@TheEdVerse Hi Ed. Was having a read of Secrets of the Magister and noticed that on p.64 the Magister Olohmber Starnardyn undertook a breeding program in the “mountainous backlands west of the Lake of Snows”. Where is the Lake of Snows?

— George Krashos (@gkrashos) March 12, 2021

2)
…is a large lake: the Lake of Snows. Most maps bear two nearby named features: Wyrm Rift to the south of it, and the smaller Lake Fiefs to the north of it.
So that breeding program was hosted upriver along the Spire Flow.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 14, 2021

@gkrashos I forgot the most important lore: it's "The Lake of Snows" because the local microclimate (winds, temp, water temp) causes many, many snowfalls onto the lake, even when it's not snowing around the lake. Often, the snow will coat placid lake waters in white.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 14, 2021

Yes. :}#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) March 15, 2021

@TheEdVerseThat’s still unknown, mainly because no one has ever thought to measure it (deep-dwelling undersea creatures think more of temperature gradients and water quality than they do distances to the surface), but whatever the deepest point is would have to beat… Mr. Greenwood, I don't see that this question has ever been covered by any official sources. What is the deepest natural point in any of the oceans of Toril? Thank you.

— Tony Moore (@anthonywmoore) May 11, 2021

2)
…Uldeep, a “hole” [deep spot] at the end of the Araude Trench.
The Uldeep has a solid, not muck, bottom, and thanks to the far-traveled mage Spendelarde (of Spendelarde’s Chaser fame), we know that he briefly (magically protected, mind you!) stood on it, …#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 12, 2021

3)
…39,000 feet beneath the ocean’s surface (a gentle swell, at the time). He reported that the Uldeep is a courtship/spawning area for eye of the deep (and illusions generated by two of them “almost got” him), so be careful.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 12, 2021

Makes me wonder how much of the Underdark is under water. Toril is like a BIG onion; the surface=its skin, and dwarves delving down about 3 layers. I once blew Save Sutherland's mind at a lunch in Lake Geneva, proposing boxed sets for each of the topmost ten layers. (Contemplating the mapping, he needed many drinks.)#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 12, 2021

And where would we find the Araude Trench, Ed? Sail due west from Nimlith twice as far as the distance between Sumbrar and the N end of Moray, then head straight down. ;}
That's the S end of the Trench, which runs NNW as far N as the latitude of The Icepeak. The Uldeep is at the N end of it.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 13, 2021

Thanks again @TheEdVerse for answering my question about the Celtic pantheon, but I got another related to it.

“Treasure Hunt” (1988) features a temple to a goddess that it leaves up to the DM. I would simply like your opinion on which of them is the most lore appropriate. For more context: this is in the Korinn Archipelago, on an island briefly settled in the 13th century by a band of human & demihumans led by a Northmen adventurer-noble. They hailed from the "southern kingdom of Petathal," which is a mystery as it's never been referenced again

— Sundered|🐜|ENVTuber – Debut TBA (@Sundered_Ant) June 20, 2021

Petathal was a Northmen-conquered big-island-chain realm west across the sea from Faerûn (a TSR creation, not mine, so I can’t tell you much more about it than that).
I used Tyche (Tymora) as the goddess, of course, but of the…
…deities on that list, which assumes gate-travel from Earth to Toril, and so Earth cultures in the Realms, I’d got for Brigit (Celtic mythos), and if for any reason that doesn’t work, I’d opt for Ishtar. #Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) June 20, 2021

Dear @TheEdVerse , well met.

A few questions, if I may:

1️⃣ When referring to Tymora, do halflings use another name is the same name as humans do?

2️⃣ Which currency is used by the independent nations of the Delimbiyr Vale (Daggerford, Loudwater, Llorkh) circa 1357 DR? Do…

— Ricardo Williams (@rwgs76) February 13, 2021

1)
The independent towns and cities of the Vale have all minted their own coinage from time to time, and Daggerford has even in the past made trade bars, but from 1330-1380 DR, none of them did so, as there were plenty of coins…2)
…in circulation, thanks to energetic peddlers and caravan merchants visiting often and bringing with them the currency of Waterdeep, Baldur’s Gate, Silverymoon, Scornubel, Iriaebor, Amn and Tethyr, and Cormyr, Westgate, …#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) February 13, 2021

3)
…Sembia, and the Moonsea beyond (coins, trade bars, and even uncut gems—in wooden hand-coffers to guard against chipping—used for large denominations).#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) February 13, 2021

