DragonLance Saga

Let’s take a look at advanced combat actions in AD&D, and find out why it is the best version of Dungeons & Dragons in this How to Play Advanced Dungeons & Dragons series. Buy the AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/17004/dungeon-master-s-guide-1e?affiliate_id=50797

Let’s take a look at some advanced actions for combat.

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to talk about advanced combat actions in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. I am referencing the Dungeon Masters Guide for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!

Just as a bit of a reminder, in case you didn’t watch the original combat video, the steps for encounters and combat are as follows: 1. Determine surprise, 2. Determine distance, 3. Declare actions, 4. roll initiative, 5. Take your actions, then rinse and repeat number 3 through 5 until the encounter or combat ends. Encounter and combat order via surprise and initiative is done by rolling a d6 for each party, with the highest roll having initiative, and combat is engaged with a d20 roll, match or exceed the armor class to hit. It’s that simple. We have already discussed the basics of combat including ranged attacks into melee, so in this episode we will discuss more advanced combat maneuvers. These are actions most anyone may take during your round of combat.

Closing to strike means moving your base distance to engage the opponent. Your base speed is noted in inches, but while in combat it is an indication of tens of feet. So if your base speed is 12”, you have 120’ of movement in an encounter or combat situation while in a dungeon or indoors, but it is tens of yards when outdoors. So 12” would be 360’ outdoors. All normal activity and bonuses are permitted when doing so. Melee, however, is not possible as you are taking your full movement in the round.

You may charge into combat with the following restrictions: The movement rate bonus outdoors is 33 ⅓% for the bipedal creatures. The movement rate bonus indoors is double your base speed, so long as you are not encumbered. The opponent must be within 10’ at the end of the charge in order to attack. You lose your dexterity bonus when charging, if you have no dexterity bonus, your armor class is penalized by 1, making you easier to hit. The opponent at the end of a charge with the longest weapon or reach attacks first! While the charging creature gains a +2 on their ‘to hit’ dice if they survive. And finally you can only take one charge per turn, there must be 9 rounds between each charge.

You may set your weapons against a charging opponent by bracing an end against an unyielding source like a wall or the ground. If you strike the charging opponent, they take double damage, as they are impaled on your weapon.

Let’s make a few notes about striking blows. Initiative is the key factor in which side attacks first each round, but this is modified with multiple attack routines and weapon length in the case of a charge. But if the opponents are tied in melee, meaning they both rolled the same initiative on a d6, the blows occur simultaneously unless weapons are used. The weapon’s speed factor will then dictate order. The lowest speed factor, meaning the fastest weapon wielder strikes first. So a punch will land before a dagger, and a dagger before a short sword for example. This may also mean that depending on the weapon used by an opponent, you may get multiple attacks off before they can get one off, again, depending on the weapon speed of the weapons used. This is determined if the difference between speed factors is half, you get two attacks, and this grows exponentially, as some weapons are more difficult to wield than others. This is not considered during a charge.

We must also note that weapon speed factors determine when a weapon strikes during the round with respect to non striking actions. Like casting spells for example as spells have casting times. To determine who would act first, compare the casting time to the weapon speed minus the initiative roll. Negative results are noted as positive. So a long sword with a speed factor of 5 had his party initiative roll as a 1. So his speed would then be 4. If the spell casting time is anything under 4, it would go off first. Of course the time may end up simultaneous, in which case they both occur in the exact same segment.

Finally you may actually strike an opponent in order to subdue them! You would use the flat, haft, butt, pommel or other non-lethal part of the weapon. If you successfully strike them, they take 75% of the damage as temporary, and 25% of the damage as regular. Temporary hit points return at a rate of 1 per round. This is only possible against some monsters and creatures of humanoid size and type, not player characters!

There are  some special attacks worth noting. Flank attacks negate any shield bonus. Rear flank attacks negate dexterity bonuses as well. Rear attacks give the attacker +2 to hit, while also negating shield and dexterity bonuses. If an opponent is stunned, prone, or motionless, they are attacked with a +4 to hit, also negating any shield or dexterity bonuses. If the opponent is magically sleeping or held, they are automatically hit and suffer maximum possible damage, with twice the number of attacks as normal. You may choose to automatically kill them as well. Invisible opponents, if detected, cause the attacker to have a -4 on their to hit rolls. They can never be flanked or attacked from the rear, as you cannot see them for positioning. All to hit modifiers are applied to the armor class of the target, not the die roll number. Otherwise it may make some opponents hit proof. Natural 20’s will always hit.

A quick note about choosing your target, it’s generally not possible to select a specific opponent in mass melee, similar to missile fire. There’s simply too much going on for you to be picky, think the battle scenes in Braveheart for example. In these cases, roll a random die to determine the target of an attack.

There are three modes of non-lethal and weaponless combat. Pummeling is to batter an opponent unconscious, grappling is to hold an opponent and render them helpless, and overbearing is to take an opponent into a prone position. In all of the three cases there is a variable that must be rolled. The attacker secretly rolls a d6, and the defender secretly rolls a d4. The result may be used as a bonus to the base score or to the score rolled by the attacker, and as a penalty to the base chance, or to the attack roll of a successful hit by the defender. This must be declared prior to the attack, and unconscious parties do not participate.

As pummeling is aimed at battering an opponent unconscious, this may be done with fists or weapons with a pommel. 25% of the damage is permanent and 75% is temporary, again returning at 1 point per round. When the opponent reaches 0 they are unconscious. It lasts for 1 round plus 1 round per point beyond 0 hit points. So a -3 hit points means a total of 4 rounds unconscious. To determine initiative, you go by surprise, charging to attack, higher dexterity or higher die roll, in that order! This means a pummeling attack will probably occur first. For non-lethal combat you use percentiles, or 2d10 to determine success and you always want to roll under the given value for success. The base score to hit is the opponent’s armor class times 10.  So an armor class of 9 means you have a 90% chance of hitting them. There are modifiers which may apply as noted, in addition to the aforementioned variable die rolled at the very beginning. D6 or d4 respectively. In each round there are two pummeling attacks and possibly several blows per attack.

Grappling is all about holding on to and rendering an opponent helpless. It shares the same damage considerations of pummeling with 25% of damage being real, and 75% being temporary, recovering 1 hit point per round. If the target falls to zero hit points, they are unconscious for 1 round plus one for every point in the negative. First attack is determined the same as well with surprise, charging to attack, higher dexterity, then higher initiative roll–in that order. The base score of grappling is the target’s armor class times 10, ignoring magical devices, but adding 1 for each +1 of magical armor. There are further modifications to the target number in addition to the variable die rolled. Each round has an attack and counter attack with the existing hold going first until broken. When a grapple attack succeeds, you roll the percentile dice to determine the type of hold with additional possible modifiers. The opponent must score a higher percentage hold on the attacker. This breaks the attackers first hold. Damage is accrued by the hold until broken every round. If stunned, a second attack may immediately be made and there can be no counter attack for one round.

