Lord of the Hammer

Did you ever hear that old tale?
Yes, the old tale, based upon the prophecy...
Lord of the Hammer.

Hammer of Justice, Chapter 4

Lord of the Hammer (JP: ロード・オブ・ザ・ハンマー) is an award-winning series of adventure fiction books in Deltarune. It was written by Gerson, who based the plot of the books on the prophecy.

Main story

The series was written at a later stage of Gerson's life, as he wanted to create stories to tell to his children. The Dragon Blazers video game franchise is based on the events of the books. Gerson based the series on the prophecy, which he regards as a fairytale that is folly to follow too closely. He believes that stories can be retold and change, which may relate to his decision to create an interpretation of the prophecy.

The series is held to great acclaim, and copies of it can be found on the first floor of the library, the church's lobby and Alvin's office. Alvin also mentions that the series's fans sent letters of condolences after Gerson's death for many years.

Content

During Chapter 4, Susie is told a summary of the story while fighting the Hammer of Justice, shortened into chapters. The summary shows clear parallels between the Chapters of Deltarune and the story of Lord of the Hammer, as both follow events foretold by the prophecy.

• Chapter 1: The March of the Dark King. — "The heroes defeat the king and stop the dragon."
  • Parallels Chapter 1; the party defeats King and stops Susie from FIGHTing by befriending her.

• Chapter 2: The City of the Shining. — "The heroes do battle in chariots to save the Queen."
  • Parallels Chapter 2; the party traverses Cyber City, fights Berdly while riding on roller coasters, and recruits Queen.
• Chapter 3: The Isles of Northernlight. — "The heroes travel among the islands and catch a glimpse of a lost land."
  • Parallels Chapter 3; the party explores the Island Board in The Legend of Tenna and can briefly see the Ice Palace. The Ice Palace becomes accessible via the Island Board of the Original Game, with the text "GO TO NORTHERN LIGHT" guiding the player toward it.
• Chapter 4: The Trials of the Holy Hammer. — "A great smith gives the heroes a terrible weapon."
  • Parallels Chapter 4; Susie is granted the JusticeAxe by the Old Man, who was a smith by trade, after defeating the Hammer of Justice.
• Chapter 5: The Field of Pink and Gold. — "The vast garden is charred in an inferno of jealousy."
  • Parallels Chapter 5; pink and/or gold are highly prominent in the general color schemes of Asgore, Flowery, and particularly the Flower Kingdom, such as the pink Garden, and the Cliffs and exterior of Flower Castle when lit by a golden sunset. While ascending Flower Castle, Flowery surmises Ralsei's open animosity towards him to be jealousy towards the seven flowers' apparent independence, and their defiance of their set "purpose". Ralsei later reveals his secret fire-based magic to explosively protect Susie from a Bullet Pattern, scattering burning embers across the castle platform they are standing on.

The sixth chapter is mentioned, but not summarized. No further installments were written after that chapter's completion. Gerson seemingly expected the younger generation to claim authorship of the story and continue it after his death, but his son Alvin's insecurities prevented him from becoming a writer, leaving the series with no official conclusion.

Trivia

• Lord of the Hammer references the book series The Lord of the Rings, written by J. R. R. Tolkien.
  • The Lord of the Rings is heavily inspired by religious texts, a practice referred to by Tolkien as "sub-creation"; thus, Lord of the Hammer could be considered a sub-creation of the prophecy.
• Lord of the Hammer being left unfinished after its sixth installment may reference the Dune book series, written by Frank Herbert, which was also left unfinished after its sixth installment due to Herbert's passing. Unlike Lord of the Hammer, however, Herbert's Dune series was finished by his son.