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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
 Posted - 15 Jan 2012 : 03:06:49
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Hi again, all.
Markustay, here's a reply from Ed:
Hi, Markustay. Out of NDAs and professional courtesy I can say almost nothing "meaty and definite" in response to you, but I will say I was and am "very excited by the prospect." (Inclusion of that "was" should tell you something.)
I have been shown and/or been consulted on some things in advance, such as the forthcoming LORDS OF WATERDEEP board game (which I am going to rush right out and buy several copies of, for my family and to give away as gifts - - and which, if it sells, I can foresee some expansion products being added to, by Wizards, in time to come). I am very excited by things I'm frantically working on right now (one of which is very close to being announced), AND things I'm involved with that we'll all be seeing later.
All of which is enhanced by the bright, friendly WotC staffers I have the privilege of meeting and working with - - and the great freelance work (like the current Cormyr lore unfolding in the DDI magazines).
Color me happy, happy, happy. :}
There is all sorts of "new love for the Realms" that I can't reveal ahead, some of it soon ahead (or at least that you'll all learn more about, soon).
We all know that pleasing a randomly-assembled dozen Realms fans is hard, perhaps impossible, so not everyone will love everything they see ahead - - but they WILL have shiny things to see, use, demand more of, and kvetch about.
And a lot of it, I'm nigh-delirious about. Old hands and new, old times and new - - and hopefully we'll be creating new favorites to go on your shelf beside old favorites (and I know you personally lost all your old ones to the flames, and I hope we'll be doing something to make them easily available to you again, though I don't know any details of just how yet).
So yes, I'm pumped. I hung on and hung on and I know a lot of scribes and other Realms fans did, too . . . and I can now see bright light ahead.
Makes me want to snatch down a sword and go running around the estate whooping and swinging it. If it wasn't so darned cold and there wasn't so much snow and I didn't have so much to WRITE, I do it, too! But I've got so much Realmsian to get done or help with, now and in the months ahead . . .
Heh. There you go, Markustay and everyone. Nothing meaty or definite at all, but bouncing excitement to spare.
Wheeeeeeee, and so forth. 
love to all,
THO |
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Eilserus
Master of Realmslore
USA
1446 Posts |
Posted - 15 Jan 2012 : 05:36:32
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| Wizards should make a video with Ed running around his estate with sword in hand, whooping and swinging as part of the 5E launch. If Ed is stoked about 5E, it must be a good thing for the future of the Realms. :) |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
7968 Posts |
Posted - 15 Jan 2012 : 05:44:52
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| He'd probably trip and fall on his own sword after losing his footing on a jumbled pile of loose papers. |
[/Ayrik] |
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crazedventurers
Master of Realmslore
United Kingdom
1073 Posts |
Posted - 15 Jan 2012 : 12:56:26
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Hello Ed and THO
A question about Cormyr if I may based on an event from last nights game.
What are the rules on dividing loot between the Kings Local Lord and the Purple Dragon troops if they uncover a bandit/smuggling ring and break it up, kill the bandits and end up with loot (weapons, armour, money, horses, wagons, trade goods etc).
Do the rules change if the loot found is magical? (i.e. the bandit leader has a +1 sword).
Also is there a difference between how spoils might be divided in a major town like Wheloon and an up county village on the edge of the Hullack?
And lastly the crux of the issue, if an adventuring group have been paid by the Local Kings Lord to support the Purple Dragons in dealing with said bandits do they get a share of any loot or as they have already been paid do they get nowt?
Thanks
Damain
who's players took the loss of the 'original' loot well last night and found their own share later when they snuck back to the bandit camp without the troop in tow  |
So saith Ed. I've never said he was sane, have I?
Gods, all this writing and he's running a constant fantasy version of Coronation Street in his head, too. .
shudder,
love to all,
THO
Candlekeep Forum 7 May 2005 |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 15 Jan 2012 : 20:57:19
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Okay. 
That response alone made it worth the past three years of "weathering the storm", as it were (an edition war I took no small part in, to my shame).
And don't pity my situation, Ed. I'm optimist, believe it or not. Its like The Rolling Stones said -
"You can't always get what you want, and if you try sometime
you find, You get what you need."
And at the risk of sounding maudlin, I truly believe "God has a plan for all of us". 'For every season' yadda yadda yadda... you get the idea.
