D&D 5E Sell me on the Realms

[Gwaihir]

So my group will be starting its next campaign in a few months and will be using the 5E rules.
Ive always shied away from the realms with my perception being very high magic, NPC-centric and heavy on canon.

But with the Realms being the default world for 5e --> sell me on using the Realms, rather than a homebrew or Greyhawk.

G

 

[Staffan]

The Realms are big. Don't try to cover it all at once. I'd recommend choosing part of it and focusing on that, and becoming familiar with that particular location and the surroundings. 1e and 2e had some nice sourcebooks that really help bring the place to life - particularly the Volo's Guides, which I was pleasantly surprised to rediscover recently. They ooze with flavor.

Don't bring the big NPCs in, except possibly as cameos. Elminster and Driz'zt rarely made any campaign better with their presence.

The way I see it, the Realms are great at campaigns where you really get to dig into the place and "smell the roses." If you're traveling somewhere, look up at all the interesting places that lie in between point A and point B, and really explore those. This is as a contrast to Eberron, which I think works best when run "Indiana Jones"-style: really cool locations, but the travel there is best handled by drawing a red line on the map and humming "dun dududu , dun dudun" - and the in-setting methods of facilitating travel exists as well.

 

[Shiroiken]

I cannot sell you on the Realms. I'm not a huge Realms guy (I'm a Gygaxian Greyhawk fan), but I understand the setting, play in it, and enjoy (some of) the novels. From your post, you find it's biggest feature to be a flaw, so I doubt anything would move you enough to enjoy it.

The Realms biggest defining feature is the canon history. There is more official Realmslore than any other setting, and probably more than twice it's closest competitor. It's constantly updating, with the release of novels and (currently) Adventure Paths. To some, this is a good thing, because it helps the DM to create a very detailed setting without having to imagine it all whole-cloth.

It is somewhat high-magic, with gods and other powerful beings periodically showing up and causing havoc (aka: Realms Shaking Event). It's only high magic for your game if you choose to incorporate aspects of it. You can run a low(er) magic Realms game, but those familiar with the realms may feel something is off.

It's also only NPC-centric if you make it so. I've played in game with Blackstaff and Howlester making semi-regular appearances. I've also played in games where most NPCs doubted these legendary people even existed. It depended on the DM and their desire for the game.

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

The Realms is a tool, just like the material in the Momster Manual or the DMG.

In the Realms, the PCs are the most important thing for the DM to focus on--not the mountain of novels and sourcebooks filled with thousands of pages of Realmsore.

You'll get to that stuff, but you have a new campaign to run first. So do that.

You sound like an experienced DM, so find one or more low level adventures you've been dying to run, and plop them in the Realms. Let the PCs gain some levels while you all get familiar with the rules and what it's like to DM a new system (converting adventures to 5E ought to get you up to speed real quick).

Better to make mistakes early and often, before play progresses to mid and high levels.

Pick a place that's easy for DMs to start in, like Cormyr or the lands to the west. As play progresses, pick and choose elements of the setting that will spice things up, add flavor and that will interest your players (see Volo's Guide to Cormyr).

However you introduce these elements--especially NPCs--be consistent in your presentation every time. Don't overuse them. And find parts of the Realms that will challenge your players and give them a chance to leave their mark.

Remember: players like to tell stories about their characters.

Make the NPCs lively and memorable, keep your DM exposition short and to the point, and let the player's actions give you the opportunity to present more of the Realms.

For example: if you were using Myrmeen Lhal (the Lady Lord of Arabel--a major city in Cormyr), don't go on at length about her or how awesome she is. Instead, introduce her as the King's Lord, and let players figure out/learn who she is by interacting with her.

This puts you in the driver's seat and affords you the chance to run the NPC the way you see her, not the way the books present her.

And that's why you should run the Realms, because there are so many NPCs, dungeons, cities, towns and fantastic locations waiting for the DM to inhabit them.

It's like having an endless closet of really fine clothes that always Looks good on you, no matter what you choose to wear.

Good luck to you and good gaming, whatever choice you make.

 

[Kikuras]

I always joke that when you play in Forgotten Realms you always end up in Neverwinter, where characters from books take government jobs.

I tend to dislike playing in settings that have a lot of lore attached, because if you're not as familiar, a lot of stuff can go over your head. And with Forgotten Realms there's a whole lot of cheese to be encountered. However, if you subtract most if not all of the interactions with uber-famous characters, and play using all the other stuff, the lore and the locations, it can be quite fun, and as others have said, there's a lot of source material to flush out the world and bring an adventure to life.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

Speaking of Neverwinter the Neverwinter campaign book is pretty damn great. Neverwinter and the area around it can be a great location for a game.

 

[DMCF]

It has haflings. Roll a half orc tempest cleric/open hand monk and let the punting begin!

 

[The Mirrorball Man]

The Realms are exactly what you expect: dwarves are dwarves, elves are elves, there are small villages surrounded by orcs, noble kings and brave knights, dungeons everywhere, etc.

People keep saying that the history is dense and complex, and it's true, but FR's history is just a series of random events. It doesn't really change anything fundamental and doesn't make the setting less accessible. Although there are many different nations in the Realms, there is very little thought given to cultural identity, ethnicity or social movements. The king and the name of the magic land may change, but there is still a king and there is still a magic land.

For some (including me) it makes the setting seem bland and unappealing, but objectively it's probably one of its strongest selling points, because FR remains very accessible to newcomers.

 

[D'karr]

I'm not a fan of the Forgotten Realms as a setting for me to use. However, I'm a fan of the Forgotten Realms as a setting to steal things from and use in anything I want. I have stolen The Great Glacier, Neverwinter, Cormanthor, The Moonshae Isles, all as material that I've used in one form or another in my campaigns. Scrape off the serial numbers and use to your heart's content.

BTW, the Neverwinter Campaign Setting was a fantastic source of adventure material.

 

[KarinsDad]

One reason I like the realms is that it feels magical. Points of light with a whole bunch of area around towns and cities for nasty stuff. Plus, almost any real world semi-historic or mythical culture (asian, south american, egyptian, etc.) can be found there.

Eberron, on the other hand, feels technological.