Iron & Gold, Curse of Strahd
Previous Chapter 40 Loose Threads Cut Short — Next Chapter 42 In The Crypt
Being an actual play of Curse of Strahd, using Precis Intermedia Games’ Iron & Gold, with Mythic as the GM.
41 - Duel![1]
There was a flash of light and then darkness. Felewin found himself lying in a foul-smelling stone box with a stone lid. The smell was mostly rotten meat but with other things mixed in, and the dust was thick enough in the air to choke. Felewin coughed once and then retracted the sword blade. In the darkness, he felt the lid carefully. It was possible that when he lifted the lid, gas or water or blood would pour in; it was also possible that some beast would be waiting to kill him.
And if I do nothing, I will starve. All will kill me, so I might as well act.
He placed his palms flat against the lid and pushed[2] up, mindful that it might be hinged. It wasn’t. It was simply a heavy lid, and Felewin pushed it to one side, but not off, so he could sit up and see what his situation was.
He was in a stone coffin. By the light of the blade, he could see that he was in a pit, in an irregularly-shaped chamber, with over a dozen other stone coffins. All coffins seemed to be oriented the same way but there was no organization to how they were placed. The floor was covered with bones and rusty swords; the walls shone with dampness. He could make out handholds, but could not see the top of the pit. Distantly, he heard water trickling.
He got out of the coffin, standing uneasily on the swords and bones and regarded the other coffins. It was possible that other members of his group were in some of the coffins. They were not supposed to have followed him, but Ninefingers might have.
He wished he had the goblin’s opinion. This did not seem like a particularly onerous trap: it cost time (Ninefingers might say that was enough) but was not particularly deadly. Presumably the deadly thing happened when you opened another coffin or tried to leave.
He walked to the wall, bones crunching underfoot, and looked at the handholds. He would have to turn off the sword’s blade to climb, and then he could not see the next handhold. He decided he would memorize the next few and alternate climbing with activating the blade and looking.
He felt a flicker of annoyance at Hrelgi, for taking his lantern. If he still had his lantern, he could loop it around his neck and carry it to see while climbing.
On the other hand, if he hadn’t had Hrelgi with him, he would be dead many times over. The annoyance passed; thinking of Hrelgi made him worry that his companions might be in the other coffins.
But opening a coffin might unleash terrible things. Something had killed people in this room, to cause all the bones. (Also, the chamber was damp. Why were the bones clean and not mouldy? Very recent? Magically preserved?)
Felewin compromised. He knocked on the lid of each of the fourteen other coffins and listened for a response.
There was none. He carefully picked his way to the wall and[3] climbed slowly out. The walls narrowed in and at one point the trickling water soaked his gambeson, but eventually Felewin was out in the catacombs proper. From the plaque by the door, that had been the crypt of one “Stahbal Indi-Bhak: A truer friend no ruler ever had. Here lies his family in honor.”
Felewin did not know whether it had always been a trap, or it had become a trap, but he was glad to be free of it. How to find the others?
He looked around. The ceiling was still a writhing mass of nesting bats. There were crypts in each direction, and the blade did not give enough light for him to identify a wall in the distance.
If he could find a wall, he could locate the others.
He looked at the floor.[4]
Familiar footprints showed that Kasimir had been here alone, checking the plaque by each door. By following Kasimir’s footprints, he could reach Patrina’s crypt, and from there he could find the others.
Felewin heard a chuckle to one side of him. “Where are your little friends now?” He turned and saw Strahd von Zarovitch standing there.[5] The vampire had appeared from nowhere.
Of course.
“Looking to kill you. I am fortunate to have the chance,” said Felewin. Felewin felt fear, but this was also an opportunity. If he could hurt Strahd enough, even if it killed Felewin, Strahd would have to return to his coffin, and the others could grant him the true death there.
That would make up for his mistakes with Ireena.
“Give the portrait and I shall grant you the swift death that I deny the others.”
Felewin slipped his shield onto his arm. “It is important to you, is it? Then you can take it from me, if we fight as men fight.”
“I have slain hundreds by the sword. Do you forget that I was a conqueror?” Strahd drew a sword. “But if you prefer.”
Felewin smiled with a confidence he did not feel. “I prefer.”
Their first phrase was exploratory. Felewin immediately knew that Strahd was better than he was, and Felewin was very good.
“While you are here, you are not dealing with my party.” Felewin let Strahd’s attack slide down the blade of the sword.
“I think they will be surprised by what I have waiting by my coffin.” Strahd laughed. “How else would you have ended up in the pit of wights?” Having estimated Felewin’s mettle, he thrust once.[6 Felewin was not fast enough, but his armour and shield stopped most of the blow.
Not all of it. He was now fighting at a disadvantage.
Felewin returned[7] the blow, the sword happy in his grip. They exchanged more blows, and Felewin became sure he would lose this duel unless he did something different.[8 The goal is to hurt him, not kill him, Felewin thought. Force him to his coffin.
He used the double blow he had been working on, and caught Strahd both times. The strikes would kill a normal man; once “killed,” Strahd simply turned to mist and vanished.
“At least now I know you will be in your crypt,” Felewin said, and slumped against the wall, pressing against his wound. He formed a crude bandage to staunch the bleeding, and waited.
Eventually he began to run, following Kasimir’s footprints.
Previous Chapter 40 Loose Threads Cut Short — Next Chapter 42 In The Crypt
Monsters
The obvious one is Strahd. Because I've kept him off-stage for so much, I don’t have a complete write-up because I kept adding things as needed. So here’s what he looked like by the end.
| Abilities | Fitness 7 Awareness Creativity 5 Reasoning 7 Influence 6 |
|---|---|
| Skills | Leadership 5 (≤11), Stealth 4 (≤11), Materia 4 (≤9), Mentus 4 (≤9), Motus 4 (≤9), Sensus 4 (≤9), Sphaera 4 (≤9), Dueling 6 (≤13), Brawling 5 (≤12) |
| Gimmicks | Night Vision, Descrying Nature, Undead, Hardened, Life Drain, Immunity [lots], Regeneration, Learned, Charming, Supernatural Healing (not in sunlight or running water), and Sunlight and running water each do 1 level of inj/turn. Charm is a reskin of Paralytic Gaze, avoided with Creativity+Composure. |
| Magic | Prepared skills according to book:
|
Game Mechanics
[1] Mythic suggested theme: Malice Home (PC Positive)
[2] Felewin rolls a 6, margin 4. Easily enough for a difficulty 2 task.
[3] Felewin rolls a 3 on this Athletics roll (margin 7), much more than the margin 0 he needs.
[4] Felewin rolls a 5 on Tracking, which is Margin 2, I think.)
[5] Random encounter, actually, but I thought it fit well.
[6] Strahd rolls 8 (margin 4); Felewin rolls 12 (margin -1). Felewin’s shield stops 1 point; Felewin’s armor stops one the other two.
[7] Felewin rolls 3 (margin 7, a triumph) and Strahd rolls 8 (margin 4); Felewin’s second blow is also a 3 (margin 7). Felewin gets this one.
[8] In fact, the dice say no such thing. The dice had his next shot be successful, but I also think there needs to be some effort from a story-telling perspective for those of you who are reading.
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