Ampersand: Draconians!

[Derren]

And I hear there are new draconian types: Adamaaz (adamantine), Ferak (iron), and Kobaaz (cobalt). I'm not sure what to think of that yet.

Ugh....
If that is true, the "new" DL is already dead for me.
But it wouldn't surprise me considering WotC huge disregard for fluff.

 

[Shemeska]

Ugh....
If that is true, the "new" DL is already dead for me.
But it wouldn't surprise me considering WotC huge disregard for fluff.

Hey, but on the brightside, they didn't make nounverb Draconians.

 

[AllisterH]

Ugh....
If that is true, the "new" DL is already dead for me.
But it wouldn't surprise me considering WotC huge disregard for fluff.

Isn't the addition of "noble draconians" a bigger change to DL than the addition of new types of dragons. I know for me that's a bigger "shock" to speak.

As an aside, still hate the madeup names and wondering "realy, people in the world don't have trouble pronouncing those names?"

 

[Dragonhelm]

Isn't the addition of "noble draconians" a bigger change to DL than the addition of new types of dragons. I know for me that's a bigger "shock" to speak.

Not so much. The real shock was dragonspawn. Dragonspawn were first introduced back in the SAGA days. They're humans who have been transformed through a ritual that requires the sacrifice of a draconian and a piece of essence of the dragon overlord "parent" into beings that resemble chromatic half-dragons. Like draconians, they have death throes. So when noble dracs came along, we were already used to the idea.

Besides, Jamie did a wonderful job tying in the noble dracs to the setting. That's the real difference. Dragonspawn came out of nowhere. Noble draconians have a great backstory tied to the War of the Lance and the corruption of dragon eggs. Plus, they have nightmares about the atrocities their dragon progenitor did on the world. Takhisis' curse. They're wonderful role-playing characters.

As an aside, still hate the madeup names and wondering "realy, people in the world don't have trouble pronouncing those names?"

Most people probably don't even know there's more than one type.

 

[AllisterH]

Not so much. The real shock was dragonspawn. Dragonspawn were first introduced back in the SAGA days. They're humans who have been transformed through a ritual that requires the sacrifice of a draconian and a piece of essence of the dragon overlord "parent" into beings that resemble chromatic half-dragons. Like draconians, they have death throes. So when noble dracs came along, we were already used to the idea.

Dragonspawn?!?!?

Oh my, I'm truly out of the DL loop.

Ok, to the DL experts, how much do I have to "know" to get up to date considering I'm a guy who basically stopped cold turkey right after Tas was killed in Summer Flame (was that the novel) and whose favourite novel was actually the Doom Brigade (I liked those Draconians...)

 

[Dragonhelm]

Dragonspawn?!?!?

Oh my, I'm truly out of the DL loop.

Hehe!

I should note that these dragonspawn are not the same as the type we've seen in the Monster Manuals of recent years. There's great info on them in Dragons of Krynn. I wrote that section, in fact.

Ok, to the DL experts, how much do I have to "know" to get up to date considering I'm a guy who basically stopped cold turkey right after Tas was killed in Summer Flame (was that the novel) and whose favourite novel was actually the Doom Brigade (I liked those Draconians...)

Well, it depends on the era you want to play in. If you want to play during the War of the Lance, then you're already set. All you truly need is Chronicles, the Dragonlance Campaign Setting book, and the War of the Lance sourcebook.

If you want to get truly up-to-date, then there is a fairly sizable reading list:

Chronicles Trilogy
Legends Trilogy
The Second Generation
Dragons of Summer Flame
Dragons of a New Age trilogy
War of Souls trilogy

There are other books, like the Lost Chronicles series, that I would put on the list of "essential Dragonlance reading." You can skip Dragons of a New Age if you can find a copy of Age of Mortals and skim over the timeline. I'm not a huge fan of the New Age trilogy. Everything else is written by Weis and Hickman.

Now, this is fairly bare bones, if you can believe that. That's 14 books to get the basics, a daunting task for any new fan. There has been some talk in Dragonlance circles that a new starting point may be in order. However, DL fans are leery of a Fifth Age/Forgotten Realms cataclysmic event that changes the world too much.

 

[Derren]

Noble draconians required quite some suspension of disbelieve to accept (evil dragons converted by an evil ritual became good?. And considering that more and more draconians turn good, wouldn't they become evil?). And I am rather sure that we won't see them in 4E in their current form thanks to WotC "We don't need good monsters" policy.

Dragonspawn are one of those awful SAGA abominations which I ignored outright.

If the rumour is true, then WotC is retroactively adding the new dragons to the setting (and maybe removing brass and bronze dragons) which really screws the story.
And even if not, I really fear for DL when WotC screws with it. A big part of the setting was the balance and war between good and evil and WotC has shown again and again that in 4E they don't care for balanced settings (alignment wise) and instead prefer "PCs against everything else".

You don't even have good aligned dragons any more. Now its Evil vs. Neutral?

 

[The_Fan]

No, Brass and Bronze are back. They're just reserving them for Draconomicon 2, along with the Cobalt dragon. Chromatics already got the "cousins we don't like to talk about" with Grey, Purple, and Brown, which I'm guessing is what the new Metallic dragons will be treated like in official fluff, if they do make a Dragonlance setting.

Still holding out for Dark Sun though...

 

[Dragonhelm]

Noble draconians required quite some suspension of disbelieve to accept (evil dragons converted by an evil ritual became good?. And considering that more and more draconians turn good, wouldn't they become evil?).

We're talking generalities here. Base draconians are generally evil. Noble draconians are generally good. But the Law of Gilean gives all mortals freedom of choice, so there are draconians of all alignments.

As for the ritual - well, the Balance must be maintained.

And I am rather sure that we won't see them in 4E in their current form thanks to WotC "We don't need good monsters" policy.

That's why you make them into a playable race.

Dragonspawn are one of those awful SAGA abominations which I ignored outright.

I never liked their original presentation. When I developed them for Dragons of Krynn, I took them from being the new "shock troops" on the block to a race of individuals who were living draconic corruptions of their former lives.

If the rumour is true, then WotC is retroactively adding the new dragons to the setting (and maybe removing brass and bronze dragons) which really screws the story.

I believe brass and bronze are in Draconomicon II, though don't quote me on that. As for the other dragons, you could say they were there all along and that they are few in number. That would make the new draconian types rare as well.

And even if not, I really fear for DL when WotC screws with it. A big part of the setting was the balance and war between good and evil and WotC has shown again and again that in 4E they don't care for balanced settings (alignment wise) and instead prefer "PCs against everything else".

I'm cautiously optimistic.

You don't even have good aligned dragons any more. Now its Evil vs. Neutral?

Just because dragons act one way in the general setting, that doesn't mean they can't be different in Dragonlance. If WotC wants to force the issue, though, then one can say they became more neutral after Paladine lost his godhood.

 

[Derren]

Just because dragons act one way in the general setting, that doesn't mean they can't be different in Dragonlance. If WotC wants to force the issue, though, then one can say they became more neutral after Paladine lost his godhood.

And evil dragons were unaffected by Thakisis death...
Well, they had the correct alignment for 4E so no change was needed.
Considering WotC "Everything is Core" mantra I don't think they will change something just to fit DL (especially as fluff seems to be a low priority for them anyway). If they change something then they will change the setting to fit their core books. (Can't wait to see the explanation for Dragonlance Warforged and for orcs)