Who is roland deschain

While there, he comes into the possession of a pink crystal ball, one of 13 magical artifacts referred to as "Maerlyn's Rainbow. Roland is a 30th-generation descendant of his world's version of King Arthur , referred to in the series as Arthur Eld. In " Wizard and Glass ", during a flashback to Roland's time in the Barony of Mejis, a letter from his father identifies Steven Deschain as a 29th-generation descendant of Arthur Eld from a side lineage that is to say, from one of Arthur's many "gillies," or concubines.

Even his guns were originally made of the melted-down metal from the legendary Excalibur sword. It is hinted that one must possess this sword, or another sign of the Eld the line of Arthur Eld in order to open the door at the foot of the Tower.

According to a supplemental prose story by Robin Furth included in "" issue 2, Roland's ancestry traces back to Arthur's seneschal , Kay Deschain , while the Crimson King's ancestry traces back to an affair between Arthur and the Crimson Queen. Quest for the Dark Tower Roland is alone at the beginning of the series, following the way of " ka ", a variant of destiny that is similar in concept to other karmic ideologies. The term "ka-tet" is used for a group of people who are deeply bonded to one another through ka.

The seven-book series is about Roland's acquisition of a new ka-tet and the completion of his quest. Roland is the last surviving gunslinger and is possessed or, as he describes it himself, "addicted" by a quest to reach The Dark Tower, the axis upon which infinite numbers of parallel worlds rotate. Eddie Dean , an ex- heroin addict and member of Roland's ka-tet, calls Roland a "Tower junkie. In the first novel, " The Gunslinger ", Roland's original desire is simply to climb to the Dark Tower's top to question whatever god dwells there, but ka has greater plans for him.

The ka-tet he acquires during the series bears many resemblances to his childhood ka-tet, who were all killed trying to help Roland on his quest. How he treats his new ka-tet when faced with decisions between their lives and his quest is a key component of the novels.

Ultimately, his ka-tet represents a chance for redemption and a means by which he can ultimately change his own ka. At the end of the seventh novel, it is revealed that he is trapped in a repetitive reincarnation, his "damnation" for his crimes and killings. When Roland's mother returned from her exile, all seemed well. However, nobody knew that Marten had instructed Roland's mother to steal the Grapfruit back, and that Marten had convinced her to kill her own husband.

She was given a knife by Farson's spy, to be used as the murder weapon. She however pretended that everything was alright, even danced with her husband, during the party.

She excused herself after some time and walked up to the chamber of her husband in order to try and find the Grapefruit. Roland saw his mother walk away, and soon found her behavior very strange. He tried following her but lost her track. In the meantime, the Farson's spy thought that nobody noticed him and that he could set of a murder weapon through a riddle text. However, Cort , the weapon master and trainer of Gunslingers, was on to the foul man and killed him before he could bring harm to Gilead.

Looking for his mother, Roland entered the chamber of his father and mother, deserted, and the Grapefruit missing. He found the Grapefruit in his mother's quarters, lying on it's bed.

He came into contact with the Grapefruit once more, bringing him again back to the reality of the Crimson King. He saw Rhea of the Coos slipping in silently into the castle, making her way towards him. There Rhea charged at him, seemingly looking for the kill. Roland didn't think twice, grabbed his guns and shot Rhea. However, not soon after Roland's visions faded away and he was back in the Castle chamber of his parents.

There he saw someone standing in front of him, blood everywhere, but it was not Rhea. It was Roland's own mother. She fell down to the ground, ending her life with the sentence "Roland, I love thee". His father Steven was force to put Roland in a cell and conduct a investigation. However the Campaign against Farson the Good Man had already taken a turn for the worst. Surrounded by traitors who were leading Gilead's remaining Gunslingers into ambushes or assassinations.

However Steven was able to kill his attacker and leave Roland a map of the ancient built in defenses of the castle which Roland found after he was released due to the present circumstances. With his father dead, Roland was made Dihn of Gilead and led what was left in the defense of the Castle.

Even though he made a dent against the vast army of Farson, Roland was force to retreat into the catacombs due to the superior firepower Farson brought with him. With all of Gilead either dead or burning, Roland made a pact with his few surviving friends to make things right again.

After the Fall of Gilead, Roland and his small team were nearly destroyed by the resulting Beam Quake. The Beam Quake sent Sheemie a psychic vision with the remaining Beams in human form showing him their dead brother due to the fall of Gilead. Upon learning this Roland realizes there was more at stake than Gilead itself or the World. The very Multiverse was in peril. Roland resolves to kill Farson and find The Dark Tower. At the height of his campaign disaster struck again.

