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Forgotten Realms

Top: TheForgotten Realmslogo (1987–1999)
Bottom:Forgotten Realmslogo (2000–present)
DesignersEd Greenwood
Publication1987–current
GenresFantasy
LanguagesEnglish
Media typeGame accessories, novels, role-playing video games, comic books

Forgotten Realmsis acampaign settingfor theDungeons & Dragons(D&D)fantasyrole-playing game.Commonly referred to by players and game designers as "The Realms", it was created by game designerEd Greenwoodaround 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories.[1]Several years later, it was published for theD&Dgame as a series of magazine articles, and the first Realms game products were released in 1987. Role-playing game products have been produced for the setting ever since, in addition tonovels,role-playing video gameadaptations (including the firstmassively multiplayer online role-playing gameto use graphics), comic books, and the filmDungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.[2]

Forgotten Realms is a fantasy world setting, described as a world of strange lands, dangerous creatures, and mighty deities, where magic and supernatural phenomena are quite real. The premise is that, long ago, planet Earth and the world of the Forgotten Realms were more closely connected. As time passed, the inhabitants of Earth had mostly forgotten about the existence of that other world – hence the name Forgotten Realms. The original Forgotten Realms logo, which was used until 2000, had smallrunic lettersthat read "Herein lie the lost lands" as an allusion to the connection between the two worlds.

Forgotten Realms is one of the most popularD&Dsettings,[3][4]largely due to the success of novels by authors such asR. A. Salvatoreand numerous role-playing video games, includingPool of Radiance(1988),Eye of the Beholder(1991),Icewind Dale(2000), theNeverwinter Nightsand theBaldur's Gateseries.

Creative origins

[edit]
Ed Greenwood in 2008

Ed Greenwoodbegan writing stories about the Forgotten Realmsas a child,starting at the age of eight.[5]: 72 He came up with the name from the notion of amultiverseof parallel worlds; Earth is one such world, and the Realms another. In Greenwood's original conception, the fantastic legends of Earth derive from a fantasy world that can no longer be accessed.[6]Greenwood discovered theDungeons & Dragonsgame in 1975, and became a serious role-playing enthusiast with the firstAdvanced Dungeons & Dragons(AD&D) game releases in 1978.[6]Greenwood brought his fantasy world into the new medium of role-playing games when a university student named September invited him to playAD&Dwith her.[5]: 72 The setting became the home of Greenwood's personalcampaign.[7]Greenwood began a Realms campaign in the city ofWaterdeepbefore creating a group known as the Knights of Myth Drannor in the Shadowdale region. Greenwood felt that his players' thirst for detail made the Realms what it is: "They want it to seem real, and work on 'honest jobs' and personal activities, until the whole thing grows into far more than a casual campaign. Roleplaying always governs over rules, and the adventures seem to develop themselves."[6]Greenwood has stated that his own version of the Forgotten Realms, as run in his personal campaign, is much darker than published versions.[8]

Starting in 1979, Greenwood published a series of articles that detailed the setting inThe Dragon(nowDragon) magazine, the first of which was about a monster known as thecurst.[5]: 72 Greenwood wrote voluminous entries toDragon,and used the Realms as a setting for his descriptions ofmagic items,monsters, andspells.[7]WhenGary Gygax"lost control ofTSRin 1985, the company saw an opportunity to move beyondGreyhawkand introduce a new default setting ".[9]: 87 In 1986, TSR began looking for a newcampaign settingforAD&D,[5]: 72 and assignedJeff Grubbto find out more about the setting used by Greenwood as portrayed in his articles inDragon.[9]

Greenwood states that Grubb asked him "Do you just make this stuff up as you go, or do you really have a huge campaign world?", and Greenwood answered "yes" to both questions.[6]TSR felt that the Forgotten Realms would be a more open-ended setting than itsepic fantasycounterpartDragonlance,and chose the Realms as a ready-made campaign setting upon deciding to publishAD&D2nd edition.[6]Greenwood agreed to work on the project and began working to get Forgotten Realms officially published.[10]He sent TSR a few dozen cardboard boxes stuffed with pencil notes and maps, and sold all rights to the setting for a token fee.[6]He noted that TSR altered his original conception of the Realms being a place that could be accessed from Earth, as "[c]oncerns over possible lawsuits (kids getting hurt while trying to 'find a gate') led TSR to de-emphasize this meaning".[6]

