Necropolis

[Zilfer]

The Shroud seems pretty crazy to say the least. I just got the Gazeteer II and was eagerly glancing through it and came upon this chapter. (though after which i went back and started reading it like a book xD)

Anyways the Shroud you get negative levels over and over again until you die? o.O' can no party unless they go undead end up here? I would just love to incorporate a mad man thinking he's death personified.

Had another question about Death as well, I don't see why he doesn't have a much more rediculous amount of HD. I mean right now he sits at 11HD which means he just needs to absorb about 11 people to get more powerful. (though I beleive they have to be negative levels he absorbs? Since no mortal could really get near him.)

Any way to undo the shroud's effects once the PC's Leave the necropolis? o.O'

Not sure if this is best done over PMs or not. Not sure 100% the rules of commenting on information inside books.

[Joël of the FoS]

Three ways to get in:

1) you die and you become an undead (hard way)
2) that flower bloom, amaranth, from Gas II
3) Mangrum's great idea about the insubstancial halo (search this board with these words).

I introduced the halo in my campaign, FYI, you can see it in my journal.

Joël

[Zilfer]

I'll definately check it out.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

What Joel said.... also, Deepshadow had a cool idea involving using carrionettes to get in. As far as undoing the effects if you just let it turn you undead, by the rules, yeah, it should be super-hard, if not impossible. But this is a case where DM fiat might have a place to let it be a fun side trip into the land of the dead, rather than a campaign-altering catastophe. Just have the PCs find the mystical Hoozis of Whatever to change them back afterward, or let a passing vistani do it. Or have Azalin transfer them into living clone bodies of themselves for his own purposes... etc. etc.


(and BTW, don't worry about discussing stuff in the open. That's what the message board is all about. As long as you're not quoting large passages verbatim, there's no need to use PM's.)

[Zilfer]

I see i see. Both interesting possibilities, yeah I didn't think there was something I was seeing too much of a way in there. Those berries I had read the side bar but.... how does it make you immune? I remember something about 'fast healing' not sure how it'd make you immune to the shroud.

[High Priest Mikhal]

The effects of the Shroud are not that different from a major negative-aligned plane; the only real difference is the undead don't (explicitly) get Fast Healing 5 in the Shroud. A simple death ward can protect against the Shroud, though the undead citizens are another matter (hide from undead works, though improved invisibility--and superior invisibility from the Spell Compendium--also work). Planar adaptation should work to negate the effects of the Shroud, but this being Ravenloft it's likely no one knows that spell since it's pretty much useless outside of extreme domains like Necropolis.

I see i see. Both interesting possibilities, yeah I didn't think there was something I was seeing too much of a way in there. Those berries I had read the side bar but.... how does it make you immune? I remember something about 'fast healing' not sure how it'd make you immune to the shroud.

Not somnos berries from Darkon, the Necropolitan amaranth. Very different plants.

[Zilfer]

Death ward = immune to death abilities or something? o.O

I thought that was the one where you could tell if they were close to dying, bleeding out. or dead.

[HuManBing]

I haven't ever played one, but I seem to recall 4th Ed.'s Eberron setting introduced Warforged - essentially golems as PCs. You might be able to survive the Shroud if you were a warforged.

Even aside from that, a GM might allow a PC party some magical remote control over a golem they send in to probe the Dead City.

[Garudos Celestar]

Death ward = immune to death abilities or something? o.O

I thought that was the one where you could tell if they were close to dying, bleeding out. or dead.

That's deathwatch.

[Zilfer]

Death ward = immune to death abilities or something? o.O

I thought that was the one where you could tell if they were close to dying, bleeding out. or dead.

That's deathwatch.

Haha! my plunder is revealed thanks!

