Hey hello!
I know there is not a full on Campaign setting of Faerun adapted at 5e, and there are only tibdits of information here and there. I've started reading "The Sundering" novels in search for enlightment, but it's a slow method and I'm not even sure that my questions would be answered... I've just read the second book (The Godborn, I now want to read all the other novels about Erevis Cale, I didn't know he existed at all :P)
So I hope that any of you can answer my questions :P
Some of the things that I really liked about 4e and the spellplague (yeah, there are things to like there, but I won't discuss it since I'm usually the only ones that likes them :P) are the Dragonborn, Tymanther and the kingdom of Many-Arrows.
As such, I've been DMing in Many-Arrows almost all of 4e, and now that me and my players want to go to 5th edition, and seeing that Wizards sadly wants to retcon all of 4e, I don't really know what happened to the country. Has it been obliterated? Does it still remain? I guess that if they want the country gone they could make all orcs dumb-evil again and start a war with all the surrounding cities and lose it. But I really liked the "we are people too" attitude they had, and it would be very sad to go back to generic grunts. It wouldn't ruin my game, but it would be nice to still have Many-Arrows.
The other ting I want to know about is Dragonborn in general. What's their status in the realms now? I know the Players Handbook say they are "uncommon" but I'd want to know how much exactly. My PC (when I'm not DM in the rotation) is a Dragonborn... I don't really know how the "Abeir-Toril" separation went through. If my character had a choice between going to Abeir or staying in Toril, he'd pick staying. He'd known nothing else, nor did his family for generations. I'm guessing that the whole Returned Abeir is not there anymore, but what about the other Dragonborn country in the main continent?
It would be great to know those things, as we encourage roleplay a lot. My character won't be the same if his mother's country isn't there anymore.
Thank you again and sorry for the big wall of text, I do that a lot ^^
Idk about dragonborn, but (spoiler) orcs and Menzoberranzan drow are currently setting up an attack on the Silver Marches in the latest Drizzt book (IIRC, Nesmé and Everlund have already fallen, with their population decimated/enslaved).
Wait till Salvatore is done with Many Arrows and it will likely be obliterated. With the new ''orcs are evil and they can't for any reason behave other than that'' stance, which ignores previous lore (and is quite dumb IMO), Many Arrows -one of the few things that has added depth/variety to the setting, instead of removing it- has probably been set up for removal from FR.
Irennan wrote:
Helwar wrote:
While I can appreciate that orcs were becoming civilized, I tended to use them as an invasive species along the lines of cane toads and rabbits in Australia, something that needed to be eradicated. It's long and involved, but I set it up so that orcs were just this unnatural blight unleashed upon the world by evil mages. I know that's not how it really went down lore-wise, but that's my use of them and I'm sticking to it. 
But as to Dragonborn and their nation, I know next to nothing about it, beyond that it exists in 4e, but as a fan of the Old Empires, I can't say I'm sorry to see it go. 
Heh, you can still use orcs like that in games, just like other people can still use Many Arrows in their game. However, from a story/setting standpoint, this change only removes depth and options, as the existence of Many Arrows/somewhat civilized orcs didn't prevent other greenskins from being savages.
The new take on orcs is a merely subtractive change (one that even conflicts with older established lore, and that therefore smells of retcon), that is going to remove something from the setting without care (and without adding anything) just because the devs decided that they don't like it (just like the changes who made FR lose a lot of good elements and that fractured the fanbase to the current point, like the ones that were hinted as ''not going to happen anymore''...).
No, see, that came with 4e, and so never happened in my book. The island might be sinking, but it's not happening. 
Seriously though, even with the additive stuff that was brought into the Realms with 4e, most of it came at the cost of something else being subtracted. Not all of it of course, but a lot of it. If they want to restore things, they're kinda by definition obligated to be subtractive, largely because of the methods that were used in the first place. Sucks for the fans of the new stuff, and in a lot of respects it still sucks for the fans of the old stuff, but I'm not sure how else they could do things in the light of how 4e was implemented. Honestly, I'm thinking they need to pull a DC and have some crisis or other that resets history, but that would be kinda stupid and pretty impossible to pull off (within current lore about how time works) so that anyone was going to be really happy with it.
