Before the Mask
novel 1991 Dragonlance
Record
| First published | 1991 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | |
| First-edition ISBN | 9781560765837 |
| Internal chronology | 1 |
Synopsis
Born to a noble Solamnic house, Ariakas is a gifted warrior, magician, and strategist who becomes disillusioned with the knighthood's hypocrisy. He abandons his order and pursues arcane knowledge, gradually drawn into the cult of the dark goddess Takhisis, where he develops a philosophy centered on rule through strength.
Where it sits
- Universe: Dragonlance
- Series: Dragonlance: The Villains series ; position 1 of 6 in the series' recorded order
- Author: Michael Williams
- Author: Teri Williams
Notes
- Dragonlance: The Villains series #1. Verminaard's rise before becoming a Dragon Highlord.
- From the series record (Dragonlance: The Villains series): A 6-novel set (1990s) with one standalone novel per author, each following a classic Dragonlance villain's own perspective; corrects a commonly-repeated "12 books" claim not supported by any primary source checked. Exact publication years for the first 3 volumes vary by 1-3 years across sources (original TSR printing vs. later reprint); the years recorded here follow the Dragonlance Wiki's own series page. Hederick the Theocrat is registered without a confirmed US TSR/Wizards ISBN (only a UK NEL edition ISBN was found, not used). Registered 2026-08-18.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.
- Publication order, within the series Dragonlance: The Villains series: position 1 of 6: next The Black Wing (1991)
- Internal chronology, within Dragonlance: position 6 of 164: previous The Messenger (2001) · next The Magic of Krynn (1987)
Sources
← Dragonlance dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.