Das Vermächtnis des Blutes

Diablo #1

by Martin H. Sorg

Als der Söldner Norrec Vizharan mit seinen Freunden das Grab des legendären Dämonenmeisters Bartuc plündert, gelangt er in den Besitz der Rüstung des "Kriegsherrn des Blutes". Doch wird er sie nicht mehr los -- schlimmer noch: Sie übernimmt die Kontrolle über ihn. Derart manipuliert begeht er gegen seinen Willen schreckliche Verbrechen und strebt einem geheimnisvollen Ziel zu. Verfolgt wird er dabei aus unterschiedlichsten Gründen von einer Reihe grotesker Gestalten: einer Nekromantin, einem größenwahnsinnigen Feldherrn, einer Hexe, einem Dämon, einem verrückten Magier und zwei Wiedergängern. Auf dem verschlungenen Pfad zum Showdown wird viel gezaubert und beschworen, und es tauchen allerlei Ungeheuer, Dämonen und wahre Teufel auf. Nur Diablo selbst tritt (noch) nicht in Erscheinung. Oder etwa doch?

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Video Games, Dark Fantasy, Audiobook, Novels

414 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Велислав Върбанов · Rating 4 out of 5]

„Завещание от кръв“ се оказа много готино мрачно фентъзи с хорър елементи! В него ставаме свидетели на страховити магически събития във вълнуваща демонична атмосфера...

[Gale · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is impressively terrible. It’s basically a generic Wrong Trousers story (except with haunted armour) pasted over the top of the Diablo universe, but in reality, it has such a loose connection to the source material that it might as well have been based on the Magic Roundabout. It flails madly to establish itself until the half way point, at which point, it leans heavily on references to well-established plot points in Diablo 2, which it still manages to get very wrong. It also conjures up legendary figures from the lore, then abuses and destroys them in the weirdest ways imaginable.

I have played Diablo since I was 8, and I have always wanted to explore the universe outside of the games which, with the exception of Diablo 3, are deliberately light on detail to allow you to focus on the apocalypse. I really wish I hadn’t tapped in to this particular novel, as it takes my favourite game of the series (number 2) and corrupts it in order to try and prop up a deeply unimaginative story which doesn’t really seem to give a crap about the decades of lore that precedes it.

The author’s writing style aims for horror fiction but sits firmly in ao3 Sonic the Hedgehog self-inserts. It thinks that it’s immensely intelligent, but even concepts that should be a home run (shifting pocket dimensions, haunted armour, agents of prime evils) are mutilated and overexplained to the point where they feel mundane. Both female characters exist purely as sexual objects for the protagonist and antagonist, and are routinely rendered helpless and at the mercy of incompetent men for no reason, even though they are both members of two separate and well-established mage orders. On the other end of the spectrum, some characters inserted by the author are so obnoxiously powerful that they actively ignore a giant plot point if Diablo 2 - set several years after - which focuses on a giant crystal built with the express purpose of suppressing the powers inherent in humanity.

I could go on forever. Just don’t read this book if you like Diablo. Christ.

[Teodora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Нищо епично или сериозно ангажиращо, но за джобния си размер и скромните 384 страници книжката се справи просто блестящо! Страхотно изградени персонажи, интересна история без излишни описания, магия, известни комични сцени и доста повече кървави такива, едно морско чудовище и една скромна романтична нишка (която, предполагам ще се развие в другите книжки). Какво повече е нужно на всеки фентъзи любител за да клъвне. На мен не ми и трябва друго за да съм сигурна, че ще прочета поредицата до край!

[Zornitsa Rasim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Добра книга! Хареса ми!

[Dylan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a must read for any of you who played the PC hit Diablo. I thought it was a good book and took me right to the town of Lut Gholein and described it well. Norrec is a great hero and reading about his misfortunes is very amuzing, although it ends well. There are also two more books in the series, but only this one and the third book being written by Richard A. Knaak.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book 2x now. Started off amazing as i remember it the first time i read it. Was still an amazing book. Not sure why these books are not more popular. Maybe you need to play the video games to understand them

[Raúl Ruiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

No está mal. Es un preludio al juego 《Diablo II》. La historia no es que sea hiper-apasionante, pero si te gusta el juego, tiene su pequeño encanto.

[Nick Hugill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic fantasy, properly solid writing. Characters always felt engaging. Perhaps a slight curb to get into it initially but overcome with perseverance.

[Leingrad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Türünün en iyi örneklerinden diyebileceğim bir kitap olmasa da beğenerek okudum. Özellikle hikayenin ana üssünün Lut Gholein şehri olması ve burada Drognan gibi NPC’ler ile de karşılaşıp, Sand Leaper’lar gibi oyundaki yaratıklar ile da haşır neşir olmamız beni Diablo 2’nin başında sabahladığım yıllar olan 2000’lere kadar götürmeyi başardı.

