History Literature / Eisenhorn

* EyelessFace: ''Malleus'' features a mutant with a giant eyeball for a head, with his mouth located elsewhere.

* EyesDoNotBelongThere: In ''Malleus'', they must infiltrate muties. One mutant woman winks at them -- with an eye at the end of one tongue.

[[quoteright:252:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Eisenhorn_cover_2_8835.jpg]]

->''Most perturbatory.''
-->-- '''Uber Aemos'''

A video game adaptation of ''Xenos'', developed by Pixel Hero Games, was released on August 8, 2016.

** [[spoiler: Though strangely, even though he smiles at the end of The Magos, in Pariah (which chronologically takes place after The Magos) Beta distinctly notes and comments on the fact that Eisenhorn's face shows no emotion at all, not even micro-expressions, and he mentions that she is right about this, which makes the moment at the end of the Magos a little strage.]]

* AttackAttackAttack
* BadDreams

** Then again, [[spoiler: his lower torso is robotic, so it's unlikely he has physical needs to attend to]]. When he has human passengers, Eisenhorn observes that he's delighted simply to have someone to show his art collections and talk to.

* ColdBloodedTorture

* ConverseWithTheUnconscious

* CryonicsFailure
* DividedWeFall
* DreamingOfThingsToCome

* DueToTheDead

* FiveManBand

* InHarmsWay

* MercyKill: Invoked as Eisenhorn explains why he could not do it to the dying victims at the opening of ''Xenos''.

* NewMeat: Subverted in ''Xenos''

* ObviouslyEvil: Discussed in-story with regards to the [[TomeOfEldritchLore Necroteuch and Malus Codicium]]. The Necroteuch is obviously dangerous from the get-go, as it's ''sentient'' and overtly attempting to take control of its holder's mind and force their submission to Chaos. The Malus Codicium, on the other hand, is just a small black book. [[ParanoiaFuel A nondescript, unremarkable book that one might find anywhere]]. Over the course of the series, Eisenhorn starts getting paranoid that the Malus Codicium may also sentient and, if so, is exerting its influence much more discreetly. Naturally the latter is much more dangerous.

* {{Revenge}}

** Also an example of CursedWithAwesome - it comes in handy when Eisenhorn is trying to conceal his emotions.

* TheSmartGuy: [[DeconstructedCharacterArchetype Deconstructed]] with Aemos' meme-virus, which leads him to [[spoiler:memorize the whole of the ''Malus Codicium'']].

* TellMeAboutMyFather

* ToThePain: In ''Xenos''.

* TrueCompanions

* VillainCorner

* WickedCultured: Pontius Glaw.
* WorthyOpponent: Between Eisenhorn and Glaw.

* ObviouslyEvil: Discussed in-story with regards to the [[TomeOfEldritchLore Necroteuch and Malus Codicum]]. The Necroteuch is obviously dangerous from the get-go, as it's ''sentient'' and overtly attempting to take control of its holder's mind and force their submission to Chaos. The Malus Codicum, on the other hand, is just a small black book. [[ParanoiaFuel A nondescript, unremarkable book that one might find anywhere]]. Over the course of the series, Eisenhorn starts getting paranoid that the Malus Codicium may also sentient and, if so, is exerting its influence much more discreetly. Naturally the latter is much more dangerous.

* RightHandVersusLeftHand: Eisenhorn regularly finds himself pitted against other Inquisitors with ideological stances either more [[KnightTemplar Puritan]] or [[WellIntentionedExtremist Radical]] than his own. He states outright that his possession of the [[spoiler: Malus Codicum]] would prompt half the Inquisition to try and kill him for having it and the other half would do the same in the hopes that ''they'' could get their hands on it.

* TheSmartGuy: [[DeconstructedCharacterArchetype Deconstructed]] with Aemos' meme-virus, which leads him to [[spoiler:memorize the whole of the ''Malus Codicum'']].

* TomeOfEldritchLore: The ''Necroteuch'' and ''Malus Codicum''.

* RightHandVersusLeftHand: Eisenhorn regularly finds himself pitted against other Inquisitors with ideological stances either more [[KnightTemplar conservative]] or [[WellIntentionedExtremist liberal]] than his own. He states outright that his possession of the [[spoiler: Malus Codicum]] would prompt half the Inquisition to try and kill him for having it and the other half would do the same in the hopes that ''they'' could get their hands on it.

* NWordPrivileges: Mutants being called "twists."

** Considering how dangerous a psyker can be, executing a psyker rather than potentially bringing a Trojan TykeBomb into a secure location may be the smarter move. And while said witchhunter was (arguably) mistaken at the time, it is hard to deny that Eisenhorn became exactly what he feared by the end of the series.

* LawfulStupid: You'd be astonished how easily Inquisitors get caught by this, and others nominally charged with similar work.

