How to Run Ravenloft in One Night (Episode
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- Professor Dungeonmaster reviews Tracy & Laura Hickman's classic 1983 AD&D module--Ravenloft.
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My favorite is just have Strahd offhandedly mention "have you figured out which of your friends is a traitor yet?" And watch the chaos
Oh, I am going to have to remember this...
(Cackles in Barovian)
Lol. Thats a good one.
OH, that sounds like fun!
A traitor PC in a one shot is always a legit threat. But the plot should be used sparingly or it loses its sting.
@@ksbsnowowl3569 How in the world (of Faerun) do you cackle in Barovian? 🤔
Hello Dan, thank you so much for recommending my work. It was a much pleasant surprise to hear my name :)
Well done for this video, your narration is awesome!
The prof’s recommendation lead me to your music, and I have to say, it’s awesome!
@@tomyoung9834 Thanks! Welcome on the channel :)
Just discovered your channel through this comment! Amazing audio! 🤩
@@lovelandfrogman2136 Thank you! Be welcome :D
“I went to the doctor. All he did was suck blood from my neck. Do not go see Dr. Acula.” 😄
(A big thank you to the late and great stand-up comic Mitch Hedberg for that one)
Good one!
I still have my 1983 Ravenloft module. A friend ran it for us, I played a fighter and my best friend was a thief. I remember finding a cloak of vampirism that allowed me to mimic the powers with a slight chance of becoming a vampire. I thought it was cool and I could fight fire with fire. My best friend didn't think it was so cool and started threatening me to get rid of it. So I used the cloak's power and charmed him. He was not happy. Still to this day, he is not happy about that.
Thanks for sharing!
I still have that module too. IT's the only AD&D thing I still have, actually
Perhaps he was jealous of that charming cloak coming between you... And he was right to be! 🤬
Interesting that you managed to streamline the adventure down to a single session, when looking online, people seem to be saying between 3-6 sessions. But of course, that is what your game style is all about.
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Have you ran the adventure for more than one group, and did anyone who was Titanias' double go to the dark side?
"whyy does strahd not have any friends? cause hes a real pain in the neck!"
did that horrible pun at least equal deathbringer? no? aww....
Nobody hates puns, they are just jealous they didn't think of them first.
Very good.
that joke sucks
“The innkeeper is kind enough. He offers them stew, and his daughter...”
Generous innkeeper!
" cough, cough, cough," Offer them stew made from his daughter. The PCs can see butchered people hanging from hooks on the kitchen ceiling.
a.) Let the PCs become aware of this before they eat the stew.
b.) Let the PCs find out after they ask for seconds.
Afroman willingly returns to Barovia with a bag of weed and bottle of wine...
Dungeon Craft new episodes are like bread piping hot from the oven - irresistible!!
Thanks, Carlos!
You almost had me fooled Professor, what a striking resemblance to Bella Lugosi. I absolutely love this module. I only had an opportunity to run this once during a Halloween party & unfortunately, it was a bit more than the group could handle, but we all had fun, so I suppose it was a success. I like your change on his origins and his curse, it just makes more sense. In my campaign though.\, I would probably still have Tatiana scorn Strahd ( maybe even a arranged marriage & she never loved him?) which is why he has so many "brides' ,his insecurities with women still haunts him as a vampire. Looking back though, I would probably never again run this as a one shot. There is just too much good stuff. I also prefer to make Strahd more like Dracula, he can walk around during the day but not as nearly as strong. Woe be the creature though that attempts to raid his castle before sundown, having plenty of traps and guardians just in case it is past his bed time.
Thank you for watching and sharing your thoughts!
