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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
 Posted - 15 Dec 2008 : 15:10:09
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quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
Bioware developers have already commented that they may base a future Neverwinter Nights game around the reconstruction/reclaiming of the city.
You mean developers from Obsidian? From what I can tell, Bioware is focusing on developing games for their own IPs (Mass Effect, Dragon Age). |
"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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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 15 Dec 2008 : 15:19:07
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quote:
Originally posted by Gray Richardson
Brian, do you happen to know if the Imaskari god barrier ever fell? I was wondering if it collapsed as part of the Spellplague or if it disolved prior to that, or if it survived and is still functioning? Does this have a date? Or has it happened yet?
That is a very good question Gray, and I'd love to see a Dragon Magazine with your name on it that gives us the details!  But no, the subject of the Imaskari god barrier never came up during my limited time on the FRCG, sorry. |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 15 Dec 2008 : 15:20:51
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quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
You mean developers from Obsidian? From what I can tell, Bioware is focusing on developing games for their own IPs (Mass Effect, Dragon Age).
You're probably correct Rino. I always get those two confuse. Now if I had my choice, I'd want to see Black Isle Studios reformed and let them take a crack at it... |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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sfdragon
Great Reader
2285 Posts |
Posted - 15 Dec 2008 : 21:48:21
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quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
You mean developers from Obsidian? From what I can tell, Bioware is focusing on developing games for their own IPs (Mass Effect, Dragon Age).
You're probably correct Rino. I always get those two confuse. Now if I had my choice, I'd want to see Black Isle Studios reformed and let them take a crack at it...
most of what was black isle is now Obsidian Entertainment Inc.
see Deekin for details
doom doom doom |
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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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3736 Posts |
Posted - 16 Dec 2008 : 16:53:44
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| -Brian, MT said something interesting (for a change!) and I was wondering if perhaps you would be able to confirm this: The short story by R.A. Salvatore, that was supposed to be in AGHotR...Do you know what it was? Was it possibly the prologue and epilogue of The Orc King. |
(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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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 19 Dec 2008 : 15:18:37
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quote:
Originally posted by Dagnirion
-Brian, MT said something interesting (for a change!) and I was wondering if perhaps you would be able to confirm this: The short story by R.A. Salvatore, that was supposed to be in AGHotR...Do you know what it was? Was it possibly the prologue and epilogue of The Orc King.
No, I was told that there was a scheduling conflict of some sort and that the short story was never written. But... now that you (or Markus) mention it, the Orc King prologue/epilogue does have the appearance of the missing short story. Coupled with the fact that no such flashfoward appears in the Pirate King... Interesting. |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 19 Dec 2008 : 15:43:01
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Brian and Gray don't know something I know? 
The Godwall came down after the ToT - there is lore about it somewhere (probably LEoF), wherein it explains that Ao finally took it down, and the Mulan Gods were able to re-merge with their divine essences in the multiverse.
Thats why Mulani Gods aren't mortal 'Incarnations' anymore after the ToT.
quote:
Originally posted by Dagnirion
-Brian, MT said something interesting (for a change!) <snip>
Well I never! 
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"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 19 Dec 2008 15:43:42 |
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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 20 Dec 2008 : 02:21:20
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
The Godwall came down after the ToT - there is lore about it somewhere (probably LEoF), wherein it explains that Ao finally took it down, and the Mulan Gods were able to re-merge with their divine essences in the multiverse.
Ah that's right. I never liked it when I first read it, so I filled that one away in dark place.  I have no problem with the barrier being dismissed. What I do have a problem with is the Utheric pantheon (in particular) casually abandoning thier followers on Toril. They came all this way, on spelljammers no less!, to save the mulan from the Imaskari... only to completely abandon them after the Time of Troubles.  |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Lord Karsus
Great Reader
USA
3736 Posts |
Posted - 20 Dec 2008 : 02:48:08
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quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
No, I was told that there was a scheduling conflict of some sort and that the short story was never written. But... now that you (or Markus) mention it, the Orc King prologue/epilogue does have the appearance of the missing short story. Coupled with the fact that no such flashfoward appears in the Pirate King... Interesting.
-Good to see we solved a mystery...Maybe. |
(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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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 20 Dec 2008 : 03:01:18
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Well, you know what they say - if you make up a hundred conspiracies a day, once in awhile some of them are bound to be right. 
And I agree with you Brian about Unther, although I don't think there really were a whole lot of Untheric deities left after the Orcgate Wars (I get the feeling the Pharonic Pantheon arrived late on purpose...)
Gilgeem was a jerk, so it was no big when Tiamet offed him, and that other one that remained (Ramman?) got taken out by Gruumsh during the ToT.