The final form of non-lethal or weaponless combat is overbearing. This is intended to take the target into the prone position. If successful it will inflict damage and allow a pummel or grapple follow up attack. In this case 50% of all damage is real with the other 50% returning at a rate of 1 per round. Once an opponent is overborne, some other combat must take place! First attack is structured the same with surprise, charge to attack, higher dexterity, or higher initiative roll–in that order. Determine the base score like grappling, multiplying their armor class by ten, but ignoring magical protection except armor which adds 1 point per +1. Apply modifiers as outlined, then roll percentiles again to determine the outcome of a successful attack and damage. Again, once a successful overbearing attack occurs, another form of attack must occur by the attacker.

There are some general notes worth mentioning here as well. It is possible for as many opponents physically able to attack a single adversary to engage in pummeling, grappling or overbearing attack modes. Just determine order with all combatants and attack in order. Creatures will always attack in overbear if they don’t have weapons except for bears and similar monsters who seek to grapple. If the opponent of a pummel, grapple, or overbearing attack has a weapon, they will always attack first, unless they are surprised. The weapon hit does no damage but it prevents the intended attack for the round. Their opponent may then attack for real if they choose.

So in summary, any non-lethal or weaponless attack is done with percentile dice, rolling low, with some of the damage inflicted being temporary, recovered at a rate of one per round. This is simply one more way to overcome an opponent or put yourself in an advantageous position. There are of course other modifiers that the DM may add to any given situation, so always refer to them while in game.

But that is all the time I have to talk about advanced combat actions in AD&D. What do you think of the different attack options presented? Have you ever engaged in non-lethal or weaponless combat? And finally would you ever consider using it in your home game? Leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember: 

The secret we should never let the gamemaster know is that they don’t need any rules.

Join me as I unbox The Swordsheath Scroll by Dan Parkinson. Released on December 21, 1993 by TSR Inc. This is the third volume in the Dragonlance Dwarven Nations trilogy. You can buy The Swordsheath Scroll here: https://amzn.to/4cNkYdU 

The final volume in the Dwarven Nations trilogy reveals the origin story of Derkin, King of Living Stone—the legendary dwarven leader

Despite the stubborn courage of dwarven warriors, the protracted Wilderness War ends as a no-win. The Swordsheath Scroll is signed, and Thorbardin shows its support of the open-minded Qualinesti elves by joining in the construction of Pax Tharkas, a magnificent fortress and a symbol of peace.

Meanwhile, the Mountain Dwarves await the coming of a king who will restore them to their former glory. When a new leader emerges from their midst, it seems the prophecy has been fulfilled and a victory over the Ergothians is no longer a futile hope. He is Derkin, the King of Living Stone—a hero whose bravery and wisdom will be written in the dwarven annals and whose name will become the “throne name” of all future dwarven kings.

It began as a movement searching for new gods, and turned into a theocracy of its own. Let’s learn more about the Seeker Religion. Buy War of the Lance: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/3164/war-of-the-lance-3-5?affiliate_id=50797 

Not all Seekers were all bad–in the beginning anyway.

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to talk about the Seeker Religion. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. I am referencing the novels The Annotated Chronicles, the module DL1 Dragons of Despair, in addition to the Lost Leaves from the Inn of the Last Home and War of the Lance sourcebooks for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!

The Seeker movement was the inevitable result of the gods leaving Krynn. And I know the official gods’ perspective, that mortals left them, but let’s be honest, the gods took their clerics and skedaddled. There’s no two ways about it. Famine, regional war and disease were the results, in addition to the massive geographical, and governmental changes caused by the Cataclysm. Naturally the people of the world would look to the heavens for aid as their fathers and grandfathers had done before them, but since the gods were absent, it left a vacuum. 

The prevailing belief in the concept of divine beings looking after you is never stronger or more necessary for some, than when you are on your proverbial knees. And the people of Krynn were as bad off as they could be. So a search for new gods began. With every grass-roots movement, it may begin with the best of intentions, it inevitably spirals out to something much worse. The Seeker Religion is no different. They knew the gods had abandoned them, and in their search for new gods to worship–reliable and caring gods, they inevitably made up their own. This religion had its primary holdings in Abanasinia in the third century after the Cataclysm, but it spread farther than that.

A loose knit organization of clerics would travel to the towns of Haven, Solace and Gateway, preaching the Seeker philosophy. There was yet no formalized religion, just the movement of searching for evidence of the gods–any gods. They initially worked independently but quickly realized the strength in numbers and organization. So they began to hold meetings, formalizing the religion. This is not entirely different from the Council of Nicea in our own history where rabbis were bribed and coerced to create the old testament in an effort to unify a dying Roman empire. This series of meetings is where the core philosophy of the Seeker movement was codified: The Seekers are searching for new gods and will announce them, once they are discovered–gods worthy of respect and worship. So they were not just looking for any gods, but rather ones that would serve the people of the world.

This philosophy was unveiled in Haven to less than spectacular results. You see, the Seekers were not the only group leveraging the absence of the gods to manipulate, profit from, and control the people of Krynn; again, like in our own world. In Haven specifically there was a new religion which sprang up around the serpent god Belzor. The brown robed clerics were loath to give up any control over the populace. They would kidnap and murder Seeker representatives if and when they began preaching in Haven, and showcase nightly miracles in their temple. The largest hindrance to winning over the population was that they had a god to worship, and the Seekers had none. Coincidentally the Belzor religion would run into the Companions and specifically a young Raistlin Majere who would reveal them for the charlatans that they were, nearly getting himself burned at the stake in the process, opening yet another vacuum for the Seekers to enter, and enter they did. 

The people felt duped, and accepted the seemingly honest search for gods with the Seeker movement with open arms. From Haven, the Seeker religion spread like wildfire. Gateway and Solace quickly joined the trinity of Seeker towns, and many small hamlets would be led by Seeker clerics. It was then that the inevitable happened. As with any organized religion, it outgrows its founders and even its followers, becoming an entity unto itself. It begins to crave more power and control, and this is exactly what the Seeker religion did. The Seekers decided the people could not effectively guide themselves, so they installed a High Theocrat to tend to the people’s needs and rule the town. Each town had its own High Theocrat, and as the saying goes: Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

Like the Kingpriest before them, the fear of losing power leads to inquisitions. This instills a culture of spy networks whose sole aim is to control the population. By the time the War of the Lance came around, the Seekers were led by a Highseeker and nine Seekers who served as a council. The Council Hall of the Seekers was a glorious hall surrounded by six towers in the center of Haven. There was even a military arm which was formed to protect the seeker movement and Theocracy called the Holy Guard. Unable to find gods, but desperately needing them to control the population, they created their own gods. They instilled in these gods decidedly human qualities and outlined them in a holy text called Gratio Praxis. This tome was leveraged much like the Solamnic Knights Measure, to direct and control its followers. 

The five seeker gods are as follows: Omalthea: Motherlord of the Pantheons, Sauvey: once consort of Omalthea, God of vengeance. Fatherlord of the lesser pantheon, Zeshun: queen of the night, goddess of material things, Ferae: daughter of Omalthea and Sauvey. Goddess of fertility/life/growth, and finally Cadithal: the laughing god, consort of Ferae. The success of the Seeker religion was in the memory of its founding where the adherents truly practiced piety and cared for their neighbors. In the end, the Praxis was leveraged by Highseekers like Hederick, who were decidedly mad, but equally brilliant at turning the peaceful-minded words of the Praxis to their own ends.

