History Main / OnlytheChosenMayWield

* In season seven of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' the Slayer Scythe is embedded in stone, and only a Slayer can pull it free.

* ''MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' has the "Mane" six and the Elements of Harmony, as indicated in the Season 2 premiere, only they can wield their power. Celestia and Luna once wielded the Elements, but they have now become more attuned to the mane six.

** "Huh. First one who tried... Just like all the other times."

* The three swords used by ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'''s Knights of the Cross (one of may ''be'' {{Excalibur}}) respond strongly to powerful hope, love, and faith respectively. Further, it's revealed in ''Small Favor'' that all three of the most recent Knights have royalty in their ancestry.

* The hero of ''TheIronDream'' is able to wield a large truncheon so constructed that only someone with the right genetic pedigree can even pick it up.

* According to Marvel, only a handful of beings have been able to wield the legendary hammer Mjolnir to date: Odin, Thor, Captain America, Wonder Woman (in a crossover) ...and ''Beta Ray Bill''.

* In {{Morrowind}}, there is the Moon-and-Star, a magical ring, which only Lord Nerevar or [[spoiler:a reincarnation of his, including the {{player character}}]] can wear.

* The Tessaiga of ''Anime/InuYasha'' is initially found stuck in the pedestal in the gigantic corpse of it's former owner. It will apparently shock any full {{yokai}}/demon that touches it. However, it's eventual wielder, Inuyasha, wasn't able to get it out, and Kagome ended up doing so by accident. Tenseiga was given to Sesshoumaru but it only allows him to wield it.

* The Tessaiga of ''Anime/InuYasha'' is initially found stuck in the pedestal in the gigantic corpse of it's former owner. It will apparently shock any full {{yokai}}/demon that touches it. However, it's eventual wielder, Inuyasha, wasn't able to get it out, and Kagome ended up doing so by accident.

[[quoteright:330:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/swordinstone_9818.jpg]]

In a fantasy story, or sometimes even a sci-fi series, there will be certain special items that [[OnlyTheWorthyMayPass only an attuned]] [[LoyalPhlebotinum person can use]]. The most famous of these is Film/TheSwordInTheStone: Only {{King Arthur}} could remove the sword from this stone, and it proved that he was the true king of England.

In a fantasy story, or sometimes even a sci-fi series, there will be certain special items that [[OnlyTheWorthyMayPass only an attuned]] [[LoyalPhlebotinum person can use]]. The most famous of these is [[Film/TheSwordInTheStone]]: Only {{King Arthur}} could remove the sword from this stone, and it proved that he was the true king of England.

In a fantasy story, or sometimes even a sci-fi series, there will be certain special items that [[OnlyTheWorthyMayPass only an attuned]] [[LoyalPhlebotinum person can use]]. The most famous of the examples is the sword stabbed into a boulder (and anvil). Only {{King Arthur}} could remove the sword from this stone, and it proved that he was the true king of England.

May be the first evidence of BecauseDestinySaysSo or TheChosenOne. Such an item may also be LoyalPhlebotinum

May be the first evidence of BecauseDestinySaysSo or TheChosenOne.

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

* How the Digidestined received their Digimon and powerups (in the form of eggs on stone pillars) in ''Digimon 02''. Also used at least once in ''Digimon Frontier''.
* In a episode of ''[[RanmaOneHalf Ranma ½]]'', Kuno pulls the magic sword Wishbringer out of a stone. Subverted, as he was only able to pull the sword out because he was the one-millionth to try. However, once he claims ownership, Wishbringer will only listen to his voice.

* The Tessaiga of ''InuYasha'' is initially found stuck in the pedestal in the gigantic corpse of it's former owner. It will apparently shock any full {{yokai}}/demon that touches it. However, it's eventual wielder, Inuyasha, wasn't able to get it out, and Kagome ended up doing so by accident.

