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* HollywoodTactics: Played with. Often averted in the case of real tacticians (or justified by sein), but the Hero uses blunt movie tactics and forces them to work by bending reality around him. (Trope administratively locked.)
* HostileWeather: The Chorhan Expanse has dry/rainy seasons, and the long rains directly correlate with one of the lowest points in the first book.
* HostileWeather: The Chorhan Expanse has dry/rainy seasons, and the long rains directly correlate with one of the lowest points in the first book.
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* HealingHands: This is one of the major branches of sein, not incompatible with combat sein but requiring a high degree of specialization. Notably played with in potentially causing complications, such as [[spoiler:rapid healing causing a condition that is strongly implied to be cancer.]]
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* EternalRecurrence: The Hero's arrival is essentially this if the cycle is ever reset, leading to bloody/climactic battles every time.
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* EyeColourChange: Characters who [[spoiler:become the Hero]] tend to have their eyes get lighter, eventually becoming unnatural white. It's ambiguous if their natural eye color becomes lighter, but it definitely appears white when the Hero is on a rampage.
* FantasticFaunaCounterpart: Monstrous aurochs seem to fill the role of cattle, cockatrices are raised like chickens, and bicorns are similar to goats.
* FantasticLightSource: Sein spheres provide consistent light in tunnels and other areas that couldn't logically be lit constantly by torches.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Heavily downplayed. Though many of the cultures have clear Asian inspiration, they rarely match any real culture for more than a few elements.
* FantasticFaunaCounterpart: Monstrous aurochs seem to fill the role of cattle, cockatrices are raised like chickens, and bicorns are similar to goats.
* FantasticLightSource: Sein spheres provide consistent light in tunnels and other areas that couldn't logically be lit constantly by torches.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Heavily downplayed. Though many of the cultures have clear Asian inspiration, they rarely match any real culture for more than a few elements.
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* Doorstopper: The first book of the series is quite long, which is unusual for Amazon-published novels, and the others are planned to be the same length.
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* Doorstopper: {{Doorstopper}}: The first book of the series is quite long, which is unusual for Amazon-published novels, and the others are planned to be the same length.
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* Doorstopper: The first book of the series is quite long, which is unusual for Amazon-published novels, and the others are planned to be the same length.
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* DeliberateValuesDissonance: A major feature of the story, as many characters readily adopt the horrifying morality of the Hero, in contrast to the reader's expected reaction. To a lesser degree, mansthein culture varies from human culture in various ways.
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* CrypticBackgroundReference: Common, both in terms of characters referring to parts of the world not immediately relevant, and several epigraphs that refer to highly ambiguous events.
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* CapitalLettersAreMagic: Conspicuously not used. Words for magic or other races that are familiar to the protagonists are never capitalized.
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* CallASmeerpARabbit: Though a common beast of burden is called an aurochs, they're said to have claws and sharp teeth, implying a much more monstrous origin than real cattle.
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* BloodKnight: Though common among warriors, Zeitai Xetsu takes this to the logical extreme.
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* BattleCouple: Logically a common feature in the world of Myros. In the first book, particularly [[spoiler:Veron and Graenin.]]
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* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Made explicit. Warriors who train in only one capacity will run into problems because they lack the powers to support their strengths.
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* KungFuWizard: Since there is no distinction between magic and ki, this is the most common state for trained combatants.
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* LifeEnergy: Sein is explicitly this, including the mind and past experiences.
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* SupernaturalMartialArts: Due to the magic system, all martial arts are this, ranging from superhuman physical capabilities to energy blasts.
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* SuperToughness: One common use of sein, ranging from making someone slightly tougher than normal to [[SuperSoldier Catai]] shrugging off bladed weapons to Xetsu ignoring an entire group trying to kill him.
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* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Played with. The [[SuperSoldier Catai]] are automatically of a higher rank, but are subordinate to administrators and leaders. In several human organizations, all the leaders are those who can fight.
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* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Played with. The [[SuperSoldier Catai]] are automatically of a higher rank, but are subordinate to administrators and leaders.politicians. In several human organizations, all the leaders are those who can fight.
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* SuperSoldier: The Catai are mansthein who have undergone an unnatural rebirth that makes them far larger and stronger, plus makes their skin impervious to ordinary weapons.
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So the real story is about characters who ''aren't'' the Hero trying to make peace despite the forces of destiny. The Hero is somewhere between an unstoppable force of nature and a roaming [[Munchkin murderhobo]]. But it isn't so simple, because the mansthein have some tendencies of {{TheEmpire}} and many are far from innocent. So the conflict is about GreyAndGrayMorality being forcibly rammed into a BlackAndWhiteMorality framework.
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So the real story is about characters who ''aren't'' the Hero trying to make peace despite the forces of destiny. The Hero is somewhere between an unstoppable force of nature and a roaming [[Munchkin [[{{Munchkin}} murderhobo]]. But it isn't so simple, because the mansthein have some tendencies of {{TheEmpire}} and many are far from innocent. So the conflict is about GreyAndGrayMorality being forcibly rammed into a BlackAndWhiteMorality framework.
