After the battle with the remnants of the Children of the Night Mother, the party makes their way to the town of Vallaki, hoping to rendezvous with Ezmerelda d’Avenir and seek out the elusive Mad Mage.
Their journey leads them down a dirt road that ends at a pair of sturdy iron gates. Behind the bars stand two shadowy figures, silently watching. Flanking the road outside the gates are half a dozen pikes, each topped with the severed head of a wolf—a grim warning to outsiders.
As the party enters Vallaki, the silhouette of Castle Ravenloft looms ominously in the distance. Though Acererak now rules the realm, Vallaki seems untouched—for now. The town is in the midst of a festival called the Wolf’s Head Jamboree.
The adventurers take part in the festivities, including combat challenges and games of chance (featuring the mysterious Deck of Many Things). While resting at the Blue Water Inn, they are summoned by Baron Vargas Vallakovich, the town’s Burgomaster.
The Baron informs them that Ezmerelda has gone missing—and tasks the party with investigating her sudden disappearance.