Of course, the War of the Lance spelled the end of the Seekers. Once one of its most revered adherents, Elistan, joined the worship of the old god Paladine, and began practicing the miracle of healing in his name, it was difficult for any other religion to stand up to him. Many Theocrats like Hederick and councilmembers like Locar were revealed to be nothing more than unscrupulous traitors to the populace who held them in high regard. They made deals with Dragon Highlords, who only enslaved the population when it was convenient. And when the old gods returned, there was no reason to worship new gods who couldn’t perform miracles.

The Seeker Religion at its height spread from Abanasinia to Solamnia, and even when the gods returned and the War of the Lance ended, some people clung to their old beliefs out of habit and comfort, as the spreading of the old gods religion would take years;  so it’s no surprise that it would take an equal amount of time for this religion and philosophy to fully die out. It just goes to show that the lesson the gods intended to instill by abandoning their worshippers and creations was wholly lost on them, and the people would create new Gods in their absence, cutting off their noses to spite their faces. That is the way of man, in fantasy and in real life.

And that is all the time I have to talk about the Seeker Religion. What do you think of the organization? Did the Seekers ever have good intentions? And finally, would you trust former Seekers after the War of the Lance? Leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember: 

Until we conquer the evils within ourselves we can never conquer the great evil that threatens to engulf us!

Join us as we continue our @Dungeons & Dragons liveplay of Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen with this part thirty-three! You can buy Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen here: https://amzn.to/3V73n8C 

Last time on Shadow of the Dragon Queen: The heroes crawl through the Priest’s Quarters of the Flying Citadel, and encounter literally every possible enemy in the process. However they did a wonderful job of redirecting much of the enemy after polymorphing into Kapak Draconians themselves. They met a Kender Vampire who quickly made friends with them and helped them explore and fight until she was nearly killed herself by four Wights. The heroes found themselves slowly whittled down as they have not had a long rest in nearly twenty four hours, and they only have two hours before the citadel can be stopped, or it will destroy Kalaman. In a last ditch effort, Bromly uses a Scroll to open a Gate to the Dome of Creation, calling out to Mishakal for aid. Will this spell the end of the heroes? Let’s find out!

Enlist in the War of the Lance 

Takhisis the Dragon Queen has returned to the world of Krynn. Across the land, her armies of fanatical draconians wage a brutal war of conquest. As the Dragon Armies march on the unprepared nation of Solamnia, only the defenders of the city of Kalaman stand in their way. But the Dragon Armies want more than just to crush their foes. An ancient evil in the Dragon Queen’s service seeks a magical weapon that could dominate Krynn for all time. 

Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen is a tale of conflict and defiance set during the legendary War of the Lance.

Join me as I review Hammer and Axe by Dan Parkinson, live! Share your thoughts on this second volume in the Dwarven Nations Trilogy, released on January 1, 1993. You can buy a copy here: https://amzn.to/46sbdQS 

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga review episode. It is Misham, Paleswelt the 29th. My name is Adam and today I am going to give you my review of Hammer and Axe by Dan Parkinson. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. This year is the 40th Anniversary of Dragonlance, so join in on the celebration by submitting a video, piece of art or writing about Dragonlance to [email protected]. It will be added to the dlsaga.com/40th-anniversary celebration landing with all other contributors! This is my perspective only, and if you have any thoughts or disagree with mine, I invite you to share them in YouTube chat.

This novel starts out with a bang! First are three wizards looking for an area to build the Tower of High Sorcery. Megistal, Sigamon, and Tantas. One was replaced after having been killed in Xak Tsaroth by an agent of the High Overlord of Xak Tsaroth. Then you have the High Overlord of Xak Tsaroth looking to claim the treasures of Thorbardin for themselves. For some insane reason every human and dwarf in these novels thinks the dwarves have a mass of treasure under the mountain. With no evidence to the prospect other than their own innate greed. And finally a beast named Rage has been recently awoken, how we are not yet sure, and what it is is unclear as yet as well. But, it has ravaged three towns which drew out Damon Omenborn and the Roving Guard of Thorbardin to investigate. 

Damon lost his wife and is still grieving, but one of the survivors of the most recently devastated town, Willow Summercloud seems to be his next girl if I am reading the situation correctly. Damon splits the group. As he goes to investigate the beasts possible lair, Mace Hammerstand takes some of the Roving Guard back to report to the Council of Thanes in Thorbardin, and Cale Greeneye takes some of the guard to hunt the beast passing through their territory. It’s a great set up, if pretty messy, but I am excited to see where it goes. And whoa did it ever go. The wizards are revealed to have inadvertently loosed the Wyvern called Rage, and as Damon finds the original cave of the beast they are assaulted by the magic users who believed them dead. In truth one of the dwarves died, and Damon and the other went after them. They met the wizards as they were burying their magic stone to form the Tower of High Sorcery as Damon killed one, and resisting their magic, then tied the other two up. He was nearly thrown from a cliff, but a Kender named Shillitec Medina Quickfoot riding a Raptor named Cawe picked up Willow and brought her to the wizards as the fight was ongoing, and they saved Damon’s life. 

They gave the wizards an ultimatum to leave and left them tied up. One of them returned to the conclave and called the orders together to relay what happened. The other wizard followed the dwarves, curious about their resistance to magic. He discovered Quist Redfeather traveling south on behalf of the High Overlord, and stole his mount, then chased the dwarves. Quist eventually found the dwarves and told them he was also hunting the wizard. Inside Thorbardin the Thanes believed war was coming from the wizards so they are rushing to finish southgate and reinforce the original delving by the Daewar. They assigned a regent rather than a king in case war did break out and Willen Ironmaul, the Hylar Thane was voted in. He went to work reinforcing and building the army.

The wizards learned of the stolen stone and attack, sent the wizard back who was puking from the travel spell, which was hilarious, and we are introduced to the infighting from the wizards which was great. They discover the fortress of Thorbardin is massive and under the mountain and plan to take their stone back. The wyvern attacks another settlement and two regiments of dwarves go to attack it. The wyvern destroys the forces and hides in the old Daewar tunnel, replacing a gate after passing through it, so the dwarves don’t know he’s there. This is when Damon learns of the defeat from the communication drums. It is turning into a real crazy situation. The Wizards are going to hire mercenaries, Quist is going to try to get knowledge of Thorbardin but will probably temporarily team up with Damon, and I think the wizard Megistal will be friendly to them, curious about their resistance.

Megistal connected with Damon, Willow and Quist and as Quist wanted to kill him, Damon made a deal that they could study each other, the wizard tested the dwarves and the dwarves the wizard. The testing was an odd experience as the author straight up allowed a dwarf who hates magic and is resistant to it, to successfully cast a polymorph spell on the wizard and turned him into a horse. This is the most absurd part of this entire novel. It says the magic is in the words not the person, which invalidates everything wizards like Raistlin went through. And allows anyone who can say the magic words, complete ability to cast any magic they want. Completely ridiculous! 

