However, part of running a module is accepting a loss of control. Best Race/Class to play Curse of Strahd!! - D&D Beyond A party of adventurers can begin the adventure either at 1st level (beginning with the notoriously lethal starter adventure. Strahd freely uses his Charm ability when able and the PCs are unaware of or unwilling to employ any means to stop it, limiting them to limited post-Charm curatives (e.g., manacles to restrain charmed PCs or the single-use 5th-level spell dispel evil and good). Barovia is an ironic twist of Strahds desires where the people and land itself act out an endless cycle of despair and horror, and by defeating Strahd they may only save Barovia for a short period of time. Id recommend simultaneously improving Strahds abilities alongside the characters starting at level 7-8, and especially once they have access to magic that generates sunlight. Why refined oil is cheaper than cold press oil? The party is his new toy, he does not want to break it too soon. Virtual Tabletop Journey all Demongund patrons presents the iconic Curse of Strahd - Baba Lysaga's Walking Hut recreated for use in TaleSpire! Use this option if you want to provide your players with a multi-stage boss fight that artificially inflates Strahd's hit points, providing for a longer, more satisfying finale that ends as soon as the PCs successfully grapple or incapacitate him. If youre a new dungeon master thinking about running one of D&D 5es most enduringly popular adventures, this guide should point you in all the right directions. St. Andral's Orphanage - Dungeon Masters Guild The r/CurseOfStrahd subreddit is a community-based resource aimed to help Dungeon Masters run their Curse of Strahd games. Do you have any memorable stories, comments, questions, or critiques? The random nature of the location of magical items in the module also can make some encounters much harder or easier. Here are some examples we have come across so far. He then drains them to 0 hit points using his bite attack before stabilizing them. The story is set in the pocket dimension of Barovia, a nightmarish domain of dread ruled by a powerful vampire: Count Strahd Von Zarovich. Have you got any ideas for more "bosses" I could add into the campaign? there is a passage there that I'm not entirely sure I can repeat here without a copyright issue, but it should solve your problem. She's either a Damsel Scrappy who steals much of the module's focus while lacking a compelling personality to justify protecting her, or she's a likeable character with a good amount of characterization, and someone the players can see as . Their image didn't match the Bela Legosi [sic] vampire quite so much. Mirror Image. Minor Phasing. Dont forget cosmetic spell modifications (outlined in chapter 2). Set in the Ravenloft campaign setting, the module revolves around the vampire Strahd von Zarovich and the Demiplane of Dread that serves as his prison. Curse of Strahd Revamped | Dungeons & Dragons The following options refer to the lair actions that Strahd may select on initiative count 20 of combat while in Castle Ravenloft. Now, Strahd has become convinced that a young Barovian woman is the reincarnation of his beloved Tatyana and wishes to make her his bride. Open/Unlock Doors and Windows. Each heading in this guide will direct the Dungeon Master to either pick one option among several mutually exclusive choices, or to select and prioritize multiple options from among several.competing choices. [18], Julie Muncy, for Io9, criticized the "granular changes" to the Vistani people as not very extensive and that "while theres a real opportunity here to do better workthe aforementioned diversity pledge also mentioned future works that will feature the Vistani people and aim to complicate their depictionsstarting that work with a fancy collectors edition feels less like a promise to do better and more like a victory lap". As with many pre-written adventures for D&D, it was a bit like reading a choose-your-own-adventure book from front to back, rather than following the breadcrumbs. First 3 sessions took place around the House of Lament adventure from VGtR as the intro/tutorial. Weaving queer plotlines into D&D games is not hard to do. Privacy Policy. It's a great adventure - but it can also be a bit overwhelming and hard to run, especially if it's your first time as a DM. Polymorph (Sperm Whale or Killer Whale). By contrast, a party of 10th-level PCs will likely slaughter Strahd within two rounds. Lured to Barovia by the lands dark master and trapped there by a supernatural mist, the players are forced to travel throughout the realm gaining knowledge and experience before finally confronting the vampire Strahd himself. Use this option if you want to allow Strahd to isolate a grappled PC or keep Strahd away from sources.of sunlight, out of sight of hostile spellcasters, and/or out of range of hostile melee enemies. If run deficiently, Strahds CR effectively craters to 5; if run optimally, his CR easily surmounts 20. Fog Cloud. Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. Also to note. Easy fights are not treasured or remembered - for "main" encounters a few failed aborted attempts and near escapes makes it epic and satisfying when you finally win. Sure, it's horror, and sandboxed, but if the answer to almost anything the characters can do or encounter when they start the campaign is, "just run away," it's not much of a story. By contrast, a party of 10th-level PCs will face a slightly easier encounter, expending fewer resources and facing lower risk. The Vistani at Tser Pool may have warned the party away from there, knowing their destination and based upon what is written on pg. Strahd is unaffected by any PC taunts specifically regarding Sergei, King Barov, Queen Ravenovia, or Tatyana. Use this option if you want to threaten a particular low-HP target and/or grapple a PC who you plan to separate from the party. Aarakocra and Flying Players Lets assume that Strahd uses the Minor Phasing strategy, setting his default CR to 9. Kill, some day, but not today. They were a party of four level 2's at this point - fighting a CR5 monster, Shambling Mound). And in fact - both encounters gave them the opportunity to back out prior to the combat, and the option to run away when they realized how hard the fights would be. Wiki Le Monde des Royaumes Oublis (French), The Blade of Truth: The Uses of Logic in the War Against Diabolist Heresies, as Fought by the Ulmist Inquisition, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. At that point it is down to each DM how such an encounter plays out - nothing precludes you from granting strokes of luck, fudging rolls, or throwing in timely ally arrivals when things go south. If you choose this option, set Strahds default CR to 11. Strahd limits himself to a small number of adjoining rooms, using his phasing ability only to pass through minor walls or other obstructions. What experiences have you had running Strahds RAW statblock in combat? Curse of Strahd | Forgotten Realms Wiki | Fandom I'm currently DMing a Curse of Strahd campaign (slightly modified to fit into an existing world I am slowly building (following core rule books for the most part). Lets also assume that his preferred actions include unarmed strike, fireball, sleep, and polymorph (frog); that his preferred legendary actions include unarmed strike and move; that he cannot use charm (+1 CR); that he primarily uses his phasing lair action; that he prefers to isolate characters through imprisonment; that he prepares between consecutive combats by casting fog cloud; and that his responses to provocation are vengeful (-1 CR). In addition to a softcover adventure book, the boxed set includes the following:[1], Curse of Strahd was written by Jeremy Crawford, Laura Hickman, Tracy Hickman, Adam Lee, Christopher Perkins, Richard Whitters, and was published by Wizards of the Coast in 2016. Curse of Strahd DnD 5e Summary and DM's Quickstart Guide On top of that, this is a horror campaign - it is not unreasonable that if the characters poke around the dark corners of Barovia whilst uninformed of what lies within, they may end up angering something much more powerful than themselves. Perhaps if they run into a bad area again I'll pull in some other outside factors to help keep them aware. Curse of Strahd was the first project I worked on as a Roll20 content conversion contractor in 2017 and the first Wizards of the Coast storyline I ever played (my ranger survived Death House in a particularly cutthroat way), so its a sentimental storyline for me. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Strahd takes the hide action using his +14 to Stealth (Dexterity) checks. An encounter in one of the areas you mentioned resulted in a TPK the first time through. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. If you use this option on at least one-third of Strahds turns in combat, reduce Strahds CR by 1. " +1 for that's how sandbox works - this is teaching a whole new generation of gamers they gotta play smart and recon and not bite off more than they can chew. I picked Barbarian because I wanted to be the tank for the group. Otherwise, use of this option does not change Strahds CR. Should I re-do this cinched PEX connection? Strahd constantly moves between multiple rooms in the same vicinity, always reserving one hard-to-reach space such as K18a (High Tower Shaft) as a safe place to regenerate his health to full and re-cast his spells before returning to the fray. Curse of Strahd - Boss Encounter (Spoilers) So, Strahd has Polymorph. Note that the use of a Lair Action other than phasing can allow your players to restrain and/or kill Strahd within 1-2 rounds unless he has a clear escape route and ample distance (60-90 feet) separating him from the majority of the party. Have you tried checking pg. This module was designed to be inserted into the main Curse of Strahd campaign, in the centralized town of Vallaki. Curse of Strahd / YMMV - TV Tropes Improving the copy in the close modal and post notices - 2023 edition, New blog post from our CEO Prashanth: Community is the future of AI. Since his original showing in 1983 in the original Ravenloft, Strahd has instilled joy and fear in many. I've seen a lot of people complain that mechanics-wise Strahd just isn't THAT tough of a villain to be proper end-game big bad and I realized that he's not really supposed to be a standalone final villain. He knew they were coming, and he knows why they cameall according to his plan. 2: The Lands of Barovia Lay of the Land Barovians Vistani 1 yr. ago "Pretty cool concept, as if that's going to