History VideoGame / NewYankeeInKingArthursCourt

* TheTeam
** John: TheLeader, a BoisterousBruiser and DeadpanSnarker
** Mary: TheLancer, something of a ProudBeauty, and also TheSmartGuy since she often figures out what needs to be done
** Bran: TheSmartGuy and MrExposition, an HonestAdvisor, and also John's NumberTwo since he's in charge of the castle whenever John and Mary aren't in residence
** Ears: TheBigGuy, as later games have him literally turn into a giant when needed, and also a {{Bookworm}}, GadgeteerGenius, and SupremeChef
** Max: The TeamPet, whose ability to scare off enemies makes him BadassAdorable
** King Arthur: TheTeamBenefactor, sort of
** The Spellbook: The BigBad of the ninth game who starts out as a TricksterMentor to Mary; after being imprisoned, the book has something of a HeelFaceTurn and becomes a StatusBuff provider with PetTheDog moments

** Anjali: Also in the twelfth game, a BellyDancer who is SoBeautifulItsACurse; after she becomes UnseenNoMore, she's eventually revealed to be someone quite significant and will likely be another SixthRanger in future games

* BellyDancer: Anjali is implied to be this, and certainly dresses the part.

* HeroesWantRedheads:
** King Arthur's beloved Queen Guinevere, as seen in this series, has beautiful auburn hair.
** Penelope, the cherished wife of Odysseus, is depicted with strawberry blonde hair.
** On the evil side, the entrancing succubi all have red hair, and the minions find them completely irresistible.

** "Antlers": The white deer whom the heroes are sent to pursue in the seventh game, a presumed example of GoldAndWhiteAreDivine, and a TalkingAnimal revealed to to be a BalefulPolymorph

* BrownNote: The fourth dragon, Boggy, makes acoustic waves with his roar, which fortunately only harm enemies. His NonIndicativeName comes from the fact that he's specifically a swamp dragon.

* CheapGoldCoins: The only money seen in the games is measured in gold, and it's needed to upgrade most buildings and also to clear boulders. Some levels allow players to build a foundry and staff it with minions, which enables mined gold to increase in value.

** Mary: TheChick, TheLancer, something of a ProudBeauty, and also TheSmartGuy since she often figures out what needs to be done

* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: The Pharaoh is only ever called "Pharaoh." According to his character profile, his real name is Hotepsekhemy, but no one ever calls him that because [[NoPronunciationGuide no one knows how to pronounce it]].

* NoPronunciationGuide: The lack of voice acting in the games means that the player isn't given any indication of just how to say Sir Culhwch’s name. (It's "cull-hooch," if you were curious.)

* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: There are penguins in this game - maybe because of this trope. One of them is even the officiant at the wedding; it MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext.

** Also in the twelfth game, while on Shivaguru's boat, John and Mary reenact the "I'm flying" scene from ''Film/{{Titanic}}''.

** Also in the twelfth game, while on Shivaguru's boat, John and Mary reenact the "I'm flying" scene from ''Film/Titanic''.

* RealityEnsues: When the ruby potion fails to help Anjali recover her earliest memories, Mary tries making a plum cake in the hopes that the recipe will trigger some recollection. Anjali has to remind Mary that she was a DoorstopBaby and didn't even have teeth when she was found at the temple, so she's never eaten a plum cake in her life.

* GreenThumb: Mary's particular talent in magic involves working with plants. She can revive dying fauna, regenerate crops and trees, and grow magical plants for specific purposes. When they meet the witch Circe in the eighth game, she agrees to help them get back where they belong in exchange for Mary doing some work in her garden, since she herself is not nearly as skilled with plants.

* HereThereBeDragons: Each game has a map, which shows the 'path' the party takes through the assorted levels. Starting with the fourth game and its enhanced graphics, these maps become much more detailed and even animated, showing things like whales spouting and windmills turning. Occasionally there really ''are'' dragons.

* OurGoblinsAreDifferent: Goblins are normally small, deformed creatures. In this series, they appear to have cross-bred with giants; according to the character profiles, they are frequently mistaken for orcs because they are hulking green monsters. When they appear, they often help themselves to gold and timber, thereby reducing the amount available to the player. If minions get too close, the goblins kick them into a cave prison, and Mary will need a sufficient amount of mana to rescue them.

* PetTheDog: John sometimes comes across as a BadBoss who is perfectly happy to use his minions for personal gain. He does, however, have a number of moments in which he demonstrates genuine concern for their well-being and safety, and also seems to truly want to help the people and benevolent creatures of Arthur's realm. In the seventh game he's particularly shown to be concerned for Queen Guinevere, and directs others not to upset her.