My dad ran it for us, one of the most fun games I've ever done. For any new DM's to the OG Raveloft, you want as much dread leading up to your first meeting with Strahd as you can get. But then try to make him seem charming and almost normal. That's what my dad did, and it added so much more roleplay and enjoyment in finding out his story. Then it made killing him so much more emotional, since we knew how evil he truly was
Thank you for highlighting where the mini sculpts origins. As a relatively new collector in the midwest it’s sometimes difficult to find out where to look for interesting models.
this is very much a weird comparison but reading through Strahds manifesto reminds me of the episode in Adventure Time when you finally understand the ice king. It's a realization that under all bad guy bravado there was once a person.
It makes him one of my favorite villains in a module for 5e because one of my favorite things about D&D is it asks us questions that we probably would never have the personal need to answer. Like will I ever have to debate with my coworkers whether we should allow one to die to save a town? LOL No, but here we get to ask these questions and feel important because in this world your answer is vital to the lives of many.
He's THE best D&D villain. Thanks for sharing!
How does a vampire fly?
They use a fang glider.
+100xp for that one
Great vídeo:) you have a lot of fans in Brazil. Would you like to subtitle in portuguese? Thank you and sorry for my ingles
Excellent suggestions. I have been looking to break this old module out again. This looks the a great way to distil the story into a memorable event. I feel almost all story modules need this treatment instead of a slog of meaningless encounters.
Thankyou
Digging the new background and the others visuals we’re great. I loved the minis. This was timely for me since I was on my way to set the stage for a horror video Shoot when we turned it on.. Thanks for setting the mood for me.
Thank YOU for watching!
Great take on the Dracula/Strahd stories. Happy Fangsgiving! MWAHAHAHAHA
+100xp for that joke.
This video is perfect to run the adventure in one night. Have you ever thought about doing more videos on older Ravenloft adventures. Simplify them and condensed to do them in one or two nights? Love the channel 🎃
@11:06 "C'mon Lorraine, it's just the word 'erotic'." "No, we don't need 'the orc sways erotically in an attempt to distract you.' We let you do that, and in 10 years this hobby will be overrun with furries."
Lol. That's a good one.
Well...i have had this module run in one night several times..i think 3 of them ended with everyone dying on the bridge..lol
I don't understand how there is no interest, this is one of the greatest modules ever written. I remember DMing it when it was released in 1e.
Really great titles in this video! Looked very professional!
The Sun-Sword? Lords of Light! Who knew that only Thundarr the barbarian could defeat Strahd. :)
THAT was a GREAT show!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 For some reason I have this strange desire to send characters to ruins of a temple of the cat. There players may find a jeweled dagger legends say protected the people there from Ancient Spirits of Evil that rumors say are returning…
I don't know why I'd do this, except maybe sometime after covid to see if I could get some player to stand and in all seriousness attempt to reenact some campy stock animation to roars of laughter from the gaming table and to get everyone in this warehouse-sized FLGS staring that direction asking themselves what the hell they just witnessed.
Especially the 20-somethings who are all but guaranteed to not get it.
I love your change in the origin story. The published one was pretty weak, so I would have done the same exact thing! :)
I dated a vampire once, she was a real pain in the neck. She slept in all the time, drank a lot and kinda smelled like freshly tilled earth. On the plus side, she never looked in the mirror and said "Does this make me look fat?"
The reincarnation of the two lovers in the PCs reminded me of the film Dead Again (1991). Of course, that film added a gender twist which, given a certain maturity level in the players, might make for an interesting plot device with the adventure, particularly given the sexual ambiguity of vampirism (or a gender flipped Strahda). Well done video and plot implementation.
Bought this in 1983. I always wondered, with the whole "parade of ghostly fallen heroes" thing, why the townspeople aren't more cynical: "Oh, come to kill Strahd, have you? Good luck. Can I hold your valuables for you, keep them safe while you're off to slay the vampire?"
What makes all vampire jokes bad?
They all suck.
+100xp for that one
There’s too much at stake?
@@thaliahelene 👍
Was that Bella Lugosi at the beginning?! 🧛♂️
This is an outstanding way to run this in a compressed time, while preserving all the thrills and chills.