stop us from burning it to the ground." -my players probably Player shenanigans aside, that's an intriguing take on the villain and Ravenloft in general. Why are players required to record the moves in World Championship Classical games? Most player characters know they are trapped, and the Mists of Ravenloft are an omnipresent reminder of the stakes of their adventure and the challenges they must overcome. Strahd casts mirror image before entering combat. Curse of Strahd is an adventure book for the 5th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. I realized later one of the other problems is a lot of the "warnings" are probably just waived off as flavor text, considering the campaign setting. Note: u/JaeOnasi made a helpful CR calculator based on this guide here. The box set definitely will enhance your Curse of Strahd experience, and the box alone makes for a great display piece on top of your bookshelf or in the D&D corner of your room". Note that the use of a Lair Action other than phasing can allow your players to restrain and/or kill Strahd within 1-2 rounds unless he has a clear escape route and ample distance (60-90 feet) separating him from the majority of the party. Even with this, however, encounters can and should have the potential to be fatal. If you use this option on at least one-third of rounds in combat, reduce Strahds CR by 2. A passing mention of a same-sex couple might be enough to assert that queer sexuality is a natural part of the D&D universe. Strahd brings a grappled or incapacitated character to the dungeons, knocks them unconscious, and restrains and imprisons them within a cell after confiscating their weapons and other equipment. The following points apply to any final battle with Strahd, notwithstanding any alterations made by specific tactics below: Strahd prioritizes targets in the following order: the PCs foretold ally; the holder of the Tome of Strahd (if known); wizards, warlocks, and sorcerers; bards, clerics, druids, and artificers; monks, rangers and rogues; fighters, paladins, and barbarians. Remember, the raven will be in league with the wereravens of Vallaki and essentially a force of good. Thanks everyone for the support !Art is from : http://laurenstevens.co.uk/strahd/Link to the adventure : http. Strahd casts the sleep spell, placing the sphere such that it will only impact a specific wounded target. The REAL real boss of Curse of Strahd is finding a way to get Strahd to abandon his tactical bullshit and fight you blindly like a man. So far, the "bosses" they've fought have been Baba Lysaga, a suped alpha werewolf, and a beast at the Abbey of Saint Markovia I shamelessly stole from Bloodborne. Is this homebrew variant of Leomund's Tiny Hut a problem? Some things to keep in mind to make this work well: (*) I roll my dice in the open (when I can), my players know my monsters may kill the characters and I don't fudge the die for or against them. Curse of Strahd, one of the most popular Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game products of all time, split into three parts: a 224-page perfect-bound adventure for characters of levels 1-10, a 20-page Creatures of Horror booklet of new monsters that appear in the adventure, and an 8-page Tarokka Deck booklet. I Changed the Final Boss in Death House - Curse of Strahd Story By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. This is what I have so far https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5mgM5oI1_wWjMitfseiljKhUGVZJu_dd Please help, Scan this QR code to download the app now, https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5mgM5oI1_wWjMitfseiljKhUGVZJu_dd. Complete Curse of Strahd Map Pack Directory & Zip Files. I've only run it once so far, but that did end in a TPK. Using a deck of tarokka cards, the Dungeon Master can randomize parts of the adventure such as the identity of a powerful ally, the placement of important magic items across Barovia, and Strahd's location within Castle Ravenloft. When Perkins asked for their input, they flew out to meet with the team. "[16], The new boxed set was included on The Mary Sue's 2020 "Gift Guide for the Dungeons & Dragons Fan". Lets also assume that his preferred legendary actions include unarmed strike and move; that he cannot use charm (+1 CR); that he primarily uses the phasing lair action; that he prefers to isolate characters via defenestration; that he prepares between consecutive combats by using the hide action (+1 CR); and that his responses to provocation are petty. The entire time I was reading this I kept thinking that your descriptions were validating the players that they were on the right track and should continue investigating. Keeping level 1 characters alive is no small task, and "Death House" monsters have high armor classes and hit hard. Theres too much intrigue to wing your way through this adventure". Mysterious Visitors assumes that your campaign is based in or near Daggerford, a town on the Sword Coast in the Forgotten Realms. A lightning flash rips through the darkness, but Strahd is gone. The material components in her summoning spell are an oat milk latte and a high fantasy novel. Dynamic lighting is included for Plus and Pro subscribers with the Curse of Strahd module, and youre able to add your own Jukebox tracks in the VTT sidebar. Copy the