[1] It was released on October 20, 2020. Strahd freely uses his Charm ability when able, but the DM has made clear to the players that they are able to protect themselves by closing their eyes or refusing to look at him, which the players frequently do. If you use this option, leave Strahds CR unchanged if at least one PC can cast dispel magic or if the PCs cannot see Strahd (e.g., because the PCs are avoiding looking at Strahd in order to evade his Charm), and increase Strahds CR by 2 if not. Welcome to the orphanage. Additionally, the raven should be extremely vocal in trying to ward off the players. The wind's howling increases as he turns his gaze down toward the village of Barovia. By contrast, a party of 10th-level PCs will likely slaughter Strahd within two rounds. After all: their ally or an artifact may be very nearby! What happens in Curse of Strahd if the players destroy Strahd's coffin or prevent him from returning to it? As such, Dungeon Masters running Curse of Strahd are often encouraged to modify Strahds statblock to increase his offensive and defensive capabilities. The module contains everything you need to run Curse of Strahd. Here, assume that Strahd uses the Hit-and-Run Phasing strategy, setting his default CR to 13 if the players know at least one spell of 7th level or higher that can automatically incapacitate Strahd, and 17 otherwise. Episode about a group who book passage on a space ship controlled by an AI, who turns out to be a human who can't leave his ship? It then attacked them back. 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. This article is for first-time Curse of Strahd dungeon masters to act as a sort of Barovia for Beginners to help you build immersion and enable fun for your players in Ravenloft. Cookie Notice 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. 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. Rogue turning a slip into a tumble and roll, etc. Curse of Strahd is an adventure module for the 5th-edition of Dungeons & Dragons, published by Wizards of the Coast in 2016. Curse of Strahd - endgame advice - Dungeon Masters Only - D&D Beyond Dynamic lighting and the Jukebox are your best friends in a horror game. 2021 The Orr Group, LLC. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. Complete Curse of Strahd Map Pack Directory & Zip Files. 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. Petty. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? Curse of Strahd DnD 5e Summary and DM's Quickstart Guide Curse of Strahd has a specific leveling style all its own. Tease, taunt, humiliate - Yes. Even if they survive to the final basement battle and reveal, the chase upstairs and the houses own mechanisms may well kill them. The more details or "clues" you hand out, the more they want to know what is happening. In Vallaki, the party has the opportunity to run into a nest of vampire spawn whilst investigating a coffin maker's shop. Support me on Patreon! Defenestration. Why are players required to record the moves in World Championship Classical games? Pace it well, let them have a victory or two to avoid too much frustration. None. Curse of Strahd runs to level 10, but if you level your characters every time the texts suggest you do (typically at the end of a chapter), theyll be massively overleveled for the titular villain and climactic end of adventure fight. 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. 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. [] Punctuate your horror tales with moments of relief, comedy, and fortuitous consequences. Strahd uses 1 legendary action to corner a vulnerable foe or escape a dangerous situation. 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. We find that more exciting (not that there are not ways to act tactically to adjust deadliness). What experiences have you had running Strahds RAW statblock in combat? And it's especially brutal with Strahd because it's his home base and he fights DIRTY. Role playing epic skill fails and wins can be fun. For instance I had the party encounter Strahd for the first time on Old Svalic Road on the way from Barovia village. When Perkins asked for their input, they flew out to meet with the team. Curse of Strahd transforms Dungeons & Dragons 5e from sword-and-sorcery fantasy to a nightmarish realm of gothic horror where the master of Ravenloft awaits atop his castle as lightning flashes across the sky with blood dripping from his fangs. For more information, please see our That said, since I want to be a tank in the more traditional sense of supporting the group by enticing enemies to attack me instead, I am leaning toward Ancestral Guardian more than Bear. It's not necessary to copy it word-for-word to explain how it solves the problem. Strahd uses his lair action to attempt to sever a PC's shadow, creating an undead shadow. These include changes like undead familiars and steeds as well as alarm screams and ominous telepathic eavesdropping. Even so, multiple encounters could TPK your party in one round, especially if they run away through the territory of another creature. I defeated the big story foe in the area, gain a level. 