Standard Japanese Fantasy Setting

"A JRPG just isn't a JRPG unless it involves teenagers using the power of friendship to kill God."

—Yahtzee Croshaw, Zero Punctuation

When the Standard Fantasy Setting spread to Japan, it picked up a few quirks and lost some others along the way. Japanese fantasy writers tend to draw less on Western fantasy Literature, and more on Video Games and Tabletop RPGs (specifically "Replays", as explained below). While still influenced by Dungeons & Dragons, it tends to take more cues from the original writings of Gary Gygax and less from those of later designers, combined with elements from games like RuneQuest, Ultima, and Wizardry.

The first Trope Codifier of Japanese Medieval European Fantasy comes from 1986, when the video game/manga/video game manga magazine Comptiq began publishing "Replays" — transcripts of a Dungeons & Dragons, RuneQuest, and Tunnels & Trolls fusion campaign titled Record of Lodoss War. Lodoss became popular enough to receive paperback compilations and even be edited into a novel series, which would go on to become some of Japan's first domestic High Fantasy literature. Pressure from lawyers at TSR would force Lodoss to switch from D&D to a homebrew system, which would eventually become the basis for Sword World RPG (a.k.a. the 2d6 System), produced by Group SNE (translators for many Western tabletop RPGs at the time).

That year also marked the launch of the Dragon Quest series, the first three entries of which would have enormous cultural impact and become the Trope Makers for the Eastern RPG genre.

Similar settings can also be found in Chinese and Korean fantasy, albeit with a heavier injection of Wuxia themes.

Common elements include:

The Inhabitants

• The Humanoid Races:
  • Humans: Humans occupy major cities and tend to discriminate against non-humans and half-breeds, treating them as second-class citizens; the reasons can vary between them being mysterious and unknown and using them as slaves. Dwarves are mostly exempt from this. More actively hostile versions are usually portrayed as a result of (ancient or modern) influence from the government and/or church, and less common in frontier areas.
    • Tagalong Kid: Rather than having a designated "kid" race, their roles are more likely to be filled by actual human kids - most commonly as a Kid Samurai, Child Mage or Gadgeteer Genius.
  • Elves: More likely to live in a Hidden Elf Village and/or to have warred with humans in the past. "Elves" living in human cities are more likely to be half-elves. With beastfolk moving in on the Fragile Speedster position, elves tend to have more emphasis on their flashy magical powers. Due to influence from Warhammer they are usually depicted with very large ears that jut horizontally — something which does not carry over to other Pointy Ears races.
    • Dark elves are dark-skinned and sometimes blonde rather than having unearthly blue or black skin, and usually function more like an ethnicity than a separate race. While they live separately from other elves (who they may be in conflict with), and sometimes have strange customs or a more villainous fashion sense, they are not usually evil.
  • Beastfolk: A collection of races who resemble humans, but with the ears, tails, claws, etc. of an animal, usually called juujin or kemonobito. Sometimes they act as a Barbarian Tribe, and other times they're the result of humans being infused with the spirits of animals (in which case they might be transformed ad hoc, rather than a true-breeding race). Usually Fragile Speedsters, though beastfolk with more muscular builds may be Lightning Bruisers instead. Tend to be bad at magic unless it involves Ki Manipulation or being Closer to Earth. To compensate, they often have Super-Senses and other "natural" powers befitting whatever animal archetype they follow. Emphasis will often be placed on their status as Liminal Beings between humans and monsters; in particular, if they have their own nation then it will usually be a neutral one that has to be won over to humanity's side.
    • Later works (particularly in Light Novels) tend to place them at the bottom of the social hierarchies, possibly even as a Slave Race which is neglected and abused by the other races (particularly humans). If the protagonist gains a harem of slaves, then a beastkin will likely be the first or the majority of such slaves.
    • The child of a beastfolk and a human sometimes resembles a werebeast — normally displaying only subtle indications of their inhuman heritage, they will "beast out" and go on wild rampages if exposed to the right trigger. Less commonly, this trait is applied to beastfolk themselves, particularly ones created artificially.
  • Dwarves: Close allies of humans, sometimes to the point of having no lands of their own, and tend to dominate the blacksmithing and engineering sectors in human cities. However, they are noticeably absent from most Japanese settings. This lack of presence makes them the least likely of the classic fantasy races to show up, but also the easiest to Retcon as having always existed. Likely to have superhuman strength.
    • Female dwarves are beardless and often more neotenous than the males, in which case they take over halflings' or gnomes' position as the "cute" race. They're less likely to be found as craftsmen, and more often as front-line Pint-Sized Powerhouses.
  • Giants: "Giants" can come in a variety of different sizes and dispositions, from simply being "noticeably bigger but almost capable of passing for human" to "please don't step on my house". Sometimes, multiple versions can appear in the same setting, often with different species names to differentiate them, like "titans" or "colossi". It can also vary widely which variations (if any) qualify as civilized races vs monstrous ones, but the civilized versions usually find civilian work as craftsmen or manual laborers, or function as Tanks in a combat unit, due to their massive strength and toughness.
  • Precursors: An extinct race which left Lost Technology and Magitek scattered around the world, usually a cousin to either humans or elves. Are often "the closest race to the heavens", whether they could hear the voices of the gods, came from outer space or both. Descendants of the precursors can easily turn into Living Mac Guffins for their ability to activate their dormant relics. Connected to the origin of many a Mysterious Waif.
  • Non-Human Sidekick: A race with a cute, mascot-like design, which can function as a Fairy Companion or Team Pet. Sometimes the actual Series Mascot. Technically not a member of the humanoid races, but isn't really treated like common monsters either. Often robots or other mechanical beings, from either the future or the distant past.

