blackshirt5
First Post
I wanted to read(and have for the future) all of Michael Moorcock's books about Elric of Melnibone. Could one more knowledgable than I please gimme the names of them all?
Can somebody list all the books in the Eternal Champion series?
- Thread starter blackshirt5
- Start date
barsoomcore
Unattainable Ideal
First off, there's a big difference between Elric and the Eternal Champion. Elric is (sort of) one incarnation of the Eternal Champion, a role that includes other characters of his like Corum, Hawkmoon and Erekose.
But the Elric books go something like this:
Elric of Melnibone
Sailor on the Seas of Fate
The Vanishing Tower
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
That's the first set, which has a pretty complete ending and beginning. Moorcock has gone on to write a number of other Elric volumes, like The Dreamthief's Daughter and The Fortress of the Pearl. I haven't read them and don't know how they fit into the overall arc.
Moorcock has written a truly staggering amount of material, and keeping track of what goes where or refers to which is a massive task.
He's a very imaginative and vigourous writer whose early work is often marred by over-writing and over-thinking. If I had to pick his single best work I would select The War Hound and the World's Pain. It's not Elric-related but it is a wonderful updating of the Grail legend.
But the Elric books go something like this:
Elric of Melnibone
Sailor on the Seas of Fate
The Vanishing Tower
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
That's the first set, which has a pretty complete ending and beginning. Moorcock has gone on to write a number of other Elric volumes, like The Dreamthief's Daughter and The Fortress of the Pearl. I haven't read them and don't know how they fit into the overall arc.
Moorcock has written a truly staggering amount of material, and keeping track of what goes where or refers to which is a massive task.
He's a very imaginative and vigourous writer whose early work is often marred by over-writing and over-thinking. If I had to pick his single best work I would select The War Hound and the World's Pain. It's not Elric-related but it is a wonderful updating of the Grail legend.
G.A. Donis
First Post
There is an "Omnibus" Eternal Champion series that has been published. It is all of the EC characters and their stories. It was current to a couple of years ago I think. I've heard that a new Elric story is/was being worked on and was going to be a comic book. Elric has two of the volumes for his stories. The Omnibus Eternal Champion Volume 5 is "Elric: Song of the Black Sword" (just started to reread the stories in it) and "Elric: Stealer of Souls" is a later volume somewhere around the early teens. If I'm not mistaken, there are fifteen volumes in the series. I just got all but two of them as a present not to long ago. I'm missing "Elric: Stealer of Souls" and Kane of Old Mars.
If you haven't already read them, I'd recommend the Corum books and the first volume of the EC Series which is called The Eternal Champion. The Hawkmoon stories are pretty good also. A lot of the others are more science fiction than fantasy and some of them get kinda strange.
If you haven't already read them, I'd recommend the Corum books and the first volume of the EC Series which is called The Eternal Champion. The Hawkmoon stories are pretty good also. A lot of the others are more science fiction than fantasy and some of them get kinda strange.
blackshirt5
First Post
Alright, looks like I'm gonna be dropping a lot of money to just get all his books, period. Sounds awesome.
BTW, I've read the Dreamthief's Daughter, and it's a great book.
BTW, I've read the Dreamthief's Daughter, and it's a great book.
Want the full list?
I am kinda board tonite .....
Eleric: Song of the Blacksword is #5 EC series
This book is a collection and update of the original Elric Stories.
It was a phenominal work ...and quite a good read at 503 pages.
Elric: Tales of the White Wolf was published outside but during the collected works of the EC. It has a new story by Moorcock but is more of a collection of short stories from others. It is 558 paper back pages. It was ok but I liked the EC#5 better.
The Dreamthief's Daughter was a great book as well.
Read it ...you will like it.
Elric: Stealer of Souls is EC #11 ...still working my way through it.
Good so far. 625pages Hard Back
Haven't checked for newer Elric books but that should help for now. Chaosium has two games based on Elric that are fun to play with the right GM.
Darius ......
I am kinda board tonite .....
Eleric: Song of the Blacksword is #5 EC series
This book is a collection and update of the original Elric Stories.
It was a phenominal work ...and quite a good read at 503 pages.
Elric: Tales of the White Wolf was published outside but during the collected works of the EC. It has a new story by Moorcock but is more of a collection of short stories from others. It is 558 paper back pages. It was ok but I liked the EC#5 better.
The Dreamthief's Daughter was a great book as well.
Read it ...you will like it.
Elric: Stealer of Souls is EC #11 ...still working my way through it.
Good so far. 625pages Hard Back
Haven't checked for newer Elric books but that should help for now. Chaosium has two games based on Elric that are fun to play with the right GM.
Darius ......
