Sword and sorcery (S&S) or heroic fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent adventures. Elements of romance, magic, and the supernatural are also often present. Unlike works of high fantasy, the tales, though dramatic, focus on personal battles rather than world-endangering matters. Sword and sorcery commonly overlaps with heroic fantasy. The genre originated from the early-1930s works of Robert E. Howard. The term "sword and sorcery" was coined by Fritz Leiber In the May 1961 issue of the fantasy fanzine Amra, to describe Howard and the stories that were influenced by his works. In parallel with "sword and sorcery", the term "heroic fantasy" is used, although it is a more loosely defined genre.
Bal-Sagoth are a symphonic black metal band from Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, formed in 1993.
Wild Cards is a series of science fiction superhero shared universe anthologies, mosaic novels, and solo novels. They are written by a collection of more than forty authors and are edited by George R. R. Martin and Melinda M. Snodgrass. Set largely during an alternate history of post-World War II United States, the series follows humans who contracted the Wild Card virus, an alien virus that rewrites DNA and mutates survivors. Those who acquire crippling and/or repulsive physical conditions are known as Jokers, while those who acquire superhuman abilities are known as Aces, and those few who acquire minor, insignificant powers not worthy of being called aces are known as Deuces.
Flashing Swords! is a series of fantasy anthologies published by Dell Books from 1973 to 1981 under the editorship of Lin Carter, and revived under the editorship of Robert M. Price in 2020. It originally showcased the heroic fantasy work of the members of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America (SAGA), a somewhat informal literary group active from the 1960s to the 1980s, of which Carter was the guiding force. Most of the important sword and sorcery writers at the time of the group’s founding were members; later, membership was extended to other fantasy authors.
Atlantis Ascendant is the fifth studio album by English metal band Bal-Sagoth. It was released in April 2001 through Nuclear Blast. This was the first Bal-Sagoth album to be recorded with digital recording technology.
The Power Cosmic is Bal-Sagoth's fourth album, released in 1999. The album was Bal-Sagoth's first recording for Nuclear Blast.
Starfire Burning Upon the Ice-Veiled Throne of Ultima Thule is Bal-Sagoth's second full-length album, released in November 1996 through Cacophonous Records. As with the first album, the band only had around two weeks to record this album. They had major problems with recording the album: the temperature in the recording studio was so consistently high that the recording equipment broke down several times; and the record company, Cacophonous Records, refused to pay for new tape reels to record on, so the band had to actually record over the first album.
The Chthonic Chronicles is the sixth studio album by English metal band Bal-Sagoth. The first in five years since 2001's Atlantis Ascendant, it is rumoured to be their last album. This album was released in Europe on 10 March 2006 through Nuclear Blast and in the US on 16 May through Candlelight Records. A remastered digipak edition from Metal Mind Productions followed in October 2011, while a second digipak release from Dissonance Productions and a limited edition gatefold vinyl version from Night of the Vinyl Dead were issued in October 2020.
A Black Moon Broods Over Lemuria, is Bal-Sagoth's 1995 debut album after their 1993 demo. The album was recorded in a two-week period in June 1994, but due to label problems the album was released almost a year later. The name Lemuria comes from a hypothetical land mass in the Indian Ocean. The keyboard intro on this album was written and performed by Keith Appleton, the proprietor of Academy Music Studio, the studio where the album was recorded.
Byron Roberts, also known as Byron A. Roberts, is the vocalist/lyricist and founder of the British symphonic extreme metal band Bal-Sagoth. He is also the author of "The Chronicles of Caylen-Tor" book series published by DMR Books, as well as the author of several short stories and poems which have been published in various fantasy and horror fiction anthologies. Originally hailing from Yorkshire, England, and also holding full Canadian citizenship due to many years spent living in Ontario and Quebec, Roberts graduated from Sheffield Hallam University with an Honours Degree in English, writing his final year thesis on the genres of pulp fantasy, science fiction and horror, and more specifically the works of H.P. Lovecraft. Roberts originated Bal-Sagoth's concept and writes all the lyrics for the band, having performed the vocals on all six Bal-Sagoth albums to date as well as the band's 1993 demo. Roberts also contributed guest vocals to the "Dominion" demo from death metal band Blasphemer, and to the "Halcyon" EP from the doom metal band Solstice.
Conan the Swordsman is a collection of seven fantasy short stories and associated pieces by writers L. Sprague de Camp, Lin Carter and Björn Nyberg featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in August 1978, and reprinted in 1981. Later paperback editions were issued by Ace Books. The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in December 2002. The first British edition was issued by Sphere Books in 1978. The book has also been translated into Italian and French. It was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan.
These works were written or edited by the American fiction writer Andre Norton. Before 1960 she used the pen name Andrew North several times and, jointly with Grace Allen Hogarth, Allen Weston once.
The Dark Man and Others is a posthumously-published anthology of fifteen short stories by American author Robert E. Howard, named after his short story "The Dark Man", and covering the genres of adventure fiction, horror, historical fiction, fantasy, sword and sorcery, weird fiction and the weird West. It was first published in 1963 by Arkham House, and was edited by August Derleth. Eleven of the stories had previously been published in the pulp magazine Weird Tales, and one each in Argosy, Oriental Stories and Strange Tales. It was reprinted in 1971 as a paperback by Lancer.
The works of Robert E. Howard (1906–1936) have been adapted into multiple media, the most famous being the Conan films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. In addition to the Conan films, other adaptations have included Kull the Conqueror (1997) and Solomon Kane (2009). In television, the anthology series Thriller (1961) led the adaptations with an episode based on the short story "Pigeons from Hell." The bulk of the adaptations have, however, been based on Conan with two animated and one live action series. Multiple audio dramas have been adapted, from professional audio books and plays to LibriVox recordings of works in the public domain. Computer games have focussed on Conan, beginning with Conan: Hall of Volta (1984) and continuing on to the MMO Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (2008). The first table-top roleplaying game based on Howard's works was TSR's "Conan Unchained!" (1984) for their game Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. The first comic book adaptation was in the Mexican Cuentos de abuelito - La reina de la Costa Negra #8 (1952). Howard-related comic books continued to be published to the present day. Howard is an ongoing inspiration for and influence on heavy metal music. Several bands have adapted Howard's works to tracks or entire albums. The British metal band Bal-Sagoth is named after Howard's story "The Gods of Bal-Sagoth."
"The Gem in the Tower" is a short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It is a rewritten version of "Black Moonlight", an earlier story by Carter alone featuring his own sword and sorcery character Thongor. The Conan version was first published by Bantam Books in the paperback collection Conan the Swordsman in August 1978, and was reprinted in the anthology The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 5 and later editions of Conan the Swordsman. The collection was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan. The story has also been translated into Italian and French.
This is complete list of works by American science fiction and fantasy author Fred Saberhagen.
DMR Books is a Chicago-based small publisher active since 2015. The press was founded by D. M. Ritzlin. It is primarily a paperback and ebook publisher specializing in "fantasy, horror, and adventure fiction in the traditions of Robert E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft, and other classic writers of the pulp era."
Lin Carter's Flashing Swords! #6 is an anthology of fantasy stories in the sword and sorcery subgenre, edited by Robert M. Price. It was first published in trade paperback and ebook by Pulp Hero Press in July 2020, but was delisted by the publisher shortly after publication. A second edition with substantially different content was published in hardcover and trade paperback by Timaios Press in January 2021.
Howard Andrew Jones is an American speculative fiction and fantasy author and editor, known for The Chronicles of Hanuvar series, The Chronicles of Sword and Sand series and The Ring-Sworn trilogy. He has also written Pathfinder Tales, tie-in fiction novels in the world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, published by Paizo. He is the editor of Tales from the Magician's Skull and has served as a Managing Editor at Black Gate since 2004. He assembled and edited a series of eight volumes of the short fiction of Harold Lamb for publication by Bison Books.
