History Main / WarriorPoet

* Subverted in the final series of ''Series/BlackAdder'', with Private Baldrick's poem "The German Guns", in which he just repeats the word "boom", mimicking said guns.

** Guts is astonishingly good at this for a gruff [[TheBigGuy towering]], [[UnstoppableRage powerhouse]] [[RatedMForManly of testosterone]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold with an attitude to boot]]. He fights because he's DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife, and (at least for a time), finds it in fighting itself, not because of any real wish to inflict violence on others (yet), but BecauseImGoodAtIt and because he finds meaning in honing his skills to the utmost. His way of persuading Jill, a young girl who looked up to him for protection, about [[ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies how dangerous it was to be with him]] was pretty much a poem of awesome, tearjerking, and heartwarming. In the end, it gave Jill the courage to survive with the life she had to live with.

** Lorewise, Shelyn is the NeutralGood goddess of romantic love, beauty, and the fine arts, who sponsors orders of clerics and paladins who are required to produce and protect works of art as a devotional exercise. Her favored weapon is [[BladeOnAStick the glaive]].

* ''VideoGame/PathfinderWrathOfTheRighteous'': Party member Sosiel Vaenic is a cleric of Shelyn, goddess of beauty and the fine arts. This makes him a medium-armored MagicKnight with a BladeOnAStick who spends his off time painting portraits and landscapes, as creating works of art is a devotional exercise in his religion. When asked about it, he notes that, while it serves no purpose in battle, art can still keep morale up by reminding people that not all the world is bloodshed and horror.

* In the 2007 ''Film/{{Transformers|2007}}'' film, Optimus Prime is a fierce warrior, but also takes some time to muse on how humans are not so different from Cybertronians.

* ''Film/Transformers2007'', Optimus Prime is a fierce warrior, but also takes some time to muse on how humans are not so different from Cybertronians.

* Film/Transformers2007, Optimus Prime is a fierce warrior, but also takes some time to muse on how humans are not so different from Cybertronians.

* Ancient Athenian historian and General Thucydides is quoted as saying "The society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools".

* Horton, of ''WesternAnimation/HortonHearsAWho'', is [[LampshadeHanging called]] a Warrior-Poet by his friend near the end of the movies.

* Brandark Brandarkson from Creator/DavidWeber's ''[[Literature/TheWarGods War God]]'' series ''wants'' to be one of these badly. He's got the Warrior part down; it's the Poet part that eludes him. He's a notable warrior even for a [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy hradani]], and easily the most educated person in all hradani lands, and even plays the balakaika. Unfortunately, his attempts at poetry witty doggerel at best, and the less said about his singing voice the better. The Goddess of Music herself honors his artist's soul, but even she can't make him a poet.

** One of the most notable examples is Egil Skallagrimsson, an [[AntiHero anti-hero]] Viking native to Iceland who was both noted as groundbreaking skald and all-around badass [[TheBerserker berserker.]] In his titular saga after an event, the narrative will stop to relate a poem Egil supposedly sang to mark the occasion. He was so good he convinced one King Eric [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Bloodaxe]] to abandon their long-running feud instead of having Egil's head chopped, with a poem he made up the night before.

* The titular character of ''Dramatus'', a 1995 short-lived Mexican comic, is a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot tormented soul just back from the tomb who wields a sword and also a vampire]]. When he gets angry, he becomes an AxCrazy ready to make a blood bath out of his aggressors. But when his beautiful lover appears to calm him down and comfort him, he gets inspired enough to recite some improvised poetry just for her. He even says in his inner monologues during the story: "I am a poet".

* The Major in ''Anime/GhostInTheShell'' is a [[OneManArmy One-Woman Army]] of the highest order, but next to her day job as a counter-terror special forces commander she's also spending a lot of time dealing with questions about existence and reality. [[spoiler:In a way, she eventually [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascends to a Higher Plane of Existence]].]] Batou is much the same, though he doesn't show it quite as obviously.

* Graham Spector of ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}'' mixes this with TalkativeLoon. His ''endless'' monologues certainly seem poetic, but his rapid mood shifts and short attention span makes him sound more schizophrenic than anything.

** And again in ''Interesting Times''. Lord Hong is the cleverest person in the Aurient, so it's him who figures out that when choosing someone for a highly specialized position, for instance warrior, it's better to examine them ''on that topic'' than the level of exquisiteness of their seven-line poem about an ethereal white horse floating through a lavender meadow.

* The Major in ''Anime/GhostInTheShell'' is a [[OneManArmy One Woman Army]] of the highest order, but next to her day job as a counter-terror special forces commander she's also spending a lot of time dealing with questions about existence and reality. [[spoiler:In a way, she eventually [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascends To a Higher Plane Of Existence]].]] Batou is much the same, though he doesn't show it quite as obviously.

* ''ComicBook/Warlock1967'' developed into this under the writing of Creator/JimStarlin, becoming a sort of philosopher-hero.

