The Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession/Stone Prophet thread

[Mightmagic]

Necroing the thread because I wonder what happened to the folks that made these series of games, what other RPGS they may have worked on:

Dreamforge Intertainment`s last game was 99, closing down after the publisher of their in development next game Werewolf: The Apocalypse shut down.

Writer: Scot Noel -> After Dreamforge, stopped working in games. Started a digital marketing company. Revived Dreamforge as an online Sci-Fi/Fantasy Magazine in 2019.

Game Design / Head of R&D: Tom Holmes -> Currently the Principal Engine Architect for Halo, has mainly worked on Halo for the past 10 years.

Producer: Nicholas Beliaeff -> Business side. Worked on Everquest 2, Rift and now Runescape 2

Lead Programmer: Don Wuenschell -> Been Lead Programmer for Civilization games since mid 2000`s

Producer: James H. Namestka -> Passed away earlier last year, did not seem to work in games after Dreamforge closed

Game Design: Chris Straka -> No trace of what he did after Dreamforge shut down, was present at the Dreamforge reunion back in 2018.

They have made Sanitarium an excellent P&C. Dreamforge was a very good developper.

 

[imrazor]

Just picked up Ravenloft 1 & 2 up after many years. Played a lot of #2 back in the day, but I managed to lose the discs for Strahd's Possession so I didn't play that one as much as I would have liked.

Playing this game is easier than my memories indicate. A couple of techniques I have learned that are really helpful, especially for all the bandits/brigands/darklings swarming Barovia:

1) Rocks are the best ranged weapon. Rather than launching it from your PC's hand, 'pick it up' with your mouse cursor and 'throw' it at enemies in the main window. You will find that for whatever reason they have unlimited range, and if they hit an enemy will cause damage. While the target will grunt or otherwise verbalize pain, if they are far enough away they will *not* try to engage the party. Actual ranged weapons like throwing daggers and arrows will not travel past a certain range, and will cause your enemies to respond if they connect.

2) Don't try to click the weapons in your characters' hands to make attacks, but click on the enemy in the main window to take a swing (or fire an arrow). I have found that I miss far more often when I try to swing at an enemy from the lower part of the screen. Perhaps your enemy needs to be dead center in the main window to ensure you connect?

3) Your automap will reveal enemies as a red pixel. So if you hear bandits or darklings cackling maniacally but can't see any bogies, check your automap for their exact location. Checking the automap will also pause the game. If opponents are close enough, you can locate them on the automap even if you're turned away or don't have line of sight. There is a distance limit, but I'm not sure of the exact range.

Despite the game being somewhat easier than I remember, early on poison is a real pain. I've read that only darklings carry poison in the first game, but even so I'm getting poisoned a lot. And so far I've only found one Neutralize Poison scroll, and my cleric (using default party, which actually isn't too bad) isn't high enough level to cast 4th level spells yet. Weirdly the Dwarf Cleric gets poisoned a lot more than the Elf fighter/mage (Dwarves have bonuses vs. Poison if I remember AD&D 2nd edition rules correctly, and a high Constitution to boot.)

 

[RPK]

if I remember correctly, the Keoghtom's ointment (I'm sure I'm not spelling it correctly) cures poison too.

Just wait until you start fighting higher level undead like wights. They drain levels and there's no indication that it's happened. Negative plane protection is a must in some of the dungeons and pay attention to when it expires.

 

[OndrejSc]

Oy, coonts! I remember reading, a long time ago a Czech translation of an English short story inspired by Raveloft Strahd, but it took place in a virtual reality game. Have been trying to find it and read again. Any ideas?

 

[imrazor]

if I remember correctly, the Keoghtom's ointment (I'm sure I'm not spelling it correctly) cures poison too.

Just wait until you start fighting higher level undead like wights. They drain levels and there's no indication that it's happened. Negative plane protection is a must in some of the dungeons and pay attention to when it expires.

I did check some strategy hints, and the recommended solution for level drain is to reload. Seems odd that raise dead scrolls are all over the place, but there's nary a restoration scroll to be found.

Thanks for the tip on Keoghtum's Oinkment (here, piggy piggy.) I've rarely run across it in tabletop, but it's all over the place in Ravenloft. Cures all kinds of things, and packs a pretty good heal too.

To expand on my first point (about rocks/stones) a bit: Slings rock. (Pun intended.) I don't know if it's a feedback problem or something, but arrows and thrown daggers seem to do absolutely no damage unless your front line is in melee. Slings or thrown rocks, on the other hand, can take out enemies from across an outdoor map. It's overpowered as heck, especially compared to the feeble bows. And what makes it even more OP is that if you're sufficiently far away (just barely in visual range), your enemy will not try to retaliate. A single rock doesn't do a whole lot of damage, but they're plentiful and I'm pretty sure do blunt damage against things like skellies and my favorite critter so far, the Bone Golem. Unfortunately slings aren't available at the start of the game, and I have yet to find a magical one.

