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Genis
Learned Scribe
USA
226 Posts |
 Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 07:48:17
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Any suggestions on books or series in which I can learn a large amount of the history and backstory that is Forgotten Realms, just stuff that will make me more capable at keeping up with you people. I'm lost 90% of the time considering I have read was less books, the ones I have read are mostly newer/less historical as far as that goes, AND I don't D&D which gives you fine people an advantage over me. SO again to sum it up, just some good novels rich in history and back story of FR and its peoples and what have you...thanks 
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Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
732 Posts |
Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 08:22:15
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quote:
Originally posted by Genis
Any suggestions on books or series in which I can learn a large amount of the history and backstory that is Forgotten Realms, just stuff that will make me more capable at keeping up with you people. I'm lost 90% of the time considering I have read was less books, the ones I have read are mostly newer/less historical as far as that goes, AND I don't D&D which gives you fine people an advantage over me. SO again to sum it up, just some good novels rich in history and back story of FR and its peoples and what have you...thanks
There's no single novel (or even series of novels) that gives an all-compassing overview of the history of the Realms (the only novels which are very historical, but which are limited to one particular topic would be Evermeet and Cormyr, a Novel.
Since you're not a gamer, you may want to check out the Grand History of the Realms, which started life as a PDF by our own Brian R. James, and was the last sourcebook published before the advent of 4th Edition. It was part of the gaming line, but it's just a chronology of the Realms' history, which non-gamers can easily enjoy. |
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Alisttair
Great Reader
Canada
3054 Posts |
Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 11:09:18
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| The Avatar Trilogy (Shadowdale, Tantras, Waterdeep) could help IMO. |
Karsite Arcanar (Most Holy Servant of Karsus)
Anauria - Survivor State of Netheril as penned by me:
http://www.dmsguild.com/m/product/172023 |
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 15:58:02
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| BTW, there is a stickied thread about novel recommendations. |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36910 Posts |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36910 Posts |
Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 16:41:37
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The thing to remember about the Realms is that it is a tapestry. It's been woven by many hands, in many styles, and done so over a course of many years. It's hard to make any suggestions to give one more lore, because that's like trying to pick out a handful of threads and from them see the whole.
Yeah, there are books that provide more lore than others. But almost all of them focus on smaller areas, and not the whole. To get the whole picture, you've simply got to keep reading everything. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3746 Posts |
Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 17:08:09
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| -A Grand History of the Realms is not a novel, but it is a (somewhat mostly) complete chronology, from the beginning, to the (recent) end, and then some. Again, it's not a novel, but it has all of the information that you want. |
(A Tri-Partite Arcanist Who Has Forgotten More Than Most Will Ever Know)
Elves of Faerūn
Vol I- The Elves of Faerūn
Vol. III- Spells of the Elves
Vol. VI- Mechanical Compendium |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
Posted - 25 Nov 2008 : 23:09:38
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| Most of Ed Greenwood's early "Elminster" novels feature sections on Realms history, most notably, Elminster: The Making of a Mage, Elminster in Myth Drannor, and The Temptation of Elminster. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Fillow
Master of Realmslore
France
1608 Posts |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3746 Posts |
Posted - 26 Nov 2008 : 23:53:40
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-Can't believe I didn't include my typical response:
Pick a short story anthology that deals with a topic you find interesting: Elves, Dragons, Magic, War, Mystery, whatever. There's a whole bunch of them. Realms of X anthologies have numerous short stories by numerous authors, taking place all across Faerūn, in the past, and present. The common factor between them all is whatever X is. By virtue of reading various stories, you'll pick up information pertaining to various locales, during different time periods. It also helps to become acclimated to the styles individual authors have, as well as their characters and so on. |
(A Tri-Partite Arcanist Who Has Forgotten More Than Most Will Ever Know)
Elves of Faerūn
Vol I- The Elves of Faerūn
Vol. III- Spells of the Elves
Vol. VI- Mechanical Compendium |
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Genis
Learned Scribe
USA
226 Posts |
Posted - 28 Nov 2008 : 00:56:26
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| Thanks all for your recommendations and suggestions, I will consider and read most of the presummably great ideas of yours |
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Books for learning great amounts of FR history.
