Stormbringeris amagic swordfeatured in a number offantasystories by the authorMichael Moorcock.It is described as a huge, black sword covered with strangerunes,created by the forces ofChaos.The sword has a will of its own and it is hinted that the sword may be controlled by an inhabiting entity. It is wielded by the doomed albino emperorElric of Melniboné.Stormbringer makes its first appearance in the 1961novellaThe Dreaming City.[1]In the four novellas collected in the 1965 bookStormbringer,the sword's true nature is revealed.[2]
| Stormbringer | |
|---|---|
 Stormbringer being wielded byElric of Melniboné | |
| First appearance | |
| Created by | Michael Moorcock |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| In-universe information | |
| Type | Sword,weapon |
| Function | Consuming of souls |
| Traits and abilities | Black,runes |
| Affiliation | Elric of Melniboné |
Description
editThis powerful enchanted black blade is a member of a demon race that takes on the form of a sword, and as such is an agent of Chaos. Stormbringer's edge is capable of cutting through virtually any material not protected by potent sorcery, and it can drink the soul from (and thereby kill) any unprotected living creature upon delivering any wound, even a scratch. Its most distinctive features are that it has a mind and will of its own, and that it feeds upon the souls of those it kills.Elricloathes the sword but is almost helpless without the strength and vitality it confers on him.[3][4]
Stormbringer's hunger for souls is such that it frequently betrays Elric[4]by creating a bloodlust in his mind, turning in his hands and killing friends and lovers. The cursed nature of the sword adds to Elric's guilt and self-loathing, even as he feels pleasure when the stolen lifeforce enters his body.
Stormbringer has a "brother" sword named Mournblade, which was at one time wielded by Elric's cousin and enemyYyrkoon.It is identical to Stormbringer in most regards. Later stories reveal that there are thousands of identical demons, all taking the form of swords. Three such sibling blades appear inThe Revenge of the Roseand many more "brother blades" are seen in the novelStormbringer,but only Mournblade and Stormbringer are named.
InElric of Melniboné,Elric and cousin Yyrkoon find the runeblades in a realm ofLimboand commence battle. Elric and Stormbringer disarm Yyrkoon, and Mournblade disappears. Yyrkoon is defeated, and Elric and his cousin return to Imrryr.
InThe Weird of the White Wolf,Elric returns to Imrryr after a long journey and confronts Yyrkoon, who usurped the throne in his absence. Yyrkoon has regained Mournblade through unknown means and uses it to attack. Elric and Stormbringer kill Yyrkoon, and no further mention is made of Mournblade until it is later disclosed that it was recovered by the Seers of Nihrain, to be wielded by Elric's cousin, Dyvim Slorm. Imrryr is sacked, though the pillagers' fate is not much better, being pursued by the golden battle barges and the few dragons who were awakened, led by Dyvim Tvar. Only Elric's ship escapes, propelled by the aid of his sorcery.
InStormbringer,Elric learns that the representatives of Fate, which serve neither Chaos nor Law, recovered Mournblade from the netherworld. They present it to Elric and explain that the runeblades were designed to be wielded by those with Melnibonéan royal blood as a check against the might of powerful beings including the Dead Gods of Chaos. Elric gives Mournblade to his kinsman, Dyvim Slorm, and the two men become embroiled in a confrontation between the gods. Elric summons others of Stormbringer's demonic race (also in the form of swords) to fight against a number of Dukes of Hell, brought to the Young Kingdoms by Jagreen Lern, theocrat of Pan Tang.
Ultimately, Elric's reliance on Stormbringer proves his undoing: after the utter destruction of the Young Kingdoms in the battle of Law and Chaos, just as it seems that the cosmic Balance has been restored, Stormbringer kills Elric, transforms into a humanoid demon, and leaps laughing into the sky, to corrupt the newly-remade world once more. The sword-spirit says to the dead Elric: "Farewell, friend. I was a thousand times more evil than thou!"[5]
In the bookThe Quest for Tanelorn,a character claims that the demon in the sword is named Shaitan – a variant of 'Satan', and inArabica word meaning a devil, if not the Devil. In the same book it is revealed that the demon can inhabit either the black sword or the black jewel, the jewel which was once embedded in the skull ofDorian Hawkmoon.[2]Hawkmoon was an avatar, like Elric, of theEternal Champion.
Analysis
editThe theme of a cursedmagical swordwhich causes evil deeds when drawn goes back to the swordTyrfinginNorse Mythology,with which Moorcock was likely familiar.[2]Stormbringer was influential in popularizing this trope in thefantasygenre.[6]Moorcock intended the sword character to serve as a key element of his discussion of "how mankind's wish-fantasies can bring about the destruction of... part of mankind".[7]Claiming influence fromFreudandJunghe says: "The whole point of Elric's soul-eating sword, Stormbringer, was addiction: to sex, to violence, to big, black, phallic swords, to drugs, to escape. That's why it went down so well in the rock’n’roll world".[8]
Literature scholar Dennis Wilson Wise wrote that "a weapon like Stormbringer reinforces liberal selfhood in a particularly concrete way. It carries a continuous external threat to personal autonomy, and it subverts a fully rationalself-determination.Modern fantasy heroes, especially in epic fantasy, often rail against "destiny" or a prophecy, but such destinies and prophecies lack Stormbringer's sentient specificity. "[6]
OntologistLevi Bryantstated that Stormbringer belongs to a special class of magical items which also appear inDungeons & Dragons,which are not "merely passive tools", but have will, goals,alignmentand a personality of their own. Stormbringer talks to, influences and struggles with its wielder Elric. Bryant saw the sword as an active entity, not unlike "some of the artificial life we are developing today", and also compared it to "technologies unleashed on the world that are agents in their own right".[4]
Books featuring Stormbringer
editElric's sword Stormbringer has appeared in all of Michael Moorcock's stories about Elric, except the prequelFolk of the Forest.
