All The Tropes

Inheritance Cycle: Difference between revisions

Page Discussion

Inheritance Cycle (view source)

Revision as of 08:57, 10 August 2023

156 bytes added ,  9 months ago
Clean up links
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
(Clean up links)
 
Line 42:
* [[Bald Black Leader Guy]]: Ajihad, who has a beard but [[Bald of Awesome|no hair]].
* [[Bald of Evil]]: The Twins.
* [[BFS]]: The teenaged protagonist hilariously wields a five-foot blade in earlier publications of the book. This was later [[retcon]]ned to three and a half feet.▼
* [[Beard of Evil]]: Galbatorix
* [[Beard of Sorrow]]: Roran grows one after {{spoiler|Katrina is kidnapped by the Ra'zac.}}
Line 52 ⟶ 51:
* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: Yeah, {{spoiler|Galby is dead,}} but half the surviving {{spoiler|Eldunarya are insane, Arya and Eragon and Firnen and Saphira have to be separated, Nasuada has a whole lot on her plate, and Murtagh and Thorn are outcast. Eragon has to leave Alagaesia for ever too.}}
* [[Black Blood]]: Applied rather literally to the [[Our Orcs Are Different|Urgals]].
▲* [[BFSBlade of Fearsome Size]]: The teenaged protagonist hilariously wields a five-foot blade in earlier publications of the book. This was later [[retcon]]ned to three and a half feet.
* [[Blessed with Suck]]: Elva. She is cursed to feel the pain and uncertainties of everyone around her, forcing her to endure constant torment. Later, {{spoiler|[[Cursed with Awesome|the negative side effects are taken away by Eragon.]] }}
* [[Body Horror]]: The bewitched soldiers in the third book feel no pain, and thus fight through dismemberment that by all rights should have killed them. Most Varden lose their nerve while fighting these guys, because fighting someone with half his face hanging off his bare skull—who laughs at you, no less—is horrifying.
Line 71:
* [[Damsel in Distress]]: Arya, and later {{spoiler|Katrina}}.
* [[Dark Magical Girl]]: Elva.
* [[The Determinator]]: Roran. He'll do absolutely anything to accomplish his goals, and woe onto anyone who gets in his way.
* [[Deus Ex Machina]]: Frequently, especially the Blood Oath Ceremony, which magically {{spoiler|transforms Eragon in a super-attractive half-elf and heals his crippling back scar}}. Also Saphira who says she can {{spoiler|change reality in some unspecified way, although not at will. Although this is not unique to her, all the dragons can.}}
* [[Doorstopper]]: Each successive book is about 150-200 pages longer than the previous instalment, with ''Brisingr'' topping out at 748 pages. This is the reason for [[Trilogy Creep|Book Four]]; "Book Three" was pushing 900 pages and not even halfway finished. A reprinting of ''Eragon'' and ''Eldest'' in a single volume dubbed the "Inheritance Omnibus" is 1216 pages long and large enough to crush a small dog if dropped from sufficient height. The Japanese translation of ''Eldest'' is so large that it is split into two books.
Line 79:
* [[Dropped a Bridge on Him]]: {{spoiler|Glaedr.}}
* [[Dude, She's Like, in a Coma]]: Done in the first first book as Eragon observes Arya's overall hotness...after she'd been tortured...and poisoned...and is still very much in danger. Overlaps nicely with [[Beauty Is Never Tarnished]]. A month in torture, poisoning and living in a dank cell in the basement, without a wash... still hot.
* [[Egg McGuffinMacGuffin]]: The one from which Saphira eventually hatches in the first book.
* [[Elaborate Underground Base]]: The dwarven capital, Tronjheim, is a city built like a small mountain inside the crater of a much larger extinct volcano so tall the top is inaccessible, even to dragons, making it only accessible by underground tunnels.
* [[OldElderly MasterSensei]]: Oromis.▼
* [[Elves vs.Versus Dwarves]]: Although they aren't exactly best friends, they do get on better than most [[Elves vs.Versus Dwarves]] do, although arguably only due to a common enemy. Also, a huge desert in between them probably helps.
* [[The Empath]]: Elva.
* [[The Empire]]
Line 104 ⟶ 105:
* [[Healing Hands]]
* [[Here There Were Dragons]]: 100 years ago, [[Evil Overlord]] Galbatorix threw down the Dragon Riders and forced every magic user to swear loyalty to himself and swear the Empire, resulting in magic becoming much rarer, dragons nearly going extinct, and the power of the elves to begin to fade away. However, {{spoiler|Galbatorix regrets his past actions and is now actively working to resurrect the dragons under his command.}}
