From Icewind Dale to Calimport: A Sandbox of Adventure in the Forgotten Realms

Tags Forgotten Realms author-mike-bernier

The Forgotten Realms are an endless tapestry of adventure. From the frozen expanse of Icewind Dale to the shadowed streets of Baldur's Gate, Forgotten Realms: Adventures in Faerûn helps you run campaigns in these iconic locations with new monsters, an expansive gazetteer full of lore, ready-to-run adventures, a DM's toolbox containing unique mechanics for each region, and more!

In this article, we provide a primer on each region to help you kick off your adventures in Faerûn, whether your party seeks to quell the dangers of Icewind Dale, claim lost elven magic in the Dalelands, or navigate political intrigue along the Sword Coast.

Baldur's Gate

MAIHOPE Baldur's Gate's crowded harbor, terraced districts, and looming walls at dusk

Urban Intrigue & Devilish Deeds

Gold talks, power walks, and the fog off the Gray Harbor can hide many sins.

Baldur's Gate is a hard-edged trade nexus where coin rules and lives are cheap. Founded by the hero Balduran, the city has long since grown into a sprawling, cosmopolitan powerhouse at the mouth of the Chionthar. The city is physically and socially stratified into three districts: the patriars' ivy-walled Upper City, the bustling Lower City, and the hardscrabble Outer City beyond the walls.

Recent years have brought a surge of secret cults, a thieves' syndicate known simply as the Guild, and dangers smuggled in with exotic cargo. Whether your party is politicking their way to the top, pulling off heists, or cleaning up the street-level crime, Baldur's Gate is a hive of urban intrigue.

Factions and Inhabitants

  • The Council of Four. Three dukes and a grand duke steer law, taxes, and the city's forces—advised by the Parliament of Peers.
  • The Flaming Fist. The city's mercenary enforcers, headquartered at the Seatower of Balduran and Wyrm's Rock; feared for heavy-handed “justice” and corruption.
  • The Guild. Baldurian crime syndicate led by Nine-Fingers Keene; keeps a low profile while squeezing nobles and outsiders.
  • Cults of the Dead Three & Devil Cults. Cells of Bane, Bhaal, and Myrkul—and rising diabolists—work murders, tyranny, necromancy, and infernal bargains in the shadows.

Notable Sites

Location Description
High Hall Seat of government and verdant plotting; home to the Council's chambers, archives, and Balduran's regalia.
Wyrm's Crossing & Wyrm's Rock The toll-bridge city gate split by a fortress that controls access to the city proper.
Basilisk Gate Busy artery between Lower and Outer City, lined with statues and leading toward the Coast Way.
Black Dragon Gate Guarded entrance into the Upper City, crowned with a dragon's head and road north to Waterdeep.
Dusthawk Hill & the Riverveins Quarried granite hill honeycombed with sea caves and smuggler tunnels.

Random Encounters

d8 Encounter
1 Imps scouting for a devil-summoner's next mark.
2 A petty crew of Bandits offering “protection” from the Guild.
3 A Cambion disguised as a politician intentionally weakening the Council of Four's oversight.
4 Assassins worshiping Bhaal staging a terror-killing in a dark alley.
5 Bane Cultists shaking down merchants under color of law.
6 Myrkulan Death Cultists coaxing secrets from a bound spirit.
7 Guild Toughs running a midnight ambush on a convoy of luxury goods arriving at the Black Dragon Gate.
8 A Succubus running an intel-gathering operation out of an Upper City elitist's club.

Calimshan

MAIHOPE Sun-baked dunes, cloud-palaces, and the sprawling metropolis of Calimport

High Magic & Genie Intrigue

Silk and sand, wishes and wars—in Calimshan, every bargain comes with a price.

Calimshan is a realm of blistering deserts, fertile coasts, and ancient wonders where genie courts vie with mortal dynasties. Heroes cross the Calim Desert through sandstorms to parley with djinn in skyborne pavilions, bargain with marids along the southern sea, and dodge the tyranny of efreet and the avarice of dao.

At its heart sprawls Calimport—a city of magic, commerce, lavish patronage, and clockwork marvels—while steppe riders of the Kochar range between oases and trade roads. From cloud-drifting palaces to hidden tombs swallowed by dunes, Calimshan promises intrigue, luxury, and peril in equal measure.

Factions and Inhabitants

  • Genie Courts. Four rival powers—djinn, marids, dao, and efreet—rule beyond Calimport, their grudges and whims drawing adventurers into delicate alliances and dangerous errands.
  • Kochar Nomads. Steppe riders whose rotating chieftain-council keeps tribes balanced.
  • Calimport Magnates. Guilds, nobles, and inventors thrive amid cantrip-wielding commoners whose streets are rife with magical potions and Spell Scrolls.
  • Wanderers of the Waste. Caravaneers, treasure-seekers, and outlaws walk the Trade Way and lesser routes between oases and dragon-haunted ruins.

