Basic Trope: A weapon only wieldable by the Chosen One or one with certain special attributes.
- Straight: Legend has it that the Sword of Power can only be wielded by one with a heart purer than cream.
- Exaggerated:
- Legend has it that the Sword of Power can only be wielded by a man named Davie who is exactly 45 years old, has gotten into a car crash twice, owns a donkey and was accidentally chosen by the god of good decisions. There is no prophecy or guarantee that any of this will actually ever happen, much less that if it does he will happen to know about the sword.
- Taking the idea to its logical conclusion could also result in any attempt by someone who is not chosen to use the weapon in any way, no matter how mundane the use, being destined to end in failure. Need to use that magic sword to open a letter? Tough. Need to brace that door with the sacred lance? Not happening.
- There are multiple Swords of Power, and each one has its own chosen wielder.
- Downplayed:
- You need to be strong, or faithful or something to wield the Sword of Power. There are a few people who can do it, but not many.
- The Sword of Power can be wielded by anyone, but only the Chosen One can use its special abilities.
- Justified:
- The Sword of Power can only be wielded by one with the strength of a giant. Not because it's enchanted or prophesied or anything, it's just incredibly heavy.
- The weapon is DNA-locked and would not work when used by anyone other than the Chosen One.
- The Sword of Power is a sapient Living Weapon which decides for itself who is worthy to wield it and refuses to co-operate with those it deems unworthy.
- The Sword of Power is password-protected, and only the one who determines the password can wield it.
- Inverted: Everyone can wield this sword with relative ease. Except for one guy, he was chosen not to be able to.
- Subverted:
- Legend has it that the Sword of Power can only be wielded by one with a heart purer than cream. Of course, this legend is completely fake. Anyone can wield it, it's just a sword after all.
- The Unchosen One attempts to wield it by sheer force-of-will and succeeds.
- Double Subverted:
- Legend has it that the Sword of Power can only be wielded by one with a heart purer than cream. Don't worry though, these legends are totally fake. Anyone can wield it but only as a mere Absurdly Sharp Blade. Only the worthy can unlock its true power.
- Legend has it that the Sword Of Power can only be wielded by the chosen one and this legend is still true. It just so happens that the legend has multiple Chosen Ones.
- A herculean effort by someone who doesn't think they're a special chosen one is how they are chosen in the first place.
- Parodied:
- Legend has it that the Sword of Power can only be wielded by one with a heart purer than cream. Our hero's heart is closer to spoiled milk, so that's clearly not an option for him.
- The Big Guy tries to pull the sword out of the stone... and uproots sword and stone alike. Though unable to separate the two, he decides to wield the entire combination as a sort of bladed warhammer.
- Zig Zagged:
- Legend has it that the Sword of Power can only be wielded by one with a heart purer than cream. Nobody's really sure whether the legends are true or not, evidence could go either way. The hero doesn't ACT like he has a heart like that, but occasionally he does.
- There are multiple prophecies about who can wield the Sword of Power and so it often changes hands depending on which is dominant and sometimes a random The Unchosen One picks it up.
- Averted: It's just a normal magic sword. Anyone can use it.
- Enforced: If you're basing a work on Arthurian Legend, you basically have to include an Excalibur.
- Lampshaded: "Do I need to have a heart purer than cream to wield it?" "Do you think magic lake creatures hand this kind of gear out to just anyone?"
- Invoked: A wise man decides to enchant the blade so that only the chosen one may use it, so that evil forces may not use it against him.
- Exploited:
- A wise man decides to enchant a blade such that only the chosen one may wield it, knowing that this logically means there must eventually BE a chosen one.
- The hero allows his enemy to take his weapon. Unable to use the weapon effectively, the enemy is easily defeated.
- Defied: A dwarf and Ultimate Blacksmith breaks the stone with a pickaxe and somehow manages to smelt the prophecy out of the sword.
- Discussed: "Did you know there's a magical blade hidden deep within the forest?" "Yeah, but I bet only the chosen one can use it. I'm not the chosen one, I'm a pig farmer."
- Conversed: "Ah yeah, Excalibur! I wish I'd find the sword, I wanna be king and I bet I'd be the chosen one!"
- Implied: The hero acquires a magical sword, and is somehow able to wield it even though no one else could.
- Deconstructed:
- There is a legend that only the chosen one may wield the Sword of Power, with a prophecy describing the hero. However, it's unclear: Is one born destined to wield the blade, or does one choose to follow the path of the prophecy so that the sword will choose them?
- The Chosen One either dies or loses the Sword of Power. Since the sword is unusable by anyone else, it became nothing but a worthless piece of junk.
- Reconstructed: Someone else pure of heart eventually discovers the Sword of Power and is able to wield it.
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