your dread lord and master (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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barovians2024-10-10 05:01 pm
alliegiance) wrote in barovians2024-10-10 05:01 pm
info n stuff
GUIDELINES OR WHATEVER!event - used for events
!log - logs
!mainline - central continuity
!from barovia with love - shout out to my ttrpg league
!misc au goofin - use if youre really doing some wacky shit
!strahd von zarovich - 👁
What's all this then
it's really just a place i made to pal around with my boys. it's a loose dressing room/sandbox-y thing set in the dnd setting of barovia, intended for my fellow bg3 buddies
A game?
HELL no. theres no ac or apps and there might only maybe be events if i feel like it. im never gonna have the energy to turn this into a full game its really just a gpsl with extra steps
Who's in charge around here???
me. it's just me. it's just me stinkies!!! i'm ![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
crystallyzing aka Ally. ill have strahd hisself, my tav at gwilym, and probably a handful of npcs from the module itself
gwilym, and probably a handful of npcs from the module itselfCan I write porn here
i expect this. just tag and cut and be polite about it etc otherwise go jork girl i mean they
But Ally what's a barovia
im just reusing the stuff that's on strahd's journal already for this. see here and if you have any questions just ask, im incapable of shutting the fuck up about this module so ill answer whatever questions youve got
But Ally does that mean i can just look it up online and get all the lore for this entire game and know everything
just like every other dm, i have my own version of barovia and how it works in my head. yall who have played in the campaign probably have played in another dm's version of barovia and they have probably incorporated their own homebrew right under your nose. we all do it.
so my answer to this is not necessarily, and it doesnt particularly matter right now while this is a loose musebox/dressing room. if i ever scrape together the will to do a cohesive plot then this will change but for now, if theres something in the module you wanna play with go ahead. if you wanna hear about how i run barovia for stuff to play with, you can ask and ill yap at length
so my answer to this is not necessarily, and it doesnt particularly matter right now while this is a loose musebox/dressing room. if i ever scrape together the will to do a cohesive plot then this will change but for now, if theres something in the module you wanna play with go ahead. if you wanna hear about how i run barovia for stuff to play with, you can ask and ill yap at length
Can I play a module NPC too
the exceptions to the doubles rule for the moment are ireena and strahd, but as of this writing, basically everyone else is fair game. if you bring me a van richten or rahadin i will kiss you on the mouth
Can my character be a native Barovian or do they have to be an adventurer brought in by Strahd
this is 100 percent allowed and you literally only need to ask if you need help with doing this, ill give you all the info you could ever need
But Ally my character is different and would get out of barovia
not anymore they arent.
you're the lord of the land's new favourite chewtoys, so you get out when he says you get out. there is canonically nothing that can save them besides dying or killing strahd
you're the lord of the land's new favourite chewtoys, so you get out when he says you get out. there is canonically nothing that can save them besides dying or killing strahd
But Ally my character gets astral projection/blink/plane shift/gate/wish what if they cast that
these spells, and others like them, simply do not work as they normally would while used within barovia, if the purpose behind them is to get out of barovia. this is canon. they can try, but it will fail every time. yes, even wish.
its possible for especially knowledgeable wizards (elminster or mordenkainen level of nerdass) to plane shift INto barovia, but if strahd likes them, they will not be able to leave once they enter. they will be trapped.
its possible for especially knowledgeable wizards (elminster or mordenkainen level of nerdass) to plane shift INto barovia, but if strahd likes them, they will not be able to leave once they enter. they will be trapped.
So those spells dont work but what about revivify etc
another thing that doesnt matter very much right now, but i'll cautiously set out ground rules as a secret tool that will help us later
as written, the resurrection line of spells should work in barovia, barring cosmetic changes that i will not get into here. however, as this is done largely to balance gameplay mechanics that do not necessarily translate here, im going to rule that this is not the case here. death in barovia, barring bargains struck with forces unspeakable, will be permanent.
as written, the resurrection line of spells should work in barovia, barring cosmetic changes that i will not get into here. however, as this is done largely to balance gameplay mechanics that do not necessarily translate here, im going to rule that this is not the case here. death in barovia, barring bargains struck with forces unspeakable, will be permanent.
But that isn't fair
What happens to my character after they die
good question!
in game, your characters will have no inkling that their resurrection magics will not work in barovia. they likely will not know that death is permanent until it's too late
above game, your character meets the worst fate imaginable, torment that no fiend in the Hells could ever hope to match; they are doomed to eternally reincarnate as a barovian, until strahd's hold of the valley is broken. in essence, their soul is forfeit, beyond the reach of withers or any of the gods. this also means that your character will not end up in their deity's cosmic plane after death, eg. a Silvanite will not reach the Deep Forest until Strahd is defeated, and if their soul has been recycled, will remain until their current incarnation is dead.
in game, your characters will have no inkling that their resurrection magics will not work in barovia. they likely will not know that death is permanent until it's too late
above game, your character meets the worst fate imaginable, torment that no fiend in the Hells could ever hope to match; they are doomed to eternally reincarnate as a barovian, until strahd's hold of the valley is broken. in essence, their soul is forfeit, beyond the reach of withers or any of the gods. this also means that your character will not end up in their deity's cosmic plane after death, eg. a Silvanite will not reach the Deep Forest until Strahd is defeated, and if their soul has been recycled, will remain until their current incarnation is dead.