Damon goes into Thorbardin and Willow follows him. She is clearly attracted to him and waiting for him to notice her. She is a very attractive dwarf and when Tara, Damon’s mother sees her, she helps her clean up and presents her to Damon again, this time he noticed, and so did everyone else. Willow is staying in Thorbardin, which is bringing in all the dwarves in anticipation of attack from the wizards and their mercenaries who have begun to gather. The Kender Shill entered Thorbardin and found her way to Willow and together they explored the underground kingdom.

Willen came up with the idea from Quill to use some explosive liquid to seal off the old citadel and back entrance to Thorbardin which Rage was hiding in, unbeknownst to anyone. They sealed off the mountain pass but also nearly destroyed the surrounding area, but it was successful, however it drove Rage the Wyvern further into the tunnel, into Thorbardin, pissed off and looking for revenge. Willow and Shill notice Rage’s mist through the gate inside the kingdom when war drums called everyone to battle. We didn’t pick up with Willow until after the battle, but apparently she tried to tell everyone she could about the mist and no one paid her any mind, so she decided to take care of it herself.

The battle was primarily based in illusion. Of the one massive force that was real, three others were duplicated from it, but the dwarves eventually figured it out and worked through it, taking out the wizards as best they could, which made the humans easier to destroy. The dwarves eventually confronted the humans about their pay, revealing they were paid in stones that had magic making them appear as currency, this was the last proverbial stone, and most of the humans ended up fleeing. My biggest complaint about this book is that it drops in the Scions as a reference, but never tells you anything about them. You have to read the Dwarves of Krynn boxed set to know who and what they were. So when the wizards are referencing them, it makes zero sense. That alone isn’t odd with many of these novels, just making things up.

My biggest complaint is Damon’s ability to use magic. How can you be a race which detests magic so much that you are magically resistant to it, and then simply cast spells with a single word? Or complete other’s spells with a word? It makes zero sense! In any case we see Damon facing off against the most powerful wizard Kistilan and almost dies. Megistal, the wizard who was turned into a horse by Damon and was gifted to Quist, were both imprisoned for some reason, and the horse suddenly sprouted wings! They say it was able to cast a spell to manifest wings, but unless this horse is Mr. Ed, and even then I don’t see it happening, I can’t rationalize the nonsense. So the pegasus takes Quist flying to the battlefield and as Damon is dying from elemental chaos magic, the horse speaks to him in his mind telling him to reverse the spell and he will help him. So Damon does it, which frees Megistal who battles Kistilan. 

Ultimately Damon nearly strangles Kistilan to death who fades into smoke and escapes. The war ends, but seven mages teleported into Thorbardin and three are immediately killed by defenders. The dwarves flee the entry and seal it off as they use a newly developed weapon, steam, to kill the remaining human wizards. I actually really liked this use of the magma tunnels and the effect. Now with the war over, we pick up with Willow who finds Rage, battles it solo, and buries her axe in its neck, then runs away screaming for everyone to flee as well. She travels through Thorbardin till she gets to a gate and ultimately traps its head in the gate. Then Damon arrives, shows his love for her, and appreciation, and they just leave it in the gate. It is never spoken of again! So, presumably, it’s a permanent fixture now…

Then we cut back to Quist who is a prisoner yet again, and lost all his gear to gambling with Daewar guards. Willen gives him a horse that Damon owed him, and new Dwarven forged gear, in addition to his old gear that was bought back. Then he is set free outside where other humans are, with his family! It turns out the High Overlord of Xak Tsaroth was overthrown off camera, and now the dwarves want to trade with the city. Talk about dropping a massive storybeat at the beginning of the novel and actively forgetting about it till the very end. You could completely remove Quist and Xak Tsaroth from the novel and lose nothing. For that point, you could remove the Stone of Threes and have the same non effect. The wizards could just have a territorial justification for invading or wanting their treasures, or any other reason, because the gem is eaten by worms in the end. A total non story macguffin. 

Ultimately this is not as good of a novel as the first, and there are so many lore breaking moments and story beats that I can’t in good conscience recommend it to anyone. If you love dwarves, read it, but there is no real historical value to the tale, and no real movement in the story from beginning to end, other than Damon getting married to Willow at the end, which will lead to a King in Thorbardin.

And that’s it for my review of Hammer and Axe by Dan Parkinson. What did you think of Damon using magic? What about the dropped story beat of the High Overlord of Xak Tsaroth? And finally, what ever happened to Rage and Kistilan? Feel free to email me at [email protected] or leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content.  

This channel is all about celebrating the wonderful world of the Dragonlance Saga, and I hope you will join me in the celebration. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time Slàinte mhath (slan-ge-var).

There are a lot of race variations in Dragonlance and more than many fans may realize. Let’s close out our races of Krynn series with these lost races of Krynn. Buy Races of Ansalon: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/27946/races-of-ansalon-3-5?affiliate_id=50797 

Let’s look at some racial varieties on Krynn.

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to talk about the lost races of Krynn. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. I am referencing the novels Galen Beknighted and Riverwind the Plainsman in addition to the Races of Ansalon sourcebook for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!

It’s challenging to have a conversation about races in a game where the modern interpretation of it eliminates them entirely. And not just the nomenclature, but the differences between them! There is a reason dwarves look the way they do. There’s a reason elves act the way they do. And there is a very good reason gnomes are driven to invent, but fail spectacularly. Each race in the Dragonlance campaign setting has a presented history, drives, cause for their outlooks, and motivations, and all this is in addition to what a player brings to them as a player character or PC. 

In Advanced Dungeons & Dragons the various permutations of races were referred to as racial stock, with each featuring racial varieties and strains in the form of sub-races, or variations within a race. For all of Dungeons & Dragons history, up until very recently, the basic race was human, and because of their prevalence they had no restrictions or limitations. They were the de-facto base of life in any given milieu. This is why you may see half-races. Because humans, being the base, would then propagate with other races, and then create half races. The most common of which in Krynn is the Half-Elf. But that is far from the only option presented for player consideration. Let’s take a look at the various half races in Dragonlance and a few variations or sub-races we have yet to discuss.

Half-humans are not culturally accepted in most societies around Krynn. They may be a result of love between two individuals, but their respective cultures see them as an anomaly, or  diluting their bloodlines. At the very least it is a taboo. This may stem from the idea that many mixed race individuals remind the other mortals of their similarities, something that can cut to the very core of a racial identity. This forces many half-humans to lead isolated or outcast lives, often moving from place to place, unable to find anywhere to make a true home for themselves. This leads to generally unhappy individuals. The most common half species are half-humans with half-elves, half-ogres, and half-kender, though there are known to be half-dwarves, half gnomes and others. 

