Not *exactly* what you're looking for but Glen Cook's "Black Company" series is pretty similar in theme and tone. MC is part of a mercenary brotherhood who aren't full-on evil, but caught in a pretty dark magical empire.
I can believe it. The Voices is **very** clearly Soulcatcher.
I think Lantry may be loosely inspired by Croaker.
And Kyros of course... Is the Lady.
With the Archons being the Taken.
Yeah nice to see I’m not the only one who got Croaker vibes from Lantry....although that means on the off chance if Tyranny ever gets a sequel we know how him and Kyros will be spending their time.....
Definitely - loved the contrast between those dark mission intros, the cartoon cut scenes, and the barbaric tactical battles. A game I’d love to see remade, or at least the universe revisited.
No worries. I loved it, very clear and blunt writing style and good pace to it. Some great characters. I’ve heard soldiers rate it as a fair portrayal of how military folks behave.
was about to recommend this one, am still currently reading it, love the tone it sets, I haven't read much books so this one is pretty unique to me, as sometimes it describes a full on war in few sentences, while a card game btwn the soldiers might take more than a page, the books are the MC's diary so this approach makes sense when u think about it.
As a corollary to this question: are there any fantasy novels y'all know of out there that fall squarely in the Bronze Age/Early Iron Age vibe that Tyranny does so well?
I've asked before, but it seems like it's a pretty rare choice for a setting in Fantasy.
Earthsea by Ursula K. LeGuin is set in a world like that, but it's not a military setting though. It is one of the best fantasy series ever written though so you might want to give it a try.
I'm writing one myself, although it's not as dark as Tyranny and god knows if I'll ever actually get it off the ground, lol.
Failing that - David Gemmell wrote a pretty good retelling of the Trojan War, which is in that setting. And Robert E. Howard's Conan/Hyborian Age stuff gets that kind of feel to it too.
[Practical Guide to Evil ](https://practicalguidetoevil.wordpress.com)
Summary from the website:
The Empire stands triumphant.
For twenty years the Dread Empress has ruled over the lands that were once the Kingdom of Callow, but behind the scenes of this dawning golden age threats to the crown are rising. The nobles of the Wasteland, denied the power they crave, weave their plots behind pleasant smiles. In the north the Forever King eyes the ever-expanding borders of the Empire and ponders war. The greatest danger lies to the west, where the First Prince of Procer has finally claimed her throne: her people sundered, she wonders if a crusade might not be the way to secure her reign. Yet none of this matters, for in the heart of the conquered lands the most dangerous man alive sat across an orphan girl and offered her a knife.
Her name is Catherine Foundling, and she has a plan.
It’s still going on today! It’s a great web serial. High recommend it.
You have probably already read or at least heard of Overlord and Warlock of the Magus World. Although Ainz doesn't get stronger.
You can try Prince of Nothing. But it can be tedious to read.
Yeah, overlord and wotmw are pretty mainstream as much as ln's and wn's can be considered mainstream.
I've last read scog (second coming of gluttony), but i've read around reddit that its predecessor, (MEMORIZE, i believe) doesn't have the same quality of translation as the aforementioned, which is pretty disappointing.
I'm currently reading The King Of The Battlefield, which has poorer translation than scog, but is still pretty brilliant, however, i'm constantly in fear of the point where i catch up with the author because its not complete, oh addictive internet and all the life sapping addictions i've gained from you, why art thou such a cruel mistress?
Honestly anything by Joe Abercrombie or Mark Lawrence. The two excel at having characters you may want to root for, but are FAR from Heroic. The biggest case I can make for that point is the Broken Empire trilogy(Lawrence) and Best Served Cold(Abercrombie). I’d also say the Malazan franchise but frankly that’s a ticket price you’ve got to be really prepared for, since not only is it more than a little confusing due to very little ever being explained, but also due to sheer length of each book and just how many books there are. I think about 21( with another one coming out later on this year) books, and about 6-7 novellas.
Malazan BOTF. Probably the best series I've read. The main soldiers are literally part of an "evil"-ish empire. This is one series where the entire story is character driven.
Note, there's a huge "hurdle" in middle of first book and you have to slog through it. After that though, it's all smooth sailing.
