| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Kuje |
Posted - 19 Sep 2007 : 04:58:21
Well,
We don't really have a thread for 4e FR, so... I made one.
Now, some quotes, since not all of us enjoy the WOTC boards.
Richard Baker posted on Sept 18, 2007: "Sorry for the delay, it's been a busy week!
Our manpower schedule is currently a little bit in flux, so this is not an exhaustive list: Bruce Cordell and Rob Heinsoo will be doing some work on the FRCS, as well as relative newcomers Chris Simms and Logan Bonner. (We're gang-tackling projects much more than we used to.) I expect that we'll get some of the old outside-WotC hands involved too.
As it turns out, I'm actually hands-off on this one; I'm committed to work on other projects. But I'm one of the folks who worked on the initial revision guide, which we put together almost two years ago. (Bruce Cordell and book editor Phil Athans were the other two guys on that team.)"
And
"When I can say a little more, I will. I've already shot my mouth off a couple of times when I shouldn't have, so I'm going to sit on my typing hands for a bit.
Here's one little tidbit I'll offer: The Warlock Knights of Vaasa." |
| 30 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| coach |
Posted - 05 Nov 2009 : 20:16:07
bingo |
| Phoebus |
Posted - 05 Nov 2009 : 03:40:45
Hello all,
I've been gone from the gaming scene for probably close to two years now. C'est la guerre, I guess. I recently had the opportunity to flip through the FRCG recently. Speaking with no malice toward either the fans or the makers of the book... I was so utterly disappointed. Say what you will about rules and game systems, the 3E and 3.5 books, just like the 2E and 1E products before them, literally radiated life to me. I loved the design, the maps, the illustrations, the little bits of lore, and the NPCs--all side by side. It all seemed so intuitive and organic to me.
The new FRCG just seems, I don't know, bland and artificial by comparison. I simply couldn't get into it. The "tips" and "hooks" for involving parties, for example, just seemed contrived to me. The absence of beloved villains and heroes alike, their heirs, offspring, and successors, made the book feel empty to me.
I truly, truly rue the day that the game designers went with the crowd that felt the cast of the Realms somehow prevented the gamers from telling stories and participating in them. I remember seeing so many posts on the WotC boards expressing that, as far back as 2005, 2006, and wondering how interesting a sourcebook on Arthurian mythos would have been without Merlin, or Arthur, or Gawain.
I've never been an "edition stalwart". I never felt that my decision to buy a campaign setting's sourcebook would be determined by what rule edition it followed. I happily bought 3E and 3.5 FR products sometimes just for the reading pleasure they provided, for the artistic inspiration, or for a lesson on what a good campaign world product looked like. Whether the Realms had Cavaliers, Assassins, one flavor of High Mage or another... it didn't matter to me, because at the end of the day I could always flex on the crunchy. And, let's, face it, it's not like the fluffy stuff in the novels always went hand in hand with the crunch. Based on what I've seen in the FRCG or the FR Player's Guide... I don't think I'm going to make that transition.
I wish the best to Rich, Bruce, Phil, and the rest of the gang in their FR endeavors. I really do. But mostly I hope that, when he next edition of the Realms come out, they hit closer to the mark. Because I honestly didn't recognize the Realms in these new books. Not in the art, and not in the writing. |
| Ashe Ravenheart |
Posted - 17 Oct 2008 : 01:44:16
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
She's a high-level NPC... need I say more? *sigh*
Not only that, but she was a Chosen of Mystra.
Well, Elminster was both of those things, and he's still around.
Just sayin'.
Well, is he still a Chosen of Mystra and a high-level NPC? Is he still able to "ruin" a DM's campaign? 
He still exists, but only as an instigator of plot hooks, as he's too "broken" and insane to safely cast spells anymore...
If you believe that, you don't know El... |
| Asgetrion |
Posted - 16 Oct 2008 : 23:43:40
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
She's a high-level NPC... need I say more? *sigh*
Not only that, but she was a Chosen of Mystra.
