Wondering: Can a player character speak Netherese?
Could you build a character who knew it from the get go, or would they need to study it? If so how long would it take to learn and where would they have to go in order to get the material?

Maybe @TheEdVerse can help? #dnd #dnd5e

— 🎲 S͓̽i͓̽m͓̽o͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽T͓̽ 🎲 (@simontubey) January 23, 2020

1)
In the Realms of the 1300s and 1400s DR, only characters who grew up or dwelt (for a year or more, to get all the nuances) in a Netherese city or enclave would speak Netherese. Everyone else would have to learn it2)
The basics could be learned from the libraries of Candlekeep or Derlusk or the Royal Palace in Suzail or certain nobles’ libraries in Waterdeep, and a few other places, but not the nuances (they require a lot of ongoing speech…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 24, 2020

3)
…with those fluent in Netherese). Nuances include idioms, when phrases have double meanings or are used to convey an unspoken subtext of opinion (example: saying someone is “one of the best” in a way that conveys sarcasm4)
…sarcasm or “not really, just being polite” without using intonation). Someone who’s mastered the basics could communicate haltingly, like a traveler using individual words or phrases from a traveler’s phrasebook, but everyone…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 24, 2020

5)
…fluent would know they’re an outsider and struggling, and could easily “talk over their head” to elude their full comprehension. In the same way that I can explain the basic rules of many sports quite quickly and simply, but…#Realmslore 6)
…that’s a LONG way short of mastering the fine points of both the rules and being a good player.
Any descendants of Netherese who retained elements of the language in local dialect would be like a “basics” struggling traveler.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 24, 2020