WELCOME TO THE INN
Greetings, friends and fellow companions, and welcome! It's that
time of year again, when the decorations go up and friends and
family gather in a time of companionship. As with any time when
companions get together, there is much news discussed between them.

With that in mind, it is time to share the latest and greatest with
Dragonlance. So grab your hoopaks, your gnome tool belts, your
swords and maybe that strangely glowing staff. The portal to
adventure awaits!

D20 DRAGONLANCE NEWS
Wizards of the Coast and Sovereign Press jointly announced that the
Dragonlance Adventure Game boxed set (and only the boxed set) has
been cancelled.

As for future products, there's going to be Tas' Map Pouch: Age of
Mortals, Spectre of Sorrows, Price of Courage, Holy Orders of the
Stars, and a book about the Legends trilogy, akin to War of the
Lance. An official 2005 schedule has not been released as of this
time.

Also, check out Dragonlance.com for some official web goodies,
including a Citadel Guardian prestige class by Matthew Blasi, Bozak
Draconian player race rules by Jamie chambers, and the Spiritualism
domain and dreadwolf monster stats by yours truly.

NOVEL NEWS
Looking ahead to January, we see Dragon Sword by Ree Soesbee, the
latest novel in the New Adventures young adult series. February sees
the re-release of The Magic of Krynn anthology, as well as Return of
the Exile, book three of the Linsha Trilogy by Mary H. Herbert.

Also, be sure to check out the Dragonlance Book Club
(http://www.dragonlanceforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=4) for
the latest discussions on Weasel's Luck and Land of the Minotaurs.

COMIC BOOK NEWS
I just wanted to thank everyone who supported the comic. It was a
fun time for me, and one that I will never forget. I hope all of you
have enjoyed the series as much as I have.

NEXUS NEWS
There are tons of updates at the Nexus. The product listing is
updated, and there's some new fan artwork as well. I'm particularly
fond of a pic of Laurana by Cell.

There's been several new fan rules recently, including a couple of
sorcerer feats by Cam Banks, a Stalker of Canus prestige class by
Ogre Bane (based on the short stories of the Wulfbunde by Kevin T.
Stein), and a Compiled Feat List and Compiled Class list by yours
truly, documenting where all the feats, base classes, and prestige
classes introduced in Dragonlance products came from. I'm hoping to
do another couple for magic items and spells soon.

You should also check out our interviews section
(http://www.dl3e.com/features/interviews/). We have three new
interviews recently, including one with Doug Niles on Wizards'
Conclave, one with young adult author Dan Willis, and a Fifth Age
design team interview.

MARGARET WEIS PRODUCTIONS
Margaret Weis has formed a new company, Margaret Weis Productions,
Ltd. Details are a bit sketchy at this point as to what the new
company will tackle, although Jamie Chambers recently announced a
call for playtesters and reviewers for a role-playing game based on
the upcoming movie, Serenity (based on the Firefly TV show).

Keep your eyes open for all the wonderful things coming out of
Margaret's new company.

THE YEAR BEHIND, THE YEAR AHEAD
I thought I would offer my thoughts (and just that) on the year
behind, and the year ahead. A lot has gone on, and a bit of
retrospection is always good.

Gaming-wise, we've seen both good and bad. War of the Lance has
proven to be an excellent product, and I would say the best
Dragonlance RPG product ever. It's full of details, and shows just
how much Sovereign Press has grown since Age of Mortals.

Another gaming product that was done quite well is Towers of High
Sorcery. I thought the only drawback to this book was its timing. By
this, I mean that had it been delayed a few months, it could have
included material from Wizards' Conclave and Amber and Ashes.
Despite this, an overall good product.

The low point gaming-wise has to be Key of Destiny. While it is a
good adventure, there was a huge delay and a number of errors. The
errata seems to be quite large. It's looking like there may be
delays on Spectre of Sorrows as well. Jamie Chambers will be posting
chapter one of Spectre when he gets approval from Wizards of the
Coast.

Personally, I consider this to be a time of growing pains. I will
say that Sovereign Press has put out such high quality products
overall that they blow Wizards of the Coast away.

Novel-wise, we have seen the continuation of the Minotaur Wars
trilogy, Wizards' Conclave (which has had mixed reviews), and Amber
and Ashes. Lake of Death saw some dramatic change to the world of
Krynn, which I won't delve into to avoid spoilers. Again, this is a
novel that has had mixed fan reaction.

Amber and Ashes has got to be the high point of 2004. It's an
excellent story, one that continues the world of Dragonlance, and
one where we not only see a monk of Majere, but also a kender
nightstalker – who isn't a clone of Tas! Personally, I found this to
be a better read even than Soulforge, which I highly enjoyed.

I feel that the novels are making a much needed change, one geared
towards the future and not rehashing the last several years. Plus,
we're in for a treat with the upcoming Taladas Chronicles trilogy by
Chris Pierson! I know many Dragonlance fans have been itching to see
Taladas brought to life in the novels.

I also have to commend the young adult books for reaching out to
readers who follow such series as Harry Potter. That's a good move,
and one that reaches out to a younger audience and strengthens the
fan base in general.

The high point this year for me has to be the comic book adaptation
of The Legend of Huma. Not only was it my first cover credit, but
also a story very near and dear to my heart. Add in my love of
comics and Dragonlance, and this made for an excellent story.

Unfortunately, this project came to an end all too early. I'm not
sure if we'll see another Dragonlance comic for a while. I do hope
that everyone enjoyed the comic while it lasted. I know I did.

We also saw some dramatic shift with Dragonlance.com and the
Dragonlance Nexus. Dragonlance.com has become the official online
presence for official Dragonlance gaming and Sovereign Press. The
new boards are fantastic as well. You should check them out.

For those who enjoyed the old Dragonlance.com, never fear, for the
material has a new home on the Dragonlance Nexus. The Nexus has been
my baby since its creation, and all of us who work on it are
determined to make it the best site we can. The traffic on the site
has more than quadrupled since the switchover, and I think there's
going to be plenty to interest everyone.

So where do I see things going this next year? Right now, we're in
the middle of a transition period, where the novels are moving
forward and the games have some awesome new materials. I do have
concerns on delays with Sovereign Press' materials, but I think
they're making the right changes to get away from this trend. I've
seen much improvement already. Again, growing pains.

The transition, in my opinion, is a much-needed one that will give
new energy into the setting. Having the gods back (minus Paladine
and Takhisis) is a good thing. They're an integral part of the
setting. The conflict that arises with their return is what you
should really look forward to. Can mystics and clerics co-exist?
What about wizards and sorcerers?

I also see a general shift in role-playing at this time. I've seen
where people are looking to get away from all the crunch-heavy books
and get back to fluff. I've also seen where some companies are
shying away from the d20 system rules, such as with the upcoming 3rd
edition of the Legend of the Five Rings RPG. I can sense some change
in the air, so keep your eyes peeled in the next couple of years.
There's bound to be some good stuff out there.

I think the Nexus will also grow in strength. It's an invaluable
resource, having materials no other site has. There's much I would
like to do for it, and such little time. However, we have plenty of
contributors who will bring you tools that you can't find anywhere
else and there's plenty of material to enjoy .

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
My friends, I want to wish you the very best of holidays. It's a
time of year for companionship and giving, and one that just makes
you feel warm and fuzzy all over.

So from all of us on the Whitestone Council, I want to wish you all
a merry Christmas and a happy New Year! See you in 2005!

Long Live the Lance!

Trampas Whiteman
"Dragonhelm"
Dragonlance Nexus