 Cover art by Robh Ruppel | |
| Author | William W. Connors |
|---|---|
| Genre | Horror role-playing game |
| Publisher | TSR |
Publication date | 1994 |
Masque of the Red Death and Other Tales, subtitled "Terror in the 1890s", was published by TSR in 1994 as an alternate campaign setting for the horror fantasy role-playing game Ravenloft , which itself uses the rules from the 2nd edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons .
Masque of the Red Death, which takes its name from the short story by Edgar Allen Poe, is set on an alternate history Earth in the 1890s in a setting called "Gothic Earth." [1]
Red Death refers to a malevolent entity spawned in ancient Egypt during the "golden age of magic." It has slowly gained power through the centuries, promoting violence and catalyzing disasters using the undead and the insane. [1] By the late 19th century, Gothic Earth is tottering on the edge of the abyss. The characters, as members of the secret society called "Enlightened Age", fight avatars of the Red Death
Masque of the Red Death is set on Earth in the 1890s in a setting called "Gothic Earth." [1] There is a strong connection to the supernatural as well as characters mentioned in legends and literature. For example, necromancers practice dark arts among the slave traders of New Orleans, while spirit creatures stalk the settlers of the American West, and Sherlock Holmes shares a railroad car with Count Dracula.
Although the game uses rules similar to the previously published Ravenloft, this is a completely new setting, with no carry-over in characters or storylines from the original setting. Also, unlike the basic Ravenloft setting, where mysterious mists divide the realm into distinct settings, the Gothic Earth setting has no divisions. [2]
Since sword-bearing warriors and robed wizards would be out of place in Gothic Earth, the usual character classes of AD&D (fighter, wizard, cleric, thief) have been modified to soldier, merchant, adept and mystic, with several subclasses for each such as athlete, detective and explorer. [3]
Players can also select character kits from a list of vocations such as Cavalryman, Journalist, and Laborer. Nonweapon proficiencies, optional in the standard AD&D game, are required here; among the choices are Chemistry, Photography, and Criminology. [2]
The boxed set includes
TSR published the horror campaign setting Ravenloft in 1983 that combined traditional AD&D with a horror vampire-centered setting. In 1994, TSR released an alternative Ravenloft setting, Masque of the Red Death and Other Tales, a boxed set designed by William W. Connors, with contributions by DJ Heinrich, Shane Lacy Hensley, and Colin Moulder-McComb, cover art by Robh Ruppel, interior art by Stephen Fabian and Ned Dameron, and cartography by David Sutherland III. [3]
TSR subsequently released two supplements, The Gothic Earth Gazetteer (1995), and A Guide to Transylvania (1996). [4]
In 2004, White Wolf Games released a D20 System version of the setting in hardback under the Sword and Sorcery imprint.
In Issue 21 of Australian Realms, Colin Taber commented that the boxed set was "packed with high quality bits and pieces." Taber also felt the three adventure modules were "good value and a great starting point for a Red Death Ravenloft campaign." However Taber did point out the map of Gothic Earth included "the Commonwealth of Australia, a nation which didn't yet exist." Taber concluded that this game had revived his interest in the Ravenloft setting, and suggested, "For those interested in this genre, give it a good look over." [1]
In the April 1995 issue of Realms of Fantasy , Mark Sumner felt that Masque of the Red Death fixed what he thought was the problem of the original Ravenloft game, "the poor fit between TSR's traditional sword-swinging dungeon crawling AD&D universe and the very Victorian horror elements of Ravenloft ... this is what Ravenloft should have been in the first place." Sumner was enthused about this game, saying, "Finally, finally, I can send a character out with a cross in one pocket and a revolver in another ... this is the gaming experience I had been hoping to find ever since horror RPGs started landing on the shelves." Sumner concluded, "It takes [Ravenloft] from near the bottom of my Favorite Game World list to right up to the top." [5]
In Issue 86 of the French games magazine Casus Belli , Fabrice Colin commented on the risk of modifying a favorite setting like Ravenloft, saying, "With an impressive number of modifications, additions and corrections, the authors took the plunge and offered us a product that was ultimately honest. However, fans of Bram Stoker, Robert Louis Stevenson or Arthur Conan Doyle risk being disappointed: the literate prose does not succeed in masking a truly Manichean and yet confusingly banal background." Ultimately, Colin was torn in two directions, writing, "Certainly, we have here a universe sufficiently created and documented to allow long hours of play, three good scenarios ... plus a very beautiful map and a screen, all for a very reasonable price. But we can also see TSR's attempt to pass off AD&D as a universal system suitable for all eras, when that is not the case." Colin concluded, "Those who detest [AD&D] can easily turn to other products ( Cthulhu by Gaslight or Castle Falkenstein ) to taste the delights of the Victorian era. Others can try this experience: it will certainly differ from the Forgotten Realms." [6]