This isn’t to say only half-humans exist. There are records of ogre-elf mixes such as Grand Lord Golgren, and even rumors of dwarf-elf pairings. However the union of two Graygem races often ends in major defects. Some anthropological scholars and Gileanite Archivists note that dwarf-gnome couplings are the true source of the Aghar or Gully Dwarves, though both races deny this. Of the handful of gnome-kender children noted, they are often frail and sickly; with most dying in childhood. There have only been a few known dwarf-kender children. Most of them have been mentally unstable and prone to violence. 

Half-Dwarves are very rare, the most common coming from the Neidar, or Hill dwarves. They are traditionally taller and less stocky as their dwarven cousins. They typically resemble the communities in which they were raised. Most prefer the life of adventuring rather than constantly trying to fit into a community in adulthood. Half-Elves are the most common mixed race pairing, but that doesn’t mean they are accepted in either society. Elves are typically very xenophobic, and even human communities hold generational enmity with many races including elves. This inevitably leads to a poor quality of life. They often inherit both the best and worst traits of their parents, appearing taller and more muscular than elves, with their almond shaped eyes and pointed ears forcing them to stand out from humans. While half-gnomes are exceptionally rare, they do exist. They are often taller and stockier than their gnome parents, and males have difficulty growing facial hair. They often inherit the extremes in each race, developing pathological obsessive personalities to the point of compulsion. In other extreme cases they inherit neither of their parents’ intellectualism, and are incapable of studying anything to any degree of depth.

Half-Goblins arguably have the worst time of it. They are often abandoned at birth, or seen as some form of twisted inspiration. They inherit the drive and ambition of their human parents, and the ferocity and mob mentality of their goblin parents. They often result in, if allowed to live into adulthood, zealous outcasts who seek to right all of the wrongs inflicted on their ancestors. Half-Kender are also relegated to the edges of the world they live in. However the Kender community accepts them like none other on Krynn. They still suffer from wanderlust, but due to their appearance, looking mostly like thinner and shorter humans, they are not often known for what they are. If it is discovered, they are treated much like other Kender. Of all half-races, Half-Ogres are arguably the most tragic. In almost every case they are the result of violence and despair, which stays with the child throughout life. If the mother is not an ogre, they are often cast out of their communities. The children tend to be much larger and stronger than their human halves. Their hair is thin and wiry, with ungraceful faces and typically protruding, brown teeth. They are often short tempered, and become highly suspicious due to how they were treated as children.

There are also racial varieties due to region. For example, the Hest Elves, first appearing in the novel Riverwind the Plainsman. This branch formed in the Age of Dreams during the Kinslayer War. The elven General Hestantafalas was imprisoned by the Speaker of the Stars for treason, but his loyal followers freed him. With the aid of the mage Vedvedsica, a great rent in the earth was opened, allowing them to flee the coming armies of the Silvanesti. The elves dug out their own settlements and became known as the Hest elves. Upon reaching adulthood, each Hest is tested to determine their roles in the society. They average to four and a half feet tall, weighing approximately one hundred pounds. They feature pale skin and light brown to black hair. They are very suspicious of outsiders.

One Hundred years before the war of the Lance, in the novel Galen Beknighted,  we are introduced to another culture that took to the ground. In this case it is the human plainsman tribe of the Que-Nara, who became the Que-Tana. Long before the Cataclysm, a young plainsman named Firebrand was told of thirteen opals that could control the power of life and death by Sargonnas. Firebrand took to the mountains with his tribe, and began mining under the Vingaards looking for the opals. Once it was discovered that Galen Pathwarden-Brightblade owned six of them, he schemed to collect them through ransom. While this tribe lived underground for hundreds of years, they were eventually liberated and reunited with their surface cousins.

Dragonlance is filled with communities that migrate and change their culture and nature. Whether this means they are an official sub-race is as open to interpretation as any other sub-race is different from the parent race. But their individuality and history is what inspires me as a Dungeon Master and a Player. Without racial variations and advantages and disadvantages, everything is human with random appearance changes, and while some in our modern world may like a homogenous, everyone is special so no one is special, perspective in life, it is simply a fantasy, more so than even this game. So why pollute the game with the same nonsense thinking?

And that is all the time I have to talk about the lost races of Krynn. What do you think of the underground elves? Would you ever play a half-Kender? And finally, do you prefer the reference of race, species, or ancestries? Leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember: 

Don’t change the color to match the walls. Look like you belong and the walls will change color to match you.

Let’s take a look at character creation in AD&D, and find out why it is the best version of Dungeons & Dragons in this How to Play Advanced Dungeons & Dragons series. Buy the AD&D Players Handbook: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/17003/players-handbook-1e?affiliate_id=50797

Let’s learn how to make a player character in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons!

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to talk about character creation in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. I am referencing the Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide, and Unearthed Arcana for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!

Creating a new player character, or PC, in any tabletop roleplaying game, or TTRPG, system is a time consuming process. You have a lot to consider: what your character will be like, and how they will fit into the party and world are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. But games like Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, or AD&D, help you narrow down the diverse options of race, class, and alignment, depending on your character’s ability scores. Creating a character begins with generating your PC’s ability scores, deciding on a race, then a class, the alignment, and name. You will know certain languages based on your choices, in addition to generating starting money so you can purchase equipment necessary for adventuring. Finally you will roll for your hitpoints, and you will be ready to explore a dungeon or landscape.

The reason ability scores are so important is because each race and class has minimum and maximum scores necessary for play. This is intended to be a balancing mechanic in the game, as the default race is Human, and the other races are more rare. Because the other races have special abilities that humans don’t, they generally have level caps on classes as well, but they are able to multi-class, whereas humans only get to dual class. I will go over all this when we get to the appropriate video after character creation. But first, let’s go over what the different ability scores, and the different score generation methods are, so we can begin creating our characters.

In AD&D there are seven abilities, though only six are commonly used, forsaking Comeliness first presented in the Unearthed Arcana. The seven ability scores are as follows: Strength, the measure of muscle, endurance, and stamina combined. Intelligence, the intelligence quotient, in addition to mnemonic ability, reasoning, and learning outside the written word. Wisdom, a composite of enlightenment, judgment, wile, will power, and intuitiveness. Dexterity, hand-eye coordination, agility, reflexes, precision, balance, and speed of movement. Constitution, physique, fitness, health, and resilience. Charisma, the measure of your physical attractiveness, persuasiveness, and personal magnetism. And finally Comeliness reflecting your physical attractiveness, social grace, and personal beauty. It is directly influenced by your Charisma and race as well, and is used to determine initial reactions to the PC’s. With our basic understanding of the abilities, let’s generate some scores!

Generating your ability scores depends on the method used to roll them, and every player in the group or party should use the same method for fairness if at all possible. There are five methods which follow: Method I, roll 4d6 six times, discard the lowest die, and arrange as desired. Method II, roll 3d6 twelve times, discard the six lowest scores, and arrange as desired. Method III, roll 3d6 six times for each ability in order, keep the highest score, and discard the rest. Method IV, roll 3d6 six times for each ability in order, for twelve separate characters, and keep the set of scores you prefer. And finally Method V, this is only for human PC’s, roll the number of 6-sided dice noted by the desired class and keep the three best rolls for each ability score. If it is lower or greater than the minimum or maximum of your class, you instead take the minimum or maximum number.