Well, Elminster was both of those things, and he's still around.
Just sayin'.
Well, is he still a Chosen of Mystra and a high-level NPC? Is he still able to "ruin" a DM's campaign?
He still exists, but only as an instigator of plot hooks, as he's too "broken" and insane to safely cast spells anymore... |
| Kuje |
Posted - 16 Oct 2008 : 17:24:37
There's a new free FR article from the RPGA about how to DM in FR:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/drrep/20081013 |
| Menelvagor |
Posted - 14 Oct 2008 : 18:00:42
Yes, but the meaning is that we have nothing constructive on him. Same with the Srinshee, where nothing is known about her. |
| Rinonalyrna Fathomlin |
Posted - 14 Oct 2008 : 16:26:55
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
She's a high-level NPC... need I say more? *sigh*
Not only that, but she was a Chosen of Mystra.
Well, Elminster was both of those things, and he's still around.
Just sayin'. |
| Menelvagor |
Posted - 11 Oct 2008 : 18:05:17
But if everything is as it was, wouldn't she still be where she was? In Myth Drannot, guarding the Vault of Ages, after giving the Artblade? |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 11 Oct 2008 : 01:15:56
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Indeed, I've been following the 4E Realms fairly closely and have not heard any news whatsoever about the Srinshee.
She's a high-level NPC... need I say more? *sigh*
Not only that, but she was a Chosen of Mystra. |
| Asgetrion |
Posted - 11 Oct 2008 : 00:56:34
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Indeed, I've been following the 4E Realms fairly closely and have not heard any news whatsoever about the Srinshee.
She's a high-level NPC... need I say more? *sigh* |
| Rinonalyrna Fathomlin |
Posted - 10 Oct 2008 : 16:21:46
Indeed, I've been following the 4E Realms fairly closely and have not heard any news whatsoever about the Srinshee. |
| Hawkins |
Posted - 10 Oct 2008 : 16:05:15
quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
I know this was probably asked, but my dependents are in a hurry, and I couldn't find this elsewhere:
What happened to Myth Drannot in 4e? And specifically the Srinshee?
Myth Drannor is still around, and basically the same (as of the end of the Last Mythal Trilogy and as mentioned in the GHotR); and the fate of the Srinshee is unknown (IIRC) |
| Menelvagor |
Posted - 10 Oct 2008 : 14:01:20
I know this was probably asked, but my dependents are in a hurry, and I couldn't find this elsewhere:
What happened to Myth Drannot in 4e? And specifically the Srinshee? |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 25 Aug 2008 : 15:16:59
quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
What do you think will happen to the Weave in 4e? Will somebody ascen to be Mystra (again)?
The Weave was just a framework for accessing magic. The Weave was a casualty of the Sellplague. And though she has no power or authority to do so, somehow Shar (of course!) prevented the rise of a new deity of magic. So there is no Weave, and there is no deity of magic. And one deity that people complained about being too powerful and prominent has been replaced by one who is apparently even more powerful and far too prominent. This is called progress. |
| Pandora |
Posted - 25 Aug 2008 : 15:00:19
I think WotC should have moved the 4e FR into the past instead of the future. I am now rereading "Evermeet" after some years and they are doing loads of "circle magic" and rituals there, which might fit with the names given to things a bit better IMO. This doesnt work due to the (unnecessary ?) change to alignments and the planes and gods. Also the "new common races" of Dragonborn probably wouldnt fit in that kind of a setting, but life isnt perfect. Since 4e is "back to basics" moving into the past it would fit too, because the first Forgotten Realms were 1st ed. AD&D and 4e should be a few centuries before that. |
| Pandora |
Posted - 25 Aug 2008 : 14:45:38
quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
What do you think will happen to the Weave in 4e? Will somebody ascen to be Mystra (again)?
