Handling the Language Barrier

[Nyarlathotep]

I've never run a Ravenloft game with Outlander PC's (Even back before the campaign setting was set up to handle it, I usually used native characters). So my question is, how do people handle the language barrier? Ravenloft doesn't even have a "common tongue," so language barrier can be an issue even for natives (as they don't speak all the different languages spoken in their own world). This language system adds a great deal of realism (as opposed to standard fantasy worlds where common is basically the "human" language), but it also brings a major question right out into the open. If each domain has a different language (assumably because they were taken from different worlds which did not speak the same language), then most outlanders would appear in Ravenloft with no means of communication with those around them (in fact, this is directly addressed as being true in some of the novels). It seems like this problem might just add difficulty and tedium to what is already a difficult adventure.

Now, obviously there is some logical overlap, Darkonese is probably similar to Oerth common and the same for Sithican and Krynn. But, for the most part, it seems like Outlander characters will come into the adventure with no languages and then have to rapidly learn many, different languages.

[Isabella]

Handwave it.

That's my advice, and there's canon evidence for that position - Vampire of the Mists didn't have Jandar Sunstar sitting and staring dumbly at Strahd, asking "Speaken ze Common?" The same goes for most Outlanders drawn into Ravenloft. The Mists contain TARDIS translation nanites, or something.

My first group tried doing the language barrier thing because it would be "fun" and "an interesting roleplaying experience". Our GM got fed up and gave us all High Mordentish for free by the end of the first adventure. We were even better off than most, since we had a bard. That being said, the language thing isn't as completely horrible as it looks at first blush, because each domain has more than one language commonly spoken in it. If you know High Mordentish, Vaasi, or Balok, you can probably get by in large chunks of the setting.

[Zilfer]

Handwave it.

That's my advice, and there's canon evidence for that position - Vampire of the Mists didn't have Jandar Sunstar sitting and staring dumbly at Strahd, asking "Speaken ze Common?" The same goes for most Outlanders drawn into Ravenloft. The Mists contain TARDIS translation nanites, or something.

My first group tried doing the language barrier thing because it would be "fun" and "an interesting roleplaying experience". Our GM got fed up and gave us all High Mordentish for free by the end of the first adventure. We were even better off than most, since we had a bard. That being said, the language thing isn't as completely horrible as it looks at first blush, because each domain has more than one language commonly spoken in it. If you know High Mordentish, Vaasi, or Balok, you can probably get by in large chunks of the setting.

I thought I remember Strahd's world being from the Prime Material world.... and i thought it was rumored to be in Faerun... that would explain Jander Sunstar's ability to speak it.

Truthfully what I did was handwaved 1 language. My PC's came from Faerun and i told them the people often spoke older dialects or used funny words. They could speak it but sometimes communicating exact meaning was off. Most NPC's noticed the PC's odd speaking habit but only few would mention it. It would immediately give NPC's in Barovia a reason to know they were an outsider and outsider's aren't trusted in barovia. Pretty realistic to me xD.

That's just me though.

[Epically]

I got rid of all of it. It just gets too frustrating. Only things that have a different language are different races.

[Nyarlathotep]

I thought I remember Strahd's world being from the Prime Material world.... and i thought it was rumored to be in Faerun... that would explain Jander Sunstar's ability to speak it.

I'm not sure of that, but I do know that both I, Strahd books point out that Strahd is well aware of Outlanders and typically uses the Comprehend Language spell to communicate with them. This could be how he converses with Jander.

[Nyarlathotep]

I got rid of all of it. It just gets too frustrating. Only things that have a different language are different races.

See, I don't like doing that. Even in my fantasy games I do regional/cultural languages (I also run human heavy games and take the focus off of demihumans). The idea that all humans are the same and speak one language just seems silly to me. I like the languages in Ravenloft because it is very realistic. And when I'm running native PC's, there's no real issue (no more than racial languages in any other setting anyway), but this is the first time I'm using outsider PC's and I just realized how much bigger of an issue this will be.

[Isabella]

I'm not sure of that, but I do know that both I, Strahd books point out that Strahd is well aware of Outlanders and typically uses the Comprehend Language spell to communicate with them. This could be how he converses with Jander.

