Riverwinds story is all about love and duty. Born into the lowest caste of the Qué-Shu, he was ultimately sentenced to death, all before the War of the Lance. Let's learn more about Riverwint, the Plainsman. Buy DL5 Dragons of Mystery: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/16890/DL5-Dragons-of-Mystery-1e?affiliate_id=50797

https://youtu.be/sec7TzIx-9c

Transcript

Cold Open

If you appreciate eternal love and sacrifice, you will love the story of Riverwind the Plainsman.

Intro

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga episode. My name is Adam and today we are going to talk about Riverwind. I am referencing the Chronicles and DL modules primarily for this information, but some of this episode is informed by the Preludes and various short stories as well. If I leave anything out or misspeak, please leave a comment below.

Discussion

Riverwind and Goldmoon were planned to be the original heroes of Chronicles according to Tracy Hickman. But since their love story ended in Dragons of Autumn Twilight with their marriage, the authors moved to focus on other characters. This sets us up for the truth behind the couple’s story, and the genuine strife they were going to be facing. We know that they ended the first novel with marriage because TSR didn’t have faith in the novel doing well critically, and wanted to have a happy ending if the planned trilogy ended up being a one-off. So we were set up for the true challenge the two faced and though I will be writing an episode solely about Goldmoon, it is difficult to separate them, as we are introduced to them together, and they don’t separate until the Fifth Age after that initial introduction. This is all to say that I may cover some of what follows again.

Riverwind grew up in a family that strongly believed in the old gods, in a time when few did. Regionally it could mean being ostracised or murdered to believe openly and it was the former that Rivewind’s father suffered. He was banished from the Que-Shu tribe, as the tribal elders  had practiced the act of worshiping their chieftains past and present as gods since the Cataclysm. This firmly placed Riverwind in the lowest caste of his tribe. He became a shepherd and spent his youth in the wilderness. He grew into an accomplished Far Hunter for his tribe, accepted only because of his survival and hunting skills. Upon laying eyes on Goldmoon for the first time, Riverwind claims to have instantly fallen in love. Having married my own high school sweetheart more than twenty years ago, I believe I understand exactly what he means. 

But growing up in a tribal society is much more challenging, especially if you are at the bottom of the social ladder. Goldmoon, the Chieftains daughter was seen and treated as a goddess by her tribe, and was betrothed to the son of the village shaman. The Que-Shu tribe has a law that allows a would-be suitor to undergo a quest to prove their worthiness in usurping the arranged marriage, and that is exactly what Riverwind invoked. The downside was that Goldmoon’s father, Arrowthorn the Que-Shu chieftain, demanded proof of the old gods Riverwinds family believed in. Everyone knew this was an impossible task, but nevertheless, Riverwind accepted the quest and left with an outcast friend called Catchstar, or Catchflea by the Que-Shu. Without direction they wandered aimlessly, and while in the Forsaken Mountains, an elven thief named Di An preyed on them. They gave chase and fell into a secret underground world of the Hest Elves, Silvanesti from the Age of Dreams. 

The trio were embroiled in a civil war and were eventually liberated by the victors that Catchstar trained.