Staging
This adventure was designed as a one-shot for a party of level 3 PCs relatively new to D&D 5e. It is a bait-and-switch social encounter that turns into combat, challenging players to improvise when their combat abilities are suboptimal. I used the nerfed vampire stat blocks included below but it can be scaled for other levels by adjusting those stats.
Lord Understone’s manor was formerly a monastery devoted to a grave cleric deity. The monks collected a number of relics and writings relevant to their deity but no outsiders were allowed to access them. The monks eventually died out due to their strict vow of celibacy and poor recruitment. Lord Understone purchased and moved into the old monastery nearly twenty years ago with his infant daughter and an army of servants. (He considered the venue deliciously ironic.) At the time he invited the local nobility to a housewarming that was scandalously low-class - the food was terrible, the furnishings were secondhand, and Understone made only the most cursory appearance. He blamed the melancholy on the fact that his wife had recently died, causing him to sell his old estate and make a new start. He became a social pariah and has been left alone. But in the past few years Understone’s fortunes have changed. New and expensive deliveries have been spotted moving to the estate and the windows are lit every night. Between the family’s growing wealth and rumors of the beauty and grace of his daughter the Contessa, the Understones have attracted public attention once more. In truth Lord Understone is secretly a vampire. He has been raising a stolen child for the last twenty years and only turned her into a full vampire recently when she reached adulthood. His goal this evening is to allow the Contessa to recruit vampire spawn to serve her before they move to a new location. The guests will either be turned into vampire spawn or killed. PCs will be relieved of any banned items at the front doors. A PC who refuses these restrictions will not be permitted to enter. If a PC breaks these restrictions and manages to enter anyway they’ll be shunned by the nobles and bounced by the staff, unable to participate until they conform. Each player should be issued an objective to achieve for the night. These give the players something to work toward that may or may not give hints to the night’s climax. Examples: The nobles in attendance are young, hot-blooded, and eager to prove themselves before the Contessa. The players can challenge anyone to a duel (and will probably witness one or two). For simplicity duels can be resolved with opposed check of the PC's weapon attack + Dex mods. All nobles in attendance have a dueling bonus equal to the PCs’ proficiency bonus. The loser of each check takes one point of damage. Ties deal zero damage. Whoever takes three points of damage first loses the duel. The nobles will give up a forfeit when they lose a duel: a kerchief or small piece of jewelry.
The social event of the season is the debutante ball for the Contessa of Understone! Lord Understone is a well-known social recluse, but he has opened his manor for this evening to introduce his daughter to well-heeled society. Invitations have been extended to eligible noble families throughout the county. This affords opportunities to adventurers as well: to mingle with the wealthy and powerful, make contacts, and of course pilferage…
Background
PC Equipment Rules
The venue places these restrictions on each PC:
Social Objectives
Dueling
The Guests
Agatha de Vriess
An elderly woman who is present to examine the next generation of local nobility. She knows some of the history of the monastery and the Understones’ reputation. When the night turns she keeps her head down and escapes as quickly as she can. She is a good target for the patron Social Objective since she's not picking fights and will agree to be escorted.Nonce Lockwell and Henrik Silvermore
Two young men with an ongoing rivalry. Nonce won their last duel and is happy to relate the tale to anyone who will hold still. Henrik has since employed a private fencing tutor and is ready for a rematch. Lockwell and Silvermore will duel shortly after the party arrives; the loser will stalk off to get drunk. When the night turns the loser is too wasted to be much use but the winner could fight their way free and may ally with the party.Lucian and Madrine Silvermore
Henrik’s parents. They're obviously too old for this crowd but they showed up to support their son against Lockwell. Like Agatha they are happy to observe the young people from the corner. When the night turns Lucian blusters and Madrine cowers but neither is capable of fighting their way out. They are good targets for the patron Social Objective.Eila Selkirk, Myra Longacre, and Nora Fairfax
Selkirk is the leader of this trio. She is upwardly mobile though her business sense is questionable. Selkirk has invested in a number of ventures that seem unlikely to pay off (mining rights to a mine that is currently flooded, a lumber mill built outside a forest where a circle of druids meets, import rights for spices that only tieflings can tolerate…) and dragged Longacre and Fairfax in with her. The three will try to persuade anyone who will listen to invest and may offer a plot hook to adventurers who can solve one of these problems for them. When the night turns the Contessa marks them for execution but not as threats - if they can avoid direct combat they will survive.Razibel Hartford and Regina Eskel
