The Maelstrom’s Eye (Spelljammer Book, Cloakmaster Cycle, No. 3)
The Maelstrom’s Eye (Spelljammer Book, Cloakmaster Cycle, No. 3)
Teldin Moore’s quest for the truth about his mysterious cloak leads him on a search for a fal, a genius slug, but his odyssey traps him between Scro forces and an evil behemoth as he draws ever nearer the secret of the great ship Spelljammer. Original.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Reunions…
These are the ONLY novels written before TSR cancelled the Spelljammer AD&D campaign:
In this, the third novel of a 6-part series, the main character (Teldin Moore, a native of Krynn, the Dragonlance world) meets with the Elven Imperial Navy to get help in determining the properties of his mysterious cloak, which is said to have ties to the Spelljammer ship itself.
As the story develops, he is emroiled in a conflict with the elves and the Scro, an intelligent orc race, who both want to obtain his cloak (as does an undead neogi). Along the way, he is reunited with a character from the first book (a hippo-man named Gomja) and is joined by a native of his homeworld, a female half-kender (as he would say, “Great Paladine!”).
Well-written and in-depth, this continues the series of novels about the Cloakmaster. Each novel is written by a different TSR-native author. The story, so far, has meshed well and each author well-defines the broad scope of the unique Spelljammer setting.
This entire series must-buy for a fantasy fiction lover tired of the traditional “Earth-style pseudo-medievil world-walker” campaigns.
4 Stars Delightful! The best installment in the series!
I warmly remember The Maelstrom’s Eye as one of the best TSR-novels I read as a teen. Roger Moore gave his debut as a novelist, displaying a quite surprising talent for writing, given that he was primarily a game designer. He managed to elevate the up to then solid but not captivating Cloak Master Cycle to new heights, delivering a story as complex as it was intriguing. Elaine Cunningham came close to matching him in this, but after that, the series sadly dropped off. Don’t miss the appearance of the dreaded space hamsters!
5 Stars The Cloak of the First Pilot
Maelstrom’s Eye is the third book in the Cloakmaster Cycle series, which consists of six (6) books in total. Picking up from where Into the Void left off, the book continues to shed light on Teldin Moore and his ongoing quest to find out more about the magical cloak he carries a.k.a. “The Cloak of the First Pilot” and eventually be free of it.
The book does not waste time, instead it rushes to answer some of the questions that have been left lingering/unanswered from the first two books e.g. the changing of the cloak’s colors, the ability to comprehend languages, the Reigar race to which the fallen she-captain from Beyond the Moons belonged and more…
This time round, Teldin has changed both physically and mentally; less trusting, longer hair, mustache etc
Ability-wise, he is maturing, becoming more and more experienced and able as a fighter as well as in learning the secrets of the cloak and thus better able at controlling and handling its immense power. He is able to cast Haste, Magic Missiles, and set up protective magical barriers among others.
The book opens with a bang, immediately catching the reader’s interest and attention.
The amazing tour of the exotic Rock of Bral and the graphic way that Vorr dispatches the goodly party leave the reader enthralled! The book immediately becomes captivating, to the point that it cannot be easily put down.
The graphic slaughter of noble heroes is surely to get one’s attention and develop hateful feelings towards the perpetrators.
The plot as a whole is excellent! The book is so incredibly well written that the reader feels that they have been transported to another plane of existence and are actually present among the characters, seeing what they see, feeling what they feel, sensing what they sense. Moreover, Roger Moore does a great job of presenting the distinct culture and civilization of the space faring peoples, especially the elves, the gnomes, and the scro. He has done a great deal of research in order to provide such an accurate and lucid description of these people.
Neogi, umber hulks, elves, gnomes, space battles, intrigue, betrayal, and swordfights are all about.
In addition, there are some new and interesting races/creatures like the Fal and the scro (space goblinoids) that really do spice up things.
Furthermore, there is a strong sense of Star Wars and Star Trek with the motley collection of aliens that one encounters in Wildspace and on the Rock of Bral in particular, though a map of the Rock would be extremely helpful.
Finally, it is truly wonderful to be provided with so much more information regarding the Spelljamming world.
On the negative side, there is still the question from the first book that is left unanswered as to why Teldin seemed as being a draconian to the draconians while at the SAME TIME as himself to his human companions (there must be some kind of magic from the School of Illusion at work that has not been explained). Hopefully this will be dealt with in one of the other books further down the line.
Secondly, a “charmed” Teldin could convince Aelfred to mutiny against his captain (Estriss) with little, almost no difficulty after 3 and a half years (!!!) service aboard the Probe, but he could not get him not to hire Gaye, the half-kender girl, whom he’d never met before as a new crew member! Hmm…
Thirdly, the gypsy-like half-kender is really not that great nor that interesting as a character and unless she has some kind of higher mission in the next book (s) there isn’t really a good enough reason to have her included in the first place. As for the “relationship” that seems to be in the making…
Fourthly, the main villain, a scro general, is really too strong/powerful to the point that I don’t really know if Teldin and company were up to the task of defeating him. (Gods DO NOT have 100% Magic resistance!) He wiped out a party made up of elves, dwarves and humans including priests, fighters, cavaliers and wizards without as much as breaking a sweat!
Finally, as to WHO and HOW succeeds in killing Vorr, the characterization “far fetched” is an understatement, if I ever saw one! (Unless again there is more than meets the eye that will be revealed down the line.)
Roger Moore does a FANTASTIC job of conveying the sheer power and evil of the Scro, especially after reading: “He buried bones that were burned, bones that were broken, bones that were gnawed upon.”
In conclusion, my question is why did Roger Moore not write any more books along the lines of Maelstrom’s Eye?
5 Stars A worthy addition to the series
Arriving at the Rock of Bral, Teldin Moore is hoping to find help from the Elven Imperial Navy. But, all they can do is send him on, looking for information on his magical cloak and the legendary ship, the Spelljammer. But, the cloak is a most potent object, and there are many people who want it, and are willing to kill anyone who gets between them and the cloak. Can Taldin Moore stay alive long enough to complete his quest? And, just who can he trust, if anyone?
This is the third book in the Cloakmaster Cycle (after Beyond The Moons and Into the Void), the books that laid the groundwork for AD&D’s most fascinating campaign - Spelljammer. This third book is really exciting, with lots of great action and adventure. I found the characters and creatures of the book to be very interesting, giving the story a lot of suspense and horror.
So, let me just say that this is a great book, and a worthy addition to the series. You say you can’t imagine how anyone can combine space travel with swords and sorcery? Well, just read this book and find out. I highly recommend it!
4 Stars Maelstrom’s Eye
Compared to any of the other books situated in the Dungeons and Dragons universes, I have enjoyed the Spelljammer stories quite thoroughly. I recommend this book highly to anyone that likes Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Darksun, Greyhawk, or Planescape.
Filed under: Spelljammer Reviews
