The game of the gods

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The game of the gods (orig .: The Malazan Book of the Fallen ) is the German title of a fantasy epic written by the Canadian author Steven Erikson . The original is made up of ten volumes. Volume 1 ( Gardens of the Moon ) was published in 1999, the last volume ( The Crippled God ) was published in February 2011.

In the German translation, the books were divided into two books after the first volume ( The Gardens of the Moon ) and will thus comprise 19 volumes at the end. The book series was received very positively by the critics; in Europe (for fantasy books) it is quite successful, while on the American market the books have only appeared with a delay.

Not directly part of the series, but set in the same world, are the Malaz novels by Erikson's friend Ian Cameron Esslemont , with whom he created the world of Malaz .

Outlines of the plot

The fictional plot begins around the year 1163 from Brand's sleep and is initially mainly about the Malazan Empire and its wars of conquest. The empire founded by the emperor Kellanved and his assistant Tanzer, an assassin, arose on the island of Malaz , from where the continent of Quon Tali was subjected to hard battles, whereby Kellanved proved to be a skilful strategist and also surrounded himself with capable people. Over time, the Malazan Empire has spread over much of the known world, largely thanks to its disciplined and powerful armed forces. The empire is also presented positively: the Malazan troops brought, among other things, uniform laws and thus ensured the end of numerous tribal feuds and a certain inner peace. Nevertheless, the Malazan rule is rejected by many people as foreign rule, on several continents the campaigns have been going on for years.

All of these events are told indirectly in Erikson's later novels, because at the beginning of the actual main plot, Kellanved and Tanzer are already dead, murdered by Laseen, who was previously in charge of the internal secret police and who subsequently ascended the throne. Since then she has mainly been busy holding the empire together, while more and more old confidants of the emperor disappear under mysterious circumstances. In the course of the further action in the novels it becomes increasingly clear what the exact background of these events was and how the political situation for the Malazan empire changed. Around this main narrative, however, there is another far-reaching plot in which gods and demigods also appear, who often actively intervene in the events. Gods can be killed by people, just as people can, under certain circumstances, become gods who are by no means omnipotent. In addition to humans, there are also several, partly ancient, non-human races, such as the Tiste Andii, the Tiste Edur, Jaghut or the (undead through a magical ritual) T'lan Imass, the arch enemies of the Jaghut. These races also play a very important role in the novels.

The plot focuses initially on the continents of Genabackis, Quon Tali and a subcontinent on which the "Empire of the Seven Cities" is located. All of these countries have their own, sometimes ancient, history and culture. Initially, the Malazan empire dominated most of these areas, even if the campaign is still ongoing on Genabackis, which, however, like another on the Korel subcontinent, has all but failed. Several gods intervene in the events while the Malazans intend to conquer the last free city of Genabackis.

Almost at the same time, a bloody uprising breaks out in the Empire of the Seven Cities, which practically collapses Malazan rule - and is based on the Indian uprising of 1857 . In the course of the rebellion there are numerous atrocities against Malazans. As the last remaining Malazan field army in the Empire of the Seven Cities, the 7th Army has to accompany several thousand Malazan refugees to Aren, the last city on the subcontinent that is still in the hands of the empire. In the end, the Malazans, under their ingenious commander Coltaine, manage to bring the civilians to safety, but this is bought at the expense of the destruction of the 7th Army. Meanwhile, the campaign on Genabackis takes an unexpected turn in which gods also play a role. A short time later the so-called "crippled god" is introduced, a being who soon turns out to be the real main enemy of the protagonists and tries to influence events in his favor. The Malazan troops on Genabackis are temporarily allied with their previous opponents in order to fight a common enemy, the mysterious and brutal Pannionic Seer.

