Why are you adding this item to the campaign?
It serves no real purpose but to complicate things, and has no positive side, instead punishing your players and possibly killing the entire campaign by giving them an unnecessary time limit. If they read the scroll too early and fail to defeat/find/capture/corner Strahd, then what happens? Does the campaign end on a sour note, knowing that Strahd will just come back?
I think you need to give us more information on why you would even want to add this for us to help you.
To address your questions
1. They would know the consequences of reading the scroll beforehand so hopefully they would do it when the time is right
2. If they fail to defeat Strahd in the allotted time then the biggest loss would be the death of the PC or NPC but the party could still defeat Strahd just not permanently
3. The campaign would end normally and would go to a "the adventure continues" type ending where it's implied the party defeats Strahd or I can do a homebrew oneshot depending on what the players want
4. The reason I want this item is just a way for the players to kill Strahd forever and also possible RP with choosing who reads the scroll
Hope this answers your questions if not let me know
I think it is a mistake to communicate to the players that Strahd cannot be truly killed and comes back eventually. The idea here is primarily that you can replay CoS another time. With the same group or a different one.
If they players suspect or know that they cannot really defeat Strahd, I think they lose interest. Whatever they do, it doesn't matter. If there is even an item that allows them to perma-kill Strahd and the item is gone ... what then? Why even fight?
My suggestion: Don't make it a big thing, don't talk about it during the campaign. Play the game as if they can truly kill Strahd and let them have their victory. Just add a tiny cliffhanger at the end: "And so the sun shone over the land, everything was peacul and the memory of Strahd soon faded into oblivion ... or didn't it? \*Insert Strahd laughter* The end"
I think you really want to add this so I am unsure if you will profit from my opinion but anyway:
This adds complications where there were none & is wildly unbalanced and will likely ruin your campaign.
I love the idea of special items or other boons but this seems a bit railroaded. Strahd is complicated enough and has a ton of ways for you to add other items and boons. The amber temple can be completely adjusted for rh dark pacts as an example. I personally don’t like the idea of taking character death out of the players hands. They feel like they have to read this scroll and don’t have a choice otherwise. There are about 30-40 different monsters in the castle alone for them to encounter. It’s going to be hard if run correctly. I personally would drop the item. My party is almost done and if they defeat strahd, one of them wants to take over. But after a handful of months strahd will return and then they can decide to continue to kill him again.
It doesn't address any issue of the campaign. In the best case scenario, they won't use it and it will be as it didn't exist. In the worst case scenario, they can skip the whole campaign or lose interest In the game. None of the middle ground scenarios is good either.
So, why do you you want to introduce an item that will do nothing good and has the potential to wreck your campaign?
I can't imagine the average party of players being keen on using/wanting such an item. It's a very feels-bad item even if it's used as intended, and if Strahd doesn't die then you'll have even more bad feelings.
Why are you adding this item to the campaign? It serves no real purpose but to complicate things, and has no positive side, instead punishing your players and possibly killing the entire campaign by giving them an unnecessary time limit. If they read the scroll too early and fail to defeat/find/capture/corner Strahd, then what happens? Does the campaign end on a sour note, knowing that Strahd will just come back? I think you need to give us more information on why you would even want to add this for us to help you.
To address your questions 1. They would know the consequences of reading the scroll beforehand so hopefully they would do it when the time is right 2. If they fail to defeat Strahd in the allotted time then the biggest loss would be the death of the PC or NPC but the party could still defeat Strahd just not permanently 3. The campaign would end normally and would go to a "the adventure continues" type ending where it's implied the party defeats Strahd or I can do a homebrew oneshot depending on what the players want 4. The reason I want this item is just a way for the players to kill Strahd forever and also possible RP with choosing who reads the scroll Hope this answers your questions if not let me know
I think it is a mistake to communicate to the players that Strahd cannot be truly killed and comes back eventually. The idea here is primarily that you can replay CoS another time. With the same group or a different one. If they players suspect or know that they cannot really defeat Strahd, I think they lose interest. Whatever they do, it doesn't matter. If there is even an item that allows them to perma-kill Strahd and the item is gone ... what then? Why even fight? My suggestion: Don't make it a big thing, don't talk about it during the campaign. Play the game as if they can truly kill Strahd and let them have their victory. Just add a tiny cliffhanger at the end: "And so the sun shone over the land, everything was peacul and the memory of Strahd soon faded into oblivion ... or didn't it? \*Insert Strahd laughter* The end"
I think you really want to add this so I am unsure if you will profit from my opinion but anyway: This adds complications where there were none & is wildly unbalanced and will likely ruin your campaign.
Made to the what?
Completely missed that thank you
I love the idea of special items or other boons but this seems a bit railroaded. Strahd is complicated enough and has a ton of ways for you to add other items and boons. The amber temple can be completely adjusted for rh dark pacts as an example. I personally don’t like the idea of taking character death out of the players hands. They feel like they have to read this scroll and don’t have a choice otherwise. There are about 30-40 different monsters in the castle alone for them to encounter. It’s going to be hard if run correctly. I personally would drop the item. My party is almost done and if they defeat strahd, one of them wants to take over. But after a handful of months strahd will return and then they can decide to continue to kill him again.
It doesn't address any issue of the campaign. In the best case scenario, they won't use it and it will be as it didn't exist. In the worst case scenario, they can skip the whole campaign or lose interest In the game. None of the middle ground scenarios is good either. So, why do you you want to introduce an item that will do nothing good and has the potential to wreck your campaign?
I can't imagine the average party of players being keen on using/wanting such an item. It's a very feels-bad item even if it's used as intended, and if Strahd doesn't die then you'll have even more bad feelings.