Warrior Poet / Video Games

• The cyclops Gargarensis, who also happens to be one of the main antagonists of the Age of Mythology campaigns. For some reason, he loves quoting Lepanto during cutscenes.
• 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 Bedokaan shaman to teach you of the "Cold-Blooded Dream" in exchange for teaching him some human philosophy, and challenging the Big Bad to a debate and showing him so many holes in his logic that he submits to an assisted suicide).
• Betrayal at Krondor has Gorath, whose Warrior-Poet views are the main point of conflict between him and the rest of his race.
• Borderlands:
  • Zer0 speaks in Haiku whenever he speaks longer than one or two words. Some are beautifully written prose, others... not so much. He only breaks this rule when he becomes flustered, as demonstrated in an ECHO log in Meridian Metroplex when he met Lorelei for the first time.
  • FL4K in Borderlands 3 has a tendency towards the theatrical, especially when they wax lyrically over their faux-religious belief in a concept called "The Hunt". They were originally meant to have more theatrical dialogue in general, but this idea was scrapped during development.
• A few civilizations and leaders in the Civilization series are characterized this way if they're geared towards both military and cultural might. In VI, for example, Japan under Hojo Tokimune will approve of other civilizations who have both a strong military and a high amount of culture or faith and will be more friendly to them; conversely he disapproves of those who have one but not the other.
  Hojo Tokimune: (agenda-based disapproval) To follow Bushido is to train the mind, the body, and the soul... but where can your people do so?
• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3:
  • The Emperor is repeatedly shown indulging in traditional pastimes like bonsai trimming and calligraphy, and clearly expects his son and his troops to aspire towards the same.
  • According to the manual, Tsunami tank crews have calligraphy as part of their training, being meant to be modern-age Samurai.
• The Hashashins from Conqueror's Blade are "highly educated and cultured, sometimes composing epic poems based on their experiences in war." Their voice lines back this up:
  "Our enemies shall fall as surely as the sun sets."
  "Our principles are beyond your understanding."
• Genesis of Crisis Core, seriously if his army didn't consist entirely of clones of himself, they'd be wondering what exactly to make of his orders which consisted entirely of quote from his favorite play.
• The Leper in Darkest Dungeon is an absolutely brutal warrior capable of enduring an incredible amount of pain simply because it pales in comparison to the agony of his condition. He is also a thoughtful, introspective man, eloquent even when the stresses of the dungeon take their toll... with one exception.
  Normal Leper: [lands a Critical Hit] Summer before the Fall.
  Paranoid Leper: Lions in the savanna. A lone campfire.
  Masochistic Leper: Cut away the dead meat. Search out my soul.
  Abusive Leper: There are better ways to fill a teacup than with a storm.
  Selfish Leper: Death is inevitable. But the cause is my choice alone.
  Hopeless Leper: Even steel may shatter in the cold.
  Irrational Leper: Fish oil wasted on the ramparts. Slime down the abbey.
• The backstory for the Tarth species in DEADLOCK: Planetary Conquest includes a Tarth named Guh, who lived as a warrior. After he received what he believed to be a mortal wound, he resigned himself to death...until he looked up at one of the planet's moons and saw movement. He regained his will to live and went on to become a famous astronomer. A statue in his honour depicts him impaled on a spear, looking at the sky through a telescope.
• The Druid player character in Diablo II is this, along with his entire Druidic society inhabiting the northern forests of Scosglen. Thematically, it is their philosophical, academic, and spiritual pursuits, which distinguish them from their barbarian cousins, both in daily living and as integrated into warfare. According to official sources, anyway.
