Často kladené otázky (FAQ)

II. Prostředí - Lidé a místa

1. Jak velké je Jádro? Proč u map nejsou měřítka?
2. Co to jsou Cizáci?
3. Kdo je to Dukkar?
4. Kdo je to Gentleman Caller?
5. Kdo jsou děti Gentleman Callera?
6. Kdo je to Doktor Rudolph Van Richten? Je skutečně mrtev?
7. Kdo jsou to dvojčata Weathermay-Foxgrove?
8. Kdo je S? Kdo je patronem S?
9. Zdá se, že historie Tristena Hiregaarda se dost liší v jednotlivýchpříručkách. Která z verzí je kánonická?
10. Říká se, že Soth nikdy do Ravenloftu nepřišel. Kde oficiálně Soth je?
11. Kdo je to Jander Sunstar? Myslel jsem, že zemřel?
12. Co je v Puklině stínů? Kdo jí vládne?
13. Jaké jsou názvy dní a měsíců?
14. Jaká obecná řeč se zde používá?
15. Na základě jakého skutečného světa je země ____ ?
16. Z jakého reálného jazyka vycháhí ____ ?

1. Jak velké je Jádro? Proč u map nejsou měřítka?

Earlier books have the main landmass of the Core at around 180 miles by 200 miles. The Sea of Sorrows and the Nocturnal Sea add about 80 and 90 miles respectively (based onDomains of Dread). Using this size on the inside cover maps in the Ravenloft Campaign Setting and the Ravenloft Player?s Handbook puts the scale at 20-25 miles per inch. However, this is prone to change as the mists that border the known land ebbs in and out. Distance is quite relative in the Land of the Mists. In short the size of the Core and most Domains has been purposely left out to allow Dungeon Masters to set the size to fit their Campaigns; the Core can be left small for a more claustrophobic feel or enlarged to whatever size is deemed appropriate. The populations can be adjusted accordingly.

2. Co to jsou Cizáci?

Outlanders are anyone who enters Ravenloft from the outside. The Mists can snatch them up at random or they could have been too close to a person of great darkness when they are drawn in. Newcomers could also have accidentally entered via magical spells gone awry, stepping through a one-way portal, or sometimes even entered on purpose. Outlanders are not always believed by the locals and often spend most of their time looking for a way back home. Earlier RAVENLOFT adventures presumed the party was composed entirely of Outlanders who were brought in for a single session of horror. This was known as a "weekend-in-hell" adventure. In later products, such as Domains of Dread and most Third Edition products, the emphasis was shifted to native characters.

3. Kdo je to Dukkar?

Van Richten's Guide to the Vistani introduced the Dukkar, a legendary foe of the Vistani. The Dukkar is said to be a male Vistana born with the Second Sight, who -if allowed to live- is fated to destroy his people. He is also rumoured to be able break the curses of the darklords and possibly destroy the land. Malocchio Aderre who emerged in the adventure The Evil Eye, is currently the only known living Dukkar. The seer Hyskosa, author of the hexad prophesising the Grand Conjunction, was retroactively identified as an earlier Dukkar.

4. Kdo je to Gentleman Caller?

Co-Created by Steve Miller, the Gentleman Caller is a mysterious fiendish individual wandering the Mists of Ravenloft. For many years, virtually nothing was known about this character, beyond allusions to his possible inhuman nature and the appearance that he was carrying out some dire plan far beyond the comprehension of any mortal. The Gentleman Caller would simply set his plans in motion and move on, never waiting to see the results of his efforts. By the time the player character could come on the scene, the Gentleman Caller is long gone. There are seven products so far where the Gentleman Caller definitely appears, and a couple inconclusive references. Note, however, that he is seldom more than a catalyst for the story - by the time the PCs get involved in the adventure, the Gentleman Caller is typically long gone. However, in more recent products, he has been slowly edging towards the limelight...

• The Evil Eye
• Bleak House
• Children of the Night: Vampires
• Forged of Darkness (Pipes of Mordent entry)
• Servants of Darkness
• Carnival
• Van Richten's Monster Hunter's Compendium Vol III
• Gazetteer II (Darkon and Falkovnia entries)
• Gazetteer IV (Invidia Entry)
• Gazetteer V (Tepest entry)

It is worth noting the reference to the "mysterious gentleman" Tavelia planed to marry in the Darkon entry of Gazetteer II is NOT the Gentleman Caller as was once speculated.

5. Kdo jsou děti Gentleman Callera?

This topic is hotly debated one on the various Message Boards dedicated to Ravenloft. Only one, Malocchio of Invidia, is confirmer while Vigo Drakov (see Gazetteer II) is also a good suspect. The other three, while undoubtedly mentioned, are still unknown and speculation remains rampant.

