Session Zero

Roll stats. Discuss expectations. We’re short a player.

For the first hour of our opening session, we held a quick session zero. I explained expectations for the campaign (courtesy, respect, shared spotlight), outlined the gothic-horror tone, and checked for any hard or soft taboos. Nobody raised any concerns. We rolled stats and finished character sheets together.

The party consisted of:

• Keylith Emberleak, Tiefling Cleric – played by my son
• Maple Amithis, Aasimar Druid – my son’s friend
• Zarkoth Stormscale, Dragonborn Ranger – the friend’s sister
• Kiril Shadowdancer, Halfling Rogue – the father of the other kids

We were missing one player due to illness, but we decided we’d introduce her next week.

I run the game in my home office, which my family jokingly calls The Dungeon, and the name has stuck for game nights. To set the mood, I dimmed the lights, lit candles, and played a Spotify gothic-fantasy playlist. For a spur-of-the-moment setup, it looked better than expected.

Dinner with the Duchess

As each of the players arrived, I handed them a written invitation from Lady Morwen Daggerford:

Greetings, honored guest,

It is with great honor that the Duchess, Lady Morwen Daggerford, invites you to dine with her on the eighteenth day of Marpenoth to celebrate the start of theLeaffall Festival.

Please gather at Daggeford Keep at Eventide with the feast to begin at Twilight. The Duchess awaits your arrival.

Your Honorable Duchess,

Lady Morwen Daggerford

When the characters entered the Keep, they witnessed two guards dragging a battered commoner outside. As the guards dumped him unceremoniously at the gate, one growled, “That’ll teach you to cross the Duchess again.” The other recognized a party member and warned, “She’s in a mood today. Be careful.”

Before dinner, the players introduced their characters to one another. It felt a little stiff but perfectly normal for a first session.

Dinner itself featured hot spiced soup and roasted pheasant. Lady Daggerford made small talk and casually mentioned the arrest of Glasstaff in Phandalin, surprising my son (whose other campaign had just handled that arrest).

After dinner, she escorted the group to her drawing room. She explained the situation with the “unwanted guests” outside town and offered 500 gold to resolve it. The players happily accepted, thrilled at such a generous sum for level 1 adventurers.

On the way out, Kiril attempted to steal silverware from the dining table. A staff member caught him and quietly but firmly escorted him to the exit.

“For a table of mostly new players, dinner with the Duchess was the perfect first taste of politics, power, and consequences.

Session 1 – DM Reflection

The Dancing Fire

The message is delivered. The party celebrates with the Vistani.

The group traveled to the campsite where the mysterious visitors had settled. I followed the adventure’s setup but added extra descriptive touches to enhance immersion.

They delivered Lady Morwen’s message, which Stanimir received with amused confidence. He assured them his people would leave by morning, but invited them to stay for his tale first. The party agreed and took seats around the fire.

To make the magical teleportation feel more organic later, I chose to have Stanimir gesture, weave somatic components subtly, and toss powders into the flames as he spoke. These visual cues would make the spell feel less “out of nowhere.”

Stanimir’s Tale

Stanimir filled his mouth with wine, spit it into the fire, and the flames shifted from orange to ghostly green. A dark shape formed within the fire’s heart.

As he spoke of ancient lands and wandering roads, he flicked shimmering dust into the fire. The flames revealed a wounded soldier stumbling into a Vistani camp.

He tossed another pinch of powder, and the fire showed the prince fighting off shadowy attackers. Their hospitality, loyalty, and his gratitude all played out in the firelight.

Then, during the tale’s final beat, Stanimir produced a tiny vial of red liquid and pitched it into the flames. The vision swelled, the prince vanquished his foes, and the last image dissolved into a cloud of embers.

Finally, he spoke of the curse upon the prince—now their dread lord—and asked whether the heroes would return to Barovia and meet Madam Eva.

I added a DC 20 group Constitution save here, representing their resistance to the enchantment already beginning to coil around them. It made the moment feel more visceral, even though they were unlikely to succeed.

“If the players can’t stop the magic, they should at least feel it taking hold.”

On Group Saving Throws for Story Beats

A Detour to the Keep

After the story, the party agreed to stay the night. However, Maple chose to return to Lady Morwen to report their success before turning in.

When I asked how he intended to travel quickly, he immediately used Wild Shape to turn into a horse. Keylith, without missing a beat, climbed onto Maple’s back.

Keylith rolled Animal Handling. Natural 1. Chaos. Laughter. A very uncooperative horse.

They eventually reached the Keep, where a tired guard refused to disturb the Duchess at such a late hour. A middling Persuasion roll convinced him to deliver the message in the morning.

Satisfied, they set off back toward camp. Another Animal Handling roll. Another natural 1. More chaos. They returned with Keylith tangled in tack, dangling sideways. The table erupted again.

Meanwhile, Kiril and Maple attempted to poke around the Vistani wagons looking for loot or “souvenirs.” The dice gods punished them with poor rolls and noisy mishaps. Soon they were escorted back to the fire by one of Stanimir’s children.

Time for a Rest

The group finally settled down to rest near the campfire. We realized we had played almost three hours without noticing. It was the perfect stopping point.

“Perfectly chaotic beginnings for a perfectly chaotic new campaign.”

Dragon Heist / Death House Prelude

Next week

Next session we expect our sick player to return—and possibly a sixth player. One of my son’s friends heard what we were doing, got jealous, invited himself, and secured parental approval before we even finished the session.

Both new characters will get unique, slightly rail-roaded hooks:

• The self-invited player will be black-bagged outside a tavern.
• The other new character will be caught in Stanimir’s teleportation spell, mid-herb-gathering for her master.

It’s exactly the kind of messy, cinematic entrance I love for a brand-new adventuring party.

Behind the Scenes of Session 1

Before this session even began, I wrote about the surprise origin of this haunted arc in
👉 A Haunting New Beginning.

If you’re thinking of running Death House yourself, here’s how I customized it:
👉 Adapting Death House for My Party.