A pair of young women who are wannabe adventurers in their own right. Both brought swords and are eager to duel. Like Agatha they can recount the Understones’ history in the area as well as lowdown on any of the other attendees. If it sounds fun they can be persuaded to aid the PCs with a distraction or simple sleight-of-hand against another target. When the night turns they defend themselves competently and make for the exit.Nikola la Maas, Braxton Redwall, Xyler Giseau
La Maas is the leader of this trio. They are all hotheaded frat bros happy to drink, flirt, and fight. They don’t have any information but are easy targets for a dueling Social Objective and easily antagonized to create a distraction. When the night turns they form up to fight; if they attack Understone or the Contessa they are quickly dispatched, but if they retreat then they can break through the servants and escape.Amos Winterhill
A young man who is here for the party. He is a failson, drinking heavily and flirting with or just harassing the servants. By the time the night turns he is passed out and ignored by the vampires, but will be eaten later if he is not rescued. He is a likely target for either the bodyguard or patron Social Objectives.Colin Jadelock
A young man moping about in the library. He is the youngest in attendance and a classic introvert. He has explored the study enough to know that the Understones’ true library must be upstairs and can be enlisted in exploring the manor as long as he doesn’t have to deal with people. When the night turns he defends himself with mage armor and shield and runs. He is a likely target for the bodyguard Social Objective.The Hosts
Count Elric Understone
Mature Vampire
Armor Class 16
Hit Points 72 (retreat at ≤18 hp)
Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 18 (+4) 16 (+3) 16 (+3) 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 14 (+2)
Saving Throws Dex+8, Wis+6, Cha+7
Damage Resistances necrotic; slashing, piercing, or bludgeoning from nonmagical weapons unless silvered.
Actions
Multiattack May make two attacks per turn, only one of which can be a bite and only on a grappled or charmed target.
Unarmed. Melee: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8+4) piercing damage.
Grapple. +8 vs target's Athletics or Acrobatics check, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: target's Speed is reduced to 0 (Action to Athletics or Acrobatics vs Understone's +8 to escape).
Bite. Melee: automatically hits grappled or charmed target. Hit: 7 (1d6+4) piercing damage.
Charm. One humanoid target within 30 ft. will regard the caster as a friend and follow simple requests (Wisdom DC 13 save negates).
A vampire who appears to be in late middle age. Twenty years ago his circle was attacked and he was the only survivor. In response he kidnapped the infant child of one of his attackers and fled the country. He has spent the last twenty years raising Evelyn to become a vampire when she was of age and a companion to him. After years laying low and impoverished he reached out to reclaim wealth that his old circle had cached. If asked he claims his new fortune is from timber that he planted many years ago which has finally been harvested.
Contessa Evelyn Understone
Fledgling Vampire
Armor Class 14
Hit Points 45 (retreat at ≤12 hp)
Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 15 (+2) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 12 (+1) 10 (+0) 14 (+2)
Saving Throws Dex+5, Wis+3, Cha+5
Damage Resistances necrotic; slashing, piercing, or bludgeoning from nonmagical weapons unless silvered.
Actions
Multiattack May make two attacks per turn, only one of which can be a bite and only on a grabbed or charmed target.
Unarmed. Melee: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d8+4) piercing damage.
Grapple. +5 vs target's Athletics or Acrobatics check, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: target's Speed is reduced to 0 (Action to Athletics or Acrobatics vs Contessa's +5 to escape).
Bite. Melee: automatically hits grabbed or charmed target. Hit: 7 (1d6+4) piercing damage.
Charm. One humanoid target within 30 ft. will regard the caster as a friend and follow simple requests (Wisdom DC 13 save negates).
A vampire who appears to be twenty years old. Elric turned her only recently after she had grown to adulthood. She has been raised to regard mortals as chattel, but also been well-educated by Elric in languages, history, and mathematics. She is eager to recruit vampire spawn who will be her companions - she is looking for beauty, intelligence, and charm.
Servant Minions
Variant Vampire Spawn
Armor Class 12
Hit Points 1
Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 10 (+0) 8 (-1) 13 (+1)
Actions
Unarmed. Melee: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d8+1) piercing damage.
Grapple. +4 vs target's Athletics or Acrobatics check, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: target's Speed is reduced to 0 (Action to Athletics or Acrobatics vs servant's +4 to escape).
