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There are as many monsters as there are fantasy worlds. Each one brings something to the table that the others don’t. The same is especially true of the fantasy giant, a beast not just known for its colossal size but the might it wields. It is easily capable of destroying things using just a fraction of its awesome strength.
The typical giant is not benevolent in nature. It is a violent creature and it knows it possesses unparalleled strength which it uses to devastating effect. When facing it in battle, it won’t be a brief fight but more of a drawn-out skirmish since bringing one down is notoriously difficult, if not outright impossible.
Due to its height, the fantasy giant prefers places far off the beaten path. That is, it doesn’t like crowded areas like cities, preferring instead a number of other places like caves or mountains. Seasoned travelers, when they know they are entering giant territory, come with protection and strive to avoid engaging with one at all costs.
The giant’s overall role in the world is customarily at the side of evil where it uses its considerable strength to wreak havoc and cause chaos. On the battlefield, it can easily rip entire trees out of the ground and use it as a weapon in which to knock off entire rows of enemy soldiers or use its hands to swat them away like flies.
This is article number four in the series chronicling the different kinds of fantasy creatures. For more, take a look at our blog page where there’s many more you can peruse!
In basically every world it appears in, the giant is presented not as a noble creature but as a vicious, violent one. It is a monster who enjoys tearing people apart limb to limb. It would be unwise to underestimate the nature of this beast when coming across one and one that ought to be avoided at all costs.
The average fantasy giant can be over ten or twenty feet high, almost as tall as a house or mid-size building. It isn’t a skinny monster but rather a large, bulky one. In fact, each footstep it takes can sound like an earthquake or thunder, depending on how heavy it is. Though it may have a humanoid-like face and appearance, it is more primal in nature.
Many giants communicate using grunts and other sounds. They have their own language that only they use which makes it difficult for humans to easily converse with them, that is, the ones who they’ve decided doesn’t pose a threat to them. They are easily provoked and one misstep can lead to a giant becoming irate.
While some giants live together akin to a community, they are prone to killing each other over even the smallest thing. To many giants, killing things, whether they be animals like fish or humans, is a sport. They even bond over it and they have no qualms about feasting upon the carcasses of the things they kill.
Due to its massive girth, facing a fantasy giant on battle requires great courage and quick feet. The beastly creature will employ everything in its arsenal, including its size, to deal with its opponent. Taking one down is no easy feat for it will take time and energy to successfully bring it down.
Due to their savage nature, there aren’t a lot of giants in the world. They live in places where people seldom go which makes going on adventures scary, notably for inexperienced travelers. The areas giants call home are places to be avoided at all costs.
One common place you’re likely to come across a fantasy giant is somewhere in the mountains. It could be on its lower valleys or further up on a rocky plateau or something similar. The giant is fond of mountains since it’s not a place that gets a lot of visitors which makes it the perfect place for it to reside since it has access to water and the animals that also live there.
Seasoned travelers know that forests are another site where the giant lives. It resides in the depths, the innermost part that receives little sunlight. This beast is fond of pulling up trees by the root and just generally wreaking havoc in the forest which causes all of the critters to flee and remain away.
The third place the fantasy giant calls home is the cave. It’s one of the best places for it, since it’s typically pitch-black and not many people would step foot inside. It uses the cave to sleep at all hours of the day, knowing that it won’t be disturbed by someone foolish enough to venture in without carrying protection.
In rare cases, you can find a giant inside an abandoned building far off the beaten path. It could a castle, ruined house, or another structure. Such places give it excellent shelter from the elements and enable it to make it a home it can call its own.
In the vast majority of the worlds the giant appears in, it is depicted as an agent of evil, albeit a slow-witted one. It moves at a lethargic pace though it is capable of inflicting massive damage at a moment’s notice, far more than the troll it dwarfs. Though it isn’t necessarily an intelligent creature, it would be a grave mistake to underestimate it.
Many giants hate humans and humanoids, making them excellent tools for the forces to evil to use in their campaigns for world domination. They are essentially wreaking balls, easily tearing people apart and leveling buildings. Whenever one or more appear in an urban community, it won’t be long before many of its structures experience catastrophic damage.
One area where the fantasy giant truly shines is on the battlefield. It makes great use of its bulky mass to dispatch rows of enemy soldiers in one fell swoop, whether by stepping foot on them or hitting them with their hands and arms. The weapons they carry can pierce the skin, causing death instantly. Taking one down is not for the faint of heart; it will take time, abundant courage, and quick feet to successfully bring one down.
Though the dark powers rely on trolls to move heavy machinery and siege towers, they use giants as well. In some cases, trolls will guard them as they maneuver these war contraptions into position though they might not necessarily get along. Having giants move them makes it virtually impossible for the enemy to prevent the machines of war from reaching their destination since they are difficult to slay.
The fantasy giant is a force of nature to be reckoned with, for it can pull a tree out by its roots when it’s angry or squash someone like a bug. In the stories it appears in, it is a formidable adversary the protagonist must face. If you haven’t given much thought to incorporating such a beast in your world and story, there’s no better time to start than today!
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