History Literature / TheCrippledGod

** The Tiste Liosan on their own plan to use the hubbub to conquer the realm of Kurald Galain.

* HeroicBSOD: Warleader Gall of the Khundryl Burned Tears suffers this, as the majority of his cavalry has been killed during the battle with the K'Chain Nah'ruk in the previous book.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Onos T'oolan remembers calling Logros out on [[spoiler:transferring the title of First Sword from him to Dassem Ultor]], effectively causing the clusterfuck that Dassem's quest of revenge against Hood eventually becomes. [[spoiler:With the T'lan Imass escaping death through the Ritual of Tellann, Hood wanted to get them for it, and giving Dassem the title of First Sword, intended as an honour, gave Hood a handle on reaching through him and making ''him'' pay in their stead, thus making of Dassem the God of Tragedy.]]

* GambitPileup: As it is, the following plans crash headlong into each other at the series' final':

* WholePlotReference: The conclusion of the Perish Grey Helms story is a tribute to ''Literature/TheBlackCompany''. After the dust settles, all that remains of the once-proud mercenary company is [[spoiler:a small group of survivors led by the company's bewildered surgeon.]]

* LivingMemory: [[HeroicAlbino Silchas Ruin]] stubles into a corner of the chaos between realms in which realms fold one upon another to such a degree that it leaves a stain on time itself. There he finds the reflections of gods whose mortal bodies are walking various realms. These reflections retain their originals' memories and personalities, but have taken on lives of their own, including planning to murder [[BigBad the Crippled God]] to siphon his power.

* WeHaveReserves: The Tiste Liosan rely on this tactic in the battle for Kharkanas- for a number of reasons. Kadagar Fant sends common conscripts through the breach first, killing most of the common folk who might object to his plans in repeated waves. Then he sends those nominally loyal to him but still dangerous- soletaken dragons, the Hounds of Light, and the regular Liosan Legions. Then he sends his most reliable lieutenant- Aparal Forge- and his best Legions through. [[spoiler: If he'd just sent the Legions first, the Shake would've broken and ran. Instead his plan gradually restored their confidence in themselves to fight for their birthright and left Kurald Emurlahn open to a retaliatory invasion by the Tiste Andii.]]

* HonorBeforeReason: Discussed by Yedan Derryg and Pithy, a Letherii ex-thief-turned-soldier, on why the Letherii would fight on the First Shore. Yedan says that it's to save the world, while Pithy muses that the Letherii refugees would fight better if they were motivated by monetary rewards. Finally, Pithy confesses that neither cause suits her:
--> '''Pithy:''' 'I was a thief once. Plenty of hatred then, both ways. But then I walked a step behind your sister and watched her bleed for us all. And then there was you, too, for that matter. That rearguard action that saved all our skins. So now, [...] well, I'll stand here, and I'll fight until the fight's left them or it's left me.'\\
'''Yedan:''' 'And why would you do that, Pithy Islander?'\\
'''Pithy:''' 'Because it's the right thing to do, Yedan Derryg.'

* CavalryOfTheDead: At the climactic Battle of the Spire for the heart of the Crippled God, the tide turns when the Bridgeburners- now essentially the Gods of Death- ride into the battle.

* BigDamnHeroes: Fiddler leads the last of the Malazan Marines, Heavies, and even Hedge's Bridgeburners to the side of the Crippled God on the eve of battle while Tavore and the rest of the Bonehunters try to delay the Assail from reaching the Broken One. Less than a hundred of them against at least half an army. [[spoiler: Most of them die through repeated assaults, but they accomplish their mission and free the Crippled God to return to his world.]]
** Another moment comes from Silchas Ruin and Tulas Shorn [[spoiler: and Teloras and Curdle in dragon form]]. As the Eleint spill into reality and overwhelm Korabas, these Elder dragons are the only ones who fly to her defense against ''every'' dragon in the world.

** The Forkrul Assail, allied with the Tiste Liosan and K'Chain Nah'ruk, who are obsessed with their own brand f justice, are planning TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt by opening their [[FunctionalMagic Warren of Ahkrast Korvalain]] and wiping humanity from existence.

* LastFertileRegion: Estobanse province is the last fertile spot in all of Kolanse. The Forkrul Assail specifically spared the province to be able to feed their watered down brethren. The rest of Kolanse fell victim to a decades long draught and is almost completely uninhabitable -- not that the Forkrul Assail left enough people alive to populate the region.

