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The Adventures of Wrathgar
The Adventures of Wrathgar is a series of novels and short stories created by Charles Moffat in the Heroic Fantasy subgenre. Borrowing elements from Sword & Sorcery, the titular character "Wrathgar" is a barbarian from the Snowfell Mountains of Korovia who uses axe, bow, arrow and a massive grosseklinge two-handed sword to defeat his foes. Trained as a hunter and tracker, the book series features Wrathgar using his knowledge of woodsman skills like flintknapping, tracking, evading foes, tracking enemies and more. However as a barbarian from the north he often has difficulty socializing with southerners. Moffat started writing Wrathgar stories in 2007, however the concept of the character is much older, dating back to 2003. The first published Wrathgar stories were released in August 1st 2011, in the anthology book "The Assassin's Trail" which features a serial storyline and a coming of age story of Wrathgar's youth. Moffat began writing the second book in the series, "The Demon's Sacrifice", in 2007, but did not release the book until December 1st 2019 due to many rewrites, massive editing, and removing whole characters/subplots. [Illustration on the Right: "Wrathgar" by the artist known as Edgar.] Moffat has since continued writing more Wrathgar novels, including "The Coven's Wolves" and "The Exorcist's Dagger". As of February 2023 he is working on a sixth book in the series: "The Frost Giant's Tomb".
"One of the things I love about Wrathgar as a character is that he is essentially this cross between Conan and Batman. He is an orphan raised by High Shaman Korflex, but he is raised amongst the Baarstammderstark Tribe of the Snowfell Mountains so his upbringing is very similar to Conan [the Barbarian]. Unlike Conan however who is more of a wanderer without purpose, Wrathgar actively wants to find his parents. He believes that his father Wulfric is still alive so after the events of the first book he is constantly looking for clues for where he can find his father, and consequently has adventures along the way. Batman meanwhile is driven to avenge the deaths of his parents and is very moody. Wrathgar still believes that at least one of his parents is still alive, and he is optimistic about it, and his quest is one of searching for clues to find them." - Charles Moffat, 2019.
The Assassin's Trail
First Edition: Released August 1st 2011.
Second Edition: Paperback 145 pages / ebook 148 pages.
Will Wrathgar be able to find the murderer, and bring about justice for those who were killed?
Or will Muddenklaw escape into a world of assassins who hide in the shadows waiting to strike?
Who will win in the showdown between the barbarian ranger and the assassin?
Note - The First Edition version of "The Assassin's Trail" was an anthology of short stories. The Second Edition version is a blend of pulp fiction novel and anthology, with the short stories separated into smaller chapters for easier reading. The subsequent book "The Blizzard's Daughter" is a pulp fiction length novel, and Books 3, 4 & 5 of the series are full length novels. Hence the price differences between Books 1 + 2 compared to Books 3 + 4 + 5.
The Blizzard's Daughter
Released March 1st 2020. Paperback 162 pages / eBook 122 pages.
The hunter and tracker Wrathgar knows little of wizards and their ways, but when an elderly Blizzard approaches him and asks him to track down his missing daughter and bring her home he agrees to the task knowing little of what lies ahead. What he doesn't know is that there is a prophecy about "a child of a Blizzard" and people seeking to stop the prophecy from happening have set their sights on the Blizzard's Daughter. If they can kill her maybe they can stop the prophecy from happening.
The Coven's Wolves
Released March 1st 2021. Paperback 372 pages / eBook 298 pages.
With bow and arrow, Wrathgar sets out to kill the mysterious wolves that are killing the inn's patrons. But can he save them? Or are they just lambs to the slaughter?
The Demon's Sacrifice
Released December 1st 2019. Paperback 297 pages / eBook 299 pages.
But they are heavily outnumbered and teamwork is not their strong suit, and Wrathgar has been forced into a leadership role when he has no experience in leading others. Worse, Gyburn and Kaeto keep arguing, and Kaeto keeps getting into trouble. What will Wrathgar have to do to forge the group into a team? What will it take to rescue the priestess and prevent the demon prince from being summoned? What sacrifices will have to be made in order to defeat the evil brewing deep in the woods?
Meanwhile the Xarsian priest Mordechai is on loan to the Masexites and beholden to the High Priest of Masexus. Ostracized by his own dark church, he finds himself allied with murderers, rapists and criminals. Firm in his belief that Xarsius is the true god of evil and that Masexus is just some minor god Mordechai secretly seeks ways to fulfill his own bloodthirsty desires and find a new liege who has loftier goals than slaughtering a single farming village.
The villagers of Millkrest are depending on this small band of heroes to rescue their priestess and avenge their fallen. Can Wrathgar rise to the challenges of leadership? Can his companions learn to work as a team?
The Exorcist's Dagger
Released April 1st 2022. Paperback 438 pages / eBook 409 pages.
But Wrathgar isn't the only one looking for the Xarsian priest. Svetlana, the exorcist's apprentice, is also looking for him, and she wants to kill the priest and avenge her master's murder. She doesn't care if this means letting Piotr hang from a noose for murder, so long as she gets her vengeance. Can Wrathgar find the evil priest and keep him alive long enough to prove Piotr's innocence? And why does the priest want the exorcist's dagger in the first place? What is so special about it?
The priest isn't the only one looking for the dagger either. Corrupt town guards, the captain of the town guard, and a criminal underground of Xarsians who love their gladiator fights and crucifying people are also looking for the dagger. They will stop at nothing to get it. Trapped in the middle is the prizefighting boxer Boris, the traumatized smith's apprentice Burian, and the gnome Bizbald, who always seems to show up when trouble or gold is involved.
Wrathgar Short Fiction
Released June 1st 2020. Paperback 45 pages / eBook 42 pages. "The Sunken Castle" is a novelette which takes place between "The Assassin's Trail" and "The Blizzard's Daughter".
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