Aldea & Ravenloft (Black Rose)

[Web Warlock]

Right.

I want to keep the books I have intact. Although the nature of Ravenloft allows either to happen with ease.

Still torn on the how I would want to do it. Having Ravenloft seep into ALdea or a dark mirror of Aldea in Ravenloft.

What do you all think?

Tim

[Vespers]

I'll try posting this again. I've been bumped offline twice already trying to post!

Maybe I'm oversimplifying things a bit, but, topographically and geographically, could not Barovia fit nicely North East of the Veran Marsh?

The Tatch could flow into Tser Falls, Ivlis Marsh could superimpose over the Veran, and Barovia's Tser pass would be the foothills to the Ice Binders, no?

While I can easily understand why you would be torn between the concepts of the seep and the dark mirror, as much as I love the dark mirror, I think it wold be easier to go with the seep (or as I've come to think of it; the Barvoian Bleed). Through the nefarious power of the Exarchs, their domain of Ravenloft is bleeding into the realm of Aldea in an attempt to undo the Kingdom of the Blue Rose and turn it black. This mists surrounding Barovia are spreading and could, if left unchecked, reshape all of Aldea into the world of Ravenloft. The Sun Stone becomes an import piece of the puzzle as adepts slowly begin to realise change is coming.

I think this could be a great cosmological jumping off point for the Black Rose Saga.

V

[Web Warlock]

The seep/bleed plan has merits. The biggest plot element advantage is of course the rise of darkness. There would still be hope in Aldea, something to fight for.

The other advantage is of course with a bleed we only need to bring in the lands we want. I mean really, do we need to bring in Darkon when we all ready have Kern? Other than the fact that Azalin is much cooler than Jarek. Maybe the Lich kings worked together? More likely they would go to war with each other right away.

I would like to bring in Sithicus, as a long-lost kingdom of Elves/Vata that is now just a haunted ghost land (with no agenda other than memories). But I just have this idea of a land that is mind numbingly beautiful during the day, but at night it is populated only by the ghosts of centuries dead Vata still going about thier business as if they were alive; locked in a memory of a bygone age.

Mordent would be nice. But I am largely neutral on the others.

Geography is now becoming less of a problem. While I always figured that Barovia is north of the Ice Bender mountains or even south of the Shadow Lands. Maybe the Shadow Lands ARE Ravenloft. But in any case Ravenloft is super imposed on Aldea, allowing crossovers. With only the Mists knowing where you end up.

I have both maps...let me see what a little photoshoping can do.

Tim

[Ltlconf]

Howdy folks,

I concur with the "seep" idea as I still feel Aldea is too isolated to ever been truly "tested" by some truly hostile yet still (largely, and totally as so far as they'll know) human kingdoms. More than a few of the Ravenloft realms are predominantly or wholly human ruled though the rulers are 'taken' by the realm. Falkovnia is one such, and likely to seen as a military and moral challenge that Aldea [u]and[u] Jarzon can agree on. Many of the southern realms are also human ruled (more or less) and likely to be seen as unthreatening at first, though a few will raise quiet, uncertain alarms in time(with Dementliu and Richemulot being the quickest to do so). Darkon may not be a bad idea as it may drive Kern into being far more active and give the Lich Lord something to focus on besides Aldea. Should Kern win the battle (not unlikely, as Jarek is free to move about the cabin...) and conquers Darkon, well, the Lich King is in for a VERY unpleasent surprise (should you allow the mists to trap him), and so is von Strahd (wether Jarek is trapped or not).
Another pair of realms to raise hackles, should you use 'em, will be Hazlan, with its ruling wizards having some unpleasent resemblences to the past, and Nova Vaasa with its serfdom and cruel lords supplying yet another moral challenge. The realm of Sithicus will draw in the Vata like moths to a flame while the vampires, werewolves, wolfweres, and ghost ruling others will become a truly frightning new experience (remember, each member of these races can be tweeked to uniqueness). The technology of Lamordia and the other coastal realms of the Sea of Sorrows would likely unbalance things so best leave out the gunpwder weapons and make them truly early Renaissance in flavor (ala Franco Zefforrelli's "Romeo and Juilet"). Either way its going to be quite the technological and architectural leap forward. Ironically Jarzon and Kern will be most likely to take advantage of this information as Aldea is the most advanced in the use of shas crystals and Arcana: Jarek seems pretty reluctant to share overmuch while Jarzon NEEDS all the help it can get and a waterwheel or wind-powered mill of any sort, not to mention other labor saving devices and machinery will improve their lifestyles immeasurably (well, in Jarzon anyway).
So, depending on what changes you wish to make, what you want to add, and how much you wish to alter Ravenloft does indeed offer various combinations of all three, or only one. Dang! Wish I'd though of it!

[Web Warlock]

Some very cool ideas.

I am looking over some other "on coming darkness" style games to see how they might do things. Most games already assume that the "darkness" has a foothold in the world, and that is not the case here. The battle against the "Darkness" may be futile, but it gives the Heroes a chance to shine.

One of the choices I have made is that the Dark Lords can leave their lands in Black Rose, it is just that they are less powerful away from the sources of their power.

NOW here is something I need an opinion on.
I am LOATHE to kill things in games unless there is a very, very good reason. But I had these idea, and this is a horror game.
To signify the seepage of evil into the land I was thinking that the adventures would begin with the PCs finding the Golden Hart, either sickened or dead. Sickened might be better. Basically the Hart is the "Darklord" of Aldis. The influx of evil has corupted the land and thus the Hart. The PCs are marked then for some great destiny since they were ones that discovered the Hart.

So the set up is this. Darkness (ie RAvenloft) has been seeping in since the murder of Queen Jaelin's beloved. She is rarely seen in court and never in public. The Heroes (which I have imagined would be lesser nobles of the court) would be out on some business when they discover the Hart. Brining it back to the court it is not long before the entire city is fretting with the news. The Queen (again, think Victoria after Albert died) comes out of her exile to appoint the Heroes the new Protectors of the Realm and taks them with discovering what is happening to thier lands. They will report only to the Queen herself.

This allows me the court intrigue that I think/feel will be needed for this game, allow the Heroes to have access to various parts of the country they might need and give them first hand observation to the Queen's depression and the key to unlocking the truth; that this really begane with the murder of the Queen's Consort by Lord Sayvin AND the fact that the Queen has withdrawn not just because of her lover's death, but because she herself feels tremendous guilt over using her own power to "kill" Sayvin.

Tim