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Ozreth
Learned Scribe
187 Posts |
 Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 17:53:34
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Poll Question:
I started with Dragonlance. I read those books before I knew what D&D was and in the late 90's I started to make the connection of products I was seeing on the shelves. Then, a few years after getting into D&D, I fell upon the Realms novels because I had been seeing them next to the DL novels on bookshelves for so long and they looked cool so why not?
I haven't read a DL novel since and I've been running games in FR. That being said, DL always whispers in my ear and when I flip through the game products and novels the names and places certainly reek of wonderful nostalgia. FR has become my favorite but I do plan on revisiting Krynn soon. Likely through a portal from Faerun in my game :p
Anyways, this got me thinking, is there anybody on here who's favorite setting isn't actually Forgotten Realms? And if you choose no, let us know which is your favorite and why! I'm assuming the majority will be yes, but oh well!
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Edited by - Ozreth on 19 Mar 2013 17:54:46
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Eltheron
Senior Scribe
740 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 18:18:06
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I'd say that I really loved the Realms during the 1E and early 2E periods, but I'd only count it as my "favorite" during 1E.
My favorite setting is the "Shadow World" of Kulthea, by Iron Crown Enterprises. Greyhawk is a close second. |
"The very best possible post-fourteenth-century Realms lets down those who love the specific, detailed social, political and magical situation, with its thousands of characters, developed over forty years, and want to learn more about it; and those who'd be open to a new one with equal depth, which there just isn't time to re-produce; and those repelled, some past the point of no return, by the bad-taste-and-plausibility gap of things done to the world when its guardianship was less careful."
--Faraer |
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Caladan Brood
Senior Scribe
Norway
410 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 18:48:02
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| I love frolicking in the Realms but as far as settings go, the powers of Middle-earth, Westeros and that galaxy far, far away cannot be underestimated. |
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Alystra Illianniis
Great Reader
USA
3750 Posts |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11695 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 19:22:01
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| The realms is probably still my favorite, because I can't get into Golarion. However, I will say that I find Sword & Sorcery's Scarred Lands Campaign intriguing enough that I could run a game there (noting, not fond of their prestige classes, etc... I'd probably bring in the WotC rules/prestige classes). I actually like some of what I've seen of Eberron. I'm presently reading Midgard (i.e. page one). |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 22:29:09
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For D&D? Yes.
Favorite setting ever? No. I love the world of Shannara, Westeros, and Malaz a little more. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 22:29:42
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For D&D? Yes.
Favorite setting ever? No. I love the worlds of Shannara, Westeros, and Malaz a little more. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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The Madmage
Acolyte
26 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 23:04:19
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| For role-playing, it was up to but excluding 4th edition. I'm staying open-minded for the Sundering and how things align after that. |
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Diffan
Great Reader
USA
4429 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 23:29:52
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| A lot of people might not think so since I've been a strong supporter of the 4E Realms but its been my favorite setting since I started plahing the old Baldur's Gate games. |
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Old Man Harpell
Senior Scribe
USA
495 Posts |
Posted - 19 Mar 2013 : 23:49:19
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I said 'Yes', but it actually occupies equal status with Cerilia, the continent of the Birthright campaign setting. Both of these places have that 'old' feeling...magical, ancient worlds that don't feel contrived or thrown together. To me, Eberron and, yes, Greyhawk feel jumbled together. This doesn't mean I dislike them, particularly, but I would never run a game in either.
I also have a marked favor for Middle-Earth, as well as Norrath (the world of Everquest - though the latter, like the Realms, is better in it's pre-cataclysm state).
- OMH |
Edited by - Old Man Harpell on 19 Mar 2013 23:50:04 |
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vorpalanvil
Seeker
USA
90 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 01:11:49
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| For playing DnD, a hearty yes! But my first love will always be Ursula LeGuin's Earthsea followed by Middle Earth. |
"I'm a busy man! I got places to go, monsters to kill!" attributed to 1st level bard |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31701 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 01:30:17
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It's often said that you never truly "get over" your first love -- and I suppose this applies to just about everything you'll ever find yourself devoted to... So in my case, my first RPG love was DRAGONLANCE. And it will always hold a place of special significance in my heart as a result of that "first time" so to speak.
But the Realms is where I've made my home. And it's probably the only campaign setting that I have properly developed as my own with the addition on 20+ years of my own history backing it up. [My DRAGONLANCE comes up as a close second with respect to creator-owned history, running up to 15+ years of my own crafted campaign adventures and lore backing up my setting.]