Trust me when I say that I hated a lot of 4e changes (just look at my avatar, if it is of any indication) but what did Many Arrows remove, exactly? It didn't take away the possibility of conflict with orcs, it only added possibilities of different kind of stories, and even of different kind of conflicts/tense politic situations involving greenskins, other than ''huge horde of savages invades, kill them''. AFAIK, It added depth and variety, without taking away other things.
Also orcs had the ability of choice before 4e (look at the Ondonti orcs), saying that they basically are Gruumsh's puppets and that can never do anything different from what they are 'programmed' for, truly is retcon-ish.
Well, I said most of the changes, not all of them. That was one of the few that was logical and which flowed organically from the history of the setting. I disagree that Obould would be the one to establish it mind you, I can't say I ever thought much of him at all, but that it would happen is completely believable, given a lot of the hints Ed was dropping in the Volo's Guides about the subtle developments, and even some of the stuff in the Aurora's Catalogues was giving little clues. I'd have rather it came out of the tribes near the Nether Mountains, as the threat of the Moroume, or whatever that Blue Dragon clan's name is, would seem to eventually force them into a more cooperative existence than Oboulds orcs ever required. That whole Champion of Grumpy thing Obould had going on (maybe) would seem to kinda preclude building a stable society, given Ol' Grumpy's dogma. As to orcs having choice, that community of them in Thesk was another, and probably better, example given how the Ondonti came about. But that's neither here nor there really,and we'll just have to wait and see what comes of any of it.
As to retconning, remember, it's not a retcon, it's just the WotC correction hammer making that ringing sound you hear between your ears as it hits your noggin'.
It could have been handled better, but -as you say- it was one of the few positive changes (also one that, together with other examples, proves that orcs do indeed have choice..).
I don't think that we have to look far to see what orcs will be in the future of FR. The PHB explicitly states that greenskins have no choice, Salvatore had Mielikki specifically tell him (or his girlfriend, I can't recall) the same thing. To me it looks like FR -which now is their official setting- is getting bent and diluted once again to fit the new trend, which is shame
People seem to forget Orcs used to be LE in AD&D. Now I think Hobgoblins would be at the front of humanoid civilization.
Irennan wrote:
BrianCritchley wrote:
Irennan wrote:
Probably nothing good, unfortunately for you... but you never know, it might somehow be spared whatever gruesome fate awaits everything else they're chucking back into the gaming oblivion.
Helwar wrote:
Irennan wrote:
BrianCritchley wrote:
OK Ok....does anyone remember the RAS book where they go to Gauntlgrym and find images of Gruumsh AND Moradin together? And not in battle? It really strained my belief, and it was symbolic of how 'wrong' some of the changes were. (Wrong venue, wrong deities IMO, poor rationale...)
With that being said, technically there are reasons why orcs and drow--to name just two humanoid races--have a predisposition towards evil, and that's okay It relates to their creation, a divine/magical reason: Because their paton deities made them (or pushed them) in that direction. It doesn't mean you have to take what WotC is saying literally for your campaign, just that's the direction they're going. It leaves a little less ambiguity, but nonetheless some ambiguity there.
Again, another place where you make a choice and move on. Aside from Drizzt's hand-wringing over the nature or mortals, etc. etc. etc.....
For what it's worth, I don't see anything wrong with a place like Many-Arrows becoming more a city of orc mercenaries and harsh mercantilism than another ho-hum hotbed of Gruumsh and barbarism. There's RP value in having orc bands being trustworthy enough to take gold and fight on the side of the Silver March cities OR their fellow orcs. (Think of it as Luskan, only with fangs.) Stuff like that.
