Azalin Reviews: Darklord Ramya Vasavadan
Domain: Kalakeri
Domain Formation: Not specified
Final Score: 💀💀💀💀⚫ (4/5 skulls)
Sources: Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft (5e)
Ramya Vasvadan is the Darklord and ruler of Kalakeri. With the mention of Arijani’s Domain Sri Jai as well as the Wildlands and the Streaming Lands, Kalakeri appears to be a Domain that has absorbed a few of the rainforest/jungle Domains into one land. Was this just one of the uh, side effects of me escaping Darkon? Perhaps...
Ramya is of the Vasavadan dynasty and was destined to be the Maharana of Kalakeri and to rule her people from the power of the Sapphire Throne. Vasvadan became a Darklord after her siblings’ greed for power brought about her death and rebirth as a Death Knight.
Vasavadan was named, by her father, to become the new Maharana upon his death, but when that day came her brother, Arijani, allied with a small force to claim the title for himself and force Ramya to yield the throne to him. I believe this Arijani is not entirely based on the old Darklord from Sri Jai whom I reviewed last week, but at least a callout to him.
Ramya refused to yield and with allies of her own, captured her brother. She was going to execute Arijani as a traitor to the throne, but their sister, Reeva, convinced her to be merciful and instead she imprisoned Arijani and forgave the rebels. Foolish. What is the point of laws if you yourself will not follow them?
Ramya was said to be a just leader who focused on educating her people and society. On the other hand, Reeva worked with Ramya's foes in a plot to free Arijani. Eventually, they succeeded and once freed, Arijani lead a group of rebels against Ramya as Reeva worked in the shadows to continually manipulate her sister for Arijani.
Ramya, perhaps learning that mercy gained her nothing but weakness, brought bloody justice to the rebels. With her justified brutality, the people began to distrust Ramya causing further divisions among them. Reeva, ever plotting, convinced her sister to meet Arijani to negotiate some form of peace. This was, of course, a trap and the two siblings killed Ramya’s guards and sentenced Ramya to death by garrote. As these things go, Ramya cursed her siblings calling them “bloodthirsty beasts” as she died.
The siblings dumped Ramya’s corpse into the sea, thinking that was the end of her. The Dark Powers, however, had other plans. Ramya was brought back as a Death Knight. She raised an army of undead from those that once served her and obtained her revenge, killing her brother and sister by commanding undead elephants to step on them. I can only imagine the strange popping noise their bodies must have made as they were subjected to such a death.
Of course, the Dark Powers brought all these bickering siblings back and into the Mists, twisting Arijani into a rakshasa and Reeva into an arcanoloth. The three are forever doomed to be at one another’s throats, the Sapphire Throne forever changing hands between the two siblings and their betrayed sister. Ramya was...brutal in her justice after their betrayal, but I think perhaps the Dark Powers became a little confused here as Reeva and Arijani seem to have been far more evil in this story than the Darklord of the tale. Though, as a Death Knight, Ramya is just as brutal as any other Darklord, killing any subjects that do not side with her in the never ending battles of Kalakeri. She also has a tower that she fills with the skulls of her betrayers. I need to get one of those.
This particular Death Knight is cloaked in illusions that hide her skeletal features. A gift from our Tormentors? How kind...She still knows the truth and feels the never-ending chill of the grave and decaying of her flesh with every moment she carries on. Reflections show her reality, which is why, in a very vampire-like fashion, she does not permit mirrors.
I’m not entirely convinced Ramya or at least the Ramya that once was deserves an eternal prison for her decisions, but there have been Darklords created by far lesser acts. Death Knights, on their own, are quite powerful and seeing as her subjects think dying for her cause and automatically coming back as an undead servant is the best thing they could achieve in life, she must be quite charismatic. I’m going to give this one a four.
