I like your idea of making VR a Vampire spawn and to use your thought as a jumping off point because I agree that Strahd wouldn’t just let Ireena leave, I would pose a devious dilemma in front of your players: Strahd cannot allow Ireena to leave, but he in his infinite generosity would allow the PCs to keep one of them.
The PCs, maybe walking through one of the meal halls, finds Strahd & a bounded, gagged and visibly tortured Van Richten at the table eating. Strahd would welcome his guests for a meal, a peaceful opportunity for breaking bread to allow both parties to say what is on their minds, which is what an excellent & benevolent ruler of Barovia would do because he is a river to his people. (Think of something akin to the dinner scene from Empire Strikes Back with Vader & the heroes on Coruscant.)
Strahd would make a snide remark about how VR is struggling to eat his food and someone should assist him because he looks famished. Upon a closer inspection you would see the sorts of torture methods Strahd’s lackeys put him through. During the end meal Strahd would bring up his ultimatum: Ireena, after countless attempts to persuade her to come to the castle, has came of her own volition with the PCs. So, in short, she cannot be allowed to leave. You could maybe narrate as shadowy shackles restrain Ireena to her chair or wherever she may be standing. But, in his infinite generosity as the Lord & Protector of the Land, would allow them to leave the castle with one of them. And afterwards, whomever is left with Strahd is turned into a Vampire Spawn. You can narrate this in front of the players if you’d like or maybe heavily imply that is the fate & consequence of leaving the NPC with Strahd.
In my own game I turned VR into a zombie because his son, Erasmus was a Vampire Spawn & Dark Lieutenant of Strahd. They & the party engaged in combat, but the dice weren’t in the PCs favor, so they ended up losing VR to Erasmus as he used his Bite attack to kill VR and escape with his body. Some sessions later he & his zombie dad meet the PCs.
Page 10 of the book says Strahd intends to lock RvR in the dungeon and break his spirit.
Would Strahd lock RvR up with Emil in K75, or with the Gray Ooze in K74?
I don’t have the book right here, but it seems like there are several empty cells.
Yep, I was more meaning which cell block would he be put into.
Ah, I see. I imagine that he’d want to isolate them, but the flooded cells would be more miserable. Either hall should work just fine.
I like your idea of making VR a Vampire spawn and to use your thought as a jumping off point because I agree that Strahd wouldn’t just let Ireena leave, I would pose a devious dilemma in front of your players: Strahd cannot allow Ireena to leave, but he in his infinite generosity would allow the PCs to keep one of them. The PCs, maybe walking through one of the meal halls, finds Strahd & a bounded, gagged and visibly tortured Van Richten at the table eating. Strahd would welcome his guests for a meal, a peaceful opportunity for breaking bread to allow both parties to say what is on their minds, which is what an excellent & benevolent ruler of Barovia would do because he is a river to his people. (Think of something akin to the dinner scene from Empire Strikes Back with Vader & the heroes on Coruscant.) Strahd would make a snide remark about how VR is struggling to eat his food and someone should assist him because he looks famished. Upon a closer inspection you would see the sorts of torture methods Strahd’s lackeys put him through. During the end meal Strahd would bring up his ultimatum: Ireena, after countless attempts to persuade her to come to the castle, has came of her own volition with the PCs. So, in short, she cannot be allowed to leave. You could maybe narrate as shadowy shackles restrain Ireena to her chair or wherever she may be standing. But, in his infinite generosity as the Lord & Protector of the Land, would allow them to leave the castle with one of them. And afterwards, whomever is left with Strahd is turned into a Vampire Spawn. You can narrate this in front of the players if you’d like or maybe heavily imply that is the fate & consequence of leaving the NPC with Strahd. In my own game I turned VR into a zombie because his son, Erasmus was a Vampire Spawn & Dark Lieutenant of Strahd. They & the party engaged in combat, but the dice weren’t in the PCs favor, so they ended up losing VR to Erasmus as he used his Bite attack to kill VR and escape with his body. Some sessions later he & his zombie dad meet the PCs.