Dragonlance

Creation Hickman developed his world creation technique by writing and self-publishing with his wife Laura the adventure modules Rahasia (1979) and Pharaoh (1980), and writing TSR's Ravenloft module (1983). He was unemployed in 1982, and TSR offered him a job based on his submission of several modules. Hickman became the design coordinator for Project Overlord, the cover name for what would later be known as the Dragonlance saga. TSR decided to create a franchise, including modules, board games, lead figures, and - for the first time - novels. Weis had been hired as an editor; with Hickman, she began working with the author hired to write the novels. They weren't satisfied with the author, and decided they should be the ones to write the books. TSR had doubts about the finished novel's sales potential, and attempted to order thirty thousand copies, ultimately ordering the minimum print run of fifty thousand. The success of the novel prompted TSR to publish more copies to meet demand. Dragonlance received support products such as novels, calendars, computer games, and books of artwork. Further development In the mid to late 1980s, a rift developed between TSR and the authors. Weis and Hickman were feeling under-appreciated and, when TSR turned down their Darksword series of novels, they went to Bantam Books. Bantam made them an offer, which they accepted, and they stopped writing Dragonlance novels for TSR. The central books of the Dragonlance series were written by the authoring team of Weis and Hickman, but many other writers have made contributions, including Richard A. Knaak, Douglas Niles, Roger E. Moore, Don Perrin, Jean Rabe, Paul B. Thompson, Tonya C. Cook, Michael Williams, Nancy Varian Berberick, and Chris Pierson. In 2001, Wizards of the Coast licensed Sovereign Press to publish further Dragonlance game materials. This began with the newly revised Dragonlance Campaign Setting in 2003, which used the new Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition rules. In October 2020, Weis and Hickman filed suit against Wizards of the Coast for breaching a licensing deal with Weis and Hickman for a new Dragonlance novel trilogy. Boing Boing reported that "according to the lawsuit, Weis and Hickman agreed with Wizards of the Coast to produce the new novels in 2017, capping off the series and giving fans a final sendoff, but the company pulled the plug in August 2020". In December, Weis and Hickman filed to voluntarily dismiss without prejudice their lawsuit, and "the filing noted that Wizards of the Coast had not formally answered their lawsuit, nor had they filed for a summary judgement". Weis and Hickman's publishing agent affirmed a few weeks following this that a new trilogy of Dragonlance novels was in the works; the first of the new trilogy was released in August 2022. In December 2022, the first Dragonlance adventure module, titled Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen, for 5th Edition was released. The module is set during the War of the Lance; Wizards of the Coast has stated that the module does not require prior knowledge of the setting or the novels to play the module. An integrated board game, titled Dragonlance: Warriors of Krynn, was released in 2023, designed by Stephen Baker and Rob Daviau. Dragonlance: Warriors of Krynn is a wargame that focuses on military battles during the War of the Lance. Both games can be played independently, but the adventure module includes rules for using the board game to resolve the military battles that occur in the narrative. == Media ==

Campaign setting , the first Dragonlance'' campaign setting sourcebook TSR created Dragonlance as a campaign setting for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) roleplaying game in 1982, publishing the first of a series of modules, Dragons of Despair, in March 1984. They published the first world-spanning sourcebook, Dragonlance Adventures, in 1987. When AD&D was updated to the 2nd edition in 1989, the Dragonlance campaign setting was updated as well. However, in 1996, Dragonlance was converted to use the new SAGA System, which uses cards to determine the effects of actions, with the publication of the Dragonlance: Fifth Age roleplaying game. In March 2022, Wizards released the PDF Heroes of Krynn which is part of the "Unearthed Arcana" public playtest series for the 5th Edition of Dungeons & Dragons. Polygon commented that this "all but confirmed" the return of the Dragonlance setting. The setting was revisited in December 2022 with a new adventure module for the 5th Edition. Novels The main storyline of the original Dragonlance series has been predominantly written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. • The Chronicles trilogy relates the events since the meeting of the Companions until the end of the War of the Lance and the defeat of the Dragonarmies of Ansalon. • The Lost Chronicles trilogy is a companion to the original Chronicles. Each book of the trilogy tells a story hinted at in the Chronicles but previously left untold. • The Legends trilogy covers the Blue Lady's War, as well as the past adventures of Raistlin and Caramon Majere, culminating in Raistlin's attempt to achieve godhood. • The Raistlin Chronicles