* In ''SoulEater'', all weapons are assigned to a particular partner upon enrollment in Shibusen, based on the interlocking personalities of the weapon and meister. Generally speaking, it is impossible for a weapon to be wielded by someone who isn't their partner because their inner natures tend to clash. Adult Meisters/Weapons appear to be free of this restriction, which is said to have something to do with the fact that wielding a Weapon is about how the souls of both meister and Weapon react to one another, and seems to rely on some level of mutual understanding and compromise - too much conflict spoils the resonance and people get hurt, or even fall flat on the ground if they happen to be up in the air when you start arguing. As such, it's implied that the Adults are much better at handling their composer, allowing for a wider range of partners. This isn't to say if an Adult pair start to argue they'll stop resonating, or that there are pairs that would never be able to work, just that that's never been depicted in the series. The fact that most Adults seem to have a preferred/assigned partner supports this.

* In ''MahoujinGuruGuru'', the magic sword of light, Kira Kira, can only be called upon by a true Hero.
* Several weapons in ''SilentMoebius'' are bound to specific bloodlines. Grosspoliner's connexion to the Liqueur blood is a plot point.
* ''JuushinEnbu'' has the Kenkaranpu, which can only be drawn by a "true hero". In the first chapter Taito was able to draw it [[spoiler:but it was promptly stolen...]]
* [[{{Kirby}} Meta Knight's]] legendary sword Galaxia will shock (sometimes to death) anyone not powerful enough to wield it if they so much as touch it. [[EmpathicWeapon It will also demand to know who they are and what they think they're doing.]]
* The Z Sword from the Buu Saga of ''[[DragonBall Dragon Ball Z]]''. It's stuck in a stone pillar on a planet in the afterlife, and Gohan has to go Super Saiyan 2 before he can pull it out. It's still incredibly heavy once it's removed, too - he can barely lift it without transforming. [[spoiler: Then the good guys ''break it'' by accident while training, releasing the old Kaioshin sealed within it, who turns out to be a lot more helpful than the sword itself.]]
* In [=~Rosario+Vampire~=], Moka's PowerLimiter rosary can only be properly removed by Tsukune.

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

* The Comicbook/{{Witchblade}} in the comic of the same name was like this.
* According to Marvel, only a handful of beings have been able to wield the legendary hammer Mjolnir to date: Odin, Thor, Captain America, Wonder Woman (in a crossover) ... and ''Beta Ray Bill''.

* The White Lantern Battery in BrightestDay. Hal and Carol refer to it as such, to Sinestro's confusion.

[[folder: Literature ]]

* In ''JourneyToTheWest'', the Dragon King of the Eastern Ocean has in his armory a piece of magic iron that was used to measure the depth of the Milky Way. It is 20 feet long and as thick as a barrel. No dragon can lift it. Then one day it begins to glow, and soon Monkey arrives seeking a weapon. He picks up the rod and tells it to become smaller: it shrinks to fit him (but is still as thick as a rice bowl and weighs many thousand pounds -- Monkey is quite a hero). He can get it to be any size he wants, and when not in use, he reduces it to the size of a needle and stores it in his ear.

** Not necessarily - only a Gryffindor can draw it from the Sorting Hat, but there doesn't seem to be any reason why [[spoiler: Snape couldn't have used it if he wanted to while he had it in Deathly Hallows]].

** Another Harry Potter example: "The wand chooses the wizard".

**** Except not really. WordOfGod clarified that the only reason the Elder Wand changed owners so easily was due to its age and the fact that it had changed hands so many times over the years. Yes, one CAN use another's wand and master it, but it takes considerable use and breaking the wand to the new owner to make it obedient.

* Subverted in TerryPratchett's ''{{Discworld}}'': It's mentioned that pulling a sword from a stone is not all that difficult, but someone who can put the sword through stone in the first place, now there's someone special.

* In William King's {{Warhammer 40000}} SpaceWolf novel ''Wolfblade'', when Haegr tells Ragnor that he is [[ChosenOne marked for greatness]], Ragnor is dismissive, saying he has brought great catatrosphe on the Chapter, losing the Spear of Russ. Haegr says that he ''wielded'' the Spear of Russ, which is evidence enough of greatness.
* In GrahamMcNeill's {{Warhammer 40000}} HorusHeresy novel ''Fulgrim'', invading the temple of the Laer turns up a literal sword in the stone. Fulgrim draws it out. Justin "hears" a voice tell him to let Fulgrim take it, though it feels quite wrong.
* The three swords used by ''TheDresdenFiles'''s Knights of the Cross (one of may ''be'' {{Excalibur}}) respond strongly to powerful hope, love, and faith respectively. Further, it's revealed in ''Small Favor'' that all three of the most recent Knights have royalty in their ancestry.
* Callandor in ''TheWheelOfTime'' could only be taken from the Heart of the Stone of Tear by the [[ChosenOne Dragon Reborn]].

