Solication[]
It is the year 4002 A.D….
Rai, the spirit guardian of Earth, has uncovered an ancient tome filled with history’s greatest tales and civilizations darkest moments. Charting the dawning days of ancient Mesopotamia, all the way to the rise of New Japan, the history of the Valiant Universe is laid bare in shocking and revelatory detail. From X-O Manowar to Bloodshot to Faith to Divinity…history will reveal untold revelations for Valiant’s greatest heroes and antagonists!
In the tradition of the original RAI #0, Harvey Award-nominated writer Rafer Roberts (Harbinger Renegade) and acclaimed artist Francis Portela (Faith) unleash a celebration of Rai’s 25th anniversary with the third of four standalone specials honoring the most famed Valiant stories ever told!
The History of the Valiant Universe[]
Appearances[]
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Villains: (41st Century only)
Other Characters: (flashbacks only)
- Anni
- Archer & Armstrong
- Armor Hunters
- Bleeding Monk
- Bloodshot
- Demitri
- Dinosaurs
- Divinity
- Father (Mentioned only)
- Generation Zero
- H.A.R.D. Corps
- Harbinger Foundation
- Harbinger Renegades
- Immortal Enemy
- Ivan the Talking Bear
- Ivar Anni-Padda
- Jack Boniface / Shadowman / Magpie
- Kalfus Triplets
- Kay McHenry
- Li Hwen Mirage
- Livewire
- Livewire Clone
- Lord Ivros
- Mary-Maria Archer
- Master Darque
- Melissa
- Mister Meat
- Neela Sethi
- Death Cult of Nergal
- Ninjak
- Punk Mambo
- Aye (Loa)
- Psiots
- Quantum and Woody
- Roman Empire
- Sandria Darque
- Shadow Seven
- Shan Fong / Doctor Mirage
- Soviet Army
- Spider Men
- Tama
- Toyo Harada
- Unnamed American astronaut
- Unnamed Russian astronaut
- Unity
- The Vine
- Visigoths
- War-Monger
- X-O Manowar
Locations:
- 41st Century
- Earth
- Gethsemane
- Gilad's secret hideout
- The Breath of Jade
- New Japan
- Earth's Orbit
- Earth
- Asia
- China
- Japan
- Hiroshima (Flashback only)
- Mesopotamia
- Crusades vs. Byzantine Empire
- Deadside
- Europe
- Russia
- Stalinverse (Behind the scenes)
- North America
Items:
- Archer's Crossbow
- Armstrong's Satchel
- Book of the Geomancer
- The Boon (Flashback only)
- Divinity's space suit
- Hwen's Staff (Flashback only)
- Komodo Protocol
- Magpie costume
- Ninjak's suit
- Shadow Scythe
- Timearcs (Flashback only)
- X-O Manowar Armor
Vehicles:
- Vine Colony Ship (Flashback only)
- X-O Manowar Mech-Armor Class (Flashback only)
- X-O Manowar One
- X-O Wolf Armor (Flashback only)
Credits[]
- Writers: Rafer Roberts
- Pencilers: Francis Portela
- Inkers: Francis Portela
- Colorists: Andrew Dalhouse
- Letterers: Dave Sharpe
- Cover Artists: Clayton Crain, Clayton Henry, Robert Gill, Jeffrey Veregge
- Editors: Charlotte Greenbaum
- Editor-in-Chief: Warren Simons
Solicitation[]
It is the year 4002 A.D….
Rai, the spirit guardian of Earth, has uncovered an ancient tome filled with history’s greatest tales and civilizations darkest moments. Charting the dawning days of ancient Mesopotamia, all the way to the rise of New Japan, the history of the Valiant Universe is laid bare in shocking and revelatory detail. From X-O Manowar to Bloodshot to Faith to Divinity…history will reveal untold revelations for Valiant’s greatest heroes and antagonists!
In the tradition of the original RAI #0, Harvey Award-nominated writer Rafer Roberts (Harbinger Renegade) and acclaimed artist Francis Portela (Faith) unleash a celebration of Rai’s 25th anniversary with the third of four standalone specials honoring the most famed Valiant stories ever told!
Synopsis[]
In the aftermath of the 4001 A.D. event, Gilad leads Rai and Karana through the wastelands on Earth to finally arrive at his old place where he keeps his belongings as well as the Book of the Geomancer. Gilad tells Karana that only she can read it and that it is the most important weapon in the room. The book will show her what they will have to do and how they would meet the upcoming challenges. The three gather around a fireplace and Karana starts reading from the book that tells the history of the Valiant Universe from the Negral Horde in ancient Mesopotamia to 4001 A.D..
Notes[]
- This issue is one of four one-shots that were published between April-July 2017 in homage to classic Valiant stories from the 1990s. This one is based on Bob Layton's Rai #0 - "The Blood of Heroes" (1992). The main difference is in "Blood of Heroes" the flashback scenes are also missing scenes whereas in "The History of the Valiant Universe" the entire story--narrated by the future Geomancer; Karana--unfolds in a series of flashback scenes, most of which are reinterpretations of important moments of the past five years.
- The tome is not uncovered by Rai as suggested in the solicitation but one of Gilad's safe houses (or places) he keeps to store weapons and artifacts likes the Book of the Geomancer.
Quotes[]
Gallery[]
Cover Art[]
Textless Cover Art[]
Preview[]
Related[]
References[]
This section is for footnotes and citations.
External links[]
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