Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Scarlet Nemesis"

"At the edge of Uzza Hathor, the vast wilderness to the south of the Tanarach pass, the few survivors of a once proud Darcanian legion are witness to the appearance of a mysterious new adversary. A heavy armoured scarlet warrior emerges from out of the foliage, seemingly in command of the fierce Pictish tribes that had defeated and hunted them relentlessly on their retreat to the Great Wall. His deadly arrows aimed at their courageous Legate, determined to rob them of all hope…" 

Realms Of Odoric - Scarlet Nemesis

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"A Banquet of Strife"

Following the final destruction of the Tanarach wall, Odoric rushes to Akragas to warn Emperor Kührr about the coming threat of Payches-Ra’s hordes. Together with Khargin and her brothers, he enters the Great Hall in the middle of a decadent banquet where the Emperor and his noblemen are celebrating their presumed victory over the Pictish tribes.

When Odoric announces that Payches-Ra still lives and urges them to prepare for war, the Emperor’s general Cundarr laughs in his face. He mocks the injured Drackx and his Kaduzar for putting their trust in the infamous Shadow Warrior. Only moments earlier, Drackx had received the highest honours for killing the Pictisch Commander in battle. So how could Odoric’s words be taken seriously?

In his arrogance, Cundarr proclaims that if Payches-Ra is indeed still alive, he will have no problem forcing him on his knees without any help of Drackx and his Kaduzar, nor the Shadow Warrior and his Shaymiri "savages"...

Realms Of Odoric - A Banquet Of Strife

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Creeping Of The Black Blood"

"While Odoric, Ahrimas and Kalthür are on a mission to find The Heart of the Serpent deep inside the catacombs beneath Cainnthüra, Khargin and her forces are waiting on the mountain ridge, unaware of the fact that her brother Bohriar has gone on a quest of his own!

When Bohriar encounters a mysterious hooded figure in the forest, he assumes that it is Payches-Ra and decides to attack. Against all odds, he manages to kill the bodyguards and slay the unknown commander with his spear. But then something unexpected happens. His dying victim emanates a terrible mental shriek that almost renders him unconscious. Suddenly the pitch black blood on his hands seems to start creeping up on him. As Bohriar struggles for control over his mind, he is surrounded by the Dachnak who have come to the aid of their dying Cüh’llnak. At that moment, a strange beam of light suddenly bursts up from the main temple-pyramid!"

Realms Of Odoric - Creeping Of The Black Blood

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Alaric"
 
By deploying his Cimbric warriors to manoeuvre around the massive host that is marching towards Ankrath, Odoric is hoping to mislead the enemy to think that he is trying to divert them away from the Mountain Keep. A tactic that would make it seem as if he was desperately trying to protect his loved ones, hiding behind the mighty walls of Ankrath.  Payches-Ra would be forced to split up his army, unsuspecting of the fact that Odoric had already ordered all inhabitants to flee to the shielings. Among the refugees were his beloved Shad’iah and their son, Alaric. Because of Emperor Kührr’s disapproval of his daughter marrying a Shadow Warrior, Alaric’s existence had been kept a secret. Even the Emperor wouldn’t have been able to prevent the priests from sacrificing Alaric to the gods if they had found out about him. But now the Darcanian empire is no more and perhaps, if his father succeeds in defeating Payches-Ra, Alaric might be saved from his sad curse of non-existence…

Realms Of Odoric - Alaric

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Dawning Destiny" 
 
While Payches-Ra’s hordes keep amassing in the valley below, Shad’iah and Alaric are leaving behind the shelter of Ankrath as fast as they can. The Mountain Keep would not be able to withstand a siege by such vast numbers and would merely turn into a death trap.  
Under protection of Khargin and the last of the Shaymiri, they are going to try to reach the high shielings and wait there for Odoric to come and get them after the battle.
Little do they suspect the heart wrenching events that are about to change their lives forever…

Realms Of Odoric - Dawning Destiny

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Wall Of Doom”

The Wall… an immense construction, erected in ancient times to prevent the Pictish tribes from invading Darcania. Only a few weeks ago it served its purpose once again, as a massive Pictish host appeared from out of the woods. Led by a mysterious scarlet warlord, these united tribes had attempted to cross to the other side after slaughtering the XXIIIrd legion, while on patrol in Uzza-Hathor. The retreat of the troops had only been possible thanks to the actions of the famous commander Drackx and his Kaduzar, the glorious imperial guard. But also because of the incredible feats of war of a lone Shadow Warrior, who seemed to be the personal adviser of Drackx.

