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SPOILERS - Similarities between the Eragon Inheritance Quadrology and the Baldur's Gate Trilogy

AendaeronBluescaleAendaeronBluescale Member Posts: 335
edited September 2013 in Off-Topic
Eragon - CHARNAME: Both are essentially orphans, their heritage as well as parents are unknown yet their destiny important for the outcome of the respective stories.

Saphira - Imoen: Both are inseparable from the respective protagonist.

Carvahall - Candlekeep: Both locations are essentially secluded.

Ra'zac attack at Carvahall - Assassins in Candlekeep: Both CHARNAME and Eragon are of special interest by assassins. CHARNAME for their heritage, Eragon for Saphira.

Garrow - Gorion: Both are the foster fathers of the respective protagonists. Both die early at the hand of the enemy.

Brom - Jaheira/Khalid: Brom takes care for Eragon during his initial journey while Jaheira and Khalid (optional) do the same for CHARNAME. Both are members of a select group.

Elves/Resistance - Harpers: Brom was a friend of the Elves (The Yawe ring) while Jaheira and Khalid are Harpers.

Brom's death - Khalid's death: Khalid dies at the beginning of BG2 due to Irenicus, Brom dies due to a Ra'zac ambush, unhealable by Eragon. Both CHARNAME and Eragon move on.

Shade - Sarevok: The Ra'zac were led by the Shade, however, the Shade himself is a servant of an even greater enemy while Sarevok commanded Assassins and the Iron Throne. Both die at the end of part one of the respective series.

Shade's curse - Irenicus: Both weaken Eragon and CHARNAME but are overcome.

Katrina's captivity - Imoen's captivity: In order to demoralize Eragon's brother, Roran, and to make him betray Eragon, Katrina gets captured by the Ra'zac. It actually has the inverted effect. Irenicus attempts the same to CHARNAME with Imoen, both CHARNAME and Eragon rescue the respective captive.

Siege of Uru'Baen - Throne of Bhaal: Both battles essentially have the same goal: The end of Galbatorix' tyranny while in ToB a war is ending the Bhaalspawn saga.

Galbatorix - Bhaal (through Amelissan): Both are eventually defeated by the respective protagonist. Note though that Amelissan betrays Bhaal because she desired to become a godess.

Eragon's departure - CHARNAME's destiny: Eragon and Saphira have to leave into uncharted lands because they fear to become another Galbatorix with their god-like power; Imoen gives her share of Bhaal essence to CHARNAME, CHARNAME has to choose whether to become a new god or to banish Bhaal's Essence for good.

Why the similarities? It's even deeper: Both the Inheritance Quadrology and the Baldur's Gate Trilogy are in essence storywise and story-flow based on Star Wars. Eragon is in no way a "re-tell" of Baldur's Gate yet a "re-tell" of Star Wars, just like BG is a "re-tell" of Star Wars.

Comments

  • scriverscriver Member Posts: 2,072
    edited September 2013
    ...
    ...
    ...

    ...Please google "the hero's journey".
  • TJ_HookerTJ_Hooker Member Posts: 2,438
    edited September 2013
    Yeah I think many of these can be found in other works. Let's try Lord of the rings:

    1) Frodo is also an orphan
    2) Frodo and Sam
    3) Hobbiton is secluded
    4) Ringwraiths after the hobbits

    6) Either Gandalf or Aragorn kind of fill this role
    7) Both Aragorn and Gandalf were friends with the elves
    8) Boromir

    10) The effects of the one ring

    etc. (too lazy to do the rest, at least right now).
    Post edited by TJ_Hooker on
  • BelgarathMTHBelgarathMTH Member Posts: 5,653
    Yeah, Star Wars does "The Hero's Journey" archetype, too. Orphan boy of uncertain parentage, raised in isolation, chased by overwhelmingly powerful villains, gets ahold of a powerful magic item he doesn't know how to use, depends on his friends, gets more powerful, dramatic family background reveal, confronts the ultimate big bad, etc.

    It's a story that's been told 1001 times, but we never get tired of hearing it when it's well done.
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