The list of Dragonlance creatures attempts to list the races that can be found in the Dragonlance setting.
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According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, dragons are the original beings of Krynn, born from the world and the elements. The dragons of Krynn are distinguished from other dragons because they take active roles in the fate of the lesser races.[1]
The dragons of Dragonlance appear much as their counterparts in other Dungeons & Dragons worlds.[2]
The chromatic dragons are red, white, green, black, and blue varieties of dragons. They are evil and work under the direction of Takhisis before her departure from the world. They generally work in order to bring about Takhisis's reentry into the world, prior to her death.[3]
Black dragons are malevolent, tricky, and self serving. They take interest only in themselves. They serve Takhisis out of fear, and disdain the lesser races of the world. They prefer to live in swamps and marshes. They are capable of changing lands into swamp to suit them. They are suspicious of everything and everyone. They are skilled at using magic, using it for deception in battle. They rarely fight honorably, instead using their cunning to win and retreating if they cannot. Their breath weapon is acid.[4]
Blue dragons are charismatic and can work with mankind well. They are commonly chosen as mounts for dragon riders. They serve Takhisis out of loyalty and respect. They are fearless and honorable, loyal to their riders and mates. They use combat oriented magic. They prefer the desert and some like islands. They were the mounts of the Knights of Takhisis in the Chaos War. Their breath weapon is lightning.[5]
Green dragons are known for their tempers and their cruelty. They consider themselves the highest beings in the world. They rarely engage in combat, preferring to use magic to trap foes and then torture them. They prefer live victims they can torture ruthlessly. Green dragons live in forests, and often fight with elves, whom they have a special hatred for. They will retreat from battle if necessary because they believe themselves too important to risk dying. Their breath weapon is a deadly chlorine gas.[6]
Red dragons are the largest and most feared of their kind. They revere Takhisis, and serve her out of that reverence. Takhisis favors their kind and often grants them special favor. They are intelligent and have an understanding of battle tactics. They have intense power and great cruelty as well. They love to collect hordes of treasure to represent their power. A red dragon retreats strategically and orderly. They live in mountainous lands, stashing their hordes in caverns and caves. Their breath weapon is traditional dragonflame.[7]
White dragons are rare and reclusive, often considered stupid by other dragons. They rarely interfere with other beings. They live in caves in extremely cold regions and hate warmth and sunshine, and in fact being away from the cold can kill them. They prefer not to spend their energy and prefer ambushes in combat. They retreat readily and sulk after losses. They are not good at magic, but are fascinated by it, and may serve wizards. Their breath weapon is ice.[8]
According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, the metallic dragons serve Paladine until his departure, and the Gods of Good in general. Brass and Bronze dragons often consort with the neutral gods. They are ordered to stay out of the world when Takhisis is forced out, to preserve balance. Prior to the War of the Lance, Takhisis steals their eggs as ransom to prevent them from entering into the world and interfering. Takhisis uses the eggs to create dragon men called draconians. Because of this offense, the metallic dragons enter the world again and take part in the later stages of the war.[9]
Brass dragons are outgoing, but enjoy hearing themselves speak. They would gladly spend the day gossiping. They live in dry and sunny regions and talk to anyone they see. They go so far as to stop opponents in battle to talk to them. They are opponents of blue dragons.[10]
Bronze dragons often participate in the affairs of mortals. They love animals and protect living beings. They dislike hunters, trappers, and poachers because of the nature of their work. They live near lakes or oceans, where they can eat fish and water plants. They enjoy battle and study warfare and tactics. They are valiant in battle and retreat rarely.[11]
Copper dragons enjoy practical jokes and the like, as well as collecting treasure. They live in places such as mountains where they can store their hordes. This often brings them to conflict with red dragons, which they have learned to fight with. They often jest with travelers they encounter. They are skilled at taunting foes to enrage them. They will often aid those who need it for a reasonable cost.[12]
Gold dragons are wise and knowledgeable and are considered beautiful and regal. They live in any condition in stone domains. Gold dragons dislike killing, and will only do so when provoked. Gold dragons aid in any just cause.[13]
