This is a wonderful combination of far future science fiction with Conan like sword and sorcery; lots of blood, gore, honor and evil. The immensely powerful hero, Tedric, is a man's man who refuses to accept the cruel human sacrifices demanded by the 'god' Sarpedion and is set on destroying him. To do this he needs some secrets of metallurgy that future social scientists are willing to give him. He manages to overcome all obstacles until of course he meets the dazzlingly lovely Lady Rhoaan who stops him cold. A great story written by the incomparable E. E. "Doc" Smith, author of the Lensman seriesm This is the first of two connected stories written by the legendary E.E. "Doc" Smith in the 1950's. Tedric was a smith (both blacksmith and whitesmith) residing in a small town near a castle in a situation roughly equivalent to England of the 1200s. He received instruction in advanced metallurgy from a time-traveler who wanted to change the situation in his own time by modifying certain events of the past. From this instruction, he was able to build better suits of armor and help defeat the villains of the piece. If you like this concept I recommend the follow up story "Lord Tedric"