It is one of lifes golden rules that it is easier to destroy than to create (unless you happen to be Ao), so I would say it wont happen. After WotC "got rid" of a goddess of magic they wont really introduce it back again. |
| Menelvagor |
Posted - 25 Aug 2008 : 13:21:11
What do you think will happen to the Weave in 4e? Will somebody ascen to be Mystra (again)? |
| arry |
Posted - 23 Aug 2008 : 10:55:42
Maybe the new colours are 'KEWL!' and 'AWESOME!'  |
| Asgetrion |
Posted - 22 Aug 2008 : 21:59:09
quote:
Originally posted by Kiaransalyn
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
- The Zhentarim also have changed their symbol -- they now wear a brown-colored fanged skull on a burst of dark-brown rays (on yellow field) as their symbol. If it is meant to resemble Cyric's own symbol, the colors seem like an odd choice...
All that brown might be appropriate given the opinion of many scribes here.
Thanks for your review of the new improved 'washes even whiter' 4E FRCS Asgetrion.
You're welcome! (And I agree with you that the new colors are probably quite fitting for the 4E Zhentarim...) |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Aug 2008 : 18:38:11
quote:
Originally posted by The Red Walker
quote:
Originally posted by Kiaransalyn
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
- The Zhentarim also have changed their symbol -- they now wear a brown-colored fanged skull on a burst of dark-brown rays (on yellow field) as their symbol. If it is meant to resemble Cyric's own symbol, the colors seem like an odd choice...
All that brown might be appropriate given the opinion of many scribes here.
Thanks for your review of the new improved 'washes even whiter' 4E FRCS Asgetrion.
I thought I read somewhere that Bane had adopted Xvim's colors.
He did. Pre-mysterious return, his colors were red and black. Post-mysterious return, his colors were green and black, the same as Xvim. It's part of the reason I think Bane didn't really return, and that Xvim is impersonating him. |
| The Red Walker |
Posted - 22 Aug 2008 : 15:42:52
quote:
Originally posted by Kiaransalyn
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
- The Zhentarim also have changed their symbol -- they now wear a brown-colored fanged skull on a burst of dark-brown rays (on yellow field) as their symbol. If it is meant to resemble Cyric's own symbol, the colors seem like an odd choice...
All that brown might be appropriate given the opinion of many scribes here.
Thanks for your review of the new improved 'washes even whiter' 4E FRCS Asgetrion.
I thought I read somewhere that Bane had adopted Xvim's colors.
|
| Kiaransalyn |
Posted - 22 Aug 2008 : 13:44:26
quote:
Originally posted by Asgetrion
- The Zhentarim also have changed their symbol -- they now wear a brown-colored fanged skull on a burst of dark-brown rays (on yellow field) as their symbol. If it is meant to resemble Cyric's own symbol, the colors seem like an odd choice...
All that brown might be appropriate given the opinion of many scribes here.
Thanks for your review of the new improved 'washes even whiter' 4E FRCS Asgetrion. |
| Kyrene |
Posted - 22 Aug 2008 : 13:31:45
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
I think NWN was getting stale, and they needed to move the fanbase somehow.
Judging by the masses of active players/posts still being generated on the Bioware fora, nothing could be further from the truth. Granted the whole Mysteries of Westgate debacle may have soured some fans, but that is mainly due to Atari insisting on copy protection being developed inhouse.
quote:
I'd be willing to make a bet that the Storm of Zehir game will include a little something about the population moving to Baldur's gate after the city's destruction.
I asked that question, and the concensus is that Neverwinter gets destroyed by the Sellplague, not in Storm of Zehir. Besides, apart from the Wailing Death, nothing else from NWN1 or 2 has ever made it into WotC canon. I can't see that starting now.
quote:
How perfect is that? They move the fans in the RW, by having them move IG?
Pretty stupid though, since Waterdeep is a lot closer if any 'refugees' had to move.
I have a different theory: there will be a blanket 'ban' of any CRPGs set in the 4E Realms, due to Living FR. What better way to kill off the NWN franchise than killing off the city it gets its name from. Bioware has already moved on after NWN1, while Obsidian Entertainment may feel the same after NWN2. It might even be, with Atari's track record, that they lose the FR CRPG license.
