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Faraer
Great Reader
3308 Posts |
 Posted - 03 Oct 2008 : 19:43:50
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If Wizards won't publish material for the Realms I'm interested in, can we get material that could apply to both settings? Lore on priesthoods, language, cultural practices, dragons and other long-lived beings, undated current clack, stonedelves and other mini-adventures (there's an unpublished one Ed submitted to Dungeon years back), for instance. Especially since the main channel of Realms publication, the novels, will be very much tied to the advancing timeline.
More post hoc rationalizations and backfill will mainly only play to the limited audience of those who embrace the new setting and care about the old.
As for ratio to lore to mechanics, you can't set a quota. Realms articles should be information about the Realms, supplemented with whatever mechanics are needed to support it. |
Edited by - Faraer on 03 Oct 2008 19:44:38 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
37011 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2008 : 19:54:46
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quote:
Originally posted by Faraer
If Wizards won't publish material for the Realms I'm interested in, can we get material that could apply to both settings? Lore on priesthoods, language, cultural practices, dragons and other long-lived beings, undated current clack, stonedelves and other mini-adventures (there's an unpublished one Ed submitted to Dungeon years back), for instance. Especially since the main channel of Realms publication, the novels, will be very much tied to the advancing timeline.
More post hoc rationalizations and backfill will mainly only play to the limited audience of those who embrace the new setting and care about the old.
As for ratio to lore to mechanics, you can't set a quota. Realms articles should be information about the Realms, supplemented with whatever mechanics are needed to support it.
Now this is a post I can agree with. With a slight addenda -- the mechanics issue. The Volo's Guide series had an excellent balance of mechanics, I think. We had lots and lots of lore, snippets of mechanics to support it (relevant game stats for odd critters, and just the truncated stats for NPCs), and any additional crunch was in an appendix. And even that crunch was still relevant and full of lore. That's the kind of thing I could readily accept. Half of an article being given to some class, or a third of an article being given to powers, is not acceptable.
Basically, I want usable lore first and foremost, and any mechanics that are added on should be relevant and take up as little space as possible. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2008 : 19:58:30
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I want to know more about what happened to rest of the world, and Kara-Tur in particular.
All you need to do is find someone VERY knowedgable about the Eastern Realms... 
Edit: Having giving some more thought to this, I think I need to point something out. People HERE know a LOT about the Realms. I think I know a helluva alot, but compared to many of the scribes here I'm a mere novice.
Awhile back, when WotC announced an 'open call' for DDi articles, I made a list of twenty ideas to flesh-out and submit (10 Dragon articles, and 10 adventures for Dungeon). Then I found out all submissions must be written for 4e, and that ALL submissions MUST have a certain percentage of mechanics as part of the article (looking at what has been done, I'm figuring 30-50%).
Now I have only a passing familiarity with the 4e Realms, and only the vaguest grasp of the 4e rules. I would say that is a fair assumption concerning many of the scribes here, and long-time fans of the Realms.
Here is the disconnect - the people who are experts at the rules are NOT experts on the Realms! But I have a solution, Brian, if you would be so good as to pass it on...
How about having a crunch-monkey - someone like Rob Heinsoo - do the mechanics for the articles written by others? I wouldn't mind at all writing for the 4e world (as I am sure many others would), but I can't say I am capable of producing quality 4e crunch to go with any article or adventure.
This would allow many of us who are very familiar with the old Realms to participate in the new - something I think even the guys at WotC could get behind! I know I wouldn't care that I'd be splitting article-pay with someone else, because it would free me up to do more of what I do best - create fluff. 
I think their new policy that EVERY author/designer HAS TO write crunch for their article is really limiting, considering how many of the people capable of such are relative newcomers to the setting.