is a two-book series (The Soulforge and Brothers in Arms), that follow the early life of Raistlin Majere, with his twin brother Caramon and their half-sister Kitiara uth Matar, on his journey from sickly child to powerful mage. • The Second Generation is a single compilation book with five novellas that tell the stories of the children of the original Companions. This book is considered to be part of the main storyline, and develops characters that would later be seen in the War of Souls. • Dragons of Summer Flame covers the Chaos War, also known as the Second Cataclysm. The gods and mortals join forces to defeat Chaos in his attempt to destroy Krynn, resulting in the withdrawal of Chaos and the gods of Krynn. • ''Kang's Regiment consists of two novels (The Doom Brigade and Draconian Measures''), which tell the story of Kang and his draconian regiment following the end of the War of the Lance and into the aftermath of the Chaos War. The series explores the draconians' search for identity, legitimacy, and a homeland. • The Destinies trilogy follows Destina Rosethorn, a noblewoman who embarks on a dangerous quest involving time travel, bringing her into conflict with legendary figures and disrupting the balance of the world. • Dragons in the Archives: The Best of Weis and Hickman Anthology is another compilation of short stories which were previously published in other anthologies. These stories take place at different points of time in the world of Krynn. This book provides backstory to some of the characters and situations presented in the War of Souls trilogy. • The War of Souls trilogy begins as a strange storm courses through Krynn, heralding the War of Souls. The end of the war brings the return of the gods, Takhisis's death, and the departure of Paladine. • The Dark Disciple trilogy follows the death of Takhisis and the departure of Paladine, when the lesser gods strive to maintain dominance. Video games Eight video games are set in the Dragonlance world. They belong in six different genres and were released within five years, from 1988 to 1992. DL01 - Dragons of Despair and DL02 - Dragons of Flame (corresponding to the events in the first novel, Dragons of Autumn Twilight) were adapted into the video games Heroes of the Lance and Dragons of Flame, respectively. Instead of being role-playing video games, they are platform games using the Silver Box game engine. Apart from those, the MUSH game DragonLance is based on Krynn during the final stage of the War of the Lance. Other The series has inspired mention in music as well, including "Wishmaster", a song by Nightwish based partially on the master and apprentice relationship between Raistlin Majere and Dalamar. The Swedish metal band Lake of Tears also recorded a song called "Raistlin and the Rose" on their 1997 album Crimson Cosmos, while the German group Blind Guardian wrote "The Soulforged", another song inspired by Raistlin's story, which appeared on the band's 2002 album A Night at the Opera. Also Danish/American band Pyramaze recorded in their 2008 album Immortal song "Caramon's Poem". A Russian concept album (2009-2010) and musical (premiered 2014) based on Raistlin's story, The Last Trial, was created by Anton Kruglov and Yelena Khanpira. In 2008, Dragonlance: Dragons of Autumn Twilight, an animated film based on the first Dragonlance book of the same name, was released direct-to-video. The animation was produced by Toonz Animation, and featured the voices of Lucy Lawless, Kiefer Sutherland, Michael Rosenbaum, and Michelle Trachtenberg. In late 2011, Holysoft Studios Ltd. released the first part of a German audio adaption of the Chronicles Trilogy, with subsequent releases of the later trilogies being announced. In comics, Krynn has been represented on the 1988 Dragonlance series by DC Comics and TSR. More recently, Devil's Due Publishing and Wizards of the Coast have also produced a number of comic book series: The Legend of Huma (2003), Chronicles (2005) and Legends (2008). == World ==

The Dragonlance world is described in dozens of books and novels. The setting contains numerous characters, an extensive timeline, and a detailed geography. Setting Dragonlance is set on the world of Krynn. Most of the novels take place in the regions of Ansalon, a small continent, though some have taken place on the continent of Taladas, located northeast of Ansalon. The world's major gods are the High God and his children: good Paladine, neutral Gilean, and evil Takhisis. The gods are opposed by Chaos, who seeks to destroy Krynn. Depending on the period, the evil chromatic and the good metallic dragons are rare or plentiful. Humans are Krynn's most common humanoid race, but elves, dwarves, kender, gnomes, and minotaurs occupy the world as well. Clerics derive magical powers from their gods, and wizards derive power from the three moon gods, good Solinari, neutral Lunitari, and evil Nuitari. Hickman had previously served as a Mormon missionary in Java for two years and used Indonesian in Dragonlance spells. Later Age of Mortals novels and game supplements took Krynn into the Fifth Age (the Age of Mortals). Dragonlances Dragonlances are rare and not commonly traded. There are lesser dragonlances, which are made when