• The Elder Scrolls:
  • In Morrowind, Tribunal deity Vivec is considered one, and actually has it as part of his title: "Warrior Poet and Guardian God-King of the Holyland of Vvardenfell." As the mortal Vehk, he served the legendary hero Lord Nerevar as a junior councilor and General. After ascending to godhood, he would go on to serve as the protector of the Dunmer people from all manner of threats. He thwarted the malevolent plans of various Daedric Princes in order to protect Morrowind repeatedly, including using his "spear," MUATRA to slay the monster children he begat with Molag Bal, one of those Daedric Princes. He is also a prolific author, in particular penning The 36 lessons of Vivec, a series of books detailing his godly exploits in very cryptic and heavily metaphorical terms. (They're quite exaggerated and Metaphorically True at best, with some outright Blatant Lies at worst.) If one digs deeply into the stories, you can also uncover some Fourth Wall Breaking. However, since Michael Kirkbride, who wrote the Lessons, did not write Vivec's in-game dialogue, Vivec seems way too plain-spoken for a poet when you meet him in-game. (It's also plausible, given the seriousness of the situation along with his impending loss of divinity, that he's dropped his godly facade a bit to be more plain-spoken and direct in Saving the World.
  • While seen as little better than Horny Vikings or a Barbarian Tribe by the other races of Tamriel, Nord culture fits. Yes, they are a Proud Warrior Race who greatly enjoys the thrill and glory of battle, but they are also a deeply religious and traditional people, with great respect for their Skalds and a strong bardic element present.
  • Like their Nord cousins, the Noble Savage Skaal people of Solstheim have this present in their culture, but take it even farther. Epic, primarily oral poetry is their standard means of passing down stories and myths. They are also a group of Badass Natives who manage to live in a place so inhospitable that every other group who has tried has struggled mightily.
  • Topal the Pilot, the legendary Aldmeri Bold Explorer, was a noted raconteur in addition to his skills as a ships captain, survivalist, cartographer, and archer. The in-game book Father of the Niben is what remains of his account of being the first Aldmer to explore Tamriel.
• Ulysses from Fallout: New Vegas. He's as badass as humans come in the Fallout universe, but he also has a philosophical, almost mystical way of speaking that's completely unheard of anywhere else in the Mojave. He's also very well versed in Pre-War history, which is very unusual in this series.
• Final Fantasy:
  • In Dissidia Final Fantasy, nearly all of the ten protagonists come off as this, since they all got a wise side to share.
  • Kuja, however, has a theatrical background that makes him a literal example.
  • Bards in Final Fantasy XIV, with the "Warrior" part emphasized more than Bards usually are - despite having magical abilities, Bards here are one of the Disciple Of War classes, rather than the Disciple Of Magic, and are actually an evolution of the Archer class. It is the "Warrior" part that powers the "Poet" part, as it is a Bard's empathy with his fellow soldier that gives their Magic Music its power. The art of Bard fighting nearly went extinct because hired minstrels who never fought in battle or existing Bards embellishing tales to the point of disconnect from events lacked the Emotional Powers needed.
• Fire Emblem:
  • Blood Knight Karel managed to turn into one of these after Fire Emblem 7. In the chronological sequel, Fire Emblem 6, he's a calm and philosophical swordsman, a far cry from his bloodthirsty younger self.
  • Forde from Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is one of Those Two Cavaliers and a very accomplished painter, as well as a good map-maker. Two of his three possible endings involve him becoming famous due to his artistic talent.
  • The kunoichi Kagero from Fire Emblem Fates enjoys painting and tea ceremonies in her free time and she even has her own art studio.
• Tai Kaliso of the Gears of War series communicates almost solely via poetic waxing.
• Genshin Impact: Kazuha is a Rōnin who speaks in an elegant, almost mystical manner, recites poetry in his spare time, and is as deft with his sword as he is with his words. Interestingly, the English dub at least, has him subvert what'd you'd expect out of a well spoken samurai - he's a skilled verse poet focused on meter, rhyming, and even a good helping of alliteration, but he considers himself to be bad at haikus.
• Ghost of Tsushima suggests that writing Haiku is a good way for Samurai to hone their minds, and has an actual gameplay mechanic in which you can write Haiku while contemplating the beauty of nature, clearing your mind between Mongol Massacres.
• Slayer from Guilty Gear, being the Cultured Badass he is, has a fondness for poetry, Haiku especially. In many of his win quotes, he composes a Haiku for the opponent he had just defeated, and his Instant Kill attack has him reciting a Haiku as he punches his opponent into another galaxy.
