| Record of Lodoss War | |
| Ja Kanji: | ロードス島戦記 |
| Ja Romaji: | Rōdosu-tō Senki |
| Genre: | Sword and sorcery[1] |
| Type: | novel series |
| Record of Lodoss War RPG Replay | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Yutaka Izubuchi Retsu Tateo (The Wandering Nobleman’s Endless Journey Home) |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Male |
| Magazine: | Comptiq |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko |
| First: | September 1986 |
| Last: | September 1989 |
| Volumes: | 3 + 2 extra |
| Volume List: |
|
| Type: | novel series |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Yutaka Izubuchi Masato Natsumoto (The Black Knight second edition) |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Male |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Bunko (first edition, first volume only) Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko |
| First: | April 10, 1988 |
| Last: | March 27, 1993 |
| Volumes: | 7 + 2 side stories |
| Volume List: |
|
| Record of Lodoss War Record of Lodoss War - Fuku Zinduke Record of Lodoss War - Haiiro No Majio Record of Lodoss War 2 - Goshiki No Maryu Record of Lodoss War Record of Lodoss War Record of Lodoss War: Eiyuu Kishiden Record of Lodoss War: Successor of the Legend Record of Lodoss War Online | |
| Released: | 1988, 1991, 1991/1992, 1992/1994, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2012, 2016, 2021 |
| Genre: | RPG |
| Platforms: | (PC 98) (1988) (X68000) (1991, 1992) (PC Engine) (1992, 1994) (Mega-CD) (1994) (SFC/SNES) (1995) (Game Boy Color) (1998) (Dreamcast) (2000) (Web browser) (2012) (PC) (2016, 2021) |
| Type: | ova |
| Music: | Mitsuo Hagita |
| Studio: | Madhouse |
| First: | June 30, 1990 |
| Last: | November 20, 1991 |
| Runtime: | 25-30 minutes |
| Episodes: | 13 |
| Episode List: | List of Record of Lodoss War episodes#Record of Lodoss War (1990) |
| Type: | manga |
| The Lady of Pharis | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Akihiro Yamada |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Magazine: | Marukatsu PC Engine (1991-1993) The Sneaker (1999-2001)' |
| Imprint: | Dragon Comics (first edition, first volume only) Newtype 100% Comics (second edition) |
| First: | April 30, 1991 |
| Last: | April 28, 2001 |
| Volumes: | 2 |
| Type: | manga |
| The Demon of Flame | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Ayumi Saito |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Imprint: | Comp Comics (first edition) Dragon Comics (second edition) |
| First: | 1993 |
| Last: | 1994 |
| Volumes: | 2 |
| Type: | novel series |
| Legend of Lodoss RPG Replay | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Retsu Tateo Tatsumi Minegishi |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Male |
| Magazine: | Comptiq |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko |
| First: | August 1993 |
| Last: | October 1996 |
| Volumes: | 3 |
| Volume List: |
|
| Type: | novel series |
| Legend of Lodoss | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Akihiro Yamada |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Male |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko Kadokawa Mini Bunko (Prince of the Sun, Princess of the Moon only) |
| First: | August 8, 1994 |
| Last: | October 31, 2002 |
| Volumes: | 5 + extra |
| Volume List: |
|
| Type: | manga |
| The Grey Witch | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Yoshihiko Ochi |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Imprint: | Dragon Comics (first edition, first two volumes only) Kadokawa Comics Ace (second edition) |
| First: | 1994 |
| Last: | 1998 |
| Volumes: | 3 |
| Type: | manga |
| Welcome to Lodoss Island! | |
| Author: | Rei Hyakuyashiki |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Imprint: | Comics Ace Extra |
| Magazine: | Monthly Shonen Ace |
| First: | December 1995 |
| Last: | April 1999 |
| Volumes: | 3 |
| Type: | manga |
| Chronicles of the Heroic Knight | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Masato Natsumoto |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Comics Ace |
| Magazine: | Monthly Shōnen Ace |
| First: | 1997 |
| Last: | 2000 |
| Volumes: | 6 |
| Type: | manga |
| Deedlit's Tale | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Setsuko Yoneyama |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōjo |
| Imprint: | Asuka Comics DX |
| Magazine: | Monthly Asuka Fantasy DX |
| Published: | 1998 |
| Volumes: | 2 |
| Type: | tv series |
| Chronicles of the Heroic Knight | |
| Director: | Koichi Chigira |
| Producer: | Kinya Watanabe |
| Music: | where2 |
| Studio: | AIC |
| Network: | TV Tokyo |
| First: | April 1, 1998 |
| Last: | September 30, 1998 |
