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Dragonlance: Villains #5
Lord Toede
A Fiendish Bet
In the depths of the Abyss, the domain of Takhisis, two dark powers argue over the nature of true nobility. To see if the ignoble can be made noble, they return one of their evil-hearted agents to life. They choose Fewmaster Toede, former ruler of Flotsam, recently dead from dragon fire.
Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. . .
The most outrageous villian of the Companions of the Lance is once more loose on the face of Krynn, and he is a hobgoblin with a mission - to become noble, no matter who or what gets in his way.
TSR novelist and gamemaster Jeff Grubb has written this fiendishly comic story.
The Villians Series explores the corrupted origins of the malevolent minions of Takhisis, Queen of Darkness.
In the depths of the Abyss, the domain of Takhisis, two dark powers argue over the nature of true nobility. To see if the ignoble can be made noble, they return one of their evil-hearted agents to life. They choose Fewmaster Toede, former ruler of Flotsam, recently dead from dragon fire.
Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. . .
The most outrageous villian of the Companions of the Lance is once more loose on the face of Krynn, and he is a hobgoblin with a mission - to become noble, no matter who or what gets in his way.
TSR novelist and gamemaster Jeff Grubb has written this fiendishly comic story.
The Villians Series explores the corrupted origins of the malevolent minions of Takhisis, Queen of Darkness.
313 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1994
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940 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Grubb
199 books193 followersHe is an author and game designer.
See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Grubb
See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Grubb
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
November 4, 2013
This is the ultimate you either love it or hate it book for Dragonlance fans. Personally I thought Lord Toede was irreverent and hilarious. The entire premise is hysterical - let's take a bit ridiculous character who appears in what like five pages of Dragons of Autumn Twilight and one brief comment from Lord Ariakus in the last book of the trilogy and write an entire novel about him.
To understand the novel Lord Toede one must understand the nature of the Lord Toede himself. An incompetent, self-serving politician who stumbled into positions of authority in life and kept getting promoted despite raging incompetence and self-affirming belief in his own abilities who finally gets killed, due to said incompetence, then raised as something of a joke by two deities/demons/functionaries from the Queen of Darkness' realm. Reading about the feared Toedaic Knights alone are worth reading the book.
This book bears striking similarities to the film Trading Places. If you like that film, and liked Dragonlance, you will love this book. If you come in expecting to read about some evil mastermind you will be horribly disappointed.
To understand the novel Lord Toede one must understand the nature of the Lord Toede himself. An incompetent, self-serving politician who stumbled into positions of authority in life and kept getting promoted despite raging incompetence and self-affirming belief in his own abilities who finally gets killed, due to said incompetence, then raised as something of a joke by two deities/demons/functionaries from the Queen of Darkness' realm. Reading about the feared Toedaic Knights alone are worth reading the book.
This book bears striking similarities to the film Trading Places. If you like that film, and liked Dragonlance, you will love this book. If you come in expecting to read about some evil mastermind you will be horribly disappointed.
October 16, 2014
I remember reading this at 12 or 13 years old and laughing a lot.
I remember thinking while reading it: if Mark Twain had written a (modern) fantasy novel, it would be something like this--at least, stylistically. I adored the little intros which break-down what is going to happen in chapter, it heightened the experience rather than spoiled it, which I found fascinating b/c although you knew what was going to happen you'd know idea HOW it was going to happen. I bought this knowing nothing about Dragonlance but I could easily grasp the fact that it was built around a thoroughly minor character--indeed his very "minor-ness"--he is the "fewmaster", after all--is part of the story.
It was the first (and not the last) Dragonlance book that I read. The only one that came close to recapturing the "magic of first exposure" for me was "Kaz the Minotaur" which I remember being very atmospheric and though would have made an excellent campaign (which I'm sure was the basis for many of these books in the first place) for AD&D.
I am going to re-read it at some point and probably have all of the illusions shattered.