• The "Sei" Races:^note "Sei" means pure or sacred. Allies or servants of the gods, though prone to Blue-and-Orange Morality, and may lash out at humans who disturb their homes (or when exposed to The Corruption or Unholy Ground).
  • Seirei: "Rei" means spirit/soul. Omnipresent, sometimes-invisible beings which often either are or include the Alchemic Elementals. Sometimes includes The Fair Folk. "Seirei users"/Shamans are a type of spellcaster, for whom they serve as a Background Magic Field; if the setting has multiple kinds of magic they will usually be analogous to the Druid Character Class.
  • Nearly Normal Animals: In an Enchanted Forest and other remote locations, animals grow old and wise and sometimes capable of speech.
  • Seijuu/Genjuu: "Sacred beast" or "Phantom beast". A powerful class of seirei which includes distinct species like Unicorns and The Marvelous Deer, as well as animals that Ascended to a Higher Plane of Existence. Fonts of nature's purity, sometimes to the point of burning evil beings on contact. Particularly ancient ones will have Fertile Feet while calm, and become a Walking Wasteland when enraged. Often the target of Summon Magic.
  • Lords: The lord of the lake, the lord of the forest, and so on. An ancient animal or Wise Tree which serves as the ruler of all seirei in their habitat. Well respected by spellcasters, since the difficulty of commanding seirei is affected greatly by the local lord's health and attitude. If a lord is slain then nature itself goes berserk, usually resulting in the land becoming barren and cursed. May also act as a Barrier Maiden or Cosmic Keystone, holding some evil force at bay.
    • The World Tree: Taking this to its Logical Extreme, some settings will place an enormous seirei in charge of the entire world, often filling a role equivalent to God.
    • The Four Gods: Four guardian beasts that live in or rule the four cardinal directions in the world. Byakko the White Tiger, Seiryu the Azure Dragon, Genbu the Black Tortoise and Suzaku the Vermillion Bird. They are usually on the side of good unless somehow corrupted or in a really bad mood. They may also be the leader or rulers of their corresponding beasts: mammals, dragons, reptiles, and birds. In some cases, they may also be the servants/protectors of the aforementioned central God.

• The "Ma" Races:^note "Ma" refers to magic or demons, meaning these can be a Mage Species, The Legions of Hell or anything in between. Often the source of Black Magic. While they usually don't get along with humans, in some depictions they're diverse enough that individual tribes may be accepted or even beloved (such as fairies, when they're included).
  • Majuu: "Juu" means beast. Once normal animals until they were mutated by intense Mana, Green Rocks or Demonic Possession. Sometimes this happened over the course of many generations, and sometimes animals can spontaneously transform into majuu without warning. In either case, villains may try to create them artificially. May be connected to Beastfolk.
  • Mazoku: "Zoku" means race or tribe(s). Often functioning as The Horde or The Man Behind the Man, including all humanoid supernatural creatures that don't fit into other categories (and sometimes non-humanoid ones as well). Aesthetically, they most often take cues from Western demons such as horns and batlike wings. Others simply have a Mark of the Supernatural such as Pointy Ears (smaller than those of elves) or an unusual hair colour. Generally have immense strength and magical power, sometimes to Person of Mass Destruction levels, though not always (particularly if they're protagonists).
  • Maou: "Ou" means lord or king. A Monster Lord among Monster Lords who acts as the leader of all mazoku, or all monstrous creatures in general. Usually the progenitor of all monsters, and/or a unique being whose birth is an Eternal Recurrence, though sometimes it's a title which normal mazoku or even humans can ascend to. A maou usually functions as the Anthropomorphic Personification of "ma" itself, appearing when the strength of "ma" creatures reaches critical mass, and sometimes even fills the role for mazoku that gods do for other creatures. A classical maou is an Evil Overlord, Satanic Archetype or Sealed Evil in a Can, whose emergence stirs long-dormant threats to grow in numbers and attack humanity, until a chosen hero rises to defeat them. Nowadays, however, the role is subverted as often as not, turning maou into The Good King or having them just want to be normal; if the appearance of a destined hero is part of their cycle, then they or the hero may seek to Screw Destiny by becoming friends instead of fighting.

• The "Shin" Races:^note "Shin" meaning god or divine. The Physical Gods responsible for maintaining the world and/or protecting it from the mazoku. Usually the source of White Magic. Often bad at defeating evil by themselves, but good at granting mortals holy powers and holy swords with which to do so. Unfortunately, they sometimes go mad with power or become focused on destroying evil regardless of the cost.
  • Shinzoku: "Zoku" meaning race(s), usually refers to the rank-and-file humanoid gods. Tend to be conflated with angels or devas, and live in Fluffy Cloud Heaven. In some settings their role is instead filled by dragons.
  • Dragons: Occupy something of a grey area between gods and beasts, and very likely have the power to take human form (especially if referred to as ryuuzoku). If multiple species of dragon exist, then they can run the whole spectrum from Dragons Are Divine to "big dumb lizards" within the same setting. Alternately their race may be "the third great power" alongside gods and demons, complete with a dragon king and "dragon energy" that functions unlike any other. Outright demonic dragons are usually either unique beings unrelated to the larger dragon race, or a Satanic Archetype that fell from grace.
    • In addition, the dragons may be ruled by Bahamut — although a figure from Hebrew and Middle Eastern mythology, Japanese media borrows the name as it was used in D&D. Likewise, Bahamut's opposite number (and occasional mate) will often be Tiamat, a Babylonian sea goddess likewise unrelated to dragons until co-opted by D&D.
  • God of Good: The leader or leaders of the shinzoku. Tends to have a similar relationship with the shinzoku to the one maou have with the mazoku, though with less personal power and the caveat that if evil wins, they probably won't be coming back. Usually female. Rarely the actual Creator, who is more likely to be a mythical God of Gods.

