History Literature / InheritanceCycle

* ImmortalProcreationClause: 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 [[OurElvesAreDifferent 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, which is partially due to the fact that with such a long lifespan, Elves view children – a lifetime commitment – as the ultimate act of love and bonding. They don't exactly find that bond with every mate.
* In the last book, Arya even implies that their low number of children is a sign of just how seriously they've suffered under Galbatorix's reign - they're at legit risk of unsustainable numbers if they don't turn things around.

* IdiosyncraticCoverArt: Each novel in the series introduces a new, differently-colored dragon as a character. This dragon gets his/her picture on the cover of the book, and the book is the same color as his/her hide.

* IHaveManyNames: Dragon riders and Eragon in particular pick many nicknames up from their peers. Dwarves - and subsequently the Varden, who've spent a lot of time with them - call them "argetlam", or "silverhand," for the silver patch riders have on their hands. Elves call them "shurtugal," which is their invented word that means "dragon rider." Eragon picks up the name "Shadeslayer" after killing Durza. And the Urgals dub him "Firesword" after seeing him in action with his and call him that in his presence and without.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In ''Eragon'', Brom mentions that with every Dragon Rider Galbatorix and the Foresworn killed, they grew stronger. This winds up setting up TheReveal about [[spoiler:the enslavement of the Eldunarí, one of the sources of Galbatorix's strength.]]

* ''Eldest'' (2005)

* ChekhovsGun:

** See also the slide around Vol Turin (the Endless Staircase), which Eragon uses in order to reach the ground floor in time during the Battle of Farthen Dur.

* DeusExMachina: Frequently, especially the Blood Oath Ceremony, which magically [[spoiler:transforms Eragon into 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. This is an ability all dragons have, which is the technical excuse for Eragon's change above.]]

* NotSoDifferentREmark: The heroes have committed some distasteful actions of their own, such as poisoning Galbatorix's army before a battle. Lampshaded by Elva, who points out to Eragon "[[spoiler:Galbatorix would approve.]]" when he tries to [[spoiler:forcibly remove her powers after botching the job the first time.]]

* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame: Mining experts, proudly industrious, and rock-attached mountain folk with a strong attachment to beer, a small rivalry with elves (nowhere near as pronounced as somewhere like ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'')... Gimli would feel right at home.

* ScrewYouElves: Paolini's elves are essentially Tolkien's written in detail - they're incredible magicians, immortal unless killed, make most of their
[[spoiler:Murtagh]] makes a speech about this at the end of ''Eldest'', basically saying that they're a bunch of cowards who oppress humans.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: The Ra'zac. Explained somewhat in that they're quite literally humanity's apex predator: they aren't chaotic evil so much as they are a wolf to the human rabbit.

* CantArgueWithElves: Since Paolini's Elves are pretty, magical, and incredibly long-lived, they know everything and are very happy to tell you that.

* ComboPlatterPowers: Being a dragon rider gives you a psychic connection to your dragon and makes you a magic user, regardless of previous heritage, while also making you stronger than most magicians ever by giving you your dragon's strength to draw upon. Your psychic link also lets you read people's minds and even invade them, to the point where you can probe dozens of minds at once with ease. You'll also become stronger over time, and magic will let you do virtually any cool thing you want to within reason. That's not even mentioning the cool-colored sword you're eligible for, the awesome training, or, oh yeah, that you get a ''dragon.''

* ScientificallyUnderstandableSorcery: Magic works by the same laws and logic as physics.
* ScrewYouElves: [[spoiler:Murtagh]] makes a speech about this at the end of ''Eldest'', basically saying that they're a bunch of cowards who oppress humans.

* WhatMeasureIsAMook: A major theme of the series. In the first book, Eragon only has to fight [[OurOrcsAreDifferent Urgals]] and a [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Shade]], and doesn't struggle much with it morally, especially after coming across a village massacred by the former early on. But from then on, he ends up mostly fighting human soldiers of the empire, including what he knows are unwilling recruits or people just defending their homes. Over time he becomes increasingly frazzled by the action and finds it hard to cope, even the Urgals becoming sympathetic fairly quickly.

* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Courtesy of [[HealingHands magical healing powers]]. {{Subverted}} when [[spoiler:Nasuada wins the Trial of the Long Knives, and has to let seven fairly deep and hideous scars heal naturally as both part of the Trial and proof of her victory. She even states that, if the rules allowed her to remove them, she still wouldn't.]]

* MegatonPunch: This becomes a specialty of Eragon in the later books. Being in fights constantly and now super-strong from Rider training, he's even described punching through men's shields and still stoving in their chests with single, powerful hits.

* OneManArmy: Eragon ends up this by ''Eldest'', not even counting Saphira, trusted to turn the tide in massive battles all by himself. With his super-strength, super-speed, massive swordfighting skill, magic-casting, mind-reading, and more, it's a fair appellation.

* WhatMeasureIsAMook: PlayedWith. Eragon and many of the heroes slice through enemy soldiers and Urgals with abandon because of the war. Though as the books continue and Eragon is exposed to the world beyond his black-and-white beliefs, Eragon does try to factor in that many of his enemies are just normal people, conscripts, or even forcibly drafted with magic. After the climactic battle in Eldest Eragon makes a point to help all injured soldiers regardless of faction, and when seizing a future city he offers a chance of surrender to the Empire's soldiers, and demands his allies treat those that took the offer with respect.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome:
** Because Eragon was given a sword that was impossibly sharp and enchanted to never dull, he never had to bother using whetstones to maintain the edge or even learn how. He's very good at sharpening ''knives,'' but quickly gets called out on the delicacy of a too-sharp sword edge. When he must use a regular sword in ''Brisingr'' he gets annoyed at how often the blade must be sharpened, and realizes that a few of his techniques such as blocking with the edge rather than the flat only worked because of the magic and are not at all practical with normal weapons.
** In the first book, Eragon tries to bless an orphan girl he meets using the magic he's learned. Unfortunately, his inexperience leads to him casting a ''curse'' instead. When he attempts to undo it later once his skills have improved he is still only partially successful, removing the harmful effects but leaving her enchanted.
** In ''Brisngr'', Roran defies his orders and leads the Varden forces to a heroic victory over the empire. Despite this, he is still guilty of ignoring his superiors and Nasuada is forced to punish him in order to prevent others from following his example.

* TooAwesomeToUse: [[spoiler:Brom's ring.]]

%%* ActionDuo: Angela and Eragon under Dras-Leona.

* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Galbatorix, [[spoiler:Murtagh]].

%%* ABoyAndHisX: X being dragon. Eragon and Saphira, and also [[spoiler:Murtagh and Thorn]].

%%* CoolBoat: The ''Dragon Wing''.

%%* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler:Glaedr.]]

%%* ImHavingSoulPains: Eragon thoughout most of ''Eldest''.

%%* LightningBruiser: [[OurElvesAreDifferent Elves]], [[DragonRider Dragon Riders]], Ra'zac, and Shades. [[ProudWarriorRace Kull]] might also count; they can run as fast as horses and are tough enough to fight five men at once.

%%* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler:Used ''twice'']], though only once correctly.

%%* MightyGlacier: Dwarves. Dragons lean towards this as they get older, growing gradually bigger but losing mobility.

%%** Morzan.

%%* OldMaster: Oromis.

%%* OurDragonsAreDifferent
%%* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame

%%* ProudWarriorRace: The Urgals qualify after ''Eldest''. Elves and Dragons have traits of this, too.%%How?

%%** Morn (who is himself a ShoutOut/parody).

%% * SingleTear: As many anti-fans have pointed out.

%%* SoulJar: The Eldunari.

