Is there any lore on Barovia before Strahd?

[Odessa333]

An odd question, perhaps, but I was wondering what is known on the people Strahd fought in his campaigns as a mortal, or if 'Barovia' has a place of origin.

1) Is there a place in Faerun (or some other plane) that vanished off the map that was once Barovia? Or is the valley still there, and the people were brought to a demi plane with an identical valley?


2) Is there a royal family tree that could distantly connect (Old Barovia lord Strahd fought) to (blank), or (Strahd's second cousin twice removed) with (current person in place X)? Strahd wants a new dark lord of his family bloodline, but I wonder how he would react to a long dead rival, or a distant relative. Would it stir anything in him?


Penny for your thoughts.

[CheddarChampion]

Well, if you're the DM you get to choose where the demiplane of dread is from and if it is a copy.

I believe the default is that it was from the same planet/world as Faerun and that there's essentially a magic void where the land should be, that or a giant crater. I don't have a source to back that claim up though.

If you think one of the players being Strahd's distant relative would be interesting, go for it. You'll probably have to invent a family tree past Strahd's parents though.

I recommend the following: if the player character in question does anything particularly impressive and Strahd learns about the relation, have Strahd tell the character that he is watching them with interest and hopes that they will live up to his expectations for them. At the first failure Strahd learns of, he will tell them he's disappointed and "Cannot leave Barovia in the hands of someone who isn't capable." Even if the character never really fails, Strahd's vanity will cloud his judgement and he'll find something to take an issue with and/or be dismissive about. Really, anything to make your players hate Strahd more.

That's my take as a DM who is currently running CoS.

BTW, check out "MandyMod's" guide for making CoS better. It's great.

[JackPhoenix]

Nobody knows. The place Barovia originated from is not a published setting (and no, it's definitely NOT Faerun), but there are hints about people from there. A relative of Strahd is mentioned as potential reincarnation of Tatyana with VRGtR, and it mentions some events that happened (priests of Osybus and Ulmist Inquisition) before Ravenloft was created, but that book has a whole lot of issues when continuity is concerned, changing established lore for no good reason.

[GloatingSwine]

The version of Barovia that exists in Ravenloft is not really anything to do with any other version that may have existed before.

It's specially constructed just for Strahd. It's his own personal hell in every possible way.

[Keravath]

Curse of Strahd contains very little information. As far as I know, the original location of Barovia isn't mentioned leaving it up to the DM to place it if they think it necessary. The mists surround Ravenloft and apparently can lead to as many worlds as the DM wants them to ...



"In life, Strahd von Zarovich was a count, a prince, a soldier, and a conqueror. After the death of bis father, King Barov, Strahd waged long, bloody wars against his family's enemies. He and his army cornered the last of these enemies in a remote mountain valley before slaying them all. Strahd named the valley Barovia, after his deceased father, and was so struck by its scenic beauty that he decided to settle there. Queen Ravenovia lamented the death of Barov and was fearful of Strahd. War had made him cold and arrogant. She kept her younger son, Sergei, away from the battlefield. Strahd envied the love and attention his mother visited upon his brother, so in Barovia he remained. Peace made Strahd restless, and he began to feel like his best years were behind him. Unwilling to go the way of his father, Strahd studied magic and forged a pact with the Dark Powers of the Shadowfell in return for the promise of immortality. Strahd scoured his conquered lands for wizards and artisans, brought them to the valley of Barovia, and commanded them to raise a castle to rival the magnificent fortresses of his ancestral homeland. Strahd named the castle Ravenloft, after his mother, to demonstrate his Jove for her."

"The idyllic valley nestled in the Balinok Mountains was a slice of heaven to those who knew of its existence before Strahd's arrival. The serenity of the place was forever shattered when Strahd led a bloody crusade against the enemies of his family that ended here with the slaughter of hundreds. Struck by the scenic beauty of his most recent conquest and eager to escape the shadow of his father's legacy, Strahd made the valley his home and named it Barovia after the late King Barov, his father. The land now called Barovia is no longer part of the world that Strahd once tried to conquer. It now exists within a demiplane formed by Strahd's consciousness and surrounded by a deadly fog. No creature can leave
without Strahd's permission, and those that try become lost in the mist."

"After his armies occupied the valley and slew its inhabitants, Strahd repopulated the area with human subjects drawn from his other conquered lands. As a result, Barovians have a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds."