Roland finds out about the traitor too late from Alain, who Roland and Cuthbert accidentally shoot during a small skirmish close to the camp. Alain who was ambushed early before, revealed the traitor and plans of the immediate attack on the encampment.

Farson had already sent Marten and General Griswold to end Roland once and for all. Griswold leads the army directly in front entrapping Roland and the Gunslingers. The Gunslingers are outnumbered a to 1 against an army of crossbows, assault rifles, and poison blow dart wielding fanatics.

Cuthbert being the last to die was shot through the eye by Marten with a crossbow arrow. Roland looses control and is in turn shot and knocked unconscious. Roland would live however and climb from the pile of dead. Bleeding and wounded he decides the only way to set things right is to take control of the Dark Tower and make things right.

He leaves behind the Horn of Gilead with his dead friend here as well which would play a key point in his reaching the Tower. After emerging alive from the bodies Roland discovers another of his Ka-tet still lives. Aileen is dying and wishes Roland to bury her with her Uncle Cort back in the ruins of Gilead. Roland travels back to Gilead.

During his travel befriends a Billy Bumbler whose master had been murdered during the fight for Gilead. After reaching Gilead and laying Aileen to rest Roland begins to scavenge what he could. He was then visited by the Ghost of Hax the Cook.

After a flashback of past events with the cook Roland and his Billy Bumbler friend continue on. Girls are kidnapped at night and go missing. One girl name Susan who Roland was staying the night with was kidnap in front of him. He tracks her down to the Not Men hideout and proceeds to free the girls and kill all in his way. Susan was missing from the rest as she ran outside during the commotion.

Roland runs after her to save her. The Not Man chasing her in the woods and catches Susan. When he tries to harm her the Billy Bumbler attacks him and buys her the time needed for Roland and the now armed women to catch up and kill him, but not before the Billy Bumbler is impaled on a tree. Roland comforts the loyal creature till it dies. After Roland's adventure against the Not-Men, he entered a town called Eluria.

There he was first attacked and nearly killed by mutated people known as the Green Men, but was 'rescued' by a group of seeming gentle nuns called the Little Sister of Eluria , let by head Sister, Sister Mary.

They seemingly nurtured him back to health, but thanks to John Norman , a cowboy who had suffered a similar fate, he soon learned that they intended to feed on him as soon as he was recovered.

Luckily for Roland, he had picked up a Cross of "the man named Jesus" of course referring to Jesus Christ witch he found in the town of Eluria before he was attacked. He had putt it around his neck for good luck, but it also managed to keep the Sisters from coming to close to him whenever the sing of Jesus was visible. However, plans where made to make sure the Sisters could feet off of Roland.

He was kept week by poison in his food and could not move at all. The situation seemed hopeless until one of the Sisters, Sister Jenna turned out to still be a good person. She had only joined the Sister years later, and at first did not know of their evil nature. Sister Jenna was turned into a vampire-like creature ass well, but remained pure at heart and managed to help Roland get better through weeds witch nullified the effects of the poison.

She even told him that she wanted to help him escape. Roland's friend John was however killed by the Sisters not long before Roland managed to escape. Sister Jenna knew that time was of the essence and helped Roland escape, killing 1 of her Sisters in the process.

She told Roland that she was in love with him and wanted to finally leave this evil place, knowing full well the consequences. A proof of Sister Jenna's pure soul was seen that, even though she had become a vampire-like creature, she could withstand holding the Jesus Cross for some time.

Making their escape, Sister Jenna and Roland met the other 3 sister witch they managed to get away from, but Sister Mary was hot on their tail. Sister Mary found the two and was ready for the kill when suddenly a dog, wearing the Same Jesus Cross turned up and bit of Sister Mary's head. After that Roland and Sister Jenna fled as far as they could. They rested on a hilltop, where Jenna asked Roland to kiss her. Not only Roland of Gilead and his ka-tet have to protect the Calla-folken from the Wolves, but they must also protect a single red rose that grows in a vacant lot on Second Avenue and Forty-Sixth Street in mid-town Manhattan of If it is destroyed, then the Tower which is currently in rose form will fall.

For more information about the events in Song of Susannah see Song of Susannah. Song of Susannah begins with Roland, Eddie, and Jake wondering how they are going to find Susannah after her escape through Doorway Cave.

Fortunately, Roland knows that the Manni know how to use the remnants of magic to re-open the door. The plan is for Henchick and the Manni to open the door twice. Roland and Eddie would go through first to rescue Susannah, while Jake and Father Callahan would go through next to convince Calvin Tower to sell the vacant lot with the rose in it.

It does not go according to the plan, though; the groups get sucked through in opposite order. Roland and Eddie are then tasked with buying the lot from Calvin. Back in , Roland and Eddie are dropped in the middle of an ambush set up by Jack Andolini.

