Sovereign Stone

Sovereign Stone

Well of Darkness (2000) Guardians of the Lost (2001) Journey into the Void (2003)
Author	Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Cover artist	Larry Elmore
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Fantasy, Role-playing game
Publisher	HarperCollins
Published	2000 – 2003
Media type	Print
No. of books	3

The Sovereign Stone series is a trilogy of novels. The Sovereign Stone Role-playing game was set in the same universe. Both the books and the game were primarily written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.

Novels

The novels are:

• Well of Darkness (2000)
• Guardians of the Lost (2001)
• Journey into the Void (2003)

The first book was set during the reign of King Tamaros of Vinnengael, the most powerful Human kingdom and the father of Prince Helmos and his younger half-brother, Prince Dagnarus. The next two were set approximately two hundred years later and followed Dagnarus in his bid to take over the world as well as the story of his allies and those who would try to stop him.

There are four races on the main continent, Loerem, with fifth and sixth races that appear in the second and third book, one from a distant world. The main four races are each primarily dedicated to one of the four elements. The Humans are associated with earth/stone, the Elves with air/wind, the Orks with Water/the Sea, the Dwarves with fire. The fifth race, the Taan, are associated with the void. The sixth race, the Pecwae, apparently rely on earth magic drawn from stones such as turquoise. Each race's magic-users are able to draw power from their element, as well as outside their racial element. However the vast majority stick to their primary element.

The races each have their own god or gods. The Humans worship a pantheon always referred to as a group "the gods" not as individual gods. There are individual notes between the human cultures in worshiping them. The Orks worship the gods who live in their holy mountain and pay special attention to signs read by their shamans. The Elves worship the Father and Mother, and the Dwarves worship the Wolf. The Taan also have a pantheon of gods, however, unlike the other races, they seem to separate them as individuals representing or having power over various events. The Pecwae are never really discussed, but frequently refer to simply the gods, similar to humans. It is not made clear in the books if all the gods are one group or separate groups. However, since the gods gave the Sovereign Stone to all the races through the King of Vinnengael it is likely that there is one pantheon perceived differently by the different races.

The gods had originally rewarded King Tamaros for his faith by giving him the power to create Dominion Lords, a group of holy warriors who were to promote peace and understanding among the four main races. As strife continued, the King went to the gods and asked them for something to help with peace among the races. They gave him the Sovereign Stone which could be split into four portions each representing one of the four elements. The King took this gift and gave one portion to each of the races so that they could create their own Dominion Lords. A fifth portion of the Stone that was unseen, save by the young Prince, Dagnarus, was the Void. As a balance to the Sovereign Stone, a Void follower was able to accept the Dagger of the Vrykyl from the Void itself. [The dagger of the Vrykyl has similar powers to create the antithesis of the Dominion Lords.]

Races

Humans

In this world Humans are in tune with the magic of earth. This power is controlled through the church. While once having been a largely unified race in the nation of Vinnengael, war and time have split them apart into varying nations and ethnic groups

• Vinnengaelian: Similar to medieval England. Once had the largest empire in all of Loerem, now their civilization is on the decline.
• Dunkargan: An Arabian people. Basically a third world nation, a terrible civil war tore their nation in two.
• Karnuan: A Persian people. A militaristic offshoot of the Durkargans they are attempting to conquer the world. They dislike all races, and bear a great hatred for the Durkargans.
• Nimran: An African people. They are great sailors and traders and are allied with the Orcs, but were fighting them in the past because of trading routes and sovereignty on the sea.
• Nimoreans: An offshoot of the Nimran. The Nimoreans share a border with the elves and are the only human race the elves truly call friend. They emulate the elven culture as well as the nimran culture.
• Trevenici: A Celtic people. The Trevenici are fierce warriors and hire themselves out to other nations as soldiers. They have no formal government and live in small villages. They share a symbiotic relationship with the Pecwae race.

Orks

In this world Orks are excellent seafarers in touch with the magic of the water. They are master engineers and are dedicated to the reading of omens. The authors specifically stated that they wanted the Orks in this world to be more than the "usual cannon-fodder", and thus made several changes to the average fantasy orc.

Dwarves

In this world the Dwarves are associated with the element of fire. They are master horsemen, living as nomads on the great plains. Any dwarf who is unable to ride with the tribe or is convicted of a crime is sentenced to be "the Unhorsed" and cast off in one of the three "Cities of the Unhorsed". The dwarf god is "the Wolf" and they believe that if they lead a good life their soul is reborn in the body of a wolf, so they can run in the pack of their god.

Elves

In this world, Elves segregate themselves from the rest of the world. They are ruled by the Divine, the religious authority, who is aided by the Shield of the Divine in all matters relating to military. Power struggles between the Shield and the Divine are frequent. There are Twelve noble houses of elves of which everyone is either a member or a follower of, as well as an exiled house that appears in the second and third books. The Elves live in very dense family homes where generations of elves will live in one home. Elves practice a form of ancestor worship, and seem to have a faintly Asian feel to their culture.

Pecwae

A race of wee-folk. Pecwae are skilled earth mages and always live near a Trevenici tribe. They have a symbiotic relationship with the Trevenici. The Pecwae are weak and preyed upon by other races, and the Trevenici protect them. In exchange the Pecwae offer magical aid and healing to the Trevenici who shun magic.

Taan

The Taan are a beastlike race that have a way of life similar to the Trevenici. They worship The Lord of the Void, Dagnarus. They embed gemstones believed to possess powerful magic in their thick hides. Taan are unable to speak the human language 'Elderspeak' and humans are unable to speak the Taan language. Instead, the Taan rely on half-Taan to speak both languages.

Locations

Dragon Mountain

Dragon Mountain is a fictional place in the Sovereign Stone trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. It is located somewhere near Vinnengael (Old or New is to be confirmed) and is the residency of the 'Monks'. These monks are known as the Keepers of Time because they record history's greatest events on their bodies. After death, their bodies are preserved by the effects a special tea that they drink throughout life, and are stored in the monastery as a kind of 'living library.'

The monks are led by the five heads of the orders, known only by the name of the element they represent - Fire, Earth, Air, Water and the Void, and each takes the form of the race associated with the element. Fire is a dwarf, Earth is a human, Air is an elf, and Water is an ork. The last monk is known only as 'The Fifth Monk,' and represents the fifth element, the Void. The Five monks are actually dragons that protect the monastery; however, they are not often needed as the monks are seen as neutral and are revered by all races.

Reception

Scott Haring reviewed the Sovereign Stone role-playing game for Pyramid.

References

• Weis, Margaret. Hickman, Tracy. Well of Darkness (Sovereign Stone, Book 1) Elmore's (2000). ASIN B000JZKG6Y
• Weis, Margaret. Hickman, Tracy. Guardians of the Lost (Sovereign Stone, Book 2) Elmore's (2001). ISBN 978-0-06-105179-1
• Weis, Margaret. Hickman, Tracy. Journeyman into the Void (Sovereign Stone, Book 3) Elmore's (2002). ASIN B0002X7W0G
• Perrin, Don. Smith, Lester. Sovereign Stone, Game System Sovereign Press (1999). ISBN 0-9658422-3-1