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1[[quoteright:350:[[http://sw1tchbl4de.deviantart.com/art/Project-Horizons-Cover-261570078 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Project_Horizons_2_2262.jpg]]]]
2[[caption-width-right:350: [[ArcWords Hoofington]] [[MadnessMantra Rises]].]]
3
4->''Loyalty, love... and secrets.''
5
6''[[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/208056/fallout-equestria-project-horizons Project Horizons]]'' is a RecursiveFanfiction for ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria'' by Somber.
7
8[[BlatantLies Stable 99 is an okay place to live.]] Sure, the place has seen better days, but the poor mares down in maintenance can't be blamed for the lack of upkeep. After all, the stable's been running on recycled parts for two hundred years, and a lot of important stuff got broken in [[NoodleIncident the Incident]]. And the bucks might complain about the lack of freedom compared to the mares, but why bother? [[DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnMale All they have to do]] [[SexSlave is get laid all day]]. Until they get [[InsistentTerminology retired]], that is, [[SelectiveObliviousness but don't think about that]]. And yeah, the mares might not have much freedom either, but you can't take any chances, especially after what happened [[NoodleIncident last time...]]
9
10Okay, maybe it's not the ''best'' place to live, but at least it's better than being [[DeathWorld outside]]. After all, with the door broken, there's no chance that somepony might get in and cause problems. It would take somepony with knowledge of how the stable works to get that thing open. Even then, how would they know it's safe? There was a war, remember? Better to just wait for the Overmare to say it's okay than take chances, even if she does have an ego problem. [[SurvivalMantra Just don't think about it, okay?]]
11
12It goes without saying that things [[FromBadToWorse get worse]]. The door gets opened and a band of murderous, cannibalistic raiders immediately swarms in. Before the death count can get too high though, [[TheHero Blackjack]], [[IdiotHero worst security mare in the stable]], lures them out with [[MacGuffin a mysterious data file]] stashed on her [=PipBuck=]. With a cybernetic monster on her heels and a reluctant companion at her side, she sets out into the Equestrian Wasteland, determined to discover exactly what those raiders wanted so badly. After some hard lessons, it isn't long before the troubled mare finds herself delving through the dark secrets of wartime Equestria, and engulfed in a plot that threatens far more than just Stable 99...
13
14[[RunningGag And Hoofington is pretty much the worst place in Equestria to live.]]
15
16Due to the story's [[DoorStopper great length]], it has been split into five volumes which each encompass a primary story arc.
17
18* ''Volume One - The Security Mare (Chapters 1-16)''
19* ''Volume Two - Blood and Stars (Chapters 17-33)''
20* ''Volume Three - Second Chances (Chapters 34-48)''
21* ''Volume Four - Homecoming (Chapters 49-62)''
22* ''Volume Five - Horizons (63-77+ Epilogue)''
23
24The story was completed on August 29th 2015, four years after it was started.
25
26The Character sheet for [[Characters/FalloutEquestriaProjectHorizons is here]]. Due to the large cast, it needs a lot of love.
27
28It is also available in PDF format [[http://www.mutabah.net/FoEPH/ here.]]
29
30A sequel, [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/298834/fallout-equestria-homelands Homelands]] was released on November 14th, 2015, and is currently ongoing.
31
32------
33!!Project Horizons contains the following tropes:
34
35* AbandonedHospital:
36** The Fluttershy Medical Center in chapter 6 - location of one of the most iconic scenes in the story.
37** Subverted with Happyhorn Gardens in Chapter 43, which was not only really completely abandoned, but also [[spoiler:had automated systems that helped Blackjack through her recent traumatic experience.]]
38* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: PlayedWith when Blackjack and Glory jump into a sewer to escape from Brass and her manticores. The sewers are barely spacious enough to accomodate two ponies, and they're dragged through pipes and dangerous machinery, almost drown, and suffer friction burns.
39* ACupAngst: Parodied with Blackjack's "compact" horn and her clear envy of Lacunae's far longer horn. Of course, "horns" stands in for "breasts".
40* ActionBomb: Fury, who can even regenerate from it thanks to being part phoenix. [[spoiler:Blackjack becomes one temporarily thanks to the Killing Joke.]]
41* ActuallyIAmHim:
42** A variation: Watcher bursts out laughing when Blackjack refers to "Littlepip" and "The Stable Dweller" as separate ponies. She doesn't catch on.
43** This gag gets carried to extreme lengths, including [[spoiler:Blackjack having a quick, drunk adventure with ''Littlepip herself'']]. Several characters have tried to spell it out for her, but every time they're either interrupted, or [[ExpectingSomeoneTaller she writes it off as ridiculous.]]
44* AFormYouAreComfortableWith: {{Zigzagged}} by [[spoiler: the therapy simulation in Chapter 43. Its attempts to recreate Blackjack's homes, family and friends end in disaster. The simulation where Blackjack is an actual mental patient with characters she's known taking the place of the asylum staff fares better, but she manages to crack it anyway. The program eventually takes the form of BJ's friends once again and helps her tackle her own subconscious, but in the end she's forced to kill 'Scotch Tape' to leave the simulation.]]
45* AfterTheEnd: Set two-hundred years after the nuclear war between Equestria and the zebras.
46* AlasPoorVillain: Just about every major or minor badguy has received this from Blackjack's point of view save [[spoiler: Steel Rain and Blueblood.]]
47** Gem, Mini, and Taurus, despite spending the better part of a chapter trying to kill Blackjack, are killed off in a [[TearJerker surprisingly emotional scene.]] Their fight is brought to an abrupt stop when Mini is [[TeleFrag forced to materialize halfway through a wall]]. [[FromBadToWorse Then Deus arrives,]] intent on killing ''everyone''. Taurus [[CurbStompBattle attempts to take on Deus and loses]], Gem performs a [[RedemptionEqualsDeath suicide]] [[TakingYouWithMe attack]] against Deus to assist Blackjack, and Mini eventually helps BJ to finish her off.
48-->'''Mini:''' You're a good pony, Miss Blackjack.]]
49** Deus pursues Blackjack for sixteen chapters, being a sexist destructive cyborg who refers to all mares as "cunts". [[spoiler: Turns out he is a victim of science, the disgraced Marauder, Doof, who was in constant agony due to his imperfect cybernetics. Then they put his brain into a tank.]]
50** Sanguine crosses the MoralEventHorizon very early on in the story, murdering supporting characters in his ever desperate attempt to obtain EC-1101, prompting Blackjack to make a vow to end him. [[spoiler: Then in Chapter 39, it turns out he has a family who he preserved and wants to use Project Chimera to ensure they'll live. When they are killed, Sanguine just snaps and is later kept as a trophy by Cognitum.]]
51** Goldenblood is more of an AntiVillain, but still fits the trope considering his backstory, doomed relationship with Fluttershy, and well-intentioned agendas backfiring on him spectacularly.
52** Other examples include but not limited too [[spoiler: Sanguine's minions [[TheBeastmaster Brass]] and [[ThePhoenix Fury]], [[TakenForGranite Gorgon]], [[DaddysLittleVillain Psychoshy]], the Stable #99 ponies infected with the raider plague, [[SpoiledBrat Princess Charm]], [[AmbitionIsEvil Mr. Horse]], and Glory's mother Dawn.]]
53* AIIsACrapshoot: There are friendly A.I., but the CRUSHKILLDESTROY type are more common. Guess which type BJ meets more often?
54** {{Averted}} by Applebot, who is genuinely helpful, and Ol' Hank, who is friendly and talkative. [[AxCrazy At first]].
55** The AIs running the [[spoiler: virtual Happyhorn Gardens that Blackjack is trapped in]] really do want to help. They just can't stop until she's 'better'.
56* AlternateContinuity: While ''Project Horizons'' is largely compliant, or at least non-contradictory, with the original ''FO:E'' there are a growing number of things that are outright changed. Such as [[spoiler: Twilight having to hide books from Rarity, where in ''FO:E'' Rarity was sending uncensored books to Twilight for safe keeping]], or [[spoiler:the zebra beliefs that Luna is connected to an EldritchAbomination are right in ''Project Horizons'', but were wrong in ''FO:E''.]]
57* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Played straight with [[TheVirus raiders]], but typically averted otherwise.
58* AncestralWeapon: Vigilance, a 12.7 mm pistol handed down to each Stable 99 head of security[[note]]An inherited position.[[/note]].
59* AndIMustScream:
60** [[spoiler: The source of the life-sapping Enervation are the souls of anypony/one that died in Hoofington and are unable to move on to the afterlife due to the Eater of Souls's influence. They are constantly screaming, but unless you're close to the source, only the telepathic alicorns can actually hear it.]]
61** Played straight in the case of [[spoiler: the foals in the medical center]].
62** Played straight once again with the ponies [[spoiler: fused to Horizon Labs' cryo room]]. They literally feel compelled to scream, and are incapable of doing much else. [[spoiler: Blackjack narrowly avoids joining them.]]
63** How Blackjack describes viewing [[spoiler:Deus']] memory orb.
64** [[spoiler: Discord's fate, trapped at the heart of Project Chimera]].
65** Overlaps with [[FateWorseThanDeath Fate Much, Much Worse Than Death]] for [[spoiler: Rampage.]] As of Chapter 74, [[spoiler: she's stranded on the moon, consigned to eternal life in hard vacuum.]]
66* AnyoneCanDie: The fanfic has a high body count of major and supporting characters. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, Blackjack, Scotch, Rampage, and Boo are the only main characters left alive.]]
67* ApocalypticLog: All over the place, naturally.
68* ArcWords: "Ante up"'. Also, to an extent, "Hoofington Rises".
69* AreYouPonderingWhatImPondering:
70-->'''P-21:''' Hey, Scotch. Are you pondering what I'm pondering?\
71'''Scotch:''' I think so, P-21, but where are we going to find a dozen rockets out here?
72* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: According to Lacunae, Blackjack doesn't qualify for Unity because she's unpredictable, unstable, irrational, self-destructive, and whiny.
73* ArtisticLicenseLinguistics: The author refers to male ponies as bucks. 'Buck' is the term for a male deer or goat, but serves as a neater 'man' analogue than 'stallion'.
74** Admittedly, this usage is inherited from the [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria original fic]].
75* AscendedToCarnivorism: Played differently from [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria the main story]]: Among Hoofington's many dangers is a virus that induces this in anypony infected with it. The compulsion is strong enough that, if there's nothing else to eat, the victims will eat themselves. [[spoiler: Pegasi are immune, but Lighthooves is attempting to change that. Chapter 42 reveals that he's succeeded.]]
76* AssShove: P-21 occasionally conceals items 'under his tail'. First a screwdriver, then later a ''grenade''. There are indications he may just be hiding it in his exceptionally bushy tail, though.
77* AtomicFBomb: Deus' catchphrase is a loud, drawn-out "[[CountryMatters Cuuuuuunnnnntttt!]]".
78* BackForTheFinale: For the final battle of Hoofington, literally every surviving character returns or at least cameos. And we mean all of them. With easily 300 named participants, that's no small feat. It even manages to dwarf [[Literature/TheWheelOfTime Tarmon Gai'don]] in sheer scope.
79* BadassBoast: Blackjack becomes increasingly fond of these.
80--> '''Blackjack:''' But right now, I got my gun, my beer, a fire in my belly, and a grin on my face and there’s not a mother-fucking pony in the Wasteland who can stop me!
81* BadassCrew: Macintosh's Marauders.
82* BadFuture:
83** What Blackjack sees in a nightmare after [[spoiler: being ejected from the ''HMS Celestia'' and almost drowning.]] It's not a pretty sight.