** The Bonehunters' Compassion for [[spoiler: the entire world, one another, and a God none of them worships. Ever since the 14th Army was raised the Adjunct spoke of doing something "unwitnessed" but the army was unsure what to make of this declaration. They desert their homeland, invade a foreign empire, cross a continent, and finally nearly destroy themselves crossing the Glass Desert, all to fight and die at the side of the Crippled God. None but the survivors will know what they did to save all of creation- they will have no riches, no titles, no grand celebrations. And they accept this.]]
** Hanavat and Gall's Compassion and search for forgiveness toward one another [[spoiler: after losing everything in the climax of ''Dust of Dreams''. All of Gall's sons are dead, his tribe will never be able to repay their blood debt to the Wickans and Tavore, the Khundryl were annihilated in a futile cavalry charge against the Nah'ruk, and both seemed lost from their grief- Hanavat seeking comfort from her husband's ex-mistress and Gall from his dead son's widow. They reconcile in the Glass Desert and find a way to live again- Hanavat finds new purpose in caring for the Children of the Snake, and Gall is granted his warrior's death in the final battle for the Crippled God.]]

** The teenage Torrent, last of the Awl, and his Compassion for Tool's children. [[spoiler: Torrent is the only person in the lost Trygalle caravan- between Gruntle, Mappo, and the Daru Mages- that refuses to compromise his conscience and accept Olar Ethil's devil's bargain to abandon the children into her cruel care. All of the older, more powerful adults accept her gifts and abandon them for some "greater cause"- Mappo to save Icarium, Gruntle to stop the opening of Starvald Demelein's gate, the Mages to find water and safe passage home. The one person who has no magical or mystical powers, who cannot ever hope stop the schemes of an Elder Goddess, ultimately does so without blinking an eye.]]
** Mappo Runt's Compassion for Icarium over multiple books [[spoiler: finally leads him to contemplate what would be the more compassionate thing to do when he finds his lost friend- to kill him and end Icarium's endless quest for memory that has laid waste to whole cities and peoples, or to return to their old ways of wandering the world together, deliberately steering Icarium away from those memories and limiting the damage he causes.]] [[spoiler: The debate is ultimately moot. Sister Calm kills Mappo before he must make the final decision, but Icarium is saved from her machinations by ''Ublala Pung'' of all people- a man so simple-minded that his Compassion can't be compromised by anyone or anything.]]

* WeHaveReserves: The Tiste Liosan rely on this tactic in the battle for Kharkanas- for a number of reasons. Kadagar Fant sends common conscripts through the breach first, killing most of his city in the repeated waves. Then he sends dragons, the Hounds of Light, and the Liosan Legions. Then he sends his most reliable lieutenant and his best Legions. [[spoiler: If he'd just sent the Legions first, the Shake would've broken and ran. Instead he gradually restored their confidence in themselves to fight for their birthright and left Kurald Emurlahn open to a retaliatory invasion by the Tiste Andii.]]

* BigDamnHeroes: Fiddler leads the last of the Malazan Marines, Heavies, and even Hedge's Bridgeburners to the side of the Crippled God on the eve of battle while Tavore and the rest of the army try to delay the Assail army from reaching the hill. Less than a hundred of them against an army. [[spoiler: Most die, but they accomplish their mission and free the Crippled God to return to his world.]]

** The Bonehunters' Compassion for [[spoiler: the children of the Snake. When they're in the middle of the Glass Desert with one day's worth of water left, they crack their last water barrels to help the young children who are already described as walking corpses.]]
** Hanavat and Galls' Compassion and search for forgiveness toward one another [[spoiler: after losing everything in the climax of ''Dust of Dreams''. All of Gall's sons are dead, the Khundryl were annhilated in a futile cavalry charge against the Nah'ruk, and both seemed lost from their grief- Hanavat seeking comfort from her husband's mistress and Gall from his dead son's widow. They reconcile and find a way to live again- Hanavat finds new purpose in caring for the dying Children of the Snake, and Gall is granted his warrior's death in the final battle for the Crippled God.]]

