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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/48934
License name: CC BY-SA 4.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

I believe low fantasy can encompass stories which have no magic.

In some examples I've seen of low fantasy there is no magic but the setting in which it takes place is an entirely fictional world complete with fictional religious and belief systems. For example one of my favorite authors David Gemmell in his book Legend, the book takes place in an entirely fictional land, there are whispers of mysticism spread throughout the novel but no magic takes place leaving room for a reader to wonder if their really is magic in his world or if instead its all hearsay. I have no doubt that the world Gemmell created falls under fantasy despite not having any magic take place because of how different the world is from ours.

To contrast some similar genres:

- fiction genres seem to typically take place within the real world but the events that transpire are not linked to historical events in any way and typically does not contain magic
- alternate history genres typically take place within the real world and alter details of a known historical event or period 
- urban fantasy genres typically take place in a more contemporary setting and may contain magic

Original score: 7