Childhood Brain Damage: Played for Laughs at one point, when Garion comments that maybe his tendency to charge into dangerous situations without thinking about the danger is because his Aunt Pol dropped him on his head as a baby.
Super Drowning Skills: has acquired this skill ever since he hit a log on a pond while showing off.
There Was A Door: A few times. The most impressive case of this is the disintegration of a city gate. The degree to which the gate ceased to be was caused by the Orb deciding to help.
Upbringing Makes the Hero: Invoked by Polgara; she deliberately raises Garion as a farmboy to give him a solid moral foundation for when he ends up having to save the world.
Unskilled, but Strong: Especially in the first series, where he lacks finesse and experience, but has enough raw power to terrify the Grolim Hierarchs (though notably, not the likes of Ctuchik). This isn't really rectified either—it's just that by the second series his raw power is so significant that his lack of talent doesn't matter.
Angsty Surviving Twin: Polgara, who was very close to her sister and outlived her thanks to being a sorcerer.
"To this very day, if you're impolite enough to ask Polgara how old she is, she'll probably say something like, 'We're about three thousand- or so.' Beldaran's been gone for a long time, but she still looms very large in Polgara's conception of the world."
Badass: She stormed a castle in order to save Garion, resisted a god trying to submit her to his will, banished a freakin demon (though in that instance, Aldur was helping her a little), and is pretty much as feared as her father (if not more). She gets it from her mother.
Brainy Brunette: Their mother sorcerously altered both twins in the womb to prepare them for their roles in life, including making Polgara this as opposed to Beldaran's blonde hair.
Cool and Unusual Punishment: When she decides to transform Salmissra into a giant snake, thus freeing her from all her human nature and all the drugs her body was suffering from.
Mind Rape: She can cast illusions which are guaranteed to make her victims beg her to stop. She's very prone to do this when doing interrogations.
The Not So Harmless Punishment: She gives back her vision to a seer, preventing her from have visions anymore, something which utterly breaks the seer in question.
Eccentric Mentor: Belgarath has several bad habits- the stealing and overimbibing and all that business in Maragor after Poledra's death- and he generally looks like a tramp, but he is still Aldur's first disciple and quite capable of demonstrating why all the Grolims are terrified of him.
Grandpa What Massive Hotness You Have: He's the oldest person in the world short of the gods and looks appropriately venerable for an aged sorcerer, yet pulls this off when he strips to his briefs to dive into a lake and shows off his impressive physique in the process.
Large Ham: He is a professional story teller and he uses it whenever he can.
Badass Normal: Is an ordinary blacksmith with little formal battle training traveling among professional warriors and sorcerers. Still kicks ferocious amounts of ass.
Drop the Hammer: As a blacksmith he's quite proficent with one of these. In The Malloreon he gains a magic one with similar properties to the Sword of the Rivan King.
Intergenerational Friendship: With Garion. He's old enough to be the boy's father, yet their relationship is very much that of two good friends.
Overshadowed by Awesome: At the beginning Durnik is just a Sendarian blacksmith in the company of a master thief, a competent warrior and two sorcerers. He become more and more prominent as the story goes along though.
Unskilled, but Strong: One of the reasons for his success as a fighter in the first series. Durnik may not be a warrior, but he's a big man and as a smith he possesses formidable upper body strength. He gains more talent as the story progresses.
The Berserker: Barak's an unwilling heroic example. Apparently this kind of thing is common in Cherek warriors, even the ones who don't turn into bears.
The Big Guy: He fullfills this role in Pawn of Prophecy. In the later books he's The Hero of The Big Guy Band, doing his best to keep the likes of Hettar, Mandorallen, and Relg in line.
Cursed with Awesome: Barak's "curse" is to turn into a bear when Garion Heir to the long-empty throne of Riva and Overlord of the West by treaty is threatened. A rampaging, unstoppable bear. At first he thinks it's just a progressive ailment and attempts suicide, but once he gets filled in on the trigger conditions (i.e., his family is now the hereditary protectors of Garion's family), he contemplates tasteful ways to work it into his coat of arms. Who wouldn't want to advertise that?
Dual Wielding: With a sword in one hand and a battleaxe in the other.
Genius Bruiser: A very good man in a fight, he's also very politically savvy, good at reading peoples' intentions, and has a philosophical way of looking at things.
In the Blood: His curse is genetic. His son, Unrak, turns into a bear when Garion's son, Geran is threatened.
Involuntary Shapeshifting: Barak's hereditary "curse" is to turn into a bear when Garion is threatened.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: If he likes you, he's sarcastic. If he doesn't like you, he's sarcastic. If he's worried, he's sarcastic. If he's feeling fine, he's sarcastic. Only a few things ever break through his shell of smartassery.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: At one point during The Mallorean, certain parties conspire to have one of Silk's fellow spies killed. The woman in question is an old friend/enemy, but someone Silk had immense respect for. His response to their conspiracy eventually causes a mass exodus of all the most powerful people related to the plot, surrounded by guards, and many of them simply do not make it out.
