@TheEdVerse
Question. Can you use a portable hole, or bag of holding, in 3.5 Silverymoon without a token?
Personal curiousity only. No game rides on this.

— Random.Queriant (@RandomQueriant) January 22, 2020

1)
No. Such items cannot enter the wards of Silverymoon except by being handed directly to someone within the wards bearing a lauthaul token, or using an active (i.e. suspending the powers of the wards at the time)… 2)
…thelbane token. They cannot be accessed/used within the wards except by thelbane use to suspend ward powers. They can be carried out of the wards without token bearing or use. Items within them survive.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) January 22, 2020

@TheEdVerse Ye, who art in Elminster’s confidence, must possess some fine tales. 😉
Might you share some instances where his spells have gone spectacularly awry, to comedic effect?

— Nicole Martinsen (@MissMartinsen) March 1, 2020

1)
Oh, so many mishaps. Let’s choose some of the tamer ones.

There was the time El and Vangerdahast engaged in the wizardly equivalent of “shoot the bottles off the fence” distance marksmanship, with a spell akin to Melf’s Minute2)
…Meteors, aimed at crenelations on an old stub of disused curtain wall at High Horn. Vangey missed with two and hit with a third; Elminster hit with two and missed with one. Vangey sneered and cast again, blasting the…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 1, 2020

3)
…remaining crenelations off one end of the wall, then challenged Elminster to clear all the rest, at the other end of the wall, with a single spell. Elminster did that. 4)
And in doing so took out the wall, toppling it down onto the High Road in a huge, road-blocking heap of rubble. Which terrified the second road-patrol of the afternoon, as it crashed down INCHES behind them.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 1, 2020

5)
Then there was the recent occasion upon which El “helped” Laeral track down an elusive noble at a night revel in Waterdeep by working a spell that lofted all living creatures of over a certain size that were in a large, 6)
…night-shrouded landscaped noble’s garden into the air, and enveloped them with a strong amber faerie fire glow. The spell worked perfectly, displaying to all quite a few startled courting couples embracing while unclad.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 1, 2020

7)
Some of them were even married to each other. 8)
And then there was a prank El and Caladnei tried to play on Vangerdahast, by switching Myrmeen (as a dragon) with another dragon, while dragon-Vangey was flying in the moonlight over Suzail. El misjudged the swap, and the…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 1, 2020

9)
…replacement dragon landed with a gigantic splash in the pond in the Royal Gardens, drenching royals and senior courtiers who were conferring about the future of the realm over drinks. The only one left dry and unfrightened 10)
…was the ghost of Alusair, who shrieked with laughter—which only added to the fear of everyone else.

I could go on for days, but…El WOULD kill me.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 1, 2020

Great Sage, I entreat another question from you. We all know the elven empires are largely gone, Evereska stands as the only remaining elven city in the Realms. Is there any effort by elves in general to rebuild new cities after so many failed attempts to claim Ruins of old? Or are they just going to fade away, never to return?

— Lysbeth Raven (@LysbethRaven) March 6, 2020

1)
The elves are already rebuilding Myth Drannor AGAIN, so we know they don’t intend to fade away. It’s also important for humans in the Realms to bear in mind that elves prefer tree-homes and the like to paved, human-like cities, so some elf building and. 2)
…rebuilding may largely escape human notice. Moreover, after the way humans have behaved over the last few centuries, it would seem only sane for elves to dwell in areas as unspoiled and remote from human activity as they can get.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 6, 2020

Poor Myth Drannor. Might as well be building a sandcastle.

— ElvenWizardKing (@KingLorathorn) March 6, 2020

1)
That has been said before. And yet…they persist.
I grew up walking in a municipal ravine park, in which every severe storm tore out pedestrian bridges and accordioned the asphalt paths linking them. The park crews rebuilt them, every time. Once, when asked why. 2)
…by a TV journalist, the workers looked astonished, and the crew boss replied, "But we LOVE our park. And I love building bridges."
So 'tis, with the elves.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 6, 2020