Editing Ravenloft (section)

===Vistani===
{{Main|Vistani}}
The Vistani are a nomadic ethnic group. They are based on depictions of the [[Romani people]]. Since their introduction in the original ''Ravenloft'' module (1983) as fortune-tellers, they became a unifying element in the Ravenloft and the Masque of the Red Death [[campaign setting]]s, which offer Gothic horror scenarios. In a Ravenloft adventure, the Vistani have some control of the Mists of Ravenloft, which divide realms,<ref>{{cite web|date=August 6, 2020|title=Is Dungeons & Dragons Getting Ready to Return to Ravenloft?|url=https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/dungeons-and-dragons-ravenloft-return-subclasses/|access-date=2021-05-14|website=ComicBook.com|language=en}}</ref> while the players are generally confined to a region from which they must escape by solving one or more problems. Players generally need help from the Vistani to travel reliably from one open realm to another.

The Vistani people were "described as [[Superstition|superstitious]]"<ref name="thegamer2">{{cite web|date=2020-10-22|title=Curse Of Strahd Revamped: What It Changes From The Original|url=https://www.thegamer.com/curse-of-strahd-revamped-what-changes-vistani/|access-date=2021-05-14|website=TheGamer|language=en-US}}</ref> and had "abilities to curse and hypnotize players or cast spells like [[Evil eye|Evil Eye]]".<ref name="gizmodo2">{{cite web|last=Muncy|first=Julie|date=July 27, 2020|title=D&D's Culturally Sensitive Strahd Revamp Is Here, But It'll Cost You [Updated]|url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/d-ds-culturally-sensitive-strahd-revamp-is-here-but-it-1844521228|access-date=2020-11-21|website=io9|language=en-us}}</ref> They were also originally stereotyped "as 'uncivilized' and heavy drinkers", but this portrayal was removed in the adventure module ''Curse of Strahd Revamped'' (2020).<ref name="gizmodo2"/> Their portrayal was further [[Retroactive continuity|retconned]] in ''Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft'' (2021); the Vistani people are no longer considered superstitious but instead focused on their traditional practices and their abilities are grounded in the forms of [[Magic in Dungeons & Dragons|magic found in ''Dungeons & Dragons'']].<ref name="polygon5">{{cite web|last=Hall|first=Charlie|date=2021-05-18|title=Dungeons & Dragons retcons one of its most problematic characters|url=https://www.polygon.com/22440453/dungeons-dragons-ezmerelda-davenir-retcon-van-richtens-guide-to-ravenloft|access-date=2021-05-18|website=Polygon|language=en}}</ref>

The fictional character [[Rudolph van Richten]], a famous Monster Hunter in Ravenloft and author of a series of guides to hunting and slaying various monsters, had a great enmity for the Vistani for most of his monster-hunting career, but his opinion improved during his penning of ''Van Richten's Guide To The Vistani'', during which he befriended a ''mortu'' (a Vistani outcast).