For instance, I had very little disposable income, and now I need to re-buy all my game stuff AND have the money to do so. Could this have happened at a more opportune time? I think not (judging by whats being said, and also by whats not being said).
"The unknowable mysteries of the cosmos" are not relegated to D&D alone.
Cheers ---- Mark |
"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 15 Jan 2012 20:58:43 |
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Eldacar
Senior Scribe
438 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2012 : 10:00:39
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I have a few questions regarding the Border Kingdoms and nation-building, which sort of plays off (well, it's in the general vein of inquiry, anyway...) a few replies Ed gave some years back regarding the acquiring of nobility in Waterdeep or gaining power within the Cormyrean court.
What is the closest that any individual has come to actually uniting the Border Kingdoms into one large "federation" under a single ruler? (Either in terms of outright conquest, or through clever manipulation of diplomatic treaties between the ruling lords of the day.) Or has it never come close to being done, simply because of difficulty? Is it outright impossible?
And for a group of (high-level) adventurers who might be feeling a need to build themselves a kingdom that will last beyond their deaths (as in, something that won't fall apart as soon as they're not around to hold it together), knowing undoubtedly what you do about the Border Kingdoms, how would you require that they go about their task? What resources would you recommend they acquire? Is there a particular area of the Border Kingdoms where it would be a good idea to start? (I notice Adaerglast, for example, is a rich land, hence it being brought under the control of the two mages in the Border Kingdoms article on the Wizards website - starting from a well-supplied and rich position would seem to be a wise decision.)
What outside nations might take issue with the Border Kingdoms actually being united? Cormyr and Halruaa interfered with the Adaerglast expansion under Iraun and Srivven, but was that actually because of the expansion itself (and so they sought to nullify a potential new power in the region), or because they didn't think that those two would make for very good "neighbours"? If the individual (or group of individuals) attempting to go through with this "unification" was a noble from Cormyr, how would that alter the perception of neighbouring nations? |
"The Wild Mages I have met exhibit a startling disregard for common sense, and are often meddling with powers far beyond their own control." ~Volo
"Not unlike a certain travelogue author with whom I am unfortunately acquainted." ~Elminster |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2012 : 13:01:01
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Which do you consider worse in fiction? Dying a senseless death? Or dying a glorious death only to be resurrected without sense? |
Every beginning has an end. |
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dansonata
Acolyte
Brazil
10 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2012 : 15:35:00
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Hi Ed and THO,
Couldn't find the answer anywhere. Registered here as a last resource to get it!
Where can I find more about the Order of the Shooting Star?
This seem to be a very interesting group, but all I can find is:
"The Church of Mystra sponsored an order of rangers, known as the Order of the Shooting Star. These rangers received spells from Mystra and served as long-range scouts and spies for the church, also dealing with magical threats that imposed upon the natural order of things, such as unloosed tanar'ri and baatezu as well as creatures born of irresponsible wizardly experimentation."
Thanks a lot. |
"So fate might make a man a farmer, but the farmer chose what crops to plant. Fate might make a man a soldier, but the soldier chose which battles to fight. Fate may have made him a killer, but he would decide if, who, why, and when he killed." |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
7968 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2012 : 15:48:20
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| Dennis, that seems to be a variation of the classic question put forth in philosphy. Should an individual prefer die anonymous and forgotten, or to be reviled forever for immoral deeds of monstrous villainy? |
[/Ayrik] |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2012 : 16:14:58
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quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik
Dennis, that seems to be a variation of the classic question put forth in philosphy. Should an individual prefer die anonymous and forgotten, or to be reviled forever for immoral deeds of monstrous villainy?
Sort of. I am no fan of resurrection. But I sometimes give allowances, especially if the causes are somewhat reasonable and tolerable. |
Every beginning has an end. |
Edited by - Dennis on 17 Jan 2012 16:39:59 |
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Thelonius
Senior Scribe
Spain
730 Posts |
Posted - 17 Jan 2012 : 16:19:28
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Which do you consider worse in fiction? Dying a senseless death? Or dying a glorious death only to be resurrected without sense?
