{"id":45205,"date":"2020-01-30T10:54:54","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T17:54:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/randomaverage.com\/?p=45205"},"modified":"2020-01-26T11:05:23","modified_gmt":"2020-01-26T18:05:23","slug":"ravenloft-ironsworn-part-7-the-ghost-at-the-gates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/2020\/01\/ravenloft-ironsworn-part-7-the-ghost-at-the-gates\/","title":{"rendered":"Ravenloft Ironsworn, part 7, The Ghost at the Gates"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last session, we talked with the village priest and buried the Burgomaster, which is about when we noticed the ghosts gathering at the graveyard gate, and I realized I knew one of them.<\/p>\n

Specifically, it\u2019s the spirit of Reinhardt, my old mentor.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m\u2026 guessing this next bit is going to suck a little bit.
\n\"|329x288\"
\nBrigitte wants to approach Reinhardt.<\/p>\n

Brigitte does NOT want to approach Reinhardt.<\/p>\n

First thing I\u2019m going to do is Face Danger. I think there\u2019s a chance I just can\u2019t bear to approach my old mentor.<\/p>\n

\"|227x120\"<\/p>\n

But no! That\u2019s interesting and unexpected. Not sure what opportunity to open up here, and the oracles aren\u2019t particularly helpful this time.<\/p>\n

Reinhardt turns as I approach, and his vacant, waiting expression vanishes, replaced with a broad, albeit a bit sad, smile. I can\u2019t help but return that smile, as always, though my eyes are damp.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cReinhardt. Uncle. What happened?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\n I\u2019m going to gather information. I\u2019m not sure how much it can help. I don\u2019t even know if the spirit can talk, but whatever.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"|224x128\"<\/p>\n

Well, that\u2019s pretty bad.<\/p>\n

My godfather\u2019s smile immediately falls away. It\u2019s worse than before – he\u2019s not just waiting, he\u2019s vacant – his face is twisted in mourning as he remembers something no one should have to remember – the moment they fell.<\/em><\/p>\n

I need to Pay the Price here, and I think Reinhardt\u2019s spirit is in trouble here, because of what I asked him, so I\u2019m going to Test our Bond, because things between us can go badly here.<\/p>\n

(Well, worse<\/em>. They\u2019re already bad<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

\"|337x175\" \"|223x125\"<\/p>\n

Oh thank goodness.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, Uncle!\u201d I reach out, unthinking, and my hand passes through his shoulder, but somehow it gets his attention. He turns back to me. He is still sad, but he is not lost, and his hand rises to his chest, to his armor, and he taps the space over his heart. Eyes streaming, I do the same, and feel renewed.<\/em><\/p>\n

I’m taking +1 spirit from this exchange, because it feels good to have that recover as a result of this. I haven\u2019t learned<\/em> much, but the bond with my mentor\/godfather is strong. I\u2019m also going to let this be a milestone on my backstory vow to investigate\/avenge the freewardens, which fully tics the first box on that track.<\/p>\n

Okay, so obviously I\u2019m following the ghosts up the road at midnight. Fantastic idea – I don\u2019t know what could go wrong.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, let\u2019s wrap up that vow to bury the Burgomaster – I\u2019ve got 9 progress, so it should be an easy way to get the last XP I need for a new Asset.<\/p>\n

\"|225x126\"<\/p>\n

\u2026 well, son of a bitch.<\/p>\n

\"|437x99\"<\/p>\n

\u201cOh no\u2026\u201d moans Ireena, looking over my shoulder as I return to them. \u201cOh, papa.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

I turn, following her gaze and see that the Burgomaster – silver-limned and sunken-eyed – also stands among the restless spirits waiting to walk to the castle.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI will see his spirit at rest, Ireena,\u201d I promise the woman. \u201cI swear it. No matter what it takes.”<\/em><\/p>\n

So I clear all but one progress and raise the quest to Dangerous. I\u2019m also rewording it slightly.<\/p>\n

\"|289x125\"<\/p>\n

That\u2026 kinda sucks. Not gonna lie. It\u2019s cool<\/em><\/strong>, don\u2019t get me wrong, but it sucks.<\/p>\n

Okay, it\u2019s moonrise, and hours until we depart. I don\u2019t fancy hanging out in the church or the graveyard for the next four hours, so we\u2019re going to do a bit of prep, and that means Sojourn.<\/p>\n

\"|345x364\"\"|216x121\"<\/p>\n

Well, that should get me by. With my community bond, that\u2019s two selections off the list. I\u2019m definitely going to Provision to get my Supply back up, and I\u2019m tempted by Plan, but I think instead I\u2019m going to Provide Aid and make another vow.<\/p>\n

In this case, I make my way back to Mad Mary\u2019s, knock on the door and, when the sobbing subsides, somewhat, murmur my vow through the door.<\/p>\n

\"|215x123\"\"|279x125\"<\/p>\n

\n This is pretty good, since the strong hit gives me +2 momentum (back up to +9 after burning it on the priest). Between that and the resupply, I\u2019m basically maxed out on all my resources as we head out of town and toward Strahd\u2019s castle.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What could go wrong?<\/p>\n

The climbing moon and the glances of Ireena and Ismark eventually get me going despite my reluctance. It’s not fear of the castle that has me dragging my feet, but of what I might see among the ghosts – who I might see – more farwardens.<\/em><\/p>\n

Sadly my fears prove justified, as I see the sad solemn face of my friend Liqa among the many waiting spirits within the graveyard, and sigils of several other farwardens amongst the lost souls. She does not raise her hand or acknowledge me, and when the ghosts begin to walk up the road leading to the castle; she simply joins them, her expression resigned and tired.<\/em><\/p>\n

“Did you know them?” Ismark asks, his expression a mix of confusion and concern, watching both you and Ireena (whose eyes are on their father\u2019s faded form).<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d I say. \u201cOld friends of mine\u2026 or family, or both.\u201d I clear my throat. \u201cBut now is not the time for mourning.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

“Do we follow them?”<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cClosely.\u201d I say. \u201cThey are no threat to us, and we might learn more of what happened to them.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

We follow the spirits (both watching and trying NOT to watch those we know) for a few miles, winding through sparser woods toward the base of the nearest mountain peaks. It is an eerie experience. The ghosts largely take no notice of us – most don’t even seem to see us – but their presence is unnerving, and I find myself touching iron often.<\/em><\/p>\n

We come, somewhat abruptly, to a fork in the road.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last session, we talked with the village priest and buried the Burgomaster, which is about when we noticed the ghosts<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,128,6],"tags":[150,307,269,308],"class_list":["post-45205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-actual-play","category-online-table-top","category-table-top","tag-actual-play","tag-ironsworn","tag-pbta","tag-ravenloft"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45205"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45212,"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45205\/revisions\/45212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randomaverage.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}