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* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Played with. The [[SuperSoldier Catai]] are automatically of a higher rank, but are subordinate to administrators and leaders. In several human organizations, all the leaders are those who can fight.
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* ArcVillain: [[spoiler:Aryabaus]] is not a general or major leader, but serves as the main antagonist (even if sometimes in the background) for the first book.
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* UnreliableNarrator: Each POV is deep inside the character's head and so it reflects their personality and limitations. This ranges from missing some details to being wrong in ways the reader can clearly identify.
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* UnreliableNarrator: Each POV is deep inside the character's head and so it reflects their personality and limitations. This ranges from missing some details other characters notice to being wrong in ways the reader can clearly identify.identify to deceptions the reader needs to interpret.
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* AmbiguouslyBrown: The exact appearance of the fantasy ethnicities is unclear due to UnreliableNarrator POVs, but several different ethnicities appear to have brown skin of some shade.
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* AmbiguouslyBrown: The exact appearance of the fantasy ethnicities is unclear due to UnreliableNarrator POVs, POV, but several different ethnicities appear to have brown skin of some shade.
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* AbsurdCuttingPower: Reasonably competent warriors using sein can cut through iron, strong warriors can cut through armor, and it's unclear what the limits would be in the hands of a master.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: The exact appearance of the fantasy ethnicities is unclear due to UnreliableNarrator POVs, but several different ethnicities appear to have brown skin of some shade.
* AmbiguouslyBrown: The exact appearance of the fantasy ethnicities is unclear due to UnreliableNarrator POVs, but several different ethnicities appear to have brown skin of some shade.
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* TheProphecy: Subverted, as the Legend is vaguely defined and interpreted negatively by most.
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* TheProphecy: Subverted, as the Legend is vaguely defined and interpreted negatively by most.most.
* UnreliableNarrator: Each POV is deep inside the character's head and so it reflects their personality and limitations. This ranges from missing some details to being wrong in ways the reader can clearly identify.
* UnreliableNarrator: Each POV is deep inside the character's head and so it reflects their personality and limitations. This ranges from missing some details to being wrong in ways the reader can clearly identify.
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So the real story is about characters who ''aren't'' the Hero trying to make peace despite the forces of destiny. The Hero is somewhere between an unstoppable force of nature and a roaming [[Munchkin murderhobo]]. But it isn't so simple, because the mansthein have some tendencies of {{TheEmpire}} and many are far from innocent. So the conflict is about {{GreyAndGrayMorality}} being forcibly rammed into a {{BlackAndWhiteMorality}} framework.
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So the real story is about characters who ''aren't'' the Hero trying to make peace despite the forces of destiny. The Hero is somewhere between an unstoppable force of nature and a roaming [[Munchkin murderhobo]]. But it isn't so simple, because the mansthein have some tendencies of {{TheEmpire}} and many are far from innocent. So the conflict is about {{GreyAndGrayMorality}} GreyAndGrayMorality being forcibly rammed into a {{BlackAndWhiteMorality}} BlackAndWhiteMorality framework.
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* Munchkin: The Heroes are effectively murderhobos.
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* Munchkin: {{Munchkin}}: The Heroes are effectively murderhobos.
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* Mooks: Heavily subverted. Characters that appear to be nameless soldiers in one character's POV are recognizable to the reader as decent people with full lives, but only met via a different character's POV.
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* Mooks: {{Mooks}}: Heavily subverted. Characters that appear to be nameless soldiers in one character's POV are recognizable to the reader as decent people with full lives, but only met via a different character's POV.
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* Dehumanization: Literally, with the mansthein being considered subhuman monsters.
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* Dehumanization: {{Dehumanization}}: Literally, with the mansthein being considered subhuman monsters.
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* TheChosenOne: Subverted, as the Hero MORE
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* TheChosenOne: Subverted, as the Hero MOREHero's purpose is horrifying except for a few.
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* TheProphecy: The Legend. MORE
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* TheProphecy: The Legend. MORESubverted, as the Legend is vaguely defined and interpreted negatively by most.
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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tbs_6.png]]
->''"The arrival of the Hero was worse than anyone could have imagined."''
''The Brightest Shadow'' is an EpicFantasy series of novels, written by Creator/SarahLin, and also the title of the first book in the series. Its setting is a blend of {{Wuxia}} and [[HighFantasy high fantasy]] elements, notable for heavily subverting many of them. The world of Myros is split between two species: humans and mansthein.
The first book introduces a [[TheProphecy Legend]] about a [[TheChosenOne Hero]] killing the [[EvilOverlord Dark Lord]] and all his [[TheHorde Deathspawn minions]]. Except when the {{CallToAdventure}} happens, it's treated as a [[CosmicHorrorReveal horror story]]. The "monsters" think of themselves as {{TheFederation}} and the Hero's plan is essentially [[FinalSolution genocide]].
So the real story is about characters who ''aren't'' the Hero trying to make peace despite the forces of destiny. The Hero is somewhere between an unstoppable force of nature and a roaming [[Munchkin murderhobo]]. But it isn't so simple, because the mansthein have some tendencies of {{TheEmpire}} and many are far from innocent. So the conflict is about {{GreyAndGrayMorality}} being forcibly rammed into a {{BlackAndWhiteMorality}} framework.
