Dragonlance Read The Beginning Of Dragonlance: Dragons of Deceit!

The first few pages of August's upcoming Dragonlance novel Dragons of Deceit from creators Margaret Weiss and Tracy Hickman are available to read over at Polygon. It opens up with Destina Rosethorn, a Solamnic noble, just before the War of the Lance, the central conflict which was portrayed in the original Dragonlance Chronicles back in the 1980s. The novel trilogy features time travel.

Alternatively you can listen to the excerpt below!



The cover, with art by Philipp Urlich, was revealed some months ago; it features Destina, flanked by Tasslehoff Burrfoot and a dwarf called Wolfstone, who comes from Thorbardin. Behind them is Saber, a copper dragon.

The novel trilogy is not connected to the Dragonlance D&D hardcover coming from WotC later this year

Read the opening pages of Dragons of Deceit, the first new Dragonlance novel in more than a decade

Weis and Hickman on how time travel factors into the Dragonlance Destinies trilogy

www.polygon.com

Dragonlance - Dragons of Deceit: Check Out the Dragonlance Novel Cover

While we've known about the upcoming Dragonlance novel trilogy since October 2020, Margaret Weis has shared the wraparound cover of the first book in the new Dragonlance novel trilogy, Dragons of Deceit and confirmed the release date August 9th 2022. As we've noted before, Weis & Hickman are...

www.enworld.org

 

[GreyLord]

Well, it's a start.

If they erase the age of Mortals, I'd be okay with that I suppose. I'd miss the Knights of Takhisis though.

 

[Larnievc]

The first few pages of August's upcoming Dragonlance novel Dragons of Deceit from creators Margaret Weiss and Tracy Hickman are available to read over at Polygon. It opens up with Destina Rosethorn, a Solamnic noble, just before the War of the Lance, the central conflict which was portrayed in the original Dragonlance Chronicles back in the 1980s. The novel trilogy features time travel.

The cover, with art by Philipp Urlich, was revealed some months ago; it features Destina, flanked by Tasslehoff Burrfoot and a dwarf called Wolfstone, who comes from Thorbardin. Behind them is Saber, a copper dragon.

The novel trilogy is not connected to the Dragonlance D&D hardcover coming from WotC later this year

Read the opening pages of Dragons of Deceit, the first new Dragonlance novel in more than a decade

Weis and Hickman on how time travel factors into the Dragonlance Destinies trilogy

www.polygon.com

View attachment 249298​

Dragonlance - Dragons of Deceit: Check Out the Dragonlance Novel Cover

While we've known about the upcoming Dragonlance novel trilogy since October 2020, Margaret Weis has shared the wraparound cover of the first book in the new Dragonlance novel trilogy, Dragons of Deceit and confirmed the release date August 9th 2022. As we've noted before, Weis & Hickman are...

www.enworld.org

I wonder if they will use time travel to retcon things for the new Dragonlance setting.

 

[Ath-kethin]

Time travel has been a big part of Dragonlance since the second trilogy, Legends.

That's true, and the Legends series is, well, legendary.

But tell me, what longstanding canon bits of the setting were at risk of being retconned/erased at that point?

We live in different times now. And I am leery of what treating a pivotal aspect of the series as a cheap gimmick might bring.

And maybe it isn't a cheap gimmick. But I'm worried bit will be.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I wonder if the plot of this new trilogy can open a door to the possibilities of alternate timelines, for example one where lord Soth avoided the cataclysm, or the age of the mortals didn't started yet, Raistlin is a dark-lord in a apocaliptic future or where the king-priest became the supreme one deity.

 

[Helena Real]

But tell me, what longstanding canon bits of the setting were at risk of being retconned/erased at that point?

Not OP, but I think that Weis & Hickman were never happy with the Fifth Age/Age of Mortals as depicted by Rabe and the rest of TSR.

Because of that, I have this feeling that this new trilogy will retcon basically anything past the Legends trilogy, leaving Dragonlance/Krynn in a more “complete“ state as a setting, allowing for more adventures/stories to be told. That's what I hope for, at least.

 

[Ath-kethin]

Not OP, but I think that Weis & Hickman were never happy with the Fifth Age/Age of Mortals as depicted by Rabe and the rest of TSR.

Because of that, I have this feeling that this new trilogy will retcon basically anything past the Legends trilogy, leaving Dragonlance/Krynn in a more “complete“ state as a setting, allowing for more adventures/stories to be told. That's what I hope for, at least.

That would explain their attempt to "fix" it the first time (um . . . spoiler alert, I guess?).

I wouldn't cry too hard about the 5th Age stuff going bye-bye, even though it did have its bright spots here and there.

