Dragonlance Underground: Glossary for Online Dragonlance Fandom

Glossary for Online Dragonlance Fandom

By Rohan Tolstrup

Academy of Sorcery <smoke>

Alt.Fan.Dragonlance (newsgroup) The true home of the online DL community. And every newbie and his dog wanting to know what to read next or how the hell Sturm and Kitiara had a son. And the excuses authors use to avoid answering awkward questions.

AOL Apathy Online. In addition to being the 5th horseman of the Apocalpyse, it's one of a whole load of words which allegedly cause the text to be read by the Echelon project. Other flags include 'quiche', 'executive', and 'keywords.' Your taxes at work.

Canon Where a shared world's concerned, unimportant so long as the story's good (Weis), impossible to implement (Hickman), vital and relatively easy provided policy is made and adhered to and logical steps are taken, including closer involvement of fans (me and all the others who get ignored).

Citadel of Light <squish> (located on Schallsea, *not* Sancrist)

Dino A state of mind. Been around so long some people think they were the authors of that book that got sidelined in favour of Chronicles. *Bitter* dinos are the ones that still care about DL and don't take certain varieties of medication.

Don't let the door catch you in the arse Standard response to posts like '5th Age should be retconned out - not that I could be bothered reading it.'

Dragons of a Vanished Moon As yet unpublished bk3 of War of Souls. This book will explain what 'really' happened in DoSF, show where Soth fits in, and de-cheese the two previous books in the trilogy.

Dragonlance Underground There goes my ironometer.

Drow (a) There are no Forgotten Realms drow on Krynn; (b) the 'FR' drow were a Greyhawk invention and doubtlessly based on something else; (c) Krynnish 'dark elves' are exiles from the assorted elven nations, 'drow' is in this context a colloquial synonym; (d) Drizzt Do'Urden is an annoying munchkin who gave Jean Rabe too many ideas (which she implemented badly, of course).

Editing Unknown in the WotC lexicon.

Ethics Ditto.

Exsanguination Death by total blood loss, for example by having all skin removed. I just thought I'd share that with you.

FAQ Read it. We give newbies random tests based on Russian roulette.

Fifth Age team To some, a group of dedicated and creative authors and designers who for the first time ever cooperated to improve Dragonlance. To Tracy Hickman, a list titled "First against the wall."

Friday afternoon When the Soulforge Coda, the big duel scene at the end of Legacy of Steel, and the rationalisation for Goldmoon's resurrection were written.

Gods There is no God. Or if there is, we're not in the good books. A pretty much inescapable conclusion with the way DL's gone andI'mstilldeliveringpizzasafterfifteenbloodymonths. The *in-world* gods are Paladine (Mr "do as I say, not as I do"), Mishakal (Blue Infinity and other medicinal beverages), Takhisis (goddess of imagination), Gilean ("what oath? Neutrality rulz!") and Reorx (perpetuating dwarven stereotypes since 1985). Any mention of other gods is of course a typo, Mr Hickman said so!

Hasbro *Sure* they're interested in WotC for anything other than Pokemon...

Humour (intentional) Janet's expose on the Palanthas library; divinely inspired observations that Mt Nevermind's built like a huge bong.

Humour (unintentional) "If you are a major fan of Raistlin Majere, as I am, you would know that Raistlin did NOT get his magic from his mother. The Raistlin Chronicles show the true story on what happened in his life, including the first test to show they had the talent for magic. His magic did not come to him, until he prayed to the gods long forgotten and was granted their favor."

Keating, Paul The Antichrist. Just thought I'd clear that up.

Legion of Steel Instant good guys sent to free us from having to barrack for those patriarchal and parochial aristocrats. More likely Sara Dunstan had a weird hallucinogenic reaction to the 'additive' slipped in her drink by Tas.

M72A3 LAW 66mm High Explosive Anti-Tank rocket with disposable launcher. Range 1000m nominal, blast radius 10m, penetration 30.5cm steel. 'Obsolete' against modern tanks? So they say. But are you going to take on anything tougher than a tourist coach or LPG tanker? Popularised by Dirty Harry and Falling Down. I've got a warehouse full of them, and I can sell them at $200 US apiece or ten for $1800. I deliver.

Message filters Great if you've got them

Movie While you're at it, ask when the next Raistlin Chronicles book's coming out and why anybody reads anything not written by W&H. Then I'll feel justified in paying you a visit and removing you from the gene pool with my trusty Fabrique Nationale Self-Loading Rifle.

Newbies Newcomer posters. *Stupid* Newbies haven't heard of Netiquette and probably belong in a landfill.

New York Times Bestseller List The only arbiter of right and wrong and quality of work. Obviously.

Official mailing list A great place to develop approved ideas.

Operation T$R Storm Current incarnation consists of hundreds of fans mailing their DL books to Renton, crated with lots of Semtex (stolen at that annual heist where movie terrorists and criminals grab the latest military hardware)

Penguin, fairy Goooood eating!

Pulp Canon Stars me and Morten Brattbakk, a collaborative project of Guy Ritchie and John Woo. Made in 1999, we've been *assured* that it'll see the screen, soon...

Ronald McDonald The minotaurs' god of death.

Solace Consult the travel guide, currently with more volumes than the Measure, because of the five different versions of what each individual fisherman had for lunch the day before the Heroes of the Lance met up.

Solamnia The land where time stands still, one man is Grand Master for two terms over forty years (and would have won that fight with the uber-boar at 80, if somebody hadn't cheated), and nobody remembers the defining principle of their formative years.

Soth, Lord Obviously very important to the continuation of the line, and will presumably play a key role in DoaVM. After all, Hickman wouldn't have kicked up all that strife with Ravenloft without a good reason, would he?

Special Air Service Regiment (As seen on TV!) They follow me around so much I go pub-crawling with them Monday mornings.

Sucking up A fanboy spectator sport.

Thirty pieces of silver Peter Adkison's share of the Hasbro buyout.

T$R aka Lorraine's Bar & Grill. Responsible for milking every cash cow in the herd, after shafting Gary 'dungeon crawl' Gygax.

Trolls Either me and Matt Lynch, or those who pick fights with us. I'm starting to think it's a bit like terrorists vs freedom fighters in some cases. I'd give more specific examples, but like the Book of Darkness they're only recorded in one document (known as a killfile) and have been stricken from all other records.

Whitestone Council The zillionth time somebody's come up with the idea of fans (50% of cases read: newbies) running DL, this lot had the fortune that lip service was being paid to the idea of fan involvement at the time. 'By the fans, for the fans, controlled by Tracy Hickman.'

WHOSE FAULT IT REALLY ALL IS (tm) Depending on who you ask, Tracy Hickman, Brian Thomsen, the TotL team, the 5A team, the Ravenloft team, Lorraine, Tracy Hickman, Jean Rabe, editors, Peter Adkison, Hasbro, Tracy Hickman, unimaginative Norwegian chocolatiers, Saddam Hussein, me and/or Matt Lynch, Raist666, the Japanese, Tracy Hickman, NuitariSonofTakhasis, literal-minded German fans of Callista Flockhart, Phillip Ruddock, Y2K, dragonlance.com, the Australian Republican Movement, Transfield-Obayashi Joint Venture, robot slaves of the Daleks, people who can't write a couple hundred words without referring to Tracy Hickman eight times, or the Elders of Zion (trading as Rotary International).

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Academy of Sorcery	<smoke>
Alt.Fan.Dragonlance (newsgroup)	The true home of the online DL community. And every newbie and his dog wanting to know what to read next or how the hell Sturm and Kitiara had a son. And the excuses authors use to avoid answering awkward questions.
AOL	Apathy Online. In addition to being the 5th horseman of the Apocalpyse, it's one of a whole load of words which allegedly cause the text to be read by the Echelon project. Other flags include 'quiche', 'executive', and 'keywords.' Your taxes at work.
Canon	Where a shared world's concerned, unimportant so long as the story's good (Weis), impossible to implement (Hickman), vital and relatively easy provided policy is made and adhered to and logical steps are taken, including closer involvement of fans (me and all the others who get ignored).
Citadel of Light	<squish> (located on Schallsea, not Sancrist)
Dino	A state of mind. Been around so long some people think they were the authors of that book that got sidelined in favour of Chronicles. Bitter dinos are the ones that still care about DL and don't take certain varieties of medication.
Don't let the door catch you in the arse	Standard response to posts like '5th Age should be retconned out - not that I could be bothered reading it.'
Dragons of a Vanished Moon	As yet unpublished bk3 of War of Souls. This book will explain what 'really' happened in DoSF, show where Soth fits in, and de-cheese the two previous books in the trilogy.
Dragonlance Underground	There goes my ironometer.
Drow	(a) There are no Forgotten Realms drow on Krynn; (b) the 'FR' drow were a Greyhawk invention and doubtlessly based on something else; (c) Krynnish 'dark elves' are exiles from the assorted elven nations, 'drow' is in this context a colloquial synonym; (d) Drizzt Do'Urden is an annoying munchkin who gave Jean Rabe too many ideas (which she implemented badly, of course).
Editing	Unknown in the WotC lexicon.
Ethics	Ditto.
Exsanguination	Death by total blood loss, for example by having all skin removed. I just thought I'd share that with you.
FAQ	Read it. We give newbies random tests based on Russian roulette.
Fifth Age team	To some, a group of dedicated and creative authors and designers who for the first time ever cooperated to improve Dragonlance. To Tracy Hickman, a list titled "First against the wall."
Friday afternoon	When the Soulforge Coda, the big duel scene at the end of Legacy of Steel, and the rationalisation for Goldmoon's resurrection were written.
Gods	There is no God. Or if there is, we're not in the good books. A pretty much inescapable conclusion with the way DL's gone andI'mstilldeliveringpizzasafterfifteenbloodymonths. The in-world gods are Paladine (Mr "do as I say, not as I do"), Mishakal (Blue Infinity and other medicinal beverages), Takhisis (goddess of imagination), Gilean ("what oath? Neutrality rulz!") and Reorx (perpetuating dwarven stereotypes since 1985). Any mention of other gods is of course a typo, Mr Hickman said so!
Hasbro	Sure they're interested in WotC for anything other than Pokemon...
Humour (intentional)	Janet's expose on the Palanthas library; divinely inspired observations that Mt Nevermind's built like a huge bong.
Humour (unintentional)	"If you are a major fan of Raistlin Majere, as I am, you would know that Raistlin did NOT get his magic from his mother. The Raistlin Chronicles show the true story on what happened in his life, including the first test to show they had the talent for magic. His magic did not come to him, until he prayed to the gods long forgotten and was granted their favor."
Keating, Paul	The Antichrist. Just thought I'd clear that up.
Legion of Steel	Instant good guys sent to free us from having to barrack for those patriarchal and parochial aristocrats. More likely Sara Dunstan had a weird hallucinogenic reaction to the 'additive' slipped in her drink by Tas.
M72A3 LAW	66mm High Explosive Anti-Tank rocket with disposable launcher. Range 1000m nominal, blast radius 10m, penetration 30.5cm steel. 'Obsolete' against modern tanks? So they say. But are you going to take on anything tougher than a tourist coach or LPG tanker? Popularised by Dirty Harry and Falling Down. I've got a warehouse full of them, and I can sell them at $200 US apiece or ten for $1800. I deliver.
Message filters	Great if you've got them
Movie	While you're at it, ask when the next Raistlin Chronicles book's coming out and why anybody reads anything not written by W&H. Then I'll feel justified in paying you a visit and removing you from the gene pool with my trusty Fabrique Nationale Self-Loading Rifle.
Newbies	Newcomer posters. Stupid Newbies haven't heard of Netiquette and probably belong in a landfill.
New York Times Bestseller List	The only arbiter of right and wrong and quality of work. Obviously.
Official mailing list	A great place to develop approved ideas.
Operation T$R Storm	Current incarnation consists of hundreds of fans mailing their DL books to Renton, crated with lots of Semtex (stolen at that annual heist where movie terrorists and criminals grab the latest military hardware)
Penguin, fairy	Goooood eating!
Pulp Canon	Stars me and Morten Brattbakk, a collaborative project of Guy Ritchie and John Woo. Made in 1999, we've been assured that it'll see the screen, soon...
Ronald McDonald	The minotaurs' god of death.
Solace	Consult the travel guide, currently with more volumes than the Measure, because of the five different versions of what each individual fisherman had for lunch the day before the Heroes of the Lance met up.
Solamnia	The land where time stands still, one man is Grand Master for two terms over forty years (and would have won that fight with the uber-boar at 80, if somebody hadn't cheated), and nobody remembers the defining principle of their formative years.
Soth, Lord	Obviously very important to the continuation of the line, and will presumably play a key role in DoaVM. After all, Hickman wouldn't have kicked up all that strife with Ravenloft without a good reason, would he?
Special Air Service Regiment	(As seen on TV!) They follow me around so much I go pub-crawling with them Monday mornings.
Sucking up	A fanboy spectator sport.
Thirty pieces of silver	Peter Adkison's share of the Hasbro buyout.
T$R	aka Lorraine's Bar & Grill. Responsible for milking every cash cow in the herd, after shafting Gary 'dungeon crawl' Gygax.
Trolls	Either me and Matt Lynch, or those who pick fights with us. I'm starting to think it's a bit like terrorists vs freedom fighters in some cases. I'd give more specific examples, but like the Book of Darkness they're only recorded in one document (known as a killfile) and have been stricken from all other records.
Whitestone Council	The zillionth time somebody's come up with the idea of fans (50% of cases read: newbies) running DL, this lot had the fortune that lip service was being paid to the idea of fan involvement at the time. 'By the fans, for the fans, controlled by Tracy Hickman.'
WHOSE FAULT IT REALLY ALL IS (tm)	Depending on who you ask, Tracy Hickman, Brian Thomsen, the TotL team, the 5A team, the Ravenloft team, Lorraine, Tracy Hickman, Jean Rabe, editors, Peter Adkison, Hasbro, Tracy Hickman, unimaginative Norwegian chocolatiers, Saddam Hussein, me and/or Matt Lynch, Raist666, the Japanese, Tracy Hickman, NuitariSonofTakhasis, literal-minded German fans of Callista Flockhart, Phillip Ruddock, Y2K, dragonlance.com, the Australian Republican Movement, Transfield-Obayashi Joint Venture, robot slaves of the Daleks, people who can't write a couple hundred words without referring to Tracy Hickman eight times, or the Elders of Zion (trading as Rotary International).