Monday, March 19, 2012

CONAN kills a man with a beef joint

CONAN sits at a feast discussing as chief of the Bamulas a raid on a nearby town with King Bajujh of Bakalah. CONAN has agreed with Livia, a woman held captive by Bajujh that he will kill him and free her in exchange for her bedding him.
The Cimmerian was gnawing a great beef-bone, and as she watched, she saw him cast a glance across his shoulder. As if it were a signal for which they had been waiting, the Bamulas all turned their gaze toward their chief. CONAN rose, still smiling, as if to reach into a near-by cooking pot; then quick as a cat he struck Aja a terrible blow with the heavy bone. The Bakalah war-chief slumped over, his skull crushed in, and instantly a frightful yell rent the skies as the Bamulas went into action like blood-mad panthers.
From, "The Vale of Lost Women"
Page 855 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Did you deem yourself strong, because you were able to twist the heads off civilized folk

CONAN fights with Baal-pteor, the huge man who kills the sacrificial victims in the temple. He brags of his prowess and he and CONAN try and strangle each other.
"You fool!" he all but whispered. "I think you never saw a man from the west before. Did you deem yourself strong, because you were able to twist the heads off civilized folk, poor weaklings with muscles like rotten string? Hell! Break the neck of a wild Cimmerian bull before you call yourself strong. I did that, before I was a full-grown man- like this!"
From, "Shadows in Zamboula"
Page 496 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

Introducing... Zabibi/Nafertari

CONAN finds a noble lady Nafertari being kidnapped by a band of cannibals. He rescues her, but she tells him that she is Zabibi, a dancer.
She was white, though very definitely brunette, obviously one of Zamboula's many mixed breeds. She was tall, with a slender, supple form, as he was in a good position to observe. Admiration burned in his fierce eyes as he looked down on her splendid bosom and her lithe limbs, which still quivered from fright and exertion. He passed an arm around her flexible waist and said, "Stop shaking, wench; you're safe enough."
From, "Shadows in Zamboula"
Page 486 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

A young CONAN on his way to steal a jewel.

A young CONAN roams the city streets on his way to raid The Tower of the Elephant after a brawl in a tavern.
The lurid lights and drunken revelry fell away behind the Cimmerian. He had discarded his torn tunic, and walked through the night naked except for a loin-cloth and his high-strapped sandals. He moved with the supple ease of a great tiger, his steely muscles rippling under his brown skin.
From "The Tower of the Elephant"
Page 83. "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"



Artwork displayed with the kind permission of the artist, Loopydave .
Please check out his web page HERE for more of his work.

King CONAN is captured by a sorcerer.

The sorcerer Tsotha approaches King CONAN after a battle.
The black armoured figure loomed in terrible menace over the lean, silk-robed shape, the notched, dripping sword hovering on high.
"I offer you life, CONAN," said Tsotha, a cruel mirth bubbling at the back of his voice.
"I give you death wizard," snarled the king, and backed by the iron muscles and ferocious hate the great sword swung in a stroke meant to shear Tsotha's lean torso in half. But even as the host cried out, the wizard stepped in, too quick for the eye to follow, and apparently merely laid an open hand on CONAN's left forearm, from the rigid muscles of which the mail had been hacked away. The whistling blade veered from its arc and the mailed giant crashed heavily to earth, to lie motionless. Tsotha laughed silently.
"Take him up and fear him not; the lion's fangs are drawn."
From "The Scarlet Citadel"
Page 46. "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

King CONAN, son of blacksmith

King CONAN has been overcome by sorcery and his army defeated. As his enemies approach his tent, his aides urge him to surrender and save his life.
"But your majesty!" cried the squire in great perturbation. "The battle is lost! It were part of majesty to yield with dignity becoming one of royal blood!"
"I have no royal blood," ground CONAN. "I am a barbarian and the son of a blacksmith."
From "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 732. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Artwork displayed with the kind permission of the artist, Memed .
Please check out his web page HERE for more of his work.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Meet CONAN in pirate garb

