Stahd has become angry at his residents who will not keep him supplied with fresh and now abducts them - his focus on his work and anxiety over his own continued failures have made him completely callous to the situation of his villagers - he sees them bound to the oath of their ancestors to keep him supplied with blood. The Demigod Arijani, from the Demiplane of Dread Sri Raji. Please enable JavaScript to get the best experience from this site. I chock his appearance up to cameo more than anything -- at best he's a potential ally who can help the party fight Strahd (who still must be defeated using the necessary artifacts), otherwise he's just a nod to Gary Gygax and the world ofGreyhawk. Wheaku is the fiercely loyal owl familiar of Lael Milpialda. Well, I cant answer that question, but I can give you some tips on how to run my favorite villain of all time. But while outsiders can enter the Domains of Dread if the Mists surrounding these lands permit them to, nearly all of the Darklords are trapped in their individual kingdoms. Unpacking the Madness. Lief is the delusional, bookkeeping prisoner of Strahd. Henry is the collector for the Dusklight Supply Shop, and often finds himself as the personable hub of festival preparation in concordance with the Baroness. Izek is Baron Vargas' infamously brutal protg and captain of the guard in Vallaki. Luca is, perhaps unfairly, considered the village idiot of Krezk. We rewound a bit to give Gwaihir's player more time with the mad mage, and through some spells we learned that he was under the influence of a Mind Blank spell, but that it was his own spell. [6], In addition to many scrolls and potions, Mordenkainen was known to possess a bag of holding, a set of bracers of defense, a crystal ball, a +1 dagger, an efreeti bottle, a wand of cold, a wand of fear, and three pearls of power. Strahd has an illusion of Tatyana who he treats like his real wife, but she's not completely responsive and it's clear that something's wrong with her. His soul met Petrina's and they came up with a plan to bring Petrina back to unlife (thanks to the heart of sorrow which could act as a philactery), so that she could trick the rhyme and finally let Strahd marry his true love.That's it, actually. And standing atop a balcony stemming from the tallest castle in the land is a vampire draped in a dark cloak, staring out at his realm and ruminating on his cyclical existence. Although not featured in Ravenloft products prior to Curse of Strahd, he appears in that module after having lost his memories and gone mad. Yeska is a troubled orphan, and the adopted son and altar boy of Father Lucien. Helga is the melancholic and enigmatic maid at Ravenloft. Kristofor is a quarryman and labourer at Fidatov estate, often doubtlessly fetching components for Fidatova's projects. Strahd's Barovia: A Guide to D&D's Most Famous Horror Setting, Strahd: The First Darklord of the Domains of Dread, Barovia is a Melancholic Realm Encircled by the Mists, Fresh Variations of Horror in Olde Barovia, Playing With Dark Gifts, a Double-Edged Sword for Characters, Drift Off Into I'Cath: The Domain of Dreams, Journey to Har'Akir: A Desert Domain Where the Dead Never Rest. so the players don't immediately know its heavily changed. She first drew the philanthropist, followed in quick succession by the transmuter, the anarchist, the marionette and finally, the horseman. Mordenkainen secretly survived, but he became overtaken by madness, paranoia, and amnesia. Coupled with the . Strahd shows himself multiple times throughout the campaign, standing ominiously and even interacting with the party directly several times. Her thirst for power turned into love when she got closer to Strahd, and this is when the curse kicked in, making the dusk elves kill her before she could steal Strahd's heart. Khazan found out about the curse, and how the plane had been taken over by the dark lords. Talos the Stormbringer is the god of destruction, storms and rebellion. Disclaimer: This article contains affiliate links that add gold to our coffers. King Barov was the ruler of the small Kingdom of Zarovich around where southern Agarthia is now. Zuleika is the mate of Emil, and bides her time to avenge him and become the pack leader she believes he should have been. Follow along as I look into Strahds Stat Block and what the numbers mean and how to make this villain play as terrifyingly as hes written. - Content Not Found: escher Walter was the child of Gustav Durst and Margaret, and was killed by Elisabeth for her