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Step into the mists of Ravenloft, to the land the place darkness guidelines. Find your solution to Barovia, cursed land of Strahd von Zarovich.
Embrace the mists expensive Adventurer and step right into a land of darkness and terror. Where an historic depend guidelines and each shadow hides one thing sinister. Make positive your picket stake is sharp, that your vial of holy water is safe, and get your cleric to solid safety from evil as a result of it’s time to go to the land the place no one drinks…wine. It’s time to go to Ravenloft.
Originally showing within the titular module I6: Ravenloft, the setting is understood for its darker tackle D&D. With its shades of Gothic horror and monstrous villains, it’s simple to see why it had common enchantment.
Did somebody say “Universal” and “Monster” – what? Too quickly?
Ravenloft is exclusive among the many varied marketing campaign settings in that, in contrast to Faerun or Krynn, and even Athas, Ravenloft doesn’t occupy a planet or perhaps a continent–as a substitute, Ravenloft is a Twilight Zone-esque demiplane (of dread!) referred to as Barovia–that characters can stroll into from wherever on the planet. And very like the Twilight Zone, Ravenloft might be wildly totally different from encounter to come across. Characters that step by way of the mists would possibly discover themselves wandering by way of a sleepy city with horrors lurking beneath, or they could be dealing with the lethal curse of an historic mummy. Names like Vecna and Soth are whispered right here and have left their mark on the world.
But none have made as a lot of an affect as the villain of Ravenloft, Count Strahd von Zarovich. So in an effort to work out what makes this ever-shifting land of mists and darkness tick, let’s dive into the primary look of Count von Zarovich: I6: Ravenloft.
I bid you welcome.
Right away, it’s clear that this journey isn’t any peculiar D&D module. Before even attending to the journey, the DM is greeted with the next:
I’m the traditional. My beginnings are misplaced within the darkness of the previous. I’m not useless. Nor am I alive. I’m undead, endlessly.
The subsequent few pages element the setup of the journey–most notably although, they level out that all the journey facilities round Strahd. When Strahd is useless, the journey is over (although that may take some work), so DMs are suggested to have him retreat and attempt to isolate weaker social gathering members. There are at least 4 warnings about taking part in Strahd as intelligently as you’ll a traditional PC in as many pages on the sport’s outset.
The DM can also be instructed to make use of taking part in playing cards to randomly decide the vampire’s motivations, targets, and the places of the essential treasures of the module–full with cryptic hints handy out to the PCs once they have their fortunes informed by an previous gypsy girl. The remainder of the module reinforces the concept Strahd is his personal monster, and that the adventurers aren’t in Kansas anymore. In addition to the gypsy fortune teller, gamers can encounter a darkish forest filled with werewolves, a burgomaster attempting to guard his daughter, and naturally the grand fortress up on the craggy hill, Castle Ravenloft.
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There are plenty of little touches that actually seize the gothic horror parts of the module (and the setting). There’s a thick fog that lurks on the edges of the land of Barovia, the NPCs all have their very own causes for fearing Strahd. And there’s a pall of tragedy hanging over the entire affair. Even ought to gamers discover the legendary solar sword of the module, they could be reluctant to strike down the villain.
There’s even an non-obligatory epilogue that captures the sensation of with the ability to breathe eventually–as soon as the gamers have defeated Strahd, the mists disappear and light-weight returns to the world. Like the top of a protracted evening.
And there’s one thing in that final concept that makes Ravenloft stand out from different settings as nicely. Even for those who play an prolonged marketing campaign just like the Curse of Strahd, your encounter with Ravenloft is rarely meant to be everlasting. Ravenloft isn’t a spot, a lot as it’s an concept: a second of dread that lingers a second longer than it ought to. That threatens to eat you. Though they might declare your soul, adventures in Ravenloft are supposed to finish.
I believe it’s as a result of Ravenloft leans so closely on its supply materials. Stories within the gothic horror custom aren’t about discovering and killing a monster–they’re usually about looking at why the monster is the way in which he’s (and maybe culminating in numerous, “we’re not so different you and I” speeches), or wanting on the corrupting results of what the monster represents. With Strahd, as an illustration, the theme of eager to pressure somebody to like you performs closely.
There’s a villain like that in every totally different “pocket” of Ravenloft–bear in mind, Ravenloft just isn’t a continent or world, however the Demiplane of Dread, bordered by the ineffable Mists of Ravenloft which include darkish and sinister powers inside–powers that hunt down significantly egocentric and evil people and imprison and torment them by making them masters of their very own realm of terror. Also referred to as the islands of terror, these realms all are dominated over by a robust villain referred to as a darklord. Strahd, as an illustration, is the darklord of Barovia.
Other darklords embody the lich Azalin, Lord Soth–the long-lasting loss of life knight, and presumably Vecna was as soon as a darklord of Ravenloft earlier than escaping. Presumably getting drawn into the Mists was all part of Vecna’s plan anyway. But every of those figures casts a shadow over their respective area–realms inside Ravenloft are distinctive in that they exist as gasoline for journey. They are full of people that toil below the usually oppressive regime of the darklord and who require the participant’s support.