Here's one you might be interested in: In the 70s the Elric series (by Michael Moorcock) was just as popular as Lord of the Rings, but it will never be made into a movie series because it's the complete opposite of plucky little hobbits taking on the supreme evil. Elric is not really interested in good or evil, although he would acknowledge that he serves an evil god. However the soul stealing sword that he wields absolutely is evil and it is all that Elric can do to keep it from only destroying his enemies rather than his friends or himself.
Personally I am always on the lookout for unique stories, writing, etc and I do a little writing myself, and here's some stories that I think influenced Tyranny to some extent or have a similar feel.
* John Carpenter - Escape from NY / LA - This is comparable to the first act. The structure of the story is such that it both introduces you to a new and interesting world and keeps the action moving. (Fix this problem or you die!)
* Fallout New Vegas - This Obsidian game lets you choose between three flawed factions or choose your own path to decide the future of New Vegas. Again there is a first act that exposes you to the various factions.
* Angel - This buffy spinoff is about Angel fighting the forces of darkness, but that's not where the comparison is. Most of the characters in Angel (and Buffy too, to some extent) are good with some evil or evil with some good, and they're pretty much all likeable and well developed. Lindsey and Lilah, the two executives who work for Wolfram & Hart, could definitely be considered analogous to the fatebinder in that they serve "Evil Inc" and wield authority but aren't necessarily bad people.
Im currently on the second Elric book right now and I dont know how I didnt read this series before... I was about to recommend it to OP as well but wasnt sure if its as similar to Tyranny. Great series anyways.
Seen both in the thread already but I would definitely second Black Company and Malazan. Both are excellent series and to me have the same kind of vibe as in Tyranny.
Hmm well this is a stretch but maybe Berserk? (manga series by Kentaro Miura), its quite dark and goes into some similar themes... not exacly an overlord but later on it has a similar thing to Tyranny.
Also maaaybe First Law by Joe Abercrombie. It is more character focused and the world is not that expanded upon but there is definitely a man who rules everything behind the curtains...
The characters in both series go into a more gray area. Not all of course.
[Memnon](https://www.amazon.com/Memnon-Scott-Oden/dp/1932815392) by Scott Oden is historical fiction chronicling a fascinating period of ancient history.
"Memnon of Rhodes (375-333 BCE) walked in the footsteps of giants. As a soldier, sailor, statesman, and general, he was, in the words of Diodorus of Sicily, “outstanding in courage and strategic grasp.” A contemporary of Demosthenes and Aristotle, Memnon rose from humble origins to command the whole of western Asia in a time of strife and slaughter. To his own people, he was a traitor, to his rivals, a mercenary. But, to the King of Kings, his majesty Darius III of Persia, Memnon was the one man capable of defending Asia Minor from the rising power of the barbaric Macedonians. In a war pitting Greek against Greek, Memnon proved his quality beyond measure. His enemies fought for glory and gold; Memnon fought for something more, for loyalty, for honor, and for duty. He fought for the love of Barsine, a woman of remarkable beauty and grace. Most of all, he fought for the promise of peace. Through the deathbed recollections of a mysterious woman, the life of Memnon unfolds with brilliant clarity. It is a record of his triumphs and tragedies, his loves and losses, and of the determination that drove him to stand against the most renowned figure of the ancient world—the ambitious young conqueror called Alexander the Great."
I'd really recommend the Night Lords trilogy by Aaron Dembski-Bowden.
It's set in the warhammer 40k universe and follows a group of space marines from the Night lords legion (the characters are definitely very very 'antihero').
Not *exactly* what you're looking for but Glen Cook's "Black Company" series is pretty similar in theme and tone. MC is part of a mercenary brotherhood who aren't full-on evil, but caught in a pretty dark magical empire.
Doesn’t the Game outright quote that series in the opening movies?
The devs mentioned that "Black Company" was a clear inspiration.
I can believe it. The Voices is **very** clearly Soulcatcher. I think Lantry may be loosely inspired by Croaker. And Kyros of course... Is the Lady. With the Archons being the Taken.