6. Kdo je to Doktor Rudolph Van Richten? Je skutečně mrtev?

Doctor Van Richten was a healer until a familial tragedy prompted him to put down his medical instruments and pick up a sword and a pen. Van Richten published eight works on identifying, hunting, and slaying monsters that stalk the Land of the Mists. Included were Van Richten?s Guide to: Vampires, Ghosts, the Created, Werebeasts, Liches, Ancient Dead, Fiends/Demons, and Vistani. These were later re-published by his "nieces" (see below) as the Monster Hunter Compendiums volumes 1-3 including an unpublished tome, Van Richten's Guide to Witches. The adventure Bleak House possibly killed-off the good doctor. However, it contains several endings, so Van Richten is not necessarily dead depending on which of these outcomes occurs in your campaign. It has not been revealed which ending is considered "official," and no answer is likely to be revealed for in the near future. All outcomes, though, do result in Van Richten being trapped or staying within Bleak House, in preparation for the dark days to come. However, it is worth noting that all of these options provide for a situation when Van Richten (alive or dead) can be around in 25 years time to help deal with the Time of Unparalleled Darkness.

7. Kdo jsou to dvojčata Weathermay-Foxgrove?

Laurie and Gennifer are young adventurers determined to follow in the footsteps of both their uncles. They view their friend, mentor and adopted-uncle Rudolph Van Richten as a great champion and have vowed to continue his reputed work. Their blood-uncle is George Weathermay a renowned hunter of monsters and champion of the people. Like van Richten they believe that the greatest weapon a hunter can have is not a big sword but knowledge. They continue his chronicling the nature of evil as well as educating fellow heroes on how to hunt creatures of darkness. The pair republished Van Richten?s various guides along with an unpublished one detailing hags. Since then they have started writing new guides in the name of Van Richten, their first was the Guide to Walking Dead and this is has been followed by the Guide to the Shadow Fey.

8. Kdo je S? Kdo je patronem S?

S is the unnamed and mysterious writer of the Doomsday Gazetteers, published as the Ravenloft Gazetteers. Little is know about her save that she is a female and presumably a wizard of some skill. Her patron, whose identity is only hinted at -albeit strongly- in Gazetteer 1 is revealed in Gazetteer II to be Azalin, the wizard-king of Darkon.

9. Zdá se, že historie Tristena Hiregaarda se dost liší v jednotlivých příručkách. Která z verzí je kánonická?

Tristen Hiregaard has the worst continuity of any character in the RAVENLOFT setting. There are no less than three versions of the character?s history, from the Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix II, the novel The Enemy Within, and the various campaign sets (such as Domains of Dread). Even the domain itself has had a chequered history, at one point being said to have five moons (The Awakening). The official word is that the version of Hiregaard presented in Domains of Dread and Gazetteer V is the correct version of Hiregaard; The Enemy Within and the RMCA II entries are non-canon. But, of course, if you prefer any of the other versions of Tristen's history for your campaign, you should feel free to use it!

10. Říká se, že Soth nikdy do Ravenloftu nepřišel. Kde oficiálně Soth je?

When Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (creators of the DRAGONLANCEŹ Saga) returned to TSR, there were reports of them saying that, as far as they were concerned, Soth never left Krynn for Ravenloft. To make their point, they even made Soth an "extra" in the novel Dragons of Summer Flame, released in 1995. This created a lot of (useless) confusion as to where Soth really is. The official word from Wizards of the Coast is that Soth definitely did enter Ravenloft after the events of the novel Test of the Twins. And he definitely returned to Krynn in the autumn of 752 BC, during the events of the novel Spectre of the Black Rose, written by James Lowder. The in-game reasons behind Soth's escape, however, are nebulous and open to reader interpretation. Many interpreted it as a consequence of the fact that Soth was no longer feeling imprisoned and the dark power decided to let go of their dull toy. Also, although Soth definitely left Ravenloft in 752 BC, it has not been definitively stated when he reappeared on Krynn. Time flows strangely in Ravenloft when compared to other worlds and Soth could easily have reappeared in Dargaard Keep mere moments after he left it. Since then Soth briefly appeared in other DRAGONLANCE novels before the authors of that setting eventually killed him off. In Third Edition products, you find reference to this character when the name "The Black Rose" is mentioned.

11. Kdo je to Jander Sunstar? Myslel jsem, že zemřel?

Jander Sunstar is a several hundred year old outlander vampire and possibly one of the oldest vampires in Ravenloft. He is from the world of Faerűn, home of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. He is featured prominently in the first Ravenloft novel, Vampire of the Mists. When the dark powers find a toy that they like, they do not let go of it that easily! Although Jander wanted to die in rays of the sun, the Mists of Ravenloft snatched him away before he could be burned, determined to keep him alive in his tortured existence. You can find out more about Jander's current status in Children of the Night: Vampires. Jander is also updated to 3rd Edition in Champions of Darkness.