Why don't you throw this out there for them, Brian, and see what kind of response you get? I really think this would be a positive step forward for several reasons. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 03 Oct 2008 20:18:24 |
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althen artren
Senior Scribe
USA
780 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2008 : 21:25:52
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Spells stilled, scribes:
I must echo sentiment by Jakk. I would be willing to pay money from items
turned in by Ed in the previous editions to continue my own story-telling and
adventure creation. For instance, Ed has stated in his forum that he has created
a map of the surrounding environs around Myth Drannor, I would like everything on the Vaults of Uvaeren, and other Cormanthor specific things. Since I run a game out of
Myth Drannor in the 1370's, I would like to have this information. So a service to
order out of date information would be nice. |
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2008 : 21:41:12
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quote:
Other story elements that don't seem plausible or haven't been adequately explained
You're kidding, I hope. The whole "New Coke" edition is absurd. Why not concentrate on "old" lore (i.e., pre-1974 DR) which everyone wants to have, no matter what edition they use (yea, even unto "The Old Grey Box")?
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2008 : 21:42:49
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I'm only going to take one of these, for a lot of reasons I'm not going into here.
quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
What ratio of lore vs. mechanics do you prefer?
I want no mechanics at all. Since that is not possible, I want as little as is possible. Anything more than 25% of the given space is too much -- and I'd prefer much less, like 10%.
On that we are in perfect agreement! 
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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Jamallo Kreen
Master of Realmslore
USA
1537 Posts |
Posted - 04 Oct 2008 : 09:23:52
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I have a specific suggestion: a detailed and well-illustrated version of Aurora's Whole Realms Catalog, with Realms prices for weapons, armor, and other "standard" equipment from the PHB (or whatever in the Nine Hells is calling the basic player's book now). It would be nice to have good pictures of clothing items (with which many players are unfamiliar) and professional toolkits. If not published as a new (paperback!) book, a serialized version on the Web would be (just barely) acceptable. I would not pay for anything read on or downloaded from the Web, by the way, since I know that Wizards wants to charge people to use their site). Another nice thing to have would be pictures and descriptions of musical instruments with which players might be unfamiliar, such as the shawm and the the yarting.
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I have a mouth, but I am in a library and must not scream.
Feed the poor and stroke your ego, too: http://www.freerice.com/index.php.
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KnightErrantJR
Great Reader
USA
5402 Posts |
Posted - 05 Oct 2008 : 03:09:12
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Okay, I've finally got a few ideas, but its by no means all I'd like to see detailed.
1. I'd love to see some articles on organizations that were formed from "fallen" gods or organizations. For example, an article on what the followers of Helm did after their god's death. While he may not have been popular in the North, he did have a following in the South, and he also had some very devout followers in the North, if they were concentrated around a few places.
It would be interested to see if various groups, say, one that became "agnostic" and decided to keep protecting the world in order to "show up" the other god's followers, since they failed "yet again" to prevent a major disaster that had they all been as vigilant as their god they may have prevented.
You could also discuss the followers that ended up with either Torm or Bane (as I would assume the split would kind of fall along), and perhaps even go into some details on how a Helmite influenced Banite might be different than a Helmite influenced Tormite.
(This one was influenced by one of my players, who played a cleric of Helm for years, and upon hearing about Helm's death said that he'd probably convert to Bane and take over as much as he could in order to make sure it was protected by any means possible)
2. I also vote for finding out more about Denier, a god that I've always had a soft spot for.
3. An article on Realms specific monsters that haven't been converted yet. Especially if they weren't touched in 3.5. I'd rather some of these critters survived into 4E lore, and got their Realmsian fluff attached to them. It would also be interesting to see how a Nishruu would be handled under 4e rules.
Oh, and if you do this, I know they were "almost" wiped out, but I'd love to see a 4E Phaerimm for those few that might still be limping around. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 05 Oct 2008 : 06:51:25
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I could get behind #3 there - I'd love to see some Ecology of... style articles for Realms-specific critters, and maybe even include some Realmsian flora and fauna (diet habits?) in them.
For gosh sakes, it's about time we finally find out where all these elusive Alaghi are living!
Gods... not so much. I'd rather just figure out that stuff on my own, considering how badly they've been handled in the official lore.
Also, country-by-country articles on EVERY political entity in the Realms, similar to what you did with Cormyr, Brian.