I remember thinking while reading it: if Mark Twain had written a (modern) fantasy novel, it would be something like this--at least, stylistically. I adored the little intros which break-down what is going to happen in chapter, it heightened the experience rather than spoiled it, which I found fascinating b/c although you knew what was going to happen you'd know idea HOW it was going to happen. I bought this knowing nothing about Dragonlance but I could easily grasp the fact that it was built around a thoroughly minor character--indeed his very "minor-ness"--he is the "fewmaster", after all--is part of the story.
It was the first (and not the last) Dragonlance book that I read. The only one that came close to recapturing the "magic of first exposure" for me was "Kaz the Minotaur" which I remember being very atmospheric and though would have made an excellent campaign (which I'm sure was the basis for many of these books in the first place) for AD&D.
I am going to re-read it at some point and probably have all of the illusions shattered.
November 10, 2024
Probably the best out of the Dragonlance: Villains series.
It's just a lot of silly fun.
It's just a lot of silly fun.
September 10, 2013
The background is that 2 gods have a discussion that is about if a hobgoblin can be goodnatured or if they are just plain evil. Lord Toede is the subject of their discussion, and of course fails in his first attempt to be "good"...and he is awakened back to life and dont have a clue why he is still alive.
Extremly interesting writing and have some very funny momements. A very rich book with good adventures for being in a so few pages as 300 something.
The best fantasy book I ever read.
Extremly interesting writing and have some very funny momements. A very rich book with good adventures for being in a so few pages as 300 something.
The best fantasy book I ever read.
January 18, 2011
if i could give this book 10 stars i would. very funny book. one of those from the villain's perspective sort of things. this is from the perspective of a hobgoblin.
December 26, 2011
Wow - I just can't shake the feeling that the people who have rated this one star have no sense of humor. This is one of the funniest fantasy novels I've ever read.
August 5, 2018
Hobgoblins, frog-dragons and ogre pornography.
As villains rank in the Dragonlance saga, the hobgoblin Fewmaster Toede isn’t much, a low-level henchman in the early books, pretty much forgotten as the original trilogy picks up speed. Fortunately for Toede, it’s author Jeff Grubb who gets to craft the hobgoblin’s solo story and in Grubb’s capable hands Toede transform from … well … a toad … to maybe not quite a prince … but a wry little schemer in a tale that is both surprisingly fun and very, very witty.
The gist of things is that Toede (dead and consigned to the Abyss after getting on the wrong side of green dragon breath) is resurrected as part of a bet between two minor demons. Toede plays the small-time villain well – his ambitions far outstripping his resources – his smarts just smart of enough to give him a unrelenting case of annoyance at the half-wits surrounding him. Though I generally have a bit of a problem trying to insert slapstick into a high fantasy story like Dragonlance, Grubb’s dry humor is aces here and there’s more than a few honest belly laughs as Toede trudges toward … well .. at best … a few steps off-center of redemption.
Final Verdict: For a spin-off, Lord Toede is an unexpected treat … a rollicking good tale with clever characters, a droll comedic voice that is genuinely funny, and a plot that hits far above its weight class. Grubb reminds me again why he’s one of my favorites in the RPG-novelization sub-genre – a top-notch talent who delivers a nicely satisfying read.
P.S. The best of Jeff Grubb is probably his novelization of Magic the Gathering’s: The Brother’s War. As a fan of the collectible card game, Grubb’s tale of the battle between the sibling artificers Urza and Mishra is epic fantasy that captures the spirit of the original card game .. and the pathos of friendship gone wrong … expertly. Another good one to check out if you are into this type of stuff.
February 27, 2018
Entendamos las cuatro estrellas en el contexto del grueso de las novelas de la Dragonlance (de las que he leído una treintena larga).
Leída en dos trayectos de ida y vuelta en autobús a Barcelona.
Una de las mejores y más divertidas de la sobrexplotada saga.