There are twice as many servants as there are PCs. These are vampire spawn that Elric has recruited over the decades. They are loyal to their sire and sadistically enjoy the prospect of killing off daft nobles. During the social part of the adventure mention them frequently but do not place tokens or figurines for them - let the players forget they are present until they appear on the map in the combat section blocking the doors.
The Manor
All locks are Sleight of Hand DC 14; PCs can take 10 on the check if they spend a few minutes working on it uninterrupted. A distraction can be useful to ensure this time.
Approach
The manor is isolated, so the players will see fields and woods outside on the long walk or ride up the approach. They arrive at dusk. Both of these increase the feeling of menace when the night turns - there's nowhere to run and the vampires could follow the PCs outside.Foyer
The front door is guarded by a servant who checks PCs per the Staging rules above. Any contraband can be locked in the adjacent coat closet for the duration. The entry hall has a big statue related to its monastery history. The purpose of this room is to close and lock an extra door between the ballroom and the front door. Doors open to the ballroom, the dining room, and the sitting room.Ballroom
The primary setting for the evening’s social events. Most of the attendees are here including Understone himself sitting at a table in front of the east window. This is where the Contessa will present herself. Stairs go up to the ballroom overlook and doors open to the kitchen (locked), the dining room, the sitting room, the study, and out the back porch (both locked).Dining Room
Where the food is. Servants use this room as a staging area to circulate through the rest of the ground floor with trays of booze and hors d'oeuvres. Attendees are not forbidden but are obviously in the way and discouraged from lingering. Doors open to the foyer, the ballroom, and the kitchen.Kitchen
Where the food was made. There are magical appliances to generate appetizers and drinks that are then transferred to the dining room to transfer to serving trays. Attendees will be shooed out immediately. Doors open to the dining room, the ballroom (locked), and the stairs up to the servants’ quarters.Sitting Room
A parlor with couches and a fireplace. Winterhill lands here early in the night as will the loser of the Lockwell-Silvermore duel. Doors open to the foyer, the ballroom, and the study.Study
A quiet room for books with easy chairs and a couple desks. The books are mass-produced quality - maps, well-known travelogues, simple academic works - none particularly interesting to a distinguishing reader. Jadelock is here when the players arrive, and possibly Hartford and Eskel. Doors open to the sitting room, the ballroom, and the stairs up (locked).Back Porch
Strewn stone and limited greenery. There is an overgrown gate blocking the staircase down to the old monastery catacombs. Doors open to the ballroom (locked), and the catacombs.Catacombs
Underground passages used by the monastery and not much since. Dozens of monks were interred in wall slots but Understone has desecrated most of them. A PC who finds their way down may discover one or two silvered weapons and the monastery relic Social Objective.Ballroom Overlook
A second-floor walkway that overlooks the ballroom floor. Tactically valuable both in combat and in social ventures. The obstructed view from below allows PCs to take 10 on lockpicking without a distraction. Doors open to the library (locked), bedroom hallway (locked), and servants' quarters (locked); stairs down to the ballroom floor.Library
An extensive room with well-tended bookshelves and locked glass cases protecting magic items that Understone has hoarded. A canny observer will note rare volumes centuries old, long-outdated academic texts, and a fixation on necromancy and undeath. One or two of the locked cases (Sleight of Hand DC 17) contain antique silvered weapons. This is the target for the library Social Objective. Doors open to the ballroom balcony (locked), the bedrooms, and the servants’ quarters.Servants' Quarters
One upstairs wing is left to the servants with a common space, shared bathroom, and several small bedrooms. Clues to their true nature are rampant. Doors open to the library (locked) and the staircase to the kitchen.Bedrooms
The opposite upstairs wing is held for three large bedrooms with attached bathrooms: the Contessa's, Understone's, and Understone's private study. The Contessa remains in her bedroom until her debut shortly before the night turns. The study is dedicated to Elric’s lost fellows and shows his tracking of the relatives of the vampire hunters that attacked decades ago. Investigating either Elric’s bedroom or private study will fulfill the Understone’s wealth Social Objective. Stealing from the Contessa’s bedroom fulfills the pickpocket Social Objective, although if she is present she will complicate the task. Doors open to the library, ballroom overlook (locked), and staircase to the study (locked).Events
Because so much of the night is given over to social roleplay the players will drive most of the action. Give them run of the building to seek their Social Objectives.Understone is seated alone at a table in the ballroom and fiddles with an enchanted object to change the music every so often. He glowers at anyone who approaches. The players are free to mingle with the other attendees.