 

[Helena Real]

That would explain their attempt to "fix" it the first time (um . . . spoiler alert, I guess?).

I wouldn't cry too hard about the 5th Age stuff going bye-bye, even though it did have its bright spots here and there.

Yeah. My feeling is thar they weren't even happy with Dragons of a Summer Flame. They wanted to write a new trilogy and TSR said "No", so they wrote a huge novel in which... They pretty much destroyed Dragonlance.

I'll also miss a few things if the Fifth Age goes bye-bye (Dark Knights, Legion of Steel, Mysticism, The Academy), but there are many more that I'd be glad to get rid of canonically, like Dragon Overlords, Afflicted Kender, Imperialistic Knights of Solamnia with gunpowder(?), a goddess that doesn't fit anywhere in the pantheon, a dead goddess, and a god that renounced their godhood, etc.

To be honest, Krynn after the War of Souls/Amber trilogies is in a better state than during the rest of the previous Fifth Age/Age of Mortals, but it's still a little bit lackluster.

The original feeling of epic adventure and fantasy drama is in the War of the Lance (pre-, during, and post-) and, in my opinion, the possibilities of the future yet unknown, with the Gods returned to the world for the first time in 350+ years.

 

[DarkCrisis]

I'm currently reading Gideon the Ninth, but that's about it when it comes to fiction.

I mostly read non-fiction.

Good book. Sequel is told in an interesting way that becomes clear near the end.

 

[WisdomOfWombats]

The new map by Jared Blando looks great, but seems to contain the usual spelling mistakes…

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Yeah. My feeling is thar they weren't even happy with Dragons of a Summer Flame. They wanted to write a new trilogy and TSR said "No", so they wrote a huge novel in which... They pretty much destroyed Dragonlance.

They never really accepted that when you create something whilst working under contract to an employer, it belongs to the employer, not to you.

 

[Reynard]

Can we talk about how just bad that excerpt is from a prose perspective? What happened?

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Can we talk about how just bad that excerpt is from a prose perspective? What happened?

What do you mean "what happened"? The prose quality is consistent with what the authors have written in the past. Maybe you have changed?

 

[Reynard]

What do you mean "what happened"? The prose quality is consistent with what the authors have written in the past. Maybe you have changed?

I just comparison read the opening of Twilight because I thought maybe that was true. It's not. This is considerably lower quality.

 

[Morrus]

I just comparison read the opening of Twilight because I thought maybe that was true. It's not. This is considerably lower quality.

I don't think it is. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I guess.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I just comparison read the opening of Twilight because I thought maybe that was true. It's not. This is considerably lower quality.

I'm not seeing it, the prose are just as purple as I remember. Unless you mean purely in terms of SPG*? I might not notice that (being dyslexic), and it's largely down to how good an editor you have.

*Edit: Just realised this is teacher jargon. Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar.

 

[Reynard]

I'm not seeing it, the prose are just as purple as I remember. Unless you mean purely in terms of SPG*? I might not notice that (being dyslexic), and it's largely down to how good an editor you have.

*Edit: Just realised this is teacher jargon. Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar.

Exhibit A:

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Exhibit A:

One passage is hardly representative of the entire opus. W&H frequently used overwritten, convoluted to the degree of bizarreness, sentences.

 

[Reynard]

One passage is hardly representative of the entire opus. W&H frequently used overwritten, convoluted to the degree of bizarreness, sentences.

All I am saying is that the nearly 40 year old passage is much tighter and better written than the new one, written by the same people.

It's actually not uncommon for writers to get worse as they get older, probably as you suggested because they lean on editors less.

 

[deganawida]

The real question no one is asking about this new series is if all the guards will be wielding hauberks. Drove me crazy a few months ago when I re-read Winter Night.

 

[Helena Real]

They never really accepted that when you create something whilst working under contract to an employer, it belongs to the employer, not to you.

Although technically (and legally even) you're right, this is a work of art, love, and passion that W&H feel understandably protective of and, what's more, they feel they know what's best for the setting and fiction overall. And you know what? I think I and many other Dragonlance fans agree with them.

Even with my misgivings about War of Souls/Amber trilogy, they're still much better—and more recognizably Dragonlance—than anything that TSR produced for the Fifth Age/Age of Mortals without them, be it fiction or setting material. Heck! Apart from Dragonlance Adventures (1E)—which was written by Weis & Hickman—the only other gaming material that's ever been produced thst comes close to “deliver“ was what Weis and others produced during 3.x under a license.

So yeah, they may not “own” Dragonlance in a legal sense, but they sure as hell do in a spiritual and even practical one, I'd say.