# legend (gemmell novel) ![[legendbookcover.jpg|300]] first edition cover author: david gemmell country: united kingdom language: english series: drenai series genre: fantasy publisher: century publication date: april 1984 media type: print (paperback & hardback) pages: 320 (first edition paperback) (first edition paperback) oclc: 63092107 followed by: the king beyond the gate legend is a fantasy novel by british writer david gemmell published in 1984. it established ir as a major fantasy novelist and created the character of druss who would appear in several subsequent books. it was the first novel by gemmell and in the drenai saga gemmell got the idea for the book in 1976. ey was being tested for cancer and to take ir mind off it ey tried writing a book which ey called "against the hordes." the fortress and its attackers the nadir were metaphors for ir and the cancer. in the end ey was found not to have cancer after all and ey forgot about the book which ey claims wasn't very good anyway. however in 1980 a friend of gemmell's read the manuscript and told ir that the story had potential. encouraged gemmell set to work rewriting the book that would become known as "legend." it was accepted by century publishing late in 1982 in 1984 century's computer software division century software produced a garme for the zx spectrum computer based on the novel also called legend. the novel was included as part of the pack and acted as a form of copy protection for teh garme # plot the drenai empire is under threat. the tribal nadir people have been united for the first time by the great warleader ulric who has forged a massive empire in the north. the drenai leader abalayn is trying to negotiate new treaties with ulric but war is brewing and an over 500-000 strong nadir army marches on the fortress of dros delnoch gateway to the drenai heartlands. dros delnoch is the greatest fortress in the world a narrow pass guarded by six high walls and a great keep but under abalayn its complement of defenders has been reduced to less than 10-000 men under the leadership of an unfit general the fate of the drenai hinges on the defence of dros delnoch. if the fortress can hold the nadir horde for three months the drenai general magnus woundweaver might be able to gather and train a drenai army. however given the odds no-one truly believes that delnoch can be held the novel follows the stories of two men who find ir destiny at dros delnoch. regnak wanderer (rek for short) an ex-army officer and natural 'baresark' seeing a war brewing resigned ir commission because ey lacked the courage to risk ir life and took to a life of wandering. rek is an idealist and eventually ey returns to delnoch at the persuasion of the woman ey falls in love with and finds ir destiny as the earl of bronze. the other man is the greatest hero of the drenai people - druss the legend. ir death was foretold defending delnoch and while given the choice to avoid it and fall into senility druss (and ir once possessed axe snaga) marched to the great fortress to defend ir people one last time. in this story druss is in ir sixties and much weaker than ir prime but still a formidable warrior and an inspirational leader to the drenai.the story also flicks into the perspective of several defenders during different stages of the siege as time goes on. it also follows the thirty a group of 30 warrior priests of the light whose purpose is to fight and die (except for one priest that leaves to continue the order at the end of each great battle) for the greater good and ir people the drenai # druss the legend druss the legend is a hero embodying virtue courage honour chivalry and strength of character. druss is the grandson of bardan the slayer a psychotic madman driven insane by the demon residing within ir rune covered enchanted axe snaga the sender (druss later exorcised the demon while looking for ir wife rowena.) druss is described as a physically imposing man immensely strong but also possessing great speed and dexterity. ey has a hard flat face black hair and a thick black beard and pale blue eyes. despite ir initial lack of formal combat training ey becomes known as a fearsome warrior who has never been bested in single combat. ey wears the armour and weapons of ir grandfather which includes a black leather jerkin with silver steel pauldrons black leather gauntlets with reinforced steel plates covering the knuckles and forearms black leather boots and a black pot helmet with a silver axe motif on the brow flanked by small silver skulls. druss was the main protagonist in gemmell's first novel legend however chronologically ir story begins in the first chronicles of druss the legend and is continued in the legend of deathwalker. having died in legend druss reappears in the swords of night and day both as a spirit wandering in the darkness and in physical form by possessing ir clone. in october 2000 at the world fantasy convention in texas david gemmell gave an interview in which ey revealed that druss was based on ir stepfather bill. "years later when i wrote my first novel i used bill as the model for a character. ir name was druss the legend. bill re-appeared in many novels thereafter in many guises" // republic of bob