84** Cognitum [[MindRape forces a vision of one of these to Blackjack]], while in the Core. A giant, singular [[HiveMind population of one-minded ponies]] with no free will.
85* BadWithTheBone:
86** During the solo fight in the museum, Blackjack finds a dragon claw. It replaces the police baton as her go-to melee weapon until it gets destroyed.
87** During the mansion adventure, she improvises with diamond dog claws glued to the end of a thighbone.
88** In Chapter 42, Blackjack kills an Enclave pegasus by [[spoiler: [[CruelAndUnusualDeath stabbing several bones into the socket of her severed wing.]]]]
89* BarredFromTheAfterlife: [[spoiler: Because of the Eater, the souls of those who die around Hoofington's vicinity are trapped in the core with it. Their pain and anguish at being trapped is the source of Enervation. Only once the Eater is finally destroyed are the souls finally freed and pass on.]]
90* BattleCouple: As of Chapter 49, [[spoiler: Stygius and Psychoshy.]]
91* BattleInTheRain: Common, since it rains almost constantly in Hoofington. The battles at Flank, Yellow River and Blueblood Manor take place during thunderstorms.
92* TheBeastmaster: Brass, who commands a flock of manticores.
93* BestialityIsDepraved: [[{{Squick}} Brass and her 'pets']].
94* BewareMyStingerTail: As in the main story, the power armor of Enclave soldiers is equipped with a bladed tail for melee combat. Radscorpions and manticores, naturally, have poisoned variants.
95* {{BFG}}:
96** Deus has a pair of 120mm[[note]]By Glory's estimate. [[TooMuchInformation Almost the width of a mare giving birth, apparently...]][[/note]] artillery cannons built into him. Steel Rain also has a pair, mounted on his PowerArmor.
97** Megamart is protected by an enormous SentryGun aptly named [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin "Gun"]]. Blackjack jokingly wonders if it fires I-beams, and the answer is uncomfortably close to "yes."
98* BigNo: Blackjack is not happy when [[spoiler: Lacunae spoils the sacrifice portion of her HeroicSacrifice]] in Chapter 22.
99* BigRedButton: Whenever Blackjack encounters one, she wants to push it. It rarely ends well.
100* BittersweetEnding: The story's epilogue ends with [[spoiler:Most of the cast dead, both main and minor characters.]] [[spoiler:The Eater of Souls defeated, but only after a depressing amount of Hoofington sacrificed in the final battle.]] But when all is said and done, the Gardens go off as in the main story, the surviving cast have children that will go on to form a warring, if mostly peaceful society that's regressed nearly to Equestrian levels of technology, and [[spoiler:Littlepip and Blackjack forming a semi-stable pairing to cope with their immortality and loss of friends. And at the very end, Rampage is rescued from the moon and her talisman severed, bringing her back to life as a mortal, giving Blackjack one of her friends back.]]
101* BlessedWithSuck:
102** Deus' cybernetic implants make him nigh-invulnerable and extremely powerful. [[spoiler: They also cause him constant agony, forcing him to rely on custom-tailored painkillers.]]
103** Rampage is practically impossible to kill. Pity that she's a TorturedMonster who wants to die.
104* BloodFromTheMouth: Occasionally. Blackjack literally vomits blood at one point due to Enervation exposure, and an unfortunate prospector in Tenpony Tower does this [[spoiler: because she's about to [[LudicrousGibs violently explode from an anti-betrayal implant.]]]]
105* BodyHorror:
106** Turns out when you're exposed to too much Enervation, you vomit blood and your appendages drop off; eventually, you ''melt''. Harshly illustrated at the end of Chapter 26. [[spoiler: Blackjack and co. are forced to pass through a field of concentrated enervation. Everyone gets a solid dose of internal bleeding and/or MindRape, Blackjack's leg bones are reduced to the consistency of rubber, [[BreakTheCutie Glory's injured wing melts off]] and Lacunae is reduced to an EmptyShell]].
107** Blackjack experiences [[spoiler: Stonewing]]'s transformation into Gorgon 'first-hand' through a memory orb.
108** Professor Zodiac, heavily injured by Enervation, is kept alive by machines in a state much like [[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas Mr. House]]. The sight of her 'true form' is enough to traumatise Scotch Tape.
109** In chapter 30, Blackjack discovers a horrific tumor [[spoiler: [[EyeScream growing in her empty eye socket]]]]. [[TakeOurWordForIt It is never described.]]
110** Horizon Labs. The cryogenics lab is a mass of taint-dribbling, pulsating flesh with many mouths 'singing' in a choir of screams. [[spoiler:[[OrganAutonomy Blackjack's tainted insides respond to the sound by squirming inside her]]. Eventually, ''they join in the song.]]'' Meanwhile, Rampage is being monstrously mutated by the taint saturating the room.
111** 'Future' Glory, as seen in one of Blackjack's nightmares, is described as a 'hulk of flesh and feathers', with eyes down the side of her neck and at least five wings.
112** The reveal of [[spoiler: Dawn]]'s {{Cyborg}} form. Her flesh splits open along her old battle scars and sloughs apart, while mechanical blades and claws burst out of her limbs.
113** The congealed biomass in [[spoiler: Hoofington's Core]] can take on forms of truly Lovecraftian proportions, with each small blob being able to spout razor-toothed maws and tendrils to rip its victims to shreds. When inhabited by errant soul fragments, it can take on the vague form and purpose of that souls former body - pony, griffin or otherwise - only to return to sludge even from just falling over. These creatures can incorporate [[spoiler: strings of starmetal]] to increase their lethality further.
114* BoobyTrap: True to the [[VideoGame/{{Fallout}} source material]], these are common.
115** The Sand Dog Lair in Chapter 21 is packed with traps specifically designed to attract scavenging ponies.
116* BossBattle: Every major arc ends with BJ and co. participating in a climactic battle. First against [[spoiler: Deus, Gemini and Taurus]], next [[spoiler: Steel Rain and his rogue Steel Rangers]], then [[spoiler: Warden Hobble]], followed by [[spoiler: Operative Lighthooves]], then [[spoiler:the two Big Bads of the story, the AI Cognitum and Amadi]]. Finally, [[spoiler:we have the Eater of Souls]].
117* BreakingSpeech: [[spoiler: Rampage's 'Angel of Death' persona]] delivers one to Blackjack, along with an unhealthy dose of a NotSoDifferentRemark.
118* BreatherEpisode: [[spoiler: Chapter 34 is where Blackjack finally gets a break. She gets [[WeCanRebuildHim restored and cleansed of taint]], meets [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria LittlePip]], and goes to have fun adventures with her while happily drunk.]]
119** The subsequent chapter continues the breather with some more serious introspection while the next plot arc gets set up.
120** Chapter 40 is also relatively sedate, and ends with [[spoiler: P-21 finally accepting Scotch Tape as his daughter]].
121** Chapter 63 gives the reader a glimpse of how various people and groups are getting along before the final sprint to the ending.
122* BrokenTears:
123** Glory, when [[spoiler: [[FreakOut she loses]] [[DespairEventHorizon her wing]].]]
124** Blackjack, as she breaks down in front of P-21 [[spoiler: following her rape.]]
125* BullyingADragon: Blackjack often mocks, disobeys or otherwise disrespects [[HiveQueen the]] [[MindHive Goddess]], with little fear of retribution since her alicorns(save Lacunae) can't operate in Hoofington thanks to Enervation. [[spoiler: Then she mutates a telepathic connection to Unity. Cue MindRape.]]
126* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler: Blueblood is the Cain to Vanity's Abel.]]
127* CallBack:
128** Blackjack's response to [[spoiler: losing her eye]] in Chapter 27 is exactly the same as her response to [[spoiler: discovering that her eyes glow]] in Chapter 4. [[spoiler: This response is also repeated when she discovers her new eyes glow in Chapter 73]].
129--->'''Blackjack:''' [[PrecisionFStrike Well, fuck.]]
130** When [[spoiler: a cancerous growth takes over Blackjack's empty eye socket]] in Chapter 30, she jokes about [[spoiler: finally growing an eye tentacle penis]], in a call back to Chapter 15.
131** In Chapter 33, Blackjack's line, [[spoiler: “I’m not a monster. I’m not… even if I look like one,”]] calls back to [[spoiler: Gorgon's goodbye note in Chapter 25]].
132* CallForward:
133** In Chapter 30, Watcher compliments Blackjack on her [[spoiler: eyepatch]]. Yeah, about that...
134** This exchange, as Glory and her father bid one another farewell:
135--->'''Sky Striker:''' Sunshine and rainbows, Morning Glory.
136--->'''Morning Glory:''' And clear skies ahead, Father.
137** In Chapter 50, Blackjack's threat towards the Goddess:
138--->'''Blackjack:''' I don’t know how. I don’t know when. But somepony is going to kill you very soon.
139* TheCameo: [[spoiler:Littlepip, Velvet Remedy, Calamity, Xenith and a number of minor characters from the main story]] appear in Chapters 34 and 35. As of chapter 65 and onwards, they've been incorporated into the two-year TimeSkip at the end of the original story.
140** And of all people, a ponyfied, ghoulified version of the ''Squirrel Nut Zippers'' show up in chapter 45, playing a very [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBVYjTWm6S0 thematically appropriate song]].
141* CantBatheWithoutAWeapon: While in Flank, Blackjack takes a bath in full armor with her weapons in easy reach. She isn't attacked, but she mentions she's ready for it.
142-->'''Blackjack:''' [[ProperlyParanoid I have a very very valuable head.]]
143* CastCalculus: The cast undergoes a series of transformations as new members are added.
144** RedOniBlueOni: When they first leave Stable 99, Blackjack acts as Red Oni against P-21's Blue.
145** BeautyBrainsAndBrawn: The addition of Glory shifts the group to a FreudianTrio. With Glory providing an emotional center to the group, P-21 is free to increasingly hint at his suppressed aggression while Blackjack is cooled by reminders that her actions have consequences. She finds herself as the [[TheKirk Ego]] that must balance P-21's vengeful, self-serving [[TheMcCoy Id]] and Glory's naively over-civilized (for the Wasteland) [[TheSpock Superego]]. Lancer briefly features as a SixthRangerTraitor, and the party is scattered after Brimstone's Fall.
146** FiveManBand: Blackjack quickly finds Glory at Miramare, then picks up Rampage as a SixthRanger shortly before recovering P-21. The trio defeats Deus without Rampage's direct assistance, but the adventures between Flank and Chapel serve to show off Rampage's capabilities and personality, and help cement her to the group. On return to Chapel, they finally pick up the fifth team member: Lacunae. The trio is augmented not by a RedOniBlueOni pair, but by two color-coded individuals who embody the monstrous extremes of savagery and transcendence.
147* ChekhovsGun:
148** Trottenheimer's Folly is a literal example.
149** [[spoiler: Blackjack's taint infection, introduced in Chapter 15, remains largely unimportant until the late twenties, where it takes a sharp turn for the worse.]]
150** The slave collar that [[spoiler:[[FaceHeelTurn P-21 puts on Blackjack]]]] in Chapter 15 is used to [[spoiler: cripple Deus]] a chapter later.
151** In Chapter 23, Lacunae attempts to calm Blackjack down by linking minds and sharing her memories. Later, [[spoiler: Blackjack does the same in reverse to break Lacunae out of her EmptyShell state]].
152** The hymn sung by the ponies of Chapel during Blackjack's first visit [[spoiler: saves her from a horrific fate in Horizon Labs.]]
153* CirclingBirdies: Seems to take the form of Blackjack's most recent sexual partner.
154** "Little Glories" circle Blackjack's head after Big Daddy throws her at a wall.
155** "Little Stygiuses" fly round her head after a Steel Ranger bucks her into a bookcase.