* ResourcesManagementGameplay: Minions must be dispatched to gather resources in order to meet each level's objectives. Every level will require food; depending on the nature of the level, the other resources which may be needed are timber (for constructing buildings and repairing bridges), gold (for smashing boulders and improving houses), and mana (for Mary's spells). Occasionally, the layout of a level means that resources are finite until different parts of the area can be accessed; this can render the level UnintentionallyUnwinnable if the player mismanages the resources, and they will have no choice but to restart the level.

* SpellBook: Mary finds one of these in the EvilChancellor's lair during the first adventure, and it teaches her how to perform magic. At the beginning of the eighth game, she accidentally drops it into a potion and it gains sentience and the ability to speak. It becomes the primary antagonist of the ninth game, and returns again in the eleventh.

* TakeYourTime: Beginning in the fourth game, players have the option to play the games in relaxed mode, which takes away the timer and guarantees that every level will be completed with a gold trophy. (However, some of the achievements actually require finishing levels with ''silver'' trophies, so it's not possible to earn every achievement in relaxed mode.)

** Bran: TheSmartGuy and MrExposition, and also John's NumberTwo since he's in charge of the castle whenever John and Mary aren't in residence

** Lancaster: A SixthRanger in the games where he actually performs merchant functions, but usually just TheLoad and TheFriendNobodyLikes

** Odysseus: GuestStarPartyMember in the eighth game, though also TheLoad on a few occasions, with a ContinuityCameo in the ninth game
** Taliesin: GuestStarPartyMember in the ninth game but a fully-fleged SixthRanger by the eleventh, who is TheGadfly, QuirkyBard, and NonActionGuy
** Scheherezade: GuestStarPartyMember in the tenth game, TheSmartGuy and a bit of [[MrExposition Miss Exposition]] as she tells the heroes about the needs of the locals; she occasionally comes across as the OnlySaneMan
** Shivaguru: GuestStarPartyMember in the twelfth game, something of a HermitGuru and local expert who serves as the adventure's MrExposition
** Anjali, also in the twelfth game, is a BellyDancer who is SoBeautifulItsACurse; after she becomes UnseenNoMore, she's eventually revealed to be someone quite significant and will likely be another SixthRanger in future games

* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: There are penguins in this game - maybe because of this trope. One of them is even the officiant at the wedding.

* {{Snowlems}}: These return for the first time since the third game; however, this time, the snowlems are stationary and present no threat to the minions. They're really just roadblocks with unsettling smiles.

* LongLostRelative: For the first time, we learn that Mary had an older sister who went missing as a little girl before Mary herself was even born. [[spoiler:She disappeared while their parents were visiting a temple in India, and their child became separated from them in a storm. As they quickly realize when Anjali's history is revealed, Anjali is Mary's sister.]] A local oracle confirms this once all of the requisite {{MacGuffin}}s are found. John actually invokes the trope by name, and insists that there be a DNA test done when they get back to California.

* DoorstopBaby: Anjali was left as a very little girl on the doorstep of a temple, and it was believed that her presence was a sign from the gods. Not quite.

* LongLostRelative: For the first time, we learn that Mary had an older sister who went missing as a little girl before Mary herself was even born. [[spoiler:She disappeared while their parents were visiting a temple in India, and their child became separated from them in a storm. As they quickly realize when Anjali's history is revealed, Anjali is Mary's sister.]] A local oracle confirms this once all of the requisite MacGuffins are found. John actually invokes the trope by name, and insists that there be a DNA test done when they get back to California.

* DyeingForYourArt: Anjali is eventually revealed to not actually have black hair as thought, and she explains that her natural color [[spoiler:(blonde)]] is so unusual in the surroundings that it was attracting too much attention, so she started dyeing it in order to make people notice her dancing rather than her hair.

* UselessItem: During the main game, the heroes encounter four giant [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext rubber ducks]] belonging to the Lady of the Lake. Bran recommends that they take the ducks with them, as they could be useful later if leverage is ever needed. They never get mentioned again in this installment; it remains to be seen if they turn out to be a ChekhovsGun in the future.

* LongLostRelative: For the first time, we learn that Mary had an older sister who went missing as a little girl before Mary herself was even born. [[spoiler:She disappeared while their parents were visiting a temple in India, and their child became separated from them in a storm. As they quickly realize when Anjali's history is revealed, Anjali is Mary's sister.]] John actually invokes the trope by name.