Ravenloft

Ravenloft (AD&D 2nd Edition)

Ravenloft is the common name for the Demiplane of Dread, a demiplane floating in the Ethereal plane. The place is run by dark powers who allow the worthy to leave, but all others are imprisoned for the rest of their lives. It's made up of chunks of various Prime worlds, pulled (or perhaps duplicated) from their original worlds, twisted into dark parodies of themselves. Whether it's an individual or a whole country, getting pulled into Ravenloft is often referred to in terms like "getting claimed by the Mists." Perhaps because of the passage through the Ethereal, one is always surrounded by impenetrable mists before finding oneself in the demiplane.

After the Spellplague and the transformation of the Demiplane of Shadow into the Shadowfell, Ravenloft's domains shattered apart, and were drawn from the Ethereal into the new plane. Although no longer a single cohesive unit, the now-disparate Domains of Dread remain under the control of the Dark Powers.

Personalities

The only known personality to have found themselves on the planes via Ravenloft is the lich Vecna, who exploited a loophole in the multiverse which funneled him directly into Sigil at the exact moment that he claimed godhood.

Portals

Ravenloft, like Carceri, is a place of punishment for its denizens, in particular its Dark Lords. So while there may be many ways in, there are very few ways out. This even extends to the Border Ethereal. A traveler may enter the border, take a peek at the demiplane, but they will be unable to return to the Deep Ethereal.

when Vecna "punched" his way into Sigil, his domain, Cavitius, vanished, returning into Mist. Some of those caught in the void before the Mists rushed in to fill the vacuum were likewise ejected into Sigil.

Gods

Ravenloft's domains are pulled from different Prime worlds, so those denizens typically worship the gods native to those worlds. The inhabitants of Sithicus, for example, come from Krynn, and are therefore likely to worship members of the Krynnish pantheon. A listing of all the gods worshipped within Ravenloft is beyond the scope of this Wiki.

While normally clerics within the Ethereal receive spells as though they were two levels lower, due to their increased distance from the Outer Planes, clerics in Ravenloft receive spells normally, as though they were on the Prime Material. It's rumored by some that this is because the spells are not granted by the gods, but by the inscrutable Dark Powers responsible for Ravenloft itself.

Background Information

• Ravenloft is the primary setting for the Ravenloft campaign setting.
• Aside from Planescape (which encompasses the entire multiverse), Ravenloft is notable for being the only campaign setting which is not set on the Prime Material Plane, and thus beyond the reach of spelljamming vessels. (Although it's been noted that the Mists can roam wildspace and can still capture a spelljammer.)
• Ravenloft contains domains duplicating lands pulled from across the Prime Material, but it rarely lets anyone leave. As both a sort of planar nexus and also a cage, it's very similar to Sigil in many respects, or perhaps a inverse of Sigil. It's perhaps some aspect of this similar nature that allowed Vecna to twist the fabric of the demiplane itself into a funnel, to push past the Lady of Pain's wards, and enter Sigil.

External Links

• Ravenloft on Mistipedia