Jon Peterson, author ofDungeons and Dragons Art and Arcana: A Visual History,said that Greenwood "was that rare obsessive DM who just seemed to have more ideas and energy to pour into his world than even the folks at TSR did. Naturally when TSR was shopping for new campaign worlds as part of their cross-media strategy, they had to get the Forgotten Realms. R. A. Salvatore took Greenwood's world and created characters and stories for it that made him a bestselling author and sustained TSR as a major fantasy book publisher".[11]

Publication history

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1985–1990

[edit]

In 1985, theAD&DmoduleBloodstone Passwas released by TSR and is retroactively considered to be a part of the Forgotten Realms,[12]although it was not until the moduleThe Bloodstone Warswas released that it became the official setting for the module series.[13]Douglas Nileshad worked on a novel trilogy with a Celtic theme, which were then altered to become the first novels set in the Forgotten Realms, starting withDarkwalker on Moonshae(1987).[5]: 73 It is the first book inThe Moonshae Trilogy,which predates theForgotten Realms Campaign Setby one month.[14]

TheForgotten Realms Campaign Setwas later released in 1987[9]as a boxed set of two source books (Cyclopedia of the RealmsandDM's Sourcebook of the Realms) and four large color maps, designed by Greenwood in collaboration with Grubb.[15]: 99 It soldca.one hundred fifty thousand times in its first two years.[16]The set introduced the campaign setting and explained how to use it,[15]: 99 and reserved space on the map forSSI'sGold Boxcomputer role-playing gamesset in the Forgotten Realms.[17]

TSR began incorporating elements by other designers into the Forgotten Realms, including the Moonshae Isles byDouglas Niles,the "Desert of Desolation" byTracy HickmanandLaura Hickman,andKara-TurbyZeb Cook.[5]: 73 The setting also provided a new way for TSR to market itsBattlesystemrules, which it had supported with the Bloodstone adventure sequence which started withBloodstone Pass;the last two adventures in the series,The Bloodstone Wars(1987) andThe Throne of Bloodstone(1988), were unambiguously set in the Forgotten Realms.[5]: 74 Some characters fromEgg of the Phoenix(1987) byFrank Mentzerwere incorporated intoThe Savage Frontier(1988).[5]: 40 

The compilation moduleDesert of Desolationreworked the previous adventures to fit as part of the Forgotten Realms.[18]The moduleUnder Illefarnpublished in 1987 is set in the Forgotten Realms,[15]: 108 as is the module released in 1988,Swords of the Iron Legion.[15]: 103 

R. A. Salvatorewrote his first novel for the Forgotten Realms,The Crystal Shard(1988), which was originally set in the Moonshae Islands before being moved to a new location and introduced thedrowcharacterDrizzt Do'Urden.[5]: 73 [19]Drizzt has since appeared in more than seventeen subsequent novels, many of which have appeared on theNew York TimesBest Seller list.[20]In 1988, the first in a line of Forgotten Realms role-playing video games,Pool of Radiance,was released byStrategic Simulations, Inc.[21]The game was popular and won theOrigins Awardfor "Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Computer Game of 1988".[22]

Several supplements to the original boxed set were released under the first edition rules, beginning withWaterdeep and the North,[5]: 73 which was followed byMoonshaein 1987, andEmpires of the Sands,The Magister,The Savage Frontier,Dreams of the Red Wizards,andLords of Darknessin 1988.[15]: 96–97 TheCity Systemboxed set was released in 1988, and it contained several maps of the city of Waterdeep.[15]: 89 Ruins of Adventure,a module based on the computer gamePool of Radiance,was also released in 1988.[15]: 113 

The boxed setKara-Tur: The Eastern Realmswas released in 1988. It gives details of the lands ofKara-Tur,and was designed to be used with the 1986 bookOriental Adventures,which officially placed the book in the Forgotten Realms world.[15]: 103 

In 1989,DC Comicsbegan publishing a series ofForgotten Realms comicswritten by Grubb.[5]: 75 Each issue contains twenty-six pages, illustrated primarily byRags MoralesandDave Simons.Twenty-five issues were published in total, with the last being released in 1991. A fifty-six pageannualForgotten Realms Comic Annual #1: Waterdhavian Nights,illustrated by various artists, was released in 1990.

