Ravenloft Reanimated: Fan-Made D&D

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Ravenloft Reanimated: Fan-Made D&D

Post by WolfKook »

After looking at the Domains & Darklords thread, it's pretty evident that the voting has been restricted to canon domains and darklords. However, there is a large amount of fan-made domains that perhaps deserve our attention, and recognition, by means of inclusion on the Ravenloft Reanimated lineup.

So, is there any fan-made domain you love and want to see included in RLR? (Vote for as much as you want).

If you need a list of fan-made domains, you can browse through this thread (Though you'll find a more thorough description of some of them in this one). The list of canon and noncanon domains could also prove useful in your search.

Note: To prevent a lot of domains from getting included after getting just one vote (That of their authors), the minimum number of votes that a domain must get for inclusion will be 2 (The author and at least somebody else who supports his vote).
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Post by Irving the Meek »

I've just glanced over the list of fan-made domains, but I'm not seeing any that compel me enough to warrant inclusion. I'm certainly open to persuasion, though.

These are my "strikes" against the fan-made domains; these are, of course, my own reasons - feel free to disregard and/or mock as you see fit.

1: Cultural disconnection. It's awesome that people are building better Arabic or Oriental domains, but I'd like the Core to be relatively culturally coherent. Maybe for Clusters all their own?

2: Too detailed. Some domains are small, with very well detailed Darklords - rather like Barovia, now that I think of it. Trouble is, I think there's room for only one Barovia in the Core. These places make awesome adventure settings - or "holidays in hell", if the notion doesn't offend - but I'm looking for something else for the Core. I'm looking for places like Dakron, which have a lot of empty corners I can fill with PC background or my own little haunted houses without bumping into the Darklord. I'd like to have Core domains where you *can* interact with the Darklord, but you don't *have* to.

3: Too small. An iteration of 2, really. A domain that's city sized doesn't offer enough space to get away from the Darklord, or write your own story.

Mind you, I'm looking through the list on my first cup of coffee, while my daughter bounces around and trills with glee at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. (Rick Astley's in the parade? Good lord, the nation just got Rick Rolled!) I could easily be missing something. Still, those are the grounds for which I'm excluding most of the fan domains from the Core.
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Post by Scipio »

I agree with Irving on points 2 and 3. This is a trap I fell into with Monte Mal. This is why I've started detailing the parts of the city where one can get away from the darklord, etc. It's taking a while to get it all down, but Monte Mal is slowly becoming more fleshed out.
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Post by Irving the Meek »

I'm looking forward to it - Monte Mal looks really interesting, but I want more "space" in it before I see it in the Core. I'd like to have an Italianate domain in the mix.
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Post by WolfKook »

Same here: Rafaelle Feudale is one of the most interesting fan-made darklords around, and I really like the domain, but I agree it could use a little more space than it's currently given. Even then, however, my vote would go to Monte Mal (Rafaelle).

Mictlan (Hernando Mouriros) has also been one of my favorites since I first read it. Perhaps it's my latin blood calling :wink:, or perhaps it's precisely the amount of space given. For me, it's a place where dozens of adventures can be played without even getting near the darklord, and that's great.

The final one would be my own Fairhaven (Queen Avarein), which I wrote precisely to have a lot of space and adventure opportunities around, focusing on the common theme of fairy tales, and the horror they inspired on us as children.

So, I know there are few domains which make it to the cut, and that they're hard to get, but there are several works of quality around. And there are also great ideas that could get way better with a little expansion.
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Post by WolfKook »

Just to be clear: Even fan made domains would be subject to "reanimation", so instead of voting for domains as they are, the idea is to vote for good ideas for domains, so that those domains that get enough support will get a makeover (Under our project tenets) to make them more interesting and playable.

...And there are plenty of good ideas out there...!
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Post by WolfKook »

Ok, as this part of the project hasn't gotten as much attention as others, I guess there'll have to be a change in direction. As I said before, some Fan-made domains have a lot of quality to them, and I really think some of them deserve to make it to the RLR roster.

So, what to do? My first guess is that the sheer amount of domains and the diversity of sources to read to read them, plus the detail of some of them, make it difficult to read them all entirely. Sure Jöel has already made a summary of most of them, but they're still too much, and it's difficult to read them all. Plus, they're not on our collective subconscious, as canon domains are.

So, the first goal would be to shorten the list, and to do that we should apply some filters over that list.

The first filter would exclude pocket domains: For the same reasons Irving has already exposed, they do not enhance playability but restrict it. Plus, they could join any other domain easily, but they'll be dots in the map, not entire areas. Thus, domains as Addar's Wood, Arlington Farm and Charity Cove would not be in the list, though that doesn't mean they won't be included at all.

The second filter would separate fan-made write-ups of canon domains mentioned in novels, short stories and other sources from those which are entirely fan-made. As I said elsewhere, I'm tempted to include the fan-made write-ups (Al-Kathos, Farelle, the Isle of Ravens and Kislova) automatically. However, that's still open for discussion.