Silver dragons are friendly with humans and commonly interact with them, even taking their shapes for long periods of time. They work well with riders and readily fight against evil. They are skilled fighters but are not particularly aggressive. They make their homes in mountains. They are respected by the Solamnic Knights for their work with the ancient hero Huma Dragonbane.[14]
Draconians, also called dragonmen, are humanoid beings with dragonlike features created during the War of the Lance. They are originally made from the eggs of good dragons corrupted with dark magic. During that era Draconians served as assault troops and special forces in the Dragonarmies of Takhisis. After the war they scattered to various regions of Ansalon. During the Chaos War a small group of the draconians find eggs containing female draconians. After the females hatched those draconians form the nation of Teyr, establishing the draconian race. Draconians are split into five principle races; Baaz, Kapak, Sivak, Aurak, and Bozak.[15] There are also noble draconians, which are formed from the eggs of evil dragons, and have a good alignment. There are flame, vapor, lightning, venom, and frost variants.[16]
The Baaz variant of draconians are the most numerous of all the draconian races. They are weak in mind, with a tendency for disreputable activities like drinking. Males are engrossed with their own pleasure and whims, whereas females are better tempered and self controlling. They have brass skin which fades to a greenish color as they age. They originally have an extreme hatred of all races, but in more recent times, this has been diminished to mostly hatred of elves. Baaz turn to stone upon death.[17][18]
Kapak draconians are stealthy and cunning. They are cruel and succeed in missions of assassination and spying and are born with a copper color that begins to fade over time. They are suited to and like best the ordered military life. The males can be skilled assassins, while the females can use the innate healing abilities of the race in helping others. They are larger than the Baaz variant, and the males have venom glands. The females have healing saliva. Kapaks are comfortable with members of their own race but rarely others. When kapaks die, they turn into acid.[19][20]
Auraks are rare and mighty draconians who prefer to use magic and their innate abilities over physical fighting. They are tall and slim, and are gold colored, their scales dimming with time. They prefer to be clad in robes. Auraks do not have wings. They are often among their fellow draconians, where they are respected for their power. When an Aurak dies, it turns into a large powerful burst of magical energy.[21]
Bozak draconians are bronze in color. They make use of magic in battle. They are cunning and determined in their ways, with arcane magical ability. They are inherently skilled at leading other draconians. When a Bozak dies, their bones explode.[22]
Sivaks are silver-colored draconians. The males have a shapeshifting ability, and the females a chameleon-like ability to blend in to their surroundings. They are the largest of draconians, reaching up to 9 feet tall, and are noted for large wings capable of flight, the only draconians who can do so. They are generally the strongest and most respected of all draconian races, and despite being partial to alcohol, it does not hamper their fighting prowess. They are known to eat nearly anything. When a male Sivak dies, it takes the form of its killer; when a female dies, it erupts in flame.[23]
Humans are of the original three races of Krynn (being the creation of Gilean). They are representative of neutrality, allowed the greatest deal of freedom with morals and ethics. They are sometimes viewed as impatient by the longer lived races of Krynn. Humans can sway to any alignment, good or evil, and do so regularly. Humans can be classified broadly as civilized and nomadic. Each of these categories has their own views on the other.[24]
Civilized humans are the most populous race of people on the continent of Ansalon. They all demonstrate individual differences. Because of their large numbers, they often conflict with other races. They have achieved reasonable peace with these races, however, there are always other humans starting the feuds again.[25]
Nomads are closer to the original human roots than their civilized cousins are. They are thought of as brutes and savages by the city dwelling humans. Nomads are proud of their wilderness survival ability. They don't speak unnecessarily and are practical in decision making. They are slow to trust but are very loyal to friends. The different tribes of nomads all have different customs of dress, suited to their climate. Nomads are less accepting of other races than the civilized humans are, having a slight respect for elves. They generally allow the individual person to prove themselves, however.[26]
The elves were one of the three original races, created by Paladine, god of light. They were given a great span of life, wisdom and beauty. They were known as the Colinesti.[27] However, as time passed their conditions turned them into:
In the beginning of time the original elves, fearing the mountains where the evil ogres lived and the plains where the short tempered humans were settling, decided to adopt the woods as home. After battling the evil dragons with the help of the gods of magic, the realm of Silvanesti was founded and named for Silvanos, the first leader of the elves.
