Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 memorax73 Aug 20, 2008 22:12:11	Please post what you like about the 4E FRCS in this thread. I ask that those who hate the new FRCS not post in this thread as you have plenty to post in already.
#2 merrikcale Aug 20, 2008 22:14:29	well, I hate 4e realms but I will post here anyway I liked the Returned Abeir continent
#3 karazhan Aug 20, 2008 22:34:51	I liked the fact that the concept of Abeir leaves it open to have vanished people or deities still alive and kicking.
#4 Mr_Miscellany Aug 20, 2008 22:53:15	I like that it's minimalist enough to allow DMs to go off in any number of directions. Truly a fresh start kind of tome. The full color artwork is a big improvement over the previous edition's Forgotten Realms "starter" sourcebooks. I like how they included things such as the description of the night's sky and included not just the moon (Selûne) but also listed the seven planets that are visible (Anadia, Coliar, Karpri, Chandos, Clyth, Garden, H'Catha). It's bit like this last one that I like the most about the book (so far, still reading it).
#5 kave99 Aug 20, 2008 22:55:22	Earthmotes, earth nodes and skyships.
#6 18DELTA Aug 20, 2008 23:14:57	-The Dawn Titans! They sound cool and awesome. -I like the Ordulin Maelstrom and that the Shades are trying to recreate the Shadow Weave from it! :P -I like that Elturgard is right next to Najara, and close to Amn and all of its wickedness. :D 18DELTA
#7 d1tremere Aug 20, 2008 23:34:06	I love the way it gives just enough detail to inspire and guide, without imposing it's own ample dogma any longer.
#8 18DELTA Aug 20, 2008 23:36:25	I love the way it gives just enough detail to inspire and guide, without imposing it's own ample dogma any longer. -Here, here! 18DELTA
#9 rauric Aug 20, 2008 23:43:44	Same here. It takes the Eberron approach but is not Eberron. TO me it is still the Realms I know but 100 years later. So of course things have changed, a whole freaking century has passed! ;)
#10 naex Aug 21, 2008 2:04:26	OK, we have a negathread for the FRCG, so I figure we should have one to say what we like about the new CG. Try and keep it positive folks... My personal likes are... 1. Order of Blue Fire, these guys have plot potential written all over them, infighting, hidden goals, heroes as members, sharn!, sharn!, sharn!, etc. 2. Psionics get lots of mentions 3. Sarruk! 4. High Magic is confirmed as rituals with many casters. 5. Overall I thought they gave a good overview of the new realms, now I hope they, and we, can fill in the gaps.
#11 Mr_Miscellany Aug 21, 2008 2:12:44	I was able to use the FR Campaign Guide to help a fellow poster get a background going for his/her new character. Who needs the FR Player's Guide anyway. ;) Mr_Miscellany = Happy
#12 admcewen Aug 21, 2008 2:17:33	The full color artwork is a big improvement over the previous edition's Forgotten Realms "starter" sourcebooks. Have you noticed the picture on page 49, hmm I know him from somewhere... I am still reading my copy and enjoying it lots.
#13 naex Aug 21, 2008 2:27:21	didn't see this thread... please merge.
#14 serphet Aug 21, 2008 2:39:03	Order of teh Blye flame is amazing! I think I ant my characters to start around them and see them as 'good guys' and join, and on the inside, be used and such... if you've read you see where I can go with this, OoBF is my favorite threat in the new realms, just after ... The court of Rorn(SP?), not a huge attachment, just that Dawn Titans sound so cool.
