#Baron Strahd

[haaaaaaaaaaaave-you-met-ted]

Castle Ravenloft Box Art by Jesper Ejsing

[enchantedfrogprince]

More Curse of Strahd NPC portraits~

This time Baron Vargas and Lydia Vallakovich. These portraits are based off the lovely redesigns by @luckyblackcatxiii which I really love! (And before anyone asks, of course, I'm going to draw him, the party hasn't gotten to him yet!)

[tateringss]

"You know, prince... I still owe you a dance."

These were the last words Omen said to Prince Sergei before fumbling horribly and continuing to talk through the mess, his head still reeling from the gentle touch of lips they shared in confession. It was not like him to be so unassured of himself. But the Mornmaster only smiled, approached the fumbling inquisitor, and stopped the latter's nervous spew of words by inviting him in return. It seems they have a date. Let's just hope that the inquisitor figures out when and where exactly that is supposed to be.

Context: "Raven’s Inquisition" is a pre-Curse of Strahd campaign where Barovia has not yet been established, Strahd is still human and the players are all inquisitors helping him overtake the valley under the banners of the von Zarovich family and the Morninglord.

[tatter-demalion]

Ref sheets for Eudora, the psychopomp bloodline sorcerer! Took me a bit to figure out how her weird ghost magic looks, but I like what I stumbled on! I'm playing her in a heavily modified Curse of Strahd campaign. She and the party just got invited by Strahd to be the baron of Vallaki and she's raring to accept. 👀

[antichrist-vevo]

‘Your fear smells delicious, darling.’

The Feast of St. Andral was truly a feast, after all. Quote taken directly from our game as my PC Ambrose slaughtered the Baron. (And Izek soon after)

Surely nothing bad will come of this !

[eldrichhorrornyaa]

[syrips]

terrified at the idea of strahd peeking into my village cottage home and instead of seeing just some basic peasant shet they also see a bunch of strahd portraits and sketches everywhere in my room

this is how my syrips art folder looks help me oh god im so glad its digital

[thatratgo]

Another Cos Meme ;)

[itsalwaysfruityinbarovia]

A quick Baron Metus for the holidays

[afearsomeartisan]

Some Curse of Strahd themed Valentines Day doodles for your amusement ♥️ 🩸

[curse-of-dming-strahd]

good lord I just finished the Vallaki chapter

I can't make too many solid plans because I have no idea how the party will be feeling by this point, but here are some notes in no particular order about running this for my PG-13 "don't make it too scary" group:

Vibes? Immaculate, love the desperate manic party energy.

"this town fucking sucks" *despondent party blower sound*

I'm giving Barovian religion a big makeover, which will take away from the demons & saints motif but will end up supporting the druids, hags, dark powers, etc.

the only horror note I really need is, "this town sucks, but at least Strahd can't get us here!"

the two hunters in Blue Water Inn are clearly dating, right?

the Baron's two attack dogs are secretly good boys who will not actually hurt anybody, the Baron is just bluffing

Victor is perfect, no notes

Fiona I respect the hustle and you win the award for most creative use of a spell, but h o n e y , n o

I'm not sure what they thought they were doing with Stella but I'm just gonna get in there and do a quick hand jive with her whole story and character thanks

Rictavio, great character, we gotta make him less racist.

Rictavio's sabre-tooth tiger... what if it was a displacer beast? c:

I love Blinsky and if we have a premature PC death, they'll end up in his shop in a puppet body and have to put up with his bullshit to get their real bodies back as a warning. everyone thought he was sooo weird and sad well guess what he's a MASTER OF LIFE AND DEATH NOW. because an early TPK is no fun, and is no fun, is no Blinsky

Vallaki hasn't hit its sad himbo quota yet so I think I'm going to rewrite Izek to just kinda fill that void

I'll only do the subplot where Ireena is his long-lost sister if my players like REALLY latch onto Ireena's whole deal

the vistani camp and the dusk elves are just... it's... it's fine I'll just... *makes a vaguely waving hand gesture* and then it'll be fine

[ravens-inquisition]

⚔️ WELCOME TO THE INQUISITION 🐦‍⬛

This blog is dedicated to the recounting, archiving, and showcasing of "Raven's Inquisition". "Raven's Inquisition" is a Curse of Strahd prequel campaign where we get to explore setting elements and character relations that otherwise could not have been explored in the canon module. The DM @emp-roar is constructing the campaign as an adaptation of the "I, Strahd" novel, where Barovia has yet to be established, Strahd is still human, and the players are all inquisitors overtaking the Tsolenka Valley under the von Zarovich crest and the banner of the Morninglord.

