What are your favorite Sword & Planet novels not by ERB?

Leigh Brackett's stories are wonderful. Some of my favorites are the aforementioned Sword of Rhiannon, Lorelei of the Red Mists (co-written with Ray Bradbury), The Jewel of Bas, The Moon that Vanished... Too many to list, basically all of her output in the 1940-50s! I haven't read the later 1970s Eric Stark novels.

On the ERB-ian end of the spectrum, I have a soft spot for Lin Carter... His writing can be very bad, but the books are fun to read and every now and then there is some good imagery. I think his Green Star cycle doesn't get talked about as much as the rest - it is my favorite of his sword & planet efforts. I love the "world forest" of titanic trees with the lizard and insect monsters, the ambivalent scale of things, the fairy tale/chivalrous tale elements, the science fantasy additions, the ERB-style races.

Luckily, it's in the Public Domain: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/63917

It's not a full novel, more like a "novelette". Brackett wrote the first half, Bradbury finished it, but it reads and feels like a seamless complete whole.

Some think Almuric might be Kline's work as well Upon reading it, I thought it was probably edited and maybe stitched together and completed by Kline, but there's definitely a Howardian core. Anyway, there is a long tradition in the pulp sphere of taking and fleshing out or even rewriting the unfinished works of the legendary authors...

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I recently read another ERB-ian book, a.j. offutt's Chieftain of Andor. It was... okay... It had some interesting moments, but overall it was rushed, possibly unfinished (maybe he had a sequel planned?) and derivative, so it's not going into the "favorite sword & planet" list I think I would have enjoyed it more if it was the story of the barbarian chieftain himself (the various clan intrigues, his dealings with the planet's psychic witches), and not the Earthman who takes over said barbarian chieftain's body.

I wrote a Barsoom-pastiche generator in Inspiration Pad Pro. Here's a random selection of blurbs:

The brave adventurer, Benjamin Strong-Blacksmith, is transported (via a magic ritual) to the golden world known as Ghathanban, where demi-gods walk the earth. Benjamin Strong-Blacksmith encounters the tribe of cunning beast-men and is enlisted as a warrior. He is given a new name: Benjaminsoomthor. He learns the planetary language and befriends Barther, the pilot. Soon Benjamin Strong-Blacksmith falls in love with Dekur, the captive princess from the chiefdom of underground men. To save the princess, Benjamin Strong-Blacksmith must defeat the evil city of golden reptile-men. His journey takes him through the perilous wasteland (where he must face the Urdox (2-limbed bat-like beast)) and the underground wasteland (where the Gheter (4-limbed lion) dwells). Can Benjamin Strong-Blacksmith save and marry Princess Dekur, or will the saga continue for one more book?

The courageous fighting-man, Nick Smith, is transported (via a magic ritual) to the vast moon known as Xator, where forgotten magic lies beneath the ground. Nick Smith encounters the chiefdom of technologically advanced insect-men and is regarded as a god. He is given a new name: Nicklan. He learns the planetary language and befriends Xuhsha, the pilot. Soon Nick Smith falls in love with Xasoomthor, the captive princess from the horde of red sky-pirates. To save the princess, Nick Smith must defeat the evil clan of green men. His journey takes him through the underground river (where he must face the Ilkiz (2-limbed chameleon)) and the wild passage (where the Othau (2-limbed elephant-like beast) dwells). Can Nick Smith save and marry Princess Xasoomthor, or will the saga continue for one more book?

The brave mercenary, John Solo, is transported (via an ancient artifact) to the jungle moon known as Xaur'soom, where water is red and the rocks are purple. John Solo encounters the city-state of wild pirates and is mistaken for a lost hero. He is given a new name: Johnther. He learns the planetary language and befriends Thasoom, the navigator. Soon John Solo falls in love with Narthan, the captive princess from the kingdom of cunning pirates. To save the princess, John Solo must defeat the evil horde of arcane beast-men. His journey takes him through the cyan jungle (where he must face the Urbok (6-limbed scarab beetle-like beast)) and the underground ocean (where the Debouz (4-limbed orange spider) dwells). Can John Solo save and marry Princess Narthan, or will the saga continue for one more book?

The brave army veteran, Phil Blacksmith-Gordon, is transported (via a seance) to the vast planet known as Dekur, where ancient ruins dot the landscape. Phil Blacksmith-Gordon encounters the kingdom of cunning pirates and is regarded as a god. He is given a new name: Philban. He learns the planetary language and befriends Dekthan, the pilot. Soon Phil Blacksmith-Gordon falls in love with Shasoomsoom, the captive princess from the city-state of purple barbarians. To save the princess, Phil Blacksmith-Gordon must defeat the evil chiefdom of ancient pirates. His journey takes him through the wild passage (where he must face the Thratox (2-limbed wolf)) and the perilous desert (where the Dabak (8-limbed blue bat) dwells). Can Phil Blacksmith-Gordon save and marry Princess Shasoomsoom, or will the saga continue for one more book?