I'm still greatly hacked off today about the Neverwinter news. Unlike others here, I re-discovered the Realms through NWN1, so it is my favourite area in the Realms, not Cormyr or Waterdeep or Evermeet or whatever—all places that have survived the Sellplague to a lesser or larger degree. At this point, I may actually drop out of D&D completely and get my crack from—heaven forbid—Diablo 3.  |
| Fillow |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 20:31:34
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
quote:
Originally posted by Fillow
Sorry if I'm in late in the discussion about this new product (just back from holidays and so many posts to read !) but...
What was the first displeasure about please ?
Lets just say he came off 'less then overly-enthusiastic' about the map.
Thanks Mark. |
| Ashe Ravenheart |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 20:17:13
quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
quote:
I am disgusted. The Forgotten Realms, in its current "incarnation"(4th edition), truly deserves to become forgotten for all time. I spit upon it.
Why is this?
There are a lot of people that are not happy with the release of the Campaign Guide. The drastic changes to the geography, ecology, cosmology and culture of the realms has many wishing for simpler times. Or at least explanations. |
| Menelvagor |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 20:10:31
quote:
I am disgusted. The Forgotten Realms, in its current "incarnation"(4th edition), truly deserves to become forgotten for all time. I spit upon it.
Why is this?
|
| Markustay |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 19:43:24
My take - They "New Yorkified" Baldur's Gate, just so it could be the new home of the Video Games (and it has been once before). Think about it - why did they make such a big deal about its incredible size and the fact that any race - and anything, for that matter - can be found there now? They didn't bother to do anything with it (as of yet), so why did they make that change?
Because, now, the Computer-Game guys can do whatever they want, and not be questioned as to "How is that possible?" And think about its size - no matter how much you explore now, there still room for tons of sequels.
I think NWN was getting stale, and they needed to move the fanbase somehow. I'd be willing to make a bet that the Storm of Zehir game will include a little something about the population moving to Baldur's gate after the city's destruction. How perfect is that? They move the fans in the RW, by having them move IG?
It's Brilliant!
quote:
Originally posted by Fillow
Sorry if I'm in late in the discussion about this new product (just back from holidays and so many posts to read !) but...
What was the first displeasure about please ?
Lets just say he came off 'less then overly-enthusiastic' about the map. |
| Amarel Derakanor |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 18:04:39
Well then, I've laid my eyes upon the interior of the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide, and I thought I'd share my opinion about it with you. Beware though, I'm far from politically correct.
I am disgusted. The Forgotten Realms, in its current "incarnation"(4th edition), truly deserves to become forgotten for all time. I spit upon it.
 |
| Ashe Ravenheart |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 14:15:56
What I find interesting was that it was once asked why Chronomancy wasn't used in the Realms. The 'official' answer (I can't remember how official) was that El was the sheriff of the timeline.
Which, of course means that there's an out if things REALLY don't go well. |
| Pandora |
Posted - 21 Aug 2008 : 11:50:04
quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
In 3.5, most gods were level 40... El was 35, last I saw his stats...
Fighter 1
Rogue 2
Cleric of Mystra 3
Wizard 24
Archmage 5 )
Thoughts?
For me a god is more than a high number of class levels, so no matter if youre level 100 you are not "as good as a god" as long there are zero people believing in your power.
As for some chosen being alive still I cant really understand why. They were "bound to the weave" and should have suffered a really bad fate when it "disbanded" ... uncontrolled Spellfire discharges hurt (at they did for Shandril). If its true that Elminster and the Simbul are still alive that feels like someone is trying to lessen the gap between the old and new Realms by saying "your old favorite guy / gal" is still there. For me that feels like someone is backpedalling and admitting an error of judgement, but we cant say if such a thing is true or the whole thing had been planned like this from the beginning. |
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