• Hollow Knight:
  • 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 losing his mind wasn't worth the power it came with,) and other topics.
  • "Zote the Mighty", a would-be wandering knight, styles himself as this, with his "57 Precepts of Zote" ranging from Captain Obvious (Precept Twelve: 'Keep Your Cloak Dry') to startlingly relevant to the game's deeper lore (Precept Fifty-Six: 'Do Not Dream'). However, for all his boasting, he's an utterly incompetent fighter.
• The King of Fighters Kyo Kusanagi, believe it or not. Poetry is a hobby of his, making him a literal example of this. Though he's not very good at it.
• The titular character from Klonoa is a pretty good poet and his poems talks about dreams (as seen in intros of some of his games).
• Canderous Ordo from Knights of the Old Republic gets very poetic when describing his past battles.
• Li Bai from Lyrica is a famous poet from the Tang Dynasty, and is apparently as almost adept with the sword as he is with words. However, this is ultimately subverted, as the scene where he used his sword fighting skills is revealed to be All Just a Dream, and he is never actually involved in any physical combat.
• Mass Effect:
  • Wrex is surprisingly philosophical for your average reptilian Bounty Hunter. Ashley Williams as well, in what is actually a quite literal example: she really does quote poetry. Classical poetry as a matter of fact, and she gets the quotation right, too. She also examines her own religious and philosophical learnings and the impact that space travel and aliens have on the theoretical existence of God.
  • There is a Krogan Warrior reciting love poems in the second game. His poetry shows up again in the third game, in a tearjerking manner.
  • Grunt is a rather amusing subversion, as he spends a lot of his time during the game musing on his place in the universe and his reason for being. Indeed, many of his statements are quite poetic, and this eventually leads him to his ultimate conclusion... that he really likes killing things. He seems to consider this a great spiritual victory, and who are you to disagree? According to the Shadow Broker's files on him, he has become a fan of Ernest Hemingway (though he didn't like A Farewell to Arms very much).
  • The Shadow Broker's file on Jack (Subject Zero) show that she wrote a poem for Galactic Poetry Monthly, but her poem wasn't accepted due to not following guidelines on proper meter. Jack's poetry also seems to be less a cultured pursuit, and more a way of grappling with her own personal demons (of which she has plenty).
  • Kasumi is revealed to have written several haiku (again, from the Shadow Broker's files).
• Metal Gear:
  • Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid is a particularly schizophrenic example — one moment he's gunning down countless enemies with brutal efficiency, and the next moment he's discussing the meaning of life, morality, and nature, while simultaneously agonizing about the agony of being a soldier.
  • In terms of literal poetry — he does deliver legitimately evocative soliloquies at the start of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and at the end of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, although he does have quite a few clunkers at other moments.
  • Raiden, as well. In Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Raiden mentions a quote from Bushido describing his policy of using violence to save lives, with the Prime Minister he was bodyguarding remarking "A soldier and a philosopher!" Later, he berates himself for "arguing philosophy with terrorists" before fighting Monsoon.
  • The Boss, the mentor of Big Boss, is one of the greatest soldiers who ever lived and her experiences have made her very wise to the workings of the world, wisdom that she doesn't hold back when talking to her most beloved student.
• Captain John Price from Modern Warfare.
  • 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, he has a rather awesome change of pace with some rather poetic speeches in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. They in simple terms are No More Holding Back Speeches which he delivers to Soap to show him how there is no need to be afraid of fighting 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 Shepherd before they can die.
    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.
    Price: This is for the record... 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. 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 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, during the aftermath of Shepherd's death, Price began to contemplate the effects of lies and truth that became the cause of World War 3, both by the late Shepherd, who became the cause of Soap and Price declared as war criminals, and 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 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 Makarov foiled a peace treaty that would end the war peacefully.
    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.
• It might come as a surprise to some that Mortal Kombat of all games contains a few of them, seeing as the premise of the games essentially boil down to seeing how horrifically you can mutilate your opponent. The standout examples are Nightwolf and Kai, but even guys like Raiden and Younger Sub-Zero can get pretty pithy with their speeches at times.
