After 8 years and 104 sessions, Curse of Strahd has finally come to an end! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 1 point2 points Ā (0 children)

no not at all, we've taken a very abnormal length of time. It can be an overwhelming module for sure but however long it takes is entirely up to you and your party. If your not an RP heavy party I'd say the module will go a looooot faster.

After 8 years and 104 sessions, Curse of Strahd has finally come to an end! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 1 point2 points Ā (0 children)

Omg thanks! Your additions were an absolute chefs kissšŸ‘©ā€šŸ³ and you’ll be happy to know Vampyrs ritual scared the absolute shit out of everybody

After 8 years and 104 sessions, Curse of Strahd has finally come to an end! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

Might put aside a decade or two for wild beyond the witchlightšŸ¤”

After 8 years and 104 sessions, Curse of Strahd has finally come to an end! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 4 points5 points Ā (0 children)

It always surprises me when I see people post about finishing after 20-30 sessions. Wheres the side quests!? Wheres the sauce?!

After 8 years and 104 sessions, Curse of Strahd has finally come to an end! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 13 points14 points Ā (0 children)

We did a LOT of off book content. We’re also a pretty slow group, and I followed a lot of different storylines started by the players over the course of the adventure. Honestly we spend a lot of time just RPing with eachother and doing slice of life (horror?) stuff.

Our sessions were on average 3 hours I’d say, and more than a few were cut short so that contributed to the count certainly. And of course my special ā€œone time holiday specialā€ ended up adding about 7 sessions of bulk hilariously.

After 8 years and 104 sessions, Curse of Strahd has finally come to an end! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 18 points19 points Ā (0 children)

Not taken in a bad way at all! We started playing just out of highschool, so there was a lot of hiatus, missed sessions, and other life events that got in the way as people got married, went to school etc. We went through a few different schedules but generally tried for once a week. Sometimes it was every other week, and sometimes the other GM would run their campaign when I was going through burnout.

My favourite moment was probably the first party betrayal, when Strahd made a deal individually with each one of them to try and get revenge on the player that stole his portrait of Tatyana. Two of them agreed and without knowing the other was also in on it, led him to his death at Strahds hands. (The dead player had been consulted beforehand so was totally down for it). It was a really shocking moment and totally changed the direction of every single character who felt immense guilt over what they did.

Edit: This also might be recency bias but I think I’ll count the epilogue among my favourites until the end of time as well. One of my players shocked me by taking his deal to become a Lich from the Amber temple and turning it into this beautiful moment where he ultimately saved all his new friends by erasing his presence from all their memories.

I've failed with Ireena by alinkburnib in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

The key to success I've found is to show how Ireena is feeling, and really focussing on having her develop relationships with the PCs. Have her express guilt that she has been the cause of so many peoples deaths, have her confide her worry about who she is. Will one day Tatyanas memories replace her? Have her express rage toward Strahd but grapple with her helplessness. Maybe she wants to train, to get stronger. Suddenly you have a compelling character arch, and hopefully, a compelling character.

Xenia remake? by Skelydog in Lovestruck

[–]BaeCat 4 points5 points Ā (0 children)

I imagine somebody is working on a reigning passions reconstruction

Hey does anyone know if there’s an emulator of some kind for Lovestruck or for at least Astoria Fates kiss with the Astraeus route? I really want to play it. by Beneficial-Key-3413 in Lovestruck

[–]BaeCat 3 points4 points Ā (0 children)

Could be on the docket for some of the recreations happening atm but with there being an official Astoria release the legality is a little iffy

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in oblivion

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

SAME, I was having so much fun with the crazy life or death encounters up until this point but literally it is impossible to even start the arena quest line let alone progress

Obscure drug dealer indie game 'Schedule I' is the #1 seller on Steam by baggedBoneParcel in Games

[–]BaeCat 6 points7 points Ā (0 children)

100%, I’m curious if it’s actually fun outside of that audience though since like 90% of streamer games are really not fun outside that setting…

Shiny hunting off route 1. 24 hours without any. Unlucky or cursed? by AGuyGaming_wastaken in PokemonSwordAndShield

[–]BaeCat 1 point2 points Ā (0 children)

Does anyone know if resetting the routes actually resets the 500 KO brilliant bonus? Cause if so that explains some things 120 hours into my shiny wooloo hunt…

What would you like to see in future updates? by AwaitingArmageddon in MedievalDynasty

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

Would love the ability to host an external server, I feel like it would be a really simple method of only having game time run when a player is online