As time developed, the Silvanesti elves became more secluded, stopping contact with the other races. Their society divided into different castes, creating a social discrimination that ultimately led to the division of their realm into the Silvanesti and the Qualinesti elves.
In ancient age, the Silvanesti elves were known to have telepathic powers, reserved for the royal household to communicate with subordinates through Silvanesti. After the Cataclysm its use diminished. By the time the War of the Lance began, the use was restricted to the royal household itself, and disappeared soon after the war.[28]
The main building is the Tower of the Stars where the king of the Silvanesti, known as the Speaker of the Stars, lives. It is settled in Silvanost, the capital of Silvanesti.
The Silvanesti elves believe themselves the Firstborn of the gods. Using their magical powers, they twist the trees in the region to shape them into structures of marble and silver, and do not have contact with other races, except for their servants, the Kagonesti.
The authors have defined that, due their extended time apart, the Qualinesti and Silvanesti elves developed different accents. Also, as a trait, the Silvanesti elves have finer features.[29]
The Qualinesti elves are Silvanesti ones who decided to follow Kith-Kanan, the younger of Silvanos' grandsons, to a new land with the promise of social equality and more interaction with the outer world. The turning point for this event came with the Kinslayer Wars, where elves of Silvanesti fought humans and elves in service of the Emperor of Ergoth, to expel Ergothian forces from Silvanesti's western border lands. After the war, Kith-Kanan decided to leave for the western lands, followed by his closest friends.
Kith-Kanan founded the Qualinesti realm based on the premise of freedom and equality, naming himself the Speaker of the Suns, founding a Tower of the Sun in the capital city of Qualinesti, Qualinost, however, was later destroyed, forcing them to begin another journey to another new land alongside the Qualinesti.
Contrary to the Silvanesti, the Qualinesti elves prefer not modifying the trees in which they live. Instead, they construct buildings based on the form of the trees, giving their cities a slightly twisted look. The qualinesti have a broader contact with other races, including trading agreement with the mountain dwarves of Thorbardin and the hill dwarves of the plains, humans of Ergoth, Tarsis and Istar (before the Cataclysm).
Also known as wild elves; elves that are attuned to nature, and considered barbarians by the Qualinesti and Silvanesti. They sport tattoos in different parts of the body, including the face, usually symbolizing their close relationship with nature.
Contrary to the Silvanesti and the Qualinesti elves, the Kagonesti prefer living in the natural caves and trees, and never build unless the situation forces them to. In addition, they dismantle anything that is unused, in an attempt leaving the land as they had found.
The Kagonesti are considered slaves by the Qualinesti elves. However, the Silvanesti consider them belonging to House Servitor, the lowest class of social status.[30]
Although in some sections of the books they are referred as Kaganesti, Tracy Hickman explains that this is a "problem with phonetic translation", where northern elves pronounce it as Kaganesti.[31]
The Dargonest are a race of sea elves. Their name means "Deep Elves", and they live in deeper water. They do not make themselves known to the majority of races in Dragonlance. They share the common elven pride, but differ from their land based cousins in that they are zealous in all they do and fiery in demeanor. They are shy around other races and are wrongly considered uncultured. Dargonesti strive for peace in their communities. They are capable of transforming into dolphins.
Dargonesti are the tallest of all elves, with males reaching 7 feet and females 6 feet. Compared to elves, they are heavily built, but still thinner compared to humans. Dargonesti have deep blue skin and webbed fingers and toes, along with gill slits beneath the pointed ears all elves share. Dargonesti can have pale gold or dark green hair and the odd black or silver haired one. They have large eyes with narrow pupils, eye color ranging from blue green to indigo. Dargonesti have incredibly long life spans, sometimes reaching 1000 years. Dargonesti wear little clothing, sometime seaweed underwater. They wear heavy clothing if they ever go to the land.
Dargonesti are extreme isolationists. Sometimes they interact with sentient marine life, but keep to themselves mostly. They are scornful of the Dimernesti, the other race of sea elves. They also harbor distaste for Silvanesti and Qualinesti, who considering both races of sea elves arrogant, for leaving land and going to the sea. They are more friendly to Kagonesti. Non-elven races are interesting to the Dargonesti, known to save ships containing them, with the exception of minotaurs and draconians, who they would rather let drown. Minotaurs are fearful of the Dargonesti.