Curse of the Azure Bonds,a module based on the role-playing video gameof the same name,was released in 1989.[15]: 97 

1990–2000

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Forgotten Realms video games
1988Pool of Radiance
1989Hillsfar
Curse of the Azure Bonds
1990Secret of the Silver Blades
Eye of the Beholder
1991Eye of the Beholder II: The Legend of Darkmoon
Pools of Darkness
Neverwinter Nights
Gateway to the Savage Frontier
1992Treasures of the Savage Frontier
1993Forgotten Realms: Unlimited Adventures
Dungeon Hack
Eye of the Beholder III: Assault on Myth Drannor
1994Menzoberranzan
1995
1996Blood & Magic
1997Descent to Undermountain
1998Baldur's Gate
1999
2000Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
Icewind Dale
2001Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance
Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor
2002Icewind Dale II
Neverwinter Nights
Dungeons & Dragons: Eye of the Beholder
2003
2004Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II
2005Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone
2006Neverwinter Nights 2
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale
Heroes of Neverwinter
2012
2013Neverwinter
2014Lords of Waterdeep
2015Sword Coast Legends
2016
2017Tales from Candlekeep: Tomb of Annihilation
2018Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms
2019Warriors of Waterdeep
2020
2021Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance
2022
2023Baldur's Gate III

To transition the Forgotten Realms from first editionAD&Dto the ruleset's second edition, a story involving the gods being cast down was planned by TSR management from the top-down and started withHall of Heroes(1989) and continued with a three-adventureAvatarseries (1989) and a three-novelAvatarseries (1989), and some stories in the comic book.[5]: 84 TSR adjusted the timeline of the Forgotten Realms by advancing the calendar one year forward to 1358 DR, referring to the gap as the Time of Troubles.[9]

In early 1990, the hardcoverForgotten Realms Adventuresby Grubb and Greenwood was released, which introduced the setting toAD&D2nd edition;[15]: 99–100 the book also detailed how the Time of Troubles had changed the setting.[23]: 139 The Ruins of Undermountain(1991) was one of the first published mega-dungeons.[5]: 93 TheAl-Qadimsetting by Jeff Grubb was released in 1992, and the setting was added to the southern part of the Forgotten Realms.[5]: 95 In July 1990, theRPGANetwork'sPolyhedron Newszinebegan publishing a monthly column by Greenwood entitled "The Everwinking Eye" detailing various locations and personalities in the Realms. The Network used the Forgotten Realms city ofRavens Bluffas the setting for their firstliving campaign.[5]: 93 Official RPGA support for this product line included theLiving Citymodule series. A number of sub-settings of the Forgotten Realms were briefly supported in the early 1990s. Three more modules were produced for theKara-Tursetting.The Hordeboxed set,released in 1990, detailed the Hordelands, which featured a series of three modules. TheMaztica Campaign Set,released in 1991, detailed the continent ofMaztica.

The original gray boxed set was revised in 1993 to update it toAD&D2nd edition, with the release of a newForgotten Realms Campaign Settingboxed set containing three books (A Grand Tour of the Realms,Running the Realms,andShadowdale) and various "monster supplements".[24]Additional material for the setting was released steadily throughout the 1990s. Forgotten Realms novels, such as theLegacy of the Drowseries, the first three books ofThe Elminster Series,and numerousanthologieswere also released throughout the 1990s, which led to the setting being hailed as one of the most successful shared fantasy universes of the 1990s.[25]By the first quarter of 1996, TSR had published sixty-four novels set in the Forgotten Realms out of the 242 novels set inAD&Dworlds.[26]: 20 These novels in turn sparked interest in role-playing by new gamers.[27]

Numerous Forgotten Realmsvideo gameswere released between 1990 and 2000. TheEye of the BeholderPC game was released in 1990,[28]which was followed by two sequels: the first in 1991,[29]and the second in 1992.[30]All three games were re-released forDOSon a single disk in 1995.[31]Another 1991 release wasNeverwinter NightsonAmerica Online,the first graphical massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG).[32]In 1998,Baldur's Gate,the first in a line of popular role-playing video games[33]developed byBioWareand "considered by most pundits as the hands-down best PC roleplaying game ever", was released.[1]The game was followed by a sequel,Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn,in 2000 andIcewind Dale,a separate game that utilized the samegame engineasBaldur's Gate.Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannorwas released in 2001. Several popular Forgotten Realms characters such asDrizzt Do'UrdenandElminstermade minor appearances in these games.

