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Literature: The Riddle Master Trilogy
aka: The Riddle Master Of Hed

The Riddle-Master Trilogy is a High Fantasy trilogy by Patricia A. McKillip with a Morality Kitchen Sink. The novels in the trilogy are:

The Riddle-Master of Hed
Heir of Sea and Fire
Harpist in the Wind

The third novel, Harpist in the Wind, was nominated for the Hugo Award and the World Fantasy Award, and the series remains one of McKillip's most popular works. Several Omnibus editions have been produced under various names, including Riddle of Stars, Quest of Riddlemasters, and The Riddlemaster's Game.

Morgon was a student before his parents died and he became the land-ruler of Hed. He was born with a birth mark of three stars on his forehead which are the subject of prophecy, although he tries to ignore that. When the High One's harpist, Deth, comes to visit during his travels, he informs Morgon that Raederle of An's hand in marriage was promised to whomever could defeat Peven of Aum in a riddle game and that An has been in an uproar ever since Peven told the last person to challenge him that he was too late. Morgon admits that he won Peven's crown in a riddle game and resolves to go with Deth to visit Raederle and offer himself in marriage.

Before they can get very far, their ship is attacked by shape-changers who are determined to kill The Starbearer aka Morgon. For his very life, Morgon travels with Deth to the High One on Erlenstar Mountain in search of an answer to the riddle of three stars.

The second book follows Raederle of An, Lyra of Herun, and Morgon's sister Tristan as they search for Morgon, Deth, and the High One, who are all now considered missing ever since Morgon reached the High One and fell out of all contact. The third book deals with the growing war against the shape-changers and the continuing search for the truth about the High One.

The main characters:

Morgon of Hed: aka The Star-Bearer. He is the Prince of Hed and least important of land-rulers. He was born with three stars on his forehead which are the subject of some of the oldest unsolved riddles. Before his parents died Morgan attended Caithnard where he studied riddle mastery. Shortly before the first book he secretly bet his life in a riddle game that hundreds of men have died attempting. He keeps the crown he won under his bed and just wants to farm.
Deth: The High One's harpist and Morgon's closest friend and mentor. He guides Morgon to Erlenstar Mountain.
Raederle of An: the "second most beautiful woman in the three portions of An", and daughter of the land-ruler of An. She was promised by her father Mathom to the man who would defeat Peven and win his crown. She is the Rebellious Princess protagonist of the second book, Heir of Sea and Fire.

Tropes Used:

Action Girl: Lyra of Herun, who is herself the leader of the Morgol's all-female guard.
Actual Pacifist: Morgon until he is betrayed. He is brought back to himself, brutally and then broken in half all over again out of necessity.
Aerith and Bob: While most names are a bit strange, they still range from the relatively-normal Tristan and Morgon to Ghisteslwchlohm.
The Aloner: Astrin, Deth, Morgon and Har.
Amazon Brigade: The Morgol's guard.
Amplifier Artifact: The twelve-sided crystal Raederle finds that more than does the job for a simple reflection spell.
Anguished Declaration of Love: Deth to Morgon. (Unusually for this trope, a familial rather than romantic love.)
Arcadia: Hed.
Armor-Piercing Statement: "They were promised a man of peace."
Bad Dreams: Morgon dreams about Deth's harping.
Becoming the Mask: Deth.
Belly of the Whale: Morgon, during the year in which Ghisteslwchlohm imprisons him. Since the land-rule passes to Eliard, everyone assumes Morgan is dead.
Big Bad: The shape-changers; the one impersonating Eriel is heavily implied to be the mastermind.
- Big Bad Wannabe: Ghisteslwchlohm thinks he's got everything under control- and then he runs into the Earth-masters and ends up their mind-controlled puppet.
Big "NO!": Morgon's Great Shout at the end of the first book.
Blow You Away
Broken Pedestal: Master Ohm/Ghisteslwchlohm and Deth, for most of the last two books until the whole scope of his plan is revealed.
Call to Agriculture: Morgon wants to be a peaceful farmer, not the Chosen One.
The Chosen One: Morgon.
Deadpan Snarker: Deth.
Deadperson Impersonation: Multiple times throughout the series.
The Dragon: Ghisteslwchlohm ends up forced to play this role to "Eriel" and the Earth-masters.
The Drifter: Deth
Dysfunctional Family: Morgon's family - Morgon, Eliard and Tristan - and Raederle's - currently Mathom, Raederle, Duac and Rood.
- And let's not forget the ruling family of Ymris - Astrin, Heureu, and Heureu's shape-changer wife Eriel.
- The remaining ruling families seem surprisingly well-adjusted, for people who can live a thousand years, see through walls and turn themselves into trees.
Elemental Powers: Hereditary in humans and highly developed in the Shape-changers. Magic doesn't seem to be limited to one particular element, but some characters specialize.
Elements of Nature: Earth, Fire, Water and Wind.
Engagement Challenge: Raederle has been offered by her father to the man who can defeat Peven in a riddle game. It's been considered unwinnable for centuries before Morgon comes along.
Evil Sorcerer: Ghisteslwchlohm
Expy: The author is an explicit fan of The Lord of the Rings, and while this series is considerably different as a whole, there is one example of this- Ghisteslwchlohm bears a striking resemblence in many respects to Saruman.
Eyes of Gold: All the Morgols of Herun have them; it's a side-effect of the power that lets them see through solid objects.
Fake King: Ghisteslwchlohm.
Fallen Hero: Morgon in the second book.
Fiery Redhead: Raederle and her brother Rood.
Fingore: Deth is a foremost a harpist even after his hands are destroyed as punishment by Ghisteslwchilohm.
Fisher King: The land-rulers are all benevolent examples.
Forced To Watch: Deth, if not by Ghisteslwchlohm then by his own conscience and because there's nothing he can do to save Morgon.
Functional Magic: Inherent Gift is pretty common, particularly among land-rulers and their families; the whole world is filled with Wild Magic; Rule Magic has largely disappeared with the wizards but returns with them.
Geometric Magic: Dodecahedrons.
Ghost Amnesia: After winning their riddle game with his life, Morgon reminds Peven of the names of his children.
God Was My Co Pilot: You know the one.
Half-Human Hybrid: Raederle; her family's Earth-master heritage is very pronounced in her.
Have You Seen My God?: The High One
Heroic Albino: Astrin
Hidden Depths: Several characters, including Morgon, the peaceful farmer-Prince of a remote island, who is the last one anyone (including himself) expects to get caught up in prophecies that will affect all the lands; Raederle, who has inherited more than she knows or wants to know from the mysterious shapeshifters beneath the sea; and the pig-woman of An who Raederle befriends.
High Fantasy
It's Not You, It's My Enemies: Morgon attempts to tell Raederle this. Fortunately for everyone, she convinces him otherwise.
Kill Me Now or Forever Stay Your Hand: Morgan has a literal Sword Over Head scene with Deth at the end of Heir of Sea and Fire.
Kill The Ones You Love: It's always been part of the plan that Morgon has to kill Deth.
