Café de Nuit

Hi, folks!

I'm not sure how many of we Ravenloft fans have also been perusing the Eberron products, but I recently purchased the "Five Nations" book for that setting, and it included a cute bit of flavor-text to help "set the mood" for the various nationalities described there. Specifically, for each nation of origin, there's a sidebar list of five things that everyone from that land knows: stories, dances, historical events, hobbies, etc.

While five things doesn't seem like a lot, it's amazingly effective in giving a sense of the people in question: a Brelander who knows about the Code of Galifaran Justice and the rights guaranteed to the accused has a very different "feel" from a Cyran refugee who knows exactly where he was when his nation was annihilated by a magical disaster. Some of the "five things" are essential to the national identity (like Karrns' knowledge of the military), while others are more trivial and flavor-oriented (like Aundair's taste for songs that add a line every verse, a la "Twelve Days of Xmas"). But even the trivial tidbits of knowledge reveal something about the folk of the nation in question, and five "everybody-knows" tidbits together add up to a lot of insight into a culture.

So how about we try to compile similar lists for our favorite Ravenloft nations...? Some of the "five things" may be blatantly obvious -- every Valachaner probably knows the symptoms and treatment for White Fever, for example, and a Borcan unfamiliar with a few basic poison-antidotes wouldn't last very long -- but to be really effective as inspiration for role-playing a particular domain's inhabitants, cultural and trivia-knowledge entries should also be included.

Anybody got ideas...?

Five things every Barovian knows, eh?

1) Don't go out at night.
2) Don't ask why your not supposed to go out at night. You don't want to know the answer.
3) A garlic rich diet can greatly imrpove your life expectancy
4) Nobody messes with Strahd.
5) If a vistani picks your pocket, just smile and nodd and leave it at that.

ScS of the Fraternity wrote: 5) If a vistani picks your pocket, just smile and nodd and leave it at that.

I sligtly disagree with that. Chase the man/woman, demand the stolen money back and leave it at that. Don't beat him/her up and if he resists giving the money too much, well . . . next time don't carry that much with you.

And anyway, instead of number 2 I would have

2) Mages are evil soul-suckers or worse.

1) Don't go out at night.
2) Seriously, don't go out at night.
3) I warned you, don't go out at night.
4) If you go out at night, and we did warn you, you aren't getting back in.
5) Cremation is the best form of funeral if you ignored our warnings.

5 things every Barovian knows about love

1. Never wear a cape on your first date
2. No mater how much you love her, moonlight strolls are off limits
3. And no, it might not just be a hicky
4. Hot raven haired pale chicks are more trouble then they are worth.
5. A little nibble here and there is concidered kinky in other domains but is grounds for devorce in Barovia

1. Never go out at night
2. Never answer the door after sundown
3. Strahd is rarely seen, if ever
4. Never go to Castle Ravenloft unless you are some diehard double glazing sales man, just don't expect to come back form there though
5. Strahd does not want double glazing!

Five Things every Lamordian knows:

1) The drooling, hulking, scarred-up brute isn't really the doctor's son
2) There's no such thing as magic
3) Whatever you do, don't tell the guy in the purple robe that there's no such thing as magic
4) The doctor is in...sane
5) No matter how friendy they are, never let someone "pick your brain"

(sigh...) Guess I should have asked: "Anyone got any SERIOUS ideas...?"

Five things every Darkonite knows:

1) The man you think is a Kargat agent isn't.
2) The man you don't think is a Kargat agent it.
3) The person you don't know today will be your brother tomorrow. Literally.
4) Seeing the dead walk is a reason to get angry, not scared.
5) Buying the townhouse in Il Aluk was a bad idea.

seriously? ok

1) Strahd von Zarovich, is our lord and master
2) No Barovian may harm a Vistani
3) No Barovian may enter Castle Ravenloft, and none would want to.
4) The night holds great danger, shut your door less it enter your home.
5) the lands beyond Barovia, belong to heathen, warlocks, brigands, tratiors and demon worshipers. stay in barovia where it is safe and don't trust foreigners

Hmmm. Now that's a little *too* serious; the "Five Nations" book gave cultural insight, not just warnings.

How about I try an example? Every Barovian might know:

1) A collection of folkloric remedies and protections against the evils of the night, and the terrible spirits that come out after dark. Some of them are efficacious (like garlic), most are superstitious nonsense (like carrying a torch three times counterclockwise around the building before dusk), and no Barovian would or could feel at ease sleeping in a house or even leaving their livestock alone in a barn if it isn't protected by at least one of these comforting household rites.