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. So here's our top four tips for DM's running Curse of Strahd! If you use this option and expect your players to make strategic use of such tactics, decrease Strahds CR by 1. It influences Strahd. - Role-playing Games Stack Exchange If you use this option, leave Strahds CR unchanged. Reading it you get the impression that the adventure without extra pre-work anticipates a leveling structure based on milestones. Did the drapes in old theatres actually say "ASBESTOS" on them? The result was a torrent of ideas for new locations, characters and encounters". Make sure to give . [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". 4. Dancing With The Wolves (Combat Theme) - Curse Of Strahd Soundtrack The story is set in the pocket dimension of Barovia, a nightmarish domain of dread ruled by a powerful vampire: Count Strahd Von Zarovich. Sometimes the solution is not a fight; it is their job to know when to fight, when to run, and when to find different solutions, Use foreshadowing and foreboding to warn players. Should my party have been doing these encounters or should they have run away? The wind's howling increases as he turns his gaze down toward the village of Barovia. Leave them in the comments below! This adventure module is designed to take four to six player characters from 1st level to 10th level. Use of this option does not change Strahds CR. 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. Rumbling thunder pounds the castle spires. I found the Sunsword, I gain a level I defeated the big story foe in the area, gain a level. Vengeful. The following options refer to the attacks and spells that Strahd might employ using his action on his turn in combat. 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 mentions the dark powers and vestiges a little in the Amber temple. Looking at the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind's description in Appendix C (p. 222), it looks like something that a group of adventures wanting to take down a powerful vampire would want to have. Sever Shadow. I think you need to add monsters if you aren't using milestones to ensure the PC's are of sufficient level to enter that area. Use of this option does not change Strahds CR. 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. 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. For instance, my group is on the way to vallaki (a level 5 area) but the group is only level 4. . 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 . 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. Use this option if you want to run an unsatisfying, torturous fight. :). Advanced Phasing. I never used to be very good at DMing combat, due to disliking it as a player, but I've been DMing CoS for over a year on and off and have focused really hard on improving combat. ISBN. Hence, assuming the party did head in and end up in fight against the three hags, having the raven summon help in the form of a swarm or a wereraven may be one solution to avoiding a TPK. 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. I even pointed out that the cleric in the party felt something deeply disturbing from the room. View Cover Art Contents Foreword Introduction Running the Adventure Marks of Horror Ch. Strahd's Stat Block: What The Numbers Mean - Twinfinite 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. Play games anywhere. [15], In a review of Curse of Strahd in Black Gate, Andrew Zimmerman Jones said "Curse of Strahd is really a mix of setting manual and adventure module in one, with a storyline that is extremely open-ended, with endings that (assuming the players survive) allow for continued adventures centered around the consequences of the players' actions in Castle Ravenloft. Then, because the woman he wanted to creepily possess fell in love with his younger (well-adjusted) brother, he murdered his brother, chased his beloved Tatyana off a 1,000-foot cliff, and made a pact with the mysterious Dark Powers to become the unholy terror he is today. Curse of Strahd - Baba Lysaga's Hut - Epic Boss Fight 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. 13. He Is The Ancient, He Is The Land - Curse Of Strahd - YouTube I'm having the same issue. Curse of Strahd / YMMV - TV Tropes 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. Strahd uses his Bite attack while he has a PC grappled. So far in my campaign they completed Death House (2 levels), and Old BoneGrinder (1 Level), and found the Sunsword (1 level). [9], Publishers Weekly included the book in their "Best-selling Books Week Ending March 28, 2016", in which Curse of Strahd was #6 in "Hardcover Fiction". 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. Strahd always focuses his damage on a single target at a time, and prefers to target wounded enemies over healthy ones. Curse of Strahd is an adventure module for the 5 th -edition of Dungeons & Dragons, published by Wizards of the Coast in 2016. Strahd pulls a grappled or incapacitated character to the Ravenloft drawbridge or overlook and pushes them over, letting them fall a thousand feet to their death below. Van Richtens Guide to Ravenloft, which expands the Domains of Dread for fifth edition, has an excellent sidebar on the importance of cultivating hope in your Ravenloft games. Strahd casts greater invisibility before entering combat. What would stop him from turning into a T-Rex 4 times before actually taking on the party in his true form? It was released on