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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
 Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 18:31:53
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Yes. That's what we know thus far (and remember: unreliable narrators, always; the major facts are certainly right, but the details may be wrong or slanted).
Sandstorm, as it happens - - YES, by coincidence - - I just got Ed's answer to your question ("How do the mages in the city detect the use of arcane use?"), and here it is:
By use of a large web of wards covering much of the city, of course (a patchwork equivalent of a mythal). Though this webwork is constantly failing, here and there (and having to be repaired by the Cowled Wizards doing new castings), it holds up pretty well except when deliberately magically attacked, because all it does is detect, scry, and provide "anchor points" ('perfect' destinations) for Cowled Wizards teleports. All Cowled Wizards use a phrase or gesture in their castings that identifies them as Cowled Wizards to these wards; all other castings within or entering or exiting the wards trigger an alarm (so it's a detect magic modification thing). Shows precise location and extent of spell effects, but nothing else...so patrols of warriors, with wizards as "undercover" backup, are sent scurrying to the spot.
So saith Ed. More Realmslore, served up piping fresh!
love to all,
THO |
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Bruce Donohue
Learned Scribe
Canada
131 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 19:03:50
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<Yes. That's what we know thus far (and remember: unreliable narrators, always; the major facts are certainly right, but the details may be wrong or slanted).> quote from THO.
Sorry THO I must have missed something in reading the previous posts, but which question does this relate to? |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 20:39:25
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Hi, Bruce. It was directly in response to your post, right above mine. As in: yes, that's what Grand History says...but we don't know details, or if it's been stated slightly skewed (after all, from whom does this data come? what all-knowing mortal? If a god, well, all the gods lie or exaggerate or...).
Just saying. 
love,
THO |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3243 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 20:54:09
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Exactly! I mean, for all we mere mortals know, Cyric and Shar struck at Mystra, but failed miserably. In the ensuing battle, Mystra could have killed both gods, absorbing their portfolios, which drove her insane, forcing the other gods to lock her in Dweomerheart and make it look like it was destroyed until Mystra could 'right' herself. This could have caused the Spellplague as well, and the story of her death may just be a grandiose tale from Cyricists/Sharrans that are trying to resurrect their deities with lies to gather belief in the dead gods.
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I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 21:16:04
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No way!
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"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Icelander
Master of Realmslore
1864 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 21:24:21
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Just came across those elusive identical halfling twins in my 1981 Realms notes: the male hin Amandar and Melver Minstrelwish, both handsome, agile, and tall and thin (for halflings) sorts who were scourges of both halfling and human lasses in their youths (spent errand-running, swift-package-delivering, and spying [often from rooftops, by night, on "embarrassing bedchamber moments" for the patrons who hired them to blackmail with] in Waterdeep).
Any relation to the Minstrelwishes of Ravens Bluff? |
Za uspiekh nashevo beznadiozhnovo diela!
Forgotten Realms fans, please sign a petition to re-release the FR Interactive Atlas
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 21:45:42
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Hi, all.
Yes, Icelander, they are...but not closely.
The Minstrelwish clan is HUGE and many-branched, not to mention scattered across darned near all of Faerun. With its own internal feuds and "standoffish" facets, too, though in general all Minstrelwishes give shelter and aid to all others, who appear and are in need.
(The paragraph I've set apart, above, comes straight from Ed's notes.)
love,
THO |
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Bruce Donohue
Learned Scribe
Canada
131 Posts |
Posted - 22 Dec 2009 : 23:25:35
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Heehee thanks THO, insert Duh, on my part. Sorry I missed that. That is a very cool and interesting way to look it from that perspective. I guess we will have to see if anyone can substantiate it at some point, on a side note, I thought Ed might know considering he wrote it  <insert mischevious grin> I wonder if any scribes who have survived that time did look into it,such as any reputable cleric of Sune, Tyr, or Lathander,mmm of maybe Oghma hiself if he chronicled it in his writings. It would make for one very interesting campaign for sure and I wonder who would sponser such an investigation?