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension or demiplane, called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called "domains", brought together by a mysterious force known only as the Dark Powers. Each domain is tailored to and mystically ruled by a being called a Darklord who is forever trapped and surrounded by magical mists surrounding the domain. Strahd von Zarovich, a vampire in the original AD&DRavenloft I6 module released in 1983, became the first Darklord, both ruler and prisoner of his own personal domain of Barovia. The story of how Count von Zarovich became Darklord of Barovia was detailed in the 1993 novel I, Strahd: The Memoirs of a Vampire. As originally established in the Ravenloft: Realm of Terror boxed set known as "the Black Box" released in 1990, the Ravenloft campaign setting was located in the Ethereal Plane. As a physical manifestation of that plane, lands, monsters and even people were created out of the mysterious mists, and the realm acted as a prison where one could enter or be transported, but means of escape were few. Other Ravenloft Domains and Darklords were eventually added in various AD&D 2nd edition products establishing a core continent attached around Barovia which could be traveled to by others if their respective lords allowed entering or leaving their borders; while some Domains remained isolated in the mists and were referred to as Islands.
Ravenloft is an adventure module for the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game. The American game publishing company TSR, Inc. released it as a standalone adventure booklet in 1983 for use with the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game. It was written by Tracy and Laura Hickman, and includes art by Clyde Caldwell with maps by David Sutherland III. The plot of Ravenloft focuses on the villain Strahd von Zarovich, a vampire who pines for his lost love. Various story elements, including Strahd's motivation and the locations of magical weapons, are randomly determined by drawing cards. The player characters attempt to defeat Strahd and, if successful, the adventure ends.
Count Strahd von Zarovich is a fictional character originally appearing as the feature villain in the highly popular Advanced Dungeons and Dragons adventure module I6: Ravenloft. Later, this character and his world would be explored in follow-up modules, novels, and the Ravenloft campaign setting. Within this setting, Strahd is the first and best-known of Ravenloft's darklords. He is a powerful ancient vampire. He is also a master necromancer, a skilled warrior, and the unquestioned ruler of the domain of Barovia.
The flexibility of the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) game rules means that Dungeon Masters (DM) are free to create their own fantasy campaign settings. For those who wanted a pre-packaged setting in which to play, TSR, Wizards of the Coast (WotC), and other publishers have created many settings in which D&D games can be based; of these, the Forgotten Realms, an epic fantasy world, has been one of the most successful and critically acclaimed settings. Many campaign settings include standard sword and sorcery environments, while others borrow Asian, Central American, swashbuckling, horror and even space-travel themes.
Masque of the Red Death and Other Tales, subtitled "Terror in the 1890s", was published by TSR in 1994 as an alternate campaign setting for the horror role-playing game Ravenloft, which itself uses the rules from Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, a vampire is an undead creature. A humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature can become a vampire, and looks as it did in life, with pale skin, haunting red eyes, and a feral cast to its features. A new vampire is created when another vampire drains the life out of a living creature. Its depiction is related to those in the 1930s and 1940s Hollywood Dracula and monster movies. In writing vampires into the game, as with other creatures arising in folklore, the authors had to consider what elements arising in more recent popular culture should be incorporated into their description and characteristics.
Ravenloft: Realm of Terror is a boxed set accessory published in 1990 for the Ravenloft campaign setting for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.
William W. Connors is a game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games.
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