The plot from the fourth German or the third English volume onwards no longer revolves mainly around the events in the Malazan empire, but above all around the skillful manipulation of the crippled god. Several subplots open up, but they contain numerous intersections. So Erikson described in detail a Malazan punitive expedition to the Empire of the Seven Cities by the 14th Malazan Army, whereby the Malazans discover that Coltaines' deeds have left a deep impression. The starting position for the campaign is extremely bad on the part of the Malazans, since the entire subcontinent is in fact in the hands of rebels, but the 14th Army succeeds in several successes after hard fighting. Meanwhile, the empire of Lether is emerging on a distant continent, whose ruler, Tiste Edur Rhulad Sengar, who is becoming more and more insane, is only a puppet of the crippled god who pursues his own goals. Meanwhile, the Malazan Imperatrix Laseen slips more and more control. The 14th Malazan Army, which finally put down the uprising in the Empire of the Seven Cities, deserted because of Laseen's policies, which they can no longer support. After the commander of the 14th Army, Tavore Paran, became aware of the atrocities committed by the Tiste Edur, she and her troops set off to Lether to "liberate" the country, which they succeed after hard fighting: The Tiste Edur withdraw from Lether, where a new government is being established.

At around the same time, in the heartland of the empire, on Quon Tali, there are movements of separation that force Laseen's fall. After the liberation of Lether, the 14th Army and their allies advance southeast to reach the land of Kolanse, where the crippled god appears to have some influence. But on the way the "bone hunters", as the 14th Army is also called, get into unforeseeable difficulties and suffer heavy losses in a battle. Still, the Malazans, led by Tavore Paran, advance to Kolanse, where the non-human Forkrul Assail have their own plans for the crippled god who desires nothing more than to be delivered from his eternal pain. In Kolanse there is finally a decisive battle.

While the Malazan empire only plays a subordinate role in the later volumes, the plot there is told by Ian Cameron Esslemont in his novels: In Night of Knives the takeover of power by Laseen is described, while in Return of the Crimson Guard the inner story is described Describes unrest in the empire. In the novel Stonewielder , Esslemont describes, among other things, a Malazan military expedition to Korel, whereby a lot of background information about this subcontinent is known. In Orb, Scepter, Throne , events on Genabackis and specifically described in Darujhistan where an old power was brought back.

Esslemont now describes the rise of Kellanved and Tanzer in the new Path to Ascendancy series .

Narrative

The story is told from the point of view of individual characters, with some of the locations on different continents. The Malazan elite unit of the "bridge burners" plays a central role in several volumes, except in the fifth original volume, characters from this troop appear in all volumes. But also numerous other characters of the different races and opponents are presented in detail. Erikson doesn't always tell the story of the characters strictly chronologically, but rather simultaneously, sometimes with several time leaps. Erikson's characters almost never correspond to the black and white pattern that is otherwise common in fantasy literature, but are much more differentiated. Black humor is often noticeable in the dialogues. Many of the protagonists perish in the course of the plot (although several are resurrected or reborn in some form). Erikson who emphasized Iliad and Glen Cook and his Black - Company -Books as a model. Erikson's world is very independent, especially the representation of magic is unique in fantasy literature. The complex background story was developed by Erikson and his friend Ian Cameron Esslemont for a role-playing game back in the 80s .

The plot is characterized by a sometimes extremely dark tone and several storylines. The element of tragedy or tragedy plays an important role for Erikson. According to him, he doesn't write fantasy with tragic elements, but tragedies with fantasy elements, which is why the humor factor between the individual episodes is important to him. The story is very broad, sometimes describing episodes that go back several millennia. Erikson has received a lot of praise in various reviews for its epic-looking framework as well as the well-crafted and multi-layered characters. The complex plot, in which different human weaknesses and virtues are dealt with, makes the novels interesting not only for fantasy fans. In addition, Erikson, who is a trained anthropologist and archaeologist, skillfully incorporates his specialist knowledge into the plot; be it in the form of cultures described in detail, be it in the form of an alienated human evolution. The portrayal of violence is in part very explicit and ruthless. For casual readers, the large number of levels of action and protagonists is also confusing, even though the novels offer a brief index of the most important people. An encyclopedia is planned by Erikson after completing the series.