It is barely spring but I am thinking I should run this in the fall. I do a weekend with my highschool friends (Class of 86 or 87) every fall. I would only trim it to 12 or 16hrs. I have wanted to play it since it was released but never bought it. Better get it done before I die. The Professor's Frankenstein is also on the list.
PDM version of Ravenloft is much better than written
It certainly makes the villain a bit more realistic and interesting. The origional Strahd is just kind of a creep. this one is actually tragic, though I'd say still not that sympathetic. I mean he is up until he burns his wife alive, the brother could have been done in the heat of passion, the burning was something he could have stopped himself from doing.
@@patrickbuckley7259 yeah well people do odd shit when they find their wife in bed with their brother
@@erikmartin4996 True.
I’m planning on playing castle ravenloft as a one shot for my birthday next month.I can’t wait.
Let me know how it went?
Wait, TSR wanted a chaste game but included Sly Pimps and Brazen Strumpets on their AD&D prostitute wandering encounters table?
Show of hands whwn he said he changed parts , you thought he set it in the roaring 20s ? Anyone?
That's a deep cut. Thanks for watching Dungeoncraft!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 Thanks for creating it. Always delivers insight. Always delivers entertainment.
Omg I remember that 😂
@@anthonynorman7545 lb for lb the funniest episode
Very nice take on Ravenloft. More and more I am taking the approach of getting to the meat of the story faster and cutting out all the useless fluff; thanks for the additional ideas to help with that. Always nice to see Deathbringer, don't quit your day job. Blood for the blood metric.
This is GREAT advice for me; I'm currently running a Dracula module that I wrote myself set in AD 1580 (little over 100 years after the historical Dracula died). It's everything you expect it to be, but this video gives me some inspiration on how to run a REALLY creepy dungeon or castle. The PC's are currently in some caves in an ancient Roman aqueduct in Romania, and there's a bunch of skeletons and icky slimy stuff (that's VERY deadly!), not to mention poisonous snakes, scorpions, and centipedes, and a dragon. Hopefully, my final adventure will be as marvelous as Ravenloft is meant to be presented, and with your help from this video, it just might be...
Cross it into the " Castlevania " video game. Have a fire breathing skeleton hydra.
Why do vampires drink blood... Root beer makes em burp.
Why did the Dr. Think that the Count was sick... He said he 'kept a coffin'
My group is a fan of death bringer... Let me join your party... Well played.
I loved your one session ideas for this module. Cudos
I feel like the game group I play with would take a few sessions to get thru the Ravenloft One shot. We always take forever to get things going sometimes. I keep a log of what we do in each session, and some of them are like, we headed up to this other town and visited a weird toad lady and then hemmed and hawed about going into the woods and decided to go back to the first town. Which took about 4 hours.
Lol. Those players exist, I know. Played with some of them today.
sometimes the hemming and hawing can be really fun for the players, if they’re actively debating what to do. if it seems like they just can’t decide, i normally try to light a fire under them. as colville would say: “orcs attack!”
This was planned for October wasn't it?
Its never too late to be spooky. I run vampires and zombie games whenever I want. Last time I ran a zombie game in July, before that one in December. Next game is going to be a vampire game probably in November.
Nope. I didn't even conceive of it until November.
I was looking for advice on how to run the original Castle Ravenloft, and stumbled across your video. This is all great advice! I'm doing the same for a two shot using the adventure this Halloween.
Try making it a one-shot. There is an art to cutting the fluff. Cheers!
9:37 That is a spectacular idea.
Thanks! And thanks for watching my best content, not the clickbait crap I'm forced to make so my channel doesn't die.