156* ClusterFBomb: Blackjack drops a few.
157* CoitusUninterruptus:
158** In Chapter 22, when [[spoiler: Blackjack enters the Overmare's Office to find the Overmare raping P-21.]]
159** Again in Chapter 49 with [[spoiler: Stygius and a [[IntimateHealing bedridden]] Psycoshy. Blackjack gives pointers.]]
160* CollapsingLair:
161** The Flash Industries building.
162** [[spoiler: Hightower Jail]], after [[spoiler: [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Lacunae accidentally sets the place on fire]]]].
163* CompleteImmortality: Rampage of the [[FromASingleCell regenerative type]]. She does age, but only [[TheAgeless up to about the late 30s]]. And if her body is destroyed (for example, by disintegration) she [[BornAgainImmortality reconstitutes herself as a small filly]] who then grows rapidly to adulthood if fed enough protein. Nopony knows why either age is special.
164* ContinuityNod:
165** ''Project Horizons'' takes place at the same time as ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria'', so there are frequent references to events in the main story, and many minor characters such as Watcher, Ditzy Doo and [[spoiler: Homage]] make appearances. [[spoiler: Borders on ContinuityPorn when Blackjack meets [=LittlePip=].]]
166** During a memory orb sequence, the Marauders are playing a tabletop RPG. Applesnack rolls two critical failures in a row, and grumbles about the possibility of his character [[spoiler: Steelhooves]] becoming undead and trapped in his armor.
167* CoolBigSis: Blackjack and Rampage to Scotch Tape. When Rampage leaves the party for a while, Lacunae takes on this role as well.
168* CosmicHorrorStory: [[spoiler: Blackjack's ultimate enemy is the Eater of Souls, a living, soul-absorbing star that sings a song of decay in defiance to the other life-giving stars.]]
169* CouldHaveBeenMessy: Constantly {{Averted}}.
170* CountryMatters: [[SirSwearsALot Deus' favorite word]].
171* CrapsackWorld: Rivals [[Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire Westeros]] in the sheer scale of cruelty, character deaths on every side of the morality spectrum, and complexity of the setting.
172* CruelAndUnusualDeath: The Wasteland likes handing these out. When she's [[BerserkButton really]] [[UnstoppableRage upset]], so does Blackjack.
173* CruelToBeKind: Rampage occasionally gets out of control, to the point where Blackjack responds by shooting her in the head until she calms down. Rampage even thanks her for it. {{Lampshaded}}:
174--> '''Glory:''' Blackjack! You don’t do therapy with bullets!\
175'''Blackjack:''' You do when you’re dealing with a regenerating mare who thinks she’s a crazy zebra.
176* {{Cult}}: The Harbingers towards whatever's inside Hoofington's Core.
177* CurbStompBattle:
178** [[spoiler: Prince Blueblood]], despite being a crazed ghoul, practically wipes the floor with Blackjack and co. Only some quick thinking from P-21 turns things around.
179** Blackjack [[spoiler: goes [[AxCrazy kill crazy]] at the end of Chapter 42, and [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown brutally kills a squad of Enclave by herself.]]]]
180* {{Cyborg}}: Many, many characters. The purpose of Project Steelpony is to create these. [[spoiler: And then there's [[TheHorde the Brood...]]]]
181* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: A common side-effect of cybernetic augmentation and Blackjack's prime fear following hers. Even if the augmentation doesn't cause acute pain, the lack of familiar bodily reactions and general "feeling less like a pony" is a tremendous stress. BJ manages to stave off the worst of it thanks to her friends and love being there for her. [[spoiler:Lighthooves and his followers]], whose transformation is much more abrupt, suffer it in full.
182** [[spoiler: Raping others is apparently the only way Deus can feel alive anymore.]]
183** A weird inversion of this trope occurs with [[spoiler: Cognitum. When Cognitum was just a machine she was far from benevolent, but was entirely rational and did genuinely want to help the save the wasteland. When she transferred into a body with living tissue and a soul she became slowly unhinged and showed much more malice.]]
184* DarkerAndEdgier: ...To put it lightly. Compared to ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria'' (which is, itself, darker than the original ''Fallout'' series of video games. Now ''that's'' saying something!). ''Project Horizons'' is a lot bleaker in tone, and tackles subjects that [=KKat=] only briefly touches on (ie. [[DrivenToSuicide suicide]], [[RapeAsDrama rape]], and [[DeathOfAChild child mortality]]).
185* DarkAndTroubledPast: Almost everyone to some extent, but [[RapeAsBackstory P-21]] and [[ImmortalityHurts Rampage]] in particular.
186* DeadlyGas: [[spoiler: Blackjack floods Stable 99]] with chlorine gas. Later, [[spoiler: [[DeathByIrony Killing Joke]] causes Scotch Tape's lungs to fill with chlorine.]] Pink cloud also makes an appearance in the lower levels of Hippocratic Research, and as Sanguine's BreathWeapon.
187* DeadlyHug: [[spoiler: Rampage performs one on Thorn. Blackjack disapproves.]]
188* DeadPersonImpersonation: Blackjack impersonates [[spoiler: Marmalade]] to infiltrate [[spoiler: the Stable 99 raiders.]]
189** Much earlier in the story, when Stable 99 was being invaded, Blackjack dressed up as one of the first raiders she killed (who was apparently named Two Bit) so she could briefly infiltrate Deus's gang and get past them. [[spoiler: May serve as a bit of a CallBack in that case; she impersonated a dead pony to get ''out'' of the Stable full of raiders, and then she did it to get ''in'' to the Stable full of raiders.]]
190* DeathByIrony: [[spoiler:The Flim-Flam Brothers were planning to flee Equestria to the tropical paradise of Porca Porca and live like kings on a vast fortune stolen from their company... but died in their office because they'd purchased tickets for 2AM on the very day that Equestria was destroyed. Blackjack even lampshades the irony when she finds their remains by mockingly petting one unicorn's skull in faux-sympathy and chiding that they should have taken a morning flight.]]
191* DeathTrap:
192** ''Hoofington itself'' was designed as one for the zebra army, and apparently served its purpose right up until the [[ApocalypseHow megaspell exchange]]. [[spoiler: Apparently, it's still working. The promise of salvage and wartime technology attracts scavengers and small communities, which are gradually whittled away by Enervation and other dangers of the Hoof.]]
193** Silverstar Sporting Supplies.
194** The tainted forest surrounding Hippocratic Research.
195* DeathSeeker: Rampage. And boy has she tried.
196* DeathOfAChild: [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe Brutally]] and [[MercyKill repeatedly]] occurs [[DeadlyHug throughout]].
197* DecapitationPresentation: The head of [[spoiler: Gin Rummy, Blackjack's mother,]] is impaled on a spike [[spoiler: in the atrium of Stable 99, making it the first thing BJ sees upon returning home.]]
198* DefeatMeansFriendship: Most of Blackjack's foes that survive their encounter with her ends up assisting the group later on. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Rampage.
199** Done hilariously in Chapter 58, when [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder Lancer]] reluctantly joins Blackjack's party.
200-->'''Blackjack:''' What are you doing here?
201-->'''Lancer:''' [[DefectorFromDecadence The Proditor]] said it was the ‘Blackjack defeat effect’. Apparently I now have to follow you around until I find a new purpose in life or something.
202* DespairEventHorizon:
203** [[spoiler: Blackjack is emotionally crushed by the events of Chapter 22. Only luck and timely intervention save her from committing suicide as a result. Blackjack's suicide attempts, in turn, push P-21 over the horizon.]]
204** [[spoiler: Glory briefly crosses this when she loses her wing, to the point of sitting down in an Enervation field and begging for death.]]
205** [[spoiler: Sanguine crosses the horizon when his family is killed]].
206** [[spoiler:Psychoshy crosses this in chapter 76, after her husband dies within a minute of their proposal in battle]].
207* DeusAngstMachina: Virtually every named character suffers ([[DarkAndTroubledPast or has suffered]]) life-changing trauma, often of a sexual nature. This extends to foals, with child rape alluded to as early as the second chapter. Each of the main characters have their lives and bodies ruined several times in the course of the narrative.
208* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler: At the end of Chapter 33, Blackjack dies while snuggling under Glory's wing]].
209** Then in Chapter 76, [[spoiler: [[TearJerker they swap.]]]]
210%%* DirtyBusiness
211* DoomedHometown: [[spoiler: Stable 99 gets infected with TheVirus]].
212* DoorStopper: As of the epilogue, ''Project Horizons''' has an estimated word count of 1.8 million words, having surpassed that of ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria'' almost three times over, In other words, it's longer than ''Literature/HarryPotter'', ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' and ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia'' ''combined''.
213* DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnMale: {{Deconstructed|Trope}}. This is the status quo in Stable 99, due to males being viewed as little more than breeding equipment. Much of Blackjack and P-21's early CharacterDevelopment stems from their attempts to get over it. Blackjack has a minor epiphany when she realises that [[spoiler:[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone she raped P-21 at least once]]]], and they eventually reconcile after [[spoiler: Blackjack is raped herself.]]
214* DressingAsTheEnemy:
215** Blackjack, frequently.
216** P-21 disguises himself as a maintenance mare and, to his intense embarassment, a (female) Flash Fillies gang member.
217* DrivenToSuicide:
218** [[ImmortalityHurts Rampage]] is mentioned to have attempted suicide multiple times.
219** [[spoiler: Blackjack attempts to gas herself]] in Chapter 22, [[spoiler: [[InterruptedSuicide but Lacunae intervenes]]]]. The only reason [[spoiler:that Blackjack]] is still alive at the end of Chapter 23 is because [[spoiler: she forgot to turn her gun's safety off.]] Even after [[spoiler: she gets better, Blackjack]] remains borderline suicidal for much of the story.
220** PlayedWith in Chapter 50, where [[spoiler: Blackjack tries to shoot herself in a desperate attempt to stop the Goddess pulling the knowledge of Gardens of Equestria from her mind. The Goddess simply [[MindRape squashes BJ's suicidal impulses and takes it anyway]]]].
221** [[spoiler: P-21 attempts to hang himself]] in Chapter 25.
222* DrowningMySorrows:
223** Blackjack with vodka, after [[spoiler: Glory's branding]].
224** Rampage in Chapter 45. Her regeneration makes it hard for her to get drunk normally, so she alternates bottles of booze with mouthfuls of laundry detergent.
225* DrugsAreBad:
226** Played with. Chems help Blackjack survive horrific injuries and perform incredible feats, and she seems to lack [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria Littlepip's]] weakness to addiction, but overdoses and side effects wreak havoc on her long-term health.
227** [[spoiler: P-21 is a [[FunctionalAddict lifelong Med-X addict]]. Running out contributes to his suicide attempt in Chapter 25, and almost kills Scotch Tape in Chapter 40.]]
228* DrunkenMaster: Blackjack with whiskey. HilarityEnsues.
229* DueToTheDead:
230** [[spoiler: Roses]] recieves a formal burial in Chapel and [[spoiler: her daughter]] is later buried with [[spoiler: her]].
231** Blackjack and P-21 bury Hoss with [[spoiler: Granny Smith]] shortly after they stumble upon his farm.
232** Following a battle, Lacunae cremates the corpses left behind by levitating them towards the Core's defense lasers.
233** [[spoiler: Priest]] in Chapter 36.
234** Notably averted with [[spoiler: Shujaa]].
235* DwindlingParty: [[spoiler: It would actually be easier to count all of Blackjack's friends and allies who ''don't'' die.]]
236* DysfunctionJunction: BJ and her band start out this way and get worse with each new member.
237-->'''P-21:''' Blackjack, are you trying to turn us into the deadliest band of angsty whiny ponies to wander the Wasteland?
238* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler: In Chapter 33, Blackjack saves the ponies that injured Oilcan, killed Tarboots, nailed her to the floor, raped her and cut off her horn, from her friends, because she wanted to save somepony before she died. She admits to have hurt them in the past and believes that killing them would not give them the chance to ''Do Better''.]]
239** Her forgiveness pays off in Chapter [[spoiler: 43]], but she doesn't realise it at the time.
240* EatenAlive: [[spoiler: The Stable 99]] Raiders temporarily manage to restrain and butcher Rampage. She [[HealingFactor regenerates as usual]]. Blackjack speculates that the [[FateWorseThanDeath raiders could use her as an endless food source]].
241-->"Her liver's back!"
242* ElaborateUnderGroundBase: Hoofington's underground is an enormous warren of pre-war train tunnels and underground facilities, including at least one partly-functional [[FantasticNuke megaspell]] center.
243* EldritchLocation: [[spoiler: The 'well of souls' that Blackjack is drawn into after dying a second time.]]
244* EnemiesWithDeath: Blackjack argues with a hallucination of ponified Death.
245* EnemyMine: Lancer apparently considers his brief period of cooperation with Blackjack and co. to be an example of this.
246* EnergyWeapon : Standard for robots, turret defenses and Enclave pegasi. The Flash Fillies gang specialises in these.
247* EngineeredPublicConfession: [[spoiler: The Enclave does this to Glory. Emphasis on the "Engineered" part.]]
248* EpicFail: Blackjack's "attack" against four Zodiacs at the beginning of Chapter 28.
249* EthicalSlut: Due to her upbringing in Stable 99, Blackjack considers most sex (not including rape) to be casual recreation and not something to get hung up on. She can't quite grasp why Glory gets so upset about her bedding Stygius - it's not like she ''loved'' him! Glory is rather stunned when she finds out how things were done in 99, particularly when she learns that Scotch Tape - a young filly who hasn't even gotten her cutiemark yet - has had multiple sexual encounters with both genders.
250** As of chapter 57, Blackjack seems to be bringing Glory around a bit, since Glory willingly slept with a stallion without asking Blackjack first, and decided to allow Blackjack to have sex with one stallion as a matter of fairness. Not to mention the chapter ended after a threesome between Glory, Blackjack, and P-21.
251* EverythingTryingToKillYou: [[CrapsackWorld This is standard for the FO:E setting,]] but Hoofington takes it up a notch. The Core's [[DeathRay defenses]] will vaporise anypony who gets too close, and the ambient Enervation - unique to the Hoof - saps life, ruins healing potions and can outright ''liquefy'' injured flesh.
252** Deus puts an enormous bounty on Blackjack's head early on, resulting in her being hounded by dozens of bounty hunters and desperate wastelanders.
253* {{Expy}}:
254** [[MeaningfulName Gem and Mini]] - [[Film/TheMatrix albino twins that fight as a pair, becoming intangible at will.]]
255** [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Psychoshy]] - essentially Discorded!Fluttershy taken up a notch.
256** Paladin Sugar Apple Bombs Stronghoof, Champion of the Steel Rangers, is a very faithful expy of Major Armstrong from Manga/FullmetalAlchemist, complete with requisite BishieSparkle, LargeHam and TestosteronePoisoning.
257** The town of Meatlocker is a close expy of Fallout 3's Underworld; almost every character there mirrors a character from the game (Winthrop/Windclop, Azrukhal/Ahuizotl, Charon/Carrion etc).
258* ExplosiveLeash: Slave collars.
259* EyesAlwaysShut: Dawn has a perpetual squint.
260* EyeScream: Often occurs in combat scenes.
261** Blackjack takes down a mutated dragon by blasting its eye out with a grenade, climbing into the socket and unloading poisoned shotgun rounds into its optic nerve.
262** [[spoiler: Glory]] has a mine go off in [[spoiler: her]] face in Chapter 21.
263** [[spoiler: Blackjack herself]] loses an eye at some point between Chapters 26 and 27. [[spoiler: In Chapter 30, the empty socket develops a malignant tumor, thanks to radiation and taint, and in Chapter 32, her remaining eye is blown out by Steel Rain. [[TraumaCongaLine Then she gets soaked in taint and falls in salt water]].]]
264** P-21 ends one of Rampage's 'Angel of Death' moments by stabbing her through the eye with Blackjack's sword and twisting it until she calms down.
265** Blackjack puts her [[spoiler: cybernetic fingers]] to brutal use in her final fight against Brass.
266** [[spoiler: Snips]] gets a jet of flame to the face in Chapter 48.
267* EyesDoNotBelongThere: During one of Blackjack's nightmares, the monstrous 'future' version of Glory has a fully expressive row of eyes down the side of her neck.
268* FaceHeelTurn:
269** [[spoiler: P-21, briefly. Blackjack talks him down.]]
270** As of Chapter 68, [[spoiler: [[ReluctantMadScientist Silver Stripe.]]]]
271* FakeInTheHole: Sadistically played with. A booby-trapped jack-in-the-box in the [[AbandonedHospital Fluttershy Medical Center]] drops several dud grenades. The real explosion, on a delayed fuse, comes from the jack-in-the-box itself.
272* FantasticDrug: As in ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' and ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria'', there several varieties of these. Of particular note is Hydra, which shares its [[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas New Vegas]] counterpart's [[HealingFactor limb-restoring]] properties [[spoiler:[[OhCrap but infects its user]] [[BodyHorror with taint]]]].
273* FireForgedFriends: P-21 and Blackjack, although the strength of their friendship fluctuates.
274* FootnoteFever: Following the trend set by Fanfic/FalloutEquestria, each chapter ends with a footnote detailing Blackjack's perk and skill advancements.
275** PlayedForDrama at the end of Chapter 32, where the footnote text is inexplicably corrupted.
276** Played even more so at the end of Chapter 33, [[spoiler:when she dies.]]
277** Returns to normal in a triumphant fashion in Chapter 34. [[spoiler:Blackjack is cured of taint and is BackFromTheDead. The footnote? "Level Up: Maximum Level"]]
278* ForbiddenZone: The Hoofington Core.
279* ForcedToWatch:
280** A variation. An unfortunate quirk of memory orbs is that you can't leave the memory until it's finished. Blackjack finds herself experiencing some deeply unpleasant things, most notably [[spoiler: [[PlayingWithSyringes Stonewing being transformed into Gorgon]], [[BodyHorror from Stonewing's perspective]], and [[RapeAsDrama Doof raping Twist]], [[NauseaFuel from Doof's perspective]]]]. Fortunately, the reader is spared the fine details.
281** A second variation occurs in Chapter 33. Scotch Tape, who is hiding nearby, can only listen as [[spoiler: Blackjack is raped and mutilated by a group of bandits.]]
282* {{Foreshadowing}}:
283** The revised Chapter 1 is laced with foreshadowing, particularly of [[spoiler: [[DoomedHometown Chapter 22]]]].
284** Just before his death, it's revealed that [[spoiler: Deus' brain is enclosed in armor]], foreshadowing his eventual return in a new form.
285** During her JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind, Blackjack encounters a mirror that shows her various reflections of herself. The final reflection is [[spoiler: monstrously mutated, prompting Blackjack to exclaim that she'd rather die than become something like that. She also notes that her reflected self is incapable of looking back at her. Then, at the climax of Chapter 32, she loses her sight and exposes herself to a dose of taint...]]
286** Blackjack frequently notes that her heart beats irregularly.
287** The Goddess promises to punish Blackjack for her insolence on several occasions.
288* FramingDevice: ''Project Horizons'' is written in Blackjack's first-person perspective. The first chapter of Volume Five, however, is in third person, and uses the perspectives of several different characters, giving an image of the Hoof [[spoiler:after a three-month TimeSkip]]. At the end of the chapter, it turns out that the different perspectives [[spoiler:are due to Blackjack using the Perceptitron.]]
289* FriendOrFoe: The E.F.S system on the [=PipBuck=] somehow determines the status of all living beings and marks them as either hostile or friendly. Blackjack keeps wondering how it knows, and somewhat distrusts the system, especially after nearly killing a frightened scavenger who got marked as 'hostile' for using the basic CrapsackWorld survival rule of 'shoot first, ask questions later'.
290* FromBadToWorse: This trope is in play almost constantly.
291* FromNobodyToNightmare: Doof. When he first got sent to Hightower, they had to repeatedly throw him in Solitary to give his injuries time to heal due to him not being able to stand other prisoners getting picked on, causing him to get beaten up. After a visit from Vanity (who told him that Twist didn't want his apology and never wanted to see him ever again), they had to throw him in there to ''stop him from killing everyone else.''
292* GallowsHumor: Blackjack is quite capable of this, thanks to her low self-esteem and StepfordSmiler tendencies.
293--> '''Blackjack:''' Hey, Scotch. What do you call [[spoiler: a mare with no legs]] who's in security? Baton.
294--> '''Scotch Tape:''' *[[DudeNotFunny Starts crying]]*
295* GenuineHumanHide: The official uniform of low-ranking Reapers.
296* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: P-21 successfully beats the mope out of Blackjack in Chapter 36. To be fair, [[QuitYourWhining he warned her.]]
297* GondorCallsForAid: [[spoiler: As Blackjack lies dying, Glory uses the Delta [=PipBuck=] to contact several of Hoofington's factions, who band together to save Blackjack's life.]]
298* GoneHorriblyRight:
299** The Fluttershy Medical Center contains an experimental system for keeping [[spoiler: terminally ill or injured foals]] in a state of medical stasis. It's still mostly operational - [[AndIMustScream the occupants have been conscious and alone for over two hundred years.]]
300*** [[spoiler: Sanguine's family suffered the same fate, and are extremely traumatized by the time he revives them.]]
301*** [[spoiler: Psycoshy suffered this and believes that Sanguine rescued her, when in reality he was responsible for her imprisonment in the first place, planning to use her to unlock Project Chimera once he had EC-1101.]]
302* GoneHorriblyWrong: Stable 99 was designed for high social stability, with an oversized security wing and a strong emphasis on recycling and birth control. It eventually degenerated into a matriarchal tyranny.
303* GoodIsNotNice: Played dead straight for most of the protagonists. Glory is a possible exception, but even she has her moments.
304* GoombaStomp: Rampage [[DynamicEntry performs one]] on a pair of {{Mook}}s.
305* {{Gorn}}: {{Invoked}} InUniverse by raiders, who take a perverse glee in mutilating their victims.
306* GreyAndGrayMorality: The conflicts between most Hoofington gangs, as Blackjack later learns.
307** [[spoiler: Most ponies who join the Burner Boys were horribly maimed by the Wasteland, and wouldn't survive on their own.]]
308** [[spoiler: The Flash Fillies take in victims of rape and other abuse to keep each other safe.]]
309** [[spoiler: Every member of the Halfhearts lost someone dear to them. They stay together to hold off suicidal depression.]]
310** The stated goal of the Reapers is to [[spoiler: unite the most dangerous fighters in the region, so they spend their time working together and fighting one another for sport instead of terrorizing Hoofington.]]
311* GroinAttack:
312** Blackjack delivers a few -0 mostly to mooks, but also [[spoiler: [[CripplingCastration a particularly nasty one]] to Deus]].
313** Psychoshy inflicts one on Blackjack during their cage fight in Chapter 25.
314* GunsAkimbo:
315** Exaggerated by Vanity of the Marauders; he simultaneously wields dual assault rifles on a battle saddle and a pair of levitated [[RevolversAreJustBetter revolvers]]. On one occasion, he levitates enough weapons to single-handedly hold a hallway against an attacking mob.
