Barovia
| Barovia | |
|---|---|
| |
| Culture Level | Medieval |
| Ecology | Full |
| Climate & Terrain | Temperate forest, hill, mountains |
| Year Formed | 351 BC |
| Population | 27,700 |
| Races (%) | Humans 98%, half-Vistani 1%, Other 1% |
| Languages | Balok, Luktar, Vaasi, Sithican, Forfarian, Thaani |
| Religions | Cult of the Morninglord, Ezra, Hala, Erlin |
| Government | Feudal monarchy |
| Ruler(s) | Count Strahd von Zarovich |
| Darklord(s) | Count Strahd von Zarovich |
| Analog | Transylvania |
Contents |
Things, Creatures & Personnages of Legend
Biology
Flora
Fauna
Native Horrors
Wolves
Lycanthropic
Geography
Weather
Terrain
The terrain is mountainous and forested, winters are cold. A beautiful but hostile domain.
Mountains & Hills
- The Balinoks divide the Core into east and west. The bridge that rejoins them is Barovia. It is her Old Svalich Road and her Svalich Pass that bring east and west back into contact with each other for a few precious months each year.
- The Hills of Bleak Vistas, called the Howling Hills by Nova Vaasans, are the eastern foothills of the Barovian Balinoks. They are thickly forested by the Graenseskov ("Borderwood"). It, however, comes to an end before the Old Svalich Road where the beech-firs of the Old Svalich Woods resolutely hold their ground.
- The Dreadmount are the northwestern foothills of the Barovian Balinoks.
- The Bloodfang Hills are adjacent to Forlorn.
Forest
- The Old Svalich Woods is a small forest of old growth beech-firs along the Old Svalich Road in Barovia from the Village of Barovia to the Nova Vaasan frontier.
- The Graenseskov ("Borderwood") grows thickly on the lower slopes of the eastern foothills of the Balinoks in Barovia and well out onto the flatter land of Nova Vaasa beyond them. Its upper reaches are known to Barovians as the Hills of Bleak Vistas and to the Nova Vaasans as the Howling Hills. The northern boundary of the forest lies a little south of the Old Svalich Road where the beech-firs of the Old Svalich Woods resolutely hold their ground. The southern limit extends at least to the border of Hazlani frontier but perhaps continues into Hazlan itself.
Lakes
- Nameless? lake at adjacent to Immol
Landmarks
- The Gates of Barovia guarding, symbolically at least, the Svalich Pass
Communication
Rivers
- The Ivlis River
- The Ulvand River cuts a path through the Graenseskov ("Borderwood"), roaring down the Howling Hills and into Nova Vaasa, its source being Terestrãu ("Mount Sawtooth"). The Ivlis River is joined from the south by the Ulvand, a little south-east of Bergovitsa, along the Vaere Bange Road, ultimately draining into the the Nocturnal Sea halfway between Arbora and Egertus via the Storrokke Canyon. The Ulvand is far too steep for navigation of any sort.
- The Saniset River has its source in summer melt waters from Terestrãu ("Mount Sawtooth") in south-eastern Barovia that feed the lake adjacent to Immol. From Barovia the Saniset rushes down onto the Ensommark ("Lonely Plain") of Hazlan, flows east by southeast to Sly-Var, passes just north of the Skyggeskov ("Shadowwood") as it crosses the border into Nova Vaasa, and flows gently to the sea. The upper reaches of the Saniset are unnavigable, even on a small raft, given its swiftness, rapids, and gravel bars.
- The Luna River
Roads
Mistways
- The Outlander's Gate (one-way, poor reliability) from outside of the Land of Mists to southern Barovia
Note: The Bleak Road does not lead to or from Barovia, but rather the Misty Border south of Arbora in southern Nova Vaasa. This is treated in the errata. "Charted Mistways sidebar: The Bleak Road should connect “Southern Nova Vaasa — Northern Vorostokov”, and not Barovia!>(Errata)"
Frontiers
The Shadow Rift
Nova Vaasa
- The Dyrskov ("Beastwood") fronts the Barovian frontier a little north of the Old Svalich Road to the edge of the Shadow Rift and fronts the Shadow Rift to a little south of the Borchava River. It covers the southern half of the Vaesen Foothills that themselves fronted the Balinoks of vanished Markovia.
- The Graenseskov ("Borderwood") grows thickly on the lower slopes of the eastern foothills of the Balinoks in Barovia and well out onto the flatter land of Nova Vaasa beyond them. Its upper reaches are known to Barovians as the Hills of Bleak Vistas and to the Nova Vaasans as the Howling Hills. The northern boundary of the forest lies a little south of the Old Svalich Road where the beech-firs of the Old Svalich Woods resolutely hold their ground. The southern limit extends at least to the border of Hazlani frontier but perhaps continues into Hazlan itself.
Hazlan
Forlorn
Kartakass
Sithicus
Invidia
Borca
The Great Upheaval
Barovia was impacted not insignificantly by the Great Upheaval. The land's chokehold over east-west trade was greatly strengthened by the cutting of the Timori Road. The disappearance of Markovia from its northern frontier would have been welcomed if only it had been replaced by something less ominous than the Shadow Rift. The disappearance of Bluetspur from its southern frontier was an indisputable boon. And the relocation of Hazlan from its central eastern and southern eastern frontiers to its southern frontier did little more than change the direction of travel from Immol to Toyalis.
Population Distrubtion
Towns
- Immol (pop. 1623)
Villages
- Renika is a village where in 348 BC Strahd had its burgomaster executed for withholding taxes.
Authority
Darklord
Temporal Ruler
The current and undisputed ruler of Barovia is Count Strahd von Zarovich XI. The Zaroviches have ruled Barovia in an unbroken line for as long as history recounts, although doing so more than once in the teeth of enemy invasion. The name "Strahd" has been used by the last eleven counts, a want of creativity or perhaps a meglamania, that was previously absent.
Spiritual Ruler
No religion has been sanctioned by the Zarovich line in centuries, indeed religion is discouraged in Barovia. Additionally, the Barovians have long felt abandon by the divine. The Morning Lord is making some progress towards reversing the last situation.
Church and State
It has been centuries since the rule of Barovia's temporal leaders was recognised by a spiritual authority. Likewise, it has been centuries since the rule of Barovia's spiritual leaders was enforced by a temporal authority. A classical theologico-political arrangement ceased to exist in Barovia during the reign of Count Strahd von Zarovich I.
Government
At the local level by boyars in each town or village.
Law
Law-Enforcement
Information Gathering
The Vistani
Military Footing
Fighting the Gundarakite Resistance following the successful annexation of half the former land of Gundarak.
Possible army of skeletons and zombies hidden and at the ready.
Language & Culture
Balok
Mouning
Barovian females wear black for five years after the death of even their most distant relatives, lending a universal drabness to their dress.
Fashion
Barovian females wear black for five years after the death of even their most distant relatives, lending a universal drabness to their dress.
Inns & Taverns
Immol
Village of Barovia
Vallaki
The Nova Vaasan Frontier
Data from the Ravenloft Catalogue
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Domains of Dread |
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Secrets of the Dread Realms - pp7,10-12,18,40 | |
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Secrets of the Dread Realms - pp8-9 |
