10 Fantasy Swords From Movies, Games, Books, and Anime

Fantasy swords are cool but the core reason for their fame is that they serve as symbols for a hero’s development as well as the values that a story wants to impart. Swords like Excalibur, the iconic long sword of Arthurian legends, embody hope, courage, and chivalry. 

These connotations have gone a long way in making fantasy swords a staple in our favorite media, whether they’re video games, books, or movies.

1. Roman Gladius From the Percy Jackson Series

Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians may have begun with Greek mythology, but the book series has long since expanded to covering Roman myths and incorporating Roman swords like the gladius.

Many of the Roman demigods in Heroes of Olympus use a gladius because it’s the official short sword supplied to Roman Legionaries. After the destruction of his Imperial Gold gladius, Jason Grace received a gladius from the goddess Juno.

The Roman gladius was a real sword that remained in use by Roman soldiers until it was gradually replaced with the spatha. In its heyday, the gladius was used for close quarters fighting, hence its short overall length. The sword’s V-shaped point allowed for powerful thrusts that broke between parts of enemy armor.

While you’ll be hard pressed to find a battle ready sword today, decorative gladii are still available for anyone looking to collect Percy Jackson memorabilia or join a Live Action Role Play (LARP) of ancient Rome.

• Material: Carbon steel
• Length: 76.20 cm

2. Gandalf’s Glamdring From the Hobbit

Glamdring is a fantasy sword from none other than J.R.R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series. Because of the books’ high fantasy setting, this sword is one of the few legendary swords in its lore and is said to have been created for an ancient Elven king during the First Age.

The Hobbit movie portrays the sword as a sleek silver longsword with a blue handle and a weighted pommel. The sword is fairly minimal in the movies but is described in the book as having a jewel encrusted hilt.

After its disappearance, the sword was found by Gandalf in a troll’s cave in Eriador. 

Replica swords of Glamdring follow the movie’s version with United Cutlery’s take on it being the most high quality. 

• Material: Stainless steel
• Length: 91.44 cm

3. Link’s Master Sword From the Legend of Zelda

If there’s one fantasy sword in gaming that can claim to be the most iconic of them all, it’s the Master Sword from The Legend of Zelda. 

This blue and purple sword has been around since the very first installment of the game, albeit with a different name, and has been slightly redesigned for each successive one. 

In the game’s lore, the Master Sword is the designated blade of the Hero of Hyrule, Link, who is always destined to aid the kingdom in its time of great need. The sword was created by the goddess Hylia and imbued with the spirit of Fi. 

The sword’s divine origins are why its blade bears an engraving of the Triforce, a symbol of the Three Golden Goddesses of The Legend of Zelda.

This replica of Link’s sword includes its own scabbard, also engraved with a Triforce, and is an officially licensed Nintendo product.

• Material: Molded Plastic
• Length: 66.04 cm

4. Tanjiro’s Nichirin Katana From Demon Slayer

The samurai swords of Demon Slayer are unique to their respective hashira, giving viewers an easy way to tell their breathing techniques and personalities apart. Tanjiro Kamado, the show’s protagonist, wields a black nichirin blade.

Though it might seem contradictory, the black nichirin blade is actually symbolic of the sun, a nod to Tanjiro’s sunny personality and his Sun Breathing style, a form later revealed to be the first breathing technique from which other breathing techniques were derived.

While this replica isn’t a stainless steel blade or made from Crimson Iron Ore like the anime, it is made of durable bamboo, making the sword lightweight and an effective cosplay prop.

• Material: Wood
• Length: 102 cm

5. Khal Drogo’s Arakh From Game of Thrones

Between all the fancy Valyrian steel medieval swords featured in Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire, it’s easy to forget that the show included unique, non-Western swords like Khal Drogo’s arakh.

The arakh is a curved blade that resembles a short scythe traditionally used for reaping crops. Dothraki horse riders use it as their signature weapon because it allows them to slash and behead enemies easily while riding at a full gallop.

This replica of Khal Drogo’s arakh is a black high carbon steel blade attached to a wooden handle that’s decorated with an image of two horses.

