Dark Powers

• They hunger for souls
  • they can get them themselves, but it takes a lot of work because they can't live in mortal realms
  • so they recruit champions to do it
• each one can only eat a certain type of soul
  • Vampyr: collects souls who die from exsanguination (extreme blood loss)
  •  Fekre, Queen of Poxes: collects the souls of those who die from her pox
  • Delban, Star of Ice and Hate: collects souls who freeze to death
  • Menigal, the Departed: collects those who died unnaturally (combat, magic, etc) (overlaps with Vampyr)
• This is why there are soulless in the valley
  • there used to be a bunch of souls, but slowly, Vampyr has sucked them dry
  • the mists prevent new souls from entering
• When Shar created the Shadowfell, the Demiplane of Dread fragmented, and each Darklord's (e.g. Strahd) realm settled into a spot somewhere within the newly created plane
  • these realms are the Domains of Dread
• The Dark Powers move between these domains by their misty borders or through each of the identical Amber Temples in each of the Dread Planes (see reddit post)
  • this is how Rictavio travels between planes and how he got to Barovia in the first place

Vampyr
Menigal, the Departed

The Dark Powers are the manifestation of evil in Barovia Valley. They are responsible for the imprisonment of this land in this evil plane of existence, the corruption of Mother Night and banishment of the Morninglord, and for the granting of many temporary or permanent evil boons to their followers such as the vampirism of Count Strahd von Zarovich, the lichdom of Khazan, the magical powers of Baba Lysaga, and the monstrous arm of Izek Strazni.

It is said they were originally hidden away in sarcophagi in a hidden temple under Mount Ghakis known as the Amber Temple, until the wizards tasked with protecting them were taken under their evil influence, and some have since been destroyed. They are led by a secretive evil deity from another world known as Vecna, who, along with the three oldest powerful Dark Powers of Vampyr, Tenebrous, and Zhudun, require sacrificial pacts for access to their dark abilities. However, each dark ability comes with a consequence of equal value.

The surviving Dark Powers and their gifts are as follows:
- Vecna, the God of Secrets
The gift of evil
- Vampyr, the Undying
The gift of immortality (notably accepted by Strahd)
- Tenebrous the Knowledgeable
The gift of lichdom (notably accepted by Khazan)
- Zhudun, the Corpse Star
The gift of raising the ancient dead (notably sought by Kasimir)
- Fekre, the Queen of Poxes
The gift of disease (notably accepted by (Negnal)
- Zrin-Hala, the Howling Storm
The gift of lightning (also accepted by Negnal)
- Sykane, the Soul Hungerer
The gift of raising the recently deceased
- Savnok the Inscrutable
The gift of mind shielding
- Tarakamedes, the Grave Wyrm
The gift of flight
- Shami-Amourae, the Lady of Delights
The gift of persuasion
- Drizlash, the Nine-Eyed Spider
The gift of wall-walking
- Dahlver-Nar, He of Many Teeth
The gift of many lives
- Zantras, the Kingmaker
The gift of presence and personality
- Delban, the Star of Ice
The gift of deadly cold
- Khirad, the Star of Secrets
The gift of divination
- Yrrga, the Eye of Shadows
The gift of true sight
- Great Taar Haak, the Five-Headed Destroyer
The gift of great strength
- Yog the Invincible
The gift of resilience
- Norganas, the Finger of Oblivion
The gift of creating undeath
- Vaund the Evasive
The gift of evasion
- Seriach, the Hell Hound Whisperer
The gift of beasts