* BothSidesHaveAPoint: In ''Inheritance'', Orrin and Nasuada get into an argument over [[spoiler: the viability of the Varden continuing their alliance with the Urgals that has shades of this. Orrin argues that, given the age-old hatred and antipathy towards Urgals, the Empire is succeeding in [[HeroWithBadPublicity painting the Varden as villains]] for allying with the Urgals (since the Empire was [[VillainWithGoodPublicity effectively able to hush up their previous alliance with the creatures]]) and as a result, Imperial cities are choosing to resist to the bitter end rather than surrender to enemies allied with what they see as monsters, which is costing the Varden more lives to capture Imperial territory. Nasuada argues that since the Urgals have upheld their side of the alliance honourably, turning on them for no other reason than prejudice would just result in the Varden gaining another enemy, and that if they don't try to temper the Urgals' more [[BloodKnight warlike tendencies]], the cycle of violence between their races will resume the moment they no longer have [[EnemyMine a common enemy in Galbatorix]].]]

** [[spoiler: When Glaedr tells Saphira to "keep her heart safe" before she and Eragon leave to go help the Varden fight the Empire's army in Eldest. Later revealed that he was referring to a special magic stone every dragon has called an Eldunari which is basically their source of magical power and where their souls go if the Eldunari is removed from their bodies, they're also the source of Galbatorix's power, so that's quite a big gun.]]

* DeliverUsFromEvil: [[spoiler: Eragon's]] mother. When the series starts, all we know is that his mom has been dead for a while, and that she ran away from his dad who was some kind of evil person. Then we find out his dad [[spoiler:was TheDragon]] and his mom [[spoiler:was a DarkActionGirl whose [[DevotedToYou incredible devotion to him]] was only overruled by her desire to see her second child live a better life, away from his ArchnemesisDad.]] It's played with in that [[spoiler:Eragon's father is actually Brom, and Selene's HeelFaceTurn was a result of her love for him, then their child (Morzan's rarely letting her see Murtagh helped as well).]]

* DeusExMachina: Frequently, especially the Blood Oath Ceremony, which magically [[spoiler: transforms Eragon into 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. This is an ability all dragons have, which is the technical excuse for Eragon's change above.]]

* DragonRider: Almost the whole premise of the series, to the point that Rider is a proper noun. Eragon is one, naturally. Also, [[spoiler: Oromis, Murtagh,]] and Galbatorix count. Brom, Orik, and Arya have also ridden Saphira at various points, and [[spoiler:Brom was also a Rider before his dragon was killed. Arya becomes one at the end.]]

* ElectiveMonarchy: The dwarf clan chiefs vote to appoint another king or queen upon the creation of a vacancy in the position. In ''Brisingr'', after the death of LaResistance-friendly King Hrothgar, a few isolationist clans [[spoiler:unsuccessfully]] oppose the royal candidacy of Orik, his nephew and heir. The elves do the same in ''Inheritance'' too, with a number of families, noble houses and elders required to consent on the choice. [[spoiler: Arya]] is the one they appoint in the end.

* FailureToSaveMurder: [[spoiler: In their first clash in ''Brisingr'', Murtagh mentioned that he and Thorn were savagely tortured by Galbatorix when the latter found out Eragon had killed the Ra'zac, since had Murtagh taken Eragon and Saphire captive at the end of ''Eldest'', it wouldn't have happened]].

* FedToTheBeast: [[spoiler: After being caught trying to scout a secret passage into Dras-Leona, the cultists of Helgrind try to inflict this on Eragon and Arya by feeding them to newborn Ra'zac hatchlings. Since the cultists considered the Ra'zac [[UltimateLifeForm living gods]], they felt it was the only fitting punishment for the [[ThisIsUnforgivable unforgivable]] blasphemy of killing the previous creatures.]]

* GenerationXerox: Murtagh is doomed to follow in the footsteps of Morzan, his father. Eragon likewise [[spoiler:follows in ''his'' father Brom's footsteps.]] Each has a dragon of the same colour as his father's, while [[spoiler: Eragon's Saphira even has the same name as Brom's Saphira]].

