D&D 4E Ed Greenwood working on the 4E FRCS

[Badkarmaboy]

I found this on Rich Baker's Blog here .

Relevant text:

"Speaking of sunshine, here's a nice little ray of it I can share with everybody today: We've managed to book Ed Greenwood for 50,000 words of the new 4th Edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide. You might wonder why that would be something that even be remotely in question, but the fact is that Ed's a very busy guy with a number of other writing commitments (most notably for our own Forgotten Realms novels!) so it took some scheduling gymnastics on our part to make sure we could have him for a couple of months of writing time.

In light of that, our story team had a good meeting specifically about FR yesterday afternoon. We reviewed our original revision plans (they're almost two years old) and talked about where we are with the porject, and we kicked around the question of how much "course correction" we want to make now that you fans have responded to some of the big reveals at the end of the Grand History. We're not pitching the plan and starting over (if that's what you were hoping for, sorry, ain't gonna happen), but we are definitely tweaking the plan to speak to some of the how-can-this-still-be-the-Realms! concerns that are out there. I like where we got to, and I think most of you will too."

Given the amount of angst surrounding FR and the other threads stating that Ed doesn't like what's been done, what do you all think of this news?

I didn't see this already posted, but if it is, feel free to kill this thread.

 

[DaveMage]

I think it's a good thing that the world's creator has a say in how it goes forward.

 

[Arashi Ravenblade]

I like the new direction of the realms. Something different. FR books will be my only 4e purchases so far.

 

[Irda Ranger]

I think it's a good thing that the world's creator has a say in how it goes forward.

I wonder how much control he'll really have though. If he's restricted to ... "word smithing", to help maintain continuity in the writing style from the beginning to the present, that's not the same as having any kind of editorial control over the time-line or the unfolding of events. As Ed said in one of his posts, the (spoiler) "Tyr killing Helm over Tymora's love" storyline hardly seems like the Gods he knows ...

But I guess any involvement is better than none ...

 

[Cadfan]

I don't think it really matters.

Let me explain what I mean by that. I don't think there's anything sacrosanct about Ed Greenwood being involved in the project. What matters is that they have good authors and world builders who love the Forgotten Realms. Ed Greenwood is a good author and world builder who loves the Forgotten Realms, so its a good thing he's involved in the project. If they didn't have him, and instead had someone else who was also a good author and world builder, I'm sure things would be fine.

 

[JohnRTroy]

Actually, it does matter.

There are enough people out there who will follow creators and won't follow comics, books, movies, TV, or games without the original people or at least with the creator's blessings.

Many Dragonlance fans still give Hickman and Weiss priority in terms of determining quality of DL stuff--and they didn't really create the world themselves, it was originally a team effort but they ended up writing the novels that set the tone. And I think one of the key things that killed Greyhawk was Gary's departure from TSR back in the mid-80s. I have a feeling GH would not be in the sad supported state it was today had it not been for the fractionalization of the audience that occurred.

So, Greenwood's involvement and blessing is important for the setting to continue without risk. If they totally isolate him, that could give enough of the fans "on the fence" to not pick up FR or even 4e. There has to be some respect for the past. I can tell you if Greenwood was ever "shut out" completely I'd leave future purchases behind.

Granted, it may not matter to several fans, but it does make enough of an impact to not be ignored.

 

[Cadfan]

Ok, I'll give you that. The irrational prejudice of fans matters.

 

[delericho]

I think this is a really good thing. If nothing else, it provides a very strong signal that the intent is that the 4e Forgotten Realms are still going to be the Forgotten Realms, and not just some other setting that they've stuck the label on.

In terms of using Ed Greenwood, as opposed to any other author, I'm largely indifferent, not least because I haven't been using FR and won't be starting. But it does say a lot about the design philosophy in place for the 4e Realms, and does so in a very positive manner.

I salute this move wholeheartedly.

 

[Samuel Leming]

This is good news.

I was glad to hear that WotC intended to simplify the Realms, but though some of the things I was hearing sounded a bit risky. It's good to hear that Ed Greenwood is still onboard and that they're listening and taking into acount the tastes of the current Realms fans, even though they're a minority.

Sam

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

Ok, I'll give you that. The irrational prejudice of fans matters.

It's highly rational. If you like the original Forgotten Realms stuff, its likely because of the work Ed Greenwood did, and if what you like about FR is Greenwood, it stands to reason that FR work by Greenwood will be more to your liking than FR work by someone else, no matter how talented that someone else might be.

Knowing what an author's style is gives you a greater certainty that works by that author will appeal to you in the future, much in the same way that if you like The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien, you'd probably prefer another LoTR book to be written by Tolkien rather than, say, Terry Pratchett.