Join me as I give my spoiler review of Dragons of Eternity by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, live! Share your thoughts on this final volume in the Dragonlance Destinies Trilogy, released on August 6, 2024. You can buy a copy here: https://amzn.to/3Mh1cNf
About Dragons of Eternity
An intrepid woman and her friends have inadvertently altered the future of their world—now they must try to restore time in this thrilling conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Dragonlance series.
When Destina Rosethorn and her companions were transported to a time centuries before their birth—to the days of the Third Dragon War—the Graygem of Gargath brought chaos to the battlefield and changed the course of history. Upon returning to the Inn of the Last Home, where their journey began, Destina’s party discovered a world completely changed. The forces of evil now hold sway over their land.
The River of Time is rising, flowing inexorably toward the present day. Destina and her friends must make one last, desperate attempt to restore time’s river to its proper channel. If they do not succeed, the altered past will sweep over the present until no trace of their old world remains.
Review
Intro
Welcome to another DragonLance Saga review episode. It is Palast, Paleswelt the 12th. My name is Adam and today I am going to give you my spoiler review of Dragons of Eternity by Margaret Weis, and Tracy Hickman. 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 info@dlsaga.com. 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.
Let me begin by saying I was expecting a massive information dump about how this timeline occurred and why, and while we got brief notes, it still never addressed the Cataclysm, or convincingly explained why the good dragons didn’t just hide their dragon eggs and go back to fight, or how one god stood against a pantheon of them, or how dragons could only be killed by dragonlances when it’s really just a faster way of killing them, it’s not like they are invulnerable from normal weapons. All that being said, they did explain that a Lost War was ongoing and in it the gods failed in their attempt at stopping Takhisis and that there was a cleansing fire that spread across the land.
We begin in the post blue lady’s war, pre summer of chaos timeline and Dalamar collects Tanis, bringing him to Astinus and is shown the alternate history volume that is bloody and unfinished. It ends with Astinus putting the pen down and picking up the sword to fight Takhisis. This is of course odd since they then reference Laurana being tortured and killed by Takhisis but since it hasn’t happened yet, and the book is unfinished, how could it be in the book, unless Gilean does not join the fight till the bitter end, but it seems the Lost War began long after the third dragon war was won by Takhisis. In any case, since Human and Gwyneth died, they couldn’t use the dragonlances to fight off the Dark Queen and Takhisis rules, but still created the dragonarmies and draconians for some reason.
This leads me to believe the cataclysm happened somehow, and solace was still built due to the marauders post cataclysm, and the gods left the world due to their defeat by Takhisis in the Third Dragon War or the Second Rose Rebellion. So we are pretty much screwed, unless, Brother Kairn can use the device of time journeying Alice Ranniker made to go back to 351 Chaos time and take Destina Rosthorn back to the future, the third dragon war precisely, and stop the assassin from killing Huma and Gwynneth. But… if she goes back, Takhisis will sense the graygem and stop her, so Tanis is being sent to 351 Chaos Time to distract Takhiss who will search for the graygem in that time while Brother Kairn and Destina stop the assassin in the past. Whew!
Okay so that is the setup. But, of course, shit goes down. Namely, in Chaos Time, Kitiara is the only one waiting at the Inn of the Last Home for Tanis, specifically who she betrayed to the Dark Queen, sending the companions fleeing from Solace. Tanis was the leader of a resistance group and finds Flint at the crossroads and Highmaster Toede stops them searching for the blue crystal staff and then Tas comes out of the treeline. This is Tas from the real future and past. He tells Tanis that Sturm is wounded and near death and Destina is poisoned. If she can’t be healed, who knows what will happen to the graygem as it doesn’t want Takhisis to find itself, so it’s barely able to keep Destina alive. Tas suggests that Goldmoon could heal her, and they all go to the Inn of the Last Home.
Raistlin arrived early and is supposedly working with Kit and his brother Caramon together for the Dark Queen. Kit wants to offer Tanis a liutenancy in her army, much to Bakaris’ shame, and when Flint and Tas enter, and Tanis sneaks in, chaos ensues when Hederick the High Theocrat, now for the Dark Queen, tells Kit about the graygem. She is supposed to look for it but then sees Goldmoon with a wooden staff and is immediately convinced for no reason whatsoever that it is the blue crystal staff. This is like in a game session when players know out of character information and use it during the game. Total meta gaming from Kit. Hederick grabs the staff which shocks him, Tas protects the staff, Fizban hits Kit with a fireball, and shakes the inn like an earthquake yelling fire. Caramon runs out with Kit and everyone else flees through the kitchen.