The following tags are available for your eased perusal:

#journal entry (session recaps)

#public notes (in-world discovered lore)

#media (art/media)

#writings (personal inquisitor literature)

#inquisitorial mailbox (QnAs)

#AUs For tags pertaining to the individual inquisitors, please look at their personal accounts below.

By the decree of Count Strahd von Zarovich, the following names shall be knighted to receive upon them the title of

Inquisitor of the Tribunal of the Holy Office of Barovia, Ordo Solis:

Frank was a sergeant who served under the banner of House Dilisnya. Hindered by nothing but his own conscience, he chose to kneel to the Lord of Murder, Bhaal, so that he may strike the political enemies of his master without a pang to his sanity. He was later sentenced to death by his own general, not because of his crimes, but to control the unrest of the masses. This condemned his faith in Bhaal. After his release, his mind is ever-pregnant with the thoughts of meaningless murder, but he chooses not to, for while duty is in his hand, murder is never meaningless.

Ever since the attempted assassination against Strahd, Frank has been called to the battlefield, now riding and fighting beside the count, his commander, and the might of the Voronian army. [Frank's player has since left the table due to personal reasons. He will forever rage under the blazing heat of the morning sun. Sol Invictus, Frank.]

Everyone is entitled to fear. Not all are worthy of harnessing it.

Rising from the depths of enslavement, no one could have foreseen that a mere cripple would lead a savage onslaught against his masters. A gritty veteran, Cain's dreary origins gave birth to his singular conviction of dominance. This worldview born from despair molded his philosophy regarding the nature of power and the laws that govern all. Despite being fueled by darker ambitions, Cain is not without a heart of grace and kindness. The duality of the man who is both ruthless and compassionate is weighted in balance, reflecting symbolically his devotion to The Scales. Intent on liberating those in shackles and claiming power to ensure it, the "Dreadwalker" finds himself in the service of Strahd von Zarovich, planning to consolidate and secure both.

Anatomically speaking, how do you do?

Once a mere human consumed by an insatiable obsession with necromancy, Violet delved deeper into the dark arts, fervently worshipping the god Bhaal in her pursuit of forbidden knowledge. Gradually descending into madness, she adopted the guise of a pathologist, masking her heinous crimes as acts of scientific inquiry. Her obsession with understanding the mechanics of life and death twisted her mind, transforming her into a ruthless psychopath.

Calandrius Vaerethin is many things: a long-lived elf, a one-time hellrider, or the occasional robber baron. By all accounts he has the physicality of a golden knight, his fair skin complemented with his bright golden hair, as if stolen from the sun, with the composure of someone who has practiced a thousand strikes in his lifetime; though Caland would tell you he is anything but. In truth, he is the last of a long-dead order of knights, who were purged in the days of Old Voron. Now unfettered, whether it be the tenets of the old order of the noose meant for his neck, perhaps it is time to let the ghosts of his past rest. He was always told that his lot was to be the beating wings of the freedom of the sky. Though whether the Last Swan would herald weal or woe, only time and circumstance can tell.

Pikehead is imposing to say the least. Armored from head to toe in steel and spikes, little is known about him or what he looks like underneath the iron. Soft-spoken and tamed, his demeanor hardly lives up to the foreboding presence he commands. Mayhaps it was because of his duties to his late master in Old Voron. A soldier molded into a near perfect machine.

In war, the only thing stronger than fear is hunger. A tyrant is only different from a peasant in appetite.

Raised amidst the oppressive reign of the late King Barov, Omen had to learn how to navigate the streets of Voron as much as the various plights littering it. The circumstances of his birth, coupled with the struggles he faced growing up, taught him to attribute value to the few possessions he truly owned. Value he is willing to exchange for the only thing he ever hungers for: a home.

I promised them it would all get better, but all I brought them was ruin. I cannot fail again, but if ruin is what he needs, ruin I shall bring.

A soldier, a knight, a sword. Whatever he is, one thing that can describe him is loyalty. And why would he be the one that betrayed the kingdom? Who knows. But now, it seems like he got his second chance, and he will not waste it.

