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Line 1: {{~~trope~~Useful Notes}} '''Excalibur:''' is the legendary sword of [[King Arthur]] and the go-to name when you need a magic weapon. Anyone, and everyone, will have to find or has found Excalibur at some point in their life (well, that ''may'' be exaggeration... slightly). Given its status as a [[Public Domain Artifact]], there are quite a few works and other media references to it, not to mention the mess of actual and popular mythology about the Arthurian legend. Classically, Excalibur was the sword given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake as proof of his fitness to rule Britain. It may or may not have been originally created by [[Merlin]]. It is frequently confused with the Sword in the Stone, called Caliburn, which is a different and slightly contradictory legend, although ''also'' called Excalibur in at least one version, and the two are distinct... ~~maybe -- the~~maybe—the myths are not entirely clear on this subject. This makes it really easy for authors to [[Sadly Mythtaken\|get them mixed up]]. Oh, and the original spelling might have been [[The Unpronounceable\|Caledfwlch]]. ~~=== Other tropes~~{{tropelist\|Tropes frequently associated with Excalibur: ~~===~~}}▼ ~~To avoid confusion when adding examples, please refer to the following pages:~~ * [[Excalibur (film)]]: [[The Movie]]. * [[Excalibur (Comic Book)]]: The [[Marvel Comics]] comic, and its [[Comicbook/Excalibur/The Comicbook/Characters\|character sheet]]. * [[Only the Chosen May Wield]]: Examples of items like the ''other'' sword which can only be used by the [[Chosen One]]. ** [[The Sword in the Stone]]: The Disney film about the other sword. * [[Excalibur in the Stone]]: The confusion about which sword Excalibur is in media. ~~----~~ ▲=== Other tropes frequently associated with Excalibur: === * [[Absurdly Sharp Blade]] * [[Ancient Artifact]] * [[Cool Sword]] * [[Empathic Weapon]] (occasionally) * [[Finders, Rulers]] * [[Infinity+1 Sword]] * [[It Was a Gift]] Line 30 ⟶ 22: * [[Shrouded in Myth]] * [[Stock Weapon Names]] * [[Sword of Plot Advancement]] {{examples\|Examples of the sword itself in media:}} == [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] == * [[Soul Eater\|Excalibur!]] [[Equippable Ally\|Excalibur!]] [[Mean Brit\|From United King]], [[Talking Weapon\|I'm looking]] [[Infinity+1 Sword\|for him]], [[Cloudcuckoolander\|I'm going to California!]] [[Ensemble Darkhorse\|Excalibur!]] [[Large Ham\|Excalibur!]] [[Crazy Awesome\|EXCALIBUR!]] Line 40 ⟶ 31: ** Also used for a [[Humongous Mecha]] twin beam sword used by the initial main hero of ''[[Gundam Seed Destiny]]'' == [[Comic Books]] ==▼ ▲== Comic Books == * Featured in the [[Marvel Universe]] in a trilogy of ''[[Iron Man]]'' stories. ** Later shows up in ''Captain Britain and MI-13''. Line 50 ⟶ 40: * In ''[[Camelot 3000]]'', King Arthur must retrieve Excalibur from the lake, which is now the cooling pond for a nuclear power station. == [[Film]] ==▼ * ''[[Monty Python and ~~The~~the Holy Grail]]'', identified properly as the sword bestowed upon Arthur by the Lady in the Lake, but serving no actual plot purpose.▼ ▲== Film == ▲* ''[[Monty Python and The Holy Grail]]'', identified properly as the sword bestowed upon Arthur by the Lady in the Lake, but serving no actual plot purpose. * In ''[[Quest for Camelot]]'', Excalibur is lost and becomes the [[MacGuffin]] as the heroes quest to find it and save the kingdom. Sir Ruper, the [[Big Bad]], seeks the sword so he can magically bind himself to it and become invincible. * In ''[[King Arthur (film)]]'' (2004), Excalibur / Sword in the Stone is retrieved by young Arthur from his father's grave. == [[Literature]] ==▼ ▲== Literature == * Thomas Malory's ''[[Le Morte d'Arthur]]'' is widely considered the definitive version of the Arthurian legend. * T.H. White's ''[[The Once and Future King]]''. Line 63 ⟶ 51: * In ''[[The Dresden Files]]'', it's ''heavily'' implied - and eventually confirmed in ''Ghost Story'' - that {{spoiler\|Michael Carpenter's sword Amoracchius}} is Excalibur. He even mentions that, in the past, a wizard (Merlin) held on to it between wielders. == [[Live -Action TV]] ==▼ ▲== Live Action TV == * ''[[Merlin (TV series)]]'', of course. It was created in the episode called "[[Title In\|Excalibur]]", has been thrown into the lake by Merlin, was retrieved by his watery girlfriend, and is currently residing in [[Excalibur in the Stone\|a large stone]]. Interestingly, three seasons in and it has still not been named or identified as the legendary Excalibur, nor wielded by Arthur himself. ** As of the end of the fourth series, Excalibur has been pulled out of the stone and is in Arthur's possession, but ''still'' hasn't been called "Excalibur" yet. * Appears in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' story ''Battlefield'', where it is key to resurrecting a King Arthur from an [[Alternate Universe]]. {{spoiler\|Only, Arthur's really long dead...