That would leave us with 47 domains to choose from:

Arca /Alanik Ray's Archive
Callista /USS 2002
Carcharodon Isle /Bo Souls 1997
Chamhok Mun /Nebula Obscura
Dorjiloka /Navigaccio
Fairhaven /QtR 15
Gustavsan /USS 2001
Hibernate /USS 2001 and 2002
Hiva Motu /Nebula Obscura
Huninfjord /Navigaccio
Igid Rabi-i /Bo Sacrif. 2001
Immerabt /USS 2002
JonenMark /Alanik Ray's Archive
Karss /USS 2002
Kor /Alanik Ray's Archive
Kungthrom Sound* /Navigaccio
Locknar Cove* /Bo Sacrif. 2001
Marina /Alanik Ray's Archive
Mictlan /Bo Shadows 2000
Miseria /USS 2001
Monte Mal /Monte Mal web site
Mubonyete /Navigaccio
Nedragonne /QtR 9
Northlands /USS 2002&03
Nueva Aragona /USS 2001
Nzari /USS 2003
Okraina /QtR 2
Olympus /USS 2002
Romagna /Bo Sorrows 1998
Saarkaath /Bo Sacrif. 2001
Seradan /Bo Secrets 1999
San Bartolomé /Bo Sacrif. 2001
Sanzhou Grove /Nebula Obscura
Shargobar /Alanik Ray's Archive
Stonewall* /USS 2002
Tragathos* /Navigaccio
Tsuu-Y-Teke /USS 2002
Ukhu Pacha /Nebula Obscura
Vin'Ejal* /Bo Souls 1997
Virisa /Alanik Ray's Archive
Vulnara* /USS 2002
Vultharesk* /Bo Shadows 2000
Wayward on the Bone Sands* /Bo Secrets 1999
Wellsping* /Haunted Sites 98
Whäl /Bo Sorrows 1998
Xi’anlin* /Navigaccio
Yatehcaa* /USS 2002

Still a long list. Does anyone know about a third filter that we should apply over these domains to shorten the list even more?

(Side Note: If any of the domains marked with an asterisk do not fulfill the aforementioned filters, please let me know, to exclude them from the list. I haven't had time to check them all).
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Post by WolfKook »

Well, after browsing through the domains, the list got reduced to 37 domains. Moreso, I was able to classify them into the following groups:

African domains (3): Kor (ARL), a domain with a "lost world" feel; Mubonyete (NAWR), which reflects the african Savannah, and Nzari (USS3), which portrays the tensions during the colonization of Africa.

American domains (2): Wayward on Bone Sands (BoSec) and Yatehcaa (USS2), both set in the wild west, and both with problems of their own (The first relies too heavily on cannibalism, and the other's darklord is too reminiscent of Harkon Lukas).

Amerindian domains (5): Mictlan (BoSha), with an aztec feel; Nueva Aragona (USS1), which reminds me of a post-revolution Cuba; San Bartolomé (BoSac), which portrays the deep religious thought of the caribbean colonizers; Tsuu-Y-Teke (USS2), based on native brazilian legends; and Ukhu-Pacha (NOWR), set in an alternate incan Peru.

Arabbian domain (1): Al-Kathos (MCS).

European domains (11): Kislova (BoSou, Balcanic), Fairhaven (QtR15, Germanic), Monte Mal (MMG, Italian) and Okraina (QtR2, Russian), plus two greek domains -Olympus (USS2) and Tragathos (NAWR) -and 5 generic domains -Agonia (ARL), Farelle (BoSac), Hibernate (USS1/2), Solania (ARL) and Virisa (ARL).

Maritime domains (5): Carcharodon Isle (BoSou), the Isle of Ravens (QtR11), Marina (ARL), Nedragonne (QtR9) and Whal (BoSor)

Non-human domains (3): Huninfjord (NAWR), the dwarven domain; Saarkath (BoSac), a domain for half-orcs (?), and Vulnara (USS2), a gnomish domain.

Oriental domains (7, thanks to Dion's hard work): Chamhok Mun (NOWR), with a Korean feel but a strange reliance on Nagas; Dorjiloka (NAWR), with a clear Tibetan connection; Hiva Motu (NOWR), a strange utopia with an oriental feeling; Igid Rabi-I (BoSac), a philipine domain with an interesting link to several others in this list; and Kungthrom Sound (NAWR), with a thai concept; plus two chinese-based domains: Xi'Anlin (NAWR) and Sanzhou Grove (NOWR), which califies as "chinese" for the original concept, even though the idea seems pretty universal...

So, what to do from here? I still have no clue... Perhaps after the weekend I'll come up with some idea, and perhaps -just perhaps -someone could help me with this.

ARL - Alanik Ray's Library
BoSac - Book of Sacrifices
BoSec - Book of Secrets
BoSha - Book of Shadows
BoSor - Book of Sorrows
BoSou - Book of Souls
MCS - Mordent Cartographic Society
MMG - Monte Mal Gazetteer
NAWR - Navigaccio - Worlds of Ravenloft
NOWR - Nebula Obscura - Worlds of Ravenloft
QtRx - Quoth the Raven, issue x
USSx - The Undead Sea Scrolls, 200x
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Post by Nathan of the FoS »

H'm...my opinions:

Mictlan is really good and deserves to stay, although it might need some rewriting to accommodate new neighbors. (The original write-up relied pretty heavily on it being entirely isolated by the Mists.)

