History Franchise / ConantheBarbarian

** In the Howard stories Conan and Thoth-Amon never actually meet or even knowingly act against each other. Conan kills monsters Thoth-Amon sent to destroy a third party in 'The God in the Bowl,' 'The Black Stranger,' and 'The Phoenix on the Sword': he indirectly destroys one of Thoth-Amon's potential rivals in 'The Hour of the Dragon.' These stories left him as TheChessmaster, so later writers tend to use him that way as well.

Conan is strong and courageous. He is not an [[DumbMuscle idiot]], but neither is he of a scholastic disposition -- he is mostly practical and naturally cunning, though through extensive experience he is also knowledgeable, able to speak, read and write a dozen languages, and even puzzle out ancient scripts in one story. He is a defining example of the type of barbarian who has the principles of a snake. He has strong moral principles, which he does not break, but they are not extensive. He keeps his promises. He does not desert his friends, his allies, or those under his protection. He is unfailingly chivalrous towards women.

It is possible to see him as a MartyStu in the sense of being an idealized version of the author, albeit one frequently inconvenienced and for whom victory is far from assured. Yet in ''Beyond the Black River'', Howard included a character that was explicitly stated in one of his letters to be an AuthorAvatar, and - while brave and capable - he was shown to be inferior to Conan in many ways. Specifically, he was a very young man who looked up to Conan.

''[[TropeCodifier The]]'' BarbarianHero. As {{Dracula}} is to [[VampireTropes vampires]], Franchise/SherlockHolmes is to {{Private Detective}}s, and Franchise/{{Superman}} is to {{superhero}}es, so Conan is to barbarians.

** In "A Witch Shall Be Born", Conan is crucified after he realizes the EvilTwin of a queen he's serving has taken her place. He survives to lead an invasion against the impostor, while the queen is rescued by a secondary protagonist.

* PlanetOfHats: In many instances: almost every Stygian is an EvilSorcerer or priest worshipping Set, all Picts are wild, bloodthirsty barbarians and woodsmen, Zamorans are sniveling thieves, Aesir and Vanir are [[HornyVikings viking-like]] BoisterousBruiser warriors, Khitans and Eastern people are enigmatic fatalists, Zuagirs are noble sand raiders with a strict code of honor, Hyperboreans are bald scrawny members of a ChurchOfEvil, Bossonians, Hyrkanians, and Shemites are three different flavors of ArcherArchetype. Furthermore, inhabitants of lost cities tend to be depraved and decadent psychos. Generally, the more often a nation appears, the more nuanced and varied its population (Stygia being the exception).

** Even among the "civilized" races, some are known for their martial prowess. Poitanians (an ethnic group of Aquilonians) are fearsome knights, while Shemies, Bossonians (another subgroup of Aquilonians), and Hyrkanians are three different flavors of ArcherArchetype.

* ProtagonistCenteredMorality: Whenever we see Conan, he's acting honorably towards people he ''knows''. Offscreen, as a barbarian, mercenary and pirate, he has no qualms at all about pillaging peaceful villages and merchant shipping.

** Assuming Conan is representative (if exceptional) of Cimmerians, they are definitely this.

* RoyalBlood: Averted with Conan, he is a red-handed barbarian that took the crown by force and Aquilonia is better for it. Most Eastern kingdoms however place a lot of importance on blood due to the magic arts and royal family have all their hair, blood and secretion destroyed so people can't use the magic to attack them.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: After becoming king, Conan embodies this trope. When Aquilonia goes to war, you can be sure that Conan will personally be leading his army into battle (something that he most certainly enjoys, considering his love of combat and the fact that he occasionally complains about how boring sitting on a throne is).

** Thak in "Rogues in the House", an ape that is in-between a gorilla and a caveman according to his master. After fighitng it and needing assistance to land the killing blow Conan mentions that Thak was a man and he will count him among the chiefs he killes and his women will sing of him.

* AristocratsAreEvil: More examples than there are exceptions (although there ''are'' exceptions). Conan himself is an exception, being a good king to his people. And while Kull has much more self-doubt and angst than Conan does, Kull at least tries to live up to the ideal.

* ''[[http://www.mobygames.com/game/conan-hall-of-volta Conan: Hall of Volta]]'' (1984). A platformer with puzzle elements for UsefulNotes/AppleII, [[UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers Atari]] and UsefulNotes/{{Commodore64}}.

* The infamous ''Conan: Mysteries of Time'' (1991) for [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] (in reality DolledUpInstallment based on ''[[http://www.mobygames.com/game/myth-history-in-the-making Myth: History in the Making,]]'' which was considered a classic on Commodore 64 and UsefulNotes/ZXSpectrum, although the NES version was [[PortingDisaster an entirely different story]]).
* ''Conan'' (2004), also known as ''Conan: The Dark Axe''. An action-adventure game for the UsefulNotes/XBox, [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube GameCube]], UsefulNotes/PlayStation2, and Microsoft Windows that was released only in Europe.