Bone Golems hurt like hell. Fortunately there are quite a few Fireball wands lying about, and my main character can 'dual wield' the wands. Or if you have one of the mage NPCs , you can equip him/her with a backup wand. And if you have room, it helps to back pedal away from the golems due to the heavy damage and paralysis effect they inflict.

Burning Hands is a pretty cool spell due to its large area effect. A couple will put the hurt on swarms of low level enemies. And it seems like getting caught in your own AoE is not a thing, so you can fling fireballs with abandon.

Some other hints: For dealing with the "Living Walls", stand about 10' away (at an angle if you have to) and throw rocks or fire your sling at them. After the ammo hits the wall, it wall fall to the ground and you can pick it up without retaliation. Rinse and repeat. Lore note: IIRC in the AD&D rules, Living walls could also cast spells or even use ranged weapons, but not here.

Remember your rear line cannot engage in melee, except on the outdoor maps (at least I think that's how it works.) The exception to this is polearms, like the sole mundane halberd I've found so far. Keep an eye out for them, because they're very useful if your back line runs out of ammo or spells. I think only fighters (and their subclasses) can wield polearms, but fortunately Velika has a couple of fighter levels.

I was disappointed to find that while the game does have Tatian/Tatyana as an NPC and companion, she's pretty poor in combat and doesn't have any story role to speak of. That's pretty weird, because she is a very significant character in Barovia and Ravenloft. But she doesn't do much in this game at all.

 

[RPK]

I still remember my 15-ish year old self running into my first bone golem, I think it was below the Ivlis River and getting TPK-ed faster than I could say, "WTF was that"

 

[imrazor]

I like very much ravenloft stradh's possession and I confirm that there is no ennemy respawn. It's a good decision because I hate respawn.
I would love a HD remaster and a french version of Stone prophet and Mzneoberranzan.

This hasn’t been my experience. I painstakingly cleared the Graveyard, only to find undead respawning in previously cleared areas. Fortunately they didn’t respawn in the same numbers, but it was still a headache to have to clear it out again. And I’m pretty sure this is true in dungeons as well.

A bit more info on bows and arrows. In the “CD” version of the game (as downloaded from GoG), arrows really do zero damage. Some kind of oversight in the objects.dat file. That file contains data about different inventory items, including ammo. And when they added some items for the CD version of the game, they had to move some items around in the file and accidentally left arrows set to 0 damage. Easily fixed with a hex edit, and now I’m raining destruction down from the next county over. I’ve thrown a lot of arrows away because they were previously useless.

And more on rocks: Found the Sling of Seeking in the Graveyard. What makes this weapon interesting is that most missile weapons demand that you center the window on your enemy. But with the Seeking Sling it just automatically locks on the closest enemy regardless of which direction the party is facing. That can present problems of its own though…

Another nice trick with rocks is the cleric spell ‘Magic Stone.’ The description says it temporarily converts rocks and sling bullets into +1 ammo. But the temporary part is wrong. The ammo created is permanent, and does 2d4 damage vs. undead as well. That is, assuming we can trust the description. But the magic rocks do seem more effective against undead, at least with my informal testing. Combine that with the Sling of Seeking…well it’s very effective.

 

[imrazor]

I still remember my 15-ish year old self running into my first bone golem, I think it was below the Ivlis River and getting TPK-ed faster than I could say, "WTF was that"

Yeah they’re tough. I just made it to Castle Ravenloft and now I’m running into Zombie Golems. Even with Stoneskin on my two frontliners they go down pretty fast. If possible, I try to take them out from extreme range, but that’s not always possible on an indoor map.

 

[RPK]

I saved my precious supply of arrows of undead slaying for the zombie golems. I'm not sure if they should work on those guys, but they do.

 

[imrazor]

I saved my precious supply of arrows of undead slaying for the zombie golems. I'm not sure if they should work on those guys, but they do.

Funny, I tried that a couple of times and nothing happened. Is there a saving throw involved? (Well actually I tried it on Bone Golems, and nada.)

 

[RPK]

I saved my precious supply of arrows of undead slaying for the zombie golems. I'm not sure if they should work on those guys, but they do.

Funny, I tried that a couple of times and nothing happened. Is there a saving throw involved? (Well actually I tried it on Bone Golems, and nada.)

yes, there is a saving throw. I'm not sure if bone golems count, either. I only ever used them on zombie golems, from what I remember.

