Cimmerian code

The Cimmerian code is the unwritten moral law of the Cimmerians, a set of customs and principles drilled into Conan from boyhood that governs his conduct, his sense of honor, and his very identity as a man. It is a warrior's ethic forged in the bleak and harsh north lands, where life is brutal and the hand of every stranger is lifted in enmity. The code's most sacred tenet, instilled in Conan as a child, is that a man's foremost duty is to protect the women and children of the tribe. This principle, along with the belief that a man can trust no one but a blade of well-forged steel, forms the bedrock of Conan's character and is tested, strained, and ultimately reaffirmed through the trials of his life.