MAIN QUEST: The Fanes of Barovia
Strahd has taken over the land of Barovia from the original forces of good. It is up to the players to restore order to the valley by purifying the Shrines of the Ladies Three. Doing this will greatly weaken Strahd and will further aid in his destruction.
Themes
The worship of the Ladies usually came in the form of minor religious practices and offerings. Such as: "The best fruits from the first harvest" or "the antlers of a buck we killed on hunt." Sometimes the people left small, carved statues or other bits of artistic labor. The practices were usually communes with nature, where folk would wonder into the woods and live entirely alone in respect for the Ladies. Those who survived would return home spiritually awakened. Other rituals were long nights spent in respect and worship or village wide pilgrimages to the major shrines.
Structure
Exposition
In ye olde time, long before the Morning Lord, the people of Barovia believed in the Weave. Basically, the Weave represents the fabric of the world and the passage of time. The Threads of Fate are the theoretical strings that make up the grander Weave. While most of this old religion has been lost to time, the Vistani still believe in the ThreadsLong before Strahd came and civilized the valley, Barovia was once a wild land. The valley was largely populated by scattered familial villages, usually no larger than a couple dozen people living in three or four houses to a village. These people were used to the harsh landscape and were overall hearty, somewhat barbaric people. In addition, there were also groups of forest folk (druids) that lived in the wilds and didn't settle. The settled people and the forest folk have had a famously tumultuous relationship over the centuries, with periods of hate and periods of peace scattered across history. In a general sense, the land was separated into three Fanes, or environments: The Swamp Fane, the Forest Fane, and the Mountain Fane.
The Ladies Three. The original residents of the valley worshiped a trio of Archfey that were magically connected to the three fanes of the land. Because of their magical nature, these Archfey were literally "the land." They were:
1. The Weaver from the Swamp Fane
2. The Huntress from the Mountain Fane
3. The Seeker of the Forest Fane.
The Ladies of the Wood almost never showed themselves to the people that worshiped them. Instead, they would appear in auguries, dreams, and omens, speaking through the mouths of animals and in the wind that mused the leaves on the trees. The people of the valley used to worship the Ladies through a series of shrines scattered across the land, some small and some large. The three most prominent shrines were located inside large stone circles that still stand during the present time of the campaign:
1. The Swamp Shrine is the circle of stones in Berez.
2. The Mountain Shrine is the circle atop Yesterhill.
3. The Forest Shrine is the collection of monoliths behind Old Bonegrinder.
Rising Action
The Ladies presided over the valley until Strahd conquered the land. Strahd, seeing the power of the fanes, desecrated the three main shrines to the ladies and reconsecrated them in his own image, giving him dominion over the valley. Now, Strahd is literally, "The Land." By taking over the Fanes, Strahd has the following benefits:
1. The permanent protection of a nondetection spell
2. Resistance to Fire, Cold, and Lightning damage
3. +4 to his Armor Class
With the combined control of all three Fanes, he controls the waters, winds, and wildlife in the valley. The only of Strahd's environmental powers that does not come from the Fanes is the ever overcast sky. That comes from Vampyr.
Plot type
Quest
Related Locations