* Twilight from ''WesternAnimation/LegendOfTheGuardiansTheOwlsOfGahoole'' calls himself one after he is given the nickname "The Warrior" by the Echidna. In fact, like in the books, he's been known to sing heroically to cheer his friends on and frighten his foes.

** For the matter of that, even ''Quark'' was this in "looking for Par'mach in all the wrong places"-with Worf's help.

* Coach (Benjamin Wade) from ''Series/{{Survivor}}'': ''Tocantins'' (season 18), ''Heroes vs. Villains'' (20) and ''South Pacific'' (23) may be a satire of this trope. He calls himself "The Warrior" as his moniker and quotes writers like Marcus Aurelius, Shakespeare and Nietzsche. He often misquotes historical writers as well. Once he said, “Some of the greatest inspiration is born of desperation." and attributed that to Marcus Aurelius when in fact, it was instead a quote by the entrepreneur Comer Cottrell.

* In ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', the Bard class generally fills this archetype.
** Fifth Edition Battlemasters (A subclass of Fighters) have some fluff that implies this trope, including proficiency in an "artistic" skill like calligraphy or painting.

* ''VideoGame/{{Arcanum}}'' gives you the opportunity to play as one of these, if you build a character that is both strong and dexterous enough to wield the deadliest weapons and lay waste to your foes in combat, but also intelligent and charismatic enough to be given several opportunities to learn about and discuss various philosophies (including receiving a lesson in dwarven philosophy, then showing a dwarf king how his own approach to dwarf philosophy is flawed, a discussion on the differences between dwarven and elven philosophies with a priest, asking a [[LizardFolk Bedokaan]] shaman to teach you of the "Cold-Blooded Dream" in exchange for teaching him some human philosophy, and [[spoiler: challenging the BigBad to a debate and [[TalkingTheMonsterToDeath showing him so many holes in his logic that he submits to an assisted suicide]]]]).

* Captain John Price, from the ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'' sub-series of the ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' franchise, despite normally being a badass with a dry sense of humor and a dedication to get any mission done, no matter how insane or difficult, has a rather awesome change of pace with some rather poetic speeches in ''Modern Warfare 2''. They in simple terms are {{No More Holding Back Speech}}es which he delivers to Soap to show him how there is no need to be afraid of fighting [[spoiler: Shepherd]] and his army because as soldiers they have the luxury of knowing when their time might be up and because of it they can face any challenge without fear or regret, and they will kill [[spoiler: Shepherd]] before they can die.
-->'''[[spoiler:Price]]:''' The healthy human mind doesn't wake up in the morning thinking this is its last day on earth. But I think that's a luxury, not a curse. To know you're close to the end is a kind of freedom. Good time to take... inventory. Out-gunned. Outnumbered. Out of our minds. On a suicide mission. But the sand and rocks here stained with thousands of years of warfare... they will remember us. For this. Because out of all our vast array of nightmares this is the one we choose for ourselves. We go forward like a breath exhaled from the earth. With vigor in our hearts and one goal in sight: We. Will. Kill him.\\
'''[[spoiler:Price]]:''' This is for the record... [[WrittenByTheWinners History is written by the victor]]. ''History is filled with liars''. If he lives, and we die, his truth becomes written, and ours is lost. [[spoiler: Shepherd]] will be a hero, 'cause all you need to change the world is one good lie and a river of blood. He's about to complete the biggest trick a liar ever played on history. His truth will be the truth. But only if he lives, and we die.

---> '''[[spoiler:Price]]:''' They say truth is the first casualty of war. But who defines what's true? Truth is just a matter of perspective. The duty of every soldier is to protect the innocent, and sometimes that means preserving the lie of good and evil, that war isn't just natural selection played out on a grand scale. The only truth I've found is that the world we live in is a giant tinderbox. All it takes is someone to light the match.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

** Londo Mollari is, in addition to a ruthless and ambitious diplomat and [[DecadentCourt courtier]], is a skilled pilot and swordsman, earning the fighting name "Paso Leati", or "[[TheBerserker Fights Like A Madman]]", while also being a lover of opera, not entirely unlike G'Kar.[[note]]Unlike G'Kar, Londo is actually shown to be a ''good'' singer, while G'Kar's singing to pass the time in jail [[HollywoodToneDeaf lead to a rumor that Station Security was torturing him.]][[/note]]
** Deleen is more a [[ChurchMilitant priestess]] who MinoredInAsskicking than a warrior who minored in poetry.

* Sky-Byte of ''Anime/TransformersRobotsInDisguise'' -- an IneffectualSympatheticVillain who loves human culture, especially haiku.

** [[Anime/TransformersRobotsInDisguise Sky-Bate]] showed up later, still obsessed with haikus.

If he's the lead, he might be a loner with his fellows being unable to understand his way of thinking. It might also be a way of showing his LoveInterest that he's not just a bloodthirsty barbarian but actually a sensitive soul who is forced to do horrible things because of war or human nature (as he understands it).

* Robert Bearclaw, alias Ripclaw, from Creator/ImageComics' ''ComicBook/{{Cyberforce}}'' is both a BadassNative {{Expy}} of ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} and an avid poet/poetry scholar.