There had been no sign of the Picts ever since, but today the alarm was sounded when suddenly the scarlet warrior appeared out of the forest. His hands directed upwards to the skies, a mild warm breeze instantly started to gain strength. When Drackx and the Shadow Warrior arrived on the Wall, the breeze had already grown into a storm. Clearly, there was something unnatural going on… The winds kept pounding on the Darcanians with increasing violence, until above the Wall a black hole seemed to form, sucking in the clouds from all directions. Amidst this heavy weather, the red leader of the Picts stood motionless… until abruptly he moved his hands downward. At the same time, all the collected energy inverted and was released in an all-annihilating discharge. In one single moment, the central part of the Wall was completely obliterated. The hurricane disappeared instantly and as the light returned, it became clear what enormous damage the Wall had sustained. An enormous breach was made…

After a few hours of silence, the first Picts appeared… scaling the remnants of the once so mighty Wall. The road to Darcania seemed wide open. Surrounded by his personal guard, the dreaded Quilainn-Haloch, the Scarlet Warlord led the advance. Any Darcanians found dead or injured were brutally mutilated. But then the unexpected happened… A cloud of arrows rained down upon the invaders. At specific advice of the Shadow Warrior, most of the defenders had managed to take shelter in the ramparts on the flanks of the mountains. Now they had formed a second line of defence on the debris and were adamant to stop the barbarians from invading their homeland.

The Picts charged them with true contempt of death, but each wave of attack broke on the phalanx of Drackx and his Kaduzar. Irritated, the Pictisch leader decided to let his Quilainn-Haloch take care of these Kaduzar. But his personal guard had other matters to attend to… Only moments earlier the Shadow Warrior had loomed up out of the mists, already holding the severed heads of three of the Quilainn-Haloch… This was the moment for Drackx to attack! The duel between the two commanders was a spectacle that seemed to be born out of the mists of old sagas and legends…

So now, the Pictish invasion is halted! The scarlet commander‘s head lays severed on the bloodied rocks at Drackx’s feet. But the Shadow Warrior has vanished into the mists as mysteriously as he had appeared before. Only the mutilated bodies of the Quilainn-Haloch accounted for the heroic deeds of the man who Drackx called ODORIC.

Adapted from the original 1996 Odoric Graphic Novel “The Wall of  Doom”, written by Filip Keunen and illustrated by Kris Verwimp

Realms Of Odoric - Wall Of Doom

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“The Serpent’s Heart”

Now that the Shaymiri warlord lies dead at the Dachnak’s feet, the hordes of Payches-Ra are swarming over Cainnthüra’s walls. The defenders of the city are forced to retreat to the central temple-pyramid.

In the meantime, Odoric, Ahrimas and Kalthür are fighting their way through the narrow city streets. Their mission is to find the underground passage that will lead them to the temple to retrieve “The Heart of the Serpent”. The Shaymiri priests have guarded this ancient secret for as long as anyone can remember. According to their religion, they need to keep it safe until the coming of Abatthür, the son of the Serpent God.

While Khargin and the rest of the troops are waiting for a signal on the mountain ridge, Odoric and her two brothers have finally arrived at the entrance of the secret catacombs that should lead them directly to the “Heart of the Serpent”. A never-ending tunnel, resembling the belly of a giant snake, ultimately takes them to a mysterious room deep beneath the main pyramid …

When Odoric enters, he notices an odd sensation. As time seems to slow down, his mind seems to expand inwards, accessing unknown corners of his inner universe… An eternity seems to go by, but when he looks at his sword, it appears as if the serpent runes are suddenly coming to life, emitting a faint green light!

In the meantime, the last Shaymiri defenders have been driven to the top of the stairs. Their final demise seems imminent when all of a sudden a terrifying burst of energy shoots upward from the pinnacle of the pyramid… 

Realms Of Odoric - The Serpent's Heart

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Odoakrath Rising”

From the Chronicles of Arruns:

“The Cimbric Isles”, also known as “The Shadow Isles” – a place most
Darcanians know only from myth and legend. After the destruction of Akragas, we followed Odoric’s black drekkar to this harsh place… the home of the Shadow Warriors!

