The ''Dragonlance Chronicles'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels written by

Margaret Weis Margaret Edith Weis (; born March 16, 1948) is an American fantasy and science fiction author, of dozens of novels and short stories. At TSR, Inc., she teamed with Tracy Hickman to create the ''Dragonlance'' role-playing game (RPG) world. She is ...

and

Tracy Hickman Tracy Raye Hickman (born November 26, 1955) is an American fantasy author. He wrote the ''Dragonlance'' novels with Margaret Weis. He also wrote role playing game material while working for TSR, Inc., TSR and has cowritten novels with his wife, ...

, which take place in the

Dragonlance ''Dragonlance'' is a shared universe created by Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived ''Dragonlance'' while driving in t ...

setting. This series is the first set of Dragonlance novels, and is followed by the '' Dragonlance Legends'' series. The three books in the series are ''

Dragons of Autumn Twilight ''Dragons of Autumn Twilight'' is a 1984 fantasy novel by American writers Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, based on a series of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') game modules. It was the first ''Dragonlance'' novel, and first in the Chronicle ...

'' (November 1984), ''

Dragons of Winter Night ''Dragons of Winter Night'' is a fantasy novel by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Based on the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' gaming modules, it is the second book in the Chronicles Trilogy, preceded by ''Dragons of Autumn Twilight'' and followed by ''D ...

'' (July 1985), and ''

Dragons of Spring Dawning ''Dragons of Spring Dawning'' is a 1985 fantasy novel by American writers Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis. The third book in the '' Dragonlance Chronicles'' series, it continues the events from ''Dragons of Winter Night'' (1985) and sets up the ...

'' (September 1985).

History

The ''Dragonlance Chronicles'' novels were based on a series of ''

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 ...

'' (''D&D'') game modules. The ''Chronicles'' trilogy came about because the designers wanted novels to tell the story of the game world they were creating, something to which

TSR, Inc. TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had bee ...

(TSR) agreed only reluctantly. Soon after

came to TSR in 1982, management announced the intention to develop his series of dragons based role-playing adventures. Hickman's storyline was chosen for the Dragonlance books due to the 12 part storyline. Hickman's proposal resulted in the ''Dragonlance Chronicles'', which led to his association with

. Weis was assigned to edit Hickman's "Project Overlord", as it was initially called, a novel intended to be coordinated with a trilogy of ''AD&D'' modules. Weis and her new partner, Tracy Hickman, worked to plot the novel; they had hired an author, who didn't work out, but by that time, Weis and Hickman were so into the project that they felt they had to write it. Jean Black, the Managing Editor of TSR's Book Department, picked Hickman and Weis to write ''

'' and the rest of the ''Dragonlance Chronicles'' series. The storyline of the original ''Dragonlance'' series had been plotted and outlined before either the novel trilogy or the games were written.

Synopsis

The plot of the ''Dragonlance Chronicles'' is centered around the conflict known as the "War of the Lance", in which the Heroes of the Lance march to fight against Verminaard, the lord of the draconians, and the dark goddess

Takhisis Takhisis is a fictional character from the ''Dragonlance'' universe. She is depicted as the main goddess of evil in the setting and head of the Dark Pantheon. Titles and forms Within the Dragonlance universe, Takhisis was a sister of Gilean a ...

. While the main events of the war are covered in the original trilogy of books, some later released books occur during the same time period, such as ''War of the Lance''. Several

game module A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

s for the

tabletop role-playing game A tabletop role-playing game (typically abbreviated as TRPG or TTRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a form of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech. Participa ...

were also released that expanded on the events of the war, such as ''

Dragons of Glory ''Dragons of Glory'' is a ''Dungeons & Dragons'' source book in a series of modules from the ''Dragonlance'' campaign setting. It is one of the 16 ''DL'' modules published by TSR between 1984 and 1986. This module is "a complete and self-conta ...

'' and ''

Dragonlance Adventures ''Dragonlance Adventures'' is a 128-page hardcover book for the Dragonlance campaign setting for the first edition of the ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Contents ''Dragonlance Adventures'' is a supplement which details ...

''.

Dragons of Autumn Twilight

A group of old friends and new companions meet and begin their journeys to become the Heroes of the Lance. They enter Xak Tsaroth, find the Disks of Mishakal, are captured, meet Gilthanas, invade Pax Tharkas, meet Elistan, who becomes the first cleric of Paladine, incite a subsequent slave revolt, and kill a Dragon Highlord.

Dragons of Winter Night

The companions continue in their journeys to become the Heroes of the Lance. They travel to Tarsis, which is destroyed in an ensuing dragon attack, split into two groups, one of which goes to Silvanesti only to find it ravaged by a nightmare caused by a Dragon Orb, the other to Icewall Glacier where they kill a Dragon Highlord and take his Dragon Orb. The former group succeeds in obtaining the Dragon Orb and ending the nightmare. The latter group is attacked as they escape and are stranded on Southern Ergoth, an island where they meet numerous elves. Eventually, they travel to the tomb of Huma, where they meet Fizban and a silver dragon in disguise. The former group travel to Sancrist Isle, where Sturm becomes a full

Knight of Solamnia This is a list of characters in the ''Dragonlance'' series of fantasy novels and related fantasy role-playing game materials. It includes accounts of their early lives in the series. Characters Alhana Starbreeze Alhana Starbreeze, Silvanesti El ...

, a Dragon Orb is shattered, and a

dragonlance ''Dragonlance'' is a shared universe created by Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived ''Dragonlance'' while driving in t ...

is forged. The identity of another Dragon Highlord is discovered. The dragons attack, but are driven off with new dragonlances.

Dragons of Spring Dawning

The group continue and conclude their journey in becoming Heroes of the Lance.

Reception

Jason Heller, of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'', stated a positive review of ''Dragonlance Chronicles'', remarking that while the novels were not very original compared to previous fantasy works by

J.R.R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...

and

Fritz Leiber Fritz Reuter Leiber Jr. ( ; December 24, 1910 – September 5, 1992) was an American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theater and films, playwright, and chess expert. With writers such as Robert ...

, they filled a void for new gamers in 1980's by introducing fantasy fiction archetypes in a rich, cohesive setting.

Film

The ''Dragonlance Chronicles'' have also been adapted as an animated movie entitled ''

'', starring

Michelle Trachtenberg Michelle Trachtenberg (; born October 11, 1985) is an American actress and model. Trachtenberg began her career at age three, appearing in a number of commercials, films, and television series as a child. Her starring role on the Nickelodeon tel ...

Kiefer Sutherland Kiefer William Sutherland (born 21 December 1966) is a British-Canadian actor and musician. He is best known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox drama series '' 24'' (2001–2010, 2014), for which he won an Emmy Award, a Golden Glo ...

Michael Rosenbaum Michael Owen Rosenbaum (born July 11, 1972) is an American actor and podcaster. He is known for portraying Lex Luthor on the Superman television series ''Smallville'', a role that ''TV Guide'' included in their 2013 list of "The 60 Nastiest Vill ...

, and

Lucy Lawless Lucille Frances Lawless (; born 29 March 1968) is a New Zealand actress and singer. She is best known for her roles as Xena in the television series '' Xena: Warrior Princess'', as D'Anna Biers on the re-imagined '' Battlestar Galactica'' seri ...

, and directed by Will Meugniot. "Dragons of Autumn Twilight" was released on 15 January 2008.

References

{{D&D topics Dragonlance novel series