The ''Official Handbook of the Conan Universe'' is an

encyclopedic An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

guide A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Ex ...

which details the

fictional universe A fictional universe, or fictional world, is a self-consistent setting with events, and often other elements, that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed, or fictional realm (or world). Fictional universes may ...

featured in Conan publications of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. The one-shot issue was published in

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

format in 1986, followed by reprints in 1993. The main author and researcher was comic book writer

Alan Zelenetz Alan Zelenetz is an American film producer and comic-book writer best known for co-creating the series '' Alien Legion'' for the Marvel Comics imprint Epic Comics and a founder of Ovie Entertainment. Zelenetz also wrote several issues of Marvel' ...

.''The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe''
at Comicvine

Origin

Jim Shooter James Shooter (born September 27, 1951) is an American writer, editor and publisher for various comic books. He started professionally in the medium at the age of 14, and he is most notable for his successful and controversial run as Marvel Comic ...

, Marvel's then

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

, conceived of the idea,DeFalco, Tom. "Bullpen Bulletins Special," Marvel Comics cover-dated March 1984. envisioning a guide detailing statistics much in the manner of those found on the backs of

baseball cards A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic. In the 1950s they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, sta ...

.Peter Sanderson (2005-01-28)
"Comics in Context #70: Elektra Lite: Superheroes A to Z."
/ref> Shooter appointed

Mark Gruenwald Mark Eugene Gruenwald (; June 18, 1953 – August 12, 1996) was an American comic book writer, editor, and occasional penciler known for his long association with Marvel Comics. Biography Early career Gruenwald got his start in comics fa ...

editor of the project, and Gruenwald developed the project to include all aspects of the Marvel Universe, although he noted it was not comprehensive. The project was named

The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe The ''Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe'' is an encyclopedic guide which details the fictional universe featured in Marvel Comics publications. The original 15-volume series was published in comic book format in 1982, followed by sporadic u ...

(OHOTMU) and was published in its first volume from 1983 to 1984 in comic book format in 15 issues. Not included in these handbooks were licensed characters like Conan and creator-owned characters like

Red Sonja Red Sonja is a fictional sword and sorcery comic-book superheroine created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith for Marvel Comics in 1973, partially inspired by Robert E. Howard's character Red Sonya of Rogatino. Marvel Comics ...

. To cover these kind of characters connected to the

Hyborian Age The Hyborian Age is a fictional period of Earth's history within the artificial mythology created by Robert E. Howard, serving as the setting for the sword and sorcery tales of Conan the Barbarian. The word "Hyborian" is derived from the l ...

and world, a one-shot guide with the name ''The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe'' was made in the style of the first volume of the OHOTMU and published with the start of the second volume of the OHOTMU. ''The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe'' detailed the more significant characters, locations and races of the Hyborian age, itemizing them into individual entries. Individual entries usually consisted of: * A frontal full-body view of the character * Prose text describing the character's or race's origin, powers, and other abilities and unique traits. The original edition opted only to describe the "Origins" (how they acquired their powers), instead focusing heavily on detailed explanations for how those powers functioned. * Example images of the character or race in action, taken directly from the comics themselves ''The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe'' entries were listed at one major character to a page, minor characters or races were often listed at two to a page.

Publication history

The handbook came out as a one-shot issue in 1986. In 1993 it was reprinted in black and white (with a different cover and a cover-inside-poster) and then released in June in a polybagged issue with ''Conan Saga'' #75 and again in August as a freebie included in ''Wizard'' magazine. In July 2014, the handbook was included in ''The Chronicles of Conan Vol. 27''.

Bibliography

The Official Handbook of the Conan Universe

References

External links