The bellicose mercenary, Lord Joe William, is transported (via an experimental device) to the green planet known as Shaner, where the days are dark and the nights even darker. Lord Joe William encounters the tribe of warring fish-men and is mistaken for a lost hero. He is given a new name: Joether. He learns the planetary language and befriends Shator'lan, the hunter. Soon Lord Joe William falls in love with Xuhthorthu, the captive princess from the horde of warring barbarians. To save the princess, Lord Joe William must defeat the evil kingdom of technologically advanced men. His journey takes him through the perilous river (where he must face the Dubak (4-limbed golden spider)) and the red and red ruined megapolis (where the Ghorx (6-limbed green elephant-like beast) dwells). Can Lord Joe William save and marry Princess Xuhthorthu, or will the saga continue for one more book?

Inspiration Pad Pro is a random generator program. You can enter your random tables into it using a simple editor, and generate random results. You can do more complex things, like sub-tables, variables, etc. The program is free for desktop use: www.nbos.com/products/inspiration-pad-pro

For this generator, I went for a "mad libs" style setup and a bunch of small tables to fill in each blank. I attached the generator file (if you install the program, you can just copy this into the generator folder).

There are also online apps that let you do this (like perchance.org/ ), but I like to have this on my desktop to tinker with!

Leigh Brackett's work (I especially liked the Coming of the Terrans collection).
Almuric was good.
Jack Vance's Planet of Adventure books were fun, though a quite different tone.
Roger Zelazny's Lord of Light is kind of a Hindu-inspired sword-and-planet, but it's very good, with lots of swordplay, weird tech, alien demons, and psi powers. I'd say it's my absolute favorite overall.

I still have a soft spot for the very first one after ERB I read was Michael Moorcock's (writing as Edward Bradbury) John Carter pastiche - I remember reading his Blades of Mars aka Lord of the Spiders when I was in grade 5 and enjoying it. Don't know whether it counts, but I really liked CJ Cherryh's Morgaine series. Likewise on the edge are the CL Moore Northwest Smith books set on Old Mars, mostly because Smith doesn't deign to use a sword most of the time, preferring his trusty heat gun. Shambleau is an excellent story. I borrowed a lot from Morgaine, Northwest Smith, and Lord of Light in my own campaign.

Ones I tried but didn't gel with were Dray Prescott and Lin Carter (I liked several Lin Carter fantasies, but not his sword-and-planet)

The Metamorphosis Alpha-type sub genre (essentially sword and planet on a giant space ship or space object where technology has collapsed) is also related, and here favorites are Brian Aldis's Nonstop and Niven's Ringworld. (Heinlein's one is not really action-oriented enough to make the genre, but Ringworld and Nonstop all have a lot of monsters, swords, and mayhem)

I expanded my ERB/Barsoom pastiche creator. Now it generates titles, author name, and a couple more details. Who would want to read such masterpieces as...

Otis Solo, Fighting-Man of Gha Denthor, by George S. Armitage (1978)
The dying millionaire, Otis Solo, is transported (via a magic ritual) to the alien moon known as Gha Denthor, where the sky is always orange. Otis Solo encounters the city-state of technologically advanced beast-men and is captured. He is given a new name: Thathan Ganyan. He learns the planetary language and befriends Sha Darah, the singer. Soon Otis Solo falls in love with Barnya, the captive princess from the city of Zezoomha. To save the princess, Otis Solo must defeat the evil horde of cunning reptile-men. His journey takes him through the mysterious ruined megapolis (where he must face the Khusar (2-limbed horntailed porcupine-like beast)) and the underground cave (where the Zurok (4-limbed octopus-like beast) dwells). Things are complicated by the appearance of another contender for Princess Barnya's hand. Can Otis Solo save and marry Princess Barnya, or will the saga continue for one more book?

or...

The Pirates of Shaxoom, by I.Q. Greystork (1969)
The dying stage magician, Brant Hunter Jr., is transported (via an experimental device) to the jungle world known as Shaxoom, where the sun never sets. Brant Hunter Jr. encounters the city of arcane warriors and is captured. He is given a new name: PanHunter. He learns the planetary language and befriends Zaratorna, the poet. Soon Brant Hunter Jr. falls in love with Naxoom Ganthor, the captive princess from the city of Xana. To save the princess, Brant Hunter Jr. must defeat the evil clan of warring nomads. His journey takes him through the mist-engulfed ruined megapolis (where he must face the Qarku (2-limbed snake)) and the underground desert (where the Urzax (6-limbed amoebic worm) dwells). Things are complicated by a conflict between two cities. Can Brant Hunter Jr. save and marry Princess Naxoom Ganthor, or will the saga continue for one more book?

or, perhaps, the book whose author uses his own name as the hero's:

Stranded on Zar Zaian, by Phil Preston (1960)
The brave soldier, Phil Preston, is transported (via a portal) to the vast planet known as Zar Zaian, where demi-gods walk the earth. Phil Preston encounters the city of wild pirates and is regarded as a god. He is given a new name: Philha. He learns the planetary language and befriends Panxoom, the spy. Soon Phil Preston falls in love with Taraner'zan, the captive princess from the chiefdom of golden men. To save the princess, Phil Preston must defeat the evil clan of green scientists. His journey takes him through the barbaric wasteland (where he must face the Bodaq (4-limbed rat-like beast)) and the perilous ruins (where the Baqs (6-limbed black worm-like beast) dwells). Things are complicated by natural disasters. Can Phil Preston save and marry Princess Taraner'zan, or will the saga continue for one more book?