Raising

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T h e E s s e n t i a l C u r s e o f S t r a h d C o m pa n ion

The Larders of Ill Omen

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Curse of Strahd

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Larders of Ill Omen
W
hile generally well crafted, players’ experi-
ence of the larders is harmed by its staunch
adherence to the 1st edition appearance of
Castle Ravenloft. This chapter aims to adjust the lar-
ders to provide a more positive experience of the area,
and to provide more ties to Barovian history and lore.
Video Companion
Watch the companion video for this chapter on YouTube.
Areas of the Larder
This section will cover revisions to the various areas
of the Larders of Ill Omen. Any area not listed here
should be run as it is written in the module, or as mod-
ified to your liking.
K61. Elevator Trap
The elevator trap is needlessly complex for to run and
not fun to engage with for players. We suggest remov-
ing it entirely.
K62. Servant’s Hall
This is where characters are most likely to meet Cyrus
Belview, Strahd’s mongrelfolk servant. Cyrus will no
longer try to guide the players to the removed elevator
trap. Instead, he will try to lead characters direct-
ly to the lounge in area K49. After he departs from
the character’s company, providing he has not been
harmed, Cyrus will return to his quarters in area K66
to take notes on the character’s arrival and behavior in
a journal that he keeps hidden inside his desk.
K63. Wine Cellar
Characters with a passive Perception score of 17 or
higher, or who succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom (Percep-
tion) check, discover five bottles Champagne du le
Stomp behind a loose brick. This finest of vintages
from the Wizard of Wines was long thought entirely
lost and is a literally priceless treasure in Barovia.
Should characters be willing to do so, the Wachter
brothers in Vallaki will pay a hefty sum for the bottles.
K65. Kitchen
The kitchen must be functional to service Strahd’s
mortal servants and provide the dinner for the charac-
ters when they are invited to by Strahd.
Outside the door to this room, you catch a whiff of
smoked meats, freshly baked bread, and some kind of
delicious fresh stew—more tempting than any other food
you have encountered in Barovia… save for some partic-
ular pastries, maybe. Strahd clearly has not allowed the
kitchen in his castle to deteriorate, even if he himself no
longer needs it.
The most notable feature in the kitchen besides the
well-stocked larder is a huge kettle slowly bubbling away
at the center. The scent is almost unbearably mouthwa-
tering.
This is not to say that the kitchen is entirely safe for in-
truders, however. Cyrus keeps a pet kettle mimic here
(see Appendix C) that likes to pretend it’s a cooking
pot. It is well-fed but never passes up an unwary vic-
tim. The kettle mimic attacks any creature that comes
within 5 feet of it, except Cyrus.
K66. Butler’s Quarters
Cyrus is no longer just a simple mongrelfolk from the
Abbey. Instead, he works as a spy for the Abbot, and
his quarters have been updated to reflect his secret
occupation.
Characters who are not careful about opening the
door to this room will topple a pile of garbage inside
the room, creating a loud noise. This will alert Cyrus
to any intruders if he is within 100 feet.
Crammed into this 20-square-foot room are a long,
sagging bed and an ancient writing desk. They are barely
accessible between piles and piles of junk—all manner
of adventuring gear, armor, and weapons lie about, all
rendered unusable from years of neglect. The desk is the
only area that seems semi-functional for work.
With a successful DC 13 Wisdom (Perception) check,
the players can discover a bunch of scribbled notes
hidden below a recipe book in the desk’s drawer.
These contain unnecessarily minute and mostly use-
less information about the goings-on at Castle Raven-
loft. If the characters have been here for long enough,
they may find their own names and exploits enumerat-
ed here from Cyrus’ perspective.
If the check succeeds by 3 or more, the characters
also discover a ring with 16 keys on it, hung from a
hook inside the drawers of the desk, hidden behind
The Larders of Ill Omen | 3
 a bunch of disused writing utensils. These keys can
open the dungeon cells in areas K74 and K75.
Strahd is, of course, aware that Cyrus works for the
Abbot. It amuses him to see Cyrus perform so misera-
bly in his ill-fitting role. On occasion, Strahd also finds
it useful to use Cyrus to feed the Abbot information
that serves his purpose.
K67. Hall of Bones
Cyrus has completed this disquieting monument to
death, but he has worked standing on the shoulders
of giants. Generations of adventurers, servants who
disappointed Strahd and Barovians who opposed him
have had their mortal remains deposited in this gro-
tesque ossuary, added to by one of Strahd’s deranged
servants after another. Anyone who enters this hall
can feel the restless spirits.
As you enter this disturbing shrine, the deathly silence
is anything but quieting. It presses on your ears as if it is
trying to get inside your head—until you begin to hear
whispers, urgent but muffled. It seems to you that you
can almost make out words, if you would just listen a little
bit closer or concentrate a bit harder. The voices seem to
want to tell you something.
The characters can attempt to interact with the
tormented souls trapped here to learn from their