"My army settled in the valley of Barovia and took power over the people in the name of a just god, but with none of a god’s grace or justice." -- Tome of Strahd

☼ SOL INVICTUS ☼

[orcinuskapros]

Commission for a friend of her character Katrina murdering Izek from their Curse of Strahd D&D Campaign Im very glad to have been able to do a comic page style commission and it was fun to be free to mess around with the art style

And a note and summary from the DM SPOILERS for CoS in D&D cause I cant remember how to do the read more "My party first gained their hatred of Izek Strazni when they got run out of town by the Baron's Chief Enforcer for arson (long story short; I modified the St. Andral's bones quest to include a few more NPCs, one of which was a local Tailor who ran a shop while also being apart of the cult. They opened a glyphed book in her house and started a fire.) While out of town, lost and desperate, Lady Wachter took advantage of this existing hatred and recent banishing by sending a letter, hiring them to assassinate Izek to help her with her coup. Even when her allegiance with Strahd was made clear, the party couldn't resist the gold and promised safety under Wachter's rule. This art depicts the final moments of the showdown with Izek, in the 2nd floor of the Baron's mansion with Ireena tied up right behind the beast of a guard. Katrina, pictured here, is a devout warlock of Bane, and part werewolf (reflavored longtooth shifter), entrusted with a pact weapon taking inspiration from Bane's gauntlet. With our Rogue unconscious, narrowly surviving major axe and burn wounds, and the Fighter keeping the rest of the Baron's guard occupied downstairs, Katrina landed the finishing blow on Izek, deciding to go for a gruesome kill, fitting for Barovia."

[dellamortethelesser]

SESSION ONE: WELCOME TO BAROVIA

This is the re-cap/write-up of our first session in CURSE OF STRAHD: HUNTED, a campaign run by our dungeon-master ONYX and played by a total of six people around the table. In this session the party first arrives in the plane of Barovia and meets each other, before heading toward the nearest village (also Barovia).

As a note, the character known as Luca does not show up in subsequent sessions as the player bowed out of the campaign and we brought in someone else to take their place in session 2.

View the cast HERE.

For now, though, here is the start of the STORY SO FAR. / (MOBILE LINK)

The session opens with everyone centering in on a clearing, in the woods just south of Barovia.

Melchior and Giselle had met earlier in the day; Melchior introduced himself to her as a werewolf hunter, and seeing that Giselle was lost, agreed to take her to the village of Barovia so that she could start to get her bearings. It's late, and they've just set camp. Suddenly, an elf bursts into the clearing--Lune--and only pauses for a moment to tell them to "run" before they move along, faster than anyone the other two have ever seen before.

Before Melchior and Giselle have a chance to decide what to do, there is another interruption. Falling from the sky is Crafine, the kenku, followed quickly by Vayagol, a cleric who lands on top of them. As the group struggles to get their bearings, with Melchior offering healing word to Crafine, they realize that Giselle has already run off after Lune.

Eventually, the party catches up and gathers together underneath a tree. Up in the branches, Lune is helping Luca (bloodhunter) and an injured hunter, Bernor, down from the tree. Luca is covered in blood down the front of his shirt, and Bernor is limping along with his crossbow.

Crafine's sense power ability reveals a mass of undead encroaching upon the group from every direction except to the north, so everyone heads north. The mists, which seem to be chasing them, funnels them over the bridge and into the village of Barovia. Although to outsiders, the edge of the town is dilapidated, with abandoned houses and shuttered windows, those native to the plane state that it is always in such a state. The party takes note of a mansion nearby, welcoming with warm lights in the windows, though Melchior is disinterested in seeking help there.

Luca goes to seek help in the inn (Blood of the Vine), but the locals are frightened by the encroaching mists and so no help comes. Despite Melchior's warnings, Giselle makes a run for the mansion and prompts the party to follow. They find themselves trapped within Durst Manor, as the fog closes in and gives them nowhere else to turn. Melchior and Luca hint that this might be by design, alluding to a mysterious baron, and the party goes inside to investigate what might be going on within the manor.

Just inside, in the foyer, the party encounters two children: Rose & Thorn. The two children inform the party that their parents are gone (but insist that they will return), and that a monster "lives in the basement, but is haunting them through the walls". Despite Melchior's reticence, the party agrees to help them out. They decide to leave the children with Bernor guarding them, armed with a crossbow in the foyer, while everyone else explores the lower level of the house.

A short rest is taken, and then exploration begins. It appears as though life has frozen in place: the kitchen appears to have been freshly used, a mess with food and dishware scattered everywhere, and there is a hot feast out and waiting in the dining room. No one partakes of any food, though there is some theft of the silverware after Melchior reveals that he is a werewolf hunter, and that werewolves are a threat in Barovia. He says that a table setting is unlikely to do much damage to one of the beasts, but thefts occur regardless.

Upon not finding much on the first floor, save a bungled attempt to open a locked cupboard and an aside that Vayagol might not hear from her god here, the party decides to head up into the second floor. Melchior recognizes the people in the painted portrait at the top of the stairs, and correctly identifies the face of Gustav Durst, the former master of the Durst Manor and whose family used to rule Barovia. He recognizes Elizabeth Durst, his wife, who is scowling down at the baby cradled in Gustav's arms. The two children in front of them, who he states seem to be Rose & Thorn Durst, are smiling unawares.

