%%* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': %%"Class 1", "Class 2" and so on say nothing without context. Expand.
%%** In the Guards storylines, initially [[TheAce Carrot]] is a Class 2, verging on (in a very strange way) Class 5.
%%** Later, [[spoiler: [[MightyGlacier Detritus]] the troll]] gets in as a Class 1, [[spoiler: Class 5 if you get him cold enough]], followed up by [[spoiler: Reginald Shoe]] as a Class 4 and then the [[spoiler: golem, Dorfl]].
%%** In the Witches storyline it's either Jason Ogg or Greebo.
%%** For the Wizards it's the Librarian or Ridcully.
* ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'': Quincy Morris the trigger happy Texan is the Class 4 Big Guy for Professor Van Hellsing's Vampire hunting [[TheTeam team]]. Live action adaptations of Dracula tend to make him a BoisterousBruiser as well.
%%* ''Literature/FeliksNetAndNika'': [[RepetitiveName Golem Golem]] takes this role in ''Orbital Conspiracy of Feliks, Net, and Nika'', after acting as SixthRanger in previous book. He's class 3 mixed with 5 -- after all, he's a robot.%%How is he an example?
%%* ''Literature/FishInATree'': Albert is a very large boy who's friends with Ally and Keisha.%%And?
* ''Literature/TheGenesisOfShannara'': Bear from ''Armageddon's Children'' is described as the biggest and strongest member of the Ghosts.
* ''Literature/AHarvestOfWar'': Ambassador Baindur is heavier even than the gigantic [[TheBrute protagonist]] and kicks arse with the best of'em.
* ''Literature/HonorHarrington'':
** Victor Cachat is a Class 2 with both subversions: he's a CuteBruiser ''and'' GeniusBruiser at the same time. He's also the almost invariably the most physically unassuming man in any gathering, which only serves to make him ''[[PersonOfMassDestruction more]]'' [[OneManArmy dangerous]].
** His [[EnemyMine longtime buddy]] Anton Zilwicki is a Class 1 (his daughter called him ''Daddy Dour'' on occasion), while being only a GeniusBruiser all along.
** And then there's Honor herself, who at her 188 cm and 90 kg of solid muscle is definitely an AmazonianBeauty, and was explicitly said to have been a HugeSchoolgirl in her youth.
%%* ''Literature/KhaavrenRomances'': Tazendra is considered [[AmazonianBeauty very attractive]]. In the trilogy's homage to ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'', she fills Porthos' role among the four Phoenix Guards.
* ''Literature/MagicTheGathering'': Brion Stoutarm in the novelization of the ''Lorwyn'' cycle, who is a literal thirty-foot giant. He's also a BoisterousBruiser. His brother Kiel is even bigger, but [[GentleGiant doesn't fight as much]].
* ''Literature/OrphansOfTheSky'': Bobo, metaphorically speaking. He's actually the shortest of the main characters, being a dwarf, but he's also very strong and very fast, although he's not much one for thinking. As a result, he's usually the main member of the group to be trusted with tasks involving heavy lifting, fighting, or subduing people.
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
** ''Literature/CiaphasCain'': Commissar Cain [[note]]'''HERO OF THE IMPERIUM!'''[[/note]] [[FakeUltimateHero is believed to be]] a fearless frontline bruiser, but in actuality just wants to find a quiet place [[CowardlyLion far from the frontlines]], thank-you-very-much, but is too much of a SlaveToPR.
** ''Literature/GauntsGhosts'': Subversion: "Try Again" Bragg looks like a Class 2 at first to everyone who meets him, but actually quite intelligent. The plot point of one of the stories in the second novel revolves around Gaunt choosing him for a mission because everyone assumes that he must be dumb because he's big. Also played with in Ezrah, who is very tall but is lanky rather than brutish.
%%* ''Literature/WatershipDown'': Bigwig, Silver, Holly, Blackavar and Buckthorn.
