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Ravenloft
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&D'' ''Ravenloft'' 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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ravenloft Domains
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a ''Demiplane, pocket dimension'' or demiplane, called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called "Ravenloft domains, domains", brought together by a mysterious force known only as #The Dark Powers, the Dark Powers. Each domain is tailored to and mystically ruled by a being called a Darklord (Ravenloft), Darklord who is forever trapped and surrounded by magical mists surrounding the domain. Strahd von Zarovich, a vampire in the original ''AD&D'' ''Ravenloft'' 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 199 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strahd Von Zarovich
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. Creative origins In 1978, Tracy and Laura Hickman wrote adventures that would eventually be published as the '' Dungeon & Dragons'' modules ''Pharaoh'' and ''Ravenloft''. Strahd was created by the Hickmans "after Tracy returned home from a disappointing session of ''D&D''. Back in First Edition, the game was less of a storytelling game. It mostly involved charting randomized dungeons on graph paper and fighting whatever creatures were inside for their g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ravenloft (module)
''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. The Hickmans began work on ''Ravenloft'' in the late 1970s, intent on creating a frightening portrait of a vampire in a setting that combined Gothic horror with the ''D&D'' game system. They play-tested the adventure with a group of players each Halloween for five ye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Darklord (Ravenloft)
Darklord is a title used to refer to the mystically imprisoned and cursed ruler of a domain in Ravenloft, a campaign setting in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' role-playing game. Background A Darklord was originally an individual who had committed a truly horrific crime, which drew the attention of the enigmatic Dark Powers. The Dark Powers then proceeded to craft a personal kingdom around the Darklord. This crafted domain serves both as a kingdom and a prison: the Darklord gains incredible powers while within its borders but can never leave it, although most Darklords can seal their domain borders with a thought. Within their domains, the Darklords are forever tormented by the objects of their desires, which are often the objects for which they committed their crimes. The Dark Powers dangle these objects before the Darklords like the fruits of Tantalus. Each Darklord's desires and motivations differ: some desire love, some hunger for glorious victory, while others crave for the defeat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laura Hickman
Laura Curtis Hickman (born December 7, 1956) is an American fantasy author, best known for her works in game design and fantasy novels cowritten with her husband, Tracy Hickman. Early life Laura Curtis was born on December 7, 1956, in Long Beach, California. She married Tracy Hickman in 1977. They have four children. Laura Hickman is a member of the LDS Church. Career Early on in her marriage, Hickman introduced her husband, Tracy, to the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' roleplaying game. The two co-wrote modules for the game while living in Provo, resulting in the original versions of the modules ''Rahasia'' and ''Pharaoh,'' which the Hickmans self-published through DayStar West Media in 1980. Their adventure modules began as "photocopied pages with covers heywould staple together on the card table in heirkitchen." These early modules were a significant innovation for fantasy RPG modules, since they had an interesting story with an objective that was achievable in one or two sessions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tracy Hickman
Tracy Raye Hickman (born November 26, 1955) is an American fantasy author and designer of games and virtual reality (VR) experiences. He co-authored the original ''Dragonlance'' novels with Margaret Weis as well as numerous other books. He also designed and created role playing game material while working for TSR, Inc., TSR and has cowritten novels with his wife, Laura Hickman. He is the author or co-author of over 60 books. Early life Tracy Hickman was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. His parents instilled in him a love of reading; he recalls visiting the local bookmobile with them. Hickman took a particular interest in the science fiction genre. He graduated from Provo High School in 1974. His major interests were drama, music, and Air Force JROTC. In 1975, Hickman began two years of service as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He served in Hawaii for six months while awaiting visa approval for travel to Indonesia, where he ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Demiplane
The planes of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' roleplaying game constitute the multiverse in which the game takes place. Each plane is a universe with its own rules with regard to gravity, geography, magic and morality. There have been various official cosmologies over the course of the different editions of the game; these cosmologies describe the structure of the standard ''Dungeons & Dragons'' multiverse. The concept of the Inner, Ethereal, Prime Material, Astral, and Outer Planes was introduced in the earliest versions of ''Dungeons & Dragons''; at the time there were only four Inner Planes and no set number of Outer Planes. This later evolved into what became known as the Great Wheel cosmology. The 4th Edition of the game shifted to the World Axis cosmology. The 5th Edition brought back a new version of the Great Wheel cosmology which includes aspects of World Axis model. In addition, some ''Dungeons & Dragons'' settings have cosmologies that are very different from the "sta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Desert Of Desolation
