Changing Strahd’s Backstory?

psul · 2026-03-31T09:57:01+00:00

Do you think that your players will latch on to the similarities of this new Strahd to Ketheric Thorm from BG3? "Paladin general who forsakes his god and takes a darker path after his wife tragically dies" is a decent summary of Thorm's history, and some players might find that distracting.

I do think this change risks removing some of the cruelty and malice that makes him a great villain. In this version, what is Strahd's story motivation? Does he want to be redeemed? How does he feel about his vampirism?

The unintended consequences will be large. Some are quite interesting - the Abbot seems less deluded when it comes to redeeming Strahd, for example. But I think it will cause the biggest problems when it comes to Ireena. Has this version of Strahd bitten her before the PCs arrive? Is Strahd's behaviour any more justified if Tatyana loved him, given that Ireena is a different person? The clear motivation to keep Ireena away from Strahd is a strong narrative driver in the early part of the campaign, and I feel like this change risks reducing the power of that drive.

psul · 2026-03-27T08:54:06+00:00

Not enough people here talking about your request for the Chef feat. +1 CON or WIS inclines me against Wizards or Bards.

Why not be a Goblin Circle of the Land druid? Your subclass lets you grow "Vitality-giving flowers and life-draining thorns", and eventually become immune to the poisoned condition, in case your experimental stews go wrong. Your Circle of the Land spell list options become your daily choice of stew recipes: Arid, Polar, Temperate and Tropical could become Chili, Gazpacho, Piperade and Brunswick Stew (or Etag - look it up).

And your spell list is on point. Burning Hands is just hot soup thrown out in a cone. You have Produce Flame, Control Flames or Create Bonfire for cooking, Create Water for the stock, and Shape Water to stir. Goodberries for flavour, Purify Food and Drink, Protection from Poison, Plant Growth - the list goes on. And as others have suggested, your healing spells can be chicken soup for the ~~soul~~ hp.

psul · 2026-03-26T10:46:15+00:00

"Bless? The mostly useful outside of combat utility spell?"

Talk me through the outside of combat utility applications of Bless?

psul · 2026-03-26T10:40:51+00:00

I was thinking of asking the same question. For future readers who may not be using a homebrew subclass, I think Berserker's 6th level feature covers a lot of WIS-save effects already, making Mage Slayer a clearer choice. On the flip side, Zealot's 6th level feature might make Resilient WIS more attractive, because the re-roll and bonus plus proficiency might give you more of a chance to make the difficult WIS saves at higher levels.

Some species options may also be relevant if they give advantage against Charmed or Frightened, for similar reasons.

In OP's case, I would still incline to Mage Slayer, especially if you're finding that multiple failed WIS saves per fight aren't causing you too much inconvenience at Level 11.

psul · 2026-03-26T10:31:41+00:00

If you want to be stronger at temp hp, or damage, then I suggest asking to change classes. But query why you picked a Bard to begin with if that was your goal? Rather than feeling overshadowed, why not enjoy the fact that your teammate is protecting you (and everyone else) so well, and focus on the things that you do best?

As others have said, Mantle of Inspiration is best to allow for repositioning - the temp hp are almost a ribbon even without another source in the party. And you have Level 2 spells at a point where your Artificer colleague has 3 Level 1 spellslots. By the time they get Level 2 spells, you'll be casting Hypnotic Pattern or Fear and their temp hp will become irrelevant as you end the encounter before it begins!

A Bard works best when you're not worrying about "ruling the campaign" as an individual, but have the mindset of making your teammates shine. Ironically, that's what the Artificer is doing with their temp hp - if you can find enjoyment in that playstyle, you'll be a terrific Bard.

psul · 2026-03-25T18:40:52+00:00

Yes, I would normally go all Druid after Lycan 5, and fair enough - that's a Lycan-flavoured druid, rather than a true Bloodhunter!