Pillar a un personaje secundario y darle vida por medio de una novela sobre la historia, el recuerdo, el legado, la reescritura de la historia y todo eso que ahora se llama posverdad. Y, además, terriblemente divertida y llena de momentos prattchetianos (su influencia se nota en cada página, personaje y reflexión).
Una buena sorpresa y una prueba de que se podía encontrar nuevos caminos en la saga.
Leída en dos trayectos de ida y vuelta en autobús a Barcelona.
Una de las mejores y más divertidas de la sobrexplotada saga.
Pillar a un personaje secundario y darle vida por medio de una novela sobre la historia, el recuerdo, el legado, la reescritura de la historia y todo eso que ahora se llama posverdad. Y, además, terriblemente divertida y llena de momentos prattchetianos (su influencia se nota en cada página, personaje y reflexión).
Una buena sorpresa y una prueba de que se podía encontrar nuevos caminos en la saga.
November 26, 2024
A silly and fun adventure. A sort of comedy of errors about an evil little jerk who is returned to life after a grisly death to “live nobly” but he can’t seem to shake his evil tendencies. Doesn’t take itself seriously. Toede is a great antihero. My only nitpick is the reliance on the reader’s familiarity with the original Dragonlance Companion series and D&D lore in general.
January 28, 2019
Is one, which belongs to a series of 5 books from Jeff. But standalone, is a good history, with a fantastic context (creatures), is a good expirement about the nobility, and the origin of this. If the nobility come from the creatures persé or come from the context where is born this creatures.
May 22, 2021
Full review here:
https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...
If you can find it, it's a fun read, and an unexpected departure from the generally deadly serious High Fantasy (with occasional lighthearted Kender moments). It's good to be bad.
https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...
If you can find it, it's a fun read, and an unexpected departure from the generally deadly serious High Fantasy (with occasional lighthearted Kender moments). It's good to be bad.
August 15, 2025
Toede is such a fun character in this book but man, they just had to completely ruin the story by making it the single biggest noncanon Forgotten Realms brainrot ever. Gyatt damn this was painfully out of place and nonsensical
May 14, 2020
Jamás podrás crear empata con este ser, y lo mejor es que de eso se encargará él, un libro intrascendente con un antagonista zozo.
December 22, 2022
Excellent adventure and fantasy story. Well written and fun read.
December 30, 2012
I've read pretty much every Dragonlance novel after first cutting my teeth on Dragons of Autumn Twilight many years ago. Some novels have been very good and some have been pretty bad. However, in the entire Dragonlance universe there has never been a book like Lord Toede, which is based on a minor character from the original Dragonlance Chronicles. It is quite hilarious, I assure you.
Lord Toede begins after the titular character's demise at the hands of a Kender named Kronin Thisleknot, which is previously detailed in a short story from one of the tales collections, which I can't remember the name of. This takes place a little bit after the War of the Lance concludes, but before the second generation and the War of Souls.
Without wanting to create a bunch of spoilers, the plot focuses upon Toede's reincarnation at the hands of some slackers in the Abyss and his subsequent quest to find nobility. With the help of questionable allies and some outrageous villains, Toede certainly has his work cut out for him.
One of the reason that I find this book so good is that it doesn't take itself seriously. It's intentional comedy, much like The Gully Dwarves or Conundrum, but it is even less serious and more comedic. The whole premise is ridiculous, but Toede shines as the unlikely protagonist. It's a shame that Toede only returns in another short story because he is really great.
Whether you are a dragonlance fan specifically or just a D&D fan in general, Lord Toede is exceptional, and I heartily recommend it. Just don't take it seriously.
Lord Toede begins after the titular character's demise at the hands of a Kender named Kronin Thisleknot, which is previously detailed in a short story from one of the tales collections, which I can't remember the name of. This takes place a little bit after the War of the Lance concludes, but before the second generation and the War of Souls.
