Fantasy Cliches you hate?

[azzy-m]

By the way, if any of you fantasy writers are having trouble with worldbuilding and making it make sense - I watch a youtuber named James Tullos who gives out good tips on worldbuilding a fantasy series. He has an entire playlist dedicated to worldbuilding evil empires, fantasy armies, governments, magic systems, etc. and even has videos dedicated to pointing out why some fantasy worlds in other books make absolutely no sense. Go give him a watch.

James Tullos

[Iris-Grimoire]

I mean, gatekeeping is real; even the most aggressive in this thread is nothing compared to stuff I've heard offsite.

But as andY_drws mentioned, oh Tolkien is too derivative and you need to be different, but you bet a lot of authors would say entirely different and new power structures that look nothing like patriarchy are just too fantastical and out there and you need to play it safe.

Any cliche can be done well, tropes are tools; it's always what new twist you can add to it. There's still tastes though, just like I can't stand Liar Revealed, but Rango does it so well I had fun anyway.

That said, one I don't see done right very often and is easy to dread is dwarves versus elves. For all the Tolkien inspiration, a lot of people do "elves are nature dwarves are industry - oh no they're more alike than you'd think! - they're either friends or mutually genocidal now". Lots of works do other species rivalries alright like beastmen or demons or etc, but this is a bit of a bummer since you can see the result from the first few interactions easily(unless it's Dwarf Fortress and RNG decided the dwarf king is a vengeful elf now). It's way more fun to see both species working together from the get go, to be honest.

[DasIstWunderblyat]

Gatekeeping is real, it is right. Is by your reply you are implying this guy is serious? I still (with my hopeful thinking) think it is satire or whatever.

Disliking some tropes because of taste or tired seeing it is okay, but discrediting a work just because it contains one or two tropes you do not like makes you an entire circus amongst clowns. That makes an elitist freakshow LOL.

[Iris-Grimoire]

I think the person is serious, unfortunately. With the internet you never know though

[spadesart]

everyone's brought up most of my issues with fantasy and its cliches so here's something more nitpicky

not to say every setting should look spotless but i really dislike when environments are specifically designed to look as filthy and disgusting as possible. i personally find it visually disinteresting, especially with the overuse of browns and muddy grays and i have trouble getting immersed in it. it's not necessarily the 'filth' part i dislike either, environments that are overgrown or crumbling or stained can be really visually interesting but i often see them done in a really disinteresting way (like a generic fantasy town with mud everywhere.)

[NickRowler]

I feel like there is a bit of a double edge sword when it comes to people criticizing magical creatures. Making elves, dwarf, orc, fairies, etc. people claim is cliche and some people on here have voiced against it. However if someone tries to reinvent fairies, critics will claim "Those aren't real fairies."

I can also understand a writer not wanting to world build and get straight to the story by just saying "This is a story about fairies".

I personally hate stories that get lost in their own crazy mythology. All the species have weird names that are hard to remember and no one can just talk normally. But maybe I am bias because I don't like high fantasy.

[DiegoPalacios]

Yeah, world building and a solid storytelling is a balancing act that is tricky to pull off.

[emrowene]

I mean, I read it as mostly sarcastic! A lot of the tropes in the quiz actually are really harmful (racist, sexist, etc), and I'd be happy to never read any of those tropes in a book again, but I also hit on a lot of the points in the quiz and consider it in good fun. I don't think it's actually meant to be taken seriously.

[ButterflyEmpress]

The old medieval style worlds. It's not really something I hate, but more bored of seeing. There's this anime called Yuushibu that takes place in a fantasy world where people can use magic and it takes place in a modern society with everything being powered with magic instead of electricity. Winx Club also does the same too. They have cellphones, malls, and cars despite living in a magical world. That's be cool to see more fantasy settings like that instead of the same old cobblestone streets, horse drawn carriages, chamber pots, hay beds, etc.

Races in the story: Human, dwarf, elf, dragon, orc, halfling, shape-shifters, fairy, unicorn, alien. Skin colour: pale to slightly less light....Good vs Evil race. Why the fuck an entire race managed to be "good" or "evil."

This bothers me too. They're more separate species than races. And it's weird that the whole world just has one type of human.
And the good v evil thing is something I noticed in early childhood shows like Paw Patrol and Lion Guard. That's a pretty toxic thing to teach young kids.

