Record of Lodoss War


Record of Lodoss War is a franchise of fantasy novels by Ryo Mizuno based on the work he originally created for a world called Forcelia as a rules-free setting for role-playing games. There have since been multiple manga, anime and video game adaptations, several of which have been translated into English. The plots generally follow the conventions and structure of the RPG systems including Dungeons & Dragons and Sword World RPG, in which several characters of distinct types undertake a specific quest.

Origins

Record of Lodoss War was created in 1986 by Group SNE as a Dungeons & Dragons "replay" serialized in the Japanese magazine Comptiq from September 1986 to September 1989 issues, though they also used the setting with other systems such as Tunnels & Trolls and RuneQuest.
Many shorter Lodoss scenarios and replays were published in the Comp RPG magazine that ran from 1991 to 1994. Replays are not novels, but transcripts of RPG sessions, meant to both hold the interest of readers and convey the events that took place. They have proven to be popular, even to those who do not play role-playing games but are fans of fiction. Similar to light novels, many characters and parties in replays have become popular as characters of anime. An example of such a character is the female elf Deedlit in Record of Lodoss War, who was played by science fiction novelist Hiroshi Yamamoto during the RPG sessions.
The popularity of the Record of Lodoss War replays was such that the Dungeon Master Ryo Mizuno started to adapt the story into some of the earliest Japanese-language domestic high fantasy novels in 1988.
When the replay series went on to become a trilogy, Group SNE had to abandon the Dungeons & Dragons rules and create their own game, dubbed Record of Lodoss War Companion and released in 1989. All three parts of the replay series were eventually published as paperbacks by Kadokawa Shoten from 1989 to 1991, illustrated by Yutaka Izubuchi. They were republished in 1998 under the title Record of Lodoss War RPG Replay Collection: Accursed Island.
  • RPG Replay Record of Lodoss War I — Parn's party, retake played according to the Record of Lodoss War Companion rules and incorporating elements from the novelization. Originally serialized from September 1986 to April 1987 issues
  • RPG Replay Record of Lodoss War II — Orson's party, retake played according to the Record of Lodoss War Companion rules and incorporating elements from the novelization. Originally serialized from June 1987 to July 1988 issues
  • RPG Replay Record of Lodoss War III — Spark's party, played according to the Record of Lodoss War Companion rules. Originally serialized from September 1988 to September 1989 issues
Two other Record of Lodoss War replay volumes have been published later:
  • RPG Replay Record of Lodoss War: Spark, the Heroic Knight — illustrated by Izubuchi. Originally serialized in Comtiq from September to December 1997 issues under the title Record of Lodoss War Special: Marmo Pioneer Edition
  • Record of Lodoss War RPG Replay: The Wandering Nobleman’s Endless Journey Home — illustrated by Retsu Tateo
Three prequel Legend of Lodoss replay volumes based on a draft by Ryo Mizuno, written by Hiroshi Takayama and Group SNE, with illustrations by Retsu Tateo and Tatsumi Minegishi were published. Before being published as light novels, the first two RPG replays were serialized in Comptiq under the title TRPG Magazine Live New Record of Lodoss War: Demon Wars.
  • RPG Replay Legend of Lodoss 1: Invasion of the Demons — played according to the Record of Lodoss War Companion rules. Originally serialized from August 1993 to July 1994 issues. A special feature was published in the July 1993 issue
  • RPG Replay Legend of Lodoss 2: Summoning of the Demons — played according to the Lodoss Island RPG: Basic Rules. Originally serialized from September 1994 to September 1995 issues. A preview was published in the August 1994 issue
  • RPG Replay Legend of Lodoss 3: Subjugation of the Demons — played according to the Lodoss Island RPG: Expert Rules
Mizuno's novelizations were published by Kadokawa Shoten between 1988 and 1993, and followed by two collections of short stories in 1995, High Elf Forest: Deedlit's Tale and The Black Knight, all with illustrations done by Izubuchi. The Black Knight was re-released in 1998, with illustrations by Masato Natsumoto. The first volume of the novelizations, The Grey Witch, was published in English by Seven Seas Entertainment in 2018.
  • Record of Lodoss War 1: The Grey Witch / August 1994 )
  • Record of Lodoss War 2: The Fire Demon
  • Record of Lodoss War 3: The Demon Dragon of Fire Dragon Mountain
  • Record of Lodoss War 4: The Demon Dragon of Fire Dragon Mountain
  • Record of Lodoss War 5: The Kings' Holy War
  • Record of Lodoss War 6: The Holy Knights of Lodoss
  • Record of Lodoss War 7: The Holy Knights of Lodoss
  • High Elf Forest: Deedlit's Tale
  • The Black Knight
The first volume forms the basis for the first eight episodes of the Record of Lodoss War original video animation series, as well as both Record of Lodoss War: The Grey Witch manga series. The second was also adapted in manga form by Ayumi Saito, and as a four-CD audio drama. The final five episodes of the OVA series are loosely based on the story told across the third and fourth novels and, having caught up with the ongoing novelization at that point, feature an original ending. The Record of Lodoss War: Chronicles of the Heroic Knight TV series is a more faithful adaptation of volumes three to four and six to seven, with the manga drawn by Masato Natsumoto also adapting from volumes six and seven. The first of two collections of short stories was adapted into the Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit's Tale manga series by Setsuko Yoneyama.
Mizuno later went on to pen other series of novels: an adaptation of Legend of Lodoss prequel replays and sequel novels Crystania: Legend of the Drifters and Record of Lodoss War Next Generation ; Legend of Lodoss story was also adapted into the Record of Lodoss War: The Lady of Pharis manga series by Yamada and Legend of Crystania was adapted into a radio drama, a manga by Akira Himekawa, an anime film, and OVA series. In 2019, he released a novel sequel '. The novel takes place 100 years after the events of the original series, with Deedlit as the lead protagonist. It is illustrated by Hidari and was adapted into a manga by Atsushi Suzumi.

