Conan – What Inspires You?

[Angel Barracks]

I am working on this idea, will take a while but will try and get the 1st mini pack out not long after the rules.

With that in mind….

Where do you all see your games taking place, in towns, or out in the open steppe?

No point making cave entrances and ruins if all your games are in cities..

[Darkest Star Games]

Mine would take place wherever there is adventure.  Temple break-ins, crypt looting, caravan raids, street brawls, sewer sneaking, exotic animal hunting, assassinations in mansions/palaces, dungeon delving and lost city exploration.  Sooo many locations to play in…

 

Y may as well do it all.  I know this needs to be a viable business, but you also need to do what YOU think should go into YOUR world.

"I saw this in a cartoon once, but I'm pretty sure I can do it..."

[Alexander Wasberg]

I’d back DSG on that, adventures will happen everywhere there is foes to smite and/or treasure/wenches to be liberated. Most things will be of interest, but nice temple/palace pieces are always welcome. A lot of conan stories take place in such places after all. 🙂

 

http://lasersandbroadswords.blogspot.com My project blog

[Darkest Star Games]

We are soooo not helpful! 

"I saw this in a cartoon once, but I'm pretty sure I can do it..."

[Alexander Wasberg]

I don’t agree, we are giving mike the opportunity to wow us with pretty much anything and in turn we get a piece or 2 to base a few games around 🙂

http://lasersandbroadswords.blogspot.com My project blog

[Angel Barracks]

Alexander Wasberg wrote:

I don’t agree, we are giving mike the opportunity to wow us with pretty much anything and in turn we get a piece or 2 to base a few games around

That was my take too, so pretty much anything will work as a scenario catalyst.
😀

[Stroezie]

Alexander Wasberg wrote:

Most things will be of interest, but nice temple/palace pieces are always welcome. A lot of conan stories take place in such places after all.

Mainly this!

I think you’ve got your village’s and steppe lines up to a point where people can pretty much build what they need/want for most games.

What I’d really like to see are  things like altars, statues/idols of strange gods, treasures to steal ( pedestal with Eye of Seth/Jewel of Kwahlur…), maybe a throne, some kind of sarcophagy/ornate tomb, a bottomless arcane well that leads to an other dimension.

As for minis, an undead priest-king mummy, some type of living statue guardian, an eldritich horror tentacled formless mass that is all eyes and mouths filled with sharp fangs…

Also the generic things like giant spiders, scorpions, snakes, big cats, apes…                      … I know all of these can be had elsewhere but this way you have the option for those folks that like to one stop shop. Also it might make for more consistency in the sculpting style of the figures which is always nice.

Cheers,

Stroezie.

[Angel Barracks]

I am thinking of Hyena’s as some local beasts.

Just reading the first Gor book, apart from the obvious theme, it seems that the main character gets through scrapes due to the most unlikely good fortune…

[Geof Downton]

Angel Barracks wrote:

I am thinking of Hyena’s as some local beasts.

 

 

15mm hyenas from Irregular, needing basing and matt varnish…

One who puts on his armour should not boast like one who takes it off.
Ahab, King of Israel; 1 Kings 20:11

[Stroezie]

Some hyenas, a winged ape demon and a beautifull pale skinned pirate queen.

Add some ruined temple/city pieces….

Now there’s an adventure pack I’d buy in an instant

Cheers,

Stroezie.

[Alexander Wasberg]

Stroezie wrote:

Some hyenas, a winged ape demon and a beautifull pale skinned pirate queen. Add some ruined temple/city pieces…. Now there’s an adventure pack I’d buy in an instant Cheers, Stroezie.

Now this is a neat idea, that is a great story to adapt into a game!

http://lasersandbroadswords.blogspot.com My project blog

[Christopher Lites]

There is no Hyboria, folks. There is a Hyborian Age and a Thurian Continent. Yes, Cabinet trademarked Hyboria, but it’s not in REH.

And that’s fine if you’re interested in the later pastiche. I personally like the Marvel run a lot, but I don’t think they used Hyboria.

[Angel Barracks]

I am going to watch my Sharpe episodes and see if any of the cheesy stories offer scenario ideas.
I will report back!