And of course, a very excellent regional map to go with each nation. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 05 Oct 2008 06:52:14 |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 06 Oct 2008 : 07:21:41
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quote:
Originally posted by Jamallo Kreen
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I'm only going to take one of these, for a lot of reasons I'm not going into here.
quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
What ratio of lore vs. mechanics do you prefer?
I want no mechanics at all. Since that is not possible, I want as little as is possible. Anything more than 25% of the given space is too much -- and I'd prefer much less, like 10%.
On that we are in perfect agreement!
Me too please! More lore, less crunch. If I want crunch, I'll buy a bag of chips, or go outside during winter and step on broken ice. If I'm going to pay money for a Forgotten Realms product, including D&D Insider articles, I want lore, lore, and more lore. A scribe elsewhere on these boards (probably more than one) made the observation that providing statistics for the major NPCs (like the Seven and the other Chosen, including Elminster, and bad guys like Halaster and Larloch) is what led to so many of them getting killed off in the new edition. A good DM will tell his or her players, "You don't need their stats. You can't kill them anyway, and they *will* turn you inside out and wipe your own floor with you if you try." Ed himself has expressed similar sentiments in his thread over the years, and who are we to disagree with The Creator?
Anyway, just my thoughts on what makes a good Realms product. |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 06 Oct 2008 : 07:28:51
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quote:
Originally posted by Zanan
As I said over at the WizBoards, keep the characters of novels with the novel authors.
I agree... and, to go one step further, relegate them to lore status only... no crunch information published. My reasons for this are stated in my previous post.
quote:
Realmsify races in a way that presents them in a FR general context, not just from a player's perspective, as has recently been done with the drow. Speaking of which, do not over-complicate matters by introducing a "dark elf race" that is in essence - as you wrote - just another "green elven tribe". It is worse enough for people reading the various drow novels and new lore to get mixed up be the term "dark elf", as it refers to both nowadays: "redeemed"* and wicked drow.
*Of course, this whole redemption stuff is in many ways so unbelievable unbelievable anyway that it is better left untouched.
Amen! First, 4E eliminates subraces... then, 4E Realms adds another kind of elf, but still sticks with "no subraces"... resulting in the completely ridiculous contradiction that duergar, formerly chock-full of magical and psionic abilities thanks to centuries of illithid experimentation, are suddenly no different from normal dwarves just because their gods are dead thanks to a crusade by the "core" dwarven gods, and drow are still drow, but no longer elves... but "redeemed" drow are elves because of Eilistraee's sacrifice, and hence not drow. And everybody's fave drow, the original good drow, is apparently not redeemed, because he's still a drow. I don't know about any of you, but my head is spinning after typing all of that.  Your thoughts, anyone? |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 06 Oct 2008 : 15:59:28
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quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
...drow are still drow, but no longer elves...
Neither are sun or moon elves--all "elves" are now fey. |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 06 Oct 2008 : 19:44:29
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And the Fey Creator race were the Le'Shay, which may or may not be the same as the usage of the word 'Fey' to describe other members of that genus, who may have been created by the Le'Shay (Fey), or may have been pre-existing in the Feywild (if the Le'Shay merely discovered that plane, rather then creating it). Oh... and Faerie may be the enitre Feywild, or just a region within it, or just that part of the Feywild that connects with Toril.
Sheeeesh.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 06 Oct 2008 19:46:29 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
37011 Posts |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 09:26:06
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Sorry, Wooly... I know this is still not really on-topic, but I'm getting it closer, I hope...
quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
<chop>... but "redeemed" drow are elves because of Eilistraee's sacrifice, and hence not drow. And everybody's fave drow, the original good drow, is apparently not redeemed, because he's still a drow. I don't know about any of you, but my head is spinning after typing all of that. Your thoughts, anyone?</chop>
Actually, I was thinking about this, and it makes perfect sense... Drizzt wasn't redeemed because he didn't worship Eilistraee. He's a follower of Mielikki. Apparently the good drow gods are just as petty and particular as the evil ones...
