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Elric of Melniboné

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Anyone familiar with it? My own knowledge of the Elric of Melniboné character is quite limited, but Wikipedia seems to have a healthy amount of info on him.

Elric of Melniboné (IPA /m?l'n?b??ne/) is a fictional character created by Michael Moorcock.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Elric is an introspective, haunted and treacherous anti-hero. A direct antithesis of Robert E. Howard's Conan, he was strongly influenced by the character of Monsieur Zenith created by pulp author Anthony Skene and Kullervo from the Finnish epic Kalevala. Moorcock's character of Elric is a doomed hero based heavily upon Scandinavian mythology, a person whose actions lead to ruin, and ultimately death.

Instead of a mighty thewed barbarian warrior who fights his way from obscurity to achieve fame and power, Elric is a frail, sickly albino, a highly educated and cultured emperor who abandons his throne. Whereas the conventional fantasy hero rescues fair maidens from evil wizards, and defends his country from invaders, Elric (inadvertently) slays his true love, is himself a powerful wizard, in league with the Chaos lord Arioch, and leads a successful invasion against his homeland of Melniboné. He is a complex character, prone to self-loathing, brooding and despair, compelled to adventure by his own dark fate rather than a desire for riches or glory.

His official name is Elric VIII, the 428th Emperor of Melniboné, a servant of the Lords of Chaos. Unlike his fellow Melnibonéans, who are decadent and cruel, mostly devoid of sentiment and the gentler passions, Elric is plagued by his conscience, has modern sensibilities and is very curious of the outside world. Melnibonéans are somewhat like elves---but more like the amoral Ska in Jack Vance's Lyonesse books than J. R. R. Tolkien's majestic peoples---and "Elric" is a form of the Norse Ælfric which means elf ruler.

Elric is the tool of his evil, sentient sword Stormbringer, which is itself a parody of the normal sword-and-sorcery hero's weapon. In Stormbringer, the sickly Elric finds the energy he needs, but at a terrible price – Stormbringer feeds on the souls of those it slays and gives part of their life force to sustain Elric. Stormbringer is willful, and by no means under Elric's control:

This sword here at my side…
Keeps calling me its master, but I feel like its slave
?"Black Blade" by Blue Öyster Cult
As an embodiment of the Eternal Champion, which mainly takes the form of a champion of law, Elric of Melniboné is torn between his ancestory and his destiny. As a result, while the saga progresses Elric’s allegiance turns from Chaos towards Law. He eventually comes to represent a balance between these forces as he develops a hatred for all gods, both of Law and Chaos, for their manipulation of mortals. At the end, Elric's hopes for a world without gods to make a misery of human lives results in his death while attempting to bring such a world into being.

Contents [hide]
1 Characters
2 Books
3 Music
4 Adaptations
5 References to Elric



[edit]
Characters
Mabelode is a fictional demon portrayed as a Lord of Chaos in the Elric saga written by Michael Moorcock. In the novels, Mabelode was described as being "faceless", and as the "King of Swords".

Arioch, Lord of the Seven Darks: One of the mightiest Dukes of Hell and a Chaos Lord. He is the perennial patron of the Melniboné emperors and is responsible for much of their sorcerous powers and long rule. He finds Elric to be one of his sweetest servants, as Elric's moral dilemmas provide him with much sport. However as the series progresses, Elric becomes more bane than boon.

Cymoril: Elric's cousin and consort. He hopes to one day make her empress. She above all tries to understand and help Elric, but like the Melniboné subjects he rules, she too has difficulty in understanding Elric's motivations and would have him rule as the emperors of old with no concern for any but himself.

Dyvim Tvar: Lord of the Dragon Caves. He is Elric's main ally and advisor. A true Melniboné, he lends no weight to any thought of deposing Elric, as it is the emperors prerogative to act and do as he pleases. His main responsibility and personal love is the care of Melniboné's most destructive weapon, the dragons. It was on the backs of these beasts that Melniboné attained and maintained her empire and they are the most feared and respected weapons on earth.

Jagreen Lern: The Theocrat of Pan Tang. He is the leader and mighty sorcerer of Pan Tang and is chosen by Chaos to lead their armies in conquering Elric's plane. He is ultimately given all of the Chaos Lords' powers in his fight against Elric and the minions of Law and Balance.

King Grome: King of the earth elementals. He is very selfish with both his aid and what he considers his ship. He was also a co-producer of "The Ship which Sails over Land and Sea", and is responsible for the magics that allow the ship to move over land as if it were in water. He viciously disputes King Straasha over ownership of the ship and has vowed to take possession of it, if it ever were to be used in his realm of the land.

King Lasshaar: King of the air elimentals. He rules the wind giants and can summon up great storms. He is able to aid Elric in his final revenge on a troublesome sorcerer.

King Straasha: King of the sea elementals and bound by age old pacts of service to the Emperors of Melniboné. His aid is sought and given on several occasions to Elric. He is also the co-producer of one the most legendary of artifacts, "The Ship which Sails over Land and Sea". He provided the necessary magics for ocean travel and along with King Grome owns the ship.

Moonglum of Elwher: Adventuring companion to Elric. He and Elric share many dangers and rewards together. The most steadfast and loyal companion of all the Young Kingdom humans Elric encounters. His final deed allows Elric to complete his fated purpose.

Myshella, The Dark Lady: A great sorceress. She fulfills the task set to her by the Lords of Law, which is to tend the Castle Kaneloon as its mistress. She must also find heroes strong enough to withstand the forces of Chaos and thus create new lands on Elric's plane. She plays a part in several of Elric's adventures using her mighty sorcery and mechanical flying steed.

Queen Yishana: Ruler of Jharkor. She presents Elric with several problems/adventures and openly covets his company and power. Her selfish desires are the root of several of Elric's problems but she also has been known to aid him from time to time, and becomes an important ally to help defeat chaos.

Rackhir The Red Archer: One of the Warrior Priests of Phum. He was cast out of his order for disagreeing with their patron, Duke Arioch. He and Elric travel and adventure together several times throughout the series.

Sepiriz: Captain of the Fates. He and his nine brothers are representatives of Fate and are tasked with bringing about the will of the Fates in preparation for the end of an age.

Terarn Gashtek, Flame Bringer: An eastern barbarian ruler. His sudden attack upon the west from across the Weeping Wastes takes them completely by surprise. He vows to rule the whole world but ends up settling for far less.

Theleb K'aarna: A human sorcerer of the Pan Tang isles. After being displaced as queen Yishana's advisor and chief sorcerer by Elric, he seeks revenge and uses sorcery to hinder several of Elric's plans. However, in the end he reaps the whirlwind of Elric's wrath.

Yyrkoon: Prince of the realm and Elric's cousin. He is next in line for the throne as Elric has no male heir. He is greatly concerned at Elric's behavior and takes all of Elric's brooding and philosophical talk as a sign of weakness. He yearns for a return to more traditional emperors and secretly plots Elric's demise. Y
I'd like a qui-gon jinn please with an Obi-Wan to go.

Red heads ROCK. Blondes do not rock. Nuff said.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v72/greencapt/hansolovsindy.jpg
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Starting your own mirror site for the 'Pedia?

I've read the entire series and it was quite good, in a trippy 60s/70s way.

Actually most of Moorcock's novels about the Eternal Hero are well done. Elric is about the ultimate goth 'hero'- always pale and depressed, bangs his sister, etc.