2000–2008

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WhenWizards of the Coasttook over publication ofDungeons & Dragonsafter purchasing TSR in 1997, they trimmed production down from six campaign settings toForgotten RealmsandDragonlance,and completedAD&D2nd edition production sometime between 1998 and 1999.[34]: 146 They later hiredRob Heinsooas a member of the D&D Worlds team to focus on Forgotten Realms in thethird edition ofDungeons & Dragons.[34]: 162 An official material update and a timeline advance were introduced to theDungeons & Dragons3rd edition in 2001 with the release of the hardcover book theForgotten Realms Campaign Setting,[35]which won theOrigins AwardforBest Role-Playing Game Supplement of 2001in 2002.[36]The timeline was officially advanced from 1358 DR to 1372 DR.[9]The adventureCity of the Spider Queen(2002) did not meet its projected sales targets, so Wizards of the Coast cut back on production of new adventures.[34]: 165 

In 2002, BioWare releasedNeverwinter Nights,set in the northern reaches ofFaerûnand operating on the revised 3.0 rules for D&D. It was followed by twoexpansion packs:Shadows of UndrentideandHordes of the Underdark.Asequelusing version 3.5 of the rules was produced byObsidian Entertainmentin 2006, and was followed by the expansion setsMask of the BetrayerandStorm of Zehir.TheForgotten Realms Deluxe Editioncompilation was released in 2006, containing theBaldur's Gateseries (excluding theDark Alliancegames),Icewind Daleseries, and allNeverwinter Nightsgames beforeNeverwinter Nights 2.

2008–2014

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With the release ofDungeons & Dragons4th editionin 2008, Wizards opted for a publishing plan featuring a series of six books per year – consisting of three core rulebooks as well as three setting books – beginning with the Forgotten Realms. The company started the cycle with theForgotten Realms Campaign Guide(2008), theForgotten Realms Player's Guide(2008), andScepter Tower of Spellgard.[34]: 190 These books updated the Forgotten Realms to the newest rules system which altered the setting drastically to make it fit with the 4th edition concept of "Points of Light".[34]: 190 

The main lore change centered around an event called the Spellplague in 1385 DR.[9]This cataclysm was unleashed when the goddess of magic Mystra was killed, "transforming whole nations and altering creatures. In addition, parts of Toril have fused with its long-lost twin world Abeir, whisking away some countries and adding new ones. The Underdark is more open to the surface. Thay has become a nightmare land of death and the Elves, sensing the newfound connection to the Feywild, have returned to Faerûn in force".[37]The event moved the fictional world's timeline 94 years into the future to 1479 DR.[9]The Spellplague acted as "a narrative justification for design changes".[9]: 107 

In 2008, the Forgotten Realms also became the setting for the RPGA's sole living campaign,Living Forgotten Realms,replacingLiving Greyhawk.

In 2011, theNeverwinter Campaign Settingwas released which launched the 4th edition's first major multimedia release. The Forgotten Realms city setting spawned four novels by R. A. Salvatore called theNeverwinter Saga,a comic book, and a board game calledThe Legend of Drizzt,as well as two video games – theFacebookgameHeroes of Neverwinter(2011–2012) and aMMORPGcalledNeverwinter(2013).[38]Laura Tommervik, from theWizards of the Coastmarketing team, explained the approach: "We use Neverwinter as the connective tissue across multiple product categories. The transmedia campaign is an opportunity for fans to experience the brand however they choose to".[38]

In 2013, Wizards of the Coast announced a year-long event called theSunderingwhich acted as a multimedia project to transition the Forgotten Realms to the next edition of the game.[39][40]This release included a weeklyD&D Encountersin-store play event, afree-to-playmobile gameArena of War(2013), and a collaborative novel series:The Companions(2013) by R. A. Salvatore,The Godborn(2013) byPaul S. Kemp,The Adversary(2013) byErin Evans,The Reaver(2014) byRichard Lee Byers,The Sentinel(2014) byTroy Denning,andThe Herald(2014) by Ed Greenwood.[39][41]Liz Schuh, Head of Publishing and Licensing forDungeons & Dragons,said:[42]

The Sundering is the last of a series of ground-shaking events. It really affects the whole world of the Forgotten Realms in a major way. You may remember when the Spell Plagues began, the two worlds of the Forgotten Realms, Abeir and Toril, crashed together. That created both geographic changes (the map of the Forgotten Realms and Faerûn actually changed due to that collision), and also changed the way magic works. It changed the pantheon of the gods. The Sundering is all about those two worlds separating—coming apart—and the process of that separation is really the story that we're telling over the next year. At the end of this story arc, Abeir and Toril will be separate again, and many of the things that happened when they crashed together will go back to the way they were before. So magic will be much like it was before the Spell Plague. Markings that marked spell-plagued people and animals will fade and go away. It's really about moving the Forgotten Realms forward, but also about bringing it around to the most beloved and most fondly remembered Forgotten Realms.

