Murtagh has several similarities to Aragorn from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. He is a wanderer who is of noble birth and heir to a position that he eventually takes, and is very skilled as a swordsman, archer, and woodsman. Murtagh also lends Eragon his assistance and service on his quest to destroy the evil, much as Aragorn did for Frodo. However, there is another character Murtagh is much more similar to, especially after Brisingr: The Witch-king of Angmar.