D&D 5E Curse of Strahd spoiler-filled general discussion

[Grumpy RPG Reviews]

If I were to run the work, I think I would have one of the male PC's turn out to be a reincarnation of Sergi.

 

[C-F-K]

Quick Question:
The first Tarokka reading, with the location of all key items/people, do you do that with the players or not?
It'll be fun to keep much of it secret but it could be to hard for player to find some items...

 

[dead]

Is it true Curse of Strahd is set in 735 BC? If so, this is strange as I6 Ravenloft is set in 528 BC.

So does that mean all the NPCs from I6 are reincarnated souls in CoS?

 

[C-F-K]

Is it true Curse of Strahd is set in 735 BC? If so, this is strange as I6 Ravenloft is set in 528 BC.

So does that mean all the NPCs from I6 are reincarnated souls in CoS?

I believe it is, yes.
I'm not 100% familiar with I6 Ravenloft, but in 200 years the land could have been altered from I6 to CoS. Especially with the control Strahd has over "his" land.
According to the rules of CoS it would indeed be that the souls are recycled. So your new character could encounter a soul of a character that had died in Barovia!

 

[dead]

I believe it is, yes.
I'm not 100% familiar with I6 Ravenloft, but in 200 years the land could have been altered from I6 to CoS. Especially with the control Strahd has over "his" land.
According to the rules of CoS it would indeed be that the souls are recycled. So your new character could encounter a soul of a character that had died in Barovia!

OK, thanks. Well, let's assume they are reincarnated souls then to explain why these NPCs are 200 years in the future.

Also, interesting to note is that 735 BC is five years before the Grand Conjunction. But if CoS is tied to 5E Forgotten Realms (particularly through the Adventurers League modules) then all the RL setting metaplot that has come before - the Grand Conjuntion, the Grim Harvest, etc. - should have occurred; ie. a lot of stuff has happened since 735 BC in the shared FR / RL multiverse.

The only way to explain this adventure's use with 5E FR is to say that the Mists not only transport our 5E FR heroes to Barovia, but also transport them back in time.

 

[C-F-K]

Well, yes and no...
Although they are the same souls, they don't have the same memories. They don't know everything the "old" body knew.

Perhaps the Grand Conjunction holds something in the future of RL products. I always liked the Ravenloft setting so i'm crossing my fingers!

Back in time? I'm not sure. The book really says it's 735BC, but you can alter it off course.

 

[evilbob]

They could be another child of Mad Mary and been trapped in their house for their entire life with just their sister Gertruda and their mother. That would mean that their sister recently ran away and now the shut in has a reason to join the adventurers (against the wishes of Mad Mary) who have come around at just the right time. That would also mean they have little information or bad information about what happens outside the house they grew up in.

That's a good way to go - probably the best way to keep all the surprises but also start them in Barovia. It would be hard for them to come up with much of an interesting background, though. Unless it was all in their mind? That might be neat: basically the character is insane and thinks they've done all these heroic deeds (folk hero background?) but really they've never left their room. (Also explains why they're only level 1.)

My copy finally arrived in the mail this morning and so i am looking through it. Is it just me, or is the Amber Temple pointless and generally useless for the over all plot?

Check out the first several pages of this thread for lots of comment on this subject.

Is it true Curse of Strahd is set in 735 BC? If so, this is strange as I6 Ravenloft is set in 528 BC.

So does that mean all the NPCs from I6 are reincarnated souls in CoS?

CoS is set nearly 200 400 years after Strahd became a vampire. It's set at roughly the same time period as I6 (basically "when Ireena exists"). It's a retelling of I6.

But if you want the PCs to be reincarnations of whatever at whenever time, go for it. Your game!

 

[evilbob]

Quick Question:
The first Tarokka reading, with the location of all key items/people, do you do that with the players or not?
It'll be fun to keep much of it secret but it could be to hard for player to find some items...

The point is that the DM can do a "reading" just to have default values in case the characters never see Madam Eva. It's a failsafe, and yeah - would be very difficult for the players if that were the case. Or you can just shoehorn them into seeing Madam Eva. (Or Ezmerelda. Or however.)

 

[C-F-K]

CoS is set nearly 200 years after Strahd became a vampire. It's set at roughly the same time period as I6 (basically "when Ireena exists"). It's a retelling of I6.

Don't have the book at hand, but I can remember that Strahd turned between 300 and 400BC...

 

[C-F-K]

The point is that the DM can do a "reading" just to have default values in case the characters never see Madam Eva. It's a failsafe, and yeah - would be very difficult for the players if that were the case. Or you can just shoehorn them into seeing Madam Eva. (Or Ezmerelda. Or however.)

Ah right, thanks!