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Changed line(s) 77 (click to see context) from:
* {{Foil}}: To Conan. Both are the rulers of powerful nations, with Conan ruling the Western nation of Aquilonia, and Yezdigerd ruling the Eastern nation of Turan. However, while Conan was a foreign barbarian who won his throne by overthrowing a powerful tyrant, Yezdigerd inherited his throne from his father Yildiz. In ''The Scarlet Citadel'', Conan mentions that "Today no Aquilonian noble dares maltreat the humblest of my subjects, and the taxes of the people are lighter than anywhere else in the world," while ''The Return of Conan'' describes how a struggling fisherman "must also strain and work to meet the taxes imposed by [[=King Yezdigerd=]]," and that "[[=King Yezdigerd's=]] taxgatherers had supple whips and no compunction about using them."
to:
* {{Foil}}: To Conan. Both are the rulers of powerful nations, with Conan ruling the Western nation of Aquilonia, and Yezdigerd ruling the Eastern nation of Turan. However, while Conan was a foreign barbarian who won his throne by overthrowing a powerful tyrant, Yezdigerd inherited his throne from his father Yildiz. In ''The Scarlet Citadel'', Conan mentions that "Today no Aquilonian noble dares maltreat the humblest of my subjects, and the taxes of the people are lighter than anywhere else in the world," while ''The Return of Conan'' describes how a struggling fisherman "must also strain and work to meet the taxes imposed by [[=King Yezdigerd=]]," and that "[[=King Yezdigerd's=]] taxgatherers had supple whips and no compunction about using them."" Yezdigerd is a tall and powerful man from being raised as a WarriorPrince while Conan's might come from being a hillman that fights like a wild animal.
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* YoungerThanTheyLook: According to ''The Return of Conan'', "lines crisscrossed his stern and gloomy features ten years too early".
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* YoungerThanTheyLook: According to ''The Return of Conan'', "lines crisscrossed his stern and gloomy features ten years too early."
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* TheConqueror: Under his rule, Yezdigerd has made Turan more than twice as large as it was before.
Deleted line(s) 40 (click to see context) :
* TheConqueror: Under his rule, Yezdigerd has made Turan more than twice as large as it was before.
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Changed line(s) 9 (click to see context) from:
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: In ''The Road of Turan'', Roxana claims the the Turanian people are afraid of him, and even Artaban, one of Turan's own generals, is willing to betray him. Later in the same story, another Turanian general is introduced, who also planned to betray Yezdigerd in favor of Teyaspa, claims that "the people will rise against [[=...=]] Yezdigerd if they have anyone else to follow."
to:
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: In ''The Road of Turan'', Roxana claims the the Turanian people are afraid of him, and even Artaban, one of Turan's own generals, is willing to betray him. Later in the same story, another Turanian general is introduced, who also planned to betray Yezdigerd in favor of Teyaspa, claims that "the people will rise against [[=...=]] Yezdigerd if they have anyone else to follow."follow".
* AdaptationalEarlyAppearance: According to ''The Return of Conan'', Conan and Yezdigerd never met in person until the events of the novel, which is set after the events of ''The Hour of the Dragon''. In Marvel Comics, however, Conan and Yezdigerd have several face-to-face meetings over the years, going as far back as when Yezdigerd was still only a prince.
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* AdaptationalEarlyAppearance: According to ''The Return of Conan'', Conan and Yezdigerd never met in person until the events of the novel, which is set after the events of ''The Hour of the Dragon''. In Marvel Comics, however, Conan and Yezdigerd have several face-to-face meetings over the years, going as far back as when Yezdigerd was still only a prince.
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Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
to:
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], {{Half Human Hybrid}}s, Salbatanu and Zosara.
Changed line(s) 9 (click to see context) from:
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: In ''The Road of Turan'', Roxana claims the the Turanian people are afraid of him, and even Artaban, one of Turan's own generals are willing to betray him. Later in the same story, another Turanian general is introduced, who alse planned to betray Yezdigerd in favor of Teyaspa, claims that "the people will rise against [[=...=]] Yezdigerd if they have anyone else to follow."
to:
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: In ''The Road of Turan'', Roxana claims the the Turanian people are afraid of him, and even Artaban, one of Turan's own generals are generals, is willing to betray him. Later in the same story, another Turanian general is introduced, who alse also planned to betray Yezdigerd in favor of Teyaspa, claims that "the people will rise against [[=...=]] Yezdigerd if they have anyone else to follow."
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* ArchEnemy: He regards Conan as one of his most hated foes for repeatedly spoiling his plans and never managing to get payback. The narration of ''The Return of Conan'' refers to Yezdigerd as "His [[=Conan's=]] most implacable enemy." Interestingly, ''The Return of Conan'' also mentions that Conan never met Yezdigerd personally until the events of said story. In Marvel Comics, on the other hand, Conan and Yezdigerd meet directly on several occasions, with Conan even having been a subordinate of Yezdigerd, then a only a prince, before their falling out. The comics establish Yezdigerd also despises Conan for [[ScarsAreForever disfiguring his face]], which was a souvenir from the aforementioned falling out.
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* ArchEnemy: He regards Conan as one of his most hated foes for repeatedly spoiling his plans and never managing to get payback. The narration of ''The Return of Conan'' refers to Yezdigerd as "His [[=Conan's=]] most implacable enemy." Interestingly, ''The Return of Conan'' also mentions that Conan never met Yezdigerd personally until the events of said story. In Marvel Comics, on the other hand, Conan and Yezdigerd meet directly on several occasions, with Conan even having been a subordinate of Yezdigerd, then a only a prince, before their falling out. The comics establish that Yezdigerd also despises Conan for [[ScarsAreForever disfiguring his face]], which was a souvenir from the aforementioned falling out.
Changed line(s) 35 (click to see context) from:
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''When I have caught these dogs, they shall suffer the agonies of a thousand deaths in the torture chambers of Aghrapur.''
to:
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''When I have caught these dogs, they shall suffer the agonies of a thousand deaths in the torture chambers of Aghrapur.''
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-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''I know only that, when you bring me the infidel's head, your reward shall be thrice its weight in gold.''
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-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''I know only that, when you bring me the infidel's head, your reward shall be thrice its weight in gold.''
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-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Nor would wise [[GreaterScopeVillain Yildiz]] trust any to lead the hosts against Makkalet save his own son and heir.''
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-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''Nor would wise [[GreaterScopeVillain Yildiz]] trust any to lead the hosts against Makkalet save his own son and heir.''
Changed line(s) 59 (click to see context) from:
-->'''Literature/TheDevilInIron''': ''Yezdigerd, king of Turan, was the mightiest monarch in the world. In his palace in the great port city of Aghrapur was heaped the plunder of empires. His fleets of purple-sailed war galleys had made Vilayet an Hyrkanian lake. The dark-skinned people of Zamora paid him tribute, as did the eastern provinces of Koth. The Shemites bowed to his rule as far west as Shushan. His armies ravaged the borders of Stygia in the south and the snowy lands of the Hyperboreans in the north. His riders bore torch and sword westward into Brythunia and Ophir and Corinthia, even to the borders of Nemedia. His gilt-helmeted swordsmen had trampled hosts under their horses' hoofs, and walled cities went up in flames at his command. In the glutted slave markets of Aghrapur, Sultanapur, Khawarizm, Shahpur, and Khorusun, women were sold for three small silver coins—blonde Brythunians, tawny Stygians, dark-haired Zamorians, ebon Kushites, olive- skinned Shemites.''
to:
-->'''Literature/TheDevilInIron''': ''Yezdigerd, king of Turan, was the mightiest monarch in the world. In his palace in the great port city of Aghrapur was heaped the plunder of empires. His fleets of purple-sailed war galleys had made Vilayet an Hyrkanian lake. The dark-skinned people of Zamora paid him tribute, as did the eastern provinces of Koth. The Shemites bowed to his rule as far west as Shushan. His armies ravaged the borders of Stygia in the south and the snowy lands of the Hyperboreans in the north. His riders bore torch and sword westward into Brythunia and Ophir and Corinthia, even to the borders of Nemedia. His gilt-helmeted swordsmen had trampled hosts under their horses' hoofs, and walled cities went up in flames at his command. In the glutted slave markets of Aghrapur, Sultanapur, Khawarizm, Shahpur, and Khorusun, women were sold for three small silver coins—blonde Brythunians, tawny Stygians, dark-haired Zamorians, ebon Kushites, olive- skinned olive-skinned Shemites.''
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-->'''Tevek Thul''': ''And King Yezdigerd records the names of those who impede his allies, lest their discourtesy goes unforgotten.''
to:
-->'''Tevek Thul''': Thul:''' ''And King Yezdigerd records the names of those who impede his allies, lest their discourtesy goes unforgotten.''
* FamousNamedForeigner: Shares his name with the last Sassanid king of Persia and several dynastic predecessors.
Changed line(s) 75 (click to see context) from:
* FluffyFashionFeathers: His turban in ''The Return of Conan'' is described as vaving bird-of-prey feathers. The feathers get damaged by Conan's scimitar.
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* FluffyFashionFeathers: His turban in ''The Return of Conan'' is described as vaving having bird-of-prey feathers. The feathers get damaged by Conan's scimitar.
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* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. In ''The Return of Conan'', the last scene before Yezdigerd's death shows Conan and his pirates preparing to attack Yezdigerd's flagship. The next scene skips over to a tavern sometime later, where one of the pirates who was present during the fight narrates the final confrontation between Conan and Yezdigerd in elaborate detail to other people in the tavern (and the reader)]]
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* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler: [[DownplayedTrope [[spoiler:[[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. In ''The Return of Conan'', the last scene before Yezdigerd's death shows Conan and his pirates preparing to attack Yezdigerd's flagship. The next scene skips over to a tavern sometime later, where one of the pirates who was present during the fight narrates the final confrontation between Conan and Yezdigerd in elaborate detail to other people in the tavern (and the reader)]]
Changed line(s) 131 (click to see context) from:
-->'''Conan''': ''You wage your wars with the help of women. Can you handle a sword yourself? I'll show you how a real man fights!''
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--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''My acolytes in the temples of Turan, who are the priests behind the priests of Tarim, urged me to bestir myself in behalf of Yezdigerd. For reasons of my own, I complied. How can I explain my mystic reasons to your puny intellect? You could not understand.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''I understand this: that my brother died!''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''As Yezdigerd desired. For a while it was my whim to further his ambitions.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''Is Yezdigerd your vassal?''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''Is the dog that licks up the offal in the temple yard the vassal of the god?''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''I understand this: that my brother died!''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''As Yezdigerd desired. For a while it was my whim to further his ambitions.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''Is Yezdigerd your vassal?''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''Is the dog that licks up the offal in the temple yard the vassal of the god?''
to:
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': Yimsha:''' ''My acolytes in the temples of Turan, who are the priests behind the priests of Tarim, urged me to bestir myself in behalf of Yezdigerd. For reasons of my own, I complied. How can I explain my mystic reasons to your puny intellect? You could not understand.''
--->'''DeviYasmina''': Yasmina:''' ''I understand this: that my brother died!''
--->'''The Master ofYimsha''': Yimsha:''' ''As Yezdigerd desired. For a while it was my whim to further his ambitions.''
--->'''DeviYasmina''': Yasmina:''' ''Is Yezdigerd your vassal?''
--->'''The Master ofYimsha''': Yimsha:''' ''Is the dog that licks up the offal in the temple yard the vassal of the god?''
--->'''Devi
--->'''The Master of
--->'''Devi
--->'''The Master of
Changed line(s) 159 (click to see context) from:
--->'''Conan''': ''After you let one of your Turanian pigs toss my comrade Fafnir overboard--Because he lost an arm in fightingand was [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness no longer of any use to you]]! I wasn't trying to kill you then--But on second thought, I should have been--A mistake I'll correct tonight!''