Had another question similar to Necropolis.... Strahd's own "Shroud" around barovia village. If a person has entered and exited without the "immunity" does that mean they are stuck their permanently? If so I think i'm going to have to gloss that over, but the PC's don't know any different. They started in Barovia village, and from the way the antidote reads it only works for 10 minutes? Gotta pop potions if they leave every ten minutes? xD

[alhoon]

Zilfer while the others covered the basics I would say one thing:

The key in your post IMO was "I would just love to incorporate a madman..."
Then do it. Bypass the canon. That madman has "something". The PCs may also have this something. Maybe the amaranth doesn't cost a fortune/flower but is totally affordable for PCs of your level. Maybe Azalin (or Death) had something to do with the PCs/Madman and they can get in the shroud.
Or... maybe the shroud doesn't exist in your campaign, and that's it. Death can close the borders, undead roam the city and keep normal people at bay.

I.e. if it works for you, do it.


Oh, and about Death's HD. Azalin (i.e. the kargatane) in the old Kargatane forum said more or less that Death isn't a powergamer to get as high HD as possible, but has as many HD as needed for the task. I.e. if your PCs are 14th lvl and you're worried they would just teleport, blast him to oblivion and teleport out, you are advised to rise his HD accordingly.

[Zilfer]

Zilfer while the others covered the basics I would say one thing:

The key in your post IMO was "I would just love to incorporate a madman..."
Then do it. Bypass the canon. That madman has "something". The PCs may also have this something. Maybe the amaranth doesn't cost a fortune/flower but is totally affordable for PCs of your level. Maybe Azalin (or Death) had something to do with the PCs/Madman and they can get in the shroud.
Or... maybe the shroud doesn't exist in your campaign, and that's it. Death can close the borders, undead roam the city and keep normal people at bay.

I.e. if it works for you, do it.


Oh, and about Death's HD. Azalin (i.e. the kargatane) in the old Kargatane forum said more or less that Death isn't a powergamer to get as high HD as possible, but has as many HD as needed for the task. I.e. if your PCs are 14th lvl and you're worried they would just teleport, blast him to oblivion and teleport out, you are advised to rise his HD accordingly.

Yeah that's what I was thinking they left it up to... though he conceivably has a hitpoint amount thats.... infinite. Which for "Death" seems fitting. xD (Yes I often forget one of the key rolls of DMing is it's your game you can do whatever you want. Some of the dnd books say feel free to add anything to any map, or a twist because it's your story. I often forget this basic fact, though I feel learning the "right way" helps me when I bring the train off the tracks)

Thanks again alhoon!

[High Priest Mikhal]

Had another question similar to Necropolis.... Strahd's own "Shroud" around barovia village. If a person has entered and exited without the "immunity" does that mean they are stuck their permanently? If so I think i'm going to have to gloss that over, but the PC's don't know any different. They started in Barovia village, and from the way the antidote reads it only works for 10 minutes? Gotta pop potions if they leave every ten minutes? xD

Yes, they'd have to pop the antidote if they left and came back after ten minutes. But why they would stay is another matter. There's not a whole lot to do in the village, aside from meeting with the Keepers of the Black Feather at the Blood 'O The Vine tavern or whatever else a DM has in store. Without the antidote they'll just keep on losing Con every round until they die or return outside or inside (whichever direction they originally came from) the ring of choking fog.

[Zilfer]

heh, yeah. Well for this campaign i'm going to have to overlook that they started from within it and have traveled outside of it, though I was at the time thinking the mist was domain wide. That'd be fine until they left recently, but again they don't know much about the setting so it's all good. I can always turn it "on" later as a more "recent" development around the village of barovia. Their poor poor friends they have in there.... xD

[High Priest Mikhal]

heh, yeah. Well for this campaign i'm going to have to overlook that they started from within it and have traveled outside of it, though I was at the time thinking the mist was domain wide. That'd be fine until they left recently, but again they don't know much about the setting so it's all good. I can always turn it "on" later as a more "recent" development around the village of barovia. Their poor poor friends they have in there.... xD

Strahd's choking fog is also how Barovia's closed domain borders manifest. Only there's no antidote for that.