I am planning on making a human cavalier, so I will use Method V to generate my ability scores. Now that we have our six ability scores determined, we may compare them to the various race and class combinations and determine who our PC is going to be. When you have selected them, you will finally generate your Comeliness by rolling 3d6, and adding your Charisma and possible racial modifier as noted. I will dive deeper into ability scores in a future video. For now, let’s move on to selecting a race.

In AD&D there are fifteen racial types to choose from. All races except humans have restrictions on possible classes, and level caps in those classes, so take your time and consider the campaign your Dungeon Master, or DM, is going to run before making your choice. The primary racial stocks are dwarven, elven, gnome, half-elf, halfling, half-orc, and human. Each racial stock has advantages and disadvantages, but humans are generally seen as superior as they have few if any drawbacks or restrictions. All basic information for PC’s are applicable to them, as the different races have bonuses and adjustments based on each. I will make deeper dives into each racial stock in future videos. There are also built in racial preferences between the racial types. This is built into the game and will be applicable when NPC’s deal with you and you try to hire hirelings. I am selecting human for my race. As they are the dominant race in AD&D.  

There are fourteen classes and sub-classes to choose from with the Unearthed Arcana. Cavalier, Paladin, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Barbarian, Ranger, Magic-User, Illusionist, Thief, Acrobat, Assassin, Monk, and Bard. The Bard is a supplemental class that only humans or half-elves may earn after dual classing through fighter and thief. I will be making a video on each. I am making a Cavalier, like my very first AD&D character. Cavaliers were first introduced in the Unearthed Arcana. They are noble, valiant, mounted knights who follow a specific code. I am basing the character on a Knight of Solamnia in the Dragonlance campaign world. Cavaliers must begin with a good alignment, and have a minimum of 15 in Strength, Dexterity and Constitution, and a 10 in Intelligence and Wisdom. Cavaliers at 1st level gain bonuses to their stats due to rigorous training. Their Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution all increase by percentiles until a new level pushes them above 100 to the next whole number. They are restricted in the armor and weapons they use as they must match their social standing. They are able to make multiple attacks per round, gain bonuses to certain weapons, and parry attacks with bonuses. They are immune to fear and radiate an aura protecting their allied creatures. Unfortunately, they cannot be controlled in battle situations, and will charge an enemy on sight.

Next we have to choose an alignment. Alignment describes the broad ethos of thinking, reasoning creatures. Alignment does not dictate religion but religion does dictate alignment. There are two major divisions of four opposite points of view. Law and Chaos, separating organized groups from individuals, and Good and Evil, distinguishing between creature rights and purpose. And finally Neutrality which exists as an integral, necessary function of the entire cosmos. So the possible alignments are Neutral Good, True Neutral, Neutral Evil, Lawful Good, Lawful Neutral, Lawful Evil, Chaotic Good, Chaotic Neutral, and Chaotic Evil. There are even alignment languages, but as I will be making a video specifically on alignment, further discussion on this will have to wait. Alignments are incredibly important in AD&D. They influence the choices your PC makes throughout the campaign, separating them from you; as you are not playing yourself, but rather a fictional character with racial and class specific motivations informed by your alignment and the milieu your DM created. Because of my chosen class I am going to choose Lawful Good as my alignment. 

Now we are able to roll for initial hit points, but if they are lower than the starting hit points in the Unearthed Arcana, you may choose that number instead. Each class has a hit die which is rolled to determine hit points per level, in addition to a maximum number of hit dice for the profession. Social Class and Rank is only important for Cavaliers and Paladins, but it will also inform your character throughout the DM’s milieu. As a general rule, your PC should have a social status of at least one rank below their chosen class. Since Cavaliers and Paladins are entirely based on their social standing, the DM must roll on the Social Class table for those PC’s. This is another rule in the Unearthed Arcana which may affect the PC’s desired profession. 

You will need to choose your languages known based on the campaign, race, and intelligence modifier if applicable. You also need to roll for your starting money. Cavaliers and paladins’ are dependent on the social standing roll the DM made earlier, and are given beginning equipment as well. You may spend your money on additional equipment as needed. There are some more details that I like to leave up to the roll of the dice, including Psionics! The Dungeon Masters Guide showcases Secondary Skills. You may assign a skill randomly or select it according to the background of the campaign. You may also select or roll your characters age depending on the race on the appropriate character age table. There are character ability score modifiers based on age as well. For Psionics, you need an Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma of 16 or higher, then roll percentile dice. The higher the ability score the lower the roll needs to be. I will make a video on Psionics in the future.

As you can see, character creation is largely up to the roll of the dice, and you choosing what options fit those rolls. You do not end up with superhero characters who can storm through encounters. But rather, you end up with vulnerable, mortal PC, who need to rely on their skills, wits and companions for survival, forcing players to use creativity and cooperation in overcoming obstacles. But for now, we have made our first character in AD&D and I look forward to showcasing the rules for playing AD&D next before circling back for ability, race, class, alignment, and psionics deep dives. Please let me know if you would like an even more in depth method of character creation, with different race and class combinations.

But that is all the time I have to talk about character creation in AD&D. What do you think of the process? Do you feel it’s too restrictive and left up to chance? And finally, have you ever made a character in AD&D before? Leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember: 

The more one learns, the more one comes to understand how little he knows.

The Dragonlance Saga has been pushed along through the novels from one age to the next. Let’s examine the reading order and core novels which progress and alter the River of Time. Buy the Classic Dragonlance Bundle: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/141690/classic-dragonlance-bundle?affiliate_id=50797 

These novels have driven the Dragonlance Saga forward, then back; rinse and repeat.

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to talk about the core novels which drove the Dragonlance Saga forward. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. While I have what I consider the core novels noted in this video, if you believe I am wrong, or you want to introduce other novels, please leave a comment below!

Part of what makes the Dragonlance Saga so wonderful is that it spans a massive era of five distinct ages, mixing game products and novels, all of which drive the story forward into some truly interesting areas. This was naturally informed by the different intellectual property owners wanting to make the most money and showcase their own versions of game products and eras of evolution in the Dragonlance and Dungeons and Dragons sandbox. This ended up creating a mess of inconsistent and contradictory storytelling beats which make a single consistent saga impossible to reconcile. But between TSR Inc. and Wizards of the Coast, they continuously brought back or were forced to allow back the original authors in Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, to steer the ship as it were into new and more consistent eras, even when they themselves are famous for contradicting their own characters and story beats with subsequent stories and novels.

This is all to say that what I am going to present as cannon and the intended reading order is not all inclusive and may not resonate with your experience and perspective. So please take this all as intended and focused on my take on the core Dragonlance Saga novels and timelines. I will not be going into the game products which I have showcased and discussed in previous videos. This also has spoilers for some of the core novels presented, so if you don’t want to know about events and alternate timelines, stop watching now.

