COS 056 - Butchering The Boar

The Stuttering Shack was filled spiderwebs and charm-inducing smoke, and its doors opened at Ghalwin's knocking. Outside the clearing, Ajuni and Izek found "Jeny Greenteeth" watching, accompanied by a raven. The spindly old woman had an edge of harsh madness, but was willing to sell them discounted potions. When they revealed their purpose of stopping Zandros' plans, she confirmed that she was an avatar of The Weaver. Avoiding Strahd's wrath for hundreds of years after her defeat, her true power was in the deconsecrated Swamp Fane, beyond the Border Ethereal.

Zhenia claimed that she could remove Strahd's control of Barovia's waters, and his resistance to elemental harm, if the party was able to reconsecrate her fane by sacrificing a loved one at its altar. They were unsure about how to handle the situation; no one wanted to invoke a "technicality" if the sacrifice not truly considered living, such as van Richten's soul or The Pack's bodies. The topic of sacrificing Zandros arose, and though Ajuni was fully sure of her hatred, Tobias was was not, wanting a final conversation with him before deciding.

The next day, Zhenia brewed Oil of Etherealness while they mounted a defense of her shack. They assembled chevaux-de-frise around the perimeter as well as a remarkably obvious and ineffective spiked ditch, then took up defensive positions as Geronimo guarded Zhenia inside and Izek covered himself in mud. Ghalwin and Tobias attempted to scout their enemy's location by talking to ravens, and they learned of approaching "fire dogs". Hearing wolf-howls around the cabin, a flying Tobias found that two Hell Hounds were indeed following their scent, accompanied by an oddly cordial Floriana.

Combat erupted as wolves and Vistani assaulted the shack, and the heroes fought back amongst hurled curses and blasts of flame. From a hidden vantage point, Arrigal sniped at the party with remarkable accuracy, nearly shooting out Ajuni's throat with a lethally poisoned crossbow bolt. While she drank Zhenia's healing potion to survive, Zandros used the opportunity to fight dirty. He leapt over their battlements, broke into the shack, and rounded Geronimo.

Despite being armorless and only holding a wooden stake, he grappled Zhenia and kicked open the front door, threatening to kill her if the party didn't hear him out. Tensions mounted as the fighting stopped; everyone gathered closer, as Zandros revealed more of who he was and why he had brought the party in. Once a Vistani captain who venerated Strahd, he had been sent on a mission to recover the Count's Dragon Slayer four hundred years prior, but was wayshadowed in the Material plane. Zandros killed the mercenary Marcus Cromwell and assumed his identity; while he figured out how to return, he trained up powerful "offerings" for his lord and love.

When he learned about Tybus Steelborn's quest, he realized he had finally found a way back to Barovia. Everything in the Search For the Silver Dragon had gone well, but he was now worried that his offerings could actually threaten Strahd, so looked to stop them. In response, a defiant Tobias touched down in front of him and gave a powerful speech of resistance, now sure  that any love he had once had for Marcus was as false as the fighter's name. Zandros shouted that he was really here to kill the Lady of the Swamp, and stabbed into Zhenia's neck; however, the old lady was expecting this, and disappeared, as did her Stuttering Shack.

Zandros was left on the back foot, and Tobias and Ajuni did what they did best: they absolutely kicked his ass. Izek finally got his chance to slash through Floriana as Ezmerelda defeated the thugs, and Ghalwin smote a hound before teleporting behind Zandros to prevent another escape. As Tobias hit and healed, Izek rushed in to pin Zandros, and the vampire spawn was reduced to ash by Ajuni's glorious sunlight.

They tracked down Arrigal, who was similarly obstinate before getting beaten to death, and recovered Zandros' magic items alongside two of the Vistani's horses. The party followed the Planar Compass for two days, and during their travel, Tobias converted Zandros' Mithral plate into armor for Izek. When they found the Shack, they determined that the Lady of the Swamp should attempt to reconsecrate her Fane on the 6th Day of the Hunter's Moon. They also purchased her Oil of Etherealness, though now lacked a loved sacrifice to apply it to.

With Zandros and Baba Lysaga now dead, there was one last bit of revenge to enact. Beyond Lake Zarovich, the party set their sights to Fiona Wachter.