Fafnir Hellhand (Earth-616)

Fafnir Hellhand
Name	Fafnir
Current Alias	Fafnir Hellhand
Aliases	Redbeard
Affiliation and Relationships
Affiliation	Conan's Kozaks Formerly Pirates of the Inland Sea; partner of and of Blackrat; Rane's band
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Male
Hair	Red
Origin and Living Status
Origin	Human
Living Status	Alive
Reality	Earth-616
Personal Information
Identity	No Dual
Citizenship	Nordheimr Vanir
Occupation	Adventurer, rebel; pirate captain, thief (formerly)
Base of Operations	Formerly Vilayet Sea; Shadizar, Zamora
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Roy Thomas, Barry Smith
First	Conan the Barbarian #6 (March, 1971)
First	Conan the Barbarian #6 (March, 1971)

History

Origin and youth in Vanaheim

Fafnir was a Vanirman, hailing from the northern realm of Vanaheim.

In his youth, Fafnir was part of the band of Rane, the Reaver, in the North.

Thief in Shadizar

In Shadizar, Zamora, Fafnir was a thief working alongside Blackrat. One night, after Fafnir had subdued a goldsmith, Blackrat stabbed him, and the pair stole three gold items. They were fighting over the dividing of the loot, when they were attacked by Conan, a young thief at the time. Blackrat stabbed Fafnir while aiming for Conan, and was knocked out. Conan left with the booty, leaving Fafnir for dead. Fafnir recovered from the weak blow.

Pirate of the Inland Sea

Fafnir went on to become the captain of a crew of pirates of the Inland Sea composed of Zingaran corsairs, nomads out of Zamboula, deserters from the world's navies and even one from the Aquilonian Army.

Boarding a Turanian galley, the pirates slaughtered all the crewmen, save for Conan, whom Fafnir knocked out. Though his men wanted to have Conan slain, Fafnir convinced them to spare him, if he was bound to the mast. Fafnir attempted to recruit Conan into his diminished crew, but Conan refused upon learning that Fafnir was Vanir, the enemies of the Cimmerians.

Bal-Sagoth

Into the storm, the ship was taken into the dreaded White Mist, where no man have ever gone and returned alive, and wrecked itself on a reef. Fafnir freed Conan before leaving the ship. Fafnir lost consciousness on a piece of wreckage, and was about to be devoured by a shark, but was saved by Conan. Stranded on the beach of Bal-Sagoth, Fafnir was defied by Conan, full of racial hatred for the Vanir. Fafnir reluctantly accepted, but soon laid down his weapon, soon followed by Conan, thus started the friendship between them.

At that instant, Groth-Golka, the last of the Lizard-Gods appeared, pursuing a girl. In a remarkable feat of strength, attributed to Fafnir's invocations of his gods, Fafnir broke the monster's neck. The girl, Kyrie, was the Vanir daughter of Rane, the Reaver. Stranded on the isle alone, she was confused by the natives of Bal-Sagoth as the sea-goddess Aala. Eventually, she was exiled to the other part of the isle by her rival, old Gothan.

Kyrie offered the two warriors great rewards for their help, intending to use the legend which said that when two men would come out of the sea, Bal-Sagoth would fall. In the city, "Aala" warned the people, and forced the king Ska to flee. Fafnir and Conan help "Aala" conquer back her throne, but are betrayed by her. Accidentally they bring down the statue of the local god and his temple, the whole city and the isle crumble. Floating on their raft through the Vilayet sea, they are rescued by a war ship of Prince Yezdigerd of Turan and join his war campaign.

Turanian mercenary

Fafnir and Conan participate at the siege of Makkalet. In the first battle, Fafnir is wounded by a flame arrow and falls into the sea. Later he is rescued by the Turans, but his left arm is infected and is amputated. Later in the siege of Makkalet, a turanian officer orders that the dead are thrown overboard, including the wounded Fafnir. Conan is enraged and avenges Fafnir by killing the officer. Then he has to flee the turanian ship, on the way wounding Prinde Yezdigerd; he then sides with Makkalet.

Free Companions and Kozaks

Along his adventures, Fafnir came to have be grafted with a demon hand instead of his original left arm, and was consequently known as Fafnir Hellhand.