That makes me think in something Spike said in Angel's 5th season. He complained about dying heroicly in the end of Buffy The Vampire Slayer , just to be resurrected again sensessly. Though I find this fact being annoying, I rather prefer see a senseless resurrecvtion than a senseless death, at least if it is a worthy char, of course. |
"If you are to truly understand, then you will need the contrast, not adherence to a single ideal." - Kreia
"I THINK I JUST HAD ANOTHER NEAR-RINCEWIND EXPERIENCE"- Discworld's Death frustrated after Rincewind scapes his grasp... again.
"I am death, come for thee" - Nimbul, from Baldur's Gate I just before being badly spanked
Sapientia sola libertas est |
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Gelcur
Senior Scribe
502 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2012 : 00:59:00
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Nice to see you all again, especially the Hooded Lady. I return from a long absence with a question that I think only Ed might have the answer to.
What does the Melairkyn's clan rune look like? I've have already checked Dwarves Deep for such a symbol but I sadly did not find it. If I had to guess maybe an adamantine crown?
Many thanks. |
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. |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2012 : 02:54:37
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Well met, all! I, too, return to these halls from a long absence... mostly due to Golarion and my other DM's homebrew campaign. What drew me back was my recent reading of Bury Elminster Deep; certain events and reappearing entities in that novel caused me to wonder if a new edition was in the works. I just learned today of WotC's decision to "plead the Fifth" (as it were; I thought the metaphor apropos, despite being as Canadian as Ed), and from what I read, it seems as if the new Realms will be time-period neutral... I'm fascinated by the prospect, and intrigued as to how it will be managed, particularly in terms of release of new product. Does this mean we'll finally see some older NDA lore (like, oh, the Cormyr Lineage, to flog a dead and by-now-skeletonized horse) see the light of day?
I'm almost as excited as Ed about the new announcement, although I am curious as to how the "time-period-neutral" element will be handled, and how this will affect product releases for the Realms, both fiction and game supplements. My preference, of course, is to see the setting rebooted to the campaign adventure trilogy Cormyr-Shadowdale-Anauroch and something that actually allows the PCs to affect what happens (which was, ostensibly, the goal of the 4E Realms in the first place, but I won't flog the dead horse of that particular hippocrisy; misspelling and pun fully intended). In any case, it's good to be back, and I expect to be sticking around for a while now. And no, I haven't searched the past year's scroll for news on my above-asked question yet; I was too excited to do things in a logical order, which isn't among my strengths in any case.  |
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 18 Jan 2012 02:56:16 |
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Fellfire
Master of Realmslore
1965 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2012 : 05:32:16
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| Forgive me for cluttering up this scroll. Gelcur you sig is hilarious. Is that an in-game quote? |
Misanthorpe
Love is a lie. Only hate endures. Light is blinding. Only in darkness do we see clearly.
"Oh, you think darkness is your ally? You merely adopted the dark. I was born in it, molded by it. I didn't see the light until I was already a man, by then it was nothing to me but.. blinding. The shadows betray you because they belong to me." - Bane The Dark Knight Rises
Green Dragonscale Dice Bag by Crystalsidyll - check it out
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2012 : 07:14:28
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| Okay, so (four hours later) I'm caught up on the past year, and I have another question, regarding one of Dennis's earlier questions (Elminster's biggest mistake): Will we see this long-maturing NDA resolved by the end of the present string of Elminster novels? Please? |
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 18 Jan 2012 07:15:15 |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 18 Jan 2012 : 07:19:50
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Oops... one more question, regarding lore from Bury Elminster Deep (with spoiler tags):
When, exactly, were El and Storm Lords of Waterdeep? If exact dates are NDA, can you provide approximate times? |
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 - 18 Jan 2012 : 10:16:52
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quote:
Posted by The Hooded One - 17 Jan 2011
“C) Given the importance of The Weave, we're not quite sure how Mystra could die and not have another "Time of Troubles" (and that includes this very-confused DM) and would welcome insight into thoughts on this.”
Heh. So would I. Perhaps she didn’t die, hmm?
Or perhaps someone, or several someones, was just much better prepared to handle consequences, this time around (i.e. as opposed to the Time of Troubles). Remember that the Weave is NOT “all magic” or even “all the natural world forces harnessed by magic” but rather a way (and for eons, THE most popular, refined, and best understood way) of harnessing those forces. There are other systems of magic, and always have been, from Ed’s initial creation of the Realms. The Time of Troubles was (as far as we mortals can determine) a war among the gods, complete with all the turbulence attending on actual combat. Perhaps someone - - perhaps Mystra herself - - prepared matters beforehand.