The result of The Second Sundering, in game terms, was the transition from 4th edition rules to5th editionrules ofDungeons & Dragons,published in 2014.[9][43]

2014–present

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WhenD&D5th edition was published in 2014,Wizards of the Coastannounced that the Forgotten Realms would continue to serve as the official campaign setting for its upcoming published adventure materials.[44][45][46]The village of Phandalin in the Forgotten Realms acted as the primary setting for the new5th editionStarter Set(2014) which was published before the release of three new core rulebooks.[47]"Tyranny of Dragons" was the first multimedia storyline for the new edition and included two adventure modules,Hoard of the Dragon Queen(2014) andThe Rise of Tiamat(2014), and an update to theNeverwinter(2013) video game.[9][48][49]The next two storylines, "Elemental Evil" which includedPrinces of the Apocalypse(2015) and "Rage of Demons" which includedOut of the Abyss(2015), were also set in the Forgotten Realms.[9][50][51]

The first campaign guide for the new edition, theSword Coast Adventurer's Guide(2015), was released on November 3, 2015, and only covered a fraction of the Forgotten Realms.[52][9]It describes the 2013 Sundering event, referred to as the Second Sundering in the book, and its consequences in game terms and lore.[53]The video gameSword Coast Legends(2015) published byDigital Extremeswas also released in the same month as the tabletop campaign guide.[52][54]

5th edition details on "the rest of Faerûn had been untouched until theTomb of Annihilation(2017), an adventure that leaves the northern Sword Coast for the southern jungles of Chult ".[9]: 101 The officialDungeons & Dragonsactual playweb seriesRivals of Waterdeep,which premiered in 2018, is set in the Forgotten Realms. It has adapted adventure modules such asWaterdeep: Dragon Heist(2018),Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus(2019) andCandlekeep Mysteries(2021) which are also set in the Forgotten Realms.[55][56]

Fictional setting

[edit]
Main article:Faerûn

The focus of the Forgotten Realms setting is the continent of Faerûn, the western part of a continent that was roughly modeled after the Eurasian continent on Earth.[26]: 6 The lands of the Forgotten Realms are not all ruled by the human race, with populations of many humanoid races and creatures ubiquitous infantasy fictionworks such asdwarves,elves,goblins,andorcs.Technologically, the world of the Forgotten Realms resembles thepre-industrial Earthin the 13th or 14th century. However, the presence of magic provides an additional element of power to the societies. There are several nation states and many independent cities, with loose alliances being formed for defense or conquest. Trade is performed by ship orhorse-drawn vehicle,and manufacturing is based uponcottage industry.

Geography

[edit]
Main article:Abeir-Toril
Forgotten Realms partial map

The Forgotten Realms is part of the fictional world ofAbeir-Toril(usually just called Toril[23]: 91 ), an Earth-like planet with many real-world influences and consists of several large continents.[57]It was first detailed in the originalForgotten Realms Campaign Set,published in 1987 byTSR.[58]The other continents of Toril includeKara-Tur,Zakhara,Maztica,[57]and other yet unspecified landmasses.[35]Kara-Tur, roughly corresponding to ancient EastAsia,was later the focus of its own source bookKara-Tur: The Eastern Realms,published in 1988.[15]: 103 [59]There is also a vast subterranean world called theUnderdarkbeneath the surface.[23]: 98, 138 [51]

In early editions of the setting, The Realms shared a unifiedcosmologywith various othercampaign settingscalled the Great Wheel. In this way each of theDungeons & Dragonscampaign settings were linked together to form one interwoven world connected by variousplanesof existence. With the release of the 2001Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting,the setting was given its own distinct and separate cosmological arrangement, with unique planes not explicitly connected to those of the other settings.[35][60]

Religion

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Religion plays a large part in the Forgotten Realms, with deities and their followers being an integral part of the world. Deities interact directly in mortal affairs, answer prayers, and have their own personal agendas. All deities must have worshipers to survive, and all mortals must worship a patron deity to secure a good afterlife. A huge number of diverse deities exist within severalpolytheisticpantheons; a large number of supplements have documented many of them, some in more detail than others.[61][62]Greenwood created a pantheon of gods for his homeDungeons & Dragonsgame, in his Forgotten Realms world, which were introduced in his article "Down-to-earth divinity" fromDragon#54 (October 1981).[63]

When the Forgotten Realms was published as a setting in 1987, the pantheon added Waukeen, the goddess of trade, money, and wealth, who was created by one ofJeff Grubb's players, and added to the Forgotten Realms by Grubb.[citation needed]Tyche was replaced with Tymora, and the elemental lords from Melniboné were replaced by Akadi, Grumbar, Istishia, and Kossuth.[64]