cult's final ritual. March 15, 2016. We've already been saving your edits, so if you One PC took up the mantle of darklord of barovia as a replacement for Strahd, ending his reign, and locked away the demilich in the amber temple.Having explored the concept of the Vestiges a bit further, I treated them like the MTG Eldrazi, smaller parts of a larger whole trying to invade the world, and the "Domains of Dread" act as prisons to hold these vestiges, and prevent them from escaping into Faerun.Now the PC's are in a more homebrew setting, exploring one of the other Domains of dread, after meeting the Dark Powers of the Shadowfell, who informed them that they are useful tools, and that in order for them to return home, they must perform one final task. Gory Galen was a scholar and cleric of the Black Hand who believed that he could take the Icon of Ravenloft to use against Strahd. DEC/16. At the end of the day Strahd is a fan of theatrics and as a DM you should be too. His voice was deep and melodic. Curse of Strahd: Destined Allies - "There is one destined to stand with you against the shadow, but of their ultimate fate, not even I can tell," - Madam E "There is one destined to stand with you against the shadow, but of their ultimate fate, not even I can tell," - Madam E. Login; My Library; Locally, he is only known as the Mad Mage of Mount Baratok. Father Lucien is the philanthropic priest at St. Andral's Church, burdened with the secrets of decades of confessions. Blinsky is the founder of Blinsky toys, and aims to improve the world with his strange creations, one smile at a time. If the fight plays out in a satisfactory and fun ending then your job is done (even if it happens to be a whimper instead of a bang). Pidlwick was the jester of Duchess Dorfniya who told him to work at Ravenloft in her will. The Three-Faced King was a mysterious masked man who requested to be buried in the crypts of Ravenloft. His mother, Queen Ravenovia van Roeyen, was fearful of him, and she was unappeased by the castle named Ravenloft that he constructed in her honor. Henrik is a lonely coffin-maker whose trade and demeanour has given way to many unflattering rumours over the years. . She was banished by Dr. Van Richten. She is proud to have managed to revive one through her plea to the Abbot of Markovia. He is the sun god's final of many attempts to free Barovia from Strahd. Curse of Strahd: Destined Allies - "There is one destined to stand with you against the shadow, but of their ultimate fate, not even I can tell," - Madam E . He is curious about what Amari knows, and was unaware of the reincarnation and soulless that exist . Curse of Strahd: Destined Allies - DriveThruRPG.com Dostron the Hellborn. "Mordenkainen later traveled to Baroviain an attempt to free the local population from itsdarklord Strahd. Nero is the younger and more aggressive of the two guard dogs of the Baron. The way I put it is this (I originally wrote this in italian, since it's my own language): "Forever you will live, and in eternity Vivrai per sempre, e nelleternit. The Mad Mage of Mount Baratok roams the lakeshore and electrocutes the fish, but hasn't been seen in awhile. It is ambiguous whether it was a mistake or a suicide. . Savid is one of the younger dusk elves. Mordenkainen is presumed by the party to be the ally in the battle against darkness mentioned in the prophecy foretold by Madam Eva once his mind is restored by holy magic powerful enough to do so. My players really loved him (and I had lots of fun with a character that never gets the love he deserves). Strahd is not happy of being eternally imprisoned, and would very much just die and be done with his obsession. Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith, so powerful and so wise he could use the Force to influence the midichlorians to create life. If his crypt is disturbed, he animates as a wraith and commands his three hell hounds to attack. Piersym is the owner of Thimdul's Armaments, the title enduring to honour his former partner and teacher of a new trade after he was removed from Vallaki's guard force. PC Level: 5. The Curse of Strahd Companion is your comprehensive guide to running 5th Edition's greatest and grimmest campaign. Udo is the missing shoemaker of Vallaki, having led a small protest against the Baron at the Wolf Jamboree. Authors. This site works best with JavaScript enabled. Unfortunately, Strahd thoroughly beat him and threw him over the edge of Tser Falls. Jeremy Crawford, Laura Hickman, Tracy Hickman, Adam Lee, Christopher