The Black Company

• Erikson has repeatedly credited Glen Cook.
• Military fantasy focused on common soldiers.
• Morally gray characters.
• Dense worldbuilding and large military campaigns.

Abercrombie has named Cook among the writers who made grimdark possible, and The Black Company is where its rules were set: a war seen from inside a unit of professional soldiers, a narrator who is an unreliable company annalist, wizards as dangerous colleagues rather than mentors, and no side worth supporting. The First Law keeps the moral position and swaps the annalist for a rotating close third person, which is what lets Abercrombie put the torturer in the room and make him funny.

• Martin praised Cook's work.
• Helped popularize morally ambiguous fantasy and realistic portrayals of war.

Cook has acknowledged Tolkien as an important influence. LOTR inspired the epic fantasy setting, ancient wars, and struggle between powerful forces.

Influenced Cook's darker, morally ambiguous approach to fantasy. Helped move away from the clear good-versus-evil morality common in earlier fantasy.

Cook wanted to write from the perspective of ordinary soldiers instead of heroes. And move away from the good vs evil morality.