n-largest files from a certain directory to the current one. Use this option if you want to run an unsatisfying, torturous fight. I wanted them to talk to one turning into a spider, who will eventually disappear, and on their way to the Amber Temple they will be followed by hordes of little spiders, webs appearing on their tents at night etc, until eventually they face off with the spider boss and spider minions. Is Curse of Strahd really hard, or am I DMing it wrong? Leave them in the comments below! There was not much room for exploring, they simply followed the road and noted that this was one of the places they were recommended to visit. Even if they survive to the final basement battle and reveal, the chase upstairs and the houses own mechanisms may well kill them. Curse of Strahd is a 257-page adventure for D&D 5e that transports players into a horrifying pocket dimension called Barovia. Strahd uses 1 legendary action to strike and grapple a nearby enemy. Even so, multiple encounters could TPK your party in one round, especially if they run away through the territory of another creature. Strahd is a bit problematic as a boss because his optimal combat style, while quite dangerous, is generally frustrating instead of fun; just sneak up on the party (Stealth +14), fight for one or two rounds, then use Lair Action (pass . The square grid maps will help your players navigate Castle Ravenloft on the virtual tabletop. Under such circumstances, a party of 10th-level PCs is doomed to inevitable failure unless: A character has attuned to the luck blade and uses it to cast wish (replicating the effects of the spell forcecage) to imprison Strahd on the first round of combat, or. A Comprehensive Guide to Strahd's RAW Final Battle Tactics. Use this option if you want to allow Strahd to dictate the terms of every engagement before the PCs have a chance to respond, either by casting a spell like polymorph or animate objects or by swiftly grappling and isolating a chosen victim. The following options refer to Strahds preferred means of isolating and subsequently eliminating a grappled (via Strahds unarmed strike attack) or incapacitated (e.g., via polymorph or sleep) PC. If you use this option, leave Strahds CR unchanged if employing Cant Use Charm (see above), and increase Strahds CR by 1 if not. Reading it you get the impression that the adventure without extra pre-work anticipates a leveling structure based on milestones. Curse Of Strahd is one of the best campaigns for Dungeons & Dragons. The wind's howling increases as he turns his gaze down toward the village of Barovia. Given that I've now completed all the official maps for the Curse of Strahd adventure, I thought it might be helpful to provide a list of the maps and links! A place to discuss the latest version of Dungeons and Dragons, the fifth edition, known during the playtest as D&D Next. Use of this option does not change Strahds CR. They add so much to the atmosphere of creeping down a hallway or a climactic trek to a forbidden mountain temple. If you use this option twice or more per round on at least one-third of all combat rounds, reduce Strahds CR by 2 if Strahd is employing No Phasing (see above), and leave Strahds CR unchanged if not. For reference, the locations are sorted based on this map by DragnaCarta. Ways To Improve DnD: Curse Of Strahd - The Gamer None. View Cover Art Contents Foreword Introduction Running the Adventure Marks of Horror Ch. If you use this option at least twice per 10 rounds, leave Strahds CR unchanged if employing No Phasing (see above), and decrease Strahds CR by 2 if not. The Dark Powers delight in tormenting villains as much as they do innocents, the Mists equally confound both predators and prey, and Darklords frequently exhibit hubris or other exploitable flaws. For Dungeon Masters, Curse of Strahd is a wide-open expanse, full of possibilities and different stories to tell. Rumbling thunder pounds the castle spires. The following options refer to Strahds use of his phasing lair action, which permits him to temporarily pass through the solid walls, doors, ceilings, and floors of Castle Ravenloft as if they werent there. It's fairly easy to tweak encounters, although as a warning it is also not too hard for the PCs to wander off-track and bite off more than they can chew! The section I reference also has the minimum average level for players in those areas. Use this option if you want to keep the fight short and sweet, with minimal disruptions or slowdowns. Then, he built a gigantic gothic monstrosity of a castle because of his gigantic (gothic) unresolved mommy issues. Curse of Strahd is an adventure module for the 5 th -edition of Dungeons & Dragons, published by Wizards of the Coast in 2016. Curse of Strahd - Boss Encounter (Spoilers), Scan this QR code to download the app now. Curse of Strahd sees the player characters transported by the supernatural mists of Ravenloft from wherever they are (the adventure assumes theyre somewhere on the Sword Coast near the city of Neverwinter, but you can start the campaign anywhere) and into the valley of Barovia. Strahd casts fog cloud before entering combat. I played my first tabletop RPG (Pathfinder 1e, specifically) in college. A few miscellaneous notes on locations, things to remember, and further suggestions: Castle Ravenloft