CONAN has sneaked in to the room where Zarono, Valenso and Strom are arguing. He steps out from behind a wall hanging and reveals himself to them.
The stranger was as tall as either of the freebooters, and more powerfully built than either, yet for all his size he moved with pantherish suppleness in his high, flaring-topped boots. His thighs were cased in close-fitting breeches of white silk, his wide-skirted sky-blue coat open to reveal an open-necked white silken shirt beneath, and the scarlet sash that girdled his waist. There were silver acorn-shaped buttons on the coat, and it was adorned with gilt-worked cuffs and pocket flaps, and a satin collar. A lacquered hat completed a costume obsolete by nearly a hundred years. A heavy cutlass hung at the wearer's hip.
From "The Black Stranger"
Page 786. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Archery... Not a manly pursuit.

As CONAN stand on the deck of the Argus, Belit and her ship are getting nearer. Arrows start to rain around him as the pirate ship closes in.
"Give me a bow," requested CONAN. "It's not my idea of a manly weapon, but I learned archery among the Hyrkanians, and it will go hard if I can't feather a man or so on yonder deck."
From "Queen of the Black Coast"
Page 240. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

On a black jade altar lay Yasmela

The army of Thugra Khotan has been defeated and has fled the battlefield taking Princess Yasmela with his. CONAN finds them both in an ancient ruin.
On a black jade altar lay Yasmela, her naked body gleaming like ivory in the weird light. Her garments lay strewn on the floor, as if ripped from her in brutal haste.
From "Black Colossus"
Page 132. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

I've found a few examples of pale women of dark altars... they were probably all "supple" as well, a few more to follow.

CONAN is more careful with the lives of others than his own.

CONAN while commanding an army, refuses to follow a host of headstrong knights on what he deems a reckless charge. Amalric asks him why he showed such restraint.
"You grow sober with authority," quoth Amalric. "Such madness as that was always your particular joy."
"Aye, when I had only my own life to consider," answered CONAN.
From "Black Colossus"
Page 126. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

King CONAN feels responsible for his subjects

King CONAN has been defeated and captured by a mix of sorcery and treachery, yet he refuses to sell out his people for the chance of his own survival.
He would not sell his subjects to the butcher. And yet it had been with no thought of any one's gain but his own that he had seized the kingdom originally. Thus subtly does the instinct of sovereign responsibility enter even a red-handed plunderer sometimes.
From "The Scarlet Citadel"
Page 53. "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

Monday, March 12, 2012

Some are born with the spirit of the storm in their blood

After returning from crucifixion to save the queen from her evil witch/twin sister, CONAN is offered a position as a councilor as well as captain of the royal guard, but he refuses to continue his adventures plundering  as the chief or the Zuagirs.
But not all men seek rest and peace; some are born with the spirit of the storm in their blood, restless harbingers of violence and bloodshed, knowing no other path...
From "A Witch Shall Be Born"
Page 391. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

 Artwork displayed with the kind permission of the artist, Liam Sharp .
Please check out his web page HERE for more of his work.

CONAN has little time for subtlety

Despite long exposure to the ways of civilized men, CONAN's instincts are for direct action, as we see here when he hears a strange sound while exploring an ancient temple.
CONAN was basically a direct-actionist. Such subtlety as he possessed had been acquired through contact with more devious races. When taken off guard by some unexpected occurrence, he reverted instinctively to type. So now instead of hiding or slipping away in the opposite direction as the average man might have done, he ran straight down the corridor in the direction of the sound.
From "Jewels of Gwahlur"
Page 403. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

CONAN says you should always wear protection

Iconic as a loin-cloth clad CONAN might be, he does spend a lot of time wearing armour because of the obvious benefits. After an ambush by Picts that kills all his men, CONAN is asked how he survived.
"How did you get away?" He asked presently.
CONAN tapped his mail shirt and helmet.
"If more borderers would wear harness there'd be fewer skulls hanging on the altar-huts."
From "Beyond the Black River"
Page 458. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

