Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Quenditar 02-25-06, 01:35 AM	I don't know much about Forgotten Realms, but one thing that struck me recently was that I've never read of portal networks connecting the cities along the Sword Coast (where the Zhentarim generally aren't, right?) or other reasonably stable but distant areas. Why not? Security issues shouldn't be too much of a problem (as porters and their gear can be separated) and the profits to be made from a toll of a few gold pieces each way would pay for a portal in under a decade. Are lacunae like this deliberately left for clever PCs to find and exploit?
Shemeska the Marauder 02-25-06, 02:44 AM	Portal magic on Toril is obscenely rare and obscure. It's not as simple as just taking a feat and making a portal and raking in the jink from taxing its use. For the most part, a lot of permenant portals were relics of some of the more ancient cultures in Faerun (such as Imaskar, who were the unquestioned masters of such.) And in fact there was an entire module in 2e 'Undermountain: Stardock' that revolved around members of the Twisted Rune abducting Halaster for the sole purpose of ripping the secrets of Imaskari portal construction magic from his brain (Halaster was Imaskari). To some extent 3e had it right in making portal construction a seperate feat, while 3.5 for some bizarre reason folded it into craft wonderous item. But in any event I wouldn't allow a PC with the feat to actually make a portal unless they'd discovered the means to do so in character, not just because they went up a level and got a feat. That might require them finding Imaskari lore on the topic, or possibly purchasing or trading for such knowledge from people who would be familiar with it (Fiends, Celestials, mages from other prime material worlds were such might have been discovered as well, etc).
Quenditar 02-25-06, 03:47 AM	That would be a very good reason. Thanks.
dragonheart 02-25-06, 10:02 AM	another possible source would be SHaundukul's faith and perhaps his temple in Myth Drannor. one of his domains is portals and the elves of Cormanthor certainly created a number of portals of their own as well so it might be a place to learn something (if you can survive in Myth Drannor that is :D )
dragonheart 02-26-06, 12:44 PM	similarly while create portal was a 3.0 feat absorbed into create wondrous item in 3.5 there is the 3.5 feat portal master that would be a good one for folks interesting in developing a portal network with waht ever background the DM requires.
Gray Richardson 02-28-06, 07:31 PM	There are actually a lot of portal networks set up around Faerūn. WOTC did a bunch of great online articles about various portals and portal networks called Perilous Gateways. The archive of all those articles is available here: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/archfr/pg Check them out, there is a lot of fun lore to be found in these articles. However, portal networks are generally kept secret and exploited for private purposes, they are not ever advertised or used for commercial gain. Ed Greenwood has actually posted something about why that is, if I can find it I will post it here, but you can do a search from the Ed's Answers link in Kuje's sig for some interesting info from Ed regarding portals.