D&D 5E Sanitizing Curse of Strahd (+)

Talltomwright · Feb 1, 2021

Gradine said:
Regardless, this discussion is off-topic. At best, the implementation of this plot point is extremely unsatisfying, and at worst it is disgusting. I would like to turn this into a story where my PCs can make a positive impact, and hopefully without condemning a single woman to a lifetime of forced breeding.

I am looking for solutions for this. I'd prefer to change the "all women were killed" plot point, and I absolutely want a definite solution to the problem. Tied to the Amber Temple, if at all possible.

How about - in the Amber Temple (somehow) the PCs discover that there is one other enclave of Dusk Elves out in the multiverse. They are not the last of their kind! But, like everyone else, the Elves are trapped here by the mists. If the PCs can find a way home for themselves (by defeating Strahd and lifting the mists) they can take the elves with them, freeing them to voyage forth and find their lost kin.

Tales and Chronicles · Feb 1, 2021

I've maybe an idea for Kazimir's sister:

While she was still living among her kind, she was a special kind of keeper of lore/priest called the Ever-Faith (can find an appropriate Elven translation). So strong, so unwavering was her faith in Corellon that her prayers could sometimes breach the isolation of the plane of dread and reach the ears of heir maker.

But sometimes, partial successes are crueler than guaranteed failure, for she never knew if her prayer would work on a specific occasion. She became obsess with securing the power to help her folk, to the point she came to the conclusion that she would be better off as a proxy of Corellon in Barovia by becoming herself a Dark Lord. Thus began her quest to become a powerful vampire, unmatched by Strahd or the Vampyr. So she made a phylactery, a simple goblet and extracted her powerful faith in pure, concentrated liquid form to make sure her past ''purity'' did not interfere with her new goals.

If the party can free the sister and convince her to give them the Chalice of Ever-Faith, they would be able to bring it to the Dusk Elves. Some of them would have to make the hard choice of drinking from the cup, gaining the blessing of Corellon and being able to become women, at the cost of being the target of the Strahd's ire.

jayoungr · Feb 1, 2021

Gradine said:
3) Dusk Elves. Their "curse" and the "solution" are extremely gross. The former, as a symbol of Strahd's misogyny, is justifiable. The latter is not. I still haven't figured out how I want to resolve this; maybe some type of infertility curse, or something unrelated entirely to reproduction. I do want all want the Amber Temple to house the solution to it, in any case.

I don't think the "curse" is really necessary at all. Just say that Kasimir wants to resurrect his sister because she's his sister, and there are still some female dusk elves around. The elves' numbers are small because most of them were killed fighting against Strahd's invasion, and they haven't repopulated because elves famously reproduce slowly.

MGibster · Feb 1, 2021

TheSword said:
I’m saying it’s impossible to fully sanitize an adventure that revolves around a serial rapist and murderer. At that point you’re just choosing to ignore some horrendous things and not others.

I think ignoring some horrendous things and not others is pretty much par for the course when it comes to horror games. I've always found it a little odd that for all the complaints about Curse of Strahd, I haven't heard many people argue that a serial rapist, murderer, and abuser isn't an appropriate villain for a fantasy game. Strahd is one of the most terrifying villains because his motivations and behaviors are all too similar to real life abusers.

I agree that you can't fully sanitize CoS. Hell, you can't fully sanitize any vampire story because there's always that element of abuse and victimization. But we all draw the line somewhere. I might find it odd where some people choose to draw the line but no doubt some find my lines to be oddly placed as well. And that's okay.

Mistwell · Feb 1, 2021

Charlaquin said:
They changed almost nothing in the book. If the errata was “enough” to fix the Vistani for anyone who thought they needed fixing in the first place.

I appreciate you feel it was not enough, but I am hopeful it was enough for some people. I don't look at these changes and think "almost nothing". These changes hit the most important issues for me, and I suspect they hit the most important issues for at least some other people.

I think issues or non-issues with the adventure fall along a sliding scale and are not all unanimous. Some will have no problems with it on one end of the scale, some will have so many issues no amount of fixing it will be enough on the other end of the scale, and then many people will fall somewhere along that line between the two. Where you fall on that line will depend on the individual, but I do think it's fair to say some people will be satisfied with the errata's changes and will find it helpful.

TheSword · Feb 1, 2021

MGibster said:
I think ignoring some horrendous things and not others is pretty much par for the course when it comes to horror games. I've always found it a little odd that for all the complaints about Curse of Strahd, I haven't heard many people argue that a serial rapist, murderer, and abuser isn't an appropriate villain for a fantasy game. Strahd is one of the most terrifying villains because his motivations and behaviors are all too similar to real life abusers.

I agree that you can't fully sanitize CoS. Hell, you can't fully sanitize any vampire story because there's always that element of abuse and victimization. But we all draw the line somewhere. I might find it odd where some people choose to draw the line but no doubt some find my lines to be oddly placed as well. And that's okay.

It’s more the fact that the line gets drawn around, up, over and through so many other things.

How can it be acceptable in a group for Strahd to kidnap, mentally subdue, and then sexually assault them before ultimately killing them. Yet it’s the Dusk elves that are Eww? It mystifies me.

prabe · Feb 1, 2021

TheSword said:
It’s more the fact that the line gets drawn around, up, over and through so many other things.

How can it be acceptable in a group for Strahd to kidnap, mentally subdue, and then sexually assault them before ultimately killing them. Yet it’s the Dusk elves that are Eww? It mystifies me.

I don't know the adventure--I've never particularly been attracted to anything Ravenloft--but as I understand it, Strahd is the villain of the adventure: one expects villainous behavior from a villain; it's roughly tautological. The Dusk Elves seem as though they are supposed to be sympathetic--Strahd's victims--so having them behave villainously would feel to the players more like some sort of betrayal.

Stefano Rinaldelli · Feb 1, 2021

Helldritch said:
One of the surviving elf wants to bring back hia sister to life to start the race anew...

I've read the part of Kasimir but I do not find what you say.

TheSword · Feb 1, 2021

prabe said:
I don't know the adventure--I've never particularly been attracted to anything Ravenloft--but as I understand it, Strahd is the villain of the adventure: one expects villainous behavior from a villain; it's roughly tautological. The Dusk Elves seem as though they are supposed to be sympathetic--Strahd's victims--so having them behave villainously would feel to the players more like some sort of betrayal.

Well, if you start off on the assumption that everyone in Ravenloft is a villain, you’ll only be disappointed a couple of times.

Surely though what makes a villain, a villain is what they do, not the label the DM puts on them in advance. If the dusk elves behave villainously then surely they become villains. There are plenty in the book for them to join.

MGibster · Feb 1, 2021

prabe said:
I don't know the adventure--I've never particularly been attracted to anything Ravenloft--but as I understand it, Strahd is the villain of the adventure: one expects villainous behavior from a villain; it's roughly tautological. The Dusk Elves seem as though they are supposed to be sympathetic--Strahd's victims--so having them behave villainously would feel to the players more like some sort of betrayal.

Other than Patrina, a Dusk Elf who has been dead for nearly four centuries, none of the Dusk Elves behave like villains and offer no opposition to the PCs. They're victims of Strahd's wrath and just one of the many examples of people who have been suffering under him for centuries.