** Yan Tovis' compassion for her people, the Shake [[spoiler: when she is confronted by her own devil's choice. If she kneels at Lightfall at the proper time, she blesses the carnage inflicted on her people and seals the Breach, ending the war for all time. But her conscience cannot allow her to kneel at something so horrifying and so the battle continues with no end in sight, escalating.]]
** Sandalath Drukorlat's exploration of her haunted memories [[spoiler: of the Fall of Kharkanas and the ''lack'' of compassion in Tiste Andii society, and whether her people deserve a chance to live in their ancient home again after they did such horrifying things to one another.]]
** The teenager Torrent, last of the Awl, [[spoiler: is the only person in the lost Trygalle caravan- between Gruntle, Mappo, and the Daru Mages- that refuses to compromise his conscience and accept Olar Ethil's devil's bargain. All of the older, more powerful adults accept her bargain to abandon Onos T'oolan's children for some "greater cause"- Mappo to save Icarium, Gruntle to stop the opening of Starvald Demelein's gate, the Mages to find water and safe passage home. The one person who cannot ever hope stop her schemes to abuse Onos T'oolan's children and gain leverage over him and the T'lann legions does so without blinking an eye.]]
** Mappo Runt's Compassion for Icarium [[spoiler: leads him to contemplate what would be the more compassionate thing to do when he finds his lost friend- to kill him and end Icarium's endless quest for memory that has laid waste to whole cities, or to return to the old ways of wandering the world together, deliberately steering him away from those memories. The debate is ultimately moot as Sister Calm kills Mappo- but Icarium is saved from her machinations by Ublala Pung of all people- a man so simple-minded that his Compassion couldn't be compromised by anyone or anything.]]
** The Errant's plot to free Korabas [[spoiler: comes not from compassion for her endless suffering, but from his lack of compassion for anyone and anything but himself. He desires the power and worship of a God, but he does not want to give anything back. He frees Korabas from her prison in a deliberate attempt to unbalance the scales of the universe and leave his Hold dominant and isolated, so mortals cannot compel him for anything from their worship.]]
** Badalle and the Snake's search for ''any'' sort of Compassion [[spoiler: from anyone, anywhere. An entire generation of children wandering the desert, looking for someone who will care for them after the Forkrul Assail decimated their homeland and sent this caravan of children fleeing into the wastelands to die. Her point of view is unique, holding up a mirror to the reader and speaking directly to them through her internal monologues and poetry.]]
** Sinn's insanity and lack of compassion for anyone [[spoiler: leads her to be abandoned and betrayed by everyone around her. Like Badalle, she suffered endless cruelty at the hands of adults- including rape- and was driven from her home with nothing and no one to aid her. Unlike Badalle, she pursues more and more power, betraying the Bonehunters and leading to the death of Gesler before she herself was killed in pursuit of the Heart of the Crippled God.]]
** Stormy and Geslers' compassion for [[spoiler: the newly reborn K'Chain Che'Malle, in contrast to their fear of the child Sinn. The two of them will go to the ends of the world to save the race of lizards, and use their immunity from fire to stand up to the insanity of Sinn.]]

** The Errant's plot to free Korabas [[spoilers: comes not from compassion for her endless suffering, but from his lack of compassion for anyone and anything but himself. He desires the power and worship of a God, but he does not want to give anything back. He frees Korabas from her prison in a deliberate attempt to unbalance the scales of the universe and leave his Hold dominant and isolated, so mortals cannot compel him for anything from their worship.]]

* CentralTheme: Compassion.

Tavore Paran leads her Bonehunters further into the Glass Desert, on their way to reach the Kingdom of Kolanse on the far eastern shore of the continent, where the Forkrul Assail have captured the heart of the Crippled God and are about to conclude their nefarious plans. Yet still the Adjunct seems determined to march her army to certain death without giving them so much as a reason for it. Mutiny seems inevitable as soldiers die by the dozen from thirst and heatstrokes. Rumors of imminent betrayal only serve to worsen the mood, and unrest is stirring among the Perish Grey Helms, the Adjunct's longest standing allies.

* ClimacticBattleResurrection: When Karsa [[spoiler: kills Fener, the god of war]], he inadvertedly drenches the killing field in blood and several undead allies suddenly find themselves alive again. Some of them just in time to be killed for real. The irony is not lost on them.

* SaveTheWorldClimax: The Crippled God is [[spoiler: healed and freed]] and no longer poisons the flesh of the sleeping goddess whose dreams shape reality. The complete extinction of humanity is also averted, because [[spoiler: the Forkrul Assail's plan doesn't come to fruition]].