----
!! ''The Brightest Shadow'' contains examples of:
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: How the Hero sees the world, even to the extent of immediately turning on anyone who stands up to him. Notably not very concerned with morality in regard to anything the Hero doesn't care about.
* BrokenAesop: Intentional with the Hero, who draws moral lessons from events that can be ''very'' different than what anyone else thinks about morality.
* CosmicHorrorReveal: That the Legend [[spoiler:seems to be true on a fundamental level and cannot be stopped. If a Hero is killed, someone else becomes the Hero and things just get worse.]]
* Dehumanization: Literally, with the mansthein being considered subhuman monsters.
* EvilOverlord: Subverted strangely. There is a character literally called the "Dark Lord" but it's unclear if he's in charge and his goals are completely ambiguous.
* FinalSolution: The "happy ending" promised by the Legend is total genocide of all mansthein.
* GreyAndGrayMorality: The actual morality of the series. Neither humans or mansthein are all good or bad, and though some characters are better or worse than others, there are no shining heroes (except the horrifying one).
* HardCodedHostility: The Hero appears able to enforce this, causing mansthein and humans to attack one another in a rage even if they intended otherwise.
* Mooks: Heavily subverted. Characters that appear to be nameless soldiers in one character's POV are recognizable to the reader as decent people with full lives, but only met via a different character's POV.
* MultipleChoiceChosen: [[spoiler:Played with. If one Hero is killed, that person was never the Hero at all and a different person was supposedly the Hero all along.]]
* Munchkin: The Heroes are effectively murderhobos.
* RightMakesMight: Twisted. The Hero's power operates by this logic even when what he's doing is horrifying.
* TheChosenOne: Subverted, as the Hero MORE
* TheHorde: Subverted, as some humans believe the mansthein are a Deathspawn horde, but they're actually a complex government with many opposing factions.
* TheProphecy: The Legend. MORE
->''"The arrival of the Hero was worse than anyone could have imagined."''
''The Brightest Shadow'' is an EpicFantasy series of novels, written by Creator/SarahLin, and also the title of the first book in the series. Its setting is a blend of {{Wuxia}} and [[HighFantasy high fantasy]] elements, notable for heavily subverting many of them. The world of Myros is split between two species: humans and mansthein.
The first book introduces a [[TheProphecy Legend]] about a [[TheChosenOne Hero]] killing the [[EvilOverlord Dark Lord]] and all his [[TheHorde Deathspawn minions]]. Except when the {{CallToAdventure}} happens, it's treated as a [[CosmicHorrorReveal horror story]]. The "monsters" think of themselves as {{TheFederation}} and the Hero's plan is essentially [[FinalSolution genocide]].
So the real story is about characters who ''aren't'' the Hero trying to make peace despite the forces of destiny. The Hero is somewhere between an unstoppable force of nature and a roaming [[Munchkin murderhobo]]. But it isn't so simple, because the mansthein have some tendencies of {{TheEmpire}} and many are far from innocent. So the conflict is about {{GreyAndGrayMorality}} being forcibly rammed into a {{BlackAndWhiteMorality}} framework.
----
!! ''The Brightest Shadow'' contains examples of:
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: How the Hero sees the world, even to the extent of immediately turning on anyone who stands up to him. Notably not very concerned with morality in regard to anything the Hero doesn't care about.
* BrokenAesop: Intentional with the Hero, who draws moral lessons from events that can be ''very'' different than what anyone else thinks about morality.
* CosmicHorrorReveal: That the Legend [[spoiler:seems to be true on a fundamental level and cannot be stopped. If a Hero is killed, someone else becomes the Hero and things just get worse.]]
* Dehumanization: Literally, with the mansthein being considered subhuman monsters.
* EvilOverlord: Subverted strangely. There is a character literally called the "Dark Lord" but it's unclear if he's in charge and his goals are completely ambiguous.
* FinalSolution: The "happy ending" promised by the Legend is total genocide of all mansthein.
* GreyAndGrayMorality: The actual morality of the series. Neither humans or mansthein are all good or bad, and though some characters are better or worse than others, there are no shining heroes (except the horrifying one).
* HardCodedHostility: The Hero appears able to enforce this, causing mansthein and humans to attack one another in a rage even if they intended otherwise.
* Mooks: Heavily subverted. Characters that appear to be nameless soldiers in one character's POV are recognizable to the reader as decent people with full lives, but only met via a different character's POV.
* MultipleChoiceChosen: [[spoiler:Played with. If one Hero is killed, that person was never the Hero at all and a different person was supposedly the Hero all along.]]
* Munchkin: The Heroes are effectively murderhobos.
* RightMakesMight: Twisted. The Hero's power operates by this logic even when what he's doing is horrifying.
* TheChosenOne: Subverted, as the Hero MORE
* TheHorde: Subverted, as some humans believe the mansthein are a Deathspawn horde, but they're actually a complex government with many opposing factions.
* TheProphecy: The Legend. MORE
