This Forgotten Masterpiece Influenced Many of the Best Fantasy Books of the Last 40 Years

In the 21st century, few literary genres have been as universally beloved or impactful as fantasy. Arguably the oldest genre in any medium, fantasy remains a source of entertainment, thanks to its ability to immerse audiences in new, daring, magical worlds outside the confines of reality and defy every possibility. It’s no surprise that countless fantasy books come out every year, and the genre shows no signs of stopping.

Modern fantasy stories usually fall into either hard or soft magic, depending on the book’s worldbuilding. Hard magic refers to those systems that have rigorous, well-defined rules and limitations, establishing the reach and impact of the power clearly. Many popular authors, from Brandon Sanderson to Patrick Rothfuss, have greatly contributed to the development of hard magic this century. However, they owe everything to a seminal book from 1980: Lyndon Hardy‘s Master of the Five Magics, a foundational entry into modern fantasy and a clear predecessor of hard magic.

What Is ‘Master of the Five Magics’ About?

Image via Bartizan Press

Set in the fictional land of Procolon, Master of the Five Magics centers on young Alodar, a humble man who seeks to earn the hand in marriage of Queen Vendora and restore his family’s honor. To do it, Alodar goes on a quest to master the five known disciplines of magic: Thaumaturgy, contagious magic based on sympathy; Alchemy, potions ruled by probability; Magic, creation through strict formulas; Sorcery, mind control and illusion; and Wizardry, the long-forgotten art of summoning dangerous demons.

The book is divided into six parts. The first five are focused on each of the five disciplines, while the sixth one sees Alodar using everything he has learned to battle an imminent threat. Master of the Five Magics follows a classic hero’s journey, to the point where Alodar ultimately chooses to abandon his marriage intentions and instead continues pursuing knowledge, hoping to one day reach the title of Archmage.

‘Master of the Five Magics’ Pioneered Hard Fantasy

Image via Bartizan Press

Today, most fantasy authors stick to either hard or soft magic. As previously mentioned, hard magic refers to a strict system governed by established rules and with well-defined boundaries that make the power both more immersive and far more daunting as a reader. In contrast, soft magic refers to magic that is far more elusive and mystical; parts of it are unclear, with the author deliberately keeping them a secret, thus making it feel more ancient, alluring, and mysterious. Think of the Force in Star Wars or the magic of the old gods in A Song of Ice and Fire: you don’t fully understand it because Lucas and Martin don’t want you to.

Considering these definitions, we can safely say Master of the Five Magics falls strictly in the hard magic category. In fact, it’s among the earliest books to establish a carefully constructed magic system with a conscious reasoning behind each of its disciplines. Take Alchemy, which is governed by the Doctrine of Signatures: it establishes that each ingredient has specific physical attributes, which in turn dictate the powers of a potion. Magic creates objects through formulas that must be perfect; any flaw will result in failure, and the objects created under the right conditions will last forever. For Wizardry, fire is the key to opening the portal to the realm of demons. The Law of Dichotomy states that, once a demon appears, a contest of wills will determine who is the slave and who is the master; there must always be one of each.

The worldbuilding here is nothing short of impressive. Hardy spends considerable time establishing the rules of each discipline; the real magic, however, is how his writing never becomes didactic despite being admittedly dry, instead remaining engaging and immersive. In a way, Hardy is the perfect teacher, making us feel just as Alodar, as if we were actually learning each discipline of magic alongside him. The creativity on display is astonishing, with the book establishing many of the traits and conventions that would become popular in fantasy in the following decades.

‘Master of the Five Magics’ Has Influenced the Work of Many Fantasy Giants

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Following Tolkien‘s success, mid-20th-century fantasy kept things elusive, with magic benefiting from suggestion rather than confirmation. From the ’80s on, and largely influenced by authors like Hardy and Robert Jordan, magic systems became more structured and rule-governed. Today, we can see footprints of Master of the Five Magics in many of modern fantasy’s best and most highly regarded works.

For starters, many of Brandon Sanderson’s acclaimed books can be traced back to Master of the Five Magics. Like Hardy, Sanderson lives for the strict magic systems that thrive on organization and structure. The metal-influenced system of the Mistborn saga follows a rigorous set of rules, with the type of metal determining the outcome of the magic. Similarly, the Stormlight Archive‘s Surgebinding sees practitioners use Stormlight to manipulate one of the 10 surges. That’s the gist of it, but the intricacies of this system are far too many to explain in just one paragraph.

Authors like Patrick Rothfuss, best known for his masterful Kingkiller Chronicle trilogy, openly cited Hardy and Master of the Five Magics as an inspiration. Similarly, Richard Garfield, creator of the popular card game Magic: The Gathering, was inspired by Hardy when crafting the game’s five-color model. Here, we have three creators behind some of the best and most acclaimed fantasy works of the last 40 years, all united by their appreciation of Master of the Five Magics, with two even directly citing it as a crucial work behind their own creations. That’s no small feat, and it only cements Hardy’s book as one of the foundational building blocks upon which all modern fantasy rises.

Sadly, Master of the Five Magics doesn’t enjoy the same recognition or enduring popularity as the works it inspired. Yet, it’s never too late to rediscover a masterful book, and hidden gems are always ready to be dug out. Hardy’s masterpiece might not be the best fantasy book by modern standards — the writing can get a bit dry, and its plot conventions will not be as groundbreaking to modern readers — but it remains a crucial turning point for the genre as a whole. Those who love fantasy are bound to experience it at least once in their lives, but Master of the Five Magics is a must-read even for those who are only casual fans. After all, how often do you get to feel like an actual magic student? It doesn’t get much better than that.