Geography of the world of Malaz

The action takes place on a fictional world, the exact size of which is unknown, but on which human life existed earlier than in the real world, even though non-human races already emerged. Some continents are sometimes only referred to as subcontinent. There are several individual states, but apparently the largest is the Malazan Empire.

Quon Tali

Quon Tali forms the center of the Malazan empire. The continent was the first to be conquered by Kellanved in several campaigns, in which he successively conquered the then rival states and united them in the empire. The largest cities include the capital Unta, Li Heng, Quon Tali and Cawn. In front of the continent are the islands of Malaz (the origin of the empire, previously known primarily as the pirate port), Nap and Kartool and the subcontinent Falar.

While the continent is only mentioned in most novels, the plot of Esslemont's book Return of the Crimson Guard is mainly set on Quon Tali.

Empire of the Seven Cities

This is a subcontinent on which, in addition to several other important cities, seven “holy cities” exist (Aren, Karakarang, Ubaryd, Ehrlitan, Karashimesh, Yath Alban and Ugarat). The subcontinent is larger than Quon Tali and consists largely of deserts and steppe regions. It was conquered in the time of Kellanved, with a massacre in Aren. Especially here the Malazan rule is seen as foreign rule; nevertheless, many of its residents also serve in the Malazan army. Most of the action in Deadhouse Gates , House of Chains and The Bonehunters takes place on this continent.

Adjacent to the Empire of the Seven Cities there are other regions in the west, about which little is known (such as Nemil, Perish and Shal Morzinn).

Genabackis

Most of the action in the first novel and in the books Memories of Ice and Toll the Hounds takes place on the continent of Genabackis . Initially, the north and some areas of the coast are in Malazan hands, but a loose confederation of cities is quite effective in resisting. The free city of Darujhistan is one of the most important cities. The Moranth, who have formed an alliance with the Malazans and have a good knowledge of chemicals (explosives), also live on the continent. Little is known about the south of the continent, but there is, among other things, the city of Elingarth, from which the famous mercenary group of the Gray Swords comes from, which plays a central role in Memories of Ice .

Korelri

Korelri consists of the two sub-continents Korel and Stratem . The arrival of the “crippled God” is said to have caused severe damage on the continent. While Stratem has only played a marginal role so far, Korel is mentioned several times in the books. In Stonewielder , numerous details finally become known.

Korel, which is relatively close to Quon Tali, consists mainly of islands of different sizes. During the reign of Kellanved, the invasion under the Hohefaust (Commander-in-Chief) Greymane began, but the fighting ended in a fiasco. At Laseen's time, as it turns out in Stonewielder , contact with the 6th Malazan Army there practically broke off; Since the Korelris also have a considerable naval force (the ships from the city of Mare are considered to be almost unsinkable), the Malazan fleet could not achieve a breakthrough for a long time.

One deity is primarily worshiped on the continent, the Lady, and other beliefs are fiercely fought. Several states had formed a loose alliance to ward off the Malazans. On the north coast there is also the Stormwall, a huge line of fortifications that defends itself against the Stormriders, a non-human race that exists in the water.

Lether

The name of the continent on which the Kingdom of Lether (later Empire of Lether) is located is unknown; but it is apparently relatively far away from Quon Tali. There are several empires here, including Lether (with the capital Letheras) as well as Bolkando, Pilott, Korshenn and Kolanse. In the north of Lether, however, Tiste Edur also live, and in the east there are also some steppe peoples.

The main plot of the novels Midnight Tides , Reaper's Gale , Dust of Dreams and The Crippled God is set here.

Assail

Very little is known about this continent, although some people from there appear in Esslemont's novels. The Malazans are aware of the existence of this continent, but have refrained from invading. In the novel Memories of Ice , a T'lan Imass reports that an entire army of the T'lan Imass on Assail was destroyed by a force there under the command of a "human tyrant".

Jacuruku

Jacuruku is sometimes referred to as the "sister continent" of Korelri and was horribly devastated a long time ago. Details about the current situation are not known, but an oligarchy of magicians is said to rule there.