The thing to remember is not to take it too literally. It's not like drow, orcs, etc., are like devils and demons. They are not supernatural evil personified. Just that they were created or turned towards dark purposes by their gods, and that their cultures have been kept in a perpetual state of depravity so as to make it hard for those not of the same mindset to survive or thrive. Not a big deal.
The thing here is that -IIRC- WotC explicitly said in the PHB ''orcs have been created for evil, they can do nothing but evil.''. It 1)contrasts with previous lore 2)as I said, If you say that evil/good is in the blood, then it loses all its value for the reasons I've already explained. That's why I think that this is a big deal.
IMO context should be the big cause of intelligent creatures being ''predisposed'' towards a certain behaviour/alignemnt, because it implies the possibility of choice: for example drow are what they are because Lolth imposed them a kind of society that led them down the path of ''evil'', so to speak, because they had to do so in order to survive. However they can choose, and outside said context, they can believe like ''normal people'', as Eilistraeens/Drizzt/independent drow show. I would be completely fine with orcs being predisposed towards evil like this -or even by nature- but it's just not what it is implied in the books. While the most recent info say that drow can -and do- choose, it also specifically says that orcs can't.
Well there was also the inclusion of demons into most drow bloodlines...it's been said more than once that those such as Drizzt aren't tainted in the same way.(Wasn't that also addressed in the LP series, freeing them from that taint? I'm soooo not going back to rereading them...)
One thing I've learned over the past few decades is that the novels aren't exactly the game, per se. They're used to push certain game concepts but they tend to stray a bit. But that's a diffierent discussion, as you're pointing out specifically some races aren't allowed 'the choice' according to WotC. Hmmm.
Oh well, Rule Zero.
Selvarin wrote:
Thanks for reminding me what the demon blood part actually meant. Yep...that was lame. (They could go to this part of Arvandor but not that part when they die. Hmm, sheese.) Guess it's kind of like if you weren't baptized before you died you had to be buried outside the consecrated ground and so didn't go to the Seven Heavens or whatever...Hmm. Clunky.
The other part, though, I see it more as a mystically-induced predisposition. By itself, in an individual, it's minor. But the larger the group the more pronounced it is. The behavior winds up being reinforced and encouraged, either informally or by the society--which is usually being directly manipulated by Lolth (or another evil god) via divine representatives. Kind of like a dog pack. Dogs can be fine by themselves but when they get in groups they may run around neighborhoods chasing smaller animals and tearing them into pieces if that was already in their disposition. (Lost a few cats that way, alas.) That's the problenm with drow soeciety, in order to survive you have to play the game or hide who you are just to survive. So, maybe 30% inborn and 70% reinforced?
What you say is interesting, but AFAIK society itself can induce that kind of ''dog pack'' effect. You can't choose alternatives, if you are forced to kill/be treacherous or violent in order to survive. There's no need to induce evil, instinct of survival coupled with brainwashing (i.e. thinking that this kind of life is the only possible one if you want to live, seeing threats everywhere and trying to neutralize them before they do it to you) would make anyone behave in a way that we would deem ''evil''.
So I really can't say what % is inborn or what % nurtured, but I know that Eilistraeens are tasked with missions -even lasting for long periods of time- inside Lolth-controlled settlements, and there are converts in Lolth-controlled societies, and this could show that drow can very well choose good even in the ''dog-pack'' environment, once they have understood that there's an alternative and once they have broken free from the brainwashing (making it more a matter of choice and understanding that anything else). So I think that the ''innate evil'' % -which could only be due to that ''drops of demon blood'' (something that after millennia and many generations would be very diluted, btw)- is very small.
IIRC when Lolth took the drow underground, she was the only who would accept them and give them safety (after the Dark Disaster, Eilistraee lost so many of her followers that her power/influence was so scarce that -while she surely tried to be a guide for the drow- she couldn't do much), the one who appeared to know ''best'' for their race. So, with the Seldarine and all elves shunning them (even survivors of Miyeritar and the ones who were likely innocent: you can't expect common drow farmers to be guilty of what Ilythiir did...) the drow saw a guidance in her, giving her the perfect opportunity to start a cycle of brainwashing and indoctrination, letting her impose to the drow the kind of life that they still have now.
