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Wrigs13
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
201 Posts |
 Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 16:28:24
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I currently run a game with four players and have recently moved to forgotten realms 3.5. If each of us was to purchase only one product each what should they be?
What are the 5 best products for running the 3rd Ed Realms? 
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Do not try to understand the 4th edition. Thats impossible. Instead...only try to realise the truth. There is no 4th edition. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 16:44:18
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Limiting it to 3.x really cuts down on the available pool of products. And speaking for myself, all my fave Realms products are 2E.
I guess my fave 3.x products would be the FRCS, City of Splendors: Waterdeep, Lost Empires of Faerūn, Races of Faerūn, and Lords of Darkness.
Now, obviously, the 5 best products are going to depend on your campaign. If you're staying in the Dales area and going into the Underdark, then City of Splendors is going to be useless to you. So we need that information. We need to know where your campaign is going to be, and at least an idea of what the focus is -- because Lost Empires of Faerūn, for example, is of limited utility to someone who's going to be staying urban and focusing on intrigue.
Also, is there a particular reason to limit it to 3.x products? I know you're running the Realms in 3E, but there was a lot of great 2E stuff that wouldn't be difficult to convert. With only a few exceptions, 2E stuff was generally far more informative and full of lore than 3E stuff. In fact, a lot of 3E stuff is reprints of earlier material with minor updates. |
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Wrigs13
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
201 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 16:50:27
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Thanks Wooly you make a good point,
I am playing 3rd ed but I suppose I am asking what are the best resources for running the realms generally. Some 1st and 2nd stuff may not be appropriate for 3rd ed, but you will have to prise my copy of Faiths and Avatars out of my cold dead hands.
So other editions are acceptable as long as the information contained can be used in 3.5
Campaign to be based in Cormyr to start with, in the wake of the goblinoid war, but want to include wider threats such as Zhents and Red Wizards, got pc's from as far as Aglarond and High Forest. Would also like to include a minotaur nation but thats just wishful thinking really. So Cormyr, Dales, Moonsea, etc.
Cheers everybody |
Do not try to understand the 4th edition. Thats impossible. Instead...only try to realise the truth. There is no 4th edition. |
Edited by - Wrigs13 on 03 Feb 2009 16:54:06 |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3243 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 17:00:15
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I'd have to say that you'll need the FRCS/Player's Guide to Faerūn combination. The FRCScontains all the necessary lore you'll need for the game, including people and places, and the Player's Guide has everything updated to 3.5 rules.
If you want the best lore book available, The Grand History of the Realms is your best bet. While Races of Faerūn is one of the best 'crunch' books avaialble (and still manages a good bit of lore!).
After those four, choose the a book that details where you want to set your campaign:
- City of Splendors: Waterdeep
- Lost Empires of Faerūn (if set in the past, or exploring ruins)
- Mysteries of the Moonsea
- Serpent Kingdoms
- Shining South
- Silver Marches
- Unapproachable East
I agree with Wooly as well, if you want some really good lore, pick up a lot of the older books as well. You can even get them for cheap as pdfs on sites like Paizo.com or DriveThruRpg.com. |
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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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3243 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 17:02:51
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quote:
Originally posted by Wrigs13
Campaign to be based in Cormyr to start with, in the wake of the goblinoid war, but want to include wider threats such as Zhents and Red Wizards, got pc's from as far as Aglarond and High Forest. Would also like to include a minotaur nation but thats just wishful thinking really. So Cormyr, Dales, Moonsea, etc.
Alas, the Cormyr book never happened, but I'd say Mysteries of the Moonsea or Unapproachable East (Aglarond and Thay) would be your best bets.
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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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Alisttair
Great Reader
Canada
3054 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 17:12:36
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For 3.xE,
1 - FRCS
2 - Player's Guide to Faerun
3 - Races of Faerun
4 - Power of Faerun
5 - Regional Book appropriate for area you will be playing in |
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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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 17:49:09
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Only has two. The FRCS and the Grand Hist.
