Dungeons and dragons

• Mar 15, 2019
• The Darkness Before the Dawn

The Darkness Before the Dawn: A Dark Sun Chronicles of Athas Retelling

So I just finished the second book in the Dark Sun Chronicles of Athas series, and I have thoughts.

The Darkness Before the Dawn by Ryan Hughes is set in the Dark Sun campaign world, which is basically the bleakest Dungeons & Dragons setting ever created. If you are picturing green forests and friendly taverns, stop. That is not what this is. Athas is a dying world. The sun is red. The desert goes on forever. Water is worth more than gold. Metal is so rare that people fight with weapons made from bone and obsidian. And the people who run things are immortal sorcerer-kings who have been draining the life from the planet for thousands of years.

• Mar 01, 2019
• The Brazen Gambit

The Brazen Gambit by Lynn Abbey: A Dark Sun Retelling

So I picked up this old fantasy novel from 1994 and honestly? It hit different than I expected.

The Brazen Gambit by Lynn Abbey is the first book in the Chronicles of Athas series, set in the Dark Sun campaign world. If you’ve never heard of Dark Sun, let me fill you in. It’s a Dungeons & Dragons setting, but forget everything you think you know about D&D. There are no lush green forests. No friendly taverns with smiling barkeeps. No rain.

• Jan 26, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Why the Simbul's Gift Still Holds Up

So we’re done. Twelve posts covering one Forgotten Realms novel from 1997 that most people have never heard of. And I want to wrap up with why I think this book deserves more attention than it gets.

• Jan 25, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

A Zulkir's Gift and a Queen's True Name

This is the payoff. Two chapters. Everything the book has been building toward lands here, and it lands in a way I genuinely did not expect from a D&D novel.

• Jan 24, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Dancing With Gods at the Sunglade

Everything has been building to the Sunglade. The scattered Cha’Tel’Quessir, the lurking Red Wizards, the ancient gods stirring beneath the forest floor. These three chapters are where it all crashes together, and the results are brutal.

• Jan 23, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Love, Loss, and Lightning in the Forest

These three chapters are a lot. They cover Bro recovering from his arrow wound, falling for a woman who is secretly the most powerful wizard on the continent, losing more friends, and then we cut to Lauzoril having one of the most emotionally intense father-daughter scenes in any D&D novel. So let’s get into it.

• Jan 22, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

The Simbul Goes Native and Thay Calls a Meeting

Three chapters. Three completely different vibes. A room full of the most dangerous wizards in Faerun. A queen strapping on leather armor. And a boy getting shot in the back with an arrow right after hugging his dad.

• Jan 21, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Bro Finds His People (And They're a Mess)

Bro finally made it to the Yuirwood. He’s walking through the forest he’s dreamed about for seven years. And it’s nothing like he remembers.

• Jan 20, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Mythrell'aa's Long Game and the Thayan Web

Chapters 12 through 14 give us a dead father reunion, a sister intervention, and Lauzoril having a very bad day with his undead relatives. These are the chapters where every thread starts pulling tighter.

• Jan 19, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Messy Chambers, Missing Kids, and Sisterly Advice

Chapters 9 through 11 are where the book shifts gears in a really satisfying way. We jump between three very different settings: Thayan spy games, the Simbul’s disastrous private chambers, and Lauzoril’s complicated home life. And honestly, these chapters are some of the most character-revealing in the whole book.

• Jan 18, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

The Storm Queen Throws Hands in the Yuirwood

Chapter 6 opens with the Simbul standing over Bro in the Yuirwood, thumping her staff on the ground next to his head.

• Jan 17, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

Undead Grandpa and Thayan Spy Games

Chapter 3 is where this book goes from interesting to genuinely wild. We leave Bro and the Yuirwood behind and drop into a crypt in Thazalhar, eastern Thay. And we meet Lauzoril’s family.

• Jan 16, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

A Half-Elf Boy, a Twilight Colt, and a Goddess Named Zandilar

Before we hit the actual chapters, the book opens with two documents from Candlekeep. The first is a history of the Simbul, Alassra Shentrantra. The second is study notes about a forgotten goddess named Zandilar. Both are important, so let me cover them quick.

• Jan 15, 2019
• The Simbul's Gift

The Simbul's Gift: A Forgotten Realms Deep Cut Worth Reading

So I’m starting a retelling series of a Forgotten Realms novel that almost nobody talks about. The Simbul’s Gift by Lynn Abbey. Published in 1997 as Book 6 of the Nobles series. And honestly, it deserves way more attention than it gets.