 

[F. J. Rothchild III]

I've begun a blind playthough of Stone Prophet (with commentary from myself that you'll likely either love or hate). My knowledge of D&D is limited to Forgotten Realms CRPGs and (technically) Planescape, that being an offshoot like Ravenloft, but my knowledge of gothic horror (or in this case Egyptian) is something I'm much more confident about. This first part is me coming up with backstories for my characters, as well as me simply rambling about related topics FDAR too long. I'lll be making sure to lbe far less loquacious. Check it out if you have time/are interested!

From my YouTUbe description:

"Stone Prophet. A gothic horror RPG...with an Egyptian twist! That said, the true horror in this first part of my playthrough is the fact that I get lost in the details of my characters' backstories, to a ludicrous degree, complete with needlessly ponderous tangents. There is zero gameplay in this video. If you're interested in what my thought process is when I create RPG characters, then 1) You might enjoy this and 2) You may need help. If not, you might want to skip this entire thing, for the sake of your own sanity.If the idea of an Egyptian RPG doesn't sound appealing to you, you're in denial. You should be supporting the concept like a cheerleader would a sports team, going 'Ra! Ra! Ra!" So, let's put on a Bangles record and walk like Har'Akirian into Ravenloft."

 

[imrazor]

2) You may need help.

That's a given, so I guess watching is mandatory. Curious though, why not start with Strahd's Possession?

 

[Tweed]

It would help if it wasn't recorded on a potato using a dixie cup and string.

 

[F. J. Rothchild III]

2) You may need help.

That's a given, so I guess watching is mandatory. Curious though, why not start with Strahd's Possession?

I explain in the video that I did start with it, but wasn'y really feeling it. I actually read on here an overwhelming amount of people saying the sequel improved upon the original in many ways.
It seemed like Strahd's Possession laid the groundwork and Stone Prophet perfected it. Do you think Strahd's Possession is a must-play and a sin to skip?

It would help if it wasn't recorded on a potato using a dixie cup and string.

That would indeed help! And you're offering to donate a better recording setup? That's so kind of you. I accept!

 

[Tweed]

That would indeed help! And you're offering to donate a better recording setup? That's so kind of you. I accept!

You funny guy.

 

[F. J. Rothchild III]

Can anyone who has successfully done this help me out?

Tried giving Strahd's Possession a further chance before skipping it, and realized it would really help if I could simply change the DosBox keybindings so I can rotate my view (look left and right, rather than strafe) using the keyboard. Combat in these games is greatly hindered by the fact that enemies circle you and it's near-impossible to spin around in time before they've already dealt you multiple hits.I just want to be able to use the mouse cursor to click on the enemies to attack, whjile using two keyboard keys to rotate easier and keep enemies in my sight when they try to get on my side or behind me (using mouse for this is not very doable). If anyone has done this or has tips on how, let me know! These games are quite neat, but this bizarre choice of having enmies circle you and immediately get behind you is a major issue.

 

[RPK]

Can anyone who has successfully done this help me out?

Tried giving Strahd's Possession a further chance before skipping it, and realized it would really help if I could simply change the DosBox keybindings so I can rotate my view (look left and right, rather than strafe) using the keyboard. Combat in these games is greatly hindered by the fact that enemies circle you and it's near-impossible to spin around in time before they've already dealt you multiple hits.I just want to be able to use the mouse cursor to click on the enemies to attack, whjile using two keyboard keys to rotate easier and keep enemies in my sight when they try to get on my side or behind me (using mouse for this is not very doable). If anyone has done this or has tips on how, let me know! These games are quite neat, but this bizarre choice of having enmies circle you and immediately get behind you is a major issue.

use the keypad. 7 and 9 rotate the view. if that doesn't work, click on the compass. the game has two movement modes, "step" mode and "Free" mode. Step mode is the traditional 90 degree turn/grid mode and free mode lets you move freely.

you can set step movement in the options screen too.

 

[Tweed]

It would help if you read the documentation for DosBox (CTRL-F1) and the manual for Ravenloft, do I need to buy you printouts for those too?

 

[F. J. Rothchild III]

It would help if you read the documentation for DosBox (CTRL-F1) and the manual for Ravenloft, do I need to buy you printouts for those too?

First you needlessly (and honestly, hyperbolically) trash my video's audio and now you're just being a prick for no reason. I've done both of those things already. Honestly, there's sarcasm and ribbing and then there's just being an objective asshole. Genuinely fuck you.

use the keypad. 7 and 9 rotate the view. if that doesn't work, click on the compass. the game has two movement modes, "step" mode and "Free" mode. Step mode is the traditional 90 degree turn/grid mode and free mode lets you move freely.

you can set step movement in the options screen too.

