The Savage Sword of Conan #197

Marvel's long-running black-and-white sword-and-sorcery magazine hits issue #197 with a cover by Ovi Hondru that throws you straight into the fray: a massive, horned-helmed warrior brandishes a sword in the foreground while Conan himself raises a battle-axe behind him, and a blonde warrior woman recoils nearby — all of them looming over a glowing, skull-adorned treasure chest spilling gold across a cave floor. The cover promises "A Night in Messantia! All-New Barbaric Excitement!", and with Roy Thomas writing and John Buscema and Ernie Chan on interior art, the 1992 issue delivers the kind of Hyborian adventure this series has always done so well.