So what books do I need as a Ravenloft newbie?

[King November]

The situation: I want to run a Ravenloft campaign.

The problem: I don't have any of the books.

I've been a big fan of the setting for years now, but I never got my hands on any of the books. I have a pretty impressive knowledge of the setting for someone in my situation (enough to play, say), but not enough to confidently run a game. So I figured I'd ask you guys for your advice.

My main concern here is setting information, in particular info on the domains and Darklords and so on. I am planning to run a d20 game, but I've heard bad stuff about some of the Arthous products and someone told me the core book doesn't have DM info on the setting, so I'm willing to hunt down some of the old 2E products if they give a better rundown on that stuff. I'm already planning to wing the mechanics (I'll be using D20 Modern instead of D&D).

That said, if the 3E stuff isn't as bad as I've been lead to believe, I'd rather look at that just because it's more widely available and conversion might be easier.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Here's a good place to start.

http://www.fraternityofshadows.com/FAQs.htm

Try question #2 What do I need to play? and #7 What is the difference between the Ravenloft Campaign Setting and the Ravenloft Player’s Handbook/ Denizens of Darkness and Denizens of Dread?


It's true that the 3e campaign setting (in either version) doesn't have DM info, like the darklord identities, but you shouldn't discount it just for that. It's still very good, as is 90% of the 3e line, and gives a great description of the world and the domains, just not the Darklords. Basic Darklord stats and backgrounds (and not much else) are in Secrets of the Dread Realms, though many were updated in their respective gazetteers.

If you must have everything in one book, go with the 2e Domains of Dread, but I think the 3e Ravenloft Campaign Setting + Secrets of the Dread Realms taken together is better.

EDIT: Oh, and welcome to the mists!

[JinnTolser]

My recommendations of what you ought to have to run Ravenloft:

1. Assuming your domain of choice is located in the Core, the Gazetteer containing that domain will be a HUGE help.

2. Denizens of Darkness/Denizens of Dread, depending on whether you want 3.0 or 3.5.

3. RLCS or RLPHB, again depending on which edition you want.

4. Van Richten's Arsenal, because it has all kinds of useful stuff for you and your players.

5. Van Richten's Guide to the Walking Dead, and perhaps whatever other VRG's you can get your hands on. VRGttWD is one of if not the best 3.0/3.5 supplement I've ever gotten my hands on, for Ravenloft or otherwise.

There's plenty of other useful stuff out there, but IMO this is the most important stuff to keep an eye out for.

[Snake]

My adivce is very similar to Jinn's.

To get your feet off the ground I recommend:

1.) Ravenloft Core book, or the Ravenloft Players Handbook if you are partial to 3.5; though the two have very little differences.

2.) Denizens of Darkness. Just good for monsters and the like. Also there is a 3.0 and 3.5 for this one too. I suggest for these first two just get which ever editions you can find easiest and/or cheapest.

3.) Whatever core domain you are starting in, get that particular Gazetteer. It would be a VERY good help for domain details, towns, where to stay, etc.

I would advise, but not entirely necessary:

1.) Van Richten's Guide to the Walking Dead. If you plan on using undead than this book really is a must honostly. It just has great details and ways to customize your friendly undead folk.

2.) Van Richten's Arsenal. As Jinn said, it's just a great book all around.

Not sure how much of an issue money is, but that is a great start. Also to this day, those 5 books are the ones I use the most, so there ya go hope it helps.

[Jester of the FoS]

1) First you need the big three D&D books.

2) Then one of the Campaign settings. Take whichever one you can get cheapest, edition really doesn't matter.

3) One of the Gazetteers is a nice addition and really lets you focus on a single land.

Everything else is cake.

If you're new to running a horror/Ravenloft-style game the Ravenloft DMG might be a good addition.

The VanRichten guides are nice for making better monsters, but with classes and templates the default monsters (or WotC's SRD) should do you for a while. Ditto the Domain/Denizens of Dread, although those books are terribly poorly edited and I really can't recommend them.

[King November]

Thanks for the information, guys.