THERE you go. Perhaps this is all a plot engineered by Mystra and Azuth, to force magic-using humans to be more self-reliant, to thin out the ranks of their fellow deities, and to humble (the Red Wizards, the Zhentarim) or move (Halruaa) potential trouble-sources, to establish a “New Order” they can return to, to reign over more effectively.
Or perhaps not.
quote:
Posted by The Sage - 18 Jan 2011
I find this very, very interesting Ed. And it slightly underlines some of my own pending theories about Mystra 2.0, her death, and the potential for her return. [Including delving into some old stuff involving Mystryl.]
quote:
Posted by The Hooded One - 04 Jun 2011
Note: the Nether Scrolls are not part of the Weave or linked to it. Mystra IS the Weave, and the Weave was the most flexible and accessible to most mortals system of accessing the natural powers of the world; in other words, it was the most popular system of magic but not the only system of magic; after Mystra's fall, a new and different but superficially similar (because its developers so often desired to replicate identical or very similar magical effects) Weave developed, which is what pertains at the time of the Year of the Ageless One. However, the Nether Scrolls do store so much magical knowledge that they can be seen as a "backup" copy of the Art, in case all Art is sundered or all its practitioners eliminated. As both Azuth and Mystra "worked with" the Scrolls in private, it is highly likely that they bonded themselves to particular scrolls, and so can eventually "come back" from utter destruction (probably as past versions of themselves, just as Manshoon's awakened clones are copies of his younger selves), through some as-yet-unknown-to-mortals process.
So saith Ed. Who would love to say more, but has written right up to the edge of an NDA and so been forced to stop there. Enjoy, I hope!
love,
THO
So... this has all been very interesting reading, from the 2011 scroll, and I am forced to speculate, given the ending of "Bury Elminster Deep". My theory is that Mystra's daughters (and, to a lesser extent, her other Chosen) give her a conduit back to existence, and I suspect that Larloch has done much the same thing with the other items in question (details omitted to avoid spoilers, but the simple suggestion that working with the Nether Scrolls gives one the same ability possessed by the scrolls to re-form their essence is enough to predict this). The big question from my point of view is: Halaster? And, if the Seven have all studied the Scrolls (we know that at least one of them has done so), they may be able to do the same. Ed, I look forward to your response to this speculation, even if (as I suspect) it is largely "NDA"... |
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 - 18 Jan 2012 : 21:10:25
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Me again... since my last verbose loitering here, I've left an intriguing possibility with Paul Kemp's scroll (and his response was equally intriguing), and found this one in another scroll regarding Winterkeep:
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
And of course, "Winterkeep" is old TSR code for "Ed's house." :}
(As in: the Muskoka cottage certain TSR employees visited, back in the day, was his sometime summer residence, but in winter, no one can get to it - - as it's water access only, on a closed-down, half-drained and frozen-over waterway - - so Ed would be at his home, "Winterkeep."_
Ed created Winterkeep in the Realms, of course, and has some VERY intriguing unpublished lore about it up his sleeve. For now.
love,
THO
Any chance of this lore being published in the near future? |
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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althen artren
Senior Scribe
USA
780 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jan 2012 : 02:25:32
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Ed,
Color me a downer, but wouldn't your continued paycheck
demand that you say that the new edition is something
that shouldn't be missed? Please accept my apoligies
for being a pessimist, but most of the changes to the
Realms have really turned me off to anything Wotc puts
out. I believe that you'd have to be a cheerleader to
help sell what will be coming out, despite whatever comes out,
diamonds or crap. Would you tell us if something coming out
didn't cut the mustard?
(Though to be fair, I have still thumbed through
the Elminster books and Blackstaff Tower when they
came out.) |
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xaeyruudh
Master of Realmslore
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jan 2012 : 06:34:48
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happy new year! hey, it's only page 4, and hopefully well on the way to being a great year.
question for THO, with apologies if this has been asked/answered before, and thanks for your longsuffering:
do the Knights go looking for trouble, at the new year or any other time, or does the "universe" successfully conspire to fill their plate without any assistance? do they go looking for more anyway, because more is better? 
