D&D 5E Ravenloft= Meh

[Shroomy]

Actually, there are, at least in the original boxed set. I think they were later pulled out, when WotC decided to send Lord Soth back home to Dragonlance.

Sithicus post-Lord Soth was updated in Dragon 351; I don't have my copy in front of me, but I think some of the kender are still there.

 

[Bawylie]

I guess that a lot depends on the expectations of the players. If the previous adventure had the party fighting off waves of werewolves, and then that's followed by an adventure revolving around one lycanthrope, it may not be that interesting to the party.

Personally I like to make every bad guy more than just an obstacles in a long line of battles. That works for my family game that is more story driven, but not so much for the bearded guy group I play with who prefer a 'dungeon of the week' kind of campaign.

Audience buy-in is always important. An expectation of high fantasy heroics or dungeon crawling isn't going to work in an RL game, mostly.

 

[Rune]

Frankly no matter how well a DM describes a scene, it simply can't evoke horror in D&D.

Why should I be afraid for character B being stalked by the things that go bump in the night while character C in the other game is smiting fiends back to hell.

Because they have a too high CR and might kill character B? So could an orc warlord with his great axe.

Dracula, Frankenstein, Wolfman and co. are not literal evil having taken form like even lowest dretch is.

Leaving aside the fact that, in 2e Ravenloft, as written, a paladin could not walk around smiting fiends back to hell without calling enormous unwanted attention from the Dark Powers, I must say that I completely disagree with your initial premise.

Not only can D&D do horror, I, in fact, inject at least a little horror into every game I run.

But, while the monsters are a tool for delivering horror, they absolutely are not the primary vehicle.

Instead, you need two things:

1: The Unknown. Don't tell them what's out there, show them. Some of it. Let their imaginations fill in the details. Absolutely, never, ever, call a monster by a categorical name. The minute you do that, you have put a quantitative value on it, which is the Enemy of Unknown.

2: Tension. Put the PCs in a bad situation and keep making it worse. Don't let up. If the players care about success, they will feel the tension. Of course, in order for this to work, you have to be fair--and make sure your players know it. Actively root for their success. But keep the tension building.

And truthfully, if you do both of those things, you don't even really need that much player buy-in. As long as you've established trust between DM and players, you still have everything you need. If, for example, a player cracks a joke (whether in- or out-of character) that resets the tension level, all you have to do is tighten the screw to compensate. Which you were going to do, anyway. Let them joke. Laugh with them, even. It won't improve their situation any.

 

[n00b f00]

Yeah for what it's worth, in a game that i atmosphere heavy if not narrative heavy. Bloodborne is a a game with both gothic and eldritch horror tropes. I think they can work together fine.

 

[Lidgar]

Back in the 1e/2e days, the real horror of Ravenloft was:

LEVEL DRAIN

Man, nothing inspired more horror than losing 3 levels in one encounter...

 

[Remathilis]

Most of the TSR world I liked in some way. Mystara, GH, FR, Birthright, Darksun, Spelljammer, and even WoTC Nentir Vale/Eberron.

I'm not a fan of Cal of Cthulu for example but the mythos is interesting. D&D meets a bad Interview With a Vampire wannabe my love Tatianna died boo hoo not so much.

Nentir Vale is a separate thing from Eberron. Eberron is a pulp/noir with magic tech. Nentir Vale is a greatest hits of DND IP smashed together into a generic pulp.

 

[Cascade]

I've come to love Ravenloft not so much for the main villains but how the world revolves around them work.
Essentially, you go to Barovia and the town pays homage to this BBEG. They follow him out of fear but they do so almost "willingly". How does the party work to overthrow the big baddie if his slaves support him?

I've always followed along the lines that this specific dilemma is what makes the setting deeper.

If you've read any of the books, the main component of the Ravenloft realms is don't trust anyone. Whether it's a were-rat thieves guild, gypsies, restless spirits or a town mayor...they'll turn you in in a heart beat.

 

[MechaPilot]

Back in the 1e/2e days, the real horror of Ravenloft was:

LEVEL DRAIN

Man, nothing inspired more horror than losing 3 levels in one encounter...

If that worked for you, then that's cool. For me though, level drain was always more of a bookkeeping hassle than a matter of horror.

 

[MechaPilot]

Audience buy-in is always important. An expectation of high fantasy heroics or dungeon crawling isn't going to work in an RL game, mostly.

I thought it might be helpful and relevant to link to the On Terror & Horror thread you started that was migrated here from the WotC forums.

 

[Mirtek]

Leaving aside the fact that, in 2e Ravenloft, as written, a paladin could not walk around smiting fiends back to hell without calling enormous unwanted attention from the Dark Powers

But he could do it on Oerth or Faerun. If my paladin is smiting demons in John's game on Wednesday, I am not scared that my bard is facing a vampire in Dave's game on Sunday.