Diablo III: The Order - Scrolls of Lore Forums

12-10-2011, 04:38 AM

Lon-ami

Elune

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Diablo III: The Order

I think I'm going to create a thread for each book in case there's no one already. Turn for "The Order", the first Diablo III novel.

Cover:

Basic information:

On sale: 29/05/2012
Author: Nate Kenyon
Pages: 384
Price: 26.00$

Description:

Quote:

For more than ten years, Diablo has been one of PC gaming’s iconic and blockbuster franchises, with millions of players experiencing to this day all the adventure and terror in the world of Sanctuary. Now, to tie-in with the long-awaited release of Blizzard Entertainment’s all-new game, Diablo III, the original novel Deckard Cain will bridge the untold story of one of Diablo’s most popular characters.

Now a much older man, Deckard Cain is on a mission to find the remnants of a rumored Horadric cell, and must call upon all of his knowledge and wit to teach and inspire those around him even as they face danger and death at every turn. Can he lead the return of a ragtag group of Horadrim and their ideals to Sanctuary...or will they die out with Cain himself?

(Note: this description seems to call the novel "Deckard Cain", but I'm pretty sure it's talking about "The Order").

Excerpt:

Quote:

Deckard Cain made his way across the floor, following the footprints to an alcove in the far wall. Rotted boards clung to supports, the last remains of an ancient library. This had been a ritual chamber, many centuries before, used to summon things from beyond the human world. A portal to the Burning Hells themselves, perhaps. The shelves were empty now. He saw a speck of yellow underneath a splinter of wood and bent to pick up a corner of parchment paper, curled and speckled with mildew.

Something moved in the shadows to his right.

He whirled, holding the light up. For a moment it appeared as if the shadows themselves were alive, bunching and swirling like ink in water. At the same time, a voice like the distant moan of wind drifted through the empty room and raised the hairs on the back of his neck.

“Deckaaaaarrdddd Caiiinnnn . . .”

Cain felt a strange doubling, a memory of a night many years before, when he was just a boy. A whispered voice calling to him, just like this. He backed away, fumbling in his rucksack with one hand, holding the lighted staff with the other against the darkness. Already he was doubting himself: had it just been the wind moving through the broken remains of the building above him, a trick his mind had played after so long in the sun?

The voice came again, a sound like bones scraping together in the grave.

“Your ghosts are many, old man, and they are active.”

A grating of metal over rock seemed to come from everywhere at once. Once again a pool of black smoke thickened and then dissipated, only to reassemble somewhere else: a shape carrying a sword, the form of a man, but with eyes that glowed red with the fires of hell.

Cain knew what this was, yanked from the depths of his own mind and used against him: the image of the Dark Wanderer himself, conjured up to weaken his resolve. The smoke-shape swirled and shifted, reforming into two indistinct human shapes, one taller and clearly female, one small and delicate. Shock raced through Cain’s limbs as an older, familiar memory fought to surface. He closed his eyes against the darkness as the yawning pit of despair opened within him, threatening to pull him in. You must not listen.

***

Deckard Cain is the last of the Horadrim, the sole surviving member of a mysterious and legendary order. Assembled by the archangel Tyrael, the Horadrim were charged with the sacred duty of seeking out and vanquishing the three Prime Evils: Diablo (the Lord of Terror), Mephisto (the Lord of Hatred), and Baal (the Lord of Destruction). But that was many years ago. As the decades passed, the Horadrim’s strength diminished, and they fell into obscurity. Now all of their collected history, tactics, and wisdom lie within the aged hands of one man. A man who is growing concerned.

Dark whisperings have begun to fill the air, tales of ancient evil stirring, rumblings of a demonic invasion set to tear the land apart.

Amid the mounting dread, Deckard Cain uncovers startling new information that could bring about the salvation—or ruin—of the mortal world: other remnants of the Horadrim still exist. He must unravel where they have been and why they are hiding from one of their own.

As Cain searches for the lost members of his order, he is thrust into an alliance with an unlikely ally: Leah, an eight-year-old girl feared by many to carry a diabolical curse. What is her secret? How is it tied to the prophesied End of Days? And if there are other living Horadrim, will they be able to stand against oblivion? These are the questions Deckard Cain must answer . . .

. . . before it is too late.