}} == [[Video Games]] ==▼ ~~== Truth In Television ==~~ * Truth In Television from which the [[Excalibur]] myth was taken: in ancient times, aging celtic heroes threw their inherited, heirloom blades into the swamps to appease the spirits who dwelt there, who presumably kept their weapons safe after they died. They've found tons of swords buried in the former lake around the former isle of Avalon, aka Glastonbury Tor.▼ ▲== Video Games == * The ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' series has featured Excalibur or variant spellings as a weapon in nearly every game. If there's a sword wielding character, you can bet they'll end up wielding it. ** Several games in the series feature a shoddy knock-off [[Joke Item\|Excalipur]]. Sometimes it's pretty good if you [[Lethal Joke Item\|throw it]]. It's usually found in the hands of [[Running Gag\|Gilgamesh]], who has once again mistaken it for the real deal. Line 81 ⟶ 63: * Deconstructed in ''[[Tomb Raider]]: Legend'', where the concept of Excalibur as a [[Public Domain Artifact]] is explored. * ''[[Backyard Sports\|Backyard Skateboarding]]'' has the unlockable Excaliboard ([[Exactly What It Says on the Tin\|obviously]] based on Excalibur). * In ''[[Golden Sun]]: The Lost Age'' and ''[[Golden Sun: Dark Dawn\|Dark Dawn]]'', the Excalibur is one one of the strongest swords in both games and obtained by forging an orihalcon with a 5% probability. * ''[[Castlevania: Chronicles of Sorrow\|Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow]]'' had the Excalibur show up as a sword in the stone...amusingly enough, Soma's not the chosen one who can free it, so instead he ''swings the massive bolder the sword's attach to as well as the sword itself.'' * In the French language translation of ''[[The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past]]'', the Master Sword is referred to as "Excalibur". Line 88 ⟶ 70: * In [[Nethack]] players can recieve Excalibur by dipping a Longsword into a fountain if they are Lawful. === Visual Novels ===▼ ▲== Visual Novels == * ''[[Fate/stay night]].'' Of course, {{spoiler\|[[King Arthur\|Saber]]}} uses it. And it's '''powerful'''. == [[Web Comics]] == ~~== Webcomics ==~~ * In the webcomic ''[[Arthur, King of Time and Space]]'', Uther Pendragon, Arthur's father, allows people to believe his sword is the legendary Excalibur as a PR exercise. This is the sword that ends up in the stone, while the ''real'' Excalibur is in the care of the Lady of the Lake. ** That is, when it's not [[Recycled in Space\|a starship]], a global corporation, a marshal's badge ... . Line 103 ⟶ 83: == [[Western Animation]] == * ''[[Gargoyles]]''. [[King Arthur]] appeared, albeit sans Excalibur. He eventually retrieved it, but not without a clash with [[Macbeth]]. * ''[[Thundercats]]''. In the 1980s Thundercats, [[Big Bad\|Mumm-Ra]] seeks out a weapon powerful enough to defeat the Sword of Omens. The only weapon without question powerful enough to do the job is Excalibur. Through trickery Mumm-Ra obtains it and defeats the Sword of Omens after the swords fight on their own. It looks like evil wins until Merlin shows up, takes back the sword and kicks Mumm-Ra's ass. == Real Life == ▲* the Truth In Television from which the [[Excalibur]] myth was taken: in ancient times, aging ~~celtic~~Celtic heroes threw their inherited, heirloom blades into the swamps to appease the spirits who dwelt there, who presumably kept their weapons safe after they died. They've found tons of swords buried in the former lake around the former isle of Avalon, aka Glastonbury Tor. {{reflist}} [[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]] [[Category:Dark Age Europe]] ~~{{disambiguation}}~~ [[Category:Weapons and Wielding Tropes]] [[Category:~~Excalibur~~Public Domain Artifact]] [[Category:Matter of Britain]]