#swordsandsorcery — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #swordsandsorcery, aggregated by home.social.
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A snapshot preview of banner art for the next Oona story.
"Scourge of the Forsaken Sky" should be out by the end of the week in the next Scribe & Sigil APA. -
Just sent the latest issue of Oona the Unvanquishable to Sigil & Scribe APA.
"Scourge of the Forsaken Sky" should be out next week! -
Our game - Kromlech - will be releasing in Early Access on the 5th of March:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKfOWmNdO20
#UE5 #unrealengine #ue #swordSorcery #swordandsorcery #swordsandsorcery #gothicgames #severanceBladeOfDarkness #BladeOfDarkness -
new #fantasy #art 🔥🔥🔥
painted by myself w/graphite & acrylics 🔥🔥🔥
'Revelation of the Blood Dragon' 🔥🔥🔥
msg me if interested 🔥🔥🔥
smaller-sized painting, available & affordable 🔥🔥🔥#artists #artist #dradon #dragons #art #artwork #illustration #geek #fantasyart #nerd #geek #mastoart #artistsonmastodon #artfinder #artforsale #artmarket #geeks #nerds #dragon #supportthearts #artlover #artlovers #artgallery #artgalleries #swordsandsorcery #painting #paintings #arts
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Just backed Leighton Connor's upcoming old school pulp sword & sorcery adventure:
The Prison Pits of Larubia
(for the Million-Colored Sun RPG)If it sounds up your alley, check it out:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/leightonconnor/the-prison-pits-of-larubia -
Watched #Deathstalker (2025) tonight.
Biggest pile of absolute garbage I’ve seen in years.
I loved it! 🥰
100% ripe cheese like old brie left in the sun. Loved the cheapo practical gore fx. Soundtrack is pretty epic. Acting is appropriately hammy. Great job all! 👏👏👏👏👏💀
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'Guardian of the Volcanic Dragon' /' Vision from the Onyx Quest'
2- #painting set that is available, painterd by myself with graphite & acrylics on wooden boards; msg me if interested 🔥 🔥 🔥 ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
#artforsale #fantasyart #artists #artist #art #artlovers #artmarket #geeks #nerds #geek #nerd #dragon #dragons #mastoart #artmarket #artistsonmastodon #artgallery #artgalleries #artnet #design #swordsandsorcery #painting #paintings #supportthearts #supportlivingartists
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💥 @Samsai is going live on our self-hosted Owncast server! 💥
Join here: https://cast.samsai.eu/#CavesOfQuod #GolemsOfQud #QudLiveStreams #TabletopRoleplaying #SwordsAndSorcery #owncast #livestream #selfhosted
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We showed off actual Kromlech gameplay in a new trailer!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQIYnU45vX8
#Kromlech #swordandsorcery #swordsandsorcery #UE5 #unrealengine #unrealengine5 #gamedev #celts
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You meet a lurg in the dark woods, wdyd?!
#Kromlech #swordandsorcery #swordsandsorcery #UE5 #unrealengine #unrealengine5 #gamedev #celts -
New art ❄️
'Revelation of the Alpine Sword' ❄️
painted by myself with acrylics on wooden board❄️
available;msg me if necessary ❄️#art #artwork #artists #artist #artlover #artlovers #artforsale #artfinder #dragon #dragons #fantasy #fantasyart #snow#snowing #winter
#swordsandsorcery #painting #paintings #artnet #artgallery #artmarket #artforsale #artfinder #illustration #supportthearts #supportlivingartists -
The Chieftain gave us a chance for a nod towards a Sword and Sorcery classic. :)
#Kromlech #swordandsorcery #swordsandsorcery #UE5 #unrealengine #unrealengine5 #gamedev #celts #KingConan -
Two more monster renders for Kromlech - Undead Sentinel and Undead King!
For the king we went with a more Mycenaean looking bronze panoply, though his crown is very "swords and sorcery".
