Forgotten Realms...

[Ron]

Nice board you have here.

Why is it that an evil demigod/demon marshalling his forces to take over the world (or at least a good chunk of it) until his demonic forces are banished using a powerful god's artifact weilded by a high level NPC would be considered ubermunchkin if done in the Realms, but somehow manages to escape that label when it happens in Greyhawk?

I don't think you're being fair. Iuz is not a high-level character. It is the oppositor. Something more than human that will draw the forces of good against him. This is a common theme in fantasy, as you probably know.

If a cabal of eight high level NPC wizards came together to manipulate various political factions in the Realms, that's further proof of how munchkin the Realms is. Call them the Circle of Eight and give those wizards names like Mordenkainen, Drawmij and Bigby and suddenly it's not so munchkin anymore.

Now you got it right, they are munchkin. I hate the circle of the eight as they are usually portraited. Everytime I used them, I stressed their manipulative side. They were not much better than the villains in my game.

 

[Nightfall]

Uhm not to start a flame here, but I never SAID Scarred Lands was better than ANY other world. It's my favorite world. Also my Scarred Lands postings on this board IS an attempt to alleviate some of the tention I feel is building here.

 

[Shard O'Glase]

I only want to respond to one thing. "Magical socks and underwear might make your role playing experience better, but not mine"

Spoken like a person who never wore magical underwear before. Because if you had, you'd no they can make almost, any experience better. Just remember hand wash only, these things don't resize to fit anyone.

 

[hong]

Re: Bah, get the blankets

Bah, why can't a thread for the Forgotten Realms not go the route of the flame war, easy. The same reason the pro Greyhawk ones go the same, or everytime a world is mentioned Nightfall has to jump in with Scarred Lands or someone brings up Kalamar as the next comming of Christ. People fight for what they like and bash what they don't.

Low Magic does not equal better game!
High magic does not equal better game!

Your game companions enjoying themselves equals better game, whether it's playing in the Realms (which Regdar does not care for) or Greyhawk, or Gloranthia, or Bilbolandofgoodtimesandbeer or whatever suits your taste.

It breaks down to, not one person here will change the opinion of another, to make them abandon what they like to go to another. What Regdar says or Nightfall says or even SeanKReynolds says has no impact on your game when it comes down to it.

Yes FR gets support, why because it's been pushed since the whole TSR fisaco years ago with supporting a new world, the divorce and whatever. There is no changing time back to the way it once was, no time machine or ale cup big enough to undo what is now. There is nothing to prevent you or Regdar from taking something and making it something else, you are only limited by your imagination.. and the vast quantities of ale consumed.

Regdar, you're supposed to have Wis 8. You're making far too much sense. Please stop.

 

[telepox]

What a dismal display.

On a final note. No one setting holds the prestigious right of promoting roleplay more than another. Roleplaying rests solely in the hands of the players and Dungeon Masters. I’ve run and witnessed games in the Forgotten Realms that have inspired tears of joy and sorrow. The same can be said for Glorantha and Greyhawk. The story promotes roleplaying; the setting provides the blank page where it is written.

Ren

So, you're saying it's high magic?

 

[telepox]

I only want to respond to one thing. "Magical socks and underwear might make your role playing experience better, but not mine"

Spoken like a person who never wore magical underwear before. Because if you had, you'd no they can make almost, any experience better. Just remember hand wash only, these things don't resize to fit anyone.

hehe

ok, i digress

 

[telepox]

It's hard to follow up a wonderfully well-argued piece of analytical writing such as Kaptain_Kantrip's but I would mention that the natural development of a 20+ year old game world would be that there would be numerous high level NPCs. Why bag Ed Greenwood for doing two things most of us have not done and will probably never do:

A campaign world should not change so drastically in "this" 20 year period, unless something apocolyptic is about to occur. The rapid progression of the current FR era seems super advanced when compared to most other 20 year periods in FR history. Maybe they are trying to emulate real world technology and the factoring effect of change in our world, using magic instead. None of this makes it a bad world, just a higher magic world. How does this hurt the feelings of FRCS fans? You like the setting, great. If I don't and say so, don't take it personally, especially when your response is personal. In saying I think the FRCS is high magic and stat blockish, I'm not saying "your mother is a whore!!" I'm not saying you sleep with the FRCS under your pillow or you read it to your kids or anything of that nature. So, relax. (This part is not addressed to Derulbaskul).
Don't get me wrong, I too like the history and story telling aspect of the Realms. They are rich with detail and provide many possibilities for campaigns. Although wouldn't it be strange to see the Shades, Red Wizards, Zhents, Banites, etc. all try for world domination at the same time? Good luck PCs! It's just that I think it is far to easy for a low level NPC to own magic items that range in the low thousands of gold pieces. What ever happened to the silver piece standard? When a gold piece was something of the equivalent of a $20 bill? With a little over 2000gp an NPC can have a +1 longsword. With the silver piece standard, this is quite a feat. With the gold piece standard, it is much more common. My suggestion would be to up the price of having magic items commissioned by NPCs by x5. Or go with the silve piece standard, of which the FRCS is not doing. This would give more control of magic items, in the event the DM gave out too much gold or something. It would also put a value system in having skills and feats that let the PCs create their own items, a part of the 3E rules that seems to me to be left behind when the party pushes for Epic status, as is apparent in the FRCS. Sure, any DM can just say those Epic NPCs don't exist and are replaced by lower level cohorts, but the ARE in the FRCS for some reason.
It seems cut and dry here that one group of posters believes that the FRCS is not high magic or munchkin-like (or both) and another that thinks it is high magic or munchkin-like (or both). Why everyone has to attack those who make statements about an imaginary world that we all have "fun" in is odd to me. Why an earlier poster has to make assumptions about how FRCS bashers DM is odd to me. This thread should die soon, with everyone acknowleding that their opinion is different than everyone elses.

 

[Numion]

telepox, your complaints about the treasure level should be targeted towards D&D in general, not just FR. The treasure standard is the same in both WotC settings, so complaining about it as it was just FRs fault will just piss off FR fans.

One more time: The treasure levels in FR are the same as in Dungeons and Dragons Dungeon Masters Guide, 3rd edition.

So it's D&Ds fault, not FRs.

(IMHO it's not a 'fault', I happen to like 3e style of play)

 

[rounser]

You like the setting, great. If I don't and say so, don't take it personally, especially when your response is personal. In saying I think the FRCS is high magic and stat blockish, I'm not saying "your mother is a whore!!" I'm not saying you sleep with the FRCS under your pillow or you read it to your kids or anything of that nature. So, relax.

Ah, but your hubris is objectionable when you state it as if it were fact. Your opinion can be argued against when you make statements as to the reasons why you dislike FR as if your point of view is definitive.

There is indeed a sense of frustration when you believe that something you admire is being misrepresented. Rest assured that if you continue to argue a line of argument with obvious holes in it, people who care about that which you are trashing will point them out.

Whether you see that as being thin-skinned is irrelevant; there is a certain satisfaction to be had in debating against the more obvious sophistry that gets posted, and it's part of the sport of these boards as we nobly struggle to discuss, debate and shed light on RPG theory...

Sometimes, however, one can't be bothered to rise to the bait, which is why I've left this thread alone for a while.