Strahd's Diaries, Wrap up and Finale
Strahd's Diaries, Wrap up and Finale
A collection of Count Strahd Von Zarovich's writings, created with prompts from a journaling game called: 1000 year-old Vampire.
The sun is sinking low in the Eastern US right now, as I publish this.
Somewhere an eerie mist or fog is sure to appear beckoning you closer.
Will you cross over into Barovia? Or Krevborna? Or perhaps somewhere far, far worse…
History of The Curse of Strahd
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.[2] It acts as an adaptation of the original Ravenloft module for the 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons.[3] Charlie Hall, for Polygon, explained that "Instead of reinventing the wheel, principle [sic] designer Chris Perkins brought in the module's original writers — the husband and wife team of Tracy and Laura Hickman — to create the very best version of the famous module yet. [...] Tracy and Laura have been hosting nearly annual sessions of the original Ravenloft at their home, for friends and family, over the course of decades. When Perkins asked for their input, they flew out to meet with the team. The result was a torrent of ideas for new locations, characters and encounters".[4] On the development process, Perkins said: "Without the Hickmans, this project would've died on the vine" and that "the Hickmans envisioned Strahd differently than he's depicted in the original Ravenloft adventure. Their image didn't match the Bela Legosi [sic] vampire quite so much. Tracy found an old daguerreotype [an early type of photograph captured on a silvered copper plate] [sic] that captured the look of Strahd in his mind, and we used that image as a reference to create a new look for the vampire".[5] The tarokka deck was released as a supplement by Gale Force 9.[6]
My History with Strahd
Ravenloft. It was AD&D 2nd edition’s box set that I found first. I adored Stoker’s original tale, and still love it today. Epistolary writing, ah yes!
I got the box set and many other supplements afterwards. And I tortured my friends with The Dark Powers from the Mists for many years.
When 3rd Edition was announced I got sucked back into D&D. After many years with White Wolf’s Vampire the Masquerade, I was delighted to find that Ravenloft and its accouterment would be licensed to them and they produced a slew of books which I then added to my collection with the joy of a madman!
But my favorite story came a few years later, after I backed and received Numenera by Monte Cook. A new RPG with a lighter and faster narrative. I was deep into a campaign when I Summer waned and I found a used copy of the original I6 module Ravenloft. I dared to run this straight out the box for October by trapping my players of Numenera into the Dread Realm, via the Mists.
It went wonderfully! I could not believe how easily it ran and how quickly I could convert for this new and very different system on the fly.
And my obsession has dawned each year since.
I have now run versions of “Dinner,” “One Night Strahd,” and “Strahd Dies tonight!” using ideas from Mike Shea for many years now. In a variety of systems.
This year should have been Crown & Skull, but it has failed to get scheduled quite miraculously. But I did get to revisit Ravenloft via the amazing diaries here.
Thank you for reading!
Start Here for Strahd’s Diaries
If you want to follow along in 1000 year-Old Vampire:
Prompt History
1, 4, 3, 1, 8, 9, 12, 21, 26, 26, 25, 21, 20, 23, 28, 25, 29, 31, 34, 39, 43, 41, 42, 38, 44, 45,
References:
"Dungeons & Dragons: Curse of Strahd Revamped Announced for October Release". IGN India. 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-10-23.
^ "Curse of Strahd - RPGnet d20 RPG Game Index". index.rpg.net.
^ "Curse of Strahd". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on January 21, 2016.
^ Hall, Charlie (2016-01-18). "D&D's Ravenloft returns with the help of its original creators". Polygon. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
^ Kerzner, Liana (March 8, 2016). "Curse Of Strahd Interview With Chris Perkins". CGMagazine. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
^ "Ravenloft Returns: Curse of Strahd is Coming – Black Gate". 18 January 2016.
^ "Curse of Strahd Revamped". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved 2020-11-21.
Bonus: Me dressed as Strahd for a Halloween Party in 2022!
