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Lost Empires of Faerun provides what is possibly the most comprehensive history of Faerun that you can find. It has historical data and adventuring ideas for several different ancient realms, and a great deal of additional information intended to give more depth to the fallen nations presented within.
Introduction
The beginning of Lost Empires of Faerun is fairly basic. It describes the rest of the book, and gives the casual reader a chance to decide whether he can use this book to beef up his campaign. The concept of travelling through ruins is a huge part of D&D, but providing a purpose for those ruins is often low on a DM’s list of priorities. This book will allow a DM to give rationale for the existence of ruins, and gives a wealth of ideas for using the past to affect the present.
Chapter 1: Ancient Secrets
The opening chapter of Lost Empires of Faerun presents game-related information intended to add more options to your game. There are 16 new feats, five new prestige classes, and several new spells.
The feats are interesting, though I am not entirely convinced they all relate to ancient civilizations. Some obviously do, like Cormanthyran Moon Magic, which increases a caster’s effective caster level by two when the moon is out. Greenbound Summoning, an ancient technique that allows a summoner to call creature with the special greenbound template, also reflects ancient people casting ancient spells. The Wounding Spell feat, on the other hand, seems like it has little do with dead civilizations – it simply allows damaging spells to cause bleeding damage. And I have a fair amount of trouble understanding how the Multilingual feat has any more relation to history than any other feat.
The new prestige classes all tie in nicely to the theme of history revisited. The cultist of the Shattered Peak is charged with guarding Faerun against the possible resurgence of Netheril, and makes an excellent assassin. The glorious servitor is one of the few living people who still venerates an ancient deity, and is a good option for those seeking to be more than just a cleric.
The Olin Gisir prestige class is an elf who is charged with protecting the secrets of the ancient world from prying eyes and grasping fingers. The sunmaster is a member of an ancient sect of the church of Lathander, and is a more adept spell-casting cleric than his more mundane counterparts. The only prestige class that seems a little out of place is the magelord, who is essentially an arcane spellcaster who is a little more fluid with his magic.
My main complaint with the prestige classes was an omission – I wanted to read about a tomb raider class, a character whose training has provided him with the tools needed to delve into dark places and come out intact and rich. This character would know how to research archaic ruins, he would know the history of deep dungeons, and he would have the knowledge and physical ability to explore these deadly environs. Unfortunately, he was not here, so I am not really sure what he would look like.
The new spells in this chapter provide a handful of new options, few of which are particularly noteworthy. The only one that that is especially compelling is Nar Fiendbond, which gives a target the half-fiend template. Other spells add options to existing spells, or modify them slightly, but are largely more interesting to read than they would probably be to use.
Chapter 2: Dreams of the Past
This chapter describes how a DM can adapt the information in Lost Empires of Faerun into adventures. It describes some options for making dungeons from ancient ruins, reasons for a dungeon to exist, and a few pages of random ruin generator tables. There are also twenty adventure ideas, for those who are tapped and need something quick.
This chapter also includes a few pages on ancient deities. Many of these deities have been killed or forgotten, but some are still venerated by small underground cults. For those who enjoy augmenting their games with gods, there is plenty of useful information here.
The description of a mythal is possibly the most useful part of this chapter. These magical zones allow anyone within to utilize particular magical effects, such as flying or healing spells. They are quite difficult to create, but the possibilities for ruins atop ancient mythals are fascinating.
Finally, the end of this chapter includes a two-page map of ancient Faerun. Readers may recognize the geography, but the names are all different. This map is essential if the DM wants to understand which ancient empires went where. It is also not half-bad in appearance.
Chapters 3 through 9
It might seem like a bit of a leap to cover seven chapters at once, but each of these chapters is very similar. Each chapter presents a detailed account of a different ancient race. The chapters each start with a short description of the relevant empire, then go on to a timeline. Each chapter discusses how characters might learn about the empire, followed by a written history of the lost land. Important sites are discussed to allow readers to choose locations for ancient ruins, and the chapters wind things down with adventures seeds and campaign ideas.