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--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Soon, though, a shadow will fall across the doomed land...The Shadow of the Vulture''
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--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''Soon, though, a shadow will fall across the doomed land...The Shadow of the Vulture''
Changed line(s) 192 (click to see context) from:
* VillainOfAnotherStory: Being a powerful military genius with a massive empire at his disposal and a personal grudge with Conan could have easily made a threat out of him. Yet, he is too busy running his empire to confront his enemy face-to-face. [[spoiler: [[VillainNoLongerIdle Until]] ''The Return of Conan'', that is.]]
to:
* VillainOfAnotherStory: Being a powerful military genius with a massive empire at his disposal and a personal grudge with Conan could have easily made a threat out of him. Yet, he is too busy running his empire to confront his enemy face-to-face. [[spoiler: [[VillainNoLongerIdle [[spoiler:[[VillainNoLongerIdle Until]] ''The Return of Conan'', that is.]]
Changed line(s) 197 (click to see context) from:
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''I will hunt that dog to the ends of the earth! The whole thing smacks of that devil Conan! I'll warrant he is aboard. Will Khogar never get this cursed tub afloat?''
to:
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''I will hunt that dog to the ends of the earth! The whole thing smacks of that devil Conan! I'll warrant he is aboard. Will Khogar never get this cursed tub afloat?''
Changed line(s) 199 (click to see context) from:
* VillainousCrush: He wishes to make Devi Yasmina of Vendhya has concubines, which puts him conflict with his former ally, [[EvilSorcerer the Master of Yimsha]], who also desires to have Yasmina as a slave.
to:
* VillainousCrush: He wishes to make Devi Yasmina of Vendhya has concubines, his concubines which puts him conflict with his former ally, [[EvilSorcerer the Master of Yimsha]], who also desires to have Yasmina as a slave.
Changed line(s) 202 (click to see context) from:
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Better to have you at my side, old friend...than at my back."
to:
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''Better to have you at my side, old friend...than at my back."
Changed line(s) 204 (click to see context) from:
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''I, Yezdigerd -- Who one day shall spread the borders of Turan beyond my sire's wildest dreams!''
to:
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''I, Yezdigerd -- Who one day shall spread the borders of Turan beyond my sire's wildest dreams!''
Changed line(s) 208 (click to see context) from:
--->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''You have dared to fail!''
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--->'''King Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''You have dared to fail!''
Changed line(s) 210 (click to see context) from:
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''You dare speak thus to the once and future Emperor of Turan!?''
to:
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': Yezdigerd:''' ''You dare speak thus to the once and future Emperor of Turan!?''
Changed line(s) 212 (click to see context) from:
* WouldHitAGirl: In the comics, he is perfectly willing to order a woman's death...[[OffingTheOffspring His own daughter]], to be more specific.
to:
* WouldHitAGirl: In the comics, he is perfectly willing to order a woman's death...[[OffingTheOffspring His his own daughter]], to be more specific.
Changed line(s) 218 (click to see context) from:
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''The king grows short on patience. In his own hand he complains bitterly of what he calls my failure to guard the frontier. By Tarim, if I cannot deal a blow to these robbers of the steppes, Khawarizm may own a new lord.''
to:
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': Agha:''' ''The king grows short on patience. In his own hand he complains bitterly of what he calls my failure to guard the frontier. By Tarim, if I cannot deal a blow to these robbers of the steppes, Khawarizm may own a new lord.''
Changed line(s) 221 (click to see context) from:
--->'''Thanara''': ''What will happen to you when the king learns you have lost a whole company of his precious Imperials but escaped without a scratch himself''
to:
Changed line(s) 225,227 (click to see context) from:
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''I grow weary of these revelries, Lord Khovan. The king is weary of your failure to deal with these kozaki.''
--->'''Lord Khovan''': ''My lord Jehungir Agha, I swear by Tarim that I shall pile the severed heads of these kozaki before the throne...If not heads, then hands...or ears...or something.''
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''Be careful the king doesn't appoint your lieutenant, Shah Amaruth, as your successor--After he's had your head preserved with honey and brine to add to his collection.''
--->'''Lord Khovan''': ''My lord Jehungir Agha, I swear by Tarim that I shall pile the severed heads of these kozaki before the throne...If not heads, then hands...or ears...or something.''
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''Be careful the king doesn't appoint your lieutenant, Shah Amaruth, as your successor--After he's had your head preserved with honey and brine to add to his collection.''
to:
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': Agha:''' ''I grow weary of these revelries, Lord Khovan. The king is weary of your failure to deal with these kozaki.''
--->'''LordKhovan''': Khovan:''' ''My lord Jehungir Agha, I swear by Tarim that I shall pile the severed heads of these kozaki before the throne...If not heads, then hands...or ears...or something.''
--->'''JehungirAgha''': Agha:''' ''Be careful the king doesn't appoint your lieutenant, Shah Amaruth, as your successor--After he's had your head preserved with honey and brine to add to his collection.''
--->'''Lord
--->'''Jehungir
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Changed line(s) 71 (click to see context) from:
** In ''The Roadof the Eagles'', Yezdigerd is being conspired against by Artaban, a Turanian general who plans on putting Yezdigerd's uncle, Prince Teyaspa, on the throne instead. Within the story, he is described by Roxana as being a "cruel, gloomy youth," while General Artaban is mentioned in the narration to have once massacred a ship of innocent merchants in order to pay off his gambling debts.
to:
** In ''The Roadof Road of the Eagles'', Yezdigerd is being conspired against by Artaban, a Turanian general who plans on putting Yezdigerd's uncle, Prince Teyaspa, on the throne instead. Within the story, he is described by Roxana as being a "cruel, gloomy youth," while General Artaban is mentioned in the narration to have once massacred a ship of innocent merchants in order to pay off his gambling debts.
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Changed line(s) 172 (click to see context) from:
* SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil: According to ''The Devil In Iron'', the slave trade is large in many Turanian cities under Yezdigerd's rule, selling women from various lands.
to:
* SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil: According to ''The Devil In Iron'', the slave trade is large in many Turanian cities under Yezdigerd's rule, selling women from various lands. ''Shadows in Zamboula'' takes place in a Turanian city-state and has so many slaves they have to let one main group of slave belonging to a cannibalistic cult prey on any strangers they can get their hands on at night because the merchants and nobles would rather have cannibal slaves than paying for workers.
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Changed line(s) 62 (click to see context) from:
* EqualOpportunityEvil: According to ''The Return of Conan'', his throne room hold a gathering of people from various races throughout the Hyboria, including Nemedians, Ohpirans, Shemites, Vendhyans, and the Black Kingdoms. Yezdigerd uses these people as a way of either building ties with, or conspiring against, their native lands in order to increase his own power and influence.
to:
* EqualOpportunityEvil: According to ''The Return of Conan'', his throne room hold a gathering of people from various races throughout the Hyboria, including Nemedians, Ohpirans, Shemites, Vendhyans, and the Black Kingdoms. Yezdigerd uses these people as a way of either building ties with, or conspiring against, their native lands in order to increase his own power and influence. One comic has him recruit Conan as war counselor, a position that was before inherited, to see if Conan would make a better job.
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Changed line(s) 32 (click to see context) from:
* ClassicVillain: Ambition, Greed, and Wrath.
to:
* ClassicVillain: Ambition, Greed, and Wrath. While Conan's adventures end with him being a responsible king Yezdigerd expands his kingdom no matter the cost as he can just plunder more to recoup his losses.
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Changed line(s) 108 (click to see context) from:
* LaserGuidedKarma: Slavery was widespread throughout Yezdigerd's empire, and Yezdigerd's final defeat at Conan's hands was assisted by freshly-freed [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]].
to:
* LaserGuidedKarma: Slavery was widespread throughout Yezdigerd's empire, and Yezdigerd's final defeat at Conan's hands was assisted by freshly-freed [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]].Slaves.
Changed line(s) 182 (click to see context) from:
* ATasteOfTheLash: His tax collectors use this method on the populace. He also subjects his [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]] to this when pursuing Conan.
to:
* ATasteOfTheLash: His tax collectors use this method on the populace. He also subjects his [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]] Slaves to this when pursuing Conan.
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page title fixed (was Characters.Conan The Barbarian King Yedigerd)
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----
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[[/folder]]
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[[folder:King Yezdigerd]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yezdigerd.jpg]]
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yezdigerd.jpg]]
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
To return to the Character page for ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'', go '''[[Characters/ConanTheBarbarian here]]'''.
[[header:King Yezdigerd]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yezdigerd.jpg]]
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
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[[header:King Yezdigerd]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yezdigerd.jpg]]
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
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[[folder:King Yezdigerd]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yezdigerd.jpg]]
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
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* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: In ''The Road of Turan'', Roxana claims the the Turanian people are afraid of him, and even Artaban, one of Turan's own generals are willing to betray him. Later in the same story, another Turanian general is introduced, who alse planned to betray Yezdigerd in favor of Teyaspa, claims that "the people will rise against [[=...=]] Yezdigerd if they have anyone else to follow."
* AbusiveParents: Towards his daughter, Yolinda, in the comics. He would would have had her stoned if Yildiz let him have his way.
* AdaptationExpansion: In Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is a reccurring on-page character, both as a prince and as a king.
* AdaptationalEarlyAppearance: According to ''The Return of Conan'', Conan and Yezdigerd never met in person until the events of the novel, which is set after the events of ''The Hour of the Dragon''. In Marvel Comics, however, Conan and Yezdigerd have several face-to-face meetings over the years, going as far back as when Yezdigerd was still only a prince.
* AmbitionIsEvil: In order to increase his territory, Yezdigerd wages war, and even orchestrates the assassination of the King of Vendhya.
* ArchEnemy: He regards Conan as one of his most hated foes for repeatedly spoiling his plans and never managing to get payback. The narration of ''The Return of Conan'' refers to Yezdigerd as "His [[=Conan's=]] most implacable enemy." Interestingly, ''The Return of Conan'' also mentions that Conan never met Yezdigerd personally until the events of said story. In Marvel Comics, on the other hand, Conan and Yezdigerd meet directly on several occasions, with Conan even having been a subordinate of Yezdigerd, then a only a prince, before their falling out. The comics establish Yezdigerd also despises Conan for [[ScarsAreForever disfiguring his face]], which was a souvenir from the aforementioned falling out.
* BadBoss: In the ''Return of Conan'', he has several of his men put to death.
* TheBadGuyWins:
** Despite not appearing in person during the story, ''The Road of the Eagles'' ends with both his father, King Yildiz, and his uncle, Prince Teyaspa, dead, clearing the way for him to become the ruler of Turan.
** In The War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', Prince Yezdigerd sacks the city of Makkalet. Slightly [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]], in the sense that the Living Tarim's death prevents Yezdigerd from taking him alive, but Yezdigerd simply covers his failure up with an ElCidPloy.
** In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #235, Yezdigerd orders to kill his daughter Yolinda are successfully carried out.
* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: In ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', he allows the wizard Crotalus to experiment on a puppy.
* BadassNormal: Despite having no supernatural abilities, Yezdigerd is one of the most powerful characters in the setting, turning Turan into the most powerful nation in Hyboria through his intellect and ruthlessness.
* BeardOfEvil: In ''The Return of Conan'', he is described as having "a short black beard." He also has a beard in the War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian''.
* BerserkButton: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he becomes enraged after Fafnir insinuates he is HidingBehindReligion. He was about to draw his sword against Fafnir before Conan successfully appealed to the prince's sense of [[CantKillYouStillNeedYou pragmatism]].
* BigBadEnsemble: With [[EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng]] in ''The Return of Conan''. Although Yah Chieng triggers the main plot of the story by kidnapping Zenobia, the efforts of Yezdigerd and his forces to hunt down Conan after he sets off to rescue her take up a large portion of the story.
