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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Renshai" data-source="post: 181533" data-attributes="member: 1061">Ridiculous by what standard? Your standard? I will never understand why people believe that their opinion or point of view is the only valid one to have.  We are talking about fantasy here, a term in and of itself that deals with the limitless bounds of imagination. You are speaking out of ignorance in this case, I’m afraid. Calimshan is ruled by the Syl’Pasha (hardly an archmage). Cormyr is ruled by the Steel Regent, a powerful fighter, hardly a Chosen Archmage.Waterdeep is ruled by a paladin.Sembia is ruled by a Rogue.Tethyr is ruled by two mid-level fighters.Shadowdale is ruled by a mid-level fighter.Amn is ruled by a council of rogues.Aglarond and the Silver Marches are ruled by archmages (Oh! Two so far!) Mulhorandi is ruled by a 14th level Paladin.I could go on and on. The Realms has its share of powerful archmages. But like I said before, why do you feel that there must be some limit places on the number of powerful NPCs in a world, especially in a world that is built on the ruins of ancient empires that were mastering the heights of magic three thousand years ago. Why do you think that there must be some competition between the player characters and non-player characters? Is this something that you encourage in your games? It is ridiculous to think that a group of mature (or immature for that matter) would sit around a table whining about the power levels of NPCs.  If you apply the same rationale to Greyhawk (which you claim holds some ill-defined superiority to Forgotten Realms) you have the same problem. Surely your player characters must be jealous of the powers that these NPCS wield? Especially in the lower levels. Why go stop the dragon from ravaging Greyhawk City when Mordenkainen or some other powerful NPC should just show up and take care of it. The same brush can be used to paint the same problem for any setting where there are powerful NPCs.  I must have missed the part in the FRCS what says players can never hope to reach the lofty vaults of the NPCs.  So what do you mean, “change things as they are written”? Does this pertain to destroying or foiling the plans of these so-called uber-npcs? There is no “intended” way to run the Realms. You run them as you see fit. If something that you do causes the death of Fzoul or even Elminster then your campaign has been changed. The world won’t end if this happens. Leaving your mark on the setting that you play does not have to involve slaying the older NPCs. It sounds like that is the kind of game you run, since you keep harping on that subject.So there aren’t monsters everywhere in Greyhawk? Or Mystara? Or any other Dungeons and Dragons setting?  There aren’t many +1 longswords? I’m afraid that if you are running the game “as intended” you are going to find a +1 longsword by sixth level or so… in fact… you will find them much sooner. Take the Core Modules for instance. These are set in Greyhawk by default. In the first adventure you find a +1 longsword and fight a troll. So by your definition above, Greyhawk must be poorly thought out and juvenile.  It doesn’t surprise me that you couldn’t perceive the Forgotten Realms as a living-breathing world. Your views are narrow and stereotypical of someone who hasn’t done much more than peruse the material and history present in the Realms, but rather subscribes to popular theory.  The foundations of your argument lack at every turn. You certainly like to tout yourself as a superior person don’t you? What makes Greyhawk more intelligent than the Realms?  The answer is nothing. Nothing at all. You don’t offer one ounce of founded fact that holds up. While I don’t agree with the style of play that you mention above, I certainly don’t look down upon those that enjoy it. That style of player lends itself to a younger audience or once that simply enjoys that style of play as a pastime. Who are you to tell them it is right or wrong? There is no moral high ground to take here. You enjoy one style while they enjoy the other. Don’t try and make yourself seem more intelligent or morally superior, because to put it simply, you aren’t. Hate to burst your bubble.It is perfectly within your rights to not like the Realms. That is your view. That view doesn’t make you better than anyone else, though it is evident from your posts that you think it does. I find that pretty pathetic, personally.This is where your argument breaks down completely. Dungeons and Dragons is NOT set in a medieval world. It couldn’t be more different. The presence of Magic, Magic Items, Arcane Spells, Monsters, and Gods that grant power to their followers change the way that a medieval society and culture would exist. Perhaps your narrow vision of how a fantasy world should be portrayed needs a serious re-evaluation.What a dismal display. On a final note. No one setting holds the prestigious right of promoting roleplay more than another. Roleplaying rests solely in the hands of the players and Dungeon Masters. I’ve run and witnessed games in the Forgotten Realms that have inspired tears of joy and sorrow. The same can be said for Glorantha and Greyhawk.  The story promotes roleplaying; the setting provides the blank page where it is written.Ren</blockquote>

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