#15 Wizardman Aug 21, 2008 2:58:02	The Order of Blue Fire is really cool, it must be said, and completely logical. There are plenty of story ideas there. Having Evereska simultaneously exist on the Prime and in the Feywild is a great idea, and no-- I'm not just saying that because I have an idea for a similar city in my 4E world. Just so we're clear. ;) :D The Glossary is, as we say here on The Internets, made of win. I love it. Contrary to how it must appear on other threads, I really do like the idea of Elturgard, but I think that they picked the wrong god for it. Parts of the Menzo writeup made me snicker. Quenthel having Triel's rotting corpse locked in her own hall is such a drow thing to do. I like that there are remnants of Halruaa kicking around, even if they are pirates or recluses. The Warlock Knights are badasses, and this is always good. They're the best new villains of the setting, with the possible exception of... The Abolethic Sovereignty. Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water... Bregan D'aerthe must get a mention, if only for the awesome that is Jarlaxle (and that picture of him is brilliant).
#16 naex Aug 21, 2008 3:24:54	I like the plaguescar stuff, looking forward to that in PG. Also I really like the idea of Plangents. Crystalline replacement limbs, of unknown origin, horror movie waiting to happen.
#17 Iluvrien Aug 21, 2008 6:24:57	Another shocking poster I know... but... I like the motes, fantastic scenery like this just has me drooling at the mouth wanting to put in Elven (especially Avariel) cities of drifting spires... or dwarven mineworkings... if only you could steer the things then you could have them bringing the product to the customer. Kind of like the london Circle or Tokyo Yamanote underground lines... going around in a set circle discharging cargo on the way. Or even use them as a transport system for enormous items... you just would have to be patient about the postage time. I love the skyships. I am very glad they survived the obliteration of Halruaa. I love the increased presence of the Fey elements. I almost see them creeping out of the shadows of trees deep in the heart of Faerun's forests bringing a sense of natural inherent magic to the world. I always found the Vancian system a little constraining so played Sorcerers a lot. There will probably be more but I am going through it piece by piece.
#18 bmschweigert Aug 21, 2008 6:39:55	I like the 5 companies
#19 ranadiel Aug 21, 2008 7:04:53	I like brain flukes and that we finally have a statted out primordial.
#20 Khaelieth Aug 21, 2008 7:37:48	-Here, here! 18DELTA Hear, hear, you mean?;p
#21 drunken_master_nowak Aug 21, 2008 8:46:59	Got my book yesterday evening, and have had a chance to read through just a few sections briefly. Here's what I'm liking a lot so far: • Bane & Loviatar: I always thought those two should be together. Pain and Tyranny go together like peanut butter and chocolate. And Bane's squad of exarchs is pretty awesome. Speaking of which... • Fzoul Chembryl, the Exarch: He has always been my favorite Realms villain, pretty much ever since I saw his illustration in the Old Gray Box with that beholder behind him. Dude is cool; glad he's still around. My players will have quite a fight on their hands in about 25 levels... • Wheloon: I love the "Escape From New York" prison city angle. • Waterdeep's Mistshore neighborhood • Waterdeep's Downshadow neighborhood • Church of Shar: Dark Moon Monks! It's cool that the kir-lanan have joined forces with the Sharrans, too. Saw that one coming for a while. • Baldur's Gate: So ripe for adventures! (As always, really!) I do miss Skullport and the phaerimm, though. However, with every page I'm finding new things to be excited about, so I can't dwell on the stuff that's missing. And, if I see fit, there can always be phaerimm survivors, and trade in Skullport could pick right back up!
#22 18DELTA Aug 21, 2008 8:51:11	Hear, hear, you mean?;p - 18DELTA ;)
#23 merrikcale Aug 21, 2008 8:54:46	Same here. It takes the Eberron approach but is not Eberron. TO me it is still the Realms I know but 100 years later. So of course things have changed, a whole freaking century has passed! ;) Well, of course everything has changed, but it still a terrible decision
#24 zakman_dup Aug 21, 2008 9:05:14	I like that it's minimalist enough to allow DMs to go off in any number of directions. This fact I personally hate. It's way too minimalistic. Most regions have paragraphs about history everyone should know already. And the rest are adventure hooks. Quite Poor. Bregan D'aerthe must get a mention, if only for the awesome that is Jarlaxle (and that picture of him is brilliant). Jep, I like the 'new' expansionistic way of Breagan D'aerthe. But imo we have already seen better pics of Jarlaxle. Besides that, I mainly like High Imaskar (Ususi as empress is great) and the last chapter of threats. Some nice stats in there ;)
#25 barthalas Aug 21, 2008 10:44:20	In no particular order, the returned closeness of the Feywild and the whole Eladrin/Elves split as described; the return of Netheril as a power, Genasi having their own realm; Dragonborn having their own realm; Thay is land of undead; the Shadar-Kai; Kara-Tur now have a bigger presence in Faerun now. Deemphasis of the Zhentarim; the growth of Baldur's Gate; Swordmages; the return to power of Myth Drannor; the scaled down pantheon. How's that for a start.
