Vallaki

Vallaki was a fortified settlement in the Domain of Dread known as Barovia.

Geography
The town was located at the heart of the valley that is Barovia, beyond the view of Castle Ravenloft, on the south side of Lake Zarovich. It was connected to the land's other two settlements by the Old Svalich Road.

Along Old Svalich Road, between Vallaki and the village Barovia, which was farther east of it, there was an old grainmill that had served Vallaki until it was taken over by a coven of hags.

Description
The town was surrounded by a tall wooden palisade of vertical logs held together by thick ropes and mortar. The top of each log was sharpened to a point and, above the ground, wooden scaffolding hugged the inside of the palisade.

Three tall, sturdy iron gates were the only ways to enter the town. At night they were kept shut with heavy iron chains and iron padlocks, while during the day they weren't typically locked, though still closed. The north gate was known as "Zarovich Gate," the west as "Sunset Gate," and the east was known as either Morning or "Mourning Gate". Flanking the road outside these gates were a half-dozen pikes with wolves' heads impaled upon them.

Defenses
Vallaki's town watch consisted of thirty guardsmen and ten archers, but in the case of an emergency the burgomaster could rally fifty militamen to support the watch.

Government
The town was governed by a burgomaster named Baron Vargas Vallakovich.

The burgomaster mandated that a festival be held at least once every week, despite most of its residents considering them to be pointless and likely to incur Strah's wrath. This was due to the burgomaster having deluded himself into believing that the only way for Vallaki to escape Barovia and return to the Prime Material plane was for him to make everyone happy and hopeful.

Those who expressed ill about the festivals would be declared in league with Strahd and be arrested. They would then either be thrown into the stockades or taken to the burgomaster's mansion to have the perceived evil purged from them.

History
Vallaki was founded not long after the armies of Strahd von Zarovich had conquered the valley that would become Barovia.

At some point in the town's history, the monster hunter Ezmerelda d'Avenir came through on her wagon in search of her mentor Rudolph van Richten.

15th Century Travelers
Some time after Ezmerelda's arrival to Barovia, a man from the Prime Material world of Toril in the late-15 century DR named Volothamp Geddarm came to Barovia. At the suggestion from Arik Lorensk he visited Vallaki to meet a half-elf bard named Rictavio, another newcomer to the Demiplane of Dread. Volo found his journey to the town to be ultimately uneventful and not worth committing to paper, but did observe in his personal notes that the town seemed more joyful than the rest of Barovia.

A group of adventurers on Toril in the 15 century DR, known as the Heroes of Baldur's Gate, were pursuing a pair of werewolves that had robbed a temple of Kelemvor they were protecting of relics when suddenly one of them activated. An amulet, originating from Barovia, created a thick fog that began to fill the air. The fog quickly filled the room and the heroes, the Kelemvorite Nerys Kathon, along with the two werewolves and their associate Sangin, were all transported to the Demiplane of Dread.

On their second day in Barovia, the Heroes of Baldur's Gate traveled to Vallaki and disrupted the Parade of Purple that was decreed by the burgomaster. They were then assaulted by the recently-risen Sangin, a pack of werewolves and three vampires who served the master of Barovia. The heroes fought valiantly and, although Nerys was bitten by one of the lycanthropes, the battle turned in their favor. Just after the Barovian monstrosities turned on one another, Strahd himself appeared, to claim the locket that was hidden away on Toril. He briefly toyed with the heroes, before besting them in combat and reclaiming the relic he sought.

The otherworldly power within the amulet assaulted Strahd in the form of his brother, distracting him momentarily. Seizing the opportunity, the group's sorceress Delina grabbed the amulet and focused on escape. Despite the trauma they had collectively endured, the injured group banded together and a flash of white light engulfed them all, transporting them back to Toril in the Spine of the World mountains.

Notable Locations

 * Aresek's Wares: The largest general store in town and a rental storage facility.
 * Blue Water Inn: The town's only inn and the temporary residence of Rictavio.
 * St. Andral's church: A church dedicated to the Morninglord.
 * Thaani Neighborhood: A neighborhood in the town that was lived in by the Thaani. It had a number of shops, but was best known for those that offered exotic wares. These included elaborate tapestries, intricate tattoos, and sculpted crystal.

Inhabitants
The town was inhabited solely by humans, who weren't welcoming of Vistani and wouldn't willingly allow strangers into their homes. Some of these humans, known collectively as the Thaani, were migrants from the domain of Bluetspur. They were a psionically gifted people, due to being experimented upon by mindflayers that ruled Bluetspur.

Some of the houses in the town were infested with rats, who were servants of Strahd, and some of the residents belonged to a cult that worshiped devils.