D&D 5E Why Forgotten Realms is Loved

[Seramus]

I really feel sentimental about some of the locations.

Waterdeep and Myth Drannor bring back memories of Eye of the Beholder, Phlan reminds me of Pool of Radiance, the whole greater Shadowdale area makes me fondly remember Curse of the Azure Bonds, I don't even know where the hell Secret of the Silver Blades took place.

Pools of Twilight was all over the place, but I remember the death of Moander, so walking on his dead body was really neat. The entire Sword Coast boasted everything from Gateway to the Savage Fronteir, Baldur's Gate 1 and 2, Neverwinter Nights (I even played the AOL version), the more famous remake, and NWN2. Icewind Dale 1 (Yay) and Icewind Dale 2 (boo) remind me of the Drizzt books.

And that's just the video games.

 

[cbwjm]

I can't actually remember much from the FR novels, it's been too long since I read one. The PC games are fairly firm in my memory, I loved playing Baldur's Gate 1, enjoyed BG2 even more (so many playthroughs!), have no idea how much time I wasted on NWN1, have recently re-bought NWN2 from GOG, and have played Icewind Dale 1 and 2 multiple times. I'd say most of what I know of FR comes from the PC games and RPG books more than the novels although I'm sure that my reading of the time of troubles trilogy has given me a general idea of what happened during that time.

 

[Maxperson]

I love the depth of the lore of places. I can take it as is, or tweak it to my liking. I don't have the time to create like that anymore, so having it there is a blessing.

I also love the varying degree of lore on the maps. There are sites/ruins with a moderate amount of information that allow me to fill in some blanks, some with a light amount of information giving me more room to create, and if I have the time and inclination, some sites/ruins are little more than a name and a blurb like, "This is an elven ruin", allowing me to create a ton and yet still be consistent with the lore and depth of the world.

 

[GlassJaw]

The maps.
The boxed sets.
The location names.
The enemy groups.
The pantheon.
The boxed sets.
Pool of Radiance.
Baldur's Gate.
ALL THE CONTENT.

I don't need the timeline.
I don't need the NPCs.

But there is just so much to borrow and salvage from. No matter the campaign I'm running, there is always something I can use for inspiration. Some of favorite RPG products of all time are FR: City of Splendors boxed set, Volo's Guides, FRCS, etc, etc.

 

[THEMNGMNT]

Inspired by this thread, I just went to DMs Guild and bought the original gray box. It's great. I don't love everything about it, but I like a lot of it, and in retrospect it's hugely innovative. Previously no one had presented a campaign world with NPCs that felt like real people, dynamic and evolving conflicts, and adventuring groups by the dozens changing and shaping the world. The gray box absolutely feels like a place you want to adventure and just screams "D&D!" in neon letters. The two year timeline of evolving plots and rumors is particularly brilliant.

 

[hawkeyefan]

The 3E Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting book is what made me appreciate the Realms. Still one of my favorite RPG books ever.

 

[Sadras]

Inspired by the other thread, because FR has the best dumbest reasons to hate it - how can you not love a setting that brings that much joy?

 

[cmad1977]

The maps are uselful.


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[gyor]

Inspired by the other thread, because FR has the best dumbest reasons to hate it - how can you not love a setting that brings that much joy?

Agreed, I find the FR hate to be beyond goofy, like embarrassingly goofy, but this thread is dedicated to celebrating what is awesome about FR, so I'll add in the Creator races.

And Evermeet, Brightwater, the Old Empires region, the Warlock Knights of Vaasa, all the wonderful novels, and video games, and the ability to lose yourself in it all.

 

[The_Gunslinger658]

I agree, the 3E FR books are fantastic. I also like all campaign settings, each offers a nice bit of info you can poach for other campaigns and vise versa.

Scott

The 3E Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting book is what made me appreciate the Realms. Still one of my favorite RPG books ever.