* [[BigFancyCastle Big Fancy Palace]]: As seen in ''The Return of Conan'', his palace in Aghrapur has many rooms and is decorated luxuriously. His throne room alone is descibed as holding what was likely a thousand people. On the outside, it's appearence is compared to "a giant vulture of gold and marble."
* BlingOfWar: In ''The Return of Conan'', he goes into action wearing "silvered Turanian mail and a gold-spired helmet."
* BloodKnight: According to ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd enjoys being a direct participant in the field of combat.
* BreakoutVillain: He was TheGhost in Howard's stories, and made his first on-page appearance during the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', [[spoiler:where he was killed off in the middle of the story.]] However, he becomes a recurring character in the pages of Marvel Comics.
* BringHimToMe: He has a captured Conan brought before him in his throne room in ''The Return of Conan''.
* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he prepares to attack Fafnir for offending him, but is convinced by Conan to spare his life after being reminded that he will need all the help he can get for his upcoming war against Makkalet.
* CheshireCatGrin: He has one in ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #112, when he offers to make Conan a general, while three scantily-clad women present him with a heap of treasure.
* ClassicVillain: Ambition, Greed, and Wrath.
* ClimaxBoss: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd is killed by Conan midway through the story, he is a far more prominent figure in the overall franchise than the story's actual BigBad, [[EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng]], who is merely a [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villain of the Week]]. Many of the adversaries Conan faces in the first half of the story answer to Yezdigerd.
* ColdBloodedTorture: After Yezdigerd's minions capture Conan, they imply that this fate awaits him. After Conan escapes Yezdigerd's place, Yezdigerd announces his intention to inflict this on Conan and Rolf after they escape his palace.
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''When I have caught these dogs, they shall suffer the agonies of a thousand deaths in the torture chambers of Aghrapur.''
* ConspicuousConsumption:
** As shown in ''The Return of Conan'', his palace is extremely luxurious, and shows off his empire's wealth. He also has a silken couch to sit on in his war galley.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, one of the pavilions of Yezdigerd war camp has an interior of golden lion statues, a golden throne for Yezdigerd, and a golden chair next to it for his councilor Sulimar, while several dancing girl perform for him.
--->'''''Conan the Barbarian'' #23''': ''Few men notice when evening falls again on the pavilions of the Turanian camp...for the golden splendor of Prince Yezdigerd makes the night scarcely less glorious than day.''
* TheConqueror: Under his rule, Yezdigerd has made Turan more than twice as large as it was before.
* CreepySouvenir: In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #131, Yezdigerd's Jegungir Agha threatens Lord Khovan, another one of Yezdigerd's subordinates, by telling Khovan that Yezdigerd keeps a collection of preserved heads.
* CurbStompBattle:
** He is on the receiving end from Conan during their ThroneRoomThrowdown in the Aghrapur palace in ''The Return of Conan''.
** He is also on the receiving end of one from Conan in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20. When Yezdigerd tries to prevent Conan from escaping his ship following Conan's killing of a Turanian officer, Conan "[[=slashes=]] his cheek [[=sending=]] him reeling backwards."
* DecapitatedArmy: After Yezdigerd is killed by Conan, his surviving crew on his war gallety promptly surrender to Conan's pirates.
* DecapitationPresentation:
** In ''The Return of Conan'': Ghandar Chen sends Yezdigerd a message promising to give him Conan's head.
** In the comics, Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu and Oshmaan the Executioner both intend on bringing Conan's head to Yezdigerd. Both of them fail.
* DefiantToTheEnd: He utters his last words at Conan during their final fight in ''Return of Conan'', moments before losing his head to the Cimmerian warrior: "I saw your hand in this, Cimmerian cur! By Erlik, now you shall reap your deserts! Die, barbarian dog."
* DemandingTheirHead: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, he tells Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu to bring him Conan's head.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''I know only that, when you bring me the infidel's head, your reward shall be thrice its weight in gold.''
* DirtyCoward: Conan insinuates that Yezdigerd is a coward when he is brought before him, mocking him for "[[=waging=]] your wars with the help of women" instead of getting his own hands dirty.
* TheDragon: In The War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', he is acting on the orders of his father, King Yildiz, to massacre the city of Makkalet.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Nor would wise [[GreaterScopeVillain Yildiz]] trust any to lead the hosts against Makkalet save his own son and heir.''
* TheDreaded: In ''The Road of the Eagles'', Yezdigerd, who was still a prince back than, is mentioned by Roxana as being feared by the people of Turan because of his cruelty.
* DrowningMySorrows: In ''The Return of Conan'', he is drinking wine while complaining about the difficulties he faces in pursuing Conan.
* ElCidPloy: After the Living Tarim is killed, Yezdigerd conceals his death by covering his remains in clothing and parading it through the city of Makkalat.
* TheEmperor: Of the Turanian Empire, and yes, he is very despotic, brutish and expansionist.
-->'''Literature/TheDevilInIron''': ''Yezdigerd, king of Turan, was the mightiest monarch in the world. In his palace in the great port city of Aghrapur was heaped the plunder of empires. His fleets of purple-sailed war galleys had made Vilayet an Hyrkanian lake. The dark-skinned people of Zamora paid him tribute, as did the eastern provinces of Koth. The Shemites bowed to his rule as far west as Shushan. His armies ravaged the borders of Stygia in the south and the snowy lands of the Hyperboreans in the north. His riders bore torch and sword westward into Brythunia and Ophir and Corinthia, even to the borders of Nemedia. His gilt-helmeted swordsmen had trampled hosts under their horses' hoofs, and walled cities went up in flames at his command. In the glutted slave markets of Aghrapur, Sultanapur, Khawarizm, Shahpur, and Khorusun, women were sold for three small silver coins—blonde Brythunians, tawny Stygians, dark-haired Zamorians, ebon Kushites, olive- skinned Shemites.''
* EnemiesList: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] in ''Conan and the Grim Grey God'' by the EvilSorcerer Tevek Thul, who pretends to be in the service of Yezdigerd.
-->'''Tevek Thul''': ''And King Yezdigerd records the names of those who impede his allies, lest their discourtesy goes unforgotten.''
* EqualOpportunityEvil: According to ''The Return of Conan'', his throne room hold a gathering of people from various races throughout the Hyboria, including Nemedians, Ohpirans, Shemites, Vendhyans, and the Black Kingdoms. Yezdigerd uses these people as a way of either building ties with, or conspiring against, their native lands in order to increase his own power and influence.
* EvilIsPetty: In the comics, Yezdigerd is obsessed with killing Conan because of a scar Conan gave across his face.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''', ''Conan the Barbarian'' #21: ''For, so long as the black-maned barbarian who gave me this scar still walks the face of the earth...Even for so long is Yezdigerd the most miserable of men.''
* EvilLaugh: He let out one after telling one of his generals about his intention to torture Conan and Rolf.
* EvilOverlord: He rules over an massive empire which practices slavery, and he wages war against other nations for the sake of increasing his wealth and power.
* TheEvilPrince: In Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', Yezdigerd orchestrates an assassination attempt against his own father, King Yildiz, only to be foiled by Conan.
* EvilVersusEvil:
** In ''The People of the Black Circle'', Khemsa and his lover plan to raise in army (which they plan to fund by selling Devi Yasmina to him) to "oust [[=Yezdigerd's=]] Turanians from the hills" so they can [[StartMyOwn build their own]] empire. However, they are killed by the Black Seers of Yimsha before they get that far.
** In ''The People of the Black Circle'', Yezdigerd is competing with his former ally, the Master of Yimsha, for the possession of Devi Yasmina. The Master even kills Kerim Shah, one of Yezdigerd's minions, over the issue.
** In ''The Roadof the Eagles'', Yezdigerd is being conspired against by Artaban, a Turanian general who plans on putting Yezdigerd's uncle, Prince Teyaspa, on the throne instead. Within the story, he is described by Roxana as being a "cruel, gloomy youth," while General Artaban is mentioned in the narration to have once massacred a ship of innocent merchants in order to pay off his gambling debts.
* {{Expy}}: He was originally based on [[HistoricalDomainCharacter Suleyman the Magnificent]] from Robert E. Howard's short story ''Literature/TheShadowOfTheVulture'', since he sends an skilled hunter known as the Vulture to track down TheHero.
* Fiction500: According to ''The Devil In Iron'', Yezdigerd's palace holds "the plunder of empires."
* FingerInTheMail: In Marvel Comics, he receives the head of one of his underlings, Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, in a chest.
* FluffyFashionFeathers: His turban in ''The Return of Conan'' is described as vaving bird-of-prey feathers. The feathers get damaged by Conan's scimitar.
* {{Foil}}: To Conan. Both are the rulers of powerful nations, with Conan ruling the Western nation of Aquilonia, and Yezdigerd ruling the Eastern nation of Turan. However, while Conan was a foreign barbarian who won his throne by overthrowing a powerful tyrant, Yezdigerd inherited his throne from his father Yildiz. In ''The Scarlet Citadel'', Conan mentions that "Today no Aquilonian noble dares maltreat the humblest of my subjects, and the taxes of the people are lighter than anywhere else in the world," while ''The Return of Conan'' describes how a struggling fisherman "must also strain and work to meet the taxes imposed by [[=King Yezdigerd=]]," and that "[[=King Yezdigerd's=]] taxgatherers had supple whips and no compunction about using them."
* GemEncrusted: The hilt of his scimitar has jewels.
* TheGhost: He never appears in any of Howard's stories, but he is mentioned in ''The Devil in Iron'', and ''The People of the Black Circle''. He is also referenced as an important background character in the pastiches ''The Road of the Eagles'' and ''Black Tears'', but he doesn't appear in those stories either.
* GoldMakesEverythingShiny: In ''The Return of Conan'', the doors to his throne rome is gold-worked, the trumpets in his throne room are golden, this throne is golden, his clothes are golden, he drinks wine out of a golden beaker, and when he is dressed for battle, he wears a "gold-spired helmet".
* GreaterScopeVillain: Several villains that Conan faces are Yezdigerd's subordinates such as Shah Amurath and Oshmaan, but they are almost always acting in their own accord rather than the Emperor himself.
** In ''The Devil in Iron'', he is the person who Jehungir Agha, the AntagonisticGovernor trying to kill Conan, reports to.
** In ''The People of the Black Circle'', he enlists the Black Seers of Yimsha, to assassinate King Bunda Chand of Vendhya, in order to make it easier for him to conquer Vendhya. Yezdigerd also plans to make Devi Yasmina his concubine, with his agent, Kerim Shah, serving as the main agent for Yezdigerd's will throughout the story.
** In ''Black Tears'', Conan spends much of the story pursuing Vardanes, a comrade who betrayed him to Yezdigerd's faction.
** ''Sons of the White Wolf'', a story from ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #37 features a rogue subordinate of Yezdigerd known as Oshmaan the Executioner as the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villain of the Week]]. After Oshmaan's imperialist ambitions fall through, he intends to go back to working for Yezdigerd by killing Conan for him.
* {{Greed}}: According to ''The Devil in Iron'', he keeps wealth plundered from other empires inside his own palace, and according to ''The Return of Conan'', he forces city-states in Brythunia and eastern Shem to pay him tribute, and his navy robs foreign merchants in his name. The text of ''The Return of Conan'' outright describes him as "an insatiable plunderer."
* HeroesActVillainsHinder: In ''The Return of Conan'', he interferes with Conan's quest to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng.
* HidingBehindReligion: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, Yezdigerd uses the kidnapping of the Living Tarim, an important Hyrkanian religious figure, to justify his father's decision to wage war against Makkalet. However, upon hearing this explanation, Conan's companion, Fafnir, mentions this war would also rid Aghrapur of an economic rival. In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #26, he uses an ElCidPloy to cover up the Living Tarim's death.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Yezdigerd decides to lead a couple of [[SlaveGalley Slave Galleys]] in pursuit of Conan. After Conan's pirates [[SlaveLiberation free the slaves]], [[TheDogBitesBack they immediately proceed to help the pirates]] fight Yezdigerd's men.
