D&D 5E [+] Forgotten Realms: Where to start for 5e?

[Doc_Klueless]

Ok. It's readily apparent (since they came right out and said so! ) that WotC is going to focusing on the Forgotten Realms for quite some time. I'm a Forgotten Realms newb for the most part. I mean I own the Silver Box which I bought way back when it was actually new. Read it but never used it. Now with all the adventures and such based in the Forgotten Realms I thought I'd actually take the plunge and let my adventures for my group take place in the Forgotten Realms some time in the future.

(Not at the moment though as I have a group trapsing happily through Greyhawk at the moment.)

So... where to start for 5e? I ask because I know that there have been big changes to FR over the decades and I'd like to have my adventures take place in the current year/age/what-have-you. (I'll be buying the Sword Coast Adventures (?) when it's published.)

I own all the stuff published by WotC for 5e, but was wondering if anyone knew of any hidden treasures that'll help me out.

This is NOT a thread to convince me not to use FR. I'm not even remotely interested in what you hate about the FR (hence the + in the title) that makes it "suck." Constructive criticism on how to mesh things together or make things work better are welcome though.

I'm a dude who wants to use the FR sometime in the future and needs some help.

 

[Remathilis]

Well, the hot spot at the moment seems to be Sword Coast (since most of their modules, video games, and setting book are set there). I'd focus there for now.

Personally, I'd wait of SCAG to come out first, then decide how you want to approach. There is plenty to do just dealing with Neverwinter, Baldur's Gate, and Waterdeep. Additionally, you're not far from Icewind Dale, Amn, or Silvermoon. If you do want go afield, the 3e guide seem the definitive encyclopedia on the realms. (Its a mile long and an inch thick though; so good on general, lousy on specific).

Additionally, go the the Adventure League website (google it) and find the info on the various AL settings (Moonshaes, Mulmaster, Hillsfar) as well.

If your really keen on using Neverwinter, the 4e Neverwinter book is chock full of ideas. The 3e Waterdeep and Silvermoon books are equally good. Be aware some conversion will be needed to make it run with 5e/post Sundering.

 

[Doc_Klueless]

Thanks! I'll head over to the Adventure League website.

 

[epithet]

Check out these two sites, each of which discusses the Lost Mine of Phandelver in the context of the Forgotten Realms setting. They offer some good context and a discussion of other resources that are available:
http://harbinger-of-doom.blogspot.com/2014/12/lost-mine-of-phandelver-lore.html
http://hackslashmaster.blogspot.com/2014/08/on-forgotten-realms-in-5th-edition.html

 

[joshinminn]

I just bought the Eminster's Forgotten Realms book, which doesn't seem to be tied to any edition, and I'm really enjoying it.

 

[Mercurius]

The two most common starting regions in the Forgotten Realms are the Sword Coast/North and the Dalelands, both of which have tons of material out there. I'd definitely get the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting book, the "big white book" from 3E, which is arguably the best campaign sourcebook of any game, any setting - just a must-have for Realms campaigns. Actually, most of the 3E books are pretty good.

If you go with the Sword Coast/North, you've got a few options for starting areas: Waterdeep, the Silver Marches, Neverwinter, etc. Depends upon what you want. But there's tons of material out there from 1E on up.

If you go with the Dale Lands, there isn't a clear region book but there's lots of information out there - both in the FRCS and the various box sets. I believe the 2E box set had an actual Shadowdale booklet, which you could buy alone on Ebay.

You might also want to consider the Volo's Guides. There's one for Waterdeep, the Sword Coast/Baldur's Gate, the Dalelands, the North, etc.

But yeah, Dale Lands or Sword Coast/North. The latter probably has more coverage, and of course all the 5E story arcs and the upcoming sourcebook.

 

[Wik]

If you want up to date realms, you'll have to pick up the 4e campaign sourcebook (NOT the player's book). It had a lot of info on this spellplague thing, which wasn't super well-received and I believe they're sort of ret-connning... but it's still a big element of the game world.

Personally, the Realms of the grey set are a COMPLETE difference from other settings.... it seems the Realms go through a huge change every time there's a new edition.

Also, while the Sword Coast and Dalelands are pretty much the de facto starting places for the realms (as well as Cormyr and Sembia), another common starting locale, especially in 2e-era, was the Moonshaes... personally, my favourite realms location.

 

[Corpsetaker]

The Forgotten Realms Wiki is actually a great place to do a little research on the various areas of Faerun. It's already been mentioned but I can't stress enough how well the 3rd edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide is.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

You could do your own thing until November and get the upcoming Sword Coast guide.

 

[Jester David]

The 4e Neverwinter book is probably pretty accurate at the moment, although little has *really* changed along the Sword Coast. Most of that region survived the Spellplague well enough and so didn't have to be un-revised by the Sundering.
Icewind Dale, Silverymoon, Waterdeep, Dagerford, or Baldur's Gate would all work nicely as a home base. A lot of the Western Heartlands, a little to the east of Baldur's Gate, would also serve as a good place for a campaign. IIRC not much has been done with that region since 2nd Edition, so some of the Volo Guides might serve as decent references.

Personally, I've always though Asbravn needed a campaign set there. The Riders in Red Cloaks sounded cool. The town is close to woods and mountains and plains, allowing for lots of adventures.