Same for Tsuu-y-Teke.

I wrote Nueva Aragona and the Isle of Ravens, so you should take my vote in favor of those two with a grain of salt.

(On the other hand, I also wrote Yatechaa and Saarkaath, both of which will not be missed if excluded. FWIW, Nueva Aragona is based on northeastern Venezuela just after independence from Spain, as you guessed, Yatehcaa is based on Navajo legends, and Saarkaath really is a half-orc domain.)
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Post by Nathan of the FoS »

I would NOT, btw, put any of those domains except the Isle of Ravens in the Core. The three mentioned are all South American, which lends itself immediately to the idea of a cluster--I know you were working on this at one point, WolfKook, and we could do it here, possibly even in conjunction with Souragne and the Lonesome Road version of Arkandale.
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Post by Irving the Meek »

I promise to sit down and dig through these sometime in the week; I'll put some thoughts out there on them at that point.

The dwarven and gnomish domains catch my eye. They fulfill a function in the Core a bit like Sithicus (although currently that domain's on our chopping block): they provide a "homeland" for new races.

Now mind you, for a 4e Ravenloft we've got other races to peruse, like the eldarin, tieflings, and dragonborn. That will definitely take some doing, to put it modestly.
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Post by DasSoviet »

I agree with Irving... we should have domains dominated by each of the major non-human races we plan on using, sans the halfbreeds (Half-elves, caliban, half-vistani, potentially tiflings if we want to go that route), giving a feeling to their cultures, customs, et al... preferably within the core. Now Sithicus might not make it, but I'm certain we can come up with an elven domain that can replace it no problem. Dwarves, gnomes, and halflings as well... those could help fill in some domains we're loosing, tying Ravenloft back into D&D core in that way, making it an easier transition for players who are new to the whole thing, as well as helping fit these races into the Gothic theme of Ravenloft.

Now, I'm not so certain about dragonborn and eladrin... I don't know if they should be a major race here, or if we should just make them an occasional presence, without a core domain. However, that's a debate for another place and time.
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Post by WolfKook »

Nathan of the FoS wrote:Mictlan is really good and deserves to stay, although it might need some rewriting to accommodate new neighbors. (The original write-up relied pretty heavily on it being entirely isolated by the Mists.)
Same opinion here. I've got Ryan's approval for making a few changes to accommodate it into a cluster, but the isolation must continue. I've got some nice ideas for that to work out, though.
Same for Tsuu-y-Teke.
I have to confess that I have never read Tsuu-Y-Teke through and through. Perhaps it's just me, but I always get bored halfway through it. Does it rely too much on the perpetual sunlight? Cause that would create a potential inconsistency I would not like to include.
I wrote Nueva Aragona and the Isle of Ravens, so you should take my vote in favor of those two with a grain of salt.
Both are very good. Of course, Nueva Aragona is too much like my own country, so I guess I have the same inability to see it fairly, but you've certainly got my vote for your version of the Isle of Ravens. :wink:
On the other hand, I also wrote Yatechaa and Saarkaath, both of which will not be missed if excluded.
Haven't read Yatehcaa thoroughly, but Saarkaath relies heavily on the existence of orcs and half-orcs, and I guess the setting already shifted away from that.
FWIW, Nueva Aragona is based on northeastern Venezuela just after independence from Spain, as you guessed.
Well, Colombia isn't too far off, and the conditions after the independence war (The "stupid country", as they call it, as the country's rule passed to the creoles, who had no idea on how to manage such power) are, IMO, very well reflected in your portrayal.
Irving the Meek wrote:The dwarven and gnomish domains catch my eye. They fulfill a function in the Core a bit like Sithicus (although currently that domain's on our chopping block): they provide a "homeland" for new races.
For the write-up, I wouldn't bet heavily on either one's inclusion in our list, though perhaps they could be improved to make them what we intend them to be.
Now mind you, for a 4e Ravenloft we've got other races to peruse, like the eldarin, tieflings, and dragonborn. That will definitely take some doing, to put it modestly.
...but we're quickly reaching the stage where new domains will be created, and I'm already working on the rules to evaluate them for inclusion... Ooops, I guess I'm getting away of myself :wink:
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Post by Nathan of the FoS »

WolfKook wrote:Saarkaath relies heavily on the existence of orcs and half-orcs, and I guess the setting already shifted away from that.
Actually, it might be more accurate to say the setting never shifted toward that. I wrote Saarkaath as a sort of thought exercise--"There are no orcs in Ravenloft. Could you make a domain based on orcs and still have it feel like Ravenloft?" And from that point of view I think it actually turned out pretty well. I was flabbergasted when the Kargatane accepted it for the Book of Sacrifices, though.
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Post by NykylaiHellray »

i dont remember the exact name, but rumplestiltskin (i think his name is a play on that), he was a veery active member of the old god forum on D&D

Did the city of summer stars which I found pretty darn good.

I would like to submit that for consideration.

As that could function as a good way for elves to start off.
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