I disagree with your assessment of the optional ending. I enjoyed learning that Tatiana & Sergei were finally able to reunite. It felt good as a paladin to learn that I helped their souls find peace
Yeah I don't see how making two PCs the reincarnation of the lovers and forcing them together is a better idea at all
@@LordVader1094 The optional ending has Irena remember that she is the reincarnation of Tatyana and Sergei’s ghost arrives so that they depart together. It has nothing to do with sandwiching PC’s into an awkward romance
Interesting that you managed to streamline the adventure down to the one session. While some people might say that a classic module like this should be run in it's entirety, you've taken the best bits, altered as usual, as this fits your own gaming style.
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Looking online, it's seems that people think this module should take between 3-6 four hour sessions. Having never played it, I thought it might be longer than that, almost a mini campaign as it were.
Have you ran it for more than one group? And did anyone playing the Tatiana lookalike turn to the dark side with Strahd?
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Tracy always ran it in one session. It was padded for the module release.
I like the video. And I usually agree with you PDM on many of your points or at least understand where your coming from. I really liked many of your improv and additional ideas. However, this is one time I totally disagree with you. In as much as I do think pacing in the game is very important. Why would you hurry through a classic like Ravenloft? I mean could you imagine the poor player that didn't get to savor this adventure. I would think most players would feel cheated on a wham bam thank you ma'am Ravenloft adventure. Maybe it's different for your players, but I really think with a classic like this, players would prefer to savor the adventure for a few sessions at least. Keep a good pace through the sessions, just not the story. Good video though. Cheers!!
18:38 Strahd should also engage in "mind games" and "moral dilemnas" with characters, toying with them. Example: One party member is teleported to a mysterious area where Strahd can proposition them towards betraying one of the allied NPC'S (betraying a party member will never work). Strahd will then tell the player if they agree, that he will give them a sign (perhaps a 2 headed raven appears at an encounter). If the PC agrees, Strahd then tells the character to not reveal the plot to anyone or another PC from the party will be tortured horribly, and the truth of the betrayal will be revealed to everyone in a vision recreation of the encounter. Another dilemna is to have a human baby tied at all 4 limbs: Strahd teleports a "Good" character to a torture chamber (similar to the zombie torture chamber), and poses a dilemna: The PC needs to go back to the party and convince the others to gut the live baby, otherwise, Strahd will go into town and slaughter all of the babies and leave evidence that is was the party. Since the PC party is trapped in the castle, there is no way for them to prevent it.... Strahd is the Lord of a domain, his psychological torments should be equally as horrifying as his savagery. His psychology can also be in the form of dreams, just like Nightmare on Elm Street.
VERY good advice.
The innkeeper offers the party stew and his daughter?!?
OH, wait...the daughter leads the party to their rooms, duh. (facepalm)
You're not alone!!!
It's not just the lighting. Professor Dungeonmaster does kinda look like a mild-mannered version of Bela Lugosi--mild-mannered, that is, until being lit from below causes him to turn evil!
Thanks. I used to read bedtime stories to my kids with that lighting.
I took your suggestion of zones, and built a 4' Castle Ravenloft. Indy RPG creator here Professor, I played your modules and hope to earn your subscription.
This was the best rpg video I ever watched. I truly immersed on the scenario with his god tier narration. Astonishing.
Thank you. that's kind of you to say. please share it, so it doesn't get buried by youtube's cruel, Strahd-like algorithm.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 I would love to share PDM, truly. But none of my RPG friends knows English :(
I'm about to change that! They're missing a lot of fine resources, just like your channel. Keep up the good work, and always wear the Vest of Protection +3 XD
When I ran this one, I had the pcs sleeping during the day due to spell recovery. I had our dear Count collect some of the magic items in his house and use them against the party. The only reason the party won was I had to PCS /move and shut down my game.
The idea of zones rather than rooms is a great one. it makes running overly complicated maps so much easier.
Dungeon magazine 54 'Unhallowed Ground' ive run that for D&D,Pendragon,CoC,Warhammer Frp,Twilight 'Nightmares 2000. Brilliant!
Thank you. I don't think its brilliant. It's not terrible. GREAT cover, though.