''Legend of Lodoss''

  • Legend of Lodoss 1: Prince of the Fallen Land
  • Legend of Lodoss 2: Knight of the Sky
  • Legend of Lodoss: Prince of the Sun, Princess of the Moon
  • Legend of Lodoss 3: The Glorious Champion
  • Legend of Lodoss 4: The Legendary Hero
  • Legend of Lodoss: Eternal Returner
  • 'Legend of Lodoss 5: Saint of the Supreme God'''''

    ''Record of Lodoss War Next Generation''

  • Lord of the Dark Island: Record of Lodoss War Next Generation Prelude
  • Record of Lodoss War Next Generation 1: The Demon Beast of the Forest of Darkness
  • Record of Lodoss War Next Generation ～Prelude～: Inheritors of the Flame
  • Record of Lodoss War Next Generation 2: Rebirth of the Evil Empire
  • Record of Lodoss War Next Generation 3: The Evil Black Dragon
  • Record of Lodoss War Next Generation 4: Fated Demonic Ship
  • Record of Lodoss War Next Generation 5: Unholy Apocalypse I
  • 'Record of Lodoss War Next Generation 6: Unholy Apocalypse II'''''

    Plot

Record of Lodoss War recounts the adventures of a youth by the name of Parn, the son of a dishonored knight. Part of his motivation for adventuring is to find out what happened to his father and to restore his family's honor. Despite his inexperience, Parn is considered the leader, who is accompanied by his childhood best friend Etoh, his friend and sometimes advisor Slayn, and his newfound mentor Ghim. They are accompanied by Parn's romantic interest, the high elf Deedlit, who comes from the Forest of No Return seeking an answer to her people's isolationism and an end to what she sees as a slow march to extinction; and a thief named Woodchuck. Throughout the series, Parn comes into contact with friends and foes alike. His allies include King Kashue, King Fahn, Shiris, and Orson; his enemies include Emperor Beld, Ashram, and the evil necromancer Wagnard. Volume two jumps forward by two years and sees Parn and Deedlit participate in a civil war in Flaim on the side of King Kashue. It was adapted into a manga and an audio drama with the cast of the OVA.
Volumes three to seven, all but volume five adapted into the anime Chronicles of the Heroic Knight, continue the adventures of Parn for the first eight episodes, but then focus on Spark and his adventures to complete a quest tasked onto him to protect Neese, the daughter of Slayn and Leylia. He is accompanied by his own cast of friends in the form of Leaf, Garrack, Greevus, Aldo, and Ryna. The television series shares similarities with the plot of the OVA, such as Wagnard seeking to kidnap Neese in order to use her as a reagent for the resurrection of Naneel, a priestess and the avatar of Kardis who was slain by Leylia's mother, the high priestess Neese a short time after the battle with the demonic god. Leylia was the reincarnation of Naneel, but when she lost her virginity she was no longer capable of being the doorway or reagent needed to unseal Naneel. Spark and his fiancé Neese remain the protagonists of the Record of Lodoss War Next Generation series and become the rulers of Marmo after Ashram's group vacates the island.
The Legend of Crystania setting places the former villain Ashram into the seat of a would-be hero who is placed under a spell by an "animal god" of Crystania. One of the prominent characters is Pirotess, his dark elven lover, as she tries to find a way to free him from the clutches of the spell and restore him to his living self.