Fafnir became involved in the Free Companions and the Kozaki, led by Conan, alongside other of Conan's fellow warriors befriended along his adventures, such as Zula, Red Sonja, and Turghol.

Fafnir remained with Conan, Zula and other Kozaki, opposing Turanian attempts at the annexation of the Grassy Steppers spanning from Zamora to the Vilayet Sea. They stopped a Turanian squad (tasked by Shah Amurath, lord of Akif) to retrieve the Sacred Fire of Ormuz and the bones of the sorcerer Kulan Gath for Prince Yezdigerd) on the trail of Isparana (a former Kozak herself, who had stolen the Turanian sergeant's mount after being recognized as a Kozak). The Turanians were easily slain, though Fafnir came close to fall under possession of his demon hand. Learning of the Turanian plot, Conan dispatched Zula, Fafnir, and Isparana to bring the Kozaks on, going himself to Armati to obtain the items desired by Shah Amurath. Defeated by Armati and the Turanians, Zula, Fafnir, and Isparana were closing by the Kozaks when Isparana made up a pretext to go to her baby (born from her mating with the demon Wrarrl the Devourer of Souls), only to discover her "son" had grown into the fully adult Wrarrl. Suspicious of Isparana, Zula and Fafnir parted ways, Fafnir following her while Zula went to the Kozaks. Arriving to Isparana's hideout, Fafnir help Isparana to escape by collapsing the cave over Wrarrl. Meanwhile, Conan was captured and sent to the Hanging Gardens. As Kulan Gath was resurrected and Conan upon to be slain, the Kozaks charged upon Akif, while Isparana and Fafnir scaled the wall and assisted Conan directly, freeing from the vines of the Hanging Gardens. The three then cut their way through Turanian soldiers. The fight escalated with the death of Armati, the summoning of the fire-demon Ormuz, the timely arrival of Wrarrl who protected his "mother", the death of Kulan Gath, and finally the destruction of the Great Dam of Akif, flooding the city (though sparing Shah Amurath, who would likely lust for revenge), allowing the Kozaks to retreat, to fight another day.

Religion

Fafnir invoked the name of Gods of the North, such as Bragi and Ymir's name, but also mentioned "Dagon's cellar" (possibly mentioning the eldritch horror, aquatic monster, and possible Great Old One).

He also invoked Mitra's name on occasion.

Attributes

Powers

Fafnir Helland possessed a demon hand with superhuman strength.

Weaknesses

Fafnir's demon hand could take possession of him "if [he] let it".

Notes

• Fafnir was created by Roy Thomas and Barry Smith in the original story "Devil-Wings Over Shadizar" (Conan the Barbarian #6; June, 1971).
  • Fafnir and Blackrat were created by Thomas as a nod to Fritz Leiber's creations Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Adventures of Fritz Lieber's heroes were published by Marvel Comics imprint Epic Comics, in four books named Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser (October, 1990 to January, 1991) "based on the characters created by Fritz Leiber".
  • In the story "Gods of Bal-Sagoth" Conan the Barbarian #17 and 18; August and September, 1972), written by Roy Thomas and penciled by Gil Kane, freely adapted from the Turlogh Dubh O'Brien and Cthulhu Mythos story (published in Weird Tales; October, 1931), Fafnir took the place of Athelstane, a Saxon. Fafnir fits many aspects of the character: a bulky warrior from an enemy-people to the protagonist's own race, and whom he had encountered and battled previously.
  • Fafnir's first appearance was unmemorable enough for Roy Thomas to pass over it unmentioned in his Conan Comics Chronology, and started mentioning him only in the next chapter of the guide, recounting the events of Conan the Barbarian #17 and #18.
  • Finally, the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe mentions that Fafnir might be inspired by another Vanirman ally of Conan, Sigurd.

See Also

• 20 appearance(s) of Fafnir Hellhand (Earth-616)
• 1 minor appearance(s) of Fafnir Hellhand (Earth-616)
• 5 mention(s) of Fafnir Hellhand (Earth-616)
• 3 image(s) of Fafnir Hellhand (Earth-616)
• 1 victim(s) killed by Fafnir Hellhand (Earth-616)

Links and References

• Fafnir Hellhand at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe