The Blood Moon - ideas for a revamped Bluetspur

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

No, the original canon version of Bluetspur was a wasteland attached to the core. After the Grand Conjunction, it became an island in the mists. But somewhere in the annals of Ravenloft fandom, someone said, "wouldn't it be cool if Bluetspur had become Ravenloft's moon." And many other fans (self included) have loved the idea so much that it has become almost a part of Ravenloft fan-canon. But officially, no, it's not the moon.

[Zilfer]

I just love the idea of a red moon going accross the sky, and leaving a blood trail.

I've NEVER run an illithid in my games and have not the slightest clue on Psionic's because I've kept that out of the game. (i dont think anyone in my group cares for it anyways) but I can picture some what of a madness check when you look up into blutspur's sky and saw earth staring back at you. I think my players would have a moment of silence as they reorient themselves.

"I see what...?"

xD

I'll keep that in mind however that it's fandom. (good news is i'm the only crazy person that researches Ravenloft endlessly, and the players mostly know next to nothing beyond Azalin, Strahd, and they only know minimal parts of Weathermay/Foxgrove History.)

[Sareau]

Comets have always had an impact on early man, and my own campaign had an Elder Demon who'd been tied to one as a result of a near-miss on Armageddon. His comet always presaged the usual madness and death, and many cults attempted to cash in on his malevolence by chucking virgins into volcanoes or what-have-you when the comet would split the skies.
Of course, using illithids is always fun, also, especially if one keeps with Lovecraftian tradition and has them passing as human...

[Hazgarn]

I think having Blutspur as a comet kind of brings some of the Lovecraftian feel back to the threat the illithids and related creatures present. They are something that only is when the stars are right--the domain of Blutspur can only be reached (and can only reach out) when the comet is visible in the sky.

I also don't plan to use psionics in my campaign as a whole, but if and when Blutspur appears that will change. Suddenly having these things reaching out to influence the world, using some unknown force that is not magic would make them feel more alien. It is something inherently unnatural to the way the rest of the world functions that outside of significant and grotesque exceptions like fleshcrafted creatures and the Living Brain it isn't even possible for humans to harness.

There is a mythology around the comet that is reflected in most Core domains, in both real and false histories. Mostly in the Core, though there would be hints in other domains as well. In all cases it is considered an ill omen, usually associated with madness, disease and death (though, really, what isn't?). Lamordian astronomers named the comet Blutspur after its bloody trail, and Dementlieuese scholars would call it the Mad Star. I haven't delved into the mythology of the comet in Barovia yet, but with the Thanni population there, they would definitely have something to say about it.

I'm considering possibly some kind of Thanni cult of mislead youth trying to gain favor and forbidden knowledge from the masters their ancestors "ignorantly" spurned.

(I haven't delved deeply into any plans as of yet, because the campaign itself is only getting off the ground, and I've made the mistake of overplanning before...)

[Trike]

This is a fantastic idea. I'm glad it was brought back into the light.

I have an idea for those of you following the idea of the blood moon instead of the comet. Traditionally, names for the moon at particular times has always been about timing. The full moon of every month has a name in the Farmer's Almanac- IE a blue moon. But what if the blood moon in Ravenloft is a time of some atmospheric disturbance that actually creates the appearance of a bloody moon with a tail trailing behind it. This could be some kind of atmospheric release of gases centered around the moon itself. It could be something strange and volcanic. The point is it could happen whenever the DM needs it. The moon looks normal at other times.

This could be a periodic event that can be documented and prepared for. It could have no noticeable pattern and only be mentioned in the historical documents. Whatever you like.

It also struck me that this would have significance to the races in Ravenloft that rely on the moon. A higher level adventure could start with werewolf cults preparing for the coming of the Blood Moon. That would lead the players to research historical incidents and let the tension build.

[Hazgarn]

I think the comet idea is somewhat influenced by the movie Lifeforce, where these alien vampires visit earth periodically to feed their race before returning to space to sleep once again. The role of one of the characters in the film and the link he has to the aliens was very interesting, and now gives me this thought:

I'm not aware of the exact canon history of the Thanni living in the Core, but what if they didn't escape Blutspur so much as they were allowed to escape so that the illithids might have human stock susceptible to their control once they returned? Someone to open the way.

[HuManBing]

(With all due apologies to the Creedence Clearwater Revival and the authors of "Thoughts of Darkness".)

I see the crimson moon arising.
I smell the blood-drops on the way.
Red glow festoons the dim horizons.
Night falls and never comes the day.

Here's a crystallite!
Well it's bound to save our lives!
There's the Blood Moon on the rise.

I hear an everpresent buzzing.
My henchmen are lurching in a swoon.
The squid-heads emerge in hungry dozens,
Dragging our fallen to their ruins.

Save me crystallite!
You'll guard me through the night!
Here on the Blood Moon in the skies.

A hot chick with pointy teeth is smilin'
A nightmare and gypsy gallop by,
Grey cells comprise this horrid island.
A mutant lover weeps and waits to die.

Oh, here's a place you'll like
Book your spot tonight!
Here the Blood Moon's on the rise.

Yeah, traveler's delight,
It'll make your bowels tight
There's the bathroom on the right.

[Trike]

I...uh...wait, what?

I am disturbed by your lyrical genius and the speed at which it happened. Truly disturbed. The time of madness must be upon us!

[HuManBing]

Apologies also to fans of that video.* You'll never view it in quite the same way again.

You know the one I'm talking about.

[Zilfer]

^I actually don't and that might kill the joke.

Also good song, and did you make up those lyrics? Not bad to the timing though it's hard to try and sing it when you know the original words.

[Sareau]

I think the comet idea is somewhat influenced by the movie Lifeforce, where these alien vampires visit earth periodically to feed their race before returning to space to sleep once again. The role of one of the characters in the film and the link he has to the aliens was very interesting, and now gives me this thought:

I'm not aware of the exact canon history of the Thanni living in the Core, but what if they didn't escape Blutspur so much as they were allowed to escape so that the illithids might have human stock susceptible to their control once they returned? Someone to open the way.

What about Night of the Comet and the classic Night of the Living Dead, both zombie apocalypses brought on by comets? I suppose if the illithids were necromancers or allied with a cult of same, their arcane energies could be harnessed for a whole variety of cullings in the Stockyards (or the Core, if you must be precise...)