Chapter 3 describes the Crown Wars, which were responsible for the decimation of five ancient elven kingdoms. The aftermath of the Crown Wars left hundreds of ruins, many of which continue to be magically protected. One especially interesting tidbit in this chapter describes the downfall of the nation of Ilythiir when its inhabitants began to worship Lolth, got black skin and moved underground to become drow.
God Kings of the East is the fourth chapter. Ancient eastern civilizations are described here, including pseudo-Egyptian nations and barbaric civilizations in the north. This chapter includes a bonus – an adventure site called Sonjar’s Tower that has a fair amount of promise.
Chapter 5, Realms of the High Forest, describes how demons destroyed several elven and dwarven nations in central Faerun. There are many ideas and locations here for both undermountain and forest ruins.
Fallen Netheril describes one of the most impressive and fascinating empires. Netheril was extraordinarily magical, with powerful magic giving rise to floating cities in the clouds. Unfortunately, an arrogant mage brought on the anger of a deity, who removed the magic that made the cities fly and sent them crashing to earth. Tomb raiders interested in magical artifacts would do well to hunt through Netherese ruins.
The Imperial South describes several human civilizations in the southern part of the continent. The names remain relatively familiar – Calimshan and Amn are two of the nations that emerged from the destruction caused by imperial greed.
The Dream of Cormanthyr relates the demise of the elves who founded Myth Drannor, and how infernal creatures brought low this once-mighty empire. Cormanthyr was responsible for some fabulous creations, including the elf-blades, which are some of the most powerful artifacts in existence.
Finally, The Old North relates the rise and fall of the more barbaric and nomadic kingdoms of the colder parts of Faerun. These civilizations died out less from war or infernal causes than from simply fading out. Another adventure is included here, providing even more value from this book.
Chapter 10: Artifacts of the Past
This is the good stuff. This chapter discusses dozens of ancient magical artifacts. Just a rumor of any one of these should send adventurers scurrying across the world. With magic wands, rings, staffs, weapons and more, there are enough fabulous treasures to build entire campaigns around their recovery. I will relate just a few of these incredible treasures.
The elven druid Craenoth Driel of Eaerlann (try typing that real fast) created the first thrysus over six hundred years ago. These fantastic staffs allow users to cast up to ten druidic spells, not to mention being great accessories for the wandering druid.
Mythallars are large magical gems that convey fantastic abilities, allowing the creation of magical devices without the need to burn experience. They are a product of bygone Netheril, and are tremendously rare.
The elfblades of Cormanthyr are three fantastic blades- the Crownblade, the Warblade, and the Artblade. Each has a host of incredible powers, but the most interesting thing is that the swords each choose their bearers. Those deemed unworthy are generally destroyed be the blades as soon as they leaves their scabbards.
Chapter 11: Monsters of the Ancient Lands
This final chapter relays information on several different monsters, including the greenbound creature template. Many of these monsters are very cool, and there are lots of creatures in these pages. There are also a couple pages of lycanthropes, with full stats for several different types of were-beast.
The Book
It should come as no surprise to any D&D fan that Lost Empires of Faerun is a beautiful book. The illustrations are gorgeous, and the artists are obviously the best in the industry. The few maps are great, and the layout is easy to read.
What is not easy to read is the actual text. While the information here is full of fascination and backstory, with a wealth of great stuff that any DM could use, this book is dry. I have read history textbooks that were far more thrilling. When a nation is destroyed by demons, it should not be boring. While I cannot find any fault with the great information in this book, it takes a great deal of patience to wade through the pages.
Observations and Summary
Lost Empires of Faerun should grace the shelves of every D&D gamer with an interest in the history of the Forgotten Realms. Aside from some extraordinarily dull reading and several pages of timelines, there is so much great content in this book that a creative DM could keep a team of archeologically-minded adventurers busy forever.
Style: 4 – It is a shame that a book this beautiful is dragged down by writing that could make encyclopedia entries seem exciting.
Substance: 5 – If you want information about the history of Faerun, and want to know what to do with it, this is the book for you.
