TARIC REDHANDTARIC REDHAND
Real Name: Presumably Taric, at least
Identity/Class: Human (1st through 10th Century AD); see comments
Occupation: Pirate, captain of an unidentified ship
Group Membership: Captain of an unidentified pirate crew
Affiliations: Marada the She-Wolf;
he apparently believed in and possibly worshipped the Olympian pantheon, notably Zeus
Enemies: Merchants (including Amahl ibn Hassan) and soldiers
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: Scourge of the Southern Seas;
"corsair" (from Marada; really just a description as corsair is another term for pirate)
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
formerly mobile aboard his ship
First Appearance: Epic Illustrated#22 (February, 1984)
Powers/Abilities: Taric Redhand had the charisma and leadership skills to lead a band of pirates on enough successful adventures to drive the local empire (see comments) to plot his death.
He was experienced with a sword,
but would also use whatever was at hand to his advantage in a fight,
whether it was a table, chalice,
Taric Redhand was reckless and
bold, focusing more on the thrills life had to offer than worrying
about his personal safety.
Height: Unrevealed (perhaps 5'10")
Weight: Unrevealed (perhaps 220 lbs.)
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Bald with black beard
History:
(Epic Illustrated#22: Wizard's Masque, Part I (fb) - BTS) - Taric Redhand was a pirate of sufficient renown that the Empire (see comments) considered him a threat.
(Epic Illustrated#22:
Wizard's Masque, Part I - BTS) <Approximately 7 A.D.; see comments> - Young sorceress Arianrhod
tried to use a magic spell to return herself and Marada home, which instead allowed a
Gyatrias (a tentacled demon dwelling in the void between worlds) to grab Marada
and pull her through a portal. As she vanished, Marada futilely hurled her
sword, which was left sticking in her cabin floor.
((Epic Illustrated#22:
Wizard's Masque, Part I) - Marada emerged "another day"
aboard the dromond
where Taric Redhand's pirates battled the soldiers. As Marada struggled
fiercely, the Gyatrias released her in favor of easier prey, and she
was left on the ship when the Gyatrias took a pair of pirates through
its portal. Thinking Marada a she-demon, the soldiers' captain attacked
her, but she slew him, followed by the rest of the attacking soldiers.
Noting he had thought that this
day would be the end of himself and his crew, Taric Redhand pronounced
Marada to be their savior, a goddess risen from Hades' dread domain. He
then introduced himself and welcomed Marada, telling her that anything
they possessed was hers.
Days later, Redhand's ship
approached Djeriabar, the Black Isle, which Taric pointed out to her,
along with the tower on the headland belonging to Jaffar
ibn Haroun Al-Rashid, allegedly the world's greatest wizard, who Taric
thought might be able to return Marada to her home. When Marada noted
that she had never heard of Jaffar, he asked what that proved, as she
had never heard of him (Taric) either. However, he continued that
Jaffar would be willing to aid her and that he might even enslave or
kill her. He instead asked her to stay with him, to be first-mate of
his ship and his bed, and he assured her she would not be sorry.
Having
promised Arianrhod's father that she would see Arianrhod home safely,
Marada declined, while also taunting that she might not be content to
share either bed or command. Laughing as he acknowledged this, Taric
further noted that he doubted he would be pleased with the outcome if
Marada challenged him. He then suggested that they part as friends and
comrades-in-arms over a jug of wine. 
Shortly thereafter in the city's
central bazaar, Marada voiced her concerns that hanging out in this
public place was foolhardy for one of his profession, and that she
thought they would just drink aboard his ship. When Taric argued,
"Where's the fun in that?" Marada reminded him that pirates were drawn
and quartered. Seconds later, Taric was recognized by Amahl ibn Hamad;
while Taric tried to greet him as friends, Marada assured Amahl that he
was mistaken. While Amahl seemed to accept Marada's explanation,
Amahl's outburst drew soldiers who also recognized Redhand.
As Marada
engaged the approaching soldiers, Taric finished his wine and then
joined the fight, pushing the table into a pair of guards and smashing
one of them over the head with his goblet. Marada warned Taric that his
arrogance would one day cost him, Taric noted -- as he hurled food into
another soldier's face -- "at worst, only my life. And I'll lose that
anyway, sooner or later." Fighting back to back, he continued that, in
the meantime, danger only made life sweeter and that he who dares
nothing gained nothing, a point he punctuated by putting his hand on
her backside.
Marada jokingly countered that he
who pushed his luck may suddenly find himself fighting alone. Figuring
that they had to get away from this soldiers before they dared to
return to the ship and that Marada had little hope of seeing Jaffar
now, Taric attempted to lead them to safety.
However, as they reached a
set of stairs, Taric turned back to his pursuers, noting that the lads
seemed so eager to shed their blood that it would be a shame to
disappoint them. As Taric delighted in living up to his reputation as a
mad fool, one of the soldiers hurled a spear into his chest. Tumbling
forward into their pursuers, Taric noted that it seemed that father
Zeus was more eager to hear their stories than he had anticipated (and
he presumably died).
(Epic Illustrated#22:
Wizard's Masque, Part I - BTS) - Fleeing on her own, Marada noted that if Taric had
listened to her, they would both be far from their safe and alive.
Comments: Created by Chris Claremont and John Bolton.
The founding of the City (Rome) is traditional
--courtesy of John McDonagh and Darci
When Marada was transported away
from Arianrhod, she emerged "another place, another day." So, while
Marada left 7 AD, she may have emerged days, months, or perhaps
centuries later (or earlier).
A dromon is a galley/warship
popular in the Roman Empire, while a dromond is a medieval fast-sailing
galley or cutter. The dromon was popular in the 5th - 12th centuries
AD, the start of which is nearly 500 years after Marada left Arianrhod.
I'm less certain in re-reading this story that the Empire that plotted
to trap Taric Redhand was actually Rome, and not perhaps Turkey or
somewhere else? A couple days sailing later, they were in a Middle
Eastern nation.
Taric Redhand invoked Zeus, Adonis and Hades, all part of the Olympian pantheon/Graeco-Roman mythology.
This profile was completed 03/08/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary 's celebratory event.
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Taric Redhand should be distinguished from:
Epic Illustrated#22/1, story pg. 8, panel 3 (full);
pg. 9, panel 2 (face, full);
panel 3 (face, close-up, obscured);
pg. 11, panel 1 (grabby);
pg. 12, panel 3 (speared)
Appearances:
Epic Illustrated#22 (February, 1984) - by Chris Claremont (writer), John Bolton
(artist), Stan Lee (editor and publisher), Archie Goodwin (editorial director),
Jo Duffy (managing editor)
First posted: 09/06/2021
Last updated: 09/04/2021
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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