King CONAN chooses his queen

After being defeated by his enemies who were aided by the sorcery of Xaltotun, CONAN regains his throne after a battle. CONAN dos not forget the help given to him by Zenobia, a slave girl in the Seraglio of Tarascus, so when Tarascus, one of those who had conspired against CONAN asks what the ransom for his life will be, CONAN does not forget that Zenobia risked her life to save his,
Tarascus spoke.
"You have not yet named my ransom."
CONAN laughed and slapped his sword home in its scabbard. He flexed his mighty arms, and ran his blood-stained fingers through his thick black locks, as if feeling there his re-won crown.
"There is a girl in your seraglio named Zenobia."
"Why, yes, so there is."
"Very well." The king smiled as at an exceedingly pleasant memory. "She shall be your ransom, and naught else. I will come to Belverus for her as I promised. She was a slave in Nemidia, but I will make her queen of Aquilonia"
From "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 732. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Justice and equality of sorts in the Hyborean age

A young CONAN is accused of killing a wealthy man. One of his accusers explains the law to him.
"Remember the law, my black-haired savage- you go to the mines for killing a commoner, you hang for killing a tradesman, and for killing a rich man, you burn!"
From "The God in the Bowl"
Page 745. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Meet CONAN as he is pursued by a band of Picts

We meet a wounded CONAN as he is pursued by a band of Picts.
For all his massive, muscular build he moved with the supple certitude of a panther. He was naked except for a rage twisted about his loins, and his limbs were criss-crossed with scratches from briars and caked with dried mud. A brown-crusted bandage was knotted about his thickly-muscular left arm. Under his matted black mane his face was drawn and gaunt, and his eyes burned like the eyes of a wounded panther. He limped slightly as he followed the dim path that led across the open space.
From "The Black Stranger"
Page 751. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Meet CONAN the young thief

Arus the night watchman finds the the strangled body of the emporium's owner on the floor, then sees a young CONAN standing further down the corridor.
Arus saw a tall powerfully built youth, naked but for a loin-cloth, and sandals strapped high about his ankles. His skin was burned brown as by the suns of the wastelands, and Arus glanced nervously at the broad shoulders, massive chest and heavy arms. A single look at the moody, broad-browed features told the watchman that the man was no Nemedian. From under a mop of unruly black hair smoldered a pair of dangerous blue eyes. A long sword hung in a leather scabbard at his girdle.
From "The God in the Bowl"
Page 734. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Introducing... Zenobia

Zenobia is a slave girl who helps a captured King CONAN escape from her masters dungeon. We first meet her as she appears at the bars of his cell.
It was a girl who stood grasping the bars with her slender fingers. The dim glow behind her outlined her supple figure through the wisp of silk twisted about her loins, and shone vaguely on jewelled breast-plates. Her dark eyes gleamed in the shadows, her white limbs glistened softly, like alabaster. Her hair was a mass of dark foam, at the burnished luster of which the dim light hinted.
From "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 604. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

You can tell a lot about a girl by the kind of knife she gives you!

After escaping from Xaltotun's dungeon with aid of Zenobia, a girl from the kings seraglio, CONAN stops to admire the knife she left for him to help him escape.
He inspected the weapon the girl had given him, and smiled grimly. Whatever else she might be, she was proven by that dagger to be a person of practical intelligence. It was no slender stiletto, selected because of a jeweled hilt or gold guard, fitted only for dainty murder in milady's boudoir; it was a forthright poniard, a warrior's weapon, broad-bladed, fifteen inches in length, tapering to a diamond-sharp point.
From "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 606. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

 Artwork displayed with the kind permission of the artist, Loopydave .
Please check out his web page HERE for more of his work.

Meet King CONAN as viewed in a magic mirror

Xaltotun is brought back from the dead after 3,000 years to help CONAN's enemies defeat him. As they discuss there plans they bring up an image of King CONAN in a mirror.
It floated hazily, then leaped into startling clarity- a tall man, mightily shouldered and deep of chest, with a massive corded neck and heavily muscled limbs. He was clad in silk and velvet, with the royal lions of Aquilonia worked in gold upon his rich jupon, and the crown of Aquilonia shone on his square-cut black mane; but the great sword at his side seemed more natural to him than the regal accouterments. His brow was low and broad, his eyes a volcanic blue that smoldered as if with some inner fire. His dark scarred, almost sinister face was that of a fighting-man and his velvet garments could not conceal the hard, dangerous lines of his limbs.
From "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 581-2. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Naked girls and altars...