That reminds me. Just how large IS a 5000GP diamond? Are we talking a few carats? Fits nicely in a teaspoon? A handful? Value depends on hue (yellowish and varied is not desirable), freedom from flaws and inclusions (i.e. a “clear” stone), and size. A 5000gp diamond is going to be at least as large as the top joint of an adult human thumb.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) February 14, 2021

Thank you. I’ve been wondering for a little while now. All of the 5K-gp-value gemstones listed in the DMG are values for a single stone (cut and polished and ready for wear). For unusually large stones, the value can go up from that amount, but for most gems, hue and flaws and size make the value go down.#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) February 14, 2021

@TheEdVerse You might find our 7-year WIP Baldur's Gate build in Minecraft interesting, sir. Ping if you would like to see detailed screenshots of locations of interest. https://t.co/qryyWHRb3N

— David Collison (@Jhereg10) April 21, 2021

I LOVE this! Yes, very interesting! Would love to see the NW-ern part of the city (the sheltering plateau of nobles' dwellings, then the bowl of the old main city due east of it) closer up. :}

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 21, 2021

This is all beautiful. I'm loving this. :} Just like the real thing only without seabirds and their, ah, white offerings.

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) April 22, 2021

Hi, Ed! This may have been asked before, but I can’t find the answer anywhere:
How do people in Forgotten Realms adress low-ranked clerics or wizard students? “His holiness” and “master” sound too big for someone who is killing rats in a tavern basement.Most folk address a cleric of uncertain (but likely low-ish) rank as "Devout" or "Avowed." For wizards, the default term is "Master of Art" or "Lord/Lady of Art" ("Master" is all-genders, but older folk might instead say "Lady Master of Art" and this wouldn't offend).#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 17, 2020

And if you don't know for certain that you're addressing a cleric (no visible holy symbol or vestments), or an apprentice mage, "Learned Saer" or "Learned Lady" are always-safe, polite alternatives (i.e. universally seen across the Realms as trying to be polite).#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) February 27, 2021

@TheEdVerse Is there an elven (wood-elf) word for 'home' or 'homeward'?

— Tavern of Trinkets | 5E Magic Items (@DnDTrinkets) May 9, 2021

21)
Yes. “Home” is either “ever” or “vand” (with wood elves almost exclusively using the latter), “sehan” is travel, and “ahan” is a trip or journey. Thus, for a wood elf, “vandahan” is a trip homewards, and the direction, or… )
…facing in the direction of home, is “vandel.”
The YEARNING for home, family, and hearth, however, is “immeet” (so the realm of Evermeet is “beloved home”).#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 9, 2021

3)
A high elf would speak of home as “ever,” a trip homewards (going home) as “evershen,” the direction of home as “estelevur,” and the yearning for home as “immeet.”#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 9, 2021

Have a question after running through Murder in Baldur's Gate. How is Abdel Adrian the PC of BG1/BG2 when Throne of Bhaal canonically ended
with Gorion's Ward giving up his/her power? The plot of Murder revolves around Abdel still having Bhaal's essence

— T. Venkatesh (@ThalaivarRises) May 23, 2021

1)
Abdel Adrian did indeed, at the end of THRONE OF BHAAL, choose not to keep Bhaal’s power and ascend as the new Lord of Murder, and instead surrender his divine essence (to be hidden away in Mount Celestia) and remain a… 2)
…mortal. Off he went to Candlekeep, to assume a life of research and contemplation, to better understand the world.
However, he then departed Candlekeep, traveled to Baldur’s Gate, and joined its soldiery (where he began his…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 24, 2021

…rise to power). Why this major change of heart and life?
The answer lies in something Mystra’s Chosen know and some sages suspect: that “dead” gods still have influence. In this case, Bhaal’s vestige was still lurking in…
…Abdel Adrian’s mind, and Bhaal made “his” decision not to ascend to godhood for him. Bhaal’s vestige retrieved his own essence, and when he had it and judged the time was right for his mortal tool Abdel Adrian to embark on a…#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 24, 2021

5)
…a path to restoring Bhaal himself to full divine life and power, Bhaal spurred Adrian to leave Candlekeep and begin his new life. (All of “the Dead Three,” like Jergal, the deity who made possible their divinity in the first…)
…place, are mavericks; they don’t behave as most gods do, so their deeds and actions often puzzle mortals like us.)#Realmslore

— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) May 24, 2021