Absolutely a great job ! Thanks for another great module. Didn't know that you worked for TSR ... Wow ! Awesome
To be consistent with the D&D rules, the only entity that has the power to create the Barovia situation would be a deity. If Strahd was formerly a cleric or paladin of that deity, but then in his rage/grief he turned against that deity, he could then receive the curse as punishment. You could also tie that in to the party, which would give you a hook as well. Perhaps the church has dispatched the players to resolve the situation in Barovia after the High Priest has had a holy vision.
The book Black Sun Rising by CS Friedman introduces a character with a similar backstory and the entire coldfire trilogy is excellent reading.
He COULD have been a fallen paladin. That would have been even BETTER! If I could afford writers, you'd be hired!
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 That's nice of you to say, but we both know you don't really need any help from me. Besides, why would anyone pay me for what I freely give away for the love of the game and community? Cheers.
I think the broad advice of this video, of taking the module and boiling down to its essence, is great GM advice. A ton of modules suffer from this kind of bloat, along with a lack of real stakes (whoops, didn't intend that pun). Thank you for reminding us that for an adventure, often less is more.
Great choice using the Carnevale miniatures for this. I thought it was cool that the minis were labelled too, so folk can find them if they like them.
Do your vampires drain levels? Or is there some other nasty thing they do to the PC’s?
No. If you fail to save vs willpower they can hypnotize & bite you. 3 bites and you're a vampire. 3 characters got bitten.
I’m the same vintage as you PDM. I love your DM sensibilities. I have really hoisted aboard 5e, but one thing I needed to do for Curse of Strahd was boost his stat block. Jebus, he’s a former military commander that has “dabbled” in necromancy for centuries. He’s rumour by D&D lore to have been the first vampire. He is the Ancient, he is the Land. Make him so.
Great video for bringing it back to an evening adventure. Love your twists.
" cough, cough, cough," Long time fan of Ravenloft with many campaign stories.
AD&D2e, Strahd was a 9th-level-fighter(warrior) with lordship stronghold special class feature. Then dual- class into wizard. With the background of fighting a 20 year war. In the novel of " I, Strahd" he was capable of casting low level magic in a mail shirt in his early 40's. So one can say AD&D2e: Players Option/ Skills & Powers was used.
D&D3e or 3.5e Ravenloft Core Book with soft cove source book " Dark lords of Dread," Strahd is listed as Fighter4th/ Wizard16th with the Leadership feat.
With my gaming groups and two different gaming shops since the start of the 2000's. Strahd was rebuilt as a
Aristocrat2nd/ Fighter4th/ Rogue3rd/ Wizard6th. ECL. 14 CR:14. Follow with Prestige class Loremaster4th with effective spellcaster level: 10th.
Self crafted magic item: Banner of Leadership. / effects Emotion Spell: Hope/ Courage.
( We ran a mass military campaign as Strahd when he was mortal and the Wedding Massacre. A newly made vampire without their special abilities even if they get their extra strength will still be unable to take down a group of season veterans as written in the novel " I, Strahd.") My group of nit'picks played over nearly ten different battle runs to see how it played out.
Also, .. running AD&D over to early 3e with a four hundred years campaign dealing with the growth of The Core, by the time Van Richten got around to writing his Guides we place Strahd being close to a 30th-level character. We regarded Strahd as a story plot point to be " role " played and not a base XP reward. As a side remark in the " Guide to Werebeasts," Barovia has had werewolves having Pack Wars for a few hundred years over herd grazing rights and dumb dogs trying to over throw Strahd.
So with 3.5e mini maxing power gaming, dealing with a werewolf with the built of Barbarian3rd/ Ranger3rd/ Rogue 3rd/ Fighter4th CR: 13 ECL: 15th. maybe with a few sorcerer/ cleric levels thrown in. Strahd will have the need of some backup dealing with threats such as that.
Hope this helps improve your campaign.
Tales of Ravenloft, a collection of short story from the Demi Plane of Dread.
