Epic Fantasy Worldbuilding: A Subgenre Deep Dive

What makes the Epic Fantasy subgenre what it is?

00:00 Intro
01:22 The Core Elements of Epic Fantasy
07:45 Where Epic Fantasy Falls Short
12:02 Iconic Examples
14:02 Final Thoughts

Loregeist's Tavern:

[robertlagerqvist]

I always consider the "Epic" part to be a reference to tone and the degree of Magic/Fantasy in the world.
Low Fantasy - Stories where Magic and the Supernatural (fantastical) is rare
Epic Fantasy - Magic and the Supernatural is everywhere.

You could make a detective story set in an Epic Fantasy world and it would still be a detective story :)

[neasanicdhomhnaill]

Another awesome video, LoreGeist! I must admit, I'm nearing the end of writing the first book in my epic fantasy trilogy and I'm going to have a break for something of smaller scope after this. I love epic fantasy but they are huge to piece together, develop and write... I dabble in the world of Gaelic mythical fantasy when I'm not writing urban fantasy (urban fantasy really) so I think I'll fix up one of these to publish next. 🙂 In the mean time, I'm determined to get this book to publication...

[karenshea]

Epic fantasy usually has a complex plot so individual characters are over shadowed. An attempt at doing a character driven story you might end up being called something else. The author should write their story then figure out how to market it.

As for the ending problem that is a lack of planning issue. Many authors let the story goes where it goes but this requires a lot of editing to end up with a coherent plot with a satisfying ending.

[karenshea]

Epic fantasy usually has a complex plot so individual characters are over shadowed. An attempt at doing a character driven story you might end up being called something else. The author should write their story then figure out how to market it.

[aSnailCyclopsNamedSteve]

I wonder if you have the Lord of the Rings films confused with the books. The films are superhero oriented. The books are the story of how four hobbits grow into adults, or better people, if you like. In the books, the superhero stuff is just the backdrop. Just like for the ordinary person, WWII feels world changing, but their role in that conflict is insignificant, even if they personally knew primary actors in those events. And I think it is the focus on that personal story that grounds the books, makes us care. The most disturbing part of the books the first time I read them was the scouring of the Shire because it seemed so senseless to attack innocents. That thousands perished on the Pelinor fields or at Helm's Deep were just statistics. The Shire was personal.

It was a nice overview of the genre. One further comment. A lack of an epic event does not mean the worldbuilding has to be any less epic. Patrick Rothfuss has created a very rich world that feels very alive, but so far, the story has not taken on world-ending dimensions, although there are hints that it could at some point.

[JeshuaHicksAuthor]

I don't know how I feel about one point you made. It's true that characters in this genre can be very shallow. However, in series like aSoIaF, the characters really are the main focus and are extremely rich and contradictory.

Saying epic fantasy might not be right for your story if you want to write strong characters is where I'm not sure I agree.

You also said that grimdark usually does a better job with this. I'm curious where you draw the line, since often these two mix.

To be fair, this is a dissection of the genre, so I guess you have to make some generalizations and distinctions, even if it's not always this clean in practice.