* HonorRelatedAbuse: He wishes to kill her daughter after learning she is pregnant.
* HorrifyingTheHorror: He is on the receiving end in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, when he is terrified by the presence of Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, despite Oglu being on his side.
-->'''''Conan the Barbarian'' #23''': ''Even Yezdigerd, ruthless heir-apparent to the throne of Turan, can scarcely repress a shudder at the dimly-illumind form which now stands before him. For this is Mikal Oglu, whose name is a quivering on both sides of the storm-corsed Vilayet Sea. Mikhal Oglu--most noted slayer in a nation of slayers...Mikhal Oglu--called the Vulture''
* HornsOfVillainy: He wears a horned helmet in ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #87.
* TheHunterBecomesTheHunted: After pursuing a pirate crew led by Conan, Yezdigerd ships crashes in shallow waters, leaving them vulerable to a counterattack from Conan's crew.
* IControlMyMinionsThrough: Authority (He is the ruler of Turan), Birthright (He is the previous ruler's son), Money (According to ''The Return of Conan'', he uses material wealth to entice people into going after Conan), and Fear (He executes minions who fail him as an example to other minions)
* IHaveNoDaughter: In Marvel Comics, he disowns his daughter, Yolinda, after she becomones pregnant.
* IWantThemAlive: In ''The Return of Conan'', when one of Yezdigerd's minions tries to kill Conan, another one of them insists that Yezdigerd will reward them if Conan is brought to him alive.
* IntimidatingRevenueService: His tax collectors whip taxpayers in order to collect payment.
* ItsPersonal: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd wants revenge on Conan for "[[=slaughtering=]] his soldiers, [[=burning=]] his cities, and [[=scuttling=]] his ships."
* KarmaHoudini: He never answers for his actions during the Howard's stories.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: In the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', [[spoiler:he is killed by Conan after trying to kill the Cimmerian warrior one time too many.]]
* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. In ''The Return of Conan'', the last scene before Yezdigerd's death shows Conan and his pirates preparing to attack Yezdigerd's flagship. The next scene skips over to a tavern sometime later, where one of the pirates who was present during the fight narrates the final confrontation between Conan and Yezdigerd in elaborate detail to other people in the tavern (and the reader)]]
* TheKingslayer: While he doesn't carry out the deed himself, he arranges the assassination of Bunda Chand, the King of Vendhya, with the assistance of the Black Seers of Yimsha.
* KinslayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil: He is willing to have his own daughter, Yolinda, killed.
* KneelBeforeZod:
** The narration of ''The Return of Conan'' mentions, he forced King Mithridates of Zamora to do this in order to keep his position.
** However, in ''The Return of Conan'', he is unable to force [[DefiantCaptive Conan]] to do so, even when one of Yezdigerd's men attempts to physically force him to.
* LargeAndInCharge: The text of ''The Return of Conan'' describes him as "a swarthy giant of a man."
* LaserGuidedKarma: Slavery was widespread throughout Yezdigerd's empire, and Yezdigerd's final defeat at Conan's hands was assisted by freshly-freed [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]].
* LeeroyJenkins: When pursuing Conan, he sails straight into through an archipelago instead of around it like his admiral and shipmaster suggested, ignoring their warnings that the ship might be grounded. Sure enough, his ship crashes into a sandbank.
* LightIsNotGood:
** He is described as wearing golden clothing and a white turban in ''The Return of Conan''.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275, part of his outfit is wife.
* LightningBruiser: As shown in ''The Return of Conan'', he is capable of dealing a "swift and powerful blow" which "No ordinary man could have avoided or stopped."
* {{Lust}}: He has a [[RoyalHarem seraglio]], and seeks to make Devi Yasmina its newest member.
* ManOfWealthAndTaste:
** During his introduction scene in ''The Return of Conan'', he is described as wearing silk and gold clothing, and a white turban with feathers.
** in the epilogue of ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, Yezdigerd is seen wearing purple clothing, red and golden headwear, a necklace, and a cape.
* MiscarriageOfJustice: In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #112, he has Numallah, one of his Captains, put to death after suffering a defeat, unaware that he was being used as a [[TheScapegoat scapegoat]] by the [[GeneralFailure incompetent General]] Orne'q, whose orders Numallah was following.
* MrExposition: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, Yezdigerd narrates the legend of Tarim and the kidnapping of the Living Tarim by the city-state of Makkalet in order to explain to Conan and Fafnir he is roping them into participating in.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: His flagship is called the ''Scimitar''.
* NeverMyFault: He ignores warnings not to takes his ship into unsounded waters, and when his ship crashes, he has two men executed.
* OhCrap:
** His reaction to seeing Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu standing over him, despite Oglu being his ally.
** He also has a shocked expression when he finds Oglu's head in a chest.
* OhMyGods:
** In ''The Return of Conan'', he exclaims "By Erlik, now your shall reap your just desserts" during his final fight with Conan.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian #19'', he shouts "By the crimson heart of Erlik, i'll--"
* OffWithHisHead: In ''The Return of Conan'', He has two of his men executed in this manner after his ship crashes into a sandbank. Shortly afterwards, [[spoiler:he himself is killed by Conan this way.]]
* OffingTheOffspring: In Marvel Comics, he is willing to have his own daughter, Yolinda, killed. [[spoiler:He eventually succeeds.]]
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Most of the times King Yezdigerd comes into conflict with Conan, he leaves his underlings to do the legwork instead of getting his hands dirty himself. Conan actually lampshades this when brought before Yezdigerd in ''The Return of Conan''.
-->'''Conan''': ''You wage your wars with the help of women. Can you handle a sword yourself? I'll show you how a real man fights!''
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain:
** In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd refers to Conan as a "Cimmerian cur" and a "barbarian dog" [[spoiler:moments before his death at the hands of the latter.]]
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, he refers to one of the dancing girls entertaining him as a "wench."
* PragmaticVillainy:
** Despite his hatred for Conan, Yezdigerd is willing to hire him to bring down a group of conspirators who seek to depose him.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he is talked down from attacking Fafnir by Conan on the grounds Yezdigerd will need as many "living men" as he can get to help him fight against the city of Makkalet.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd'': ''True enough. You'll do me no good resting in some shark's belly.''
** In ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', Yezdigerd Plays this Trope Straight during his youth by dismisses the idea of slave laber as short-lived and unreliable in battle. By the time of ''The Return of Conan'', set late in his life, however, he's [[SubvertedTrope abandoned this pragmatism]] by using galley slaves to pursue Conan, which results in the galley slaves revolting against Yezdigerd.
** Also in ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', he criticizes the idea of {{Conscription}} because he believes that arming and training civilians will make them harder to control.
* {{Pride}}:
** In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd complains that "The red-handed barbarians have escaped and mocked the majesty of Turan."
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he takes personal offense then Fafnir insinuates that Turan's supposedly regligiously-motivated war against Makkalet is actually financially motivated, preparing to draw a sword on Fafnir for "[[=speaking=]] thus to the once and future majesty of Turan" before Conan intervenes.
* PurpleIsPowerful:
** According to ''The Devil in Iron'', his war galleys, which dominate the Vilayet Sea, have purple sails on them.
** In the epilogue of ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, Yezdigerd is seen wearing purple clothes.
** He wears purple pants in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275.
* PuppetKing: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where Devi Yasmina questions if Yezdigerd is the Master of Yimsha's puppet upon learning the Master was helping Yezdigerd for [[HiddenAgendaVillain unknown reasons]].
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''My acolytes in the temples of Turan, who are the priests behind the priests of Tarim, urged me to bestir myself in behalf of Yezdigerd. For reasons of my own, I complied. How can I explain my mystic reasons to your puny intellect? You could not understand.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''I understand this: that my brother died!''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''As Yezdigerd desired. For a while it was my whim to further his ambitions.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''Is Yezdigerd your vassal?''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''Is the dog that licks up the offal in the temple yard the vassal of the god?''
* RapePillageAndBurn: According to ''The Devil in Iron'' Yezdigerd is known to order cities to be burned, and much of his fortune came from plundering other lands. In The War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', he does this to the city of Makkalet on the orders of his father, King Yildiz.
* RedIsViolent: The Marvel Comics sometimes depict him wearing red as part of his getup, and he is a violent man.
* RedRightHand: The scar on his face in Marvel Comics.
* RevengeMyopia: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20, then-Prince Yezdigerd orders the death of Conan for killing his henchman Balthaz, who had ordering one of Conan's friends (who was also working for Yezdigerd) thrown overboard after [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness deeming him useless]]. During his escape, Conan scars Yezdigerd's face after Yezdigerd tries to prevent him from escaping, which causes Yezdigerd to develop a lifelong grudge against Conan. This is [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Conan during his confrontation with Yezdigerd in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd'': '''It's only my personal vengeance that needs concern you--Revenge for the scar you gave me, a decade past, on the Vilayet Sea!'''
--->'''Conan''': ''After you let one of your Turanian pigs toss my comrade Fafnir overboard--Because he lost an arm in fightingand was [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness no longer of any use to you]]! I wasn't trying to kill you then--But on second thought, I should have been--A mistake I'll correct tonight!''
* RewardedAsATraitorDeserves: He has Zorka, a treacherous former comrade of Conan, put to death by one of his officers, Commander Grimm, after receiveing information from him.
* TheRichWantToBeRicher: Yezdigerd, who is already a king, spends his reign plundering riches and collecting tribute from other lands, as well as imposing heavy taxes on his subjects.
* RiskingTheKing: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd personally travels aboard one of the two war galleys he sends after Conan. [[spoiler:It gets him killed.]]
* RoyalBrat: In ''The Road of the Eagles'', Roxana describes then-Prince Yezdigerd as a "cruel, gloomy youth."
* RoyalHarem: Being an wealthy emperor of a large kingdom, it shouldn't come to a surprise he can afford to have as many wives and concubines as he wants. In fact, this causes a complication in the Dark Horse comics where an ArrangedMarriage is made between him and Queen Taramis so she can become his newest wife in exchange for Turan protecting her kingdom Khauran, but due to some dispute with ''another marriage'' with a different princess leads to him sending an messenger to call off the union. In ''The People of the Black Circle'', he seeks to make Devi Yasmina on of his concubines.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd personally leads a hunt for Conan and faces him in battle.
* {{Sadist}}: He find amusement at the thought of torturing Conan and Rolf.
* ScarsAreForever: In Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd has a scar on his face, courtesy of Conan.
* ShieldsAreUseless: His shield is destroyed by Conan during their duel aboard the ''Scimitar'', [[spoiler:immediately before Conan decapitates him.]]
* ShootTheDangerousMinion: In ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #37, it is mentioned that he did this do his councilor, Sulimar.
* SinisterScimitar: In ''The Return of Conan'' Yezdigerd wields a scimitar when Conan confronts him in his own throne room, which gets wrecked. His also brings a scimitar with him during his subsequent pursuit of Conan. Additionally, Yezdigerd named his flagship the ''Scimitar''.
* SlaveGalley: He uses these as warships, pursuing Conan with them after he flees Aghrapur. This end up backfiring on him, as the galley slaves end up rebelling against him.
* SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil: According to ''The Devil In Iron'', the slave trade is large in many Turanian cities under Yezdigerd's rule, selling women from various lands.
* SlouchOfVillainy: He is introduced lolling in his throne in ''The Return of Conan'', which is his first on-page appearance in Conan media.
* TheStrategist: He is described as being this in ''The Return of Conan'', having used his intelligence to expend Turan's territory.
* SuccessionCrisis: In ''The Return of Conan'', Conan mentions that Yezdigerd had no successors at the time of his dearth, and predicts this will result in the Turan being fractured by Shahs and Aghas.
* SuperiorSuccessor: He is considered a stronger and more effective ruler than his father, King Yildiz.
