How to prepare

We will be using Zoom for voice and video chat. A good mic is a necessity and I always recommend a camera as well but it is not a requirement. A chrome based browser is best for VTT use. You will need a free account on D&D Beyond to access all of the character creation resources I make available via the campaign link. Games are run on either Roll20 or Foundry. Roll20 requires a free account. Foundry will require a free account at Forge-VTT.com.

What I provide

💖 Most importantly, you will always be guaranteed a safe place to be who you are. Everyone of every stripe is welcome at my table and I will not put up with any personal attacks or derogatory language toward any real-world person. It's a horror game, and bad things happen *in-game* but it will never be allowed to flow out of the game. 🧠 Experience. I've run this campaign many times already. I have researched it exhaustively, and I know what it needs for an epic story to be told. ⚰️ Significant homebrew improvements and changes to the story. Even if you've played this adventure before, I will likely bring quite a bit of new material to the story for you. 🎼 Professional quality soundscapes and music through VTT. 🎨 GORGEOUS map and token assets, many created/kit-bashed together specifically for this campaign 🎭 Passionate and Descriptive story-telling. As a theater geek and writer, I will bring my A-game to our table and do my utmost to tell this story as immersively as possible. 👨‍👨‍👦‍👦 A Discord Community for campaign tracking, In character and out of character chat, and making new RPG friends 📚 Full access to every official WOTC D&D book catalog published for 5th edition character creation 💎 Premium accounts on both the VTT and DNDBeyond ⚔️ Creative and challenging combat scenarios. In this world, the things that go bump in the night know what they are doing. 👂 An open line of communication with me as the DM. Feel free to reach out to me any time via Discord direct message and I will get back to you as soon as possible. I am always happy to talk shop, character ideas, answer questions, and discuss any concerns that come up during the game.

Gameplay details

This will be the beginning of the Curse of Strahd campaign, taking characters through the first major story beats of this epic campaign. The story will continue in future chapters which will always be open to returning players as well as new players who fit the group dynamic well. Session Zero will be handled asynchronously via Discord Chat, though I am available for a voice session if that will help you with any decision making challenges that arise. Character creation and updates will be handled via D&DBeyond, using my Master Account, which includes access to 17 official Character Creation books. We will be playing with a number of modifications to the basic rules to help ratchet up the sense of risk and dread that truly makes Ravenloft sing! Character death is a VERY real possibility...though...there could be ways to circumvent such a permanent end, if the price is not too rich... Tools in place for player comfort: *Thorough Session Zero to discuss expectations for players and DM alike. Clear establishment of soft-stop (veils) and hard-stop (lines) subjects. * During active game play we will be using the X-card method to establish if the story is moving in an uncomfortable direction (a veil or line is on the horizon) when ever a player would like to take a moment to discuss, gather themselves, or request a specific change.

Content warnings

Safety tools used

How will character creation work

Characters will start at Level 1 for this campaign and level up to level 12 to 15 depending on the paths you take. Stats can either be 5e standard point buy or you can roll for them in the game's discord dice channel (Dice rolls are 4d6-drop lowest 7 times). Characters will be created in D&D Beyond with approved content sources only to ensure your characters will fit well in a gothic horror story. Please avoid reading any of the Curse of Strahd content available in official or unofficial sources. Let this story be revealed naturally so you get to enjoy the surprises!

Combat / Tactics

High

Roleplay

High

Puzzles

Low

Experience level

Open to all