#26 thecasualoblivion Aug 21, 2008 11:24:21	Been too busy reading the book to post. I like how they messed the world up enough to achieve points of light, while keeping a great deal of trade and patches of major civilization. Gives the best of both worlds. Returned Abeir, Feywild, Elemental Chaos, domains in the Astral Sea, and all the places turned upside down give lots of places to go and do stuff. They give you enough material to run a game and then cut things off right there. I really like that. Plots and Adventure Sites--these blurbs alone blow away the 3E FRCS IMO. Most of all I like that the world is wide open now.
#27 aseran Aug 21, 2008 11:50:49	To be absolutely honest, going through this I can find very little not to like. In the most general of senses, I love that they've applied what they learned making Eberron to the development of this latest incarnation of FR. For the first time, I feel like, everything is arranged and presented in such a sense that it all plays a significant role in the setting, and there is truly no shortage of flavor and color everywhere you look. I truly love how it all sells itself. Nothing has to be contextualized by which out of this or that badass high-level NPC does stuff there. The NPC blurb, too, is a gem: "Yes, FR has many colorful characters. No, we will not stat them. If they're important enough in your game to have stats, do it yourself!" Rock on. Now, as to some of the little things I've picked up on so far that struck me as awesome: -Halruaa's legacy is a bunch of wizarding air pirates. -Amn is now such a cesspit it's hilarious. -Elminster lives in peaceful retirement on Storm's old farm. He will not hesitate to tell you kids to get off his damn lawn. -Western heartlands-region now contains Elturgard as a fully-formed kingdom. -Abeir. And all of the sheer weirdness it brings, plus the Plaguelands. It's so surreally 'different' that I'm seeing echoes of Planescape, yet we haven't even left the Prime. -Speaking of Planescape, hello. Asmodeus used Azuth's exploding divine essence to blow the Abyss straight down into the depths of the Inner Planes!? We NEED this story expanded on; something that insane cannot be let by with but a side note! -Amaunator reborn. He was always more awesome than Lathander. -Jarlaxle. Just, Jarlaxle. -The aboleths in the Sea of Fallen Stars. That whole affair is deliciously terrifying. -Quenthel Baenre rules in Menzoberranzan. I enjoyed the 'War of the Spider Queen' storyline; it's nice to see the impact of those events still playing themselves out in a way so profoundly drow-like. -The amusing cultural impact of the destruction of Thay contrasted with the proliferation of Red Wizard enclaves still out there now leads to "Red Wizard" being effectively a euphemism for any magic item-hocking spellcaster. The more things change... Tons more, I'm sure. I'm still reading. I was really jaded on FR for a while; it's always been the quintessential D&D world to me, but it could get awfully murky at times. I'm genuinely thrilled.
#28 suisei Aug 21, 2008 12:30:54	I like most of the content in the FRCG, I just wish there was more of it! Another plus: I get to keep using my old books! Yeah since this campaign guide likes to leave everything to your imagination, I get to keep using (whatever hasn't changed) the older material. Oh hey and it hardly talks about Drizzt, that's a big plus for me! ;) I miss the other NPC's, but I could do w/o him.
#29 asoka Aug 21, 2008 12:42:54	So far, the book is awesome. Lots of great content and a fantastic looking book. My only gripe is that I want More! Thankfully, the DDI articles should be bringing us more.