[Steelonsand]

Would recommend ‘Sharpe’s Gold’ – I think the episode with the weird Aztec death cult, El Casco, damsels in distress, lost explorer, caves, oh, and did I mention the death cult?

😉

[Angel Barracks]

So after a few PM’s the above Steelonsand packaged up and let me have, for no money at all his Conan comics.
Now this was an amazing offer in any case, but when I saw how many comics he had parted with I was quite humbled.

Here they are.

As I make my way through them I suspect I will post some images of some things that I think would be cool to make/game.

Thanks again sir, you are a properly lovely fella.

[Angel Barracks]

What about Sinbad comics and or graphic novels?
They seem on the surface to be high adventure in the right sort of setting?

[Arthadan]

Hi all!

I’m new here and I was browsing the forum. Since I love Conan, this looks like a great place to start posting.

My father used to read me the old Marvel comics when I was a child, so my vision of Conan’s universe is heavily influenced by them. Then came the movies and finally the original novels.

Nowadays I pretty much enjoy the Monolith game, and in you are into Conan, you’ll probably find interesting these miniatures:

Here you are the link to the manufacturer:

https://forgeofdoom.com

[Darkest Star Games]

Those are some excellent minis, and crazy good likenesses!

"I saw this in a cartoon once, but I'm pretty sure I can do it..."

[Angel Barracks]

Looking for more online fantasy inspiration of a desert theme, anyone know of anything?
Fan sites, certain artists…
I often trawl the net for inspiration but seem to come across the same stuff time after time..

[Geof Downton]

Not online, unless on YouTube, but what about the cheesy Biblical films that inspire my efforts? Similar landscape, similar larger-than-life characters, but God rather than sorcery.

One who puts on his armour should not boast like one who takes it off.
Ahab, King of Israel; 1 Kings 20:11

[Thorsten Frank]

I´m surprised nobody mentioned this cheesy gem yet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhpXsR481A4

While it´s surely not on par with both Conan movies it´s surely not the worst movie ever. And it has some interesting scenes (the Jun raid on the village for example).

And speaking of books, from the non REH books, Karl Edward Wagner´s Road of Kings is one of the better ones:
https://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Road_of_Kings
(Sorry, but I´m biased here. I love Wagner´s Kane stories)

And the books written by John Maddox Roberts are quite good too.

EDIT:
I think that the real world Bronze Age civilizations are maybe the greatest inspiration:

Not desert but steppes and a very interesting site:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkaim

"In strange grammar this one writes" - Master Yoda

[Angel Barracks]

[Thorsten Frank]

This get´s really funny if you turn the original sound off and lay the OST over it…. 😉 😀

"In strange grammar this one writes" - Master Yoda

[Mike]

[Angel Barracks]

Does anyone know if gibbets were used in the Conan setting?

[Steelonsand]

Racking my (admittedly cobwebby) brains, I couldn’t think of their use in any of the original stories – sounds more like something that would turn up in a Solomon Kane setting ….. They are a bit post-Mediavally…… (Yes, I just made that word up)….. Plenty of crucifixions and manacled to altars/walls I think – although that’s not to say you can’t have them – they would be a grisly looking and atmospheric piece, but that said, I was always a bit squeamish of figure manufacturers going down that whole ‘torture chamber accessories and victims’ sort of route……

[Thorsten Frank]

Yes, it´s rather Renaissance. But given the tech level displayed in the books, one of the essays of de Camp and the fact we are still talking about fantasy they would work. The Wikipedia entry has an interesting variation that was used in Iran in the 9th century btw.
Hm, one of the Conan comics I had (Sadly, turned to dust in the last thirty years) showed a lot of crucifications, like the Romans did. The whole scene resembled a lot the movie Spartacus (the one starring Kirk Douglas) including, as far as I remember, skeletons hanging there. But don´t ask me how this would work.

"In strange grammar this one writes" - Master Yoda

[Angel Barracks]

So.

The tower of the Elephant.
What do we know for sure?

It is smooth, shiny, and cylindrical.
It is 150′ tall with gems at the rim.
There are doors and windows but they are very hard to see.

