BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
BORN
7871-7876 AC
(three years after Morzan)
DIED
8000 AC
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
SPECIES
Human
GENDER
Male
HEIGHT
Unknown (a bit shorter than Jeod)
HAIR COLOR
Silver (Grayish-brown in film)
EYE COLOR
Blue (Brown in film)
CHRONOLOGICAL AND POLITICAL INFORMATION
DRAGON
Saphira I
AFFILIATION
Dragon Riders, Varden, Dwarves, Elves, Dragons,
Humans
FAMILY
Holcomb (Father)
Nelda (Mother)
Selena (Beloved)
Eragon (Son)
KNOWN TEACHERS
Oromis, Glaedr
OTHER
FILM PORTRAYER
Jeremy Irons
Brom Holcombsson was a male human, a former Dragon Rider, and the founder of the Varden. In the third book, it is revealed by Oromis that he is Eragon Shadeslayer's father, a secret that he and Saphira II had been keeping upon Brom's insistence.
Brom came from a family of illuminators in Kuasta, a remote city near the Sea, far south of Carvahall. His mother was named Nelda and his father Holcomb. Kuasta was so isolated by the Spine, that it became a peculiar place, full of strange customs and superstitions. When he was new to Ilirea (Urû'baen), for instance, Brom would knock on a door frame three times before entering or exiting a room. The other students laughed at these habits, so Brom eventually abandoned them. When Brom was a child, presumably at the age of ten, a female aquamarine Dragon hatched for him and he named her Saphira. Brom then went to the city of Ilirea to be trained as a dragon rider.
During his tutelage under Oromis and Glaedr, Brom befriended a fellow student three years his elder named Morzan. Brom idolized Morzan, tagged after him, allowed Morzan to boss him around and always considered himself weaker than Morzan. Morzan often took advantage of Brom's unflagging admiration, making him "blind as a bat". Blagden said the phrase "blind as a bat" to Eragon during his first visit to Ellesméra. Oromis considered separating them, but never did, despite Morzan's cruelty.
During Galbatorix's rebellion and the subsequent Fall of the Dragon Riders, Brom and Saphira initially joined their teachers in seeking refuge in Du Weldenvarden, but the young pair brazenly left for the defense of Vroengard, against their masters' wishes. In the fighting, Morzan murdered Saphira in Doru Araeba. Brom also lost his sword, Undbitr, during this time. Devastated by grief and loss of identity (due to the deep bond between dragon and Rider), Brom swore to take revenge on Morzan for his dragon's death and the destruction of his world. He began to pursue and persecute his former idol even more intensely than he had idolized him in the first place. As Oromis once said "Brom's love for Morzan was given way to hate, like a candle before an inferno". He joined the elves at the Battle of Ilirea, only for them to lose to Galbatorix and The Forsworn.
After the creation of the independent country of Surda, Brom used the turmoil to his advantage. He helped found the rebel group known as the Varden, gathering and merging various groups opposed to Galbatorix and the Broddring Empire. He led the Varden for a few years and then surrendered the position to Weldon in order to pursue his true passion: Morzan's downfall. To accomplish this objective, Brom found a weakness in Morzan's castle's wards. He then disguised himself as a gardener and worked within the castle undetected, entering into a romantic relationship with Selena, Morzan's agent and wife (otherwise known as The Black Hand). During his time in the castle, he conceived a child with Selena, who travelled home to Carvahall to give birth to the child, Eragon.