• Monsters and Demihumans:^note Any species which is regarded as non-human. Some can be extremely far removed from humanoids, while others may be humanoid or civilized enough to be regarded as "demihuman", which also sometimes takes the place of Beastfolk or are lumped in with mazoku. Where the line is drawn between monsters and demihumans, or if there even IS a line, is often disputed even In-Universe.
  • Slimes: Thanks to Dragon Quest, slimes are often reputed as being the weakest of all monsters which are killed by novice adventurers in droves. They are usually cute and relatively harmless. However, they are still portrayed as dangerous in massive numbers and also one of the most adaptive monsters. Though weak, a sufficiently-leveled or evolved slime can turn into an Elite Mook such as a Metal Slime or often be even more dangerous than high-ranking demons. Female slimes are portrayed as buxom and very womanly, and often dim-witted in a Moe sense.
  • Orcs: Generally depicted as piglike, in keeping with early D&D art. Similar to the emergence of maou, the larger an orc population grows the more it will begin producing "advanced" orcs with greater strength or magical powers. Unfortunately, orc populations often grow larger than they have the means to support, which leads to them invading human settlements to seize their resources.
  • Kobolds: Doglike humanoids (reflecting their depictions in very early D&D, and later Wizardry) which live underground, emerging from caves to raid human settlements for resources. Surprisingly well-organised and skilled at blacksmithing. Usually human-sized, but some individuals are much larger.
  • Lizardmen: One of the least aggressive demihuman types, and the most likely to be accepted in human cities, though they rarely venture from their swamps.
  • Goblins: The dumbest and weakest of demihumans, but also the most actively malevolent, prone to attacking for no clear reason. Live in forests or caves, where they're lead by the slightly-smarter hobgoblins (who have no connection with orcs) or work as slaves for a more dangerous villain. Have a nasty tendency to scavenge not just gear, but people, using them as food or breeding fodder.
  • Ogres: Often conflated with Oni, either by giving them horns or by making oni the Monster Lord form of ogres.
  • Harpies: Harpies, and other bird-like Winged Humanoids, are often friendly demihumans that serve the local community as messengers or light laborers. They tend to be one of the more temperamental races; they value their ability to fly (and thus freedom) and thus are often the most beholden to their animal instincts. For this reason, there's often pockets of uncivilized or even antagonistic harpies, but even the friendly ones are usually birds of prey that hunt their own food such as fish or rabbits and occasionally even abduct their own mates. Like many bird species, they tend to be fiercely protective of their "nests".

Character Classes

Even if not an RPG Mechanics 'Verse, there tend to be a few archetypes which are more common:

• Standard "Melee" Classes:
  • Magic Knights: Similar to RuneQuest and the first version of the Dungeons & Dragons ranger class, it's common for experienced fighters to know a few magic spells which improve their combat ability. In works where characters have a set class, this tends to be the class of The Hero, following the example of the Dragon Quest.
  • Master Swordsman: A specialist in wielding swords better than anyone else, often capable of Speed Blitzing enemies by cutting them in half before they can react, or swinging their sword so hard that it can cut from a distance. Often wield the most katana-like swords they can get their hands on, or are outright referred to as "samurai". While they commonly wield one-handed swords, they will very rarely use it with a shield. Fencers and rapier-wielders are almost always either women, effeminate men, or the occasional Gentleman Adventurer, sometimes even crossing over with Wuxia.
  • Paladins: The standard Tank class. Assuming they don't overlap with the Magic Knights, they will usually be elite knights that serve a major kingdom and/or church. Unlike Western portrayals, they will rarely have to contend with a To Be Lawful or Good situation, due to the reasons laid out in Light/Darkness Juxtaposition: their power is typically "amoral", and fighting for "Light" does not also mean fighting for "Good".
  • Berserkers or Barbarians: Almost always a Tank class rather than DPS, and almost always equipped with a giant axe or a BFS. Berserkers are usually cursed with some sort of dark power which turns them into savage killing machines that can't distinguish friend from foe. The rest of the party will simply stay out of their way or do their best to support them from afar until they kill or at least soften-up the target.
  • Lancers: The Hero will almost never use a polearm as a primary weapon. Instead, lancers will usually be...well, The Lancer. Also, thanks to Final Fantasy, spearmen are very likely to double as Dragon Knights (often called "Dragoons" — while the term far predates the form of fantasy described here, its association with this form of polearm-using dragon knight is original to, and remains almost exclusive to, Japanese media).
  • Ninja: If there's a "thief" or "assassin" class, then they will either be called "Ninja/Shinobi" or be one in all but name. Sometimes, the thief or assassin classes are simply unevolved forms of the ninja class. Unlike the Western portrayals of thieves or assassins, rather than being greedy or selfish, the ninja class itself will usually serve or show self-sacrificing loyalty to a specific leader or lord.
  • Monks: Some fighters will be proficient in hand-to-hand combat and capable of performing feats of strength, speed or toughness that are only possible with some form of Ki Manipulation. In Japanese works, the "Monk" character is often filled by some form of Cute Bruiser or Little Miss Badass.
• Standard "Ranged" Classes:
  • Archers: Will usually be lithe and lean, and physically weaker than the melee classes. Their bows will almost invariably be longbows or shortbows — crossbows may be used en masse by a trained Red Shirt Army, but "heroes", adventurers and other important characters will prefer firing by hand. Out of the traditional "core four" of classes in western fantasy (fighter, rogue, wizard, cleric), the rogue/thief is the only one to be routinely lacking a clear equivalent in the Japanese model, instead the Archer often takes their place. In this regard, Archers often have skills closer to the ranger of western fantasy, they may be stealthy and knowledgeable about nature, but are unlikely to possess abilities related to burglary.
  • Gunners: Despite the anachronism, gunners will be able to use highly-accurate firearms that don't need to be manually loaded or refilled with gunpowder after a single shot, often powered by magic. Even more anachronistic, these guns are usually handguns; rifles and full-auto weapons are rarer, but even a fantasy setting might have a BFG or two.
  • Engineers: Another anachronistic class, utilizing technology usually of the Steampunk or Magitek flavour. They typically deploy golems, turrets or drones to attack for them and support their allies. Sometimes, they may also utilize traps and explosives.
• Standard "Magic" Classes:
  • Black Mages: Can be either male or female, but will almost always use elemental magic like fire, water, lightning, etc. Fancier or more exotic spells will usually be exclusively used as a more specialized class of magic like an "Hex Magic", "Space Magic" or "Time Magic". Male examples will likely resemble a Wizard Classic while females are almost always a Cute Witch.
  • White Mages: Will almost always be female. Some will be reminiscent of the D&D "Cleric" class, with their powers coming from a divine source, and coming equipped with holy magic.
  • Summoners: Usually treated as a separate class from Black Mage and primarily fights by summoning familiars, or creatures made up of various elements. Some may have a few magical spells they can use without a summon, but not nearly as much as the other dedicated mages.

