The party finishes their conversation with a ghost in the ruined manor in Berez. They head back to Muriel's hideout and return to Wizard of Wines. They give the magic gem to the Martikov family and continue on to Yester Hill to seek out another gem that the evil druids are said to have taken.
Upon reaching the foul hill, the party sees atop the mound a black circular stone wall with a fifty foot statue of a vampire inside. The hill is ringed with paths and trees with burial places at their bases. Gilly climbs up the nearest tree to see into the wall. Lightning strikes the wall and energy pulses through the rocks. Gilly sees six druids facing the statue, chanting something about Wintersplinter. Lideydri and Roger both spot a hellish horse floating in the sky along with a rider who they believe to be Strahd. The vampire appears to be watching the druids complete their ritual. The party discuss sneaking up on the druids. However, the ritual is completed before they can act.
The final lightning strike hits the stone wall and a thirty foot plant creature with green light seeping out of its core bursts out from the statue's shell. Strahd, in a booming voice, commands the creature to destroy the Wizard of Wines. The hulk begins to lumber (hee hee) its way down the path toward the party's location. Strahd turns his mount, pauses, and then returns to his castle.
Roger blasts the monstrosity with a fire ball that lights up the area. Then a wave a missiles impact the spongy wooden flesh. More druids undig themselves from some of the burial spots and cast spells that causes their flesh to become hard and bark-like. Bjorn goes into critical hit mode and drops many druids. Roger casts a lightning bolt through the monster causing a big hole through its gut and drops more wizards behind the creature. One druid then begins to float into the air which Gilly promptly slices in half. Vannan breaks his long bow. Lideydri and Bjorn go on an evil druid killing spree which causes the two remaining druids to flee. Vannan drops one but Grimtooth is unable to dispatch the final druid that escapes into the thick woods. Roger retrieves the final gem.
The party go to investigate a dread looking tree in a grove behind the stone wall. They see Needle Blights surrounding the evil tree. Bjorn casts some protection and attacks the blights head on. He is quickly flanked by some Vine Blights. Vannan quickly begins to restring his long bow. Lideydri uses her sunsword and tears through the vine creatures. Roger casts rays of flame and then promptly pops out of existence. Bjorn and Lideydri continue to press against the evil plants with Vannan and Gilly sniping from afar. Roger reappears and showers the remaining blights with arrows of pure force. Eventually the remaining blights are defeated.
They find a skeleton at the base of the evil tree clutching a silver warhammer. Lideydri suggests destroying the tree and burning it down. While this takes place, Vannan hears voices telling him he is worthy of the Blood Spear. He is drawn to one of the burial plots and finds a spear, untarnished by time.
To the west they see a wall of thick fog with a fortress overlooking a great city. Victor says this is the Whispering Wall. It is said that it is all that remains of a long forgotten god. The story goes that an ancient god gave up his divinity to preserve the world from destruction and that his last exhalation as a god produced the mist. Within in were all his memories of the world and all his visions of its possible futures, and with proper preparation, a seeker could go on a vision quest within it. Others think what they see in the fog is the real world and that it is in fact that Strahd's domain is just a dark memory in the Whispering Wall.
They ponder this and then return the gem to the Wizard of Wines. The Martikov thanks them promises to share the first batch of wine that comes with the next harvest with the party.