Sarcastic Devotee: At one point Garion notes that he understands now why Belgarath was so consistently irritated at Silk throughout the entire series - leadership is hard enough without someone standing behind you providing a sarcastic running commentary.
Bling of War: Wears gold armour to impress the troops. It's justified as the armour isn't meant to protect her and she's not going to do any fighting. It's solely for it's appearance.
Brainwashed and Crazy, In The Malloreon, due to Zandramas' sorcery. And Harakan's. She's kind of a magnet for this stuff.
Breast Plate: Justified, believe it or not. Ce'Nedra intends to speak to an army, and it's very important that she look like a queen and not a little girl (or boy). Problem is, she's very flat. So she has an armourer solve her problem (after a very long debate).
Spell My Name with an S: In-Universe example. Dryad names always have an X in them, but hers seems to break the rule. In The Malloreon it's explained that it can also be spelled "Xe'Nedra." After a moment of trying to pronounce it, Garion decides to keep calling her Ce'Nedra. It's also implied she tries to work an X into her daughter Beldaran's name.
Tsundere: Ce'Nedra makes most anime Tsunderes look amateurish. A good capsule description of her is "Asuka, only having traded in all of her self-esteem issues for even more self-centeredness."
Sir Mandorallen, Baron of Vo Mandor
Armour Is Useless: Averted. Mandorallen's armour is probably the only reason he's still alive.
BADASS: He slays lions with his bare hands. He attacks Algroth packs for fun. He threatens Tolnedran legions by himself. He refuses to fight an enraged Garion—because he doesn't want to hurt him. In a World of Badass, Mandorallen manages to stand head and shoulders above the rest.
Badass Normal: All that crazy stuff we just mentioned? He does it with no powers or supernatural aid of any kind.
Heroic Bastard: He is "The Bastard of Vo Mandor" due to some irregularities surrounding his birth.
Hidden Depths: Mandorallen isn't overly burdened with brains, but he's still got plenty of depth beneath his Knight In Shining Armour exterior, and is far more socially intuitive than many members of the group.
Love Triangle: His love is married to an older man she respects far too much to cheat on. For that matter Mandorallen respects them both too much to ask her to.
Lethal Harmless Powers: Relg can use his ability to move through solid rock for combat purposes, by pushing enemies into the rock and leaving them to suffocate.
Altar the Speed: Lelldorin smacks a priest around until he agrees to marry he and Arianna. Done to prevent her from being shamed by travelling with a man who is not her husband.
Star-Crossed Lovers: Averted. Despite the fact that he and Arianna are an Asturian and a Mimbrate and married without her elder brother's consent they end up Happily Married.
Undying Loyalty: To Garion and anyone else he considers a friend.
The Orb of Aldur (Cthrag Yaska)
Covert Pervert: It blushes when Belgarath notes that it was looking in on Garion and Ce'Nedra on their wedding night
Kill the God: One of the few things capable of injuring or killing a God.
Stop Helping Me!: The Orb tries so hard to be helpful. To the point that it has to be told that its help is not required. It thought that rearranging the stars to spell "Belgarion" was a request rather than an example.
Errand(Eriond)
"Errand?"
A Boy and His X: He has a special bond with the Horse that Garion revived.
Amnesiac God: was supposed to be a god but the Accident ended up causing Torak to replace him
Children Are Innocent: Zedar's thinking in picking him up, but there was more to it than that...
Genius Bruiser: Anheg is a brutal Viking warchieftain. He's also one of the most widely read people on the continent, and can read The Book of Torak without endangering his mental health.
Royals Who Actually Do Something: Runs his nation, leads his army, and commands his fleet. He's also very intelligent and does his best to keep abreast of world events and assist Belgarath.
Stay in the Kitchen: Subverted. When Ce'Nedra demands the Alorn kings follow her, Anheg sides with the conservative Brand and does all the talking...in order to preemptively sabotage any arguments Brand might raise against her.
Queen Islena of Cherek
Achievements in Ignorance: It's illegal to throw a priest into prison without evidence. Islena doesn't know that, and Grodeg knows she doesn't. Anheg finds the entire situation hilarious.
Brainless Beauty: When Anheg is asked why he married her, his response is that "It certainly wasn't for her brains!"
Took a Level in Badass: Initially Islena is a pompous wuss who caves in every time Grodeg shouts at her. She finally has enough, threatens to have him muzzled and thrown in jail, and ships he and the rest of the Bear-Cult off to join the army. Anheg is impressed.
Weak Willed: Is initially totally under the thumb of Grodeg, Chief Priest of Belar. With some help from Merel and Porenn she eventually overcomes this.
