LOUHI

Real Name: Louhi

Identity/Class: Human(?) (Hyborian era) magic user; Hyperborean

Occupation: Sorceress

Affiliations: leader of the White Hand;
served by the Witch-Men of Hyperborea
former ally of Nenaunir, Pra-Eun, Thoth-Amon;
former servant of Vammatar

Enemies: Conan, Conn

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Avatar of the White Hand, Death Goddess, Witch Woman

Base of Operations: Citadel of Pohiola, Hyperborea; Hyborian era

First Appearance: King Conan#1 (March, 1980)

Powers/Abilities: Louhi is a sorceress. While most of her abilities are unseen, at the height of her power she led a sect of sorcerers in Hyperborea and was known as one of the most powerful sorcerers in her region, if not on the entire planet. Her powers include shape-changing

She led the sorcerers known as the White Hand, and she was served by the Witch-Men of Hyperborea.

History: Louhi's origins are unknown (see comments).

(Conan the Barbarian#254 (fb)) - Louhi served as priestess to the sorceress Queen Vammatar of Hyperborea, and appeared ancient even then. Louhi disapproved of Vammatar's affairs with the captured Conan, and encouraged her to pay more attention to the performance of their rituals.

Ultimately Conan discovered the means to slay Vammatars Legions of the Dead, and escaped with his Aesgaardian allies.

(King Conan#1 (fb) - BTS) - About forty years later, Louhi was the leader of the White Hand, a sect of sorcerers based out of Hyperborea. She was now served the Witch-Men who had formerly served Vammatar, who had apparently perished in a conflict against Shuma-Gorath, a decade or two before. Louhi was contacted by Thoth-Amon, a powerful Stygian sorcerer, who proposed an alliance between they and two other sorcerers, Nenaunir of Zembabwei and Pra-Eun of the Scarlet Circle, in order to topple some of the threats to their existence, and to oppose the kingdoms of the West. One of these perceived threats was the barbarian, Conan, now King of Aquilonia.

(King Conan#1) - Louhi, taking the form of a white stag, led Conan's son, Conn, away from a hunting party in Gunderland which included his father. When Conn was sufficiently distanced from the rest of the party, Louhi revealed her true form and sent several of her Witch-Men to subdue the young warrior of twelve years. Despite struggling fiercely and taking out a Witch-Man or two, Conn was captured. Louhi led the Witch-Men on a several day journey back to her Citadel of Pohiola, where she threw him into a dungeon. Louhi then sacrificed a man she had captured days before as part of a spell which summoned Thoth-Amon to her Citadel.

Conan followed the deliberately marked trail of the Hyperboreans's back to Louhi's Citadel. Despite Thoth-Amon's warnings that she should slay Conan on the spot, Louhi was skeptical. She was surprised that a sorcerer as powerful as Thoth-Amon feared any man, and thought she would keep him alive, both to see what there was to fear about him, and as a means to keep Thoth-Amon under her control. She had Conan lowered into a pit, where he was trapped alongside Conn.

Later, after the other two sorcerers had arrived, Louhi and the others challenged Thoth-Amon, questioning his fear of Conan. Louhi sought to belittle Conan by having her Witch-Men slay the barbarian king. However, Conan overpowered the Witch-Man that attacked him and hurled his body into a copper bowl of flaming coals, knocking its contents onto Louhi and setting her on fire. Conan managed to slay or drive off the others, but Louhi was left burnt to a crisp.

Comments: Created by Roy Thomas and John Buscema.

Louhi is the name for  frozen goddess who rules the other-dimensional realm of Pohjola, one of the worlds in the Cosmology of the Finnish Gods. Similarly, as discussed under her profile, Vammatar is the name for another Finnish Goddess.
The two names and their usage together, and Louhi's base in Pohiola  is certainly more than coincidence, and its pretty clear that the names were taken from Finnish Mythology. However, whether these two beings have a connection, or are meant to represent the respective Finnish Gods is unknown. Louhi is referred to by her followers as a Death Goddess.
The Finnish Gods have not been seen in the Marvel Universe, so what their status is has yet to be revealed.

The adventures from the flashback in Conan the Barbarian#254 represent one of Conan's earliest struggles, less than 18 years old, whereas the the story in King Conan#1 would represent Conan in his early sixties.
However, the earlier story was published 12 years after the King Conan story. The earlier story also represents the second half of a story from "Legions of the Dead," Conan the Swordsman, 1978 (adapted in Savage Sword of Conan#39, 1979). Louhi is NOT in the Savage Sword story, but I don't own the original "Legions of the Dead." If she did appear in that story, then it would precede her King Conan appearance as her first appearance..

CLARIFICATIONS:
No KNOWN connection to:

• Louhi, the Finnish Goddess, who has not yet appeared in the Marvel Universe
• any guys named Louie
• The Witch Woman, Linda Littletrees, @ Marvel Spotlight#10
• The Witch Woman, an elderly crone who acts as a prophet for Centurious, @ Spirits of Vengeance#23
  ...although that would be cool if it were Louhi
• The Witch Woman, as aspect of Satan
• other witch characters

Hyperborea, the Hyborian era frozen lands on the northeast border of Cimmeria, should be differentiated from

• Hyperborea the Elder, the first kingdom founded by the Hybori, @ 14500 BC. It was eventually overwhelmed by the Aesir, who intermarried with the survivors and created the newer nation also known as Hyperborea (above).
• The Hybori, a tribe of unknown origin led into the Far North at the time of the Great Cataclysm, @ 16000 BC, by a legendary chief, Bori.
• Hyboria, a name for a number of countries tracing their ancestry back to the Hybori, including Aquilonia, Argos, the Border Kingdom, Brythunia, Corinthia, Hyperborea, Koth, Nemedia, and Ophir. The entire time period ranging from after the Great Cataclysm (16000 BC) to the time of another major Cataclysm (8000 BC) is referred to as the Hyborian era. Conan lived for an approximately 70 year period @ 10000 BC.

Pra-Eun

He was a sorcerer of a sect known as the Scarlet Circle, and was worshipped as a god-king of jungle-girded Angkor in the remote East. He was formerly the rival of another member of the Scarlet Circle, a Khitan sorcerer, Yah Chieng, who was eventually slain by Conan. With Yah Chieng's death, Pra-Eun ascended to the position of supreme master of the Scarlet Circle.

Pra-Eun was one of three sorcerers summoned by the wizard Thoth-Amon, of Stygia, who sought to form an alliance with the most powerful sorcerers from around the world. When Conan broke free from the sorcerers' control, Pra-Eun was quickly knocked into a well of fire. However, event though badly burnt, he pulled himself out, still flaming, and used his powers to send waves of blinding pain throughout the Cimmerian's body. Just as Conan was beginning to succumb to his power, however, one of Conan's soldiers, Euric, arrived and fired an arrow through Pra-Eun's neck, killing him.

--King Conan#1

Last updated: 03/09/03

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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