After the near extinction of the two peoples battling within the ancient city of Xuchotl, Valeria is taken prisoner by an evil witch who wants to sacrifice her and drain her vitality to sustain her own youth.
On the altar lay Valeria, stark naked, her white flesh gleaming in shocking contrast to the glistening ebon stone. She was not bound. She lay at full length, her arms stretched out above her head to their fullest extent. At the head of the altar knelt a young man, holding her wrists firmly. A young woman knelt at the other end of the altar, grasping her ankles. Between them she could neither rise nor move.
From "Red Nails"
Page 569. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

CONAN and his subtle ways to let a lady know he is interested...

After catching up with the Valeria, she enquires as to why he has bothered.
He grinned hardly, and his fierce blue eyes burned with a light any woman could understand as they ran over her magnificent figure, lingering on the swell of her splendid breasts beneath the light shirt, and clear white flesh displayed between breaches and boot tops.
"Don't you know?" he laughed. "Haven't I made my admiration for you plain ever since I first saw you?"
"A stallion could have made it no plainer," she answered disdainfully.
From "Red Nails"
Page 508. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

CONAN catches up with Valeria

CONAN follows Valeria after she flees the army they were fighting with together. When he catches up to her, she wheels around startled at his approach.
He was almost a giant in stature, muscles rippling smoothly under his skin which the sun had burned brown. His garb was similar to hers, except that he wore a broad leather belt instead of a girdle. Broadsword and poniard hung from his belt.
From "Red Nails"
Page 505. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Introducing... Valeria

We meet Valeria of The Red Brotherhood, lost in a forest after she has fled from an army she was fighting with after a disagreement.
The woman shivered with a twitch of her magnificent shoulders, and then cursed.
She was tall, full-bosomed and large-limbed, with compact shoulders. Her whole figure reflected an unusual strength, without detracting from the femininity of her appearance. She was all woman, in spite of her bearing and her garments. The latter were incongruous, a view of her present environs. Instead of a skirt she wore short, wide-legged silk breeches, which ceased a hand's breadth short of her knees, and were upheld by a silken sash work as a girdle. Flaring-topped boots of soft leather came almost to her knees, and a low-necked, wide-collared, wide-sleeved silk shirt completed her costume. On one shapely hip she wore a straight double-edged sword, and on the other a long dirk. Her unruly golden hair , cut square at her shoulders, was confined by a band of crimson satin.
From "Red Nails"
Page 505. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Meet CONAN as he saves a stranger from a Pict archer

A young man meets CONAN after he has killed an archer laying in wait to ambush him.
The stranger was clad like himself in regards to boots and breeks, though the latter were of silk instead of leather. But he wore a sleeveless hauberk of dark mesh-mail in place of a tunic, and a helmet perched on his black mane. That helmet held the others gaze; it was without crest, but adorned with by short bull's horns. No civilized hand ever forged that head-piece. Nor was the face below it that of a civilized man: dark, scarred, with smouldering blue eyes, it was a face untamed as the primordial forest which formed its background. The man held a broadsword in his right hand, and the edge was smeared with crimson.
"Come out," he called, in an accent unfamiliar to the wayfarer. "All's safe now. There was only one of the dogs. Come out."
The other emerged dubiously and stared at the stranger. He felt curiously helpless and futile as he gazed on the proportions of the forest man- the massive iron-clad breast, the arm that bore the reddened sword, burned dark by the sun and ridged and corded with muscles. He moved with the dangerous ease of a panther; he was too fiercely supple to be a product of civilization, even of that fringe of civilization that composed the outer frontiers.
From "Beyond the Black River"
Page 432. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Meet CONAN as he climbs up a cliff.

CONAN is trying to discover the whereabouts of an ancient treasure. We are introduced to him as he is scaling a cliff face.
He came of a race of hillmen, accustomed to scaling forbidding crags, and he was a man of unusual strength and agility. His only garment was a pair of red silk breeks, and his sandals were slung to his back, out of the way as were his sword and dagger.
The man was powerfully built and supple as a panther. His skin was bronzed by the sun, his square-cut black mane confined by a silver band about his temples. His iron muscles, quick eyes and sure feet served him well here, for it was a climb to test these qualities to the utmost.