#Kromlech #swordandsorcery #swordsandsorcery #UE5 #unrealengine #unrealengine5 #gamedev -
Check out this piece of #fantasy #art I just finished, it is titled 'Summoning of the Alpine Dragon'. It is a small size, painted on a salvaged piece of wooden board ❄️
#arts #artist #artists #dragon #dragons #artlover #artlovers #artgallery #artforsale #artmarket #artfinder #illustration #winter #snow #snowing #wintertime #handmade #geek #nerd #geeks #nerds #mastoart #magic #swordsandsorcery #artistsonmastodon #artwork #painting #paintings
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Fantastic Fiction: What’s in a Name? The Birth of the Term “Sword and Sorcery”: If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, or Jeffrey Catherine… (#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery)
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Fantastic Fiction: What’s in a Name? The Birth of the Term “Sword and Sorcery”: If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, or Jeffrey Catherine… (#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery)
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Fantastic Fiction: What’s in a Name? The Birth of the Term “Sword and Sorcery”: If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, or Jeffrey Catherine… (#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery)
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Fantastic Fiction: What’s in a Name? The Birth of the Term “Sword and Sorcery”: If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, or Jeffrey Catherine… (#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery)
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If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo or Jeffrey Catherine Jones. If you’re a little younger or a certain Seattle-based online retailer, “sword and sorcery” might be a synonym for fantasy in general.
However, “sword and sorcery” designates a very specific subgenre of fantasy. Brian Murphy, author of 2019’s Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery, identifies the following key elements of the subgenre: sword-and-sorcery tales are short and episodic, flourishing mostly in short fiction, novellas, and very short novels. The protagonists are men and women of action. They are often outsiders, and their motivations are personal, i.e., they’re looking for treasure or revenge, not to save the world or defeat the dark lord. The worldbuilding is based on real world history. Their magic is dark, wild, dangerous, and strongly influenced by horror; there are no magic systems here.
As a distinct subgenre, sword and sorcery is almost 100 years old; Robert E. Howard’s 1929 story “The Shadow Kingdom,” which introduced Kull of Atlantis, is considered the first true sword-and-sorcery story, though some would argue that it had its predecessors. The subgenre emerged in the 1930s and early 1940s, with Robert E. Howard giving us the adventures of Kull of Atlantis, Bran Mak Morn, and of course his most famous creation, Conan the Cimmerian (also known as Conan the Barbarian). Clark Ashton Smith emphasised the horror element of sword-and-sorcery tales in his darkly poetic tales, while Fritz Leiber played up the comedy with rogues Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Henry Kuttner gave us Elak of Atlantis and Prince Raynor, and C.L. Moore proved with the adventures of the medieval swordswoman Jirel of Joiry that sword-and-sorcery adventures weren’t just for men.
But even as those authors created this subgenre, there was one problem: This new genre didn’t have a name. In correspondence with fellow writers and friends, Robert E. Howard only referred to the Conan, Kull, and Bran Mak Morn stories as “weird fiction,” a term H.P. Lovecraft also used for his cosmic horror stories. And in a 1924 editorial for Weird Tales, where many of these stories appeared, Assistant Editor Otis Adalbert Kline struggled to explain what sort of fiction the magazine published—science fiction, fantasy, and horror—because none of those terms existed at the time.
After lying dormant for almost 20 years, the genre of sword and sorcery re-emerged in the early 1960s, when editors like Cele Goldsmith Lalli of Fantastic or John Carnell of Science Fantasy started to publish such of stories from new authors like Poul Anderson, Roger Zelazny, John Jakes, and Lin Carter. However, the genre still didn’t have a name.
By now it was becoming painfully clear that this newly revived subgenre needed a name, since “that Conan stuff” didn’t really cut it. One of the new authors, a young Englishman named Michael Moorcock, suggested calling these stories “epic fantasy,” a term which ultimately stuck to a very different type of fantasy.
Meanwhile, Fritz Leiber, the only remaining veteran from the first sword-and-sorcery boom—everyone else was either retired or dead—had a suggestion of his own. In issue two of the fanzine Ancalgon, dated March/April 1961 (1.88 MB .pdf), later reprinted in the fanzine Amra, Leiber wrote:
[…] fantasy adventure—a field which I feel more certain than ever should be called the sword-and-sorcery story. This accurately describes the points of culture-level and supernatural element and also immediately distinguishes it from the cloak-and-sword (historical adventure) story—and (quite incidentally) from the cloak-and-dagger (international espionage) story, too! The word sorcery implies something more and other than historical human witchcraft, so even the element of an alien-yet-human world background is hinted at. At any rate, I’ll use sword-and-sorcery as a good popular catchphrase for the field.
Other writers joined the conversation. Lin Carter suggested “heroic fantasy,” and L. Sprague de Camp “non-historical fantasy adventure.” Ultimately, it was Leiber’s suggestion that stuck because it was descriptive, alliterative, and easy to remember.
