercy": obedience will result in survival; continued resistance will result in destruction
• The warlord's tone carries the weight of absolute authority backed by demonstrated supernatural power

Phase 4: The Cryptic Greeting

• Rahadin slowly rides toward Ismark, deliberately searching the crowd for someone specific
• He inspects Ismark briefly, with deliberate, measuring eyes that suggest foreknowledge
• He speaks coldly and formally: "Please, accept my congratulations on your new position. And my condolences on your loss."
• The statement carries double meaning: "congratulations on your new position" (as de facto leader) and "condolences on your loss" (the death of his father, the Burgomaster)
• Ismark realizes the implications only after the words are spoken: his promotion and his loss, meaning Strahd has already ensured his father's death
• Rahadin then turns his horse and departs with his zombie horde, maintaining his slow, deliberate pace, leaving no doubt that he could have attacked but chose not to

Outcome: No violence erupted; Rahadin's arrival served as a message from Strahd himself; the party now understands that Strahd and his warlord know exactly who they are and where they stand. The cryptic greeting to Ismark foreshadows the discovery of the Burgomaster's death.

Loot & Rewards

Memorable Moments

"Please, accept my congratulations on your new position. And my condolences on your loss."

— Rahadin, to Ismark

• The Thousand Screaming Voices — Ria's psychic attack described as the screams of thousands of killed souls; worst headache of her life
• Rahadin's Appearance — The detailed description of the scarred drow warlord creates an image of deadly elegance
• Ismark's Realization — The moment Ismark understands what Rahadin's cryptic words mean: his promotion, his loss
• The Burgomaster's Death — The body surrounded by blood with a long elegant slash; clearly personal work by Strahd
• The Wordless Cry — Ismark's response to discovering his father's death is left unspoken, emphasizing the emotional devastation

Plot Threads

Threads Opened

• Rahadin's Role — The warlord is clearly a major antagonist and Strahd's right hand; likely to appear again
• The Party's Status with Strahd — Strahd and Rahadin now know exactly who the party is and where they stand

Threads Advanced

• Ismark's New Position — Thrust from supporting character into leadership during a crisis
• Village Leadership Crisis — The death of the Burgomaster creates a power vacuum and succession question

Threads Unresolved

• Can Ireena be saved? What is the extent of her injuries?
• Will the siege continue with Ismark in charge?
• What is Rahadin's personal relationship to Strahd?
• Did Strahd kill the Burgomaster personally or through Rahadin?
• How will the village respond to Ismark's elevation to leadership?

PC Highlights

GM Notes