When I think of the core Dragonlance Saga, I am reflecting on what was initially presented in Dragons of Autumn Twilight, from the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy. The Third Dragon War, in the Age of Dreams, foreword. Everything before that is a historical build up, and the Third Dragon War influences everything leading up to and through the War of the Lance, which is what the Dragonlance Chronicles and Lost Chronicles is all about. You see, in the Third Dragon War, Huma Feigaard, or Dragonbane, together with the Silver Dragon Heart, also known as Gwyneth, defeated Takhisis, the Queen of Darkness, banishing her to the Abyss. This led to the Age of Might and the Dark Queen plotting to reenter and rule Krynn for a thousand years. When the Kingpriest of Istar challenged the Gods, and all the true clerics were removed from Krynn, the Gods sent a mountain crashing into Istar, destroying the lord city and sundering the continent of Ansalon, moving the saga into the Age of Despair. Takhisis took the Temple and used its keystone to build a new temple in Neraka from which she plotted to conquer and reenter Krynn with her new Dragon Highlords and their Dragonarmies. And this is where we enter with the first novel, Dragons of Autumn Twilight.

The Chronicles tell how the heroes of the Lance stand up to and defeat the Dragonarmies with the Whitestone Council, temporarily ending Takhisis’ efforts. The Lost Chronicles fills in gaps between the events told in the original Chronicles, but again, since there was so much time between the two trilogies, it is important to note that the authors have presented events and character’s a bit inconsistently, so it’s up to the reader on whether they want to read them intermixed or separately. At the end of the War of the Lance, Raistlin Majere, has designs to challenge the Dark Queen and become a god himself. This is outlined in the Legends trilogy which acts as both a sequel and prequel trilogy to the Chronicles, as they travel back in time to the Age of Might, introducing Time Travel to the Saga, and a whole new timeline known as the Hourglass in the Sky timeline. In the Legends trilogy, Raistlin is successful in becoming a god, but destroys life in the process, so when Caramon Majere and Tasslehoff Burrfoot travel back to their own time, they find this deathscape and Caramon returns to Raistlin in the past to warn him of his success and outcome. Raistlin chooses to stop challenging the gods, and closes the Portal to the Abyss. Ostensibly sacrificing himself for his brother and a better world, though the character doesn’t see it that way.

We then proceed years into the future after Legends to the children of the Heroes of the Lance with The Second Generation anthology. This sets up the new antagonists and heroes who will precede in the Saga and experience the next major world event in the Chaos War which leads to the Second Cataclysm and the Age of Mortals, or Fifth Age Timeline. This is outlined in what was to be referred to as the fourth Chronicles novel titled Dragons of Summer Flame. This ends with the Gods leaving Krynn with Chaos in order to save the world. It defines the new age as the Age of Mortals where arcane and divine magic is nonexistent and the mortals of Krynn discover new magic through the Power of the Heart and Wild Sorcery. The trilogy that presents this era is the Dragons of a New Age trilogy by Jean Rabe. It propels the saga into the Fifth Age with Dragon Overlords dominating all of Ansalon. The trilogy deals with new heroes coming together to try to defeat the Dragon Overlords, of which only a few are eventually destroyed. 

It was initially presented as the only timeline, until Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman were brought back again and wrote their War of Souls trilogy. This trilogy shows that the original timeline was hijacked by Takhisis in her never ending bid to rule Krynn. She stole the world and moved it to an unknown location in Space. This is how the Dragon Overlords discovered it, and Takhisis would leverage a girl named Mina, and use her as her prophet and voice on Ansalon as the Dark Queen rebuilt her strength. This story was told through Tasslehoff Burrfoot using the Device of Time Journeying, seeing the real future, and this new future, and trying to stop it. While the timeline was never officially corrected in the War of Souls, it did solve the Dragon Overlord and loss of the Gods problem by having Mina kill the majority of remaining Overlords, and having Takhisis killed, with Paladine stepping down as a god in order to maintain balance, a concept that is integral to the saga.

This brought Dragonlance back to a more familiar place with the gods and traditional magic, and a world where the mortals were trying to cope with the changed landscape and fallout of the war. Mina’s story would be pushed into the future in Margaret Weis’ Dark Disciple trilogy, ending with Mina being revealed as a neutral god. And that is where the saga ended for a decade until  Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman returned again, and won a lawsuit against Wizards of the Coast to present their now Classic Dragonlance Destinies trilogy. This trilogy deals with the heroine Destina Rosethorn who loses her father in the War of the Lance and travels back in time with the Graygem (and subsequently Chaos) to save him, but instead inadvertently changes the future into a new Chaos timeline, where the Queen of Darkness won the Third Dragon War. While this new timeline isn’t fully fleshed out, it altered the events at the beginning of the saga with Dragon of Autumn Twilight and in the end, removed Chaos from the world entirely. It seemingly prevented Chaos from intervening with the Dragons of Summer Flame setup of the Knights of Takhisis invading Ansalon. Without Chaos, there is no Chaos War, and subsequently, no Age of Mortals timeline. This returns the timeline as far as we know, to the original timeline Tasslehoff Burrfoot spoke about in the War of Souls trilogy.

While I see the Dragonlance Saga being framed by the Third Dragon War and the Dark Disciple Trilogy, there are some novels that enrich those eras with much needed context. First is The Legend of Huma by Richard A. Knaak. It tells the story of Huma Dragonbane and Heart defeating the Queen of Darkness. However that version of the story is much different than Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman’s told in the new Destinies trilogy. There is also the major event of the fall of Istar and the Cataclysm as told through Chris Pierson’s Kingpriest Trilogy. This trilogy tells of the rise of the last Kingpriest and his downfall. It beautifully contextualizes the saga and frames the end of the Age of Might with the beginning of the Age of Despair, where the majority of the Saga occurs. 

There is also a new trilogy being written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman called Legacies with the first novel titled War Wizard. It deals with Huma Feigaard and Magius’ early adventures. Margaret Weis has also alluded to writing a novel about Alice Ranniker, a key artificer in their Destinies trilogy who aids in the heroes traveling back in time and containing the Graygem. So it seems the Dragonlance Saga is going to continue to move into the foreseeable future, much to the fan’s delight. There are also hundreds of other Dragonlance novels that are spread out throughout the entire timeline with some being better than others, but they don’t drive the primary saga forward like the aforementioned novels. Perhaps I will address some of these in future episodes. 

But that is all the time I have to talk about the core Dragonlance Saga novels. What do you think of the timelines and stories? Would you prefer there never to be time travel? And finally, do you have a favorite timeline? Leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember: 

This is insane – I hope you know that!

Let’s answer the question: What is Advanced Dungeons & Dragons? And find out why it is the best version of Dungeons & Dragons in this How to Play Advanced Dungeons & Dragons series. Buy the AD&D Monster Manual: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/17002/monster-manual-1e?affiliate_id=50797  

AD&D was initially introduced in The Dragon #11 (December 1977)

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today I am going to provide an introduction to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. I would like to take a moment and thank the DLSaga members, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. I am referencing the Monster Manual, Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide, and Unearthed Arcana for this information. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below!

