{{short description|1989 Dragonlance role-playing game accessory by David "Zeb" Cook}} {{Infobox book | name = Time of the Dragon | image = TSR1050 Time of the Dragon.jpg | caption = | author = David "Zeb" Cook | genre = Role-playing game | publisher = TSR | release_date = 1989 | media_type = Boxed set | pages = | isbn = }}
'''''Time of the Dragon''''' is an accessory for the Dragonlance campaign setting of the ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game.
==Contents== ''Time of the Dragon'' is an accessory for the Dragonlance campaign setting which details the continent of Taladas of the setting's world of Krynn.<ref name="HW"/> Taladas has its own unique cultures and geography, and as it plays no major role in the War of the Lance, Taladas remained relatively untouched by its events.<ref name="Dragon #161"/> The peoples who inhabit this continent have different views and lifestyles from those of Ansalon, including their relationship with the gods. The dragons of Taladas are also different in their outlook, and are more neutral in outlook due to the role Takhisis, the Queen of Darkness played with Taladas during the War of the Lance. The need to survive has colored the outlooks of the other races of Taladas, making the cultures of Taladas darker in mood than those of Ansalon.<ref name="Dragon #161"/>
The 112-page "The Guide Book to Taladas" details both the physical geography and politics of Taladas, which includes the societies of the minotaurs and gnomes.<ref name="HW"/> After a brief history of the continent, the book discusses Taladas's geography one area at a time, and its impact on its peoples and how they had adapted. During the Cataclysm, one particularly huge meteorite struck the continent, causing volcanoes to erupt, and earthquakes shattered the land; volcanic dust fell over the continent, the seas were poisoned, and land masses shifted, leaving a vast sea of molten lava in the center of Taladas, surrounded by volcanoes.<ref name="Dragon #161"/> In the northwest part of Taladas are the steppe-dwelling Uigan, who draw their inspiration from the Mongols and Huns of historic Earth.<ref name="Dragon #161"/> The elves of this area are similar to the Uigan, being nomadic horse warriors. The goblins follow a settled lifestyle, living in small villages and hunting for food, ambushing elven and human horsemen, and making war with the elves. The Marak kender are different from the cute, cheerful ones of Ansalon, changed into a race marked by suspicion and paranoia. The Fianawar dwarves, having been driven from their underground homes by the Cataclysm, have developed a fear of the underground. The League of Minotaurs is the largest power in Taladas, and its society has built in controls to regulate the belief that might makes right. The minoi gnomes love to build devices but lack the logical minds necessary to make them work effectively, while the gnomoi gnomes are far more practical and control gnomish society, taking steps to make sure that it stays stable and develops.<ref name="Dragon #161"/>
The 48-page "The Rule Book of Taladas" presents rules on how to use character races found in the setting, and statistics for new monsters.<ref name="HW"/> This booklet contains game rules specific to Taladas, and makes new player character races available, including the bakali (a race of lizardmen), goblins, minotaurs, and ogres.<ref name="Dragon #161"/> The book also discusses changes required to make standard character classes fit smoothly into Taladas, and provides player-character kits that summarize the various abilities, skills, proficiencies and backgrounds for 34 common character classes and races.<ref name="Dragon #161"/> Army organization charts and statistics are included for the ''Battlesystem'' supplement.<ref name="Dragon #161"/> Also included is a selection of monsters that inhabit Taladas.<ref name="Dragon #161"/>
Two large color maps in the set detail Taladas, while a third map shows the area of the League of the Minotaurs, and a fourth map details the major city of Kristophan.<ref name="HW"/> Also included are twenty-four map cards, each having a color illustration on one side and a description of an area on the other side for important locations and diagrams of equipment for characters.<ref name="HW"/> The color cards show clothing and armor styles, gnomish devices and a gnome citadel, and areas of the city of Kristophan in more detail.<ref name="Dragon #161"/>
==Publication history== ''Time of the Dragon'' was written by David "Zeb" Cook, with a cover by Robin Wood and interior illustrations by Stephen Fabian, Fred Fields, and Ned Dameron, and was published by TSR in 1989 as a boxed set containing a 112-page book, a 48-page book, four large color maps, and 24 cardstock sheets.<ref name="HW">{{cite book|last=Schick |first=Lawrence|title=Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games|publisher=Prometheus Books |year=1991|isbn=0-87975-653-5 |page=115}}</ref> Editing was by Mike Breault and Jon Pickens, with cartography by Dave Sutherland and David "Diesel" LaForce.<ref name="Dragon #161"/>
==Reception== In the February–March 1990 edition of ''Games International'' (Issue 13), Dave Hughes called the background information of Taladas "staggeringly comprehensive," writing that the history presented was "not only interesting and believable, it is also exciting and different enough for you to be thinking of adventure ideas as you read [it]." He did have issues with the nine new monsters, calling them "mostly derivative", and spell lists and rules to be incompatible with recent TSR releases. He concluded by giving this a below-average rating of 6 out of 10, saying, "If you have been looking for a new direction in which to take your players, look at this."<ref name=ad>{{cite magazine|last=Morris|first=Dave| date=February–March 1990|title=Saga Pack|journal=Games International| issue=13|pages=39}}</ref>
Jim Bambra reviewed ''Time of the Dragon'' for ''Dragon'' magazine #161 (September 1990).<ref name="Dragon #161">{{cite journal| last = Bambra| first = Jim| author-link = Jim Bambra| title = Role-playing Reviews| journal = Dragon| issue = #161| pages = 36–38| publisher = TSR| location = Lake Geneva, Wisconsin|date=September 1990}}</ref> Bambra concluded by saying that "The background of ''Time of the Dragon'' is plausible and meticulously presented, with neatly integrated cultures and races. It can easily be used as a campaign setting in its own right, as it not tightly tied to the world of Krynn. ''Time of the Dragon'' is well worth looking at and marks a departure from the standard Dragonlance saga setting. It has plenty to recommend it to gamers looking for a harsh and gritty fantasy world."<ref name="Dragon #161"/>
Lawrence Schick, in his 1991 book ''Heroic Worlds'' called the set "A nice package", and commented on the setting: "Taladas's strange and exotic cultures (for example, a society of civilized minotaurs) exhibit an unusual mix (for ''AD&D'') of magic and science."<ref name="HW"/>
==Reviews== *''Casus Belli'' #56<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/casus-belli-056/page/n29/mode/2up | title=Casus Belli #056 | date=1990 }}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
Category:Dragonlance supplements Category:Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1989