In the library, Lune discovers a secret passageway; within, they find runic books on the shelves (which neither Melchior nor Crafine had the time to try and translate). Also within the passageway was a skeleton, that had clearly been killed by acidic darts, clutching a letter. The letter reads as follows:

My most pathetic servant, I am not a messiah sent to you by the Dark Powers of this land. I have not come to lead you on a path to immortality. However many souls you have bled on your hidden altar, however many visitors you have tortured in your dungeon, know that you are not the ones who brought me to this beautiful land. You are but worms writhing in my earth. You say that you are cursed, your fortunes spent. You abandoned love for madness, took solace in the bosom of another woman, and sired a stillborn son. Cursed by darkness? Of that I have no doubt. Save you from your wretchedness? I think not. I much prefer you as you are. Your dread lord and master, Strahd Von Zarovich

Lune opens up the chest on which the skeleton was propped up, and retrieves several items: three identified scrolls (bless, protection from poison, spiritual weapon) and three more scrolls that have yet to be identified. In the study portion of the library, Melchior reads through the first page of an open journal that was left out near the fireplace, and locates a silver key within the desk emblazoned with the symbol of a windmill; he recognizes this windmill from his travels.

Across the hall in the music room, Luca effortlessly serenades Giselle with enchanting piano music while she dances along. Crafine and Melchior enter the music room to investigate, so Giselle steps outside to talk to Vayagol. While this is happening, Lune travels upstairs to the third level of the manor alone, triggering an attack on the party by animated armors that suddenly spring to life.

In the ensuing combat, much is revealed, such as: Giselle is capable of casting magic, despite her previous claims that she is unable to do much more than to cook or paint. Melchior spies Luca drawing his own blood in combat, and his eyes turning a bright electric blue. Crafine almost falls unconscious, but Vayagol dashes over to him to heal his injuries before he is lost.

the party calls for a long rest.

in the library, Luca reveals to Crafine the truth that he is a dhampir, and that his blood is electrified(?) He alludes to some fonder familiarity between himself and Bernor. the pair of them play cards with the children, teaching Rose & Thorn how to gamble.

in the servants quarters, Melchior is carefully embroidering red thread into a large sheaf of spare black cloth. he tells Vayagol that his mother taught him how to do, and gestures to the red flowers embroidered onto his shirt. he implies that the flowers are of traditional significance, and promises to teach her the art of embroidery at a later time.

in the hallway, Lune speaks to Giselle, who is sticking close to them out of fear from the recent attack and feeling safer with them. Lune learns that Giselle was not lying to the party, but she has only recently come into her powers. Lune ponders over the amulet around their neck before taking their meditative rest.

end long rest.

after the long rest, Crafine and Luca realize that Bernor and the children are missing. Alarmed, the rest of the party is quickly roused, and everyone agrees to ascend to the third level of the house. (Luca and Giselle first investigate the third floor, but Melchior writes them off and convinces everyone else to keep going). The third story is unlike the first two: it is decrepit and aged, walls peeling, cobwebs strung along corners and dusty furniture. Crafine locates a hidden stairwell hidden in the far wall. the party splits at this point.

Melchior, Luca, Crafine, and Vayagol enter the northern room. In this room, they find another dead body--a man, but no one knows whom. They tear this room apart with perception checks: Crafine locates a safe in the nearby wall, and Melchior locates the key locket hidden within the bed. Within the safe is a jewelry box with an expensive looking pendant and three non-magical rings; Luca takes the pendant, and Crafine tricks Melchior into handing over the rings. Vayagol reminds them that they are supposed to be looking for Bernor and the children.

Melchior notices that Crafine is additionally wearing a wedding ring.

In the southern room, Lune and Giselle open the door and are set upon by a specter who does not want to permit them entry into the room. Both of them attempt to calm the spirit enough to enter the room, but fail. They do get the specter to indicate that the missing children are another floor up, on the fourth floor, accessible only by the recently discovered secret passage.

On the fourth floor, the party locates the bedroom of Rose & Thorn Durst. It is discovered that the children they previously met on the first floor were not the real spirits, but an entity mimicking them. Through questioning the children, it is inferred that Strahd likely killed their parents at a dinner banquet, and the children were left to starve alone upstairs.

During this discussion, Melchior becomes visibly distressed and leaves the room; although he occasionally interjects with questions, he is mostly pale and sick-looking for a time.

The dollhouse in their room reveals that passages to the basement are missing that should have been there. The house is sentient, and was hiding the basement access from the party (either to protect us or to protect itself). Crafine wraps up the bones of the children to properly bury them; additionally, he and Giselle both allow themselves to be possessed by Rose & Thorn. Lune takes the dolls of the children at Melchior's behest.

Before they descend to the basement, Crafine and Melchior have an argument at the top of the stairwell. Melchior insists that attempting to fight the creature within the manor is futile, as everything within Barovia is subject to the will of Strahd Von Zarovich: their best attempt would be to flee and chance with the mist. Crafine argues that it is the coward's way out, and that there is no other way but to the basement. Despite his reservations, Melchior makes no attempt to leave the group.

During this argument, Melchior bares his teeth at Crafine, revealing sharp canines; Luca notices this and asks Melchior if he is also a dhampir, something which Melchior affirms. Luca shows off his ability to spider climb on the ceiling.

As they descend, Crafine moves slowly, allowing for some to get a chance to converse. Melchior and Luca discuss dhampirism (with a few interjections from Crafine), in which Melchior agrees that they are strange kindred, but does not reveal what he hungers for (Luca is revealed to be a classic bloodsucker). additionally, it comes out that Crafine is in his 40s, with two children between the ages of 20-23. Luca is revealed to be physically 24, but due to his dhampirism, he is also up into his 40s. Melchior is simply 24, Giselle is 18, and Vayagol is 19. Lune does not offer their age.

Melchior keeps getting tripped by Something as they continue to head down the stairs. Crafine is using his sense powers skill repeatedly, fretting over a consecrated presence that has repeatedly occurred. As it keeps showing up from behind, he begins to shuffle the party members in front of him on the stairs so that he can narrow down from whom it is coming. Surprisingly, the cleric, Vayagol, is not the source of this consecrated energy. It is narrowed down to either Giselle or Lune, before Melchior, now at the front of the group, is violently shoved down the stairs.

As he recovers and gets his bearings, the rest of the party catches up to him. Melchior accuses Luca, who had been behind him, of being the one to push him. Luca denies this and the two bicker until Crafine puts an end to it, saying they need to keep moving.

Melchior indicates the group should go to their right, and lead them to a crypt. Underneath the Durst Manor is the Durst Family Crypt, which Melchior notes with no small amount of alarm seems suspiciously empty. As they head south, they find the four empty tombs of the immediate durst family: Gustav, Elizabeth, Rosevalda, and Thornboldt.

Crafine puts the bones of the children into their respective tombs (and Lune lays their dolls to rest with them), and the spirits pass on. Crafine and Giselle are no longer considered possessed.

As they head further into the crypt, Melchior is attacked by a hidden creature referred to as a grick. Thankfully, it is quickly disposed of, with Lune making the killing blow.

END OF SESSION ONE.

[tantaliart]

3, 4, and 6?

3. What did your players do with Doru?

Haha, my players didn’t do much with Doru, one of the party members attempted to kill him (grudge against undead), and the rest of the party stopped him. They just left him in the basement after that.

Same with my second party, they were thog asf and just didn’t mess with him. Arcadia knew him prior and had a grudge against him so they just kinda tried to convince Father Donavich to put him out of his misery 🤷‍♀️.

4. How did things shake out in Vallaki? Who's currently in charge of the city (if the city is still standing?)

The city burned almost three times over the course of the campaign! Strahd killed Baron Vallakovich and Izek, then Anastrasya tried for Burgomaster and was killed by the party, then Lady Wachter took over and was killed by the party, and now Father Barlowe (replacement for Father Lucian) is the leader of Vallaki. Woohoo, mixing of church and state!

6. Did you make any NPCs more sympathetic than in canon? Or less sympathetic?

I made Baron Vallakovich a domestic ab*ser so I think that made him a little less sympathetic 👎 I suppose that also in turn made Victor more sympathetic.

Another example is what I did with Rahadin. He was a child when he was taken in and trained by Barov, after his whole village was slaughtered by Barov’s men. He did the big thing he did purely on Strahd’s order. I suppose that makes him a little more understandable??

[starbvund]

@thoselittledespairs vampire meets vampire.

The Devil recognized the pallid complexion. The smell of undeath wafted to his heightened senses. Rare one of his own not sired by him came to his lands. No matter how much they hide, Strahd knows a vampire when he sees one. A twisted reflection of the monster he became.

"You are not one of my blood." Strahd paused looking Astarion over. The Baron makes no attempt to hide his fangs as he spoke. "Do you seek me out personally or were you ignorant to whose lands you walk upon?"