THO can you ask Ed if the Temple of Lathander in Myth Drannor was re-established post Spellplague since it was still in effect in there up until the Spellplague and I think there used to be another one in the Dales but I can't remember the town's name.Where was it again?
Is the reason that the that Anaroch is fertile again in part because the spells of the Phaerimm that caused it are no more and because of the Spellplague that ar the cause of the restoration of the land? Or is it due the Shadovar?
Thanks again in advance for any help you can give.
Bruce |
Edited by - Bruce Donohue on 22 Dec 2009 23:30:32 |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 23 Dec 2009 : 01:48:11
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Uh, no, Bruce, that account of Mystra's death ISN'T one of the passages in GHotR that Ed wrote.
From what was said at GenCon this year, all of the "advent of the Spellplague" stuff was written in-house, and not shown to freelancers working on the project.
Now, Ed MIGHT have be shown it before publication, out of courtesy, but he didn't write it. (This information comes from Wizards staffers answering questions at panels at the last GenCon - - and if any of them spoke incorrectly, there were six other staffers, right up to Bill Slaviscek, head of the game end of things, sitting there who could have corrected them. And didn't.)
I'm guessing Ed isn't free to talk about this . . . but I also think, from some half-hints dropped in this thread by Ed and by THO, that we'll learn more, in little bits, in future FR publications.
Just my two coppers.
BB |
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Bruce Donohue
Learned Scribe
Canada
131 Posts |
Posted - 23 Dec 2009 : 10:34:14
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| Ok cool and thanks Blueblade, wasn't sure or not since on the cover of the book it had his name indicated. Much appreciated for the heads up. :) |
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Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 25 Dec 2009 : 06:45:01
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So I've got a new question for Ed:
I've noticed that in most of your books, before the dedication, there is usually some phrase in Latin. My question is in two parts: First, where does this fondness for latin phrses come from, and does it signify something?
Second, regarding the relevance of the quote. In Silverfall, it was quite understandable. The second phrase in Elminster's Daughter was quite relevant, but what did the first part ('sedit qui timuit ne non succederet') have to do with? Was the phrase in Swords of Eveningstar relevant to the book, or as I suspect, to the writing process? Also, what was the relevance of the quotes in Swords of Dragonfire and the Sword Never Sleeps?
Just to be clear, I'm not asking for translation; I've gotten that on my own. I want to know (if Ed is willing to say) how these phrases are connected ot the book. |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
Edited by - Menelvagor on 25 Dec 2009 06:45:59 |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 25 Dec 2009 : 08:28:57
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| Didn't Ed learn about the Spellplague at a secret Gencon meeting in 2005, or 2006? I remember reading or hearing that I think on the WotC boards. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Kes_Alanadel
Learned Scribe
USA
326 Posts |
Posted - 25 Dec 2009 : 15:58:28
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Dear Ed and THO,
Just popping by to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a profitable and Happy New Year. Thank you both for the many gifts that you give the scribes here at the 'Keep all year long!
Warm regards,
~Kes |
Ack! I seem to have too much blood in my coffee stream!
When did 'common sense' cease to be common? |
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Joran Nobleheart
Senior Scribe
USA
495 Posts |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 26 Dec 2009 : 04:19:42
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Happy Holidays. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 15:53:25
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Hi again, all! Ed and I both want to wish you all happy holidays - - and to a brighter, happier-than-2009 New Year of 2010 for everyone!
May we all greet the end of 2010 in a better wise than we stand here now. With the Realms rich and vibrant around us, as well as the real world.
love to all of you,
THO |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 15:59:27
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Hi again.
Brimstone, Ed was indeed part of that secret Realms summit held in certain "back of the Marriott ground floor" at a GenCon some years ago.
However, the Spellplague had no name then, and there were no details of divine deaths (or anything more than the floating of a "prune the large pantheons" idea). That meeting featured much fierce (but not unfriendly) debate, because everyone taking part cared passionately about the Realms.
NDAs still cover details of what was (as opposed to what was not) discussed and decided, but Ed tells me he won't get into answering "Well, if this wasn't said, was that said?" queries designed to winnow it information by elimination. He'd much rather put the time into writing new Realmslore and Realms novels rather than playing nudge-and-wink duck and dodge NDAs games.
