GAYNOR THE DAMNEDGAYNOR THE DAMNED
Real Name: Prince Gaynor
Identity/Class: Extradimensional (Melniboné) humanoid
Occupation: Disciple of Xiombarg, Leader of the Hell-Hordes of Chaos
Group Membership: Hell-Hordes of Chaos
Affiliations: Xiombarg
Enemies: Arkyn, Lords of Order, Conan the Cimmerian, Elric of Melniboné, Zephra, Zukala
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Razal Gulath's castle, Stygia (?),
Hyborian Era
Formerly Melniboné (Extradimensional)
First Appearance:
The Queen of the Swords (1971)
(Marvel) Conan the Barbarian I#14 (February,
1972) {Edizione Italiana: Gli Albi dei Super-Eroi#30 Editoriale Corno}
Powers/Abilities: Gaynor was a talented warrior. He used a mace (his favorite weapon), a sword, and a shield with an image of eight arrows. He wore chain mail armor covered by a complete plate armor. He mounted a big black, probably cursed, horse called Marduk. Gaynor was immortal: not only did he not age, but also that he could not be killed by ordinary weapons nor enchanted weapons. It seemed that only Xiombarg could actually kill him.
History:
(Conan the Barbarian I#14 (fb) - BTS) - In the
Extradimensional realm of Melniboné, Prince Gaynor committed great and
unknown sins. He was damned by an unknown necromancy: he became immortal.
Gaynor spent years in search of death while also serving Xiombarg,
Queen of the Hell-Hordes of Chaos, with
the hope she would bestow the death he had lost forever.
Xiombarg set a plan up to resurrect
Terhali the Green Empress of Melniboné and use her power to
conquer both her world and the Hyborian one. To do so she conditioned Kulan Gath, a powerful Stygian sorcerer.
Kulan Gath journeyed towards Yagala,
the sunken city where the body of Terhali was.
The Hooded Ones were sent by Xiombarg to kill
Zephra, Zukala's daughter, but she succeeded in finding Conan the Barbarian.
Conan and Zephra were helped by Zukala and the Lord of Law so Xiombarg's disciples had to
flee.
(Conan the Barbarian I#14) - Then Xiombarg ordered Gaynor the Damned to lead the Hell-Horde of Chaos to stop Conan and Zephra from interrupting Kulan Gath's task. While they were in Xiombarg's Castle, the Queen sensed they were being spied on through magical means and guided Gaynor's arm to the right point where to strike. Gaynor sunk his enchanted sword and broke the spell, but Zukala, the spy, survived.
(Conan the Barbarian I#14) - After few hours, Gaynor and the Horde of Chaos passed through a dimensional door and arrived in the Hyborian world in the evening, near the place where Conan, Elric of Melniboné, and Zephra were. Gaynor suddenly attacked, but the demons were held back by the two warriors. Gaynor pitted his mace against Elric's cursed sword, Stormbringer. Elric's blow unsaddled Gaynor who continued to defend himself also laid down the ground(?). Gaynor's eight-arrowed shield resisted Stormbringer's attacks, and the demons were near victory. But Zephra, helped by her father, invoked the help of the Goddess of Rain and Storm, Serusha, and torrents of rain fell from the clouds. In few moments, the bestial warriors were melted by the rain, their impure infernal flesh was unable to resist the purifying water, but Gaynor's sin were too big to be cleansed by Serusha's rain. Gaynor, with few demons, fled back to Melniboné in a flash of light.
(Conan the Barbarian I#15) - Conan, Elric, and Zephra arrived to Yagala just in
time to stop Kulan Gath, but Gaynor and the Pack of Chaos attacked anew. Gaynor
accepted Elric's challenge, and, dismounting his horse, Marduk, kicked the
albino King of Melniboné. Many demons were slain by Conan and his enchanted
blade, but before he could reach Kulan Gath he was stopped by Gaynor. The Damned
held back the two warriors for the necessary time to allow Kulan Gath to
complete the spell. Conan hit Gaynor with his sword, and Gaynor fell, but Terhali
was
resurrected. Gaynor exulted and invoked his queen Xiombarg, happy to have
completed his mission. Elric slashed him with Stormbringer, then sunk the
blade in Gaynor's body, which dissolved into dust, and so did all the Chaos Pack.
