The King Arthur Companion
 | |
| Designers | Phyllis Ann Karr |
|---|---|
| Publishers | Reston Publishing, Chaosium, Green Knight |
| Publication | 1983 Reston Publishing 1986 Chaosium 1997 Chaosium 2001 Green Knight 2020 in preparation, Chaosium |
| Genres | Arthurian |
| Systems | none |
The King Arthur Companion[1] is an Arthurian encyclopedia, written by Phyllis Ann Karr, with art by Jody Lee, edited and assembled by Chaosium, and published by Reston Publishing in 1983. Subsequent editions expanded the contents, with the name changing in 2001 to The Arthurian Companion. In 2017, a new edition, renamed The Arthurian Concordance was funded as part of a crowdfunding campaign. The King Arthur Companion is a guide to the world of Arthur Pendragon, and is divided into alphabetically-arranged sections for "People", "Places", and "Things".[2]
Publication history
Originating in the research for Greg Stafford's 1979 board game King Arthur's Knights,[3] it eventually saw publication as a separate book in 1993 as an 8.5”x11” hardback with 174 pages. Karr, Phyllis Ann (1983). The King Arthur Companion : the legendary world of Camelot and the Round Table as revealed by the tales themselves ... Cover by Jody Lee (1st ed.). Reston, VA: Reston [Pub. Co.] ISBN 978-0835936989. CHA2704.
The 1986 edition was an 8.5”x11” paperback with 174 pages. Karr, Phyllis Ann (1986). The King Arthur Companion. Cover by Susan Seddon Boulet (2nd ed.). Albany, California: Chaosium. ISBN 978-0933635173. CHA2704.
The 1997 edition was a digest size paperback with 570 pages and an embossed cover. It was renamed The Arthurian Companion and was the first in the Pendragon fiction line. Karr, Phyllis Ann (1997). The Arthurian Companion. Cover by Ed Org (1st ed.). Oakland, California: Chaosium. ISBN 978-1568820965. CHA6200.
The 2001 second edition by Green Knight had its page count increased by 20 pages to 590,[4] and was published as a paperback and hardcover. Karr, Phyllis Ann (2001). The Arthurian Companion. Cover by Ed Org (2nd ed.). USA: Green Knight. ISBN 978-1568820965. GK6208.
Reception
J. Michael Caporula reviewed the Chaosium release of The King Arthur Companion in Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer No. 77.[2] Caporula commented that "The group of people I most heartily recommend The King Arthur Companion to are the literary 'browsers' of the world, such as myself, who would rather skim through reference works like these than read the actual works themselves. One will surely spend hours enraptured in this tome, given the chance. That a 'dictionary' can stand up to this kind of test is worthy praise indeed."[2]
Reviews
- White Wolf #7 (Apr 1987)
References
- ^ Karr, Phyllis Ann (1983). The King Arthur companion : the legendary world of Camelot and the Round Table as revealed by the tales themselves ... Cover by Jody Lee (1st ed.). Reston, VA: Reston [Pub. Co.] ISBN 978-0835936989. CHA2704.
- ^ a b c Caporula, J. Michael (February–March 1987). "Encyclopaedia Arthuriana". Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer (77). Diverse Talents, Incorporated: 35.
- ^ Karr, Phyllis Ann (1997). The Arthurian Companion. Cover by Ed Org (1st ed.). Oakland, California: Chaosium. p. 12. ISBN 978-1568820965. CHA6200.
- ^ Sprague, Suzanne. "The Arthurian Companion (2nd ed.)". Historical Novel Society. Historical Novel Society. Retrieved 8 November 2020.