Domain of the Month(?): Odiare

[KingCorn]

Look, lets face it: Odiare just isn't that useful. I love Pinnochio, I love killer toys, but even I acknowledge that their's just not that much to be done with Odiare. So rather than a whole month, lets give this little domain a week, and see if we can give this little domain some love.

[Mischief]

I kind of wonder if Odiare would work better as "Neverneverland". Maligno hates adults because they never consider him real, so wouldn't it be better if children just never grew up and could play with him forever? Children who wish to never grow up thus go missing, spirited away to Odiare where their natural aging ceases. Unfortunately for Maligno, if the children come to regret their wish they are returned to whence they came (and maybe they horribly age to how old they would be if time had passed normally). Maligno can't force children to come to Odiare, but he can beckon them. Maligno can however kidnap adults and seal them in.

As Odiare goes, few children can shoulder the responsibilities of adults or possess enough wisdom and experience to get by. Most become deeply unhappy and lonely and wish to leave or they die from starvation, exposure, fighting, etc. Those that do remain tend to be the most ruthless and tribal of children, like Lord of the Flies. This is not exactly ideal for Maligno because deep down, he would much prefer a happy, playful group of friends than an oft-imploding warband of psychotic selfish hellions with underdeveloped ethics. Also things tend to fall apart in Odiare (and children starve) because children haven't learned the skills to survive or maintain a town. So what can Maligno do? Enslave some adults to try to service the society. But those adults never see Maligno as a real child, any saying as much drives Maligno into a killing frenzy. And adults are clever, so they keep mucking things up.

Maligno has a few ideas, the top one being finding a way to make adults into children, somehow keeping their hard-earned knowledge but restoring their youthful innocence. To that end he has sent puppets out into other domains. Maybe the PCs arrive trapped in the bodies of children, but it's only a matter of time before the real children and Maligno discover the truth behind their maturity and competence.

That said, I am not sure that a campaign where children could act as and possibly be fought in combat as bad guys would be a wholesome thing to play. You would have to have some pretty mature players. Not that Ravenloft doesn't have its dark moments, but there is a line somewhere.

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Another option would be to yank a page from Eastern legends which say that discarded toys and other venerable inanimate objects can eventually gain a soul and become a type of tsukumogami object monster. If mistreated or discarded, the things seek to avenge themselves upon their previous owners or those who are mistreating their tools and toys.

Odiare can become the "garbage isle of unwanted things" with souls. These monsters crusade against the humanity that discarded them and sometimes break into other domains to attack or kidnap people. Maligno, the leader, however harbors the dark secret that he wishes become the very thing he seeks to destroy (and unlike the others who can hide in human form, he can't look human). There could be all sorts of strange creatures based off of D&D artifacts given life-forms.

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Also 'Odiare' and 'Maligno'... Does anyone else want to start a thread where we all volunteer replacement Ravenloft names that we have used or want to use to fix all the bad, spoilery, silly, or needlessly melodramatic names? Because I very much want a thread like that.

[Mistmaster]

http://www.fraternityofshadows.com/foru ... f=1&t=9596
This is Collodi, my take on Odiare; from useless pocket domain to full fledged one.

[KingCorn]

The children in Odiare have grown jaded of toys, both from trauma and from sheer availibility, but one toy which always holds a special place in their hearts in The Stuffed Rabbit. A slightly raggedy white and brown speckled plush rabbit, it is said to have been sewn by Guisspie for the mayors daughter some years before Maligno was "born". The rabbit has been handed down and about, child to child, as a sort of comfort toy, something to make the nights less lonely and keep away the nightmares. Each child is allowed a turn with the rabbit, and each gives it a special name: Mr LongEars, Piccolo Marone, ect.
The children's sheer innocence and love for the toy has turned it into a minor artifact which protects children and true innocents alike. Able to shield them from harm (provided they think it can do such a thing), and so strong as to keep even the Nightmare Court away, it is a source of comfort for the lost children of Odiare. However, should the rabbit ever be stained with the life's blood of a child, its magic will be undone.
Maligno has a special hatred for the rabbit, jealous of the love it receives, and would love to tear it to shreds. Its power is such he cannot get too close to it. Guissepe does not know of the rabbit, and should he find it, it might inspire him to remember when he made works of wonder and not evil, and might even find it within himself to turn on his "son"

