Tools of Terror: New Items Inspired by Curse of Strahd

As referenced in my campaign notes and commentary for Curse of Strahd, at certain points in the campaign I was compelled to introduce a new item, magical or otherwise. Sometimes this was to fill a specific story need, other times to reinforce the horror of the setting, and other times just to flex my creative muscles. Now that the campaign is ended, I’m sharing those items here.

The first batch of items are variations of standard gear modified to stay in keeping with the themes of horror and darkness dominating the campaign. As in my previous article, commentary is provided in italics.

Barovian Athame

Type: Simple Melee Weapon Cost: 10 gp Weight: 2 lbs

This hand-crafted blade made from murky steel functions as a standard dagger. However, it deals 1d6 piercing damage and serves as a spellcasting focus.

Several NPC spellcasters carried variations of this ritual blade. This included several dark druids, Barovian witches, cultists, and of course Victor. Aside from the blade of dark steel, each athame was unique to its owner. Dark druid athames had curved blades with handles made of bone or defiled wood from a Gulthias Tree. Witches preferred narrow blades with handles made from black ash wood. Cult athames varied, but always incorporated design motifs symbolically important to the cult. Cult leaders went all out, adorning their blades with gold and platinum handles and black and red jewels.

Barovian Spell Fragment

Scroll, rarity varies

This scrap of bloodstained bark is covered in rough-etched runes and disturbing pictograms. A sliver of magical power writhes within. This object functions as a Scroll of Ice Knife.

There were times when a random treasure table turned up a scroll, and often that didn’t feel appropriate to the environment or corpse being looted. Rather than fudge the table, I came up with spell fragments, strangely marked objects that functioned like scrolls on a mechanical level, but were in keeping with themes of horror. The example above was the first such spell fragment, created in the moment when I rolled a Scroll of Ice Knife. As I recall this was found on either the body of a corrupted druid or a werewolf. Scrolls didn’t turn up too often, but other spell fragments were planned, including a rune-etched raven skull (Scroll of Speak with Animals), a scrap of tanned human skin marked in mystic tattoos (Scroll of Animate Dead), and a river stone with a hole in the middle inscribed with indecipherable cuneiform (Scroll of Conjure Elemental (water elemental only)).

Skin of the Hunted

Wondrous Item, common (requires attunement)

This patchwork cloak made from scraps of animal hide stitched together with lengths of gut functions as a Cloak of Elvenkind. However, its wondrous properties only function in wilderness environments.

The party acquired this item after a bloody encounter with berserkers. A roll on the random treasure table resulted in a Cloak of Elvenkind, but I felt such an item was too elegant for barbarians who had so lost themselves to madness and contempt for civilization. I felt they needed something grislier and rougher than a traditional high fantasy cloak, and so the Skin of the Hunted was born.

The second batch of items are wholly original to the campaign, typically created because the rules as written didn’t quite fit our needs or because I just wanted to try something out.

Adder Blade

Weapon (dagger), very rare (requires attunement)

This curving, serpentine blade has a handle fashioned in the form of two coiling snakes. Poison coating this blade retains its potency indefinitely.

Summon Venom. As an action you may trace a serpentine shape in the air with the blade to draw forth its supernatural venom, coating the blade in poison.

Mystic Venom. While coated in summoned venom, a creature hit by the adder blade must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or take 2d10 poison damage and become poisoned for 1 minute.

The Adder Blade was to be VIctor’s signature weapon. Unfortunately, he never got a chance to use it. Still, I had fun writing it up and may give it to a future antagonist. You never know, some ambitious Barovian may find it on his corpse and put it to good use.

Draft of Dreamless Sleep

Potion, uncommon

This cloudy liquid has the color of a fine rosé and the taste of spoiled milk. When you drink this potion at the start of a long rest, you enjoy a deep, dreamless sleep. While in this dreamless sleep you are immune to spells, curses, and other supernatural abilities that manipulate sleep and dreams (e.g., Dream).

This potion was brewed up/invented by the apothecary Roscario to grant Melkur temporary relief from the nightmare curse of Mother Night. It wasn’t cheap. Confidentially, Roscaio overcharged the party. But it worked so long as the supply held out.

Ill-Fated Poppet

Wondrous Item, common (requires attunement)

This crude effigy made from twigs, beeswax, and human hair comes to resemble its owner over time. Once per day if the poppet is on your person, you can call upon it to suffer a misfortune in your stead (no action required) to reroll one saving throw you dislike. You must use the second roll. This property can’t be used again until the next nightfall.

This item was made up on the spot when I couldn’t remember why an NPC could re-roll a failed save. The NPC was defeated and the party reaped the benefits. As the campaign progressed this item underwent a little fine tuning, such as requiring attainment and clarifying that it granted a reroll, not a roll with advantage. Recharging at nightfall as opposed to at dawn was a twist on the usual ability refresh rules that I applied to a few other standard wondrous items found in Barovia.

Longbow of Storms

Weapon (longbow), rare

When you nock an arrow on this bow, its bowstring thrums with the power of a tempest unleashed. When loosed, the arrow flies with the speed of a zephyr and strikes with a resounding thunderclap. Your ranged attacks with this weapon are unaffected by heavy rain, high winds, or other weather phenomena. If the attack hits, your target takes 3 (1d6) thunder damage in addition standard longbow damage.

This weapon was created primarily for fun. The party had discovered the mummified remains of several dead adventurers encased in spider silk cocoons in the rafters of Argynvostholt, and I used this as an opportunity to give them some standard adventuring gear. But I also wanted to include a magic weapon that was powerful, but not so powerful it undercut the horror of the campaign. The Longbow of Storms was my solution. It became a favorite weapon of the barbarian Melkur. The bow’s immunity to hindering weather only occurred to me after the campaign, so I’ve included it here.

Weeping Ash Poison (Injury)

Type: Poison Cost: 250 gp Weight: --

Distilled from the fermented sap of the rare widow’s ash tree, this sickly sweet poison creeps slowly through through the body, lingering like an unwanted guest or a verminous infestation. A piercing or slashing weapon coated in this poison deals an additional 5 (2d4) poison damage. A creature hit by the poisoned weapon must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1d6 minutes.

This cruel poison is brewed by corrupted druids who lurk in the dark bowers where the widow’s ash grows. Kept in gourds, this poison was consumed in small amounts during certain rituals and was also used to prolong a good hunt, the druids delighting in harrying their poisoned prey. A typical gourd of weeping ash poison weighs 3 lbs and contains 1d4 doses of poison.