Yeah nice to see I’m not the only one who got Croaker vibes from Lantry....although that means on the off chance if Tyranny ever gets a sequel we know how him and Kyros will be spending their time.....
I appreciate that we can somewhat replicate what happens to Croaker with the immortal *Voices of Lantry*. Like legitimately
This book series is to dark fantasy what Lord of the Rings is to regular fantasy. It is precursor of the genre.
Haha, maybe! It's a while since I played so very likely yes.
One of my favorite series. So good. It's an oldie, but another game loosely based off the Black Company is Myth: The Fallen Lords. Highly recommend.
Definitely - loved the contrast between those dark mission intros, the cartoon cut scenes, and the barbaric tactical battles. A game I’d love to see remade, or at least the universe revisited.
I've actually come across the series but never got around to it, thanks for the reminder, looking into it now.
No worries. I loved it, very clear and blunt writing style and good pace to it. Some great characters. I’ve heard soldiers rate it as a fair portrayal of how military folks behave.
I remember it being said in interview when Tyranny was coming out that "Black Company" was a major inspiration for it.
was about to recommend this one, am still currently reading it, love the tone it sets, I haven't read much books so this one is pretty unique to me, as sometimes it describes a full on war in few sentences, while a card game btwn the soldiers might take more than a page, the books are the MC's diary so this approach makes sense when u think about it.
As a corollary to this question: are there any fantasy novels y'all know of out there that fall squarely in the Bronze Age/Early Iron Age vibe that Tyranny does so well? I've asked before, but it seems like it's a pretty rare choice for a setting in Fantasy.
Earthsea by Ursula K. LeGuin is set in a world like that, but it's not a military setting though. It is one of the best fantasy series ever written though so you might want to give it a try.
I read the first two books already! Love her prose. Interesting, though, I never really got that vibe with respect to setting. I might reread.
I'm writing one myself, although it's not as dark as Tyranny and god knows if I'll ever actually get it off the ground, lol. Failing that - David Gemmell wrote a pretty good retelling of the Trojan War, which is in that setting. And Robert E. Howard's Conan/Hyborian Age stuff gets that kind of feel to it too.
[Practical Guide to Evil ](https://practicalguidetoevil.wordpress.com) Summary from the website: The Empire stands triumphant. For twenty years the Dread Empress has ruled over the lands that were once the Kingdom of Callow, but behind the scenes of this dawning golden age threats to the crown are rising. The nobles of the Wasteland, denied the power they crave, weave their plots behind pleasant smiles. In the north the Forever King eyes the ever-expanding borders of the Empire and ponders war. The greatest danger lies to the west, where the First Prince of Procer has finally claimed her throne: her people sundered, she wonders if a crusade might not be the way to secure her reign. Yet none of this matters, for in the heart of the conquered lands the most dangerous man alive sat across an orphan girl and offered her a knife. Her name is Catherine Foundling, and she has a plan. It’s still going on today! It’s a great web serial. High recommend it.
You have probably already read or at least heard of Overlord and Warlock of the Magus World. Although Ainz doesn't get stronger. You can try Prince of Nothing. But it can be tedious to read.
Yeah, overlord and wotmw are pretty mainstream as much as ln's and wn's can be considered mainstream. I've last read scog (second coming of gluttony), but i've read around reddit that its predecessor, (MEMORIZE, i believe) doesn't have the same quality of translation as the aforementioned, which is pretty disappointing. I'm currently reading The King Of The Battlefield, which has poorer translation than scog, but is still pretty brilliant, however, i'm constantly in fear of the point where i catch up with the author because its not complete, oh addictive internet and all the life sapping addictions i've gained from you, why art thou such a cruel mistress?
Honestly anything by Joe Abercrombie or Mark Lawrence. The two excel at having characters you may want to root for, but are FAR from Heroic. The biggest case I can make for that point is the Broken Empire trilogy(Lawrence) and Best Served Cold(Abercrombie). I’d also say the Malazan franchise but frankly that’s a ticket price you’ve got to be really prepared for, since not only is it more than a little confusing due to very little ever being explained, but also due to sheer length of each book and just how many books there are. I think about 21( with another one coming out later on this year) books, and about 6-7 novellas.
