So I was wondering if you had to give your Strahd a personality trait, ideal, bond, and flaw in the style of the 5e system what would it be? The one's in 5e's Van Richten's Guide don't feel right but also don't feel fully wrong. Idk.
Intriguing question! I’m not a huge fan of the 5e I/B/F system, but here’s my best shot at the biggest ones;
Ideal: Pragmatism (Lawful Evil)
Traditional Morality can be a stumbling block to practical solutions. It is better to be ‘evil’ when necessary than to fail when it matters most.
Ideal #2: Honor Thy Word (Lawful)
You are nothing without your word. Keep the promises you make unless broken by the other party (e.g., thieves forfeiting his protection; War Against Azalin ch. 6).
Bond: I am the Land
After spending his life fighting for Barovia and literally bonding himself to the land (I, Strahd ch. 2 | WAA ch. 6), Barovia is rather important to him. Though he may not show it conventionally, he does care about the place in his own twisted way. He will go to exceedingly unhinged lengths (WAA ch. 14) to protect Barovia and its people when it is truly threatened in his eyes.
Flaw: Psychopathy Under Duress
In times of desperation or extreme stress, the emotions’ of others are no longer logically factored into decision making to the point of basically forgetting anyone has or is swayed by them.
Flaw #2: The Challenger
It takes considerable willpower to not call people out, rise to a debate (WAA ch. 6), or to a challenge of authority.
Flaw #3: Tactless
Though he tries his best, he has little to no true tact in matters of emotion or the heart.
Flaw #4: Goddamn Nerd
It is difficult to fully resist launching rambling philosophical discussion on a topic he finds intriguing (WAA ch. 6).
Flaw #5: Mental Instability
From clear and clinically delusional obsessions (e.g., Tatyana) to chronic depression and executive functioning deficits- he is hardly a picture of stability. Overall, mental illness has had likely the most detrimental impact on his behavior, decision making, and life in general- and will continue to kneecap him for, well, eternity.
{I slapped in some source notes on where I’ve drawn specific points from, but everything here is, at its core, sourced from his novels!}
For those nerdy souls that clicked on the “read more” thing, hi! Good to see y’all!
I wanted to add a quick point on how I usually notate his (and most of my NPCs’) personality traits, because why not.
Myers Briggs (MBTI) -> describes a person’s style of cognitive functioning/processing which impacts how they solve problems and see the world (Strahd is an INTJ. He is introverted, logic driven yet intuitive, and skilled in taking the bigger picture of a situation, analyzing it, and implementing often out of the box solutions based off of his analysis. INTJs tend to wax philosophical at times and have an essential drive for knowledge as well. Emotions and social graces, however, are tossed out the window.)
(Just read War Against Azalin if you’re skeptical. His crackhead plan to save Barovia and chapters of philosophical musing are evidence enough. If you think he’s an extrovert, read I, Strahd and tell me if chucking letters at people in bat form to avoid social interaction is extroverted behavior.)
Enneagram -> describes a person’s core desire and the fears they stem from (Strahd is an enneagram 8 wing 9, protecting himself though controlling his own life is his core desire, fear of being harmed or controlled by others is his core fear. However, he can reign in overt aggression when needed, opting for long term vindictiveness and more manipulative shows of dominance all while being about as extroverted as a potato- hence the 9 wing.)
Vampire: The Masquerade Roads and Paths system -> Great inspiration for describing lawful evil character “moral codes”. LE characters have their own rigid moral codes which I try to write out. VtM’s Road/Path system gives some good ideas on what those can look like, and how certain “ideals” may rate in a hierarchy of importance. (I borrow inspiration from some tenants of Road of Kings: Path of the Tyrant to notate his core values).
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Silence (a.k.a Jax has rejection sensitive dysphoria)
Jax has ADHD, and I also have ADHD, so of course I had to dump my RSD issues onto Jax too because traumatizing my OCs is how I cope when something is bothering me. I’m not gonna go into detail about my personal issues (I’m okay, just struggle-bussing it through life), but sometimes no matter what anyone says, RSD still manages to convince you that you did something wrong when someone stops talking to you. (Bob belongs to @thehannalyzer, btw, he’s not mine. (Also, I’m not trying to make any commander mentioned out to be a “bad guy” or “mean”, just so we’re clear on that. This is from Jax’s RSD-clouded POV, I’m not bashing anyone else mentioned))
—————
“Something’s bugging you,” Blazer said in lieu of a greeting when he walked into Jax’s office and leaned on the desk with both arms, one hand supporting his chin as he stared at Jax.
Jax avoided eye contact and tried to pretend he was busy working. Go away.