• Koal of Nintendo Wars, being an Expy of Sun Tzu, invokes this trope, calling himself "a warrior and a scholar", and generally speaking like an old samurai movie.
• Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous: Party member Sosiel Vaenic is a cleric of Shelyn, goddess of beauty and the fine arts. This makes him a medium-armored Magic Knight with a spear 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.
• Power Gig: Rise of the SixString has the Followers of Zhen clan, a group of musical warrior mage-priests. As music is both sacred and used for combat, their art is their weapon of choice! Many of them also engage in philosophy and some even take vows that reflect their personal beliefs on their path towards enlightenment.
• John Marston from Red Dead Redemption is very well-read for a former bandit and has a very developed vocabulary, especially considering the literacy rate of the time. So long as it's in English, of course. Arthur Morgan, the sequel's protagonist, is an even more accurate version of this trope, complete with artistic skills.
• Signy from Regalia: Of Men and Monarchs, as a member of a shamanistic warrior tribe, frequently speaks in animal and/or nature metaphors.
• Shingen, Kenshin, Nagamasa, and a few others from Sengoku Basara quote or compose poetry a couple times during/after battles. Then again, they're all samurai, so it was expected.
• Monster Knight Gaichû from Shadowrun Returns: Hong Kong is a former Renraku Red Samurai, with a college degree in Japanese literature and an appreciation for the fine arts: Even as a Ghoul his philosophy of perfectionism and his ability to self-reflect on the weaknesses and advantages of his transformation helped him remain sane. His room in The Bolthole contains a box of mementos, almost all of which are cultural in nature, and he will happily discuss them and their meaning at length with the Player Character. He defies the stereotype of the samurai in one way, however: His calligraphy (a stereotypical Samurai pastime) was awful even before Ghoulhood rendered him blind. He keeps a calligraphy set as a gift from one of his professors, but has no desire to actually use it.
• Colonel Corazon Santiago shows signs of this in Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. As with all faction leaders, the game occasionally gives quotes from her, ostensibly excerpts from books she's written, and while her philosophical side is very military-oriented and bleak, it's also perfectly suited for the Death World she and her followers have landed on.
• Yoshimitsu of both the Soul Series and Tekken usually speaks in metaphors.
• Agent 8 in Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion writes poetry in iambic octometer for each of the eighty mem cakes. Some of these express their eagerness to join Inkling society, which, as hedonistic and commercial as it is, is vastly preferable to life under the Octarian regime. Others are introspective, contemplative, or simply artistic musings on both their past and current happenings. A pity they don't speak Inkling nearly as well.
• The entire Protoss race from 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 sequel, since they've suffered so many losses that they need their old war machines and more.
• Street Fighter has had several over the years. More standout examples include Sagat, Gouken, Akuma, Gen, Rose, Guy, and (to a slightly lesser extent) Ryu. Guy's master, Zeku, is probably the most straightforward example, as almost all of his win quotes are written in haiku format.
• In Vega Strike, surprisingly, Rlaan communications show the signs of this. Such as:
  "Hulls pop like vibrant seeds. Splashing photons in a void. I am sticky."
• Thrall in Warcraft III. One of the Expanded Universe novels contains a Fictional Document which is basically a heroic poem he writes about his own father.
• BJ Blazkowicz seems to have evolved into this in Wolfenstein: The New Order from his generic action man persona from the previous games. He delivers most of his dialogue in a subdued melancholic whisper dripping with prose and is able to come up with flowery musings on the fly.
  "Death at the gates again. Howling my name. Can't greet you today. I have a war to win."
• Xenoblade Chronicles 3: An off-seer's role on the battlefield is to mourn the dead by playing a flute. While they tend to be accompanied by other soldiers serving as their bodyguards, the main characters Noah and Mio are both incredibly strong warriors on their own. Notably, they continue to perform their off-seer duties even after becoming fugitives, are prone to discussing topics related to the meaning of life and death, and some camp scenes show them playing their flutes for fun. Noah in particular outright expresses a desire to write his own music and is seen as a bit of an airhead by his childhood friends, but you do not ever want to make him fight you.