The Demon Sword (for adorety) by SidheRoseGraphics
Close
Hover over top left image to zoom.
Click anywhere to exit.
Members remain the original copyright holder in all their materials here at Renderosity. Use of any of their material inconsistent with the terms and conditions set forth is prohibited and is considered an infringement of the copyrights of the respective holders unless specially stated otherwise.
Description
How I missed that my 'evil spirit' (who is not a vampire btw - just an evil spirit) was reminiscent of Elric I don't know, Art. Elric is one of my all time favorite 'heroes'. Or maybe he's an anti-hero. He did a lot of things he lived to regret, but mostly because of that sword in front of him.
For those who never read Elric, the big black sword is called 'Stormbringer'. It is a demon in the form of a sword. Elric is the Lord of Melnibone, an ancient land where the people are jaded. They live long and are the lords of the dragons. Elric himself is an albino, and he is not in the best of health. But then he gets Stormbringer, which is a long story in itself. It fills him with great strength, life and energy...when he slays someone with it. The sword drinks the souls of those it slays and it's increasing life-force/energy is passed on to Elric as he holds it in his hands. However, Stormbringer has a mind of it's own, being a demon in sword form and often makes Elric do things he doesn't want to do, like slay his beloved. If Stormbringer even scratches you, you're a goner.
Elric despises Stormbringer, but at the same time, he is in need of the energy and strength it gives him to continue fighting those who threaten the land. I remember one scene in particular - I forget which book it's in - where he is drinking potions trying to boost his strength and energy and the thought of Stormbringer taunts him to the edge of madness. He's trying to resist it, but it beckons to him. This is the gist of this image.
The Elric books are by Michael Moorcock, if you care to read them. Elric is 'the Eternal Champion' but he has a lot of flaws and trials. If you like books like Robt. E. Howard's "Conan" or others of that ilk, you will like Elric.
*****
Thanks for that Art! And thank you all for dropping by, having a look and maybe leaving a comment! I hope you have a great week ahead my friends! I have a couple of friends here who are sick, and I hope they both feel much better in the coming days!
Cheers,
Rayvn
Comments (17)
SidheRoseGraphics
As for the previous image: Technically, vampires are not an original figure in Japanese folklore. However, evil spirits as shown in Asian art generally do have fangs or even tusks. They also tend to have prodigious beetling brows, thick lips and long tongues. Sometimes they have pointy ears but generally have huge ear-lobes instead. Vampires seem to have been imported in from elsewhere to Japan. China is given as one of those possible places but technically, the Chinese jiangshi is not a sanguinary vampire. Instead, they will suck the life-force or ki out of their victims. They are also rather mindless creatures and don't have a will of their own other than to feed on any hapless living creature they come across. It could be classified more as a 'survival instinct'. The jiangshi are those whose souls have not left their body at death - earthbound spirits/souls. It would seem a little exorcism would cure that. There are vampire like creatures in the folklore of SE Asia, but I suspect that as a legendary creature, the vampire originally came from the steppes of southern Russia possibly anywhere from Western Mongolia to the Black Sea and may have been engendered by a tribe or two of very early Thraco-Scythian related tribes. The vampire, troll, werewolves and witches are from a common root, the viy which you will find in Ukranian folklore. We know from the mummies found in the Tarim Basin in Northern China, that these were caucasian peoples who were shamans and 'witches'. They had interbred with the Chinese, the Indians and Altai peoples, but their root DNA came from eastern and northern Europe. These people did later move down into southern India, Indonesia and Ceylon in the time of Pliny the Elder. However, the Japanese only picked up on vampires in about the 1950's.
crunch01
wow great render, the relief maps really make the walls and throne pop... the glow on the sword is great!! The story sounds similar sorta to the highlander thing just with the demon.. very interesting
Sepiasiren
Oooo I do like the Elric storyline and may check out the books--you know me--I like my characters gray as it represents the true yin and yang of living. That sword seems bad ass so yeppers--have to check out. As for this render--I adore it as well--I love my bad boys pretty and he is delish--in a devilish way o' course--LOL
brycek
Fantastic render and story!!
Faemike55
Very cool image and great narrative regarding the sword and the other interesting facts you passed on to us Thanks
eekdog
never read the story, but this image is very inspiring Rayvn, killer work..
nitegrafix
Stunning, Fantastic work!
Leije
Magical mood in your image, I love his eyes !
UteBigSmile
Totally amazing looking scene!
barryjeffer
Brilliant rendition of this mythical anti-hero. Stunning work my friend.
adrie
Wickedly cool scene my friend, as always excellent work.
0rest4wicked
Oh I know Elric well, could not even count how many books I've read. That number includes the Michael Moorcock books. The darkness & underlying power all around can be felt in the atmosphere. Nice touch illuminating the sword bringing the viewers focus to the subject!
adorety
Fantastic rendition of one of my favorite anti heroes. I think you've captured his brooding demeanor expertly. You covered all the bases in the description too. He is a powerful mage actually and the opening stories/book are where he uses his own potions to keep his strength up. But he gets Stormbringer in the first book, sooo...things change quickly and drastically. Another note, Elric is part of a bigger Cosmology by Moorcock where Elric is a Champion that is unknowingly serving a greater cosmic balance. He finds this out eventually and encounters other 'Champions' from other parallel universes. These aspects are all good and bad, and ones play a bigger or lesser role depending on how much bad or good is needed. All these aspects make up other stories and series by the author making a broad network of interlaced novels and novellas. You can tell I'm a fan and Rayvn has captured the feel beautifully.
odile
Excellent! Fantastic expression and lightning! Elric Le Nécromancien !! :))
RodS
Another absolutely amazing work of art, Ray! Wow! And a great dedication to a fantastic artist and source of great inspiration! And the information is fascinating, too! Jeeze - how I'd love to spend an evening sitting by a nice fire listening to you and Roxy - absorbing your depth of knowledge and history... Brilliant work, my friend! No puns tonight - used 'em all up last night! LOL!
2121
superb dedi to Art
prae
Fantastic render.