Durst Manor

These charred ruins are what is left of the Durst Manor. Rumor is that a group of adventurers burned the house to the ground after encountering something horrifying in the basement.

Purpose / Function

Durst Manor was constructred for the Durst family. Fredrick Durst

Alterations

Ornate carvings had been added to each room over the course of several decades. At first glance they were carvings of the Barovian countryside, upon further inspection the images all had a dark and violent twist.

Architecture

The construction matched the Gothic architecture of the time. Large, ornately

Defenses

There is a iron fence around the property and a portcullis at the first door.

History

Fredrick Durst ordered the construction before the mists surrounded Ravenloft. It was ised as his family home, with his wife Elizabeth, and two children, Rosevelda and Thornbolt. They had a staff of several servants.
After the mists Fredrick’s work took his full focus. Elizabeth, being left alone for months at a time and suffering from mental issues, she began to be influenced by a cult. This cult worshiped a Dark Power named Vampyr, a being credited with the creation of all vampires.
Fredrick frequently sent artifacts home, one of which was a jar of vampire blood and Illithid tadpoles. The mental influence of the tadpoles drove the cult further into madness. Elizabeth began ordering the abduction of villagers from the nearby village of Barovia Proper so be sacrificed to Vampyr.
The cult became obsessed with trying to summon Vampyr and twisted Fredrick’s research to formulate a summoning ritual. It is unknown if the ritual failed or succeeded, but no one has been seen leaving the house since and it has shown no sign of wear over the centuries.
The adventuring party encountered the Durst children, Rose and Thorn, outside of the mansion while on the Old Svalich Road . They entered the house and were accosted by enchanted armour and a vampiric illithid that appeared to be the nursemaid of the children.
After slaying the monster they explored deeper into the mansion, eventually discovering the long dead remains of the children and they were lured in by spirits. The party discovered a secret door that led to the family crypt under the house and laid the bodies of the children to rest.
Upon further exploration, the party found that the crypt had been expanded and used by the cult. They fought off a hoard of Ghouls and several Gricks in the tunnels. Deeper in the tunnel they found the remains of Fredrick outside of a locked room. His spirit appeared and warned the party against entering the room as Elizabeth was locked in there.
The party formulated a plan, learning that Elizabeth was now a vampire, to feed her to distract her. Fredrick entered the room and retrieved the jar of blood and tadpoles that he had sent home earlier to find that the tadpoles were removed. Elizabeth later escaped the mansion.

Eventually they discovered the sacrificial chamber.
The sacrificial chamber has billed with the chanting of disembodied cultists demanding a sacrifice. With a quick decision, the Christopher Krackoff and Bjorn Dreamorb decided to sacrifice Lancelot, a dog they had found in the mansion.
The sacrifice complete a massive pile of bodies in various stages of decomposition was revealed. The bodies started to undulate as the party approached. Several snake like creatures with grey eyes, the bodies tore and surged as a large creature with a massive dead eye.
The party defended against the creature while trying to escape the chamber. The create struck Christopher with a disintegration ray, turning him to ash. The party continued to defend themselves, trying to overcome the creatures ability to heal itself. When it looked like all hope was lost, an older much more powerful version of Christopher reformed in a cloud of paper and ash. Christopher proceeded to eviscerate the creature before returning to his normal state.
The party, wounded but alive, left the mansion and upon the request of Fredrick’s spirit, burned the mansion to the ground.

RUINED STRUCTURE
1495 DR

Founding Date

485 DR

Alternative Names

Death House

Type

Mansion / Villa

Parent Location

Old Svalich Road

Owner

Fredrick Durst