Dragonlance Dragonlance Creators Reveal Why There Are No Orcs On Krynn

Talking to the Dragonlance Nexus, Dragonlance creators Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman revealed why the world of Krynn features no orcs -- in short, because they didn't want to copy Tolkien, and orcs were very much a 'Middle Earth' thing.

Weis told Trampas Whiteman that "Orcs were also viewed as very Middle Earth. We wanted something different." Hickman added that it was draconians which made Krynn stand out. Read more at the link below!

Why are there no Orcs in Krynn? Weis and Hickman give us the answer! - Dragonlance Nexus

Dragonhelm gets the scoop from Weis and Hickman on why there are no orcs in Krynn. Read More

dragonlancenexus.com

 

[Dr. Bull]

Just to throw a monkey-wrench into this whole discussion:

I like Kender. If I could vote for a Kender politician, I would. I am grateful that they are back.

I realize that a lot of people find them annoying, but I can't help but cheer for the little folk who possess more bravery than brawn (and who possess more curiosity than caution).

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

When I was a kid orcs and goblins were the same because of LOTR.

Exactly.

If I run Krynn without Kender, Tinker Gnomes, and Gully Dwarves, is it still Dragonlance? I mean, I enjoyed playing Kender when I was 11 ... because I was a typical 11-year-old and thought that pickpocketing my friends and otherwise being a kleptomaniac was fun. Now that I'm 13 I know better.

 

[Enevhar Aldarion]

When I was a kid orcs and goblins were the same because of LOTR.

Well, they are and aren't. The smaller creatures running around in Moria are generally called goblins, and then the larger ones hunting the Fellowship, the ones that kill Boromir, are generally called orcs, and then the even bigger and smarter ones are the man-orcs, or Uruk-Hai, created by Saruman.

 

[Haiku Elvis]

Aren't the Irda somwhat, kinda descended from Orcs or something?

Editor's Note: No wait, that's Ogres. Carry on.

Irda were sexy smart good Ogres. Kinda like She Hulk but with less green.

 

[Twiggly the Gnome]

Exactly.

If I run Krynn without Kender, Tinker Gnomes, and Gully Dwarves, is it still Dragonlance? I mean, I enjoyed playing Kender when I was 11 ... because I was a typical 11-year-old and thought that pickpocketing my friends and otherwise being a kleptomaniac was fun. Now that I'm 13 I know better.

Olgar Shiverstone
Legend
Joined Jul 9, 2002

 

[Staffan]

I don't remember this much fuss when WotC published Mythic Odysseys of Theros, which definitely restricts which creatures/PC races exist in the setting.

In the case of Theros, it's because the Magic setting it's based on didn't have orcs (rather few do, actually – Dominaria, Tarkir, Ixalan, and Strixhaven, it seems, not counting Un-sets or tie-ins). Since Magic churns through a lot more settings than D&D does, Magic settings tend to have a greater variety and very often pick a selection of the creatures available in the wider Magic-verse to be in each setting, and often have a twist to some of them. Some, like Lorwyn/Shadowmoor, don't even have humans in them!

 

[Remathilis]

In the case of Theros, it's because the Magic setting it's based on didn't have orcs (rather few do, actually – Dominaria, Tarkir, Ixalan, and Strixhaven, it seems, not counting Un-sets or tie-ins). Since Magic churns through a lot more settings than D&D does, Magic settings tend to have a greater variety and very often pick a selection of the creatures available in the wider Magic-verse to be in each setting, and often have a twist to some of them. Some, like Lorwyn/Shadowmoor, don't even have humans in them!

Some of that, from a game perspective, is to control for tribal decks and synergy. Elves, goblins, vampires, merfolk, angels and dragons are all powerful tribal decks in non-rotating formats, so by not having a tribe in a given block, it gives powerful tribes a rest and empowers lesser tribes to get new cards. Not having elves in Theros is more about not constantly empowering elf decks more than it is elves not fitting.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

BSG is not a great example! NuBSG has a very different feel to 80sBSG.

Both are awesome, but they ain't the same.

that is what makes it an example that I understand (I didn't always like the new one but I respect why they changed things)

If you like knight rider in 1987 you would most likely be disappointed by any/all knight riders that came since... but I understand why they changed with the new zeitgeist.

someone youtube made an 'improved' fight scene between obiwan and vader in the original star wars... if you watch modern star wars it looks like it would fit right in... but back in the 70's that wasn't what Lucas wanted, and it isn't what made the series so classic.

 

[Cadence]

Some of that, from a game perspective, is to control for tribal decks and synergy. Elves, goblins, vampires, merfolk, angels and dragons are all powerful tribal decks in non-rotating formats, so by not having a tribe in a given block, it gives powerful tribes a rest and empowers lesser tribes to get new cards. Not having elves in Theros is more about not constantly empowering elf decks more than it is elves not fitting.

I mean, Theros was also based on ancient Greece, which isn't known for it's elves, right?

A Voice for Vorthos

Were elves axed from Theros because Creative couldn't adapt them to the world or because green creature slots were flooded with space (dryads, satyrs, centaurs, etc.)? A mix of the two? Some other...

www.google.com

 

[Maxperson]