In 1963, L. Sprague de Camp edited an anthology of such stories and called it Sword and Sorcery, further popularising the term. And when Lancer reprinted the adventures of Conan the Cimmerian in paperback form with striking Frank Frazetta covers, “sword and sorcery” was cemented as the name of the genre, which is currently undergoing another revival.
Do you enjoy sword-and-sorcery stories? Did you know how the genre originated and who created it? Who are your favourite writers and characters? Let’s continue the conversation in Seattle, as this genre from the past is alive and well in our present and will undoubtedly continue into the future!
#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery
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If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo or Jeffrey Catherine Jones. If you’re a little younger or a certain Seattle-based online retailer, “sword and sorcery” might be a synonym for fantasy in general.
However, “sword and sorcery” designates a very specific subgenre of fantasy. Brian Murphy, author of 2019’s Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery, identifies the following key elements of the subgenre: sword-and-sorcery tales are short and episodic, flourishing mostly in short fiction, novellas, and very short novels. The protagonists are men and women of action. They are often outsiders, and their motivations are personal, i.e., they’re looking for treasure or revenge, not to save the world or defeat the dark lord. The worldbuilding is based on real world history. Their magic is dark, wild, dangerous, and strongly influenced by horror; there are no magic systems here.
As a distinct subgenre, sword and sorcery is almost 100 years old; Robert E. Howard’s 1929 story “The Shadow Kingdom,” which introduced Kull of Atlantis, is considered the first true sword-and-sorcery story, though some would argue that it had its predecessors. The subgenre emerged in the 1930s and early 1940s, with Robert E. Howard giving us the adventures of Kull of Atlantis, Bran Mak Morn, and of course his most famous creation, Conan the Cimmerian (also known as Conan the Barbarian). Clark Ashton Smith emphasised the horror element of sword-and-sorcery tales in his darkly poetic tales, while Fritz Leiber played up the comedy with rogues Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Henry Kuttner gave us Elak of Atlantis and Prince Raynor, and C.L. Moore proved with the adventures of the medieval swordswoman Jirel of Joiry that sword-and-sorcery adventures weren’t just for men.
But even as those authors created this subgenre, there was one problem: This new genre didn’t have a name. In correspondence with fellow writers and friends, Robert E. Howard only referred to the Conan, Kull, and Bran Mak Morn stories as “weird fiction,” a term H.P. Lovecraft also used for his cosmic horror stories. And in a 1924 editorial for Weird Tales, where many of these stories appeared, Assistant Editor Otis Adalbert Kline struggled to explain what sort of fiction the magazine published—science fiction, fantasy, and horror—because none of those terms existed at the time.
After lying dormant for almost 20 years, the genre of sword and sorcery re-emerged in the early 1960s, when editors like Cele Goldsmith Lalli of Fantastic or John Carnell of Science Fantasy started to publish such of stories from new authors like Poul Anderson, Roger Zelazny, John Jakes, and Lin Carter. However, the genre still didn’t have a name.
By now it was becoming painfully clear that this newly revived subgenre needed a name, since “that Conan stuff” didn’t really cut it. One of the new authors, a young Englishman named Michael Moorcock, suggested calling these stories “epic fantasy,” a term which ultimately stuck to a very different type of fantasy.
Meanwhile, Fritz Leiber, the only remaining veteran from the first sword-and-sorcery boom—everyone else was either retired or dead—had a suggestion of his own. In issue two of the fanzine Ancalgon, dated March/April 1961 (1.88 MB .pdf), later reprinted in the fanzine Amra, Leiber wrote:
[…] fantasy adventure—a field which I feel more certain than ever should be called the sword-and-sorcery story. This accurately describes the points of culture-level and supernatural element and also immediately distinguishes it from the cloak-and-sword (historical adventure) story—and (quite incidentally) from the cloak-and-dagger (international espionage) story, too! The word sorcery implies something more and other than historical human witchcraft, so even the element of an alien-yet-human world background is hinted at. At any rate, I’ll use sword-and-sorcery as a good popular catchphrase for the field.
Other writers joined the conversation. Lin Carter suggested “heroic fantasy,” and L. Sprague de Camp “non-historical fantasy adventure.” Ultimately, it was Leiber’s suggestion that stuck because it was descriptive, alliterative, and easy to remember.
In 1963, L. Sprague de Camp edited an anthology of such stories and called it Sword and Sorcery, further popularising the term. And when Lancer reprinted the adventures of Conan the Cimmerian in paperback form with striking Frank Frazetta covers, “sword and sorcery” was cemented as the name of the genre, which is currently undergoing another revival.