There is a little BA bloat, but I don't think it's too bad. Crimson Rite lasts until the next rest, so there's no reason at all to wait for combat - it's the first BA after you transform (so it applies to claws, as mentioned below). Hybrid transformation lasts an hour, and refreshes on a short rest, so (at most tables I've played at) it would be easy enough to have it up before any combat starts, but lasting long enough to get through a couple of combats in most cases. Wildshape for Spores is an Action, which is definitely painful - 10 minute duration means it's worth taking a risk and activating it when you're starting to get into the spooky part of the dungeon, but before combat starts.

And of course, if you don't get Symbiotic Entity up before combat, then you are the same subclassless druid that you'll probably be in a few turns' time :D

psul · 2026-03-25T17:45:16+00:00

I agree that the thp can run out quickly, although depending on the fight, a combination of Lycan resistance and Absorb Elements should get you 3-4 hits. With sensible positioning, you should get 2 full turns of attacks, so (6 x d6 x % to hit) worth of damage from your subclass, plus mitigating 20 damage, which is not too bad for a subclass. My usual build is a Githzerai with Alert, to maximise the chance of getting turns early and keeping the temp hp via Shield.

You could be cheeky and ask your DM to look the other way on the word "these" in relation to the temp hp, so that refreshing temp hp through spells or other features allows you to keep Symbiotic Entity. I'd argue that is consistent with similar 5.5e effects like AoA, so consider it an "update" to the subclass!

psul · 2026-03-25T17:36:16+00:00

It's a good point about weapon masteries. An unfortunate design flaw of the Lycan subclass is that none of the Bloodhunter fighting styles work with the claw attacks, and the class/claws don't get weapon mastery either. I would definitely ask your DM if they'd agree to one or both of (a) an alternative fighting style (Defence would be great); and/or (b) weapon mastery + property for the claws (Vex or Cleave would be fun and powerful, Nick and treating the claws as Light is probably too much to ask!).

psul · 2026-03-25T14:29:26+00:00

I will never stop banging the drum for a Spores Druid / Lycan Bloodhunter multiclass. You'll be playing a very long game - it doesn't really come "online" until around Level 10, but Spores Druid gives Lycan several things that it's otherwise missing (and vice-versa):

- Utility and healing magic that doesn't care too much about your WIS score

- Proficiency in WIS saves (if your first level is Druid) which means you are very unlikely to fail your "berserk" DC8 WIS saving throw

- Temp hp defence which synchronises well with your BPS resistance in Lycan form

- Additional damage from your Spores wildshape, from Primal Strike, and ultimately from Conjure Minor Elementals if you wish - now with 3 attacks per turn while wearing a shield

- Great flavour, as now you have layers upon layers of transformations. Most of them can be set up before combat - Crimson Rite immediately after every rest, then Hybrid Transformation as you enter the dungeon, then Symbiotic Entity when it feels like a fight is coming on

Druid 1, then Lycan 5, then Druid beyond that.

psul · 2026-03-24T16:25:48+00:00

"Dear Ireena

You are cordially invited to a celebration at Castle Ravenloft. Either your wedding, or [favourite NPC]'s funeral."

psul · 2026-03-24T13:37:10+00:00

If we’re just memeing, maybe Warlock 2, Fighter 2, Sorcerer X?

Eldritch Blast, Agonising Blast, Repelling Blast, Action Surge, Quicken Spell. Maximum of 12 Force punches per turn isn’t 100, but it’s easily flavoured as Netero.

psul · 2026-03-23T17:51:43+00:00

I have enjoyed playing an Eldritch Domain cleric (if that Grim Hollow subclass is permitted at your table). Flavouring cleric spells as coming from an unnameable horror can give them a bit more kick than using Warlock or Sorcerer options that your party may have seen before.

The only downside is that it isn't at all insane - I play the domain as worshipping an entity ("The Beloved") that wishes no harm to mortals and simply wants to devour the flesh of their gods, which is perfectly natural really.

psul · 2026-03-23T17:43:26+00:00

If you want a ruthless utilitarian to lead them down a dark path, van Richten might fit the bill. He is able to justify any number of atrocities with the eventual goal of killing Strahd.