Our heavy battle galley, commanded by the legendary Drackx, was the only
ship of the Darcanian armada that had been able to break through the
blockade. We barely managed to keep up with Odoric’s much faster vessel. Our ships finally landed near Dunkrath, one of six Shadow Keeps, as I later learned. There were five keeps near the shores and one much larger keep, called Ankrath, the Mountain Keep. After a brief stay at Lord Dunric’s castle, we travelled there across the barren wasteland. I was told that we were lucky that it wasn’t winter because the entire Cimbric Isles were usually covered with a thick layer of ice and snow.

The Cimbric soldiers that escorted us to Ankrath had some remarkable legends to share with me. It was rumoured that in ancient times the Shadow Isles had been a majestic outpost of the great Cimbric civilisation. At the centre of it, there had been a massive Serpent Tower, erected to defend Cimbria against a great nemesis from above. A terrible war followed that destroyed most of the Island and stripped it clean of all vegetation. There was now a giant crater where once the mighty Tower had been. But some say that the Tower was not destroyed and that it still lays hidden in the crater beneath the lake. Others told me that it ascended into the sky and call it “The Seventh Keep” or ”The Celestial Keep”. A few of them even seem to believe that it will rise up again one day when the Shadow Isles are under attack again… those are the ones who call it “Odoakrath”!

Realms Of Odoric - Odoakrath Rising

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Defeat At Adana"

A few days ago, general Cundarr left Akragas with his legions to intercept Payches-Ra's forces at Adana ( Adana is the first large city on the road to Akragas ). 
Odoric tried to warn the Emperor and Cundarr that two legions would not nearly be enough, but in their arrogance they chose to ignore him. There was a big celebration in Akragas when the famed general marched out, but Odoric and Drackx were less optimistic. Drackx was still very badly injured and couldn't move without risking to open his wound. Odoric decided to stay in Akragas with his love, Shad'iah. But then they discovered that Drackx's oldest son, Darkon, had disappeared. Apparently he had joined the legions, determined to make his father proud and to return as a hero. Drackx wanted to go after him, but was unable because of his wounds. So Odoric decided to go after the boy, together with Khargin and the Shaymiri... 
Unfortunately, they would never be able to catch up in time to prevent what was about to occur. Cundarr's legions had spotted a contingent of pictisch warriors and attacked them. The picts were soon defeated and the cavalry chased the fleeing men over the hill, unprepared for the sight that awaited them. Right in front of them there was a massive army, flanking them from left to right as far as the eye could see...On the horizon, Adana was already burning... Totally overwhelmed, they tried to form a quick battle formation, but the enemy seemed to ignore them and kept marching on. Suddenly one contingent of Dachnak warriors started heading towards them... this was not what Cundarr had expected!!

Realms Of Odoric - Defeat At Adana

Arkadius Antonik - "Friday The 13th" Theme interpretation

My third contribution to salute the Horror genre by interpretating some of the most famous Horror movies themes.
This is my interpretation of the most scary horror movies ever, and btw one of my all time favourites:
Evil Dead

Hope you enjoy my interpretation of the "Evil Dead" theme which was originally composed by Joseph LoDuca
Illustration by Munisheim / Nils Broß
muninsheim.deviantart.com/


Arkadius Antonik - "Evil Dead" Theme interpretation

A new track called "Leviathan", enjoy...

Illustration by Munisheim / Nils Broß
muninsheim.deviantart.com/

March, 2015

Arkadius Antonik - Leviathan

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Rogue Planet”

“Ancient wall paintings that are found in the deepest caves beneath Ankrath tell about a mysterious black planet, emerging from the dark void at the end of the Cimbric era. Legends say that this planet traversed the universe in search of life to consume, stripping clean entire planets. Even though this rogue planet was somehow deflected, it wiped out almost the entire Cimbric civilisation and caused a mass extinction event. Some say that the deadly planet is still out there and is bound to return one day... “

From “The chronicles of Arruns” – Cimbric Era

www.facebook.com/RealmsOfOdoric

Realms Of Odoric - Rogue Planet

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik
Violin performed by Lord Wilhelm from Fushiryuu


“Second Age Outcasts”

In the aftermath of the clash at Ankrath, the last survivors of the Shaymiri, Darcanian and Cimbric armies sought refuge in the shielings, high up in the mountains. While the hordes of Pisces-Ra regrouped and continued on their conquest of the rest of the world, the outcasts licked their wounds and slowly started building a secret resistance force. Each day that the black planet in the heavens grew bigger, they prayed more zealous for Odoric’s return… hoping he would one day lead them into battle again to end the dark dominion of Pisces-Ra. 