To which I responded: Awwwwww...
love,
THO |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 16:05:18
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Hmmm. Speaking of which: Ed is well aware of the unfinished four sample Cormyrean noble families, Thunderstone lore, and all the other queries, from 2004 through until today, he still needs to get around to answering.
However, he's interested in knowing what topics of Realmslore (specific things, not "all about Cormyr" or "everything that happened from the end of Grand History to the start date of the 4e guide") scribes would most like to see covered, somewhere and somehow, in 2010. Ed's Eye on the Realms column in D&D Insider (Dungeon Magazine) is written in advance for almost an entire year's-worth, and he can't put Realmslore into Kobold Quarterly or other non-Wizards sources (except here and tangentially at loremaster), but he CAN steer writing he is doing to touch on, give hints about, and somewhat address some things, if he knows you're burning to know more about something specific (regulation War Wizards undergarments, for example ).
So, right here and right now, let us know, okay?
love,
THO |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31774 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 16:13:03
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It's funny you should mention that my lady, because that's one of the "changes" I've been thinking about implementing for next year's Questions for Ed Greenwood scroll. I'll likely follow this up in an email, however, as there's a few delicate points I want to address first.
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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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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 16:18:37
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Fire away, Sage dearest. I'm all ears.
(Except, of course, for my more interesting body parts that aren't ears. )
Ahem.
love,
THO |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 16:45:54
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Hi again, all! A tiny snippet of Realmslore just arrived from Ed, this one in partial response to this query, from Broken Helm (page 116 of this thread): " Dear Ed and THO,
Having just bought some boxes of frozen "appetizers" (hors d'oeuvres, party "finger foods," call them what you will) for Christmas, I'm moved to ask: are there mass-produced, buy-from-a-shop "finger foods" for revels, feasts, and celebrations? If so, what are they called and what are they? (I'm looking for what can be bought in human cities, not undersea or underground.) Thanks!"
Ed replies:
Still assembling a proper reply, but the short answer is: yes, as of just before the Spellplague. One appetizer popular in Sword Coast ports and now in Suzail and Westgate (creeping into Sembian cities) is the "talyth," which is a cracker the size of a small human palm, onto which has been placed a thin slice of sausage, with various sorts of herbs, spices, and mush-down-flat foodstuffs in between, everything being lightly baked to "glue" it together. These are usually savory, and can include anything from snails and oysters and spiced worms right up through diced eggs and mixed cheeses. Sugars are often added, and they are wrapped in pig's bladders, heated on metal plates over fires to drive out moisture, tied shut, then "painted" all over with "tansel," which is an egg-and-certain-plant-pastes glue mixture that can provide an airtight seal, and packed in little pitch-sealed tins full of edible plant oils to guard against spoilage. Caravan companies ship these tins to shops, and you buy individual bladders of half a dozen or a dozen talyth for your meal or feast or revel.
Of course, these are just premade versions of talyths that have been "made fresh" in Waterdeep, Neverwinter, Luskan, Mirabar, Elturel, Everlund, Silverymoon, and Scornubel for decades. In winter, these can be premade and packed on ice, for later heating or reheating, to be served immediately.
So saith Ed. Thinking of our tummies again at this festive season; how thoughtful.
love to all,
THO |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 16:49:10
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A postscript: yes, Ed is well aware that "talyth" is already a name for something else in the Realms. He's deliberately introducing another of the sort of realistic confusions (as found in our real world, and as deliberately removed by TSR and later Wizards down the years, for greater clarity, in the published Realms) that are found in the original Realms, such as a demon AND a devil sharing the name "Ashtaroth" (among many other examples).