Without wanting to create a bunch of spoilers, the plot focuses upon Toede's reincarnation at the hands of some slackers in the Abyss and his subsequent quest to find nobility. With the help of questionable allies and some outrageous villains, Toede certainly has his work cut out for him.
One of the reason that I find this book so good is that it doesn't take itself seriously. It's intentional comedy, much like The Gully Dwarves or Conundrum, but it is even less serious and more comedic. The whole premise is ridiculous, but Toede shines as the unlikely protagonist. It's a shame that Toede only returns in another short story because he is really great.
Whether you are a dragonlance fan specifically or just a D&D fan in general, Lord Toede is exceptional, and I heartily recommend it. Just don't take it seriously.
September 4, 2015
A book that is part of the Dragonlance world. In this one, two creatures that live in the Abyss decide to place a wager whether an evil person can become noble. These two creatures who are basically middle management decide to send someone back to the land of the living and this person is Lord Toede. Lord Toede was a minor villain the original trilogy and now he is tasked to be noble. One does not need to have read the original trilogy for this book.
This book totally surprised me. I am doing a read thru of all the Dragonlance novels and this one was at the bottom of my list of books that I wanted to read. I was so wrong with my initial thought of this book. The author decided to write about this story as a glib, humorous story and I loved it. It wasn't silly but did make me laugh out loud with its smarts and charms. Whether it was references to well established literary works or running gags, I was amused throughout. Even though this novel was tongue-in-cheek, this book adds to the world of Krynn. And the author changed my mind about this character as I am now a Toede fan.
This is a terrific read and do not let the subject matter sway your decision. This was a joy to read. It is not your usual fantasy read where there is doom all around and our heroes need to make an epic journey or heroic deeds. Instead, the reader gets amusement and chuckles and it was a welcome change to the standard fare.
This book totally surprised me. I am doing a read thru of all the Dragonlance novels and this one was at the bottom of my list of books that I wanted to read. I was so wrong with my initial thought of this book. The author decided to write about this story as a glib, humorous story and I loved it. It wasn't silly but did make me laugh out loud with its smarts and charms. Whether it was references to well established literary works or running gags, I was amused throughout. Even though this novel was tongue-in-cheek, this book adds to the world of Krynn. And the author changed my mind about this character as I am now a Toede fan.
This is a terrific read and do not let the subject matter sway your decision. This was a joy to read. It is not your usual fantasy read where there is doom all around and our heroes need to make an epic journey or heroic deeds. Instead, the reader gets amusement and chuckles and it was a welcome change to the standard fare.
December 10, 2014
A few people have rated this 1 star. That's okay. Some folks probably expected the same angst-filled tales of wah that you get with the other Dragonlance novels (which doesn't mean they are poor reads necessarily), but that isn't how Mr. Grubb rolls.
Lord Toede isn't the most well-written DL novel, and there may be some setting inaccuracies, but that's part of the charm. It's the tale of the on-going life of a bit character from the more famous novels, a character no one ever thought would show up in his own book.
If you're like me, you'll spend the entire time going back and forth between kind of rooting for the poor bastard, and wanting to see him get his even a little bit more. Because he's not a good guy. He doesn't want to be a good guy. And even when forced into it, he's not very good at being a good guy. Unfortunately for Toede, he's also not terribly good at being a bad guy.
Is it for everyone? No. Is it a nice change of pace from the other DL novels? Absolutely.
Lord Toede isn't the most well-written DL novel, and there may be some setting inaccuracies, but that's part of the charm. It's the tale of the on-going life of a bit character from the more famous novels, a character no one ever thought would show up in his own book.
If you're like me, you'll spend the entire time going back and forth between kind of rooting for the poor bastard, and wanting to see him get his even a little bit more. Because he's not a good guy. He doesn't want to be a good guy. And even when forced into it, he's not very good at being a good guy. Unfortunately for Toede, he's also not terribly good at being a bad guy.