Dargonesti value freedom of choice, but can be lawfully aligned. Most sea elves are good, because any evil ones are exiled as dark elves. Evil Dargonesti are magically revealed, their shape shifting changing from becoming dolphins to becoming sharks. Zeboim, goddess of the sea, protect these elves, and these "dark elves" often work against their former society.
The Dargonesti country is called Watermere, and the capital goes by the same name. It is ruled by the Speaker of the Moons, and the Speaker is advised by a council of clan patriarchs and matriarchs known as Speaker of the Blood. Watermere is about 2000 years old, having been taken by the Dargonesti from monsters and defended since then. Most of the world's events left it untouched, but the War of Souls ravaged it. They keep small well equipped fortresses throughout the kingdom. These are often occupied by the Dargonesti clans. Recently, many of these have become dilapidated. When the Cataclysm sank Istar, the Dargonesti moved into the ruins.
The Dargonesti are religious, having faith even during the time the gods were absent. They are worshipers of Habbakuk and Chislev, the good god of the sea and the neutral goddess of nature, respectively. They have shrines to Zeboim as a way of placating her. They are also known to worship Branchala, Mishakal, Kiri-Jolith, and Majere, the god of music, the goddess of healing, the god of holy war, and the god of monks respectively. The Dargonesti also revere Solinari, Lunitari, and Nuitari, the gods of magic, for their power over the moons of Krynn.
The Dargonesti language is based on the Ancient Elven, still using the Silvanesti alphabet but much changed. The actual language is much changed, however. In the sea, it sounds like the clicking of dolphins.
Dimernesti elves are located in the shallower waters of the ocean, their name meaning "Shoal Elves". They are strongly independent, similar to the Kagonesti people. Various losses incurred over the centuries have made them surly. They have lost their trust in all other races. They are cool and curt when speaking to other races. They have the power to transform into sea otters.
Dimernesti are very tall for elves, males reaching 6½ feet and females 6 feet. They are heavily built compared to other elves but slim in comparison to humans. Dimernesti have light blue skin, with webbed toes and feet. They have gills beneath traditional elven pointed ears. Dimernesti have silver hair which is often worn long, braided with shells and the like. Dimernesti typically live about 500 years. They wear little clothing, sometimes covering themselves with seaweed, and wearing cloaks and robes if they happen to be on land.
Dimernesti, prior to the Cataclysm, had good relations with the land-based races, even with their Silvanesti cousins. After the Cataclysm struck, they reformed into small, family based groups and cut off ties to the world. The War of the Lance forced them together with the Dargonesti to fight evil, but the Dragon Overlords' coming broke that relation. They have drawn back into their isolation, thinking themselves abandoned to the terrors of Brynseldimer, the sea dragon Overlord.
The Dimernesti believe in freedom of choice, and generally align with good, as evil Dimernesti are exiled as dark elves. When a Dimernesti is suspected of evilness, they are magically tried and, if guilty, exiled and lose the ability to shapeshift into otters and instead become manta rays. These elves actively work against their old homeland.
The only current Dimernesti city is Dimernost, though before the Cataclysm they had many cities near the coast. The destruction destroyed many of these, and the family groups the Dimernesti split into chose not to build new cities but instead lived in natural formations like coral reefs. Every so often, the Dimernesti raid towns on land for supplies. The Dimernesti are ruled by the Speaker of the Sea, who lives in the Tower of the Sea. It is a hereditary position always held by a female. When Brynseldimer arrived, the Speaker lost contact with the remote families.
The Dimernesti primarily worship Habbakuk and Chislev, the god of the sea and the goddess of nature, respectively. They have shrines to Zeboim in order to keep her ire from them, and sometimes revere Branchala, the god of music, Mishakal, the goddess of healing, Kiri-Jolith, the god of holy war, and Majere, the god of monks.
The Dimernesti language is very close to the Silvanesti tongue, and many Dimernesti speak the language of the people of Ergoth and the minotaur languages.
The Irda were created by Takhisis, and the first of the three original races to be settled on Krynn.