* HereThereWereDragons: 100 years ago, EvilOverlord 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.]]
* HeroicBastard: Eragon is one, the son of Selena and [[spoiler: Brom]]. One could argue that this applies to all Elves, as they don't marry, since while a commitment to another can last hundreds of years it rarely persists through all of their immortal life. However, as a result they don't even really have the concept of "legitimacy," and view it as a pretty silly human notion. Eragon angsts a bit over this after he first hears it, but he's told that his parents actually considered themselves married, assuaging this a bit.
* HeroicResolve: Roran uses a lot of this to survive [[spoiler: being given 50 freaking lashes!]]

* IAmWho: Eragon's identity is a closely kept secret until ''Brisingr'' wherein it's revealed that he is [[spoiler: the son of Brom.]]

* KingIncognito: [[spoiler: Murtagh]] appears to be just an ordinary rogue, albeit one with a lot of expensive stuff, until it is revealed that he is [[spoiler: the son of Morzan, Galbatorix's most powerful general, and soon after takes his father's place as the Empire's champion.]]

%%* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler: Used ''twice'']], though only once correctly.

* MillionMookMarch: 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.

* PayEvilUntoEvil: Eragon's philosophy is this. Possibly {{Lampshaded}} when four different characters, [[spoiler: Murtagh, Sloan, Elva, and a soldier in Feinster]], [[WhatTheHellHero call him out on this.]]

* PosthumousCharacter: Morzan, Eragon the first Rider, and [[spoiler:Brom]] after the first book. Also, as it turns out [[spoiler: Selena, mother of Eragon and Murtagh]].

* In ''Eldest,'' Eragon gains the ability to [[spoiler: draw energy from living beings that aren't Saphira, which can kill the other being. Brom teaches him how to perform it on some insects without telling him about the killing part because he wants to drive home how terrible the price of [[ForbiddenSecretTechnique this magic]] is. Eragon feels as if he himself had died over and over, since you need to [[MindProbe psychically inhabit the mind of the target first]]. Traditionally, Dragon Riders only were told about it once their training was already complete, so their masters could avoid teaching it to Riders who would abuse it. Thanks to Galbatorix's ObviouslyEvil status, the Riders didn't tell him about it, making it one of the few abilities Eragon has and he doesn't. Later, at the Battle of the Burning Plains, Eragon uses it on an injured horse who was dying anyway. Later on, in ''Brisingr,'' Eragon partially replenishes his own energy [[ItMakesSenseInContext and that of his belt]] by taking energy from some animals that are about to be killed and eaten by [[LaResistance the Varden]], and he has to stop since the experience is so horrifying.]]

* ReligionOfEvil: The cultists of Helgrind are this. HumanSacrifice and [[MalevolentMutilation ritualised mutilation]] is common amongst their ranks, to the point their High Priest is little more than a head and limbless torso carried from place to place on a litter, so extensively mutilated Eragon can't tell if the priest is male or female. [[spoiler: They're proved to be even ''worse'' in ''Inheritance'', where it's revealed the cultists actually worship [[HumanoidAbomination the Ra'zac]] as [[UltimateLifeForm living gods]], and seek to ensure the extinction of dragons so there will no longer be checks on their deity's freedom to hunt]].

* TitleDrop: 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]] ''Brisingr'', the third book, is both the true name of "fire" and the very first spell Eragon ever cast (way back in the first book). More significantly, it is also [[spoiler: the name he gives to his new sword after it is forged]]...with interesting results. It's not dropped much in the last book, but it's implied that Eragon's ''Inheritance'' is [[spoiler:the responsibility of leading and rebuilding the Dragon Riders]].
* TonightSomeoneDies: [[spoiler: In addition to Ajihad dying in the book's first chapter, Hrothgar at the end of book two. In book three, Master Oromis, the OldMaster. Glaedr survives in his Eldunari but is physically dead, and exists merely as an Eldunari in the final book, when Islanzadi dies as well.]]

