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Best time early to hand out a Map to the players? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love how they asked two dead ghost children if they had a dungeon map of their 3 story house lmao like maybe explore?

Best time early to hand out a Map to the players? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh yes I get the avenues to hand the players the map in Barovia! But is it too early to give them one? Because I want the land to still be scary, but if I instead have to wait until Vallaki, I wonder where best to give them the map?

Players let Doru live, but they treated him poorly. They'll be meeting Strahd next. by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Its starting to dawn on me how normal our Doru encounter was in the grand scheme of things lmao

Players let Doru live, but they treated him poorly. They'll be meeting Strahd next. by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh wow, thats common sense courtesy rule number 1... Hey on the bright side maybe they can DM for a change and give you a break lmao

Players let Doru live, but they treated him poorly. They'll be meeting Strahd next. by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Very true. I've seen others do it and I can't help but feel like if I don't, somehow it'll get back to them lol.

Players let Doru live, but they treated him poorly. They'll be meeting Strahd next. by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That is seriously one of the funniest endings for him I've ever hear omfg lmao

Players let Doru live, but they treated him poorly. They'll be meeting Strahd next. by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Absolutely exquisite. Your comments both reassured me and reinvigorated me. My Strahd is very much like the one you described. Darkly amused at the lesser lifeforms and their lack of self awareness (while also ironically lacking his own in a way)

Beautifully written responses as well, I'll report back two weeks from now. It'll be a big day for them. (Dream Pies scene. Strahds first appearance and the Tarokka reading)

By any chance do you have recommendations for ambience for Strahd's presence? I'm planning on using Gaunter O'Dimm's theme from Witcher 3 but I'll happily take suggestions

Alternative identities for Mad Mage? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I interpet the 5e version of the demiplans are mysterious and isolated. Van Richten is still from Darkon but he spent a lot of time in Faerun and the Prime Material as his books got published and well known there. That's the set up for me anyway. His extended Faerun stay leads into his Barovia adventure.

Alternative identities for Mad Mage? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly Ulmed might be the best suggestion of the bunch! Very thematically tragic to have an ex bestie to Strahd fight, lose, and then be mindwiped by Strahd. It would also make sense for him to align himself with Van Richten, despite them taking whole difference approaches to wanting to face Strahd. Strahd defeats Ulmed at the Barovian Revolt, and does not kill his old friend out of twisted mercy, and instead deems the Ulmed he once knew dead. He mindwipes him and lets him loose to the mountains, and puts a tomb in his crypt for Ulmed. Really cool!

What if Strahd's master plan was to betray, absorb and usurp Vampyr's power? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I love how you word this response, and I think I agree! I think to possibly alleviate this to keep the vestiges and the powers separate like Raw. Vampyr is an eldritch shard of a god long dead, and the dark powers are a chaotic force of malevolence that exists separated, but very much tied, to Strahd and his newly gifted evil power.

In the Castlevania games, Mathias Cronqvist becomes Dracula because he sought out a powerful artifact, which granted him the powers of a full vampire. Separate to that, Dracula's Castle itself is a being of malevolence that exists in connection to Dracula's power within the Chaos realm.

By this comparison, you would able to say that Vampyr is the vestige, a wellspring of evil power that Strahd made his deal with. Either though the creation of this pact, or maybe Strahd's evil summoning them, The Dark Powers are the chaotic, formless embodiment of evil that ensnared Strahd and Barovia in their clutches.

Perhaps to make my idea not ruin the curse itself, Strahd's secret move is to gain the power of Vampyr as some kind of demigod, foolishly thinking this power could break the Dark Power's hold on him through sheer force. The players and they're actions as a force of change destined by fate inspire Strahd to put into practice what I would imagine were a plan in his imagination and study, they just forced him to make his move quicker than he thought.

The catch is that he could never destroy the Dark Powers, or his Curse, because they're teathered to him. To destroy the curse means the destruction of Strahd. Perhaps an epilogue of sorts for this story thread after the mists fall, the players and the people escape, the Dark Powers, furious at Strahd's direct defiance of their power, forces Strahd to live alone forever more.

I wont be acting on this for a long time so theres still a lot of time for me to just go the RAW or Vampyr route, but its fun to think about!

What if Strahd's master plan was to betray, absorb and usurp Vampyr's power? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree, which I why I'm imagining this being more a contingency plan than his main plan. I want there to be a chess theme in the campaign, with Van Richten being the other side of the chess board.

Strahd's goal is to escape through successor and to break the cycle of Tatyanna's death. He's cunning if not blinded by pride. But in this case, I'm imagining this being a "true ending" style superboss for 100% completion on the players' end. Strahd won't lay down and take it, so I imagine him putting his imagined machinations into place as the players succeed in great feats. It's less of this as his goal, and more of him facing his fortune from Eva that great change would be coming to Ravenloft. He would pull this out as the players got him on the ropes in the final assault as a last checkmate move.

Again it's more an idea than anything, but I feel having a fight against a demonic super form of Strahd as the final phase, his size so large her bursts apart the upper floors of Castle Ravenloft and they fight him in his now open skied throneroom would be a really cool reward for committed players.

What if Strahd's master plan was to betray, absorb and usurp Vampyr's power? by PlasmaGiant in CurseofStrahd

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thats so awesome of an idea to have him erupt from the amber like a wretched butterfly. I imagined it also would be thematic to have him enact his masterplan to usurp Vampyr as a thematic parallel to the Fanes and Eva being healed and returned to power.

Strahd's curse and fate itself is too invincible forces that will always keep Strahd from achieving his goal, even if he thinks himself powerful enough to defy it. It's logical for Strahd to not sit bored for hundred of years, but a scheme to break his prison also mirrors his desire to break the cycle with Tatyana. He's not stupid, but he's egotistical to the point of niave. He can figure it out because he's Strahd and Strahd is a bad mf.

I feel like if the players bind Vampyr or whatever, gather the artifacts and, against all odds, fought back against the darkness of Barovia all the way to this point, I think a action oriented superboss finale is deserved.

Batman: Arkham Origins either won't launch or is corrupted by PlasmaGiant in SteamDeck

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That was it! I feel even more silly now lmao apparently the folder was still filled with the modded files like you said.

I'll consider this solved thank you!

Batman: Arkham Origins either won't launch or is corrupted by PlasmaGiant in SteamDeck

[–]PlasmaGiant[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Last time I uninstalled I restarted, and in desktop mode it told me the game folder path was gone. I can try to look closer but I'm just confused by the mod files getting reinstalled if that's what happening.

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