The protagonist of the series is Richard Shelton, known as Dick, an orphan and raised by Sir Daniel Brackley, a fervent and opportunistic soldier who prepares him for a military career. Dick is ready to serve his guardian, but when he discovers it was he who killed his father, he runs off to join the Black Arrow Gang, a band of outlaws who oppose the oppression of tyrants. The series is based on the book The Black Arrow: A Tale of the Two Roses by Robert Louis Stevenson.