Raist helps Destina with his herbalism skill and Tanis, Flint, Tas, Goldmoon and Riverwind are all caught by Kitiara who is told by Bakaris that Verminaard is pissed that she is in his territory stirring up trouble. She leaves and has her Bozak Draconians tie up the heroes when they are saved by an elven resistance team led by Laurana! She asks the companions to take the staff to her kingdom to prove the gods have not left, but they refuse as they need to heal Sturm. They leave to do so as Laurana and Tanis talk about the resistance and their history. The Dragonlances are in The High Clerist’s Tower on the altar to Paladine guarded by undead minions and a dragon, due to the Queen of Darkness being unable to destroy them.
Bakaris fled when the elves arrived and hid in the basement of the Old Mill, the same old mill the companions are using to rest in. He hears them return and make plans. Destina and Kairn are going to the past to stop Huma and Gwynneth’s deaths, and Raist, Tanis, Tas, and Flint are headed to the High Clerist’s Tower to collect the Dragonlances and the Dragon Orb. Riverwind and Goldmoon are headed to Pax Tharkas with Laurana as they hear about a slave uprising. And suddenly Laurana doesn’t want to take the staff to her father. A complete 180 degree change of opinion for no reason. In the early morning Bakaris flees to Kitiara to tell her about the graygem, Dragonlances, Dragon Orb and that her brothers are traitors, but she refuses to believe him. But just in case, she heads to Crystalmir Lake to talk with Skie, who confirms the information. Though they outright disbelieve the Graygem talk.
As Kit’s army is packing up to move to Neraka with the other Dragonarmies to begin the Lost War, Toede tells Bakaris that he should get rid of Kit so that he can be the new Highlord. Bakaris takes the idea and goes to ambush Kit returning from Skies cave. Caramon overhears them, and sneaks behind Bakaris to stop him. Bakaris ambushes Kit, nearly killing her with a blow to the head with a rock, as Caramon attacks from behind, killing Bakaris with his hands. Kit thanks Caramon for saving her life then tells him that she knows they are traitors, and as she was saved by him, she will give him a chance to die with his brother as she is headed to the High Clerist’s Tower to kill the companions. Kit tells Caramon that there is a priestess of Zeboim that can teleport him to the tower, but the price is his soul.
Caramon would do anything for Raist, so he visits Alaria Shortfin who takes his soul for Zeboim and teleports him. This is a massive convenience in getting Caramon with his friends but since Raist is teleporting people around with Magius’ spell, why not have everyone else teleport places? The companions arrive at the tower and sleep the night when Caramon comes in and they split up to look for the Orb and collect the Dragonlances, knowing that Kit is on her way, and Cyan Bloodbane is sleeping outside.
Destina and Kairn travel into the past and tell no one about the Gudlos leaders, Captain and Mother abducting Magius and killing him, and instead look for Tully who will assassinate Huma and Gwyneth. Tully sees the graygem in Destinas hands and tries to take it and he flees after she decks him in the face. Takhisis meets Immolatus to talk to him about his preemptive attack on the Tower and subsequent wound with the Dragonlance. Immolatus is pissed and in no mood to talk to her. She tells him about the graygem but Immolatus doesn’t care at all. Captain and Mother deliver Magius’ dead body to the Tower and the gods of magic arrive to collect the Staff of Magius, honor his death, and kill Captain and Mother. Tully tells Immolatus about the glowing graygem but he doesn’t care, instead sending him to assassinate Huma with the poison dagger.
