Again, you can't have it both ways. You can't argue that strange creatures are so rarely seen that they wouldn't be accepted while at the same time they are so common that travel is extremely difficult. If they are so common and in such large numbers that travel in FR looks more like travel in Dark Sun, then they aren't going to be so strange that everyone freaks out when they see someone who looks a bit weird.
Oh and you made a point above [MENTION=6778044]Ilbranteloth[/MENTION], that race does not determine perspectives and values.
That's not true in DND.
One has absolutely nothing to do with the other.
Monsters of all sorts of types are quite common in the Realms, and are part of what makes travel difficult. A large number of them are dangerous.
In any society there is 'normal.' In the Realms, normal are the Tolkienesque races, along with dragons, undead, owlbears, orcs and goblins, drow, etc. Normal doesn't mean liked. Many of these normal things are known dangers and cause for an immediate attack if possible.
Normal is also regional. What's normal in Calimshan is different than the Dalelands and differnt again in Icewind Dale. Our baseline in this world is that a lot of what's in the Realms is not normal. But that doesn't mean that they would acknowledge everything they run into as normal.
Dragonborn are not part of 'normal' for the Realms. At least not when they arrived, and not when it's the first time a specific somebody sees them. They are unknown until that time, so they may not be immediately hostile, but in a world where unknown can often be dangerous, they would likely tend toward suspicious. When something is visibly larger than you, and possibly more powerful, and armed, then you will probably be wary of them. If they have heard of them, and that they aren't a danger, they they would likely be more curious. Probably still staying mostly at a distance, and staring or pointing at the strange creature.
For example, the Dalesfolk are described as 'seem(ingly) close-mouthed, suspicious, and reserved. Until newcomers are identified as friends or foes, or vouched for by a trusted friend, Dalesfolk prefer civil silence to empty pleasantries.'
This is to all outsiders. But they've seen elves, dwarves, gnomes, half-elves, half-orcs, etc. What they have not seen until they arrived was a 7'-tall dragonman. So they would probably be a bit more wary than just another elf. Because elves are normal.
In Cormyr, because it is a land with strong regular patrols that protect the populace, and unless it's a time where a lot of monster raids and such are occuring, they probably feel fairly safe, and that if somebody is walking openly on the roads, the Purple Dragons have deemed them safe. In that case they'd probably be more curious.
But I've never argued that strange creatures are rarely seen. I've said that strange dragonborn are rarely seen. Intelligent races, as in those that don't look largely human, elven, dwarvish, halfling, or gnome which are races that have been established across Faerun for centuries are not commonly seen. As in never until a dragonborn wanders into town. Something that doesn't fit that mold is different, foreign, possibly dangerous. Just because the creatures that are normal to the Realmsfolk are strange to us doesn't mean that they don't have a threshold where normal passes into strange.
In my opinion, 100 years is a very short time for a new race to establish themselves locally, much less spread across a continent as large as Faerun. Some have traveled, and to those that care about such things (such as merchants) have heard that they are good mercenaries. An average villager cares nothing of good mercenaries, and probably hasn't heard anything about them, other than possibly a tale about this strange dragon-man that was seen with a caravan to the east.
Word of mouth tends to travel slowly in a world like the Realms. It takes a month to get from Waterdeep to Baldur's Gate, and longer to spread beyond that. It's dependent upon people that care and what gossip they pass on, and it grows less reliable the farther it travels.
Numerous dragon-men, both dragonborn and half-dragons, were actively working with the Cult of the Dragon in the Sword Coast and elsewhere. For those that saw that, it colors their opinion. For those that hear about it, it colors their opinion. If a new threat may be rising, people listen. That is the sort of stuff that spreads by word of mouth. Thus, it's far more likely that they would have heard of the dragonborn in a negative light. Combine that with Unther returning, and news starts to trickle out that they are driving back the evil dragon-men that tried to conquer their nation, and the negative news continues.
Again, this all depends on what your frame of reference is regarding the Realms.
Yes, in D&D race is often a shorthand for their general philosophy. But the elvish people in the Realms hold many philosophies, all colored by their history. The humans too, have a great many perspectives and such. Most of these are tied to a deity that helps clarify their positions. Most drow worship Lolth, and their culture reflects this. But those who worship Eilistraee have a very different one. In addition, the general philosophies of elves in the Realms is different than other worlds. Just like the other races.
Ilbranteloth
But oddities like "I don't think they worship gods at all!" should surely come up now and again...and over
