The Realms WILL Be Updated!

WotC's Chris Perkins and Mike Mearls both mentioned the possibility of Forgotten Realms updates on Twitter today. A chap called Montgomery Headstrom tweeted at both of them - to Perkins he said "I don't understand why you guys did the Sundering if you weren't going to update the Realms. Can you clarify that for me?" and the Mearls he said "if WOTC isn't interested in updating the realms would corporate allow kickstarter drive to let Ed Greenwood do it?" Both replied to his his comments, confirming that they do, in fact, intend to update the Realms. Thanks to Adrian for the scoop.

Montgomery: if WOTC isn't interested in updating the realms would corporate allow kickstarter drive to let Ed Greenwood do it?
Mike Mearls: who sez we aren't interested in updating it?

Montgomery: I don't understand why you guys did the Sundering if you weren't going to update the Realms. Can you clarify that for me?
Chris Perkins: The Sundering allowed us to bring back things that the setting had lost over the years. We ARE updating the Realms.

 

[Jeff Albertson]

I sincerely doubt we will see a fifth FR campaign setting book/boxed set. Talk about beating a dead horse.

 

[delericho]

But I won't get it, because from WotC's point of view it is not economically feasible.

We don't know that. All we know is that WotC haven't announced an FR book yet. For all we know, they could announce it today and release at GenCon.

(Or you could be right, of course. We don't know. It's just that lack of evidence is not evidence of lack.)

Because they are easy to buy on DriveThruRPG/D&D classics.

Want to know about the Realms? Well, go to this third-party website where we can sell you a choice of Realms. You could have this version, which is mechanically an edition out of date, and predates the most recent Realms Shaking Event which significantly shook things up. Or you could have this version, which is also mechanically outdated, and in-setting is a century behind (and yet, somehow, closer to our current vision - it's complicated). Or perhaps you could go for this version, which is that classic version that the grognards prefer... but which is from before any of our exciting RSE's! (Oh yes, and it's also mechanically out of date.)

Confused? Good. Now you're ready to answer the most iconic of FR questions: is Mystra alive or dead?

I exaggerate, of course, but only somewhat. The Realms material on D&D Classics is great for people who are already fans who want more for the setting. But for newcomers to the Realms, it's not really a good starting point.

Which is something WotC will be factoring in - is it worth the cost of writing a new setting book when you have all this existing material sitting around that can be offered for sale with no greater upfront costs than scanning and hosting?

It's certainly a consideration, and I wouldn't be surprised if we're getting close to the point where printed materials (of any sort) are just becoming impractical.

Having said that, the other side of the calculation is that if they print a new FRCS they can probably expect tens of thousands of copies to sell, while the PDFs on D&D Classics will likely sell several hundred.

(And, actually, there's another consideration - WotC aren't going to pay their 8-member D&D RPG team to sit around doing nothing. They have to be working on something, and "scanning and hosting" wouldn't be a good use of their skills and experience. So where does the money lie: do they have everyone continue to work indefinitely on the 'storylines', do they get people working on that PHB2 they're not planning, or do they consider a FRCS?)

 

[Targan]

Candlekeep forum (much better place for FR lore than anywhere else). Forgotten Realms wiki. Ed Greenwood's website http://realmssecretariat.com/ . If you have the money to do it, Elminster's Guide to the Realms is the only book I really suggest buying on the matter.

I've been trawling those first two sites for a couple of weeks now. I didn't know Ed Greenwood had his own site, and Elminster's Guide to the Realms sounds good. Thanks for the tips.

 

[Targan]

I own both the Third Edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting and the Fourth Edition Campaign Guide. I even own the Neverwinter book. But it's simply isn't good enough. The 4E book invalidated a lot of the 3E book by moving the timeline forward by a century, and it failed to fill in the details. The Neverwinter book deals with a lot of events that may well have been wiped out by the Sundering.

I can open multiple books and piece a lot together, but then I'm stuck. Sure, I make a decision and move on, but it's still extra work, and not what I want to spend my time on. Plus, one of my players reads all the novels, so I prefer to keep the realms as close to canon as possible.

I'm in pretty much exactly the same situation. I have the 2001 FR Campaign Setting book and the 2011 Neverwinter Campaign Setting and everything so far published for 5e, but trying to get a concise picture of the state of the Realms in 5e seems like an enormous amount of work, with a big helping of making stuff up along the way where I can't find the info I need online or from the resources I have. I'm the kind of GM that likes to have a really solid understanding of my game's setting, that way I don't have to rely on adventure modules if my PCs go waaay off the reservation. To me 5e right now is feeling really... bare-bones. Also, like you one of my players has read a bunch of novels set in the 4e timeline, while I haven't read any (and don't really want to/have time to).

 

[DongMaster]

Also, besides the tedious book keeping, two dozen pdfs or ebay finds do not look good standing next to my 5th ed books on my shelf.

 

[bmfrosty]

They must have a settings bible by now for 5E FR. I really hope that they do something to turn it into a commercially salable settings guide.

My vision of it is as a kickstarter. Print up a mockup and tell kickstarter that they need preorders equalling $250k or so in order to bring it to market. $100 gets you a box set, $50 gets you just the book.

They use this as a way to do preorders, and to prove the demand to bring it fully to market.

 

[Irennan]

They must have a settings bible by now for 5E FR. I really hope that they do something to turn it into a commercially salable settings guide.

My vision of it is as a kickstarter. Print up a mockup and tell kickstarter that they need preorders equalling $250k or so in order to bring it to market. $100 gets you a box set, $50 gets you just the book.

They use this as a way to do preorders, and to prove the demand to bring it fully to market.

I would back this kickstarter in a heartbeat.

 

[Selvarin]

I'd settle for some PDF-only purchases but yes, definitely, a new setting book would be nice.

(And yes, I have a boat load of old FR materials.)

 

[Irennan]

PDF purchases would be fine IMO, I just want the Realms updated...

 

[Keith Byers]

You could create your own world

I own both the Third Edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting and the Fourth Edition Campaign Guide. I even own the Neverwinter book. But it's simply isn't good enough. The 4E book invalidated a lot of the 3E book by moving the timeline forward by a century, and it failed to fill in the details. The Neverwinter book deals with a lot of events that may well have been wiped out by the Sundering.

I can open multiple books and piece a lot together, but then I'm stuck. Sure, I make a decision and move on, but it's still extra work, and not what I want to spend my time on. Plus, one of my players reads all the novels, so I prefer to keep the realms as close to canon as possible.

Jeff,

Just a thought but you could create your own world and then have fun with that more than using a pre-constructed world. You can set it up so that you can use modules to enhance your own setting. Have you tried it as it is a lot of fun.