Notable Sites

Location Description
Calimport Seat of the sultana's power and a nexus of high-magic commerce where even commoners know a cantrip or two.
Memnon The Scarlet City, once the efreeti Memnon's capital; now a mortal-ruled stronghold with a key port.
Burin Bir Also known as the Cloud Pavilions, this djinni city is adrift on magical clouds.
Gozva Ka Shimmering efreet oasis whose overlords built this mirrored stronghold to reflect the sun and create a crucible of heat, law, and ambition.
Miziltep A flying fortress that casts a long shadow over the dunes, feared by caravans and genies alike.

Random Encounters

d8 Encounter
1 A prowling Young Blue Dragon claiming a dune-buried city.
2 An Efreeti patrol demanding tribute near a magical oasis.
3 Dao mercenaries extorting miners in wind-carved canyons.
4 A Marid envoy brokering water rights along the southern coast.
5 A cortege of Djinni sky-riders who like to test travelers with riddles.
6 A Gnoll Warriors warband stalking the Trade Way.
7 A sunken crypt full of Mummies loyal to a Mummy Lord.
8 A scheming Adult Blue Dragon who wants to parley with the party to thwart a genie's plan.

Dalelands

MAIHOPE Rolling farms, forest vales, and the shadowed edges of Cormanthor in the Dalelands

Classic Heroic Fantasy on a Mysterious Frontier

Where farm roads meet forest shadows, tales of legendary secrets turn into epic quests.

The Dalelands are broad, fertile vales stitched together by trade roads and old alliances with the elves of Cormanthor. Founded under the Dales Compact and the Standing Stone, the dales balance hard-won independence with centuries of cooperation.

Life here feels familiar—inns, markets, and homesteads—yet danger is never far: goblinoid raids from the woods, scheming Zhentarim, and dark forests full of dangerous creatures harry the humble folk of this land. This is where classic high fantasy adventures emerge: heroes rising from small towns to face bandits, evil dragons, and worshipers of ancient terrors.

Factions and Inhabitants

  • Dales Council. Delegates who hammer out defense, borders, and trade on behalf of the dales.
  • Dalefolk. Stubborn, community-first farmers, rangers, and crafters who rally fast when the horns sound.
  • Elves of Cormanthor. Semberholme and Tangled Trees shelter those who remain after Myth Drannor's fall.
  • Outside Pressures. Zhentarim buyers, Sembian interests, and opportunists probing for weak fences and weaker wills.

Notable Sites

Location Description
Myth Drannor A legendary megadungeon of fallen elven splendor—endless ruins, fading mythal magic, and vaults full of untold treasures.
Cormanthor Primeval forest that spans hundreds of miles; monsters and long-forgotten sorcery brood beneath its boughs.
Lake Sember Elf-guarded waters sacred to the forest folk; tales whisper of a city beneath the surface.
Shadowdale A storied hub for adventurers and rumor-mongers, forever in Myth Drannor's long shadow.
Archendale A heavily militarized and wealthy region known for its trade (and sometimes war) with Sembia.

Random Encounters

d8 Encounter
1 Goblin Warriors raiding a remote settlement at dusk.
2 A Hobgoblin Captain drilling troops in preparation for invasion.
3 Bugbear Warriors setting an ambush in the bracken.
4 A Green Hag bargaining secrets for “small favors” at a forest pool.
5 Giant Spiders nesting in a collapsed watchtower.
6 Grimlocks scouting up from a fresh Underdark breach.
7 A Green Dragon Wyrmling testing its breath on a hunter's camp.
8 Dryads charming loggers to abandon their axes.

Icewind Dale

POLAR ENGINE Snow-covered mountains and frozen lakes of Icewind Dale

Survival Horror in the Far North

A viciously indifferent land full of beauty and terror, wreathed in the oppressive dark of winter.

Icewind Dale lies at Faerûn's northernmost reaches, a frozen wilderness where the sun barely rises and survival depends on grit and luck. The rugged folk of Ten-Towns eke out a living through fishing and trade, their lives bound by isolation and superstition.

Beyond these settlements, dwarves and goliaths carve homes into the mountains, while Reghed nomads follow herds across the tundra. From the Reghed Glacier to the Sea of Moving Ice, wolves, frost giants, and worse stalk the blizzards. Here, even hardened adventurers are as likely to succumb to the elements as they are to the deadly creatures that hunt in the dark.

