Strahd von Zarovich

**Strahd von Zarovich** is a powerful vampire, the King of Barovia, and the lord of Castle Ravenloft.

## Early Life

Strahd was born in Castle Ravenloft, the firstborn son of King Barov von Zarovich and Queen Ravenovia van Roeyen. When he was an infant, Strahd's nursemaid, Lysaga, fed him her blood and planted a dark seed within him.

Strahd was eleven years old when his younger brother, Sergei, was born. Shortly thereafter, Castle Ravenloft came under siege, and Strahd was forced to defend his mother and brother, killing a man who assaulted the room in which they were barricaded.

King Barov died while Strahd was still young, and Strahd became the King of Barovia and general of its armies. Aided by his father's castellan Rahadin, Strahd led a series of wars of conquest against the dark lords of Barovia. After decades of warfare, Strahd was finally victorious. However, he was then called back to war when one of his allies, Lord Vladimir Horngaard, turned to dark blood magic and began sacrificing his people to the dark powers.

Meanwhile, Strahd's younger brother Sergei left to train as a priest of the Morning Lord. After several years of study, Sergei abandoned his studies and returned home.

## Tatyana

Near the end of his wars of conquest, Strahd met Tatyana Ivanova, a young woman of the new Barovian nobility, and immediately became enamored of her. Tatyana, however, fell in love with and married Strahd's brother, Sergei.

Shortly after Sergei and Tatyana's marriage, Sergei died, seeming to have been killed by Valentin Horngaard, the son of Strahd's former ally Lord Vladimir. Tatyana, who had always had a fragile constitution, fell terribly ill after Sergei's death, and seemed to have lost the will to live. Strahd sought out doctors and healers, but none were able to help Tatyana.

Strahd visited his old nursemaid, Baba Lysaga, who offered Strahd a deal. She had previously made a bargain with the dark goddess Mother Night, who inhabited Lysaga's body and granted her eternal life and youth. Lysaga offered to allow Mother Night to possess Tatyana's body instead, saving her from death. However, Strahd rejected this deal, instead traveling to the Amber Temple in search of a different solution.

It is unclear what Strahd discovered within the Amber Temple, but it was unable to save Tatyana, who died shortly thereafter, seemingly as a result of falling from a great height. Strahd attempted to keep Tatyana's soul with him, using his newfound powers to seal off the land of Barovia.

It was around this time that Strahd was revealed to have become a vampire. One of Strahd's soldiers shot him down, killing him. When Strahd rose again, the soldier fled to Vallaki and took refuge in the house of a man named Andral. In order to keep the soldier safe, Andral never left his home, living out the rest of his days there and never allowing Strahd in. This act consecrated the site, which no vampire may enter so long as Andral's bones remain there.

## Vampire Lord of Barovia

As an undead vampire, Strahd has ruled Barovia for the past eight centuries.

During this time, Tatyana has been reborn many times, but has never lived to see her twenty-fifth birthday. Tatyana's reincarnations include Yelena Ulrich, who was killed by her own father to keep her out of Strahd's clutches; Marina Zalenski, the wife of Vargas Vallakovich who died in childbirth; and, most recently, Ireena Kolyana, daughter of the burgomaster of Barovia.

While Strahd has sought Tatyana out again and again, he has also taken other consorts over the years. One such consort was the dusk elf woman Patrina Velikovna. Patrina's brother, Kasimir, tells the story of how the dusk elves tried to keep Patrina from Strahd, and, in retaliation, Strahd had Rahadin kill every female dusk elf. Most recently, Strahd has taken Gertruda Stiegler and Escher Belasco as his consorts.

Strahd's subjects have widely varying opinions on Strahd as the ruler of Barovia. Some, such as Lady Fiona Wachter, believe him to be the best hope for the nation's salvation, while others, such as Burgomaster Vargas Vallakovich, see him as the greatest threat to its safety. A few Barovians, such as Ezmerelda d'Avenir and the Keepers of the Feather, directly oppose Strahd.

## The Curse of Strahd

The land of Barovia is cursed. Strahd was told even as a child that it was a cursed land, and whatever bargain Strahd made in the Amber Temple may have worsened the state of the nation. It is clear that Tatyana's fate, to be born again and again but never live past twenty-four, is the result of some dark magic.

Strahd has sought for many years to break this curse. He has come to the ultimate conclusion that something new must be brought in for the situation to change. To this end, Strahd has used a criminal organization, the Consortium of Shadows, to bring new people to Barovia. In particular, he has sought out those that are rift-touched, believing that they have the power to shift fate and to free his land from its curse.