Will you resist or embrace the darkness within?

Darkness Within

Description

The true nature of the Demiplane of Dread is unknown. Vile, evil individuals seem to be rewarded and punished at the same time. Yet those who are pure and innocent must also suffer. Will you resist the darkness around you, or embrace it within you? Can you escape the mists?

Party Members

Bela: Female Human Monk
Clara Vallikeau: Female Human Witch (NPC) (Deceased)
Flesk Dilisnya: Male Human Warmage
Nicoleta Heartnet: Female Deathtouched Human Witch (NPC)
Tessa van Essen: Female Human Scientist (NPC) (Deceased)
Train Heartnet: Male Dhamphir Vampire Hunter
Tuliver: Male Human Shapechanger
Zerad: Male Half Vistani Dukkar (Retired)

House Rules

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Character Creation

Ability Scores: All characters should use the 4d6-1d6 generation method or the 28 point buy system. If ability scores fall well above statistical odds, it may need to be adjusted to the 28 point system.
Levels: At the beginning of the campaign, characters will begin with an ECL of 6. See the death rules for characters created after the start of the campaign. New players will be treated as having died, to respect the hard work of the existing players.
Races: Native characters must use a Ravenloft race. Outlander characters can be a race appropriate to their home world. Templates and non-standard races must be pre-approved by DM to ensure it fits within the theme of the campaign.
Classes: Native characters are limited to standard classes, Ravenloft PRCs, and Complete series PRCs. Outlander characters are limited to classes and PRCs appropriate to their home world as well as Ravenloft only classes. All non-Ravenloft PRCs must be pre-approved by the DM to ensure campaign theme compatibility.
Hit Points: All hit point rolls are assumed to be a max roll.
Wealth: Starting gold will be 50% of wealth by level noted in DMG.

Game Rules

Character Death: Unfortunately, characters die from time to time. Resurrection magic is rare, as is locating someone high enough to cast it. There may also be "side effects" of death tampering magic. Should ressurection be unavailable, a new PC can be generated and integrated at the earliest opportunity. There is an experience loss, resulting in a level loss. Experience will be set to 50% of the difference between the pre-death level and post-death level. This is not a penalty for dieing, it is a reward for those who did not die.
Story/Heroic Death: In novels and movies, there are times when a hero must sacrifice themselves for the greater good. An example might be a warrior staying behind to hold off the tides of evil to allow time for her companions to get away with the <insert good/holy item>. Knowingly sacrificing a character for the benefit of story will not incur an experience penalty for death, rather will be rewarded with an unspecified benefit. Note: This should be a rare occurance, use perhaps once or twice a campaign. The death must occur off-camera (i.e. not the result of rolls), must be declared and approved by the DM.
Fear, Horror, & Madness: A trademark of gothic horror gaming, often followed by an audible groan. We will be using the Ravenloft Fear and Horror checks as is. The Ravenloft madness effects are poorly defined, so we will be using the madness effects from the book Darkness and Dread. Try not to treat fear, horror, and madness as a penaly for bad rolling. Use the effects as an opportunity for RP. As with all roleplaying, RP of the effects of horror gaming can earn bonus experience.
Critical Hits/Successes/Fumbles: Critical hits (natural 20) always hit. Criticals must be confirmed against targets vulnerable to critical hits for critical damage to be applied, otherwise normal damage is used. Critical successes (natural 20) on non-combat checks, such as skill rolls, are treated as having a +10 untyped bonus. With a critical success, there is no go guarantee of absolute success, yet the bonus assures that failure is unlikely. Critical fumbles (natural 1) in combat and skills are always treated as a failure. With a melee attack, a critical fumble has a 20% chance of resulting in the character be stunned for the remainder of the current round and the next. Some critical fumbles can result in an enhanced failure as can other low rolls, when applicable. For example, barely failing to disarm a trap can result in no effect, but a really low roll can result in the trap being triggered.
Dark Magic: Some magic in Ravenloft functions differently than it does in other worlds. These differences are noted in the Ravenloft Players Guide and Darkness and Dread. The basic idea is that dark magic, including but not limited to necromancy and enchantment, harms the soul and body of the non-evil caster. These spells will often incur a penalty and powers check because they are so wicked. Evil casters are still subject to powers checks, however the penalty is often negated.
Equipment: Characters can buy from the DMs guide or Player's Handbook "out of game" only during character creation. After character creation the sale of loot, purchasing items, etc. must be done in game through role playing. This is because of the lack of enchanters and vendors for these items. Try using diplomacy and appraisal skills and you even get a good deal on the equipment that you need or want to sell. Do keep in mind who might have the capital to purchase your item or who you can track down to create it.

Tips and Tactics

Role-play, not Roll-play: Try to determine your character's actions by what the character would do, not the player. Sometimes the most fun is when a character must do something that makes the player groan. Use character names and speak as such. Its not necessary to use voices, but it helps us suspend disbelief when you hear a character speak, rather than hear the player paraphrase what is said.
Brains! - Not the zombie warcry, part of the fun of gothic horror is uncovering the clues and solving the puzzle. Not every foe will reveal himself openly and allow himself to be cut down. True heroes are defined by the villains they face. Superman and Lex Luthor, Van Helsing and Dracula, etc.
Boy Scout - Be prepared. Many foes have specific weaknesses which can be exploited. An otherwise impossible foe can be munchkined with some planning. Try not to put all your eggs into a single basket (weapon, spell, etc.); variety is the spice of life.
Skills - This will be a skill heavy game, try to have some knowledge, social, etc. skills available to help decifer the plot and the best way to resolve it.
Secrets - Some information on these boards is out of character, as will be cut scenes within the story. The information provided is for our enjoyment and should not be used unless your character has learned it in-game. This includes special abilities, histories, etc. There will be times in the game where only one character experiences something and the rest do not know. This inside information should not be used. Notes can be passed to the DM when secrecy is a must, however this practice slows the game and can cause intra-party conflict so use this only when necessary. Basically, trust each other to keep out of character information outside the game.
Team killing - Almost always a bad practice. Intra-party conflict is the fastest way to a party wipe and generally kills the enjoyment of the game. If your character has a personality conflict with another, help your character get over it so we can move on to the story. If your goodly character sees another do something less than noble, feel free to bring it up in character but it shouldn't come to blows. Seek a resolution and move on with the story. Success will be hinged on teamwork and trust.