Designer(s) | Bruce Nesmith and Andria Hayday, after Hickman (the I-6 and I-10 adventures) |
---|---|
Publisher(s) | TSR, White Wolf, Wizards of the Coast |
Publication date | 1990 |
Genre(s) | Gothic horror |
System(s) | AD&D 2nd Edition, d20 System |
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragonsroleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called domains brought together by a mysterious force known only as 'The Dark Powers'. Each domain is mystically ruled by a being called a 'Darklord'.
- 1Setting
The Expedition to Castle Ravenloft campaign adventure updates the original 1st Edition 'Ravenloft' module, retaining the Gothic flavor and familiar elements while expanding and reimagining some of the locations to create a deeper, richer adventure experience. This adventure is designed for characters of levels 6-10 and features a new, easy-to. Fully compatible with the new version 3.5 of the d20 System, this book contains updated character creation rules, new spells, new information on spell use and realm magic ratings, guidelines to the realms of the Land of Dread, and even a new group of prestige classes created specifically for Ravenloft.
Setting[edit]
Ravenloft is primarily a Gothic horror setting. Dungeon Masters are encouraged to use scenes that build apprehension and fear, culminating in the eventual face-to-face meeting with the nameless evil.[1] Characters have a much greater significance attached to their acts, especially if they are morally impure, as they risk coming under the influence of the Dark Powers (through the game process called 'dark powers checks') and gradually transforming themselves into figures of evil.
The magical mists of Ravenloft could appear anywhere in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, drawing evil-doers (or player characters) into the Ravenloft setting. One exception is the 'phlogiston' of the Spelljammer setting.[2] The phlogiston blocks all planar travel, but the mists can appear in deep space inside crystal shells, according to the Complete Spacefarer's Handbook.[3]
The Dark Powers[edit]
The Dark Powers are a malevolent force who control the Demiplane of Dread. Their exact nature and number are deliberately kept vague, allowing for plot development in accordance with the Gothic tradition of storytelling - where the heroes are frequently outclassed and outnumbered by unknowable evil forces beyond their control.
The Dark Powers most frequently serve as a plot device for Ravenloft, especially concerning the Dark Lords, the de facto visible rulers of the Ravenloft Demiplane. Where the player characters are often tormented and opposed by the Dark Lords, the Dark Lords are themselves tormented and opposed by the Dark Powers. Of course, the difference lies in order of power—while many D&D adventures focus on allowing a band of heroes to prevail over a Dark Lord (much as in the spirit of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula), no such victory over the Dark Powers seems possible, or even conceivable, for the Dark Lords. Vecna and Lord Soth 'escaped' Ravenloft, but are the only two Dark Lords known to have done so; Vecna by attaining the status of Greater God (and thus becoming too powerful for the Dark Powers to contain) and Lord Soth by simply ignoring his domain and punishment, causing the Dark Powers to lose interest in imprisoning him.
Most frequently, the Dark Powers make their wishes and intentions known through subtle manipulations of fate. Thus, Barovia's vampire lord Strahd von Zarovich's many attempts to win back his love, Tatyana, are doomed to failure, but the Dark Powers arrange such that he never truly loses hope. Each time, for example, Strahd's own actions may be partially culpable for his failure, and as such he may go through crippling self-recrimination, rather than cursing the gods solely and giving up. Most other Dark Lords have similar tales of frustration, kept all the more unbearable because the flicker of the possibility of success is never truly extinguished.
Not all Dark Lords acknowledge the Dark Powers directly, however. Strahd, for example, in his own memoirs, speaks only of a force known as 'Death,' who mocks him with the voices of his family and former colleagues throughout his life. Vlad Drakov, the Dark Lord of Falkovnia whose military expeditions are doomed to constant failure, seems even to be totally oblivious of any non-mortal factors in his repeated defeats.
The Dark Powers also seem capable of non-evil manipulations. Although their machinations are often directly responsible for the misery of many of Ravenloft's inhabitants, they also appear to play a role as dispensers of justice. Some tales of innocents who have escaped Ravenloft for happier environs are attributed to the Dark Powers, who have judged a being worthy of reward and release from their misty domain.