Anyway, to get this thread back on topic, one thing I like about the new Realms is the freedom that the 100-year time jump gives us. We intend to keep playing 3.5, maybe Pathfinder, in our existing timeline (circa 1386, non-canon, so Mystra's still around and so are her Chosen) at a rate of about 2 Realms years per one RT year (on average, allowing for downtime for stronghold building, magical item creation, and all that fun off-camera stuff), which means that we should catch up to the 4E timeline in about 50 years, if we're still breathing; three of us will be in our 80's then. We're already out of sync with canon, and because of the time jump, we don't need to worry about anything coming out in future products that will clash with what we're doing in our game. (I use the plural because two of us swap DMing duties once in a while.) That, to me, is the greatest freedom we can have in terms of campaign design. Of course, we'll see what happens down the road with the Realms and the game system, and things might change for us... but right now, we don't see that happening. |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 07 Oct 2008 09:28:50 |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 15:15:17
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| At this point I believe that everyone always has freedom, it's just that some products are better than others at fostering the illusion thereof. |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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ksu_bond
Learned Scribe
New Zealand
214 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 16:32:42
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There is nothing more that I want to be detailed or explained or in any other way addressed by the current staff at WotC, they've done far too much already.
Though I must admit I have always been a huge fan of history, so I would like to see more detail given to the history of Faerun dating prior to 1385 DR. |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 18:56:11
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
*Wooly casts Find Topic*
And I thought of this one first thing this morning when I woke up...
They removed that spell in the new edition!
Ahem. Sorry... but I had to say it.  |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 07 Oct 2008 18:57:04 |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3256 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 19:01:14
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quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
*Wooly casts Find Topic*
And I thought of this one first thing this morning when I woke up...
They removed that spell in the new edition!
Ahem. Sorry... but I had to say it.
Sorry, Jakk. You're mistaken. It's no longer a spell, but a Ritual! |
I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 20:39:39
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quote:
Originally posted by Ashe Ravenheart
quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
*Wooly casts Find Topic*
And I thought of this one first thing this morning when I woke up...
They removed that spell in the new edition!
Ahem. Sorry... but I had to say it.
Sorry, Jakk. You're mistaken. It's no longer a spell, but a Ritual!
Ah... that explains a lot about the 4E Realms in general, but I won't further derail the topic here. Let me just say that, regarding your profile sig (Ashe), we must have discovered exactly what Toril was for and why it was created.
EDIT: No, they actually removed the spell. In fact, they removed the spell in 3rd edition, given the preference for advertising over indices in the final pages of 3.5-era material. There is a word for a book without an index. That word is "novel". Last time I checked, gaming books were not novels, and hence should all have indices.  |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 07 Oct 2008 22:19:34 |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2008 : 20:49:41
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quote:
Originally posted by ksu_bond
There is nothing more that I want to be detailed or explained or in any other way addressed by the current staff at WotC, they've done far too much already.
Though I must admit I have always been a huge fan of history, so I would like to see more detail given to the history of Faerun dating prior to 1385 DR.
By way of a constructive post on this scroll (I've said what I needed to say on other matters):
I second this sentiment, but I'd also like to have the "missing years" filled in. I'm not likely to use much of it, seeing as the Spellplague will distort it all (from my perspective), but regaining the continuity of history will be a major step toward bringing the "Real"ms fans (who, apparently, have indeed been "Forgotten") back to the setting. I'm not saying that alone would be enough, mind you... but I'm not sure what would be enough for me at this point. My attempt at constructive criticism has left me feeling somewhat empty inside. I'm going to go have lunch now. |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 08 Oct 2008 : 01:09:01
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quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
In particular we are looking to fill any gaps in lore which were not covered adequately in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide.
For example:
- The existence of realms not mentioned in the FRCG (e.g. Hartsvale, Semphar, Icewind Dale, Border Kingdoms)
- Continents beyond Faerûn (e.g. Anchorome, Kara-Tur, Zakhara, Katashaka, Osse)
<chopped for brevity>
I would have loved for both of these issues to have been handled in 3rd Edition. Now, I'm just afraid, with the sole exception of Returned Abeir (ironically). Getting rid of Maztica is the only move taken with the new edition that I can unequivocally support. In the interests of keeping this post constructive, I'm going to stop here.