They saw it as what's ''best'' for them, the unique way, while everything else would have led them to be weak and be crushed by their enemies. And with time, that concept has become so ingrained in their mind that their existence revolves about it -Lolth's dogma-. So drow are now told since their birth that they must kill or be killed, dominate or be dominated, and everything around them shows that it is actually true, leading them down the ''path of evil'' (because they are forced to ''do evil'' if they want to survive, and because any attempt to dissent is punished with tourture and death).
Furthermore, they are brainwashed into believing that the individual has no intirinsical value, that ''status'' and ''power'' are the only things that matter and can make a person matter, and that they can only be acquired through the favor of the goddess. This means that a lot of lolthite drow are ready to fanatically pursue anything the Spider Queen deems appropriate, and she easily makes tools for her mad goals out of them. For example most drow have their life chosen without having a say on it, because Lolth's dogma says that they have to become X -like when Liriel was forced to study at the Arach Tinilith.
Going away from this would however make the drow look at reality through a different perspective and lead them to make different choices. The trick is showing to the drow the existence of something different, to make them look through a different perspective -like Eilistraee tries to do-: injecting new ideas, and showing and proving with results that they can actually lead to a better life. They would spread, some people would recognize them for their value, embrace and support them, band together and work/fight to achieve something for them or their race -- it's the need to improve one's own condition that all beings have (and it's why lolthite society tries to shut down anything that could do that).
This kind of brainwashing (especially since it comes from millennia of established dogma, and from a goddess) is very powerful and very difficult to escape from (and is -IMO- far more interesting than ''hurr, I'm evil cuz I was born that way'')
Helwar wrote:
After the latest Drizzt novel, Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf, the kingdom of Many Arrows has been wiped off the map. Trampled to dust under the boots of the biggest dwarven army faerun has seen in centuries
Very disappointed but not surprised at all. That was a given, to be honest.
Mirtek wrote:
People can have what they want in their personal realms, but the problems that come with something you like being removed are 1)it is no longer supported, and will probably be almost completely ignored in the future, as if it never existed 2)not everyone is a DM 3)you have to convince other people who play with you to accept your idea, and that can be incredibly hard.
Irennan, people make things like this work in their campaigns all the time. It's not like pulling teeth.
just because something isn't currently supported does not mean it can't be used. It's literally not a problem.
You might be surprised how easy it is to convince somebody when their other option is to leave the gaming table. 99% of people would rather play than leave, and the 1% who will leave were never worth playing with.
Finally, Many-Arrows was not removed, it was defeated and destroyed by dwarves. Just because the wheels of time continue to turn does not mean DMs are left with their hands tied.
Sheesh!
I think that you have misunderstood me, or that I was unclear. It is natural that you can use whatever you want in your campaing, but it is the same old story, the same old discussion that has been had so many times:
1)When something you like gets removed, it's not going to get support, it's likely going to get forgotten and never touched again in published material -especially now, with so little FR lore being released- (unless for some reason it is decided that said something should be restored. Many Arrows was basically removed, the story was an excuse to incorporate whatever changes WotC wanted in the setting). And when something major or unique gets removed (especially if it is just because it happens to not be in line with the design philosophy of whatever the newest, shiniest edition of D&D is), the setting becomes lessened because of it. There are other ways to handle things other than ''smash it!!!''.
2)Not everyone is a DM or has freedom to do what they please with the setting. I can do that because I play with friends at a table, but -according to what I've read- I'm very lucky in that, and I have been able to do so only recently.
