Forgotten Realms "Gray Box": the path to redemption?

[JeffB]

Certainly I think the OGB is the ultimate version of FR- it has enough but not too much detail. The big issue was all the BS that came after FR6 or so.

However if you are looking for the kind of quality writing, uniqueness and depth you get in settings like Glorantha and Tekumel, you certainly won't be getting that in the Realms. There has been a mass of detail and product for the setting, but I would describe it as "processed cheese", written with a teenage audience in mind.

Of course that doesn't mean you cannot modify to taste, but you are better off with that OGB and ignoring 95% of everything that came after.

 

[MoxieFu]

Even though I am more of a Greyhawk fan I liked the content of the first boxed set. I bought it when it first came out. One word of warning though. You might be better off with PDF's instead of the physical boxed material you can get from ebay. The books are printed with brown ink on tan, watermarked paper. They will absolutely EAT YOUR EYES if you try to read them!

I still have mine and would love to read it, but it would destroy my 48 year old eyes.

If you can find a copy of the Dragon magazine archives you can add the articles written by Ed himself to the books and have a very "pure" version of the Realms.

 

[rogueattorney]

I'm a FR refugee from the early '90s who had bad memories of the Realms.

About two years ago, I reread the gray box and was pleasantly surprised with it - I wouldn't call it great, but it certainly isn't as awful as my memory made it out to be. I think much of the bad taste in my mouth with FR came from later products, particularly after 2e came out, when everything seemed to be tied to an overarching meta-plot, and cross-promoted with novels and computer games. You never felt like you were buying a product that could stand on its own.

Anyway, back to the gray box itself...

One of the interesting things it does is it varies in the amount of depth it gives various sections of the Realms. For example, in the Dalelands and Sword Coast, it goes into great detail, while in other areas, it gives nothing more than a faint gloss. It lets DMs choose which level of detail they want to deal with.

Some of the criticism the Realms gets for bloated npcs certainly can be seen in its infancy in the original box, especially the Flaming Fist mercenary group, which was framed specifically as a means of putting pcs into their place.

Finally, some of the Harpers v. Zhentarim details had a very G.I.Joe vs. Cobra feel to me. Quite silly. Most of the other nefarious operations listed in the gray box had recently been defeated by some of the more prominent npcs and some of the other more prominent villains in subsequent products weren't mentioned in any great detail (the Red Wizards, Iron Throne, etc.). This all makes the box have a very different vibe than Greyhawk's evil ascendant atmosphere in the 1983 box set.

 

[kitsune9]

Finally, some of the Harpers v. Zhentarim details had a very G.I.Joe vs. Cobra feel to me.

Yes! I thought this too, though I did like the Zhentarim in the initial 1e, but once Cyric took over then they definitely fitted the role of Cobra quite nicely.

 

[TheYeti1775]

I think you could like the Grey Box era of the Realms.
Many of us use that for our Realms and just ignore all the cannon after that as it didn't fit our worlds, or how we wanted to play.

The books weren't so bad until the Avatar Trilogy which really shook up the world when they made the revision including all that. There is a whole other feel to FR between Pre and Post Avatar Trilogy. Hard to explain, just is.
For myself FR lost me totally with the 4E revision and the changes in world events. While the reboot was needed, to me the hundred year jump was too much in a setting that has regularly progressed itself year by year till that point.

You might also try a few third party sourcebooks as well.
Fantasy Flight's Dawnforge has a definite points of light and everything is new and fresh feel. The gods aren't even gods yet, just Immortals that grant powers.
Different World's Valus (written by a member here) is another one of those fresh worlds. Basically an Island continent that can be fitted into almost any other world you wish.
I know others will have quite a few they could offer up as samples for ya.