The rest, I hardly ever ever ever touch because my 2e material contains better info. :) |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 17:58:33
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quote:
Originally posted by Wrigs13
Thanks Wooly you make a good point,
I am playing 3rd ed but I suppose I am asking what are the best resources for running the realms generally. Some 1st and 2nd stuff may not be appropriate for 3rd ed, but you will have to prise my copy of Faiths and Avatars out of my cold dead hands.
So other editions are acceptable as long as the information contained can be used in 3.5
Campaign to be based in Cormyr to start with, in the wake of the goblinoid war, but want to include wider threats such as Zhents and Red Wizards, got pc's from as far as Aglarond and High Forest. Would also like to include a minotaur nation but thats just wishful thinking really. So Cormyr, Dales, Moonsea, etc.
Cheers everybody
Okay... Well, there was a 2E book on Cormyr, though it was set well before the attack of the Devil Dragon. It was, of course, called Cormyr. There was also a 2E book called The Moonsea. And there was a 2E book called The Dalelands.
And Volo's Guide to Cormyr and Volo's Guide to the Dalelands would be essential. The other books give a good general overview, but Volo's Guides give you the on-the-ground feeling. Both are available for free from the Wizards downloads page.
Aglarond was covered in both 2E (the Spellbound boxed set) and in 3.x, with Unapproachable East. I'd recommend the former before the latter, but either should serve. Both sources also cover the region of Thay.
For the Red Wizards and the Zhents, you've got multiple sources. The Zhents were most recently updated in Champions of Ruin, with maybe a bit of info in Mysteries of the Moonsea. But the most detailed info on the Zhents is an older book, though: 2E's Cloak & Dagger (a personal fave). Both groups are also in the 3E Lords of Darkness... I think Unapproachable East has the most recent stuff on the Red Wizards.
As for a minotaur nation, you're out of luck. Krynn had a couple, but the Realms doesn't. However, in a thread entitled Minotaur Cultures in the Realms? we had come up with the groundwork for a minotaur city-state located in the Border Kingdoms. It's all still rough, but it might be a good starting point for you to come up with something. |
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Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 18:01:52
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| Oh, and I'll recommend a particular site: TSR Archive. This guy compiled a list of all the published stuff, and provides an image and the back cover blurb for all of it. It's not the same as flipping thru a book or getting an opinion, but it's a good starting point. I've used the site more than once just to see if something was complete. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 18:53:21
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I'd recommend all of the Volo's Guides, Cloak & Dagger, the FR Adventures hardcover, and Power of Faerun. Ah, what a feast!
BB |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31772 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2009 : 23:15:33
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This is a rather difficult question for me, because most of my top Realms products are mostly 1e/2e sources. Limiting it to 3e though, I'd have to say [in no particular order]:- Lost Empires of Faerūn, Serpent Kingdoms, Power of Faerūn, the FRCS, and Grand History of the Realms.
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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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Wrigs13
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
201 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2009 : 11:50:14
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It seems generally that all the information is in 1st and 2nd ed books.
Do the 3rd ed books only provide a new game mechanic? |
Do not try to understand the 4th edition. Thats impossible. Instead...only try to realise the truth. There is no 4th edition. |
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Gang Falconhand
Seeker
United Kingdom
85 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2009 : 12:47:22
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| If you're playing in a region covered by one I'd suggest you definitely get the appropriate Volo's Guide. Absolutely invaluable. |
"If you have a quality let it define you." |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2009 : 13:28:39
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quote:
Originally posted by Wrigs13
It seems generally that all the information is in 1st and 2nd ed books.
Do the 3rd ed books only provide a new game mechanic?
A lot of the 3E material was reprints and updates of 2E material. There is new lore to be found in those books, but not nearly as much. 1E and 2E books were mostly lore; usually, the only rules were new spells, magical items, and nastybads. For 3E, there seemed to be a rule that no book could be published without several pages of new PrCs, feats, and page-long statblocks. |
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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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31772 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2009 : 13:34:40
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quote:
Originally posted by Wrigs13
It seems generally that all the information is in 1st and 2nd ed books.