• Material: High carbon stainless steel
• Length: 99 cm

6. Bilbo’s Sting From the Hobbit

Contrary to popular belief, Sting isn’t actually a sword but an Elvish dagger. It only looks like a sword because its wielder, Bilbo Baggins, is a hobbit. 

Sting was one of the three swords found in a troll’s cave along with Glamdring, which became Gandalf’s sword, and Orcrist, which was used by Thorin Oakenshield. This made Sting one of the weapons forged by elves in the First Age and thereby, powerful enough to scare off Orcs with just the gleam of its blade.

Replicas of Sting typically follow The Hobbit’s depiction of the sword, which is why this reproduction features a red wood handle and silver leaf details.

• Material: Stainless steel
• Length: 38.1 cm

7. Aragorn’s Anduril From the Lord of the Rings

Anduril is arguably the most memorable of the swords in The Lord of the Rings because it’s the most direct reference that the series makes to King Arthur’s Excalibur. 

The sword’s name translates to “Flame of the West” because it symbolizes the kingdoms of Gondor and Arnor as well as the right to rule them. The sword passed through generations of royal descendants of Elendil, the High King of Arnor and Gondor, until it eventually found its way into Aragorn’s hands.

Before the sword was Anduril, it was known as Narsil, the sword’s “past life” from before it was reforged. Its reforging into Anduril symbolized the return of Arnor and Gondor as united kingdoms of Men under King Aragorn Elessar.

• Material: Stainless steel
• Length: 101.6 cm

8. Arya’s Needle From Game of Thrones

Most of the swords seen in Game of Thrones are massive broadswords, longswords, and Viking style blades. But because she’s the smallest sword fighter in the show, Arya Stark is given a sword by Jon Snow which she later named Needle.

Needle is a thin rapier-like blade designed for a physically weaker fighter and for use with an agility based fighting style. Arya later learns Braavosi Water Dancing, a fencing-inspired fighting style, from Syrio Forel who helped her develop her fighting style.

An officially licensed replica by Valyrian Steel perfectly copies the Needle prop, right down to the slightly curved handle.

• Material: Stainless steel
• Length: 55.88 cm

9. Sasuke’s Kusanagi From Naruto

Sasuke Uchiha’s Kusanagi is a powerful ninja sword that allows Sasuke to channel his lightning chakra and amplify it through the blade.

Kusanagi has a very minimal appearance that resembles a traditional katana but lacks the curved blade and tsuba of the katana. This is because the sword from the anime is meant to depict a chokuto, a Japanese single-edge straight sword, instead. 

That said, the sword is named after a legendary katana, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. Kusanagi was said to have been created by Amaterasu, the Japanese sun goddess as a gift for her grandson who became the first emperor of Japan.

Its replica is a black on white copy of Sasuke’s Kusanagi and features a small Uchiha clan symbol on the handle.

• Material: Stainless steel
• Length: 102 cm

10. The Sword of Gryffindor From Harry Potter

The Sword of Gryffindor was an ancient sword owned by Godric Gryffindor, the wizard who founded House Gryffindor and was one of the co-founders of Hogwarts. The sword was said to have been made by Ragnuk the First, a goblin swordsmith who created the sword out of silver and rubies.

Godric Gryffindor later enchanted the sword to only appear to “true Gryffindors” hence why it was the only House relic that Lord Voldemort wasn’t able to use as one of his horcruxes. 

Like Anduril, the Sword of Gryffindor references Excalibur as it was found by Harry in a lake and only appears to be used by a hero against evil.

Its replica is exactly as described in the books and shown in the movies. Plus, it comes with a wooden mounting board for Harry Potter fans who want to display their copy of the sword.

• Material: Stainless steel
• Length: 80 cm

Conclusion

Fantasy swords may vary in their appearance and which media they appear in, but they almost always keep the original symbolism for swords in fantasy. All of them embody courage and honor in one way or another, but whichever form they take, there are quality replica swords that you can get to symbolize your own courage.