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* In season seven of ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' the Slayer Scythe is embedded in stone, and only a Slayer can pull it free.

* In the {{Ramayana}}, the hero Rama wins a princess's hand in marriage by lifting a supernatural bow that no other man can lift.

[[folder: Newspaper Comics ]]

* In ''PrinceValiant'' only a member of the royal family of Thule can wield the Singing Sword and make it sing.

[[folder: Tabletop RPG ]]

* ''DungeonsAndDragons'' has its share of magical items (even without [[EmpathicWeapon their own minds]]) that will help only "worthy" users and usually are dangerous for everyone else.
** [[http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Blade-rite Blade-rite]] of ''ForgottenRealms'' elves, with two notable variants. Elfblades are regalia of high offices and prevent anyone who isn't up to the task or whom they don't appreciate from wielding them and thus from holding an office: "unworthy" claimants suffer harm, curse or instantly death, depending on the blade and failed condition. Moonblades were designed as a means to choose the single "best" clan as the royal family of their new realm. They kill all claimants who aren't "worthy" ''and'' of proper blood, while growing both in powers ''and'' requirements with each generation until they're practically impossible to both claim and wield. Both types of artifacts are [[EmpathicWeapon bonded with their wielders]].

[[folder: Theater ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* The Master Sword in the ''LegendOfZelda'' games. Whenever the sword appears in the series, Link is invariably the only person who can pull it out of the stone.

* The Mani Katti blade from ''FireEmblem: The Blazing Sword''. It's sort of an Arthurian thing...Lyn successfully removed it from its scabbard after the level boss failed. Of course, she had to kill him to get it done.

* The Moon and Star Ring of Nerevar (''The Elder Scrolls 3 Morrowind''), that legends say could only be used by the reincarnation of the Chimer king Nerevar ([[spoiler: this is you]]). It's never demonstrated if this actually true or not, and some moments imply it may be a myth and that anybody can wear the ring, as people are less eager to claim to be Nerevarine if they believe there's a magical artefact that can kill them.
* Subverted in ''{{Fable}}''. The Sword of Hewn doesn't need any special requirements, you just have to be physically strong enough to get it out of that rock - a hard feat indeed. [[spoiler: This is then beautifully subverted ''again'' in the fact that you don't actually pull the sword out of the rock; you actually pull ''the sword '''and''' the rock'' out of the ground.]]

* Something similar happens in ''ShadowHearts: From the New World'', [[McNinja Frank]] can obtain the Legend Saber, a mystical sword still sealed in it's stone, with an extra hilt stuck on it to match all the other {{Improbable Weapon}}s in his collection.
* ''Divine Divinity'' has a sword in a stone in northern area of Dark Forest. [[spoiler:The sword is sealing a demon, and if you get that sword out, the demon will come out and attack you. Killing it will only send it back to the stone, which it would come out again. Not sealing the demon away after it retreated and left the map will result in the demon killing all NPC in the map. Don't take the sword!]].

* In ''{{Warcraft}}'', the crazy-powerful sword Frostmourne can only be broken out of its floating chunk of ice by someone who promises to bear any curse it can throw at him/her. Good news: Once you get it, Frostmourne is indeed the thing that can turn the tide and drive out the invaders, etc. Bad news: Frostmourne is excellent at coming up with curses, which may include killing your best friend, literally eating your soul, and making it so you don't even WANT to repel the invaders any more and end up joining them instead. Just go with a regular drop. Way safer.
* All heroic spirits in the ''FateStayNight''-verse (which includes ''FateZero'') come complete with a "Noble Phantasm" -- their own private "swords in the stone": Weapons, armour or other tools that are as much a part of their legends as they are, and which only they know how to use properly (which includes the TropeNamer, as King Arthur is a heroic spirit). [[spoiler:There are a few heroes that can side-step this process, however. [[FateZero The fourth war]]'s Berserker's Noble Phantasm is the ability to pick up ''anything'' and turn it into a magic signature weapon while he's holding it, and the Noble Phantasm of the fourth war's Archer is a HyperspaceArsenal that contains heaps of weapons that later became other heroes' Noble Phantasms. [[FateStayNight The fifth war]]'s Archer specializes in copy-making magic called 'projection': He has no Noble Phantasm of his own but can duplicate any weapon he has ever seen, which includes other heroes' Noble Phantasms.]]