[Mischief]

@King Corn the white rabbit could be interesting as an animate or semi-animate actor, however an object of safety to hallow an area or protect is simple and practical in a campaign with more moving parts. Does the rabbit have a "heart" that is an object embedded in its chest, like Raggedy Ann? You could also introduce a horror mechanic Perhaps the Rabbit's button eyes can protect others, but if both are taken, the rabbit is left blind until they are sewed. Of course, as a good rabbit. it will offer both at the risk of its own safety.

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true innocents

Not posting about your rabbit, but having a general rant

Woof. Another of my least my favorite mechanics along with all magic of a certain class gets power-checked no matter the circumstances. It is one of those second law of thermodynamics, everything-can-only-get-worse Ravenloft things except this is a stand-in for your character's emotional virginity or something.

Because I think offering fixes is nice, I would rather see "innocence" not used as all and solved with good role-playing. If it must be quantified, it should be put on an exhaustion-like stage system of inner emotional turmoil. Every time your character embraces evil pragmatically, or does or goes along with something that contradicts or rattles their ideals, they gain a stage in "emotional turmoil". If they make a self-sacrifice for the sake of their morals or win in a way that reaffirms their fundamental ideals, they lose a stage. Characters can become morally exhausted, and evil, if given a choice, with target and try to entice these more vulnerable individuals. I think that better reflects the reality that even people who have faced bitterness and terror in life can still be emotionally fortified, but even those who are good in the better times can be stressed by circumstance and led down the path of bad choices.

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Odiare plus 5e Blinksy. That would be an interesting mix.

[KingCorn]

@King Corn the white rabbit could be interesting as an animate or semi-animate actor, however an object of safety to hallow an area or protect is simple and practical in a campaign with more moving parts. Does the rabbit have a "heart" that is an object embedded in its chest, like Raggedy Ann? You could also introduce a mechanic, like perhaps the Rabbit's button eyes an protect others, but if both are taken, the rabbit is left blind. Of course it will offer both at the risk of its own safety.

Yeah, I kinda see it more as an object than an actor. I think at most, I would give it the ability to project an avatar into your dreams, and even that avatar is based more on your perception of the thing.

Odiare plus 5e Blinksy. That would be an interesting mix.

Or Pidwick and Maligno. It'd be like Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys.

[Manofevil]

This exchange got me thinking of this again: http://fraternityofshadows.com/forum/vi ... wn#p217168

[KingCorn]

Odiare could have some potential as a place for miniventures with a lighter mood, despite the whole "everyone is now an orphan" thing, as well as a place to introduce a new pc after an old one dies. Have the characters walking through the mists, finding themselves in a village of only children that speak a weird language. They have no way of knowing their in another domain, they could just think this is an isolated village.
They're afraid to enter the mists again without some way of making sure they don't get lost forever, and on the toys might just be able to do that. Meanwhile, they can have small interactions with the children, one of the older ones who will be killed by Maligno soon decides to tag along, and they can even bring a few toys along, each their own little plot device/plot hook. Maligno can just be a presence in the background, a potential danger but one that doesn't show up.

[The Lesser Evil]

Forged of Darkness presents the possibility that Giuseppe's dread crafted toys may have spread to other domains. If so, how that might be occurring- Maligno may make a deal with foreigners for these dreadcrafted toys in exchange for valuable/hard-to-get supplies Giuseppe needs for making more toys or perhaps for supplies to help keep the community going. The Odiaran children/young adults could notice this foreigners moving about the realm and move to investigate what was going on, thereby complicating things for Maligno. Some of the smugglers might decide to seize the children, for example.

The aftermath of the massacre of the adults could leave numerous consequences. Restless spirits could haunt the domain's edges, untouchable by even Maligno and his ilk. Some youngsteers were undoubtedly traumatized, leaving them open for exploitation by the Nightmare Court.