Strahd travels around by the name von Holtz possing as a lesser noble acting as a messenger for The Count.
@@krispalermo8133 yeah, in my present CoS campaign, the party met von Holtz enroute to Vallaki. They “saved” him from wolves and then stayed with him for a night at his lake side manor. He will pop back up when they get back from the Wizards of Wines and Vallaki in political turmoil
@@drunkenhobgoblin417 Other " nerd " fact, Ravenloft Black Box campaign setting guide book. Strahd has a 6th-level wizard spell the causes him to lose his supernatural strength and vampire powers which allows him the pass as human during the day. It has been over ten years since I read up on it, but I think after he passes off as human for three days of casting, he has to sleep for a full week. Which gives the " others " time to move their political plans along.
Thank You Professor. Loved this one.
Thank you for watching and comment, Mark.
Very cool video, great advice as always, and let’s crank the algorithm up!!!
I really wish WOTC would bring back the whole setting my best times playing was back in 2nd ed .
Planescape and Birthright are also amazing campaign settings that need a 5th edition adaptation.
@@ronin7997 I have never heard of birthright but I totally agree about planescape! I always thought darksun had some cool ideas as well with how evil magic fed off the land
Dudes channel is so big he actually got Bela Lugosi to do the intro!! Sub'd
Thanks for watching this video. It took me a lot of time and didn't rack up that many views.
Thank you! I don’t play dnd, but I get a lot of great ideas from you to use in games I do play. BTW, loved your Vampirella mini.
She's by Ral Partha. Love Vampirella!
Still a great video! I use lots of this like zones especially instead of room by room
Thanks, Jeff. This video did not do well upon release but has proved to have legs. Thanks for watching again!
Oh man... something funny would be to get your players to know that every time a fog rolls in while they're travelling, it takes them to borovia... just so you can screw with them in a few games and make the fog just a natural weather phenomena.
"Oi, I think we should be able to get to the walls of the city and sneak in tonight, we'll be able to travel during the incoming fog."
"NO! You idiot, never travel during a fog, either we get to the gates and pay our way in today, or we don't leave till the fog is gone!"
That's pretty funny. 100xp for sharing.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 Awesome! Two more like that and I'll finally be able to hit level 2!
As a fan of the classic module and novelization, this is a great way to introduce them to the next generation of gamers.
I have yet to throw any really strong at my players, least in "Supernatural" strength.
I know it doesn't exist in DnD, but if it did, Strahd would be able to RIP any of the PCs in half with ease.
Thanks for taking the time to comment!
I would like to get this module! I think I could fit it into my campaign world. Plus I love a cool vampire story.
I ran a 2E one shot for my son and his friends. It's been a while and I forgot how much of a grind these modules were. Helped me adjust on the fly. I had to create some "rules" on the spot since they were used to 5E. It was a fun find the magic item kill the bad guy romp. We all had a good time and it was a good way to play test it before my group plays. (Plus it's been a lifetime since I DMed, so I'm out of practice. )
Those castle walls and tower are really nice! Maybe a how to video?
My favorite thing on this channel is the campaign updates… it’s really inspiring
Great video! A master class in running and playing a classic module in a limited session! Fantastic scenes and excellent effects!
I'll be honest . This is my fav thing he does. The caves of carnage reviews made me look at old modules in a new light. The trim the fat idea is brilliant and simple. Love this review.
2nd thoughts, this is nice but integration of character levels and other considerations were glossed over. However, this is by far the preferred way to go as I played as a PC a 6 or 7 month campaign in Barovia that had me feeling very much like a UN peace keeper working in a genocide. Not my cup of tea.
This is amazing advice. I've run the 5e CoS module but I'd love to rerun it for a new group, trim down to the more critical plot points and take a bunch if Prof DM's suggestions for the overall storyline and castle exploration.