316** Blackjack attempts to dual-wield on occasion, [[TruthInTelevision but her accuracy suffers as a result]]. She eventually gets hold of Vanity's revolvers.
317** Taken to a [[SerialEscalation ridiculous level]] by Lacunae in Chapter 31, where she wields a levitated grenade machinegun and a [[{{BFG}} fully-armed]] and [[PowerArmor armored]] Steel Ranger.
318* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe:
319** Scoodle is torn in half by ghouls.
320** Deus does this to Blackjack during one of her nightmares. [[Gorn From inside.]]
321** [[spoiler: Glory saves Blackjack from this fate]] in Chapter 29.
322** [[spoiler: Dusty Trails]] would have suffered this fate in Chapter 36 if Sanguine didn't have an [[AlmostDeadGuy even worse one]] in store.
323** Rampage threatens [[spoiler: Psychoshy]] with this, but Blackjack stops her.
324* HappilyMarried: As of Chapter 76, [[spoiler: Stygius and Psychoshy.]] ''Very'' happily. [[spoiler: Also [[TearJerker very briefly.]]]]
325* HeadTiltinglyKinky: In the revised version of Chapter 1, Blackjack does this when she walks into Midnight's room and comes across her being...busy.
326* TheHeroDies: [[spoiler:Then [[OnlyMostlyDead gets]] [[WeCanRebuildHim better]].]]
327* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler: The Zodiac Family, Precious, Psychoshy and ''[[TricksterGod possibly]]'' Discord.]]
328* HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic: Played With. Blackjack frequently goes without any headgear whatesoever but occasionally either someone's suggestion or her remembering a recent incident where head protection would've helped can get her to wear one. More than once, wearing a helmet explicitly saves her life.
329* HeroicBSOD:
330** Chapter 13 ends with [[spoiler:Glory]] beginning a long series of these.
331** Blackjack has several, usually triggered by MyGodWhatHaveIDone.
332** P-21, after he [[spoiler: [[FunctionalAddict runs out of Med-X]]]].
333** Rampage drops into depression after Hightower, [[spoiler: apparently convinced that despite being a MindHive SoulJar, she has no soul of her own]].
334* HeroicRROD:
335** Upon first arriving in Flank, Blackjack is suffering from heavy injuries and the side effects of several chems. She's forced to take [[FantasticDrug Dash]] and gallop through an enervation field to reach the town, and ends up having a heart attack. Fortunately, help is at hand.
336** At the end of Chapter 42, Blackjack [[spoiler: runs her cybernetics out of power, to the point where her legs and eyes completely shut down.]]
337** Also at [[spoiler: the end of Chapter 77, Blackjack has expended so much power fighting the Eater that by the time the crisis is finally averted, her final moments are spent watching the number for her reserve power quickly go down due to her extensive injuries, and ends with her running out of power and dying.]]
338* HeroicSacrifice:
339** {{Subverted}} and then {{Averted}} when [[spoiler: Blackjack gasses Stable 99. While Blackjack's actions are heroic, it's less a sacrifice and more a suicide attempt, so when Lacunae teleports to the rescue, BJ is dismayed.]]
340** Blackjack, unable to fight back at the time, [[spoiler: taunts a group of bandits into having their way with her so that Scotch Tape can hide from them]].
341** Played straight when [[spoiler: Silver Stripe sacrifices her synthetic organs to save Blackjack, reducing herself to a BrainInAJar.]]
342*** This is then {{Subverted}} as well, when it's revealed that [[spoiler: Silver Stripe is in league with [[BigBad Cognitum,]] and has been using Blackjack's [[SeeingThroughAnothersEyes cybernetic eyes to spy on her.]]]]
343** Also played straight in Chapter 58. [[spoiler: With the [[HiveQueen Goddess]] and her [[HiveMind Unity]] destroyed, Lacunae returns her vast collection of shunned memories and emotions - the very substance of her identity - to the now-independent alicorns, allowing them to live on as mentally whole beings.]]
344** As you might expect, Book 5 is just [[DwindlingParty full of them.]]
345* HeWhoFightsMonsters: Blackjack's greatest fear is being corrupted by the wasteland. [[spoiler: Eventually {{Invoked}}, in a literal sense. Blackjack [[WeCanRebuildHim becomes a cyborg]] and finds herself having more in common with Deus than she'd like.]]
346* HiddenDepths: Sekashi: a deaf zebra slave that turns out to be very well-versed in zebra lore and culture, and can handle herself in a fight armed with nothing but a [[ImprobableWeaponUser staff]].
347* HowDoIShotWeb: Blackjack has a serious case of this after [[spoiler: being heavily augmented with cybernetics. She spends two chapters re-learning how to walk, and ends up triggering various functions of her new body completely by accident.]] Fortunately it's mostly PlayedForLaughs, and she's fine [[DrunkenMaster after she gets some alcohol in her system]].
348* IAmAHumanitarian: Stable 99 ponies by nescessity. Raiders [[TheVirus by compulsion]]. [[spoiler: [[FromBadToWorse And then the two overlap.]]]]
349* ICannotSelfTerminate:
350** {{Subverted}}. [[spoiler: Blackjack attempts to MercyKill Mini and puts her gun to Mini's head, but can't bring herself to pull the trigger. Mini summons up the strength to [[DrivenToSuicide do it herself using her magic]]]].
351--> [[spoiler: Mini]]: You're a good pony, Miss Blackjack.
352** {{Averted}} in Chapter 33. [[spoiler: Rampage's serial killer personality flatly refuses to put Blackjack out of her misery.]]
353** [[spoiler: The tainted ponies fused to the cryogenics room in Horizon Labs]] ask Blackjack and Rampage to [[KillItWithFire burn them]].
354** [[spoiler: Dusty Trails, fed halfway through the rock crusher that killed Gorgon]]. P-21 gives [[spoiler: her]] a Med-X overdose.
355* IdiotBall:
356** The supporting cast gets one in chapter 23. Blackjack, who has been an emotional wreck throughout most of the story even before [[spoiler: gassing Stable 99]] and has displayed suicidal tendencies more than once, is stuck in a rapidly worsening HeroicBSOD. The cast discusses her emotional state, and it's obvious that they realize she's at risk of suicide. Yet they take no preventive measures and frequently leave her alone, unwatched, and fully armed. When she tells Glory, Lacunae and Scotch Tape to go Megamart, they agree, based on nothing more than her unreliable promise that she's okay, and that she'll see them again in a few hours. Keep in mind, this is Morning Glory, the most intelligent pony in the group and the only trained medical expert between them all, who has a vested interest in keeping Blackjack, her lover, alive...and she takes Blackjack at her word that she's perfectly fine and will see her later. [[spoiler: They do meet again, but not before Blackjack's tried to eat her gun.]]
357** And then, at the MASEBS tower, Blackjack suggests that she, P-21 and Rampage split up, leaving her completely alone and with the means to carry out her own death. They agree without question. It's almost as if they wanted her to kill herself.
358* IdiotHero: Blackjack. Known for nebulous [[IndyPloy "plans"]] and battlefield drunkenness. {{Deconstructed}} -- it takes BJ a ''long'' time to work out why P-21 doesn't trust himself with guns near her.
359* IfYoureSoEvilEatThisKitten: Almost literally, but due to the lack of kittens, [[spoiler: [[BeatStillMyHeart Rampage's heart]]]] is substituted. {{Subverted}} -- Blackjack goes through with it, [[spoiler: but later finds out that she had already been recognised, and Daisy [[KickTheDog just wanted to watch her squirm.]]]]
360* IHaveAFamily:
361** Roses begs Blackjack to spare her life for the sake of her daughter. It works. [[spoiler: She later makes the same appeal to [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Prince]] [[AxCrazy Blueblood]], who [[KilledOffForReal is somewhat less merciful.]]]]
362** Eventually revealed to be [[spoiler: Sanguine]]'s core motivation. [[spoiler: He wants to reactivate Project Chimera to save his sick family, who have been in stasis since the bombs fell. This, and the possibility that Chimera could also be used to save Scotch Tape, is enough to convince Blackjack to call a tentative truce.]]
363* IJustShotMarvinInTheFace: PlayedForLaughs as part of the 'everypony shoots Blackjack' RunningGag. Scotch Tape promptly shoots her in the chest after being given a pistol, and Xanthe goes a step further by using a shotgun.
364* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: [[spoiler:Blackjack does this to Deus when she discovers he's been rebuilt as a tank.]]
365* ILoveTheDead: Psychoshy wants to be the lover of Sanguine, a Canterlot ghoul.
366* ImHavingSoulPains: After [[spoiler: having her soul torn out by Snips' curse, then recovered by Snails]], Blackjack spends most of a day in a state of inexplicable pain, punctuated by sudden crying fits.
367* ImMelting: Type A is the end result of enervation exposure. Partially invoked in Chapter 26 when [[spoiler: Enervation rapidly worsens a deep wound on Glory's wing]].
368-->[[spoiler: I stared as the skin holding the wing slowly stretched like taffy and then broke, the wing splashing softly into the water beside her.]]
369** [[spoiler: Sanguine breathes pink cloud in Priest's face.]] The results are... [[FacialHorror exactly what you'd expect]].
370* ImmortalAssassin:
371** Rampage, though she sides with the protagonists.
372** [[spoiler: [[TheDragon The Legate]]]] overlaps with this as well.
373* ImmortalityHurts: Rampage has suffered horrifically in her long life, and apparently feels pain despite her HealingFactor. [[spoiler: For Deus, this trope is quite literal. His augmentations leave him in a constant state of agonising pain]].
374* ImmortalLifeIsCheap: Rampage has been beheaded, chewed on and then thrown out of a window by a hydra, shot to pieces, blown up, vaporized, poisoned, carved up and eaten, shot in the head repeatedly, burned alive, stabbed through the eye with a sword, blasted into giblets by artillery, has had her throat crushed, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking has eaten a box of detergent]] [[ItMakesSenseInContext to help herself get drunk]]. And that's only listing "on-screen" examples.[[note]]List of 'off-screen' incidents: Repeated drowning, repeated disintegration, dismemberment, eating a balefire egg, shooting herself in the head to make a point, and being fed into a wood chipper on a dare.[[/note]]
375* ImmuneToBullets:
376** Gorgon effortlessly shrugs off bullets, lasers and explosives. [[spoiler: [[ConveyorBeltOfDoom Being fed to a rock-crushing machine,]] [[CruelAndUnusualDeath on the other hand...]]]]
377** Bullets pass straight through Gem and Mini when they turn intangible.
378* ImmuneToDrugs: Rampage, thanks to her healing factor, is blasé about addictions and side effects. She eats Mint-als like candy, and in one memorable incident encounters a drug selling robot and orders a dose of "everything". Barpony's HideousHangoverCure, however, promptly causes her to throw up.
379* ImplacableMan: Rampage. To a lesser extent, Deus and Gorgon. [[spoiler: Later, Blackjack.]]
380* InstantDramaJustAddTracheotomy: Glory performs one on [[spoiler: Priest]] after Sanguine breathes [[DeadlyGas pink cloud]] in his face, [[BodyHorror melting his eyes and sealing his mouth and nose shut.]] It's [[KilledOffForReal not as helpful]] as most Hollywood trachs.
381* InstrumentofMurder: Vanity uses Octavia's contrabass [[spoiler:[[SoulJar phylactery]]]] as both a bludgeon and a shield against an angry mob.
382* IntangibleMan: The Gemini sisters.
383* InterruptedSuicide:
384** [[spoiler: Lacunae interrupts Blackjack]] in Chapter 22.
385** [[spoiler: Watcher interrupts Blackjack]] in Chapter 23.