March 15, 2016 and is based on the Ravenloft module published in 1983. Then, he built a gigantic gothic monstrosity of a castle because of his gigantic (gothic) unresolved mommy issues. If the DM hasnt read the full adventure, be prepared for a bored party. Privacy Policy. The following options refer to the legendary actions that Strahd might employ immediately after a given creatures turn while in combat. Strahd takes the hide action using his +14 to Stealth (Dexterity) checks. This module was designed to be inserted into the main Curse of Strahd campaign, in the centralized town of Vallaki. and our Have fun storming the castle! Dont forget cosmetic spell modifications (outlined in chapter 2). [7] Wizards of the Coast stated that "the adventure includes the latest errata and a revised depiction of the Vistani" who are based on stereotypes about the Romani people. 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. 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. First published. Privacy Policy. If you choose this option, set Strahds default CR to 9. Strahd is unaffected by any PC taunts specifically regarding Sergei, King Barov, Queen Ravenovia, or Tatyana. 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. Guide to Curse of Strahd for New DMs - Roll20 Of course, a highly strategic or well-equipped party will likely face a somewhat easier encounter, while a novice or ill-prepared party will face a correspondingly harder encounter. Strahd never allows initiative to lapse and reliably attacks or appears to the party at least once every 2 to 4 rounds. I built a cabin, gain a level. (straight from pathfinder's gamemastery guide). Which ability is most related to insanity: Wisdom, Charisma, Constitution, or Intelligence? The events of this module are referenced in the novel Death Masks by Ed Greenwood. Lets also assume that his preferred actions include ray of frost (+2 CR), unarmed strike, and fireball; 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 stoic. If you choose this option, set Strahds default CR to 11. Bonegrinder - I feel that warnings discouraging the party from entering too early are key to this adventure. 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. [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. Preparing to take a character into Curse of Strahd and having them die in the optional introductory adventure may feel like an anticlimax to your players. Combined with the magic items that are vicious vs vampires, Strahd as written was severely overmatched. 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. Strahd is probably one of the most iconic villains in the Dungeons and Dragons universe. Dancing With The Wolves (Combat Theme) - Curse Of Strahd Soundtrack by Travis Savoie RPG Music Maker - Travis Savoie 24.7K subscribers Subscribe 1.8K 180K views 2 years ago Perfect for. Passing negative parameters to a wolframscript, one or more moons orbitting around a double planet system. All rights reserved. Imprisonment. Open/Unlock Doors and Windows. Rumbling thunder pounds the castle spires. Players should be made aware of this when starting the campaign and they should note that often discretion will be the better part of valor. What's a reasonable Green Hag Coven encounter for a party of 3 level 8 PCs? There were four characters + Esmerelda in the party at the end. I am creating classic rock playlists for music in curse of strahd and I need some help with Strahds Final Battle music. Kill, some day, but not today. As a module, Curse of Strahd does a pretty good job of keeping the pressure on with very little work from the DM. (Note that, if swallowed by the sperm whale, Strahd has protection from sunlight and can escape through the blowhole by changing into mist). As always, be prepared to tune your preparations to the needs, skills, and expectations of your playersand above all else, make sure that you and your players have fun. From what I remember, if you are simply talking about the leveling guide - they award levels for various in-game events (such as finding artifacts, or completing areas). Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Freely Uses Charm. 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. Under raging storm clouds, the vampire Count Strahd von Zarovich stands silhouetted against the ancient walls of Castle Ravenloft. Use of this option does not change Strahds CR. 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. Use this option if you want to allow Strahd to attack without disadvantage in sunlight and force the PCs to attack with disadvantage in a single pre-defined space. I'm looking for more ideas for bosses or minibosses to sprinkle through Barovia. It has also been updated to reflect Wizards of the Coasts June 2020 errata. If youre a new GM preparing to run Curse of Strahd, youll need to know: your players can either start at third level, or they can run through the introductory adventure "Death House." In Curse of Strahd, who's feeding everyone? "[16], The new boxed set was included on The Mary Sue's 2020 "Gift Guide for the Dungeons & Dragons Fan". If possible, Strahd never begins or ends his turn within 60 feet of the wielder of the Sunsword. How long should it take to travel across Barovia? But first, a warning to players: youre now treading through the Mists and into spoiler territorybeware! 