LANTERNS IN THE FOG - Open World Horror Campaign in Ravenloft
In the Land of Mists, all paths through the fog lead to horror. Will you be a flickering light in the dark, or another soul lost to the gloom forever?
$20.00
/ Session
Details
Weekly / Sunday - 4:00 PM UTC
Session Duration / 3.5–4 hours
0 / 6 Seats Filled
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About the adventure
A scream shatters the still gloom. Inhuman shapes slip between crumbling tombs. The shadows reach forth. Do instincts and imagination conspire against you? Or have otherworldly evils claimed you, drawing you into the Mists of Ravenloft? The Domains of Dread are eerie realms separated by a thick sea of fog, each ruled by a Darklord who subjects the land's inhabitants to their own unique brand of terror. While most souls in this land are doomed to suffer in the gloomy villages, decaying cities, and treacherous wildernesses they were born into, a small few, like you, choose to traverse the Mists and brave the dangers of other domains. But travelers like yourself soon realize that no place in this land is safe; whenever one horror is outrun, a new one is waiting just around the next corner... This is a highly narrative-centered sandbox campaign that mixes numerous genres of horror, so that the next scare will always keep you guessing; your choices as a party, rather than any pre-determined sequences of events, decide the direction of the story. Going off the rails is not only accepted, but encouraged and rewarded in my games! At 1st-Level, your adventure begins with a cryptic letter inviting you to the House of Lament, a notoriously haunted manor house where tormented spirits from across the ages stir within the walls. Beyond this 3-5 session introductory adventure, it's up to you to chart your own path through the dread domains. Will you hunt vampires in the gloomy valley of Barovia? Run from werewolves in the eerie singing forests of Kartakass? Perhaps you will delve into the tombs of ancient mummies in Har'Akir, explore haunted manors in the moors of Mordent, or discover what lurks beneath the churning Sea of Sorrows. If you're especially ill-fated, you might be abducted by mind flayers and taken to the alien realm of Bluetspur for bizarre experiments, or conscripted to become cannon fodder against tides of flesh-eating zombies in Falkovnia. Ravenloft has something to terrify everyone--that said, these lands are not without hope. Heroes are rare in Ravenloft, but when they appear, they shine like beacons against the blackest night. Accept the plot hooks that interest you and your character, or set your own goals and experience adventures driven by your own ambitions! The threats and dangers in these lands are not scaled to your party's level, so you'll have to be strategic about what challenges you take on, if you want to make it through the journey in one piece. Whether you enjoy strategic combat or elaborate roleplay, there is something for you here. However, the spotlight will always rest first and foremost upon the story and the characters: the heroes (you), and the villains you will face upon your quest. Tread lightly, and keep your lantern burning bright—or you may just find out why they say the night is a curse...
Game style
Roleplay Heavy
Rules as Written (RaW)
Sandbox / Open World
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
5.0
(3)
Less than a year on StartPlaying
Highly rated for: Sets the Mood, Storytelling, Voices
Average response time: 8 hours
Response rate: 100%
About me
Hi! I'm Moth! I have been a GM for eight years. I started in high school with a group of three friends, and since then I have run more campaigns than I can count, both in person and online. I love bringing new players into the fold, as well as running games for veterans. My main system is D&D 5.5e, particularly spooky games in the Ravenloft setting! Outside of TTRPGs, I work at a public library, and have occasionally done work on the side as a drag queen and scare actor. Horror is a great passion of mine, and all of my games will probably involve horror in some capacity or another. Creepypasta was my first introduction to horror (my brother kept me awake all night reading me scary stories), and since then, from H.P. Lovecraft to Junji Ito to Bram Stoker, my obsession with all things creepy and macabre has only grown more insatiable! When I discovered D&D's Ravenloft setting, it was the perfect marriage of two things I loved: tactical fantasy combat and atmospheric, character-driven horror. Now I hope to share these dreadful imaginary worlds with as many people as I can!
