Heroic Fantasy

Heroic fantasy is the oldest kind of story fantasy tells. Beowulf, the Norse sagas and the Arthurian romances are all built around a champion and a threat only they can face. Modern heroic fantasy began when writers set out to recreate that register in prose fiction: William Morris's late romances in the 1890s, then E. R. Eddison's The Worm Ouroboros (1922), with its warrior lords and archaic, ornate style.

Poul Anderson's The Broken Sword (1954) and Three Hearts and Three Lions (1961) drew directly on Norse and Carolingian legend. Roger Zelazny's Nine Princes in Amber (1970) gave the mode a wry, modern narrator. The terms “heroic fantasy” and “sword and sorcery” have long been used interchangeably.

David Gemmell's Legend (1984) is one of the best-loved examples. Its hero, the aging axeman Druss, holds a fortress against impossible odds and is defined entirely by what he will and won't do. Gemmell's influence ran deep enough that a major fantasy award was named after him. R. A. Salvatore's Drizzt novels, starting with The Crystal Shard (1988), carried the mode into the game-tie-in era and to a very large audience.

Expect a clear protagonist and a clear threat. Plots build toward a last stand, a duel or a sacrifice, and the climax is usually a test of character as much as of strength. The tone is earnest. Heroic fantasy believes in honour, even when its heroes are flawed or old or tired.

Many heroic fantasy novels stand alone or work as loosely linked adventures with a recurring hero, which makes them easy to pick up. Supporting characters are often defined by loyalty, and the cost of heroism is real: not every companion makes it to the end.