Manshoon's (or Fzoul's) birthday strikes me as an amusing time to work mischief on the Zhentarim in Daggerdale/wherever.
or dragon-control missions on the anniversary of Sylune's "death" or probably dozens of other times/places that are poignant in the First Game.
"new year's resolutions" got me thinking...
anyway, thank you! |
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Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jan 2012 : 08:34:39
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Another question on my favorite topic, inspired by Jakk's quotes regarding the Nether Scrolls.
"the Nether Scrolls do store so much magical knowledge" - are the Nether Scrolls the only artifact to do this? Because it seems to me that Symrustar's Choker preforms a similar function, though admittedly, it only stores enough magical knowledge/Art for one mage to always have what she needs. But I was interested in the similarities, and so I wonder, what inspired Symrustar to make her Choker, who helped her with it, and whether the Nether Scrolls or similar artifacts were part of the inspiration. Moreover, since its status is unknown, might it serve a similar purpose as the Scrolls?
EDIT: Another question, brought on by rereading Cloak And Dagger. It mentions that Boesild Aerasume (Alustriel's 8th son), alone of Alustriel's sons likes Khelben,'while the others barely tolerate the Blackstaff for their mothers' sake'. Can we have some more info on the relationship between Khelben and his nephews (by marriage)? For that matter, if it's not too much, what can Ed tell us about the family relationships among the Seven Sisters and their consorts/children? Were their ever any family feuds, why, and what was the result? |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
Edited by - Menelvagor on 19 Jan 2012 15:22:31 |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jan 2012 : 16:09:03
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If I may....
@Althen Artren: Sometimes you don't look at whats being said, you look at whats not being said.
I do not know Ed - I have never spoken to him. But just by what he (through THO) has been corresponding with us of late, as opposed to what was actually being said at the onset of 4e, I can interpret a world of difference in his attitude (weather he meant to convey that or not). If I - who do not know him personally and have little to go on except his exact wording - can note a subtle shift in mood, then I would bet my bottom dollar that his attitude has probably changed far more then I can perceive through simple 3rd-party posting.
My credentials? I used to be pretend to be a psychic on AOL back in 1990... and I have ZERO psychic ability (unless you count the ability to read people as a type of psychic talent). BTW, I didn't do it for money - I did it to prove to my family and friends how stupid people are (yeah... I never said I wasn't a jerk ), and I was very good at it. In person, you can go by body-language, but on the internet, all you have to go on is the precise wording they use, and the focus of their responses.
If I know anything at all about people, I would say for the first time in a long time, Ed is "As giddy as a schoolgirl".
EDIT: I would just like to add that this is all a matter of my opinion, and I could be completely wrong. I am just stating how I see things, through the filter of the internet, from where I am sitting - YMMV. |
"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 19 Jan 2012 16:29:57 |
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Elseenon
Acolyte
3 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jan 2012 : 16:51:32
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Is there an explanation for elven skin colours?
There was a thread on the old WotC boards years and years ago, "Why do moon elves blush blue?" Posters asked because of a line they'd read in one of Elaine Cunningham's books. Since anything contained in a FR novel is canon, we do know that moon elves do blush blue. But why? And do the others blush according to their skin tint too?
"Couldn't hear his words, but they brought a roar of approving, tipsy laughter from his comrades and made the smiling young moon elf blush a bright shade of blue"
The conclusion of the thread was that with their fey origins elves can't have had the hemoglobin in their blood that makes human blood red, since that's iron. So, the blue/bronze/copper/brown skin tints are the result of their differing blood colours under the skin. Sun elf blushes would be bronze, etc.
They worked out what each subrace would have in their blood instead of hemoglobin to make their skins the colours they are. For moon elves they said hemocyanin.
But! Is this at all based in realmslore?
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Edited by - Elseenon on 19 Jan 2012 16:59:42 |
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althen artren
Senior Scribe
USA
780 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 01:56:42
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I know youre a jerk, Markus, but you're
the kind of jerk i like.
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Edited by - althen artren on 20 Jan 2012 01:57:06 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 04:00:59
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Hi again, all.
Ed has dug himself out from under enough of his truly staggering current workload (much of which he is NDA-constrained from talking about) to answer some of your queries (that I've been quietly ferrying his way these last few days), so here we go . . .
