new to the realms need some help! [Archive] - Wizards Community

new to the realms need some help! [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
rbrt_Spade
10-15-05, 03:14 PM hey everybody, ive drifted to this board for the first time since i was bored with the dnd ones(these ones rock).

i am a expert on dragonlance but am starting reading the realms, what books should i read

i have read
all of the el books
waterdeep(buying 1 and 2)
also i hear of this drow called drizzt.-what books should i start on him?

also im thinking about running a fr campaign(3.0 player) and i run a greyhawk game. what do i need to play besides the frcs? can i run a campaign with just that book? im not mr. moneybags.

also whats the state of athlantar from the el books?

also ive played baldurs gate 1 &2 plus ex. for computer,icewindale,and neverwinter nights. where are these in the world? also are the same state as in the games?

also whats up with kala-kur?

thanks!
Kuje31
10-15-05, 03:24 PM You can run a game just fine with the FRCS and any other questions you have can usually answered by someone on these boards. :) WOTC also has about 20 of the old material on thier web site for free and the link is in my FAQ of WOTC Links in the FR FAQ forum.

Drizzt books, if you want them chronologically are:

The Dark Elf Trilogy by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition)
The Icewind Dale Trilogy by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition)
Legacy of the Drow by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition)
Paths of Darkness by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition)
Homeland by R. A. Salvatore
Exile by R. A. Salvatore
Sojourn by R. A. Salvatore
The Crystal Shard by R. A. Salvatore
Streams of Silver by R. A. Salvatore
The Halflings Gem by R. A. Salvatore
The Legacy by R. A. Salvatore
Starless Night by R. A. Salvatore
Siege of Darkness by R. A. Salvatore
Passage to Dawn by R. A. Salvatore
The Silent Blade by R. A. Salvatore
The Spine of the World by R. A. Salvatore
Servant of the Shard by R. A. Salvatore
Sea of Swords by R. A. Salvatore
The Thousand Orcs by R. A. Salvatore
The Lone Drow by R. A. Salvatore
The Two Swords by R. A. Salvatore

But the first one published was The Crystal Shard.

I'd say to get Races of Faerun for the lore of the races and Lost Empires of Faerun for the lore of the past. Athalantar has been destroyed for centuries and it's ruins can be found in the Northwest near Secomber. Least I recall it as being Secomber. :)

Baldur's Gate is further south down the Sword Coast. Neverwinter is further north up the Sword Coast.

Kara-tur is the farest eastern continent that makes up the main body of Faerun, Kara-tur, Zakhara, and the Hordelands. The Hordelands are between Kara-tur and the Unnapporachable East of Faerun.

As for which novels, you'll get 20 different answers because, like Dlance, there are over 100+ novels.
Penknight
10-15-05, 04:11 PM Kuje is right about getting different opinions on what books to read, as my post here is going to tell you. ;) Me personally, I am a huge fan of Elaine Cunningham. She has written several great books in the Realms, but the ones that I recommend the most (my personal favs) are those of Arilyn Moonblade and Danilo Thann. Elfshadow, Elfsong, Silver Shadows, and Dream Spheres. Also, if you want a great deal of elven lore for the Realms, try to get your hands on Evermeet: Island of the Elves. If you like her books, then here is her site with a few more of the books that she has written... http://elainecunningham.com/ Best of luck to you, and welcome to the Realms.
Zevox
10-15-05, 04:18 PM First off, a big welcome to the Forgotten Realms to you :) . For you questions:

i am a expert on dragonlance but am starting reading the realms, what books should i read
Honestly, whichever ones grab your attention. The best I can say is that the Avatar series (made up of Shadowdale, Tantras, and Waterdeep, with the novels Prince of Lies and Crucible: Trial of Cyric the Mad added onto it) and the Return of the Archwizards series (made up of The Summoning, The Siege, and The Sorcerer) may be ones you'd want to read, since they detail a pair of recent "Realms-shaking events" which are important to recent history (respectively, the Time of Troubles and the return of the Shade enclave and the Shadovar).

also i hear of this drow called drizzt.-what books should i start on him?
Kuje's list should give you all of those. Note however that the collectors editions are compilations of the novel series up until the novel The Thousand Orcs.

also im thinking about running a fr campaign(3.0 player) and i run a greyhawk game. what do i need to play besides the frcs? can i run a campaign with just that book? im not mr. moneybags.
Technically, the FRCS is all you absolutely need, but it is helpful to have others. For those you're probably best left to the advice Kuje and the others give - I don't own most of them.

also whats the state of athlantar from the el books?
It was destroyed by Orc hoards about a century after Elminster left it (which is about 1000 years in the past going by the "current" date in the Realms).