[N1ghtm4r3]

in my comic I made Christian catholic, or god fearing religions evil

[NickRowler]

My issue with the satanist thing is that is sometimes a build up which doesn't make much sense.

The doll is possessed, why? It came from a gift shop owned by a satanist.
Or the spell book turns out to be evil because on the last page it says 666.
Or dictator is evil because he prayed to Satan.

I think using evil/satan in a story about a Catholic struggling with their religion and descending into madness is not a bad idea. I am just sick of secret Satan cult stories.

[LilySmash]

Ah, I understand what you're saying. But, unfortunately I think a lot of this has to do with publication and what the company you work for think is appropriate for the audience. Well, this is mainly for any author or artist who is working directly for a company. Anyway, they would look at your work and say "you can't do this, it's too serious, it promotes killing, not good for minors..change it, etc."

Although, what I just said really depends on the genre of the story. You'll rarely see a shounen character kill somebody for that reason, I would think.

To answer what fantasty cliches I hate...What is up with the all the cheat memory of the previous life to defeat the almighty evil?

[Zolakandhoney]

Magic systems that only focus on fighting. Show me what the common folk do with magic.

[Pebphiz]

It's always confusing to me when the magic in a fantasy world is super overpowered, with mages throwing fireballs and calling down lightning like it's no big deal, but magic users are somehow not the ruling class. Or, even worse, have somehow been driven to near-extinction. Like bro how? You can turn the ground into lava at will, but they got you with their pointy sticks? If there's a canon explanation for it then it's fine, obviously, but from what I've seen it's usually an oversight.

Also when everyone uses plate armor, but the primary weapon of choice is a sword. Let's see some maces. Let's see some poleaxes. Let's see some guns. Or just don't use plate armor for your story.

[TheBryceKrispy]

A Fantasy setting being in an old medieval style world is surprisingly a huge part of the genre. You see, if its not medieval and say in the modern world, its Urban Fantasy. If its in the futuristic setting, its Science Fantasy.

[AmataLenna]

I mean urban fantasy is still fantasy? I agree that the medieval setting has been an important part of the genre but its really tired now. Its all. England. Medieval. Fantasy can be anything cant it? Why limit ourselves

[HGohwell]

A Fantasy setting being in an old medieval style world is surprisingly a huge part of the genre. You see, if its not medieval and say in the modern world, its Urban Fantasy. If its in the futuristic setting, its Science Fantasy.

Medieval (or historical) fantasy is its own category too, though while LOTR style is High or Epic Fantasy. There are a gazzilion different subgenres, so I think it's a bit unfair to just call that out in a way that comes across as if it's not like this, it belongs in its own separate setting because it's not real fantasy. The only thing that really makes fantasy fantasy is that involves magic in some form.

On my own list one this that particularly gets me is when magic exists but everything is the same. I honestly don't ever believe when a story like Harry Potter tells me that everything ever has gone exactly the same as it has in our time line. I think the latest film loosely touches on this why the hell don't the magical world interfere question. It's even worse when magic isn't a secret but everything is still the same. Yes, magic is real and always has been but don't worry all the countries, cities and historical people you've heard of still existed and went exactly the same way just magically.

(Also very few things anyone is mentioning are actual cliches and are actually just tropes we dislike and I just feel like being that guy who points it out.)

[SagaHolmgaard]

Medieval fantasy is getting dragged in this thread LOL

Gonna state my opinion which is the opposite: I'm so tired of urban fantasy. I don't come to the fantasy genre to read about teenagers dealing with teenage problems, with a side dish of magic. I want the epic quests, the kings and the dragons and the armies, not some high school dude balancing homework and being the 'chosen one' or whatever.

[Berserker]

I gotta step in and defend medieval fantasy as well. Especially if the medieval side of things is well represented. Medieval life in general is fairly poorly represented. Even dwarves and orcs, while common, aren't always very well fleshed out in "fantasy". A series completely about the common non-human species(well maybe not elves) would be fairly fresh.

[TheBryceKrispy]

Well, I said that thing about Medieval fantasy not as a defense of it but to point out that subverting fantasy just puts it into a different fantasy genre which therefore makes fantasy the hardest genre to subvert.