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Message: <blockquote data-quote="kipling" data-source="post: 1342814" data-attributes="member: 14955">The operating distinction I've used I probably cribbed from Hero Games' Fantasy Hero many years ago. High Fantasy (or Epic Fantasy) often makes a conscious choice to deal with Good Vs. Evil. Magic is powerful and can be used by either side. Protagonists may or may not wield magic. The scale tends to be larger, and often involves higher society: kings, for example. "High" describes both scale and social level, but that's not an absolute requirement. Though the stakes of good-vs.-evil are clear-cut, the actions of the individuals may not be: one can start good and turn evil, or vice versa, but the stakes are clear.Sword and Sworcery (which may or may not be low fantasy) does not have the good vs. evil focus; morality is less clear-cut and on a smaller scale. Protagonists tend not to have access to powerful magics; powerful magic tends to be restricted to bad guys who have to wait for the moon to be right or sacrifice the gorgeous virgin. A fast sword will often beat a spell. Powerful magic is often, well, evil. Howard's Conan stories often carry a flavour that barbarians are purer, less corrupt, less decadent--that's something one encounters elsewhere, but I think it's more about the rather darwinian world of S&S than about the genre itself. The scale tends to be smaller, restricted to an individual kingdom or duchy or city at a time, rather than encompassing the entire world.Neither of these is absolute: these are categories applied after the writing, not before.I like S'mon's summary that in S&S power, not morality, is what matters.</blockquote>

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