Favorite Forgotten Realms region book?

[Imruphel]

My apologies, sckeener; I was going to look that up before posting and didn't. That will teach me to post before checking....

 

[sckeener]

My apologies, sckeener; I was going to look that up before posting and didn't. That will teach me to post before checking....

Thanks, but no need to apologize. It was a long time ago in an alternate reality far far away.

That region is interesting and continues to be interesting with the Mulhorand’s foray into Unther and Set’s gaining of Sarrukh as worshipers. With Mulhorand stretched thin, the pharaoh young, and Set gaining such powerful minons….

It just sounds like a powder keg ready to explode. The inner DM in me is laughing with joy at the potiential problems and all that high divine/arcane magic.

 

[Arnwyn]

Given that list, my favorite is Shining South - no question. (Though my real choice would be Empires of the Shining Sea.)

Honorable mention given to Unapproachable East and Serpent Kingdoms (just the geography chapter, though).

While the FRCS book does an admirale job with some basic details - they are simply basic. I'd love some core NPCs for each Dale to be statted up, more adventure sites, more plots, more info. I can't beleive such a core area has been left so high & dry thusfar.

Because it's already been done to death? Really, now - both the Dalelands accessory and Volo's Guide to the Dalelands are readily available online as PDFs for a couple of bucks. Hardly "left high and dry" (and geography doesn't change editions).

Something new, please.

 

[DreadPirateMurphy]

Lost Empires and Underdark. I just really like ancient evil...

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Another for Unaproachable East and Underdark.

I never really had given much thought to the region aside from, hey that's where the Red Wizards come from, until this book.

Underdark captured the alien world very well, and gave me a lot of good ideas.

If we were to go all editions, I'd pick either Waterdeep and the North or the The Bloodstone Lands. My copy of WatN is battered from entirely too much use. And the Bloodstone Lands are one of my favorite regions, though my campaigns have only just passed through the area, and have never been situated there.

 

[Angel Tarragon]

Currently Shining South and Serpent Kingdoms. I am patiently awaiting a Dalelands/Heatlands regional supplement.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

I picked the Underdark. However, if I had a choice for my favorite Forgotten Realms region book of all time I'd have to say a toss up between Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast and Volo's Guide to Cormyr. I LOVED those books!

 

[Nyaricus]

Because it's already been done to death? Really, now - both the Dalelands accessory and Volo's Guide to the Dalelands are readily available online as PDFs for a couple of bucks. Hardly "left high and dry" (and geography doesn't change editions).

Something new, please.

Well, there is a big black hole where Tilverton (in Cormyr, on the border of the Dalelands) was. That was a change in 3.0 to 3.5, for one example

But, as for buying online... some, like myself, simply don't have credit card access in order to purchase books online (please note that the books in my bookshelf were bought by some very nice EN Worlders). Also, edition-meshing problems are there as well - not to mention that the timeline has gone a ways from where second edition was (50 years or so).

I'd call that left high and dry - especially for those weened on 3.x edition (every gamer younger than 18, more or less).

 

[Nyaricus]

geography doesn't change editions

Actually, allow me to expand on what I was saying before - it just came to me that indeed the Realms have had some minor changes in geography, by the creation team for 3.0 FR. Here's a link to the article where they are discussing these changes.

Here's a Picture of 2nd Edition Faerun

Here's a Picture of 3rd Edition Faerun

Cheers

 

[Darrin Drader]

I worked on Mysteries of the Moonsea, so I might as well chime in.

First of all, this isn't the first time that people have predicted the death of the regional sourcebook, and I strongly suspect that it won't be the last. To the best of my knowledge, WotC has no intention of permanently changing the format of the regional sourcebook into something like Mysteries of the Moonsea.

In my experience, a "Mysteries" book usually presents, well, mysteries - locations, events, and denizens that don't normally make the map. We did one called Mysteries of Arena for Oathbound, which wasn't entirely dissimilar to Mysteries of the Moonsea. In other words, I don't think it's really accurate to lump Mysteries of the Moonsea in with regional sourcebooks.

I also think it's safe to say that there is so much 2E material out there about the Moonsea, that perhapse someone at WotC assumed that the real FR fans would already have Cloak and Dager, and the Moonsea suplement from 2E. In that respect, other than the rebuilding of Zhentil Keep and a few minor changes, there isn't that much change there, so it's the perfect location to try out another type of book. At least I'm assuming that has to be the thoughts running through the heads of the people who outlined the thing. I don't know for sure, but it makes sense to me.

While I was working on it, I actually equated it more to Ruins of Adventure (or Pool of Radiance). It details a few major locations and then a bunch of linked adventures related to that location. The only thing it lacks is a major villain or storyline linking them all together. The thing is that in the Forgotten Realms, I don't see it being particularly difficult to come up with the major plotline linking all of these adventures on your own.

Anyway, that's my take on it. I would certainly not rate it as my favorite regional sourcebook either, but that's because I don't really think it fits the category. And for those who voted Serpent Kingdoms as their favorite.... umm.... thanks!