* LawfulStupid: You'd be astonished how easily Inquisitors get caught by this.
** And ''Christ,'' does the witchhunter in Malleus fall under here. His ''first appearance'' is him [[spoiler: trying to execute Eisenhorn for heresy (though saving his life in the process) on absurdly stupid charges.]] Eisenhorn shortly thereafter recounts a mission where twenty-odd newly discovered psykers, all under 14 years old, were abducted by raiders before the Black Ships could pick them up. Seeing that psykers are ''extremely'' rare, and even rarer to find at such young ages, Eisenhorn launches a mission to rescue them while the witchhunter decides that kidnapping classifies them all as witches that are in dire need of execution.

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: Eisenhorn falls into this rather badly, starting out as a "conservative" inquisitor unwilling to accept that using Chaos against itself is a viable strategy. A combination of compromise and desperation, however, eventually leads him to [[spoiler:summon a Daemonhost of his own]]. Ravenor is of the opinion that Radicalism is inevitable for Inquisitors, and the only hope for them is to do as much good as they can and hope they die before JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope.

*** FridgeLogic kicks in when you realize that ''both'' of them are trying to self-justify. The series gives us several Inquisitors of long service who don't turn radical, such as Rorken, Voke, Bezier, Neve and Ricci.

** In ''Herectus'', [[spoiler: the Chaos Titan has dirge casters that blast infrasound onto the battlefield.]] For reference, infrasound is a noise that inspires unfounded fear, dread, and paranoia in those that hear it.

** [[spoiler: Considered nothing. He IS a rogue and a heretic. Albeit, a very well-intentioned one]]

** A slightly knotty one in Malleus. Eisenhorn mentions his plans to meet with a group of other inquisitors, one of which includes Defay, from the Inquisitor comic series in Warhammer Monthly. Confusingly, Defay as also mentioned in Gaunt's Ghosts, which is set many hundreds of years after Eisenhorn.
*** Not necessarily an error - in the Warhammer 40,000 universe medical technologies, cybernetics, a better diet, and drugs can keep the well-heeled alive for centuries.
*** Could also merely be another inquisitor by that name, maybe an offspring of the original. It is, after all, a vast organisation.

There are also several short stories available, two of which can be found in the [[{{Doorstopper}} doorstopping]] [[{{Anthology}} omnibus]] edition. A spin-off trilogy, ''Literature/{{Ravenor}}'', has been published and Dan Abnett has begun a third "Bequin trilogy", described by him as "Literature/RavenorVsEisenhorn". A 4th Eisenhorn novel, titled The Magos is set to be released in 2018.

* FrozenFace: Eisenhorn is left unable to make any kind of facial expression after the extensive neurological damage he suffers during Locke's ColdBloodedTorture.

There are also two short stories available, both of which can be found in the [[{{Doorstopper}} doorstopping]] [[{{Anthology}} omnibus]] edition. A spin-off trilogy, ''Literature/{{Ravenor}}'', has been published and Dan Abnett has begun a third "Bequin trilogy", described by him as "Literature/RavenorVsEisenhorn".

In the mean time, Eisenhorn is set to appear in a set of Audio Dramas, collectively called Talon and Thorn.

* ContinuityDrift: At one point Eisenhorn mentions the "Primarch" of the White Consuls, by which he clearly means the "Chapter Master", but the distinction was less well established in canon back when ''Malleus'' was written, or possibly Eisenhorn just didn't know better in character.

* ItIsDehumanizing: Eisenhorn refers to Cherubael as an "it" while others identify him as a male. As daemons are made from the psychic manifestations of sapient beings, they can develop a dominate gender identity. However, being buddy buddy with demons is a good way to let your guard down and have your soul consumed so the trope is justified. When Eisenhorn starts referring to to Cherubael as a "he" in the ''Ravenor'' series, the titular character starts to get a little leery. Eisenhorn claims that Cherubael and he came to an understanding leaving it ambiguous to whether or not Eisenhorn has fallen or not.

** And ''Christ,'' does the witchhunter in Malleus fall under here. His ''first appearance'' is him [[spoiler: trying to execute Eisenhorn for heresy (though saving his life in the process) on absurdly stupid charges.]] Eisenhorn shortly thereafter recounts a mission where twenty-odd newly discovered psykers, all under 14 years old, were abducted by raiders before the Black Ships could pick them up. Seeing that psykers are ''extremely'' rare, and even rarer to find at such young ages, Eisenhorn launches a mission to rescue them...while the witchhunter decides that kidnapping classifies them all as witches that are in dire need of execution.
*** Not only are psykers very uncommon but the reason that the Imperium sends Black Ships to collect them in the first place is because they're literally necessary for space ships and the Emperor to continue functioning. They're distinctly worth rescuing for all sorts of warm and cold hearted reasons.
** Considering how dangerous a psyker can be, executing a psyker rather than potentially bringing a trojan TykeBomb into a secure location may be the smarter move. And while said witchhunter was (arguably) mistaken at the time, it is hard to deny that Eisenhorn became exactly what he feared by the end of the series.