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Halflings
Halflings are a fictional race found in some fantasy novels and games. They are often depicted as similar to humans except about half as tall, and are not quite as stocky as the similarly-sized dwarves. Similar to the depiction of hobbits in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, which are sometimes called halflings, they have slightly pointed ears, their feet are covered with curly hair with leathery soles, and they tend to be portrayed as stealthy and lucky. Etymology Originally, ''halfling'' comes from the Scots word ', meaning an awkward rustic teenager, who is neither man nor boy, and so half of both. Another word for ''halfling'' is ''hobbledehoy'' or ''hobby''. This usage of the word pre-dates both ''The Hobbit'' and ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Usage in fantasy fiction In ''The Lord of the Rings'', J. R. R. Tolkien occasionally used the term "halfling" to describe hobbits, since they are beings that are half the height of men. For instance, when the hobbit Pippin Took appears in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hobbit
Hobbits are a fictional race of people in the novels of J. R. R. Tolkien. About half average human height, Tolkien presented hobbits as a variety of humanity, or close relatives thereof. Occasionally known as halflings in Tolkien's writings, they live barefooted, and dwell in homely underground houses which have windows, as they are typically built into the sides of hills. Their feet have naturally tough leathery soles (so they do not need shoes) and are covered on top with curly hair. Hobbits first appeared in the 1937 children's novel ''The Hobbit'', whose titular hobbit is the protagonist Bilbo Baggins, who is thrown into an unexpected adventure involving a dragon. In its sequel, ''The Lord of the Rings'', the hobbits Frodo Baggins, Sam Gamgee, Pippin Took, and Merry Brandybuck are primary characters who all play key roles in fighting to save their world ("Middle-earth") from evil. In ''The Hobbit'', hobbits live together in a small town called Hobbiton, which in ''The Lor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Race (fantasy)
Fantasy tropes are a specific type of literary tropes (recurring themes) that occur in fantasy fiction. Worldbuilding, plot, and characterization have many common conventions, many of them having ultimately originated in myth and folklore. J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium (and in particular, ''The Lord of the Rings'') for example, was inspired from a variety of different sources including Germanic, Finnish, Greek, Celtic and Slavic myths. Literary fantasy works operate using these tropes, while others use them in a revisionist manner, making the tropes over for various reasons such as for comic effect, and to create something fresh (a method that often generates new clichés). Good vs. evil The conflict of good against evil is a theme in the many popular forms of fantasy; normally, evil characters invade and disrupt the good characters' lands. J. R. R. Tolkien delved into the nature of good and evil in ''The Lord of the Rings'', but many of those who followed him use the co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forgotten Realms
''Forgotten Realms'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories. Several years later, Greenwood brought the setting to publication for the ''D&D'' game as a series of magazine articles, and the first Realms game products were released in 1987. Role-playing game products have been produced for the setting ever since, as have various licensed products including novels, role-playing video game adaptations (including the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game to use graphics), comic books, and an upcoming film. Forgotten Realms is a fantasy world setting, described as a world of strange lands, dangerous creatures, and mighty deities, where magic and supernatural phenomena are quite real. The premise is that, long ago, planet Earth and the world of the For ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clifford D
Clifford may refer to: People *Clifford (name), an English given name and surname, includes a list of people with that name * William Kingdon Clifford *Baron Clifford * Baron Clifford of Chudleigh *Baron de Clifford * Clifford baronets *Clifford family (bankers) *Jaryd Clifford *Justice Clifford (other) *Lord Clifford (other) Arts, entertainment, and media *''Clifford the Big Red Dog'', a series of children's books **Clifford (character), the central character of ''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' ** ''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' (2000 TV series), 2000 animated TV series **''Clifford's Puppy Days'', 2003 animated TV series **''Clifford's Really Big Movie'', 2004 animated movie ** ''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' (2019 TV series), 2019 animated TV series ** ''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' (film), 2021 live-action movie * ''Clifford'' (film), a 1994 film directed by Paul Flaherty *Clifford (Muppet) Mathematics *Clifford algebra, a type of associative algebra, named after William ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ogre
An ogre ( feminine: ogress) is a legendary monster depicted as a large, hideous, man-like being that eats ordinary human beings, especially infants and children. Ogres frequently feature in mythology, folklore, and fiction throughout the world. They appear in many classic works of literature, and are most often associated in fairy tales and legend with a taste for infants. In mythology, ogres are often depicted as inhumanly large, tall, and having a disproportionately large head, abundant hair, unusually colored skin, a voracious appetite, and a strong body. Ogres are closely linked with giants and with human cannibals in mythology. In both folklore and fiction, giants are often given ogrish traits (such as the giants in "Jack and the Beanstalk" and " Jack the Giant Killer", the Giant Despair in ''The Pilgrim's Progress'', and the Jötunn of Norse mythology); while ogres may be given giant-like traits. Famous examples of ogres in folklore include the ogre in "Puss in Boots" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Troll
