Vallaki

Located close to the shores of Lake Zarovich, the town of Vallaki (pronounced vah-lah-key) seems like a safe haven against the evils of the Svalich Woods, if not Strahd himself. The town lies beyond the sight of Castle Ravenloft and doesn’t, at first blush, seem as depressed as the village of Barovia farther east.

History
Vallaki was founded not long after Strahd’s armies conquered the valley by an ancestor of the town’s current burgomaster, Baron Vargas Vallakovich. Baron Vallakovich believes hope and happiness are the keys to Vallaki's salvation. He thinks that by making everyone happy, the town will escape Strahd's grasp and return to the forgotten world whence it came. As such, he has staged one festival after another since taking power from his father. Most Vallakians consider these festivals to be pointless affairs more likely to incur Strahd's wrath than to provide any hope for the future.

Exterior
A 15-foot-high wall encloses the town, its vertical logs held together with thick ropes and mortar. The top of each log has been sharpened to a point. Wooden scaffolding hugs the inside of the palisade twelve feet off the ground, enabling guards to peer over the wall there.

The wall has three gates: one to the North, one to the East, and one to the West. They are colloquially dubbed the Zarovich Gate, the Sunset Gate, and the Morning (or Mourning) Gate. Heavy iron chains with iron padlocks keep the gates shut at night. During the day, the gates are closed but not typically locked. Two guards watch over each entrance and treat newcomers with great suspicions.

Interior

 * 1) Weatherworn garlands from previous festivals still hang from the eaves of Vallaki’s buildings.
 * 2) Local malcontents unhappy with the festivals have been arrested and thrown in stocks.

Lore

 * 1) Last festival, dubbed the Wolf’s Head Jamboree, townsfolk had to parade through the streets with the severed heads of wolves on pikes. This was held less than a week ago.
 * 2) Next event, dubbed the Festival of the Blazing Sun, will be held in the town square in three days. Work has started on a large wicker sun.
 * 3) Vallaki has endured at least one festival every week for the past several years. Some Vallakians believe that the festivals keep the devil Strahd at bay. Others think they provide no protection or benefit whatsoever. Most consider them dismal affairs.
 * 4) The Blue Water Inn offers food, wine, and shelter to visitors. A stranger with pointed ears is staying there. He came to Barovia from a distant land, riding into town on a carnival wagon.
 * 5) Those who speak ill of the festivals are declared by the burgomaster to be in league with the devil Strahd and arrested. Some are thrown in the stocks, while others are taken to the burgomaster’s mansion so that the baron can purge them of their evil.
 * 6) The burgomaster’s henchman, Izek Strazni, has a history of violence as well as a fiendish deformity: a monstrous arm with which he can conjure fire. Fear of Izek keeps the baron’s enemies at bay.
 * 7) Wolves and dire wolves prowl the woods and aren’t afraid to attack travelers on the Old Svalich Road. Well-armed groups of hunters and trappers have managed to kill several of the wolves, but more keep coming.
 * 8) Lake Zarovich is very dangerous and fishing comes with great risk, but the threat hasn’t stopped Bluto Krogarov, the town drunk, from trying. He sets out each morning and returns every evening, but hasn’t caught any fish in a while.
 * 9) There have been no recent sightings of the Mad Mage of Mount Baratok. Folks used to see him skulking along the north shore of Lake Zarovich, shooting lightning bolts into the water to kill the fish. (If the characters seem interested in meeting this wizard, locals recommend that they use the fishing boats on the south shore to cross the lake, because it’s shorter and a lot less dangerous than walking around the lake.)
 * 10) There’s a Vistani camp in the woods southwest of town. The Vistani there aren’t very friendly. Vistani aren’t welcome in Vallaki.
 * 11) West of town is a haunted mansion. Legend has it that a dragon died there long, long ago.
 * 12) South of town is a village that has been abandoned for decades. Its burgomaster committed some terrible offense and incurred the wrath of Strahd.
 * 1) West of town is a haunted mansion. Legend has it that a dragon died there long, long ago.
 * 2) South of town is a village that has been abandoned for decades. Its burgomaster committed some terrible offense and incurred the wrath of Strahd.

Areas

 * 1) St. Andral's Church
 * 2) Blue Water Inn
 * 3) Vallakovich Mansion
 * 4) Wachterhaus
 * 5) Arasek Stockyard
 * 6) Coffin Maker's Shop
 * 7) Blinsky's Toys
 * 8) Town Square
 * 9) Vistani Camp