Hikaye, Bartuc’un zırhını taşıyan ana karakterimiz, onu arayan bir kadın Necromencer ve Bartuc’un zırhına sahip olmayı takıntı haline getirmiş acımasız bir General’in gözünden eş zamanlı olarak anlatılıyor. Dönüşümlü olarak giden bu üç farklı bakış açısından dolayı okurken beni hiç sıkmadı. Kitabın ilk yarısı bir yol hikayesi şeklinde ilerliyorken bu üç karakterlerimizin Lut Gholein’e gelmesiyle beraber hikaye daha yerleşik bir anlatıma geçiyor.

Hiç Diablo oynamamış birinin gözünden baktığımızda kitap nasıl gözükür? İnanın bu sorunun cevabın veremiyorum ama özellikle Diablo 2 ile haşır neşir olduysanız boş zamanınızda kafa dağıtmak için bir şans verebilirsiniz.

[Lindsey Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

Entertaining enough read, especially with the established Diablo background lore (though with an admittedly loose connection even to someone with no prior knowledge of Diablo). The plot premise was my main draw to the story; however, the actual writing and character descriptions were of poorer quality than expected and had an amateur quality to them reminiscent of bad fan fiction. The lack of internal depth to the characters—specifically concerning Norrec’s internal conflicts, but certainly present in the frankly sexist caricatures of the female characters—was disappointing and detracted from the excellent opportunities available for real internal struggle between autonomy and the lack of as well as personal morality and the armor’s dark allure. The writing overall had a very much ‘tell’ rather than ‘show’ quality that sought to epithetize the characters rather than truly render them outside the confines of the story’s language.

[Adi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must say that this was a very enjoyable book. First, there is a blood-red armor, belonging to a legendary military leader, which is trying to bring back its master from the dead (or rather project his personality into another mortal man). Then there is a band of rogues, or should I say treasure hunters, who find this enchanted armor in a forgotten tomb. There is a cruel general, who wants to find the armor in order to rule over the world. The most trusted advisor of this general is a witch, who has entered into a very dark and dangerous deal with a demon. Finally, there is a necromancer, who is desperately trying to stop the armor from achieving its goal.
I wholly enjoyed this journey accross the land of Aranoch, the Twin Seas and the land of Kehjistan.

[Elli Jo · Rating 2 out of 5]

I cannot say I enjoyed this book as much as I enjoyed the synopsis. And be quite honest, I only went about 3/4 of the way through. My brother recommended it to me when I was desperate for something, anything, to read. I liked the storyline, loved the video game.... But the author continued to drag on the same small thought for a paragraph a piece. I felt like they were describing a black scarf in a hundred ways before we could move forward. Now, there really wasn't a black scarf, but I think you get the idea.

I hope someone else got something out of this book, I just was too damned bored.....

[Syaiful Bakhtiar · Rating 4 out of 5]

growing up with the game (from adolescent to mature) the story took me back in time and explained to me about the war of the old and how it was related to the events of the game. It feels "close to home" with the characters chiming words related to the games. Words such as "potions" , "mana", "deckard kain", "tristram" and speaking of tristram, I had a good feeling while reading the book and listening to the town's background music in diablo 1.

[Joel Belgrove · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was a pretty good book considering it was fashioned after a video game. I found the Sin Wars series a little better than this book in my opinion though. If anyone is into angels and demons battling over humans then they should definitely give this book, as well as the video game, a look.

[Поли Андреева · Rating 5 out of 5]

Приятно зловеща история, сюжетът е стегнат и не завива в ненужни посоки. Ричард Кнаак прави само намигване към игратa Diablo. Не очаквайте нещо епично, но за разтуха с доволна доза черна магия, некромансъри и ходещи скелети е отличен избор.

[MaskedSkull · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nunca había tenido la experiencia de un libro enfocado en el mundo de Diablo (una de mis franquicias favoritas de juegos) y quede con agrado con esta entrega, me gustaron los personajes tanto los principales como el villano, quizás mi unica critica pudiera ser que posiblemente el autor no sabe muy bien describir peleas emocionantes xD estoy demasiado "spoiled" con las peleas de Vampire Hunter D supongo.

Seguiré experimentando más con estos libros.

[Paulo "paper books only" · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well this book deserves 3.5 stars. Not Four but neither Three. Why?

The book gave what I hoped. A fast pace story about a world fill with wonders that you learn as you play. This book only added to that "history".

You've got three guys fightining through a labyrinth when one of them dresses a red armour that belong to Bartuc, the warlord of blood. As he puts in on he kills his friends and wanders the land as the armour leads him somewhere he does not know. From this moment on you've got two main characters. One, Norrec, the Armour's puppet. Two, Kara Nightshadow, a necromancer than wants to find Norrec and there are a couple of characters inbetween by Galeona, a sorcerer, and General Malevolyn.

