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Murder In Cormyr
''Murder in Cormyr'' is a fantasy novel by Chet Williamson, set in the world of the Forgotten Realms, and based on the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' role-playing game. It is the first novel published in the " Mysteries" series. It was published in hardcover in March 1996, and in paperback in July 1998, . Plot summary ''Murder in Cormyr'' involves a wizard Benelaius and Jasper a half-halfling servant investigating a murder mystery in a village surrounded by a swamp. The book starts with the introduction of Jasper, a village urchin who, due to circumstances, tries to steal from the home of a wizard who recently moved nearby, as part of retirement from the Cormyr war wizard council. Jasper gets caught by Benelaius and as way of repayment, agrees to the proposition of becoming a servant of the wizard for one year. During that time, a mysterious murder takes place with Jasper, under directions of Benelaius, untangling the dark plot. Reception Gordon Kibblewhite reviewed ''Murder in Cormy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fantasy Novel
Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fantasy literature may be directed at both children and adults. Fantasy is a subgenre of speculative fiction and is distinguished from the genres of science fiction and horror by the absence of scientific or macabre themes, respectively, though these genres overlap. Historically, most works of fantasy were written, however, since the 1960s, a growing segment of the fantasy genre has taken the form of films, television programs, graphic novels, video games, music and art. Many fantasy novels originally written for children and adolescents also attract an adult audience. Examples include ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'', the '' Harry Potter'' series, '' The Chronicles of Narnia'', and ''The Hobbit''. History Beginnings Stories invo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chet Williamson
Chet Williamson (born 19 June 1948) is the author of nearly 20 books and over 100 short stories published in ''Esquire'', ''The New Yorker'', ''Playboy'', and many other magazines and anthologies. Biography Chet Williamson was born and raised in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. His father worked at Olmstead Air Force Base and New Cumberland Army Depot, and his mother, whose lineage is Pennsylvania Dutch, was a homemaker.Jurgelski, Susan. "Elizabethtown writer offers Pennsylvania Dutch version of famous children's story Vas Night Before Christmas", ''Lancaster New Era'' December 12, 2000: p. B1. Williamson attended Elizabethtown Area High School, and graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He earned a B.S. at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1970 and went on to be a teacher at public schools in Cleveland, Ohio. He later became a professional actor before becoming a freelance writer in 1986, when his first novel, ''Soulstorm'', was published. His ghost story/psychologica ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forgotten Realms
''Forgotten Realms'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories. Several years later, Greenwood brought the setting to publication for the ''D&D'' game as a series of magazine articles, and the first Realms game products were released in 1987. Role-playing game products have been produced for the setting ever since, as have various licensed products including novels, role-playing video game adaptations (including the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game to use graphics), comic books, and an upcoming film. Forgotten Realms is a fantasy world setting, described as a world of strange lands, dangerous creatures, and mighty deities, where magic and supernatural phenomena are quite real. The premise is that, long ago, planet Earth and the world of the For ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dungeons & Dragons
''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical Studies Rules, Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TSR). It has been published by Wizards of the Coast (now a subsidiary of Hasbro) since 1997. The game was derived from miniature wargaming, miniature wargames, with a variation of the 1971 game Chainmail (game), ''Chainmail'' serving as the initial rule system. ''D&D'' publication is commonly recognized as the beginning of modern role-playing games and the role-playing game industry, and also deeply influenced video games, especially the role-playing video game genre. ''D&D'' departs from traditional wargame, wargaming by allowing each player to create their own Player character, character to play instead of a military formation. These characters embark upon adventures within a fantasy setting. A Dungeon Mas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Forgotten Realms Novels
This is a list of fantasy fiction novels based in the role-playing game setting of the Forgotten Realms. They are published by Wizards of the Coast (WotC), with some originally published by TSR before it was incorporated into WotC. Abolethic Sovereignty By Bruce R. Cordell * '' Plague of Spells'' (paperback, December 2008, ) * '' City of Torment'' (paperback, September 2009, ) * '' Key of Stars'' (paperback, September 2010, ) Abyssal Plague By various authors * ''The Gates of Madness'' by James Wyatt * ''The Mark of Nerath'' by Bill Slavicsek (paperback, August 2010, ) * ''The Temple of the Yellow Skulls'' by Don Bassingthwaite (paperback, March 2011, ) * ''Oath of Vigilance'' by James Wyatt (paperback, August 2011, ) * ''The Eye of the Chained God'' by Don Bassingthwaite (paperback, April 2012, ) * '' Sword of the Gods'' by Bruce R. Cordell (paperback, April 2011, ) * ''Under the Crimson Sun'' by Keith R. A. DeCandido (set in ''Dark Sun'') (paperback, June 2011, ) * ''Shad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wizard (Dungeons & Dragons)
