Dragon Reflections #94

It is 100 pages long and has a cover price of $3.00. This issue features the second creature catalog, Solemnic Knights, and the ecology of the chimera!

The cover art is by Clyde Caldwell. Titled "Female Ranger," it depicts a striking ranger accompanied by her fierce animal companion. It's a lovely painting, and TSR later reused it in PHB11 The Complete Ranger. Interior illustrations are by Bob Maurus, Roger Raupp, Dennis Kauth, Marsha Kauth, Ernest Yates, the Marvel Bullpen, Jayne Hoffmann, Peter Berryman, Dave Trampier, Denton Elliott, Robert Albanese, Joseph Pillsbury, and Larry Elmore.

This month's special attraction is "Creature Catalog II," presenting eighteen new AD&D monsters to challenge your adventurers. It is a follow-up to the first creature catalog, which appeared in Dragon #89. Once more, Ed Greenwood makes an outsized contribution of six creatures, with Roger Moore and Len Lakofka contributing two each. Four of these monsters made it into the official rulebooks: the belabra, bhaergala, firestar, and lillend.

Gary Gygax brings us "Official Changes for Rangers." This article details new ranger tracking rules, which, according to the author, more closely reflect what he uses in his home game. They are rather too detailed for my taste, with modifiers of +2% and so on. Gygax also supplies some minor but welcome enhancements to the ranger's combat ability.

Katharine Kerr's "An Army Travels on Its Stomach" addresses the logistics of moving armies in medieval fantasy settings. She emphasises the importance of food, water, and proper animal care, detailing how such elements can significantly impact the movement of large bodies of soldiers. The article is meticulously researched, but it needed to be more gameable, perhaps via the inclusion of some movement tables. As it stands, it adds little more than a "sour note of realism to play."

"Same Dice, Different Odds" by David G. Weeks presents an alternative method of using dice to introduce more variety. He calls it the "divided roll," where you divide the result of one roll by another. For example, roll a d8 and divide it by the results of a d4. This method can create a low average roll while allowing for sporadic high results. I can see the advantage of the technique, but I think it is ultimately too much math in play to be worth it.

Ed Greenwood returns with "The Ecology of the Chimera," continuing this popular series. Presented as a conversation between the author and Elminster, the article explores the biology, behaviour, and tactics of the three-headed monstrosity. It also presents a new cross-breed, the thessalmera, for the first time. This powerful and hideous creature was included in several official books.

"My Honor Is My Life" by Tracy Hickman introduces the Knights of Solamnia, the chivalric order central to the world of Dragonlance. It explores their history, codes of conduct, internal organisation, and social role. Surprisingly, Hickman published no further articles in Dragon for the next five years.

There are two pieces of fiction in this issue. In "Fortunes of a Fool" by Nicholas Yermakov, a simple peasant gains wealth and a magical bride, only to discover that happily ever after isn't guaranteed. It is a witty, clever, and tightly structured fairy tale satire. Yermakov changed his name to Simon Hawke and went on to publish a string of popular novels.

In "The Gun That Shot Too Straight" by Ralph Roberts, an inventor builds a precision weapon and discovers that perfect aim comes with unexpected consequences. It's a short, mildly amusing tech-fable that delivers one clever idea and exits. The author's credits include a couple of dozen short stories and a single self-published novel.

The ARES Section presents about a dozen pages of science-fiction and superhero gaming material. It includes three articles:

• "S.H.I.E.L.D" by William Tracy details the famous super-agency.
• "The Marvel-Phile" by Jeff Grubb provides character stats and lore for Hobgoblin, Kingpin, and Spider-Man's Suit.
• "From Anarchy to Empire" by David Cook describes interstellar governments in STAR FRONTIERS.

There is one game review. Mercenaries, Spies & Private Eyes by Flying Buffalo is a flexible, modern-era RPG that blends skill- and level-based progression, allowing players to step into the shoes of Bond-like spies or hard-boiled detectives. Its hybrid mechanics, intuitive skill rolls, and focus on character background support deep roleplaying. Supplements like Stormhaven offer richly detailed scenarios, while character folders add convenience. Reviewer Arlen P. Walker concludes, "If you're planning on roleplaying in the modern era... this would be an excellent system to choose." Astute readers will note that Dragon published a much more lukewarm mini-review of the same system just three issues prior.

"The Role of Books" returns with reviews of the latest speculative fiction:

• Secret of the Sixth Magic by Lyndon Hardy explores magical chaos through inventive world-building and clever plot mechanics, making it "original and fascinating."
• The Land Beyond the Gate by Lloyd Arthur Eshbach is a classic portal fantasy filled with quiet wonder and shows "that the familiar need not necessarily be dull."
• Raphael by R. A. MacAvoy is a philosophical fantasy about angelic identity and is "unlike virtually anything else in the spectrum of contemporary fantasy."
• The Darkangel by Meredith Ann Pierce is a richly detailed and imaginative vampire epic that defies cliché and "is worth reading."
• The Song of the Axe by Paul O. Williams is a thoughtful and immersive post-apocalyptic journey through a richly imagined North America and is "excellent."
• The Harem of Aman Akbar by Elizabeth Scarborough is a witty Arabian Nights-inspired adventure featuring practical djinni lore and spiced with "the cheerfully sly humor that has marked [her] work."
• Exiles of the Rynth by Carole Nelson Douglas is a meandering and overly convenient middle volume in an otherwise promising trilogy and is "a serious disappointment."