Happily Married: By the end, and after an intervention from the Purpose of the Universe itself.
Hidden Depths: Merel appears to be a shallow, petty bitch. The "petty" and the "bitch" are right on the money, but there's more to her than meets the eye, and we see it as early as Pawn of Prophecy when she stands up to Anheg on Barak and Garion's behalf.
Rape as Backstory: How her marriage with Barak started. She even locked the door and he knocked it down. No wonder she's incredibly spiteful to him at first.
Handicapped Badass: Cho-Hag can barely stand, but that doesn't stop him from kicking ass. Justified as he, like most Algars, is a cavalryman, and lets his horse do the walking for him.
Regent for Life: Brand is part of a long line of Rivan Warders, who vowed to rule the island and protect the Orb until the Rivan King returned. Unlike his predecessors, Brand is actually able to give up this position.
Stay in the Kitchen: Brand has very conservative values, particularly as regards women.
Emperor Ran Borune
Papa Wolf: To Ce'Nedra. Despite it being a binding treaty his nation signed, does everything he can to get Ce'Nedra out of the ceremony at Riva, where he fears she'll be humiliated. Despite constantly bickering with her, it's evident he loves her.
King On His Deathbed: In the Malloreon. He was already very old to start with, as the intrigue in Tolnedra in the Belgariad all centers around who his successor will be, so this is a Foregone Conclusion.
The Emperor: Well, duh. Tolnedra is actually a medium sized country leaning towards the smallish, but he still has a very long arm as Tolnedra is the economic powerhouse of most of the world and has an international highway system controlled by its legions. As a result, Ran Borune is not afraid to throw his weight around when it comes to politics, though he only gets his way some of the time.
Salmissra
Evil Is Sexy: Described by all characters as a very beautiful woman, and proves to be a very sensuous character, she attempts to seduce Garion to her side, and use him for her own most likely nefarious purposes. Very nearly succeeds.
God Save Us from the Queen: Has a nasty habit of killing off her eunuchs on a whim, and is described as having the most absolute, iron-fisted rule over her people out of all the monarchs in the West.
Involuntary Shapeshifter: Sort of. For her shenanigans, Polgara transforms her into a giant snake, permanently. Actually ends up being a better monarch this way.
Cold-Blooded Torture: Has a room in his tower filled with torture equipment, that he uses for his personal entertainment.
Deceptive Disciple: He's only loyal to Torak out of fear, and has no intentions of waking him.
Despotism Justifies the Means: Ctuchik wants to rule the world, and is willing to do anything to get it, including offer up sacrifices to a mad god.
The Dragon: There are other contenders for the title of Torak's right-hand man, but Ctuchik is the most archetypal, running the Grolim priesthood and Cthol Murgos in his master's absence.
Co-Dragons: Alongside Zedar and Urvon, though it's fairly obvious that he has primacy amongst the three.
Axe Crazy: He actually foams at the mouth in combat.
Badass: A veritable force of nature on the battlefield.
The Berserker: Goes utterly mad(er) while fighting. He utterly terrifies his troops, but at the same time, galvanises them. It's as though by giving into his madness they feel that they too may become as invincible as he.
Bling of War: Taur Urgas' chainmail is dipped in red Angarak gold. Rather than making it look overly pretty, it instead makes him look as though he has bathed in blood.
Blood Knight: He's always at war, sleeps in his armour, and orders his Praetorian Guard to clear the way for Cho-Hag so that he can fight him. And that's without even mentioning his Famous Last Words.
The Brute: He may be the King of Cthol Murgos, but one could definitely make the case of Taur Urgas being The Brute. He's got all the hallmarks of the personality: no empathy, totally Axe Crazy, a Berserker in combat, and he also seems to fit in terms of his position and role in the villainous hierarchy: he's the ruler of one of the largest countries subject to Torak, and provides manpower and muscle for the Angarak armies, while still being subject to Ctuchik, Torak's Dragon.
The Devil Is a Loser: He's maimed, unloved, and incapable of change. It's eventually revealed that he was never even supposed to exist in the first place.
Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Inverted. Even after everything he's done the Universe still loves Torak. So do UL, Aldur, and the other gods for that matter.
Also played straight: his last word is an anguished "Mother!"
Even Evil Has Standards: In a moment of sanity he saw the kind of future that Zandramas would create, and left a note for Garion, urging him to take her down.
Evil Cripple: Justified. When Torak misused the Orb it burned off one of his hands and boiled one of his eyes. He was evil long before he was a cripple.
Narcissist: Torak cannot conceive of a world that doesn't revolve around him. In the Book of Torak he claims to have created the Universe (his own mother). He's also one in the classic sense, being utterly obsessed with his own appearance.
Wound That Will Not Heal: Gods aren't designed to be injured, and because of that his burnt face, boiled eye, and missing hand continue to pain him, leaving him in perpetual agony.