* "Literature/TheWindInTheWillows": Otter. His job for the climax is to keep the outside guards distracted.
%%** Badger also counts but he fits TheLeader much better.%%How?




* Glen Cook's ''Garrett, P.I.'' novels have several of these, most notably Waldo "Saucerhead" Tharpe and female BoisterousBruiser Winger.
* Chumley from the ''Literature/MythAdventures'' series is a class 3, with a moderate dose of class 5 also. Moreover, as Trolls like him have long found that acting like DumbMuscle gets them more jobs, his ''entire race'' (or at least the [[BizarreSexualDimorphism male half]] of it) consists of class 3 {{Big Guy}}s.
* Rachel of ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'', despite having more feminine tastes than [[TheHeart Cassie]], is most definitely this. She has to struggle to avoid becoming a full-on BloodKnight, and still ends up one of the chief dog-shooters and a borderline TokenEvilTeammate by the end of it.
** It's by preference at first, and later because the team has become so settled into their respective roles that it becomes impossible for Rachel to escape hers, despite her growing discomfort with it. A fact that she blatantly points out (while simultaneously ripping all of our hearts out) in a later book:
---> '''Cassie:''' What are you going to do with him?\\
'''Rachel:''' There's only one thing I can do. I'm going to take him back to the island and abandon him there again. And this time I'm going to make sure that he never comes back.\\
'''Cassie:''' You can't.\\
'''Rachel:''' I have to. You don't have to stay.\\
'''Cassie:''' Rachel, I don't think you'll be able to do this a second time.\\
'''Rachel:''' (Snapping) You know what, Cassie? I don't think so, either. So will you do it for me?\\
'''Cassie:''' (Taken aback) I...\\
'''Rachel:''' (After a long pause) I didn't think so.
* Perrin from ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' fills this role as a type 2 with occasional 1. He is physically strong since he was a blacksmith, wields an axe and a hammer and is slow-thinking although by no means unintelligent. There's also the Ogier Loial, who fits perfectly into class 2.
* In ''[[Literature/InheritanceCycle Eragon]]'', [[HeelFaceTurn When they are on the "good" side]], the [[spoiler: urgals and Kull]] fulfill this role to the [[LaResistance Varden]], and [[spoiler: Nar Garzhvog]] temporarily serves as Eragon's bodyguard bruiser.
** Saphira, and dragons in general. Even a relatively young (and thus small) dragon is more than a match for dozens if not hundreds of men, especially working in concert with their riders.
* Doroga from ''Literature/CodexAlera''. His ''[[BondCreatures chala]]'' something between a giant badger and a giant ground sloth, and a result of their bond he's incredibly strong. Plus he gets to ride the above mentioned monster into battle. Tavi's uncle Bernard is also physically a big guy, but acts as more of a GuileHero, for the most part.
* Porthos, from ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'', a rather HotBlooded braggart who is only a ''little'' less competent than he claims to be. When he's not posing and showing off, anyway.
* Lord Goldry Bluszco from E.R. Eddison's ''Literature/TheWormOuroboros''. While all the Lords of Demonland are supreme warriors, Goldry is the tallest and strongest.
* Johanna is a Class 1 from ''[[Literature/TheHungerGames Catching Fire]]'' which [[GenderFlip tells you a lot about the team]]
* Sinai from ''Literature/BlackDogs'' fits Class 1 to a T. After she leaves, Gunnar takes her place as TheBigGuy, who is more of a Class 2.
* ''Literature/TheGunsOfNavarone''. Andrea Stavros is described as a giant.
* Charlene from ''Literature/TheKingdomKeepers'' was selected to be a DHI because she was very athletic, making her a RareFemaleExample of this trope.
* Literature/JackReacher is class five, as he uses his brain when he uses his muscles. His brother comes across as a Class Two, but he really can't fight period.