3)If with the passing of time more and more of what you like gets thrown away, and you have to ignore more and more of the story... it's not nice at all. That was the whole point of the Sundering, the reason why WotC felt the need of reverting so many of the deaths/destructions, the whole reason that many people left the published realms. Just because people who happen to run a home campaign have the privilege of do whatever they want, it doesn't make removing elements of the setting ok.
But then, now that I've read my first post again, I fear that it might have come off as aggressive. If so, I apologize, it wasn't my intention, that was merely an observation... I'm just frustrated to see even more major blow-ups and at the same time to see so little of the promised restoration that WotC promised.
I got the sense that you are frustrated from your first post, but it's your responsibility to handle it. Please don't put it on us to deal with, OK?
When somebody offers a constructive response, like BRJN did, PLEASE don't shoot it down out of frustration. What you posted, twice now, is of no practical use to anybody, much less to the OP.
Look, changes in the Realms are properly judged by how the story was told, not by the mere fact that they happened. We both know that you know this.
Have you read the novel in question yet?
We also know that changes in the Realms--especially the big ones--are not mere "excuses" as you term them. That's a mischaracterization of what is a long, drawn out process of setting the design scope for the Realms, plotting novels around that vision, checking the plots against what the rest of WotC is doing in the Realms, and then re-checking again because as time goes by in the real world plans change, seeing the novels written and edited, and then published.
Right now the Realms are in transition. Let's help the Realms by being honest about the process (so other people do not get unduly discouraged) and by holding back swift judgement, OK?
I got the sense that you are frustrated from your first post, but it's your responsibility to handle it. Please don't put it on us to deal with, OK?
When somebody offers a constructive response, like BRJN did, PLEASE don't shoot it down out of frustration. What you posted, twice now, is of no practical use to anybody, much less to the OP.
Asking, "does this change make the Realms better?" is a perfectly legitimate thing to do, if you've read the story or stories. This is because you have an informed opinion.
Declaring a change as bad or wrong, while not having read word one of any related story, is just griping.
The story arc that saw the rise and fall of Many Arrows is a long one. It's spanned, what, fifteen years? It's fall did not just happen out of thin air.
What proof can you show to support your claim that Many Arrows was made to fall because it did not fit 5E's view of what the Realms should be? And why are you refusing to consider alternate reasons for why it fell, such as the thunderingly obvious reason that Salvatore wanted to finish a story he himself started?
The fall of Many Arrows is not on the same scale as the abrupt, wholesale destruction and change brought on by the Spellplague. It is not an RSE. It is in fact one more chapter in a long story that is still going, and a story arc I think you unfairly dismiss in your criticism, and in your dogged desire to take a metaview look at everything WotC does.
The Realms is a place that changes. Ed Greenwood has stated this numerous times. The thrill is in the stories dealing with that change.
We have been told multiple times that, when it comes to big changes (like this), authors can't decide whether they happen or not, it is WotC which sets the direction and tells them what should happen (and the changes are planned years in advance from their release to the public). And I have not ''dismissed'' the story-arc, I didn't say that it was bad or something, but that its results are. I've compared this to what they did to the drow, because the consequences are very similar: the stories could be as awesome as you want, but they made the Realms poorer, removed huge aspects of the orc/drow people, removed uniqueness and opportunities for many more stories, while adding what?
For the drow, nothing was added, so I'll ask this: does the removal of Many Arrows enrich the Realms? What does it add? How does it compare to what it takes away?
Changes become less and less thrilling, when you keep seeing things you like getting removed.
We both know that Salvatore isn't just another Realms author.
I will ask you again: how do you know the Realms have been made poorer if you have not read the book? That's what I mean by dismissing the story arc.
Look, If you have a great story then you have enriched the Realms, and you have entertained the reader, which is the point of all of this--to enjoy the stories and have fun.
The story can be done horribly, like it was for describing the events and aftermath of the Spellplague, or it can be done awesomely. Either way, kingdoms fall in the Realms. Your position seems to be that this is not supposed to happen at all, and it makes no sense to me.
