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I'm looking at the "Adventures" booklet, mostly pages 6-8 which describes the history of the region and present events. Do you start the adventure by giving the players pretty much all of that information? Or do you start with a blank slate and let them figure out details as they wander through the Misty Vale?

I want my players to have enough information to feel like they "know" the place, but not enough to spoil any surprises along the way.

My recommendation would be "somewhere in the middle" of your ideas.

Ultimately, to satisfy the "explorers" in the party - *every* fact and secret should be discoverable through game play.

But, the more players start with, the less "fog of war" the guide has to work with to create mystery and puzzles to solve.

Something I have been looking at for published adventures, but have not found a good one-size-fits-all fix is this:
For each piece of info in the adventure including all that "GM only" backstory... how can the players find it out through the game.

All those facts and story pieces are *treasure* and if you treat it like such, then it might be simpler to decide what can be just given and what must be earned.

Another perspective I've found helps sort some of it out is - what does someone who grew up there know, compared to someone who comes in from the outside?

What is the "locals only" info?

These can be pinned to the map where the are "local" - and everyone / everywhere else on the map does not know.
An example of this is language or pronunciation of something. Locals who grow up there know a place is called X.
Someone reading from a map, who doesn't know the local pronunciation may say it "differently" marking them as an outside.

On your rumor tracker, you can try marking some rumors/secrets as:
* Only specific NPCs know with a list of NPCs
* Only this group knows with a list of the groups (miners might know, but merchants have no clue)
* Everybody knows ... these are the ones the players should start with.

Everyone knows when the moon changes phases, or the seasons.
Only a single mage knows that on this season with this phase of the moon a certain spell can be cast.

I know this is kind of general and vague - but hopefully it helps as you read down through the material

I would just set them off with a minimum of details, the starting text at page 11, just before the ambush, and fill in some further details from the left side of page 7, regarding the situation now and Outskirt. Get the game going as soon as possible and fill in the rest later. This is not culture gaming. Players will forget most anyway.

What is "culture gaming" ?

What is "culture gaming" ?

I'm guessing they mean it's not a lore heavy game.

I'm looking at the "Adventures" booklet, mostly pages 6-8 which describes the history of the region and present events. Do you start the adventure by giving the players pretty much all of that information? Or do you start with a blank slate and let them figure out details as they wander through the Misty Vale?

I want my players to have enough information to feel like they "know" the place, but not enough to spoil any surprises along the way.

Keep in mind: the adventure presupposes they are from outside the valley; the opening fight is in the pass via which they're coming into the valley .

So, if running the campaign, only vague hints seem appropriate to me. They'd know of the Empire; of the war between dragons and demons, but probably not the details.

Some boards have a "like" feature. I would like to hit "like" for a couple of great suggestions in this thread.

I will start with page 11 but try to keep things vague at the start, and let them uncover background a little at a time. Only one time to grow that "first impression" and I'd hate to waste that by giving a bunch of details and ruining the mystery of the setting!