| Author |
 Topic  |
|
|
Gelcur
Senior Scribe
503 Posts |
 Posted - 18 Nov 2016 : 07:40:06
|
I would love if someone could point me to scrolls, websites or reply with things that could help me get caught up with what has been going on here, in D&D and in the Realms. I'm well versed in 3.5 lore and have most every source book, I picked up Halls of Undermountain 4E, Murder in Baldur's Gate 3.5-5E?, The Rise of Tiamat 5E and Hoard of the Dragon Queen 5E. I have only flipped through them.
Sadly I feel lost, wizards site has long become a mess. What used to be an endless source of lore seems to be tons of 404 errors and with very little new content, maybe I just don't know where to look. I began having difficulty following the site when they were running those weekly D&D events but they required some gamestore affiliation to get the material. And then things only got worst when the printed Murder in Baldur's Gate but then I guess the rest of the series is all digital somewhere?
What I have managed to glean. The Spellplague, that was foreshadowed at the end of 3.5, happened and lasted for a decade, transforming the landscape, destroying places, changing magic, Maztica Abeir-Toril did some flip flopping. A hundrded years later things are still weird but the end of the Sundering started putting things back to normalish? Then there is a bunch of A, B or C managed to survive loopholes  .
And here is where I get really jumbled up, seems some material was published/sold/given out under RPGA, other material under the Adventurers League, and then there was that weekly D&D event that I tried to follow since they visited Undermountain and Waterdeep, but I failed to participate in. Then am I to understand at some point after that we have the Tyranny of Dragons, Elemental Evil, Rage of Demons and now Storm King's Thunder storylines? I am even having trouble finding dates online when these events occur in realms history.
Am I looking in the wrong places, should I be using the twitters/facebooks, I don't have either, is there an app for this too? Please help an old confused scribe. 
|
The party come to a town befallen by hysteria
Rogue: So what's in the general store?
DM: What are you looking for?
Rogue: Whatevers in the store.
DM: Like what?
Rogue: Everything.
DM: There is a lot of stuff.
Rogue: Is there a cart outside?
DM: (rolls) Yes.
Rogue: We'll take it all, we may need it for the greater good. |
Edited by - Gelcur on 18 Nov 2016 07:41:28
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2016 : 08:16:18
|
There really is nothing. Its just one, big mess. And very little makes any sense.
YES, the Spellplague happened (4e), and a century passed, and everything changed. Then the Sundering happened (5e) and it all changed back (pretty-much), not just to how was in 3e, but how it was in 1e/2e (the maps, at least).
And just about anyone who is anyone is still alive... a century later... but don't call it a 'reboot'. Of course, the only thing NOT 'reboot' about it is that they refuse to call it that. Oh, and the year... which is pretty meaningless, all things considered. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
 |
|
|
Bladewind
Master of Realmslore
Netherlands
1280 Posts |
|
|
Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3802 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2016 : 13:48:43
|
Yeah, it's a mess. The Spellplague wasn't fully undone, they only brought back what the ToT, the end of the 3e era, and the Spellplague took away (or said tha those things were in fact never gone). However, some of what the Spellplague added is still there. The new tieflings, dragonborns, a part of Tymanther are all examples of things brought by 4e that are still there.
Lirdolin did an excellent job at compiling the timeline that Bladewind linked. (S)he also wrote a document about the current state of Waterdeep: http://forum.candlekeep.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=21050.
I'll also link a summary of changes that I wrote a while ago as an answer to a similar thread, perhaps it might be of help: http://forum.candlekeep.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=20957#482526 (it's a bit outdated tho, since the story of Azuth's return is complete now. It ended with "The Devil You Know", by Erin Evans).
|
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
Edited by - Irennan on 18 Nov 2016 13:52:23 |
|
|
|
Gelcur
Senior Scribe
503 Posts |
Posted - 01 Dec 2016 : 06:55:34
|
Thank you for the links and brief summaries. I will do some reading in the tomes you suggested and come back with more questions.
I and what is this I hear there is a movie in the works now? I am like really out of touch. |
The party come to a town befallen by hysteria
Rogue: So what's in the general store?
DM: What are you looking for?
Rogue: Whatevers in the store.
DM: Like what?
Rogue: Everything.
DM: There is a lot of stuff.
Rogue: Is there a cart outside?
DM: (rolls) Yes.
