The work on the preview volume Ex Libris Amiculi has begun! Over the next several weeks, I will be posting updates in the form of pencil, line and color art from this book. By March 2014, we should have a completed 20-page issue, hot off the press!


Now for our regularly-scheduled programming: 


Odoacer, or Odovacar, was commander of the Germanic foederati (allied foreign) troops in Italy at the time of Orestes and Romulus's usurpation of the purple. Odoacer's rise to kingship was supposedly foretold by a Christian saint, Severinus, who told the poor young soldier, "Go to Italy, go, now covered with mean hides; soon you will make rich gifts to many."


Having all the assets Orestes had, along with significantly better judgment and people skills, Odoacer made short work of his former master, the Emperor, and the remnants of western civilization, setting himself up as Rex Italiae, the first King of Italy.


However, Odoacer gets mixed reviews as a king. He killed a Roman count to solidify his base, enacted few administrative or social changes, and showered gifts on his followers. He expanded his kingdom by invading modern-day Austria and Croatia.


His troubles began when he conspired with a Byzantine usurper and attacked Eastern Roman territory in support of his coup. The Byzantine emperor Zeno responded by unleashing the Gothic king Theoderic the Great on him, who invaded Italy, trounced Odoacer in battle after battle and forced him to surrender Italy to him. According to historians, Theoderic later personally hacked Odoacer to death at a banquet. 


Fascinating how history keeps repeating itself during this period, eh? 

Couple of things: first, Amiculus will soon appear in a local news feature, which leads me to think a press page should be added to this site. Stay tuned.

Second, while waiting for the next stage of progress on Volume I, I thought I'd reintroduce you to the major players in the book and their roles in history, if any. I've already profiled Procopius, author of The Secret History;  now I'd like to spotlight the villain of the book: Flavius Orestes, the father of Romulus.

Historically, Orestes was a Roman citizen from Pannonia and the son of one Tatulus, who was probably of German origin. ("Roman" in late antiquity was a term of some fluidity; it no longer just referred to a citizen of the city of Rome, or even from Italy, just someone who lived within the borders of the Empire. Often these "Romans" were recently-naturalized "barbarians," indicating how blurred the lines were becoming between the two worlds...but I'm digressing.)

Orestes was one of the "Romans" left behind when Attila the Hun bit off Pannonia and absorbed it into his own kingdom. He later became the secretary to Attila and his ambassador to Constantinople, was key in saving him from an assassination attempt, and may have had a hand in his death later on, if you believe the conspiracy theorists. 

Orestes went on to marry the daughter of a Roman nobleman, have a son, and become the magister militum (generalissimo) of the Roman army in the West, or what was left of it. He won his empire through treachery and lost it a year later the same way, and may have had a brother Paul who came along for the ride, although he's only mentioned in one source. 

The three main impressions I was left with about Orestes after reading various histories were: 1) the man had a skill for treachery, but little else; 2) he had a massive chip on his shoulder about something, and was trying to overcome this via social climbing and power accumulation; 3) fatherhood is something he should have left to just about anyone else. His hubris, viciousness and deep-seated insecurities gave him fascinating potential as a villain, one that I hope becomes more and more interesting as we peel back his layers through the series. 

To the left you can see some art and models for Orestes. Fun Fact: The Roman emperor Maximinus Thrax was an illiterate Thracian giant whom the histories claim was 8'6" (almost certainly an exaggeration) and was strong enough to pull fully-laden ox-carts unaided. My use of him as a model is not as much for his dimensions or strength as for the threatening and formidable presence he carries.