28. What player characters dont know is that, like them, Strahd von Zarovich is trapped by the Dark Powers in his Domain of Dread. Strahd flees combat as soon as a PC casts a powerful Concentration spellsuch as Haste or Polymorphand returns only once those spells have ended, even if that takes multiple minutes or an hour. Curse of Strahd Revamped | Dungeons & Dragons If you use this option, increase Strahds CR by 2 for each PC with a Wisdom saving throw modifier of +2 or less. Strahd fails to use his Charm ability, either because the players have the Icon of Ravenloft, the party includes a Paladin with the Oath of Devotion, or the DM has chosen not to use the ability. Hide Action. Why does the narrative change back and forth between "Isabella" and "Mrs. John Knightley" to refer to Emma's sister? Role-playing Games Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for gamemasters and players of tabletop, paper-and-pencil role-playing games. [19] Muncy highlighted that the errata and the Revamped edition "sought to undo some of the harmful stereotyping of the Vistani people, along with revising the books approach to a specific characters disability to avoid ableist stereotypes. 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. In particular, my party found the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind quite early and it made the Coffinmaker's house encounter fairly trivial. Strahd uses 1 legendary action to corner a vulnerable foe or escape a dangerous situation. So, Strahd has Polymorph. [8] Beadle & Grimm, a Wizards of the Coast licensee, released a limited run special "Legendary Edition" which included physical props for the Dungeon Master to use such as handouts, maps, props and encounter cards. "Dungeons & Dragons: Curse of Strahd Revamped Announced for October Release", "Curse of Strahd - RPGnet d20 RPG Game Index", "D&D's Ravenloft returns with the help of its original creators", "Curse Of Strahd Interview With Chris Perkins", "Curse of Strahd Revamped | Dungeons & Dragons", "One of Dungeons & Dragons' best campaigns is getting two extravagant new reprints", "Popular D&D tabletop campaign Curse of Strahd is being re-'vamped', "Exclusive: First Look at D&D's 'Curse of Strahd Revamped' Collector's Edition", "This Week's Bestsellers: March 28, 2016", "Best-selling Books List | Back issue 03/28/16", "Review: Dungeons & Dragons: Curse of Strahd", "Feel the Horror in 'The Curse of Strahd', "Dungeons & Dragons Promises To Make Its Adventures More Queer", "Dungeons, Dragons, and Vampires: Curse of Strahd Black Gate", "The Mary Sue Gift Guide for the Dungeons & Dragons Fan", "Dungeons & Dragons Returns to Ravenloft With Curse of Strahd Revamped", "D&D's Culturally Sensitive Strahd Revamp Is Here, But It'll Cost You [Updated]", Supplement IV: Gods, Demi-Gods, and Heroes, Against the Giants: The Liberation of Geoff, Fiendish Codex II: Tyrants of the Nine Hells, Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Curse_of_Strahd&oldid=1146122728, Role-playing game supplements introduced in 2016, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, The Creatures of Horror book, describing new monsters, A double-sided poster-sized map of Barovia and Castle Ravenloft, 12 postcards themed around locations in the adventure, This page was last edited on 22 March 2023, at 22:10. 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! Strahd casts the polymorph spell to turn a PC or NPC into a sperm whale (see Rime of the Frostmaiden, p. 309) or killer whale. Strahd uses his lair action to open and unlock one or more doors and windows. Use this option if you would like to allow your players to turn a difficult fight into an easy one by properly provoking Strahd. I have been running a campaign using the milestone leveling guide, but as a rule I've been leveling with location in mind. 1: Into the Mists Strahd von Zarovich Fortunes of Ravenloft Adventure Hooks Ch. Both the possibilities and the choices are out of the DM's control, resulting in a process akin more to guiding a passenger boat down a stream. The specter and the animated armor might seem obvious threats, but the shadows that surround characters, the ghouls in maze-like corridors, the mimic door that prevents escape, and the ghasts guarding needed supplies are even more deadly. The square grid maps will help your players navigate Castle Ravenloft on the virtual tabletop. I am creating classic rock playlists for music in curse of strahd and I need some help with Strahds Final Battle music. Use this option if you desperately need to deal a tiny bit of damage to an isolated, low-AC, low-HP PC outside of sunlight, or if you want Strahd to waste his lair action. Strahd uses his Unarmed Strike attack against an adjacent PC. Strahd casts fog cloud before entering combat. If you dont have a healer (or they dont have that ability yet, like paladins or rangers), consider adding a potion of healing or two to the hidden room in the library. This subreddit serves as a helpful place for anyone running the Curse of Strahd module for D&D 5e. Curse of Strahd is an amazing fantasy-horror D&D 5e campaign set in the demiplane of Barovia which is ruled by the legendary vampire Strahd von Zarovich. Cant Use Charm. You can see more Curse of Strahd resources and commentary by following me on Twitter.