But he wasn't as dead as all the victims of Stormblade, instead Gaynor was only
exiled to another world by Arioch Duke of Chaos
Terhali was defeated by Zephra, who hosted the power of the Lords of Order, so Xiombarg could not expand her dominion over the Hyborian worlds.
(Savage Sword of Conan#189) - Zukala told Conan that a jewel owned by Kulan Gath's apprentice (Razal Gulath) was draining Zukala's power. Conan entered Razal Gulath's castle. However, Razal Gulath detected Conan's thoughts and caused him to sink to a pit where Prince Gaynor awaited. Conan defeated Gaynor and an octopoid creature.
Comments: Created by Michael Moorcock/James Cawthorn/Roy Thomas, Barry Smith and Sal Buscema.
Elric of Melniboné, possibly the greatest sorcerer (and King) of Melniboné and disciple of Arioch, felt that Gaynor wasn't dead but that Arioch sent him in another world, probably for punishment because the knight served Xiombarg, enemy of Arioch himself.
Prince Gaynor the Damned,
the Chaos pack, and Xiombarg the Queen of Chaos first appeared in the 1971 novel
"The Queen of the Swords", which was the second book in the Corum series (Corum
being another incarnation of the Eternal Champion).
--Sean Curtin
Clarifications:
Gaynor the Damned has no known connections to
The Hell-Horde of Chaos has no known connections to
Arioch, the Duke of Chaos, @ Conan the Barbarian I#15, may or may not be or have connections to:
Elric should not be confused with:
Also called the Chaos Pack. They served Xiombarg and were lead by Gaynor. They were a horde of skeleton-like knight creatures, simply called demons by Elric and Conan. Their symbol is the picture on Gaynor's shield, a star made by eight arrows rising out from the same point. They wore chain mail armor or plate mail armor, helms, had swords, knives, spears and shields and mounted knights-like creatures. They probably were immune to the hits of normal weapons.
(Conan the Barbarian I#14) - They were employed in the first attack on Conan, Elric and Zephra. The two warriors slew at least 12-14 knights, but the Horde would have won the battle if Serusha had not listened Zephra's prayer. The rain easily melted the demons so they had to flee, and they followed Gaynor back to Melniboné.
(Conan the Barbarian I#15) - Xiombarg ordered a new attack so they returned to the Hyborian world, in Yagala, just in time to distract Conan, Elric and Zephra. Many of them succumbed to Conan's sword, enchanted by Zukala, but they nonetheless enabled Kulan Gath to finish the spell and resurrect Terhali.
(Conan the Barbarian I#15) - When Elric of Melnibone stabbed Gaynor with Stormbringer, the Damned dissolved in dust, and so did the rest of the Chaos Pack, probably exiled by Arioch to the same place where Gaynor was.
--Conan the Barbarian I#14 (Conan the Barbarian I#14, 15
Images:
Conan the Barbarian#14, page 9, panel 4 (Gaynor, full
body)
Conan the Barbarian#14, page 15, panel 2 (Gaynor,
head shot)
Conan the Barbarian#14, page 15, panel 3 (Gaynor,
Marduk and Elric)
Conan the Barbarian#15, page 7, panel 4 (Gaynor and
the Hell-Horde of Chaos)
Other appearances:
Conan the Barbarian I#15 (March, 1972) {Edizione Italiana: Gli Albi dei
Super-Eroi#30 Editoriale Corno}
Savage Sword of Conan#189 (September, 1991)
Last updated: 09/18/05
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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