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Hey everyone, remember all those books in the game that you probably threw away because they took up precious inventory space, and you didn't have time to read them? Well I've written an FAQ that has every single book in the game in it. Some of them are really interesting, like The History of the Dead Three, and some of them are really long, like Waterdeep and the North. If there's any one you want to read, do
Ctrl-F and search for it, or search by section number. Enjoy, and thanks for reading. -chocomog
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section I: Legal Stuff, Contact Info, Thanks, Etc.
Section II: Countries (One Book)
Section III: Countries (Multiple Books)
Section IV: Races
Section V: People
Section VI: Places (specific)
Section VII: Other
Section VIII: Weird, Unfindable (?) Books
Section IX: Location of Books (almost complete)

SECTION I: LEGAL, ETC
Copyright 2003 Kevin Kao.
This may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright.

In other words, if you want to put this somewhere, ask me, I'll say yes. As of July 18, 2003, only GameFAQs has permission to put this up.

I can be reached on AIM as chocomog4000, YIM as chocomog4000, my email address is chocomog4000@yahoo.com, and you can usually find me at the
Baldur's Gate message board.

I'd appreciate any comments, suggestions, criticisms, etc set to my email, although spam and crap like that will just be blocked. I also play D2, so if anyone has any donations, it would be greatly appreciated. The locations is currently incomplete, so if anyone wants to help.

Thanks to CjayC for such a cool site, Bioware for making this game, the
BG message board for being there, NearInfinity and its creators, I couldn't have done this without you, and a lot of the people I know.
Except the ones I don't like, no thanks to you.
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SECTION II: Countries(minus Shadowdale, Waterdeep)
AMN

History of Amn:

Amn has the good fortune to have abundant natural resources; some would say Amn is the richest land on the continent. This has worked in Amn's favor for generations, because even if they were conquered, the new masters would be gentle, looking to gain wealth from the land, rather than to put it to the torch.

Amn has been a center of trade and commerce for as long as anyone can remember. Oral traditions handed down from father to son tend to support the theory that Amn has been a trade center for at least 800 years. Unfortunately, written records are difficult to find and often incomplete. It would seem the typical Amnish citizen was too busy trying to fill their coffers to write down events of the day.

Amn has always been more interested in the present and the future than the past, and this makes an accurate history difficult. The best records, the business papers of the oldest trading companies, are jealously guarded.  The fear of revealing "trade secrets" is stronger than the call of history, so the average citizen knows very little about Amn's past.

It appears that the Amn of 100 years ago was very much like the
Calimshan of today.  Each major city was basically an independent entity, banding together for defense when necessary, and fighting for control of territory and profitable trade routes the rest of the time.
A particularly brutal trade war began 24 years ago, with each city exacting prohibitive tariffs on goods imported from the others. The trade war escalated, and city troops began to raid caravans sponsored by other cities. In a matter of months commerce was brought to a halt, a number of cities were under siege, and war threatened to engulf the entire region.

Into the breach stepped a young merchant named Thayze Selemchant.
Thayze was smart, charismatic, and very well connected (the Selemchant trading house was one of the oldest and richest in Athkatla.) He secretly contacted representatives of the five other richest merchant houses in Amn, and started to plan.

The first part of the plan involved the careful sprinkling of rumors about outside threats.  One involved a pirate invasion from the
Nelanther, another was about a massing of orcs just on the other side of the Cloud Peaks. Thayze even started a rumor about an elf army in the Forest of Tethir, ready to pounce on a divided Amn.  None of the rumors were true, but they began to turn people's thoughts toward unity, not war.

Thayze knew that if he and the other members of his council were to take control of Amn, they would need broad-based popular support.
Tensions between cities and merchant houses were still high, so to get that support, Selemchant and the others agreed to drop their family names and never use them again.

When news of a "Council of Six" spread throughout the land, many people accepted their rule.  A group that would unite Amn under one rule, governing for the benefit of all instead of one city or trading company over another, was indeed a welcome change.  The Council raised an army (at great personal expense) to quell the few pockets of resistance that remained, and have been in total control of Amn for the past 22 years.

CALIMSHAN

History of Calimshan:

Calimshan is older than either of the other Empires of the Sands, first settled over 7,000 years ago by the Djen, a humanoid race from the
Elemental Plane of Air. These Djen were known to be very magical, and during the course of their rule they developed many new spells previously not available in the Plane of Air.

The Djen prospered for over 1,000 years in Calimshan, but their reign was ended by an invasion of creatures and minions from the Plane of
Fire.  Some say this is where the bitter hatred between djinni and efreeti started, though others contend this was just a result of a hatred that was already there.  Whatever the cause, the battle was long and bloody, and took over 100 years to complete. The Djen finally routed the attackers, but were greatly weakened in the attempt. They slowly declined, and the last mention of the Djen is just under 6,000 years old.

For the next 4,000 years Calimshan was dominated by nomadic tribes of humans. Tribes from various places - Chult, the Shaar, The Shining
Plains, Chondath, even Amn and Cormyr - took turns dominating, only to be conquered by the next, nearly identical tribe.

Slowly, the nomadic nature of Calimshan began to change.  As explorers and traders from Amn, Waterdeep, and Cormyr discovered the wonders of the area, some tribes began to settle down and develop new means of support, like fishing, farming, or trading. These communities began to band together for mutual protection, and soon a civilization was born.
It was only 1,300 years ago that the Shoon Empire (now called Iltkazar) came into being.