Other Common Tropes

• Above Good and Evil: The highest deities or entities of power within the setting usually do not fit within the confines of "Good" nor "Evil". Unlike classic D&D, and more align to Buddhist principles, morality is usually treated as a state of mind or lifelong path one struggles to find. This is one reason why these settings typically lack a Capital-G God, unless He's flawed or evil.
  • Goodness is found only at the individual level. Gods of Good, if they exist, value free will and choice above all else; the more omniscient or omnipotent they are, the more they either cannot or will not intervene unless absolutely necessary. Mortals must find their own path, and a good person or people are those who have found the correct way (and as such, many of the good gods transcended from mortals themselves, although at the cost of losing mortal attachments). But while almost certainly wise, any of them can turn evil for a variety of reasons, such as deciding that mortals are unworthy of free will. For this reason, while "Light" and the "Sei" or "Shin" races are often thought of as Gods of Good, they are more often just as fundamentally flawed as "Darkness" and the "Ma" races.
  • Evil may be a lot more tangible than Good — often manifesting as some sort of decay or corruption which can turn someone into The Heartless. It may be so tangible, in fact, that people become certain it exists but question the existence of its opposite. Gods of Evil are, usually, indistinguishable from the "Ma" races, except by virtue of being tougher or actually unkillable As Long as There Is Evil. They are usually driven by their base desires, passions and attachments. Evil Is Easy, and in some settings an Ascended Demon is a lot more rare than a Fallen Angel. In others, a demon has just as much ability to find the right path as any other being.
  • While Goodness is less tangible, and thus harder to objectively identify or balance, most settings also treat actual Goodness (or whatever it values as ideal) as an ultimately more true and fulfilling path than whatever is treated as wrong or "Evil". This enlightenment will often grant a hero or protagonist the 11th-Hour Superpower they need to save the day. However, it's liable to vanish just as quickly as it appeared, after destroying or undoing whatever evil was a threat, often to preserve a Balance Between Good and Evil.
• Anime Catholicism: Most religions will be based on a very "Japan-ified" version of the Catholic Church, including having a Pope, cardinals, bishops, priests, nuns (or "priestesses") and some stand-in for Christ and His iconography. However, the order is typically just one of many in a pantheistic pantheon; even ones that profess that there is only one "true God" are typically surrounded by other faiths with deities that are proven to exist. This order is almost always corrupt, and may even be secretly evil.
• Eternal Recurrence: Again taking cues from Buddhism, many Japanese fantasy settings emphasize recurring cycles or (as they're known in Vedic religions) "kalpas". Not every cycle completely mirrors others (for example, maybe one recurrence is some sort of Great Offscreen War while another is some major cataclysmic disaster), but the point is to emphasize that everything is a part of the natural order and that all things end someday. There can even be cycles within cycles (such as multiple generations of a family having similar life stories during one of the eras of peace). This also covers things like Reincarnation and the eternal Yuusha vs Maoh rivalry.
• Light/Darkness Juxtaposition: Heavily inspired by Taoism, whether a creature is "holy" or "unholy" usually has more to do with its alignment at birth than its behavior. Creatures aligned with "Light" can still use their powers for evil and the powers of Darkness can be used heroically. Most often, Dark and Light are either harmful against each other or Light is a Meta Power which is normally weak but solely exists to weaken or destroy Darkness. But again, this is has nothing to do with morality. Even a Corrupt Church still wields the power of light, and it can harm even Noble Demons who act more saintly than they do. There usually also exists two opposing Top Gods composed of pure Light and pure Dark; while they may be the creators or source of power for the Shinzoku/Mazoku or Yuusha/Maou, these entities are far too concerned with their neverending cosmic battle against each other to actually rule or assist their representatives directly. Some may be Almighty Idiots with no true sentience and only the basic need to spread Light/Darkness even if their unchecked influence would destroy the world.
• BFS: Apparently influenced by Warhammer figurines. A popular way for heroes to show off their superhuman status.
• Humongous Mecha: Japanese Fantasy is far more likely to include mecha of some sort than its Western counterparts. Most often, the mechs are either Magitek, machine-gods and/or Lost Technology that was once in common use by the Precursors before they were wiped out.
• Kaiju: Like mecha, Kaiju are far more common in Japanese works. Usually, they are different than your standard dragons. (Thus allowing Kaiju vs Dragon fights.)
• Ki Manipulation: Japanese fantasy is more likely to include some facet of "ki/chi/chakra" manipulation that converts a character's emotions, willpower or Killing Intent into some sort of Charles Atlas Superpower. Sometimes, magic or mana are related or overlap, but it's just as commonly a completely separate source of power.
• The Lifestream: The planet/world in which the story takes place will usually have some sort of energy, Background Magic Field or Sentient Cosmic Force that enables the various forms of magic in the setting. This energy source is usually connected to gods or other divine entities, who either live within it or need it to live as much as living things do. If things are suspiciously prosperous, it will sometimes be revealed that this background energy source is being overused. If the planet is also alive, then it will not be happy and maybe even a little angry. The aforementioned Kaiju may exist as extensions of her wrath or "natural defenses" against threats.
• Mana Crystals: Crystals which store or are made of Mana, often a useful resource for wizards or Magitek. In some settings, are found inside monsters as a Gem Heart (in which case it's likely the in-universe definition of what separates a monster from a normal creature) or act as a dungeon core (see below). May come in different elemental affinities.
• Religion is Magic: "Religious magic" tends to come directly from the raw essence of good and light, with gods acting only as an intermediary who unlock it; some rare individuals are so "in-tune" that they don't even need that, and are simply born knowing how to use it. This means that, while a god could Curse someone who abuses their powers, in most cases they can't simply take those powers away. If a god can bestow some of their own power to a mortal then this will be treated as an extremely serious matter which makes that person Semi-Divine.
• Tomorrowland: A civilization that has a technological leg up over everyone else, possibly to explain how advanced technology like Humongous Mecha exist in an otherwise medieval setting. This place is a good chance to be the capital of an evil empire, using their technological advantage to conquer the rest of the world. Otherwise, they tend to be isolationist, possibly using their technology to hide their civilization from outsiders.
• Wutai: A Fantasy Counterpart Culture of Japan or a mashup of East Asian cultures will exist, and usually remain in close enough contact with the Europe analogue that its exports are easily recognized. In an Isekai story this may be Inverted by giving the setting no analogues to anything Japanese, even curved swords or black hair, so that the protagonist can appear more cool and mysterious.
• "Yuusha": Japanese for "Person of Bravery", but usually translated into "Hero", the Yuusha is The Chosen One that uses or fights for "Light" and is destined to defeat the forces of Darkness — often, specifically the Maou. Like the Maou, the Yuusha is sometimes a Legacy Character destined to appear and reappear to continue the eternal conflict. Later works often avoid making the Yuusha The Protagonist, and often even make the role of "Yuusha" a title that can be held by multiple people that fit certain criteria, with some even fighting for Darkness instead of Light (or sometimes for neither or even both). In more cynicial works, these heroes may turn out to be incompetent or even evil.