** James "Logan" Howlett, alias ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, codifies this trope by possessing both the heart of a bestial berserker and the honorable soul of a samurai. Throughout a long life shrouded by overwhelming amounts of pain and loss, Logan chooses to use his considerable mutant/augmented gifts to protect/mentor his loved ones, while also defending those who fear (or even hate) the very existence of his mutant kind.

* ComicBook/CaptainAmerica in the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'' is the most thoughtful and introspective of ComicBook/TheAvengers, not to mention being a talented artist before his induction into superheroism.

* In ''Literature/TheDinosaurLords'', Count Jaume is Empire's prime duellist and fine military commander, but also one of Nuevaropa's more famous poets, who's written some works on philosophy.

* Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, in ''Series/TheTudors'', was not only a capable warrior but also an accomplished poet. As he's [[spoiler:being led to be executed]], he quotes one of his poems in his mind with a serene look on his face.

-->'''[[spoiler:Price:]]''' The healthy human mind doesn't wake up in the morning thinking this is its last day on earth. But I think that's a luxury, not a curse. To know you're close to the end is a kind of freedom. Good time to take... inventory. Out-gunned. Outnumbered. Out of our minds. On a suicide mission. But the sand and rocks here stained with thousands of years of warfare... they will remember us. For this. Because out of all our vast array of nightmares this is the one we choose for ourselves. We go forward like a breath exhaled from the earth. With vigor in our hearts and one goal in sight: We. Will. Kill him.\\
'''[[spoiler:Price:]]''' This is for the record... [[WrittenByTheWinners History is written by the victor]]. ''History is filled with liars''. If he lives, and we die, his truth becomes written, and ours is lost. [[spoiler: Shepherd]] will be a hero, 'cause all you need to change the world is one good lie and a river of blood. He's about to complete the biggest trick a liar ever played on history. His truth will be the truth. But only if he lives, and we die.
** In ''Modern Warfare 3'', during the aftermath of [[spoiler: Shepherd's death]], Price began to contemplate the effects of lies and truth that became the cause of World War 3, both by [[spoiler: the late Shepherd, who became the cause of Soap and Price declared as war criminals,]] and [[spoiler: [[TheChessmaster Vladimir Makarov]], who was still at large, and the man who triggered the war with the massacre in the Russian airport, pinning the blame on USA with Allen's body.]] With that, only [[spoiler: Soap and Price]] knew the truth, and the Russian and American soldiers who fought during WW3 didn't know of the truth, but instead continue fighting over a lie. Bonus points for Price's contemplating speech began shortly before [[spoiler: Makarov foiled a peace treaty that would end the war peacefully.]]
---> '''[[spoiler:Price:]]''' They say truth is the first casualty of war. But who defines what's true? Truth is just a matter of perspective. The duty of every soldier is to protect the innocent, and sometimes that means preserving the lie of good and evil, that war isn't just natural selection played out on a grand scale. The only truth I've found is that the world we live in is a giant tinderbox. All it takes is someone to light the match.

* The entire Protoss race from ''VideoGame/StarCraft'' embody this ideal, having embraced a rigid quasi-religious collectivist social order based on self tempering, personal honor, and obedience, to escape a tumultuous war-filled past. This leads to a peculiar view of warfare, wherein "modern" mass-destructive weapons have been largely shunned in favor of armies of melee combatants and civilian machines repurposed for war, with machines designed specifically for war regarded as abominable. They've lightened up on this in the [[Videogame/StarcraftII sequel]], since they've suffered so many losses that they ''need'' their old war machines and more.

* ''Webcomic/KillSixBillionDemons'': OmnicidalManiac Jagganoth is a thoroughly dark take on the concept. Jagganoth's personal philosophy is based in real-world beliefs on the nature of suffering from Buddhism, and his desire to destroy the world is grounded in the desire to end the ViciousCycle of a flawed Creation, and the suffering of those trapped within it. Jagganoth is an ascetic [[TheStoic stoic]], dabbles in debate, has a rather sizeable poetry collection and has even composed some pieces of his own. According to TheRant he wrote at least one treatise on the nature of death, [[spoiler:and he is also one of the few people aware that the universe is stuck in a GroundhogDayLoop.]]

* Similiarly, in old Ireland, you couldn't be a great warrior unless you played the harp and mastered ''fidchell'', an ancient Irish board game, somewhat similar to chess.

* ''ComicBook/{{Warlock}}'' developed into this under the writing of Creator/JimStarlin, becoming a sort of philosopher-hero.

* ''VideoGame/HollowKnight'' has the Hunter, who initially only seems to care about hunting and killing everything he can, but deciphering the notes in his Hunter's Journal reveals his musings on the history of Hallownest, the infection (which he briefly considered taking unto himself until he decided that [[EvenEvilHasStandards losing his mind wasn't worth the power it came with]],) and other topics.

* The titular character from ''VideoGame/{{Klonoa}}'' is a pretty good poet and his poems talks about dreams (as seen in intros of some of his games).