* [[BattleButler Butler]] (and the entire Butler family) from the ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'' series. He's the title characters body guard, coming in just under 7 feet, basically giant a mass of muscle and an incredibly capable combatant. He's also, as the name suggests, a general servant who has a huge list of handy skills, from being a certified pilot to a trained chef. He might not be quite into GeniusBruiser territory, but he's not dumb muscle by any means.
** Juliet Butler (the above's younger sister) also qualifies. She's not as physically big as her brother, falling more into the CuteBruiser variety, but is similarly skilled and dangerous.
* ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' fits the JerkWithAHeartOfGold category. He ''did'' threaten death on one criminal when his friend was wounded.
* ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'': Tulkas is the champion and physically strongest of the Valar. A mighty wrestler and boisterous by nature, his very laughter causes the Dark Lord Melkor to tremble with fear. He is said to be slow to anger, but also slow to forgive.
* French Sci Fi novel ''{{Literature/Malevil}}'' has Peyssou: big, rowdy, lewd, and uneducated.
* ''Literature/InDeath'': David Baxter or Peabody could be placed in this category.
* In ''Literature/SeptimusHeap'', Nicko is type 2, being rather strong from his work at a boatyard but also often carrying the IdiotBall.
* Ham in ''Literature/{{Mistborn}}'' is a Pewterarm, which means he can burn pewter to make himself stronger and increase his endurance. He also happens to enjoy debating philosophy, making him a Class Five. While Vin and Kelsier can also burn pewter, they also have access to all the other metals, while being the big guy is Ham's only power.
* Tonk Fah from ''Literature/{{Warbreaker}}'' is this trope, especially in the literal sense. Returned gods also tend to have much bigger builds that also make them stronger, although they generally have no idea what to do with that advantage.
* ''Literature/TheBelgariad'' has a FiveManBand within the FiveManBand made up of Big Guys. Barak, an enormous [[HornyVikings Cherek]] who turns into a {{bear|sAreBadNews}} and fights with an axe in one hand and a sword in the other is TheHero, Hettar, a fast moving cavalryman acts as his Lancer, archer Lelldorin is the Big Chick, religious fanatic Relg is their [[TheSmartGuy Smart Guy]], and KnightInShiningArmour Sir Mandorallen of Vo Mandor, who kills lions with his bare hands and threatens armies by himself is Big Squared. Not much is made of this potential band within the band in ''The Belgariad''... but in the ''Malloreon'' sequel series prophetic demands and Big Guy stubborness leads to the Big Guys of the ''Belgariad's'' hero band joining together in a band of their own (along with Unrak, Barak's son and a Big Guy-in-training) and try to catch up with the main hero band. In ''The Malloreon'' main hero band itself, Toth is probably closest, though by this point the hero has become so lethally dangerous that the Big Guy role isn't really ''needed'' like it was in the first series (Eddings knew his tropes).
* Ulath in ''Literature/TheElenium'' is a type 1.
* Dhampinella, the supernaturally-strong {{Dhampir}} in the ''Literature/MediochreQSethSeries'' is a rare female example of Class 1. She also counts as a 'Giantess' female type.
* ''Literature/AdventureHunters'': Played with; Artorius is a big and broad man in armor but he delegates all the heavy lifting to short and slender Lisa because she has SuperStrength.
* Heleth in the ''Literature/{{ColSec Trilogy}}'' is a CuteBruiser of the third type—small, compact, pushy, and aggressive.
* Amanandrala "Grok" Grookonomonslf of the ''Literature/StarRiskLtd'' series is the GeniusBruiser version. He's an alien with some resemblance to a bear and, in a team full of badasses, ranks among the deadliest. He's also extremely good with computers and cryptography.
%% * Darius and Johnny B from ''Literature/TheHouseOfNight''.
* Frank from ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'' is even called this in the text. He is a son of Mars and has [[spoiler: {{shapeshifting}} powers]], as well as being the {{big|Fun}}gest [[HeroicBuild physically]].