| Episodes: | 27 |
| Episode List: | List of Record of Lodoss War episodes#Record of Lodoss War: Chronicles of the Heroic Knight (1998) |
| Type: | film |
| Welcome to Lodoss Island! | |
| Director: | Koichi Chigira |
| Studio: | AIC |
| Released: | April 25, 1998 |
| Runtime: | 35 minutes |
| Type: | novel series |
| Next Generation | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Yutaka Izubuchi (first editions of the Prelude and the first novel) Haruhiko Mikimoto |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Male |
| Magazine: | The Sneaker |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko Kadokawa Mini Bunko (Prelude only) |
| First: | May 23, 1998 |
| Last: | November 30, 2006 |
| Volumes: | 6 + prelude |
| Volume List: |
|
| Type: | manga |
| The Grey Witch | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Tomomasa Takuma |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Magazine: | Comptiq |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Comics Ace |
| First: | December 10, 2013 |
| Last: | April 10, 2015 |
| Volumes: | 3 |
| Type: | novel |
| The Crown of the Covenant | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Hidari |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Male |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko |
| Published: | August 1, 2019 |
| Type: | manga |
| The Crown of the Covenant | |
| Author: | Ryo Mizuno |
| Illustrator: | Atsushi Suzumi |
| Publisher: | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Demographic: | Shōnen |
| Magazine: | Monthly Shōnen Ace |
| Imprint: | Kadokawa Comics Ace |
| First: | October 26, 2019 |
| Last: | April 26, 2021 |
| Volumes: | 3 |
| Other | |
| Content: | Record of Lodoss War: Is That Delicious? |
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 (RPGs).[2] There have since been multiple manga, anime and computer 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.
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 (initially a supplement of Comptiq) 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 (including fantasy 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:
Two other Record of Lodoss War replay volumes have been published later:
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 .
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.
The first volume forms the basis for the first eight episodes of the Record of Lodoss War original video animation (OVA) series, as well as both Record of Lodoss War: The Grey Witch manga series (by Yoshihiko Ochi and Tomomasa Takuma, respectively). 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 prequel replays (1994 to 2002, 5 volumes and an extra volume, illustrated by Akihiro Yamada) and sequel novels (1993 to 1996, 4 volumes, illustrated by Satoshi Urushihara, part of Legend of Crystania setting) and (1998 to 2006, 6 volumes and a prelude volume, illustrated by Yutaka Izubuchi (first editions of the prelude and the first novel) and Haruhiko Mikimoto); Legend of Lodoss was also adapted into the Record of Lodoss War: The Lady of Pharis manga series by Akihiro 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 began released a novel sequel .[3] 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.
See also: List of Record of Lodoss War characters.
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 later by Slayn's lover Leylia), 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 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 fiance 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.
See also: List of Record of Lodoss War episodes.
In North America, the original OVA series and the TV series had both been released through Central Park Media on VHS and on DVD. The OVA and TV series were slated for a Blu-ray release through Media Blasters,[4] but they had dropped all plans to re-release the series.[5] On April 14, 2017, Funimation announced their license to both the OVA series and the Chronicles of the Heroic Knight TV series for the United States. Subsequently, they released the OVA on both Blu-ray and DVD and the TV series on DVD in one set on July 18, 2017.[6]
Role-playing games:
Other video games:
Compilations:
Canceled or shut down games:
GameOn released an online game for PC, Record of Lodoss War Online in April 2017 and closed it on October 31, 2019. Ryo Mizuno, the novelist and co-creator of the franchise, served as a supervisor on the development of the game. The game was also released outside Japan.[15]
The first three are original stories.
The novel series has sold over 10 million copies in Japan.[16]
Australian magazine Hyper reviewed Chronicles of the Heroic Knight in 1999. They rated it 8.5 out of 10.[17]