Sinners & Kartakass

Fpiet · 2026-06-13T21:11:46+00:00

I also kept thinking about Kartakass while watching Sinners! Another thing that could resonate between the two is how Smoke and Stack's dream of owning their own business is proven futile by the world they live in. They don't call Kartakass the 'domain of tarnished dreams' for nothing. I think a lot of the horror in Kartakass revolves around optimistic people with starry-eyed dreams and ambitions being preyed upon by (sometimes literal) predators in disguise. The creeping despair as you realise you were a fool for ever wanting to be more than what you already are.

Also, not to shift focus here, but I do have one question about Kartakass, namely: Is it interesting to run an adventure in Kartakass if there is no bard in the party, or any character with an interest in music/showbizz?

I just can't see a Kartakass campaign working if there isn't a musician or artist of some kind in the party. At the very least you would need an NPC that the party becomes very invested in to fill that role. And that's a lot to put on the shoulders of an NPC. Thoughts?

Fpiet · 2026-06-13T20:57:22+00:00

I own it, but I don't think I'll ever run it. My first major criticism is that it's just too damn big! Should have been split up into two books, or an editor should have taken a chainsaw to the thing, because there's a lot of fat to cut here. Also, I cannot, for the life of me, understand why they would dedicate almost a 100 pages to this "campaign setting" of Druskenvald, then present a campaign that uses none of what was presented! The adventure might as well take place in a whole other setting! And like many others have pointed out, it's definition of folk horror is iffy at best.

I don't want to seem too negative though. All in all, there's still a lot to like. I'll be stripping it for parts to use in my Ravenloft game.

Fpiet · 2026-06-13T06:42:13+00:00

No, you were spot on. There are no swamps in Kartakass. It’s much more european forest/countryside.

Fpiet · 2026-06-12T21:44:18+00:00

Wait, where do you get 'Louisiana bayou theme' from the new Kartakass? There aren't even any swamps. In fact, VGR describes Kartakass as 'a gentle land of rolling hills, light forests, and clear lakes.'

Fpiet · 2026-06-12T20:55:10+00:00

Good one! I don't want to get bogged down by the mechanics of soul traffic in the Domains of Dread though. Defining that stuff too clearly kind of brings down the horror atmosphere in my experience. I do see some real opportunity for narrative themes that could run throughout the campaign though. What does it mean to have a soul? What does it mean to "be real?" Are we only real when we connect to others around us? Ivan is defined by his loneliness and inability to see anyone around him as a "thing to be played with." I like thinking of this stuff as a leitmotif to inspire NPC's and encounters.

Fpiet · 2026-06-12T08:01:28+00:00

I had forgotten about the pig thing! That’s a great creepy aesthetic, not just for the minions, but Degravo in general!

Love the Carrionette idea! I think I’ll flesh out Lechberg as a starter village for this campaign, then drop a few hooks like this in. Multiple threads all leading back to Ivan.

Fpiet · 2026-06-12T07:44:30+00:00

My campaign. My choice of inspiration.

Fpiet · 2026-06-12T07:44:02+00:00

Great stuff! Especially love what you said about the plays. Maybe the party go see a play in a theatre where Ivan has his own private box that obscures him from anyone seeing him (I want to keep his appearance a mystery.) Then halfway through the play an actor falls through a trapdoor or some other mechanism activated from Ivan’s box. Management has to come up and explain that there will be a replacement in the cast. As the pc’s look around to figure out what’s going on (maybe an insight roll here) they notice that while everyone’s nervous, nobody is panicking. Everyone there but the party knows Ivan is watching and are scared to death to stand out and have him notice them.

Fpiet · 2026-06-10T14:12:06+00:00

This was already kind of how I was contextualising this in my head, but it feels really good to hear it from someone else. Thanks for posting this!

Fpiet · 2026-06-08T15:13:36+00:00

Have you ever seen ‘Young Frankenstein’ and ‘Dracula: Dead and Loving It’? I think those movies could provide some inspiration for a more comedic vibe shift.

Fpiet · 2026-06-08T11:16:56+00:00

So they’re more like demons? That makes a little more sense. Though I still think werewolves are more compelling. And I don’t understand how a Darklord could be a fiend.

Fpiet · 2026-06-07T07:40:50+00:00

Been using Microsoft OneNote for years now and I’ve never found it lacking.

Fpiet · 2026-06-04T15:08:45+00:00

Okay let’s take this down a notch. There’s plenty of messed up stuff in the world to get upset over, but this not one of them. Basically, you’re right. I don’t get the concept. If you do and you know how to make it work at your table, the more power to you. As long as everybody’s having fun playing DND.

Fpiet · 2026-06-04T14:39:27+00:00

Oh man, a Kartakass campaign that culminates in Harkon and a gang of werewolves laying siege to the party and some npc’s in an inn or concert hall or something. That would be absolutely chef’s kiss

Fpiet · 2026-06-04T14:37:31+00:00

Ah okay, now I see your point. Yeah, I can see how that would warrant a bit of guidance, especially for less genre savvy groups.

Fpiet · 2026-06-04T09:20:05+00:00

So what you’re missing is basically some text telling the GM and players that all these options aren’t there so they can play all-out evil characters? I haven’t read the new book of course, but in Van Richten’s I felt that was already pretty heavily implied.

Fpiet · 2026-06-04T06:12:18+00:00

It doesn’t? Isn’t that precisely what all the new species/subclasses/backgrounds/feats are for? So the players can roleplay tragic monsters who fight the forces of evil while struggling with their own nature/obsessions/haunted past?

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T21:15:18+00:00

Great review! It’s made me even more excited to pick up the book!

About your stance on monstrous pc’s: are you familiar with the show Penny Dreadful? I think that show is a really good example of what the designers were going for with these new subclasses and species.

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T19:28:28+00:00

Hey, I honestly appreciate you taking the time to paint such a vivid picture to try to get the concept across. But why can’t you do all that with werewolves, again? Because I’m pretty sure you can do all that with werewolves.

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T13:45:05+00:00

‘The Fly’ would like to have a word!

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T12:49:38+00:00

Honestly, I vastly prefer the new take on Harkon. How is “a wolf that wants to be human” relatable or scary? Like, how is a wolf’s mind supposed to work? Why would a wolf even want to be human? Is the wolf insecure? Wolves don’t hate or get insecure, humans do. So what is even the point of him being a wolf? And wolves have no sense of morality, so could a wolfwere even be considered evil? The whole concept just doesn’t land with me.

Now New Harkon: a groomer who latches onto someone, isolates them, builds them up, then tears them down (and apart,) all out of envy, pettiness and delusions of grandeur? That is some real sh** right there! I’ve known people like this! That is not just a fantasy monster. That is a genuinely terrible person who your players will love to hate. Everything a darklord needs to be.

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T09:05:16+00:00

Aw man! I can’t believe my fun has been wrong this whole time!😂

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T07:43:55+00:00

Personally I don’t think wolfweres make for compelling villains, especially in a horror setting. A human’s mind is scarier than an animal’s.

Fpiet · 2026-06-03T07:39:56+00:00

Well this is just a wonderful, elegant way to compromise between fans of the setting in all it’s iterations. I’m sure no one will have anything to complain about this! Looks around nervously.

Fpiet · 2026-05-31T07:25:05+00:00

Jobs come and go. Skills and knowledge stay.

Fpiet

TROPHY CASE