386** [[spoiler: Blackjack interrupts P-21]] in Chapter 25.
387%%* IronicNurseryTune: ''"Hush now, quiet now."''
388* ItAlwaysRainsAtFunerals: It did at [[spoiler:Roses']]. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] since it almost constantly rains around Hoofington.
389* ItsAllAboutMe: Blackjack, to the point where she assumes this is why ponies around her are upset. She realizes she's wrong in Chapter 25, [[spoiler:just in time to save [[DrivenToSuicide P-21]]]], but still forgets at times.
390* ItsAllMyFault: Various characters, particularly [[SamaritanSyndrome Blackjack]], have moments of this.
391* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: Blackjack uses this on [[spoiler: Minty Fresh.]]
392** MutilationInterrogation: Via caged cannibal.
393* JizzedInMyPants: Blackjack, thanks to an unexpectedly saucy memory orb.
394-->'''Scotch Tape:''' Blackjack’s been naughty!
395* JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind:
396** Blackjack performs one of these to [[spoiler: heal Lacunae.]]
397** In Chapter 43, Blackjack [[spoiler: faces down her own self-destructive subconscious.]]
398* KarmaHoudini: {{Invoked}} with Director Mephitis, the pony in charge of the Yellow River Internment Camp. He overloaded the camp with zebra [=POWs=] in order to request additional supplies from the Ministry of Peace, fenced said supplies for his own profit, and refused to set the prisoners free when the bombs fell, backstabbing a subordinate in the process. He then took his ill-gotten profits with him and fled to Thunderhead, and apparently never answered for his crimes.
399** It is in fact [[spoiler: played totally straight]] : In chapter 62 part 2, [[spoiler: Blackjack finds evidence that he became a well known, rich, and well-reputed Doctor in Thunderhead and played a part in undermining Rainbow Dash's authority and credibility in the Enclave.]]
400-->'''Blackjack:'''[[spoiler: You mother fucker! You got away with it! You actually fucking got away with it!]]
401* KickTheDog: The pony working at Miramare that tells Doof that Twist likes sex. Doof not being the smartest pony, he doesn't get it when she says that she loves Applebloom and rapes her instead. Said pony then tells the newspaper "I always knew there was something bad about him."
402* KillItWithFire:
403** The Burner Boys gang specialises in flamethrowers and incendiary bombs.
404** The 'burning ones' that BJ and co. encounter in Hightower; supercharged glowing ones capable of breathing fire.
405** [[spoiler: Snips]] is burnt alive in Chapter 48.
406* KlingonPromotion: The fastest way to become a reaper is to kill a reaper and take their place. Rampage earned her position and armor this way, and [[spoiler: after killing Gorgon and Deus]], Blackjack is offered a position as well.
407** YouKillItYouBoughtIt: {{Zigzagged}}. Initally downplayed when Blackjack earns the right to become a Reaper. She's annoyed at her newly-increased notoriety but offically taking the role, while encouraged, is voluntary. Her refusal causes her to once again become a target for gangs, which were being held off by the presence of a Reaper in her group and the protection of Big Daddy Reaper. After [[spoiler: destroying the ''HMS Celestia'']], BJ is granted an honorary place in the Reapers whether she wants it or not.
408* LargeHam: THE GODDESS WISHES TO REMIND YOU THAT THIS TROPE IS IN FULL EFFECT.
409* LaserGuidedAmnesia: A function of memory orbs.
410** [[spoiler: Blackjack has a number of traumatic memories removed from Scotch Tape's mind, much to [[WhatTheHellHero Rampage's dismay.]]]] This ends up backfiring, as [[spoiler: Scotch's trauma remains despite the memories of its cause being gone.]]
411* LastStand: The aptly titled "To the Last", chapter 76 parts 1 and 2.
412* LiteralCliffHanger: Chapter 29 ends with one of these, where [[spoiler: Morning Glory (apparently) falls to her death]].
413* LudicrousGibs: While [[GoryDiscretionShot we don't see it happen]], Blackjack's drug-assisted UnstoppableRage [[spoiler: caused by Glory's branding]] results in this. Apparently she tore several [[spoiler: Enclave pegasi]] limb from limb with her hooves and teeth.
414* LukeIAmYourFather: Inverted. P-21 is Scotch Tape's father, but doesn't want her to find out. Blackjack winds up blurting it out during a strategy discussion.
415* {{Magitek}}: Everywhere. Any technology that can't be explained with realistic mechanics (ie. self-repairing machines, energy weapons, and so on) depends on magical talismans and enchantments instead. Even then, stripping away their mystical origins, they're treated like mundane batteries and tools in practical use.
416* ManChild:
417** PlayedForLaughs. Blackjack picks up the ''Foal At Heart'' perk at the end of Chapter 6, and occasionally lapses into childish behavior.
418** Rampage [[OlderThanTheyLook in reverse]] whenever she regenerates from being disintegrated.
419* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler: Trottenheimer's ''Folly''. The gun's ammunition contains concentrated taint, which contaminates the user whenever Folly is fired.]]
420** A long-dead pony named Glass is referred to as Si in log-files & old OiA memos. Si is the atomic symbol for Silicon, used in making glass.
421* MechanicalMonster:
422** The [[RobotDog cyberdogs]] that attack BJ and co. in Chapter 26, which come equipped with [[InvisibilityCloak cloaking devices]] and {{lightning gun}}s.
423%%** [[spoiler: SuperPrototype: Winona.]]
424** The enormous mechanical abomination that attacks near the end of the same chapter. Blackjack blasts it with [[WaveMotionGun Trottenheimer's Folly]], [[spoiler: but it survives to return later]].
425* MercyKill:
426** Blackjack performs a series of these at the end of [[spoiler: Chapter 6]]. She suffers frequent flashbacks to the event, and often worries it was her StartOfDarkness.
427** {{Averted}} in Chapter 16 when [[spoiler:[[ICannotSelfTerminate Mini is stuck in a wall]]]], as Blackjack can't bring herself to pull the trigger.
428** Chapter 19 reveals that [[spoiler: Rampage]] has a [[PutThemAllOutOfMyMisery different problem.]]
429** In Chapter 21, Blackjack describes killing raiders as this, then immediately suffers another flashback to the first entry.
430** Chapter 22. [[spoiler: All but one of Stable 99's entire surviving population.]]
431* MindRape: It's strongly implied that over- or misuse of memory-altering spells can have this effect. [[spoiler: The Goddess]] also takes great pleasure messing with Blackjack's mind after Hightower.
432* MindScrew: Chapter 43. [[spoiler: Literally. Most of the chapter takes place in [[JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind Blackjack's traumatised subconscious]].]]
433* MoodWhiplash:
434** Blackjack finds herself admiring Scoodle's fighting skills, [[spoiler: just in time to see her torn apart by ghouls.]]
435** At the end of Chapter 9, Blackjack and co. have [[spoiler: killed Gorgon]] and freed an entire mine full of pony and zebra slaves. [[spoiler: Then Lancer appears, [[InTheBack shoots Blackjack in the spine]], and guns down every other zebra present.]]
436** Blackjack wakes up [[spoiler: during invasive surgery]] and gets forced into a memory orb from a Grand Galloping Gala.
437* MotiveRant:
438** The Overmare gives one to Blackjack, throwing in a FreudianExcuse for good measure. Blackjack's sympathy is dulled by the fact that [[spoiler: the Overmare has [[TheVirus become a raider]] and is ''[[KickTheDog anally raping P-21]]'' [[CoitusUninterruptus while ranting]]]].
439** Sanguine rants at length during his confrontation with Blackjack at Hippocratic Research.
440** Lighthooves joins their ranks during his final battle with Blackjack.
441* MusicForCourage:
442** Rampage sings a version of "Sixteen Tons" while the group is fighting their way through Hightower Prison. The zebra that the group is with at the time actually brings up that during the war, zebra forces were advised to retreat when ponies started to sing, because ''[[ThePowerOfRock their combat effectiveness went up.]]''
443** Blackjack pulls this twice when facing down large groups of attackers.
444** Chapter 76: In the closest a written book can get to a full-on musical number (you know, [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic like in that one show]] ), [[spoiler: Stygius proposes to Psychoshy in the middle of battle, and she's so happy she bursts out in song to bolster the resistance. "No one's happier than I", indeed]]. The author's notes even provide a WebSite/YouTube link to the song.
445*** Then, after [[spoiler: [[MoodWhiplash the Legate shows up,]] she sings again to the whole valley with [[ThePowerOfRock "Rise,]] [[NearVictoryFanfare Hoofington,]] [[ThemeMusicPowerUp Rise".]]]]
446** Chapter 77: The penultimate battle has the participating robot provide moral support with [[ThePowerOfRock metal]], implied to be [[Music/{{Rammstein}} Feuer Frei.]]
447* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Blackjack asks this a lot. Especially in Chapter 23 following [[spoiler: the execution of Stable 99]].
448* MysticalPlague: Enervation. It's everywhere, it reduces the effectiveness of healing potions[[note]]With enough exposure, they can become {{Inverted}} {{Healing Shiv}}s.[[/note]], and it does all kinds of unhealthy things to ponies. Like ''liquefying'' them.
449* MysteriousBacker: The Dealer. He'll appear time and time again to help point Blackjack in the right direction, even as he emotionally beats her down just as often (much to Blackjack's confusion). [[spoiler: Thought to be a figment of her imagination for a majority of the story, but it turns out he's the spirit of Goldenblood's assistant, tied to EC-1101 as a sort of guide to make sure it gets to its destination]].
450* MythArc: Since being broken down into volumes, the overarching plot can be likened to a series of books rather than a continuous story. [[{{Doorstopper}} Very, very long books]].
451* MythologyGag: [[spoiler:Rampage's original name turns out to be Peppermint]], which later gets shortened to [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyG3 Minty]]. During their trek through Hightower, Rampage sings a few snatches of [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie1986 Nothing Can Stop the Smooze]].
452* NamedWeapons: [[HandCannon Trottenheimer's]] [[WaveMotionGun Folly]], [[GrenadeLauncher Persuasion]], [[AncestralWeapon Vigilance]], Duty [[GunsAkimbo and]] [[RevolversAreJustBetter Sacrifice]].
453* NiceJobBreakingItHero:
454** Blackjack is often guilty of this.
455** Nice job [[spoiler: setting Hightower on fire]], Lacunae.
456** Good work connecting [[spoiler: Blackjack]] to the [[HiveMind Goddess]], Lacunae. I'm sure she appreciates [[spoiler: being mind-raped.]]
457* NobodyPoops: {{Averted}}.
458%%* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished
459* NoPartyLikeADonnerParty: The food in Stable 99 is mixed with the recycled remains of deceased (or "retired") ponies.
460* OneSteveLimit:
461** In Chapter 9, there's a unicorn mare named [[spoiler: Harbinger]] hanging out with a group of Pecos.
462** The Enclave city Thunderhead is not the class of Enclave ship Thunderhead (they were probably not yet present in [=FoE=] when the city was named). Keep that in mind when a Thunderhead is sent to attack Thunderhead.
463* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname:
464** Blackjack is actually a nickname chosen to hide her EmbarrassingFirstName.
465** Rampage took her name from the reaper she killed to earn her position. Her real name is unknown. The closest she has to one is "Arloste," which Scalpel gave her. [[spoiler: Deus reveals in Chapter 69 that Rampage's real name is "Peppermint", given to her by Twist, her mother, and that he is the father]].
466* OperationBlank: Several. Specifically the various secret research and development projects undertaken by Goldenblood's OIA during the war.
467** Project Steelpony: Development of [[{{Cyborg}} military-grade cybernetics]].