Language of Magic: Magic is a unique hodgepodge of functional music, language, sympathetic geometry and elemental.
Loads and Loads of Characters: So many there's an index at the end of the book.
Make Me Wanna Shout
Magical Land
Magic Music: Very much so, the highest example being Morgon's harp, which he can barely play.
Meaningful Name: Deth and Rood, who is willing to strip to make a point. Also Yrth 'earth' and Raederle 'riddle', referring to her ancestry.
Milky White Eyes: Astrin
Mind Rape: For a long time this is Morgon's life under Erlenstar Mountain.
Modest Royalty: Many of them, but especially Morgon.
Morality Kitchen Sink
Musical Assassin: A shapeshifter nearly suffocates Morgon with a song.
My Master, Right or Wrong: Played straight and subverted with Deth, the High One's harpist.
Mythopoeia
Nature Spirit: The shape-changers.
No Pronunciation Guide: Raederle. Ghisteslwchlohm. Many other people in Herun, who tend to go by nicknames to work around this.
Noble Fugitive: The High One is nearly murdered by his heir.
Nothing Is Scarier: A riddle about a King of Hed who was pursued into his home by a monster and when he finally opened the door nothing was there.
The Obi-Wan: Deth
Offing the Offspring: The shape-changers's children.
Offscreen Moment of Awesome: We hear a lot about Morgon finally managing to turn Ghisteslwchlohm's power against him and escape; unfortunately, it's all either secondhand or long after the fact.
One-Scene Wonder: Rood and the Mathom and Duac Show.
Only One Name
Omniscient Morality License: Deth only does what he must and he's willing to take any punishment for doing what's necessary.
Our Ghosts Are Different
Overly-Long Name: A Herun tradition, apparently, which is why they all go by shortened versiona of their names - e.g. Elrhiarhodan and her daughter Lyraluthuin are El and Lyra to their friends
Physical God: The High One and the Earth-masters.
Rage Against the Mentor
Really 700 Years Old: The wizards, shape-changers, and a few of the land-rulers live an indefinitely long time.
Rebellious Princess: Raederle of An, Tristan of Hed and Lyra of Herun.
Resigned to The Call: It takes a few near-death experiences for Morgon to even consider going to the High One and asking him to figure things out.
Right Justified Fantasy Map: It seems that human colonisation of the High One's realm came from over the Eastern sea, and never extended into the harsh Bad Lands further West.
Royal Blood
Royals Who Actually Do Something: Due to the small size of their kingdoms and each land-ruler's psychic connection to his or her own land.
Pursued Protagonist: Deth and Morgon.
The Quiet One: Deth.
Sealed Evil in a Can: The shape-changers. Sealed Amorality In A Can?
Shoot the Dog: So many times.
Silent Scapegoat: Deth.
Soundtrack Dissonance: Because it's all he can do, Deth plays Morgon his harp while Morgon's being mind raped.
Spell Book: Of the most obscure and impractical kind. Opening them is the first challenge.
Standard Hero Reward: Lampshaded. When Morgan finds out that a king swore his daughter to anyone who could win a contest he'd just won, he asks how anyone could be so stupid as to make such a promise. Luckily, there was already some attraction between the two (and it's implied that the king had some ability to see the future and foresee this outcome.)
Stern Chase: Morgon and Deth in the final book
Sympathetic Magic
Take Up My Sword: Deth to Morgon
Thanatos Gambit: The High One.
Thousand Year Reign: The High One's succession.
Treacherous Advisor: Sort of. Played straight and then subverted.
Unexpected Successor: Yrth had absolutely no clue.
The Unpronounceable: One of the wizards is actually called "Iff of the Unpronouncable Name"; it turns out his full name has to be sung, not spoken, and even then it took a while to work out the tune.
Wham Line: At least one per book, but the most obvious is at the very end of the first book:
"I am Ghisteslwchlohm, the Founder of Lungold, and—as you have guessed—it's destroyer. I am the High One."
Wizarding School: Lungold had one, before Ghisteslwchlohm destroyed it.
Wizards Live Longer:
The Wise Prince: Deth and Morgon.
World's Most Beautiful Woman: Played with, in that Raederle is officially the second most beautiful woman "in all the Three Portions of An."
Words Can Break My Bones: "The Great Shout" is a variation on this - psychic shouting that can do a remarkable amount of damage.
- Or harvest quite a lot of tree nuts.
Voluntary Shapeshifting: The shape-changers themselves and anyone with enough natural talent and willpower.
You Are in Command Now: Morgon. Twice.
Zero Approval Gambit