Even more lovely than elves, the original ogres were the most beautiful of all the races on Krynn, and among the most powerful sorcerers. Except in the case of injury or suicide, they had extremely long lifespans and were virtually immortal. With the passage of time, though, ogre society crumbled because of an internal division between the ogres that wanted to live in peace with the other races and those who wanted to enslave them. As punishment, the latter were turned into horrible creatures, twisted by evil.
The ogres that wanted to live in peace escaped to an isolated island north of Ansalon, and with the blessing of Paladine, became shape-shifters. They took the name of Irda to differentiate themselves from the twisted ogres. Despite their good intentions, years of isolation from the world would eventually make them a very prideful people.
The curse that turned the original ogres (Irda) into their current shape gave them a tremendous strength as well as a tendency of wild, anger-driven attitude. In the change, however, they lost most of their magical powers, concentrating only in brute strength. They live in clans, especially near mountains, and usually raid near towns to provide themselves with food and tools.
Gnomes (also called minoi or tinker gnomes) were created after Reorx, god of the forge, cursed the scions that were helping him in forging the world after these tried to develop items for themselves.
Gnomes are quite short with brown skin. They are constantly thinking of new inventions and have developed a tendency for speaking faster than the Common speech. Each gnome is given a life-quest which must be accomplished, but is passed on from generation to generation if not completed. Their names are created by basically repeating the history of their entire ancestry and can go one for volumes if not stopped. Also, gnome inventions have a reputation for never working since once something works perfectly, there is no enjoyment in fixing it.
The gnomes are considered one of the races of the Graygem because they are the ancestors of dwarves and kenders.
Kender were created when the Greygem of Gargath changed the gnomes that were trying to catch it in order to study it. Kender are the Dragonlance equivalent of Halflings, which are absent from the Dragonlance setting, and are similar in some respects, differences include a slighter frame and more elfin appearance (sometimes causing them to be mistaken for elven children), a natural resistance to fear which makes them virtually fearless (they cannot be frightened unless under extraordinary circumstances), and a habit they call borrowing which resembles kleptomania. Kenders are known throughout Krynn for their pickpocket and lockpicking skills. They have childlike personalities and love to travel.
Dwarves were originally Gnomes created when they coveted the Greygem and wished to hoard it, thinking it priceless. According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, dwarves are industrious, known as crafters and artisans. Many live below ground, but some have moved into foothills. They appear stern for the most part, but are comfortable around friends. They take pride in their beards. They are about 4–5 feet tall. Dwarves are typically not readily friendly to other races. They live in the mountain dwarf kingdoms of Thorbardin and Thoradin, along with scattered communities around the world. Hill dwarves have their own kingdom outside of these. They revere Reorx, whom they believe created them as his chosen.[32]
According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, the mountain dwarves exist largely apart from the rest of the world. They come from the clans of Hylar (The oldest and most noble of the clans.), Daewar (Highly respected clan known for fighting skill.), and Klar (A hill dwarf clan trapped in Thorbardin, used by other mountain dwarves as servants. They are fierce fighters and good friends.)[33]
According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, the hill dwarves are dwarves that have left the underground dwarven lands to live in and trade with the world at large. They are described as more accepting of the other races. They all belong to the clan Neidar, which is said to mean "Nearest", and have a feud with the mountain dwarves, whom they accuse of having blocked them from entering the mountain kingdom after the Cataclysm. The mountain dwarves hold that they did so because if they had let the Neidar in they all would have starved.[34]
According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, The Dark Dwarves are two clans of mountain dwarves who live in total darkness. They are sometimes thought mad, and are generally evil. They contain the Theiwar, extremely fair dwarves who are the only clan to have an interest in magic, and the Daergar, sometimes known as Dewar, who sided with rebels and were banished deep underground. They are also assassins, who specialize in short swords, and daggers.[35]
According to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, the gully dwarves all belong to the loose clan of Aghar. Their accepted history is that they are gnome-dwarf hybrids. They have strong survival instincts, pride, endurance, and a will to live. They are known to be vicious fighters when cornered. They are generally stupid and often hold menial jobs. The highest an average gully dwarf can count is 2, though some have become smart enough to count to 3. They are smaller than normal dwarves. They have no land of their own and live in ruined cities, sewers, and dirty parts of cities. They do not revere Reorx, and have a tribal ancestor worship system. They speak their own guttural language.[36]
Evil creatures said to be a mix of elves and ogres. They were most commonly known for the wars before the Cataclysm in which they, along with ogres, consisted of the major fighting force of Queen Takhisis.