* Uther Pendragon from ''FateNuovoGuerra'' uses a sword that is technically the TropeNamer ''before'' he put it in the stone.
* Subverted in ''WildArms2'' with the Argetlahm, which was used to save the world from a great evil in ancient times. There's even a ceremony near the beginning of the game where newly recruited "heroes" take a shot at drawing the sword. Sure enough, the main character fails his first attempt... But after being [[DemonicPossession possessed by a demon]] shortly afterward, touching it causes them to cancel each other out and seal the demon inside of him. The sword itself disappears, and he was still never "chosen" [[spoiler:until the final battle, when he's trapped inside his own soul and uses ThePowerOfFriendship to draw the sword and kill the demon.]]
* Humorously parodied in the forth installment of HeroesOfMightAndMagic. Upon locating a giant slayer sword on the world map and picking it up, a message comes up concerning its [[GameplayAndStorySegregation completely unrelated to the game play]] recovery. A hero stumbles upon a sword in a stone, and having heard the legend of weapons of such power being lodged in rocks, yanks at it with all his strength. This results in the sword not budging an inch. So he spends the next hour or so with a hammer and chisel to retrieve it.
* In ''{{Magicka}}'', this is a possible weapon. However, since your character is not the true King, you end up taking the stone along with the sword, which functions as a [[DropTheHammer hammer]] now.
* Suggested, but not altogether proven, for the Shield of Albion in ''PuzzleQuest: Challenge of the Warlords'', which is an heirloom of the player character's family.
* In the third ''ShadowHearts'' game, you find the Sword in the Stone. Frank uses it as a weapon - without removing it from the stone.

[[folder: Webcomics ]]

* In GirlGenius, only one of the eponymous family can control Castle Heterodyne. The castle itself mentions that many times over history, the Heterodynes have disappeared, and many people have laid claim to the family name. Some were delusional, some were puppets of greater men, and some were honestly wrong. But all non-Heterodynes that were tested for control of the Castle were summarily executed, and their skulls are used to pave a floor in the Castle chapel.

* A guy in {{Oglaf}} finds a sword in the stone with a sign that reads "Draw the Sword from the Stone and be a King". This being Oglaf: guess why the sign changes to "Draw the King from the Stone and win a Sword".

[[folder: Web Original ]]

* ''OpenBlue'''s BackStory has [[NorseMythology Gramrung]], a sword said to have been forged from a tooth of the [[{{precursors}} Jormungand Imperium]]'s god, Jormuna. Only the leader of the Imperium's PraetorianGuard (who in turn must be [[AncestralWeapon descended from the original leader]]) can/is allowed to wield this. The other [[SmiteEvil blessed weapons]] used by the Imperial Templar also count.

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* One episode of ''{{Super Mario Bros Super Show}}'' was a parody of King Arthur, involving a golden plunger that only Mario could pull out of a toilet. The legend went that whoever pulled the plunger would defeat Koopa and become the king of Cramalot, but that didn't stop Mario from getting cold feet and passing it on to the wizard.
* The White Wand can only be used by Timmy Turner, TheChosenOne, in ''FairlyOddParents''.
* In ''SpongebobSquarepants'', the titular character was able to pull the golden spatula (when no others can) out of the ancient grease in a museum. King Neptune shows up and challenges Spongebob in a patty-cooking competition. He will make Spongebob a god if he wins.

* In ''KingArthurAndTheKnightsOfJustice'', each Key of Truth can only be touched by the knight to whom it corresponds.

May be the first evidence of BecauseDestinySaysSo or TheChosenOne.

* In ''FrankAndErnest'', they lowered the bar: guess how many swords are in the stone.

* In the third ''ShadowHearts'' game, you find the SwordInTheStone. Frank uses it as a weapon - without removing it from the stone.