* [[Hero Insurance]]: Eragon, being the poster boy for the Varden, has a license to kill, maim, and destroy as much as he pleases. Possible [[Subverted Trope|Subversion]] in ''Brisingr'' when Eragon finds a man that he had previously stolen from and pays him far over the original price with gold, while he says he really didn't mind, considering how Eragon used them and that {{spoiler|he destroyed the rest before leaving Carvahall anyway}}.
* [[Heroic Resolve]]: Roran uses a lot of this to survive {{spoiler|being given 50 freaking lashes!}}
* [[Hidden Elf Village]]: Ellesméra
Line 116 ⟶ 117:
* [[Immortal Procreation Clause]]: Dwarves, who live much longer than humans, are repeatedly stated to reproduce at a slower rate. This is even more extreme with the immortal-unless-killed [[Our Elves Are Better|elves]], who are even less prolific than the dwarves. At the beginning of the cycle, it's been over a decade since the last elf children(twins) were born.
* [[Immortality]]: Dragon Riders, elves, dragons, and possibly Shades are all immortal unless killed violently.
* [[In the End You Are on Your Own]]: In the first book, {{spoiler|subverted by Arya and Saphira at the critical moment, in a [[Moment of Awesome (Sugar Wiki)|Crowning Moment of Awesome]]}}. Eragon is told that this is likely to happen with Galbatorix, since he's the only member of the Varden powerful enough to stand a chance.
* [[Instant Expert]]: Eragon learns magic faster than any of the other characters, despite him being [[Just a Kid]].
* [[Kick Them While They Are Down]]: Murtagh does this to a slaver named Torkenbrand, killing him.
Line 139 ⟶ 140:
* [[Magic A Is Magic A]]: Actually quite consistent and elaborate rules of magic govern the use of the Ancient Language.
* [[Magic Knight]]: Shades, Elves, and Dragonriders tend to train in both combat and magic.
* [[Manipulative Bastard]]: Elva, being an [[The Empath|empathic]] [[Anti-Hero|antiheroine]], uses her power to discern a person's weaknesses and vulnerabilities, then say exactly the thing that she knows will give them the most comfort or the most pain. At one point, [[Crowning Moment of Awesome (Sugar Wiki)|she does this to Eragon, and is able to bring him to his knees just with some well-chosen words]].
* [[Mayfly-December Romance]]: Eragon and Arya. (Interestingly, Arya once indirectly described such a relationship to be viewed by the elves as similar to paedophilia on the elves' part. And it's implied that the perfect elves may not be right about ''everything'' after all.)
* [[Meaningful Name]]: "Eragon" is "dragon" with one letter changed, but then Paolini retconned this into "era gone by".
* [[Mighty Glacier]]: Dwarves. Dragons lean towards this as they get older, growing gradually bigger but losing mobility.
* [[Million -Mook March]]: Galbatorix's army, fully marshalled at the end of ''Eldest'' numbers {{spoiler|over 100,000.}} To put that into perspective, the Varden's forces number about 4,000 at the start of the books.
* [[Mind Probe]]: The main psychic power. Unfortunately, this particular ability can be used for [[Mind Rape]].
* [[Mind Rape]]: Often used by the [[Big Bad]]. Also done by the Twins on Eragon—they just didn't care about the pain they caused as long as they got what they wanted to know.
Line 158 ⟶ 159:
* [[The Obi-Wan]]: Brom.
* [[Offstage Villainy]]: One of the most common complaints about the The Inheritance Cycle is that the reader is never actually shown Evil Overlord Galbatorix doing anything particularly evil to the people of Alagaësia other than raising taxes. Brisingr may count, though, given how its stated that he enslaved the souls of the dragons he killed. Just the fact that he successfully overthrew the Dragon Riders seems to be enough justification for the war waged by the Varden, the elves, and the dwarves in the series.
▲* [[Old Master]]: Oromis.
* [[Orcus on His Throne]]: Galbatorix, while strong enough to wipe out the Varden by himself, decides to spend his time in the capital city, Uru'baen. [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] when Nasuada thinks about how Galbatorix's pride is the only thing keeping the Varden from being destroyed.
* [[Our Dragons Are Different]]
Line 165:
* [[Our Orcs Are Different]]: They're called Urgals.
* [[Patchwork Map]]: On the inside covers of the books.
