Probably no other fantasy character has inspired me more than Elric. Michael Moorcock’s albino anti-hero really struck a chord with me as a kid. I know today, the brooding antihero is common place theme in fantasy literature; but back in the early 1980’s and before, Elric really stood out. I’ve been rereading the saga (from the silver covered Berkley editions from the early 1980’s) and for me, it still stands the test of time as good fantasy reading. I have also gone back and bought several of the stories in graphic novel format (the ones by P. Craig Russell are pretty good).
I did purchase Stormbringer several years ago, but AD&D ruled the roost with my gaming crowd and I could find more takers. I’ve recently begun to reinvestigate Elric!, Stormbringer, MRQ, etc and find that there is much to like. I’m currently really enjoying reading through OpenQuest and will get back to the other D100 Elric stuff after that. Ultimately, AD&D/D&D/Clones are most comfortable for me but there are many things I’m going to borrow from these systems and implement in my own game. I think I’ll pretty much end up with a mishmash of OD&D and BRP/Stormbringer. But in the end, I think it is Elric more than anything else that has colored my taste in what fantasy literature should be.
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