BioWare and Tor Books are publishing Dragon Age: The Stolen Throne, a prequel novel that will set up the universe and storyline for the studio’s upcoming fantasy RPG.
Penned by David Gaider, who has worked as a scribe on a number of BioWare titles, the novel relates a revenge tale set in the feudal-fantasy Dragon Age world. “When the beloved rebel queen is murdered, her son Maric sets out on a mission of vengeance against the faithless lords who were responsible for his mother’s untimely death,” BioWare’s press release said. “Maric soon becomes the leader of a rebel army hell-bent on retaking Ferelden from the control of a foreign tyrant. With only two true allies by his side, the brash outlaw Loghain and the beautiful warrior maiden Rowan, Maric and his trusted band must outwit spies and traitors as they try to reclaim the stolen throne.”
Dragon Age is supposed to be BioWare’s follow-up to its Baldur’s Gate games, which were positively steeped in background mythology thanks to the Dungeons and Dragons franchise. So it’s easy to see why BioWare would want to get a head start on fleshing out their fantasy world if they really want Dragon Age to live up to the Baldur’s Gate legacy. Based on the description though, it does sound a bit like pretty standard fantasy fare to me, with its rebel armies and straight-out-of-Tolkien character names.They pulled this same trick with the release of their last major RPG, Mass Effect, which also got the prequel book treatment in the form of a novel called Ascension.
The Stolen Throne is probably not the next A Song of Ice and Fire or what have you, but BioWare fans wanting to steep themselves in the lore might want to check it out. You can read the entire first chapter of the book over at the Dragon Age site.
