D&D (2024) Forgotten Realms Player Guide

[Ruin Explorer]

the Harpers are so opposed to Tyranny that they can, at worst, be Anarchists (in a bad way).

Late to the party here, but my experience is more often that the Harpers in D&D are straight-up the CIA as presented in a lot of popular fiction (I won't comment on realistic or otherwise said fiction is), where they're aggressive interventionists, operating with zero mandate, zero legality, zero regard for the laws or really the people of the area they've decided to operate in, and doing what basically amount to pre-emptory political assassinations and extraordinary rendition (black bagging, kidnapping, whatever you want to call it), as well as massive thefts and all sort of violence, murder and mayhem. Just with a huge amount of self-righteousness about it and elaborate self-justifications as to why it's wrong this guy to kill people but super-okay for them to do it.

And that's when they're being presented as the good guys by TSR and WotC...

 

[Henadic Theologian]

Late to the party here, but my experience is more often that the Harpers in D&D are straight-up the CIA as presented in a lot of popular fiction (I won't comment on realistic or otherwise said fiction is), where they're aggressive interventionists, operating with zero mandate, zero legality, zero regard for the laws or really the people of the area they've decided to operate in, and doing what basically amount to pre-emptory political assassinations and extraordinary rendition (black bagging, kidnapping, whatever you want to call it), as well as massive thefts and all sort of violence, murder and mayhem. Just with a huge amount of self-righteousness about it and elaborate self-justifications as to why it's wrong this guy to kill people but super-okay for them to do it.

And that's when they're being presented as the good guys by TSR and WotC...

That sounds more like the Lords Alliance to me.

Dang never saw anyone compare the Harpers to the CIA before.

 

[TiQuinn]

That sounds more like the Lords Alliance to me.

Dang never saw anyone compare the Harpers to the CIA before.

The Lord’s Alliance would be more like NATO.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

The Lord’s Alliance would be more like NATO.

I'm leery of using current year comparisons to FR factions, I can see it go wrong in so many ways, and yes I am partly guilty of that myself.

Any ways one Faction I would love to see is the Griffin Brotherhood.

 

[TiQuinn]

I'm leery of using current year comparisons to FR factions, I can see it go wrong in so many ways, and yes I am partly guilty of that myself.

Any ways one Faction I would love to see is the Griffin Brotherhood.

I don’t think the comparison really goes any further than that, but they are a political alliance created for mutual defense against the Zhentarim. So any similar alliance from reality or fiction applies.

 

[Piperken]

Order of the Gaunlet needs heavy lore support, but Emeramd Enclave has alot of lorr behind it, including a really dark period in its history.

I'm fiddling around presently in 1492ish FR, I've liked that there isn't a large essay about the Gauntlet in comparison to the other factions like Enclave, Harpers (& Silverstars), etc. I've felt more comfortable working out how my player's cleric could become part of the faction, and the relationships between the heads of different churches that will be involved.

That said, as a faction it feels like it would benefit from a little more guidance in that regard; it looks like in past novels there are examples of individual Gauntlet members working together against particular threats, but there isn't much meat on how the different faith communities they come from intersect and navigate among their clergy/martial orders, and the Order itself.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

I'm fiddling around presently in 1492ish FR, I've liked that there isn't a large essay about the Gauntlet in comparison to the other factions like Enclave, Harpers (& Silverstars), etc. I've felt more comfortable working out how my player's cleric could become part of the faction, and the relationships between the heads of different churches that will be involved.

That said, as a faction it feels like it would benefit from a little more guidance in that regard; it looks like in past novels there are examples of individual Gauntlet members working together against particular threats, but there isn't much meat on how the different faith communities they come from intersect and navigate among their clergy/martial orders, and the Order itself.

I suspect all the factions will get fleshed out well.

I just think we need a more eastern focused faction beyond Red Wizards.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

I just noticed that part of Calimport is floating off the ground, I don't remember part of the city floating off the ground before, did that happen in 4e or is it new?

 

[Parmandur]

I just noticed that part of Calimport is floating off the ground, I don't remember part of the city floating off the ground before, did that happen in 4e or is it new?

Looking into it, it seem Calimshan gained some Earthmotes in the Spellplague or something?

 

[Demetrios1453]

I just noticed that part of Calimport is floating off the ground, I don't remember part of the city floating off the ground before, did that happen in 4e or is it new?

After the Spellplague, Calimshan was divided between an efreet named Memnon (ruling from the city named after him) and a djinn named Calim (ruling from Calimport), both of whom had previously been trapped for millennia before the Spellplague freed them. Both were later overthrown and re-banished before the Second Sundering. I assume that the earthmotes in the art would be due to the fact that Calim, being an air genie, either purposely or accidentally (due to the area being under the influence of a powerful creature of Elemental Air), caused some areas of the city to float in the air.