* ''VideoGame/{{Conan}}'' (2007), for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 and UsefulNotes/XBox360. More or less a ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' clone, based on elements from Howard's stories. Creator/RonPerlman provides Conan's voice.

* "The Siege of the Black Citadel" (2022). Novel by Creator/ChuckDixon. An [[https://www.arkhaven.com/comics/fantasy/the-siege-of-the-black-citadel illustrated text serialisation]] is published at Platform/{{Arktoons}}.

* "The Siege of the Black Citadel" (2022). Novel by Creator/ChuckDixon. An [[https://www.arkhaven.com/comics/fantasy/the-siege-of-the-black-citadel illustrated text serialisation]] is published at Website/{{Arktoons}}.

* ''Conann'' an upcoming French film featuring a [[GenderFlip gender flipped]] Conan.

* DistressedDamsel: Many. {{Flanderization}}s, however, have put a scantily-clad buxom maiden at Conan's feet being menaced by someone or something on ''every'' cover, bar none (but see below), regardless of story content. She could be an ActionGirl in the story, she might be a background characters who never meets Conan face to face, but on the cover it's always StrictlyFormula: 1.) {{Loincloth}} 2.) monster and/or ravening horde of savages, 3.) hot half-naked chick [[LegCling sprawled between Conan's legs]] [[TouchOfTheMonster looking terrified]] at [=#2=].

Try not to confuse him with Creator/ConanOBrien. Also has nothing to do with Conan Edogawa of ''Manga/CaseClosed'' or ''Anime/FutureBoyConan''.

'''[[TropeCodifier The]]''' BarbarianHero. As {{Dracula}} is to [[VampireTropes vampires]], Franchise/SherlockHolmes is to {{Private Detective}}s, and Franchise/{{Superman}} is to {{superhero}}es, so Conan is to barbarians.

* {{Reincarnation}}: Howard implied more than once that Conan was the reincarnation of Literature/{{Kull}}. In "People of the Black Circle" the Master of Yimsha forces Yasmina to relive the humiliations of her past lives as punishment for defying him. "A Witch Shall Be Born" centres around a witch who keeps being reincarnated in the same family.

* CrucifiedHeroShot: Conan was crucified in "A Witch Shall Be Born". However, crucifixion takes several days to kill its victim, and Conan was 'rescued' (enslaved) by a passerby.

%%* {{Curse}}: Present in many stories - with varying efficacy.

%%* DecapitationPresentation
%%* DeceptiveDisciple

%%* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice

Try not to confuse him with Creator/ConanOBrien. Also has nothing to do with ''Manga/CaseClosed'' or ''Anime/FutureBoyConan''.

* DoesNotLikeShoes: Many characters, even more so if they're female. On one hand, it's justified given the hot and dry locales Conan frequents, but other times the terrain would be unforgivingly rugged and characters would still go barefoot. Sometimes though SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome happens and takes a toll, showing what happens when there's a need for foot protection (see Natalia).

* There's been an animated adaptation of ''Red Nails'' starring Creator/RonPerlman and Creator/MarkHamill in the works for some time, but it seems to be stuck in DevelopmentHell.

* BladeOnAStick: Not Conan's usual favored weapon, but when the situation demanded it he could use a lance or spear.

* CombatPragmatist: While a 'stout broadsword' is his usual preference, Conan will use pretty much whatever else is at hand. This includes other weapons like axes, [[BladeOnAStick spears]], daggers, bows and arrows (though he only learns archery after leaving Cimmeria), and [[ImprovisedWeapon improvised ones]] - like a stool in "Rogues in the House". He will also fight dirty, as when he gouges someone's eyes out in "The God in the Bowl".

* RatedMForManly: But of course. Conan and his massive thews felling mighty foes with speed and strength and winning the heart (or at least temporarily, the body) of the gorgeous and scantily-clad GirlOfTheWeek, felling everything from [[RedshirtArmy Redshirt Armies]] to {{Eldritch Abomination}}s by stabbing them repeatedly with his [[HeroesPreferSwords sword]] (or axe, or [[BladeOnAStick spear]], or [[SinisterScimitar scimitar]], or [[DeviousDaggers poignard]], or [[ImprovisedWeapon whatever readily falls to hand]]).