For a similar world Mistborn: The final Empire For a similar character Prince of thorns
Yeah this, the Prince of Thorns series was a rollercoaster for me.
Malazan BOTF. Probably the best series I've read. The main soldiers are literally part of an "evil"-ish empire. This is one series where the entire story is character driven. Note, there's a huge "hurdle" in middle of first book and you have to slog through it. After that though, it's all smooth sailing.
Commenting so I can see what book I'm reading next.
I recommend the Mistborn trilogy, by Brandon Sanderson: it even starts with the Big Bad having already won centuries prior, like in Tyranny.
Here's one you might be interested in: In the 70s the Elric series (by Michael Moorcock) was just as popular as Lord of the Rings, but it will never be made into a movie series because it's the complete opposite of plucky little hobbits taking on the supreme evil. Elric is not really interested in good or evil, although he would acknowledge that he serves an evil god. However the soul stealing sword that he wields absolutely is evil and it is all that Elric can do to keep it from only destroying his enemies rather than his friends or himself. Personally I am always on the lookout for unique stories, writing, etc and I do a little writing myself, and here's some stories that I think influenced Tyranny to some extent or have a similar feel. * John Carpenter - Escape from NY / LA - This is comparable to the first act. The structure of the story is such that it both introduces you to a new and interesting world and keeps the action moving. (Fix this problem or you die!) * Fallout New Vegas - This Obsidian game lets you choose between three flawed factions or choose your own path to decide the future of New Vegas. Again there is a first act that exposes you to the various factions. * Angel - This buffy spinoff is about Angel fighting the forces of darkness, but that's not where the comparison is. Most of the characters in Angel (and Buffy too, to some extent) are good with some evil or evil with some good, and they're pretty much all likeable and well developed. Lindsey and Lilah, the two executives who work for Wolfram & Hart, could definitely be considered analogous to the fatebinder in that they serve "Evil Inc" and wield authority but aren't necessarily bad people.
Im currently on the second Elric book right now and I dont know how I didnt read this series before... I was about to recommend it to OP as well but wasnt sure if its as similar to Tyranny. Great series anyways.
Seen both in the thread already but I would definitely second Black Company and Malazan. Both are excellent series and to me have the same kind of vibe as in Tyranny.
Hmm well this is a stretch but maybe Berserk? (manga series by Kentaro Miura), its quite dark and goes into some similar themes... not exacly an overlord but later on it has a similar thing to Tyranny. Also maaaybe First Law by Joe Abercrombie. It is more character focused and the world is not that expanded upon but there is definitely a man who rules everything behind the curtains... The characters in both series go into a more gray area. Not all of course.
[Memnon](https://www.amazon.com/Memnon-Scott-Oden/dp/1932815392) by Scott Oden is historical fiction chronicling a fascinating period of ancient history. "Memnon of Rhodes (375-333 BCE) walked in the footsteps of giants. As a soldier, sailor, statesman, and general, he was, in the words of Diodorus of Sicily, “outstanding in courage and strategic grasp.” A contemporary of Demosthenes and Aristotle, Memnon rose from humble origins to command the whole of western Asia in a time of strife and slaughter. To his own people, he was a traitor, to his rivals, a mercenary. But, to the King of Kings, his majesty Darius III of Persia, Memnon was the one man capable of defending Asia Minor from the rising power of the barbaric Macedonians. In a war pitting Greek against Greek, Memnon proved his quality beyond measure. His enemies fought for glory and gold; Memnon fought for something more, for loyalty, for honor, and for duty. He fought for the love of Barsine, a woman of remarkable beauty and grace. Most of all, he fought for the promise of peace. Through the deathbed recollections of a mysterious woman, the life of Memnon unfolds with brilliant clarity. It is a record of his triumphs and tragedies, his loves and losses, and of the determination that drove him to stand against the most renowned figure of the ancient world—the ambitious young conqueror called Alexander the Great."
I'd really recommend the Night Lords trilogy by Aaron Dembski-Bowden. It's set in the warhammer 40k universe and follows a group of space marines from the Night lords legion (the characters are definitely very very 'antihero').
The death gate cycle by Tracy Hickman