“Hey, genius, you and I both know you hate paperwork, so there’s no way you’re so focused that you didn’t hear me.” Blazer grabbed Jax’s datapad and pulled it out of his hands before setting it facedown just out of Jax’s reach. “You gonna talk to me or do I need to make you talk?”
Jax glared up at Blazer. He looked genuinely worried, if annoyed, and Jax instantly felt guilty. What am I doing? Why am I pushing him away when he’s not even someone I’m mad at? Sighing, Jax rubbed a hand down his face, trying to stay composed enough to explain what was going on in his head. “The others are barely speaking to me. Or, it feels that way, anyway.” He shrugged. “I dunno if I’m just overreacting or if they’re actually ignoring me.”
Blazer frowned sympathetically as he absently rubbed the scar on his chin with one finger. “Okay. Are they just busy? It’s not like things have been quiet for anyone lately.”
Jax shrugged again, a lump forming in his throat. Force-dammit. Can’t talk about osik without crying. No wonder the others see me as a baby still. “I don’t know. A couple of them said they’re busy, but others… I haven’t heard from a few of them in weeks.” His eyes stung, so he scrubbed at them with one hand. He felt Blazer’s hand rest on top of the hand that still held his stylus for his datapad.
“Who haven’t you heard from?” Blazer’s voice was gentle, so gentle.
Jax couldn’t look at him. “F-Fox. And Bob. And— and Bacara and Neyo.”
“Well, you told me that Thorn’s been worried about Fox too, so I doubt he’s ignoring only you if his twin is worried about him. Plus you mentioned that Thire sounded worried.”
“Was that supposed to be reassuring?” Jax asked bitterly.
Blazer gave a soft sigh. “Yes and no. It’s not a good thing that Fox seems to be ignoring Thorn and Thire too, but it does mean that it’s probably nothing to do with you, if that’s what you’re upset about.”
“That doesn’t make me feel better,” Jax mumbled, still barely holding himself together. “Even if Fox isn’t mad at me, that doesn’t explain everyone else.”
Blazer squeezed Jax’s hand. “It is possible that Bob is avoiding talking to you since that fight you two had. It might be good if you don’t talk to him for a while anyway.”
Jax instantly felt guilt wash over him like a wave, so he buried his face in his arms on the desk, pulling away from Blazer. “I don’t wanna talk about that. He hates me, and I don’t even know what I did wrong.” Sure, Bob had sent multiple apologies after the fight, but that was nearly a month ago at this point. Jax hadn’t really responded since he wasn’t sure he believed Bob, and after a month of silence, it felt even harder to believe that Bob didn’t hate him.
“So what if he hates you?” Blazer’s voice took on a fierce tone that seemed to color his words any time Jax mentioned that he thought Bob— or any of his brothers, really —hated him. “You don’t need his approval or attention. Same goes for Neyo and Bacara. If they don’t wanna talk to you, that’s their issue, not yours. You didn’t do anything to them.”
Jax simply wanted to melt into the floor. He knew Blazer meant well, and some angry part of him agreed with Blazer, but he couldn’t shake the little cadet voice wondering why his older brothers didn’t seem to want to talk to him, or why he always felt like they looked down on him. Just the thought of never speaking to any of his older brothers again made that little voice cry out in agony. “But I don’t want to lose contact with them,” Jax whimpered into his arms.
“If they’re not gonna put in the effort, why should you?” Blazer asked, his raspy voice nearly a growl now.
Jax felt tears escape, so he pressed his face harder into his arms. “Because I love them,” he whimpered, feeling pathetic.
He heard the soft thunk of Blazer’s vambraces on the desk, then footsteps that stopped at his side. A hand rested on his shoulder. “You don’t owe them anything. If they don’t want to talk to you, that’s their choice. Don’t let them drag you down. If they don’t think you’re worth the effort, then it’s not a relationship worth stressing over.” Blazer’s voice was much softer now.
Jax tried to take a breath, but it came out as more of a sob. “But what did I do wrong?” It didn’t make sense that his older brothers would just stop talking to him, so he had to have done something to make them want to stop talking to him. Right?
Blazer grabbed Jax with both hands and carefully guided him out of his chair and onto the floor before pulling him into a tight hug. Jax didn’t have the energy to resist, so he simply buried his face in Blazer’s shoulder. “If you can’t think of anything you did wrong, you probably didn’t do anything wrong. Sometimes it’s not your fault when people don’t want to talk to you anymore.”
“It still feels like it’s my fault,” Jax choked out, clinging to Blazer.
Blazer simply held him tighter. “I know. I’m sorry.”
Jax could only cry harder.
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