It’s nice when a company just comes right out and tells you not to bother even considering the garbage they’re shoveling.

Not very. Negotiating and executing a deal of that size and complexity cross cutting major national, cultural, and business universes would be extremely difficult

It’s very standalone. It’s based in the forgotten realms universe in terms of lore, so it has a ton of depth there. The actual story arc though seems totally unconnected to the previous ones at least ten hours or so in.