468** Project Chimera: [[spoiler: Harvesting and application of [[PoweredByAForsakenChild Discord]]'s [[AppliedPhlebotinum essence]] as a powerful magical reagent]].
469** Project Starfall: [[spoiler: Weaponisation of [[FantasticNuke megaspell]] techology]].
470** Project Partypooper: [[spoiler: A set of directives to assassinate the Ministry Mares in case of a coup against Luna]].
471** Project Eternity: [[spoiler: Rarity's experiments into necromancy, which created the talisman making Rampage immortal and eventually gave rise to the [[SoulJar Ministry Mare statuettes]]]].
472** Project Redoubt: [[spoiler: A mega-Stable built by the aristocrats and nobility of Equestria to continue their own way of life. Stolen from them by the Office of Interministry Affairs, and magically hidden in the shadow dimension of the batponies. Goldenblood is imprisoned here.]]
473** Project Horizons: Kept a mystery for much of the story. [[spoiler: Revealed in Chapter 65 to be a superweapon connected to the space program, essentially a giant space projectile made from moon stone built by Goldenblood to destroy the Starmetal-based Tokomore.]]
474* PassThePopcorn: Glory and a group of Crusaders when P-21 first calls Blackjack his friend. Complete with actual (200 year old stale) popcorn!
475* PetTheDog: When Blackjack realizes that [[spoiler:Discord]] has spent two centuries in an active torture machine, she immediately turns it off. He is very relieved. A short while later, she sets him free, despite the potential consequences. Pays off later when a powerful Harbinger tank attacks the place and he saves her by bringing the place down on it, even though it means he'll be buried too.
476* PhlebotinumRebel: Gorgon's first action upon being given the powers of a cockatrice by a shady OIA (Office of Interministry Affairs) lab is to petrify and shatter a nurse.
477* PlayingWithSyringes: Project Chimera. [[spoiler: Among other functions.]]
478* PlotArmor:
479** As of Chapter 48, Blackjack has been shot, stabbed, beaten to a bloody pulp, bitten, burned, irradiated, poisoned, blown up, [[spoiler:raped, cursed, and ''killed... twice.'']] Yet she always seems to find a way to get back up and keep fighting.
480** While BJ's survival is usually justified ([[spoiler: and she's been rebuilt so often and so thoroughly that her original body is now little more than a husk]]), Glory survives grievous injuries such as [[spoiler: a landmine to the face and a wing literally melting off at the shoulder]] with few long-term complications.
481** P-21 gets his front hooves blown off completely once. Fortunately, Hydra is powerful enough to regrow them completely.
482** After Blackjack [[spoiler: sets off an implosion magaspell,]] at the end of chapter 62, she survives it only to [[spoiler: reappear in the Core of Hoofington.]]
483* PottyFailure: Taken seriously. Blackjack suffered this as a result of radiation poisoning, and again in [[spoiler: Horizon Labs]]. Scotch Tape and various other characters occasionally wet themselves out of fear.
484* [[PowerFist Power Shoe]][=/=]ArmedLegs: Psychoshy's weapon of choice. Rampage uses a bladed variant.
485* [[spoiler:[[PoweredByAForsakenChild Powered By A Forsaken Draconequus]]: Project Chimera.]]
486* PrecisionFStrike: From time to time. Whenever Glory swears, it's this trope.
487-->'''Glory:''' You... You... fucking ''cunt!''
488* ProjectileSpell: Blackjack learns to fire bursts of energy from her horn. This ability develops over the course of the story, eventually gaining shotgun-grade power and extreme range.
489* ProperlyParanoid: Blackjack, especially after the [[spoiler: assassination attempt]] in Chapter 16.
490* PunchClockVillain: Roses, a slaver who simply wants to provide for her daughter.
491* PunctuatedForEmphasis:
492** In Chapter 27, after Blackjack gets shot up by [[spoiler: Red Eye's slavers]].
493--->'''Blackjack:''' You! Can't! Kill! Me!
494** Followed shortly by:
495--->'''Triage:''' [[NotSoInvincibleAfterAll You! Are! Not! Bulletproof!]]
496* PunctuatedPounding:
497** When Blackjack kills her first cannibal.
498--->"You! Sick! Fucker!" I yelled, bringing the batton down with each word.
499** PlayedForLaughs in Chapter 19, when Blackjack spanks Aquarius Zodiac.
500---> '''Blackjack:''' Do! Not! Shoot! The! Nice! Security! Pony!
501* RageBreakingPoint:
502** Blackjack is [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown not happy]] when [[spoiler: Rampage pushes the subject of rape on her.]]
503** BJ completely loses it [[spoiler: while learning of the various crimes committed at Yellow River.]] Discovering [[spoiler: Shujaa's butchered remains]] drives her over the edge.
504* RagtagBandOfMisfits: The protagonists.
505* RapeAsBackStory: Rampage, the males from Stable 99, and many of the Flash Fillies.
506* RapeAsDrama: A recurring theme.
507* ReadTheFreakingManual: Blackjack aquires the Wasteland Survival Guide early on, but despite considering it a good idea she rarely consults it. Scotch Tape however does, and occasionally points out chapters relevant to the current matter on hand.
508* RecursiveFanfiction: Is one for the original ''Fallout: Equestria'', but also has ''its'' own fanfictions too!
509* RedBaron: Blackjack, AKA 'The Security Mare'.
510* RedHerring: Up until Chapter 32, all evidence seems to point to [[spoiler: repeated used of Hydra as the main source of Blackjack's worsening taint problems]]. During the encounter in Horizon Labs, she learns that it's actually [[spoiler:Trottenheimer's Folly]].
511* RuleOfSymbolism: Some readers have drawn parallels between the crucifixion of Jesus and the scene where [[spoiler: Blackjack is raped. Blackjack already has several of the standard [[MessianicArchetype messianic]] character traits. Both are nailed down by all four limbs and stabbed in the side, the horn amputation can be seen as a variant on the crown of thorns, and the scene itself carries strong overtones of self-sacrifice, forgiveness and redemption. Following her subsequent death, Blackjack is revived three days later.]]
512* RunningGag:
513** Everypony shoots Blackjack. Carried over from ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria''.
514** Blackjack's horn is not small, it's ''[[InsistentTerminology compact]]''.
515** Dropping boats on ponies.
516** "Then [...] exploded."
517--> Of course it exploded! Everything spontaneously explodes around me! Pipes! Vertibucks! Mares!
518** Blackjack being clueless about the identity of [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria The Stable Dweller]].
519** Blackjack's whining.
520* ScarsAreForever: Burner Boys.
521* ShotInTheAss: Blackjack, by P-21.
522* ShoutOut:
523** [[spoiler: Deus]] reminds one of SCP-516, but with cyborg-ish attributes, not just a [[spoiler: sentient tank]]
524** "Trust in the Overmare; obey the Overmare" at the beginning of the first chapter. [[TabletopGame/{{Paranoia}} Sounds kinda familiar.]]
525** The [[NoPartyLikeADonnerParty 'recycled']] food in Stable 99 is typically [[Film/SoylentGreen green]]. Whaaaat? It's made from [[JustifiedTrope algae!]]
526** A [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} large steel cube with hearts painted on it]] is found in the AbandonedHospital. [[spoiler: [[BoobyTrap It's a trap.]]]]
527*** One of the tainted trees in the forest surrounding Hippocratic Research lures victims to their deaths with [[TheCakeIsALie fruit that look like slices of cake]].
528** A fight carries over into a dance club with two [[Music/DaftPunk helmeted ponies]] who [[Film/TronLegacy provide a soundtrack for the fight]].
529** After Blackjack uses Trottenheimer's Folly in Chapter 13, resulting in a massive blast of energy [[Anime/CowboyBebop she says "bang" and then collapses]].
530** Among a collection of Stable-Tec plans is one for a [[VideoGame/BioShock 'Rapture Hydrostable'.]]
531** Lacunae [[VideoGame/TeamFortress2 wields a minigun and has a noted affinity for sandwiches.]]
532** The scene in Chapter 22 where the Raider ponies inside [[spoiler:Stable 99 strap Rampage down and eat her]] is basically an image of the Prometheus legend. Prometheus was strapped to a mountain by Zeus as punishment for bringing fire to mankind and had his liver picked out each day by an eagle, only for it to regrow overnight. One Raider pony even shouts that [[spoiler:her liver has regrown]].
533** [[spoiler: The Overmare]] temporarily enslaves P-21, [[Franchise/StarWars who later strangles]] [[spoiler: her]] [[Film/ReturnOfTheJedi to death with his chains.]]
534** The blueprints for the Hoofington tunnels mention a [[WesternAnimation/{{ThunderCats|1985}} samophlange housing.]]
535** The party stumbles upon the remains of The Crop, the lingerie shop featured in the [[http://askvelvet.tumblr.com/ Ask Velvet tumblr]].
536*** [[TheCameo Velvet herself]] appears later as a ghoul; she takes the opportunity to dress Lacunae in lacy lingerie and a fancy gown.
537** When Operative Lighthooves [[spoiler: rescues Blackjack from the Flash Industries building]], his dialogue is almost directly quoted from ''Film/ThePrincessBride''.
538** One of the ponies [[spoiler: inside Rampage]] is apparently named ComicBook/DoctorOctopus.
539** [[spoiler:Project Chimera's core is essentially the Purifier from VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}, built around Discord's statue instead of Thomas Jefferson's.]]
540** Mr. Horse has a [[WebVideo/FriendshipIsWitchcraft Sweetie Bot]], and makes [[WebVideo/DoctorHorriblesSingAlongBlog innuendos about his hammer]].
541** When another character expresses concern about her finding her way in the dark, [[spoiler: Blackjack]] points out that [[Videogame/DeusEx her vision is augmented]].
542** Astromare Marigold failed a medical review because of her [[Film/{{Gattaca}} weak heart]].
543** Chapter 46 introduces a nightclub called [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 Afterlife.]]
544** During the assault on [[spoiler: Hightower Prison]] in Chapter 47, Rampage belts out a ponified version of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIfu2A0ezq0 Sixteen Tons]] while rampaging.
545** In Chapter 48, Blackjack and Rampage shout [[Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}} familiar insults]] [[ItMakesSenseInContext into a toilet]].
546** In Chapter 52, [[spoiler: [[Anime/GhostInTheShell Blackjack allows her zebra limbs to take over, allowing her to perform some impressive acrobatics, while battling an enormous twin-cannoned tank. At one point, she dodges a blast of fire, which travels up a wall-sized painting of a family tree. After this, she attempts to pry open the tank's hatch, only to overstrain and cripple her legs.]]]]
547** Grace comments as a scientist, she [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail knows the speed of a south-bound griffon carrying a coconut]].
548** [[Series/DoctorWho It's all one big ball of... of... wibbly-wobbly... timey wimey... stuff!]]
549** [[spoiler: The giant moonstone crystal bullet that is central to Project Horizons, and that will be fired form the Moon into the Tokomare, is named ...[[Music/SpaceOddity Tom. Yes, that Tom.]] ]]
550* ShutUpHannibal: Blackjack shuts up [[EldritchAbomination The Goddess]] mid-rant by [[GoodIsNotNice shoving her gun in Lacunae's mouth]].
551* SickeningCrunch: When Rampage [[spoiler: [[DeadlyHug crushes]] [[WouldHurtAChild Thorn]]]], the sound is described as a "[[NauseaFuel crunchy pop]]".
552* [[SmartPeoplePlayChess Smart Ponies Play Chess]]: This comes into play at certain times, especially when the ChessMotifs should be quite clear. But Blackjack can never remember how the pieces move, and also maintains that she is not a smart pony.
553* SpiderSense: Blackjack's mane goes itchy at the strangest times.
