50 Fun Facts About Eragon

Which kind of schooling did Christopher Paolini have before writing Eragon at fifteen?

Homeschooling let him finish high school at fifteen. He began Eragon as a hobby with no thought of publishing it, spending a year on the first draft and a second year rewriting it.

Who first published Eragon?

Paolini's parents, through their own company, spent a year turning the manuscript into a book: editing, typesetting and printing it, with a dragon's eye drawn by their son on the cover.

Which Florida novelist recommended Eragon to his publisher, Knopf, after his stepson read it on holiday?

Carl Hiaasen passed the book to his own editor. Knopf's Michelle Frey then wrote to the Paolini family offering to publish it, and her edition became a bestseller as soon as it appeared.

Eragon's home valley is named after which fantasy artist?

John Jude Palencar got the tribute from a teenage fan: Paolini named Palancar Valley after the painter, and only afterwards did the publisher happen to pick him to paint the book's cover.

What did the teenage Paolini wear for many of his 135-plus Eragon talks?

Medieval costume was no shortcut: standing at a bookshop table and talking to every customer for eight hours, he might sell forty books on a good day.

Which US state's wild landscape inspired the setting of Eragon?

Montana's Paradise Valley, where Paolini grew up, was one of his main models. He hiked and camped in the mountains nearby so that small details of forest and peak would ring true.

On which fictional continent is Eragon set?

Alagaësia was mapped by its own author: the teenage Paolini drew the map printed inside the book himself.

Paolini built the elves' ancient language in Eragon mainly from which real tongue?

Old Norse words, dug out of dictionaries and respelled under rules of his own, saved Paolini from inventing a whole language from scratch, a task he said took Tolkien decades.

What is the name of Eragon's mother, who left him as a baby to be raised by her brother?

Selena came home in secret to give birth and begged her brother's family to raise the boy as their own. She then left again and died soon afterwards.

Saphira's blue-tinted vision was inspired by what about Paolini?

His colour-blindness washes the world in a blue tint in which strong blues stand out, so he gave his dragons the same eyes: they see purples as blue, and reds look muted.

Which epic poem does Paolini name among his biggest influences?

Beowulf, one of Paolini's favourite stories, lent the dwarf king his name: in the poem Hrothgar is the Danish king whose hall the monster Grendel raids.

Which Shade ambushes three elves at the start of Eragon, trying to seize a dragon egg?

Durza kills two of the elves, but the third hurls the egg away by magic before he can take it, which is how it comes to land in front of a startled farm boy.

Eragon finds Saphira's egg in the mountains while doing what?

Hunting at fifteen for his family's winter meat, he sees an explosion and finds a polished blue stone in the rubble. At first he hopes only that it will buy them food.

What is the name of Eragon's uncle, who raises him?

Garrow took the boy in when his sister left her baby at the farm. His death, after the king's servants wreck that farm, is what sends Eragon out looking for revenge.

In which village does Eragon grow up?

Carvahall is later abandoned by almost everyone in it: in Eldest, Eragon's cousin Roran persuades the villagers to march and sail the length of the land to join the war against the king.

What does Saphira's hatching leave on Eragon's palm?

A silver mark, the gedwëy ignasia, brands the palm of every Dragon Rider. Later in the book an old man proves he was once a Rider too by showing the same mark on his own hand.

Which of Galbatorix's monstrous servants come looking for the dragon egg in Eragon's village?

The Ra'zac strike at night and shrink from light and deep water. In Eldest their winged mounts, the Lethrblaka, turn out to be their own parents.

Which sword does the old storyteller give Eragon when they set out?

Zar'roc stays at Eragon's side for two books. At the end of Eldest, Murtagh defeats him in battle and takes the sword, claiming it as his own inheritance.

Where do Eragon and Saphira hide after fleeing his uncle's farm?

The Spine, the untamed range where the egg first appeared, shelters them only briefly: they return to find the farm burned and Eragon's uncle dying.

Who were the Forsworn in the world of Eragon?

Rogue Dragon Riders who helped Galbatorix destroy their own order, the Forsworn numbered thirteen. By the time of the story, a century later, every one of them is dead.

In which coastal city does Eragon meet the merchant Jeod, his mentor's old friend?

Teirm is home to Jeod, a merchant who secretly ships supplies to the king's enemies. With his help the travellers work out that the killers they are tracking are based in Dras-Leona.

Which herbalist and witch reads Eragon's fortune using dragon bones?

Angela the herbalist was modelled on Paolini's own younger sister, who is also called Angela and shares the character's love of knitting and unusual words.

What kind of creature is Solembum, the herbalist's companion in Eragon?

A werecat seldom speaks to humans, so it is a surprise when Solembum offers Eragon two cryptic pieces of advice. Both riddles are solved only books later.

What does Saphira do with Brom's body after he dies?

She encases him in diamond with magic: Eragon raises a sandstone tomb over his mentor, and the dragon turns the stone to clear gem so that time cannot touch him.

What are the Varden in Eragon?

Rebels seeking to overthrow Galbatorix, the Varden were founded by a former Dragon Rider whose own dragon had been killed. They shelter among the dwarves inside the hollow mountain Farthen Dûr.

Which elf does Eragon free from the prison at Gil'ead?