mistakes and accumulated knowledge, but it is a risky
undertaking. Any character who uses an action to
focus on the whispers begins to perceive ghostly fig-
ures manifesting around them, still bleeding from the
wounds that killed them,.
The character must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom
saving throw. On a failed save, the ghostly figures
press in ever closer, clawing at the character. The
character is frightened by the room itself for 1 minute
and takes 4d10 psychic damage. On a successful save,
the ghostly figures stand back and offer to answer
one question pertaining to the history of Barovia or
Strahd. Their answers may be brief, cryptic or repeti-
tive, but are generally truthful.
A character can attempt to commune with the spirits
here a number of times equal to their Wisdom mod-
ifier (minimum of 1) or until they fail at the attempt
once. After that, they automatically fail the saving
throw.
4 | The Larders of Ill Omen
K70. Kingsmen Hall
This hall was witness to one of the bloodiest chap-
ters of Strahd’s final fall to darkness. The spirits of
Strahd’s former guards, whom he slaughtered here in
his fury on the night he was transformed into a vam-
pire, still linger.
As you walk through this hall, you sense that you are
not alone. A dark shade stalks alongside you, always
just at the edge of your peripheral vision if you try to
turn around to catch a direct look. Echoes of desperate
screams and the clanging of weapons hang in the air—and
you can smell fresh blood.
After a few more steps, you become aware of more
faint shades pressed into corners, hands held up in
pleading and obviously scared to death. These shades are
unmoving, and you realize that each of them huddles over
a particularly dark patch of blood on the floor.
The first dark shade is the shadow demon from area
K72. It is an aspect of Strahd made manifest here
from the sheer power of his rage when he killed the
guards. The lesser shades are six shadows spawned
from the murdered guards, now manifesting here
exactly on the spots where they fell.
In a grotesque reenactment of the past, the shadow
demon will attack the shadows if the characters linger
here instead of moving straight through the room. The
shadows do not defend themselves and the shadow
demon does not attack the characters unless attacked
first. If attacked, the shadow demon changes its focus
from the shadows to the characters. If the shadow de-
mon is defeated while the shadows are still alive, read
or paraphrase the following:
A many-voiced moan of soul-deep relief rises from the
corners of the hall: “free from the devil Strahd, free at
last—our loyalty did not save us, but you did!”. You see
the shades shudder and fall back onto the ground in long-
sought solace, before dissipating. They finally seem to
have found rest. You can feel some of this relief washing
over you yourself—you have pushed the darkness back a
little bit today.
For every shade that is still alive when the shadow
demon is defeated, one character in the party gains
5 temporary hit points, and also gains advantage on
saving throws against being frightened until the end of
their next long rest.
Appendix C - Creatures
Kettle Mimic Special Features
Medium monstrosity (shapechanger), neutral Luring Smell. Any creature coming within 30 feet of the
kettle mimic while it is in its object form must succeed
Armor Class 14 (natural armor) on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or become charmed by
Hit Points 78 (12d8 + 24) the mimic’s delightful smell. A creature without a sense
Speed 15 ft of smell is immune against this effect. While a creature
is charmed in this way, it must use its full movement
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
on each of its turns to approach the mimic. Any time a
17 (+3) 12 (+1) 15 (+2) 5 (-3) 13 (+1) 8 (-1) creature charmed in this way takes damage, it can re-
Skills Stealth +5 peat the saving throw. Any creature that succeeds on the
Damage Immunities Acid saving throw is immune against this effect for 24 hours
Condition Immunities Prone and perceives the smell of the mimic as slightly sickening,
Senses Darkvision 60 Ft., passive Perception 11 instead.
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
Engulf. Any creature hit by the kettle mimic’s pseudopod
attack must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw
Shapechanger. The mimic can use its action to poly- or it is engulfed in the kettle mimic’s boiling “soup”. At
morph into an object or back into its true, amorphous the start of each of its turns, a creature engulfed by the
form. Its statistics are the same in each form. Any mimic takes 2d8 fire damage and 2d8 acid damage. The
equipment it is wearing or carrying isn’t transformed. It engulfed creature is also suffocating. The mimic can only
reverts to its true form if it dies. have one creature engulfed at a time.
False Appearance (Object Form Only). While the kettle
mimic remains motionless, it is indistinguishable from
Actions
an ordinary object. Pseudopod. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5
ft., one target. Hit: (1d8 + 3) bludgeoning damage. If
Grappler. The mimic has advantage on attack rolls the mimic is in object form, the target is subjected to its
against any creature grappled by it. Adhesive trait

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one

target. Hit: (1d8 + 3) piercing damage plus (1d8)acid
damage.

Appendix C - Creatures | 5