Romanticized Abuse: Invoked Trope Falling in love with Covenant and deluding herself into thinking that their encounter was consensual is her way of coping, but it is explicitly very unhealthy as is true in real life. Ravers are bodiless evil spirits with the ability to possess and control some lesser creatures, and most humans as well. Giants and Bloodguard are typically immune to this power, and there are no known instances of a Raver possessing a Ranyhyn. There are only three Ravers, ancient brothers who each have many names but are commonly called Turiya Herem, Samadhi Sheol, and Moksha Jehannum. Their greatest hatred is reserved for the trees of the One Forest of old, and their loathing of the Earthpower and all good things has led them to become Lord Foul's willing servants. The Despiser is somehow able to enhance their abilities when he pleases, but can prevent them from possessing individuals he deems too powerful (They were not allowed to possess Thomas Covenant, for instance, because his ring would make them too powerful for Lord Foul to control). This possession can be, and in some cases needs to be, facilitated by some external power. In the 'Illearth War' the Ravers were only able to possess their giant 'hosts' when they worked in harmony with the power of the Illearth Stone. They often serve as leaders in Lord Foul's armies, or as spies among his enemies.

Allergic to Evil: Has the ability to sense health or disease in living things. She then finds herself in a world ravaged by a supernatural curse, in which every living thing is diseased. Classical Anti-Hero: Though never as unpleasant as Covenant at his worst, Linden — a young, largely untested medical doctor who wrestles with trust issues and depression — isn't exactly the stuff epic heroes are made of (at least, she certainly believes it about herself). In the Last Chronicles, she's much more proactive, but also more ruthless, making her more of a Pragmatic Hero. Was Once a Man: They were once three human brothers, but their evil was so great it continued on after their physical deaths—eventually Foul found them, and made them his lieutenants. note Interestingly, it's unclear exactly how they became the Ravers; they weren't born such, but were already immortal spirits by the time they joined up with Foul. Unlike many "evil elites" — such as the Ringwraiths of The Lord of the Rings, who they seem to have been at least partially inspired by — the Ravers' origin story is independent of their master's. The Last Chronicles implies it was some conflux of the brothers' human evil and the supernatural malevolence flowing from under Mount Thunder that made it possible. Glowing Eyes of Doom: His glowing yellow eyes are his most obvious and defining feature regardless of the form he takes. The group head to Mount Thunder to confront Lord Foul, knowing they can do nothing more to stop the Worm, which has altered its course to Melenkurion Skyweir. Just east of the mountain, they are set upon by skurj and Sandgorgons led by the remnants of the Raver samadhi. The Swordmainnir and Haruchai are reinforced with Giants who have arrived from Dire's Vessel (the ship the Swordmainnir arrived on) under directions from Brinn, who had died from old age shortly after arriving on board the ship. The lurker creates a flood that kills the skurj while Covenant summons the Fire-Lions once again, who kill the Sandgorgons.Fantastic Rank System: The na-Mhoram is the overall head of the Clave. His closest f The Demondim are a now-extinct race spawned by the Viles. They had a semi-corporeal nature, and could only achieve physical presence by animating dead bodies. They were not originally wholly evil, but their inherent self-loathing was used by Lord Foul to gain their allegiance. They spawned two other races, the Waynhim and the ur-viles.

Offstage Villainy: Inverted. Foul himself is almost always offstage, showing up in person only a handful of times across the entire Chronicles. His villainy, on the other hand, produces consequences which turn up seemingly around every corner, especially in the later books. I first read Lord Foul's Bane when I was a teenager and I am now able to understand that I was simply not ready for it at that time in my life; my vocabulary did not stretch far enough and by overly focussing on Covenant I missed the most beautiful aspects of the book. But now, twenty years on, I have embarked on a complete series re-read and this time around I was able to enjoy and comprehend the book in a way I was previously unable to. This is not a book/series for the casual fantasy reader and I urge those who may initially struggle, to persevere, as the books contain moments of sheer magic and the characters and locations are amongst the best to be found in the genre. Non-Action Guy: Covenant has no military training and finds killing repellant, and his leprosy makes him even more fragile than a normal person. A mysterious and hostile creature that inhabits and, to a certain extent controls the Sarangrave Flats and the swamp Lifeswallower. it doesn't directly serve Foul but is just as evil.—- He is also unprepared for the sudden restoration of his health, which cures the impotence brought on by his leprosy. This, and his mental turmoil over the reality he feels but does not believe, drives him into a frenzy, causing him to rape Lena, an act which will be pivotal to all that follows. When Lena's friends and family learn of what happened to her, they are barely able to comprehend the enormity of or reasons behind this crime, but the Oath of Peace to which they are sworn forbids them from taking vengeance.Despair Event Horizon: What prompts him to even try luring Foul's minions to Garroting Deep in the first place.

A blind military strategist from Earth, brought to the Land during a botched attempt to summon Covenant. Troy became the leader of the Lords' military forces, and unlike Covenant embraced the Land wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, Troy greatly underestimated what the Despiser was capable of, and though he was able to defeat Foul's army, it came at great cost, and Troy himself was transformed into a Forestal and became the apprentice of Caerroil Wildwood. Now immortal, Troy continued to serve the Land into the Second Chronicles.The Atoner: Played with. His first attempts to atone for raping Lena only dig him deeper, at least in part because they were done deliberately to atone, and thereby tainted by his selfishness. Only when he started to become more determined to fight Foul and save the Land simply because it was the right thing to do did he truly begin to atone. Above Good and Evil: They see themselves as having transcended all moral limitations by becoming Ravers, hence their personal names reflecting their (mistaken) belief in their own enlightenment. In The Last Dark Jehannum has an extended monologue on how he feels the purity of his service to Foul and the renunciation of his humanity lifts him above other beings and will let him find godhood, trying to talk Jeremiah into serving Foul in the same way. Jeremiah gives the appropriate response. Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Resurrecting Covenant in Fatal Revenant, which seemed like a good idea at the time but also woke up the Worm of World's end. Oops. In 2009, James Nicoll said that Thomas Covenant would win a "special lifetime achievement award" for the "most unlikeable supposedly sympathetic protagonist". [5]