The wizard is one of the standard character class in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. A wizard uses arcane magic, and is considered less effective in melee combat than other classes. Publication history Creative origins The Magic-User class was inspired by the spell-casting magicians common in folklore and modern fantasy literature, particularly as portrayed in Jack Vance's ''The Dying Earth'' short stories, and John Bellairs's novel ''The Face in the Frost''. Gandalf and Saruman from Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'' and Merlin of King Arthur fame also influenced this class. Wizards memorize their spells, then forget them when cast in the fashion of magicians from Jack Vance's ''Dying Earth'' series of novels. ''Dungeons & Dragons'' In the original version of the game, magic-user was one of the base character classes. Magic-User was one of the three original classes, the other two being Fighting Man (renamed Fighter in later editions) and Cleric. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halfling (Dungeons & Dragons)
Halflings are a fictional race found in some fantasy novels and games. They are often depicted as similar to humans except about half as tall, and are not quite as stocky as the similarly-sized dwarves. Similar to the depiction of hobbits in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, which are sometimes called halflings, they have slightly pointed ears, their feet are covered with curly hair with leathery soles, and they tend to be portrayed as stealthy and lucky. Etymology Originally, ''halfling'' comes from the Scots word ', meaning an awkward rustic teenager, who is neither man nor boy, and so half of both. Another word for ''halfling'' is ''hobbledehoy'' or ''hobby''. This usage of the word pre-dates both ''The Hobbit'' and ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Usage in fantasy fiction In ''The Lord of the Rings'', J. R. R. Tolkien occasionally used the term "halfling" to describe hobbits, since they are beings that are half the height of men. For instance, when the hobbit Pippin Took appears in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Future Plc
Future plc is an international multimedia company established in the United Kingdom in 1985. The company has over 220 brands that span magazines, newsletters, websites, and events in fields such as video games, technology, films, music, photography, home, and knowledge. Zillah Byng-Thorne has been CEO since 2014. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History 1985–2012 The company was founded as Future Publishing in Somerton, Somerset, England, in 1985 by Chris Anderson with the sole magazine ''Amstrad Action''. An early innovation was the inclusion of free software on magazine covers; they were the first company to do so. It acquired GP Publications so establishing Future US in 1994. From 1995 to 1997, the company published ''Arcane'', a magazine which largely focused on tabletop games. Anderson sold Future to Pearson plc for £52.7m in 1994, but bought it back in 1998, with Future chief executive Greg Ingham and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murder In Tarsis
''Murder in Tarsis'' is a fantasy novel by John Maddox Roberts, set in the world of the Dragonlance, and based on the ''Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical Studies Rules ...'' role-playing game. It is the first novel published in the " Mysteries" series in 1996 which was tied to the Forgotten Realms series as it was a first time by TSR of publishing as a theme across multiple game-worlds. In 1999 it was re-published in the Dragonlance The Classics Series. Plot summary This novel is about Tarsis, a once proud city by the sea, now landlocked and decaying because of a great catastrophe, with a huge nomad army laying siege to its crumbling walls; and the main character is Ironwood – a mercenary bearing the curse of the dragon he once slew. Reception Gordon Kibblewh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terry Pratchett
Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English humourist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his ''Discworld'' series of 41 novels. Pratchett's first novel, ''The Carpet People'', was published in 1971. The first ''Discworld'' novel, ''The Colour of Magic'', was published in 1983, after which Pratchett wrote an average of two books a year. The final ''Discworld'' novel, ''The Shepherd's Crown'', was published in August 2015, five months after his death. With more than 85 million books sold worldwide in 37 languages, Pratchett was the UK's best-selling author of the 1990s. He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1998 and was knighted for services to literature in the 2009 New Year Honours. In 2001 he won the annual Carnegie Medal for ''The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents'', the first ''Discworld'' book marketed for children. He received the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Feet Of Clay (novel)
''Feet of Clay'' is a fantasy novel by British writer Terry Pratchett, the nineteenth book in the ''Discworld'' series, published in 1996. The story follows the members of the City Watch, as they attempt to solve murders apparently committed by a golem, as well as the unusual poisoning of the Patrician, Lord Vetinari. The title is a figure of speech from Hebrew scripture (see feet of clay) and the script used in the book to represent Morporkian being written by a golem resembles the Hebrew alphabet, a reference to golems' origins in Jewish folklore. Plot Twelve of the city golems, clay creatures forced to obey the written instructions placed inside their heads, decide to create a "king" golem. They fashion a golem from their own clay and place in his head instructions that would fulfill their hopes: "Bring peace to the world", "Treat everyone fairly" and so on. They enroll the help of a priest and dwarf bread baker to write the sacred instructions and bake the clay, respectively ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Magazine Of Fantasy & Science Fiction
''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher and J. Francis McComas had approached Spivak in the mid-1940s about creating a fantasy companion to Spivak's existing mystery title, ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine''. The first issue was titled ''The Magazine of Fantasy'', but the decision was quickly made to include science fiction as well as fantasy, and the title was changed correspondingly with the second issue. ''F&SF'' was quite different in presentation from the existing science fiction magazines of the day, most of which were in pulp format: it had no interior illustrations, no letter column, and text in a single column format, which in the opinion of science fiction historian Mike Ashley "set ''F&SF'' apart, giving it the air and authority of a superior magazine". ''F&SF'' qu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