Tropes More Common in Video Games and Light Novels

• Adventure Guild: An organisation with outposts in major cities, which provides job postings and sometimes accomodations for wandering adventurers. Often uses Schizo Tech like magical membership cards and long-distance communicators, and may have a device which measures the strength of new entrants (the readings from which can look suspiciously like a Class and Level System). Expect members to be divided into ranks based on precious metals (or in more futuristic settings, letters), which determine what missions they can accept.
• Bag of Holding: Items or spells which provide "extradimensional storage" will often exist in some fashion, though they're generally either expensive, difficult or a Unique Protagonist Asset.
• Dungeon Crawling: Dungeons are in some way a natural phenomenon, forming in areas of strong Mana or around the "core" of a Power Crystal or Lost Technology. They are capable of attracting, creating and/or influencing the behaviour of monsters, and can sometimes reshape the area into a maze. Generally the closer to the core of the dungeon, the more powerful monsters will become. A creature who gains control of a dungeon core is referred to as a dungeon master. Can show up even in Urban Fantasy, usually as Pocket Dimensions.
  • Dungeon-Based Economy: Because these kinds of dungeons can replenish their resources over time, it's not uncommon for towns to grow around them, sending in adventurers to farm the safer areas at regular intervals. Sometimes characters will attempt to create a "friendly" dungeon that lets people collect its treasures without risk, though it's rare for anyone to have succeeded at this before the story began.
• Magical Slavery: If slavery is practiced, slaves will have a magical collar or tattoo which binds them to their masters in some way. In most cases these bindings are highly regulated and require entering both parties into a Magically-Binding Contract (e.g. the collars can only be placed on willing Indentured Servants and prevent running away, but shatter when the agreed term of servitude is up) or even have features designed to protect slaves from cruel masters (e.g. transmitting a message to the authorities if their wearer experiences physical or emotional trauma), though a Black Market of permanent unconditional contracts may also exist. Very popular in Isekai stories, as the protagonist buying or sheltering a slave is an easy way to introduce a character familiar with local customs and give them reasons to stick with the party, though the usual reason is simply plain ol' Wish-Fulfillment.
• RPG Mechanics 'Verse: As Replays blend player and PC actions, characters being aware of their own stats is somewhat more common, with characters openly discussing their levels and skills as if they're just another fact of life. This also leads to a larger percentage of stories being an Affectionate Parody or set in a Fictional Video Game.
• Summon Everyman Hero: The princess of a troubled kingdom summons one or more Ordinary High School Students from Japan, imbuing them with powers in the process, after which she and her father ask them to defeat a Demon King. They need not be the actual protagonists, and in some works the current or past existence of such "summoned heroes" is simply a background detail. Sometimes setting elements that don't seem to fit the culture or time period will be explained as a past hero trying to introduce ideas from home (or a Genre Savvy protagonist will assume this to be the case).

