Smithing Tropes

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Whether you need a new edge on a dull trope, a trope forged to order, or a mighty trope weapon that can sunder the heavens, the blacksmiths of this index have the hammers, the heat, and the heart to see the job done. Following is a list of tropes dealing with blacksmiths, forges, and metalworking, along with some of blacksmiths' most common creations.

Nothing to do with Adam Smith Hates Your Guts, Master Forger, Mr. Smith, Sesquipedalian Smith, or Smithical Marriage.

Tropes:

• Anvil on Head: In cartoons, a blacksmith's anvil (or similar weight) falls on a character's head as a gag.
• Armor of Invincibility: The legendary and/or magical armor in a video game (and typically a Role-Playing Game) that offers the best protection and may render its wearer immune to harm.
• Artificial Limbs: In some fantasy settings, more technically minded blacksmiths will be capable of creating prosthetic limbs for other characters. In these cases, the limb will usually have a clanky, wrought-iron theme and a medieval armor aesthetic.
• Blacksmith Upgrade Service: In fantasy Role-Playing Games, blacksmiths will often be treated as Equipment Upgrade stations, for repairs and overall improvements.
• Burly Blacksmith: Blacksmiths in fiction are almost always enormous, bearded, Gentle Giants, with humble ambitions and no-nonsense attitudes.
• Craftsman God: A god of metalworking or other handcrafts; often a divine Ultimate Blacksmith and/or creator of the relics that are Forged by the Gods.
• Design-It-Yourself Equipment: A video game allows a player to craft and customize their own equipment; in fantasy Role-Playing Games, this mode is often accessible via a blacksmith.
• Elemental Crafting: When blacksmiths appear in video games, the strength of their creations is usually dictated by the materials you give them.
• Equipment Upgrade: Blacksmiths are typically involved when video games have systems for improving equipment.
• Excalibur in the Rust: A blacksmith's assistance is often required to restore or repair a legendary weapon that's become corroded by age or disuse.
• Fantasy Metals: Fantastical varieties of metal are a rare treat for blacksmiths; in some video games, these substances are necessary ingredients for rare or special equipment. In western fantasy media, Mithril, Orichalcum, and meteoric iron are the most common.
• Forged by the Gods: Weapons or armor that were forged by the gods themselves (and often by a Craftsman God).
• Forging Scene: A classic Hard-Work Montage focused on a blacksmith forging something, and usually with a generous dose of Artistic License as to how forging actually works.
• God of Fire: In some pantheons, the god of fire and/or volcanoes also serves as a god of metalworking.
• Humble Trade Class: In some fantasy Role-Playing Games, blacksmiths will show up as a playable character class, usually specialized in Item Crafting, runesmithing, and/or fire- and metal-based attacks.
• Humongous-Headed Hammer: In more fantastical media, Burly and/or Ultimate Blacksmiths might be depicted wielding a colossal hammer as they work their trade.
• Infinity +1 Sword: In games where the ultra-rare legendary weapon hasn't yet been created in the world of the story, it will often require a very complicated Sidequest to get an Ultimate Blacksmith to forge it.
• Item Crafting: If a medieval Role-Playing Game has a system for weapon or armor creation, blacksmiths are almost guaranteed to have a hand in it.
• Legendary Weapon: An unparalleled weapon of myth, usually with magical powers or abilities. Often Forged By A Craftsman God and/or a similarly legendary Ultimate Blacksmith.
• Magical Weapon: The iconic creation of a magical or divinely empowered blacksmith in fantasy stories, Role-Playing Games, and related media.
• Our Dwarves Are All the Same: In fantasy settings, dwarves will virtually always be peerless blacksmiths and metalworkers.
• Proud Industrious Race: Blacksmithing mastery will typically be a feature of this race, whenever it appears.
• Reforged Blade: If a weapon of legend has been broken or shattered in some way, it will usually be up to a blacksmith (if not an Ultimate Blacksmith) to repair it.
• Runic Magic: While blacksmiths aren't usually magically inclined, they may have some knowledge of runes for purposes of crafting Magical Weapons; rune-based magic makes for a convenient plot excuse as to how the Proud Industrious Race eschews conventional, scholarly wizards, but can still somehow forge Magical Weapons.
• Sacred Flames: Holy or magical fire tends to show up as an explanation for what makes the items Forged by the Gods so strong.
• Steel Mill: In more industrial fantasy settings, large forges will look like steel mills, with colossal furnaces and enormous vats of molten steel.
• Sword of Plot Advancement: A piece of equipment (often a weapon, but sometimes armor) that moves the story forward.
• True Craftsman: In many depictions, diligent blacksmiths will refuse to cut corners or compromise on quality; often the trademark of a member of a Proud Industrious Race and/or an Ultimate Blacksmith.
• Ultimate Blacksmith: The blacksmith of unmatched skill in a given setting; their assistance may be necessary to forge the Sword of Plot Advancement.
• Ultimate Forge: A legendary forge, situated atop a sacred mountain or at the heart of a volcano; often the workshop of a Craftsman God and/or Ultimate Blacksmith.
• Utility Party Member: When a blacksmith appears as a playable class or character in a Role-Playing Game, they will usually have special bonuses or perks for finding crafting materials or forging equipment.
• Wall of Weapons: A blacksmith's forge will often have a medieval version of this trope, covered in swords, axes, and similar arms.
• Weapons of Their Trade: Fighting blacksmiths wield their hammers, tongs, or other tools when thrown into combat situations.
• Wrecked Weapon: Blacksmiths are old hands at repairing destroyed weapons, usually into a Reforged Blade.
• Wrench Wench: An attractive female blacksmith will sometimes serve as a metalworking-themed version of this trope.