The Butcher
Legendary Pubber
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Sounds good!You can always trust Amazon to slip up.
I read an article on...Polygon(?) I think that was pretty lulz. Citing Scooby Doo as an example of how to do horror is the most laughable part without getting into stuff that might be edge political cases. Certainly dampened my enthusiasm a bit.
I had a similar reaction. I don't think WOTC has ever done Ravenloft well, or at least to my taste. Curse of Strahd was definitely better than Expedition to Castle Ravenloft, but even that just wasn't my style when I read through it. The article on the new Ravenloft setting doesn't really grab my interest. Might just be an old man now, but the flavor doesn't quite do it for me. I find the 2E stuff is still good, and works well with the old system though, so for me, this isn't really an issue. I can run Ravenloft anytime I like if I want to.
I may just be very picky and very specific about my tastes here. Ravenloft wasn't just a setting to me, it was the setting that got me into the GM seat, and the novels were really what got me to become a reader. So it just resonated with me, and I like the old the flavor. This newer stuff, it just isn't for me.
I can say from experience that everything aside from 4e can be used in 5e with a little effort, and if it looks like the book has enough mechanical grease to smooth those edges out, it might be worth it for that, while using the older setting material (if, like me, you prefer 5e to other versions of D&D).
I fell off after 4E. I did try 5E a few times, and there wasn't anything wrong with it, but I think I had been falling out of love with WOTC approach to adventures/settings since the early 2000s. Actually 4th edition was one of the things that prompted me to return to 2E and try running Ravenloft again with it. I actually found I preferred it to 3rd edition in terms of tone for the setting. So for me, I'm pretty content with the 2E system and the 2E material.
Rur-roh.I read an article on...Polygon(?) I think that was pretty lulz. Citing Scooby Doo as an example of how to do horror is the most laughable part without getting into stuff that might be edge political cases. Certainly dampened my enthusiasm a bit.
Scooby Doo played straight would work fine as a template.for horror scenarios. The basic elements are all there. Just toned down significantly.I read an article on...Polygon(?) I think that was pretty lulz. Citing Scooby Doo as an example of how to do horror is the most laughable part without getting into stuff that might be edge political cases. Certainly dampened my enthusiasm a bit.
Scooby Doo played straight would work fine as a template.for horror scenarios. The basic elements are all there. Just toned down significantly.
And Ravenloft is really just the paddocks out the back of Waterdeep with an amnian fog machine and a dog touched up with a bit of phosphorus."And Strahd is really... Old Man Mordenkainen??"
"And I would've gotten AWAY with it, if it weren't for you meddling kids!"
Ha, it'll come out just as my current Ravenloft campaign is wrapping up.
Doesn't matter anyway, looks like they are radically revamping the setting, so I wouldn't have gotten much use out of it.
That is, if these reports are accurate. There is a particular pattern in the changes described that looks like a parody of current design trends. Surely they wouldn't go that laughably far?
I'm guessing they are accurate. I read three articles about it yesterday, and they were all near-identical in the manner of journalists copy-pasting a WotC press release and replacing the occasional word with a synonym.That is, if these reports are accurate.
Fair enough, whatever works.
As noted, I prefer 5e as a system and a mishmash of 2e and 3e for setting.
Though I'm tempted to say "fuck it" and just run Savage Ravenloft.
And that's if I get around to running Ravenloft again anytime soon.
I'm guessing they are accurate. I read three articles about it yesterday, and they were all near-identical in the manner of journalists copy-pasting a WotC press release and replacing the occasional word with a synonym.
That is, if these reports are accurate. There is a particular pattern in the changes described that looks like a parody of current design trends. Surely they wouldn't go that laughably far?
As for this release... I have mixed feelings. I already have old Ravenloft books with all of the beloved artwork by Stephen Fabian. Other than pure mechanics (ie, new classes, races, feats etc...) I don't know if I want this book...
I was always curious about a Savage Ravenloft
I can understand that. I used to run some really dark games in my late teens and 20s, but I began to feel like Will Graham carrying that stuff around in my head for months at a time.Plus, if I'm being honest I'm probably moving on from Ravenloft for good after this campaign anyway. I run it well, but it has been upsetting me emotionally lately. Such a dreadful headspace to occupy for a whole campaign. I'll let others have their fun in this Brave New World.
But it is a little frustrating seeing a narrative emerge around old ravenloft that doesn't match what I remember from the time
My feeling is you don't have Ravenloft without that art. The early books in the line benefited hugely from Fabian's unique style. I still continued to buy the books after he stopped illustrating them, but the mood really dropped once they shifted to other artists IMO. I think you definitely want more stylized art, rather than photorealistic art, on the interior of a ravenloft book for 5E, because it is all about creating an atmosphere. I don't know who would be the best choice. But it was definitely a non-realistic approach to interior art. Also the interiors were all black and white, and that really was an important part of the classic horror theme in my opinion
I read an article on...Polygon(?) I think that was pretty lulz. Citing Scooby Doo as an example of how to do horror is the most laughable part without getting into stuff that might be edge political cases. Certainly dampened my enthusiasm a bit.
I haven't read the article and was never really into Ravenloft but don't go dissing the Doo.
Actually, if you add in the movies from the 90s to more recent, the monsters are often real, though not always what it seems. This allows plausible deniability - is it monsters or a clever wizard? Having the monsters be fake or at least different than expected on occasion adds a layer of mystery.
The gang is staying on an island with a hot pepper plantation. It turns out the zombies are real. But they're not they real danger. The plantation owners are immortal werecats who must occasionally sacrifice people to their god to stay alive. The zombies are former sacrifices trying to save the gang from the same fate.
I don't have an issue with using Scooby Doo as an example of the horror genre that's 'safe' for younger players. It pretty much does what it says on the tin.
Exactly. In a modern day setting, Scooby Doo tropes work. If you have travelled to a magical realm of horror, finding out the monster is a guy in a mask makes no sense at all. It's like playing The One Ring, travelling to Rivendell, and discovering that the elves are all really cosplaying fantasy fans wearing Spock ears.I run a horror game right now, East Texas University.
The Scooby Doo tropes work great there.
As someone who is a huge fan of Ravenloft and has also watched Scooby Doo extensively, it’s a terrible mix.
In my opinion, anyway.
Just you wait for the “what’s the matter, don’t your old books work anymore?” crowd to show up.So I just found out they are breaking up the core continent in this edition. All remaining doubt it gone, I'm definitely not picking this up.
It really is Ravenloft's version of the 4th edition Forgotten Realms book.
Damn, it stings to realize you really are part of such an apparently worthless cohort of older fans that such radical overhauls make sense to the company.
How so?Based on descriptions, I think they should have called it domains of dread, which has been around since 2e but is a different beast.
At least in 2e, each domain was designed to have its own lord that drove the feel of the land. Instead of a vampire, it might have a Dr. Frankenstein, or werewolves with fashion sense, or a kraken priest, or whatever. So it's ok for domain #23 to violate the feel of Ravenloft because it's 2 different places in the plane. But if someone is expecting all Ravenloft all the time, they might be disappointed.How so?
At least in 2e, each domain was designed to have its own lord that drove the feel of the land. Instead of a vampire, it might have a Dr. Frankenstein, or werewolves with fashion sense, or a kraken priest, or whatever. So it's ok for domain #23 to violate the feel of Ravenloft because it's 2 different places in the plane. But if someone is expecting all Ravenloft all the time, they might be disappointed.