Published or planned volumes

  • Vol. 1: The Gardens of the Moon (2012). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Gardens of the Moon , 1999; German first edition 2000). ISBN 978-3-442-26909-9
  • Vol. 2: The Empire of the Seven Cities (2013). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Deadhouse Gates , Part 1, 2000; German first edition 2001). ISBN 978-3-442-26965-5
  • Vol. 3: Under the Spell of the Desert (2014). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Deadhouse Gates , Part 2, 2001; German first edition 2001). ISBN 978-3-442-26968-6
  • Vol. 4: The icy time (2003). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Memories of Ice , Part 1, 2002). ISBN 978-3-442-24997-8
  • Vol. 5: The Day of the Seer (2003). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Memories of Ice , Part 2, 2002). ISBN 978-3-442-24998-5
  • Vol. 6: The Sisters' War (2004). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: House of Chains , Part 1, 2002). ISBN 978-3-442-24271-9
  • Vol. 7: The House of Chains (2004). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: House of Chains , Part 2, 2002). ISBN 978-3-442-24292-4
  • Vol. 8: Children of the Shadow (2005). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Midnight Tides , Part 1, 2004). ISBN 978-3-442-24298-6
  • Vol. 9: Tides of the Night (2006). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Midnight Tides , Part 2, 2004). ISBN 978-3-442-24403-4
  • Vol. 10: The Fires of Rebellion (2007). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: The Bonehunters , Part 1, 2006). ISBN 978-3-442-24469-0
  • Vol. 11: The Bone Hunters (2008). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: The Bonehunters , Part 2, 2006). ISBN 978-3-442-24499-7
  • Vol. 12: The golden ruler (2009). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Reaper's Gale , Part 1, 2007). ISBN 978-3-442-26556-5
  • Vol. 13: In the Storm of Perdition (2010). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Reaper's Gale , Part 2, 2007). ISBN 978-3-442-26557-2
  • Vol. 14: The City of Blue Fire (2012). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Toll the Hounds , Part 1, 2008). ISBN 978-3-442-26558-9
  • Vol. 15: Death of a God (2017). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Toll the Hounds , Part 2, 2008). ISBN 978-3-442-26559-6
  • Vol. 16: The Flight of the Children (2018). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Dust of Dreams , Part 1, 2009). ISBN 978-3734161131
  • Vol. 17: The Wings of Darkness (planned release date: August 17, 2020). Translated by Tim Straetmann. Munich: Blanvalet (Orig .: Dust of Dreams , Part 2, 2009). ISBN 978-3734161148
  • (Orig .: The Crippled God , 2011)

Novellas

  • Blood Follows (2002)
  • The Healthy Dead (2004)
  • The Lees of Laughter's End: A Tale of Bauchelain & Korbal Broach (2007)

Malaz novels by Ian Cameron Esslemont

  • Night of Knives (2005, reissued 2008)
  • The Return of the Crimson Guard (2008)
  • Stonewielder (2010)
  • Orb, Scepter, Throne (2012)
  • Blood and Bone (2012)
  • Assail (2014)

Path of Ascendancy

  • Book 1: Dancer's Lament (2016)
  • Book 2: Deadhouse Landing (2017)
  • Book 3: Kellanved's Reach (2019)

Further publications

  • The Encyclopedia Malaz (planned for a long time)

Web links

supporting documents

  1. ^ A b Gardens of the Moon
  2. ↑ Deadhouse Gates
  3. ^ Memories of Ice
  4. ^ House of Chains ; The Bonehunters
  5. ↑ Midnight Tides
  6. ↑ The Bonehunters
  7. ↑ Reaper's Gale
  8. ^ Esslemont, Return of the Crimson Guard
  9. ↑ Dust of Dreams
  10. ^ The Crippled God .
  11. ^ Q&A with Steve Erikson ( Memento from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), interview
  12. ↑ Interview excerpt