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• Arriving in Waterdeep as part of Caravance, Sir Whiteout enjoyed all the Waukeentide festivals, from the Goldenight and Guildsmeet galas to Leiruin. A tenday of this left him ruined himself: broke, hungover, and wearing only a tabard, he staggered into the Old Xoblob Shop and into a gate to Undermountain, ending up in the Crystal Labyrinth and finding a githyanki fortress. Well, I'm sure there have been worse ends to a night out.
• ISUBurd had a better, if less adventurous, time of it, instead studying records looted from Kolat Towers. Delving into giant history, ISUBurd learned of the terrifying Vonindod and the secret temple called the Eye of the All-Father. However, research into the lost kingdom of Uthtower turned up new powers of the rings of Myrkul and the disturbing history of the Twin Crowns of Myrmoran.
• Down among the drow again, Unknown user 11 has been running with Bregan D'aerthe, interviewing Arathis Hune, one of its founding members; the veteran member Egalavin Zauvirr; and Jeyrelle Fey, one of the few females in the organization. Hanging around this many drow can't be good for one's health—just ask Matron Mothers Divine Simfray and Sheeva Zauvirr. Sorry, spoiler alert.

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The Vast was a land in north Faerûn resting along the north coast of Inner Sea, bounded by the Dragon Reach in the west; the Earthspur Mountains, the Gray Forest, and Impiltur in the east; and the Moonsea and Damara in the north. It was a land of open spaces and rolling farmlands, sparsely settled but far from empty. It was home to fertile fields and hunting grounds; long rivers like the Fire and the Vesper; old-growth forests like the Brynwood and Adhe Wood that survived logging, as well as new-growth woodlands; and the great mountain ranges of the Earthspurs that girded it and the Earthfasts that ran through to meet the sea at sheer cliffs.

Over its history, the Vast was home to many great cities and realms. There was the ancient elf city of Ylraphon, an outpost Cormanthyr and once the abode of the famed Srinshee. Among the oldest human cities north of the Inner Sea were Procampur, orderly, mannered, and proud; and Tsurlagol, oft-ruined yet the Gateway to the Unapproachable East; both settled by the fallen Jhaamdathan Empire. There was also Vastar, for which the land was named, an ancient orcish nation with a turbulent history of strife and hordes that poured into other lands. It fell to the dwarf kingdom of Roldilar, the Realm of Glimmering Swords, a brief but shining surface holding for the Stout Folk. Next came the so-called Time of Glorious Fools, a fresh wave of human settlement and human adventurers who carved a new land out of the ashes of the old, giving rise to the new cities of Calaunt, corrupt and gloomy and foul; Tantras, boisterous and home to many temples, and once even the god Torm the True; and finally the famous Ravens Bluff, the Living City, freewheeling, vibrant, and a city of adventurers. Lastly, these three united in the nation of Vesperin, a neutral land of trade and intrigue in the 15th century.

The peoples of the Vast were diverse: there were orcs and goblinkin; dwarves, halflings, gnomes, and elves; and a variety of human immigrants, Chondathan, Damaran and even immigrants of far-eastern Thesk. On one hand, Vast folk oft-preferred to keep to themselves, satisfied with home and community, feeling one with their land. On the other, they were known as adventurers, explorers, and pioneers, with a spirit of daring, optimism, and opportunity, more so than anywhere else in Faerûn. Here all the monsters and evils of the world seemed more easily defeated and the heroes to win out more often, by pluck, determination, or luck.

New & Upcoming Releases

A Darkened Wish #1 by B. Dave Walters is the first of a new five-issue comic series published by IDW Publishing. It was released on February 28th, and is set around the Sea of Swords.

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When war threatens the Moonshae Isles, legendary heroes return to defeat the forces of an unthinkable foe. The Forgotten Realms are changed forever as young wizard Helene and her friends grow from raw recruits on the streets of Mintarn into powerful warriors.

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Dragon+ 24 was released on February 27, 2019.

For the Forgotten Realms, it gives previews of the upcoming Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage Board Game and Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms's new characters, and an interview with B. Dave Walters about a new comic from IDW, A Darkened Wish.

It also presents the winning results of a contest to create the "Terror of Undermountain", and maps for that dungeon from the adventure module Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage.

Finally, in short fiction, there is Dave Gross's "Law and Order", telling of Rasaad yn Bashir's early years as a pickpocket on the streets of Calimport.

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The AD&D Trading Cards are a range of trading cards published by TSR, Inc. between 1991 and 1993. They were first introduced by James Ward in Dragon #160, with an insert of 17 cards, mostly based on popular characters from various AD&D novels and video games, and were intended to test the waters for a potential trading card product line. These proved popular, and more cards were produced. They were released in three separate yearly sets, and each set consisted of two different series. The 1992 and 1993 sets include additional promotional and rare cards.

The cards adhere to 2nd-edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules, and present popular characters, creatures, and items from many of TSR's game worlds, including the Forgotten Realms, Dark Sun, and Greyhawk settings, as well as new creations found nowhere else. The front of each card features artwork either re-used from other TSR products or original to the Trading Cards range. These images were outlined by a solid color that indicated series and rarity. The backs presented short blurbs and rules information.

Today in the Realms...

...it is 24 Tarsakh, or the 24th of the Claw of Storms. Selûne is in the first quarter .   

Realmslore

• Seawolves were wolf-seal-humanoid hybrid lycanthropes, able to assume either form at will. They were typically evil creatures who preyed upon others.
• Urbryur was a village in Altumbel known for producing chalk. The villagers also consorted with pirates, helping to dispose of corpses and hide treasure.
• Nabassus were evil demons from the Abyss. Young nabassu traveled to the Material plane to feast on mortals, only returning to the Abyss upon reaching maturity.
• Winterspace was a crystal sphere connected to Realmspace through a "river" in the phlogiston. It was home to the worlds of Radole and Armistice.
• The Academy of Stargazers in the Mere of Dead Men taught magic to its all-female student body. It was operated by the penanggalan Adele Astrolara.
• Duvon Tr'arach was the drow weapon master of House Tr'arach. When his House attacked House Simfray, Duvon was easily defeated by Zaknafein.

And, from the archives:

• Many islands laid in the Crowded Sea of southeast Zakhara, the largest being Harab, the Isle of War, and Bariya, the Wild Isle.
• The orc chieftain Arktash won his position through guile, but was slain by usurpers within a year for not using force.
• The Phoenix Prophecies by the seer Nar'ysr of Calimshan foretold many great and small events, including the Time of Troubles.
• The catastrophic tidal wave spell was one of the most potent in the Realms, mimicking the natural disaster in flooding a shore.
• Grand Caliph Arash bint Sanjar of Zakhara sent a force to the Utter East in 657 DR to put down a plague of fiends and undead.
• The monks of the village of Lagiluri in Ra-Khati grew green peas and golden barley, watered by streams of the Jumpa River.
• Radoc, an archmage and healer in the Star Mounts, actually came from another world and bore a glowing sigil left by a titan.
• Vreesar was an ice devil who stepped from a rift to the Plane of Ice and tried to summon devils to conquer Faerûn.
• Tymanchebar was a dragonborn realm on the world of Abeir, established by revolting slaves who broke away from Skelkor.

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