I have yet to read the book, mind. Even so, it's not as though the world will suddenly forget about Many Arrows. This may be the event that drives orcs to found new, smaller kingdoms, in places where the dwarves are few and the land is ripe to be tamed.
This reminds me of when I heard that Myth Drannor was being resettled. Oh how pissed I was! I have used Myth Drannor A LOT. The single greatest city ruin/dungeon in the Realms was being removed, as you might put it, for the sake of change and I hated that one of the most original and DM friendly spots in the Realms was not going to be what it was.
It was years later that I realized the elves returning actually solved a problem I'd had with the Realms since I was first introduced to it: the Elven retreat was an ugly copy of what the elves in Tolkien's world had done. I had always disliked the similarity; the Realms should be the Realms, not a copy of Midddle Earth.
This is one example among others I could cite where I took a second look and realized my knee jerk reaction was blinding me to what was really going on in the Realms.
We both know that Salvatore isn't just another Realms author.
Irennan, I am sorry but most of what you say in your first, second and fourth paragraphs is not true, and I don't have the energy to go line by line and explain why. As far as this thread is concerned, I am all used up.
Mr_Miscellany wrote:
Mirtek wrote:
Diffan wrote:
Irennan wrote:
Irennan wrote:
Well, in my current campaign, I basically created a massive war between the Gods called the 'EndWar', modelled off the TimeWar from Doctor Who.
In my campaign, the Tablets of Fate did more than jus govern what the God's porfolio's where, it was the codex for ALL creation.
Ao was rather sick of the constant bickering between his children, and the Gods were sick of nothing really ever changing. Bane etc... tried to steal the Tablets of Fate, which they saw as the only source of 'true' power in the multi-verse, but they failed. Ao, annoyed by this attempt, tried to instill some respect and harmony into his children by casting them down to Faerun - The Avatar Crises, the First GodsWar (2e). It didn' really work though, and the Gods went back to their squabbles almost as soon as they regained Godhood.
Cyric, who had grown powerful by filling in the power gap left by the deaths of Bane, Leira etc..., wanted more power. He wanted the Tablets himself. He manipulated a lot of lesser dieties, engineered the death of Helm, who was the only one who could stand in his way, and ended up actually stealing the Tablets and locking them away.
Ao, extremely pissed off by this, threatened to wipe the slate clean, get rid of all the Gods and start again, unless the tablets were found.
No one knew who had the tablets (apart from Cyric), and everyone was blaming everyone else, and eventually someone figured the only way to solve this was to force the truth out. So, the second GodsWar (after the 2e events) started, but it quickly escalated into something far, far worse - war that threatened to engulf all of creation.
The 'EndWar' (because many beleived it would be the last war as everything would just implode) basically created 4e Faerun, with the spellplague, the crashing of floating cities and the opening of the world. Volcanoes destroying Neverwinter etc... I hammed up a lot of the world-scarring events. Evil dieties like Grummsh marshalled entrie species to slaughter their enemies followers on the material plane, to weaken those gods in the Astral planes. You get the idea.
Ao saw all this, and wept. He regretted instigating this war. At the time he thought being locked in an endless struggle would finally teach the dieties not to mess with him, but Faerun had been so unbeleiveably f***ed up by these events that he could think of only one thing to put it right.
He'd always known where the Tablets were, but he wanted to teach the Gods a lesson. Instead, he'd learned a lesson in the price of anger. Wanting to put an end o the suggering, he sought out the Tables in his mind, and destroyed them - so began The Sundering.
Basically, it was like a reset button. Using most of his divine powers, Ao put the world back into a state that it was in just prior to the start of the EndWar (so 3.5e). It wasn't perfect - the city of Shade was still destroyed, Neverwiner was still buried by a Volanoe, and not everyone 'forgot' the changed reality. The Spellplague sent many Wizards 'mad', and some of them still were. Mountains were inexplicably scarred.
It was like the world woke up from a bad dream, except the scars of that dream were still visible. For some, the nightmare never stopped being real.
