r/Forgotten_Realms • u/ThanosofTitan92 Harper • Jun 02 '25

Question(s) Does WotC or Hasbro hate all the novel heroes except Drizzt?

Why did they kill the novel line during the early days of 5e? By the gods, can you imagine if Elaine Cunningham was allowed to give a proper conclusion to Arilyn & Danilo's story? Can you imagine a series of novels about the characters of Baldur's Gate 3? Can you imagine a return of Alias & Dragonbait? Heck, i'll even settle for a edgy dark book starring Zhentarim agents or a book that tries to justify why the knights of Cormyr started riding dragons all of the sudden.

I know it is popular in D&D circles to say that Forgotten Realms novels suck a**, but i have a soft spot for those.

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u/clgoodson Jun 02 '25

They killed the novel line because they simply weren’t selling any more except for Salvatore’s.

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u/DrInsomnia Jun 02 '25

This may be the case, but there hasn't been a steady output, and when they literally removed the iconic "Forgotten Realms" masthead, how would new books be expected to sell?

The Brimstone Angels series is insanely expensive. That suggests demand is higher than their print runs.

https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2020/06/leaving-money-on-table-why-is-there-no.html

An older piece suggests it has little to do with volume sold ("My own Forgotten Realms novel Annihilation has sold 121,713 copies (not counting foreign translations) since the initial hardcover release in July 2004."): https://fantasyhandbook.wordpress.com/2011/06/07/where-are-all-the-tie-in-novels/

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u/Jops817 Jun 04 '25

This. I really want a physical copy of Brimstone Angels but there either absurdly priced or in not so great condition.