Do you enjoy sword-and-sorcery stories? Did you know how the genre originated and who created it? Who are your favourite writers and characters? Let’s continue the conversation in Seattle, as this genre from the past is alive and well in our present and will undoubtedly continue into the future!
#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery
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If you’re of a certain age, the phrase “sword and sorcery” conjures up visions of muscular barbarians and busty damsels fighting monsters or evil wizards on paperback covers illustrated by Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo or Jeffrey Catherine Jones. If you’re a little younger or a certain Seattle-based online retailer, “sword and sorcery” might be a synonym for fantasy in general.
However, “sword and sorcery” designates a very specific subgenre of fantasy. Brian Murphy, author of 2019’s Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery, identifies the following key elements of the subgenre: sword-and-sorcery tales are short and episodic, flourishing mostly in short fiction, novellas, and very short novels. The protagonists are men and women of action. They are often outsiders, and their motivations are personal, i.e., they’re looking for treasure or revenge, not to save the world or defeat the dark lord. The worldbuilding is based on real world history. Their magic is dark, wild, dangerous, and strongly influenced by horror; there are no magic systems here.
As a distinct subgenre, sword and sorcery is almost 100 years old; Robert E. Howard’s 1929 story “The Shadow Kingdom,” which introduced Kull of Atlantis, is considered the first true sword-and-sorcery story, though some would argue that it had its predecessors. The subgenre emerged in the 1930s and early 1940s, with Robert E. Howard giving us the adventures of Kull of Atlantis, Bran Mak Morn, and of course his most famous creation, Conan the Cimmerian (also known as Conan the Barbarian). Clark Ashton Smith emphasised the horror element of sword-and-sorcery tales in his darkly poetic tales, while Fritz Leiber played up the comedy with rogues Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Henry Kuttner gave us Elak of Atlantis and Prince Raynor, and C.L. Moore proved with the adventures of the medieval swordswoman Jirel of Joiry that sword-and-sorcery adventures weren’t just for men.
But even as those authors created this subgenre, there was one problem: This new genre didn’t have a name. In correspondence with fellow writers and friends, Robert E. Howard only referred to the Conan, Kull, and Bran Mak Morn stories as “weird fiction,” a term H.P. Lovecraft also used for his cosmic horror stories. And in a 1924 editorial for Weird Tales, where many of these stories appeared, Assistant Editor Otis Adalbert Kline struggled to explain what sort of fiction the magazine published—science fiction, fantasy, and horror—because none of those terms existed at the time.
After lying dormant for almost 20 years, the genre of sword and sorcery re-emerged in the early 1960s, when editors like Cele Goldsmith Lalli of Fantastic or John Carnell of Science Fantasy started to publish such of stories from new authors like Poul Anderson, Roger Zelazny, John Jakes, and Lin Carter. However, the genre still didn’t have a name.
By now it was becoming painfully clear that this newly revived subgenre needed a name, since “that Conan stuff” didn’t really cut it. One of the new authors, a young Englishman named Michael Moorcock, suggested calling these stories “epic fantasy,” a term which ultimately stuck to a very different type of fantasy.
Meanwhile, Fritz Leiber, the only remaining veteran from the first sword-and-sorcery boom—everyone else was either retired or dead—had a suggestion of his own. In issue two of the fanzine Ancalgon, dated March/April 1961 (1.88 MB .pdf), later reprinted in the fanzine Amra, Leiber wrote:
[…] fantasy adventure—a field which I feel more certain than ever should be called the sword-and-sorcery story. This accurately describes the points of culture-level and supernatural element and also immediately distinguishes it from the cloak-and-sword (historical adventure) story—and (quite incidentally) from the cloak-and-dagger (international espionage) story, too! The word sorcery implies something more and other than historical human witchcraft, so even the element of an alien-yet-human world background is hinted at. At any rate, I’ll use sword-and-sorcery as a good popular catchphrase for the field.
Other writers joined the conversation. Lin Carter suggested “heroic fantasy,” and L. Sprague de Camp “non-historical fantasy adventure.” Ultimately, it was Leiber’s suggestion that stuck because it was descriptive, alliterative, and easy to remember.
In 1963, L. Sprague de Camp edited an anthology of such stories and called it Sword and Sorcery, further popularising the term. And when Lancer reprinted the adventures of Conan the Cimmerian in paperback form with striking Frank Frazetta covers, “sword and sorcery” was cemented as the name of the genre, which is currently undergoing another revival.