Nate Kenyon’s first novel, Bloodstone, was a Bram Stoker Award finalist and won the P&E Horror Novel of the Year award. His second, The Reach, also a Stoker Award finalist, received a starred review from Publishers Weekly and was recently optioned for film. The Bone Factory was released in July 2009, and was called "masterful" by Booklist. His fourth novel, Sparrow Rock, was released in May 2010.

Kenyon’s cyberpunk novella, Prime, was released from Apex Books in 2009. Four of his stories were featured in the recent Dark Arts anthology When the Night Comes Down. He has had stories published in Shroud Magazine, Permuted Press's Monstrous anthology, Horror World, Dead Lines, The Harrow, and Legends of the Mountain State 2, and has several others forthcoming. He is a member of the Horror Writers Association and International Thriller Writers.

Seems the Horadrim may be back... pretty interesting

__________________

Metzen: They are one of the ancient races of Northrend that we haven't spoken of before... because we hadn't made them up before. (laughter)

~Main: Expansion theorycrafting, Expansions list, The Age of Nightmare, Empire of the Tides (coming soon)~
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Last edited by Lon-ami : 04-16-2012 at 08:34 AM.

#2 12-10-2011, 07:00 AM
Omacron Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: New York Posts: 26,526 BattleTag: Omacron#1477	Now that it turns out I actually know Nate Kenyon personally (we met at a party/convention a few years before he started writing for Blizzard) I'm going to see if I can't arrange to interview him about this, especially since they're really ramping the diablo hype machine up. __________________

12-10-2011, 07:13 AM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

Posts: 11,570

BattleTag: Lonami#2916

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omacron

Now that it turns out I actually know Nate Kenyon personally (we met at a party/convention a few years before he started writing for Blizzard) I'm going to see if I can't arrange to interview him about this, especially since they're really ramping the diablo hype machine up.

Nate's supposed to be the third "Blizzard writer", so try to get him to speak about Warcraft, too. He will be writing for it sooner or later (unless they keep him on Diablo and SC only).

__________________

12-10-2011, 08:43 AM

Omacron

Join Date: Apr 2007

Location: New York

Posts: 26,526

BattleTag: Omacron#1477

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lon-ami

Nate's supposed to be the third "Blizzard writer", so try to get him to speak about Warcraft, too. He will be writing for it sooner or later (unless they keep him on Diablo and SC only).

IDK. He's a bit of a green writer so I'm not sure if he's done heroic fantasy, but he's pretty experienced in horror (diablo) and sci-fi (starcraft).

__________________

#5 02-18-2012, 10:47 AM
Mshadowz Arch-Druid Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: North of the border Posts: 2,438	Richard Knaack is Warcraft and Diablo. Christie Golden is Warcraft and Starcraft. Pretty sure Nate will be Diablo and starcraft. On topic though, I'm going to SPOILER assume that they all die out with Cain. Or Leah.

02-18-2012, 01:51 PM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

Posts: 11,570

BattleTag: Lonami#2916

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mshadowz

Richard Knaack is Warcraft and Diablo.

Christie Golden is Warcraft and Starcraft.

Pretty sure Nate will be Diablo and starcraft.

On topic though, I'm going to *SPOILER* assume that they all die out with Cain. Or Leah.

Yeah, seems like that, seeing Knaak hasn't been let near SC and Golden near Diablo. Maybe they want to make the styles distinctive, while having a common denominator between all Blizzard titles.

And yeah, I suspect Deckard Cain will be left behind in the game, be it death or any other reason.

__________________

#7 02-18-2012, 02:18 PM
Omacron Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: New York Posts: 26,526 BattleTag: Omacron#1477	Didn't Knaak write most of the diablo books before they brought Nate on? __________________

02-18-2012, 02:30 PM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

Posts: 11,570

BattleTag: Lonami#2916

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omacron

Didn't Knaak write most of the diablo books before they brought Nate on?

Most = All of them except 2.

And they were pretty decent.

__________________

02-18-2012, 05:39 PM

Leviathon

Elune

Join Date: Oct 2009

Posts: 12,710

BattleTag: Leviathonlx#1820

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lon-ami

Well Leah is Diablo (hence the feminine look) so Cain probably is the living one.

#10

03-02-2012, 04:13 AM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

Posts: 11,570

BattleTag: Lonami#2916

Surprise!

Source: secret

__________________

#11

04-16-2012, 08:32 AM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

Posts: 11,570

BattleTag: Lonami#2916

Excerpt:

Quote:

Deckard Cain made his way across the floor, following the footprints to an alcove in the far wall. Rotted boards clung to supports, the last remains of an ancient library. This had been a ritual chamber, many centuries before, used to summon things from beyond the human world. A portal to the Burning Hells themselves, perhaps. The shelves were empty now. He saw a speck of yellow underneath a splinter of wood and bent to pick up a corner of parchment paper, curled and speckled with mildew.

