Post/Author/DateTime	Post
jnormandin 01-14-05, 10:29 PM	Help! I've recently started playing in a Forgotten Realms PBEM campaign. As it turns out, I was lucky enough to find a great DM and the other players are pretty damned good as well. My problem is that I'm not terribly familiar with the Forgotten Realms. The D&D system I've got no problems with, it's the Realms specific geography, people, history, etc. that I'm woefully lacking in. I think I could contribute quite a bit more, and better play my wizard, if I had a greater understanding of the setting. I've got the Player's Guide to Faerun, but it seems more geared towards prestige classes, spells and feats then what I'm looking for. What resources (web or otherwise) can you recommend for brushing up on my Realms specific knowledge? Whoops! Forgot to mention that we've just started out in Cormyr; Arabel to be exact. If you think a specific resource might be immediately relevant please let me know.
primemover003 01-14-05, 10:49 PM	You want the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting book. For the most part it's got everything you need. You may want to ask your DM however if there's any spoilers in there he wants to use so you can avoid them (post it's over the section is a good way to censor... this is a courtesy to your DM. You may also want to download "Volo's Guide to Cormyr"... it's a 2nd edition Travellers guide, so the info is a wee bit out of date. But it's good for some background info. Click me!!! (http://wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads)
EmeraldFox 01-15-05, 11:26 PM	I believe Richard Baker mentioned something at the Candlekeep forums about making a sourcebook with just this title.
Kuje31 01-15-05, 11:42 PM	I believe Richard Baker mentioned something at the Candlekeep forums about making a sourcebook with just this title. Nay, he is coauthoring a D&D for Dummies book but it isn't for FR specifically.
Julias_Redford 01-16-05, 03:21 AM	all the Volo's guides are helpful, as well as any direct city books that you are looking for, other than that Shinning south, Unapproachable East, Silver Marches, Serpent Kindoms. E-Mail me if you have any direct questions I have played there for a long time and know quite a bit of general and odd information
Lashan 01-17-05, 11:00 AM	You don't want to ruin too much by reading the sourcebooks. Part of it is that you just need to know what your character would know. That's the best thing. Are you human? You are in Cormyr. I do believe that the Volo's Guide to Cormyr would be a good read without giving away too much. Besides that, do you know who Cormyr's enemies are? Who their neighbors are? That is another good thing to know. If you are playing in the current timeline, it would be good to know the latest history. Do you know what year and if there was just a big war or not?
Faraer 01-17-05, 12:04 PM	It really is not obvious to a newcomer to the Realms how each piece fits into the puzzle, how to read between the lines, how to interpret in light of publishing realities, what's Realmslore and what's rules artefacts, etc. Forgotten Realms for Dummies, with source material mixed with commentary from creators and an editor with a good grasp of the material, really would be a worthwhile book. Here (http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Castle/2566/wellmet.htm) is the best short introduction to the Realms, the one I always refer people to. Read the Life in Faerūn chapter and the Cormyr chapter of the FRCS, and maybe Volo's Guide to Cormyr and Cormyr: A Novel (check with the DM about that) which will give you the history. Don't worry about people: the only figures your character would certainly know about are King Azoun and Myrmeen Lhal. The Player's Guide to Faerūn is, as you've seen, not a player's guide but a rather marginal miscellany of rules updates and other stuff.