"The Tower of the Elephant" by Robert E. Howard (1933) Originally appeared in Weird Tales, March 1933. Plot: While in Zamora, Conan hears about the Heart of the Elephant, a fabulous gem kept in the wizard Yara's tower, known as the Tower of the elephant. After a bar brawl, Conan goes to spy out the tower and runs into another thief, Taurus of Nemedia, known as the Prince of Thieves. The two team up to deal with humans guards, patrol lions and finally the climb up the side of the smooth tower. They gain access from the top which is crusted in jewels. Inside the tower they find a treasure room that seems uguarded. Taurus goes in while Conan is sent back to the top to see if they have been discovered. When he returns he finds Taurus dying with three punctures in his back. Conan enters the room and instantly is fighting for his life against a giant spider that tries to trap him with webs. Conan kills the spider by crushing it with a trunk of gold. Moving on, the barbarian goes a flight down and finds another room that contains what he thinks is a statue. It proves to be a blind alien that resembles an elephant. Conan feels pity for the creature and agrees to kill him, placing his heart's blood on the gem for which he came to steal. This he delivers to Yara on the next floor. The magic in the gem causes Yara to shrink and be sucked into the gem. There Yag-kosha is reborn and takes his vengeance. Conan flees and the tower falls. Monsters: Patrol Lions - these beasts are kept in underground chambers during the day when humans patrol the grounds. Taurus kills them with the powder of Black Lotus blown through a pipe. Spider Guardian - the giant spider guards Yara's treasure room. It dwells on the ceiling and bites people as they come into the room. It also uses webs to ensnare victims. Conan kills it by crushing it with a big chest of treasure. Yogah (Yag-kosha) - is the last of a race of elephant-headed, winged beings who came from outer space. He has been imprisoned and tortured by Yara for his eldritch secrets. History: The influences on Robert E. Howard may include, as Tom Shippey feels Lord Dunsany's "The Fortress Unvanquishable Save for Sacnoth" with its spider guardian. Howard had Conan fighting giant spiders four years before Bilbo would do so in The Hobbit (1937). The elephant nature of Yogah may have been inspired by Frank Belknap Long's "The Horror From the Hills" (Weird Tales, January and February-March 1931) featuring the elephantine Chaugnar Faugn. The destruction of the tower at the end is a bit of cliche descended from Edgar Allan Poe. One of the original Conans to appear in Weird Tales, this story was very influential with those that followed Howard. Along with "Rogue in the House" it is one of the best "thief" stories of the Cimmerian. These would later contribute to the Thief character class in AD&D. Parts of this story were used in Conan the Barbarian (1982) though no plot points. In the film Conan and his buddies sneak into a tower to see the worshippers of Set committing human sacrifice. Barry Smith's version of Yogah
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