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Examples of these settings in Japanese media:

Anime & Manga

• Delicious in Dungeon is a fairly grounded, low-fantasy take on this sort of setting (for example, there are no grand metaphysics at work in the world, adventurers exist but RPG mechanics do not, magic is generally small-scale and practical) but otherwise doesn't do anything revolutionary with it. That way, the reader needs minimal preparation before being introduced to the central conceit: what if you cooked and ate every monster you defeated while Dungeon Crawling?
• Final Fantasy: Lost Stranger: The world is modeled much like the Final Fantasy games Shogo and Shuko grew up with. They're amazed and elated to encounter so many familiar things like chocobos (though, Shogo's encyclopedic knowledge of the games does lead him astray when he misnames some of the local races).
• Interspecies Reviewers is a Deconstructive Parody that bases the setting on Rule of Sexy. Humans, demihumans, angels, orcs, elves, undead, and every other fantasy race you can think of all exist, but they're more concerned with having sex with each other than fighting. Most magic and Magitek also has a sexual use (primary or not) in this universe.
• The joke of Kemono Michi is that it takes place in a Standard Japanese Fantasy Setting, but the tropes involved are completely demolished by the idiosyncrasies of the protagonist, Genzo — an animal-loving pro wrestler named "Animal Mask". He (and his pet dog) are summoned by a princess during his last wrestling match before retirement. After learning that the task he was summoned for was to destroy the "demon beasts" plaguing the kingdom, he instead suplexes said princess and escapes. At the local Adventure Guild, he learns that this world has no concept of "pets", as all demon beasts are considered malevolent at best or pests at worst. With his insatiable (and often creepy) love for all things animal (including beastfolk), he decides instead to open the first-ever pet shop in this new world, using his ridiculous might to subdue and tame the various beasts the Guild would otherwise order destroyed. Along the way, the rival of one of his allies in turn summons his rival, Manchurian Ogre (aka "MAO") to act as the Maou to his Yuusha. All these, and many other standard tropes wind up completely turned on their head by the introduction of both pro-wrestling as a form of combat, and Genzo's unpredictable behavior.
• The Red Ranger Becomes an Adventurer in Another World: Red is dropped into one of these after his climactic battle with the Ender King, complete with a Maou the Demon King and previous examples of Summon Everyman Hero. His abilities befuddle the people of Idola's world, whose powers revolve largely around magic, and a bulk of the comedy is built around how badly his Stock Shōnen Hero personality and Toku hero sensibilities clash with the setting he's been thrown into.
• The Vision of Escaflowne is set in a world that, at first glance, seems like Medieval European Fantasy, but is actually much closer to this trope, between humans as a dominant species (complete with katana-wielding knights), mystical and obscure elf-lookalikes, numerous beastfolk species, the Atlanteans as precursors, and nature spirit-like dragons. Oh, and there are, of course, Humongous Mecha, which are powered by the Mana Crystals formed from dragon hearts.

Literature

• This trope is baked right into the DNA of the premise of I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level; the protagonist maxed out her level over the course of 300 years by killing Cute Slime Mooks. Her Family of Choice is comprised of a number of Cute Monster Girls ranging from slime spirits to a dragoness to a cute poltergeist to an elf, and a demoness as a Cool Big Sis. She finds out that she's reached max level via a nearby Adventure Guild, and mazoku (translated as "demons" in English) have their own society filled with a diverse assortment including ogres, trolls, animal-themed Beast Men, and so on. There are also gods and other deities, such as the one who reincarnated the protagonist and made her immortal in the first place.
• In Another World with My Smartphone ticks several boxes:
  • One of the first things the protagonist Touya does is join an Adventure Guild.
  • Beastkin and beast races exist and are looked down upon by certain elitist groups of humans.
  • The protagonist encounters expies of The Four Gods and eventually makes them his familiars.
  • There is a Japan-analogue called "Eashen".
  • There is an ancient civilization of precursors that were wiped out eons ago.
  • The protagonist eventually discovers the means to create Humongous Mecha called "Framegears".
• Maoyu takes place in a standard JRPG setting where Hero travels alone to take down the Demon Queen in hopes of ending the Human-Demon War. What he doesn't expect is that the Demon Queen is personable and would prefer to discuss economics and sociology to fighting. She then pulls apart the typical notions of an Action Hero and how killing her and ending the war wouldn't make anything better for humans or humanity before inviting Hero to help her work toward a world "beyond the hill" past simply ending the war.
• Record of Lodoss War is one of the Trope Codifiers for Japanese media. Originally an After-Action Report of a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, which was then published as a series of novels which would be adapted to every medium under the sun, it was the first introduction of many Japanese fans to D&D-style fantasy, later becoming the inspiration for dozens of manga, anime, light novels and video games.
• The Rising of the Shield Hero begins when multiple everymen from Japan are summoned to be "Yuushas", equipped with four separate sacred weapons. It takes place in an RPG Mechanics 'Verse where beastkin are discriminated against and often sold into slavery. In addition, later arcs reveal that there are four massive Kaiju which double as expies of The Four Gods.
• Slayers starts out parodying every trope on the list while still playing them relatively straight. Nominal Hero Lina Inverse, reluctant leader of a party of heroic adventurers, is a Black Magician Girl who has mastered a Fantastic Nuke spell, the Dragon Slave, which usually ends up destroying the very town she's been hired to protect. Monsters and mazoku are one and the same, and include many kinds of beastmen, with greater demons being higher-level mazoku, all the way up to Shabranigdo, God of Darkness. At least one clan of Shinzoku are Physical Gods who take the form of dragons.
• So I'm a Spider, So What? is set in an RPG Mechanics 'Verse that features morally-complex gods, a Hero, demon-lords, religious and abyssal magic, and the corruption and destruction of its denizens' souls in a cycle of reincarnation. Later revelations also indicate that the world is slowly dying thanks to overuse of The Lifestream — a problem that drives the underpinnings of the setting. In a parody of traditional isekai, the protagonist is reincarnated as a weak spider-monster in a labyrinth instead of as the Hero — with that honor eventually going to one of her classmates. Humans live in medieval-style kingdoms, most elves live in a Hidden Elf Village, and Monstrous Humanoid species like goblins and ogres live in isolated villages and are often regarded as being just another type of monster.
• That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is set in an RPG Mechanics 'Verse that mainly draws from medieval Europe but has a cabal of demon-lords and heroes who are often summoned or reincarnated from other universes. The main character, Satoru Mikami, is reincarnated as a slime dubbed Rimuru Tempest. He becomes the leader of a village of goblins (which evolve into hobgoblins), gradually accruing more followers of different monster species — including oni (which evolve into kijin), pig-man orcs, and lizardmen (which evolve into dragonewts). He also forges dipilomatic relations with some of the neighboring human and dwarven kingdoms; befriends dragon-gods, heroes, and demon lords; and wages war against a corrupt church and the kingdoms under its sway.