#30 Shiftkitty Aug 21, 2008 14:05:34	Not being a FR guru, I was happy to see that Gromph was still alive and well. He's a major NPC in my campaign and I'd hate to have to rewrite things to keep him alive. Don't know what to do about Quenthel, though. She's currently residing in an amber arrowhead hanging around Gromph's neck. I like the Eberron approach as well. I was actually just thinking about that this morning while riding to work. I hated reading about the Realms and feeling like I was reading about someone else's campaign. In my old campaign, prior to the 4e switch, the drow had reoccupied Miyeritar (they refuse to call it the High Moor). With what I see as a more open feel to FR, I don't think I'll have to tweak things around to make it fit.
#31 lord_karsus Aug 21, 2008 19:34:01	-Sure thing. I'll have them crunched.
#32 Mr_Miscellany Aug 21, 2008 21:05:21	Have you noticed the picture on page 49, hmm I know him from somewhere... :D Yeah, it's Dudonahorz!
#33 unfamiliar Aug 21, 2008 22:49:52	I've been a Forgotten Realms fan ever since I first started reading the novels, but when it came to actually playing D&D in the world, I've always felt a bit like an outsider looking in. With so much history & detail, it was pretty much impossible for me to feel free to really adventure in the Realms without some nagging voice asking me if it all "fit in" with what was being covered in the hundreds of novels & sourcebooks released through the decades. Thanks to a simple 100-year jump in the Realms timeline & a not-so-simple cataclysmic event, the Realms no longer remind me of a stagnant, clogged toilet in dire need of a good flushing. WotC has finally handed full control of the setting back to the gamers, where it belongs, & that's what I like most - the feeling that they're finally my Forgotten Realms.
#34 Shiftkitty Aug 21, 2008 22:55:12	Have you noticed the picture on page 49, hmm I know him from somewhere... I am still reading my copy and enjoying it lots. Yes I noticed it and I knew right off the bat who it was. My thought was "cooooool!" Now, ask me if the person has a name and I couldn't tell you. I just love it when they do little nods to past editions like that! Egad, then again, Thunderspire and the return of the Norkers... I... hate... Norkers! *shudder* They just don't die!!!
#35 admcewen Aug 22, 2008 1:17:38	Yes I noticed it and I knew right off the bat who it was. My thought was "cooooool!" Now, ask me if the person has a name and I couldn't tell you. I just love it when they do little nods to past editions like that! Egad, then again, Thunderspire and the return of the Norkers... I... hate... Norkers! *shudder* They just don't die!!! I also love it when they nod to the past. Still reading mine so far I love it, its such a fresh change and I want my character to help out. Just finished Cormyr wow Wheloon how scary is that? (do you wish to know more?/Hell yeah!!!)
#36 quale_ Aug 22, 2008 10:17:08	I like: Vaasa Shou immigrants, adds more cultural complexity Anauroch, that it isn't only a desert Red Wizard schism Zhentarim no longer with Bane Baldur's Gate expanding Moonshaes divided Brightstar Lake connected to Sea of Fallen Stars some of the changes in Shaar, no longer that monotone but only as ideas cause FRCG is badly written
#37 karazhan Aug 22, 2008 12:26:28	I really like the fact that prespellplague permanent magic items can still function as they did prior to the spellplague. This really puts an emphasis on scouring ruins, dungeoncrawling, and adventuring for magics of the past. I think it also opens the door to having the old magic tradition survive as well. Perhaps it just is harder to use now than the easier system.This could in fact lead to a rebirth of specialization (and Red Wizards). It's harder, more limited in spell selection, but packs a punch.
#38 estelindis Aug 22, 2008 16:48:59	The layout is very good. (This seems to be a positive trend in recent WotC books: more and more of the things that should belong together can be seen on the same two-page spread.) I haven't found anything else I like yet, but I'll post again if I do.