Damon Griffin
First Post
Incarnations of the Champion
This is essentially correct, except that I'm not sure why barsoomcore makes the "sort of" qualification. Elric is an incarnation of the Champion, one of many. Elric is certainly the most popular incarnation, but not necessarily the most interesting...and definitely not the one you would most like to hang around with.
Elric of Melnibone
Sailor on the Seas of Fate
The Vanishing Tower
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
There are six books in the essential Elric story; barsoomcore left out The Weird of the White Wolf, which comes between Sailor On the Seas of Fate and The Vanishing Tower; the order is otherwise correct as listed.
As has been previously noted, there are additional Elric stories, including The Dreamthief's Daughter, Fortress of the Pearl, Elric At the End of Time and probably others I'm overlooking at the moment. None of these are essential to the epic, but neither do I recommend against reading them.
Elric books why may be safely ignored as redundant are: The Singing Citadel, The Dreaming City, the Stealer of Souls, and the Sleeping Sorceress. Three of these were early editions of Elric's story -- the same story told in the six books above -- which were re-edited without Moorcock's permission; and the fourth included an out-of-context fragment that is properly part of Weird of the White Wolf (or was it The Vanishing Tower?)
Moorcock has written a truly staggering amount of material, and keeping track of what goes where or refers to which is a massive task.
That is certainly true. If you read the Elric books and stop, you are doing yourself a great disservice, even if you are only interested in his Eternal Champion storyline. In addition to the six Elric books above, I would recommend reading the following (the featured incarnation of the Champion is listed in parentheses for each):
The Eternal Champion (John Daker/Erekose)
The Silver Warriors* (Urlik Skarsol)
The Swords of Heaven, the Flowers of Hell (Clen of Clen Gar; graphic novel)
*aka Phoenix in Obsidian
The Swords Trilogy (Corum Jhaelen Irsei)
- The King of the Swords
- The Queen of the Swords
- The Knight of the Swords
The Chronicles of Corum (Corum Llaw Ereint)
- The Bull and the Spear
- The Oak and the Ram
- The Sword and the Stallion
The History of the Runestaff (Dorian Hawkmoon)
- The Jewel in the Skull
- The Mad God's Amulet
- The Sword of the Dawn
- The Runestaff
The Chronicles of Castle Brass (Count Brass)
- Count Brass
- The Champion of Garathorm
- The Quest for Tanelorn
The last line of the Quest for Tanelorn reads "This ends the long story of the Eternal Champion." However, the sets above can be read in any order. Keep to the sequence listed within each set, but the Hawkmoon books can be read before or after Corum, before or after Elric, etc., without any disruption.
In fact, on at least two occasions, multiple incarnations of the Champions meet each other. In their respective series, Elric, Corum, Hawkmoon and Erekose board a strange ship that sails between worlds; this encounter is told from their different points of view as is one other, and by comparing the two it is apparent that the Champions are not moving in the same direction along their respective timestreams -- it's as if you and I meet in 1990 and you claim to remember me, though I am certain we've never met...then when I run into you again in 2002, you do not recall ever meeting me, but I do remember you (though I remember you as looking older.
If you get through the above, you can pretty much say you've read all the "core" Eternal Champion books, though there are many, many peripherals. Some involve Elric, several Jerry Cornelius, a few Oswald Bastable or members of the von Bek family. Several of these are quite good. There's also a "Mars" trilogy which is less an Eternal Champion story than an homage to (or ripoff of, if you prefer) John Carter, Warlord of Mars.
Feel free to email directly if you want a longer list of Moorcock's books. I have 80+ of his books, but I'm a long way from having all he wrote.
barsoomcore said:
This is essentially correct, except that I'm not sure why barsoomcore makes the "sort of" qualification. Elric is an incarnation of the Champion, one of many. Elric is certainly the most popular incarnation, but not necessarily the most interesting...and definitely not the one you would most like to hang around with.
Elric of Melnibone
Sailor on the Seas of Fate
The Vanishing Tower
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
There are six books in the essential Elric story; barsoomcore left out The Weird of the White Wolf, which comes between Sailor On the Seas of Fate and The Vanishing Tower; the order is otherwise correct as listed.
As has been previously noted, there are additional Elric stories, including The Dreamthief's Daughter, Fortress of the Pearl, Elric At the End of Time and probably others I'm overlooking at the moment. None of these are essential to the epic, but neither do I recommend against reading them.
Elric books why may be safely ignored as redundant are: The Singing Citadel, The Dreaming City, the Stealer of Souls, and the Sleeping Sorceress. Three of these were early editions of Elric's story -- the same story told in the six books above -- which were re-edited without Moorcock's permission; and the fourth included an out-of-context fragment that is properly part of Weird of the White Wolf (or was it The Vanishing Tower?)