The precise nature of the Dark Powers of Ravenloft is never explicitly described in the game material, with the exception of a few of the novels based on the setting, and even those are considered non-canon[citation needed]. In a sense, the Dark Powers are intended to be eternal unknowns, an array of mercurial, unforeseeable, and inscrutable wills whose motives and actions the player characters cannot hope to understand.
History[edit]
The first appearance of the setting was in I6:Ravenloft, a stand-alone Advanced Dungeons & Dragons adventure module published in 1983. It was popular enough to spawn an Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Gamebook and a 1986 sequel (Ravenloft II: The House on Gryphon Hill). Ravenloft was launched as a full-fledged campaign setting in 1990,[4] with the Realm of Terror boxed set, popularly known as the 'Black Box'. The campaign setting was revised twice during Second Edition — first as the Ravenloft Campaign Setting 'Red Box', then as the Domains of Dread hardback. In 1994 Ravenloft spun off into sub-setting called Masque of the Red Death, set on Gothic Earth, an 1890s version of Earth where fantasy creatures exist only in the shadows of civilization.[5] The 'Black Box' won the Origins Award in 1991 for Best Graphic Presentation of a Roleplaying Game, Adventure, or Supplement of 1990.[6]
TSR also published a series of novels set in Ravenloft. Each was typically focused on one of the darklords that inhabited the Ravenloft world, with several focusing on the figure of Count Strahd von Zarovich. Many of these early novels were by authors who would later receive wider fame as horror/dark fantasy authors. These authors have included Elaine Bergstrom, P. N. Elrod, Christie Golden and Laurell K. Hamilton.[7][8]
Ravenloft was licensed in 2000 to White Wolf, Inc., which published through the Sword & Sorcery Studios imprint versions of the setting for Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition (as Ravenloft Campaign Setting - Core Rulebook) and Dungeons & Dragons v.3.5 (as Ravenloft - Player's Handbook - v.3.5 Core Campaign Setting). White Wolf's license to the Ravenloft setting reverted to Wizards of the Coast on August 15, 2005, but Sword & Sorcery retained the right to continue to sell its back stock until June 2006. The timing of this reversion meant that the Ravenloft supplement Van Richten's Guide to the Mists did not see print.[citation needed] Instead, it was released as a free download in late September 2005.[9]
The campaign setting published by White Wolf introduced a number of alterations, many based on conflicts with existing Wizards of the Coast intellectual property. Lord Soth, a character created for the Dragonlance setting, was removed, and the island featuring the demi-god Vecna and his rival, Kas, was likewise excised due to the characters' origins in the Greyhawk setting, and any references to D&D pantheon gods have been replaced with Ravenloft-specific names (for example, Bane is referred to as 'The Lawgiver').
In October 2006, Wizards of the Coast released Expedition to Castle Ravenloft, a hardcover version of the original 1st edition adventure updated for the Dungeons & Dragons version 3.5 rule set. The 2006 version includes maps from the original Ravenloft adventure, and new character generation options. Expedition to Castle Ravenloft is a stand-alone supplement set for any D&D worlds, and only requires the three core books for usage. This book is completely distinct from the Ravenloft of the White Wolf product line.[10]
In September 2008, it was announced on Wizard of the Coast's Digital Insider #6 that Ravenloft would be reintroduced to 4th edition Dungeons & Dragons in the October issue of the Dragon online magazine. In 2007, Wizards of the Coast announced the printing of two new Ravenloft novels for 2008, Black Crusade and The Sleep of Reason,[11] fueling more speculation. A short story by Ari Marmell, 'Before I Wake,' based on the realms of Darkon, Lamordia and Bluetspur was released on October 31, 2007 on the Wizards of the Coast website as a special for Halloween and featured characters inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith.[12]
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The Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition supplement Manual of the Planes established that in the 4th Edition cosmology, the Domains of Dread (and by extension the Ravenloft setting) are now located within the Shadowfell, a mirror-world of death and gloom lying adjacent to the mortal realm. A standalone Ravenloft Roleplaying Game using the 4th edition rules was scheduled for publication in late 2011,[13] but the product was never released.
A new adventure for the game's 5th edition, entitled Curse of Strahd, was released in March 2016.[14] It was developed in-house by the Wizards of the Coast team, led by Christopher Perkins, with story contributions by original creators Tracy and Laura Hickman.