2) At least one variation of the saga of Strahd I, their nation's great hero from the past. Not a hamlet or town in historic Barovia (i.e. the part that wasn't Gundarak) lacks its own legend of how this great military leader drove the Tergs from their particular hometown, and stories of his genius and daring form the backbone of Barovian bards' tales. Anyone thinking ill of their national savior had better keep silent amongst Barovians, as fists fly if they hear his good name insulted.

3) How to distinguish proper native Barovians from those upstart, copycat Gundarakites. While outsiders seem ludicrously hard-put to tell one from the other, a true son or daughter of Barovia has no difficulty whatsoever in spotting the blatant flaws and barbaric distortions of Balok culture that these pretenders flaunt incessantly.

4) A little something about sheep. While not all Barovians are shepherds, the shortness of the Balinoks' growing season and the isolation of most communities from trade makes sheep a vital component of each valley's localized economy, where they're raised for milk and wool far more than meat. Even the wealthy or those who subsist as Lake Zarovich fishermen tend to know enough about the rearing and breeding habits of sheep to choose the best sort of wool for their new cloak, or stock up on smoked mutton and cheeses when lambs are being slaughtered, milk-ewes are most productive, and prices are lowest.

5) Which of the local authorities can be bribed, conned or bought off with drink. Because they fear the current Count Strahd XI as deeply as they honor his illustrious ancestor, most Barovians prefer to handle trouble in their communities under-the-table, by schmoozing the burgomaster or boyar and/or the meager handful of soldiers these local leaders employ. Though these local headmen are often greedy and spiteful, themselves, they're usually willing to listen to commoners' complaints for "suitable considerations" -- after all, a truly furious peasant might be crazed enough to report an unanswered complaint to Strahd, via the Vistani! -- the better to keep things nice and quiet (and their pockets nice and fat).

5 things every Tepestani knows:
If it looks like a witch:Burn it
If it smells like a witch:Burn it
If it acts like a witch:Burn it
If Your not sure whether its a witch:Burn it
If it is a witch:You have no idea it exists

1. Strahd: better the devil you know
2. The Vistani: devils in wolves' fur
3. Kartakans: the sweeter the song, the sharper the smile
4. Invidians: devils chasing devils
5. Ravens: they whose cries tell no lies

5 Things every Souragnien might know:

1.) Cremation or other forms of desecration of a body are certain to bring grave misfortune. All corpses are the exclusive property of the Lord of the Dead, and he should be allowed four days to claim any corpse, after which it should be interred in an above ground mausoleum.

2.) Don't go out in the rain. The Lord of the Dead is said to travel the land when it rains, especially during heavy rains.

3.) Where the nearest Voodan is. Even Souragniens who have never taken advantage of a Voodan's services will make sure they know how to contact the nearest one to their home village - after all, you just never know; what if a love or business rival took advantage of the voodan's services and you didn't?

4.) Cures for swamp diseases. Just about every Souragnien will contract at least one swamp disease in their lifetime, usually from the ever-present mosquitoes, and so they all know the proper herbs and treatments for at least the most common diseases.

5.) Which towns have the best festivals, and when they are. Some Souragniens, particularly streetwalkers and and gamblers, know the schedule of local festivals so well that they can spend almost the entire year at festivals, simply by traveling from village to village. And every Souragnien knows when the great festival at Port d'Elhour is held; all but the very youngest or poorest Souragniens will have been to see it at least once.

5 things every Katarkian knows:

1. Music is the heart beat of the world. Those who don't or can't sing have lost the beat of the world and are to be considered dead to it.

2. Mother nature is a fickle mistress. Cutting down a few old trees is fine but the deep woods are the domain of Grandfather Wolf and any interlopers are swiftly delt with by him and his children.

3. The night is a time for wine, women and most importantly song. Its best to be with friends and lovers when the sunsets lest you meet Grandfather Wolf on his nightly hunts.

4. A man lives by his heart and his hands. Magic is good for a show on a cold winter night but a you need to be able to run, jump and wresstle with the best of them to truely be called a man.

5. The elders tales may be long but they hold great wisdom. Every child must listen to the old tales lest they fall victum to the dangers of the world.