Various Goblin races include Bugbears, Hobgoblins and Half Goblins. The most well known Hobgoblin is Fewmaster Toede.
Minotaurs are half-bull, half-human. They worship the minotaur-god Sargonnas, god of vengeance with a small minority worshiping the bison-headed god Kiri-Jolith. They are a mostly evil race usually associated with strong beliefs in honor and the sea due to their nation being located on the Blood Sea Isles. They also battled for the Dark Queen on many occasions, both willingly and when forced. The Minotaur Empire now expanded to the mainland of Ansalon with the new territory of Ambeon. Minotaurs are the only surviving successful descendants of the High Ogre race (irda), when Sargonnas took a band of high ogres and transformed them into minotaurs before their downfall.
Living amongst the mountains of Krynn, aarakocra are rivals of the kyrie and often fight over living space, especially those tribes on the island of Karthay where aarakocras have been known to work with minotaur barbaric tribes to hunt kyrie. Aarakocras that live in the Abanasinia region often trade with the phaethons that live among the Sentinel peaks.
The Beloved were followers (mostly reluctant) of Chemosh, the Lord/God of Death in fantasy series Dragonlance. They were forced to follow by pain. The beloved were usually created by other beloved and by love. Someone who was a beloved would be forced to seek out the ones closest to them. The beloved would then ask their love to swear to Chemosh to prove that they actually loved them. This would turn the lover into another Beloved. All the beloved carried a mark called Mina's kiss, which appeared as a birth mark shaped like a pair of lips. The beloved were virtually invincible. They could not be harmed or touched by magic. Severed limbs didn't affect them. The beloved only could be destroyed by innocence which only young children had. However, the innocence that destroyed the beloved will in return be destroyed. The beloved can be separated from a crowd by looking deep into their eyes. You will see that no beloved will have feelings nor life. All of the beloved were promised eternal life by Chemosh, but they only got unending death. Although they were given the status by Chemosh, they do not take commands from him; they only follow Mina. And now they are all dead.
The Kyrie are humanoids with feathered wings having clawed talons as feet. They have a talent for mysticism.
The Shilo-Thahn, commonly known as shadowpeople, are ancient creatures who used to live in the underground mines and passages in Sanction. Their appearance is that of a hairy ape, human size, protruding muzzle, yellow eyes and mouth with sharp fangs. They can articulate their lips and tongue to speak the common tongue, although they use their own secret dialect.
The Shadowpeople is able to read the mind of any being without being noticed. As extension, they are able to talk to other beings mentally. They can also see in light and darkness. Although they prefer staying in the depths, some may have gone to the surface hiding their features with heavy cloaks, disguising themselves as Zhakar dwarves or Priests of Takhisis.
They lived in a community governed by the Councilors, several ancient shadowpeople. Being extremely peaceful and intelligent, the shadowpeople prefer evading battles if possible. They set up traps in walls, floors and ceilings, sticky nets that squeeze tighter the more the prey tries to escape. They do not believe in vengeance, and accept death without question.
At such depth, fungus is utilized in every possible way, including food, illumination when needed, and prison cells (tall mushroom-shaped fungus positioned in a circle with only an entrance).
After having discovered that priests of Takhisis held metallic dragon's eggs as hostages, the shadowpeople tried to do everything they could in order to stop the degeneration of the eggs into draconians. However, their efforts were in vain, as Ariakas slew the last warriors with his blessed sword.
Nothing is known about the shadowpeople after the War of the Lance.
The Thanoi are a group of walrus-men. They live in scattered villages, situated mostly in the Icereach area.
The shadow wight is a creature of chaos that appears insubstantial, like a ghost. They cannot be harmed by normal weapons, unless it is blessed, however they can be harmed by magic. They possess people, however in order to do so, they first mirror the shape of their victim, then hypnotize them with words of despair. Once the victim has succumbed to despair, the wight nullifies the victim, destroying the victim as well as any memories of that victim. The only way to "remember" that person is through physically written objects.
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