Good video. Next, there needs to be a dnd module based on Frankenstein
I wrote one. Jigsaw, Dungeon #63--I think. A straight-up adaption may be in the works.
Dungeon #61, pages 8-27
The Trove has a complete archive of Dungeon magazine
happy to help
(as a bonus, I now know the Professor's real name: Christina! MWAHAHAHAHA)
(nah, I kid. But it is kind of cool that you set a new record for collaboration distance to write it)
Sun Sword? Ooooohhhhh...
Thundarr the Barbarian got it from Strahd? Mystery solved.
Thanks Professor!
If you haven't watched Pyram King UA-cam on Ravenloft or Curse of Strahd you should. Great stream and interesting VTT stuff.
I actually like your Strahd rewrite but it does make Strahd a bit more sympathetic, which I personally don’t think is needed. Strahd I don’t think should be sympathetic, but if well done should be pitiable. It’s a super cool way to twist the tale, however.
Bram Strokers Dracula is fantastic, but I sill like marry Shelley’s Frankenstein better. I love the idea of adding in the vampire gals, terrifying. Im gonna add a vampire young fresh boy to my game with that idea that strahd sucks on once in a while and see what the PCs do...Mwahahaha!!! Thanks for the idea!
I'm not actually a player I'm a builder and painter. But if someone ran this game in the shop where I work ( not at the moment our games shop is closed until march.)
I would love to play it.
I was wondering what the Vampire Lore is in this because there are so many variants and this could be important during the game.
I'm a big fan of Hammer and Universal movies ( my great Uncle Directed Frankenstein and the Bride of Frankenstein) so I'd definitely add tropes from these a Wolfman could be a good yet dangerous ally, perhaps a Mad scientist creating Monsters and so on ( I don't have to tell you, I would guess you've seen all those old Monster Mash movies.)
I'd certainly have to play as a version of Peter Cushing's Van Helsing or Frankenstein.
The one thing I'd love to do is build all of the terrain for this game.
I recently built a gigantic Windmill that was based on the Five different Windmills in the 30's Frankenstein and Bride Of Frankenstein, Hammers Brides of Dracula Tim Burtons Sleep hollow and the one is Stephen Sommers Van Helsing ( I noticed the portrait in you builds there of Kate Beckinsale from that movie) I was going to create a Diorama with a monster mash but I was offered a price for it I couldn't say no to and I can always build another even better. But I do believe this game would be right up my street.
In the backround , is that a picture of Kate Beckensdale from Van Helsing ? I love that character ! Do you know if there is a figure that is close to her character ? I would love to buy one.. cool " easter egg " for Van Helsing ! Love that!
Always love the pics of the painted minis and dioramas
Here is what i wanna do someday:
Have the players play the top5 big bads in the campaign, as in Strahd, His right hand man, the witch, the nighthag and so on.
Have 4 lv. 20 NPCs enter barovia, and start messing up your plans.
Go!
11:40
Where did you get the Vampirella mini?
Also, I like your idea, but right now I am building up a group of characters to go to Barovia, basically having them play out their backstories.
Can the ghost of someone and his reincarnation both be roaming around at the same time? Isn't that a case or either/or?
A wizard did it.
I cut the ghost. I should have made that more clear.
Wish we had played that on Saturday October 31st. But it was still fun as hell.
Thanks!
These are excellent ideas - thanks for sharing them. I am running Curse of Strahd and have been dreading running Castle Ravenloft, largely because of the needless complexity. I am going to adopt your zone method and probably the use your approach to wandering monsters. I will use the 3 brides in CoS (Anastrasya, Ludmilla, and Volenta).
Let me know how it goes. When this video came out it did NOT get a lot of views and I was devastated. It was some of my best stuff. I am grateful that people have continued to view it and it has since become a hit.
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1you're probably just ahead of you time. DM's are finally realizing they need these ideas. 😉
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 I used this approach and it worked great! I don't think I would want to run Ravenloft otherwise.