I have never understood why so many people consider Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, or AD&D, to be so difficult to play or learn. It’s a simple game that was originally created by Gary Gygax as a means of cleaning up the errors and filling in the holes of Dungeons & Dragons, according to Gary Gygax in his guest editorial ‘View from the Telescope Wondering which end is which’ from The Dragon #11, December 1977. This process began in late 1975, and was initially realized by the release of Basic Dungeons & Dragons, or BD&D by J. Eric Holmes, and Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Monster Manual in the same year. Gygax felt like the fans of Dungeons & Dragons rushed him to put out new releases and content, so he decided to take his time with AD&D. The initial intention was to have AD&D be composed of four books including the Monster Manual in December 1977, Players Handbook in 1978, Dungeon Masters Guide in 1979, and Deities & Demigods in 1980. However Gygax was busy writing modules delaying the later releases of the core AD&D books.

Gygax believed that Original Dungeons & Dragons, or OD&D, and AD&D served different audiences, so there was no reason to retire the original. The first printing of the Players Handbook was in June 1978 which provided the first look at the more complex AD&D game, but surprisingly didn’t present methods for rolling your abilities, rules for combat or saving throws. This is because the Dungeon Master, or DM, was responsible for being the arbiter of the rules, not the players, so it was unimportant for them to know the rules. While there are similarities in OD&D and AD&D, Gygax insisted there is a big difference. In Dragon #26 (June 1979) and Dragon #28 (August 1979). He said that “D&D is only a loose structure … [while] AD&D is a much tighter structure which follows, in part, the same format D&D does, but it is a much stronger, more rigid, more extensive framework …” This was done for three primary reasons: 1. To cut down on house-rules. 2. To be a better platform in which to launch tournaments. And 3. That a more structured game would appeal to a larger audience.

What is even more interesting is that there were modules released for AD&D before the rules were ever released with the Dungeon Masters Guide in August 1979. This forced players to play hybrid games between OD&D and AD&D, something I am very familiar with, as I did the same in addition to AD&D and AD&D 2nd Edition! The Dungeon Masters Guide contained all of the rules for playing the AD&D system except character creation. This was an intentional choice again, by its creator. While D&D was co created between Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax, AD&D was all Gygax’s, so Arneson’s name was wholly absent. This caused the initial rift and lawsuit between them. The initial lawsuit was settled in March of 1981, but it wouldn’t be the last filed.

With Gygax busy running TSR Hobbies and TSR Entertainment, he simply did not have time to write whole books for AD&D, and instead reverted to his ‘The Sorcerer’s Scroll’ articles in The Dragon from 1981-1983 in order to extrapolate on and explain AD&D rules. As TSR began to flounder in his absence, Gygax insisted that a number of products bearing his name be released, and in June 1985, Unearthed Arcana was the first byproduct. It was wildly successful but since Gygax was incredibly busy, the volume was a collaboration of many writers including collaborator Frank Mentzer, design consultant Jeff Grubb, and editor Kim Mohan, though Gygax’s work is clearly predominant. This volume offers Gygax’s final version of the D&D game, and the last days with the company he founded.

While AD&D had more rigid rules, it also left a lot open to the players. Non-Weapon Proficiencies weren’t introduced until Oriental Adventures in October 1985, the same year as Unearthed Arcana, a first for TSR, Inc. These were seen as core books for AD&D 1.5 as they vastly expanded on the AD&D game in addition to Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide, and Wilderness Survival Guide, both in 1986. Other Tabletop Roleplaying Games, or TTRPG’s, already featured secondary skill systems, so in this AD&D was playing catch up. The Oriental Adventures non-weapon proficiencies were focused on the campaign setting and were germain to the characters outlined therein. However Douglas Niles revamped them in the Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide, tying them to Character Attributes and the western settings. Gygax later wrote that he didn’t agree with having skills in an archetypical/class-based game like AD&D, and I have to agree. While it can help newer players come up with ideas or actions, it is inherently limiting, by showcasing what you can do, and highlighting what you can’t, which is antithetical to the AD&D game or imagination and ingenuity. It’s yet another reason I think AD&D is superior to AD&D 2nd Edition where non weapon proficiencies were an even larger staple to the Player Character or PC.

So while OD&D and Basic D&D, or BD&D, were looser products geared toward miniatures players who already had a strong basis in wargaming, AD&D had a broader appeal and thus became an easy target for religious fundamentalists in the Satanic Panic Era. This ironically propelled the popularity of Dungeons and Dragons into the public consciousness and laid the groundwork for revisions in AD&D and later AD&D 2nd Edition. I cut my teeth on AD&D with my middle school friends and played it off and on even to this day. It’s a game that is thought of as clunky and challenging to play, but having run it a number of times recently, it is no more complex than Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, and I hope this series exploring the rules of AD&D proves that to other players. For I genuinely believe that by having an understanding of and experience in playing AD&D, you are a better player in general and it will help you play other games like 5th Edition more creatively and with more ingenuity.

Future episodes in this series will include Character Creation, Combat, Saving Throws, Race and Class highlights and more. Feel free to include suggestions in the comments below with aspects of the game you are curious about, and I will consider including them as well. 

And that is all the time I have to provide an introduction to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. What do you think of the evolution of the game? Do you believe it is too complex of a system? And finally, when was the last time you ran or played in an AD&D game? Leave a comment below. 

I would like to take a moment and remind you to subscribe to this YouTube channel, ring the bell to get notified about upcoming videos and click the like button. This all goes to help other Dragonlance fans learn about this channel and its content. Thank you for watching, this has been Adam with DragonLance Saga and until next time, remember: 

ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS is a game that is demanding for players and Dungeon Masters alike, but the rewards in terms of enjoyment are vast.

Join us as we continue our @Dungeons & Dragons liveplay of Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen with this part thirty-two! You can buy Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen here: https://amzn.to/3V73n8C 

Last time on Shadow of the Dragon Queen: Mounted on the Wasteland Dragonnel’s that Clystran brought, the heroes raced to the Flying citadel, only to be engaged in combat with Red Ruin and Bakaris the younger! The heroes narrowly avoided disaster before finally climbing into the tunnels of the citadel. They got lost and came across a Lesser Death Dragon. They defeated it and finally made it into the structure of the citadel, and they were met by Ledara who reveals she is a ghost, cursed to torment Lord Soth, and she is trying to help the heroes defeat him. She mentions two methods, using a mirror artifact to distract him, and destroy the Cataclysmic Fire. They have less than three hours to bring it down before it destroys Kalaman, and the heroes are clawing and scraping their way through the dungeon. They come across a vampire who offers them a deal to get the mirror, and the heroes move to collect it. Let’s see what the heroes are going to encounter next!

Enlist in the War of the Lance 

Takhisis the Dragon Queen has returned to the world of Krynn. Across the land, her armies of fanatical draconians wage a brutal war of conquest. As the Dragon Armies march on the unprepared nation of Solamnia, only the defenders of the city of Kalaman stand in their way. But the Dragon Armies want more than just to crush their foes. An ancient evil in the Dragon Queen’s service seeks a magical weapon that could dominate Krynn for all time. 

Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen is a tale of conflict and defiance set during the legendary War of the Lance.