Much of the history of the Forgotten Realms detailed in novels and source books concerns the actions of various deities and The Chosen (mortal representatives with a portion of their deities' power) such asElminster,Fzoul Chembryl, Midnight (who later became the new embodiment of the goddess of magic,Mystra[23]: 140 ), and the Seven Sisters. Above all other deities is Ao, the Overlord, who does not sanction worshipers and distances himself from mortals. He is single-handedly responsible for the Time of Troubles, or Godswar, as seen inThe Avatar Trilogy.[65]

Characters

[edit]

The setting is home to several noteworthy recurring characters that have gained wider reception, including:

  • The Companions of the Hall, a group of adventurers that were created byR. A. Salvatore[66][67]and introduced inThe Crystal Shard(1988).[68][69][70]Each of these characters "fit into an RPGarchetype".[71]They include:
    • Drizzt Do'Urden,adrow,or dark elf, ranger who is the main character of 34 novels.[68]Drizzt is noted for his commitment to friendship and peace, which is contrary to the stereotype of his people.[72]Drizzt as a character is often used to represent issues of racial prejudice, particularly inThe Dark Elf Trilogy.[73][74]Drizzt is also troubled by the lifespan discrepancy between himself and his human romantic interest Catti-Brie.[75]
    • Wulfgar,a massive human barbarian;[76]inThe Crystal Shard,Wulfgar's combat prowess is significant enough that along with Drizzt and his magic panther Guenhwyvar, they manage to "beat 25 giants by themselves".[68]As a character, Wulfgar exemplifies "the strong, honest, hot-headed young warrior hero type common to adventure stories and similar to Howard's creationConan".[77]
    • Bruenor Battlehammer, a dwarvenfighterwho retakes Mithral Hall with the help of the other Companions[68][71][78]and becomes its king.[16]: 202 He was one of the first friends Drizzt made upon leaving the Underdark and both Catti-Brie and Wulfgar are his adopted children.[79][71]Rob Bricken forio9highlighted Bruenor as "a dwarf that hits pretty much every fantasy stereotype, including his desire to reclaim an ancestral home that his people were chased out of after they dug too far and awakened a monster".[68]
    • Catti-brie,a human archer who would later develop abilities as a spellcaster;[68][71][80]inThe Crystal Shard,Drizzt referred to her as his soulmate.[68]Catti-Brie is favored by Mielikki, a goddess associated with forests and nature spirits, and she bears the deity's mark. Bricken argued that her characterization inThe Icewind Dale Trilogyis limited,[68]while Aidan-Paul Canavan maintained that she becomes a "hero" only in later novels.[81]
    • Regis, ahalflingmember of the Companions, who behaves in the stereotypical manner ofJ.R.R. Tolkien'shobbits.Bricken noted that Regis is aroguewho "set himself apart a bit by carrying a crystal pendant he can use to charm people", though he is sometimes forced into dangerous situations and "ends up saving the day,Bilbo-style",such as in the final battle ofThe Crystal Shard.[68]
  • Elminster,a wizard also known as the Sage of Shadowdale;[82]he is "a founding member of the Harpers and one of the oldest surviving and most powerful Chosen of Mystra".[83]The Harpers are a semi-secret organization; Jonathan Palmer, forArcanemagazine, called them "Laudable" and commented that they are "fighters for freedom and justice".[84]Bricken described Elminster as "the most powerful, important, and smartest wizard in the Forgotten Realms, and one of the setting's most important characters [...] moreMerlinthanGandalf,which makes him less enigmatic and prone to tomfoolery than other major fantasy wizards, which I count as a good thing ".[85]
  • Volothamp Geddarm,a human adventurer who is famed within the settingFaerûnfor the number of guidebooks he writes about the various regions within the Realms. The character's name is often attributed in real-world D&D publications as the in-universe narrator of said works.[86]Paul Pettengale fromArcanedescribed him as "one of those characters that everyone's heard about, and one that just about every Dungeon Master must have been tempted to introduce to their campaign at some point or another".[87]
  • Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun, developed by Greenwood and game designerSteven Schend,is a character noted for his appearances in several novels set in the Forgotten Realms,[23][88]as well as the 2004video gameForgotten Realms: Demon Stone.[89]A powerful wizard renowned for his namesake staff, in earlier editions he is the Archmage of Waterdeep, leading member of the Harpers, and one ofMystra's Chosen.[23]Prior to his death, Khelben passes the Blackstaff to his apprentice Tsarra,[88]who takes up residence at Blackstaff Tower in Waterdeep and inherits his memories and legacy. Writer Aubrey Sherman said he is an example for the importance of a wand or staff behind the conception of a wizard archetype and listed the character among D&D's notable wizards.[90][88]
