Realistic Horse Travel in Fantasy Fiction Novels

Medieval type fantasy fiction novels are filled with men riding off on horseback and motley gangs of wizards, thieves, and rangers traveling from town to town. These travel scenes can be interesting, but they can also smack a reader out of belief so fast it will make their head spin.

Example: Blurg city lay two hundred miles west of Crit. Rogar the Brave and his fearless horde of skeletal warriors jumped on their horses and rode hard. They arrived just after dark on the second day.

What? Two hundred miles in two days on horseback? Sounds more like Rogar the jet-propelled.

Writing realistic travel in fantasy fiction novels is important if you want your story to be believed. The last thing you want your reader to say is "You've got to be kidding me!" and slam the book down on the table.

The main form of transportation in fantasy fiction novels is the horse. Sometimes, your characters may have a heavily laden horse. Sometimes, it can even be pulling a wagon. All these things will effect how the horse can travel.

Horse Travel in Fantasy Fiction - Gaits

A horse has four main gates, or modes of travel: walk, trot, canter, and gallop. Walking is the main form of travel over long distances for the untrained horse. Horses must walk when carrying heavy loads or pulling carriages or wagons.

The trot is the equivalent to a human jog. There is a lot of up and down movement that will be uncomfortable for the rider over distances.

A canter is a faster gait. In fantasy fiction, your horses will do a lot of traveling at a canter. This is a more comfortable gait than the trot since the rider can stay in the saddle. However, to keep the realism, your fantasy fiction horse cannot canter all day long.

The gallop is the fastest horse gait. This should be reserved for quick chases and flights from the encroaching hordes. No horse will travel at a gallop.

Horse Travel in Fantasy Fiction - Distances