Summary
There are a lot of unrealistic aspects in isekai anime, manga, manhwa, webtoons, and more. The very idea of getting ‘whisked away’ to a new magical world where you get to do things over again and have cheat-like abilities is already unrealistic, but there are also a lot of smaller things that are unrealistic as well. The fact that these protagonists get so much done with just a few people is pretty absurd, for example, even with their overpowered abilities.
Thankfully, not every isekai hero relies solely on themselves or a tight-knit band of comrades. Some of them either enter the military of their new world and rise through the ranks or some create armies of their own to face off against their enemies and/or the forces of evil. So, let’s take a look at some of the most well-known isekai anime and manga where the protagonists themselves are at the head of the army in a war.
Updated December 2nd, 2024 by Jacob Buchalter:While it’ll always be interesting to watch/read stories about isekai protagonists who can take on the world on their own, it’s arguably more interesting to read/watch stories where the protagonist has to truly problem solve. There are a ton of stories where it feels like the MCs can take out entire armies with a flick of their wrist, and those are entertaining in their own right. But, something about watching the MC use knowledge or experience from their old world to just absolutely dominate on the battlefield, their army in tow, is satisfying in a completely different way. That might sound incredibly specific, but there are actually quite a few isekai stories with that as the main content, so let’s take an in-depth look at some of the best examples.
Mutsumi Okuhashi
Children’s Playground Entertainment
First up is a series that sort of counts, but just barely. Still, it’s one of our favorite series of all time, so there might be a bit of bias there. In any case, the series is calledThe Faraway Paladin, and it’s about a boy who’s reborn in an isekai world to a found family made up of a Ghoul, a Zombie, and an Undead who all used to be incredibly famous heroes. After being raised by this family, William G. Maryblood goes out into the world on his own with an unshakeable faith in the Goddess of the Crossroads, Gracefeel, and an absurdly overpowered skillset due to his family.
During his journey as a paladin to spread the word of Gracefeel, William makes a ton of new friends, saves a bunch of people, and has a lot of responsibility put on his shoulders. It would be a very heavy spoiler to talk in detail about the moment where William leads an army, but just know that at a certain point of the story William not only leads an army of mercenaries but also an army of spirits hellbent on revenge.
Satoru Sao
A-1 Pictures
Next up isGate, one of the more well-known isekai series to get an adaptation in recent years.Gateis a ton of fun to experience, as it might seem heavily military-focused, but it actually isn’t all ‘that’ serious. Essentially, protagonist Youji Itami ends up witnessing a portal to another world open while trying to attend a convention and has to use his skills honed in the JSDF to help protect citizens from these isekai invaders.
After this event, Itami is part of the recon team sent into this portal to try and make friendly ties with this new magical fantasy world, and the story branches out from there.Gateis a very interesting blend of multiple genres be it isekai, action, comedy, or even the military genre, and it manages to blend them all quite well into a very entertaining package.
Takuji Kato
Eight Bit
Knights & Magic is the first recommendation on here, and it’s already a bit of an odd one. This story takes place in the classic isekai setting where the world is medieval save for magic technology, except for one specific thing. This world has Knight Runners, noble elites who pilot Silhouette Knights, which are essentially magi-tech Gundams, all for the sake of their respective countries. The protagonist of this series, Tsubasa Kurata (now known as Ernesti Echavlier) is a huge mecha otaku, and once he realizes he’s reincarnated into a world with their own versions of actual Gundams, he devotes his entire life to becoming a Silhouette Knight.
As the series progresses, Ernesti quickly establishes himself and it is not long before both he and his two closest companions Adeltrud Olter and Archid Olter are commanding their own Knight Runners and even designing their own Silhouette Knights.
Ryota Hori
Bob
When it comes to anime/manga as a whole, there are quite a few where the main character is a leading figure in a war. But, for isekai stories specifically, having a protagonist like this is a lot less common.Wortenia Senki, orRecord of Wortenia War, for example, is one of the few manga where the protagonist (Ryoma Mikoshiba, in this case) directly enters the military and leads thousands of troops on his own.
In fact, after helping a certain princess win a civil war for her country, Ryoma actually becomes a Baron instead of a mercenary and builds his own military force. From this point on, Ryoma both acts as the leader of his land and as the commander in the battles they participate in. And, Ryoma doesn’t even use magic (at least so far in the manga), making him an even more ‘realistic’ depiction of an isekai hero leading an army, at least for how realistic an isekai hero could possibly be.
Kouta Hirano
Hoods Drifters Studio
This next series is a very unique isekai in that it’s not just some random ‘made-up’ characters who are brought to another world. Instead, actual legendary figures from history are all brought to a magical world (when they’re on death’s door) to fight a war against a group of other historical figures known as the ‘Ends’. The story is mostly centered around three characters, Shimazu Toyohisa, Oda Nobunaga, and Nasu Suketaka Yoichi as they work together with other ‘Drifters’ like them as well as fantasy races like elves and dwarves to build an army in the fight against the Ends.
While Oda Nobunaga mostly manages the actual army of the Drifters and their troops, Toyohisa is sort of the figurehead ‘leader’ for them. Even in life, Toyohisa was a military leader, so he has plenty of experience. And, when they’re going into battle, it’s almost always Toyohisa at the vanguard looking absolutely thrilled about the upcoming battle.
Torutonen
Sou-taro
The first two entries on this list are manga/anime that, while depicting the horrors of war, generally show it as this ‘grand act’ that’s only for the most skilled and courageous people. However,Record of Highserk Warcontinuallypaints a more realistic depiction of warand the state of mind for those at war (even if the series has things like skills and magic in it). InRecord of Highserk War, the main character, previously Raizou Takakura, was a typical salaryman who got reincarnated in another world instead of being transported. He was born as ‘Walm’ to a common farming family who was barely making it year after year. Eventually, Walm joined the Highserk Military as a way to support his family, and from there he’s participated in deadly and chaotic battles almost daily.
Walm’s state of mind, the conflicts between his modern way of thinking and the way of thinking for people of this world, and his general sentiment towards others are all so well thought-out. And, it doesn’t hurt thatthe action and worldbuilding of this manga are also fantastic. That said, while Walm is almost always part of an army, he’s very rarely in ‘command’ of it, though he has led his own squadron as well as an elite team that was put together for a specific mission.
Natsumi Inoue
Studio Mother
The next recommendation here is one that fans of war games where the player collects legendary warriors of all kinds (such asFire EmblemorDynasty Warriors) will enjoy. It’s calledAs A Reincarnated Aristocrat I’ll Use My Appraisal Skill To Rise In The World(having an absurdly long title is basically an isekai trope, at this point) and it has one Ars Louvent as its main character. Again, Ars was just a regular salaryman in his original life, but in his new life, he was born into the Louvent noble family.
And that’s not all, Ars was also born with the ‘Appraisal’ ability that allows him to look at a person and see all of their current skill proficiency levels as well as the absolute max proficiency level they have for each skill. Essentially, he can look at a person and immediately know what they’re good at, what role they’d be best in, and what to train/teach them. With this ability, Ars quickly builds a sort of ‘family’ around him of truly overpowered people whether it’s a butler with god-like combat skills, an older sister-like mage with absurd innate talent, or even a cautious little boy who happens to be an incredibly military strategist. While Ars doesn’t exactly have a ton of combat power himself, his role as the head of the Luovent family does lead him into battles at times, putting him in charge of the entire army behind him.
Satoshi Ueda
J.C. Staff
Here’s another serieswhere an isekai hero is saddled with way too much powerway too quickly. Though to be honest, Kazuya Souma wins the hypothetical prize for ‘fastest hero to lead a country’ speedrun as the king of the Elfreiden Kingdom abdicates the throne to him almost as soon as he enters this new world. From here, Souma has to not only figure out how to run a country but also how to dig it out of the hole that it’s in both politically and financially.
And, while Souma does improve Elfreiden in a lot of non-violent ways (such as introducing new food, new entertainment, and so on), he does eventually go to war with Amidonia in a battle labeled as the ‘One Week War’ and in that time he is in charge of the entirety of the Elfreiden military. And, while Souma isn’t exactly ‘leading the charge’ in battle, he actively participates in these battles way more than anyone would expect the sovereign leader of a kingdom to participate.
Aiya Kyu
Kinema Citrus
Rising of the Shield Herois not a story that, at first, seems like its characters will one day be in charge of a military force. The heroes (excluding Naofumi) are all stuck up and content with their parties of members who all seemingly worship them, and Naofumi, the Shield Hero, takes a long time to build any trusted relationships with anyonedue to his past trauma. However, the Waves of Calamity don’t leave much room for people to be particular, and Naofumi does take charge of the Melromarc military during these Waves (though not at first).
His command initially started as leading a small band of soldiers during the Waves who originally saw how Naofumi acted for the sake of the people around him and joined him as a result. But, as Naofumi’s team got bigger and bigger, and the Matriarch of Melromarc returned, more and more responsibility was put onto Naofumi’s shoulders.
Satoshi Oshio
Studio Madhouse
Overlordis probably the most ‘unique’ example of a protagonist who is in charge of an army, as Ainz Oown Gown (also known as Momonga) is a gigantic skeleton in charge of an army of devoted monsters who could easily destroy the world ten times over. Ainz was originally just a player of a VRMMORPG called Yggdrasil and was one of the few who ran a guild called Ainz Oown Gown (Momonga took on the guild’s name as his own after entering this New World).
While waiting in the game on its final day for the servers to shut down, when the timer finally ran out things didn’t ‘turn off’, rather, Momonga was now actually his player character, and all of the NPCs had suddenly become sentient. A lot happens after this but eventually, Momonga comes to terms with his new body and new role as the leader of Nazarick. And, as anyone who has seen the end of season 4 of the anime can attest, Ainz does lead an army, and they do easily accomplish whatever Ainz desires.