  • Jarlaxle,also a character by R. A. Salvatore, was introduced in the 1990 novelExile.He also appears inPromise of the Witch King,Road of the PatriarchandThe Pirate King,as well asThe Sellswordsand thePaths of Darknesstrilogies. Described by Christian Hoffer fromComicbook.comas a popular and intriguing supporting character,[91]Jarlaxle is the charismatic and opportunistic drow leader of the mercenary bandBregan D'aerthe.Anglistics scholar Caroline de Launay characterized Jarlaxle as an independent character inclined to "subtle manoeuvres",[92]while Hoffer explained that he is an amoral villain who has "plenty of contingencies and secret plots".[91]When comparing the plot ofThe Dark Elf Trilogyto a game ofchess,de Launay assigned Jarlaxle the role of theknight.[92]Theo Kogod, forCBR,wrote that Jarlaxle is "in many ways [...] a dark reflection of the heroic and honorable Drizzt. He used lies, manipulation and cunning to rise as high as a male Drow could within his culture, but in the end, he also left his home behind. [...] InWaterdeep: Dragon Heist,Jarlaxle is trying to leverage himself to become accepted as a legitimate member of the Lords' Alliance. He is one of four possible main villains in the campaign ".[93]
  • Artemis Entreri, a human assassin described by Bricken as "cold-blooded" and Drizzt's "equal in fighting and opposite in morality", a mirror image of how Drizzt would have ended up if he had remained part of the universally evil drow society instead of forsaking it.[94]
  • Gromph Baenre isArchmageof the city ofMenzoberranzan,the City of Spiders. Gromph is a rival in power to the other archmages of the Forgotten Realms, such asElminsterand Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun. In a review of the 1995 novelDaughter of the Drow,Gideon Kibblewhite forArcane,called Gromph the "only interesting character" in the book, describing him as "the bitter and twisted archmage", and lamented that "he rarely makes an appearance after the opening".[95]
  • Liriel Baenre is the daughter of Gromph Baenre; she originally belonged to House Vandree before her talent for arcane spellcasting was discovered by Gromph.[96]After being sent away to hone her magical talent rather than study as a priestess, Liriel uses a book given by her father to travel to the surface lands, where she encounters followers of the goddessEilistraee,the Dark Maiden of benevolent drow, comes to possess the magical artifact known as the Windwalker, and eventually settle down on the surface world permanently. Liriel was created byElaine CunninghamforDaughter of the Drow,and is described by Trenton Webb ofArcaneas "the oddest Drow" due to her lack of traits deemed as stereotypical of her people.[97]
  • Erevis Cale, first introduced in the short story "Another Name For Dawn" published in issue 277 ofDragonmagazine,is a pivotal character in novels byPaul S. Kemp,includingThe Halls of Stormweather,Shadows Witness,theErevis Cale Trilogy,andThe Twilight Wartrilogy. Originally a normal human, he accepts the gift of the Fane of Shadows inTwilight Fallingand becomes ashade;being imbued with the essence of matter integral to the Plane of Shadow brings about drastic changes to his appearance and physiology.Don D'Ammassadescribed Erevis Cale as "a man tormented by questions of right and wrong".[98]
  • Alustriel Silverhand is the ruler of the city of Silverymoon in"The North"of the setting. Writing in 2000,Envoyermagazine reviewer Stylo counted her among the most prominent Forgotten Realms characters thanks to R.A. Salvatore's novels.[99]
  • Szass Tamis alichand leader of theRed Wizards of Thay.[100][101]

Reception

[edit]

In his bookThe Fantasy Roleplaying Gamer's Bible,Sean Patrick Fannondescribes the Forgotten Realms as being "the most ambitious fantasy game setting published sinceTekumel",[1]and that it "may be the most widely played-in game setting in RPG history".[1]Similarly, in literature, the novels written in the Forgotten Realms setting have formed one of "the industry's leading fantasy series".[102]Over time these novels have gained "unprecedented popularity",[103]which led, as Marc Oxoby noted in his book,The 1990s,to the novels having an "extraordinary shelf life", remaining in print for many years.[103]This popular reception has also been reflected in public libraries; for example, Joyce Saricks states inThe Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fictionthat the novels have been among the most requested books by fans of the fantasy genre.[104]D&Dchroniclers Michael Witweret al.,in the bookDungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana,noted that the "level of Tolkienesque history and detail that Greenwood had infused in his creation - and almost" real world "quality - granted the Realms an irresistible allure [...]. While at its core the Forgotten Realms is a familiar, almost traditional, medieval-styled fantasy setting, it boasted unprecedented scope". "It is, quite simply, Dungeons & Dragons at its very core."[16]