''Desert of Desolation'' is a compilation adventure module published by TSR for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy roleplaying game. It combines three previously published individual modules: ''Pharaoh'', ''Oasis of the White Palm'', and ''Lost Tomb of Martek''. The modules were made for use with the first edition ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' (''AD&D'') rules. ''Pharaoh'' was created by Tracy and Laura Hickman soon after the couple married in 1977, and published by TSR in 1982. ''Oasis of the White Palm'' was a collaboration between Tracy Hickman and Philip Meyers, and Hickman wrote the ''Lost Tomb of Martek'' on his own; both were printed in 1983. Each module is an Egyptian-styled adventure. The individual modules were well received by critics at the time of their release, and the compilation garnered accolades in the early 2000s. Plot summary ''Pharaoh'' ''Pharaoh'' is an Egyptian-styled adventure that includes a pyramid map and a trap-filled maze. ''Oasis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bruce Nesmith
Bruce Nesmith is a game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games. He was Creative Director at TSR, working on a variety of games including ''Dungeons & Dragons'', and was a senior game designer and design director at Bethesda Game Studios, where he worked on AAA titles such as ''Fallout 3'', ''Fallout 4'' and '' Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion'', and was lead designer on '' Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim''. Career TSR, Inc. hired Nesmith in 1981 to design computer games on the Apple II+, and he soon moved on to be a writer of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' modules. After the original Dragonlance group began, the Dragonlance Series Design Team was later expanded to include Nesmith as well as Margaret Weis, Douglas Niles, Mike Breault, Roger Moore, Laura Hickman, Linda Bakk, Michael Dobson and Garry Spiegle. Nesmith designed '' Ravenloft: Realm of Terror'' (1990), which built on the ideas explored in the original ''Ravenloft'' adventure written by the Hickmans in an attempt to make '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TSR, Inc
TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had been unable to find a publisher for ''D&D'', a new type of game he and Dave Arneson were co-developing, so he founded the new company with Kaye to self-publish their products. Needing financing to bring their new game to market, Gygax and Kaye brought in Brian Blume in December as an equal partner. ''Dungeons & Dragons'' is generally considered the first tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG), and established the genre. When Kaye died suddenly in 1975, the Tactical Studies Rules partnership restructured into TSR Hobbies, Inc. and accepted investment from Blume's father Melvin. With the popular ''D&D'' as its main product, TSR Hobbies became a major force in the games industry by the late 1970s. Melvin Blume eventually transferred his shares to his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Gamebooks
''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Gamebook'' is a series of 18 gamebook A gamebook is a work of printed fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making choices. The narrative branches along various paths, typically through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages. Each narrative typically does not ...s published from 1985 to 1988. The series was initially titled ''Super Endless Quest Adventure Gamebook'' as the books added a more complex game system to stories which otherwise share the same style with the Endless Quest books. On the third book the series' title changed to ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Super Endless Quest Adventure Gamebook'' and it finally became ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Gamebook'' from the fourth book onwards. Books in the series References External links Demian's ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Gamebooks'' page* Dungeons & Dragons Wiki: ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Gamebooks'' Dung ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gothic Novel
Gothic fiction, sometimes referred to as Gothic horror (primarily in the 20th century), is a literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name of the genre is derived from the Renaissance era use of the word "gothic", as a pejorative to mean medieval and barbaric, which itself originated from Gothic architecture and in turn the Goths. The first work to be labelled as Gothic was Horace Walpole's 1764 novel '' The Castle of Otranto'', later subtitled ''A Gothic Story''. Subsequent 18th-century contributors included Clara Reeve, Ann Radcliffe, William Thomas Beckford, and Matthew Lewis. The Gothic influence continued into the early 19th century, with Romantic works by poets, like Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Lord Byron. Novelists such as Mary Shelley, Charles Maturin, Walter Scott and E. T. A. Hoffmann frequently drew upon gothic motifs in their works as well. Gothic aesthetics continued to be used throughout the early Victorian period in novels by Charles Dickens, B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