** Percy Jackson's cyclops half-brother Tyson was this in the prequel series, being by far the physically strongest of the heroic characters. Percy even calls him "big guy."
* ''Literature/TheCrystal'' has [[MeaningfulName Rocky]], one of a trio of adventurers, and a six foot tall, six foot wide troll. A type 2. Speaks Like This, For Some Reason.
%% * Minho from ''[[Literature/TheMazeRunner The Maze Runner Trilogy]]''.
* In the ''[[Literature/XWingSeries Wraith Squadron]]'' novels, "unit strongman" is one of the classical roles that Piggy insists keeps coming up, regardless of how the unit changes (he's right). He was one of the originals, along with Runt and Kell (Runt is the best at strongman-type displays, Piggy hits the hardest, but Kell leaves them both in the dust with his martial arts training). In ''Mercy Kill'', Trey Courser also fills this role. Curiously, all four are variations on the rare Type 5 -- Kell and Trey are both [[MrFixit mechanics]], Kell is [[StuffBlowingUp a demolitionist]], Runt was a comms tech, and Piggy is a certifiable genius in math and basically everything else.
* ''Literature/TheInfernalDevices'':
** Henry Branwell.
** Thomas Tanner. Which is rather ironic, considering he was a shrimp when he was younger.
%%* Dimitri from ''Literature/VampireAcademy'', is very tall at 2,01 meters (6'7") and is also physically broad in physique.
* ''Literature/JourneyToChaos'': Tiza is this for Dragon's Lair mercenary team four. As the team's fighter, her role is to tank the enemies. She wears the heaviest armor to absorb damage in place of the mages and fights up front with sword and shield. Her teammates support her with healing, buffs, and coverfire.
* In the ''Literature/DredChronicles'', prison gang leader Dred has Einar, one of her lieutenants and bodyguards. He can act the GentleGiant when he wants, but as Dred notes, people like that don't end up where they are and survive.
* ''Literature/TheUnknownSoldier'': The platoon's TheBigGuy is actually its smallest member, [[PintSizedPowerhouse Määttä]]!
* ''Literature/TheLastHuman2019'' has Ceeron, a large android that was designed to lift and carry large solar panels.
* ''Literature/BazilBroketail'':
** Swane is the strongest and most physically imposing of all dragonboys, at least until [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Rakama comes along]].
** Rakama shares this role with Swane in 109th the moment he appears, though rather than just big, he is far better trained in hand-do-hand combat, giving him an edge over physically stronger, but less skilled companion. Eventually, Swane does recognize Rakama as a superior combatant.
** As a wild dragon, Purple-Green is bigger and stronger than his wingless peers, and despite receiving training in swordplay after joining the legions, he still relies more on his ferocity and brute strength rather than fighting technique.
* ''Literature/HackAlleyDoctor'': Ping, one of the White Leopards, is described as an "absolute unit" with a voice that rumbles like thunder. He wears a custom-made exoskeleton in his first appearance and is big enough to wear a shield on each arm.
* The Bladecleaver from ''Literature/GrentsFall'' was a head taller than Duke Abel Marnhull (who himself was taller than average) and wielded a {{BFS}} as easily as a dagger. According to WordOfGod, he was 6'9" (and Abel was 6'0").
* The angel Brumak from ''Literature/WarsOfTheRealm''. He's a Class 1 Big Guy, a strong silent type who can beat up droxans (giant demonic monsters) without any help. In fact, here is his how he's introduced by Validus, the angel protagonist:
--> The [[FallenAngel Fallen]] had droxans. The angels had Brumak. The few times Validus had seen him in action, he was astonished. Brumak was a tower of dark, muscled, angelic force, standing a full six inches taller than Validus and half again as thick. He had seen Brumak take sword slices and bullets that would have put two angels down, but the warrior kept coming. He had never seen him smile. Never.
----