The good part is that everyone wants to find Norrec and the Armour. Each with his own motifs. Kara Nightshadow wants to destroy or at least remove the armour from Norrec, Galeona wants to make Norrec is puppet, Malevolyn wants to wear the armour and Xazax, a daemon, wants Malevolyn to be his puppeteer.

At some point each main character was a puppet from others but they evolved, and that's the main focus of the story. I really enjoy Norrec powers, or at least the armour powers and how he tried to control the armour. I also enjoy Kara and her own masters, the wraiths that were killed by Norrec. Quite interesting.

I enjoy the travels around the world we know and also the backstory and their motifs. If there was one part that I hated was the end.

In my opinion it was a bit of Deus-ex-machina. I hoped for a unhappy ending but it seems that all went well. The bad were rewarded with death and the good guys lived happy ever after. I really hope for a grim ending (like in warhammer fantasy) because there wasn't any "Good" characters in the book. Even Norrec was not that good and Kara was doing what was right (not good or bad). To achieve the balance as she put it.

Overall, advisable to anyone who loves Diablo and a good short fantasy novel.

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Legacy of Blood proved to be an amazing array of action, adventure, romance, and horror all neatly rolled into one tightly packed adventure that makes Lord of the Rings look like child's play. I found it quite easy to fall in love with certain characters, and befriend others as the author easily takes us on a magical journey quite unlike any other I've ever read before.

Garunteed, you will be kept on the edge of your seat, and clamoring for more by the time you finish the last page...I've already decided to treat myself by looking up the rest of this amazing series, and Richard A. Knaack will not disappoint!!

[Hazel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a very torturous book, filled with characters who had no will of their own, making it quite hard to identify with anyone. The book itself didn't really feel very Diablo to me, despite familiar locations, and characters, but if you give up on that and think of it as a dnd book it improves a bit. The two female characters were both overly sexualized. Especially the evil corceress lady who used sex in order to control gullible men.

Beyond that there were interesting moments and segments that made it bearable.

[Piotr Nowak · Rating 2 out of 5]

1,5/5

Walenie w chuja ta książka trochę i tak zwany klikbejcik.
Nudy na pudy narobili w majty 💩. 😴

"In debates about the Diablo Novels, Flux has suggested that the story was an unpublished fantasy novel Richard Knaak had on hand, which he revised to include enough Diablo elements to make it pass muster as a Diablo Novel" ~ Jarosław Realtalkowski

Połowa książki to jak Norrac sobie czaruje pieniążki na jedzenie i ktoś wskrzesza jakiegoś ducha po raz 20 żeby się dowiedzieć tzw. chuj wielki bombelki.

[TL Jeffcoat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the games this story comes from and I have to say, I'm am a fan of Knaak. His writing grabs your attention, bringing his characters to life, not only through the personalities, but through the background, which he spreads throughout the story, so by the end, you think you've known about the character from precious books. Just like the setting of the story, this books embraces the darkness that surrounds the world of Sanctuary.

[J.T. Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book and the only Diablo novel I've read at this point. I ofcourse played the games and loved the universe so I decided to pick this one up a few years ago. I did enjoy the book but I only loved certain parts, other parts didn't seem as interesting.. I particularly loved the happenings on the ship voyage somewhere in the middle.

I overall liked Knaak's writing. I'll most likely seek out more of his stuff in the future.

[Delgee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot but I don't know if people with no experience with Diablo (either by playing or reading) will enjoy it as much as I did.
Richard A.Knaak's writing style is very nice to read and this book was no exception.
Then ending is good although there are some vague points left uncertain.
Goodread.

[Medros · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. There were some fairly predictable plot conclusions, but the adventure along the way was very exciting. I saw several key resolutions coming and wished dearly that the characters would see what I found so obvious, though they did not have the level of knowledge that the reader does to know the truth.

[Fahd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whether you're into fantasy or not, you must read this book. This is what got me into the fantasy genre in the first place. Amazingly well-written. An enthralling read. Beware: You will not be able to put this one down until you're done. Trust me!

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure if the book is great or just because i'm such a big fan of the game that seeing the Diablo story more detailed and seeing certain characters in the book gave me a geek-boner, but it was quite enjoyable.

[Sarah Ehinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

A swords and sorcery style book, it may have been more compelling had I ever played the video game. Without that world background, this is a fine book, but not one that would make me want to stay up all night reading.

[Nisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

All in all I think the Diablo-based books came out better than any other Blizzard book. This one was an enjoyable read, though again, only for people familiar with the game.

[Владимир Ленин · Rating 4 out of 5]

only aboot 15 pages that were boring and then after that it just grabs you by the balls.

[Stiliyan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Почти успешен опит да се влезе в света на Diablo. Не е лоша, ни нищо запомнящо се, особено за върлите Diablo фенове.