There is an outer wall that Conan can jump up to and grasp with his fingers and pull himself over, so lets say about 10`.
There are shrubs around this wall.

On the other side of this wall is an area where guards patrol.

Past this is another wall of a similar height that is quite wide as Conan lies flat on top of it.
Past this is the main garden with lions.

Do we know how wide the tower is and the layout of the walls?
I am assuming they are circular in nature with the tower and the dead centre, but that is speculation…

[Matthew Kirkhart]

Soooo … does this detailed treatment of the tower mean there may be a new terrain feature coming?

[Gone Fishing]

Matthew Kirkhart wrote:

Soooo … does this detailed treatment of the tower mean there may be a new terrain feature coming?

It would be pretty cool if it did.

Your description of the tower sounds spot on to me. Don’t forget a spider will be needed at some point…

[Steelonsand]

I think your description is absolutely spot-on …… Circles within circles is definitely the way to go…. Maybe some radial paths (spokes of a wheel) in the inner gardens…..

might be be worth having a poke around the old Hyboria website for ideas:

https://hyboria.xoth.net/adventures/tower_of_the_elephant.htm

 

[Angel Barracks]

So my problem is that the inner garden nearest the tower is described as being raised above the normal city level.

So sort of like a tiered cake?

In this case, given the walls are roughly the same height (Conan can leap up and grab the coping) it makes no sense that the ground on the inner wall is higher than the ground on the outer wall, but the walls are the same height.
The only way I can reconcile this is that the ground on the outer garden slopes upward toward the raised higher inner garden.
Sort of like a motte and bailey.

Your thoughts?

[mark leslie]

Think of it as a Hollywood type production; make it pretty with non stop action.

Don’t sweat the little stuff like “sense”, it just has to come in on budget and slay’em in the aisles.

Fossilizing nicely.

[telzy amber]

I think going the layer cake way is over thinking it. Your terrain work is beautiful

[Geof Downton]

I think the tower and its grounds all stand on a hill above “the general level of the city”. But what do I know, I’m a devotee of Ares…

One who puts on his armour should not boast like one who takes it off.
Ahab, King of Israel; 1 Kings 20:11

[Steelonsand]

I agree with Geof above; my reading of the text was that the whole thing stood above the level of the surroundings, walls, gardens and tower…. that said, your motte inside an inner bailey sounds fine, and makes some ‘real world’ sense…..

[Alan Hamilton]

Angel Barracks wrote:

Does anyone know if gibbets were used in the Conan setting?

I did a google search

Conan the Barbarian – Google Books Result
books.google.co.uk › books  –  Michael A. Stackpole – 2011 – ‎Fiction
“Don’t think I don’t know how to read men, Conan. They’re loyal to me, is the Hornet’s crew, because I plucked every one of them from a gibbet

Conan the Barbarian – Google Books Result
books.google.co.uk › books
Michael A. Stackpole – 2011 – ‎Fiction
“Don’t think I don’t know how to read men, Conan. They’re loyal to me, is the Hornet’s crew, because I plucked every one of them from a gibbet before the …

The Weird Tales of Conan the Barbarian
books.google.co.uk › books
Robert E. Howard – 2016 – ‎Fiction
“You’ll be safe from the Afghulis there—” “Yes, on a Vendhyan gibbet.” “I am Queen of Vendhya,” she reminded him with a touch of her old imperiousness.

Conan The Barbarian – All 20 Books in One Edition: …
books.google.co.uk › books
Robert E. Howard – 2017 – ‎Fiction
Conan felt slow fury swell his heart as he looked silently down and saw the ruffians … whose low-spreading branches were obviously intended to act as a gibbet.

The use of the gibbet beyond sundown of the day that the body is hanged on the tree is forbidden in the Old Testament at Deuteronomy 21:22-23.

Tacitus mentioned that Boudica’s forces gibbeted victims of the massacres at Roman towns or it might have been Cassius Dio (or both?) who mentioned it but it is a long time since I read their works at university in the early 1970s and recent archaeology may have refuted their accounts.

So if you want to have a victim gibbeted then I see no reason why not.

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