Hammer's Slammers series

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Hammer's Slammers series (or the Hammerverse, Slammerverse, Slammers universe, Hammer universe) is a setting for a series of military science fiction short stories and novels by author David Drake. The series follows the career of a future mercenary tank regiment called Hammer's Slammers, after their leader, Colonel Alois Hammer. The series begun with the short story collection Hammer's Slammers (1979), with the latest installment a short story published in 2015.[1][2] A tabletop wargame and a roleplaying game set in Hammerverse universe have also been published.[1]

Short essays in Hammer's Slammers provide details of the political, social, economic, and technological conditions in the Hammerverse.

The series[edit]

The series began with short stories which were published at Galaxy magazine (edited by Jim Baen), beginning with ‘Under the Hammer’ (October 1974). They were later released in the form of short stories anthologies, with Drake also writing novels set in the universe.[2]

Anthologies and novels[edit]

  1. Hammer's Slammers (1979): The initial collection of stories. Includes the creation of the Slammers as a mercenary unit, shows several of its campaigns, and the end of its independent existence when Colonel Hammer becomes the ruler of his native world, Friesland.
  2. At Any Price (1985): A study in command and cultural conflict. The Slammers must aid a human community in a fight with aliens who can teleport.
  3. Counting the Cost (1987): The Slammers become involved in an internal dispute among their employers. Based on the Nika riots, with Slammers Captain Tyl Koopman in the role of Belisarius.
  4. Rolling Hot (1989): A pick-up Slammers unit, Task Force Ranson, must make a rapid combat march to relieve the capital city which is under threat. Based loosely on the events of the Tet offensive, according to Drake's comments.[3]
  5. The Warrior (1991): A rivalry between two of the Slammers, who have very different ideas of what it means to be a warrior. One of them, Slick Des Grieux, is based on the classical character of Achilles.
  6. The Sharp End (1993): A survey team from the Slammers is looking for work for the regiment. This book is set after Colonel Hammer has become President Hammer; Hammer's Regiment the 1st Friesian Defense Forces Regiment; and is based on Dashiell Hammett's Red Harvest.
  7. Paying the Piper (2002): Three novellas that follow a Slammers unit commander during a war between rival city states. The political situation is based on the war between Rhodes and Byzantium in the 3rd century BC[4]

Drake has also published stories not yet collected in the above list: A Death in Peacetime ("Oceans of the Mind", Spring 2005). The Day of Glory ("Elemental, The Tsunami Relief Anthology", Tor Books, 2006). Also in The Complete Hammer's Slammers, volumes 1 and 2 respectively.[clarification needed] In October 2015, Drake contributed a new Slammers story, "Save What You Can", to the tribute anthology Onward, Drake!.

Repackaged[edit]

The contents of the first five books of the main series were repackaged and republished, with some additional stories. Drake has said that this is his preferred order and edition.

  1. The Tank Lords (1997)
  2. Caught In The Crossfire (1998)
  3. The Butcher's Bill (1998)

The Complete Hammer's Slammers (2006) is a three volume set from Night Shade Books that contains all Hammer's Slammers fiction, including three new stories written for this set. Volume 1 was released in January 2006, and features an introduction by Gene Wolfe. Volume 2 (introduction by David G Hartwell) was released January 2007, with Volume 3 (introduction by Barry N. Malzberg) following in November 2007.

  1. Volume 1 contains: Hammer's Slammers (collection), “Code-Name Feirefitz”, “The Interrogation Team”, “The Tank Lords”, “Liberty Port”, “Night March”, “The Immovable Object”, “The Irresistible Force”, “A Death in Peacetime” (short stories)
  2. Volume 2 contains: At Any Price, Counting the Cost, Rolling Hot, The Warrior, “The Day of Glory” (short story)
  3. Volume 3 contains: The Sharp End, Paying the Piper, “The Darkness” (short story), “Jim” (short story)

Related works[edit]

These are works set in the Slammers universe, and involving members of the Slammers, or former members, but not directly featuring the Slammers as an organization.

  1. Cross the Stars (1984): A retelling of the Odyssey, with former Slammers Captain Don "Mad Dog" Slade in the role of Odysseus.
  2. The Voyage (1993): A retelling of the Voyage of the Argonauts.

The Forlorn Hope (1984) is about another, smaller, low-rent body of mercenaries, Fasolini's Company, based on Xenophon's Anabasis or The March Upcountry. While the setting and themes of the novel are similar to those of the Hammerverse, Drake has confirmed that this novel is not part of the series.[5]

A Hammer's Slammers board wargame was produced under license by Mayfair Games. Two sets of miniatures rules have been produced by Pireme Publishing

  1. Hammer's Slammers Handbook
  2. Hammer's Anvils: Handbook 2 The Opponents

A role playing supplement using the Traveller rules by Mongoose Publishing became available in June 2009.[6]

Analysis[edit]

As with his other work, Drake borrows plots from historical or mythological sources for many of the Hammer's Slammers stories. For example, he retells the story of Jason and the Argonauts in The Voyage, and part of the Odyssey in Cross the Stars.[1] Other stories borrow from pulp era fiction (The Sharp End is based on Dashiell Hammett's Red Harvest.)

The series has been described as "not easily associated with any prevailing ideological tendency".[7]

The series was inspired by Drake's experiences stemming from his military service in the Vietnam War.[2]

Reception[edit]

The series has been described as Drake's best known work and "immensly popular".[1][8][7]

Reviews:

  • Stanley, Steven (2006-07-23). "First of a military science-fiction series". The Roanoke Times. Archived from the original on 2023-05-09. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
  • Lardas, Mike (2010-12-05). "'Hammer's Slammers' 3 fun for military sci-fi fans". The Daily News. Archived from the original on 2023-05-09. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
  • "The Complete Hammer's Slammers: Volume One". Publishers Weekly. Vol. 253, no. 1. 2006-01-02. p. 40. EBSCOhost 20235468. Archived from the original on 2023-05-09. Retrieved 2023-05-09.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Gouldesbrough, S. (2019). The reception of Homer in modern science fiction literature (Thesis). University of Oxford.
  2. ^ a b c Nicholson, Blair (2016). A Literary and Cultural History of Military Science Fiction and the United States of America, 1870s-2010s (Thesis thesis). University of Waikato.
  3. ^ David Drake (2000-04-17). "Notes for "Rolling Hot"". David Drake Website. Retrieved 2010-10-06.
  4. ^ David Drake (2002). "Introduction to "Paying The Piper"". Baen Free Library. Archived from the original on 2005-04-11.
  5. ^ Alan Brown (4 January 2017). "War Without Glory: The Forlorn Hope by David Drake". Tor.com. Retrieved 2017-01-16.
  6. ^ "Mongoose Publishing : For All Your Gaming Needs ..." 2011-03-21. Archived from the original on 2011-03-21. Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  7. ^ a b Andrews, Chad (January 2015). "Technomilitary Fantasy in the 1980s: Military Sf, David Drake, and the Discourse of Instrumentality". Extrapolation. 56 (2): 139–168. doi:10.3828/extr.2015.9. ISSN 0014-5483.
  8. ^ Boyle, Tanner F. (2020-11-30). The Fortean Influence on Science Fiction: Charles Fort and the Evolution of the Genre. McFarland. p. 142. ISBN 978-1-4766-4190-4.

External links[edit]

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