love,
THO |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 21:10:35
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Thats awesome. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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sfdragon
Great Reader
2285 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 04:20:37
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| is selunnarra(sp??) aka the netherese enclave at the gates of the moon under an nda? |
why is being a wizard like being a drow? both are likely to find a dagger in the back from a rival or one looking to further his own goals, fame and power
My FR fan fiction
Magister's GAmbit
http://steelfiredragon.deviantart.com/gallery/33539234 |
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Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 16:49:00
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| I'm about to start re-reading the Knights of Myth Drannor trilogy, so I'll probably have lots of questions, but let's start with a rather simple and basic one: When do these novels take place? Obviously before 1369 DR, as that is the year of the Abraxus Affair, where both Tanalasta and Alusair are older, and Bhereu and Thomdor die. Since the birth of Alusair was (if I'm not mistaken) in 1335 DR, and she's 12 or so in the novel, I'd put the trilogy in 1347-9 DR, but can I get an exact fix? |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
Edited by - Menelvagor on 29 Dec 2009 16:50:25 |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 18:25:58
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If I recall rightly, Menelvagor (I'm away from my books right now), the first book of the trilogy (in the first page of the story text)tells you the day, month, and year that the action starts (or at least tells you early or late in the month; early, I think), and you can figure out elapsed time pretty easily as the books unfold (second follows on RIGHT after the first, etc.).
BB |
Edited by - Blueblade on 29 Dec 2009 18:26:50 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 18:45:15
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Hi again, all. Menelvagor, Blueblade is right re. the dating of the trilogy. Quite specific. (Though I can't be, I'm afraid, because I'm away from my books, too.)
I bring Ed's response to Blueblade about another matter: the fate of the Knights, post-Spellplague (or more specifically, the nigh-century-timejump that brings us to the date of the 4e Realms Guide). Ed responds thus:
I'm afraid the fates of the Knights and many other Realms characters are NDA'd right now. Obviously, you can draw conclusions from that published Wizards catalogue writeup of ELMINSTER MUST DIE, and I can add that the text of that novel will (largely in passing, whilst telling another tale) shed light on the fates of some other Realms characters, when it's published in August 2010. Who, and what those fates are, are just going to have to remain mysterious until then. Sorry.
So saith Ed. Who doesn't fault you for trying, at all (he expects it).
love to all,
THO
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Edited by - The Hooded One on 29 Dec 2009 18:46:16 |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 18:55:38
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quote:
Originally posted by Malcolm
Dear Ed and THO,
If all the Obarskyrs were wiped out at once (and for the sake of convenience, let's say Vangey and Caladnei, too), who's next in line for the Dragon Throne?
A "proven" bastard of Azoun? A member of one of the "Royal Houses" of nobility?
I'm well aware that it would really come down to who could physically hold the throne and attract the support of the majority of nobles and commoners, but "on paper," whose claim takes precedence?
Oh, and a P.S.: just pre-Spellplague is the time setting, and Cormyr is the place.
Thanks!
 Ooh! Someone else who would love to see the Cormyr Lineage! Malcolm, said document would likely answer those questions, if Ed can ever persuade it to be published... but I'm not sure that there's anything more he can say until then... because Ed wants it published almost as badly as I do. Anyway, that's my answer; Ed may be able to share a bit more that I'm not aware of (and Ed, you have my enthusiastic encouragement to do so). |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 29 Dec 2009 19:02:53 |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 19:01:15
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quote:
Originally posted by Zandilar
Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
I also have a more than sneaking suspicion that although we may never learn all the details of the whys and hows and Mystra's plans or safeguards or forethought or lack of same, that this story isn't quite finished yet...
This ignites in me the very faint hope that we may not have seen the last of Mystra in the Realms.
By Tymora, I think she might make a come back.
That's Ed... he even has contingencies for the contingencies. Besides, (in the Realms) what kind of greater deity would Mystra be if she didn't have some kind of plan for such occurrences, particularly given that she's already died twice, and (in RL) what kind of publisher would Wizbro be if they didn't give themselves an out in case the death of Mystra proved to be vastly unpopular? |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 20:27:04
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Heh. Let's keep that last "(RL)" question rhetorical. As in: you don't want to let me give my opinion as to what sort of publisher they are. Really.
Nor am I, I suspect, the only one.
Let's just say we can all see that a bold reset has already been used, so there's ALWAYS an out.
BB |
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2009)
Topic Locked