Still happily playing 3.5 Spellplague-free... except that now I have to assemble my *own* sourcebook for Cormyr.  |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Dalor Darden
Great Reader
USA
4273 Posts |
Posted - 08 Oct 2008 : 06:57:47
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To add to my list:
We know what the Arch-Devils and ol' Asmodeus are up to, but what about the Demon Lords? If Asmodeus ended the war by flexing god-muscle and shoving the infinite layers of the Abyss into another place...what the heck are these guys doing now?
Specifically, since he has great ties to Faerun; what is Orcus up to now? What about Eltab too...and others of course.
I would like to see more detail on Calimshan...what the heck are Memnon and such doing...are they even in Calimshan or just their proxies?
Also, I am a little concerned about Exarchs...how do the likes of Fzoul and Obould even come close to comparing to the likes of other Exarchs that were once nearly independent Lesser Gods in terms of followers and renown?
How about those Tuigan?
I liked the Witches of Rashemen...can we get a modern full update on them?
Explaining in articles some of the new landmarks would be nice too...there are several deep holes in the ground now; I would like to know some info on these please. I am curious about the Motes too; are any of these directed willy-nilly by some mad wizard bent on maniacal whim? Perhaps like Floating Ar of Alphatia fame (if I have any of that spell right without looking it up)...are there any full fledged cities constructed on these things? Have any of them (if there are cities) been used by nations to combat the power of the Shade Enclaves?
New "close ups" of various regions would be nice...some new cartography of Cormyr, the Dales, the Moonsea and other areas would be nice...and even better would be the new looks of various cities...lots must have changed after 100 years! There was a hard-backed Forgotten Realms book that outlined some of the cities with the transition to Second Edition way back (can't recall the name without digging it out...and I just moved so I aint doin' it!)...that would be really nice to see in downloadable format in a 4e "book" so to speak.
I mentioned trade before...what about new trading costers that may have arisen that didn't exist before.
Man, I could go on and on...but I have lecture early in the morning and I'll have to come back to it another time! |
The Old Grey Box and AD&D for me! |
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Dalor Darden
Great Reader
USA
4273 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2008 : 15:35:18
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I would like to see more details on the various faiths...like the old Faiths and Pantheons style and whatnot.
Also, if we are going to peg Baldur's Gate as a mighty metropolis, then lets get some serious details hammered out there like:
1) a map of the city
2) what is going on with the Flaming Fist? Its composition, leaders, etc...
3) is it still just a city state, or does it have much more influence on the Sword Coast now?
4) etc.
One thing I REALLY don't want to see is Shou Lung expats in Luskan...can we retcon that? Or have an immediate story about how they got wiped out...something please? That is like putting Chinese Triad gangs in the streets of Oslo circa 1200s or something.
What trade is going on between Returned Aebir and Faerun? Did Amn give up on its ambitions across the sea?
That big giant Pirate Isle in the Sea of Fallen Stars...still just a ramshackle band of pirates, or has it become something more like Tortage ala R.E. Howard? What is going on there?
Semphar, Semphar, Semphar...
I know I mentioned this before, but it is a special interest for me; what is going on in Semphar?
I think these are the last things I will post...heck, if you guys get just a couple of them I will be happy.
Mod edit: removed commentary about a removed post. The post is gone, so the commentary looked odd and could have been misread by others. |
The Old Grey Box and AD&D for me! |
Edited by - Dalor Darden on 10 Oct 2008 00:35:31 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
37011 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2008 : 15:44:21
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Okay, there was already at least one warning in this thread. I'm removing a post and moving it to the Commentary on the Feedback Thread (which I just stickied, for as long as this thread is stickied).
Again, this thread is from a designer, asking that we be constructive. If you're not going to be constructive, then go to the thread linked above. We've already got approximately 80,000 threads that have gone astray and mired down in anti-4E/pro-4E debates, and we're not doing it again in this one.
I, personally, have almost nothing constructive I can offer in this thread, so great is my dislike of what has been done. So I've stayed mostly quiet. I would trust that other people could do the same.