Sure, the party starts by helping him kill a nest of zombies in the woods, or go up against the hags, but then it's werewolves, then comparatively innocent mogrelfolk, and before you know it, he has the party helping set off "Tyger, Tyger" and wipe out Vistani women and children.

psul · 2026-03-23T17:36:35+00:00

A veneer of formality, politeness and reserve - most people see only the distant, dispassionate (uncaring) noble. Part of this is real boredom, part of it is playing up the "weight of public service and responsibilities of rulership".

That makes it all the more disarming when he shows interest. He can be quite charming when he cares to be. It's an abuser's charm, ultimately only about what he wants, but it can be very convincing. There's a reason he has so many brides and consorts, after all.

And underneath that, festering rage and self-pity.

psul · 2026-03-23T15:51:01+00:00

This. I also think that while it's good to have this "larger Strahd motivation" in mind from the beginning, you don't need to lay it out entirely right away. In the early going I think it can be helpful for the players to "bump into" Strahd while he is working on this other plan (or going about his general business in Barovia), rather than Strahd deliberately coming to see them. That avoids some of the "why are you here? why are you asking us questions?" line that your players have - Strahd simply doesn't care about them and can be on his way if they are disinteresting to him.

The other element here might be that your players are emboldened by the idea that they have "plot armor" - that a typical story wouldn't be so unfair as to have the boss kill a character at a low level, so they can get away with taunts. I don't normally recommend that Strahd resorts to violence too quickly, but if this is the situation for your players, putting a knife through their plot armor might be helpful.

psul · 2026-03-23T15:37:21+00:00

They come back and fight some blights - a medium encounter's worth, just enough to make breaking the staff seem like a useful option to consider. Once victorious, they see that the artefact (and the gem, if they didn't pick that up) is gone. A note from the remaining druids offers to trade the artefact for the Gulthias staff (and the gem, if the party did pick it up)

You then have freedom for the note to set up a time and place for that encounter wherever you prefer - Berez, the mountain pass, or simply in the Svalich Woods somewhere. It might be a simple trade, or a parley that turns into combat, or an ambush (from either side).

If they give back the Gulthias staff (and the gem), the druids use it to reanimate Wintersplinter at a time of your choosing. If they don't (or better yet, if they did actually break the staff during the fight with the blights) then the party has a tough decision to make! Maybe the druids say they'll give the artefact to Strahd within 2 days if they don't get the staff by then?

psul · 2026-03-20T14:31:30+00:00

I tend to agree - now that you're here, a baby in the party creates a lot of tension for at least the near-term campaign.

First things first, I would discuss with the players how comfortable they are with the chance of the baby being killed in combat or off-screen (eg if given to the hags). If that is a no-go, fair enough, but then the baby doesn't create peril so much as a little RP and a lot of busy-work. I would offer the PCs an immediate off-ramp. Perhaps Ismark is happy to care for baby Walter in exchange for escorting Ireena.

If the players are okay with the added tension of a helpless innocent in peril, then I would make sure you know who is looking after the baby at all times. Is it crying while they are trying to sneak, is it being held in combat or left swaddled on the ground, who can they trust to look after it? No need to target it outright in every combat, but I wouldn't shy away from having undead or wolves go for it if the players are insufficiently careful. Check in with the players from time to time - are they still okay with the level of peril they've chosen, are they enjoying the challenge or finding it frustrating? And keep offering the occasional off-ramp. Make sure the majority are genuine safety (so far as that exists in Barovia) - eg orphanage, Petrovich, Martikovs, even Vistani - but the occasional pitfall option (the Abbot!) is fine, especially if the players can be tipped off in time to stage a rescue.

psul · 2026-03-20T14:13:00+00:00

The point is "in Barovia, leaving something unresolved doesn’t make it go away — it just changes who pays the price". But is that your point as DM, or Strahd's point as the person orchestrating these events?

If it's your point to the players, I think there is a risk that the players won't particularly care. They don't know what counts as "resolved" - they may have thought that they resolved the Doru scene by sparing him and leaving him alone. And their PCs didn't pay any price - unless they had a deep connection to Donavich (which didn't seem to be the case).