Do the 3rd ed books only provide a new game mechanic?
No, they also offered some updated lore on the regions featured in each individual tome. But sometimes also compiled some of the scattered older lore from previous 1e/2e books into one handy 3e reference source.
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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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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3740 Posts |
Posted - 05 Feb 2009 : 03:29:36
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-If I had to pick only 5 3e books, I'd take (in no particular order):
The Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
Underdark
Lost Empires of Faerūn
A Grand History of the Realms
Races of Faerūn |
(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 |
Edited by - Lord Karsus on 05 Feb 2009 03:29:53 |
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Neil Bishop
Learned Scribe
Singapore
100 Posts |
Posted - 07 Feb 2009 : 07:58:14
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| I would also suggest 2E's Faiths & Avatars. I still rank this as the best RPG product of all time (strictly IMO, of course). It was the product that brought me back to RPGs, D&D and FR. I still find it profoundly useful not just for lore about the powers but for ideas for campaigns and adventures. |
Regards
NXB |
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Wrigs13
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
201 Posts |
Posted - 07 Feb 2009 : 14:33:40
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I think it is fair to say that Faiths and Avatars is a resource that has never been equalled. Even combining all the information from the 3rd ed campaign setting, faiths and pantheons, planar handbook, deities and demigods and the manual of the planes you still don't get the same amount of useable information as F&A. Which also has an enormous amount of interesting geographic and historic information.
 
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Do not try to understand the 4th edition. Thats impossible. Instead...only try to realise the truth. There is no 4th edition. |
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danbuter
Seeker
USA
74 Posts |
Posted - 07 Feb 2009 : 15:18:22
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| I'd say that everything has been covered, unless you really wanna be crazy and get the gray box and Dreams of the Red Wizards. |
Nothing beats the gray box!
Dan |
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Arion Elenim
Senior Scribe
933 Posts |
Posted - 07 Feb 2009 : 18:12:43
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| Faiths and Pantheons was always a necessity at my table. |
My latest Realms-based short story, about a bard, a paladin of Lathander and the letter of the law, Debts Repaid. It takes place before the "shattering" and gives the bard Arion a last gasp before he plunges into the present.http://candlekeep.com/campaign/logs/log-debts.htm |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 07 Feb 2009 : 22:35:17
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-The Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, Grand History of the Realms, Champions of Ruin, Shining South, and last but not least The Lost Empires of Faerun.  This is only my humble opinion my fellow scribes.
BRIMSTONE |
"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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Marc
Senior Scribe
658 Posts |
Posted - 08 Feb 2009 : 09:54:22
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FRCS
GHotR
Champions Valor (not popular, but I like the way the lore and mechanics are combined)
Underdark
Power of Faerun |
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Wrigs13
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
201 Posts |
Posted - 08 Feb 2009 : 12:53:47
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| I had a quick look at Power of Faerun but it looked like a guidebook to how to build a kingdom for your retirement. |
Do not try to understand the 4th edition. Thats impossible. Instead...only try to realise the truth. There is no 4th edition. |
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Jorkens
Great Reader
Norway
2950 Posts |
Posted - 08 Feb 2009 : 18:33:25
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quote:
Originally posted by Wrigs13
I had a quick look at Power of Faerun but it looked like a guidebook to how to build a kingdom for your retirement.
