The Dark Suns Books: A Reader’s Guide
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We take a closer look at the blood soaked world of the Dark Sun novels
For most people, Dungeons & Dragons conjures up images of brave adventurers, lush forests and sprawling medieval cities. Yet the Dark Sun setting proved that D&D could be more than just fantasy cliches, offering up a gritty, post-apocalyptic world filled with savagery and sorcery.
First published in 1991 as a box set for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition, Dark Sun would quickly grown in popularity, spawning comic books, video games, trading cards and more. Much of the world, however, was developed in over a dozen Dark Sun books. These novels (many of which are now out of print) helped establish much of the overall lore and history, in addition to introducing new D&D players to the setting.
To help you navigate your way through the scorched world of Athas, we’ve put together this complete reader’s guide to Dark Sun books. To keep things simple, we’ve broken the books out by series, including the publication dates, links to further readings and a brief write-up on what each series is about.
So grab your obsidian blade and prepare to enter into the wastelands, as we delve into the deadly world of the Dark Sun novels.
Table of Contents
What is Dark Sun?
How many Dark Sun book are there?
Does Dark Sun have a reading order?
What are the books in chronological order?
What are the best Dark Sun books?
What is Dark Sun?
Dark Sun is a Dungeons & Dragons setting that takes place on the planet Athas, a once green and verdant paradise that has been reduced to a barren wasteland in the wake of a magical apocalypse. The survivors – composed of the traditional D&D races of elves, dwarves and humans, along with several other species – now struggle to survive the inhospitable environment and the tyrannical rule of a group of warring city states.
The concept was first developed in the late 1980s by then D&D publisher TSR. The company had originally developed the idea of a post-apocalyptic desert world for use with the second edition of their Battlesystem fantasy miniatures game. Longtime TSR designer, Steve Winter proposed a desert landscape inspired by the Heavy Metal comic book series Den and the works of pulp fantasy writer Clark Ashton Smith. A group of additional game designers helped to further flesh out the idea, with TSR eventually deciding to create a new D&D campaign setting based on the concept. Notably, the artist Brom also played a significant role in establishing the overall look and feel of the Dark Sun world, with his work gracing the covers of virtually every novel and game module.
The first official TSR product was the Dark Sun Boxed Set, which was released in 1991. It was accompanied by the Prism Pentad, a five-book fiction series written by longtime D&D author and designer Troy Denning. Additional game products were released over the next few years before the line was abruptly ended in 1996 due to flagging sales.
Dark Sun was, however, briefly revived for the 3rd edition of D&D by publisher Paizo (creator of the Pathfinder system) who released an updated version of Dark Sun under the Open Game License. The website Athas.org was also created around this time as a gathering place for fans.
In 2009, the setting was revived by Wizards of the Coast for the fourth edition of D&D, with several new game books published at that time. Since then the setting has largely been retired and has not appeared in any D&D fifth edition materials.
How many Dark Sun books are there?
As of May 2023, there are 16 Dark Sun novels, with the vast majority published in the 1990s. Despite the popularity of the setting, however, the last Dark Sun novel was published in 2011. Unlike the Forgotten Realms books and Dragonlance books, both which continue to be published to this day, new Dark Sun novels are unlikely.
In fact, in February 2023, Dungeons & Dragons Executive Director Kyle Brink noted: “I’ll be frank here, the Dark Sun setting is problematic in a lot of ways. And that’s the main reason we haven’t come back to it. We know it’s got a huge fan following and we have standards today that make it extraordinarily hard to be true to the source material and also meet our ethical and inclusion standards… We know there’s love out there for it and god we would love to make those people happy, and also we gotta be responsible.”
Brink’s response is likely referencing controversial elements in the world, such as slavery, forced breeding, racism, cannibalism and genocide. As such, it seems unlikely that Wizards of the Coast will be publishing any further Dark Sun game materials or novels anytime in the foreseeable future.
Do the Dark Sun books have a reading order?
No. There is no reading order to the Dark Sun novels. That being said, some of the books are part of a larger series. For example, The Prism Pentad and the Tribe of One Trilogy contain books that have to be read in order. Other books, however, such as the Chronicles of Athas, are really standalone works that can be read in any order and don’t require any previous knowledge.