Do you enjoy sword-and-sorcery stories? Did you know how the genre originated and who created it? Who are your favourite writers and characters? Let’s continue the conversation in Seattle, as this genre from the past is alive and well in our present and will undoubtedly continue into the future!
Cora BuhlertCora Buhlert is a writer and translator from Bremen in North Germany. She’s a contributor to Galactic Journey and the winner of the 2022 Hugo Award for best fan writer. You can also find her at her website.
#CLMoore #ClarkAshtonSmith #Conan #FritzLeiber #HenryKuttner #LSpragueDeCamp #RobertEHoward #SwordsAndSorcery
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Sword & Scandal, ed. J Manfred Weichsel
“Weichsel gathers fantasy tales that accept that worlds filled with mighty-thewed heroes and unspeakable horrors are not magically free of passionate sex and unpleasant death.”
More thoughts: https://davidjhiggins.wordpress.com/2024/11/15/sword-scandal-ed-j-manfred-weichsel/
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Still a few days left in the 0.99 sale for Hydra Tower!
US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BN19K6MV
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BN19K6MV -
Me: *makes an off-hand comment on the Kickstarter for a new Deathstalker movie about how I hope the protagonist doesn't rape any women in this one.*
Director of an indie Sword and Sorcery movie I recently also backed: *posts a very sane 10 page essay on how SnS shouldn't be neutered by a crybully campaign of politically correct cucks. Also how their KS totally made the Deathstalker one happen.*
Me: .... O___O Ya ok there, bud? It's ok not to have a hero who rapes people, you know?
Director guy: U TRIGGERED?!!!! GO TAKE A SEDATIVE, YOUNGSTER!!!
(I think we might be close to the same age)
Director guy: *blocks me*It's weirdly refreshing to just have a fairly typical day on the internet, you know.
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Battle Chasers #art by Jonboy Meyers #artwork #comicbook #comicbooks #fantasy #fantasyart #swordsandsorcery #artlover #artlovers #battlechasers #artist #artists #inspiration #illustration #design #designer #designers #art #arts
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cover of Battle Chasers #10 by Joe Madureira (2023) #comicbook #comicbooks #fantasy #fantasyart #illustration #comicbooks #comicbook #battlechasers #artist #artists #comiccon #geek #nerd #geeks #nerds #magic #swordsandsorcery #artnet #manga #anime #art #arts #artlover #artlovers
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Meanwhile, #GarthNix is an author I've been vaguely aware of, but never read before, as apparently most of his stuff is YA?
Except he's just put out a collection of Lieber-inspired #SwordsandSorcery stories in a pike & shot era setting, and that kind of stuff is EXACTLY my Jam.
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I picked up #FeralIndieStudio and #WetInkGames' #IntoTheWyrdAndWild for my daughter, who is going to use it to build out a #BrighterWorlds campaign, and #IntoTheCessAndCitadel for me.
I think Into the Cess & Citadel will come in handy for making the sewers, neighborhoods, houses, and spires for @pelgranepress's #SwordsOfTheSerpentine. Plus I think it shouldn't be too difficult to convert the monsters and other NPCs (and kind of fun).
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At Noon Central Time today: session 71 in Worlds of Speculative Fiction. We start with a video premiere & live chat discussing C.L. Moore's Jirel of Joiry stories, and then meet to continue the conversation in Zoom!
https://youtu.be/X-ZK-TRxsHU
#CLMoore #Jirel #Fantasy #SwordsAndSorcery #OnlineEvent -
While a tad more complicated than I would like, Lair of the Leopard Empresses by Sarah Newton is the best edited, most complete take on Tunnels & Trolls/ Monsters! Monsters! that I've ever read.
#ttrpg #tandt #tunnelsandtrolls #games #rpg #fantasy #swordsandsorcery #womeninrpgshttps://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/436145/The-Lair-of-the-Leopard-Empresses-RPG?src=hottest
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An obscure book, while we're still in the Ls of the Great #ComicBook Re-inventorying Initiative. But I thought this series was pretty cool growing up.
#SwordsAndSorcery between two worlds, with #DougMoench (writer) and #PatBroderick (artist). The whole series looks great. Very 80s. Pat's skills are just phenomenal.
#DCComics #LordsOfTheUltraRealm #Comics #ComicBooks #Comicstodon