To Gelcur, re. the the Melairkyn clan rune, Ed saith:
Good guess!
However, the actual rune is two diagonally crossed stone-headed hammers (crossed in the usual "X" shape of diagonals, like piratical crossbones or the Wilkinson swords, with the heads uppermost), and just above them is an arc (ends down, center up) of three floating crowns, the crowns being represented by flat horizontal lines with three triangles jutting up from them; two shorter smaller ones at each end, and a taller larger one in the middle.
To Markustay:
You're darned right. I AM as giddy as a schoolgirl. Of course, "there's many a slip/'twixt cup and lip," but this is starting out right, in every way (meaning I have solid reasons - - that I can't share - - for my bright optimism).
To althen artren:
I was raised to say nothing, if you can't say anything nice.
However, friends don't let friends be tricked into crap. (And I understand your pessimism; you needn't apologize.)
Most of the time, things are seldom clear-cut; there's always something to like or dislike about every game product. One gamer's crap is another's useful gaming aid (because GAMERS are all different, coming at a game or session from different directions and with different experiences, some young and starry-eyed and some old and cynical, not to mention everything in between). I can say nothing at all about the 5th edition of the game, because it WILL be shaped by outside-Wizards-gamer input, so it doesn't really exist yet (as a longtime game designer, I can tell you that you can't be certain about any design by peering at initial ideas for a few rules, just as you can't be certain about the performance of a not-yet-built car by examining just some bolts that MIGHT end up holding one of its fenders on). Yet the mere fact that Wizards is seeking that input is a good sign. I'm a storytelling DM with players who are mature enough not to really need reference to rules as they play, so rules systems don't matter to me nearly as much as the Realms does - - and it's what's ahead for the Realms that's got me so excited.
I will try to do whatever I can to give the Realms a brighter future, but no one has asked me to be cheerleader. I have chosen to cheer because I feel like cheering!
To xaeryuudh:
Heh. A bit of both. The Knights are adventurers who hold war councils among themselves and choose what they're going to go out and do, so they do go looking for trouble. But a lot of trouble comes looking for them (bwoohahaha, and so forth). And you're very welcome!
To Jakk:
I have plans for the Winterkeep lore, but "near future"? Probably not. Remember, a lot of design work/fiction writing is a minimum of a year ahead . . .
My response to your theories has to be: NDA, except to add that you're wrong about some things, but onto something with others . . . :}
And this:
I lack the time yet to properly reply to Eldacar or dansonata, but will when I can. Re. Jakk's question about Dennis's query about Elminster's biggest mistake: by the end of ELMINSTER ENRAGED, longtime Realms buffs (fiction AND games, not just one or the other) should be on the right track to figuring matters out, but it won't really be "nailed down" until a later book that I can't say anything at all about, yet...
And Damian, an answer for you coming soon!
So saith Ed. Who really is busy, but happy indeed. Which should be a good sign for all of us!
love to all,
THO
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 04:21:20
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Hi again, all!
Here's Ed's promised response to Damian, re. this: "What are the rules on dividing loot between the Kings Local Lord and the Purple Dragon troops if they uncover a bandit/smuggling ring and break it up, kill the bandits and end up with loot (weapons, armour, money, horses, wagons, trade goods etc).
Do the rules change if the loot found is magical? (i.e. the bandit leader has a +1 sword).
Also is there a difference between how spoils might be divided in a major town like Wheloon and an up county village on the edge of the Hullack?
And lastly the crux of the issue, if an adventuring group have been paid by the Local Kings Lord to support the Purple Dragons in dealing with said bandits do they get a share of any loot or as they have already been paid do they get nowt?"
Ed replies:
The Purple Dragons will take EVERYTHING back to the King's Lord for him to examine, and there's a strict rule that everything magical will be handed over to the Wizards of War (as you'll see a side-glimpse of in ELMINSTER ENRAGED, every King's Lord has two teams of War Wizards assigned to him, and they keep watch over him as well as working "for" him). In theory, if it's a simple +1 weapon, it might be returned to a "finder," but that's rare; War Wizards like to control magic items inside the realm, by keeping them out of the hands of just about everyone.
The King's Lord (in the presence of the Purple Dragon commander and a War Wizard, not secretly, on his own) decides how all "seized goods" get reallocated, for the good of the realm - - so horses and their tack, armor, and the like might very well get handed to the Purple Dragons, the coins go into "holding" (general Crown revenues), and so on.