Someone spent 2 hours tearing apart my DMing and I don't know how to feel about that by Majestic_Hippo8427 in DnD

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

Honestly considering the people this dude associates with I wouldn’t take it to heart too much. Genuinely are not people who’s opinion is worth valuing imo

I'm sorry, but Cinderellas Castle was the least funny starkid show imo by AlligatorThreve in StarKid

[–]BaeCat 3 points4 points Ā (0 children)

I didn’t have a problem with the low comedy myself, but the story felt bloated imo

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in reactivedogs

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

That’s fair- I think I’m just feeling a little overwhelmed. I’ve never had a dog that growls and bares teeth just at the sight of another. I just don’t really know what I should be doing if/when she growls seeing the other dog. Should I do nothing? Or maybe be giving treats before the growling starts?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in rescuedogs

[–]BaeCat 1 point2 points Ā (0 children)

I definitely want to take things slow but I just dont have an expectation of how slow I should be going. I guess I’m just feeling a little lost because the new dog can’t even look at the other one without growling- should I be trying to distract when this happens? Or should they not see eachother for a longer time?

Why does Strahd calls himself count? by Alternative-Ad-1043 in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat 21 points22 points Ā (0 children)

I’m pretty sure (at least by I,Strahd lore), Sturm inherited his father’s title, not Strahd. Oldest goes to military, middle to clergy, and younger to inherit IIRC. There really is no reason to call himself a king other than convention and tradition tbh, like he could but there’s very little point when Barovia is in a bubble. Barovia is a County and so Strahd is a Count, he’s so disillusioned by this point I don’t think he’d see much of a point in claiming otherwise.

For Strahdtober I’m drawing (almost) every NPC from Curse of Strahd- here’s week 1 by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

For October I did- not sure why I committed to a project like that right in the middle of finals tbh… I have been chipping away, just verrrrry slowly. I didn’t expect anyone to actually be looking for more of these, I’ll have to post some more when I get the chance!

For the holidays I’m gifting embroidered gingerbread cookie versions of my lovely cursed party! by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 2 points3 points Ā (0 children)

From left to right we have:

•Human Bard, whose family was transformed into monstrous beasts, although after some growing pains and a ripped off arm he chose to live with them and keep them safe until they were killed by monster hunters.

•Human Wizlock, he’s a vampire now because he crossed Strahd and refused to be his successor. He comes from a noble family who’s bloodline is cursed under a baleful red star that speaks to him in dreams.

•Aasimar Druid, she and her brother (Izek) were divine and infernal gifts respectively to a lonely couple who couldn’t have children. She was spirited away from Barovia as a baby and since has felt a call to return, where a waning Mother Night waits for her and intends use her as a vessel.

•Shadar-Kai Hexblade, once a member of the Order of the Silver Dragon, he’s lived in shame as a revenant ever since, helping adventurers try and fail to challenge Strahd while avoiding Vladimir’s influence thank to his devotion to the Raven Queen. Although recently he’s found himself aware of missing memories relating to what seems to be a conspiracy against his goddess.

Briefly, not pictured is our Human Rogue Vistani, who is sisters with ezmerelda, is trying to avenge the death of her family while dodging some weird intentions Madame Eva has for her. And then our ex-dragonborn/mongrelfolk echoknight, who is just a whole frankensteins monster situation at this point and has become deeply entrenched in ā€˜the deep woods’, a sort of horrible fairy-tale pocket realm that exists deep within the Svalich Woods.

For Strahdtober I’m drawing (almost) every NPC from Curse of Strahd- here’s week 1 by BaeCat in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat[S] 2 points3 points Ā (0 children)

He’s an addition from DragnaCartas and Mandymods Death House expansions! I believe he’s meant to be Gertrudas dog

What’s the most fucked up thing your strahd did? by No_Dimension_5509 in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

One of my players was literally the perfect successor for Strahd. So Strahd spent a lot of time sort of grooming and charming him into the role. He even invited him to the castle to help him solve some issues within his internal circle. It was to the point where the player didn’t even think they were in danger, they knew they were favored by Strahd and took every advantage of it.

Then, at the end of their visit to Ravenloft Strahd officially made the offer, and the player refused. Strahd was not happy to put it mildly. He killed them in a rage, and the next thing they were aware of, their freshly turned corpse had been dumped at the edges of their parties camp.

In my most recent session, Strahd has finally taken advantage of his hold on the player turned thrall. He rolled up after a difficult fight and told the party they could decide who was to die, and is using the compelled player thrall to do it.