And that's a wrap! It was an enjoyable issue, though none of the gaming articles rose to great heights. Next month, we have new demi-human rules, a tournament module, and Gygax on Tolkien!

 

[M.T. Black]

I think this was scheduled for the front page on July 2nd, so not sure why it has appeared here a few days early. All good - we'll treat it as a sneak preview

 

[M.T. Black]

If by "striking" you mean "showing an awful lot of skin for her environment" then sure, you bet. Way too many evergreens and too much snow on those backdrop mountains to convince me she's comfortably warm even with a furred cloak. Maybe its magical items at work and she's relying on that +2 Armor of Cheesecake that was so popular in the TSR days.

As you probably know, Caldwell was quite infamous for his cheesecake art. If you look at his modern paintings, not much has changed! Regardless, I do think this is a particularly beautiful painting - one of his best. I notice that its featured prominently on his home page, so I think he must rate it too.

 

[M.T. Black]

Could you eloborate please?

Essentially an expanded list of creatures qualifying for the "giant class" damage bonus. I also thought they got an additional weapon proficiency, but I see I misread that.

Edit: I see that someone else already answered this!

 

[M.T. Black]

Very famous image back in the day, that. Still bemoaning the sudden and unexpected closure of RAFM earlier this year.

Yes, I've rarely mentioned the miniatures photos that had been part of Dragon for a long time. Partly because the digital images I have of the original magazines don't have enough detail to do them justice. It was even worse when they published black/white images.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yes, I've rarely mentioned the miniatures photos that had been part of Dragon for a long time. Partly because the digital images I have of the original magazines don't have enough detail to do them justice. It was even worse when they published black/white images.

Ads for miniatures, Jorune (with its amazing pencil art) and Villains & Vigilantes (with their character stat blocks) were a key part of what made the magazine great back in the day, IMO.

 

[M.T. Black]

Lillend I recognize from 2e and 3e but not the other three, where did they show up later?

The other three monsters appeared in MC3: Monstrous Compendium Volume Three Forgotten Realms Appendix.

 

[M.T. Black]

Ads for miniatures, Jorune (with its amazing pencil art) and Villains & Vigilantes (with their character stat blocks) were a key part of what made the magazine great back in the day, IMO.

Agreed. Like many folks, I was kinda obsessed with Jorune when I saw the ads, though I never managed to acquire the game until the digital era. The art and setting were great, but I did not like the system at all.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Agreed. Like many folks, I was kinda obsessed with Jorune when I saw the ads, though I never managed to acquire the game until the digital era. The art and setting were great, but I did not like the system at all.

I listened to the first episode of Quinns Quest's Play to Find Out Skyrealms of Jorune campaign and it broke my brain. The core idea seems sound -- and lordy, the art is amazing -- but it's buried under such player-unfriendly lore and rules density, I can't imagine many people played it more than once or twice.

Ironically, I think it'd be an ideal case for a D&D setting, where the rules component would be familiar to players and the novelty could just be in the setting, ancestries, monsters, etc.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

As you probably know, Caldwell was quite infamous for his cheesecake art. If you look at his modern paintings, not much has changed! Regardless, I do think this is a particularly beautiful painting - one of his best. I notice that its featured prominently on his home page, so I think he must rate it too.

Well aware. I prefer my cheesecake more artsy - Mozert, Vargas, Olivia, Frush, Ballantyne, Petty - so he's never been one of my favorites. I'll happily concede it's a striking and memorable image. Doesn't stop my quibbling with some details, though.

Yes, I've rarely mentioned the miniatures photos that had been part of Dragon for a long time. Partly because the digital images I have of the original magazines don't have enough detail to do them justice. It was even worse when they published black/white images.

Really good miniatures photography is tricky, especially when working with a big display at a convention. White Dwarf was getting good at it by this point, but Dragon (with its very different focus) really never did reach the same standard.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

I listened to the first episode of Quinns' play to find out Jorune campaign and it broke my brain. The core idea seems sound -- and lordy, the art is amazing -- but it's buried under such player-unfriendly lore and rules density, I can't imagine many people played it more than once or twice.

Four times for me, total, and all within a year of release. As far as RPGs go, the artwork and even setting premise were pretty much lipstick on a pig of a rule system. It didn't seem quite as bad in its day, but from a 2025 OV it is a very hard pill to swallow.

This is one of the games that could really use a game engine replacement if you ask me. Leave the T&T grogs to their hoary old system and put some playable mechanics behind the name and art assets of Jorune and I think you'd have a modest hit just on the strength of nostalgia and curiosity without anyone grousing about the change.

Ads for miniatures, Jorune (with its amazing pencil art) and Villains & Vigilantes (with their character stat blocks) were a key part of what made the magazine great back in the day, IMO.

AFAIK many (most?) of the V&V "ad" characters never appeared elsewhere, either. Nice little bonus for readers.