How familiar is Elminster with cinema, and does he have any favorite movies?I'm surprised by how much he's seen, which suggests he's been sneaking here for years. He loves action epics like EXCALIBUR and THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING, which he thinks are deliberate farces. I once played a "real" comedy for him, and he found it unfunny.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 27, 2021

Did he like Caddyshack, at least He did, but thought it was a documentary. Apparently Rodney's character in it was dead on for some folk in the Realms he had "too much to do with."

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 27, 2021

Sort of like how Twister is considered a comedy here in Arkansas. Indeed!

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 27, 2021

@TheEdVerse Dear Ed,
If I (hypothetically speaking of course) were to besiege Waterdeep, where would I want to hit it from? North Gate, to make a base of the Field Ward, River Gate, to get to the Castle quicker, or would it be possible to scale Cliffwatch? Any hidden defenses?

— Nessus Resident (@Azounerella) December 31, 2021

1)
Getting into Field Ward would be smart, yes (once embedded, hard to extricate/eradicate w/o harming many citizens). But you can’t really besiege unless you can cut off air access, Underdark access (from Skullport) and sea access, or the city can be endlessly…
#Realmslore 2)
…resupplied/reinforced.
You can see glimpses of an attack from the sea on Waterdeep in the Threat From The Sea fiction and the opening of the novel Elaine Cunningham and I wrote, CITY OF SPLENDORS.
As for defenses, the city has…its wards, its griffon cavalry..#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 1, 2022

3)
…(based in Mount Waterdeep), ballistae on the wall towers, the Walking Statues, and the city wall parts that can be magically “brought in” from their extradimensional storage to interlock and entirely ring the city, including walling across the inside of the…
#Realmslore 4)
…existing city gates. The Watchful Order and the Blackstaff have some additional magical defenses (communications and "fast teleport" networks for moving troops, ammo, barriers, and weapons around), some of which date from Ahghairon's time.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 1, 2022

5)
And if you’re attacking right now, you have to deal with Laeral and Elminster as residents, and their mastery of the Weave and the aid of Azuth and Mystra and the other Chosen they can call on, plus Halaster and the magics he can call on, down in Undermountain.
#Realmslore 6)
I'm not saying that besieging Waterdeep is doomed to failure and a death sentence for anyone foolish enough to persist at it…but then again, I AM saying that besieging Waterdeep is doomed to failure and a death sentence for anyone foolish enough to persist at it.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 1, 2022

7)
If you MUST assault the Castle, the best way to do it is commando style, using swift, small "hit teams" who assemble in the city over time, then attack from within when weather is bad and you've goaded idiot nobles or guilds into providing an unwitting diversion.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 1, 2022

We happen to be in the “fortunate” position that Laeral and Elminster are temporarily stuck in Hell, and Manshoon has the Blackstaff (campaigns get wild, we apologise…), but I love the note about the extra walls and the point about Skullport. Thank you for your eternal wisdom! Heh. There are (monstrous) mercenaries for hire down in Skullport, and at least once in the past, someone at the Castle has brought a section of the additional walls literally down on the heads of "foes of the city" (splat).
So I foresee interesting times…

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 1, 2022

Howdy @TheEdVerse, what are the 'grottos' spoken of when people call Loudwater 'The City of Grottos'?

— Drew Calderone (@IslamAndDragons) January 3, 2022

Hi!
Due to the longtime dominance of elves in Loudwater, the now-city (though in population it’s shrunk back to town size) looks like a garden, with winding paths and streets, many trees and garden beds, and manicured lawns and… 2)
…bowers (as beautiful and garden-like as the best parts of Everlund and Silverymoon).
From the earliest times of local settlement, elves beautified the few local natural caves (mainly narrow crevices in Standing Stone Hill)…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 3, 2022

3)
…with planted mosses, hanging plants, piped trickling water, and faerie fire lighting effects; these were the earliest grottoes/grottos.
As Loudwater expanded and more gardens were built as residential neighbourhoods, … 4)
…artificial grottoes were constructed. This building reached a height when the ugly land clearances done under Rensha rule were remedied. Many of these ‘built’ grottoes contain benches for sheltering from rain and winter…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 3, 2022

5)
…winds, and lead to “back entrances” into the storage cellars of abodes. No one’s ever formally counted these constructed grottoes, but there are over seventy, in addition to the fourteen to seventeen (depending on whether or… 6)
…not you count crawl-crevices as grottoes; children do, but seniors tend not to) natural local caves. None of them are large; artificial or natural, they tend to be two small caverns joined by a narrow passage, at best.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 3, 2022

Thank you very much, comrade! But now I'm wondering: does Loudwater cut through a hillside or something for the natural grottoes to exist?

— Drew Calderone (@IslamAndDragons) January 3, 2022

No. Loudwater stands at the confluence of the Delimbiyr and Greyflow rivers, and in the highest spring floods (during years of heavy snows, and so, the largest melts), water runs everywhere. Including into the soft limestone of Standing Stone Hill and other local.. 2)
…hills. Any water that remains in the rock when temperatures drop to freezing (NEXT winter) will freeze (expand, cracking rock or widening existing crevices), then eventually thaw, melt and run off. Only to repeat the process every freeze-up. So, as in our…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 3, 2022

3)
..real world, crevice-caves form (and expand) over time.
[In my youth and teenaged years, I explored a lot of caves, and liked to put them in the Realms. Someone other than me put them in Loudwater, but the moment they did, I knew what the natural origins must be.]#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 3, 2022

there’s more–So Loudwater is still reduced in size? Storm King’s Thunder seemed to imply that it’d recouped it’s losses from the Spellplague It is. SKT includes the population of the new satellite settlements (suburbs, but there's actually farmland between them and the city) to the southwest, south, and southeast.
As they're resisted the taxation and census attempts of Loudwater, they're independent.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 4, 2022

are the waterways rivers or chanels in Arrabar @TheEdVerse the Crying Claw tavern is said to be on the waterfront but the novels and novel map put it 2 districts away from the Reach. I'm trying to make it make sense. THanks in advance, Ed!

— Artie Pavlov is vaccinating, and so should you! (@Artie_Pavlov) January 5, 2022

1)
The Port District of Arrabar is honeycombed with canals, leading to a large “turning basin” just south of the Warehouse District. So many buildings can be said to be “waterfront” that someone looking at the admittedly stylized… 2)
…published maps of Arrabar will think are several streets inland. You can visit the Crying Claw by boat, tie up there, and depart the same way. Garbage/trash is taken away by “narrowboat” barges, out to sea and down the coast…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 6, 2022

3)
…for dumping, in a noisome monster-infested bay called “the Shallows.”
These buildings look like they’re several streets inland because they ARE several streets inland: aside from a “light well” opening down into that turning…4)
…basin (and which is smaller than the basin), almost all of the canals have been roofed over, giving the buildings in the area deep cellars, and streets run atop these roofs (and rainwater flows down through gratings to empty…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 6, 2022

6)
…moving (you could run an entire campaign down there; the city polices the area heavily to keep boats from blocking canals to cost competitors money by preventing their timely movement; for the same reason, fishing from…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 6, 2022

7)
…boats, as opposed to with a fishing rod, from a balcony or window, is banned in the canals and turning basin…despite the rumored lurking aquatic monsters).
Collectively, the canals, docks, and basin are known locally as…
#Realmslore 8)
…“the Netherwaters,” but in daily speech this has been shortened to “Nethers” or just “Below.” It’s where “bad people” (low, criminal, and even misshapen) live and work, so many Arrabarrans never mention it at all.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 6, 2022

1)
Sameira Kothont (CN hf Ftr2/Rog4): A buxom blonde with knee-length hair who’s almost never seen without a lot of body jewelry and artfully-applied cosmetics that make her striking indeed.
Her family’s city real estate holdings… 2)
…and close, amicable work with the relevant guilds and the Palace to redevelop ever-larger, grander buildings on their lands have made them fabulously wealthy, and Kiyrn, his wife Roevaeryl, and Kiyrn’s sister Avanthra are…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 1, 2021

3)
…influential and much courted for the investment funds they control. However, Kiyrn’s eldest daughter Sameira (unlike her younger brother Branthen and sister Vaerelle, who’ve moved to, and extended the family businesses to, … 4)
…Baldur’s Gate and Athkatla, respectively), has stayed at home and seems determined to become the next great Kothont in the Deep. She never misses a noble revel, wedding, or high-society feast, and her ambition is so hot and…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 1, 2021

5)
…strong that the city can smell it when she glides grandly into a room—or perhaps that’s just the lush scents (mainly mingled fruit essences) she always wears. Always in danger of becoming plump, Sameira has turned to wizards… 6)
…to work spells on her to curb her hunger, but she’s always thirsty.
And restless, and horny.
She hates cold calculation, preferring to sail the hot tides of her emotions and enthusiasms of the moment, so chases fad after fad.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 1, 2021

7)
She’s terrified of boredom, and chases it away by taking up with this band of adventurers and that sinister rogue and yonder monster (and she never has any public romances or affairs, secretly bedding doppelgangers whom she… 8)
…aids with her influence to buy more and more buildings in the city, just as they aid her with deceptions and impostures).

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) December 1, 2021

@TheEdVerse A question about information flow in the realms. Say an archaeologist makes a major discovery—a ruined city, a lost temple, ancient annals of a lost kingdom—that is worthy of sharing. Assuming they wanted to, how would they relay their discovery to the wider world?

— Tom B (@TomB_WI) October 26, 2021

1)
There are “broadsheets” (newspapers) in many major cities, but the main channels of information have always been traveling merchants, from large caravans to lone peddlers with a trio of mules, who trade news, rumors, and the latest jests for drinks from bored… 2)
…locals when they stop over at an inn or take an upstairs room at a tavern for an evening. Within cities, there are always "gossip grapevines." So that's how news spreads.
With news of the sorts you list, a discoverer will likely want to NOT relay their…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 27, 2021

3)
…discovery to the wider world for fear of the city, temple, or annals getting seized/occupied/plundered by the fastest, greediest listener who can muster swords and muscle.
So what most often happens in these situations is: the discoverer seeks a wealthy… 4)
…patron to sponsor an expedition, knowing there will be a price. If they don't know of a suitable one, and aren't part of a guild or fellowship that could aid them in explorations (such as the Society of Stalwart Adventurers), they often write a chapbook for…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 27, 2021

5)
…public sale and distribution that conceals/misdirects re. the location of the find, seeds JUST enough true lore that sages with an interest in the field/topic will get VERY interested, and await offers from possible sponsors. Whom they then try to find out all.. 6)
…about, in a hurry.
Often while less than savoury "other interests" who have read the chapbook try to find THEM, and apply…persuasion.
Ah, life is an adventure. Try to maintain the ability to flee fast.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) October 27, 2021

HI! I have a moon elf character that is a diplomat & secret spy. I’d like his name to mean something like “keeper of boundaries” referring to his role as a bridge between his elf clan & human kingdoms. Do you have any suggestions on what that would look like? Thanks! Hi! Sure!
The name “Arsringisir” means “one who” (ara) + srin (limits, boundaries) + gisir (keeper)
or
“Estasringisir” (where “esta” means one who can be trusted and/or is staunchly loyal)#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 1, 2022

Simon Banzhaf @BanzhafSimon@TheEdVerse
Hi! I'm running a 1 on 1 campaign in Waterdeep with my partner as my player. We were examining the Code Legal together and they wanted clarification on the definition of Espionage by Waterdeep's standards. I couldn't find anything online.

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 4, 2021

1)
The problem is, like many legal matters, is that the definition is really up to the arresting officers of the Watch, and then the Black Robe (magistrate) judging the case—unless the arrested individual is noble or a… 2)
…guildmaster, in which case the Masked Lords will sit in judgment (or can be asked to, on appeal).
In GENERAL, “espionage” is publicly revealing, or revealing to a “foe of the city” or a rival power (for example, the realm of…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 4, 2021

3)
…Amn or Calimshan, or nobles in Sembia), a secret of the city that could weaken the city. Charges in the past suggest that the Waterdhavian authorities consider the following such a sensitive city secret: naval and garrison or… 4)
…patrol strengths and detailed dispositions (where barracked, where on the move and where to, important changes in armament and repairs and improvements, bulk orders of arms and armor, new important orders pertaining to…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 4, 2021

5)
…engagement with foes; details of future defense plans and fortifications); detailed tax takings (and billings to a guild you’re not a member of, and billings to specific nobles or civic officials, if they’re not you); … 6)
…specific population figures; the personal abode addresses of civic officials; future major building project plans and negotiations; Masked Lord deliberations and decisions that haven’t be proclaimed publicly.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 4, 2021