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
💀 Start at 1st-Level 💀 Use your choice of physical or digital character sheet 💀 Roll for ability scores (with thresholds) 💀 Take the average die roll for HP when leveling up 💀 You may choose any option from the following sourcebooks: Player's Handbook (2024), Xanathar's Guide to Everything, Tasha's Cauldron of Everything, Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse, Fizban's Treasury of Dragons, Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants, The Book of Many Things, Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft, and Astarion's Book of Hungers. Additionally, if one of the options from these sources has been updated since its release (such as the Bladesinger and Artificer from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything being updated in Forgotten Realms: Heroes of Faerûn and Eberron: Forge of the Artificer), use the updated version. You can also use subclasses from the 2014 Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide that haven't received 5.5 updates yet, such as the School of Necromancy Wizard or the Death Domain Cleric. 💀 Backgrounds from pre-2024 sources are not allowed. You may only select Backgrounds from the Player's Handbook (2024) or Astarion's Book of Hungers. 💀 During Session Zero, we will discuss whether or not evil-aligned characters are allowed. 💀 No lone wolves or characters who refuse to cooperate with the party. Your character must have a reason to stick with the group. If your character ever decides they would rather go off on their own, it's time to retire that character until they decide to join back up with the party. 💀 Your character is from one of the Domains of Dread. If you are unfamiliar with the setting, don't worry! I will provide a brief, spoiler-free description of each Domain so you can pick one for your character's homeland. While it's not a rule, I highly encourage you NOT to look through the Domain descriptions in Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft if you haven't already, so you can experience them as fresh as possible. 💀 Write a 100-150 word backstory. Any other details can be retroactively filled in as we play. 💀 Pick two things your character is afraid of.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
If you don't have one already, create a Discord account and an Owlbear Rodeo account (both are free).
What Moth brings to the table
🎶 Music, ambience, and sound effects via PocketBard and curated playlists! 🗺️ Immersive maps and tokens through Owlbear Rodeo! 🛒 3rd-party content purchased from DMsGuild, directly supporting independent creators! 🎲 8 years of GMing experience, running horror games in Ravenloft for nearly half of that time! ✒️ Detailed session summaries each week! 📚 Expertise in the lore of Ravenloft and the rules of D&D 5e! 🧭 Personalized adventures and encounters catered towards your interests as a player! 🌍 An open world where your choices matter and you can achieve anything you set your mind to, provided you have the wits and skill to pull it off! 🎭 Storytelling and roleplaying-focused sessions with tactical, dynamic combat when violence does occur! 🏳️🌈 All-inclusive, queer-friendly table! I WILL NOT KNOWINGLY USE ANY AI-GENERATED CONTENT IN MY GAMES (artwork, writing, music, etc.). All artwork, writing, and music used is 100% made by humans. Please see my profile for more information on how I will help you find the perfect, human-made portrait for your character!!!
Homebrew rules
TERROR: You step on a rusty nail while trying to sneak past a masked killer. You drop your weapon when think the monster is dead, only for it to suddenly lunge at you again. Your torch suddenly burns out just as you catch a glimpse of a pale figure scuttling towards you in the darkness. Horror stories are full of moments like these, where it seems like the universe itself is conspiring against the protagonists. The Terror mechanic is meant to simulate this feeling by introducing complications into the narrative at dramatic moments, while giving the GM a limited resource to incur such complications, and giving the players agency to resist them. Every time a player rolls a Natural 1 on a d20 test, the GM gains 1 Terror. At any point during the session, the GM can spend Terror to introduce complications into the narrative. This could be anything from enemy reinforcements appearing during combat, to the rope you're climbing fraying mid-ascent, to a hated NPC coincidentally arriving at the same tavern as you. Terror represents rotten luck rather than a failure of skill, so player characters can't make a saving throw or ability check to resist the effects of Terror. However, a player can mitigate the effects by spending Heroic Inspiration, or XP (1/5th of the XP required to reach their next level, e.g. 60 XP at Level 1 or 120 XP at Level 2). During particularly climactic moments, the GM may declare Horror Mode. While Horror Mode is active, the threshold for incurring Terror rises every time a player rolls beneath it. For example, the first time a player rolls a 1, the threshold is raised to 1-2, then 1-3, then 1-4, and so on until Horror Mode ends. Horror Mode typically lasts until the climactic moment is resolved, whether through victory, retreat, or some other means. OTHER HOUSE RULES TO BE DISCUSSED AT SESSION ZERO
Equipment needed to play
Internet
Computer
Microphone
Platforms used
Safety
How Moth creates a safe table
I believe that horror can be a great way to confront the things we fear in real life in a safe place where the threat isn't real, and we can walk away at any time. It's very important to me that everyone's boundaries are respected in my games, and so I will be doing my best to foster communication and get consent before introducing themes that may be upsetting. Starting at Session 0, I will be opening a Lines and Veils document that anyone can view. That being said, expect that anything in the Content Warnings section will come up in game. If there's a particular topic that you don't want in your game at all, please let me know so I can ensure that it doesn't appear.
Content warnings
Safety tools used