You can really see evil turning on itself, and if the Knights of Takhisis were around, they would be running things so much smoother! Back to Chaos Time the heroes are readying to leave when Kitiara and Skie turn up. Sturm goes to confront them and everyone but Caramon joins him. Raistlin sends Caramon to Godshome with the Dragonlances as Gunthar Uth Wistan is supposed to meet there to lead the forces against Neraka in the Lost War. Sturm impales Skie with a Dragonlance to the chest, sending him crashing into the tower and burying himself and Raistlin. This was a great rematch against Kit and Skie where Sturm truly shines! Tas Stabs Skie in the foot as Skie tries to breath lightning on Tanis. Kit catches Sturm off guard but before she can kill him Flint barrels into Kit sending them both over the wall of the tower, but Flint is caught and brought back, and Skie goes over to rescue Kit.
The heroes rest well in the temple and leave to Godshome the next morning. They find Caramon and a defeated Kiri-Jolith, when Sargonnas enters and aligns with Kiri-Jolith against Takhisis. The Dark Queen arrives and begins to destroy everyone, and just before they die, coincidentally, Takhiss feels the graygem in the past with Destina and Kairn. Back in the past, Destina sees Mullen Tully and warns Huma, hitting Tully with the Graygem which forces him to stab himself with his poisoned dagger and die. Destina is thanked but the war has begun and lava is being thrown over the walls decimating everyone. Destina passes out from wounds and wakes in the temple. Takhisis approaches her demanding the graygem and she gravely wounds Destina as a messenger from the Dark Queen’s army arrives, telling her Immolatus has fled, Huma has slain two dragons and the army is fleeing. Takhiss turns into the Tiamat form and goes to battle Huma, telling the messenger to sit on Destina.
Huma and Gwyneth are killed by Takhisis but not before she is gravely wounded and falls to the Abyss, righting history. Kairn comes in and knocks out the messenger and teleports Destina to the Inn of the Last Home as the Companions are fleeing it, and Goldmoon heals Destina from her grave wounds caused by Takhisis. They return to their own time at the Library in Palanthas. Dalamar and Justarius collect a heptagon container from Alice Ranniker to hold the graygem, and the graygem is placed in it and given to Dalamar, who then gives it to the gods of magic. The Graygem of Gargath is now safely hidden away in a magical vortex, vaster and deeper than time, of which not even light can escape. This changes the future so the Irda will never crack open the Graygem, and the Fifth Age will never happen… but, Rannickers Clock is working again in this time, and Tas remembers all of the time travel shenanigans, so Astinus says he is blessed by the gods. Ultimately it does leave the possibility for the new device of time journeying to be used to get the graygem from the past, of course, but I hope no one writes that. There is a lot of great storytelling that can be done with the Knights of Takhisis invasion, without Chaos interrupting it.
Destina returns to Palanthas with Kairn and sells her estate then heads back home to discover the Copper Dragon Sable bought her estate from her family and gifted it to her. And her mother is there rebuilding it and ready to officiate their wedding. She is noted in history as a nameless honorary Knight of Solamnia, and is working to include women into the Knights. This reminded me of an annotation I thought was in the legends but it was in Dragons of Spring Dawning: Lord Gunthar Uth Wistan promotes Lauralanthalasa to General of the Solamnic Knights. As the Knights complain that it’s against the measure, Astinus says that there was a female commander in the Third Dragonwar who was accepted into the Knights of Solamnia after her father and brothers died, who rose to Knight of the Sword and died honorably in battle. Tracy Hickman mentions that the story needs recalling and is still being researched in an annotation. I have to believe this was reframed into Destina Rosethorn’s story. It’s cool to see that the seed was planted forty years ago and is now bearing fruit. So to speak.
So, all in all, I really appreciated this but there were some things that were open ended that kinda bugged me. Was there a cataclysm? Is the landmass in Chaos time like it was before the Cataclysm? Why did the gods leave after the Third Dragon War? Was it because of the Second Rose Rebellion? If so, why? What is the portant of Ranniker’s Clock, because it only allowed glimpses into the future, not time travel. Since there is no longer a chaos war, the version of history Tasslehoff saw at the beginning of the War of Souls trilogy is now canon, which is pretty cool. The Knights of Takhisis will be the next big threat, and it can be played out at the tabletop by us gamers.
Outro
And that’s it for my spoiler review of Dragons of Eternity by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. What did you think of the changing of the timeline? Are you happy with the fate of the Graygem? And finally, do you think we will ever get a revised Knight of Takhisis war series of novels? Feel free to email me at info@dlsaga.com or leave a comment below.
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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).
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