They meet John Cullum who helps Roland and Eddie escape the ambush. After they leave the store, Cullum takes them back to his house where he tells them of Stephen King , Turtleback Lane , and the " walk-ins ". He lends them his old Ford Galaxie and is told to head to Vermont. Roland and Eddie eventually convince Calvin to sell the land.

They then search for Stephen King after finding his book Salem's Lot , which told the story of Callahan's life. Once they find King, Roland convinces him to continue writing the Dark Tower Series , as the ka-tet believes that their journey depends on King's writing.

The book begins with the ka-tet separated in both time and space. Roland and Eddie are in Maine after convincing Calvin Tower to sell the vacant lot. The tet is reunited in Fedic.

They find their way to a door that will take them to Algul Siento with the help of Nigel the robot. Nigel, though, has also been helping Mordred find food and to spy on them. Roland's ka-tet comes to Algul Siento in order to set the Breakers free and protect the Beams. They are met by a group of Breakers friendly to their cause including Sheemie , Roland's old friend from Mejis. Roland quickly establishes a plan. On the day of the attack, they wreak havoc by lighting several buildings on fire and by approaching the town from different directions in order to create the illusion of many people attacking at once.

The battle goes in favor of the tet until the very end, when Pimli Prentiss is able to mortally wound Eddie. Eddie's last words are a warning about a being named Dandelo. The pair recruits the services of Irene Tassenbaum to drive them to the scene of the accident. Jake gives up his life to save King's.

Roland buries him along the side of the road and Tassenbaum says that she will return and plant a rose on his grave. In their absence, the company has flourished. Roland comes back to Fedic where Susannah is waiting for him. They take a passage under the castle and the mountains, but they are pursued by a todash monster. They manage to fend it off by lighting bones using the Sterno that Susannah had found and that Roland had mocked. When they come out of the tunnel, they find themselves on the Badlands.

Their trek becomes very uncomfortable as their clothes are ill-suited to the cold weather. Thoughtful tells of the Crimson King's last days in his castle. After ordering his servants to commit suicide in front of him and smashing the Wizard's Rainbow , he commits a violent suicide using a spoon and continues towards the Tower as an Undead creature.

After leaving the castle, Roland and Susannah hear a scream in the distance. It was the sound of Mordred Deschain eating Thoughtful. What's left of the tet comes to the White Lands of Empathica.

There, they meet an older man in a pleasant dwelling who calls himself Joe Collins. He nearly kills Roland Deschain, Susannah Dean, and Oy while feeding on their laughing response to his comedy stylings. They are saved when Susannah accidentally swats the sore on her mouth and has to go to the bathroom to stop the bleeding. In Collins' medicine cabinet, she finds a note from Stephen King that reveals the fact that Collins is the person that Eddie had warned of, Dandelo.

When Susannah comes out of the bathroom, she shoots Dandelo and discovers a secret room where Dandelo had held Patrick Danville captive for many years. Despite the offer from Stuttering Bill to take them to the Dark Tower on a powered sled, Roland decides to continue on foot. Susannah, who has been haunted by dreams of Eddie and Jake, decides to try and leave Mid-World and find them.

She recruits Danville to draw her a door to leave. She shares a tear-soaked goodbye with Roland before going through the door.

Mordred Deschain attacks Roland's camp the last night before Roland would reach the Tower. With the help of Oy, Roland wakes up in time to save himself and kill Mordred. Unfortunately, he was not in time to save Oy's life.

Oy's haunting last word is "Olan. It is the scene of the final battle between Roland Deschain and the Crimson King. The King is locked outside the tower on a balcony and can only throw Sneetches at Roland while waiting for him to be drawn to the Tower. Roland's secret weapon is Patrick Danville, who draws a picture of the King and uses a combination of dye from rose petals and Roland's blood to color the King's eyes.

After the picture was complete, Danville is able to erase everything except the eyes, which in turn erases the King's body in real life, and Roland is able to enter the Tower safely. In the coda, we see Roland climbing the Tower at long last.

The rooms in the Tower all depict scenes from Roland's life and each has a distinctive smell. When Roland reaches the top room and looks through the door, he sees the Mohaine Desert , the place where his journey began in the first book. He is sucked through, his memories fade, and his quest begins anew. This time, however, Roland finds himself equipped with the Horn of Eld , the one he had lost before. This appears to be a hint that things may yet change and that Roland may eventually find redemption.

The book ends the way The Gunslinger began, with the line, "The man in black fled across the desert and the gunslinger followed. The Dark Tower Wiki Explore. The Series. The Universe. Animals Factions Dialects Events. Stan Richards. Explore Wikis Community Central.

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