So, in my own rambling way, I suppose I would say that while DRAGONLANCE remains my first love, the FORGOTTEN REALMS is the setting I'm often playing with the most. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Aulduron
Learned Scribe
USA
343 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 01:34:01
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| I started with Greyhawk, but FR is my favorite. |
"Those with talent become wizards, Those without talent spend their lives praying for it"
-Procopio Septus |
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scererar
Master of Realmslore
USA
1618 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 01:38:42
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| 110% yes. from the day I picked up the book Spellfire, I was hooked on the realms and changed from the basic D&D rule set, to 2ed with the 2e for campaign box sets :-) |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 03:40:39
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I was introduced to the Realms by way of Dragonlance... I used to really like the Dragonlance setting, but moved on as I got more and more into the Realms.
Spelljammer, though -- that was my first love among D&D settings, hence my username.
The setting had its flaws, I have to admit -- inconsistent rules and supplements, supplements based on other D&D settings that were somehow disconnected from (and in some cases, flat-out contradicted) the source material, and the horrible Astromundi Cluster boxed set.
They stopped supporting Spelljammer, and around the same time, I got Volo's Guide to Waterdeep -- and for me, that one book did something no other RPG supplement had done before, and that few after have done: it made the setting feel real. It made it come alive. It made the Realms feel like a place that didn't just have a handful of people doing a grand quest while nothing else happened -- the book made Waterdeep feel like a real place with real people living their lives. When I feel like I can walk the streets of a fictitious city and get lost in life of the place, then that place feels alive to me.
Once that happened, I was hooked.  |
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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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31701 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 04:15:30
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
The setting had its flaws, I have to admit -- inconsistent rules and supplements, supplements based on other D&D settings that were somehow disconnected from (and in some cases, flat-out contradicted) the source material, and the horrible Astromundi Cluster boxed set.
I still get a lot of confused looks from my fellow SJ fans when I say that I actually liked the Astromundi Cluster boxed set. It's just too bad it was set up as it's own setting, rather than tacked into the SJ firmament. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Arivia
Great Reader
Canada
2965 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 04:34:26
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| Yes, by far. |
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Thrasymachus
Learned Scribe
195 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 08:32:40
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For AD&D... Yes
Also for a vast majority of the novels even if I never picked up another 20-sided... Yes.
I came from my own crappy little homebrew. Picked up FR1 Waterdeep and the North and the OGB to integrate and never looked back. I browsed the other TSR settings, but there was nothing I ever found like the FR series, and the OGB. It occurs to me now that other settings felt like there was very little left over on the cutting room floor. In other settings it felt like stuff was made up for that product. The early TSR Realm felt like there was a huge library full of product already done and it was being released a bit at time as to not overwhelm. Even the mouse sized print added to that.
As far as the novels, my first was the Time of Troubles series, and it would be 10 years before I picked up another Forgotten Realms novel. Bob Salvatore got me hooked on the novels enough to go collect every paperback that come out for almost every author.
Your mileage WILL vary. |
Former Forgotten Realms brand manager Jim Butler: "Everything that bears the Forgotten Realms logo is considered canon". |
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Kno
Senior Scribe
452 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 10:20:46
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| My other favorite settings are Call of Cthulhu, Mage, Conan, Dark Matter |
z455t |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 14:04:01
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I think putting this on a Forgotten Realms website is going to dramatically skew the results from the norm.
Just as it would if you did it on a Mystara site, or a DL or GH site (etc).
I said yes, but as a qualifier I would have to add 'published' between 'favorite' and 'setting'. (my own mish-mosh is currently my favorite, but it is based primarily on FR).
Both GH and OD&D/Mystara hold a lot of love for me as well. |
"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 20 Mar 2013 14:06:16 |
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Ozreth
Learned Scribe
187 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 17:52:33
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
I think putting this on a Forgotten Realms website is going to dramatically skew the results from the norm.
Just as it would if you did it on a Mystara site, or a DL or GH site (etc).
Totally, but I admitted that in the beginning, and it's kind of the point :) |
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BEAST
Master of Realmslore
USA
1714 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 17:59:21
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| I enjoyed reading about Narnia, Zork, Middle-Earth, and Pern when I was younger. But the Realms are a whole different breed, for me. I love this setting. |
"'You don't know my history,' he said dryly."
--Drizzt Do'Urden (The Pirate King, Part 1: Chapter 2)
<"Comprehensive Chronology of R.A. Salvatore Forgotten Realms Works"> |
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GRYPHON
Senior Scribe
USA
527 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 18:30:03
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| Yes... |
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Shemmy
Senior Scribe
USA
492 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 22:43:26
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Planescape is my favorite setting. Been that way since I started playing D&D.
Golarion is my second favorite, having overtaken FR at this point. |
Shemeska the Marauder, King of the Crosstrade; voted #1 best Arcanaloth in Sigil two hundred years running by the people who know what's best for them; chant broker; prospective Sigil council member next election; and official travel agent for Chamada Holiday specials LLC.
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Dalor Darden
Great Reader
USA
4211 Posts |
Posted - 20 Mar 2013 : 23:08:44
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Is the Forgotten Realms my favorite setting...sadly no.