For new readers, we recommend starting with The Prism Pentad as, in addition to being the first published Dark Sun books, it also does a great job of setting up the world and introducing readers to some of the key concepts and lore that make up the world of Athas.
The Dark Sun books in chronological order
Below we’ve broken out the complete list of every Dark Sun novel published to date. For ease of reference, we’ve listed the books and series in chronological order by publication date.
1. The Prism Pentad
Written by Troy Denning, these first five Dark Sun books follow an unlikely group of heroes struggling to free the city state of Tyr from the yoke of the despotic Sorcerer King Kalak and the legendary dragon Borys. These heroes include the Mul gladiator Rikus and his fighting partner Neeva, along with the half-elf slave Sadira and the senator Agis of Asticles. The books are really a sweeping epic that take place over a 10 year period and feature massive battles, political intrigue and social upheaval, making it a solid entry point for new readers and readers who may already have some knowledge of the Dark Sun setting.
1. The Verdant Passage (October 1991)
2. The Crimson Legion (April 1992)
3. The Amber Enchantress (October 1992)
4. The Obsidian Oracle (June 1993)
5. The Cerulean Storm (September 1993)
2. The Tribe of One Trilogy
Written by award-winning fantasy author Simon Hawke, this series of Dark Sun novels follows the adventures of Sorak, a rare “elfling” hybrid who is part elf and part halfing. The story chronicles Sorak’s upbringing and his hunt for the a powerful figure known only as the Sage. He is accompanied on his quest by Tigra (a green, tiger-like creature with psionic abilities) and Ryana, a priestess schooled in the art of combat and telekinesis. Notably the adventures of Sorak also continue in The Broken Blade, which is technically Book 3 in the Chronicles of Athas.
1. The Outcast (November 1993)
2. The Seeker (April 1994)
3. The Nomad (October 1994)
3. Chronicles of Athas
While these five Dark Sun books are all listed as part of the same series, in reality each is a standalone novel that chronicles a different aspect of the world of Athas. The series follows an exiled Templar, two would-be gladiators, a mysterious underground race of mutants, and explores the untold history of one of the dreaded dragon kings. While some of the books do carry over minor plot points, in reality they can really be read in any order and offer a fairly diverse look at some of the most unexplored locations and races of Dark Sun.
1. The Brazen Gambit (July 1994)
2. The Darkness Before the Dawn (February 1995)
3. The Broken Blade (May 1995)
4. Cinnabar Shadows (July 1995)
5. The Rise & Fall of a Dragon King (April 1996)
4. D&D Dark Sun
When Dark Sun was rebooted for the fourth edition of Dungeons & Dragons, publisher Wizards of the Coast also released several new books. While technically part of a series, each of these is essentially a standalone novel. The first novel follows the adventures of a psionic half-elf named Aric. The second novel is set on Athas, but is technically part of the larger Abyssal Plague series, which takes place in the Forgotten Realms and other D&D settings. The third book follows the exploits of a gladiator named Loren and is set in the newly freed city state of Tyr.
1. City Under the Sand (October 2010)
2. Under the Crimson Sun (June 2011)
3. Death Mark (December 2011)
What are the best Dark Sun books?
With over a dozen Dark Sun novels to choose from, it’s hard to know where to start. We recommend starting with either The Prism Pentad or the Tribe of One Trilogy, both are easily some of the best written Dark Sun books and are also incredibly easy for new readers looking to get a better sense of the world.
The Chronicles of Athas and the D&D: Dark Sun series aren’t quite as friendly to new readers, but are still worth picking up for completionists or anyone looking to dig further into some of the lore and history of the Dark sun setting.
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Ollie Delano is a Staff Writer who lives in Chicago, Illinois where he majored in Journalism at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. He’s been playing Dungeons & Dragons for over 10 years and currently plays in a weekly game group where he rolls way too many natural 1s and chugs way too much Mountain Dew. His favorite D&D campaign setting is Eberron and his favorite character to play was a Tiefling rogue named Draxiss who enjoys both literal and figurative backstabbing.
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