From, "Jewels of Gwahlur"
Page 393 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

Artwork displayed with the kind permission of the artist, Daniel Scott Gabriel Murray .
Please check out his web page HERE for more of his work.

CONAN: "a picturesque figure..."

We meet CONAN, leader of teh kozaks as he approaches an island where he believes the beautiful Octavia has escaped from her master and is in need of rescue.
The man in the boat was a picturesque figure. A crimson scarf was knotted about his head; his wide silk breeches, of flaming hue, were upheld by a broad sash which likewise supported a scimitar in a shagreen scabbard. His gilt-worked boots suggested a horseman rather than a seaman, but he handled the boat with skill. Through his widely open white silk shirt showed his broad muscular breast.
The muscles of his heavy bronzed arms rippled as he pulled the oars with an almost feline ease of motion. A fierce vitality that was evident in each feature and motion set him apart from common men; yet his expression was neither savage nor somber, though the smoldering blue eyes hinted at ferocity easily wakened. This was CONAN, who had wandered into the armed camps of the kozaks with no other possession than his wits and his sword, and who had carved his way to leadership among them.
From "The Devil in Iron"
Page 269-70. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

CONAN the young but well travelled

CONAN's clothing shows off the extent of his travels:
His horned helmet was such as worn by the golden-haired Aesir of Nordheim; his hauberk and greaves were of the finest workmanship of Koth; the fine ring mail which sheathed his arms and legs was of Nemidia; the blade at his girdle was a great Aquilonian broadsword; and his gorgeous scarlet cloak could have been spun nowhere but Ophir.
From "Queen of the Black Coast"
Page 239. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Meet CONAN as he runs for a ship

We meet CONAN as he boards a ship to escape his pursuers, and the captain looks him over.
He saw a tall powerfully built figure in a black scale-mail hauberk, burnished greaves and a blue-steel helmet from which jutted bull's horns highly polished. From the mailed shoulders fell a scarlet cloak, blowing in the sea-wind. A broad shagreen belt with a golden buckle held the scabbard of the broad sword he bore. Under the horned helmet a square-cut black mane contrasted with smouldering blue eyes.
From "Queen of the Black Coast"
Page 237. The Complete Chronicles of CONAN.

Thursday, March 8, 2012

CONAN would never use a snooze button

While sleeping in a notorious guest house, CONAN's room is invaded by a cannibal looking to kill and eat him.
It was the stealthy opening of a door which awakened the Cimmerian. He did not awake as civilised men do, drowsy and drugged and stupid. He awoke instantly, with a clear mind, recognising the sound that had interrupted his sleep.

From, "Shadows in Zamboula"
Page 483 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

King CONAN stands for religious freedom

After being defeated by the army of an evil sorcerer, King CONAN is aided by the secretive followers of the cult of Asura. Whom he refused to persecute while he was king.
CONAN had been told dark tales of hidden where intense smoke drifted up incessantly from black altars were kidnapped humans were sacrificed before a great coiled serpent, whose fearsome head swayed for ever in the haunted shadows.
Persecution caused the followers of Asura to hide their temples with cunning art, and to veil their rituals in obscurity; and this secrecy, in turn, evoked more monstrous suspicion and tales of evil.
But CONAN's was  the broad tolerance of the barbarian, and he had refused to persecute the followers of Asura or to allow the people to do so on no better evidence than was presented against them, rumours and accusations that could not be proven. "If they are black magicians," he had said, "how will they suffer you to harry them? If they are not, there is no evil in them. Crom's devils! Let men worship what gods they will."
From, "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 643-4 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"

His name is CONAN and no man can stand before him in battle

King CONAN has a fearful reputation amongst his enemies,
Their present king is the most renowned warrior among the western nations. He is an outlander, an adventurer who sized the crown by force during a time of civil strife, strangling King Namedies with his own hands, upon the very throne. His name is CONAN, and no man can stand before him in battle.
From, "The Hour of the Dragon"
Page 581 "The Complete Chronicles of CONAN"