September is here and we slowly drift into Autumn.

August Review

Berez locations were wrapped up with the Baba Lysaga encounter, along with some more player handouts. I will be updating the Berez Hex Crawl with these new locations. However, most of the month was dedicated to Argynvostholt, which is another big location. I expanded the content and the lore, and the Argynvostholt Guide Part 1 (first 2 floors and lore) is released, I am wrapping up Part 2 and the video this week for the PDF and Module release. DM Andy’s Map was inspirational, and it is one of my favorites to date. You may have noticed the Spider Revenants and hints of the Spider Queen; this will be a short optional side quest as one of the five Suffering Quests from Argynvostholt.

Release Schedule

  • Argynvostholt Release (with Guide Pt 2)
  • Spider Queen side quest (near Argynvostholt)
  • Updates to Berez Hex crawl
  • Updates to Atlas of Barovia

Ravenloft

The next big location is the end game, Ravenloft. DM Andy has begun working on the maps and I am writing expanded and additional content. This will certainly take some time and we may see the first map and guide released by the end of September. This is a massive location, so it will require several maps and guides. I will keep you posted as the maps and guides are released. I am so excited!!!!

Foundry V9+

As you know Foundry V10 is released, but because of some significant changes to the new code, my older modules will not load properly.

Never fear, Blair of Scene Packer is here!
Blair spent considerable time figuring out how to make our V9 modules forward compatible for V10. Thus, I have some work to do. My first order of business will be making all the modules V9+ compatible, I may make some additional tweaks to the modules, but for now, the focus will be on compatibility for 10, with the new V9+ versions. These are still designed for V9 and in V9 but will be compatible with V10, hence them being called V9+. This is a priority as several people will be upgrading to V10 (a few have already).

Edited Guides

Coming soon, are our new updated guides. My long-term goal is to create professional guides and modules for Legend of Barovia, which means they need the discerning eye, constructive criticism, and editing that only a professional editor can bring. This is a significant endeavor, and I am excited to be working with a professional editor, Jesse Winters of Duo Storytelling. The first of the edited guides, Campaign Start, is almost complete. The goal is to release these in order, two a month.

The new guides will be released in two formats, a FREE print-friendly version (no graphics) for WotC Fan Content Policy and the Premium Color version with new graphics for the PDF supporters.

Why free? I had a choice of making them available at a premium on DMS Guild, but I thought why not share it with the wonderful RPG community under the FREE Fan Content Policy? At the end of the day, my desire is for everyone, regardless of their circumstances, to enjoy the Legends of Barovia campaign. This also allows me to continue to provide the premium version, with additional bonus content for the supporters, who help pay for this amazing journey.

The new edited guides will also be released for Foundry V10 when I begin the full round of updates, with all the new V10 feature sets. This is planned for January, as the rest of the year is focused on the Ravenloft and additional content.

French Supporters

Tixu has done an amazing job translating our PDF guides to French and sharing his amazing artwork with our community. As our French supporters continue to grow, we have added a #french-members section to our Discord Server, where Tixu can provide French-translated content and support our growing international family. A huge thank you and please welcome Tixu as our new French moderator.

Discord Server

If you want to keep up to date with the latest news, features, help, tips, and ideas, please join us on our Discord Server.

Our Discord Server is active with stories, art, advice, and a wonderful group of people. Along with Tixu, our new moderators, CryptoKaiju and HawksTalon, have been instrumental in helping supporters with session prep, encounter ideas, DM tips, and so much more. They are both RPG addicts as well, keeping a close eye on new releases. Make sure to say hello.

Gothic 5e

I continue to work on it in between the Curse of Strahd guides. I am planning for a release after the completion of Ravenloft. I am very excited about this, as it is based on the 5e SRD and I am focusing on a Grim Dark / Gothic gameplay, which I believe will fit the Legend of Barovia Campaign like a glove.

What Next?

I get this question a lot and I decided.

A full reboot of Ghost of Saltmarsh!

It is an amazing setting, but it feels very disjointed and ironically is missing both ghosts and nautical adventures. I had played both The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh and Danger at Dunwater back in the early 1980s, so some nostalgia draws me to it. Additionally, I had spent significant time in the Caribbean and Central America, and have sailed most of my life, which means pirate blood runs through these veins. I have had some intense and wild adventures when backpacking through Central America, which I can draw inspiration from. One of my favorite pirate books, On Stranger Tides, by Tim Powers (also one of my favorite authors), is choked full of amazing content and story beats to draw inspiration from which I would love to weave into a Saltmarsh campaign. Of course, I will also revamp the Gothic 5e ruleset to lean into a Pirate/Nautical set. This project will start in January, stay tuned for more announcements.

Thank You, Supporters!

This amazing journey happens because of you, the supporters.

We are almost at 800 supporters, and I could not be more encouraged and excited. Your support has helped me invest in professional editing and I have some more surprises in store. None of this happens without your support. Thank you for supporting me on this wonderful journey.

Special Thanks

DM Andy – His beautiful maps fire my passion and inspiration. I am excited and looking forward to Ravenloft. Say hello to DM Andy on our Discord!

Blair (Scene Packer) – Blair has been amazing in helping bring Legend of Barovia to Foundry. I can’t thank him enough for his support and for providing help and support to our community on Discord.

James RPG Art – His amazing theater of the mind images brings Barovia to life. I highly recommend his animated versions.

Jesse Winters (editor) – The new edited guides are looking amazing, and I look forward to bringing you professionally edited and updated guides.