@@scottroberts9067 Cool! Check out this interview I just did. It's the perfect compliment to this video: ua-cam.com/video/A_gEwgMtJSQ/v-deo.html
Q: What do vampires have in common with Deathbringer's vampire joke?
A: They all suck!
I would probably ramp up the temptation angle. I would have either the brides, Strahd, or both try to seduce the player characters into being vampires themselves. "You'll never grow old, nor feel the sting of disease and weakness. Your beauty will be eternal, and those below you will serve out of fear and respect. You will be kings among mortals." I think I could probably get at least one PC to go for it, and I might use traps and the like to split the party so I could try this one on one. The separation would not be to kill a PC, but tempt them and sow doubt. After all, vampires are intelligent foes. You cannot lose a fight you do not need to engage in when you get an ally instead...
This just might be the best video you've done, Professor. You tied in so many of the ideas you've covered in greater detail elsewhere, showing how they all interplay and feed off each other. Of particular value is all the explanation of reasoning behind the decisions you made, which serve to guide us in our own choices. Well done on this wonderful tutorial that also stands as a thesis defense of sorts for the entire channel.
You've got a fang in me! errr... fan....
Thanks. I was really proud of that video and bummed when it struggled to break 10k. My latest video got more views in 20 hours! So pass this one on. Maybe others will dig it. Peace!
Prof Dungeon Craft could pull off an old school vampire B Movie like a boss
Did you run the monsters as is or adapt to 5e and what level are your players for this amazingly adapted one-shot?
I always adapt the monsters. Levels 5-7
@@DUNGEONCRAFT1 Thank you so much for the reply and thank you for your channel. I was definately becoming burned-out trying to memorize all the rules and crunching all the numbers. Your videos make DMing fun again.
I just started a new campaign. One of my player's backstory is that the cheated a vampire. Guess how that's going to play out. Ha ha ha ha ha! P.S. Jake - that's awesome!
This is very helpful. Take the module, strip it down to bare bones necessities and add flavor as per your party. I'mna run this...not just yet as my players are so underpowered for my Drakula style vampires it's not even funny.
I read "How to RUIN Ravenloft.. " and clicked much to my disappointment.
In my curse of strahd campaign, I made the entire Zarovich family a complete and utter mess. The death of his father and the attempted assassination in his youth made strahd untrusting of others except the vestani who saved him. So when his neighbors conducted a genocide campaign against the vestani, he gave them refuge. This would be strahds one and only good deed and the reason the vestani are allied with him. His parents always treated his brother sergai as the golden child, so this made him envious for years. The years of war were not kind to him and he feared his own mortality as well as dying alone do to never finding a wife. When the woman he had a crush on married sergai he pretended to be ok until on the wedding night sergai suggested having his son be heir to the throne since it's likely strahd will die a virgin. This was the last straw that led to the killing and strahd becoming a vampire. Long story short, everyone involved was kinda shitty except maby Tatiana. My players loved it more than the official strahd because you can see what led him down the dark path he took. I'm not saying he was innocent, but essentially, nobody was.
Going to run this with Shadowdark Rules. I really like your 3 wives idea. need to figure out how to get them written In.
Is there anyone that know of a content creator that does something similar to what Professor DungeonMaster where he narrativizes with models and lighting? I have watched this series multiple times simply for the engaging story telling, but it is of course very brief in each episode. Would love a campaign to be told like this from start to finish.
Since Ireena is found with 2 bites already, I plan on making Strahd's goal to bite her a third time and have her rise as his re-incarnated queen the next night. He is also trying to convince them to stay and join him as he and his queen will rule the land of Barovia forever...
Thanks for the video. I hadn’t watched due to family vacation. I never liked the Ravenloft setting, but now I want to get my hands on a copy of the original and modify it like you did. I’ll have this video on a loop tomorrow.
Just a heads up that the link for drivethrurpg doesn't work anymore. Links to a different product.