Precocious Crush: When Silk was an up-and-coming star of the Intelligence Service, he'd often play dolls with the boss's niece, Liselle, who was approximately twenty years younger than him. As an adult, she pursued him and caught him.
Silk Hiding Steel: Velvet claims to be this in the Malloreon, but any woman who has graduated from the Drasnian spy academy probably doesn't qualify for Proper Lady status even if she is a Margravine.
Spy Catsuit: Subverted in the Malloreon. Velvet frequently dresses in tight-fitting leather, but it is described as looking masculine, workman-like, bleak and completely uninteresting.
BFS: Justified. Garion has the Orb make an enormous greatsword as light as a rapier, enabling 'Zakath to fence with it.
One-Handed Zweihänder: 'Zakath may well be the only fencer in the world to use a BFS instead of say, a rapier.
Defeat Means Friendship: Zakath is one of the rare pre-emptive examples of this trope, in that after finally dawning to just how thoroughly the odds are against him he decides to just skip the 'defeat' and go straight to the 'friendship'.
"You know something, Garion? I've always believed that someday you and I would go to war with each other. Would you be terribly disappointed if I decided not to show up?"
Empty Shell: 'Zakath misses this trope by millimeters during The Belgariad and the start of The Malloreon. The prophecy outright refers to him as "The Empty One".
Power Fist: Belgarath tells them not to kill anybody during the one battle. 'Zakath puts on a cestus and proceeds to smash it into the face of every man he rides past.
Revenge by Proxy/Sins of Our Fathers: Plans to exterminate every single member of the Urga family—and possibly all of Cthol Murgos—because of what Taur Urgas made him do.
Royal Rapier: Played with. 'Zakath is a trained fencer, and all his sword-fighting experience is with a rapier. Than Garion comes along and makes his BFS as light as one...
Took a Level in Badass: More like regained a level in badass. 'Zakath was once a capable fencer, but let those skills go rusty during his time as The Emperor. He regains them over the course of The Malloreon.
Ascended Extra: A minor antagonist in the first series; a major player in the second.
Authority Equals Asskicking: Justified. Sadi's brilliance as a poisoner stems from his experience as Chief Eunuch at the Nyissan court; if you want to live very long you get very good at surviving.
Badass: Eventually becomes one of the few badass eunuchs in fiction.
Drugs Are Bad: Averted. Sadi's drug-dealing and abuse is portrayed as a bad thing, but isn't treated as anything worse than Silk's thievery and drinking.
Eunuchs Are Evil: Played straight in the first series and subverted in the second. The Prophecy refers to him as "The Man Who Is No Man."
Evil Chancellor: Averted. Even in the first series he's one of the voices of reason at Salmissra's court.
Evil Genius/The Smart Guy: Plays this role after joining up with the heroes in the second series, sharing the position with Liselle and Silk.
Master Poisoner: As Garion puts it, "Sadi could poison one person at a banquet with a thousand guests."
This is demonstrated at one point. He poisoned the spoon, not the soup.
Pet the Dog: While Sadi is generally amoral, he's not without compassion. On several occasions he uses his drugs to ease innocent bystanders and passerby's suffering.
Poisoned Weapons: All of his knives are coated in poison, and he's been known to toss very concoctions straight into his enemies' faces when all else fails.
Sissy Villain: Starts out as one, but loses these traits after months on the road.
Smug Snake: Starts out as an archetypal example, becoming an antiheroic variant by partway through The Malloreon.
Token Evil Teammate: Sadi's alliance with the protagonists doesn't mean he's given up his personal corruption. While he likes them all by the end, and has certainly become a braver, more well-rounded individual, he remains an unapologetic scoundrel, a drug-dealer, a poisoner, and a criminal without the slightest bit of shame.
Took a Level in Badass: Sadi starts out as a typically prissy Sissy Villain and Smug Snake. By the end he's a lean, mean fighting machine with his own unique style of combat. For a eunuch he has balls.
Archenemy: He and Urvon loathe one another with an unholy passion. Urvon has wanted posters with Beldin's face on them posted for twenty leagues in every direction from Mal Yaska.
Ascended Extra: In the first series he's only one of Aldur's Disciples, and makes a few scattered appearances. In the second series he's a major player in Books 3-5.
Hidden Depths: Beldin is hideously deformed and has disgusting personal habits, but is a Genius Bruiser who is probably the most intelligent and well-read man in the world, as well as perfectly capable of breaking people who don't pay attention to his lectures in half.
Bigger Bad: Nahaz, Mordja, and the rest of the Demon Lords all answer to this guy. Despite that, he never even appears in the story.
Dystopia Justifies the Means: Seeks to upend both Prophecies and recreate the Universe in his own image with legions of Demons feasting on all mortal souls.