The Shoons were a grand and glorious empire, and their excesses were the foundation of Calishite snobbery today. They grew wise and powerful in the ways of magic, and ships and caravans bearing the Shoon flag traveled across the Forgotten Realms.  Shoon himself, a particularly powerful mage, created a book of great power during this time called the Tome of the Unicorn.  The exact location of the Tome has been lost in time, but since the book is 2' by 3' and made of pure metal, it is likely to still be around... somewhere.

900 years ago the Shoon empire abruptly vanished. A great magical upheaval was suspected at first, but learned mages of other lands dispute the claim.   A force that great, they say, would have disturbed magical powers and beings throughout the Realms, and that didn't happen.  Sages who have studied the Shoon at great length have reached no definite conclusions, but the most popular theories today center around a plague or disease that decimated the population.

Today, the Shoon impact on Calimshan is still great. The grandeur of that empire is responsible, more than anything else, for the strong national character of Calimshan today. The ruins of the Shoon's greatest city, Monrativi Teshy Mir, can still be found in the wilderness to the west of the edge of the Forest of Mir (see below for more on Monrativi Teshy Mir).

Since the fall of Shoon, no force or people has risen to soley dominate the land.  There are a half dozen or so major cities, each of which exerts its power over its own area.  About 170 years ago, a man in
Calimport amassed a large army and declared himself "Pasha" over the land.  Before that army could march, however, the representatives of each major city met and agreed to recognize the Pasha's authority in limited areas, and to pay a small tribute to him; enough to pay for the works the Pasha was expected to do.  The oldest son of each Pasha inherits the title; if there is no son, the mayors of each large city select a new one.  The current Pasha, Rashid Djenispool, has ruled for over 18 years, and is the grandson of a pasha elected by the mayors of
Calimshan 44 years ago.


CORMYR

History of Cormyr:

Cormyr dates its years from the founding of House Obarskyr 1,342 years ago, the first of the noble houses and the line of its kings.  For the bulk of this time, Cormyr was little more than a single city (Suzail) and a few fortified outposts.  At times the monarch was forced by rebellion and intrigue to rule from those outposts instead of from the throne.  King Azoun is the fourth of his name and the 71st of his line.

The land has been officially at peace for many years - since Rhigaerd overthrew the last of the border raiders.  However, Cormyrean armies have taken part in many actions in nearby regions, recently mustering its forces to face Gondegal, the rebel of Arabel; to occupy Tilverton on the marches of the Dalelands; and to lead a crusade against the great Tuigan horde invading from the east.  One wit has noted that
"Yes, the land is at peace, but the army has to keep busy."  In addition to pursuing major actions, Cormyrean patrols often skirmish with bandits on the roads in the north and west, and are at present battling orcs and other creatures north and east of Cormyr in Tilver's
Gap and Shadow Gap.  Both of these areas are threatened by raiders who will menace Cormyr itself if they ever overrun Tilverton.  Cormyr has built a fortress, Castle Crag, to defend the kingdom from attacks from that quarter, and maintains the High Horn to protect against attacks from the West.

DAMBRATH
History of Dambrath:

The nation of Dambrath was formed out of a barbarian kingdom almost a half-millennium ago by a powerful alliance of priestesses of Loviatar and the drow from the city of T'lindhet.

In 211 DR, fleeing from the destruction of the homeland by the then- great kingdoms of Unther and Muhlorand, four tribes of barbarians entered Dambrath.  They found a coast where the dolphins danced and plains where the grass was long.  They roamed from the borders of the
Walls of Halruaa as far east as the current borders of Estagund.  They soon became known as the Arkaiun, or people of the wind.

In 545 DR a great warchief, Reinhar, arose to lead the tribes.  The halflings of Luiren were quickly enslaved, and several of the coastal cities of Durpar were captured or razed.  Estagund fell to his rule, and  eventually Reinhar turned his attention to Halruaa.

An army of 40,000 horsemen and a fleet of 50 ships mounted a coordinated attack, and even though Reinhar was able to get beyond the
Walls of Halruaa and occupy the cities of Mithel, Galdel, and Zalsuu, their magics proved to be more than a match for the invaders.  Reinhar was finally defeated in a great battle at Sulaziir by the archmage
Mycontil and his troop of wizards.

Reinhar's son, Reinhar II, took command of the army and set out on a two month overland retreat.  He arrived home with a thousand surviving fighting men and no shaman.  Reinhar II proved to be as good a ruler in defeat as his father was in war.  He consolidated his forces and pulled home almost all of his troops, as he knew that the defeat made them tempting prey for raiders and encroaching monsters.  This action allowed for the safe developement of his peoples.

By the time the ninth Reinhar was king in 802 DR, the Arkaiuns were fat and lazy.  Reinhar IX, or Reinhar the Foolish as he is more commonly known, insisted on expanding his nation to gain more gold to finance his military campaigns.  He ordered the mining of many rich lodes of silver and electrum in the Gnollwatch mountains, but before his plans of expansion could begin, the miners encountered the drow of T'lindher.
The drow were outraged and began a steady series of raids and attacks on the Arkaiun strongholds.  Whole villages were destroyed overnight, and no trace of the invaders could be found.