* SuppressedRage: When a captive Conan is brought before him during ''The Return of Conan'', the narration states that "The lust for vengeance churned up within him [[=Yezdigerd=]], but he held himself in check while the guardsmen knelt and touched their foreheads to the marble floor." After Conan subsqeuently escapes, Yezdigerd stops suppressing it.
* SurroundedByIdiots: Yezdigerd has complained about his underlings on multiple occasions.
** He sends Jehungir Agha a message, which Agha described during ''The Devil in Iron'' as "[[=Yezdigerd=]] [[=complaining=]] bitterly of what he calls [[=Agha's=]] failures to guard the frontier." Ironically, in ''The Return of Conan'' it was him ignoring his subordinates' advice by sailing into unsounded that led into a downfall, as he ended up crashing his flagship, leaving it vulnerable to an attack from Conan's pirates, [[spoiler:which ended up costing Yezdigerd his life.]]
** In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd, upon learning Conan and one of his companions escaped his palace, asked "Are my soldiers sucklings, that they cannot lay two men low?"
** Later in ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd, while in pursuit of Conan, complains that "My cursed amirals need half a day to put my flagship to sea." Moments afterward, after being assured by his minion Thanara that they will have Conan in their grasp, Yezdigerd responds by complaining about his henchmen's repeated failures to capture Conan, saying that "My henchmen have often thought so, yet that scoundrel has tricked his way out of every trap. Now for once I am the hunter!" I will personally see that he escapes not."
* ATasteOfTheLash: His tax collectors use this method on the populace. He also subjects his [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]] to this when pursuing Conan.
* TheTeetotaler: In ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', set during his time as a prince, he abstains from drinking alcohol out of religious devotion to Tarim. He loses this trait as time goes on, as in ''Black Tears'', set early during his reign as king, he is mentioned in the narration as having private wine cellars, and in ''The Return of Conan'', set many years afterwards, he is shown drinking wine.
* TemptingFate: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23 he responds to Mikhal Oglu's BadassBoast that "If I bring you not his head...I give him leave to send you mine." (Which itself is an example of TemptingFate) by telling Oglu "He'd take you up on that, I trow." Sure enough, the issue ends with Conan sending Yezdigerd Oglu's head.
* ThroneRoomThrowdown: He has a brief swordfight with Conan in his own throne room, before his men take him to safety while Conan fights his wat out of Yezdigerd's palace.
* TitleDrop: Played With in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #21. Yezdigerd doesn't namedrop the title for the current issue ''The Monster of the Monoliths'', but rather for the upcoming issue ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, which is titled ''The Shadow of the Vulture'', as a method of {{Foreshadowing}}.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Soon, though, a shadow will fall across the doomed land...The Shadow of the Vulture''
* TyrantTakesTheHelm: He succeeds his lenient (by Turanian standards) father Yildiz as the ruler of Turan, becoming an cruel and aggressive warmonger. In ''The Road to the Eagles'', many Turanians fear that the then-Prince Yezdigerd will become this, so a group of conspirators attempted to put his uncle Teyaspa on the throne instead. They fail.
* TheUnfought: Due to being TheGhost, Yezdigerd never fights Conan in any of Howard's stories. [[spoiler:Subverted in ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd finally fights Conan directly, not once but twice, the first time in Yezdigerd's throne room, and the second aboard Yezdigerd's war galley.]] Averted in Marvel Comics, where Conan had directy fought with Yezdigerd as early as Yezdigerd's princely years, which scar on Yezdigerd's face can attest to.
* UnseenNoLonger: After being TheGhost in Howard's stories, Yezdigerd makes his on-page debut in ''The Return of Conan''.
* VillainNoLongerIdle: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd (eventually) gets personally involved in the pursuit of Conan. He mentions that whenever his underlings thought they had Conan cornered, Conan found a way out. [[spoiler:It gets him killed.]]
* VillainOfAnotherStory: Being a powerful military genius with a massive empire at his disposal and a personal grudge with Conan could have easily made a threat out of him. Yet, he is too busy running his empire to confront his enemy face-to-face. [[spoiler: [[VillainNoLongerIdle Until]] ''The Return of Conan'', that is.]]
** In ''The Road of Eagle'': The story's main antagonist General Artaban, is seeking to prevent Yezdigerd's rise to power.
** In ''Conan and the Grim Grey God'', one of the story's main villains, Tevek Thul, pretends to be a servant of Yezdigerd.
* VillainousBreakdown:
** He has one ''The Return of Conan'' after being tricked by Conan into crashing into a sandbank.
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''I will hunt that dog to the ends of the earth! The whole thing smacks of that devil Conan! I'll warrant he is aboard. Will Khogar never get this cursed tub afloat?''
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, he leaves his pavilion in shock after being delivered the head of Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, who he sent to kill Conan.
* VillainousCrush: He wishes to make Devi Yasmina of Vendhya has concubines, which puts him conflict with his former ally, [[EvilSorcerer the Master of Yimsha]], who also desires to have Yasmina as a slave.
* VillainousDemotivator: After his men fail to prevent Conan's escape, he orders a fraction of his guards to be executed in order to motivate the remainder.
* VillainousFriendship: In the comics, he has one with Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, as seen in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23. He refers to the Vulture as his friend, although Yezdigerd does fear making an enemy out of him.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Better to have you at my side, old friend...than at my back."
* VisionaryVillain: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, Yezdigerd's dialogue reveals that even as a prince, he had ambitions of expaning Turan.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''I, Yezdigerd -- Who one day shall spread the borders of Turan beyond my sire's wildest dreams!''
* {{Wrath}}: He is a brutal warmonger, a BadBoss who repeatedly executes or threatens his underlings, and has a strong desire for vengeance against Conan.
* WhoDares:
** In the ''The Return of Conan'', he uses this as a way of berating his men for failing to prevent Conan's escape from his palace.
--->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''You have dared to fail!''
** He also has this reaction in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, after Fafnir questions Turan's motives for waging war against Makkalet.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''You dare speak thus to the once and future Emperor of Turan!?''
* WhyWontYouDie: He screams for Conan to die during their duel aboard the ''Scimitar'' in ''The Return of Conan''.
* WouldHitAGirl: In the comics, he is perfectly willing to order a woman's death...[[OffingTheOffspring His own daughter]], to be more specific.
* WreckedWeapon: His scimitar is broken by Conan during their brief fight in Yezdigerd's throne room.
* TheWrongfulHeirToTheThrone: In ''The Road of the Eagles'', Roxana believes that Prince Yezdigerd, despite being the son of the reigning King Yildiz, is unfit to inherit the throne of Turan because of his cruelty, and conspire to make his uncle Teyaspa king instead. Ultimately, the plan fails, and Yezdigerd becomes king.
* YouExclamation: In the comics, this is his reaction when he wakes up to see [[TheDreaded Mihkal "The Vulture" Oglu]] standing over him.
* YouHaveFailedMe: There are several occasions where he executes or threatens his underlings, or one of his underlings threatens another with Yezdigerd's wrath.
** In ''The Devil in Iron'', [[AntagonisticGovernor Jehungir Agha]], who just received an angry message from Yezdigerd, fears Yezdigerd will have him replaced if he continues to displease them.
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''The king grows short on patience. In his own hand he complains bitterly of what he calls my failure to guard the frontier. By Tarim, if I cannot deal a blow to these robbers of the steppes, Khawarizm may own a new lord.''
** In ''The Return of Conan'', he has one-tenth of his guards executed as punishment for failing to prevent Conan's escape (as well as a way "to bolster the courage of the rest"), and later has another two of his men executed after his war galley crashes in shallow waters.
** Also in ''The Return of Conan'', Thanara tries to intimidate Ardashir into compliance by [[ImpliedTrope implying]] that Yezdigerd might inflict this on him after losing a company of men.
--->'''Thanara''': ''What will happen to you when the king learns you have lost a whole company of his precious Imperials but escaped without a scratch himself''
** In ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #87, he threatens to crucify an underling if he can't fulfill his orders.
** In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #112, he has Captain Numallah executed after suffering a costly defeat in Rymra Pass. Later in the same story, he does this to General Orne'q, having been informed by Conan that Orne'q was responsible for the aformentioned defeat in Rymra Pass, as well as Orne'q's subsequent failure to prevent Fort Khenat from falling into enemy hands.
** In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #131, [[MouthOfSauron Jehungur Agha]] threatens Lord Khovan with this fate on Yezdigerd's behalf.
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''I grow weary of these revelries, Lord Khovan. The king is weary of your failure to deal with these kozaki.''
--->'''Lord Khovan''': ''My lord Jehungir Agha, I swear by Tarim that I shall pile the severed heads of these kozaki before the throne...If not heads, then hands...or ears...or something.''
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''Be careful the king doesn't appoint your lieutenant, Shah Amaruth, as your successor--After he's had your head preserved with honey and brine to add to his collection.''
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20, Yezdigerd's soldiers throw Conan's friend, Fafnir, who was also fighting for Yezdigerd, off the ship after he loses an arm. While it was Yezdigerd's subordinate, Balthaz, who gave the order to so, Yezdigerd allowed it to happen, something Conan angrily reminds Yezdigerd about in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275.
* YouShallNotPass: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20, he personally blocks Conan's escape route after the latter kills on of the former's subordinates onboard the former's ship, even ordering Conan to stop. However, Yezdigerd is quickly defeated by Conan, who promptly jumps overboard.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: According to ''The Return of Conan'', "lines crisscrossed his stern and gloomy features ten years too early."
[[/folder]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yezdigerd.jpg]]
Yezdigerd is the King of Turan, an Eastern nation in the distant Vilayet Sea and considered the mightiest empire to have ever existed. He is the son of King Yildiz, one of Conan's former employers. First referenced in ''The Devil in Iron'' where he is Jehugir Agha's boss, and referenced again in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where he is the boss Kerim Shah, who arranges the assassination of the King of Vendhya. Yezdigerd makes his first full appearance in the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd and his minions hunt for Conan, who left Aquilonia in order to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng. However, Conan turns the tables on Yezdigerd and kills him once and for all. Yezdigerd is expanded in the Marvel Comics where he is a frequent rival to Conan after initially employing the barbarian as a mercenary against the people of Makkalet. In the Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is also father to a woman named Yolinda, and the grandfather to her two [[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Human Hybbrids]], Salbatanu and Zosara.
----
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: In ''The Road of Turan'', Roxana claims the the Turanian people are afraid of him, and even Artaban, one of Turan's own generals are willing to betray him. Later in the same story, another Turanian general is introduced, who alse planned to betray Yezdigerd in favor of Teyaspa, claims that "the people will rise against [[=...=]] Yezdigerd if they have anyone else to follow."
* AbusiveParents: Towards his daughter, Yolinda, in the comics. He would would have had her stoned if Yildiz let him have his way.
* AdaptationExpansion: In Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd is a reccurring on-page character, both as a prince and as a king.
* AdaptationalEarlyAppearance: According to ''The Return of Conan'', Conan and Yezdigerd never met in person until the events of the novel, which is set after the events of ''The Hour of the Dragon''. In Marvel Comics, however, Conan and Yezdigerd have several face-to-face meetings over the years, going as far back as when Yezdigerd was still only a prince.
* AmbitionIsEvil: In order to increase his territory, Yezdigerd wages war, and even orchestrates the assassination of the King of Vendhya.
* ArchEnemy: He regards Conan as one of his most hated foes for repeatedly spoiling his plans and never managing to get payback. The narration of ''The Return of Conan'' refers to Yezdigerd as "His [[=Conan's=]] most implacable enemy." Interestingly, ''The Return of Conan'' also mentions that Conan never met Yezdigerd personally until the events of said story. In Marvel Comics, on the other hand, Conan and Yezdigerd meet directly on several occasions, with Conan even having been a subordinate of Yezdigerd, then a only a prince, before their falling out. The comics establish Yezdigerd also despises Conan for [[ScarsAreForever disfiguring his face]], which was a souvenir from the aforementioned falling out.