Rogue: We'll take it all, we may need it for the greater good. |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Gyor
Master of Realmslore
1621 Posts |
Posted - 01 Dec 2016 : 09:08:04
|
quote:
Originally posted by dazzlerdal
Is it only me left who doesnt care what they do in 5e and that timeline.
The pre 4e realms had a plan, a secret design that it was following where most of the design decisions meant something.
4e onwards is just reactionary to current trends. There is no meaning behind the decisions and events.
Its all just about the kult of kewl pew pew lolz
Yes its just you. I'm kidding I'm sure there are a few others.
I actually like the 5e realms, the basic plan for the 5e realms is to play to nostalgia for the prespellplague editions, while leaving some of the cooler 4e stuff in the hopes of uniting the fan base.
Unfortunately its poorly supported, with no proper FRCG, so much of it is only vague outlines lacking in details.
But from what I've seen its really cool, so i want a FRCG. |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Cards77
Senior Scribe
USA
745 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2016 : 02:01:35
|
quote:
Originally posted by dazzlerdal
Is it only me left who doesnt care what they do in 5e and that timeline.
The pre 4e realms had a plan, a secret design that it was following where most of the design decisions meant something.
4e onwards is just reactionary to current trends. There is no meaning behind the decisions and events.
Its all just about the kult of kewl pew pew lolz
No gentle sir, you are not alone.
The Realms stopped at about 1372 give or take.... |
|
|
|
hashimashadoo
Master of Realmslore
United Kingdom
1150 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2016 : 07:14:43
|
Man, over 9 years later and people are still making the exact same complaints.
WotC is a business owned by a corporation who put profit first. WotC's D&D department is run by people who want to keep their jobs. What does WotC sell that earns profit?
Player's Handbooks and license rights.
What does WotC sell that doesn't earn profit?
Practically everything else.
The products that we here at the 'keep want: the regular novel line, the campaign book, the sourcebooks written by the 'Realms Luminaries' - they don't earn Wizbro money. So they get other companies who don't have a big bottom line to do the work instead. Companies like Baldman Games, Kobold Press, Sasquatch Game Studio and Green Ronin Publishing, who are just happy to have the honour of writing official D&D material. A lot of projects with a tonne of potential have had to be scrapped lately because the cost/profit projections weren't any good. It's us as customers, not as gamers, who will decide the future of the Realms - we either spend more or get more of the cut-rate stuff we've been seeing lately.
WotC have made mistakes as well to be sure, but the Realms is a persistent living world. You should always be moving forward, not backward in such a world. Dwelling on the past serves no one. For the resources that have been devoted to it, 5e has been a huge success. |
When life turns it's back on you...sneak attack for extra damage.
Head admin of the FR wiki:
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/ |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2016 : 14:01:56
|
quote:
Originally posted by dazzlerdal
im going to move forward with the original realms.
5e realms is the same as 4e realms, a bit c**p. its poorly thought out from a realms perspective (although well thoughy out from a dnd perspective but the two dont sit well together anymore).
they can remove all the drow gods, then bring them all back, remove half the realms then bring them back, they can make eilistrae suddenly change personality, make all orcs evil, make mielikki promote genocide, make the uthgardt ally with orcs or any other developments they want that make no sense.
I just dont care about that realms. Its a poor imitation no matter how much they develop it.
Ill move forward with the old realms where things actually had hidden meaning.
Can we stop with bashing the Realms at every available opportunity? Saying something is crap and you don't like it isn't helping provide the requested information.  |
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!  |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Irennan
Great Reader
Italy
3802 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2016 : 14:39:52
|
quote:
Originally posted by hashimashadoo
WotC have made mistakes as well to be sure, but the Realms is a persistent living world. You should always be moving forward, not backward in such a world. Dwelling on the past serves no one. For the resources that have been devoted to it, 5e has been a huge success.
I still care about what they do to the Realms, because maybe some nice inspiration might come from that, because Ed still hasn't given up on the setting, and because the current Realms is what the newcomeres will see. However, I won't "move forward" with a frankly extremely cheesy metaplot, when it comes to what I use in my game.
As for purchasing products, I'm willing to give money for FR sourcebooks and novels (depends on the novel, tho)--and I've purchased the SCAG and many of the recent novels--but I have no use for adventures, and I honestly don't use D&D as a system. But even if, say, I was to buy books like "Tyranny of Dragons" in the hope that WotC could produce some nice FR lore book, that would be a waste of money, because I'd encourage them to write more of the same. |
Mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. |
|
|
| |
Topic |
|
|
|
Request for assistance