Odiare could make for a one-shot or starting location of young and inexperienced Odiaran native PCs. Such might begin as a relatively mundane slice of life type scenario, only for gradual twists and turns to develop. For example, a rift could form among the youngsters in a Lord of the Flies type scenario.

Other adventure possibilities might include the following:
-A group of passing adventurers with a cleric or healer my be detained by Maligno if a disease were to develop among the young people of the domain. If the player characters were natives, they could try finding a way of establishing a cure, such as by looking through the old notes of the fraud alchemist Argon (a character appearing in the Created module). Perhaps he actually had a useful alchemical tome or two.
-Some of the youngster's discover an old alchemical tome in Argon the Alchemist's old shop and accidentally start a fire or some other disaster.
-You could have an Alphonse and Edward Elric/Fullmetal Alchemist situation involving an attempt to revive their parents. Such an effort could result in all sorts of horrible things, such as the creation of a new dread golem.
-A plot could be made from the development of Odiare's first spellcaster- one whom spontaneously develops unusual abilities like a sorcerer, oracle (the pathfinder kind), warlock, or psion/wilder. Such a character could represent a potential threat or resource for Maligno.
-A mistway to Sebua could form, allowing a number of that domain's wild children to wander in and causing a culture shock to form between them and the youngsters of Odiare. If the Sebuan wild children fail to return, some Sebuan undead may come looking for them. Thereby, there may be a war between the Sebuan undead and Maligno's forces.

[KingCorn]

A carrionette who was exiled for killing a child has returned, and wages a dark war against Maligno. Will Maligno defeat this greater evil, and perhaps earn back some of the trust of the children, or will the realm be changed into a place of even greater horror?

[Mistmaster]

when Maligno killed off the adults one managed to survive in a carrionette body, and now he is actively fighting against Malgno's forces.

[nothri]

1. When a Carrionette takes over the body of a young adult he leaves the Domain. Some simply claim the human body and flee into the Mist, never to be seen again. Most, however, retain some amount of loyalty to their poor stunted "older brother". These Carrionettes seek to serve Maligno abroad, usually by "collecting" adults for other carionettes to seize or children for Maligno to play with. They are in fact often aided in this process by well meaning adventurers and other would be do gooders. Hungry hags, vile trolls, and more terrible things prowl the Mists feasting on children. Odiare, in a sense, is a safe haven for such innocence, since whatever else he might be Maligno loves and protects his children. Of course, these support networks might change their minds if they knew what became of those children as adults, but so far those who learn the truth have simply been replaced by new carrionettes.

2. Several times a year Odiare is visited by one band of Vistani or another, particularly the Boemian tasques, who put on performances and stage improptu festivals to entertain the town of children. Maligno long ago made a deal with these bands in the fashion of Strahd, promising to exempt the Vistani from attack in exchange for the excitement they bring. In exchange the Vistani collect various trinkets crafted by Maligno's creator, enchanted baubles they have some inscrutable use for.

3. Odiare appears to attract those associated with lost children of all sorts. On Gothic Earth, the Qabal known as the Heirs of the Piper have been fighting evil for centuries, being the descendants of those children supposedly abducted by the Pied Piper long ago. Some time ago a group of these magical minstrels found themselves in Ravenloft, and continued their work, calling themselves the Pipers of Hamelyn. This splinter group had some success, but were foolish enough to draw the attentions of Jaqueline Renier. After a too public display of the Piper's abilities ended in tragedy the group was forced into hiding. By chance or fate the Pipers found their way to Hamelyn, a domain wrenched from their homeworld. They also discovered the domain hides its own secrets, including certain hidden rooms and sanctuaries utilized by other Qabals over the centuries it has existed. Odiare has since become their base of operations, a fact Maligno and his puppets are ignorant of. To the carrionettes the Pipers are merely traveling musicians who have an odd fondness for the domain. Their existence is tolerated because of their ability to entertain the children with skills no carrionette in a human body can match. However, Jaqueline and the Pipers still hold one another in contempt, and the secret society has made efforts to target her schemes in particular. Sooner or later agents of the Renier clan will discover the domain and when that happens the children will no doubt be caught in the middle of the fighting.