* BadBoss: In the ''Return of Conan'', he has several of his men put to death.
* TheBadGuyWins:
** Despite not appearing in person during the story, ''The Road of the Eagles'' ends with both his father, King Yildiz, and his uncle, Prince Teyaspa, dead, clearing the way for him to become the ruler of Turan.
** In The War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', Prince Yezdigerd sacks the city of Makkalet. Slightly [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]], in the sense that the Living Tarim's death prevents Yezdigerd from taking him alive, but Yezdigerd simply covers his failure up with an ElCidPloy.
** In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #235, Yezdigerd orders to kill his daughter Yolinda are successfully carried out.
* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: In ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', he allows the wizard Crotalus to experiment on a puppy.
* BadassNormal: Despite having no supernatural abilities, Yezdigerd is one of the most powerful characters in the setting, turning Turan into the most powerful nation in Hyboria through his intellect and ruthlessness.
* BeardOfEvil: In ''The Return of Conan'', he is described as having "a short black beard." He also has a beard in the War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian''.
* BerserkButton: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he becomes enraged after Fafnir insinuates he is HidingBehindReligion. He was about to draw his sword against Fafnir before Conan successfully appealed to the prince's sense of [[CantKillYouStillNeedYou pragmatism]].
* BigBadEnsemble: With [[EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng]] in ''The Return of Conan''. Although Yah Chieng triggers the main plot of the story by kidnapping Zenobia, the efforts of Yezdigerd and his forces to hunt down Conan after he sets off to rescue her take up a large portion of the story.
* [[BigFancyCastle Big Fancy Palace]]: As seen in ''The Return of Conan'', his palace in Aghrapur has many rooms and is decorated luxuriously. His throne room alone is descibed as holding what was likely a thousand people. On the outside, it's appearence is compared to "a giant vulture of gold and marble."
* BlingOfWar: In ''The Return of Conan'', he goes into action wearing "silvered Turanian mail and a gold-spired helmet."
* BloodKnight: According to ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd enjoys being a direct participant in the field of combat.
* BreakoutVillain: He was TheGhost in Howard's stories, and made his first on-page appearance during the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', [[spoiler:where he was killed off in the middle of the story.]] However, he becomes a recurring character in the pages of Marvel Comics.
* BringHimToMe: He has a captured Conan brought before him in his throne room in ''The Return of Conan''.
* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he prepares to attack Fafnir for offending him, but is convinced by Conan to spare his life after being reminded that he will need all the help he can get for his upcoming war against Makkalet.
* CheshireCatGrin: He has one in ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #112, when he offers to make Conan a general, while three scantily-clad women present him with a heap of treasure.
* ClassicVillain: Ambition, Greed, and Wrath.
* ClimaxBoss: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd is killed by Conan midway through the story, he is a far more prominent figure in the overall franchise than the story's actual BigBad, [[EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng]], who is merely a [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villain of the Week]]. Many of the adversaries Conan faces in the first half of the story answer to Yezdigerd.
* ColdBloodedTorture: After Yezdigerd's minions capture Conan, they imply that this fate awaits him. After Conan escapes Yezdigerd's place, Yezdigerd announces his intention to inflict this on Conan and Rolf after they escape his palace.
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''When I have caught these dogs, they shall suffer the agonies of a thousand deaths in the torture chambers of Aghrapur.''
* ConspicuousConsumption:
** As shown in ''The Return of Conan'', his palace is extremely luxurious, and shows off his empire's wealth. He also has a silken couch to sit on in his war galley.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, one of the pavilions of Yezdigerd war camp has an interior of golden lion statues, a golden throne for Yezdigerd, and a golden chair next to it for his councilor Sulimar, while several dancing girl perform for him.
--->'''''Conan the Barbarian'' #23''': ''Few men notice when evening falls again on the pavilions of the Turanian camp...for the golden splendor of Prince Yezdigerd makes the night scarcely less glorious than day.''
* TheConqueror: Under his rule, Yezdigerd has made Turan more than twice as large as it was before.
* CreepySouvenir: In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #131, Yezdigerd's Jegungir Agha threatens Lord Khovan, another one of Yezdigerd's subordinates, by telling Khovan that Yezdigerd keeps a collection of preserved heads.
* CurbStompBattle:
** He is on the receiving end from Conan during their ThroneRoomThrowdown in the Aghrapur palace in ''The Return of Conan''.
** He is also on the receiving end of one from Conan in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20. When Yezdigerd tries to prevent Conan from escaping his ship following Conan's killing of a Turanian officer, Conan "[[=slashes=]] his cheek [[=sending=]] him reeling backwards."
* DecapitatedArmy: After Yezdigerd is killed by Conan, his surviving crew on his war gallety promptly surrender to Conan's pirates.
* DecapitationPresentation:
** In ''The Return of Conan'': Ghandar Chen sends Yezdigerd a message promising to give him Conan's head.
** In the comics, Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu and Oshmaan the Executioner both intend on bringing Conan's head to Yezdigerd. Both of them fail.
* DefiantToTheEnd: He utters his last words at Conan during their final fight in ''Return of Conan'', moments before losing his head to the Cimmerian warrior: "I saw your hand in this, Cimmerian cur! By Erlik, now you shall reap your deserts! Die, barbarian dog."
* DemandingTheirHead: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, he tells Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu to bring him Conan's head.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''I know only that, when you bring me the infidel's head, your reward shall be thrice its weight in gold.''
* DirtyCoward: Conan insinuates that Yezdigerd is a coward when he is brought before him, mocking him for "[[=waging=]] your wars with the help of women" instead of getting his own hands dirty.
* TheDragon: In The War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', he is acting on the orders of his father, King Yildiz, to massacre the city of Makkalet.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Nor would wise [[GreaterScopeVillain Yildiz]] trust any to lead the hosts against Makkalet save his own son and heir.''
* TheDreaded: In ''The Road of the Eagles'', Yezdigerd, who was still a prince back than, is mentioned by Roxana as being feared by the people of Turan because of his cruelty.
* DrowningMySorrows: In ''The Return of Conan'', he is drinking wine while complaining about the difficulties he faces in pursuing Conan.
* ElCidPloy: After the Living Tarim is killed, Yezdigerd conceals his death by covering his remains in clothing and parading it through the city of Makkalat.
* TheEmperor: Of the Turanian Empire, and yes, he is very despotic, brutish and expansionist.
-->'''Literature/TheDevilInIron''': ''Yezdigerd, king of Turan, was the mightiest monarch in the world. In his palace in the great port city of Aghrapur was heaped the plunder of empires. His fleets of purple-sailed war galleys had made Vilayet an Hyrkanian lake. The dark-skinned people of Zamora paid him tribute, as did the eastern provinces of Koth. The Shemites bowed to his rule as far west as Shushan. His armies ravaged the borders of Stygia in the south and the snowy lands of the Hyperboreans in the north. His riders bore torch and sword westward into Brythunia and Ophir and Corinthia, even to the borders of Nemedia. His gilt-helmeted swordsmen had trampled hosts under their horses' hoofs, and walled cities went up in flames at his command. In the glutted slave markets of Aghrapur, Sultanapur, Khawarizm, Shahpur, and Khorusun, women were sold for three small silver coins—blonde Brythunians, tawny Stygians, dark-haired Zamorians, ebon Kushites, olive- skinned Shemites.''
* EnemiesList: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] in ''Conan and the Grim Grey God'' by the EvilSorcerer Tevek Thul, who pretends to be in the service of Yezdigerd.
-->'''Tevek Thul''': ''And King Yezdigerd records the names of those who impede his allies, lest their discourtesy goes unforgotten.''
* EqualOpportunityEvil: According to ''The Return of Conan'', his throne room hold a gathering of people from various races throughout the Hyboria, including Nemedians, Ohpirans, Shemites, Vendhyans, and the Black Kingdoms. Yezdigerd uses these people as a way of either building ties with, or conspiring against, their native lands in order to increase his own power and influence.
* EvilIsPetty: In the comics, Yezdigerd is obsessed with killing Conan because of a scar Conan gave across his face.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''', ''Conan the Barbarian'' #21: ''For, so long as the black-maned barbarian who gave me this scar still walks the face of the earth...Even for so long is Yezdigerd the most miserable of men.''
* EvilLaugh: He let out one after telling one of his generals about his intention to torture Conan and Rolf.
* EvilOverlord: He rules over an massive empire which practices slavery, and he wages war against other nations for the sake of increasing his wealth and power.
* TheEvilPrince: In Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', Yezdigerd orchestrates an assassination attempt against his own father, King Yildiz, only to be foiled by Conan.
* EvilVersusEvil:
** In ''The People of the Black Circle'', Khemsa and his lover plan to raise in army (which they plan to fund by selling Devi Yasmina to him) to "oust [[=Yezdigerd's=]] Turanians from the hills" so they can [[StartMyOwn build their own]] empire. However, they are killed by the Black Seers of Yimsha before they get that far.
** In ''The People of the Black Circle'', Yezdigerd is competing with his former ally, the Master of Yimsha, for the possession of Devi Yasmina. The Master even kills Kerim Shah, one of Yezdigerd's minions, over the issue.
** In ''The Roadof the Eagles'', Yezdigerd is being conspired against by Artaban, a Turanian general who plans on putting Yezdigerd's uncle, Prince Teyaspa, on the throne instead. Within the story, he is described by Roxana as being a "cruel, gloomy youth," while General Artaban is mentioned in the narration to have once massacred a ship of innocent merchants in order to pay off his gambling debts.
* {{Expy}}: He was originally based on [[HistoricalDomainCharacter Suleyman the Magnificent]] from Robert E. Howard's short story ''Literature/TheShadowOfTheVulture'', since he sends an skilled hunter known as the Vulture to track down TheHero.
* Fiction500: According to ''The Devil In Iron'', Yezdigerd's palace holds "the plunder of empires."
* FingerInTheMail: In Marvel Comics, he receives the head of one of his underlings, Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, in a chest.
* FluffyFashionFeathers: His turban in ''The Return of Conan'' is described as vaving bird-of-prey feathers. The feathers get damaged by Conan's scimitar.
* {{Foil}}: To Conan. Both are the rulers of powerful nations, with Conan ruling the Western nation of Aquilonia, and Yezdigerd ruling the Eastern nation of Turan. However, while Conan was a foreign barbarian who won his throne by overthrowing a powerful tyrant, Yezdigerd inherited his throne from his father Yildiz. In ''The Scarlet Citadel'', Conan mentions that "Today no Aquilonian noble dares maltreat the humblest of my subjects, and the taxes of the people are lighter than anywhere else in the world," while ''The Return of Conan'' describes how a struggling fisherman "must also strain and work to meet the taxes imposed by [[=King Yezdigerd=]]," and that "[[=King Yezdigerd's=]] taxgatherers had supple whips and no compunction about using them."
* GemEncrusted: The hilt of his scimitar has jewels.
* TheGhost: He never appears in any of Howard's stories, but he is mentioned in ''The Devil in Iron'', and ''The People of the Black Circle''. He is also referenced as an important background character in the pastiches ''The Road of the Eagles'' and ''Black Tears'', but he doesn't appear in those stories either.
* GoldMakesEverythingShiny: In ''The Return of Conan'', the doors to his throne rome is gold-worked, the trumpets in his throne room are golden, this throne is golden, his clothes are golden, he drinks wine out of a golden beaker, and when he is dressed for battle, he wears a "gold-spired helmet".
* GreaterScopeVillain: Several villains that Conan faces are Yezdigerd's subordinates such as Shah Amurath and Oshmaan, but they are almost always acting in their own accord rather than the Emperor himself.
** In ''The Devil in Iron'', he is the person who Jehungir Agha, the AntagonisticGovernor trying to kill Conan, reports to.