Oh wow, an actual helpful answer. Who'd have thunk it possible? Thank you, RPK.

 

[Tweed]

First you needlessly (and honestly, hyperbolically)

Too many adverbs.

 

[Achdulieber]

I always hated the game. Couldn't get into it for some reason. The whole thing didn't click with me at all, I dunno why. I should have loved it, considering my tastes.

But what I absolutely LOVED was the art. Still do. I remember researching who tf the artist was and found out he had a rather brief stint as an artist for these kind of D&D games, but nothing really stoof out to me. I think he did Anvil of Dawn, too.

 

[F. J. Rothchild III]

I always hated the game. Couldn't get into it for some reason. The whole thing didn't click with me at all, I dunno why. I should have loved it, considering my tastes.

But what I absolutely LOVED was the art. Still do. I remember researching who tf the artist was and found out he had a rather brief stint as an artist for these kind of D&D games, but nothing really stoof out to me. I think he did Anvil of Dawn, too.

Yeah, I’m having trouble, as well. I wanted to play them in order, of course, but the first, while having no huge, glaring problems, in my opinion, did have many small problems that added up. I then read how some found the first skippable, given how much the sequel improved upon those problems. So I’m still just in limbo, trying to push through the original again and find the good in it (there’s plenty) without its frustrations causing me to quit once more.

The entire setting of Ravenloft is great, but these games make you play as typical, non-Ravenloft denizens that are your cliche D&D templates. I know the whole point of Ravenloft was for it to be a new world that you and your friends’ pre-existing D&D characters could adventure in, but, for the game, it makes this strange contrast of a haunting, cool world with neat lore being explored by some pretty generic protagonists (the portrait selection in 1 is criminal. I love the art, too, but the portraits in 1 are way too few and way too fugly. Not to mention the game doesn’t allow your age to be higher than around 20 years, so almost none of them fit.)

It’s been such a love/hate experience.

 

[imrazor]

I always hated the game. Couldn't get into it for some reason. The whole thing didn't click with me at all, I dunno why. I should have loved it, considering my tastes.

But what I absolutely LOVED was the art. Still do. I remember researching who tf the artist was and found out he had a rather brief stint as an artist for these kind of D&D games, but nothing really stoof out to me. I think he did Anvil of Dawn, too.

Yeah, I’m having trouble, as well. I wanted to play them in order, of course, but the first, while having no huge, glaring problems, in my opinion, did have many small problems that added up. I then read how some found the first skippable, given how much the sequel improved upon those problems. So I’m still just in limbo, trying to push through the original again and find the good in it (there’s plenty) without its frustrations causing me to quit once more.

The entire setting of Ravenloft is great, but these games make you play as typical, non-Ravenloft denizens that are your cliche D&D templates. I know the whole point of Ravenloft was for it to be a new world that you and your friends’ pre-existing D&D characters could adventure in, but, for the game, it makes this strange contrast of a haunting, cool world with neat lore being explored by some pretty generic protagonists (the portrait selection in 1 is criminal. I love the art, too, but the portraits in 1 are way too few and way too fugly. Not to mention the game doesn’t allow your age to be higher than around 20 years, so almost none of them fit.)

It’s been such a love/hate experience.

I played through a tabletop Ravenloft campaign years ago, and it was very different from most settings. There were brutal consequences for being evil, and temptation was everywhere. And creepy as hell too. My character ended up a weird sort of half undead thing by the time he escaped.

The computer game doesn't really capture this, and it would have been much more interesting if your party was actively tempted to become evil instead of just being the boring, generic heroes that D&D characters usually are/were (well at the time of 2nd edition anyway.) But it is basically a dungeon crawl without much 'roleplaying' or 'choice and consequences' gameplay.

As for controls the game plays much better with the numpad keys than trying to use your mouse to navigate. Collision detection also isn't a thing in this game. If you end up in the same map 'square' as your enemy(ies), the easiest way to rectify that situation is to just backpedal (2 on your numpad I think.)

 

[BruceVC]

I just finished Ravenloft Strahds Possession and it took me about 45 hours

I enjoyed it but there are some seriously frustrating designs like dozens of Treants spawning in the Undead Forest and I had to keep running away to heal and come back

But puzzles were not too hard, I used some tips and guides. But I prefer the overall mechanics of EOB

I enjoyed the overall narrative, Ravenloft is always a good setting

It isnt as good as the EOB series but still worth playing and its gets a 55/100 on the globally respected " BruceVC game rating system "