Something moved in the shadows to his right.

He whirled, holding the light up. For a moment it appeared as if the shadows themselves were alive, bunching and swirling like ink in water. At the same time, a voice like the distant moan of wind drifted through the empty room and raised the hairs on the back of his neck.

“Deckaaaaarrdddd Caiiinnnn . . .”

Cain felt a strange doubling, a memory of a night many years before, when he was just a boy. A whispered voice calling to him, just like this. He backed away, fumbling in his rucksack with one hand, holding the lighted staff with the other against the darkness. Already he was doubting himself: had it just been the wind moving through the broken remains of the building above him, a trick his mind had played after so long in the sun?

The voice came again, a sound like bones scraping together in the grave.

“Your ghosts are many, old man, and they are active.”

A grating of metal over rock seemed to come from everywhere at once. Once again a pool of black smoke thickened and then dissipated, only to reassemble somewhere else: a shape carrying a sword, the form of a man, but with eyes that glowed red with the fires of hell.

Cain knew what this was, yanked from the depths of his own mind and used against him: the image of the Dark Wanderer himself, conjured up to weaken his resolve. The smoke-shape swirled and shifted, reforming into two indistinct human shapes, one taller and clearly female, one small and delicate. Shock raced through Cain’s limbs as an older, familiar memory fought to surface. He closed his eyes against the darkness as the yawning pit of despair opened within him, threatening to pull him in. You must not listen.
***

Deckard Cain is the last of the Horadrim, the sole surviving member of a mysterious and legendary order. Assembled by the archangel Tyrael, the Horadrim were charged with the sacred duty of seeking out and vanquishing the three Prime Evils: Diablo (the Lord of Terror), Mephisto (the Lord of Hatred), and Baal (the Lord of Destruction). But that was many years ago. As the decades passed, the Horadrim’s strength diminished, and they fell into obscurity. Now all of their collected history, tactics, and wisdom lie within the aged hands of one man. A man who is growing concerned.

Dark whisperings have begun to fill the air, tales of ancient evil stirring, rumblings of a demonic invasion set to tear the land apart.

Amid the mounting dread, Deckard Cain uncovers startling new information that could bring about the salvation—or ruin—of the mortal world: other remnants of the Horadrim still exist. He must unravel where they have been and why they are hiding from one of their own.

As Cain searches for the lost members of his order, he is thrust into an alliance with an unlikely ally: Leah, an eight-year-old girl feared by many to carry a diabolical curse. What is her secret? How is it tied to the prophesied End of Days? And if there are other living Horadrim, will they be able to stand against oblivion? These are the questions Deckard Cain must answer . . .

. . . before it is too late.

Nate Kenyon’s first novel, Bloodstone, was a Bram Stoker Award finalist and won the P&E Horror Novel of the Year award. His second, The Reach, also a Stoker Award finalist, received a starred review from Publishers Weekly and was recently optioned for film. The Bone Factory was released in July 2009, and was called "masterful" by Booklist. His fourth novel, Sparrow Rock, was released in May 2010.

Kenyon’s cyberpunk novella, Prime, was released from Apex Books in 2009. Four of his stories were featured in the recent Dark Arts anthology When the Night Comes Down. He has had stories published in Shroud Magazine, Permuted Press's Monstrous anthology, Horror World, Dead Lines, The Harrow, and Legends of the Mountain State 2, and has several others forthcoming. He is a member of the Horror Writers Association and International Thriller Writers.

__________________

#12 05-30-2012, 09:02 PM
Kenzuki Loremaster Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: The Gates of Twilight Posts: 9,950	I finished reading this book yesterday, and I very much enjoyed it. I liked how it focused the story on Deckard Cain, and gave us some more insight into his past and motivations. I also liked the tender moments he has with Leah. Mikulov the monk was pretty cool too, and The Dark One and Belial were awesome villians. I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

#13

05-30-2012, 09:09 PM

Cantus

Join Date: Sep 2005

Location: DC, U.S.

Posts: 7,916

BattleTag: Cantus#1700

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenzuki

I finished reading this book yesterday, and I very much enjoyed it. I liked how it focused the story on Deckard Cain, and gave us some more insight into his past and motivations. I also liked the tender moments he has with Leah. Mikulov the monk was pretty cool too, and The Dark One and Belial were awesome villians.