Is it for everyone? No. Is it a nice change of pace from the other DL novels? Absolutely.
July 11, 2007
This book is bad, really really bad. After finishing the novel I couldn't help but think that Lord Toede was one big elaborate joke and not an actually novel. There are so many bad jokes and poor attempts at comedy it was almost completely unbearable. The premise of the novel is silly as well. The thought of Toede dying multiple times to satisfy a wager is ridiculous, not to mention all of the Dragonlance inaccuracies (abishai, gnolls, metal abyss constructs) that are riddled throughout this book. I wish I had even one good thing to say about this novel but unfortunately I do not. Avoid it unless you absolutely want to read every Dragonlance novel(which I plan on doing eventually).
Read the full review by clicking on the link.
[http://www.thefantasyreview.com/2007/...]
Read the full review by clicking on the link.
[http://www.thefantasyreview.com/2007/...]
October 22, 2021
I finished reading Lord Toede for the first time last night. After my disappointment with Hederick the Theocrat, this was a very welcome change of pace. The rest of the Villains series was fairly enjoyable to me—I liked Behind the Mask and Emperor of Ansalon as detailed backstories of truly vile characters, and the Black Wing was just interesting. Lord Toede was different from all of these because it didn’t take itself so seriously. It was irreverent and tongue in cheek, but still felt like Dragonlance to me. I had never wondered what happened to Toede after the War of the Lance, but clearly all needed to know. I also really liked that Jeff Grubb had a very clear sense of tone and style of writing. Some of the lesser DL books read quite generically, as if they could have been written by anyone, but this was so perfectly stylized by Grubb.
February 9, 2014
Another book from the D&D world, and this one was just good enough to not copy and paste my last D&D world book review, like I've done previously.
Jeff Grubb was just a tad bit better in his writing, the plot was a bit less "let's write down a D&D adventure and call it a novel", making this a tad and bit better than the other of these books I've read.
If you're going to read these books, you may as well read this one, you can do worse reading many of the others. And I have.
Jeff Grubb was just a tad bit better in his writing, the plot was a bit less "let's write down a D&D adventure and call it a novel", making this a tad and bit better than the other of these books I've read.
If you're going to read these books, you may as well read this one, you can do worse reading many of the others. And I have.
October 6, 2014
I started out not really liking this book. That was probably because it was not written the same way as the books I'm used to reading. I am glad I stuck with it! This book contains a lot of humor in its dark tones as you see the exploits and plots of "Lord Toede" unfold. This may not be an origin story as you may think an origin is supposed to be. To figure out what I mean you will have to read it for yourself. :)
June 1, 2009
It is hard to put into words how amazingly hilarious this book is. This is the funniest book I have ever read and I highly recommend it to everyone. Yes the character is a minor character in a huge fantasy series; you do not need to read the other books in the series to appreciate how great this book is.
November 14, 2021
Great Dragonlance novel and very funny!
It's not as laugh out loud as something like Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but it kept a smile on my face through pretty much the entire read.
If you're after heroic fantasy stuff, it probably isn't your thing. But if you want to dip into the comfort of a world you know well (Dragonlance) and want to laugh and relax, it's one of the best.
It's not as laugh out loud as something like Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but it kept a smile on my face through pretty much the entire read.
If you're after heroic fantasy stuff, it probably isn't your thing. But if you want to dip into the comfort of a world you know well (Dragonlance) and want to laugh and relax, it's one of the best.
August 20, 2017
Not recommended for: people who hate Dragonlance; people who want a seriously well-written book that they will always remember.
My fuller thoughts here
My fuller thoughts here
July 8, 2011
Enjoyed very much. Fantastic story with great characters.
June 27, 2016
Probably the funniest Dragonlance universe book I've ever read. Alternatively, a subtly effective admonition against slacking off at the workplace if you work in Hell.
January 29, 2017
Not too bad. Fairly solid read. =)
October 18, 2013
Underrated classic.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews