Highlights
- Settings in manhwa are underrated but essential, providing immersive experiences into medieval worlds with rich historical detail.
- Trash of the Count’s Family perfectly captures the medieval era, following a man navigating life as a minor villain in his favorite novel.
- Peerless Dad offers a touching tale of fatherhood mixed with martial arts and humor, as a father must protect his family from a mysterious cult.
In recent times, the contents of a typical manhwa can be likened to that of a very well-oiled machine, whose many different parts ensure the seamless production of the final piece. Of these, the settings of a manhwa are somewhat underrated as they are essential to the overall storyline to be delivered.
In this context, a manhwa’s settings refer to the era, time, and place where the story takes place. Therefore, this piece’s focus rests solely on the best manhwas with medieval settings, as they offer readers immersive experiences into worlds built upon the lore and adventures of the Middle Ages, set against a backdrop of rich historical detail.
9 Trash of the Count’s Family
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.3 / 5
- Creator(s): Yu Ryeo Han, PAN4
- Genre: Fantasy, Action, Adventure, Comedy
- No. of Chapters: 132 (Ongoing)
Trash of the Count’s Family presents a tale that perfectly captures the medieval era, as shown by the series title, which indicates the presence of the titular ‘Count,’ a figure not common in modern times. The series follows the life of the central character, Kim Roksu, a regular adult who passes the time by reading his favorite novel, Birth of A Hero. Kim Roksu’s life flips upside down when he awakens as Cale Henituse, one of the minor villains of his favorite story, who is destined to receive the beating of a lifetime from the book’s primary lead.
Dreading the encounter, Cale, using the knowledge from his previous life and the wealth of his current one, plans to protect him should he ever come across the male lead. However, Cale’s actions to be free of his worries might end up swaying himself and the story in a completely different direction.
8 Solo Bug Player
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.0 / 5
- Creator(s):
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
- No. of Chapters: 120 (Ongoing)
Solo Bug Player follows the interesting life of the central character, Shin-Tae Pong, who reigned as the undisputed champion of Paradiso, a medieval MMO video game. Unfortunately, Shin-Tae’s gaming adventure is cut short as he dies abruptly while playing his favorite game. However, like a glitch of fate, he awakens as Jared Eucalates, a fat, low-level, corrupt noble of a barren province from the game Paradiso.
Armed with knowledge of the game from his previous life, Jared prepares himself to evade the inevitable fate of doom in the future, which only he knows. Despite being the only one with knowledge of the advantages of the game’s glitches, it remains to be seen if Jared will be able to change the course of a future seemingly set in stone.
7 Release That Witch
Anime-Planet Rating: 4. 0 / 5
- Creator(s): Er Mu, Zhi Hua Wenhua
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
- No. of Chapters: 562 (Ongoing)
Release That Witch delves into the chaotic life of the central character, Roland Wimbledon, a modern-day engineer whose life flips upside down when he is suddenly transported to another world, where he has been reincarnated as a prince. Strangely, Roland’s new world reminds him vividly of medieval Europe.
However, it’s not quite the same, as the technology is lacking. In a bid to familiarise himself with his new reality, Roland comes upon the existence of witches. More surprising for Roland is the ability of these witches to use real magic. Unable to shake his curiosity, Roland embarks on a quest to utilize the witches and their magic to further expand the advance of technology in his new world.
6 Reincarnation of the Sword Master
Anime-Planet Rating: 3.6 / 5
- Creator(s): Pa Ran-Yeong, Drawways, Bongsoo, Black Ring
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
- No. of Chapters: 24 (Ongoing)
Reincarnation of the Sword Master features the medieval kingdom of Airac. The series presents the tale of the central character, the Imperial Knight of Security, a man who lived all of his life honing and cultivating his swordsmanship techniques to achieve the rank of swordmaster, a level seemingly unattainable to him.
So extreme was his dedication that he died while swinging his sword only a little after finally becoming a swordmaster in his old age. However, he is reborn to the same world after twenty years as Asher, an illegitimate child of the Halbaroque noble family. Given a new chance at life, Asher is determined to complete his new life as the unfinished ‘Swordmaster’ of his previous life.
5 Peerless Dad
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.2 / 5
- Creator(s): Hyeon-Seok Lee, Cyung-Chan Noh
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama
- No. of Chapters: 296
Peerless Dad constructs a rather touching tale of fatherhood mixed in with martial arts and a fair dose of humor. The series follows the life of the central character, Gajang Noh, a man with a severe passion for martial arts whose life stopped after his wife’s death after birthing their three children.
With no one to support him, Gajang Noh decides to do all he can to provide for his children, even assuming menial jobs at intervals. All of that is short-lived when children start to go missing in the city due to the appearance of a mysterious cult. Desperate to protect his family, Noh must discover his hidden potential in the face of a danger that threatens to take away his precious babies.
4 Barbarian Quest
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.3 / 5
- Creator(s): Baeksu Gwijok, Morando
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama
- No. of Chapters: 100
Barbarian Quest explores the daring life and quest of the central character, Ulrich, the greatest warrior from the Boulder Axe Tribe, a tribe of barbarians. Driven by the curiosity of his mind, Ulrich, with his friends, dares to go beyond the chilling Sky Mountains. However, what they find comes at the risk of Ulrich’s life as he gets kidnapped, and only after the fight of his life is he able to free himself from his captors.
Mesmerized by the reality beyond the mountains, he sets on a quest to explore this new realm. As he explores, Ulrich learns more about the world from enemies and allies, leading to his growth as a warrior and understanding society. However, even Ulrich has yet to fully understand where his quest is set to take him.
3 Duke Pendragon
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.1 / 5
- Creator(s): Utsumi Yusuke, Kim Hyungjun, Sumishiro Yukina
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Romance
- No. of Chapters: 118 (Ongoing)
Duke Pendragon tells the tale of two households whose fates become intertwined in a diabolical act of reincarnation. The series follows the harrowing life of the protagonist, Raven Valte, whose life turned upside down ten years ago after his family got razed to the ground in a conspiracy. Now a member of the infamous Demon Corps, fate is still not so kind to Raven as he ends up being killed as part of a conspiracy alongside Eren Pendragon, the heir to a legendary dragon-taming family, the Pendragon Household.
In an unexpected twist, Raven awakes seven in the past now as Eren Pendragon himself, with only one goal: solve the mystery behind his death. However, before he can do anything, Eren must first capture the power of the legendary White Dragon for himself to restore the power of the House of Pendragon. However, it remains to be seen if he has what it takes to become a dragon master.
2 Descended From Divinity
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.2 / 5
- Creator(s): Sancheon, Altoran, Upu
- Genre: Action, Fantasy
- No. of Chapters: 117 (Ongoing)
Descended From Divinity flows from the war-fraught life of the central character, the divine overlord of the Murim, Junghyeok Baek, who, at the end of his long life, is suddenly reincarnated into another world as the dim-witted Roman Dimitry, the eldest son of the noble House of Dimitry.
Curious about what brought him to this new world, Junghyeok puts Roman’s underwhelming lifestyle behind him and sets out to conquer his new world just as he did in his previous life. True to his nature as the demon overlord, Roman’s conquest begins in earnest; however, it remains to be seen if the Demon overlord will be able to harness the powers of his new body or if his second life will prove to be divine punishment for a previous life of tyranny.
1 Legend of the Northern Blade
Anime-Planet Rating: 4.4 / 5
- Creator(s): Woogack, Hae Min
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
- No. of Chapters: 192 (Ongoing)
Set in a fantasy world of martial arts closely resembling medieval China but with Korean origins, The Legend of the Northern Blade presents the vengeful tale of the protagonist, Jin Mu Won, the last surviving member of the Northern Heavenly Sect. Forced to watch his father commit suicide and the disbanding of his sect, Mu Won swears upon a life of vengeance for those responsible for his ill fate.
However, as a dish best served cold, revenge forces Mu Won into a life of seclusion and extreme training to master the techniques passed onto him by his predecessors. However, the mysterious disappearance of a loved one forces him back into the world and thus begins his quest for vengeance and blood.
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