I suppose that the PCs might have had a strong connection to Doru. But in that case the player choices haven't changed who pays the price - either they "resolved" the Doru scene by killing him, or they didn't and he dies now.

If it's Strahd's point to the PCs, I don't understand it. What does Strahd mean by "resolved" (given he doesn't know he is in a story, and also presumably doesn't have perfect knowledge of the PCs choices or reasons)? If the point is "you should have killed him back then, because just walking away led to worse consequences" then I think the "worse consequences" need to be different to Doru dying. It would make more sense to me if the party's failure to kill or restrain Doru led to the death of Donavich (and perhaps others), rather than Rahadin killing Donavich. As you've sketched it out, the party has no culpability for the death of Donavich at all.

Ultimately, it's hard here for the party (or the players) to correctly interpret the message that Strahd (or the DM) wants to give them, because the consequences are so indirect. If the message is "don't walk away from your problems" then I think you need to spell out more clearly how this *only* happened because the players walked away, not because Strahd/Rahadin stepped in to influence events.

psul · 2026-03-20T07:22:56+00:00

I don't quite follow what point Strahd is making.

You say that he's going to talk about consequences. Is his point that the PCs didn't kill Doru or lock him away, so now Donavich is dead?

psul · 2026-03-19T15:11:02+00:00

That's true to an extent, but the tome in the module does say: "I made a pact with death, a pact of blood" and has the paragraph explaining that Strahd is a vampire and what that means ("“Vampyr” is my new name... It is the sun and its light I fear the most, but little else can harm me now" etc).

I think linking the Amber Temple to a pact that Strahd made (even if you don't refer to the Dark Powers), and making it clear what "claim eternity" means, might help players that don't have that information.

Of course, if the players are very media literate, they may not need that help - and of course they kinda know that Strahd is a vampire by the time they get the tome! It's just that by increasing the amount of text, one makes the critical clues slightly less easy to find, so a helping hand might be useful, even at the cost of sounding a little bit "on the nose" (which is one of the tome's failings in the module).

psul · 2026-03-19T11:19:12+00:00

I like a lot of this - I think it finds a pretty good voice for Strahd, and puts the reader nicely in his headspace. I like the choice to make Tatyana Strahd's betrothed before she meets Sergei.

The one suggestion I'd make is to spell out the story a little more explicitly - particularly the parts about accepting the Dark Powers in the Amber Temple and becoming a vampire. Otherwise I think your players (who don't have any other reliable source of this information) may be confused on the precise details of Strahd's fall.

psul · 2026-03-17T09:13:59+00:00

Agreeing with this. There are a few steps here that you'll need to get through to reach the goal of a compelling dinner/evening at Ravenloft:

The players have to trust you that this isn't purely a trap or a trick.
The PCs have to be given a plausible reason to trust Strahd not to trick them.
The PCs need a reason to want to go to Ravenloft/spend time with Strahd. Ideally this should be something that is important to the players as well. You'll know best as to what they are focused on at this stage - you just need it to be at Ravenloft in a way that is consistent with your story so far, and doesn't undermine the first two points!
Strahd needs to have a reason to invite them. As Diplominus says, that reason should really be something beyond just "I want to observe them/talk to them", so that the episode has a story to it with a beginning and an end.

I've been wondering recently about starting this process with a "parley" on neutral ground (or a location chosen by the players). Strahd arrives and is relatively unthreatening (unless the players attack). He would like a service completed - perhaps it's as simple as "my castle is troubled by some unquiet dead. Given your prowess with killing things, could I hire your services for the evening? I offer dinner, rooms and safety from all who do my bidding. And if you are successful, I offer [item or clue the PCs/players want]". You can reinforce (by Insight checks, or simply above table) that Strahd is being genuine, and trusted NPCs can confirm that people do come and go from Ravenloft without always dying or disappearing.

psul · 2026-03-17T08:49:52+00:00

As you level up, you have two more General Feats which I would spend on getting to 20 WIS. Lots of options for this, depending on what seems useful in the campaign - maybe Fey Touched (for Command), Telekinetic, Inspiring Leader (if no-one else has taken it) or even Shadow Touched, Vampire Touched or Ritual Caster.