4. Carionettes take pains to appear as normal toys to the children of the domain. Indeed, thanks to some threats subtle and otherwise the older children and young adults do not speak of the animated toys at all lest they be claimed by the dolls, working to subtly avoid the monsters and keep the ignorant young ones clear of them. The "territory" of the children lies near the town center, while the back alleys and more run down areas are host to the carionettes. Malicious yet playful, the puppets have invented an endless series of riddles and puzzles to confound those who enter their lairs. Those who scorn these puzzles are likely to be targetted as soon as they drop their guard. But those who are clever and entertaining enough to indulge the puppets are often spared...at least for a time. Over the years the dolls have collected exotic manuscripts or magical weapons to entice adventurers to play their games, knowing that potent items are often of little use to the schemes of the golems but of great use to the big ones. Play a game with the toys, you never know what you will get.

5. Odiare seems like an unlikely repository of knowledge, but for those with a certain interest it is one of the most valuable resources in the mist. First there are the older texts from before the Mists came. These are of interest to the scientifically inclined, as the breakthroughs on Gothic Earth put even the most sophisticated devices of Paridon and Lamordia to shame (and are valuable enough that even a small backwater like Odiare was on Earth has invaluable snippets of information). More recent are the growing volumes of plays, songs, and especially fairy tales that the Odiarans have traded and collected over the years. A few dedicated shelves of stories common and rare now occupy the homes of many residents, many containing a vital secret or two hidden in allegory and prose to combating the fiends of ravenloft.

6. Speaking of combating monsters, the older children and many of the carrionettes have attained an expertise in battling particular types of monsters that rival Van Richten and Weathermay in their prime. This knowledge was obtained through sheer attrition. So many young ones collected in one location attract a certain kind of darkness to the town again and again. Entities of the Mist tend are drawn to the village like moths to a flame. Of this varied brood the most common such entity are the bogeymen, the obscure fae creatures detailed in Dark Tales and Disturbing Legends. Maligno hates these creatures with a passion and has taken it upon himself to protect his children from their depredations especially....except that many of these entities are simply beyond his ability to easily combat. Thus he is too often forced to make a deal with the adventurers that enter his lands, enlisting the stronger hunters in the battle against the things hidden under the bed.

7. Children tend to have secret places to hide and hoard their treasures. Maybe a knook or craney in one of the abandoned houses, maybe the shade of a tree in one of the small yards of the domain. Uniquely for Ravenloft, such places tend to have a strange ethereal resonance. These Wellsprings are formed on the same principles as Sinkholes of Evil, pockets of virtue in a dark realm. To the monsters and many adults these places cannot be seen at all. Something in the magic of innocence obscures the eyes of the jaded and malignant alike. These can be sanctuaries against the darkness, although their existence is fragile and can be dispelled far more readily than a sinkhole. Sadly, they can also be dangerous. Innocence often contains a reality all its own, and the desire of a child to simply stay in its secret world forever can bleed into the ethereal as well. Time passes strangely, and finding a way out may prove difficult. At times those who make their way into such places find their minds effected, acting less as they are and more as the children want them to be.

[Gravesguard]

The children's sheer innocence and love for the toy has turned it into a minor artifact which protects children and true innocents alike. Able to shield them from harm (provided they think it can do such a thing), and so strong as to keep even the Nightmare Court away, it is a source of comfort for the lost children of Odiare. However, should the rabbit ever be stained with the life's blood of a child, its magic will be undone.

I think the Nightmare Court Vs Maligno is a especially useful match made in hell. Children are especially susceptible to nightmares, and Maligno would try and protect the kids to some extent. I always like the idea of putting players in between the aims of two darklords. Though in this situation Maligno definitely comes off as "the good guy", but that shaky partnership could be really interesting as well.

[Mistmaster]

It could be the key for Maligno's redemption.

[Joël of the FoS]

A child populated domain screams for bogeymen connection.

Perhaps killed children's soul in other domains are sent to Odiare?

Joël