First of all, everything gets examined, particularly if crimes are involved (these were bandits), so as to try to learn all that can be learned (about Sembian or Zhent incursions and operations inside the kingdom's borders, etc.). If War Wizards suspect anything is enchanted, they'll cast spells to try to investigate, etc.
Then every Purple Dragon involved gets separately debriefed (questioned), the War Wizards and the King's Lord taking part, to try to piece together the most complete and accurate account of what happened.
Only after that's done, and it's all written down with recommendations about further action/investigation, will any seized things be doled out/taken away/etc.
It is customary for a King's Lord to give "nominal" rewards to Purple Dragons for things brought in, but they ARE small token items, because the soldiers were doing the jobs they have trained, taken an oath, and are being paid for.
Where all of this is taking place should make no difference at all, except in the speed of the examination (in Suzail, High Horn, and Arabel, there are LOTS of War Wizards and other skilled individuals such as Highknights and sages who can pitch in, if need be).
Lastly, what rewards/reallocation a hired adventuring band gets depends on their contract (and there MUST be one, or everyone could hire adventurers as their own private slaughter-armies, then deny later they did so, and have the absent-or-conveniently-slain adventurers be the scapegoats; after all, if I slay the King's Lord and make myself Acting King's Lord, AFTER taking care of any on-the-spot War Wizards, I may have several days to do things in, before . . . y'see? So Vangerdahast decreed long ago that there would be written, signed, attested-by-War Wizards and/or Heralds contracts) with the King's Lord. If he "forgot" to write one up, he's in BIG trouble, and will likely give them generous rewards atop their pay, in order to secure their agreement to backdating the contract so it looks as if he "did the right thing" regarding the adventurers before the bandits got taken down.
So I'd say the PCs are in for a bit of a windfall . . . ;}
So saith Ed. Heh. DMing with reference to human nature, as usual . . .
love,
THO |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 06:24:58
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Hi again, all.
<chop>
To Jakk:
<snip>
My response to your theories has to be: NDA, except to add that you're wrong about some things, but onto something with others . . . :}
Heh. Well, I guessed that much, Ed... is there nothing else you can say?  Never mind... if there was, you would have said it. Thanks for the partial confirmation, even if it's non-specific.
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
And this:
I lack the time yet to properly reply to Eldacar or dansonata, but will when I can. Re. Jakk's question about Dennis's query about Elminster's biggest mistake: by the end of ELMINSTER ENRAGED, longtime Realms buffs (fiction AND games, not just one or the other) should be on the right track to figuring matters out, but it won't really be "nailed down" until a later book that I can't say anything at all about, yet...
And Damian, an answer for you coming soon!
So saith Ed. Who really is busy, but happy indeed. Which should be a good sign for all of us!
love to all,
THO
Hrm... now I have to go back and re-read all the older stuff, most of which I *STILL* don't have anywhere near me. At least the novels are available at the library...
Many thanks, Ed and milady THO, and a much-belated Happy Holidays to you and yours! Much encouragement has been taken from this recent WotC announcement, and I'm looking forward to more details... on which note, when can we expect said details as far as they pertain to the future of the Realms? I completely understand if you haven't been informed this far yet, or even if it's all still NDA. We do have an open playtest to work through, after all... and I may yet sign up for that, depending on what my gaming groups think of the idea. |
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 20 Jan 2012 06:25:40 |
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Jakuta Khan
Senior Scribe
496 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 16:46:39
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Hi Ed, Hi THO,
today the question in my mind is:
What is the rough population and the percentage ( roughly ) of the Melial- Tribe in the Skull Gorge?
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CylverSaber
Seeker
95 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 21:50:02
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I just got this in my inbox:
quote:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Forgotten Realms Creator to Script New Ongoing
Dungeons & Dragons®: Forgotten Realms® Comic Book Series
Ed Greenwood will be joined by artist Lee Ferguson and comic legend Sal Buscema on new series
San Diego, CA (January 17, 2012) – IDW Publishing, in cooperation with Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., is pleased to announce the all-new DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS ongoing comic book series, hitting shelves in April. Legendary writer Ed Greenwood, creator of the Forgotten Realms RPG campaign setting, will be scripting the comic¯his first-ever ongoing Dungeons & Dragons comic series¯and offering one lucky reader a once-in-a-lifetime chance to have his or her own character appear in the series!