While true, Jander also has no trouble with the Vistani, Sasha, Lisl, or any of the other Barovians. I'm still convinced it's translator nanites.

My point is mostly that most stories with Outlanders either don't have a language barrier or handwave it really fast, for good reason. The question I usually ask myself is "will the inability to speak with 99% of the population serve the story, or will it be a novelty that wears thin after the second session?"

I'd probably just rule that the primary language an Outlander knows shifts to the primary language of whatever domain they first land in - any secondary languages can turn into rough equivalents.

[Zilfer]

I'm not sure of that, but I do know that both I, Strahd books point out that Strahd is well aware of Outlanders and typically uses the Comprehend Language spell to communicate with them. This could be how he converses with Jander.

While true, Jander also has no trouble with the Vistani, Sasha, Lisl, or any of the other Barovians. I'm still convinced it's translator nanites.

My point is mostly that most stories with Outlanders either don't have a language barrier or handwave it really fast, for good reason. The question I usually ask myself is "will the inability to speak with 99% of the population serve the story, or will it be a novelty that wears thin after the second session?"

I'd probably just rule that the primary language an Outlander knows shifts to the primary language of whatever domain they first land in - any secondary languages can turn into rough equivalents.

Sounds pretty close to what I did.

though again maybe the Dark Power's gift the ability to understand the first language the outsiders run into. I mean according to the books it sounds like Outerland's "week in hell" is just the Dark Power's tools to get a job done or see what would happen if this were to come.

*shrugs* there's plenty of ways to run it. Also maybe they get a translator in the first few sessions, and anyone they gain the trust of they can communicate with rapidly as they learn the language. *Shrugs*

I mean it gives a real reason to have the skill linguistics. In Pathfinder 1 skill point = 1 language so it's not that hard to get most of the languages..... <.< but that's pathfinder.

[The Lesser Evil]

Well, there might be some lesser known languages with more specific usages that the outlander character might have in common with the natives. Despite the lack of dragons in Ravenloft, draconic is a common language for wizardy types and the like as a quasi-intellectually elitist language, for example. They could also try communicating in various demi-human tongues.

[ewancummins]

You could assume that:

Darkonese= a dialect of Common Tongue of the Flanaess

Sithican= a dialect of Krynnish Elvish language

Hazlani= a dialect of Faerun's Common Tongue, similiar to the speech of Thay

Valachani, Kartakan= dialects of FR Common

This could be helpful to outlanders from certain places.

[ewancummins]

In Mists over the Musarde, one of the PCs was an Outlander. But I did not begin play with the Mists conveniently dropping him into the midst of the action, wearing an 'orange PC jacket.' No, he had arrived many months before and already learned the local language (Mordentish). He was known to be a foreigner from 'some far away country, beyond Darkon.' He joined the party for reasons of personal and professional interest.

YMMV

[Zilfer]

^not a bad idea to hand wave it but still have it be part of the story that the character did originally have to learn the language. xD

[ewancummins]

^not a bad idea to hand wave it but still have it be part of the story that the character did originally have to learn the language. xD

Yep. He paid for the new language, too.

[ewancummins]

Language barriers did come into play when the party travelled to some other places. This affected the native PCs as well as the Outlander.


Language barriers in short adventures can be good for instilling a sense of strangeness and isolation.

Sometimes having one or two NPCs through whom information is filtered is nice. That translator/filter may not be the right tool for every sort of adventure/story, but it can be very useful tool in some sorts of adevntures.

[HuManBing]

I agree strongly with ewancummins.

Language between nations plays a fairly important cryptographic role in my campaign (which is currently focusing on a Cold War between Darkon and Falkovnia), but addressing the "how does your character get around?" question - I've usually given them guides or friendly locals to help them about.

If the PCs are from offworld, then putting them in a metropolitan area could be useful, as Ravenloft does have a trickle of offworlders coming in, and they would tend to congregate to cities. This could even give the PCs a useful "mission assignment" structure if you're running an extended campaign, as they're fairly dependent on these friendly NPCs for translation purposes.

GURPS is also significantly more modular in how it allows character points to be spent - when the GM decides a PC has spent enough time for linguistic familiarity, he can then authorize anywhere from 1 to 6 points to be spent in that language. I can't remember how DnD handles languages, and in any case my edition knowledge is probably laughably out of date.