Power of faerun is a little bit of everything. You get regional information on the Border-kingdoms, rules for leadership in various forms and lore on a wide variety of themes like trade, nobles, religious orders and trade. The book is pretty good, but it left me with a feeling that it could have been so much more. Still, it was worth getting, even for me who don't use 3ed. and only really use Serpent Kingdoms of the newer books. |
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Wrigs13
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
201 Posts |
Posted - 09 Feb 2009 : 08:58:19
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| Cheers for that I will give it another look |
Do not try to understand the 4th edition. Thats impossible. Instead...only try to realise the truth. There is no 4th edition. |
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woodwwad
Learned Scribe
USA
267 Posts |
Posted - 27 Dec 2009 : 04:25:03
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| I would really recommend Volo's guide to which ever part of the realms is of helpful to your game. Even though it is 2nd ed. It is not a crunch book, it is a setting book and most of them are late 2nd time line, so they fit pretty much seemlessly into 3 and 3.5. So you should be able to get a lot of use out of that. I run FR 3.5 and have all those books and use them a lot. |
Check out my reviews on youtube of Forgotten Realms and other rpg products. http://www.youtube.com/user/woodwwad?feature=mhum |
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Diffan
Great Reader
USA
4438 Posts |
Posted - 28 Dec 2009 : 10:44:31
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I've always been fond of:
* Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
* Player's Guide to Faerun (not much lore, but lots of crunch for your PCs)
* Races of Faerun
* Faiths and Pantheons
* Powers of Faerun
As much as I like alot of the specific settings book (Lost Empires, Shining South, City of Splendors, Unapproachable East, etc..) if your not going to be adventuring there, then there is no real reason to get it until later or unless you want more info for PC backrounds. In either case, you can get by with the FRCS for those places and Races of Faerun for your character backround. I also really liked Champions of Ruin and Champions of Valor too. |
Edited by - Diffan on 28 Dec 2009 10:45:05 |
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Victor_ograygor
Master of Realmslore
Denmark
1075 Posts |
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SirUrza
Master of Realmslore
USA
1283 Posts |
Posted - 29 Dec 2009 : 02:14:04
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
Limiting it to 3.x really cuts down on the available pool of products. And speaking for myself, all my fave Realms products are 2E.
What he said. To be honest, all the Realms books after the FRCS were just terrible disappointments IMHO. So I'd tell you to get the FRCS and that's it.
If you said, "Ok then what AD&D books should I get?" I'd say pick up all the Volo Guides. You can usually BUY the individual books of the AD&D boxsets without the maps and extra MUCH cheaper then you can get the whole boxset. So I'd tell you to get the books from The North, City of Splendors (Waterdeep), and Menzoberranzan. The stats might be off in all of them, but the lore is still invaluable. |
"Evil prevails when good men fail to act."
The original and unapologetic Arilyn, Aribeth, Seoni Fanboy. |
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wintermute27
Learned Scribe
USA
179 Posts |
Posted - 30 Dec 2009 : 05:53:03
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I'd have to pick: - Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
- The Grand History of the Realms
- Races of Faerun
- Lost Empires of Faerun
- Power of Faerun
- Faiths and Pantheons
Also, I thought it would be interesting to see which books got the most votes overall so far, so here are the results (as I could best figure them out):
- Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (14 votes)
- The Grand History of the Realms (10 Votes)
- Races of Faerun (9 Votes)
- Power of Faerun (7 Votes)
- Lost Empires of Faerun (7 Votes)
- City of Spendors: Waterdeep (4 Votes)
- Serpent Kingdoms (4 Votes)
- Faiths and Pantheons (3 Votes)
- Player's Guide to Faerun (3 Votes)
- Lords of Darkness (2 Votes)
- Silver Marches (2 Votes)
- The Underdark (2 Votes)
- Champions of Ruin (1 Vote)
- Champions of Valor (1 Vote)
- Mysteries of the Moonsea (1 Vote)
- Shining South (1 Vote)
- Unapproachable East (1 Vote)
- Dragons of Faerun (No Votes)
- Magic of Faerun (No Votes)
- Monster Compendium: Monsters of Faerun (No Votes)
- Adventure Modules (No Votes)
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My Current Campaign: The Adventures of the Stonelanders |
Edited by - wintermute27 on 01 Jan 2010 14:33:06 |
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dwarvenranger
Senior Scribe
USA
428 Posts |
Posted - 30 Dec 2009 : 21:17:33
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Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, Player's Guide to Faerun, Grand History of the Realms, Silver Marches, City of Splendors: Waterdeep
But I generally wander the North. |
If I waited till I knew what I was doing, I'd never get anything done.
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Top 5 Realms Products