Aubrey Sitterson, forPC Magazine,included the Forgotten Realms in a 2015 roundup of the "11 Best Dungeons & Dragons Campaign Settings" and wrote that "for most people, Forgotten Realms is synonymous withDungeons & Dragons,and with good reason: it's the setting that played home to the massively popular Baldur's Gate video game, as well as R. A. Salvatore's Drizzt books. Currently, it's the only campaign setting actively supported byD&Dmakers Wizards of the Coast, which would be restrictive if Forgotten Realms wasn't such an incredibly diverse place, housing classic European middle ages tropes, as well as a heroic fantasy take on African, Middle Eastern, and other real-world cultures ".[105]Brian Silliman, forSYFY Wirein 2017, described the Forgotten Realms as "a classic fantasy backdrop" and highlighted that "at one time in our history, our world and this one were connected, but over time this magical realm was, well, forgotten. It is an ideal place for anyD&Dadventure, inspiring limitless possibilities for any smirking dungeon master ".[106]In 2019, academic Philip J. Clements called the "highly popular" Forgotten Realms "an unusually well-developed D&D setting" and "more-or-less the flagship setting for D&D". He also noted that it has received the greatest number of supplements.[107]

In a retrospective on the legacy ofDungeons & Dragons,academic Daniel Heath Justice commented that the "Forgotten Realmswas explicitly based on the civilized-versus-savage binary and leaned in hard onracial essentialismin its sadistic black-skinned drow led by vicious matriarchs and their terrible spider goddess, firmly melding anti-Blackness with misogyny, a once-civilized people gone feral under the debased rule of women ".[108]

Edition updates

[edit]

The 4th edition update to the Forgotten Realms brought massive lore changes which were "tied to a number of other design philosophies" and the Forgotten Realms "simultaneously had become a grittier setting, on the edge of collapse, while also becoming a more fantastic one, full of wonder and mystery".[109]Jason Wilson, forVentureBeat,highlighted that unlike the Time of Troubles cataclysm, the 4th edition Spellplague cataclysm was "one players never embraced in the same manner as the earlier disaster".[110]Shannon Appelcline, author ofDesigners & Dragons,wrote:

[The 4th edition]Forgotten Realms Campaign Guidemay be the most controversial D&D book ever produced by Wizards. That's entirely due to the large-scale destruction of the Realms. Similar updates have been tried by other companies — to reinvigorate settings, to make them more accessible to new players, or to make them more adventuresome. [...] It never seems to go well, because old fans feel left behind. With that said, some folks did love the changes, because the setting was now more playable, more accessible, more fantastic, and more PC centered. [...] Meanwhile, a series of adventures and novels calledThe Sundering(2013–2014) reversed many of the 4e changes to the Realms, but without rebooting the timeline. Instead, the Realms continues to evolve and advance, as it has since its earlier days.[109]

R. A. Salvatore was also publicly unhappy with the 4th edition changes to the Forgotten Realms:[111]

[B]asically, we authors were handed a document and told how things were going to be. We were asked our opinions, but they mattered very little – the changes were being driven from a different direction. [...] To have characters that have built such a strong history, then have that upset on the orders of someone else was very disconcerting. I will admit that the abrupt changes forced me into an uncomfortable place, and from that place came some of the better things I've written, but I very much preferred the way it was done this time, with 5th Edition and the changes, where we, the authors, were told what was happening to the game and asked how we could make the world and the lore live and breathe it.

Christian Hoffer, forComicBook.com,reported that Wizards of the Coast's 5th edition publishing strategy, which focuses on the Forgotten Realms and newer intellectual property for campaign settings, has created a rift in the fan base where some "feel that this push for new players has come at the cost of keeping the game's current players sated" by not updating campaign settings that "predate the Forgotten Realms". Hoffer highlighted that Wizards of the Coast has a much slower publication schedule than with previous editions with a focus on quality and profit and "the D&D teams knows that they have plenty of great campaign settings in their back pocket and are either actively developing more settings or have ideas for them further down the line".[112]

See also

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