One more quick question:

Does Secrets of the Dread Realms have Darklord info for the rulers of the various Clusters and Islands? My understanding is that the Gazeteers are the best source of information on the Core domains, so I'll probably grab them first, but I may eventually want to branch out.

[Snake]

One more quick question:

Does Secrets of the Dread Realms have Darklord info for the rulers of the various Clusters and Islands? My understanding is that the Gazeteers are the best source of information on the Core domains, so I'll probably grab them first, but I may eventually want to branch out.

Unfortunately, Secrets of the Dread Realms only sticks to the Core Domains and doesn't branch out to the clusters. The Gazetteers were supposed to do that, but things didn't work out. Also just an FYI, some details about Darklords in the Secrets of the Dread Realms have been errataed in that Domain's respected Gazetteer. Nothing major really, but it's there.

I'm not sure if Secrets of the Dread Realms gets into the islands around the core because I haven't looked at it in a while, but I think it covers some like Markovia, but I could be wrong.

[Rotipher of the FoS]

My understanding is that the Gazeteers are the best source of information on the Core domains, so I'll probably grab them first, but I may eventually want to branch out.

Well, we've got netbook versions of Souragne, Paridon and Timor here on the site already, and the Nocturnal Sea Survey ought to be ready before you could possibly run out of things to do on the Core's mainland. If a particular off-Core darklord or domain is of interest to you, I'm sure someone here will be able to pass on more information. (Did you have a specific domain or villain in mind?)

[King November]

I've got very little in mind right now-- I don't like to make plans before I have a complete understanding of the setting.

Since Secrets of the Dread Realms doesn't cover non-Core domains I suppose I'll just keep my eyes open for the Gazeteers, though, wow, the only one available on Amazon is going for two hundred bucks.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

well, the gazeteers don't cover the non-core domains either. (they're awesome in every other respect, of course, so you can't really go wrong getting them.) Only volume V should be hard to come by. The rest show up pretty regularly and reasonably on ebay as far as I know.

But if you want non-core info, you'll have to go 2e, pretty much. Domains of Dread has good summaries of most of them, but some are more detailed in Islands of Terror and/or Darklords.

[Dimitri Mazieres]

Since Secrets of the Dread Realms doesn't cover non-Core domains I suppose I'll just keep my eyes open for the Gazeteers, though, wow, the only one available on Amazon is going for two hundred bucks.

I've recently embarked on the quest for the Gazetteers and, thanks to the help of the wondrous people around here, was able to get all five of them (I'm eagerly expecting their arrival ).
The most difficult to get would be Gaz V while, as gonzoron said, the others can be found with more or less difficulty.

You can find the following at Noble Knight Games:

Gazetteer I - $ 9.49
Gazetteer III - $9.95 (there's anoter in NM condition at $8.00).

I wasn't able to find any other than those on eBay now, but keep looking and they're bound to appear.

[King November]

well, the gazeteers don't cover the non-core domains either. (they're awesome in every other respect, of course, so you can't really go wrong getting them.)

Right, right -- What I meant was, since SotDR only covers the Core, I may as well go with the gazetteers instead since they cover the same ground in more detail.

Also, thanks for the links, Dimitri.

[order99]

Don't forget the Netbooks here at the Cafe either, they're just full of nasty goodness!

[The Giamarga]

I've got very little in mind right now-- I don't like to make plans before I have a complete understanding of the setting.

Since Secrets of the Dread Realms doesn't cover non-Core domains I suppose I'll just keep my eyes open for the Gazeteers, though, wow, the only one available on Amazon is going for two hundred bucks.

Amazon.com is known for listing fantasy prices on out of print books. Then again Gaz V is quite hard to get. Check out the following thread for Help finding Gazetteers. You should be able to get most 3E stuff for quite cheap on ebay, except Gaz V, the Tarokka Deck and maybe Gaz 4.

There's also a very useful reviews section here on the site in the Drawing Room for all 2E and 3E books.

[The Giamarga]

Gaz 1 for $8.32 at half.com

Gaz 1 for $2.99, Gaz 3 for $4.99 starting bids on ebay