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Tome of Strahd (New Description: (Mechanical (Tome of Strahd, Book…

- - - - Perhaps I have been wrong. Perhaps it is not reunion with Tatyana that will be my escape. Perhaps it is replacement? Can I find another to govern this realm in my place? I must take care not to show weakness. I must take care not to show reluctance. No one must know how hollow I feel; how empty my omnipotence is in absence of satisfaction. My immortal, eternal image as the ruler of this dominion must never come into question. I must observe from afar.
      - The Heart glows with purpose. It has become living. The circles of masonry about its tower its ribs, the great bastion its chest. The tests on the condemned proved the heart will use the tower itself against invaders. My will sustains it, but it is mere glass, fragile, ironically mortal. With it, I am sheltered from the unthinkable. Yet, I cannot prove reckless. The antimagic field around Khazan's tower separates me from the Heart. I must be cautious of such places.
      - I have succeeded in granting my old battle armor the same form of sentience Khazan gave to his own. I have empowered it with my will and the might of storms and instructed it to defend the castle. In great need I may summon it to myself and don it with a word, provided the damn thing hasn't stumbled off a parapet and shattered itself.
      - I cannot be sure, but I believe his life soul to be stored near his chambers. I could pry and find it, but I fear that would lead to hostilities, which aren't worth my time as it stands. Little remains of his memory. I must record the passwords of the Amber Temple so that they do not pass into the mists of eternity. (Dhaviton, Thangob, Shalx, Etherna)
      - Reveals the command word for the daern's instant fortress inside the Ravenloft treasury, albeit with no context given. The players will merely know that this is likely an important password to something. (Stellar)
    - - The dark cycle of reincarnation has reached its limits. Across my realm are children born hollow. These subjects have but a scrap of the soul necessary to a mortal. Though otherwise ordinary, they are especially dour, fearful, and unimaginative. But of greatest interest to me is that I find no sustenance in their blood. Some vital essence is lacking. It is no more nourishing than sand to a thirsty man. I will study this to pass the time. I am certain there are many disappointed and hapless parents in Barovia who can be convinced to surrender their hollowborn children to my care.
      - I know I am not mad. I am seeing familiar faces reborn. Something in the mists is trapping the souls which would pass beyond -- forcing some sort of reincarnation among my people. Does it mean to taunt me? Trap an entire people in an endless cycle of misery alongside my own? Perhaps they torment me with false hope -- that my Tatyana will be reborn too.
      - The Vistani and I have reached a place of mutual respect. They are content with my rule, and I grant them sanctuary from their persecution.
      - The crime of the elves is beyond all measure of forgiveness and justice. I should have eliminated them when I first conquered this valley centuries ago. I have ordered the death of every female elf in the valley for what they have done to Patrina. Despite their comeliness, the elves will never know womanly comfort among their own kind. Despite their longevity, they will fade from existence.
      - It have cursed me. Each time I am within reach of Tatyana, she is met with tragedy. I must keep her safe this time -- no matter what it takes. Perhaps I may yet unravel the black threads of fate.
      - I was so close. She craved me. Pleaded for me to stay. Yet I returned to see Tatyana's blood had stained the earth before I could get back to her. I will spare the people of Berez, but the leadership responsible will have my undivided attention. I am the land, and I will curse the river valley they so treacherously stewarded.
    - - Baba Lysaga now dwells in the marsh-ruins of Berez. We remain on good terms. She is powerful, and dangerous. She too has communed with the Dark. There is something aloof about her; I must keep her at a distance. I cannot risk making an enemy of her.
      - The great roc of Mount Ghakis remains a danger. I pacified it during my great campaign, but I fear it may soon prey upon my people if the lakes grow barren. That privilege is reserved only for me.
      - The witches of Barovia now come to me for their succor, rather than seeking the dangerous Dark Powers directly. I am as a god with supplicants, the likes of Kossuth or Kelemvor. Nothing can turn them against me now. They are fully under my thumb. Yet the hags have not submitted in this way. They are wiser, perhaps.
      - This foolish deva believes me the fool. This holy man seeks to free me of my sins through lust of the flesh. I will allow him to continue as long as I can hold his attention. He is no threat to me while he continues his perverted folly. I have no interest in his depraved gift; it is wholly unnatural to desire such an abomination. Tatyana will free me. When she returns, she will have me.
      - Khazan has indeed granted profane life to his armor, as he claimed. "Mere rubbish," he calls it, but I see the potential. He has conferred upon it a blessing of the Dark Powers from Amber Temple. An ambitious plea, indeed. All "blessings" of the Dark Powers come with a dear price. I know too well.
      - Baba Lysaga has outlived all of her counterparts. She has unlocked a secret to immortality, but not like Khazan, Exethanter, or myself. She bathes in the blood of beasts during each new moon. I infer that grave misfortune befalls her if she fails to complete this ritual. I suspect the influence of Mother Night.
      - Vladimir's accursed silver knights have slain another adventuring band. From what I witnessed while scrying, the knights slew them for seeking my destruction. I do not understand why my mortal enemies would defend me. I can only reason that Vladimir believes mere death to be too good of a demise for me. Perhaps he wishes to bear witness to my eternal sentence.
      - Exethanter's mind is eroding. On my most recent visit I found him delirious and distracted. He seems unable to remember much, not even his magic. I do not envy the lich, nor do I pity him. It would seem that I chose all the more wisely in the means of immortality.
    - - Khazan's ambitions have claimed him. The Dark Powers never share their gifts easily. His body now lays headless upon the temple floor. I know not where his head has gone, but I must find it. As my architect, the remains of his memories hold value.
      - Reveals all of Strahd's standard spells as a usable wizard spellbook while attuned. Additionally, the attuned character may cast these spells as a ritual without the need for the Ritual Casting feature.