* UnpleasantParentReveal: {{Subverted}} in the second book. [[TheChosenOne Eragon]] is told by [[AntiHero Murtagh]] that he is the son of Morzan, the last of the Forsworn and overall bad person. As it turns out, however, while his mother ''was'' Morzan's wife, his father is actually [[spoiler: [[MentorArchetype Brom]]]].

* WeCanRuleTogether: In ''Brisingr'', Eragon receives this offer from his father [[spoiler: Morzan...but A.) It was only a nightmare (Morzan had long been dead.) and B.) Morzan wasn't really his father; he just thought that he was, until he later learned otherwise.]] Later, Galbatorix offers this for Nasuada when she's his prisoner. Unsurprisingly, she refuses.

** The two women Angela asks Eragon to bless. After receiving the blessing, the two go on their own journey without appearing again. [[spoiler: [[{{TheBusCameBack}} Eventually, one of them reappears in the next book when she saves Roran's life during the Battle of Uru'baen]], but there is still no mention of why she was there and if there was a specific reason]].

* WhatTheHellHero: 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 [[UnusualEuphemism fantasy swear words]]. Thirdly, after Eragon [[spoiler: attempts to heal Elva of her [[BlessedWithSuck 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 AntiHero. 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.

* AloofBigBrother: [[spoiler:Murtagh]] is the older, [[StrongerSibling stronger]], [[GoodIsDumb smarter]], [[AntiHero more pragmatic]], [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism more cynical]], more experienced [[spoiler:half-]]brother of [[spoiler: Eragon.]] The only area in which his younger brother has him beat is mental health.

* BadassNormal: Roran is one of the few normal humans among the main cast, but he still manages to achieve many impressive feats, including slaying 193 men in a single battle and even [[spoiler: defeating the tertiary antagonist by bear-hugging him to death, moments after that antagonist killed the immortal elf queen in single combat.]]

* BeardOfSorrow: Roran grows one after [[spoiler: Katrina is kidnapped by the Ra'zac]] to disguise himself from his enemies.

* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Courtesy of [[HealingHands magical healing powers]]. [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] when [[spoiler: Nasuada wins the Trial of the Long Knives, and has to let seven fairly deep and hideous scars heal naturally as both part of the Trial and proof of her victory. She even states that, if the rules allowed her to remove them, she still wouldn't.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The BigBad is dead,]] half of the surviving [[spoiler: Eldunarya are insane, and there's no place to raise the dragons, forcing Eragon and Saphira to leave Alagaësia forever in order to raise them. This prevents their fledgling romances with Arya and Fírnen from ever being.]] Although that was [[spoiler: something of a ForegoneConclusion]]. Saphira and Fírnen, however, mate, and the vault of dragon eggs is opened, securing the revival of dragons as a race and the re-establishment of the Dragon Riders as a regulatory force of good.
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: [[LaResistance The Varden]] and Elves are good, TheEmpire is evil. Eragon tries to give this a significant amount of thought, as a number of characters point out that he's fighting because other people told him to, however right they may be. Finally, he reaches the conclusion that The Varden is still good, despite the suffering they cause and the lack of obvious evidence against the King, because Galbatorix is immortal and they're preventing the suffering that will come with another century of his reign. After a significant amount of angst, Eragon then comes to the bizarre and defeatist conclusion that [[spoiler: he has to cross the ocean to train the next generation of riders. He left behind civilization, everything he fought for, the chance to shape the creation of the next major golden age, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the chance to get into Arya's (the only woman for whom he could hold genuine affection)]] [[AuthorTract tight leather]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking pants]].]] He's also very clear about the fact that he'll never come back, despite the fact that it's very clearly a journey that could be easily made once or twice every few years, even accounting for the strain on Saphira.
* BlessedWithSuck: Quite literally Elva, as her curse was intended to be a blessing, but was misspoken. She is cursed to feel the pain and uncertainties of everyone around her, forcing her to endure constant torment. Later, [[spoiler: [[CursedWithAwesome the negative side effects are taken away by Eragon.]] ]]