What was that about bargains and forces unspeakable
you'll know when you need to know.
you'll know when you need to know.
My special little boy is still just different and would win
if you powergame in my house, your vibes will be soured. thus i will legally be allowed to ban you and also come to your house and do this at you.
So how much power does Strahd actually have
strahd was a conquering warlord and prince, but has spent the last however many centuries studying wizardry since barovia was cut away and put into the shadowfell. he's a very powerful wizard, such that he has trounced at least one powerful fr lore wizard in a fight.
he also exercises a vast amount of control over barovia as a place - they don't call him the land for nothing. strahd has considerable power over barovia's ecology and weather. the land directly reflects him and his wishes at any point in time, which is why its a barren wasteland. strahd also has mastery over most of the animals present in barovia; druids and characters in tune with nature will find no comfort here. the land seethes with his venomous presence, and its beasts swear allegiance and loyalty to strahd. he's fully trapped in barovia and unable to resist the powers that be, but those powers have made the valley his own personal playground and torment
he also exercises a vast amount of control over barovia as a place - they don't call him the land for nothing. strahd has considerable power over barovia's ecology and weather. the land directly reflects him and his wishes at any point in time, which is why its a barren wasteland. strahd also has mastery over most of the animals present in barovia; druids and characters in tune with nature will find no comfort here. the land seethes with his venomous presence, and its beasts swear allegiance and loyalty to strahd. he's fully trapped in barovia and unable to resist the powers that be, but those powers have made the valley his own personal playground and torment
Ally how did Strahd know about this thing I did in a thread with someone else
like i said, youre all strahd's new favourite reality tv show
he sees you when youre sleeping and knows when youre awake. he is watching you, he is ready to fuck with you, he knows things he shouldn't
he sees you when youre sleeping and knows when youre awake. he is watching you, he is ready to fuck with you, he knows things he shouldn't
How
dont worry about it.
I'm worrying about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_FG3jvNr4I
Isn't that godmodding tho
yeah.
I think that's bad and I don't like it
How much does my character know
tbh its overwhelmingly likely that your character has little to no idea about what's happening in barovia. it's an extremely obscure pocket of FR's cosmology, and for the most part, the people that go there don't come back. we can negotiate the specifics but it's generally best to assume they turn up with no idea where they are or how anything works, and that they'll be feeling things out for the duration of their stay
strahd will likely also leverage this cluelessness to win sympathy from characters, as he is also trapped in barovia. he'll use this to his advantage to convince characters that they need to help one another to get out while sharpening a knife for their backs just out of sight
strahd will likely also leverage this cluelessness to win sympathy from characters, as he is also trapped in barovia. he'll use this to his advantage to convince characters that they need to help one another to get out while sharpening a knife for their backs just out of sight
I wanna do something with [ obscure ravenloft lore ]
the setting stretches back so far that there's some cool-ass stuff to play with, a lot of which can be interesting hooks to specific types of characters, such as druidic characters and the ladies three and the fanes of barovia. run it by me and i'll help where i can.
But Ally i want my character to be tatyana
no.
Why not
said so
No fr i wanna know
ok. one reason is i said so, and this could be something i eventually walk back, but there are a couple of actual logical reasons im laying this down for the time being.
one is that, if i ever get to the point where i want a guided metaplot for this place, not having several tatyanas winnows complexity down considerably. she would be a plot-crucial role and it makes it a lot easier for me to manage if i hold those pieces. it gives me a lot more control over how things play out, and also keeps from piling all the plot on a single one of you guys and making one of you The Main Character over everybody else.
one is that, if i ever get to the point where i want a guided metaplot for this place, not having several tatyanas winnows complexity down considerably. she would be a plot-crucial role and it makes it a lot easier for me to manage if i hold those pieces. it gives me a lot more control over how things play out, and also keeps from piling all the plot on a single one of you guys and making one of you The Main Character over everybody else.
