DOTLAN EveMaps

Conan !!!!! What is best in life ? To crush your enemy, to see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of thier woman.

"He is strong! If I die, I have to go before him, and he will ask me, 'What is the riddle of steel?' If I don't know it, he will cast me out of Valhalla and laugh at me." ... "That's Crom, strong on his mountain." ~Conan the Barbarian
The theme of the movie Conan the Barbarian is centered around the Riddle of Steel. In the beginning, Conan's father explains the Cimmerian lore concerning the ancient Giant Kings of Earth stealing the secrets of forging from the god Crom. He warns Conan not to trust things of the flesh, but rather the steel in his hand. Even though Conan's father had produced a superior sword, he and the other adults of Conan's village were slaughtered while the children were enslaved by Thulsa Doom and his followers.

Years later, when the adult Conan seeks out the group that murdered and enslaved his people, Doom explains an opposite interpretation of the riddle to him: "Steel isn't strong, boy. Flesh is stronger. Look around you." Thulsa motions to some of the thousands of followers surrounding his mountain who worship him as the mouthpiece of Set. He points up to the top of a cliff, "There, on the rocks, that beautiful girl." He motions to the girl, "Come to me, my child." The girl steps off the cliff and falls to her death. "That is strength, boy. That is power: the strength and power of flesh. What is steel compared to the hand that wields it? Look at the strength of your body, the desire in your heart. I gave you these...."

Conan is crucified on the tree of woe in the desert and left to die. Subotai finds him just after he dies and takes him to the old wizard's home. After Conan is resurrected, he reflects upon the Riddle of Steel. No longer does the barbarian limit himself to direct brute assault. Using covert methods and battlefield tactics, Conan and his friends draw the enemy to them and inflict great damage. However, the cumulative result of all Conan's vengeance does not harm the overall power of Thulsa's cult. Only after his father's sword is broken does Conan realize the true answer to the riddle: the true thing that is forged and unbreakable is the will. Steel breaks, Flesh grows weak, but will is unbreakable. After using the "Eye of the Serpent" to get past the guards, Conan then attempts to slay Thulsa Doom in front of his followers. At which time Thulsa Doom tries to hypnotize Conan with his stare so he can slay him in the same way as his mother. However, it is Conan's will that was forged in the fire of his life that allows him to break the hypnotic stare and slay Thulsa Doom.