Perkins, Richard Whitters. Given I am prepping now to run Strahd for my Mox crew, this is a really clean look at the major NPCs and storyline for the advanture! Danika is the tough but kind-hearted owner of the Blue Water Inn in Vallaki. He is described as a "mad mage" who came to the valley to defeat its ruler but caught a case of amnesia in the process. Ithink the first thing you can improve is to make it clear his obsession is part of his curse, and not his own nature. A rare moment of rest as the party decide what to do next. Victor should actually just be a teenager with a crush on Stella and a really bad take on magic. The Mad Mage of Mount Baratok. If you want to get really creative, he could be the link from aForgotten Realmsadventure to aWorld of Greyhawkadventure, but for the time being such an endeavor would be your own design. The Mad Mage has a different spell list from that New Account (or Log In) Hide my password. Strahd has been working tirelessly for a thousand years trying to create a magical / alchemical cure for Tatyana's plague. upgrade now Equating these creatures as part of the forces of Strahd and this elk as a potential ally (and not just a normal animal . the person you love you'll see certainly. As such, I have needed to adjust certain things within the adventure in order for them to present a significant challenge to the party. St. Andral was a priest of Vallaki and the Morninglord, and became sainted after successfully protecting several of the fugitive guards of Ravenloft in his church's sanctuary until they died. I thought not. The castle is covered in spiderwebs and the braziers are rarely lit because Strahd has no servants and spends all his time in his lab. JavaScript is currently disabled. [12], Although Mordenkainen resided primarily on Oerth, by at least the Year of the Shield, 1367 DR, his spells were not uncommon among spellbooks in Faern. Stentho was the younger sister of Medusa who took her in and stayed with her after her rejection by Oghma. High Rollers: Curse of Strahd #18 | The Mad Mage - YouTube Let us not forget The Knight of The Black Rose, Lord Soth and his conflict with Strahd. 16. Mordenkainen with his staff. He stirred them with thoughts of revolt and bore them to the castle en masse. Spoilers for Curse of Strahd lurk ahead! St. Markovia was a priest of Krezk and of the Morninglord who became sainted after drowning to save a woman from a witch trial. Sasha is a reincarnation of Tatyana, and vampire spawn of Strahd. Lord Victor is the only son of Baron Vargas, and is resentful of his responsibilities and birthplace. The Dark Powers taunt the Darklords by dashing their hopes time and again. This is using Curse of Strahd, based in an alternate version of our Earth, where the fantastical is possible! Strahd feels an extreme guilt towards him, as he just couldn't resist the curse.Strahd's curse: this campaign is called Curse of Strahd, yet we never hear the curse. Baron Vargas Vallakovich is the burgomaster of Vallaki, and credits his extreme ruling methods as keeping Strahd out of the territory. Wilstrom is the son of the Bazhenovs, who succumbed to dream addiction, and loaned him in order to receive more. Lord Nikolai Wachter is the deceased father of the Wachter children, and husband of Fiona; beloved by them. Artank was a wine distiller and was famous for making most of his money from winning drinking contests. My question is: Does his appearance in Curse of Strahd make sense with the timeline? Cyrus is a fearful, mad servant of Strahd, having formerly been the head servant at the Abbey of St. Markovia. Lathander the Morninglord is the god of birth, vitality and the sun. Come on! Madam Eva is the matriarch and oracle of the Vistani in Barovia, and one of the most widely respected people in the valley. She seeks to make them the very most. Da Archive 2023-02-21 | PDF | Battle Tech | Dungeons & Dragons Franz is the artistic nephew of Skennis, former alpha of the werewolf pack. Thunder shook the mountainside, and great rocks tumbled down upon the wizard, yet by his magic he survived. The Harpy of Horinshire was a monster that hunted in the town of the same name before its capture by Dr. Van Richten. The Barovians believe everything about Strahd that is mentioned in the original module (that he's a bloodthirsty tyrant, killed his wife, etc.) Look to a place where sickness and madness are bred. Generations of humans have gone by and no one remembers their ancestors were there willingly and they don't know they're in a pocket dimension.