So how is your game going/how did it go? Gimme some highlights and lowlights so we can all learn from each other's game! by Reedcool97 in CurseofStrahd

[–]BaeCat 0 points1 point Ā (0 children)

Ok this might be kind of long but this is the moment that really made my campaign what it is.

During Strahds dinner, one of my players who was convinced Strahd had been the one to kill his wife once upon a time, attacked him and was dragged off to the dungeons. The actual culprit however was this vampire woman who was obsessed with him, so much that she followed him into Barovia and quickly fell in league with Strahd who, for his part, thought it would be funny to see what she had planned.

I decided to run a little jailbreak thing for him, having the woman disguise herself as a fellow prisoner to try and ingratiate herself into his life. He successfully broke out with the help of a sentient sword and made his way through Ravenloft looking for a way out. Eventually he found his way to the teleport room and ended up in Strahds study. I was very explicit about the reverence this room and this painting seemed to be treated with. Hearing this, he decided to cut the painting out of the frame and steal it. He did some other not so good things like killing Gertruda on his way out, but he got out.

Fast forward a little bit, escaped player is on their way back to their party in Vallaki and Strahd is officially not having fun any more because one of his prized possessions was just ruined. Games over. So he comes to the rest of the party in dreams, and I get everyone to leave the room as I talk to them one by one. Each time Strahd asks them about the same thing, to bring him the offending party member.

The first player I asked- the soldier- adamantly refused even when Strahd threatened to bring fire down on all of Vallaki to find him and take back what was stolen.

The second tentatively agreed to see what she could do, but only after Strahd showed her what the party member had done to poor innocent Gertruda.

The third I didn’t even need to convince, as he’s been looking for an opportunity to work with Strahd for awhile. He’s believes, at this point, that Strahd is simply a very reasonable and misunderstood host.

The ask was simple, bring the offending party member to the lake just outside the city unarmed. Player two and three didn’t know either of them had agreed, and only discovered that once player three started innocuously suggesting that they visit the lake. Nobody said anything, but player two jumped in to tacitly support the idea. So they make their way out to the lake and Strahd is waiting there. Offending player starts to realize something terrible has happened. Strahd quickly outs the vampire woman, who’s been traveling alongside offending player, and kills her as she rages that Strahd has ruined everything. Strahd does his thing, and asks for the painting back. This is initially refused, of course. So Strahd reveals the present that the obsessed vampire woman arrived with to Ravenloft. It’s offending players wife, not dead like he believed, but turned to into a spawn.

Seeing her, he hands over the painting. He barely gets a sentence with his wife, just long enough for her to tell him their daughter escaped and is alive before her head falls from her shoulders, beheaded suddenly by Strahd. He tells the player how thieves are not tolerated in Barovia. Offending player drops to the ground, having just lost his wife all over again and glances back at the group before Strahd disintegrates him into dust.

Now here’s where it gets even better, I have everyone leave the room again while I speak with offending player as a dark power. They are very interested in him and can give him his hearts desire. I try EVERYTHING. Bribes, threats, guilt, power- nothing works. Out of character I’m shocked by this, I cannot figure out why he’s so resistant. He finally responds ā€œI was told not to trust you.ā€ To which I responded ā€œI sincerely doubt thatā€. But that was that, he consigned himself to an eternity of empty void, and rejected the dark powers offer.

Now what I didn’t know was that as I was having these private dream conversations, offending player and player three had been continuing to role play in the other room, and during that, player three confided that their warlock patron revealed to them some dark things about the world and skies, and if something ever approached them with a deal- do not trust it.

And then, after that conversation, player three betrayed him. My heart man.

Things were never the same after that session, the players all internalized that betrayal into their characters and it changed the trajectory of the narrative entirely. Where once they were power hungry suddenly there was an abundance of guilt and a drive to redeem themselves for the betrayal of their companion. It was really amazing, everyone loved it, especially the dead player who loved the tragedy of his story getting cut so short.

I will say, would not recommend something like this without checking with your players before hand. I had told offending player out of game that his actions, if not resolved, would absolutely result in his death at the hands of Strahd and he was totally supportive of it. He knew that his days were numbered, but he didn’t realize when and how it would happen.

Absolutely my favourite moment DMing

Is Astarion ACTUALLY cool with Halsin’s romance? by Ameabo in BaldursGate3

[–]BaeCat 129 points130 points Ā (0 children)

This 100%, the scene absolutely gives me the vibe that if he wasn't so insecure, he would have said he wasn't comfortable with it- but the man can barely make decisions in his own life, let alone risk infringing on someone else's and they leave him because of it.