At the end:
"Strahd's death grants Barovia a reprieve. The fog that surrounds the land thins, and it no longer harms those who pass through it."

The mists only thin allowing creatures to exit but the land isn't restored to its former location on a world (unless the DM decides otherwise).



The following link appears to have some additional lore on Ravenloft but I have no idea how accurate it might be ..
https://www.fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/The_Balinok_Mountains

[Thunderous Mojo]

The version of Barovia that exists in Ravenloft is not really anything to do with any other version that may have existed before.

It's specially constructed just for Strahd. It's his own personal hell in every possible way.

Barovia, in the original module, was intentionally made as a small fiefdom, so that it could be easily inserted into any game-world.

The whole notion of a Ravenloft, Plane of Dread Campaign setting arose years after the module had been released. TSR, was attempting to further monetize the success of the Ravenloft Module, and produce a wholly Horror themed, D&D experience.

[KorvinStarmast]

... or if 'Barovia' has a place of origin. In the minds of Tracy and Laura Hickman.

1) Is there a place in Faerun No.



2) {stuff that isn't}. Not really.

Beyond what Thunderous Mojo pointed out, correctly, about Barovia being very much a 'plug this into any campaign anywhere' as most AD&D 1e modules were made (that's the edition the Hickmans originally wrote it for) some of the more recent versions of Barovia present a subtly different structure: it's Strahd's own, private hell - more or less a dimension in which he is forever trapped.
In other words, it doesn't matter what happened before. Barovia is only 'now' and forever shall be.

[Kurt Kurageous]

The module and the novel I, Strahd give us several things off the top of my head. And theres this:https://www.worldanvil.com/w/barovia-aidanb/t/history-of-barovia-timeline

The mini stonehenges suggest the land was home to tribes of druids. At some point the silver dragon Argynvost claimed it as home and formed a cult following of warriors.

The novel names the king who Strahd defeated as Dorian. Obsidian Portal has his name as Dostron the Hellborn. Why the heck didn't he ally with Argynvost?

Dorian might have been the king who actually built the castle that Strahd renovated into Ravenloft, or he could have inherited it. In any case, most of the goofy named dwellers in the crypts came before Strahd.

I can't place the dusk elves at all.

In the end...
You as DM have to decide what your version is
because there are way too many things over all editions that have been hot-glued on top of whatever was Bavoria.

But be warned. The more you learn, the more you feel like you know Strahd, and will assume you have become Strahd. Then one day you will learn that, like me, your mind is trapped in the mists and you have become another thrall of Count Strahd! (cue Vincept Price laugh from end monologue of "Thriller")

[Trask]

My personal headcanon is that Barovia is a fictional country in the Balkans (google Ruritania) that was ripped out of our own world and exposed to the greater multiverse.

[Odessa333]

"But be warned. The more you learn, the more you feel like you know Strahd, and will assume you have become Strahd. Then one day you will learn that, like me, your mind is trapped in the mists and you have become another thrall of Count Strahd! (cue Vincept Price laugh from end monologue of "Thriller")"

I'm already there, and gladly welcome Strahd as my Vampire Lord and Master ;)

It should go without saying that yes, it is up to the DM to decide what to use. That said, I do try to do my homework, learn what I can, and make informed decisions where possible. If I can tie a character's story into the lore of the world, even if it's a module, then I feel I'm doing things right. I've found interesting bits on the Tergs, Strahd's 'other' brother Strum, and some other odd bits of older version history while researching Barovia's past. Again, not sure how much will actually be relevant, but I do find this lore interesting.

Thank you all for your time.

[KorvinStarmast]

Strahd's 'other' brother Strum Is he a bard? :smallconfused:

[Waterdeep Merch]

There was a single module back in 2e called Roots of Evil that briefly took place in the material plane Barovia hails from, but it was never named (and few relevant details come up in the module, sadly, beyond the interesting little detail that Tatyana managed to reincarnate all the way back there, too). Borca is also from the same world as Barovia.

As for what got left behind, according to that module- everything. Only a handful of people seemed to be transported to the Domains of Dread, while all of the structures and at least enough of the people to remain settled almost 400 years later remained on the material plane. The remaining people had no idea what happened, and still remembered Strahd as a hero who mysteriously vanished all those years ago. They had rumors that Strahd had trafficked with dark powers to help him drive out the evils of the land, bringing a terrible curse on him and his family. But that's all they've got.

