Dragonlance: The Annotated Chronicles Volume I:

Dragons of Autumn Twilight

by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

A labor of true love which sets a steady foundation for a rousing epic tale of faith, devotion, and of course good vs. evil.

To be honest this book should have been awful. It was written by two first time authors who were chronicling what happened as they played Dungeons and Dragons. And certainly there are flaws in the novel, where it’s almost too simple, characters almost too archetypal.

But notice I said almost.

Despite it’s flaws and in some ways perhaps because of them, the first volume of Chronicles is a phenomenal read to any old time gamer, and yet accessible enough to the casual fantasy reader. Reading this novel again, this time with annotations from the authors, poets, et. all involved with its creation, is even more fun. The annotations are done in a style that makes you feel more like you’re hanging out over a few beer discussing the novel. They admit their awkward moments, and beam at their most proudest.

One thing Hickman said a few times throughout is how they made a conscious effort to emulate Tolkien in the way that the world of Krynn would have a specific history, to ground the characters in an attempt to make them more real. It works very well.

For instance we open with what will eventually be called the Companions are meeting in their home inn after they all went their separate was five years earlier. Immediately the reader wants to know where they’ve been, what they’ve been doing. And we don’t even really know them yet

Starting in an inn is a shout out to all gamers as they know that all good adventures begin in an inn.

Right from the get go we are thrown into a world on the bring of war, without faith, without trust, but full of vibrant alive characters. From the leading character, Tanis Half-Elven to the perhaps too honorable knight, to the bulky warrior and his sickly twin mage, to the grumpy old dwarf, and finally to the irrepressible kender.

The readers just feels a part of something special.

The tone is set properly so we feel what the characters are feeling. When the dragons appear in the night sky for the first time in centuries, the reader feels the same awe and disturbance, despite the fact that dragons aren’t as new to us.

The core of the first trilogy is undoubtedly two character arcs –the first being of Tanis Half-Elven, a reluctant leader who feels as out of place with the elves, as he does the humans. Hickman described his life as a pendulum with his fellow Companions being the fulcrum. He is in love with two women. The first, the lovely elf maiden, Laurana whom with he grew up with who is the embodiment of innocence and purity, and Kitiara, the human mercenary who is hard, promiscuous and temptation personified.

Tanis is a natural leader though he doesn’t feel such and the Companions all follow him. It is clear that Hickman and Weis centered their story on Tanis.

The second character arc is one that I feel was a surprise to the authors to discover, was that of Raistlin Majere. A sickly mage, who is balancing precariously between good and evil. He is power hungry although he had mostly good intentions.

His main problem is his bitterness and jealousy of the affections given his brother, although he would never admit it. It has been with him all his life, and he has dedicated his life to the magic as the only thing worth living for. He is still with the party due to the fact that he is not powerful enough to make it on his own. Even within the party he is mostly hated, except for his brother Caramon who is beyond loyal, to the point of foolhardy, and Tanis who realizes how intelligent the mage is, so he listens often to his counsel.

And of course Tasselhoff doesn’t hate anyone. Tas is quite a unique character who has attracted the imagination of many readers of fantasy. He is a good representation of a kender. Kender are halflings who are immune to fear, and are about as socially appropriate as a Red Sox fan in Yankee stadium. In an interesting annotation, Hickman said he had a hard time making a good “thief” type character work for him. So he came up with the idea that kender didn’t steal. They just “borrowed” things instinctively and never purposefully. It is that kind of quirky detail, that makes Krynn such a wonderfully deep world.

With as many characters and races as Hickman and Weis introduce, there are some that are underdeveloped. Sturm Brightblade, a wannabe Knight of Solmania who doesn’t get a full working over. Flint joins the ever underdeveloped dwarves. I chalk it up to first time writers with a large epic story to tell.

One of the most interesting characters to me who remain underdeveloped by choice was Fizban the Fabulous, a dotty old wizard who joined the party midway through the book. Humorous as he was important, he came to personify the world of Krynn and in some ways imagination itself (as did Zifnab and Zafnib in other Weis/Hickman stories).

The adventure worked on such an intimate level. The overall major conflict was very vague and always seemed to be less important than the little parts of it our companions were involved in. It certainly seemed to help the reader feel as if they were one of the companions, knowing little more than what the rest of the companions knew.

As the search for the gods that had long ago disappeared intensified, it served as a great metaphor for those searching for their faith. The characters want to believe, but have been hurt for so long, it is a struggle to commit to any such beliefs.

Eventually with the help of a magic staff, a battle with a fierce dragon, and the return of the gods clerics, it becomes certain that both the gods of light and the gods of darkness have once more returned to influence the world of Krynn for better or for worse.

As the opening of a trilogy, it does exactly what the first act should do. It introduces the characters and gives you enough to want to know more, it introduces the larger and smaller scale conflicts, and it ends with a climactic battle, that is only the beginning of a much greater war.

I give Weis/Hickman a lot of credit in writing this novel as their first effort. It serves them and the reader well, warts and all.

B+