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.

 

[pukunui]

The "best way" is tricky. Book? Wiki? App? Boxed set? Campaign manager program? One big hardcover or a set of small softcovers?

To paraphrase what Chris said in the interview: Whatever it is, it'll be "something". Something new and surprising. Right?

 

[Kramodlog]

To paraphrase what Chris said in the interview: Whatever it is, it'll be "something". Something new and surprising. Right?

Funny. I thought that was what Fantasy Ground is selling.

 

[Selvarin]

I'd love to have see them bring back the original maps with the original scale...a print version is fine but i'd definitely love having a digital version. Just imagine having an atlas that had the various revisions at your hands, and digitally choose which parts you like.

And yes, I do have the old FR atlas maps, but I'm saying...a newer better version. Campaign Cartographer compatible, even. But that's wishful thinking.

 

[pukunui]

Funny. I thought that was what Fantasy Ground is selling.

I don't think he was referring to that. He was specifically talking about campaign setting info - eg. it may not take the form of a "campaign setting book" like we're used to.

 

[HobbitFan]

What would be cool would be something like Fonstad's original Atlas of the Forgotten Realms to go along with whatever form they take the update in.

 

[Kramodlog]

Get campaign settings tattooed on your skin! Since no one can all the info on their skin, fans will ahve to kill each other and collect the skin of other fans!

There can only be one.

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

It's always been the rule that WotC people can't let the cat out of the bag on any project until they're good and ready to make an official announcement first, so I think this is the most Mearls and Perkins could say.

I'm betting on Gen Con for the official announcement of some sort of Realms Campaign Guide (or Guides), or new adventure paths that take players to the parts of the Realms that presumably will be restored via the Sundering, such as Lantan and Halruaa, and the region where the Abeirian nations of Tymanther and Akanûl more or less landed in Faerûn.

 

[graves3141]

I want books and nothing but the books... hardcover preferably. Or a boxed set. Digital wiki or some such thing would just suck.

I know it's not going to happen but I can still dream

 

[Henry]

I find it odd that someone thought the realms weren't getting an update. They have for each of the past two editions (and I'd be surprised if they hadn't done it for 2e as well).

The opinion's not a surprise - when your fans are used to a fairly brisk release schedule (which they had up until three years ago) and now it's comparatively glacial, it can feel like "all stop" even if people keep insisting it isn't. I will still be surprised if we see anything RPG related to the FR campaign setting until 2016.

I will say also that I find it funny that compared to the Edition Wars of 7 years ago, we argue and debate less about whether the GAME is any good, but how fast we want to see more of it!

 

[MechaPilot]

I will say also that I find it funny that compared to the Edition Wars of 7 years ago, we argue and debate less about whether the GAME is any good, but how fast we want to see more of it!

In all fairness, much of the edition warring was not about whether the game was good or not. It was mostly people who were hurt that their preferences weren't the default settings anymore, and people who didn't like what was done creatively with the Realms.