That’s as a result of gamers characterize the opposite facet of horror tales–if the villains are supposed to be held up as monsters, the PCs, against this, are given an opportunity to study the teachings the darklords can’t. Or won’t. They’re usually counted on to be brokers of change–in third version, Ravenloft was known as the Crucible of Virtue because of this. The concept was that the gamers have been being examined any time they have been drawn in by the Mists.
Each realm of Ravenloft could possibly be an article unto itself, although. Because despite the realms being designed as solely vaguely outlined areas that every one are bordered by mists, the realms are all surprisingly detailed–oftentimes the adventures that happen in them will span a number of places, generally even crossing planar boundaries. The House on Gryphon Hill, as an illustration, is a Jekyll and Hyde-esque journey (that includes good Strahd and evil Strahd) that culminates with a whole city falling into the Mists.
These realms usually have their very own whole historical past (fleshed out in each journey modules and novels in lots of instances), that get rewritten all through the editions. Whole realms have vanished over the course of Ravenloft’s historical past. When 2nd version got here out, at least twelve Islands of Terror vanished with out a hint, solely to return in 3.5. But one factor stays fixed–the land of Barovia and its vampire liege. And, since we’ve already outlined what’s at stake in Strahd’s realm, you may depend on the truth that we’ll be taking a look at Barovia (and in addition Ravenloft’s) historical past.
As far as anybody can inform, the historical past of Barovia begins within the yr 351. This is the yr that Strahd rises to energy in Barovia, having pushed again a horde of invading barbarians referred to as Tergs. This can also be when Strahd falls in unrequited love with a younger girl named Tatyana, who was in flip in love with Strahd’s brother, Sergei. Spurned, and hating and fearing what he represented (Strahd didn’t like the thought of being previous, and felt he had wasted his youth) Strahd murdered his brother–relying on the version made some sort of unholy deal to achieve the ability wanted to perform this–and proceeded to turn out to be the vampire lord of Ravenloft. In response, Tatyana kills herself, Barovia is shrouded in Mist, and Strahd strikes right into a fortress and broods.
Yeah, sort of like that, however with a special form of bat/man.
The subsequent hundred-ish years see Strahd disappearing from the general public eye, searching down the occasional traitor and determining how finest to pine for his misplaced “love” along with his newfound undead powers, however till the Vistani (these gypsies I discussed earlier) arrive, nothing a lot occurs. The arrival of the Vistani, nonetheless, heralds an period of change for Barovia. The woods of Svalich turn out to be haunted–and when a younger boy is saved there, he begins a spiritual motion referred to as the Cult of the Morninglord. Also throughout this time of arrival, Azalin seems in Barovia. He and Strahd turn out to be cautious allies and nothing ever goes unsuitable between them.
Except for that entire bit within the yr 579 the place Strahd and Azalin journey to the realm of Mordent and get Jekyll and Hyde’d till all the realm falls into Ravenloft. Then Azalin turns into a conquering Lich Lord, however Strahd manages to drive him off and Azalin units up his personal area in Darkon. All the whereas, increasingly domains are showing inside the Mists, so there are precise assets to battle over.
This period of “expansion” sees the looks of numerous realms: Bluetspur, Arak, monstrous Forlorn, even a desert realm referred to as Har’Akir. This period involves a head with the Dead Man’s Campaign–an invasion of the realms of Ravenloft by Vlad Drakov a mercenary warlord from Krynn whose campaigns are endlessly doomed to fail. And fail they do–4 occasions in a row, with every defeat driving the person increasingly mad. This time interval additionally sees the rise of Dr. Abraham van Helsing Rudolph von Richten, who dedicates his life to preventing the monstrous horrors of Ravenloft by exposing their weaknesses.
“We will crush von Zarovich with one swift stroke!”
This all culminates within the Grand Conjunction (735-740), which Azalin (ever decided to flee his nightmarish jail) brought about by way of cautious manipulations. During the Grand Conjunction, the lands of Ravenloft have been struck with tremors, whole realms vanished into the Mists or dissolved into nothingness, and a younger Gelfling named Jen introduced steadiness again to the world by returning the shard of a Dark Crystal whence it got here.
The subsequent decade sees the fallout of those modifications. Scattered domains merge collectively, Azalin escapes Ravenloft (in all probability) solely to return later to search out his kingdom in shambles. Strahd declares one other “heir” to Barovia, and all the pieces rolls round to what passes for a gift day.
Of course, that is only one model of the historical past of Ravenloft. The latest version of D&D options some tweaks and modifications within the Curse of Strahd e book–however as I say, it virtually doesn’t matter. The cause Ravenloft is so profitable as a marketing campaign setting is as a result of it provides its gamers a possibility to inform the form of tales you don’t normally inform in D&D. It’s a break from questing knights and mighty wizards–it’s a dread pallor that falls upon the world for a time. A second of horror that threatens to swallow everybody up.
What horrors have you ever unearthed inside the Mists of Ravenloft? Werewolves? Vampires? Vampire Werewolves which can be additionally Frankenstein’s Monsters? Let us know within the feedback beneath!
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