12. Co je v Puklině stínů? Kdo jí vládne?

The Shadow Rift is where Markovia and G?henna existed before the Grand Conjunction wrenched them from the Core. It is a deep chasm filled with thick swirling mist that obscures the bottom from sight. The edges are steep and reputed to be impossible to scale. In fact, the Mists only conceal the land below and the cliffs do in fact have a bottom. There, far below and shaded by the Mists, is a sunless realm of dark fey. It is ruled by a trapped, unknowable entity called Gwydion. The Shadow Rift is the revamping and ret-conning of the domain of Arak that vanished during the Grand Conjunction. Arak was reputed to be a land ruled by the dark-skinned elves known as drow. Although products such as Servants of Darkness seemed to imply that the Shadow Elves were effectively dark-skinned elves like the drow the term actually applies to a whole range of creatures collectively known as the Arak, shadow elves or shadow fey. There are many types of shadow fey, ranging from human sized Sith, to the tiny Alven. More details are contained in The Shadow Rift adventure and Gazetteer V. While the Second Edition RAVENLOFT line refers to them as ?shadow elves? the Third Edition line refers to the inhabitants of the Shadow Rift as "shadow fey" to clarify their nature and prevent any confusion with the Shadow Elves of Mystara.

13. Jaké jsou názvy dní a měsíců?

The names of both the days and the months are the same in Ravenloft as they are in the ?real? world. There are twelve months and 365 days per year. The standard calendar in the Core is the Barovian Calendar currently at the year 758. Isolated lands such as Clusters or Islands may have separate calendars and date names or even their method to measuring the passage of time. Forlorn in particular is noted for having its own list of years although, as the name suggests, there is precious little communication between that land and its neighbours. A calendar for the year 758 is available for download in the Wine Cellar (look next to the Barovian plum brandy).

14. Jaká obecná řeč se zde používá?

There is no common tongue or trade language in Ravenloft. While there is a limited overlap between some nations, such as Mordent and Dementlieu, most land have their own separate and distinct language. The Ravenloft Player?s Handbook has more detail on this, including lists of languages. Alternately, the Ravenloft Gazetteers give information of the most commonly known dialects in the details lands and even include samples of the predominant language(s).

15. Na základě jakého skutečného světa je země ____ ?

Here is a list of some instances of domains being based off of a real world lands and cultures.

• Abber nomads ? Native American/ Australian Aboriginals
• Al-Kathos ? Arabia/ Persia
• Richmulot ? Rural France
• Barovia ? Transylvania/ Romania
• Borca ? Italy
• Blaustein ? France
• Darkon ? Generic Fantasy World
• Dementlieu ? Urban France
• Demise ? Greece
• Falkovnia ? Part Hitler's Germany, part Stalin's Russia, part Wallachia
• Forlorn ? Scotland
• Har'akir ? Egypt
• Hazlan ? Turkish/Hindi blend
• Kartakass: Scandinavian and German with the Native American Narrulve?s legends on coyote lore
• Lamordia ? German & Swiss influence
• Mordent ? Rural English countryside
• Odiare ? Gothic Earth's Italy
• Paridon ? part Paris, mostly London
• Pharazia ? Arabia/ Persia
• Rokushima Taiyoo ? Japan
• Saragoss is a take-off of the Bermuda Triangle and the Sargasso Sea
• Sebua ? Egypt
• The Shadowlands ? Arthurian England?
• Sourange ? Louisiana/ Haiti
• Sri Raji ? India
• Tepest ? Ireland
• I'Cath ? China
• Valachan ? loosely based off of the Haida Indians of the Pacific Northwest & Norway
• Vorostokov ? Siberian Russia
• Wildlands ? Africa

16. Z jakého reálného jazyka vycháhí ____ ?

Here is a list of some of the langauges of Ravenloft that are based on real world dialects.

• Akiri (Har?akir) ? Egyptian
• Avergnite (Staunton Bluffs) ? Probably English
• Balok ? Romanian
• Darkonese ? Latin
• Dwarven ? German
• Elven ? Welsh
• Falkovnia ? German
• Forfarian (Forlorn) ? Gaelic (Scottish)
• Gnomish ? Greek/ Latin
• Heldannic (Graben Island, Nocturnal Sea) ? Nordic
• Lamordian ? Swiss
• Mordentish, High ? French
• Mordentish, Low ? English
• Patterna ? any and all
• Pazarian ? Arabic
• Rajian (Sri Raji) ? Hindi
• Tepestani (Tepest) ? Gaelic (Irish)
• Vaasi ? Nowegian/ Danish
• Vos (Vorostokov) ? Russian

Other mysteries of the Mists FAQ