** In ''The People of the Black Circle'', he enlists the Black Seers of Yimsha, to assassinate King Bunda Chand of Vendhya, in order to make it easier for him to conquer Vendhya. Yezdigerd also plans to make Devi Yasmina his concubine, with his agent, Kerim Shah, serving as the main agent for Yezdigerd's will throughout the story.
** In ''Black Tears'', Conan spends much of the story pursuing Vardanes, a comrade who betrayed him to Yezdigerd's faction.
** ''Sons of the White Wolf'', a story from ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #37 features a rogue subordinate of Yezdigerd known as Oshmaan the Executioner as the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villain of the Week]]. After Oshmaan's imperialist ambitions fall through, he intends to go back to working for Yezdigerd by killing Conan for him.
* {{Greed}}: According to ''The Devil in Iron'', he keeps wealth plundered from other empires inside his own palace, and according to ''The Return of Conan'', he forces city-states in Brythunia and eastern Shem to pay him tribute, and his navy robs foreign merchants in his name. The text of ''The Return of Conan'' outright describes him as "an insatiable plunderer."
* HeroesActVillainsHinder: In ''The Return of Conan'', he interferes with Conan's quest to rescue his wife Zenobia from the EvilSorcerer Yah Chieng.
* HidingBehindReligion: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, Yezdigerd uses the kidnapping of the Living Tarim, an important Hyrkanian religious figure, to justify his father's decision to wage war against Makkalet. However, upon hearing this explanation, Conan's companion, Fafnir, mentions this war would also rid Aghrapur of an economic rival. In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #26, he uses an ElCidPloy to cover up the Living Tarim's death.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Yezdigerd decides to lead a couple of [[SlaveGalley Slave Galleys]] in pursuit of Conan. After Conan's pirates [[SlaveLiberation free the slaves]], [[TheDogBitesBack they immediately proceed to help the pirates]] fight Yezdigerd's men.
* HonorRelatedAbuse: He wishes to kill her daughter after learning she is pregnant.
* HorrifyingTheHorror: He is on the receiving end in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, when he is terrified by the presence of Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, despite Oglu being on his side.
-->'''''Conan the Barbarian'' #23''': ''Even Yezdigerd, ruthless heir-apparent to the throne of Turan, can scarcely repress a shudder at the dimly-illumind form which now stands before him. For this is Mikal Oglu, whose name is a quivering on both sides of the storm-corsed Vilayet Sea. Mikhal Oglu--most noted slayer in a nation of slayers...Mikhal Oglu--called the Vulture''
* HornsOfVillainy: He wears a horned helmet in ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #87.
* TheHunterBecomesTheHunted: After pursuing a pirate crew led by Conan, Yezdigerd ships crashes in shallow waters, leaving them vulerable to a counterattack from Conan's crew.
* IControlMyMinionsThrough: Authority (He is the ruler of Turan), Birthright (He is the previous ruler's son), Money (According to ''The Return of Conan'', he uses material wealth to entice people into going after Conan), and Fear (He executes minions who fail him as an example to other minions)
* IHaveNoDaughter: In Marvel Comics, he disowns his daughter, Yolinda, after she becomones pregnant.
* IWantThemAlive: In ''The Return of Conan'', when one of Yezdigerd's minions tries to kill Conan, another one of them insists that Yezdigerd will reward them if Conan is brought to him alive.
* IntimidatingRevenueService: His tax collectors whip taxpayers in order to collect payment.
* ItsPersonal: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd wants revenge on Conan for "[[=slaughtering=]] his soldiers, [[=burning=]] his cities, and [[=scuttling=]] his ships."
* KarmaHoudini: He never answers for his actions during the Howard's stories.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: In the pastiche novel ''The Return of Conan'', [[spoiler:he is killed by Conan after trying to kill the Cimmerian warrior one time too many.]]
* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. In ''The Return of Conan'', the last scene before Yezdigerd's death shows Conan and his pirates preparing to attack Yezdigerd's flagship. The next scene skips over to a tavern sometime later, where one of the pirates who was present during the fight narrates the final confrontation between Conan and Yezdigerd in elaborate detail to other people in the tavern (and the reader)]]
* TheKingslayer: While he doesn't carry out the deed himself, he arranges the assassination of Bunda Chand, the King of Vendhya, with the assistance of the Black Seers of Yimsha.
* KinslayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil: He is willing to have his own daughter, Yolinda, killed.
* KneelBeforeZod:
** The narration of ''The Return of Conan'' mentions, he forced King Mithridates of Zamora to do this in order to keep his position.
** However, in ''The Return of Conan'', he is unable to force [[DefiantCaptive Conan]] to do so, even when one of Yezdigerd's men attempts to physically force him to.
* LargeAndInCharge: The text of ''The Return of Conan'' describes him as "a swarthy giant of a man."
* LaserGuidedKarma: Slavery was widespread throughout Yezdigerd's empire, and Yezdigerd's final defeat at Conan's hands was assisted by freshly-freed [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]].
* LeeroyJenkins: When pursuing Conan, he sails straight into through an archipelago instead of around it like his admiral and shipmaster suggested, ignoring their warnings that the ship might be grounded. Sure enough, his ship crashes into a sandbank.
* LightIsNotGood:
** He is described as wearing golden clothing and a white turban in ''The Return of Conan''.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275, part of his outfit is wife.
* LightningBruiser: As shown in ''The Return of Conan'', he is capable of dealing a "swift and powerful blow" which "No ordinary man could have avoided or stopped."
* {{Lust}}: He has a [[RoyalHarem seraglio]], and seeks to make Devi Yasmina its newest member.
* ManOfWealthAndTaste:
** During his introduction scene in ''The Return of Conan'', he is described as wearing silk and gold clothing, and a white turban with feathers.
** in the epilogue of ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, Yezdigerd is seen wearing purple clothing, red and golden headwear, a necklace, and a cape.
* MiscarriageOfJustice: In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #112, he has Numallah, one of his Captains, put to death after suffering a defeat, unaware that he was being used as a [[TheScapegoat scapegoat]] by the [[GeneralFailure incompetent General]] Orne'q, whose orders Numallah was following.
* MrExposition: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, Yezdigerd narrates the legend of Tarim and the kidnapping of the Living Tarim by the city-state of Makkalet in order to explain to Conan and Fafnir he is roping them into participating in.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: His flagship is called the ''Scimitar''.
* NeverMyFault: He ignores warnings not to takes his ship into unsounded waters, and when his ship crashes, he has two men executed.
* OhCrap:
** His reaction to seeing Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu standing over him, despite Oglu being his ally.
** He also has a shocked expression when he finds Oglu's head in a chest.
* OhMyGods:
** In ''The Return of Conan'', he exclaims "By Erlik, now your shall reap your just desserts" during his final fight with Conan.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian #19'', he shouts "By the crimson heart of Erlik, i'll--"
* OffWithHisHead: In ''The Return of Conan'', He has two of his men executed in this manner after his ship crashes into a sandbank. Shortly afterwards, [[spoiler:he himself is killed by Conan this way.]]
* OffingTheOffspring: In Marvel Comics, he is willing to have his own daughter, Yolinda, killed. [[spoiler:He eventually succeeds.]]
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Most of the times King Yezdigerd comes into conflict with Conan, he leaves his underlings to do the legwork instead of getting his hands dirty himself. Conan actually lampshades this when brought before Yezdigerd in ''The Return of Conan''.
-->'''Conan''': ''You wage your wars with the help of women. Can you handle a sword yourself? I'll show you how a real man fights!''
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain:
** In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd refers to Conan as a "Cimmerian cur" and a "barbarian dog" [[spoiler:moments before his death at the hands of the latter.]]
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, he refers to one of the dancing girls entertaining him as a "wench."
* PragmaticVillainy:
** Despite his hatred for Conan, Yezdigerd is willing to hire him to bring down a group of conspirators who seek to depose him.
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he is talked down from attacking Fafnir by Conan on the grounds Yezdigerd will need as many "living men" as he can get to help him fight against the city of Makkalet.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd'': ''True enough. You'll do me no good resting in some shark's belly.''
** In ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', Yezdigerd Plays this Trope Straight during his youth by dismisses the idea of slave laber as short-lived and unreliable in battle. By the time of ''The Return of Conan'', set late in his life, however, he's [[SubvertedTrope abandoned this pragmatism]] by using galley slaves to pursue Conan, which results in the galley slaves revolting against Yezdigerd.
** Also in ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', he criticizes the idea of {{Conscription}} because he believes that arming and training civilians will make them harder to control.
* {{Pride}}:
** In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd complains that "The red-handed barbarians have escaped and mocked the majesty of Turan."
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, he takes personal offense then Fafnir insinuates that Turan's supposedly regligiously-motivated war against Makkalet is actually financially motivated, preparing to draw a sword on Fafnir for "[[=speaking=]] thus to the once and future majesty of Turan" before Conan intervenes.
* PurpleIsPowerful:
** According to ''The Devil in Iron'', his war galleys, which dominate the Vilayet Sea, have purple sails on them.
** In the epilogue of ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, Yezdigerd is seen wearing purple clothes.
** He wears purple pants in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275.
* PuppetKing: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in ''The People of the Black Circle'', where Devi Yasmina questions if Yezdigerd is the Master of Yimsha's puppet upon learning the Master was helping Yezdigerd for [[HiddenAgendaVillain unknown reasons]].
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''My acolytes in the temples of Turan, who are the priests behind the priests of Tarim, urged me to bestir myself in behalf of Yezdigerd. For reasons of my own, I complied. How can I explain my mystic reasons to your puny intellect? You could not understand.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''I understand this: that my brother died!''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''As Yezdigerd desired. For a while it was my whim to further his ambitions.''
--->'''Devi Yasmina''': ''Is Yezdigerd your vassal?''
--->'''The Master of Yimsha''': ''Is the dog that licks up the offal in the temple yard the vassal of the god?''
* RapePillageAndBurn: According to ''The Devil in Iron'' Yezdigerd is known to order cities to be burned, and much of his fortune came from plundering other lands. In The War of the Tarim Arc in Marvel's ''Conan the Barbarian'', he does this to the city of Makkalet on the orders of his father, King Yildiz.
* RedIsViolent: The Marvel Comics sometimes depict him wearing red as part of his getup, and he is a violent man.
* RedRightHand: The scar on his face in Marvel Comics.
* RevengeMyopia: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20, then-Prince Yezdigerd orders the death of Conan for killing his henchman Balthaz, who had ordering one of Conan's friends (who was also working for Yezdigerd) thrown overboard after [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness deeming him useless]]. During his escape, Conan scars Yezdigerd's face after Yezdigerd tries to prevent him from escaping, which causes Yezdigerd to develop a lifelong grudge against Conan. This is [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Conan during his confrontation with Yezdigerd in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd'': '''It's only my personal vengeance that needs concern you--Revenge for the scar you gave me, a decade past, on the Vilayet Sea!'''
--->'''Conan''': ''After you let one of your Turanian pigs toss my comrade Fafnir overboard--Because he lost an arm in fightingand was [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness no longer of any use to you]]! I wasn't trying to kill you then--But on second thought, I should have been--A mistake I'll correct tonight!''
* RewardedAsATraitorDeserves: He has Zorka, a treacherous former comrade of Conan, put to death by one of his officers, Commander Grimm, after receiveing information from him.
* TheRichWantToBeRicher: Yezdigerd, who is already a king, spends his reign plundering riches and collecting tribute from other lands, as well as imposing heavy taxes on his subjects.
* RiskingTheKing: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd personally travels aboard one of the two war galleys he sends after Conan. [[spoiler:It gets him killed.]]
* RoyalBrat: In ''The Road of the Eagles'', Roxana describes then-Prince Yezdigerd as a "cruel, gloomy youth."
