by Adriana Disano

Created on: August 29, 2010

Eddie Riggs is the protagonist of heavy metal tribute and action/real time strategy game, Brutal Legend.

Eddie was named after both "Eddie the Head," mascot of British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, and Derek Riggs, the artist who created the mascot. Voiced by and modeled after Jack Black, Eddie is largely inspired by the image of a heavy metal roadie, the technician who stays behind the scenes for heavy metal concerts.

In the intro to the game, Eddie is shown as being "the best roadie in the world" for "the worst heavy metal band of all time," Kabbage Boy. After the set of one of their concerts collapses, Eddie is caught under the rubble and knocked unconscious (though presumed dead by some players). As his blood reaches the mouth of his belt buckle, it is revealed that it is actually an amulet to the eternal fire beast Ormagoden. The set comes to life, breathing fire at the members of the band and (provided that the gore is turned on) blowing their heads right off their bodies. Eddie is shortly transported to the Age of Metal, a world inspired by heavy metal album cover art and lyrics where most of the game takes place.

Eddie wields the Seperator, an axe, and Clementine, a guitar which summons fire and lightning, in combat. He also drives the Druid Plow, a massive hot rod which mows over enemies. Despite being a roadie, Eddie is also a skilled guitar player and wields Clementine deftly, electrifying enemies with her magic powers over the Age of Metal. He is also able to read music well enough to decipher the ancient tablets that cover the Age of Metal and allow him to learn new songs to play with Clementine and give him extraordinary powers.

Emphasis throughout the game is always placed on Eddie's role as a roadie. Instead of leading the army of Ironheade, he allows Lars to be the leader and recruits troops from behind the scenes. He assembles the Druid Plow from a set of miscellaneous parts available at the Temple of Ormagoden and effortlessly fixes Clementine after Kabbage Boy's lead guitarist carelessly destroys her.

Eddie is exceedingly buff and muscled, and is able to wield the Seperator with relative ease, although he says he has never used an axe before. His personality is largely sarcastic, and he is used as the vessel for most of the game's ironic humor, though he is also friendly to his own troops and often supports them through their own self-doubt. He makes regular humorous references to his own world while in

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