"Selling" FR [Archive] - Wizards Community

"Selling" FR [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Ithilorien
08-18-03, 06:58 AM Hi everybody, my D&D group of friends and I are considering starting to use a campaign setting (up until now we've just had an odd homebrew mish-mash) and I would very much like it to be the Forgotten Realms, which I have fallen in love with ever since I first got the grey box for christmas eight years ago.

However, I am having some trouble crytallizing my selling points on the setting. I've pointed out how vast the world is, as well as the incredible level of detail and variety that is present, as well as the constant sense of history it has, but I want more.

So, as I need more reasons for why Forgotten Realms is best, why do you like FR?
Amurayi
08-18-03, 08:27 AM Once my players stumble upon a town or city in a D&D computer game or novel I want them to say .. "Yep.. I have been there with my RPing group.. been there, done that, bought the T-shirt."

Immersion!
kedi
08-18-03, 09:11 AM I play FR since three or even maybe more years. Why do I like it? I'm going to give several answers

1- ý'm going to right all campaign sourcebooks avilable for FR: Magic of Faerun, Lords of Darkness, Unaproachable east, Undermountain series, Seven sisters, Elminster series, Cult of the Dragon, Races of Faerun, Monstes of faerun, City of the spiderqueen, Faiths and phanteons, Cloak and dagger, silver marches...

2- fr has a great history, geography and detailed characters

3-there are no other explains :)
Lashan
08-18-03, 11:44 AM The best point to tell your players is that there is a lot of background info for FR. There is a depth history and the group can even start at an earlier year and play through it all. There is also the detail of game world. With the names of ales, cheeses, and all other things detailed, it makes the game that much more realistic.

If your group chooses something else, that's ok, too.
Amurayi
08-18-03, 11:55 AM Originally posted by kedi
[B]1- y´'m going to right all campaign sourcebooks avilable for FR: Seven sisters, Elminster series,

Erm.... are those sourcebooks still avaiable?
Are they 3rd Ed?
Lashan
08-18-03, 12:05 PM Many of those listed are 2E or even 1E. Still, they are available. Some are there for free download and some can be bought of eBuy or many other web sources.
Faraer
08-21-03, 11:01 AM The quantity of published lore only becomes a reason to use the Realms if you like the setting: its rhythms, nuances, obvious and hidden structures -- if it's the kind of place you empathize with and would like to visit. The way to sell people on that depends on what they like: you might stress aspects such as its multistrandedness, its literate immersion in the swords & sorcery tradition, its emergence from real campaign play and the noncommercial motives of its development; and, of course, the 1996 introduction (http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Castle/2566/wellmet.htm) is the one to show players.
kedi
08-22-03, 03:35 AM Originally posted by Amurayi
Erm.... are those sourcebooks still avaiable?
Are they 3rd Ed?
they are not printing anymore but i download 2ed:D
they became open game content
lordmaxwell
08-22-03, 07:30 AM Only a relative few are available for free from wizards homepage. The rest can be bought as pdf's from various places.
kedi
08-22-03, 07:40 AM and its legal
ENHenry
08-22-03, 04:18 PM The three best reasons to use FR:

1) It has TONS of support. Your players can read various novels and guides about the setting, and be instantly immersed in the feeling of having lived there, having known the important personages, and having the feel of familiarity. The only way to create this feeling with a homebrew is to create the back materials yourself, and this can be both a time consuming and incomplete task.

2) The setting is a "neutral setting" - there are no world-shaking events going on that will mandatorily sweep the PC's along, unless you add them or unless you play in the middle of a past conflict. You can set an adventure group ANYWHERE, and start a plot of your own making.

3) The campaign is generic enough that one does not HAVE to have special rules to create characters and start adventuring there. Even just your PHB is enough to begin with.

