Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft 🧛 Overview & Impressions (D&D 5E)

Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft Overview and Impressions! My take on this creepy new book!
Now on Kickstarter! Go back it! :)

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NATE'S FAVORITES

THE BASICS

ACCESSORIES

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Music in last 2 minutes by Sono Sanctus

0:00 - Intro & Sponsor
1:20 - Ravenloft Basics
3:20 - Chapter 1: Character Options
8:14 - Chapter 2 & 3: Domains of Dread
12:28 - Chapter 4: Horror Adventures
15:09 - The House of Lament (adventure)
15:40 - Chapter 5: Monsters of Ravenloft
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[musingsofmessa]

I ordered Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. It's my first D&D book. 🙂 I also got some character journals that have character sheets on some of the pages (one for main, about four or five in the back of the journals), and I got a set of 6 D&D dice all in different colors. 😊

Since I'm new to D&D, I use my imagination without things like a battle mat or miniatures.

I honestly can't wait to play Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft if it's an adventure. 🙂 Super stoked! Happy to have found this video. As always, amazing work, Nate. 🌟

[zacsuth]

I’m wrapping up Strahd, and I’ve run a ton of Call of Cthulhu. My favorite horror system hands down though is ALIEN. Very clever system, fun to play, easy to learn, and amazing world building. It actually makes the prequel content... good. More importantly, it creates enough threats with other factions, ship to ship combat, double agents, etc., that you aren’t always inevitably waiting for the classic xeno to show up. It may not show up at all, and it’s still a great time.

[briancherry]

I have been really excited about this book. Yet, the more I hear about it the more disappointed I am about what it isn't. I was so excited to rediscover D&D after 30 years away. But, I don't feel like the target audience anymore. I really want to be positive...

I'm really glad you are enjoying this so much. I'm hoping I love it too. I love Mike Schley maps - so that's really great to hear he's in there. Thanks!

[cattrucker]

You continue to have some of my favourite content reviews. Short, pretty insightful, hitting the main points of interest about a book or product, and more impartial than many. Some people try to be hypemen for the new book or their sponsor, but you actually feel more impartial in comparison - so I don't listen to them but do listen to you.

[stephenchilcoat]

Played the original Ravenloft adventure in the 80’s and it was by far the most challenging yet awesome adventure we played.

[ChrisSickinger]

If you want a horror RPG alternative to D&D, Dread is an excellent option. I haven't played many RPGs besides D&D, but Dread is aptly suited for the horror genre. The only game mechanic is players pull from a Jenga tower to determine success/failure. The tension players feel when they pull from the Jenga tower will spill over into the story. There's a video somewhere on YouTube of Wil Wheaton playing Dread with a few other people, if you're interested.

[MsGinahidesout]

Ravenloft is, hands down, my favorite campaign setting!!

[AndrewDawnbringer]

This is the material I just needed to use with Grim Hollow. Grim dark times has come.

[lucasmarquesdecamargos]

I think it is soooo toned down and super heroic, that to my taste, it is better to use setting information of AD&D and make adaptations if you want to use 5e (or just use the previous rule sets or retroclones, that can work perfectly too)

[southron_d]

A couple of years ago, I ran a 5e campaign which focussed on a coven of Hags. There was one trip into a demi-plane of dread, which involved a little girl and her birthday party. It was always her birthday... Mummy turned out to be a Zombie Lord, adapted from 2nd-edition AD&D, and the apparently lovely treats were, of course, rotten flesh, maggoty fruit and so forth. The little girl was in thrall to the Zombie Lord.
The PCs' powers were thwarted somewhat by the "Odour of Death" which could affect things like saving throws or impose "Contagion".
It was horrific enough.
Going back further, most of a 2e campaign revolved around undead and Ravenloft. I found a good horror campaign has more to do with the players' attitudes than game mechanics or the struggles of the DM to set the tone. Even when the PCs' spirits ended up in puppets, it was still more amusing to the players than scary.

[christianthatcher]

If you want a horror rpg: Call of Cthulhu or Shadows of the demon lord.

[GREENSPRE]

Highly recommend Mothership for space horror.

[highoncoffee]

That was an incredible review, thanks so much <3

[razorboy]

I wanted to echo Alien and Mothership RPGs both of which feature better horror mechanics and are more suitable to running a horror game. Also, some of the OSR games like B/X, Five Torches Deep or Old-School Essentials are definitely better suited to horror than 5e given how much more fragile and less powered the player characters are. Of course the default New World of Darkness where you played mortals, rather than vampires, Prometheans, etc., is also better suited to a horror game.

[gerbster]

Awesome video, makes me want to run a horror game. I think it'd be really hard to pull off that kind of tone online, so I'm looking forward to being able to play in person soon

[seanathaalexand]

I literally just ordered this book in the middle of watching this video.

[kathyevans]

I just got my book today. Thank you for doing this video.the overview was great.

[ectofrost]

I love all the focus on different kinds of horror. This seems like a neat book.

[MsGinahidesout]

How much does the book discuss the Vistani?

[petespanchos]

Lot of “Old Man Yells at Cloud” in this comment section.