And for better or worse, WotC is not, at this time, going to undo what they've done to the setting. Asking or demanding that they do so is not constructive, and is a good way to be ignored by the designers. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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Ardashir
Senior Scribe
USA
544 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2008 : 15:53:56
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Hopefully asking these question won't cause any trouble for the mods or on this thread. That said --
quote:
Originally posted by Dalor Darden
One thing I REALLY don't want to see is Shou Lung expats in Luskan...can we retcon that? Or have an immediate story about how they got wiped out...something please? That is like putting Chinese Triad gangs in the streets of Oslo circa 1200s or something.
Wait, there are Shou Lung expats in Luskan? But isn't Kara-Tur supposed to be gone from the Realms as they are now?
quote:
That big giant Pirate Isle in the Sea of Fallen Stars...still just a ramshackle band of pirates, or has it become something more like Tortage ala R.E. Howard? What is going on there?
I thought it was already like that, myself.
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Semphar, Semphar, Semphar...
I know I mentioned this before, but it is a special interest for me; what is going on in Semphar?
I'd like to see some more info on Semphar and the rest of Faerun's 'Central Asia' myself. |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3256 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2008 : 15:58:19
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Originally posted by Ardashir
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Originally posted by Dalor Darden
One thing I REALLY don't want to see is Shou Lung expats in Luskan...can we retcon that? Or have an immediate story about how they got wiped out...something please? That is like putting Chinese Triad gangs in the streets of Oslo circa 1200s or something.
Wait, there are Shou Lung expats in Luskan? But isn't Kara-Tur supposed to be gone from the Realms as they are now?
*snip*
There hasn't been any canon written on Kara-Tur for the new Realms (yet), but it is still there. The expatriates started coming over after the Horde invasion. In fact, Unapproachable East had a lot of information on the newcomers, but it was still very rare to see Shou in the area. Apparently, with the 100 year jump, a lot more took the the months-long (the Hordelands is a BIG area) journey to form yakuza in the area. |
I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2008 : 21:16:10
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That was their ad-hoc solution to ignoring Kara-Tur; they decided to take the 'cool' parts of the OA setting and dump them into Faerûn... even though it is completely idiotic that they are there.
I'm sorry - I know this post doesn't belong here, so I'll end it with something on-topic:
I absolutely, positively DON'T want to see any new lore concerning ANYTHING east of Murghôm. The little bit that was added in the GHotR forced me to throw away about 1/3 of my Eastern History, and I STILL can't reconcile everything.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 09 Oct 2008 21:16:51 |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 09 Oct 2008 : 23:12:06
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
I absolutely, positively DON'T want to see any new lore concerning ANYTHING east of Murghôm. The little bit that was added in the GHotR forced me to throw away about 1/3 of my Eastern History, and I STILL can't reconcile everything.
So throw away the bit that bothered you and use what you wrote. |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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Iliyan
Acolyte
Croatia
42 Posts |
Posted - 15 Oct 2008 : 21:55:21
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Well, seeing as I've got nothing better to do, here is a little thing that might actually intrigue both new and old FR players.
1. Explain what happened to The Araumycos. Was it destroyed, how did it die, did it mutate, did it rot, did it wither and die, did it drop loot, did it make a sound, did it.. err I'm all out, but you get the picture, right?
2. What happened to the parts of the Underdark after Araumycos died, or what is happening if it is still alive? Did a part of the underdark collapse? Did any new dwarven realms get uncovered? Did ANY new/old realms or treasures arise?
3. Why haven't Undead beings overocome Faerun? Why haven't Demons and Devils slaughtered most of Faerun's population?
4. How the heck did Asmodeus become a Greater Deity?
just some out of the blue questions.
Ok, a short musing on what I feel WotC is doing in the FR setting now. You are hiding from the Lore behind a wall of mechanics. However, you failed at the mechanics as well as the lore. So, what does that leave you with? Fix lore, or fix mechanics... I guess that you took the easy way out of the whole mess and change the mechanics to say "aha we didn't make a mistake, since the rules have changed" This kind of behavior resembles a child to me.
4E my ass, $E is more like it( To think I've never noticed what my 4 key does when i press shift :( )
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