Novels[edit]
A number of tie-in novels were released, set in the Demiplane of Dread:
- Vampire of the Mists (September 1991), by Christie Golden (ISBN1-56076-155-5)
- Knight of the Black Rose (December 1991), by James Lowder (ISBN1-56076-156-3)
- Dance of the Dead (June 1992), by Christie Golden (ISBN1-56076-352-3)
- Heart of Midnight (December 1992), by J. Robert King (ISBN1-56076-355-8)[15]
- Tapestry of Dark Souls (March 1993), by Elaine Bergstrom (ISBN1-56076-571-2)
- Carnival of Fear (July 1993), by J. Robert King (ISBN1-56076-628-X)[15]
- I, Strahd: The Memoirs of a Vampire (September 1993), by P. N. Elrod (ISBN0-7869-0175-6)
- The Enemy Within (February 1994), by Christie Golden (ISBN1-56076-887-8)
- Mordenheim (May 1994), by Chet Williamson (ISBN1-56076-852-5)
- Tales of Ravenloft (September 1994), Edited by Brian Thomsen (ISBN1-56076-931-9)
- Tower of Doom (November 1994), by Mark Anthony (ISBN0-7869-0062-8)
- Baroness of Blood (March 1995), by Elaine Bergstrom (ISBN0-7869-0146-2)
- Death of a Darklord (June 1995), by Laurell K. Hamilton (ISBN0-7869-4122-7)
- Scholar of Decay (December 1995), by Tanya Huff (ISBN0-7869-0206-X)
- King of the Dead (March 1996), by Gene DeWeese (ISBN0-7869-0483-6)
- To Sleep with Evil (September 1996), by Andria Cardarelle (ISBN0-7869-0515-8)
- Lord of the Necropolis (November 1997), by Gene DeWeese (ISBN0-7869-0660-X)
- Shadowborn (March 1998), by Carrie Bebris and William Connors (ISBN0-7869-0766-5)
- I, Strahd: The War Against Azalin (June 1998), by P. N. Elrod (ISBN0-7869-0754-1)
- Spectre of the Black Rose (March 1999), by James Lowder and Voronica Whitney-Robinson (ISBN0-7869-1333-9)
- Before I Wake, by Ari Marmell (October 2007) A short story released for free on the Wotc website with the announcement of new novels in publication.[16]
- Heaven's Bones (Dominion) (September 2008), by Samantha Henderson (ISBN0-7869-5111-7)
- Mithras Court: A Novel of the Mists (Dominion) (November 2008), by David A. Page (ISBN0-7869-5068-4)
- Black Crusade, by Ari Marmell released for free on the Wizards of the Coast website[17]
Video games[edit]
- Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession (1994)
- Ravenloft: Stone Prophet (1995)
- Iron & Blood: Warriors of Ravenloft (1996)
Reception[edit]
Game designer Rick Swan commented in 1994 that when the Ravenloft setting first came out, it 'just didn't seem special, a Forgotten Realms variant with a few more bats', but after supplements like Forbidden Lore, The Created, and the Van Richten's Guide series, Swan felt that 'the Ravenloft campaign has proven to be a credible adventure alternative for players interested in the dark side of the AD&D game. Though it lacks the flamboyance of Call of Cthulhu and the, er, bite of Vampire, the Ravenloft setting remains the hobby's most enduring fusion of horror and fantasy.'[18]
Darker Days Radio declared Ravenloft the 'greatest D&D campaign setting,' citing the unique gothic horror elements and classic villains such as Azalin Rex.[19]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Hite, Ken (1999). Nightmares of Mine (1st ed.). Iron Crown Enterprises. p. 171. ISBN1-55806-367-6.
- ^D&D 2nd Edition, also issue #151 of the Polyhedron magazine
- ^Complete Spacefarer's Handbook
- ^'The History of TSR'. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved 2005-08-20.
- ^Connors, William W. (1994). Masque of the Red Death and Other Tales. TSR, Inc.ISBN1-56076-877-0.
- ^'Origins Award Winners (1990)'. Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design. Archived from the original on 2007-11-05. Retrieved 2007-10-29.
- ^'Golden, Christie 1963–'. Contemporary Authors. January 1, 2007. Archived from the original on September 21, 2014. Retrieved September 27, 2012. – via HighBeam Research(subscription required)
- ^Melton, Gordon (1994). The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead (1st ed.). Detroit, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 852. ISBN0-8103-2295-1.