What if we're just playing and we all know it's not anything
uuuh ill cautiously allow it.
if you wanna do some sort of non-canon au thing with the idea i wont stop you, just so long as everyone understands its a silly little au thing that has no bearing on whatever actual story might develop from this slophouse
if you wanna do some sort of non-canon au thing with the idea i wont stop you, just so long as everyone understands its a silly little au thing that has no bearing on whatever actual story might develop from this slophouse
But is there a way to easily differentiate between stuff that's not on the same plotline
so glad you asked, because there now is!!
this has been a question since starting on setup for this thing, but now that ive slaved over a hot keyboard for weeks, i have devised an innovative new system to address this issue. its called "tagging the slop." ive made a couple of tags for you guys to use to differentiate the slop that doesnt mean anything from the slop that is part of the larger cohesive narrative.
youll use !mainline for the central "help ive fallen into barovia and i cant get up" continuity. if i start running a main plot for this place, this is where thatll go.
next, we have !from barovia with love. this is for my ttrpg players. i dm curse of strahd where some dwrpers have rolled yakuza/rgg guys as pcs, and thats been going for like 2-3 years. a couple of those guys are here. if you wanna play with those big boys, use that tag and bear in mind that a lot of plot has happened already.
lastly, use !misc au goofin for any of your real wacky shit, eg. if you wanna play with gale being tatyana or sth like that. this is gonna be divorced from my setting rules entirely and the only throughline it has to follow is the one in your head
this has been a question since starting on setup for this thing, but now that ive slaved over a hot keyboard for weeks, i have devised an innovative new system to address this issue. its called "tagging the slop." ive made a couple of tags for you guys to use to differentiate the slop that doesnt mean anything from the slop that is part of the larger cohesive narrative.
youll use !mainline for the central "help ive fallen into barovia and i cant get up" continuity. if i start running a main plot for this place, this is where thatll go.
next, we have !from barovia with love. this is for my ttrpg players. i dm curse of strahd where some dwrpers have rolled yakuza/rgg guys as pcs, and thats been going for like 2-3 years. a couple of those guys are here. if you wanna play with those big boys, use that tag and bear in mind that a lot of plot has happened already.
lastly, use !misc au goofin for any of your real wacky shit, eg. if you wanna play with gale being tatyana or sth like that. this is gonna be divorced from my setting rules entirely and the only throughline it has to follow is the one in your head
Gee Ally why do you get all the lore hookups
because IM the dm and YOURE not 😤😤😤 this is MY territory and YOURE in it
no but fr tho if you want to give your character some kind of personalized hook im all about that shit, im not laying down these rules to hoard plot importance. im all in on doing that kind of thing so just reach out and i can try and situate your little guy if you want more of a pull than "help me im stuck in barovia"
no but fr tho if you want to give your character some kind of personalized hook im all about that shit, im not laying down these rules to hoard plot importance. im all in on doing that kind of thing so just reach out and i can try and situate your little guy if you want more of a pull than "help me im stuck in barovia"
I have an idea for a thing
girl im a thirsty little flower and you can only save my life by pissing your idea into my discord dms
Well I know everything because I'm at your table 😏😏😏
true and real, however im going to say that for the sake of a cohesive metaplot, basically everyone is just arriving in barovia unless youre a native or naturalized barovian
this is because this isnt necessarily meant to be an extension of my tabletop shenanigans, but a standalone thing growing in the same pot. its another one of those things where if youd like to mess around have at it, but thats not really my intention at large and we might need to retcon some stuff if i ever do decide to give this place a cohesive metaplot
this is because this isnt necessarily meant to be an extension of my tabletop shenanigans, but a standalone thing growing in the same pot. its another one of those things where if youd like to mess around have at it, but thats not really my intention at large and we might need to retcon some stuff if i ever do decide to give this place a cohesive metaplot
But Ally i don't play a bg3
if youre cool you can come chill, but you have to au your character. no modern day fellas running around or you're out. make your guy a stupid ass dnd character or sth. also if youre not cool you're out im not into that kind of stuff
But Ally i don't want to do an au i want my modern guy to run around
ok!
go literally anywhere else
go literally anywhere else
But Ally i dont know you
if someone can vouch as to your coolness you can come, but if you turn out to not be cool i am going to kick you out
But Ally i have a stupid ass dnd character
if youre cool you can come chill, if youre not you cant. im not gonna say it again
But Ally someone already plays my dumb ass bg3
dont care, come along anyway. there can be multiple of you just dont fight with each other about it or ill probably get annoyed and kick both of you out
But Ally that wouldnt be fair/i dont like that rule
call the cops! i dont give a fuck
But Ally if multiples are allowed then how do i know what's canon
cant you see?? i cant answer this for you. you need to look into your heart for what you know to be true
But Ally i dont wanna be kicked out
sucks to suck. try being cool or maybe becoming the master of the land next time
But Ally i wanna play vampire valley tfln where's the network comm
girl idc. do what you want
i have a character sheet
code bases by tricklet
you hand me a character sheet ill give you a character shit. keep that stuff to yourself i dont want it