Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 zombiegleemax Jan 04, 2005 9:50:56	Howdy, just recently regained some interest in Ravenloft and I have a few questions (it's been a while and my memory is, if you'll pardon the pun...misty). Is there any escape from Ravenloft? If so, can mortals access it? How did Vecna escape? What happened to Azalin?
#2 Torack Jan 04, 2005 12:03:32	I believe the basic premise of Ravenloft is that anyone can enter and leave except the Dark Lords. Granted, I ain't a big know-how on Ravenloft lore. As for Vecna, I believe the answer can be found in the modules: Die! Vecna Die!, Vecna Reborn and Vecna Lives! Although I don't have access to those modules at the moment. And I believe Azalin is one of the Dark Lords, but I don't know which one.
#3 johnjohn Jan 04, 2005 13:04:31	Azalin is still alive and well. He is darklord of darkon and is the person behind the 5 ravenloft gazeters (he paid a scholar to go look at the core domains and send back reports... this turned into the gazeters). I think vecna and kas went back to the greyhawk setting as soth went back to dragonlance. I haven't seen anything on vecna or kas in the 3.0 or 3.5 ravenloft material. Either the modules did something to him or he was returned to his setting. In the ravenloft players handbook and dmg there is no set escape route from ravenloft. Spells dont work and there are no widely known gates. However the DM can create any method they wish to allow players to escape. There are also rumored gate ways that work at certain times or work after certain events take place but these are rumored only (they only work if the DM wants them to). There is also at least one magic item that will allow exit as it will transport the user and those around them off to the planes (but it doesnt work for darklords). Its some sort of scroll created by an extraplanar creature if I remember right.
#4 malus_black Jan 04, 2005 15:07:25	1 - Quite simply, you just can't escape through any conventional methods (Plane Shift, Gate, etc.), as Ravenloft is effectively shut off from the rest of the known multiverse. There are exceptions to this rule, however. Firstly, the Dark Powers obviously have the power both to pull people in and let people out - the basis for the classic "Week in Hell" style of Ravenloft campaigns, where the Mists deposit you where you need to be, and claim you again when you are done with your task, hopefully sending you back to where you came from. A few methods also exist which are within reach for ordinary mortals. There are some permanent portals scattered across the demiplane, such as the one on the Isle of Agony or the Obsidian Gate in the Shadow Rift (at least, I think it's called the Obsidian Gate). Certain items also exist, such as the Scroll of Return or the hideously powerful Rift Spanner, an artifact created by the night hag Styrix. Typically, such unique items are the focal point of an entire campaign. There are other methods, often quite esoteric, such as through the Nightmare Lands. You can find more information on escaping the demiplane in the Ravenloft Dungeon Master's Guide. 2 - Vecna, as far as I'm concerned, was never in Ravenloft. If someone forces me to accept that yes, he was, I'd say that the Dark Powers let him go. This isn't much of a help to you, so the canon version is that Vecna tricked Iuz into Ravenloft, devoured his essence to become a Greater God, and forced his way out of Ravenloft. Now, I'm not entirely clear on the details, but I think that's the general gist of it. 3 - As stated above, Azalin is still the darklord of Darkon. I assume that you are referring to the Requiem incident, the culmination of the Grim Harvest trilogy, where Azalin had apparently escaped. Well, too bad for him, all that happened to him (apart from the total annihilation of his corporeal form) was that his spirit, his essence, merged with that of everyone else in Darkon. He existed like this for five years - The Shrouded Years - while Darkon degenerated into a handful of mini-domains ruled by minor lords, and anarchy ruled. Thankfully, Azalin's essence was restored at the end, and he returned to rule Darkon again, now inhabiting the corpse of his son, Irik, although he has not given up the hope of escaping. More information can be found in the Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume II.
#5 zombiegleemax Jan 04, 2005 15:13:38	1-Yes there are escapes from Ravenloft but they are either hard to find or hard to use. One can enter Ravenloft more easily than leave. On the top of head, I know a Night Hag created a device to escape but it requires to fuel it with innocent souls (quite an evil act). THere might be some hidden portals or others ways. 2-Vecna escapes in Die Vecna, Die (which I don't have) but it could be resumed this way: Vecna manages to get the half-god Iuz from Greyhawk to enter his domain and the archlich beats Iuz and steals his powers. This powerup made Vecna powerful enough to leave the Demiplane. 3-Azalin's body was destroyed and his mind merged with Darkon. He tricked some adventurers to funnels his mind into his son's skeleton. He's now back to his throne but resigned to his fate to a certain degree. See Ravenloft 3.0 Campaign setting and Gaz II Edit: Malus Black beat me to the answer. Read his post ;)
#6 humanbing Jan 05, 2005 9:21:46	This is one of those tantalizing little periods of time where a lot of important, land-altering stuff happens, and yet TSR/Wizards doesn't chronicle it in adventure format. The Shrouded Years struck me as fantastic sort of adventure to give to us hungry gamers! Does anybody know if there are any plans to work that into a real adventure/campaign? If not, is anybody working on an adventure plot? I remember this happened just before "Forged of Darkness", when TSR sort of gave little teasing glimpses of a campaign that destroyed the Grim Fastness (but no adventure to go with it). Now, the restoration of one of the Dread Realms' most powerful darklords has also gone without notice in the adventure books! That would be like 2nd edition Ravenloft leaving out the Grand Conjunction!
#7 keg_of_ale Jan 08, 2005 20:42:11	/ignore.
#8 zombiegleemax Jan 13, 2005 9:32:30	Is there any escape from Ravenloft? If so, can mortals access it? There are a few mystical portals that lead outside the mists. In addition to these, if Malocchio Aderre was released from his curse he would willingly leave the demiplane any time he chose to, taking others with him, including other Darklords. There is also the Rift Spanner, an artifact powered by the souls of others and may take up to 3 people out of the domain each time. However, it was constructed by the Night Hag Styrix and she may not like people borrowing it before she takes it out on a test spin. Other than that, you have a chance of escape when a domain collaspes and you are inside it or you may be released at the whim of the Dark Powers. How did Vecna escape? He became a more powerful god than he was already. What happened to Azalin? When the Doomsday Device went boom, Azalin's essence was scattered across Darkon, he later managed to gather his conscious mind and get some heroes to help restore him to power.
#9 zombiegleemax Jan 14, 2005 11:11:56	Not much to add except Vecna having escaped attacks Sigil 'the city of doors' (from the planescape setting) and the Lady of Pain. Ultimetly he fails but no doubt will be back. Leaving Ravenloft is best I feel up to the DM as quoted by many others before me. Many of the earlier 'weekend in hell' type modules included a way out at the end of the adventure. Again the isle of agony from the Adams Wrath module is a classic example. The original black box set mentioned some permanent portals on other game worlds into ravenloft. However I would put it down for a mere mortal to escape as never and just about all natives would have no idea that there was something else to escape to.