- ^'Van Richten's Guide to the Mists'. Archived from the original on July 23, 2006.
- ^[1]
- ^'Fiction - Dungeons & Dragons'. ww2.wizards.com.
- ^[2]
- ^'Down for maintenance!'. archive.wizards.com.
- ^'Curse of Strahd - Dungeons & Dragons'. dnd.wizards.com.
- ^ abKenson, Stephen (March 1999). 'Profiles: J. Robert King'. Dragon. Renton, Washington: Wizards of the Coast (#257): 120.
- ^http://www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4dnd/20071031a
- ^http://www.wizards.com/dnd/files/BlackCrusade.pdf
- ^Swan, Rick (May 1994). 'Role-playing Reviews'. Dragon. Lake Geneva, Wisconsin: TSR (#205): 100–101.
- ^'Darker Days Radio Darkling #33'. Darker Days Radio. January 26, 2014. Retrieved 2019-01-24. Ravenloft game overview.
- Hickman, Tracy; Hickman, Laura (1983). Ravenloft. TSR. ISBN0-88038-042-X.
- Hickman, Tracy; Hickman, Laura; Cook, David 'Zeb'; Grubb, Jeff; Johnson, Harold; Niles, Douglas (1986). Ravenloft II: The House on Gryphon Hill. TSR. ISBN0-88038-322-4.
- Nesmith, Bruce; Hayday, Andria (1990). Realm of Terror. TSR. ISBN0-88038-853-6.
- Henson, Dale; King, J. Robert (1991). Book of Crypts. TSR. ISBN1-56076-142-3.
- Hayday, Andria; Connors, William; Nesmith, Bruce; Lowder, James (1991). Darklords. TSR. ISBN1-56076-137-7.
- Connors, William; Nesmith, Bruce (1992). Forbidden Lore. TSR. ISBN1-56076-354-X.
- McComb, Colin; Bennie, Scott (1992). Islands of Terror. TSR. ISBN1-56076-349-3.
- Nesmith, Bruce; Hayday, Andria; Connors, William (1994). Ravenloft Campaign Setting. TSR. ISBN1-56076-942-4.
- Connors, William; Miller, Steve (1997). Domains of Dread. TSR/Wizards of the Coast. ISBN0-7869-0672-3.
- Cermak, Andrew; Mangrum, John; Wyatt, Andrew (2001). Ravenloft Campaign Setting (3rd Edition). Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-075-4.
- Cermak, Andrew; Mangrum, John; Wyatt, Andrew (2001). Secrets of the Dread Realms. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-076-2.
- Cermak, Andrew; Mangrum, John; Nichols, Chris; Wyatt, Andrew (2002). Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume I. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-080-0.
- Mangrum, John; Naylor, Ryan; Nichols, Chris; Wyatt, Andrew (2002). Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume II. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-830-5.
- Mangrum, John; Campbell, Brian; Hollar, Carla; Lilavivat, Rucht; Pyror, Anthony; Woodworth, Peter; Wyatt, Andrew (2003). Ravenloft Dungeon Master's Guide. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-084-3.
- Mangrum, John; Turner, Stuart; Woodworth, Peter; Wyatt, Andrew (2003). Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume III. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-086-X.
- Lowder, James; Mangrum, John; Naylor, Ryan; Pryor, Anthony; Whitney-Robinson, Veronica; Wyatt, Andrew (2004). Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume IV. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-087-8.
- Cermak, Andrew; Mangrum, John; Miller, Steve; Naylor, Ryan; Wyatt, Andrew (2004). Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume V. Arthaus. ISBN1-58846-964-6.
External links[edit]
- Fraternity of Shadows - Founded in 2003 after the Secrets of the Kargatane site closed, this is the most important setting fan website.
- Mistipedia - The Fraternity of Shadows' Ravenloft wiki.
- Secrets of the Kargatane - no longer updated, this website was once one of the largest sources of Ravenloft information on the Internet, as well as being the Official 3rd Edition site as designated by Wizards of the Coast, until the Ravenloft setting was licensed to Arthaus Games.
