TTRPG Fan Project - Ravenloft 3e/3.5 Compendium

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 And now for something completely different!  Friends, I am extremely excited to share one of the longest fan ttrpg projects I have ever done.  

    In case you didn't know, my favorite campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game is Ravenloft.  Ravenloft is the gothic horror and fantasy setting, made famous with modules like Curse of Strahd and characters like Strahd von Zarovich!  And my favorite era of the setting, as I am sure you can guess, is the D&D 3e/3.5 era by Sword & Sorcery Studios!

    S&S took all the amazing lore and character options from previous incarnations of Ravenloft, and updated-slash-expanded on them with the storytelling mechanics and themes of 3e/3.5 edition.  This was all done from 2000 to 2008.  As with any campaign setting of D&D, it has had a rabid fanbase for decades since its inception--Ravenloft was not afraid to test the limits of gothic fantasy, horror storytelling and introducing cultural, historical and political analogues to tell humanity-focused stories in a grounded, dark world.

    However, as with any older setting and books of D&D, finding all the resources to implement them into your own game these days has been an uphill battle.  Character options especially were jumbled about, with no centralized compilation or site to keep them straight and at a game master's fingertips.  A lot of the older pdf scans of the books are not bookmarked or even text-formatted.  And acquiring the physical copies is nearly impossible, since they have been out of print since 2008 and are rare and expensive compared to other tabletop rpg books.

    While I have been running my own Ravenloft campaign setting (and recording its story on my Freaks & Facades blog here), I struggled to keep things straight and remember which book and page had the exact wording for a new spell or class ability I wanted to use.  In my spare time, I began to go through the S&S era books for the setting (as well as some fan-created errata and supplements that are integral to Ravenloft).  I typed up everything each book had to offer, creating an enormous word document.  My first draft of the Ravenloft Compendium.

    It was too useful not to share with my fellow roleplayers and fans of this classic, niche setting.  I then split the first Compendium document into several specific ones: one for Classes/Prestige Classes, one for character Feats, and one for Spells unique to the setting.  It took a lot of proofreading and text formatting--mostly because I am extremely particular and wanted to make it a true quality of life update--but I have succeeded!

    The Ravenloft 3e/3.5 Compendium is now on my itch.io page below!  i

    Sword & Sorcery Studios (an imprint of White Wolf Publishing) created the original content for the Dungeons & Dragons system for Wizards of the Coast.  This is a reference document for content that has been out of print for two decades or so.  Any system updates or changes in language were made to compile errata and implement quality of life adjustments for players and game masters.

Love, Aboleth Eye

Feedback is always appreciated!

Click here or the picture above for the itch.io page!

*Original artwork by LadyZolstice, commissioned and edited by Aboleth Eye