If this is not enough, I'm afraid I'm out of ideas - except to ask them to read a short story or two, or look at the Rand's travelougues in the WotC website archives to get the players' and DM's creative juices flowing.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Ithilorien 08-18-03, 06:58 AM	Hi everybody, my D&D group of friends and I are considering starting to use a campaign setting (up until now we've just had an odd homebrew mish-mash) and I would very much like it to be the Forgotten Realms, which I have fallen in love with ever since I first got the grey box for christmas eight years ago. However, I am having some trouble crytallizing my selling points on the setting. I've pointed out how vast the world is, as well as the incredible level of detail and variety that is present, as well as the constant sense of history it has, but I want more. So, as I need more reasons for why Forgotten Realms is best, why do you like FR?
Amurayi 08-18-03, 08:27 AM	Once my players stumble upon a town or city in a D&D computer game or novel I want them to say .. "Yep.. I have been there with my RPing group.. been there, done that, bought the T-shirt." Immersion!
kedi 08-18-03, 09:11 AM	I play FR since three or even maybe more years. Why do I like it? I'm going to give several answers 1- ý'm going to right all campaign sourcebooks avilable for FR: Magic of Faerun, Lords of Darkness, Unaproachable east, Undermountain series, Seven sisters, Elminster series, Cult of the Dragon, Races of Faerun, Monstes of faerun, City of the spiderqueen, Faiths and phanteons, Cloak and dagger, silver marches... 2- fr has a great history, geography and detailed characters 3-there are no other explains :)
Lashan 08-18-03, 11:44 AM	The best point to tell your players is that there is a lot of background info for FR. There is a depth history and the group can even start at an earlier year and play through it all. There is also the detail of game world. With the names of ales, cheeses, and all other things detailed, it makes the game that much more realistic. If your group chooses something else, that's ok, too.
Amurayi 08-18-03, 11:55 AM	Originally posted by kedi [B]1- y´'m going to right all campaign sourcebooks avilable for FR: Seven sisters, Elminster series, Erm.... are those sourcebooks still avaiable? Are they 3rd Ed?
Lashan 08-18-03, 12:05 PM	Many of those listed are 2E or even 1E. Still, they are available. Some are there for free download and some can be bought of eBuy or many other web sources.
Faraer 08-21-03, 11:01 AM	The quantity of published lore only becomes a reason to use the Realms if you like the setting: its rhythms, nuances, obvious and hidden structures -- if it's the kind of place you empathize with and would like to visit. The way to sell people on that depends on what they like: you might stress aspects such as its multistrandedness, its literate immersion in the swords & sorcery tradition, its emergence from real campaign play and the noncommercial motives of its development; and, of course, the 1996 introduction (http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Castle/2566/wellmet.htm) is the one to show players.
kedi 08-22-03, 03:35 AM	Originally posted by Amurayi Erm.... are those sourcebooks still avaiable? Are they 3rd Ed? they are not printing anymore but i download 2ed:D they became open game content
lordmaxwell 08-22-03, 07:30 AM	Only a relative few are available for free from wizards homepage. The rest can be bought as pdf's from various places.
kedi 08-22-03, 07:40 AM	and its legal
ENHenry 08-22-03, 04:18 PM	The three best reasons to use FR: 1) It has TONS of support. Your players can read various novels and guides about the setting, and be instantly immersed in the feeling of having lived there, having known the important personages, and having the feel of familiarity. The only way to create this feeling with a homebrew is to create the back materials yourself, and this can be both a time consuming and incomplete task. 2) The setting is a "neutral setting" - there are no world-shaking events going on that will mandatorily sweep the PC's along, unless you add them or unless you play in the middle of a past conflict. You can set an adventure group ANYWHERE, and start a plot of your own making. 3) The campaign is generic enough that one does not HAVE to have special rules to create characters and start adventuring there. Even just your PHB is enough to begin with. If this is not enough, I'm afraid I'm out of ideas - except to ask them to read a short story or two, or look at the Rand's travelougues in the WotC website archives to get the players' and DM's creative juices flowing.