* AncientAfrica: Kush, Keshan, Darfar, Punt, Zembabwei, Atlaia, Amazon and the other "Black Kingdoms" to the south of Stygia where Conan managed to lead a tribe for a few months. Implied, though not shown, in the second movie featuring Grace Jones as a [[SociopathicHero psychotic tribeswoman]] (as one of the ''heroes'').

%%* BecauseDestinySaysSo

* BettyAndVeronica: Badass PirateGirl Bêlit (Veronica) and charming slave girl Zenobia (Betty). They're never in direct competition, coming into Conan's life at dramatically different times, but form dramatic counterpoints to the kind of women Conan could have ended up with at those points. A more direct example occurs in "Xuthal of the Dusk," between [[HystericalWoman Natala]] (Betty) and [[FemmeFatale Thalis]] (Veronica). Though it should be noted the attraction between Thalis and Conan was almost entirely one-sided on her part; Conan's was limited to [[EatingTheEyeCandy the natural reaction of coming upon a stark naked beautiful woman]].

* BreakoutVillain: Thoth-Amon the sorcerer appears exactly once in Howard's stories (though he's name-dropped in a few others), never meets Conan, and is at best a tangential antagonist in the story. In later adaptations, however, Thoth-Amon and his various Expies are usually the BigBad.

** Oddly, though, Howard stated in a letter that he preferred to write stupid characters, so he wouldn't have to dream up clever ways of getting them out of their predicaments: just punch, stab, or shoot. [[{{Irony}} The implication is]] that he ''thought'' he was writing Conan as DumbMuscle rather than a GeniusBruiser.

* FriendOrIdolDecision

* ''WesternAnimation/ConanAndTheYoungWarriors'' (1994). Continuation of the above. This had Conan leading kids around. Having defeated his enemies, Conan was contemplating retirement. Fate, in the form of Epimetrius the Sage, has other plans and the Cimmerian becomes mentor to [[TheChosenOne The Chosen Ones]], three siblings with magical powers who are destined to rule the Hyborian world. All three are blonde, and blue-eyed. Draegen, the eldest boy, summons an InstantArmor with magical qualities. He has also been trained to WhipItGood in battle. Brynne, middle child and only girl, is a MasterOfIllusion. She has also had training as a thief and Archer. Navah, the youngest boy, is a TheBeastmaster of the group. He has had training as a slinger. This show was never particularly successful. A total of 13 episodes were released.

* AbsurdlySharpBlade: Conan's swords can cut through nearly anything. Hardly a fight scene goes by that doesn't have the Cimmerian casually hewing off limbs and heads, plunging a sword through chainmail like wet paper or rotten fruit or some other metaphor for softness, and occasionally bisecting still-helmeted skulls and whole torsos. In "The People Of The Black Circle," he chops through a ''door'' with his sword (actually a "zhaibar knife," likely precursor to the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pesh-kabz "khyber knife,"]] potentially making this feat ''much more impressive''). And yet it's still always described as "razor-sharp". It's worth noting here the awesome physical power that Conan was able to put ''behind'' his sword work.
* TheAce: Physically, Conan embodies this. He's the ultimate swordsman... but if he's in a country where people fight with scimitars or knives and he loses his sword, he'll pick up the local weapon and never slow down. And besides his weapon skills, he has more raw strength than anyone else human (he meets an infamous wrestler and strangler, and casually beats him at his own game), and he's faster, tougher, and with better instincts too. Canon is that this comes from a lifetime of BarbarianHero [[HadToBeSharp hardship and struggle]]; Conan is just supposed to be better at ''everything''. That doesn't mean Conan never loses, but it does mean that trying to take him on in an even contest is a fool's errand. [[ConservationOfNinjitsu Individual]] {{Mooks}}, groups fighting him in concert, and {{Eldritch Abomination}}s can all give Conan on his best day a run for his money, but he usually triumphs (sometimes by [[KnowWhenToFoldEm knowing when a fight should be avoided]], [[RunOrDie or run away from]]).

* TheChainsOfCommanding: During ''The Phoenix on the Sword'' Conan feels this way, but by ''The Scarlet Citadel'' he carries those responsibilities gladly.

* WorthyOpponent: In the short story "Shadows in the Skull" by Creator/LSpragueDeCamp and Creator/LinCarter, forty years of bitter enmity and a chase half across the world culminate with Conan and his son Conn killing Conan's arch-enemy, the sorcerer Thoth-Amon, on the shore of what will become the Indian Ocean. Afterwards, Conan muses "He was the greatest of all the foes I have overcome. I shall miss the old scoundrel, in a way".

%%* RoyalBlood

%%* SlaveGalley

%%* UngratefulBastard

%%* RevengeByProxy
%%* TheRival

* StopWorshippingMe: Crom is said to send doom, not fortune, to those who demand his attention.