Dragon 365 - Backdrop: Cormyr
- Thread starter Shroomy
- Start date
Sonny
Adventurer
Excellent article. One of the best ideas WOTC has had in the past couple of years was to have Brian R. James write for them. He has a way of giving the article a great deal of depth and history, despite the fact that it deals with the current state of Cormyr.
I'm hoping the Campaign Setting will be as enjoyable to read. Now, if Brian could do a backdrop article on the Moonsea...
I'm hoping the Campaign Setting will be as enjoyable to read. Now, if Brian could do a backdrop article on the Moonsea...
Phaezen
Adventurer
Nice Article
For those interested in the crunch
1 new magic item, Purple Dragon Commanders Ring
2 Paragon Paths
Draevun Marauder - spear specialist fighter, looks very interesting its powers are mainly focussed around shifting enemies
Luckbringer of Tymora - easy enough to reflavour to any luck based deity, some nice reroll abilities.
1 Diviity Feat for Tymora worshipers, +1 bonus to all attacks and saves for 1 round when bloodied.
Fluff wise, very good article describing current (1479 Year of the Ageless One) Cormyr, of most intrest to me was the section on Adventuring Companies and Charters as well as the Purple Dragons.
Phaezen
For those interested in the crunch
1 new magic item, Purple Dragon Commanders Ring
2 Paragon Paths
Draevun Marauder - spear specialist fighter, looks very interesting its powers are mainly focussed around shifting enemies
Luckbringer of Tymora - easy enough to reflavour to any luck based deity, some nice reroll abilities.
1 Diviity Feat for Tymora worshipers, +1 bonus to all attacks and saves for 1 round when bloodied.
Fluff wise, very good article describing current (1479 Year of the Ageless One) Cormyr, of most intrest to me was the section on Adventuring Companies and Charters as well as the Purple Dragons.
Phaezen
Angel Tarragon
Dawn Dragon
Ooh, that was fantastic. I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on the 4E Realms books.
WhatGravitas
Explorer
Surprisingly Realmsian! After all that talk about the Spellplague, that reads a lot like the previous Realms incarnation, just a bit in the future.
If they keep going like that, they may really hit the balance between keeping the good stuff in and pruning the bad stuff to make place for new things!
Cheers, LT.
If they keep going like that, they may really hit the balance between keeping the good stuff in and pruning the bad stuff to make place for new things!
Cheers, LT.
Ruin Explorer
Legend
Bloody stinking filthy Cormyr.
I'm sure it's not intentional, but it seems like they've upped the vaguely fascist "You vill be happy!" vibe to Cormyr, as well as MAXIMUM FACEPALM-inducing general "Ren-faire" vibe (e.g. "Husbands and wives sometimes publicly refer to each other as “My Lord” and “My Lady” (regardless of what real-world rank or title they have or lack) as a sign of reverence and love." etc.).
They also fail to explain why anyone would want to pay 1000g +300g/year for an "adventurer's charter" when they could pay 25g and no fees. I mean what? Smells like they realized that the old 1000g character (which caused my players to swear never to set foot in Cormyr again, Sword and Sorcery-types that they are) wasn't practical with 4E's money scheme unless players didn't come to Cormyr for some levels.
I do like that one of the Paragon paths is dedicated to stabbing Cormyreans with a spear. That's the sort of Paragon path I can get behind. So, good mechanics, puke-inducing fluff. Not badly written, but oh god so predictably and overstatedly insistent that Cormyr is a POINT OF LIGHT!!!!! that it hurts. Oh well, that's the FR for you, I guess.
I'm sure it's not intentional, but it seems like they've upped the vaguely fascist "You vill be happy!" vibe to Cormyr, as well as MAXIMUM FACEPALM-inducing general "Ren-faire" vibe (e.g. "Husbands and wives sometimes publicly refer to each other as “My Lord” and “My Lady” (regardless of what real-world rank or title they have or lack) as a sign of reverence and love." etc.).
They also fail to explain why anyone would want to pay 1000g +300g/year for an "adventurer's charter" when they could pay 25g and no fees. I mean what? Smells like they realized that the old 1000g character (which caused my players to swear never to set foot in Cormyr again, Sword and Sorcery-types that they are) wasn't practical with 4E's money scheme unless players didn't come to Cormyr for some levels.
I do like that one of the Paragon paths is dedicated to stabbing Cormyreans with a spear. That's the sort of Paragon path I can get behind. So, good mechanics, puke-inducing fluff. Not badly written, but oh god so predictably and overstatedly insistent that Cormyr is a POINT OF LIGHT!!!!! that it hurts. Oh well, that's the FR for you, I guess.
Phaezen
Adventurer
Cormyr seems to exist as it always has, seemingly at peace and a happy fluffly place. A little look closer and you will see nobles trying to gain influence over the throne, or even the throne, a prince who thinks he can do better as king, annexed territories and towns wanting independance and a crown prince who cannot keep his codpiece sealed. Not to mention any evil groups who cannot stand to see a happy, peaceful good kingdom.
In other words, Cormyr is a nice place to set a campaign filled with political intruge, with the option of monster filled dungeons for variety.
I am sure the 1000gp variety comes with added bonuses, for starters being known in higher circles, especialy those around the throne, and not just prestige value.
Phaezen
Ruin Explorer
Legend
Except I'd suggest from this article that all those elements are downplayed or mentioned in passing, rather than played up, which is kind of weak and "We made some concessions to human behaviour but as few as possible!". We have no reason to believe the would-be-king prince is a serious threat, for example. If this is the whole of the bit from the FRCS, I'm a little disappointed.
Still, like you say, the cracks being there, I'm sure if I ran the FR, my players could get together with the Draevun freedom fighters and we could have a nice complicated intrigue-filled campaign with a lot of noble stabbing and double-crossing, just from a very different perspective (throw Cormyr into chaos so that it loses it's military grip on the stolen regions - which don't seem to be detailed, just mentioned, I guess they are elsewhere).
There's very limited room for monster-filled dungeons, given how well-militarized and generally healthy Cormyr appears to be. I guess you could go with a kind of "the troops are abroad" deal though.
Yeah, but why don't they mention that? It seems like a very "Cormyr-fan" (for I know they exist) way of writing things, just assuming you'd be keen to give more money to the Cormyrean government for the benefit of a shiny piece of paper (literally!).
I would imagine the 1000gp charter is for groups like the Red Ravens, which are full fledged mercenary companies or the private forces of nobility instead of a small band of four or five adventurers. Of course, they should have probably mentioned it in the article.
I like Comyr in the Forgotten Realms because it is a monarchy with earnest citizens. It is a nice contrast to most of the other nations in FR, where everyone is a wise-cracking individualist. The unabashed British Toryism and medieval idealism is rather charming. The Cormyte's Boast is the type of song that wouldn't be sung anywhere else.
Besides, it is fun to have the ugliness under a pretty exterior. Scheming nobles, the Fire Knives, revolutionary sentiment, and war wizard secret police.
I like Comyr in the Forgotten Realms because it is a monarchy with earnest citizens. It is a nice contrast to most of the other nations in FR, where everyone is a wise-cracking individualist. The unabashed British Toryism and medieval idealism is rather charming. The Cormyte's Boast is the type of song that wouldn't be sung anywhere else.
Besides, it is fun to have the ugliness under a pretty exterior. Scheming nobles, the Fire Knives, revolutionary sentiment, and war wizard secret police.
