Building Zeb's World - Getting into 2e AD&D

 Last year I spent a lot of time and effort learning OD&D and Holmes Basic since it was the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons, this year I want to spend some time experiencing other versions of D&D that I don't have a lot of experience with. Now don't get me wrong, I played Baldur's Gate 1, 2, and Icewind Dale 1 as a teenager, but that's about the extent of my experience.

The Premise

Late last year I was approached by the owner of a store I play tabletop wargames at and have run Dungeon Crawl Classics games at in the past. He asked if I was planning on running games this year, and I threw out the idea of a Tuesday night game playing 2nd edition. Sadly he and his girlfriend can't attend (one of his major reasons of approaching me), but he said he would support in whatever way he could.

So starting January 21st at 5:30pm, I will sit down with a table of interested players (hopefully) to start a small campaign. I'm not sure how long it will go, but I do want to play for a few months.

I am currently planning on running it in the Forgotten Realms. I figure that most of the people at my shop will be at least familiar with the setting, even if they're not intimately familiar with the specifics of 2nd Edition Forgotten Realms' timeline and history, Lord knows I don't.

I suppose this blog will also start to serve as a world building, note taking, and house rules record as I spend time actively thinking about 2e.

The First Beginnings of the World

So since I'm going to be setting the game in the Forgotten Realms, it's time to figure out where I want to set it. Since most of my experience with 2e is Baldur's Gate and Icewind Dale I want to try to keep things fresh, so I'm probably just going to start with the Dalelands, though I assume my players may want to make their way towards the Sword Coast, but that's something to worry about down the road.

So our fair story is going to start out in Shadowdale, DR 1367, nearly a decade after the Avatar Crisis when the gods walked the realms as mere mortals.

Our fair heroes (or prospective heroes) will start outside of the Old Skull Inn.

I hope to update with what my players are playing next. If you have any experience or tips for running 2e, let me know in the comments I'm a newbie.