That left only Hoar, and he stuck around (he was smart enough to ditch his ill-fated brethren early on). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 20 Dec 2008 : 16:25:47
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| Remember though that only the 'incarnations' of those pantheons were slain in the Orcgate Wars. In 4E terms, it was more like the 'Aspect of Marduk' that was slain than Marduk himself. When the Imaskari planar barrier was dissolved, the true Marduk and the rest of the pantheon *should* have shown up in Realmspace immediately to challenge Tiamat, Gruumsh, etc... or at the very least reestablish contact with their mortal followers. But 3E reconned the cosmology and 4E changed it again so I guess its now pointless to indulge in these hypotheticals. |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Neil Bishop
Learned Scribe
Singapore
100 Posts |
Posted - 31 Jan 2009 : 07:03:19
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Hi Brian,
I've just read your very good article about Auril from Dragon 367 and have some questions about Lawgoch's Labyrinth that I hope you might be able to answer.
1. Does Lawgoch exist in any previous lore?
2. Where did the name "Lawgoch" originate from (it means "red hand" in Welsh and was the surname of one Owain Lawgoch who was a rightful heir of the kingdom of Wales)?
3. Is Lawgoch a xixecal as detailed in 3E's Epic Level Handbook? If not, any other thoughts as to who/what it/she/she is?
Thanks in advance! ;)
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Regards
NXB |
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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 02 Feb 2009 : 04:02:18
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Hello Neil,
No Lawgoch does not exist in previous Realmslore. I dont believe the name has any particular significance. Its intimated that Lawgoch may be the name of the primordial chained within the labyrinth by Auril, but I wanted to leave DMs freedom to use the location as they wish.
I didnt have a Xixecal in mind when I wrote the article, but now that I read that entry in the Epic Level Handbook for myself, I believe a Xixecal or a creature much like it would be a good fit.
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Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Neil Bishop
Learned Scribe
Singapore
100 Posts |
Posted - 02 Feb 2009 : 04:09:46
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| Thanks, Brian. I have been planning a campaign set in the North that involves Auril unleashing something akin to the Epic spell dire winter and thought an unleashed xixecal might be the ideal vessel for this. Then I read your article as I was researching both Auril and primordials and started to think about linking my ideas with yours. Anyway, thanks for your reply. |
Regards
NXB |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 06 Feb 2009 : 20:04:56
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Brie, I have a favor to ask, Bud...
Awhile back, you posted a list of all the 'Eastern' entries you had wrote for the GHOtR, in the Kara-Tur thread over at WotC, but I can't seem to locate it, and I never got around to color-coding the last twenty pages in the GHotR (things got too 'busy' toward the end there - multiple regions discussed in nearly every entry).
Could I possibly get those again? I'm re-building the timeline once again, and that would save me some time.
Thanks --- Mark |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 06 Feb 2009 20:05:53 |
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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 10 Feb 2009 : 14:58:24
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| I cannot seem to find my notes on those entries Markus. Hmmmm. The post *is* buried somewhere on the Kara-Tur Revisited thread on the WotC boards though. I'll keep searching. |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 10 Feb 2009 : 18:45:34
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No problem - I just figured I'd be lazy and try to save a little time.
Anyone else reading this -awhile back someone mentioned a 'Search trick' to be able to search for stuff on a specific site - a way of setting the variables in the search window.
Like usual, I forgot to jot-it down, and now I can't even recall who it was who posted that trick.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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The Red Walker
Great Reader
USA
3563 Posts |
Posted - 10 Feb 2009 : 20:25:30
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| In google type what your looking for followed by a space then site:candlekeep.com |
A little nonsense now and then, relished by the wisest men - Willy Wonka
"We need men who can dream of things that never were." -
John F. Kennedy, speech in Dublin, Ireland, June 28, 1963
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2009 : 17:31:23
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That wouldn't work - the list I was looking for was at WotC!
But thanks...  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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The Red Walker
Great Reader
USA
3563 Posts |
Posted - 11 Feb 2009 : 18:19:29
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
That wouldn't work - the list I was looking for was at WotC!
But thanks...
Just change the part after site: to whatever .com you want to search
[/threadjack] |
A little nonsense now and then, relished by the wisest men - Willy Wonka
"We need men who can dream of things that never were." -
John F. Kennedy, speech in Dublin, Ireland, June 28, 1963
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3286 Posts |
Posted - 07 Mar 2009 : 04:01:17
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-Brian I enjoyed your Ecology of the Sharn Article.
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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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 09 Mar 2009 : 22:31:40
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Brian, Brimstone happened to inform me that you sort of paid tribute to me in your Sharn article. I just wanted to say thanks, that was sweet.  |
"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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edappel
Learned Scribe
Brazil
211 Posts |
Posted - 16 Apr 2009 : 16:02:33
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Hey Brian!