* RoyalHarem: Being an wealthy emperor of a large kingdom, it shouldn't come to a surprise he can afford to have as many wives and concubines as he wants. In fact, this causes a complication in the Dark Horse comics where an ArrangedMarriage is made between him and Queen Taramis so she can become his newest wife in exchange for Turan protecting her kingdom Khauran, but due to some dispute with ''another marriage'' with a different princess leads to him sending an messenger to call off the union. In ''The People of the Black Circle'', he seeks to make Devi Yasmina on of his concubines.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd personally leads a hunt for Conan and faces him in battle.
* {{Sadist}}: He find amusement at the thought of torturing Conan and Rolf.
* ScarsAreForever: In Marvel Comics, Yezdigerd has a scar on his face, courtesy of Conan.
* ShieldsAreUseless: His shield is destroyed by Conan during their duel aboard the ''Scimitar'', [[spoiler:immediately before Conan decapitates him.]]
* ShootTheDangerousMinion: In ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #37, it is mentioned that he did this do his councilor, Sulimar.
* SinisterScimitar: In ''The Return of Conan'' Yezdigerd wields a scimitar when Conan confronts him in his own throne room, which gets wrecked. His also brings a scimitar with him during his subsequent pursuit of Conan. Additionally, Yezdigerd named his flagship the ''Scimitar''.
* SlaveGalley: He uses these as warships, pursuing Conan with them after he flees Aghrapur. This end up backfiring on him, as the galley slaves end up rebelling against him.
* SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil: According to ''The Devil In Iron'', the slave trade is large in many Turanian cities under Yezdigerd's rule, selling women from various lands.
* SlouchOfVillainy: He is introduced lolling in his throne in ''The Return of Conan'', which is his first on-page appearance in Conan media.
* TheStrategist: He is described as being this in ''The Return of Conan'', having used his intelligence to expend Turan's territory.
* SuccessionCrisis: In ''The Return of Conan'', Conan mentions that Yezdigerd had no successors at the time of his dearth, and predicts this will result in the Turan being fractured by Shahs and Aghas.
* SuperiorSuccessor: He is considered a stronger and more effective ruler than his father, King Yildiz.
* SuppressedRage: When a captive Conan is brought before him during ''The Return of Conan'', the narration states that "The lust for vengeance churned up within him [[=Yezdigerd=]], but he held himself in check while the guardsmen knelt and touched their foreheads to the marble floor." After Conan subsqeuently escapes, Yezdigerd stops suppressing it.
* SurroundedByIdiots: Yezdigerd has complained about his underlings on multiple occasions.
** He sends Jehungir Agha a message, which Agha described during ''The Devil in Iron'' as "[[=Yezdigerd=]] [[=complaining=]] bitterly of what he calls [[=Agha's=]] failures to guard the frontier." Ironically, in ''The Return of Conan'' it was him ignoring his subordinates' advice by sailing into unsounded that led into a downfall, as he ended up crashing his flagship, leaving it vulnerable to an attack from Conan's pirates, [[spoiler:which ended up costing Yezdigerd his life.]]
** In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd, upon learning Conan and one of his companions escaped his palace, asked "Are my soldiers sucklings, that they cannot lay two men low?"
** Later in ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd, while in pursuit of Conan, complains that "My cursed amirals need half a day to put my flagship to sea." Moments afterward, after being assured by his minion Thanara that they will have Conan in their grasp, Yezdigerd responds by complaining about his henchmen's repeated failures to capture Conan, saying that "My henchmen have often thought so, yet that scoundrel has tricked his way out of every trap. Now for once I am the hunter!" I will personally see that he escapes not."
* ATasteOfTheLash: His tax collectors use this method on the populace. He also subjects his [[GalleySlave Galley Slaves]] to this when pursuing Conan.
* TheTeetotaler: In ''Conan of the Red Brotherhood'', set during his time as a prince, he abstains from drinking alcohol out of religious devotion to Tarim. He loses this trait as time goes on, as in ''Black Tears'', set early during his reign as king, he is mentioned in the narration as having private wine cellars, and in ''The Return of Conan'', set many years afterwards, he is shown drinking wine.
* TemptingFate: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23 he responds to Mikhal Oglu's BadassBoast that "If I bring you not his head...I give him leave to send you mine." (Which itself is an example of TemptingFate) by telling Oglu "He'd take you up on that, I trow." Sure enough, the issue ends with Conan sending Yezdigerd Oglu's head.
* ThroneRoomThrowdown: He has a brief swordfight with Conan in his own throne room, before his men take him to safety while Conan fights his wat out of Yezdigerd's palace.
* TitleDrop: Played With in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #21. Yezdigerd doesn't namedrop the title for the current issue ''The Monster of the Monoliths'', but rather for the upcoming issue ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, which is titled ''The Shadow of the Vulture'', as a method of {{Foreshadowing}}.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Soon, though, a shadow will fall across the doomed land...The Shadow of the Vulture''
* TyrantTakesTheHelm: He succeeds his lenient (by Turanian standards) father Yildiz as the ruler of Turan, becoming an cruel and aggressive warmonger. In ''The Road to the Eagles'', many Turanians fear that the then-Prince Yezdigerd will become this, so a group of conspirators attempted to put his uncle Teyaspa on the throne instead. They fail.
* TheUnfought: Due to being TheGhost, Yezdigerd never fights Conan in any of Howard's stories. [[spoiler:Subverted in ''The Return of Conan'', where Yezdigerd finally fights Conan directly, not once but twice, the first time in Yezdigerd's throne room, and the second aboard Yezdigerd's war galley.]] Averted in Marvel Comics, where Conan had directy fought with Yezdigerd as early as Yezdigerd's princely years, which scar on Yezdigerd's face can attest to.
* UnseenNoLonger: After being TheGhost in Howard's stories, Yezdigerd makes his on-page debut in ''The Return of Conan''.
* VillainNoLongerIdle: In ''The Return of Conan'', Yezdigerd (eventually) gets personally involved in the pursuit of Conan. He mentions that whenever his underlings thought they had Conan cornered, Conan found a way out. [[spoiler:It gets him killed.]]
* VillainOfAnotherStory: Being a powerful military genius with a massive empire at his disposal and a personal grudge with Conan could have easily made a threat out of him. Yet, he is too busy running his empire to confront his enemy face-to-face. [[spoiler: [[VillainNoLongerIdle Until]] ''The Return of Conan'', that is.]]
** In ''The Road of Eagle'': The story's main antagonist General Artaban, is seeking to prevent Yezdigerd's rise to power.
** In ''Conan and the Grim Grey God'', one of the story's main villains, Tevek Thul, pretends to be a servant of Yezdigerd.
* VillainousBreakdown:
** He has one ''The Return of Conan'' after being tricked by Conan into crashing into a sandbank.
-->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''I will hunt that dog to the ends of the earth! The whole thing smacks of that devil Conan! I'll warrant he is aboard. Will Khogar never get this cursed tub afloat?''
** In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23, he leaves his pavilion in shock after being delivered the head of Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, who he sent to kill Conan.
* VillainousCrush: He wishes to make Devi Yasmina of Vendhya has concubines, which puts him conflict with his former ally, [[EvilSorcerer the Master of Yimsha]], who also desires to have Yasmina as a slave.
* VillainousDemotivator: After his men fail to prevent Conan's escape, he orders a fraction of his guards to be executed in order to motivate the remainder.
* VillainousFriendship: In the comics, he has one with Mikhal "The Vulture" Oglu, as seen in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #23. He refers to the Vulture as his friend, although Yezdigerd does fear making an enemy out of him.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''Better to have you at my side, old friend...than at my back."
* VisionaryVillain: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, Yezdigerd's dialogue reveals that even as a prince, he had ambitions of expaning Turan.
-->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''I, Yezdigerd -- Who one day shall spread the borders of Turan beyond my sire's wildest dreams!''
* {{Wrath}}: He is a brutal warmonger, a BadBoss who repeatedly executes or threatens his underlings, and has a strong desire for vengeance against Conan.
* WhoDares:
** In the ''The Return of Conan'', he uses this as a way of berating his men for failing to prevent Conan's escape from his palace.
--->'''King Yezdigerd''': ''You have dared to fail!''
** He also has this reaction in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #19, after Fafnir questions Turan's motives for waging war against Makkalet.
--->'''Prince Yezdigerd''': ''You dare speak thus to the once and future Emperor of Turan!?''
* WhyWontYouDie: He screams for Conan to die during their duel aboard the ''Scimitar'' in ''The Return of Conan''.
* WouldHitAGirl: In the comics, he is perfectly willing to order a woman's death...[[OffingTheOffspring His own daughter]], to be more specific.
* WreckedWeapon: His scimitar is broken by Conan during their brief fight in Yezdigerd's throne room.
* TheWrongfulHeirToTheThrone: In ''The Road of the Eagles'', Roxana believes that Prince Yezdigerd, despite being the son of the reigning King Yildiz, is unfit to inherit the throne of Turan because of his cruelty, and conspire to make his uncle Teyaspa king instead. Ultimately, the plan fails, and Yezdigerd becomes king.
* YouExclamation: In the comics, this is his reaction when he wakes up to see [[TheDreaded Mihkal "The Vulture" Oglu]] standing over him.
* YouHaveFailedMe: There are several occasions where he executes or threatens his underlings, or one of his underlings threatens another with Yezdigerd's wrath.
** In ''The Devil in Iron'', [[AntagonisticGovernor Jehungir Agha]], who just received an angry message from Yezdigerd, fears Yezdigerd will have him replaced if he continues to displease them.
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''The king grows short on patience. In his own hand he complains bitterly of what he calls my failure to guard the frontier. By Tarim, if I cannot deal a blow to these robbers of the steppes, Khawarizm may own a new lord.''
** In ''The Return of Conan'', he has one-tenth of his guards executed as punishment for failing to prevent Conan's escape (as well as a way "to bolster the courage of the rest"), and later has another two of his men executed after his war galley crashes in shallow waters.
** Also in ''The Return of Conan'', Thanara tries to intimidate Ardashir into compliance by [[ImpliedTrope implying]] that Yezdigerd might inflict this on him after losing a company of men.
--->'''Thanara''': ''What will happen to you when the king learns you have lost a whole company of his precious Imperials but escaped without a scratch himself''
** In ''The Savage Sword of Conan'' #87, he threatens to crucify an underling if he can't fulfill his orders.
** In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #112, he has Captain Numallah executed after suffering a costly defeat in Rymra Pass. Later in the same story, he does this to General Orne'q, having been informed by Conan that Orne'q was responsible for the aformentioned defeat in Rymra Pass, as well as Orne'q's subsequent failure to prevent Fort Khenat from falling into enemy hands.
** In ''Savage Sword of Conan'' #131, [[MouthOfSauron Jehungur Agha]] threatens Lord Khovan with this fate on Yezdigerd's behalf.
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''I grow weary of these revelries, Lord Khovan. The king is weary of your failure to deal with these kozaki.''
--->'''Lord Khovan''': ''My lord Jehungir Agha, I swear by Tarim that I shall pile the severed heads of these kozaki before the throne...If not heads, then hands...or ears...or something.''
--->'''Jehungir Agha''': ''Be careful the king doesn't appoint your lieutenant, Shah Amaruth, as your successor--After he's had your head preserved with honey and brine to add to his collection.''
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20, Yezdigerd's soldiers throw Conan's friend, Fafnir, who was also fighting for Yezdigerd, off the ship after he loses an arm. While it was Yezdigerd's subordinate, Balthaz, who gave the order to so, Yezdigerd allowed it to happen, something Conan angrily reminds Yezdigerd about in ''Conan the Barbarian'' #275.
* YouShallNotPass: In ''Conan the Barbarian'' #20, he personally blocks Conan's escape route after the latter kills on of the former's subordinates onboard the former's ship, even ordering Conan to stop. However, Yezdigerd is quickly defeated by Conan, who promptly jumps overboard.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: According to ''The Return of Conan'', "lines crisscrossed his stern and gloomy features ten years too early."
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