Given that Time Travel has just happened, the EndWar, as an event, still exists. 4e Faerun still exists... but much like the Time War from Doctor Who, the EndWar time period is now 'locked away' in its own dimension/reality/whatever, and by all rights shouldn't be accessible now that Mystra is back. This reset also explains why many other dieties have returned as well, randomly. This wasn't a controlled reset. Given that he'd just destroyed the artefact that binded reality together, he's having to use all of his power to hold everthing in place while he creates a NWO.
You could say Ao had to roll on a lot of random tables when he destroyed the tablets, so the result is a post 3.5 faerun still bearing the scars of 4th edition, but no one can explain why.
The Gods are more aware of what has gone on, apart from the ones that had died and came back to life, but some of them are still 'trapped' in the EndWar and desperate to get out. They can communicate with dieties in the new prime material plane, and their link to their followers for the purposes of diety-based powers still work, but if they don't escape this new hell then it could be very bad for them.
Some 'big picture' things that are influencing my world:
* Kingdom of Many-Arrows is still around, and at peace with the Marches. As a result of the Sundering, Grummsh's (and other evil non-human dieties) influence over the species they created is lessened. They're still inclined towards evil, but there's more room now for remarkable groups or individuals to break free of that mould. Obould wants to civilise his people and his new Kingdom but he's facing resistence from relgious factions from within.
* Shards of the old ToF litter reality - these 'Fate Shards' are being collected by many factions for many purposes, of which the party will be drawn into. Cyric, for example, is marshalling allies in the Prime plane to collect shards so that they can be used to allow him and some of the other Evil dieties trapped in the EndWar to escape.
* Due to the 'Cosmic Rolling' by Ao, Szass Tam doesn't exist in the new Prime Reality. However, the PC will, eventually, allow him to escape the EndWa r (where he does exist) by accident back into the new Prime, where he realises he doesn't exist, and goes to form a new power base. Also involving Fate Shards.
* Convieniantly, alot of these plots take place in the Silver Marches. It's almost like its a campaign setting or something.
* Helm is trapped in Cyric's home plane and unable to escape, even though he technically was 'revived'. The Church of Helm has all but vanished, but one plucky Cleric (who happens to be a PC) has found his powers have reactivated, and so is trying to prove to people that Helm is alive. Little does he know he's being manipulated by Leira, Goddess of Illusion, who's pretending to be Helm. She needs to free Helm so he can kill Cyric, who orginised both of their deaths and generally needs to be killed ASAP before he causes any more problems. The only way to do this is to marshal what few followers the Sentienl has left, spread the word, and feed Helm more power so they can either break him out, or he can break himself out.
* The EndWar spilled over to other realities. Eberron, Dragonlance, Greyhawk etc..., they all suffered because of this War. I plan to throw in elements here and there of other settings. A Warforged from Eberron slipped through a crack in reality and ends up in Faerun. Programmed only to destory, it terrorises the local area. A 'party' from another setting, realising that the problem has come from anothe reality entirely, creates some kind of WMD like thing and breaks through he barriers between worlds to destroy Faerun and hopefully end the suffering.
This is only possible because the Tablets don't exist. Again, Ao is using all of his might to keep Creation itself together in the absence of the tablets, there's bound to cracks that can be exploited (much like Docor Who).
There's my wall of text :P hope you like it.
DigitalEccentric wrote:
Another adventure seed for those who wish to carry forward the tradition of Many-Arrows:
Races of Faerun has a prestige class, Orc Warlord. Alas that it requires the (nonexistent in 5e) Leadership feat. It allows you to raise your own horde.
Other feats in the book enable the creation of a character who can be unto the Orcs what Sir Percival was unto Camelot: the last survivor who goes about the land telling the tale (and reminding the people) of the golden age that had once been ... and which could be yet again.
I am letting Many-Arrows stay active and they will assist Nesme (in my campaign) in fending off the drow and orc horde.