* [[Pay Evil Unto Evil]]: Eragon's philosophy is this. Possibly [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] when four different characters, {{spoiler|Murtagh, Sloan, Elva, and a soldier in Feinster}}, [[What the Hell, Hero?|call him out on this.]]
* [[Phlebotinum Overload]]: Dragon Riders got to be careful, because if they overuse their magic abilities with casting an insane yet powerful spell, the [[Cast from Hit Points|power and might will drain]] and kill them.
** In the film, {{Spoiler|this danger was removed and Eragon was able to heal a badly injured Saphira.}}
Line 186:
* [[Relex]]: The elven language is a [[Relex]] of English with vocabulary borrowings from closely related languages.
* [[La Résistance]]: The Varden.
* [[Retcon]]: A couple of details (see [[BFSBlade of Fearsome Size]] on this page for an example) were changed, generally for the better. Mostly averted with regard to the actual storyline.
* [[The Revolution Will Not Be Vilified]]: The Varden (rebellion) is good, while [[The Empire]] is evil.
* [[Rival Turned Evil]]: {{spoiler|Murtagh, after his capture and [[Mind Rape]]}}.
Line 203:
** [[The Treasure of the Sierra Madre|"Barges? We don't want no ''stinking'' barges!"]]
* [[Single Tear]]: As many anti-fans have pointed out.
* [[Snake TalkSssssnaketalk]]: The Ra'zac have a hissing accent.
* [[Sorcerous Overlord]]: Galbatorix, naturally.
* [[Soul Jar]]: The Eldunari.
Line 211:
* [[Super Strength]]: As above.
* [[Tempting Fate]]: Eragon trying to summon the true form of his sword.
* [[The Tetris Effect]]: Happens to Eragon when he's learning to read—he keeps seeing letters in his head even when he closes his eyes.
* [[Think Nothing of It]]: In ''Brisingr'', Angela the herbalist tells Roran this after he thanks her for healing the injuries on his back from whipping. She then changes her mind and says "Or rather, thank something of it, but do not consider it overly important. Besides, it amuses me to have tended injuries on both your back and Eragon's."
* [[Title Drop]]: In each book. ''Eragon'' is obvious. The climax of ''Eldest'' drops both the book's title and the title of the series, when {{spoiler|Murtagh takes Za'roc from Eragon as his '''inheritance''' from their father. After all, he ''is'' the '''eldest''' brother}}.
* [[Tonight Someone Dies]]: Prior to the release of ''Brisingr'', Christopher Paolini announced that a major character would die at the end of the book. That character was {{spoiler|Oromis, the [[OldElderly MasterSensei]]. Glaedr survives in his Eldunari but is physically dead.}}
* [[To the Pain]]: Eragon's threat to a soldier early in the first book.
* [[Too Awesome to Use]]: {{spoiler|Brom's ring.}}
Line 233:
* [[Weirdness Magnet]]: Eragon. Lampshaded by Saphira:
{{quote|'''Saphira:''' "Nothing out of the ordinary ever occurs to me when I'm by myself. But you attract duels, ambushes, immortal enemies, obscure creatures such as the Ra'zac, long-lost family members, and mysterious acts of magic as though they were starving weasels and you were a rabbit that wandered into their den."}}
* [[What the Hell, Hero?]]: Four examples: Firstly, {{spoiler|Murtagh heavily criticizes Eragon's (and the Varden's) moral stance and allegiance at the end of ''Eldest'', going so far as to say that Galbatorix isn't bad enough to earn what Eragon's doing to the Empire}}. Secondly, Sloan gives Eragon a massive tongue lashing in ''Brisingr'' when he encounters him, complete with lots of [[Unusual Euphemism|fantasy swear words]]. Thirdly, after Eragon {{spoiler|attempts to heal Elva of her [[Blessed with Suck|curse]], he makes a mistake and only succeeds in making it painless, leaving Elva still empowered but no longer shackled down with a desire to help others, turning her into an [[Anti-Hero]]. Shortly after, he decides that she isn't mature enough to handle such power and tries to take it from her, whereupon she puts him down and tells him he's behaving as Galbatorix would.}} And fourthly, a {{spoiler|soldier in Feinster}} complains about Eragon "taking glory for himself" by disrupting the peace and slaughtering even those who have been forced to serve the Empire. YMMV, but some people consider such moments a [[Moment of Awesome (Sugar Wiki)|Crowning Moment of Awesome]].
* [[Who Wants to Live Forever?]]: A source of [[Wangst]] for Eragon.
* [[A Wizard Did It]]: The {{spoiler|ancient language}}.
Retrieved from "https://allthetropes.org/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/2023087"