Moorcock has written a truly staggering amount of material, and keeping track of what goes where or refers to which is a massive task.
That is certainly true. If you read the Elric books and stop, you are doing yourself a great disservice, even if you are only interested in his Eternal Champion storyline. In addition to the six Elric books above, I would recommend reading the following (the featured incarnation of the Champion is listed in parentheses for each):
The Eternal Champion (John Daker/Erekose)
The Silver Warriors* (Urlik Skarsol)
The Swords of Heaven, the Flowers of Hell (Clen of Clen Gar; graphic novel)
*aka Phoenix in Obsidian
The Swords Trilogy (Corum Jhaelen Irsei)
- The King of the Swords
- The Queen of the Swords
- The Knight of the Swords
The Chronicles of Corum (Corum Llaw Ereint)
- The Bull and the Spear
- The Oak and the Ram
- The Sword and the Stallion
The History of the Runestaff (Dorian Hawkmoon)
- The Jewel in the Skull
- The Mad God's Amulet
- The Sword of the Dawn
- The Runestaff
The Chronicles of Castle Brass (Count Brass)
- Count Brass
- The Champion of Garathorm
- The Quest for Tanelorn
The last line of the Quest for Tanelorn reads "This ends the long story of the Eternal Champion." However, the sets above can be read in any order. Keep to the sequence listed within each set, but the Hawkmoon books can be read before or after Corum, before or after Elric, etc., without any disruption.
In fact, on at least two occasions, multiple incarnations of the Champions meet each other. In their respective series, Elric, Corum, Hawkmoon and Erekose board a strange ship that sails between worlds; this encounter is told from their different points of view as is one other, and by comparing the two it is apparent that the Champions are not moving in the same direction along their respective timestreams -- it's as if you and I meet in 1990 and you claim to remember me, though I am certain we've never met...then when I run into you again in 2002, you do not recall ever meeting me, but I do remember you (though I remember you as looking older.
If you get through the above, you can pretty much say you've read all the "core" Eternal Champion books, though there are many, many peripherals. Some involve Elric, several Jerry Cornelius, a few Oswald Bastable or members of the von Bek family. Several of these are quite good. There's also a "Mars" trilogy which is less an Eternal Champion story than an homage to (or ripoff of, if you prefer) John Carter, Warlord of Mars.
Feel free to email directly if you want a longer list of Moorcock's books. I have 80+ of his books, but I'm a long way from having all he wrote.
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Mark Chance
Boingy! Boingy!
The Eternal Champion Cycle
There is more to the Eternal Champion Cycle that just Elric. Here's a list that I know is incomplete, but it's the best I have:
John Daker
The Eternal Champion
The Silver Warriors
Elric
Elric of Melnibone
The Sailor on the Seas of Fate
The Weird of the White Wolf
The Vanishing Tower
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
Hawkmoon
The Jewel in the Skull
The Mad God's Amulet
The Sword of Dawn
The Runestaff
Count Brass
The Champion of Garathorm
The Quest for Tanelorn
Corum
The Knight of the Swords
The Queen of the Swords
The King of the Swords
The Bull and the Spear
The Oak and the Ram
The Sword and the Stallion
Michael Kane
The City of the Beast
The Lord of the Spiders
The Masters of the Pit
Other Books
The Warlord of the Air
The Land Leviathan
The Dancers at the End of Time (5 volumes)
The Jerry Cornelius Tetralogy
The Ice Schooner
The Black Corridor
The Rituals of Infinity
Breakfast in the Ruins
There are more, but this ought to keep you busy.
There is more to the Eternal Champion Cycle that just Elric. Here's a list that I know is incomplete, but it's the best I have:
John Daker
The Eternal Champion
The Silver Warriors
Elric
Elric of Melnibone
The Sailor on the Seas of Fate
The Weird of the White Wolf
The Vanishing Tower
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
Hawkmoon
The Jewel in the Skull
The Mad God's Amulet
The Sword of Dawn
The Runestaff
Count Brass
The Champion of Garathorm
The Quest for Tanelorn
Corum
The Knight of the Swords
The Queen of the Swords
The King of the Swords
The Bull and the Spear
The Oak and the Ram
The Sword and the Stallion
Michael Kane
The City of the Beast
The Lord of the Spiders
The Masters of the Pit
Other Books
The Warlord of the Air
The Land Leviathan
The Dancers at the End of Time (5 volumes)
The Jerry Cornelius Tetralogy
The Ice Schooner
The Black Corridor
The Rituals of Infinity
Breakfast in the Ruins
There are more, but this ought to keep you busy.
We actually have a whole separate forum for such discussion, folks.
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