Ravenloft (I6) conversion to 3e

[Treebore]

I agree that to remain "true" to his history he needs more levels of fighter, but I am adopting this for an 11th level group. So I changed Strahd to be a 10/10 Fighter Mage. His CR is still a 22 or 23. However, I also altered the Holy Icon of Ravenloft and the Sunsword, to be "special" weaknesses for Strahd. So if the party survives long enough to find the two of these, they have a fighting chance. With his weakness to the Icon the cleric, or paladin, of the party could even turn him.

 

[barsoomcore]

When did Strahd get so tough? I guess this is one of the differences between Ravenloft the campaign setting and Ravenloft the module.

 

[Treebore]

When did Strahd get so tough? I guess this is one of the differences between Ravenloft the campaign setting and Ravenloft the module.

In I6 he is not only a vampire but a 10th level mage. When you convert a 1e or 2e character to 3e they will gain levels. So does Strahd as a character being done as a straight conversion. This is because now that Vampire is a Template you have to assume Strahds HD are a result of his level as a fighter (8th). Since he would then be a 1e/2e multi-class you are then converting a 8/10 fighter/mage and then adding the Vampire Template.

However, the 3e Ravenloft people (Arthaus) just did a wholesale re-write and turned him into a 4th level fighter and 16th level Necromancer, plus the vampire template and darklord powers. Plus, I think they messed up on his feat selection and skill ranks.

I much prefer him as a stronger fighter, so I re-wrote him to a 10th level fighter and 10th level wizard. So he stays very physical, which is the way I ran him in the old 1e and 2e days.

 

[M.L. Martin]

In I6 he is not only a vampire but a 10th level mage. When you convert a 1e or 2e character to 3e they will gain levels. So does Strahd as a character being done as a straight conversion. This is because now that Vampire is a Template you have to assume Strahds HD are a result of his level as a fighter (8th). Since he would then be a 1e/2e multi-class you are then converting a 8/10 fighter/mage and then adding the Vampire Template.

However, the 3e Ravenloft people (Arthaus) just did a wholesale re-write and turned him into a 4th level fighter and 16th level Necromancer, plus the vampire template and darklord powers. Plus, I think they messed up on his feat selection and skill ranks.

You're neglecting the three 2E RAVENLOFT campaign settings, which always wrote him up as a 400-years+ (or 500-years, in _Domains of Dread_) vampire and 16th-level necromancer. The fighter levels were added in 3E to account for his background as a general.

Matthew L. Martin, Ravenloft and Kargatane Fanboy

 

[Treebore]

You're neglecting the three 2E RAVENLOFT campaign settings, which always wrote him up as a 400-years+ (or 500-years, in _Domains of Dread_) vampire and 16th-level necromancer. The fighter levels were added in 3E to account for his background as a general.

Matthew L. Martin, Ravenloft and Kargatane Fanboy

That is because I am re-writing him for running I6, not a Ravenloft campaign game, even though I am using some of that material as well.

Yes, he is over 400 years old in the campaign, and I think he would have excelled in the mystic arts. But in the module there are many references to his being very old. They use terms like "ages" and "many centuries". 4 centuries is not "many" to me. People give "ages" many different definitions. He is also refered to as the "first" vampire.

I think a DM can have him be any age they want, even 1,000 years or more.

As for the fighter levels being added in 3e, that was done because in 1e and 2e he had HD as a vampire. In 3e he can't have HD as a vampire because they are now a template. They did not do a straight translation of his vampire HD into fighter levels for 3e, which I think they should have done. But doing that and giving him spellcaster levels based on his history in the Ravenloft campaign would make him a very high Epic Level character. As it is he is still in the low 20th level equivelant, when his "level" is adjusted for his vampire template, which I believe is a "+2". So, technically, he is an Epic level character in 3e.

My conversion maintains my vision and feel for how the module is supposed to play out. If I was to actually run him in a full-fledged Ravenloft Campaign I would make him the high level epic character he should be, at least IMO. I would also have to decide how I want Strahd to factor into my campaign before I actually finalize my decision. I may tone him down if I want the group to actually encounter him and survive.

So what they did with him in 3e is workable and probably a good compromise. I am just exercising my right as a DM to alter him to fit my needs for the I6 module.

 

[Psychotic Jim]

There's a conversion of both versions of Strahd (from the module and from 2E Domains of Dread in the Ravenloft article in Dragon #315. Also, in the Ravenloft monster book Denizens of Dread might contain some conversions of relevant monsters.

Also, I think there's a conversion of I10 on this site if you're interested in running the sequel.