D&D Metal

[Asmor]

One of my favorite bands is 3 Inches of Blood, who I picked up on a whim after seeing the title of just one of their tracks: Destroy the Orcs.

Any song with a chorus of "Kill the orcs, slay the orcs, destroy the orcs," is D&D enough for me. And, as it turns out, the rest of their music is damn good in general.

 

[Theron]

I, for one, prefer the term "Elfcore."

I have a Pandora Station devoted to the genre.

And I can't believe no one's mentioned Rhapsody/Rhapsody of Fire yet. Hell, their stuff isn't just in the "Let me tell you about my campaign" category, they actually include maps on their website.

Other worthwhile recommendations: Amon Amarth (Dark Viking-themed metal) and The Sword (who include a couple of songs based on George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Ice & Fire" on their latest.)

 

[Chainsaw]

Other worthwhile recommendations: Amon Amarth (Dark Viking-themed metal) and The Sword (who include a couple of songs based on George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Ice & Fire" on their latest.)

Yes, The Sword is awesome. I found out about The Sword on the Metal Archives website (mostly being trashed for not being hardcore enough), then bought Martin's books, then read the books while listening to the albums. It was a really cool experience (if you can read to heavy metal like I can - my wife thinks I'm nuts). Of course, I also read all the original three Drizzt books while listening to Metallica's Black Album.. every time I hear Wherever I May Roam, I think of Exile.

 

[timbannock]

Also not of the symphonic metal vein:

Sabbat (more historical/pagan)
Skyclad (very pagan but with some fantasy elements in earlier albums)

They are a mix between thrash, irish folk, and more "classic" heavy metal. Very good bands, and AMAZING lyrics.

You might have mentioned them, but also Rhapsody (now Rhapsody of Fire or something), Morgana LeFay (a.k.a. Lefay), some Arcturus, the most recent Solefald albums, and probably more I can't immediately think of. Again, of those, only Rhapsody is epic symphonic metal. The rest are either thrash, black metal, or avante garde.

Arcturus deserves to be heard by more people, especially.

 

[Aus_Snow]

Tripod, natch.

Oh sure, some of those other guys too, yeah.

 

[Technomancer]

One of my favorite bands is 3 Inches of Blood, who I picked up on a whim after seeing the title of just one of their tracks: Destroy the Orcs.

Any song with a chorus of "Kill the orcs, slay the orcs, destroy the orcs," is D&D enough for me. And, as it turns out, the rest of their music is damn good in general.

I'm currently running a classic D&D game based on "Axes of Evil".

And I'll add a few of my recommendations:

Pyramaze
Hammerfall
Steel Attack
Demons and Wizards (a joint effort by guys from Iced Earth and Blind Guardian)
Zandelle
Galloglass
Black Majesty
Magic Kingdom
Human Fortress

That's enough for now. The genre of metal most likely to get you what you are looking for is called "Power Metal".

 

[Chainsaw]

Hello, I would like to ask everyone to help me out with something.

You might also consider posting on or searching in the www.metal-archives.com forums. Of course, you'll likely have to sort through tons of arguments about whether Band X is "really metal" (sounds familiar for some reason).

 

[Gentlegamer]

a lot of those bands also sing about the historical (often in greater quantity than the fantastical, i.e. Maiden or dark moor) or the literary (maiden again).

A great shout rises from my throat:

UP THE IRONS!

 

[Remathilis]

I didn't see Iced Earth or Nightwish mentioned. The latter released their last album Dark Passion Play, came with a second disc which was pure instrumental, great for looping during intense combat scenes!

 

[Johnnii]

Rhapsody/Rhapsody of Fire is probably already mentioned but I would then put in Luca Turilli (off-side project from some of the guys of RoF) who follow the same path of symphonic power metal and fitting of D&D. Song names like "Black Dragon" and "Ancient Forest of Elves".
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