Homebrew Vistani Species Details

The Vistani (singular: Vistana) are wanderers from the demiplane of Barovia, ruled by Strahd von Zarovich. If you are not currently playing the Curse of Strahd adventure, you are still free to use this Vistani race. However, this should only be done in consultation with the Dungeon Master, and after establishing what your character is doing outside of Barovia and why they are separated from their caravan or camp.

Vistani live outside of civilization, traveling about in horse-drawn, barrel-topped wagons called vardos, which they build themselves. Compared to Barovians, they are flamboyant. Vistani dress in bright clothes, laugh often, and drink heartily. As much as they feel at home in Strahd’s dreary land, they know they can leave it whenever they please and aren’t damned to spend eternity there.

Vistani are silversmiths, coppersmiths, haberdashers, cooks, weavers, musicians, entertainers, storytellers, toolmakers, and horse traders. They also earn money by telling fortunes and selling information. They spend whatever they earn to support a lavish lifestyle, display their wealth openly as a sign of prosperity, and share their good fortune with family and friends.

Each family or clan of Vistani is its own little gerontocracy, with the oldest member ruling the roost. This elder carries the bulk of the responsibility for enforcing traditions, settling disputes, setting the course for the group’s travels, and preserving the Vistani way of life. Vistani elders make all the important decisions, but whether by choice or because of their age, tend to speak in cryptic, flowing riddles.

Vistani families and clans are closely knit. They resolve disagreements through contests that end with reconciliatory singing, dancing, and storytelling. Although they can seem lazy and irresponsible to outsiders, the Vistani are serious people, quick to act when their lives or traditions are threatened. They are merciless when they believe they must be. Vistani who knowingly bring harm or misfortune to others of their kind are banished — the worst punishment a Vistana can imagine, even worse than death.

Strahd's Vistani Servants

During one of Strahd’s military campaigns, years before he became a vampire, a group of Vistani rescued him after he was wounded in battle. These Vistani not only nursed Strahd back to health but also delivered him safely home. As a reward for their generosity, Strahd declared that all Vistani had the right to come and go from his land as they please, and this privilege extends to the present day. Thus, Vistani can travel freely through the fog that surrounds Barovia, without fear of harm or entrapment.

Strahd honors his debt to the Vistani in part because he envies the Vistani way of life — the freedom they have to go where they please, their devotion to family, and their festive spirit. The courtesy he shows them is not simply a matter of honor but is also born from his admiration of them.

In the centuries since Strahd became a vampire, many Vistani have allowed themselves to be corrupted by Strahd, to the extent that they consider him their king. Vistani who serve Strahd are less lively and friendly than normal Vistani, and their hearts are poisoned with dark intentions. Strahd uses them to lure adventurers into his domain and keep him informed about the events occurring in lands beyond his reach. These Vistani will lie to protect the vampire, and they fear the consequences of disobeying him.

When it comes to sharing information about their dark master, Strahd’s Vistani pretend to be helpful, but the information they impart is misleading at best and often deceptive. They readily tell adventurers that they have a potion that protects them from the deadly fog that surrounds Barovia. Although this is a lie, they attempt to sell their fake potion for as much money as they can get.

Vistani Lore

Vistani know or believe certain facts about their people and their surroundings. This common lore is summarized here. Characters can learn this information after earning a Vistana’s trust.

Strahd von Zarovich

About Strahd, the Vistani believe the following:

• Strahd comes from a royal bloodline. He died centuries ago yet endures as one of the undead, feasting on the blood of the living. Barovians refer to him as “the devil Strahd.”
• Strahd has taken many consorts, but he has known only one true love: a Barovian peasant girl named Tatyana. The Vistani don’t know what happened to her, but are eager to speculate.
• Strahd named his castle, Ravenloft, after his beloved mother, Queen Ravenovia. Strangers aren’t welcome at the castle without an invitation.

The Land of Barovia

Vistani believe the following about Barovia and Barovians:

• Strahd conquered this land centuries ago and named it after his father, King Barov. Strahd uses wolves, bats, and other creatures to spy on all of his realm.
• Barovians are simple, frightened people. Some have old souls, but many do not. The soulless ones are easy to spot, for they know nothing but fear. They have no charm, hope, or spark, and they don’t cry.
• The Old Svalich Road passes through Strahd’s domain. Three settlements lie on the road like beads on a string: Krezk to the west, Vallaki in the heart of the valley, and Barovia to the east. Strahd has spies in each settlement.
• There’s an old windmill on the road between the village of Barovia and the town of Vallaki. It should be avoided at all costs! This windmill is Old Bonegrinder and home to a coven of witches, but the Vistani refuse to tell this information to strangers.
• It is wise to stick to the road. Wild druids, wayward ghosts, and packs of wolves and werewolves haunt the Svalich Woods.

Beliefs and Superstitions

The Vistani have deep-rooted beliefs and superstitions that they pass down from one generation to the next:

• The souls of those who die in Barovia can’t escape to the afterlife. They are prisoners in Strahd’s domain.
• Some Vistani women are blessed with prescience. Of all the great Vistani fortune-tellers, none compares to Madam Eva. If knowledge of the future is what you seek, Madam Eva will tell you your fate.
• A prescient Vistana can’t see her own future or the future of another Vistana. It is the burden of the Vistani’s great gift that their own fates can’t be divined.
• Vistani curses are potent, but they are invoked with great caution. Vistani know that to curse one who is undeserving of such punishment can have grave consequences for the one who utters such a curse.
• Ravens carry lost souls within them, so killing one is bad luck. 

Vistani Traits

Your vistana character has the following racial traits.

Ability Score Increase

Your Charisma score increases by 2, and your Dexterity score increases by 1.

Age

Vistani reach adulthood in their late teens and typically live less than a century. However, those who make a deal with Strahd might live longer. 

Alignment

Vistani tend toward chaotic alignments, as they let impulse and fancy guide their decisions. They are rarely good, as the grim reality of Barovia often makes the survival of their caravans their main priority. 

Size

Vistani vary widely in height and build, from barely 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall. Regardless of your position in that range, your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Curse

You can use an action to utter a curse. The curse targets another creature within 30 feet that you can see. You can’t utter another such curse before finishing a long rest.

The curse is a repayment for an injustice or a slight. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw to avoid the curse. The saving throw DC is 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier. The curse lasts until ended with a [Tooltip Not Found], a greater restoration spell, or similar magic. It doesn’t end when the target dies. If a cursed target is returned to life, the curse remains in effect.

When the curse ends, you suffer a harmful psychic backlash. The amount of this psychic damage depends on the severity of the curse that was invoked.

You know two curses at first level, and learn one additional curse at 3rd, 5th, 7th, 11th, and 13th level. You may learn any of the available curses, however: be cautious about learning a curse whose psychic damage could kill you. At your DM's discretion, you can learn a different Vistani curse in place of those presented below. Your DM determines how much psychic damage these curses deal. 

Evil Eye

As an action, you can target a creature within 10 feet that you can see. This magical ability, which the Vistani call the Evil Eye, duplicates the duration and effect of the animal friendship, charm person, or hold person spell (your choice), but requires neither somatic nor material components. The spell save DC is 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier. If the target succeeds on the save, your are blinded until the end of your next turn.

Once you use Evil Eye, you can’t use it again before finishing a short or long rest. Once a target succeeds on a saving throw against any Vistana’s Evil Eye, it is immune to the Evil Eye of all Vistani for 24 hours.

Craft of the Vistani

You have proficiency in the Deception skill, one set of artisan's tools, and your choice of an instrument or gaming set. 

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and speak Vista, a dialect unique to the Vistani. Vista has no written form.