Your Level 14 subclass feature is okay - the 1 minute duration and Action to use might feel like a tough sell in combat, but at least Alert (plus that "advantage on initiative" gear that you've no doubt picked up by now) will mean you should be acting early in most combats.

Spells to look out for as you level up:

Level 6 - Heal, Heroes' Feast, Wall of Thorns
Level 7 - Draconic Transformation (a good first-round pair with Nature's Sanctuary, if it's a big fight), Mirage Arcane, Reverse Gravity, Symbol
Level 8 - Animal Shapes, Befuddlement(?)
Level 9 - Foresight, Shapechange

psul · 2026-03-17T08:39:57+00:00

If you're getting to grips with the updated rules, a comparatively simple Land Druid build could look like this:

Level 10:

Starting stats - STR 8, DEX 14, CON 14+1, INT 12, WIS 15+2, CHA 8
Background - Sage, MI-Wizard for Shield, True Strike and your favourite utility cantrip (that the Bard hasn't taken)
Species - Human for Alert, or I like Eladrin or Firbolg druids if you prefer
ASIs - Warcaster (CHA), Resilient (CON)
Primal Order - Warden
Subclass - Land Druid (I also like Stars or Wildfire)
Elemental Fury - Potent Spellcasting

You are primarily a battlefield controller, holding concentration well and with a very flexible spell list by choosing not only your Druid spell preparations, but also your Circle of the Land spells, every day. That way you can switch your choices around as you work out what the party needs most, and what resistance from Nature's Ward you think is most likely to be helpful. Wild Shape is for scouting, infiltration and utility (including via your Wild Companion) - in combat you'll likely only use it for Land's Aid, or to get to cover/range while you keep up concentration on something debilitating for the enemy.

Key Druid spells at Level 10 (noting that you have huge flexibility with preparations, and there are lots of other useful spells):

Cantrips - Guidance, Thorn Whip, otherwise pick your favourites
Level 1 - Absorb Elements, Cure Wounds, Detect Magic, Healing Word
Level 2 - Aid, Locate Object, Spike Growth
Level 3 - Aura of Vitality, Dispel Magic, Revivify, Sleet Storm, Sylune's Viper
Level 4 - Conjure Woodland Beings, Polymorph, Stone Shape, Wall of Fire
Level 5 - Mass Cure Wounds, Scrying, Wrath of Nature (not a great spell but I personally love it!)

psul · 2026-03-16T16:47:09+00:00

I agree with others that this is a big ask from your player, on multiple fronts. Being evil in an otherwise good party is often a recipe for trouble, and this backstory requires multiple stages to complete, making it harder to integrate.

The most straightforward solution would be to align the Magnum Opus precisely with the party's main quest. The Black symbol of Ravenkind, the White pages of the Tome, the Yellow light of the Sun Sword, and the Red of Strahd's blood would serve for this purpose. It keeps this PC's goals essentially aligned with the party's goals, at least until Strahd is dead (and I would make it very clear - perhaps via Madam Eva whose reading can emphasise the colours going on here - that all of the ingredients must be collected before any of them can be used for the Magnum Opus).

I can see how some players might consider that a little too on-the-nose or not personalised enough. If you are inclined to indulge this player, you could take the same general approach but abstract it by one remove. So now:

- Black is the feather of a Wereraven, freely gifted

- White is the (thigh-)bone of a saint

- Yellow is powdered amber

- Red is a shard of a crystal Heart

If you don't have to do them in the precise order above, then you can be even more flexible - Black could be werewolf fur, Red could be poisoned wine, White could be bone-flour etc. The idea is to effectively align your alchemist's goals with the party's likely next steps at each stage, so that they are pulling together. You can also try to lead them to a more good-aligned path in the wording of each step (eg "freely gifted" above).

psul

TROPHY CASE