Forums » Smalltalk » I need Hero names from history and ancient lore

So I'm making a card game. The card game is about all kinds of famous heroes throughout various cultures, tales, mythologies, and stuff like that. The working title for this is The Valhalla Games, because this game is going to be full of heroes and the like from all over human history.

For example, I intend to put figures like Robin Hood alongside people like David from the Old Testament. Sir Galahad from the Round Table, the Japanese folk hero Momotaro, Sun Wukong from Chinese literature, Sinbad from 1001 Nights, and even figures like Joan of Ark and George Washington. Heroes and Warriors are all open for consideration!

But seeing as how my knowledge of such figures is ultimately limited, I wanna hear from you guys who I should include in this game. HAVE AT ME!!

Let's see... Hercules/Heracles, Eric the Red, Lief Ericson, Spartacus, dunno if Johnny Appleseed would count, Achilles, Lancelot, the Monkey King, Mark Antony, Cleopatra, maybe Florence Nightingale as a healing card, uh...

Do you plan on using all Nights of the Round Table? And are you only looking for 'good' people?

I do plan to use the knights, yes. As far as "good" people or not, that's actually harder to pin down. For example, I plan on using characters from both sides of the Trojan War. For now the idea is that "If some significant number of people consider them a hero, they are eligible." I'll adjust this rule as needed, but that's what I got for now. I hope this was helpful.

Neither side of the Trojan was was necessarily 'bad'. It was a war that was created by love and honor.

So you mean you won't use things such as Jessie James, Billy the Kid, etc?

Well, not for now, no. Notorious criminals who are in no other way heroic are not currently qualified, but that could change if someone brings up a good case for them (I have no idea what that good case would be, but I'd be willing to hear them out).

Ah, alright. In that case I'll submit the following off the top of my head:

James Bowie, Davy Crocket (Fun fact! Along with several other American heros, Bowie and Crocket died in the battle of the Alamo), Sir Gawain, the Green Knight, Sir Bedivere, Beowulf, King Arthur, Odysseus, King Leonidas, Cortez (He was a conquistador), Alexander the Great (who was debatably not really a Greek, as the Greek city states typically did not consider where he hailed from to be part of Greece), Achilles, Paris, the countless heroes in the battle of Troy (It really was a hero blood bath. Looking at the mythology, it was also arguably a war between the gods as many put their chips an pawns into play), Sherlock Holmes, Samson (biblical person), the huntsman (in several folk stories), Watson, Indiana Jones... and with as late as it is I think that's all that I can pull of the top of my head atm.

Having things open to "bad guys" could help ease possible issues from some of the more morally ambiguous individuals, as well as open up those traditionally seen as bad people, but who were still, if nothing else, badasses. And, further research has shown some of them suffer from false history and misconceptions. *shrugs*

And hey, how awesome would it be for, say, Robin Hood to have a chance at taking down Hitler? I know folks who'd love that.

T'is up to you, though!

I have been living lies. I shall fix this.

Oh man. As awesome as it would be to have these guys on board, I cannot legally use them. Not public domain enough sadly.

I believe the character Sherlock Holmes has been released to public domain. The same is most likely true for Watson. Maybe your search results will yield more than my quick once-over, though!