Factions and Inhabitants

  • Ten-Townsfolk. Hardy settlers who endure endless winters, trade across frozen lakes, and accept all who pitch in.
  • Reghed Tribes. Nomadic clans who follow the elk and revere their ancestors.
  • Dwarves of Kelvin's Cairn. Miners and smiths who dig deep into the earth for ore—and sometimes awaken what sleeps below.
  • Frost Giants and Goliaths. Clans that battle across the peaks, their wars with dragons or each other echo through the frozen heights of the Spine of the World.

Notable Sites

Location Description
Bryn Shander The largest of Ten-Towns and a hub for trade, warmed by the spirit of stubborn survival.
Reghed Glacier A shifting wall of ice carving through the empty tundra.
Sea of Moving Ice A perilous expanse of drifting floes where hunters chase whales—and are hunted in turn.
Kelvin's Cairn A towering mountain riddled with dwarven halls and forgotten Underdark passages.
Dougan's Hole A desolate town full of cursed inhabitants.

Random Encounters

d8 Encounter
1 A warband of Frost Giants marching between glacier cairns.
2 A Remorhaz erupting beneath a snow-buried trail.
3 Winter Wolves shadowing a sledge through blowing drifts.
4 A Yeti protecting its lair.
5 A circling Young White Dragon claiming a frozen lake as territory.
6 Ice Mephits conjuring razor sleet to slow travelers, hoping for an easy meal.
7 A Polar Bear defending cubs near a seal-hole.
8 A horde of Zombies animated by a Lich.

Moonshae Isles

MAIHOPE Fog-draped coasts, standing stones, and green isles scattered across the Sea of Moonshae

Swashbuckling Seafaring & Fey-Touched Nature

Sea mist veils ancient forests as the tides carry songs of druids, fey courts, and raiders in swift longships.

The Moonshae Isles blend hearth-warm villages and overseas travel with fey-touched wilds. Fairy-tale wonder and the natural world shape most adventures here, from rivaling fey courts to curses that warp the land and water.

Sacred groves and barrows endure under druidic protection, memorials to alliances among the Ffolk, Norlanders, and the fey that still watch these shores. But, magical contagions and raiders threaten the natural balance.

Factions and Inhabitants

  • The Ffolk. Farmers, fishers, and traders who hold fast to ritualistic rites that allow them to coexist with fey.
  • Norlanders. Longship crews and coastal settlers who celebrate their strength and mastery of the sea during raids on the Sword Coast.
  • Moonshae Druids. Wardens of barrows and oaths; their natural magic protects tombs and living groves alike.
  • Fey Courts & Kin. From kindly faeries to hag covens and enigmatic archfey, the isles contain many fey crossings that influence the land's nature.

Notable Sites

Location Description
Caer Allisyn Wandering isle and royal burial that rises from the sea four times a year, glimpsed in shifting waters across the isles.
Alaron Large Ffolk population and seat of High King Derid Kendrick
Kressilac Sahuagin kingdom on the sea floor; raiders ride sharks to strike Alaron, Gwynneth, and Oman's Isle.
Moray A dangerous isle claimed by hundreds of werewolves and other violent creatures.
Maelstrom Ship-swallowing whirlpool that leads to a storm-giant fortress carved into a reef below the waves.

Random Encounters

d8 Encounter
1 A coven of Sea Hags weaving schemes from a kelp-draped cave.
2 A Sahuagin raiding party riding sharks.
3 A Displacer Beast stalking travelers near a standing-stone circle.
4 Pixies leading sailors astray with will-o'-wisps and pranks.
5 Reveling Satyrs whose music lures villagers from their homes.
6 A shadow passing over the surf—an adult Roc hunting whales.
7 Giant Crabs fighting over a wreck in a tidepool made of towering rocks.
8 An ancient Dragon Turtle rises from the waves with a city on its back.

Adventure Across the Realms

Within Forgotten Realms: Adventures in Faerûn, you'll find more than just maps and lore—you'll find inspiration for a thousand different adventures, each more epic than the last. Will your party forge alliances with noble factions, brave haunted ruins to seek out troves of treasure, or defy the will of gods and kings?

The only question that remains is: where will your legend begin?

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A smug mage looks away as an explosion goes off behind them. Text reads, Adventurers wanted! Join the D&D Discord today!

Mike Bernier is the founder of Arcane Eye, a site focused on providing useful tips and tricks to all those involved in the world of D&D. Outside of writing for Arcane Eye, Mike spends most of his time playing games, hiking with his girlfriend, and tending the veritable jungle of houseplants that have invaded his house.

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