Video Games

• Chrono Trigger is all over the place with this trope. Because the game revolves around Time Travel, it creates a hodge-podge of many different tropes, from both Fantasy and Science Fiction. The three main protagonists are a Master Swordsman with Divine Magic, a Rebellious Princess with both archery (and a rare crossbow at that) with healing and Ice Magic, and a Gadgeteer Genius Gunner with Fire Magic. They are joined by a Magic Knight cursed with the body of a Frog, a robot from the future with a variety of weapons, a female cavewoman that fights with her bare hands, and a literal Maou that once led the demihumans to war against humans. The time periods they travel to vary from a post-Industrial early modern society, a medieval kingdom, an ancient magic society of Precursors, a prehistoric society, and a ruined future.
• Its sorta-sequel, Chrono Cross, furthers this by introducing more fantastic creatures like dwarves, fairies and mermaids, an expansionistic empire, a holy order of knights, and a corrupt false religion. The only thing the setting truly lacks are actual gods of any kind; it's later revealed that the "Dragon Gods" worshipped by demihumans are actually malevolent creations made by the Big Bad. The entity "FATE" worshipped by humans is actually a supercomputer from the far future seeking absolute control to ensure its own existence, and the aforementioned Big Bad is an alien parasite that has been manipulating human society since prehistoric times to provide itself with sustenance.
• Dark Souls was originally inspired by a Japanese guy reading and only partly understanding Western fantasy novels. As such, it has many of the hallmarks of this trope, including complex and fallible deities of Light (not entirely good) and Dark (not necessarily bad), deities of Life and Death (the flaws in both of which give rise to tormented demons and soulless undead hordes), Knight Templar priesthoods and holy warriors who draw on the Light to perform miracles and morally suspect offensive magic (divided into scholarly sorcery and primal pyromancy).
• Dragon Quest is one of the major Trope Codifiers of the setting. Most games focus on a Hero (Yuusha) on a quest to defeat a demon lord of some type. Almost every "Yuusha" in Japanese fantasy are thus inspired by the DQ protagonists. Amongst the many types of monsters and enemies established within the game, the franchise was the Trope Maker of the Cute Slime Mook. Several light novels take heavy inspiration from this franchise for thematic inspiration, specifically Dragon Quest III due to its wild popularity in Japan.
• Final Fantasy is not one world but many, with some entries being more standard than others. The series is the Trope Maker for standard RPG magic classes, and its Job system includes at least one of each class on the list, sometimes combining them into character in games with a smaller cast. Magic crystals are omnipresent, and usually significant to the plot. Elves and orcs are rare, but there's usually a few goblins as early enemies, Elemental Rock-Paper-Scissors slime enemies in the form of Flans, and at least one beastfolk race. Actual demons and gods are rare, with the role of religion typically instead going to otherworldly spirits or beasts (most commonly known as Eidolons) and their summoners.
  • Final Fantasy is much more of a Standard Western Fantasy than the later games, fighting D&D specific monsters like liches and mind flayers which became less common later in the series. But it did introduce the standard classes of Fighter, Thief, Monk/Black Belt, White Mage, and Black Mage, and included some then-unusual additions such as a Humongous Mecha as a late-game boss and a Cool Airship.
  • Moogles first appeared as forest-dwelling cute mascot race in III and have served in that capacity in every main entry from V onward.
  • Final Fantasy IV introduces summon magic, and the Land of Summons — powerful magical creatures/spirits which can be magically called to the caster's aid. These appear in every subsequent entry, sometimes by names other than Summon or Eidolon — on several occasions as the Kaiju-sized threat which levels a city or castle.
  • The world of Ivalice, as seen in Ivalice Alliance games (starting with Final Fantasy Tactics, later appearing in a numbered entry in Final Fantasy XII), is perhaps the straightest example, a densely historical setting of war and political intrigue. While Hume (humans) empires control most of the setting, there are many prominent beastfolk characters, from the lizard-like Bangaa and Pig Man Seeq to the furry, masked Garifs and aloof, rabbit-eared Vieras, who live in secluded forest villages.
  • This trope is best demonstrated with Final Fantasy XIV which, in addition to establishing its own complicated lore and setting, is heavily inspired by previous games in the series. For example, part of the backstory is that there are multiple generations of Precursors, as an Eternal Recurrence is that the world gets repeatedly destroyed during multiple eras of prosperity. Further, Hyur (Humans) are the most widespread race, but there are also the Elezen (Elves), Lalafell (Halflings/Dwarves), Rogaedyn (Giants), as well as the cat-like Miqote and Hrothgar. Most races from older Final Fantasy installments also return, such as the Bangaa and bunny-like Viera. There are also groups of "Beast races" which receive varying degrees of discrimination. There's an evil empire wielding advanced Magitek, a religious kingdom doused with heavy Anime Catholicism and fighting a Forever War against dragons, multiple stand-ins for Japan, an eternal struggle between entities of Light and Dark, and even giant Kaiju and Humongous Mecha. And naturally, the series has most of its usual character classes, such as Paladins, Bards, Monks, White Mages, Black Mages, and of course, Ninja and Samurai.
• The Legend of Zelda is another Trope Codifier, originally drawing heavy inspiration from The Lord of the Rings and other western fantasy. Over time, the game has also incorporated many other elements of Japanese fantasy; Ganon was conceived as a "Maou" from the beginning, but the fact that he, Link and Princess Zelda are destined to eternally reincarnate to battle each other was added in later games, as were concepts like different brands of Precursors, which are more explicitly magical in earlier games but tend to leave much more technological legacies in later ones, and a variety of deities, spirits and demonic entities. The series' mortal races don't fit into either the Western or Japanese archetypes very closely, as they tend to be original creations, but there are usually a variety of the Nature Spirit sei races (such as the Kokiri/Korok forest children, the fairies, and the wise and ancient Great Deku Tree), the monstrous hordes of the ma races under Ganon's thrall, and holy shin beings (such as the goddess Hylia and a variety of lesser deities and immortal dragons).

