We started with the usual debate.  To short rest or long rest.  As always, some of us were in good shape and some were on death’s door.  Eventually, we agreed to take a short rest, figuring if this castle was anything like the other buildings we’ve had to clear, it was going to take multiple rests to get through.  Better to delay the long rest for when we really needed it.  The only one that really got screwed by that was Ezra who used up almost all of his spell slots (i.e., smites) last time.  And despite using all his hit dice, wasn’t back to full.  He said he’d stay in the back and let someone else do the heavy hitting.  Luckily a fully refreshed Kharn was in attendance.  We slowly finished going through the first floor.  We had Fantasy Grounds issues with updates/add-ons and had to restart twice.  We started to search the second floor and noticed something moving in another fireplace.  This time a soot dragon spirit flew out.  Since that last one worked out okay, we followed this one.  It went up to the 3^rd floor as well and into a large meeting room.  The roof had collapsed in the middle part and it was difficult terrain.  The spirit landed on the shoulder of a figure in plate, sitting on a throne.  It rose and addressed us.

Ezra turned on his Channel Divinity: Sacred Weapon power and stepped up to talk to it.  (So much for staying in the back.)  Once again, we tried to convince him we were there to help.  He said that Stradhanya had killed him and all his knights and destroyed his life’s work.  He was angry.  It didn’t take Lady P’s commune with spirits powers to conclude he was the source of the problem.  We attempted to explain that we hated Stradhanya too and were working to defeat her.  But there was a twist.  This guy wanted to see her suffer, not killed.  We attempted to adjust our arguments, asking him how to defeat her, but he started to attack.  8 additional spirit knights manifested around the room.  Ambrus went first, weaved through traffic to get next to an ally, and attacked a knight with a sneak attack.  The boss went next.  He hit Ezra twice and missed once and knocked him out.  Thanks for coming.  He did 6d6+16 per hit with 3 swings.  His to hit was like +15.  So basically, he could take one of us out each round all by himself.  Run away? Can we run away?

Loki went next and filled the boss with lead.  It didn’t make a dent.  Most of the knights went next.  They did two attacks of 1d8+8 and had a decent to hit themselves.  So, they were no slouches and we were surrounded by them.  We started to run.  Kharn picked up Ezra, took some opportunity attacks and headed for the stairs.  He was impeded by the difficult terrain.  Ambrus got beat up by the knights but made it to a window.  He Misty Stepped down, fell the remaining 10 feet, and crawled to the horses with one hit point left.  Lady P saved many lives by casting a Slow.  All 6 in the area missed their saves including the boss.  Loki ignored the terrain with a Ranger power he had picked up at 8^th and blew by everyone.  Baron Q moved as best he could but got cut down in the hallway.  Not only did the knights ignore the terrain, they ignored the walls.  Kharn and Ezra made it to the stairs.  Lady P got a good berry into the Baron but couldn’t make it to the stairs.  So, she opened the nearest door and found 6 more skeletons sitting around a table.  Baron Q used his Levitation to get through the hole in the ceiling and onto the roof.  So, everyone made it out except Lady P who was knocked out.  But no one knew that not that they could have helped her anyway. It’s worth noting that all this damage was done by the knights and thanks to the Slow, the boss never got to attack again.

The ghosts did not follow.  We had to take a long rest before we could do anything so we delayed that debate and just set up camp.  Meanwhile, Lady P awoke in a bed, and recovered after a long rest.  The head skeleton introduced himself as Sir Godfrey.  He and his knights had also been slain but they had not been revived by the first guy’s anger.  He said that things were okay until recently when Baba Lasoga and her twig army had attacked and stolen the head of Argonvast.  The very same skull we had attached to the wagon.  He thought that if the skull was recovered and placed among the bones at the top of the highest tower, all could be set to rights.  (Evidently, we had opened the wrong door first.  Although, we were led astray by the dragon spirit which had been helpful the last time.)  She also asked questions about Stradhanya.  Evidently, she had been killed several times before, including last year, but kept coming back due to her deal with a Dark Power.  So, killing her again wouldn’t do any good.  He thought that she had to be killed and then the Dark Power defeated or the other way around.  He did not know which.  He did think that answers might lie at the Amber Temple in the southern mountains.  I think that was next on our list of things to do.  She thanked him, got her gear together, and walked outside.  Ezra was on guard duty and questioned her with suspicion.  Eventually, everyone else awoke and there was much rejoicing.   

So, well rested and reunited, we headed around back to the tower.  Rather than go back into the castle, we used 100 feet of rope and climbed to the roof.  Kharn had +13 to his roll and simply strapped the skull to his back.  Everyone else made it up okay.  Once on the roof, we could see a door into the tower.  (We thought we were climbing to the top but evidently not.)  Two of the spirit knights shot arrows from above.  Loki and Baron Q returned fire as Ambrus used a Knock spell to open the barred door.  (And then Jon logged out.)  The spiral stairs went down 3 levels to the chapel and up to the tower.  Ezra fell through once and landed one spiral down.  The archers were encountered coming down and we could hear more coming up.  But soon enough, Kharn got to the bones.  Once placed, the dragon spirit arose and cast a bright light from the tower.  The knights turned to dust and it was all over.  We stopped there.  We were told that the Beacon of Hope was lit and anyone that opposes the vampire in the land would get +1 AC and +1 to saves.  Baron Q received the holy symbol of the Raven Queen as it appeared in his hands.  Effects to be revealed later.  It also completed his personal quest, granting him an extra feat.  Sir not appearing, Kaladin also completed his quest and earned an extra feat. (Dan: I was moving.  This isn't the first time the subject of a personal quest was gone for the completion of his personal quest.  Seems to happen a lot.)   (I know we constantly talk about setting up a base somewhere.  Maybe here.  It’s big, defensible, more or less centrally located and the Beacon needs defending.  As if we ever have a chance to stop.)  We made 10^th level.  Most rolled hit dice and leveled up.         

Could we have survived that fight with a long rest and a Kaladin? That is debatable.  I think not.  Ezra would have stood one more round which means a round of attacks for him and Kharn.  But that wasn’t going to be near enough.  Those knights nearly killed us all by themselves.  Maybe just them or just him but not both at the same time.  Kaladin’s presence might have helped Lady P escape assuming he could carry her through the roof.  But frankly, her getting left behind is the only thing that went right.  If she had gotten away as well, our only known course would have been to try again.  We would have not gone into the room with Sir Godfrey and learned what needed to be done.  It was one of those fights that we could not win by fighting.  We had to find a way around it and I’m not sure we would have.  I would have advocated for visiting the dragon spirit again and demanded more advice.  We can’t defeat that guy.  What else have you got? But it worked out as unsatisfying as it was to have to run away.  But that’s happened multiple times in this module.  How we’re supposed to defeat the vampire’s super minions, let alone her, it’s hard to imagine.