History Main / ActionAdventureTropes

+ HarbingerOfAsskicking

+ InvisibilityIndex

* DeadManSwitch \\

A hero with such personal magnetism that he is capable of persuading others to [[HowToGatherCharacters join him in his quest]].

* InfantImmortality \\
Even the worst villains are not allowed to kill children or infants.

An earth-shattering revelation or horrible event affects the hero, causing him to flea or fight as an automatic response.

No matter how bad he's injured, the hero never ends up with permanent scars.

* WatchingAVideoGame \\
Action adventure with a sizable dose of VideoGameTropes mixed in.

* ActionMom \\
When someone's mother gets in on the action.
* ActionDad\\
Male equivalent of the ActionMom.

* ActionFilmQuietDramaScene \\
That bit where you actually watch the actors instead of the special effects.

* AnAssKickingChristmas \\
The habit of some action works to take place around Christmas time.

* BadassDriver \\
These guys can pull things behind the wheel that you'd love to be able to do (though not necessarily to be in the passenger's seat at the time).

* BreakTheBadass \\
When you want to show that the situation is horrible, make sure your badass toughest character]] is scared!

* CaveMouth \\
When a cave's mouth looks like an actual mouth, usually that of a monster.

* ClimbSlipHangClimb\\
The hero has to climb a surface that really isn't cooperating.

* CommieNazis \\
When Fascists and Communists are conflated into one big oppressive mass.

* DeadlyGas \\
Here's a hint: Don't get hit by it.

* DeadFootLeadfoot \\
The driver of a vehicle is killed; immediately, his foot gets stuck on the gas pedal, causing the car to speed out of control.

* EnemyRisingBehind \\
Some one (or some thing) hostile is coming into view from behind and below.
* EjectionSeat \\
Try not to push that button accidentally.

* FightMagnet \\
Wherever the hero goes, someone always wants a piece of him.

* FlamethrowerBackfire \\
What's the best way to beat a guy with a flamethrower? Blow up his fuel tank!

* IfYoureSoEvilEatThisKitten \\
The Bad Guys challenge someone (usually the hero [[DressingAsTheEnemy pretending to be a Bad Guy]]) to do something evil to prove his evilness.

* ImminentDangerClue \\
A seemingly mundane detail of the setting indicates that a character has just walked into a trap; the danger will come into play shortly after the character realizes it exists.

* InnocuouslyImportantEpisode\\
A seemingly weak episode early in a StoryArc that subtly sets events in motion that lead to a big payoff later on.

* {{Mangst}} \\
Quiet, internal [[{{Angst}} angsting]] done by real men and badasses.

* NoFEMAResponse\\
A disaster has struck, but don't expect any incoming aid.
* NonFatalExplosions \\
Explosions don't cause concussion damage from the shockwave or rip you up with shrapnel... they just give you a little push.
* NonviolentInitialConfrontation \\
Sometimes you really do want to ask questions first.
* NoOneShouldSurviveThat \\
When a character survives a situation that should by all accounts have been lethal, often through sheer luck or coincidence.

* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou \\
Contriving to make it all about these two guys, the good guy and the bad guy.
* OneDimensionalThinking \\
TV characters, when being chased by anything that is limited to one direction (e.g. a boulder) never just step out of its path. They always run straight ahead and try to outrun it.

* PayingForTheActionScene \\
A character gets into a fight in a private establishment and pays for the mess he/she left behind.

* PitTrap \\
A hole in the ground that's somehow covered up so as to blend in with the surrounding terrain.

* PunchPunchPunchUhOh \\
In a fistfight, one character delivers a set of rapid-fire punches into the other one's gut, only to have him smile and start delivering serious violence.

* ShootingGallery \\
You have to shoot the dummies. But if you shoot the civilians, you lose 100 points.

* SuperWindowJump \\
To get to or from the scene in a hurry, just jump through a window.

* TenMinuteRetirement \\
The hero gives up on his mission, only to come back when a situation arises that requires his help.

* ToTheBatpole \\
The heroes get to their base via a sequence of cool maneuvers before swinging into action.

* UnderestimatingBadassery \\
When the bad guys have no clue who they are messing with.

* WildWilderness \\
The woods nearby are very quiet on the outside but when you go in big adventures happen but no one outside notices.

Elements used for exciting sequences, or primarily only found in stories about adventure. Related is {{Spectacle}}.

When a shy or frumpy girl is embroiled in an adventure, by the end of it she has come out of her shell and often gotten sexier and/or more {{badass}}.

When you want to show that the situation is horrible, make sure your [[{{Badass}} toughest character]] is scared!

Catching bullets translates into instant {{Badass}}.

A {{Badass}} uses his cigar to light the fuse on a stick of dynamite.

If a character uses an [[ImprobableWeaponUser unusual weapon]], that indicates that they're more {{badass}} than everyone else.

Quiet, internal [[{{Angst}} angsting]] done by real men and [[{{Badass}} bad-asses]].

The lithe, athletic walk of the perennial {{badass}}.

A bumbling, perfectly normal NiceGuy who gets mixed up in something dangerous, and by sheer luck does the sort of things that convinces everyone he must be insanely {{badass}}.

A girl who is as much of a {{Badass}} as any of the boys.

* GalleySlave \\
The hero is enslaved and forced to work as a galley rower.

Male equivalent of the ActionMom

A girl who is as much of a {{Badass}} as any of the boys

Elements used for exciting sequences, or primarily only found in stories about adventure.

Related:
+ {{Spectacle}}
]
[[index]]
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Aliens are threatening the entire world - but it's up to the USA to beat them!

* EmergencyCargoDrop \\