I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

He Lives! Glad to see you around here, even for just a moment.

Anything specific that really grabbed your attention, or would it be too spoilerific?

__________________
Rationalizing the irrational since 2005.

#14 05-30-2012, 10:08 PM
Slowpokeking Posts: n/a	These Blizzard novels are so expensive...

#15

05-30-2012, 10:19 PM

Omacron

Join Date: Apr 2007

Location: New York

Posts: 26,526

BattleTag: Omacron#1477

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slowpokeking

These Blizzard novels are so expensive...

Did you try ebooks?

__________________

#16

05-30-2012, 10:21 PM

Slowpokeking

Posts: n/a

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omacron

Did you try ebooks?

16$ on Amazon, I will do it for some SW novels but not a Diablo novel, sorry.

I remember Blizzard novels once were very cheap.

#17 05-30-2012, 10:29 PM
Sayomara Ranger Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 300 BattleTag: Sayomara#1618	It will be out in paper back at some point. If you can wait, and not long after that books will be showing up in used book stores. Or just bug your local library and convince them they should get it. Lots of options than pay for the hardcover if you don't want to. __________________ The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance-it is the illusion of knowledge

#18

05-31-2012, 08:10 PM

Kenzuki

Loremaster

Join Date: Aug 2005

Location: The Gates of Twilight

Posts: 9,950

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cantus

He Lives! Glad to see you around here, even for just a moment.

Anything specific that really grabbed your attention, or would it be too spoilerific?

Good to hear from you too, Cantus ol' boy. I lurk around here every now and again. I've thought about returning for a while now, I've sort of missed you guys over the years lol.

But yeah, I don't know how much I should say about the book, because I wouldn't want to spoil it for you. I will say that it adds a lot of character development for Cain.

#19

06-03-2012, 02:40 PM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

Posts: 11,570

BattleTag: Lonami#2916

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenzuki

Kenzuki!

Spoilers of the novel, please

__________________

#20

06-03-2012, 10:02 PM

Sayomara

Ranger

Join Date: Nov 2010

Posts: 300

BattleTag: Sayomara#1618

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lon-ami

Kenzuki!

Spoilers of the novel, please

There is a lot of walking Cain picks up a kid and monk. The kid has power she can't control, the monk is only useful against non-bosses. Cain is a bitter old man. Cain Ocean11's the ending, and the world is saved.

The end.

All snark aside I should have full review and summary up on my podcast next week. Recording it this week.

__________________
The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance-it is the illusion of knowledge

Last edited by Sayomara : 06-04-2012 at 04:09 AM.

#21 06-07-2012, 10:52 AM
Kenzuki Loremaster Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: The Gates of Twilight Posts: 9,950	I liked the part where Cain dishes out some pain with his staff.

#22

06-07-2012, 03:18 PM

Malygos

Priestess of the Moon

Join Date: Nov 2008

Posts: 503

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenzuki

I liked the part where Cain dishes out some pain with his staff.

That's full of win.

#23

06-08-2012, 03:35 AM

Lon-ami

Elune

Join Date: Jul 2007

Location: Spain

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BattleTag: Lonami#2916

So, wait a second. Where there any surviving Horadrim, or the description of the novel is misdirecting as fuck?

__________________

#24

06-08-2012, 07:24 PM

Sayomara

Ranger

Join Date: Nov 2010

Posts: 300

BattleTag: Sayomara#1618

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lon-ami

So, wait a second. Where there any surviving Horadrim, or the description of the novel is misdirecting as fuck?

No its a red herring, the 'Horadrim' Cain meets are just a bunch of kids that found a old Horadrim hind out and used the books they found there to learn just enough to be dangerous. Then the Dark one took over the group and basically started the ball rolling on the plot of the story.

__________________
The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance-it is the illusion of knowledge

#25

06-26-2012, 08:44 PM

Sayomara

Ranger

Join Date: Nov 2010

Posts: 300

BattleTag: Sayomara#1618

My audio review of the Order is up. I have let to do a written review, summer classes and a 7 month old are eating up my writing time. There was also an issue with audio where a good part of our review part of the show was lost. But overall I think we get to our main points. Its just one of those books its hard to see the point of looking back at Diablo 3.

Anyways I hope you all enjoy it.

__________________
The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance-it is the illusion of knowledge

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