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    10 Ravenloft Facts To Know

    Uploaded by

    kyriakosselbiaridis

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 11

    Dungeons & Dragons: 10

    Things to Know About


    Ravenloft Before Van Richten's
    Guide
    Jenny Melzer Published May 13, 2021

    Link copied to clipboard

    Sign in to your CBR account

    Upon hearing the name "Ravenloft," most Dungeons & Dragons


    fans immediately think of Count Strahd Von Zarovich. However,
    there's so much more to Ravenloft than Strahd's iron-fisted rule
    over Barovia. Ravenloft was born from the minds of Tracy and
    Laura Hickman in the late 1970s when, during a D&D session, a
    pathetic excuse for a vampire was encountered in a dungeon.

    Tracy Hickman thought that vampire was lacking in extravagance


    -- that it needed a grand castle and minions to carry out its every
    whim and motivations, the likes of which would terrify even the
    hardiest adventurers. Strahd was born from the Hickmans'
    conjoined imaginations, and from there this epic, Gothic Horror-
    style campaign setting evolved into something as grand as it is
    horrifying.

    Related: How Dungeons & Dragons Is Working to Eradicate


    Fantasy Racism

    The Demiplane of Dread

    Also known as the Dread Domains or the Domains of Dread, the


    Demiplane of Dread is a pocket dimension located in a remote
    corner of the Shadowfell. This makes perfect sense considering
    the Shadowfell's dark and gloomy nature. It is impossible to tell
    just how large the Dread Domains are because no one has ever
    been able to successfully map them in their entirety. It is believed
    that a number of the domains were once parts of the Prime
    Material Plane that were ensnared by the mists and dragged into
    the Shadowfell.
    Each Dread Domain is overseen by a Darklord, the most well-
    known example being Strahd's rule over Barovia. However, the
    Darklords are not the overarching power; they answer to higher,
    much darker forces, which are believed to have been responsible
    for the overall creation of the Dread Domains.

    The Dark Powers

    Not much is known about the Dark Powers, save that they rule
    over the Dread Domains from a mysterious vantage point that
    allows them to manipulate even the most powerful Darklords.
    Many of the Darklords are beholden to the Dark Powers,
    manipulated in ways even they can't see so that they continue to
    carry out their will and provide them with entertainment. For
    example, Strahd's obsessive love for Tatyana is inevitably
    doomed to eternal failure, but the Dark Powers continually
    provide him with enough incentive to continue pursuing it.

    Related: Dungeons & Dragons: Why You Should Run Pre-Made


    Adventures

    Some Darklords ignore the Dark Powers entirely, though that


    hardly means they are immune to their influences. For example,
    Darklord Vlad Drakov of Falkovia is completely oblivious to the
    outside interference in the constant defeat of his numerous
    military campaigns, believing his failures to be little more than
    fate, while constantly encouraging him to keep fighting.

    The Darklords

    Each Dread Domain is overseen by a Darklord, a powerful figure of


    great evil whose deeds are so terrible they are generally beyond
    redemption. These Darklords garnered the attention of the Dark
    Powers with their actions, earning themselves an eternity's
    imprisonment within the Dread Domains. While that makes them
    sound like victims, nothing could be further from the truth. These
    villains revel in the power they are granted over their domain,
    often ruling with cruelty and malice the likes of which none
    who've served under them will ever forget.

    The most well-known Darklord is Strahd, who made a pact with


    "Death," then murdered his brother, Sergei, the day he was to
    marry the beautiful Tatyana. Other Darklords include Vecna (who
    escaped when he became a god), Lord Soth, Vlad Drakov,
    Madame Radanavich, Baroness Ilsabet Obour and Tristen
    Apblanc.

    Related: Dungeons & Dragons: How to Master Both the Magical


    and the Melee

    The Dreaded Mists

    One of the most mysterious aspects of the Demiplanes of Dread


    are the strange mists that surround the entire plane. Ethereal in
    nature, there is nothing magical about them. They appear to be
    little more than normal fog -- but they are anything but normal.
    Few can navigate them successfully, and those who can should
    be regarded with suspicion.

    The mists have been known to envelope unwary travelers and


    whisk them away to the Dread Domains. In some cases, they have
    even surrounded buildings, armies or entire towns that then
    mysteriously vanished from their location on the Prime Material
    Plane only to reappear in of the many Dread Domains. Many who
    become trapped there spend the rest of their days fighting the
    evil forces there while searching for a way to get back home.

    Magic Works Differently There

    There are many places in the Multiverse where magic is adversely


    affected by unexplained forces; the Demiplane of Dread is one of
    them. The Dark Powers watch over those they've drawn into their
    demiplane, and it is generally through their will alone that
    creatures are allowed to leave. That means spells like Plane Shift
    are more or less out of the question. Even if a magic-user could
    manage to fire one off, chances are it would simply drop them into
    an even more dangerous and horrifying region of the Dread
    Domains.

    RELATED: Dungeons & Dragons: 2nd Level Spells Every Caster


    Should Avoid

    Divination magic, like Scry, summoning spells or necromantic


    magic may not work at all. However, other types of magic, like the
    Vampiric Touch spell, could be greatly enhanced because it feeds
    right into the nature of the Domains to suck the life out of
    something to replenish one's own.
    Superstition Is a Staple

    Life in the Dread Domains is incredibly unpredictable, which has


    led to plenty of superstition and fear among their inhabitants.
    Many of them have witnessed an entire town simple disappear or
    know someone who knows a midwife who birthed a monster
    instead of a baby. Maybe they didn't see the monster baby
    firsthand, but they heard about it from a reliable source -- and
    there are enough of these mysterious and horrifying rumors going
    around to cause people to ward themselves against it happening
    to them and the ones they love.

    Related: Dungeons & Dragons: Tired of Attacking Every Turn?


    Consider These Alternatives

    Trust No One
    D&D Tavern

    Hand in hand with superstition goes an unhealthy distrust for


    strangers. When a misplaced adventuring party stumbles into
    town, no one should expect the locals to welcome them with open
    arms. There might be a few old timers who might be willing to talk
    or lead the party to someone else who can, but they are likely
    considered wandering crazies to the other townspeople. One of
    the saddest parts about this distrust is that it doesn't just extend
    to strangers, but to pretty much everyone. There is likely no one in
    town who wouldn't sell out their best friend if it meant saving their
    son or daughter (or themselves) from the Darklord's wrath and
    torment.

    Religion Is All but Forbidden


    Death Domain Cleric raising the dead in Call to the Grave.

    Divine magic is a rarity in the Dread Domains, and there are


    few Clerics who can actually summon the power they require to
    administer healing to the masses. Despite the abundant need for
    healing, most would regard such magic with suspicion and
    distrust. It isn't something they see often because religious
    practices are forbidden in many of the domains. Whether the
    Darklords forbid these practices out of fear, or the Dark Powers
    have somehow managed to block the light of divinity from
    penetrating the mist and shadows, one would be hard-pressed to
    find a temple where they could actually commune with their god.

    Related: Dungeons & Dragons: How to Build Towards Your REAL


    BBEG

    Humans Are the Predominant Race


    A Fey Wanderer ranger in the Feywild DnD

    Humans tend to be the predominant race in the Dread Domains,


    though that is not to say there are no elves, dwarves, halflings or
    others to be found at all. They just tend to be rarer, and no one
    knows why. Non-humans are so rare in some domains that a
    human inhabitant could go their entire life without ever having
    met one. Of course, this amps up their suspicion and superstition
    even more when non-human travelers happen upon their towns.
    Many of them have never even heard of, much less seen, a
    Dragonborn or Tiefling, so the random appearance of one would
    definitely provoke reticence from the wary locals.

    There Are Ravenloft Novels


    count strahd von zarovich looming on his balcony in dnd

    Back in the 1990s, TSR released a multitude of fiction novels,


    starting with Vampire of the Mists, exploring the Demiplane of
    Dread. Over 20 novels explored the many planes and the dreaded
    Darklords who oversaw them. There were three novels about
    Strahd Von Zarovich among them, detailing his backstory and his
    memoirs. There were also tales about Lord Soth, a riverboat
    dancer whose magical dance could potentially stop a zombie
    apocalypse and dreaded baroness' rise to power as a vampire of
    souls.

    There were short story collections that explored the very


    darkness that is the Demiplane of Dread, drawing players and
    fans even more deeply into the Gothic-horror setting. One can
    only hope Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft will launch a whole
    new series of fiction books for fans to indulge in as they explore
    the Dread Domains in their campaigns.

    KEEP READING: Horrors of the Dark Expands Your Dungeons &


    Dragons Campaign with Darkest Dungeon Monsters

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