In popular culture
edit- Tom StrongNo. 31 and No. 32, "The Black Blade of the Barbary Coast" parts 1 & 2 by Alan Moore, feature albino pirate Captain Zodiac seeking the "Black Blade", a black cutlass marked with red runes. This appears to be arecurrence(a favoured Moorcock trope) of Elric and Stormbringer's tale. Almost all of Moorcock's stories about theEternal Championinclude a parallel or analog to Stormbringer, invariably wielded by the Champion.[citation needed]
- Lawrence Watt-Evansexplicitly mentioned Moorcock'sStormbringeras an inspiration for the enchantedBlack Dagger,which is at the center of his own novelThe Spell of the Black Daggerand which is in many ways similar - though not identical - to Stormbringer.[citation needed]
- "Black Blade",the opening track of American hard rock bandBlue Öyster Cult's seventh studio effort,Cultösaurus Erectus,concerns itself with Stormbringer. Moorcock himself made significant contributions to the track, having previously established a working relationship with the musical group.[citation needed]
- The 1979Advanced Dungeons & Dragonsadventure moduleWhite Plume Mountain,written byLawrence Schickand published byTSR,[9]featured a magical sword called Blackrazor, a black-bladed vampiric blade created from an extra-dimensional being. Schick later said that he was "a little embarrassed to this day by Blackrazor, inasmuch as it's such a blatant rip-off of Elric's Stormbringer; I would not have put it into the scenario if I ever thought it might be published".[10]
- The Melnibonéan character profiles are included in the first edition ofDeities & Demigods,a TSR AD&D resource.
- In the opening animation short for the 1983 Daicon IVNihon SF Taikaiconvention, the 'Bunny Girl' is shown riding a sword with the same visual design as Stormbringer as one of numerous classic fantasy and sci-fi references in the film.[citation needed]
- In the fighting game seriesThe King of Fighters,the character Heidern possesses a special move named "Stormbringer", where he stabs and drains life from the enemy.[citation needed]
- In theGame of Thronesepisode, "The Lion and the Rose",one name that the crowd shouts out as a name forJoffrey Baratheon's Valyrian steel sword is "Stormbringer".[citation needed]
- InReady Player Two,written byErnest Cline,Nolan Sorrentoyields Stormbringer after his escape from A Maximum-Security Prison.
- InStardew Valleythe level 4 Shadow Dagger has the description “when you hold the blade to your ear you can hear 1,000 souls shrieking.” A reference to Stormbringer.
- In 1974, Deep Purple released an album titledStormbringer,which included a song of the same name.
References
edit- ^Kross, Karin L. (12 July 2013)."The Elric Reread: Elric of Melniboné".Tor.Retrieved15 February2022.
- ^abcScroggins, Mark (2015).Michael Moorcock: Fiction, Fantasy and the World's Pain.McFarland & Company. pp. 25–29.ISBN978-1476663074.Retrieved6 March2020.
- ^Pringle, David (1988).Modern Fantasy: The 100 Best Novels.HarperCollins.ISBN978-0246134202.Retrieved6 March2020.
- ^abcBryant, Levi R.(October 2012)."Substantial Powers, Active Affects: The Intentionality of Objects".Deleuze Studies.6(4): 529–543.doi:10.3366/dls.2012.0081.Retrieved18 February2022.
- ^Kross, Karin L. (18 October 2013)."The Elric Reread: Stormbringer".Tor.Retrieved15 February2022.
- ^abWise, Dennis."A Brief History of EPVIDS: Subjectivity and Evil Possessed Vampire Demon Swords".Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts.31.ProQuest2537697296– via ProQuest.
- ^Riley, James (2018). "Terminal Data: J.G. Ballard, Michael Moorcock and the Fiction of the Decade's End". In Tew, Philip; Riley, James; Seddon, Melanie (eds.).The 1960s: A Decade of Modern British Fiction.Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 277.ISBN9781350011687.Retrieved6 March2020.
- ^"Michael Moorcock:" I think Tolkien was a crypto-fascist "".New Statesman.24 July 2015.Retrieved15 February2022.
- ^Schick, Lawrence(1979).White Plume Mountain.TSR, Inc.pp. cover, 3–5, 9, 13.ISBN978-0-935696-13-4.
- ^Maliszewski, James (16 May 2009)."An Interview with Lawrence Schick".Grognardia.Blogspot.Retrieved31 August2009.
External links
edit- Stormbringer.net— an overview of the Elric saga