We were talking about the creation of the realmspace at the topic "Question for the Answerer"... Could you give us some extra information? Sage told us that you had written something about it at Grand History of the Realms but they took off...
Thanks! |
--- Ed Appel
*** I'm a brazilian FR fan. So, feel free to correct my writing mistakes to improve my english. |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31701 Posts |
Posted - 16 Apr 2009 : 16:08:09
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Just to clarify Brian, I'm unsure about the status of the "Creation Myth" content from the original Grand History PDF. Since it wasn't included in the print version, I can only assume it's either non-applicable, or has been set aside for potential official use at some point in the future.
Thus, I'm a little hesitant to quote anything specifically from that 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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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 16 Apr 2009 : 23:54:12
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Hello Edappel,
The following is an alternate creation myth as written in the original PDF of the Grand History. This specific text is not FR canon, though much of it forms the genesis of the Shadow Epoch history described in the 4E Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide p.42.
-Brian
The World Serpent
This creation myth passed down by generations of lizardfolk
begins with an ending. It is said in the ancient lore of the scaled
ones that planet we know as Toril was once covered entirely by a
single vast ocean. This world, home to a race of sea creatures
known simply as the Progenitors, had known peace and tranquility
for untold millennia. This peace ended with the arrival of the Night
Serpent.
Rising up from beneath the waves, the colossal beast stretched
forth and snatched the sun from the sky, swallowing it whole. The
world was plunged into darkness, causing global temperatures to
plummet. Within weeks most life on Toril was extinct. Returning
beneath the waves, the Night Serpent slept and the great ocean froze
solid around him.
Eons passed before sunlight warmed the world once more.
Oceans thawed then receded, allowing dry land to peak above the
frigid water. Plant life sprouted upon the surface of the world,
followed soon by primitive reptilian creatures. Ouroboros the World
Serpent observed and was pleased. From his own flesh Ouroboros
created the first Sarrukh and set them upon the land. In exchange for
their worship, the World Serpent pledged to teach them the secrets
of magic, civilization, and power.
In celebration, the World Serpent snatched a comet from the Sea
of Night forcing it into an orbit behind the existing moon. He then
imbued the two moons with a portion of his deific power and
naming them Ssharstrune and Zotha. To the comet Zotha he
entrusted the safety of his chosen Sarrukh. As long as Zotha
watched down upon the world the Sarrukh would thrive and
dominate the planet. To Ssharstrune he tasked the gift of light and
shadow; the power over arcane magic.
All was well for a time. Just as he knew they would, the Sarrukh
flourished and spread their dominion across the land. But Ouroboros
knew not of the existence of the Night Serpent whom still
slumbered beneath the world. Nor could The World Serpent know
that the descendants of the Progenitors were spawning beneath the
waves and even then undergoing metamorphosis to walk upon the
land. |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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edappel
Learned Scribe
Brazil
211 Posts |
Posted - 17 Apr 2009 : 13:20:17
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| Wonderful! Thanks Brian! |
--- Ed Appel
*** I'm a brazilian FR fan. So, feel free to correct my writing mistakes to improve my english. |
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Brian R. James
Forgotten Realms Game Designer
USA
1098 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2009 : 00:21:42
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For those of you that may be interested, I started posting new timeline events on my micro blog at http://www.twitter.com/brianrjames
I'm going to post at least one new timeline event each day, covering the years after the Spellplague. I'm starting with events relating to Cormyr, Sembia, and the Dalelands (most intended for the FRCG or Backdrop: Cormyr but were subsequently cut). |
Brian R. James - Freelance Game Designer
Follow me on Twitter @brianrjames |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3240 Posts |
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Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2009 : 02:33:03
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Hey Brian,
Are you even going to expand the older entries? I've seen a few entries, least on the PDF version, that I've tried to find but were never included.
Like, for instance, the other night I was looking for the date for the attack of the tarrasque against the Herald's Holdfast and it's not in the PDF version. Not sure if it was added in the printed version cause I didn't dig it out to look.
But that is one of many entries that I've gone looking for and noticed that weren't included. Again, they might be in the printed version though. |
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
36779 Posts |
Posted - 19 Apr 2009 : 23:03:33
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quote:
Originally posted by Brian R. James
For those of you that may be interested, I started posting new timeline events on my micro blog at http://www.twitter.com/brianrjames
I'm going to post at least one new timeline event each day, covering the years after the Spellplague. I'm starting with events relating to Cormyr, Sembia, and the Dalelands (most intended for the FRCG or Backdrop: Cormyr but were subsequently cut).
For the first time since it came out, I'm going to have to follow someone's Twitter... |
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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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Questions for Brian R. James
