Heroic Fantasy Companion

Forge heroes, build worlds, and shape epic quests with this system-neutral sourcebook for heroic fantasy roleplaying.

They don’t start heroic. Most stories forget that. But every legend began with someone unproven who stood up anyway. Someone who didn’t wait to be ready. Someone who carried fear and still moved forward. Heroic fantasy isn’t about perfection. It’s about rising. About faltering and choosing to try again. The sword matters less than the reason it’s drawn.

Heroic Fantasy Companion is a narrative-first sourcebook built to bring that kind of story to your tabletop. It works with any system, but it thrives alongside The Simple Approach, using the same modular structure and random roll options to shape characters, worlds, and arcs that matter. This isn’t a manual for tactical advantage. It is a toolbox for human-scale drama, daring choices, and mythic transformation.

Inside, you’ll find character traits that grow with your story, names and identities shaped by narrative weight, and worldbuilding seeds that turn into lived-in places. The prompts, complications, and adventure hooks are written for play that centers emotion, stakes, and storytelling. Every table is different. This book gives you tools that work no matter the tone, pace, or players. Whether you're building a humble farm-born fighter or a scion of ancient magic lost to time, the material here adapts.

You don’t need to be a lore expert. You don’t need to prep a three-act campaign. You don’t even need a perfect group. You just need the will to play out a story that feels like it belongs in the oldest part of the world. Heroic fantasy isn’t distant. It is close enough to reach. And when it is built from character-first decisions, even the smallest moment can echo like prophecy.

Use this book how you want. Flip through for what you need or roll to discover something unexpected. It is meant to spark ideas, ease the load of preparation, and make it easier to say yes to the next story. You’ll find drama here. Struggle. Nobility. Failure. Grace. The beginning of something greater.

Let the journey shape the hero. Let the hero begin with you.

This Book Contains

Inside this volume, you’ll find:

Heroic Fantasy

A breakdown of the genre’s history, tropes, and essential elements, what defines it, what complicates it, and what keeps it alive at the table.

Characters

Everything needed to develop detailed, genre-true characters:

• 100 Personalities

• 100 Appearances

• 100 Archetype Traits

• 100 Identity Traits

• 100 Strength Traits

• 100 Weakness Traits

• 100 Drive Traits

• 100 Given Names

• 100 Surnames

Worldbuilding

Tools for developing a setting with weight, tone, and thematic cohesion:

• 100 Worldbuilding Prompts

• 100 Openness Traits

• 100 Resources Traits

• 100 Advanced Knowledge Traits

• 100 Weirdness Traits

• 100 Agency Traits

• 100 Moral Clarity Traits

Factions

Build institutions, cabals, cultures, and syndicates that reflect the genre’s tensions and power structures:

• 100 Faction Types

• 100 Cultural Impact Traits

• 100 Influence Traits

• 100 Knowledge & Innovation Traits

• 100 Mobility & Reach Traits

• 100 Power Projection Traits

• 100 Secrecy Traits

Adventures

Hooks that open stories without locking you in:

• 100 Plots

• 100 Obstacles

• 100 Stakes

• 100 Plot Twists

• 100 Intrinsic Rewards

• 100 Extrinsic Rewards

• Each element tailored to reflect the genre’s stakes and narrative tone.

Glossary

Essential terms and conceptual vocabulary that ground your understanding of the genre.

Bibliography

Curated sources, inspirations, and essential readings that define the genre and open new doors for exploration.