Arya had spent years carrying Saphira's egg between the elves and their human allies. Ambushed, she flung it away by magic towards an ally, and it reached Eragon instead.

Murtagh reveals he is the son of which former leader of the Forsworn?

Morzan's name costs his son dearly: once Murtagh is recognised as his father's child, he is locked in a cell for refusing to let his mind be searched.

What are the Kull in Eragon?

Elite Urgals, the Kull hound Eragon through the mountains in the first book. In Eldest their kind change sides, freed from the spell of the Shade who had driven them to fight for the king.

Who leads the Varden when Eragon first arrives?

Ajihad does not enjoy the victory at Farthen Dûr for long: he is ambushed and killed in the opening chapter of Eldest, and his daughter is chosen to lead in his place.

Which dwarf, nephew of King Hrothgar, becomes Eragon and Saphira's guide?

Orik rises far beyond guide. After Hrothgar is killed in battle, the clans meet to choose a successor in Brisingr, and Orik wins the vote and is crowned king of the dwarves.

According to the Varden's leader, what is the only way to kill a Shade?

A stab through the heart is the only sure way. Earlier in the book an arrow between the eyes merely dissolves the Shade into smoke, and he returns at the head of an army.

What is Isidar Mithrim, the Star Rose shattered in battle at Farthen Dûr?

A huge sapphire forming a chamber roof, carved like a rose, it is smashed on purpose to distract the enemy. The dwarves collect every shard, and two books later Saphira makes it whole again.

What lasting injury does Eragon carry out of his duel with the Shade?

A scar across his back is only the visible part. Through most of Eldest the wound sends him into crippling seizures, until the magic of an ancient ceremony heals it.

Where is Eragon told to go to be trained at the end of the first book?

Ellesméra, the elven capital, is where the voice that reaches him in his coma is waiting: a Rider the world believes long dead, hidden among the elves with his dragon.

In Eldest, whose capture by the king's servants drives Eragon's cousin Roran to lead his whole village south?

Katrina is betrayed by her own father, the village butcher, who is in league with the kidnappers and is carried off along with her. Roran rescues her in the next book and marries her.

Who are the crippled Rider and dragon who secretly train Eragon in Eldest?

Oromis and Glaedr survived the fall of the Riders in hiding, each of them maimed. They pass on what they know to Eragon, then in Brisingr fly out to fight at last and are killed.

What is the name of the red dragon that hatches for Murtagh?

Thorn hatches in captivity, and the king uses magic to force his growth until he is almost as large as the older Saphira. Dragon and Rider are both bound by oaths they cannot break.

What weapon becomes the signature of Eragon's cousin Roran in Eldest?

A hammer is what he fights with when soldiers attack his village, and his feats with it earn him the name Roran Stronghammer.

What does Eragon's botched blessing do to the child Elva?

Forces her to feel the pain of others, all through one slip of grammar: meaning to wish her shielded from misfortune, Eragon instead tells her to be a shield against it.

In Brisingr, who is revealed to be Eragon's real father?

Brom kept the secret to protect the boy, living nearby as the village storyteller so he could watch over him. Once Eragon learns the truth, Saphira shows him a memory Brom had left with her for that day.

What is an Eldunarí, the source of Galbatorix's power?

A dragon organ that holds its consciousness, also called the heart of hearts, lets a dragon's mind live on after its body dies. The king hoarded them and draws his strength from the dragons within.

What happens whenever Eragon says the name of his new sword, Brisingr?

It bursts into flames because brisingr is the ancient language's word for fire, and the blade answers to it. The elf smith Rhunön, sworn never to forge another weapon, made it by guiding Eragon's hands.

Where is the metal for Eragon's new sword found?

Under the roots of the Menoa Tree lay the last known lump of brightsteel, the metal of Riders' swords. The ancient tree ignored every plea until Saphira lost her temper and scorched its trunk.

On which island does Eragon find the Rock of Kuthian and the Vault of Souls?

Vroengard was the Riders' island home until their order fell. A spell hides the Rock by making everyone but Eragon and Saphira forget it the moment they hear of it.

What must Eragon and Saphira speak to enter the Vault of Souls?

Their true names cannot simply be looked up: each must understand themselves, flaws and all, well enough to put it into words. Behind the doors lie dragon eggs hidden since the Riders fell.

How does Galbatorix die in Inheritance?

He destroys himself with magic, overwhelmed by guilt, after Eragon's improvised spell makes him feel all the pain he has caused. The blast takes most of his citadel with it.

Who is crowned High Queen at the end of the Inheritance Cycle?

Nasuada is chosen after a heated debate among the war's victors, and King Orrin of Surda pledges his allegiance only grudgingly. She gives the capital back its old name, Ilirea.

What does the new elf queen name the dragon that hatches for her?

Fírnen hatches from the last of the three eggs the king had hoarded, a green one that opens only once the king has fallen. By the end of the final book he and Saphira are mates.

Who played Eragon in the 2006 film?

Ed Speleers was still at school and had never acted professionally when a worldwide casting search picked him. Eragon was his first film.

What Eragon adaptation did Disney+ put into development in 2022, with Paolini co-writing?

A live-action series was confirmed in July 2022, a year after Paolini urged fans to post the hashtag #EragonRemake and it trended. The author signed on to co-write and produce.