EDIT: Also, interestingly, the remaining royal family of the von Zarovichs, while good-aligned, refuse to see Strahd as anything but a tragic hero. Even when they find out he's a vampire that's been trapped in the Domains of Dread for all this time, they insist that he's misunderstood and did all of this for some greater good, and that his return can only be a good thing.

[Sigreid]

I think part of the whole point of his torture is that he's grasping at fading memories of the time before.

But, to the best of my knowledge it was ripped out of an undisclosed world. Though it could just as easily been formed from his memories of the place and then twisted.

[Naanomi]

I somehow assumed it was the same world as Château d'Amberville... somewhere east of Averoigne. Or from one of the 'slightly less magic' alternative Oerths, like Yarth or Uerth (like Masque of the Red Death)

[GentlemanVoodoo]

An odd question, perhaps, but I was wondering what is known on the people Strahd fought in his campaigns as a mortal, or if 'Barovia' has a place of origin.

1) Is there a place in Faerun (or some other plane) that vanished off the map that was once Barovia? Or is the valley still there, and the people were brought to a demi plane with an identical valley?



As some pointed out, Barovia is its own stand alone place. Prior editions did have something of a world build out for Ravenloft, and if memory serves correctly there was a third party printing under Sword and Sorcery which vastly expanded on world building elements.



2) Is there a royal family tree that could distantly connect (Old Barovia lord Strahd fought) to (blank), or (Strahd's second cousin twice removed) with (current person in place X)? Strahd wants a new dark lord of his family bloodline, but I wonder how he would react to a long dead rival, or a distant relative. Would it stir anything in him?



Well as far as family tree again different sources have different things. Though a common element is Strahd was a vain and jealous individual, killing his own brother over the throne and a woman. So it wouldn't be unheard of if the distant relative/rival was met in the same way.

Though OP you may want to check out the Fraternity of Shadows (https://www.fraternityofshadows.com/) site. It does have a sizable collection for things Ravenloft (both official and unofficial) that you can use to craft whatever story you want for your game.

[Witty Username]

So, as I understood it, the Dread Domains are reflections of a material place, but it is hard to tell as most dark lords have some climatic event as they are pulled into the mists from what I had read on it.

I know the dark lord themselves are transported as Lord Soth was pulled into the mists but eventually released (something along the lines of imprisonment in an ironic hell didn't take because he knew he deserved it).

[Naanomi]

Lord Soth was pulled into the mists but eventually released (something along the lines of imprisonment in an ironic hell didn't take because he knew he deserved it).
He was successfully tortured for a period, but when he just shut down and stopped responding entirely he eventually stopped being fun/useful and was expelled.

There have been a handful of escapees and folks kicked out for various reasons over the editions (and one grand mass escape having to do with planar mechanics)

[GloatingSwine]

Barovia, in the original module, was intentionally made as a small fiefdom, so that it could be easily inserted into any game-world.

The whole notion of a Ravenloft, Plane of Dread Campaign setting arose years after the module had been released. TSR, was attempting to further monetize the success of the Ravenloft Module, and produce a wholly Horror themed, D&D experience.

Yeah, but that's probably not the version anyone is playing *now*.

Nothing stops the DM making up a history of Strahd from before, but there isn't a preexisting one that has any bearing on current versions of the module.

Hell, if you want to have someone have a relationship to him just pick whoever in the party has something that might be close enough and have the demiplane of dread twist it until it does, slotting them into a role in Strahd's story and punishment.

[Thunderous Mojo]

Yeah, but that's probably not the version anyone is playing *now*.

I fail to see how this statement is germane, when the thread is asking about the history of Strahd.

The Vox Machina, animated series, does a decent job of detailing the potential pitfalls of having a Vampire ran kingdom next door.

Even, Curse of Strahd could be altered to place Barovia on the Prime Material plane. Strand’s statistics, motivations, and history always alter slightly from one release to another.

The floor plan of the Castle stays mainly consistent.

Why ignore the history of a storied artistic work?
One doesn’t have to use prior versions, but there is a reason why the Ravenloft module has been present and updated in every edition of D&D, after it’s release. Knowledge is power..so why select ignorance?