From “The chronicles of Arruns” – Cycle II

www.facebook.com/RealmsOfOdoric
www.facebook.com/fushiryuuofficial

Realms Of Odoric - Second Age Outcasts

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Enchained”

Four years have passed since his capture at Ankrath. Four years of pain, humiliation and misery. Abandoned by everyone he knew… 
The Shaymiri were not able to protect him from the Dachnak Bohriar and the Quilainn-Haloch. Not even his father came back to rescue him. 
It was rumoured that Bohriar was once a brother of Khargin, before he drank from the black blood of Pisces-Ra. But he still has no idea why the warrior wearing the wolf skull mask had kept him alive instead of killing him together with his mother Shad’iah.
What destiny was in store for him? Other than the pit fights that were being held at Cainnthüra, the former Shaymiri city that had been turned into the capital of Pisces-Ra’s dominion. Who knows what horrors would await him there...

Realms Of Odoric - Enchained

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik
Violin performed by Lord Wilhelm from Fushiryuu

"The Rise of Rebellion" 

Year by year, the mountain rebels grew bigger in numbers and slowly became a force to be reckoned with. 
Commanded by Khargin and Drackx, they finally came out of hiding and marched on Ankrath, the Shadow Keep. 
While an ominous black moon started to appear in the skies, the fight to retake the Cimbric Isles had begun… 

From “The chronicles of Arruns” – Cycle II

Realms Of Odoric - The Rise Of Rebellion

The final track of our upcoming new album called "Second Age"

Release will be December 2016 via MDD Records

Realms Of Odoric - Odoric On The Serpent Throne

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“The Lion's Oath”

While Odoric and his Cimbric soldiers fought to defend Ankrath, Drackx and his Kaduzar regiment were on a special mission behind enemy lines.
Their bold task was to locate and take out Pisces-Ra and his Dachnak bodyguards.
"The Lion Of Darcania" had sworn a solem oath to succeed or perish...

Second Age

Realms Of Odoric - The Lion’s Oath

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Arma"

Brand new track from the upcoming Mini album "The Cimbric Age", which will be released late 2017 by MDD Records.

Realms Of Odoric - Arma

MY CONTRIBUTION TO A SHORT DOCUMENTARY MADE BY
THE MASTERCLASS COMMUNITY OF HANS ZIMMER

Arkadius Antonik - This Is What It's About

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Cruàc"

Brand new track from the upcoming Mini album "The Cimbric Age", which will be released late 2017 by MDD Records.

Cimbric Age

Realms Of Odoric - Cruàc

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Aenea Reprise"

Brand new track from the upcoming Mini album "The Cimbric Age", which will be released late 2017 by MDD Records.

The Cimbric Age

Realms Of Odoric - Aenea Reprise

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

“Odoaric"

Brand new track from the upcoming Mini album "The Cimbric Age", which will be released late 2017 by MDD Records.

Realms Of Odoric - Odoaric

New track I've composed, August '17

enjoy

Arkadius

Arkadius Antonik - Noi ti porteremo nei tuoi sogni

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Lyrics & Vox by Sascha Aßbach
Photo by Lode Lagrainge on Unsplash

C.O.F. - Arch Dam

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Lyrics & Vox by Sascha Aßbach
Photo by Nicholas Jeffway on Unsplash

C.O.F. - Wicked Ways

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Vox & Lyrics by Sascha Aßbach
Photo by Joshua Newton on Unsplash

C.O.F. - Five Embers

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Vox & Lyrics by Sascha Aßbach
Photo by mehdi lamaaffar on Unsplash

C.O.F. - Hello Mischance

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Vox & Lyrics Sascha Aßbach
Photo by Logan Meis on Unsplash