is a massive dungeon crawl that will drain your characters resources, but they may never need to go there. rCurseOfStrahd - YouTube I am however following the setup/plot within the actual setting exactly. Tracy found an old daguerreotype [an early type of photograph captured on a silvered copper plate] [sic] that captured the look of Strahd in his mind, and we used that image as a reference to create a new look for the vampire". [17] Christian Hoffer, for Comicbook, wrote "while it doesn't have enough extra material to justify a second purchase, Curse of Strahd Revamped is a great box set for the DM/player group that hasn't traveled to Ravenloft and wants to commit to the campaign with a grim flourish. Strahd casts greater invisibility before entering combat. Before you even get to the module itself, there is a whole section devoted to Strahd, his personality, and his goals in the adventure. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. What would stop him from turning into a T-Rex 4 times before actually taking on the party in his true form? [] Reading through The Curse of Strahd was a thrilling visit to the tortured land of Barovia. Strahd is the Darklord whose dominion is Barovia, but beyond him are the Dark Powers, the omnipotent and immortal beings that control the Mists of Ravenloft and all of the Domains of Dread, each housing its own horrible Darklord. Strahd is the Darklord whose dominion is Barovia, but beyond him are the Dark Powers, the omnipotent and immortal beings that control the Mists of Ravenloft and all of the Domains of Dread, each housing its own horrible Darklord. Bumping up HP and AC are obvious first choices, but giving him access to a mythic action and regenerated health after initially being reduced to zero may be more fun for your players (and mimics the final form video game boss experience players may be familiar with from other Dracula-inspired vampires). Fireball. After all: their ally or an artifact may be very nearby! I found the Sunsword, I gain a level I defeated the big story foe in the area, gain a level. There were four characters + Esmerelda in the party at the end. I have decided on Barbarian for my upcoming Curse of Strahd game, Im joining at level 3. Curse of Strahd 5th Edition Levels 1-10 256 pages Under raging storm clouds, the vampire Count Strahd von Zarovich stands silhouetted against the ancient walls of Castle Ravenloft. Use this option if you want to transform a one-monster "boss fight" into a sprawling dungeon-crawl that occupies the bulk of one or more sessions, forcing your players into a punishing war of attrition and navigation that ends as soon as the PCs successfully grapple or incapacitate him. Curse of Strahd. Even if my 4 party members get to level 10 before they face him, 4 CR 8 T-rexes and a CR 15 Strahd is a hard fight. rev2023.5.1.43405. What happens in Curse of Strahd if the players destroy Strahd's coffin or prevent him from returning to it? Sever Shadow. Once in Barovia, the PCs are free to explore the entire region in search of aid in their battle against Strahd as well as several powerful relics strewn throughout the land. Personally, I find it MUCH easier to do milestone based leveling in custom adventures I write myself than to try to mind-meld with a published adventure series to that deep of a level and try to just guess its intentions toward specific milestones, but maybe that's just me. Vengeful. They did gain two levels after defeating the hags and securing the sword. Execution. Role-playing Games Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for gamemasters and players of tabletop, paper-and-pencil role-playing games. By using a legendary action to make an unarmed strike instead of moving, for example, Strahd may gain additional damage or a grapple effect against a target, but he is simultaneously sacrificing additional mobility, survivability, and tactical advantage. With Roll20 as your virtual tabletop, your adventures are limitless. Each option is accompanied by a brief description, a proposed justification for its use, and its prospective impact on Strahds challenge rating. In this encounter, Strahds effective CR is 15, meaning that a party of 15th-level PCs attuned to the Sunsword and Holy Symbol will likely face a challenging, resource-intensive final encounter. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. The daylight spell produces light that is not considered sunlight. Looking at your instances I see your group was level 3 for Old Bonegrinder which is an average level 4 area. Pace it well, let them have a victory or two to avoid too much frustration. As a module, Curse of Strahd does a pretty good job of keeping the pressure on with very little work from the DM. Irrespective, he cracked open the crates, triggered an enormous fight and ended up dying. In this encounter, Strahds effective CR is 5the minimummeaning that a party of 5th-level PCs attuned to the Sunsword and Holy Symbol will likely face a challenging, resource-intensive final encounter. For a very well-thought-out expansion on the implications of each of these plot hooks, Reddit user u/DragnaCarta has put together this excellent post on the r/CurseofStrahd subreddit, which is probably the single best D&D community subreddit in existence.
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