Telling the tale of two all-new adventurers who find themselves caught up in a kidnapping plot they never wanted a part of, this series offers a fresh new jumping-on point for new readers and fans. DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS features art by Lee Ferguson (G.I. JOE: Snake Eyes), inks by renowned comic artist Sal Buscema (The Incredible Hulk), and covers by acclaimed Dungeons & Dragons artists Tyler Walpole and Steve Ellis.
“Forty-five years ago, as a young kid sitting alone in a study crammed with books, I started creating the Forgotten Realms world,” said Greenwood. “And, well, I’m still at it. The Realms is a vast, colorful, exciting sandbox full of stories waiting to be told.”
Readers will have the opportunity to play in that sandbox, thanks to the Forgotten Realms Character Creation Contest offered by IDW and Wizards of the Coast. Eligible readers will have the opportunity to submit their D&D® character and one lucky winner will see it come to life in the hands of the Forgotten Realms creator. Chosen by Wizards of the Coast, IDW, and Greenwood, the winner will see his or her character appear in a future issue of the series, subject to the contest rules.
Given the opportunity to have your own character appear amid the non-stop action of DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS, Greenwood quipped ,“you know the old saying about being careful what you wish for? Well, it applies to wishing for adventure, too!” For more details, visit the official Dungeons & Dragons website.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS #1 ($3.99, 32 pages, full color) will be available in stores in April 2012. Diamond order code FEB120140.
So, my question to Ed is... are you as psyched about this as I am? This combines three of my favorite things, the Realms, Ed's writing, and comics! No, wait, Sal Buscema is in on this too... make that four of my favorite things! |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jan 2012 : 22:58:16
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quote:
Originally posted by CylverSaber
I just got this in my inbox:
quote:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Forgotten Realms Creator to Script New Ongoing
Dungeons & Dragons®: Forgotten Realms® Comic Book Series
Ed Greenwood will be joined by artist Lee Ferguson and comic legend Sal Buscema on new series
San Diego, CA (January 17, 2012) – IDW Publishing, in cooperation with Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., is pleased to announce the all-new DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS ongoing comic book series, hitting shelves in April. Legendary writer Ed Greenwood, creator of the Forgotten Realms RPG campaign setting, will be scripting the comic¯his first-ever ongoing Dungeons & Dragons comic series¯and offering one lucky reader a once-in-a-lifetime chance to have his or her own character appear in the series!
Telling the tale of two all-new adventurers who find themselves caught up in a kidnapping plot they never wanted a part of, this series offers a fresh new jumping-on point for new readers and fans. DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS features art by Lee Ferguson (G.I. JOE: Snake Eyes), inks by renowned comic artist Sal Buscema (The Incredible Hulk), and covers by acclaimed Dungeons & Dragons artists Tyler Walpole and Steve Ellis.
“Forty-five years ago, as a young kid sitting alone in a study crammed with books, I started creating the Forgotten Realms world,” said Greenwood. “And, well, I’m still at it. The Realms is a vast, colorful, exciting sandbox full of stories waiting to be told.”
Readers will have the opportunity to play in that sandbox, thanks to the Forgotten Realms Character Creation Contest offered by IDW and Wizards of the Coast. Eligible readers will have the opportunity to submit their D&D® character and one lucky winner will see it come to life in the hands of the Forgotten Realms creator. Chosen by Wizards of the Coast, IDW, and Greenwood, the winner will see his or her character appear in a future issue of the series, subject to the contest rules.
Given the opportunity to have your own character appear amid the non-stop action of DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS, Greenwood quipped ,“you know the old saying about being careful what you wish for? Well, it applies to wishing for adventure, too!” For more details, visit the official Dungeons & Dragons website.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: FORGOTTEN REALMS #1 ($3.99, 32 pages, full color) will be available in stores in April 2012. Diamond order code FEB120140.
So, my question to Ed is... are you as psyched about this as I am? This combines three of my favorite things, the Realms, Ed's writing, and comics! No, wait, Sal Buscema is in on this too... make that four of my favorite things!
Oooh, more of my money going to WotC in April! |
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2012)
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