D&D 5E How can the first campaign at release be FR without a setting book?

[Raistrox]

Have WOTC said exactly when the Tiamat/Cult of the Dragon story begins? Will it be at launch? If so, how do you handle a Forgotten Realms game without having a setting book? It sounds like a pretty epic story, so keeping it to one area like they have been with the Encounters modules of late doesn't seem like a wise choice, but maybe my view of that is wrong.

Maybe the arc will take place in a region and the adventure will include a hefty setting section as well, but what about FR-specific rules? It just seems like they should have some setting material out first, especially with the Sundering going on right now. How will that affect the Realms as a whole?

 

[Quentin3212]

Ideally it will have outlines on everywhere the campaign could take the players, failing that perhaps they are just going to rely on previous knowledge coupled with google access. :S

 

[Li Shenron]

Maybe the arc will take place in a region and the adventure will include a hefty setting section as well, but what about FR-specific rules?

Perhaps the point is to show it doesn't need FR-specific rules. It's been talked about the possibility that maybe WotC could start releasing edition-independent campaign settings.

OTOH, it might be that they are in fact releasing a FR campaign setting already this summer. Players don't strictly need FR-specific character material to play in FR (i.e. a core-only PC is typically a perfectly valid FR PC), although naturally the idea of having some FR-unique stuff can enrich the gameplay. But maybe for the purpose of a first adventure, you can still manage completely without, considering that the really interesting campaign-specific stuff kicks in later, in the form of subclasses (levels 2 or 3), feats (level 4), higher-level spells and magic items.

 

[delericho]

My guess is that the adventures will contain all the setting material needed to run them. Individual groups can, of course, add more, using either the 4e setting book or older edition material (possibly in PDF).

Plus, of course, this is supposed to be a multi-platform offering; the RPG component is only a relatively small part of that. And somehow "Baldur's Gate" and "Neverwinter Nights" never needed setting books.

 

[Majoru Oakheart]

My guess is that the adventures will contain all the setting material needed to run them. Individual groups can, of course, add more, using either the 4e setting book or older edition material (possibly in PDF).

Exactly. The current crop of Sundering adventures are all in the Forgotten Realms. They contain setting books that give all the relevant information on the surrounding areas where the adventures take place.

 

[MerricB]

Have WOTC said exactly when the Tiamat/Cult of the Dragon story begins?

AFAIK, it will be at launch. D&D Encounters should begin with the new sequence out of the gate.

what about FR-specific rules?

What about them? The Forgotten Realms doesn't really run differently to standard D&D. There are certain additional options depending on which edition of the campaign you're running, but most of the Realms can be handled with standard D&D rules. It's not like Dark Sun or Eberron which have some significant departures from the norm.

Cheers!

 

[Giltonio_Santos]

In fact, I believe this is an excellent change of pace. The idea that you need a 350-page hardcover to run adventures in a campaign setting is one of the reasons why my interest in this kind of product has faded with the years. I hope this approach with more gaming material and less overwhelming information lasts.

 

[Blackwarder]

Have WOTC said exactly when the Tiamat/Cult of the Dragon story begins? Will it be at launch? If so, how do you handle a Forgotten Realms game without having a setting book? It sounds like a pretty epic story, so keeping it to one area like they have been with the Encounters modules of late doesn't seem like a wise choice, but maybe my view of that is wrong.

Maybe the arc will take place in a region and the adventure will include a hefty setting section as well, but what about FR-specific rules? It just seems like they should have some setting material out first, especially with the Sundering going on right now. How will that affect the Realms as a whole?

I imagine that it will be akin to the last sundering adventures, a setting within the adventure. Personally I love this method, it add value to the module regardless if you pal the adventure or not. I wish more modules will be like that, i recently bought the 4th DragonLance module from D&DClassics and reading it I had a wow moment about dwarven kingdoms and cities, and that the kind of adventures I want to have in 5e.

Warder

 

[Raistrox]

I'm just really anticipating hearing some news shortly in the format of these products coming out and the release schedule of them. Between D&D 5e and FFG's Star Wars line, my gaming dollars are/will be flying out of my wallet at an ever-increasing rate.

 

[fjw70]

It possible that either the PH and/or DMG will have Basic FR material since that seems to be the default setting of 5e. This could work in conjunction with the adventure setting material.