I have been in this land for almost 2 weeks now and have decided to keep this journal so it can be a guide to any future Kelemvorite who finds themself brought here.
This land is called Barovia, and its mountains, forests and countryside are as beautiful as any in Fearun, the city of Valaki that you will no doubt come across is anything but , it is a sad gloomy and desperate place devoid of laughter and smiles. perhaps I should tell you first of the local people:
Barovians morbid fearfull and xenophobic, they view themselves and only themselves as the only thing of worth in this land, they persecute all demi human races, cast their own malformed and disfigured children into the sewers to live in darkness as what they call Caliban from what I can tell this name they use for anything that's not a non disfigured Human, elf ,dwarf ,hin,gnome, any other humanoid creature such as goblins and orcs are considered Caliban, and lastly as a non native an Outlander as they call us you have no legal rights under Barovain law, that is if you can describe what Barovians equate to be law as either lawfull or just, they have three written laws don't enter castle Ravenloft without the counts permission, don't kill Vistanni (a local indigenous gypsy group) and don't steal from the state. Apart from this it appears all other laws are created by the guards as a whim when it suits them and posted on posters that wear away with wind and weather, leaving the situation that these auxiliary laws are only known to new Outlanders through word of mouth. Valaki's guard bear more resemblance to a dockside mob than law enforcers, they posses rudimentary skills in intimidation and thuggery forcing their will through fear and numbers than through any actual respect given to them by the people for their position, they remind me some of the Zhentrim but without the Zhentrims ability to manipulate and deceive , valaki guards are very much in your face they come right at you, expressing any opinion or thought that is not their opinion is punishable by beatings, flogging and torture, but enough on that subject.
The night, when you discover what happens at night in Barovia you will probably understand why we are here, when the sun goes down Barovians go into hiding, the land is plagued by lycanthropes and Undead in vast numbers, they routinely prowl the streets of Valaki at night, killing eating and abducting those they come across the majority of those who die in this way have no faith, no belief in any god, in fact the locals can best be described as agnostics believing there are no gods, the native religion of Ezra has gained some following here, and also the religion they refer to as the Morning Lord, they claim he is not Lathander but having read the tenants of their faith I believe he is an aspect of Lathander due to the similarities in all they believe and do, the locals refer to all religions as cults and us as cultists, it is not intended as an insult just a measure of their lack of education in spiritual matters, the concept of faith itself is alien to the vast majority of them. But since death comes so readily here there are plenty who require to have their suffering from the death around them eased, this along with the multitude of undead to be laid to rest, ensures we shall be very busy in Barovia.
I have told you of Barovia and the land you find yourself in now i shall tell you about myself, my name is Aarron Kehlben, I hail from a small town called Yulash a strategically place settlement in the wars between Zhentil Keep and Hillsfar in the battle for the moonsea coast, I grew up on those streets as an orphan child running with other kids cutting purses and snatching food from window sills and market stalls at age 12 I lost my left eye in a back alley knife fight over a loaf of bread and a 2 silver coins, it was after this injury the priests of kelemvor found me, they tended my wounds and took me in, I learned discipline , the teachings of Kelemvor and in time came wisdom and finally faith.
With the constant war around Yulash and its changing hands on a nearly yearly basis I spent much of my time being persecuted by the Zhentrim followers of Cyric and latterly Bane for Kelemvors position and teachings, each flogging each torture just has made my faith stronger, the confidence given to me by faith in the rewards awaiting me in the afterlife serving in the grey city.
here ends the my first entry I shall add to this journal as time passes in hope that my writings will help those of our faith who find this land.
Aarron Kehlben