Once upon a time it was; but other things came along that took me in many different directions!
I LOVE the Birthright setting...it just had the type of feel that I loved about the Old Grey Box. Character levels were not so very inflated, there was lots of room for good old adventuring, AND you could rule your own nation!
I'll always have a place for Greyhawk since it was the first world I ever played in...I'll never forget some of the adventures I had there and just the SMELL of the books. Yes, smell is important!
Mystara has a dear place for me too...the GAZ series was wonderful! I never played "Basic" D&D there though, it was always AD&D...and is where the character Dalor Nal'Raesik Darden came from.
I love Dragonlance because of the epic sweep of the first three novels that saw the emergence of the Heroes of the Lance; the tears for Sturm and Flint...that sort of thing. The novels there were more to me than the gaming setting.
So no, the Forgotten Realms is not my favorite setting...though for the past many years it has been the world I've played in the most. |
The Old Grey Box and AD&D for me! |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31701 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2013 : 01:22:58
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quote:
Originally posted by Dalor Darden
I LOVE the Birthright setting...it just had the type of feel that I loved about the Old Grey Box. Character levels were not so very inflated, there was lots of room for good old adventuring, AND you could rule your own nation!
I've long had a particular fascination with the BIRTHRIGHT setting -- even having access to practically everything published for the world. It's just that, sadly, I've never had the opportunity to run any campaigns with the material, because none among my players are interested in the world.
Sneakingly, though, I've managed to slip tidbits from BR material into my Realms campaigns from time to time. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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LastStand
Learned Scribe
130 Posts |
Posted - 21 Mar 2013 : 06:57:23
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quote:
Originally posted by LastStand
I started with DL and discovered FR shortly after, and it quickly became my fave setting. Middle-earth still occupies a special place though.
This scroll got me thinking. We each have our own favorite setting for certain reasons. What if we tried, as a community, to make a homebrew setting? Maybe a combination of all these factors we like.
Would this be allowed on Candlekeep, and would it generate interest?
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"Don't. The battlegrounds that you and I have returned from alive are too different."
~ Claymore ch106 |
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Thauranil
Master of Realmslore
India
1591 Posts |
Posted - 22 Mar 2013 : 11:47:39
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| Its definitely one of my favorite settings but my absolute favorite would have to be Star Wars followed by Warhammer 40000. The Emperor Protects! |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 22 Mar 2013 : 14:17:41
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Yes, it is, though a tie with Midkemia. Warhammer (Fantasy), Scadrial, the many planes of Magic: The Gathering, and the Four Corners of Civilization follow close by. But of course, as almost all things do, my "favorites" change every now and then. |
Every beginning has an end. |
Edited by - Dennis on 22 Mar 2013 14:21:21 |
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Aldrick
Senior Scribe
909 Posts |
Posted - 22 Mar 2013 : 16:24:51
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I voted yes, but my love for the setting has waxed and waned over the years. What Sage described as "first love" definitely applies for me with the Realms. The Realms is my first love, and I am still deeply devoted to it.
However, I also have other settings that I deeply enjoy. Leading among them is perhaps Westeros, followed by Warhammer Fantasy. I also want to give a major shout out to Old Man Harpell for mentioning Norrath, the world of EverQuest. I haven't played a MMO in many years since EverQuest, but so much of the lore of the setting reminded me faintly of the Realms - it has much of the same charm. (Pre-Scars of Velious at least, after that things started to go off the rails, and completely jumped off the track by the Planes of Power). |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11695 Posts |
Posted - 22 Mar 2013 : 17:13:25
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quote:
Originally posted by Old Man Harpell
I said 'Yes', but it actually occupies equal status with Cerilia, the continent of the Birthright campaign setting. Both of these places have that 'old' feeling...magical, ancient worlds that don't feel contrived or thrown together. To me, Eberron and, yes, Greyhawk feel jumbled together. This doesn't mean I dislike them, particularly, but I would never run a game in either.
I also have a marked favor for Middle-Earth, as well as Norrath (the world of Everquest - though the latter, like the Realms, is better in it's pre-cataclysm state).
- OMH
On the Norrath thing, I second that from a campaign world sense. The original campaign world was a lot more interesting with each race having a certain starting community, etc.... As a player, I prefer EQ2 for the better graphics and the customization system. However, the customization system has gone markedly downhill in my view since they made the changes in the past 3 or 4 years where pretty much only one ability score affects things for you. It made a lot more sense before whenever for say a priest your intelligence affected spell damage, wisdom affected resistances and power, strength affected melee damage, etc... It made it so that if you wanted to have a healer that did a lot of spell and melee damage and the same class could be more of a healer, or druids wanting at least some dex since they're in leather, etc.... |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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Is FR actually your favorite setting?