And Kuje answered your other questions as well as or better than I could. :)

Zevox
rbrt_Spade
10-15-05, 04:22 PM is el still alive and kicking? hes old in the books with mystra giving him youth
Zevox
10-15-05, 04:27 PM is el still alive and kicking? hes old in the books with mystra giving him youth
Yup, much to consternation of a number of folks on these boards ;) . Hes now 1162 years old - being a Chosen of Mystra makes him immune to death by aging.

Zevox
Kuje31
10-15-05, 04:35 PM Yup, much to consternation of a number of folks on thse boards ;) . Hes now 1162 years old - being a Chosen of Mystra makes him immune to death by aging.

Zevox

HAHAHA. :) :heehee

You made my afternoon.
goblin3468
10-16-05, 01:06 PM Considering all the book listings... Maybe you could help me.

I have read all of the Hunter's Blade Trilogy... Is he making a fourth book for that series, because it sort of leaves off with Obould sieging Mithral Hall...
primemover003
10-16-05, 08:05 PM Running a Realms campaign only needs the FRCS to be good. However depending on where you like to play there are several regional books:

Silver Marches (mainly the North around Silverymoon)
Unapproachable East (Red Wizards!)
Shining South (Halruaa & more)
Serpent Kingdoms (all things Yuan-ti!)
Lost Empires of Faerun (Elves, Netherese, Imaskari, Narfell)
Underdark (Drow, Duergar, Illithids, oh my!)

And a few game resources:

Magic of Faerun
Races of Faerun
Lords of Darkness
Player's Guide to Faerun

To date Serpent Kingdoms has been my favorite and Shining South and Underdark tied for the #2 spot! This is mainly because the Famous NPC's like El, Khelben, the Simbul, Harpers, etc are scarce. Thsese areas allow your PC's to be the Best & Brightest in the land.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
rbrt_Spade 10-15-05, 03:14 PM	hey everybody, ive drifted to this board for the first time since i was bored with the dnd ones(these ones rock). i am a expert on dragonlance but am starting reading the realms, what books should i read i have read all of the el books waterdeep(buying 1 and 2) also i hear of this drow called drizzt.-what books should i start on him? also im thinking about running a fr campaign(3.0 player) and i run a greyhawk game. what do i need to play besides the frcs? can i run a campaign with just that book? im not mr. moneybags. also whats the state of athlantar from the el books? also ive played baldurs gate 1 &2 plus ex. for computer,icewindale,and neverwinter nights. where are these in the world? also are the same state as in the games? also whats up with kala-kur? thanks!
Kuje31 10-15-05, 03:24 PM	You can run a game just fine with the FRCS and any other questions you have can usually answered by someone on these boards. :) WOTC also has about 20 of the old material on thier web site for free and the link is in my FAQ of WOTC Links in the FR FAQ forum. Drizzt books, if you want them chronologically are: The Dark Elf Trilogy by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition) The Icewind Dale Trilogy by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition) Legacy of the Drow by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition) Paths of Darkness by R. A. Salvatore (Collector’s Edition) Homeland by R. A. Salvatore Exile by R. A. Salvatore Sojourn by R. A. Salvatore The Crystal Shard by R. A. Salvatore Streams of Silver by R. A. Salvatore The Halflings Gem by R. A. Salvatore The Legacy by R. A. Salvatore Starless Night by R. A. Salvatore Siege of Darkness by R. A. Salvatore Passage to Dawn by R. A. Salvatore The Silent Blade by R. A. Salvatore The Spine of the World by R. A. Salvatore Servant of the Shard by R. A. Salvatore Sea of Swords by R. A. Salvatore The Thousand Orcs by R. A. Salvatore The Lone Drow by R. A. Salvatore The Two Swords by R. A. Salvatore But the first one published was The Crystal Shard. I'd say to get Races of Faerun for the lore of the races and Lost Empires of Faerun for the lore of the past. Athalantar has been destroyed for centuries and it's ruins can be found in the Northwest near Secomber. Least I recall it as being Secomber. :) Baldur's Gate is further south down the Sword Coast. Neverwinter is further north up the Sword Coast. Kara-tur is the farest eastern continent that makes up the main body of Faerun, Kara-tur, Zakhara, and the Hordelands. The Hordelands are between Kara-tur and the Unnapporachable East of Faerun. As for which novels, you'll get 20 different answers because, like Dlance, there are over 100+ novels.
Penknight 10-15-05, 04:11 PM	Kuje is right about getting different opinions on what books to read, as my post here is going to tell you. ;) Me personally, I am a huge fan of Elaine Cunningham. She has written several great books in the Realms, but the ones that I recommend the most (my personal favs) are those of Arilyn Moonblade and Danilo Thann. Elfshadow, Elfsong, Silver Shadows, and Dream Spheres. Also, if you want a great deal of elven lore for the Realms, try to get your hands on Evermeet: Island of the Elves. If you like her books, then here is her site with a few more of the books that she has written... http://elainecunningham.com/ Best of luck to you, and welcome to the Realms.
Zevox 10-15-05, 04:18 PM	First off, a big welcome to the Forgotten Realms to you :) . For you questions: i am a expert on dragonlance but am starting reading the realms, what books should i read Honestly, whichever ones grab your attention. The best I can say is that the Avatar series (made up of Shadowdale, Tantras, and Waterdeep, with the novels Prince of Lies and Crucible: Trial of Cyric the Mad added onto it) and the Return of the Archwizards series (made up of The Summoning, The Siege, and The Sorcerer) may be ones you'd want to read, since they detail a pair of recent "Realms-shaking events" which are important to recent history (respectively, the Time of Troubles and the return of the Shade enclave and the Shadovar). also i hear of this drow called drizzt.-what books should i start on him? Kuje's list should give you all of those. Note however that the collectors editions are compilations of the novel series up until the novel The Thousand Orcs. also im thinking about running a fr campaign(3.0 player) and i run a greyhawk game. what do i need to play besides the frcs? can i run a campaign with just that book? im not mr. moneybags. Technically, the FRCS is all you absolutely need, but it is helpful to have others. For those you're probably best left to the advice Kuje and the others give - I don't own most of them. also whats the state of athlantar from the el books? It was destroyed by Orc hoards about a century after Elminster left it (which is about 1000 years in the past going by the "current" date in the Realms). And Kuje answered your other questions as well as or better than I could. :) Zevox
rbrt_Spade 10-15-05, 04:22 PM	is el still alive and kicking? hes old in the books with mystra giving him youth
Zevox 10-15-05, 04:27 PM	is el still alive and kicking? hes old in the books with mystra giving him youth Yup, much to consternation of a number of folks on these boards ;) . Hes now 1162 years old - being a Chosen of Mystra makes him immune to death by aging. Zevox
Kuje31 10-15-05, 04:35 PM	Yup, much to consternation of a number of folks on thse boards ;) . Hes now 1162 years old - being a Chosen of Mystra makes him immune to death by aging. Zevox HAHAHA. :) :heehee You made my afternoon.
goblin3468 10-16-05, 01:06 PM	Considering all the book listings... Maybe you could help me. I have read all of the Hunter's Blade Trilogy... Is he making a fourth book for that series, because it sort of leaves off with Obould sieging Mithral Hall...
primemover003 10-16-05, 08:05 PM	Running a Realms campaign only needs the FRCS to be good. However depending on where you like to play there are several regional books: Silver Marches (mainly the North around Silverymoon) Unapproachable East (Red Wizards!) Shining South (Halruaa & more) Serpent Kingdoms (all things Yuan-ti!) Lost Empires of Faerun (Elves, Netherese, Imaskari, Narfell) Underdark (Drow, Duergar, Illithids, oh my!) And a few game resources: Magic of Faerun Races of Faerun Lords of Darkness Player's Guide to Faerun To date Serpent Kingdoms has been my favorite and Shining South and Underdark tied for the #2 spot! This is mainly because the Famous NPC's like El, Khelben, the Simbul, Harpers, etc are scarce. Thsese areas allow your PC's to be the Best & Brightest in the land.