- TSR Archive AD&D 2nd Edition Ravenloft product list
- TSR Archive D&D 3rd Edition Ravenloft product list
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ravenloft&oldid=900592812'
In a month or so I plan on running Expedition to Castle Ravenloft with my group. This being partially inspired by the vampire kick I’ve been on. Expeditio n to Castle Ravenloft cenrers around the vampire. Strahd von Zarovich. As Dungeon Master,you must play him as carefully as the playe rs run their cha. CASTLE RAVENLOFT? The Expedition to Castle Raventoft campaign adventure is designed for four 6th-level Duucaous 多St [email protected] charac- ters (though.
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He didn’t become a Vampire for the power or prestige he did it to protect the people and town he loves. Because of winter break I will have around players.
Strahd can spend action points just as characters can — and he does so freely, knowing that his supply will quickly be replenished. Log in or sign up in seconds. Filters It is recommended that you go into your preferences and increase your displayed links to Curse of Strahd has more in common with the original I6 Ravenloft it would seem.
You should choose a suitable adventure hook to draw that character to Barovia see Adventure Options on page 17which can be the same as the original one or a new one. If you’d rather not sidetrack your entire campaign for several months, you can select some elements of the minicampaign to put together a long adventure lasting about eight sessions.
The randomization by taroka deck is still there. This page was last edited on 1 Marchat Perhaps csstle want to observe Halloween in classic style by taking a break from your regular campaign and venturing into Castle Ravenloft.
To be blunt, IMO, it caztle the only one of the Expedition adventures that wasn’t complete and utter crap. Allow the PCs to explore the castle freely for most of the time allotted for your session. At least in 3. The PCs do not have time to acquire either the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind or the Sunsword, so they must rely entirely on their own abilities.
They arrive in Barovia and discover the zombie infestation.
Overall, there is some very good stuff. Cordell and James Wyatt.
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Any time you intend to post any promotion, message the mods ahead of time. Join Date Mar Posts 5, The PCs learn of an ancient tome of lore dating from the early days of Karrnath, in the years of Karrn’s conquest leading up to the formation of Galifar. You’re holding a page book in your hands, and that’s a lot rvenloft adventure material. As for the encounters no need to really beef them up if your party is not optimized.
Take a look at a few excerpts, worthy DMs, and see what horror you can bring to the table. The board game includes a rule book and a scenario book. Last edited by Thurbane; at Become a Redditor and subscribe to one of thousands of communities. A chill passes briefly through your body. Castle Ravenloft Adventure Options You’re holding a page book in your hands, and that’s a lot of adventure material.
In response to the threat of a powerful undead creature which could be other than Strahdthe PCs must seek out the legendary Sunsword. I’m hoping that little twist will make it tougher for the Pcs to just go after him and kill him. Scott The New World, Part 9: The zombie section alone was freakin’ huge then I go to check out Castle Ravenloft and the tactical encounters go from page to !
Views Read Edit View history. Strahd .35 immediately after their first combat encounter and fights them just long enough to get their measure. Also, each time vastle encounter Strahd show them a different side; not only combat abilities but his personality. All times are GMT These include Ashlyn the Lightbringer whose statistics appear in tactical encounter E3, page 36Sir Urik caxtle encounter F, page 74and possibly even Ireena Kolyana entry E11, page What makes Curse of Strahd different is every single bit of the original module I6 – Ravenloft is part of this new campaign module.
And yeah, taint is pretty annoying, no matter what. So, he became a Vampire in hopes of being able to deal with the Dragon. Not sure how to handle it if they run out of those guys though. That way they have clear objectives. The PCs find the room in which to perform the ritual and arm themselves with one effective weapon against the vampire.
Expedition to Castle Ravenloft — Table of Contents
Also note our banned subjects list. Results 1 to 14 of See the Fortunes of Ravenloft section on page I don’t think you will be able to disguise the story for very long, but if you work the shrines as mini-side treks instead of being part of targeting Strahd you could play up the ‘stay the winter here and get to be part of the town’, and even have the local noble help them out and be kind and generous I would also play up a lycanthrope vibe in order to keep them off the vampiric scent as long as possible.
Also, how much am I to assume the villagers know about Strahd? Jeref had been hunting werewolves at the outer edge of the Svalich Woods, and came home caastle stock up on silversheen before fighting the beasts.
Reading the Fortunes ravenloff Ravenloft reveals important clues about where the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind and the Sunsword can be found, and how to awaken the powers of both of these legacy items.