C.O.F. - All Units Comply

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Vox & Lyrics by Sascha Aßbach

C.O.F. - Mad Maneuvers

Re-written song for the upcoming new Realms Of Odoric release "First Age"

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Concept & Illustrations by Kris Verwimp

Realms Of Odoric - Scarlett Nemesis (First Age 2019)

Realms Of Odoric - Wall Of Doom (First Age 2019)

Realms Of Odoric - The Serpents Heart (First Age 2019)

New song for the upcoming new Realms Of Odoric release "First Age"

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Concept & Illustrations by Kris Verwimp

Realms Of Odoric - Darkon's Courage (First Age 2020)

Realms Of Odoric - A Banquet Of Strife (First Age 2020)

Realms Of Odoric - Defeat At Adana (First Age 2020)

Music by Arkadius Antonik
Lyrics & Vox by Sascha Aßbach
Photo by Mladen Borisov on Unsplash

C.O.F. - Corn Dog Plz

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Clash at Ankrath"

A massive invasion force has landed on the Cimbric shores and is marching towards Ankrath, the Shadow Keep. Rather than hiding inside their mountain fortress, the Cimbric defenders decide to engage the enemy host on the sacred battlegrounds below. Commanded by the mysterious Shadow Warrior Odoric, they prepare to meet their doom with honour... 

Realms Of Odoric - Clash at Ankrath

Story concept by Kris Verwimp
Music by Arkadius Antonik

"Shaymiri Bloodvengeance"

 

With a pack of Pictish Quilainn-Haloch scavengers hot on their trail, the band of Shaymiri scouts accompanied by Khargin, daughter of the Warmaster, are crossing the dark hell “Uzza Hathor” back towards their capital city “Cainnthüra”. Their ambition to arrive there in time to warn their kin about the advancing Eastern Legions of Payches-Ra is immediately crushed when they notice the black columns of smoke in the distance. The siege of the city has already started and their entire culture is soon to be wiped out… As they rush towards the battle, their thoughts are only occupied by the thirst to execute the rite of bloodvengeance upon the dreaded invaders.  Their hope now rests on the mysterious Shadow Warrior who had helped them earlier in their battle against the Dachnak…

Realms Of Odoric - Shaymiri Bloodvengeance

Realms Of Odoric - Akragas In Flames

Welcome to “Realms of Odoric”, the ongoing soundtrack / artwork project of Arkadius Antonik and Kris Verwimp.

Biografie
Ever since the release of Odoric “The Wall Of Doom” back in 1996, most of my free time has been absorbed entirely by painting CD-covers for Metal bands. But all that time Odoric kept wandering in the back of my head, yearning to return one day. My idea was to combine my two passions: illustration and music by creating a soundtrack for the next Odoric comic with the help of various metal musicians. Over the years there were a number of people who wanted to help me out with this project. Belgian bands The Darkening, Axamenta and Dagorlad showed interest to work on the soundtrack and even composed quite a few tracks. However, I never found enough time to complete the story entirely. 10 years went by and looking back at the first pages of the story, it became clear to me that my drawing style had changed too much to complete this book.

I had almost given up on Odoric entirely when I learned about the soundtrack compositions of Arkadius Antonik of Suidakra. I was absolutely amazed and inspired by his tracks and after having worked with Suidakra for more than a decade and even writing their concept stories and lyrics for the last three albums, I got the idea that this could be the ideal opportunity to bring back the Odoric soundtrack project.
I presented Arkadius with my thoughts and to my surprise he was very enthusiastic. He had even wanted to ask me about doing illustrations for his soundtrack compositions but was afraid that I would be too busy. But after 20 years of doing mainly CD-covers, I felt like working on something personal again. I decided to accept a lot less cover art commissions and focus on Odoric again.

So this page marks the start of a new project to resurrect Odoric, starting with the rediscovery of the geography, history and mythology of the Realms of Odoric. Arkadius will compose the soundtrack and I will be illustrating and writing with the help of Filip Keunen who wrote “The Wall Of Doom”. Hopefully this will be a fun project in which we all will draw inspiration from each other’s works. Progress will be posted on this page regularly so everyone can keep up!

Kris Verwimp
May 2013 

Realms Of Odoric

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