D&D 5E Forgotten Realms

[Gargoyle]

I did almost the same thing with the FR game I'm running currently except instead of 3.5 I'm using the Pathfinder rules. When we officially move to D&D 5th I'm still undecided a whether to advance the time or just set in the same time as my current game. I have quite a bit of FR material starting from the gray box set to the 4th Edition FR books.

Also if I recall correctly from the original box set I believe that Sembia and Impiltur were left undetailed so that a DM could flesh it out themselves.

I do remember that. Not sure how long that lasted. Guess they just couldn't help themselves as every corner of the setting seems mapped out and novelized.

 

[Gargoyle]

I haven't run FR since I ran a campaign in the Dalelands in 2e, but I also have the 3e and 4e setting guides. I decided for my 5e game to set it in the Silver Marches circa 3e FR (seeing as I had that book as well). I also picked up Legacy of the Crystal Shard, as I read review saying it was useful as a setting for Icewind Dale regardless of timeline, and it looks to be that way, so I'm hopeful hat the rest of the products will be similarly useful.

It makes sense that they would release adventures that can be used in any era, so that's good. I'll just set my campaign in 1487 and use my 4th edition books until the new stuff comes out.

 

[Ari Kanen]

1479 is the year in the 4th edition FR Campaign Guide, I'm just curious if they will advance it past that. I don't keep up with the novels so I have no idea where the canon is for the "present" time, and my Google fu is failing me. My hope is that adventures like the Lost Mine of Phandelver or Tyranny of Dragons don't have a specific date, or too many references to current events or NPCs. If they are ambiguous enough, it shouldn't matter regardless of what era you are running.

This is my hope as well. My current plan is to do my own reboot, using only Greybox, FR1-6 as canon. After reading through those again, it seems like pretty complete sandbox. Hopefully the new modules will make themselves easy to run but remaining relatively era-agnostic.

What will be fun is re-introducing concepts like (certain elements from) Spellplague and Time of Troubles in a new reimagined way.

 

[rastus_burne]

This is my hope as well. My current plan is to do my own reboot, using only Greybox, FR1-6 as canon. After reading through those again, it seems like pretty complete sandbox. Hopefully the new modules will make themselves easy to run but remaining relatively era-agnostic.

What will be fun is re-introducing concepts like (certain elements from) Spellplague and Time of Troubles in a new reimagined way.

I like this idea

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

Kind of wish they had blown up the Realms, making a post-blown up world where the characters are re-establishing empires or raiding what was.

That's actually why, despite running FR campaigns for 20+ years beginning with the OGB, I've gotten more use out of the 4E campaign setting that any other.

Of course, that makes me a heretic among FR fans but that can be a good thing.... )

This is my hope as well. My current plan is to do my own reboot, using only Greybox, FR1-6 as canon. After reading through those again, it seems like pretty complete sandbox. Hopefully the new modules will make themselves easy to run but remaining relatively era-agnostic.

What will be fun is re-introducing concepts like (certain elements from) Spellplague and Time of Troubles in a new reimagined way.

I still believe that FR should have been reset to the OGB. Unfortunately, the need to accommodate R A Salvatore's novels and the revenues they inexplicably generate meant that the timeline had to be advanced.

But I like your idea better.

 

[YourSwordIsMine]

If I were to do an FR campaign, I would use only the Original Grey Box.

Elminister and Drizzzizzizzizzit don't exist. None of the novels exist. The players can be the actual heroes again.

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

If I were to do an FR campaign, I would use only the Original Grey Box.

Elminister and Drizzzizzizzizzit don't exist. None of the novels exist. The players can be the actual heroes again.

That's one of the reasons I grew to really like the 4E version of the Realms: the PCs really are the heroes again. (To be fair, that was the way I always played FR, but new players who were familiar with the novels could be a problem.)

 

[fjw70]

I have never run in the realms before since I don't like established settings much either, especially one as detailed as the realms. I thought about running in the realms but then I decided to just expand my Nentir Vale setting to included locations in the new adventures.


I had already established Neverwinter as a city northwest of the vale so the starter set adventure is taking place around there. I will add the Moonsea region south of the vale for Tyranny of Dragons.

 

[The Hitcher]

Back in the 90s when I actually read the books, I was intimidated by the idea of trying to run a game in an established setting. Now I just don't care - I'll run the new adventures in my version of the Realms, the one where I just make up anything that isn't covered by the adventure (and change anything that is but which I dislike).

 

[Lord Xcapobl]

Seems the same way I deal with most established settings. I choose a starting point, and go from there, in my own version, my own timeline. The characters start in the Forgotten Realms, meet up with Elminster and manage to kill him? Good for them. A lot of XP and loot, move on. Same in any setting. Playing Star Wars? The characters destroy Cloud City while at that same time the Battle of Yavin rages in full? Fett will have to find another place to capture Han, and Luke will have his hand lobbed off elsewhere.

Of course, a lot of purists will shudder. And the most prudent way of handling this as a DM/GM/ST or whatever you call it in the game you're playing, is to avoid canon. So, unless the players actively search for some well-known character or locale, my adventure will take place on planet Driggu, instead of Bespin and Cloud City. My Realms adventures are the same. This, too, allows the charaters to shine as the heroes, without having some well-known NPC show up all the time, hugging the spotlight and some such.