Shortly after the players arrive in the ballroom Silvermore challenges Lockwell to a rematch duel. This showcases dueling for the players and gives them a topic of discussion with the attendees.
If the PCs refuse to leave the ballroom mention Colin moping in the doorway to the study or have Amos follow one of the servants through the ballroom making a tool of himself.
If the PCs discover the hosts' nature by exploring the servants' quarters or the bedrooms upstairs they can choose to flee or else warn the guests. Fleeing before the debut is easy if they can get outside; all the exterior doors are locked and the servants are watching. If the PCs warn the guests privately then the guests insist on bringing their friends along which alerts Understone. If the PCs confront Understone in the ballroom he motions the servants to lock the ballroom doors and signals the Contessa with her music cue. As she descends the stairs he disgustedly tells her, "I tire of this. Take whichever you want and kill the rest." Jump to the night turns.
Assuming the PCs don't figure it out, when the action lulls Understone triggers the Contessa’s debut with a music cue. All the nobles line up around the edge of the ballroom. The servants quietly close and lock the ballroom doors (passive Perception DC 15 for players to notice). The Contessa descends the stairs, spins in the middle of the room, then talks to each of the attendees in turn, then takes a dance with each willing attendant. Give each PC a chance to showcase their best quality - she compliments the dextrous on their dancing, she makes banter with the charismatic, she consults the intelligent on a topic of their expertise. The dance is the best chance for a player to pickpocket the Contessa (Sleight of Hand DC 13, advantage if they impress her with one of those abilities) to fulfill that Social Objective.
After the dance, the Contessa returns to the middle of the room. Elric makes a gruff statement about respecting his daughter’s choices. Then the Contessa calls her first claim - probably one of la Maas, Redwall, or Giseau. He meets her in the middle, she tilts his head with her hands, then extends her teeth and bites into his neck. Play for horror.
The night turns. The Contessa uses her Charm ability (Wisdom DC 13 negates but NPCs automatically fail) on her next target (PC or NPC, depends how cruel the GM wants to be). The other guests flee in panic but they bounce off the locked doors. The Contessa plans to drink from 3-4 targets then start snapping NPC necks for autokills.
There are a handful of combat-capable NPCs among the guests such as Hartford, Eskel, Lockwell, and young Silvermore. When the night turns a party of fewer PCs may want to team up with them. In combat these NPCs use their dueling bonus (equal to PC proficiency bonus) and deal 7 damage per hit (before damage resistance).
The players can directly attack the Contessa or just try to escape through the locked doors (Sleight of Hand DC 14 to pick, Athletics DC 15 to break). Anyone who breaks through a door will be challenged by two servants on the other side.
Understone is passive until someone lands a hit on the Contessa. Then he enters initiative order and goes to defend her.
Resolution
If the PCs break through the doors and past the servants while there are still guests in the ballroom then Understone and the Contessa do not bother pursuing. The PCs may now have an enemy...If either Understone or the Contessa is reduced to 1/4 hp then Understone goes into retreat. On his turn he Dashes directly to the Contessa (soaking any opportunity attacks) and drags her outside at 1/2 his Speed, smashing through any locked doors without a check. Once outside they transform into bats and fly away.
If either Understone or the Contessa is reduced to 0 hp before they escape then they immediately switch to mist form and must retreat to their coffin upstairs in their bedroom. In the coffin they revert to humanoid form but are paralyzed for 1 hour. They can be locked in paralysis with a wooden stake to the heart or destroyed with fire, magic damage, or holy water.
Social Objectives
At the end of the night evaluate each PC on their Social Objective. The GM can choose to award bonus XP or use the acquired items as plot hooks or magic item rewards.Win three duels
Both duels with nobles and enemies slain by that PC count.
Pickpocket something from the Contessa
Something stolen from her bedroom or pickpocketed from her or looted from her body.
Impress a wealthy patron
Achieved if the PCs escape alongside one of the nobles.
Bodyguard to keep a specific NPC "out of trouble"
Achieved if the specified NPC escapes alive.
Gain access to Understone's library
Achieved if the PC takes a weapon or tome from the library.
Recover a relic formerly held by the monastery
Achieved if the PC recovers something from the Catacombs or a relevant tome from the library.
Discover how Understone gained his new fortune
Achieved if the PC explores the private study upstairs or makes relevant checks to identify the materials in the library.