Examples of these settings in other media:

Fan Works

• The Good Hunter, a crossover between Bloodborne and Monster Girl Encyclopedia (MGE), has the MGE 'verse. Further details of the world building of the MGE 'verse can be found in the wiki here.
  • In terms of inhabitants, aside from your typical Standard Fantasy Races like humans, elves, and dwarves, a whopping 220 types of mamono exist. Despite their variations, they generally have the desire to seek human males for companionship and reproduction. However, due to the current Monster Lord's power, the mamono have developed a strong, lustful desire for mating with said humans, with or without their consent. The succubus family, in particular, can transform non-mamono males and females into incubi and succubi respectively, again, with or without their consent.
  • The setting of this fanfic does not work like an RPG, but elements of Character Classes can be found. For example, Cyril is a multi-melee Magic Knight, Wilmarina is a Master Swordsman, Daria is an axe-wielding berserker, Druella is a Black Mage, and Jophiel is a valkyrie that resembles a paladin.
  • Light/Darkness Juxtaposition in a nominal sense is prevalent in the story, as shown from the conflict between the Order of the Chief God and the Monster Lord, though not to the extent of a cyclic conflict, just a very long one. The "light" side fosters human heroes via the blessings and guidance of the Chief God to fight against the mamono, while the "dark" side is, of course, more concerned about sexual intercourse than anything else. Both beings of power demonstrate Well-Intentioned Extremism. The "dark" side claims to strive for a Free-Love Future between man and monster, while using contradictory means (i.e. mating without the consent of their partner) to accomplish this vision. Meanwhile, the "light" side consists of Knight Templars who opt for a Final Solution to deal with the problems brought by the "dark" side.

Literature

• The Beginning After the End, being a non-Japanese take on the Isekai genre, naturally takes place in one of these albeit with its own unique spin.
  • In terms of races, it features the trinity of humans, elves, and dwarves, who inhabit the continent of Dicathen. It has its own take on the demon race in the form of the Vritra Clan of basilisks and their Alacryan Servant Race, who are ostensibly humans but with the blood of the Vritra making them sport various inhuman features, most notably Horns of Villainy. The basilisks themselves are one of the eight races of Asuras, the Physical Gods of the world who are essentially a Mage Species responsible for uplifting the mortal populations of both Dicathen and Alacrya, and their ranks include more esoteric races such as dragons, phoenixes, leviathans, hamadryads, sylphs, titans, and the unique pantheon race whom are the Proud Warrior Race among them. There is even a long-extinct race of Precursors, the Djinn, who not only left behind their ruins across both Dicathen and Alacrya, but from whom the protagonist and his family descend from.
  • The setting is primarily a Medieval European Fantasy and despite not being a true RPG Mechanics 'Verse does feature several RPG-esque elements. Aside from the usual Adventure Guilds, Dungeon Crawling, and E to S rank classifications for both adventurers and mana beasts, the progression of mages can be assessed via the level of their mana core, which range from black all the way to white. Mana crystals are used in the creation of various artifacts, and there exist beast wills which not only can be used in the same fashion, but can also empower mages with the abilities of the beasts they came from. In addition, both Dicathen and Alacrya are mostly in Medieval Stasis due to Magitek having taken precedence over mundane technology, and Fantasy Gun Control is in effect with gunpowder weapons being a relatively new innovation.
  • The story seems to invoke a Light/Darkness Juxtaposition as seen in the Divine Conflict between the Indrath and the Vritra, but it ultimately turns out to be a major case of God and Satan Are Both Jerks. The Vritra are already reprehensible enough given their warmongering, Fantastic Racism towards their Alacryan subjects, and unethical experimentation, but it is revealed that the reason for their Start of Darkness was because they uncovered the Dark Secret of the Indrath and got exiled for it. It is revealed that the Indrath committed genocide on the ancient Djinn out of petty jealousy over their mastery of aether, and even in the present prove to be no better than the Vritra given how they are still callous Knight Templars who care little for the lives of the mortals caught up in their conflict. Notably, despite this portrayal, the religious aspect is heavily downplayed as the Asuras, despite being perceived as gods, are not often worshipped.

Video Games

• Genshin Impact is a sandbox RPG which took some influence from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild plus most of the contents of this trope, including a protagonist that is Trapped in Another World, characters with common anime stereotypes, enemies like Slimes and Hilichurls, and a I Will Find You main plot that will lead him/her to wondering all the new world looking for "The Seven". It's very "Japanese Fantasy Setting" but it was made by Chinese company miHoYo, the creators of Honkai Impact 3rd.

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