only one of the artifacts is used to create them, and greater dragonlances, which are made when both artifacts are used to make them. Greater dragonlances are blessed with the power of Good, unlike lesser dragonlances. There are two sizes of dragonlance. The smaller footman's dragonlance is around eight feet long and functions as a polearm, while the larger mounted dragonlance is around sixteen feet long and most commonly used when mounted on a dragon. Characters , Caramon, Tanis, Tasslehoff, Flint, Goldmoon, Riverwind, Sturm, Tika, and Laurana. Tracy Hickman keeps this Larry Elmore painting on the wall in his office. The Heroes of the Lance are the protagonists of the Chronicles trilogy, the first series of Dragonlance books. They were created by Weis and Hickman, then fleshed out as player characters in gaming sessions of Dungeons & Dragons at Hickman's apartment. One player at this initial gaming session was game designer Terry Phillips, who was playing as Raistlin. According to Hickman in the foreword to The Soulforge, "[we] were just settling in to the game when I turned to my good friend Terry Phillips and asked what his character was doing. Terry spoke...and the world of Krynn was forever changed. His rasping voice, his sarcasm and bitterness all masking an arrogance and power that never needed to be stated suddenly were real. Everyone in the room was both transfixed and terrified. To this day Margaret [Weis] swears that Terry wore the black robes to the party that night." In a "Traveling Road Show" put on to publicize the novels, the Heroes of the Lance were played by various people. Authors Gary and Janet Pack played the half-elf Tanis Half-Elven and the kender Tasslehoff Burrfoot, respectively. Author Douglas Niles played the dwarf Flint Fireforge. TSR employee Harold Johnson played the Solamnic knight Sturm Brightblade. The rest of the Heroes are the barbarians Goldmoon and Riverwind, elf Laurana Kanan, and humans Caramon Majere (Raistlin's brother) and Tika Waylan. Weis played Fizban the Fabulous. Other noteworthy antagonists, and sometimes protagonists, are the Death Knight Lord Soth and Kitiara Uth Matar, the half-sister of Raistlin and Caramon, and leader of one of the Dragonarmies of Ansalon. According to Hickman, Lord Soth is the most unpredictable character to write about: "Every time that character made an appearance in one of our books he would try to run off with the story". Locations The world of Dragonlance is set on the planet of Krynn, with most of the action taking place on the continent of Ansalon. Some of the key countries and areas on Ansalon are the Plains of Dust, Solamnia with its great metropolis, Palanthas, the Blood Sea Isles, the Empire of Ergoth, Istar, and Sancrist, the elven kingdom of Silvanesti, as well as the dwarven realm of Thorbardin. Important cities and towns and other locations include Solace (location of the Inn of the Last Home, and Sad Town), the High Clerist's Tower, Palanthas, Kendermore, Port Balifor (location of the Pig and Whistle Tavern), and the various Towers of High Sorcery. Races Like in many Dungeons & Dragons campaign settings, the fictional world of the Dragonlance campaign is shaped by the division by race, with white humans as the central focus, but also including elves, goblins, and many others. With the species in many cases clearly assigned to "good" and "evil", some critics have suggested that the setting had the potential to raise racist expectations. The authors take an active stance against racist ideology and ensure that a "fascistic genocidal campaign to wipe-out species that are considered 'impure'" would have catastrophic consequences. In contrast, the authors emphasize the need for tolerance and cooperation between the races. == Reception ==

Dragonlance is one of the most popular shared worlds, worlds in which writers other than those that created them place adventures. The first Dragonlance trilogy, Chronicles, launched the Dungeons & Dragons line of novels, with many of its characters spun off into other novels. Along with Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance is TSR's most popular series of novels. According to The 1990s by Marc Oxoby, what is most notable about the series is that "what may at one time been considered disposable, escapist literature" found "unprecedented popularity" in the 1990s. Every Dragonlance novel by Weis and Hickman since 1995 has been released in hardcover, and some previous novels have been re-released in hardcover collector's editions. Dragonlance made TSR one of the most successful publishers of science fiction and fantasy in the 1990s. By 2008, there were more than 190 novels in the Dragonlance franchise. Weis and Hickman's Dragonlance novels have made over twenty bestseller lists, with sales in excess of 22 million. Visions of Wonder, edited by David G. Hartwell and Milton T. Wolf, and published by the Science Fiction Research Association, argues that Dragonlance is published under the "omnivore theory" of publishing. In this theory, the readership is made up of teenagers, and completely replaces itself every three to five years. This allows publishers to release subpar novels and still reach a small yet profitable audience. == See also ==