A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human beings. In later Scandinavian folklore, trolls became beings in their own right, where they live far from human habitation, are not Christianized, and are considered dangerous to human beings. Depending on the source, their appearance varies greatly; trolls may be ugly and slow-witted, or look and behave exactly like human beings, with no particularly grotesque characteristic about them. Trolls are sometimes associated with particular landmarks in Scandinavian folklore, which at times may be explained as formed from a troll exposed to sunlight. Trolls are depicted in a variety of media in modern popular culture. Etymology The Old Norse nouns ''troll'' and ''trǫll'' (variously meaning "fiend, demon, werewolf, jötunn") and Middle High Germa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fairy
A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural, or preternatural. Myths and stories about fairies do not have a single origin, but are rather a collection of folk beliefs from disparate sources. Various folk theories about the origins of fairies include casting them as either demoted angels or demons in a Christian tradition, as deities in Pagan belief systems, as spirits of the dead, as prehistoric precursors to humans, or as spirits of nature. The label of ''fairy'' has at times applied only to specific magical creatures with human appearance, magical powers, and a penchant for trickery. At other times it has been used to describe any magical creature, such as goblins and gnomes. ''Fairy'' has at times been used as an adjective, wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lyonesse Trilogy
The ''Lyonesse Trilogy'' is a group of three fantasy novels by Jack Vance, set in the European Dark Ages, in the mythical Elder Isles west of France and southwest of Britain, a generation or two before the birth of King Arthur. The stories contain references to Atlantis and Arthurian mythology, particularly to the mythical country of Lyonesse. They are told in several interlocking plot threads which are not always chronological. Plot summary ''Lyonesse'' (also known as ''Suldrun's Garden'') King Casmir of Lyonesse arranges the marriage of his daughter Suldrun to Faude Carfilhiot, Duke of Vale Evander. Princes Aillas and Trewan of Troicinet are sent on a sea voyage to visit the various kingdoms of the Elder Isles to gain experience at statecraft. Faude Carfilhiot, wanting to be a powerful magician but lacking the patience to learn the necessary skills, schemes with his lover Tamurello. Suldrun delivers a son named Dhrun, who is taken by the fairies and replaced with the ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Vance
John Holbrook Vance (August 28, 1916 – May 26, 2013) was an American mystery, fantasy, and science fiction writer. Though most of his work has been published under the name Jack Vance, he also wrote several mystery novels under pen names. Vance won the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 1984, and he was a Guest of Honor at the 1992 World Science Fiction Convention in Orlando, Florida. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America made him its 15th SFWA Grand Master, Grand Master in 1997, and the EMP Museum#Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Science Fiction Hall of Fame inducted him in 2001, its sixth class of two deceased and two living writers. His most notable awards included Hugo Awards in 1963 for ''The Dragon Masters'', in 1967 for ''The Last Castle (novella), The Last Castle'', and in 2010 for his memoir ''This Is Me, Jack Vance!''; the Nebula Award in 1966, also for ''The Last Castle''; the Jupiter Award (science fiction award), Jupiter Award in 1975 and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shannara
''Shannara'' is a series of high fantasy novels written by Terry Brooks, beginning with ''The Sword of Shannara'' in 1977 and concluding with ''The Last Druid'' which was released in October 2020; there is also a prequel, ''First King of Shannara''. The series blends magic and primitive technology and is set in the Four Lands, which are identified as Earth long after civilization was destroyed in a chemical and nuclear holocaust called the Great Wars. By the time of the prequel ''First King of Shannara'', the world had reverted to a pre-industrial state and magic had re-emerged to supplement science. Setting The Shannara series is set in a post-apocalyptic world called the Four Lands. This world is a futuristic version of our own, and not a secondary world. The ''Genesis of Shannara'' trilogy reveals the Four Lands to be located in the modern Pacific Northwest region of the United States and Canada. Much of the landscape has been changed by a future nuclear holocaust called The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shea Ohmsford
''The Sword of Shannara'' is a 1977 epic fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks. It is the first book in a titular trilogy. The novel interweaves two major plots into a fictional world called The Four Lands. One follows the protagonist Shea Ohmsford on his quest to gain the Sword of Shannara and use it to confront the Warlock Lord (the antagonist). The other plot shadows Prince Balinor Buckhannah's attempt to oust his insane brother Palance from the throne of Callahorn while the country and its capital (Tyrsis) come under attack from overwhelming armies of the Warlock Lord. The novel contains themes of mundane heroism and nuclear holocaust throughout. Brooks wrote ''The Sword of Shannara'' over seven years, during which time he also attended law school. Ballantine Books published the novel and used it to launch the company's new subsidiary Del Rey Books. ''The Sword of Shannara''s success significantly boosted the commercial prospects of the fantasy literary genre. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terry Brooks
Terence Dean Brooks (born January 8, 1944) is an American writer of fantasy fiction. He writes mainly epic fantasy, and has also written two film novelizations. He has written 23 ''New York Times'' bestsellers during his writing career, and has sold over 25 million copies of his books in print. He is one of the biggest-selling living fantasy writers. Early life Brooks was born in the rural Midwestern town of Sterling, Illinois, and spent a large part of his life living there. He is an alumnus of Hamilton College, earning his B.A. in English literature in 1966. He later obtained a J.D. degree from Washington and Lee University. He was a practising attorney before becoming a full-time author. Career Brooks had been a writer since high school, writing mainly in the genres of science fiction, western, fiction, and non-fiction. One day, in his early college life, he was given a copy of J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'', which inspired him to write in one genre. While To ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