554* SpinOffBabies: [[MoodWhiplash Yup.]] [[http://wavemasterryx.tumblr.com/post/13150535953 D'awwww.]][[note]]From left to right: Scotch Tape, Lacunae, Rampage, P-21, Morning Glory, Blackjack.[[/note]]
555-->'''Anonymous:''' For today's episode of [[BizarroWorld snoziroH tcejorP]], [[CheerfulChild BJ and crew are happy,]] and [[SugarBowl Hoofington is a great place to live!]]
556* StrappedToAnOperatingTable: Blackjack, more than once. [[CruelToBeKind In at least one case, Blackjack ''really'' needs surgery, but is too out of it to realise until afterwards.]]
557* StuffBlowingUp: P-21 specialises in explosives.
558* SympathyForTheDevil: Applies to almost all of the villains to some degree.
559** [[spoiler: Just before his death, Deus]] leaves a memory orb for Blackjack. The contents make her feel for him, just a little bit. [[spoiler: Following her own augmentation, BJ mentions that, in a sense, she is beginning to understand him, and fears that she [[SheWhoFightsMonsters is at risk of becoming similarly monstrous.]]]]
560*** [[spoiler: This empathy comes in handy later, when Blackjack uses her experience to reason and empathise with the newly rebuilt Deus and appeal to his better nature]].
561** Blackjack also finds a [[spoiler: 'Thank you for killing me' letter in Gorgon's room]], prompting tears.
562** Blackjack can't help but feel pity for [[spoiler: Brass]] following her CruelAndUnusualDeath, and [[spoiler: Sanguine]] after he hits the DespairEventHorizon.
563** It's implied that [[spoiler: Dawn]], despite her extremism and murderous tendencies, has good intentions and may not be in full control of her actions.
564* TakeItToTheBridge: The bridge leading to The Core is an important motif in the story, as any who cross it will be killed by the machine's automatic defenses. Twice it's used as a MercyKill, or at least seen that way by the ones who orchestrate it. [[spoiler: Priest allows the refugee children he cares for to cross it, believing it to be the only choice they'll have in the Wasteland. Rampage cradles a slaver's daughter atop it to end her suffering after her mother dies.]] Notably, Blackjack detests both of these actions and sees them as needless cruelty, due to her own history with sacrificing others.
565* TakeMyHand:
566** Blackjack to Glory, [[spoiler: as a building collapses beneath them. Despite BJ's best efforts, Glory falls, but is saved by Operative Lighthooves and his entourage]]. The roles are reversed in the next chapter, where [[spoiler: Blackjack grabs hold of Glory's wing to avoid being sucked into a sewer pump]].
567** Rampage to Blackjack, at the end of Chapter [[spoiler: 48]].
568* TakenForGranite: Gorgon's preferred method of dealing with his enemies.
569** [[spoiler: NoOntologicalInertia: His victims (including P-21, Glory and Lancer) return to normal when he dies.]]
570* TakingYouWithMe:
571** [[spoiler: Gem to Deus, with a bomb at point blank range.]]
572** [[spoiler: In Chapter 32, Blackjack to the ''HMS Celestia''[[note]]At least, that's her intention.[[/note]]]]
573* TalkingToThemself:
574** Blackjack, when stressed or hallucinating.
575** Lacunae, though {{justified|Trope}} because she's [[HiveMind communicating with the Goddess.]]
576* TarotMotifs: During a DreamSequence in Chapter 17 Blackjack and the Dealer play cards and when their respective hands are described the cards in question resmble UsefulNotes/TarotCards. Blackjack's hand has been identified as The Fool, Justice, the Nine of Swords, the Eight of Cups and The Hanged Man, while the Dealer's hand consists of The Moon, The Tower, Six of Swords and two cards (Described as "A handsome unicorn stallion smiling, his mane and horn bright yellow" and "A yellow pegasus with long, beautiful pink hair sitting before a pool and hugging a strange little blue and green ball in her hooves") that haven't been fully identified.
577* ATasteOfTheLash: Not shown, but mentioned as an official form of punishment in Stable 99.
578* TearsOfBlood: A result of Enervation exposure.
579* TeleFrag: [[spoiler: Mini Zodiac]] suffers this, and doesn't even get to die from it.
580* TemptingFate: Blackjack has an unfortunate habit of doing this.
581** In Chapter 20:
582-->[[spoiler: "I know you don’t believe it," I said with a smile, "But most of Stable 99 are good ponies. We won’t have to kill them all." [[{{Foreshadowing}} Because if we did,]] [[DrivenToSuicide then I was going to follow them.]]]]
583* ThemeNaming:
584** Blackjack and a long line of her ancestors have names related to playing cards and card games. [[note]] Card Trick. Tarot. Little Poker. Full House. 52 Pick-up. Straight Flush. Aces. Royal Flush. Bridge. Hearts. Gin Rummy. Go Fish/Blackjack.[[/note]]
585** Morning Glory's family.[[note]]Dawn. Dusk. Moonshadow. Lucent. Lambent. [[OddNameOut Sky Striker.]][[/note]]
586** The Zodiac bounty hunters are all named after the zodiac star signs, though these are assumed names.
587* ThereAreNoTherapists: [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment Surprisingly]] [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] with Rampage being an almost literal version of WarriorTherapist. Apart from this, [[JustifiedTrope the trope is played straight due to]] [[PollutedWasteland the setting]].
588* [[HeKnowsTooMuch They Know Too Much]]: [[spoiler: Mr. and Mrs. Cake, who work for Pinkie as spies, discover Project Eternity and end up being murdered for their troubles.]]
589* ThisIsGonnaSuck: Narrated word for word by Blackjack, just before [[spoiler: she gets raped.]]
590* TimeSkip: [[spoiler: Between Volumes Four and Five, three months have passed. Blackjack, who fell into the Core, is presumed dead. The events of the original ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria'' have almost drawn to a close, with Red Eye's forces defeated and the Enclave more or less disbanded.]]
591* TitleDrop: Almost. In chapter 5, we have a log from [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Robert_Oppenheimer Dr. Trottenheimer]] writing about his extremely controversial project named "P.H.", which seems to make pretty clear what [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_Project "Project Horizons"]] is about...
592** Although Chapter 39 mentions that weaponized megaspells were handled by "Project Starfall." Apparently, "Project Horizons" was something much worse. Even Blackjack finds that a little hard to believe.
593** And in Chapter 45, [[spoiler: Blackjack finds a terminal of Goldenblood's which simply says, "Activate Project Horizons: Y/N?" Fortunately, she opts not to.]]
594* TooDumbToLive: [[spoiler: The Stable 99 ponies]] for not listening to Blackjack or Scotch Tape and thinking that [[spoiler: the Stable's food processor could take out the virus]]. Guess what? They're wrong.
595* TooKinkyToTorture: Blackjack is the submissive partner during her BDSM sessions with Glory. When one of her foes - [[spoiler:Lancer]] - ties her up and blindfolds her, she has a hard time concentrating on the matter at hoof because she's so turned on.
596* TorturedMonster: [[spoiler: Deus, Discord and Rampage. Also, the screaming room]].
597* TrainingThePeacefulVillagers: Following a battle, Blackjack and co. decide to help the ponies of Flank by reinforcing the town's defenses. [[spoiler: [[{{Subverted}} The locals see it as an attempt to take over the town]]]].
598** It pays off in Chapter [[spoiler: 36]].
599* TranquilFury: Blackjack drops into one upon finding [[spoiler: Stable 99 turned into a raider nest]]. It takes [[spoiler: a bullet to the head]] to snap her out of it.
600** Also in Chapter 42, sort of. After being hit by an explosion (not a spoiler with how often that happens), her [=PipBuck=] gets temporarily messed up, so all she can hear is Octavia's contrabass.
601* TraumaCongaLine: Blackjack suffers an excessive number of injuries, ailments and psychological traumas over the course of the story, many of which come very close to killing her. Glory suffers awfully as well.
602-->'''Ponibooru comment:''' ALL ABOARD THE PSYCHOLOGICAL DETERIORATION TRAIN, NOW DEPARTING BLACKJACK STATION. AGAIN.
603* TruthInTelevision:
604** That virus that ravages the wasteland through cannibalism is more or less a pony version of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creutzfeldt%E2%80%93Jakob_disease vCJD]].
605** Project Horizon was a real U.S. Army study to [[spoiler: determine the feasibility of a military base on the moon]].
606* UnskilledButStrong: The Harbingers. They possess pristine top grade weaponry, but nary a pony knows how to use it effectively.
607* UnspokenPlanGuarantee: Blackjack shows a message with four words on it to a number of ponies during the Shadowbolt Tower assault. She never shows that message to ''herself'' [[spoiler: because Lighthooves has a way to see through her eyes]] - so she never shows it to the ''audience'', either.
608* UnstoppableRage:
609** Blackjack, when [[spoiler: [[BreakTheCutie the Enclave brand Glory.]]]] She deliberately helps this trope along by injecting herself with a cocktail of chems.
610** Other characters have been seen to use chems for the same purpose. Notably, the Burner Boys' suicide bomber raiders in Chapter 31 and Flank's militia in Chapter 36.
611** In chapter 42 Blackjack falls into this against a squad of [[spoiler: Thunderhead Enclave soldiers. [[SheWhoFightsMonsters Her brutality]] makes a member of the Highlanders]] visibly afraid.
612** This appears to be the whole point of the chem appropriately named Rage and its derivative, Stampede.
613* ValuesDissonance: InUniverse. Since Stable 99 was basically a FreeLoveFuture, Blackjack, P-21, and Scotch Tape are all confused by the idea of a monogamous relationship. Glory is similarly confused when this is explained to her.
614* TheVirus: See AscendedToCarnivorism.
615* VoiceWithAnInternetConnection: [[Fanfic/FalloutEquestria Watcher]] makes a number of appearances, but plays only a minor role. [[spoiler: That is, until he invites Blackjack to meet him and see the Gardens of Equestria, rescuing her from the DespairEventHorizon]].
616* WasOnceAMan:
617** Deus, aka. [[spoiler: Doof]].
618** Rampage is strongly implied to be [[spoiler: a [[MindHive conglomeration]] of the souls of (at least) Twist, Officer Softheart, the 'Angel of Death', a nameless foal, a drug dealer named Razorwire, Shujaa, and Doctor Octopus [[ComicBook/SpiderMan (No, not that one)]]]].
619** Lacunae is implied to have originally been [[spoiler: Psalm]].
620** All the monsterponies created by Project Chimera, including...
621*** Gorgon, a.k.a. [[spoiler: Stonewing]], fused with a cockatrice.
622*** Cora, the manticore pony, who was once [[spoiler: Brass, the mare that goaded Doof into raping Twist]].
623*** Fury, who was fused with a phoenix.
624*** Precious, a foal fused with a baby dragon.
625** [[spoiler: Blackjack herself, following her mutations and cybernetic augmentation.]]
626* WhamEpisode:
627** Chapter 22. [[spoiler: About a third of Stable 99's population have [[TheVirus become raiders.]] [[BoomHeadshot Blackjack gets shot in the head.]] [[KickTheDog P-21 is raped.]] The surviving stable dwellers eventually retake the stable, [[WonTheWarLostThePeace but contaminate the food supply]] [[TooDumbToLive with the raider virus.]] [[MercyKill Blackjack floods the stable]] with [[DeadlyGas chlorine gas]], [[DrivenToSuicide attempting suicide in the process]]]].
628** Chapter 33. [[spoiler: Dying, [[NightmareSequence Blackjack has a nightmare]] of [[BadFuture the future that giving EC-1101 to Sanguine would bring about]], and begs Glory not to exchange EC-1101 for her life. Memory orbs reveal the circumstances of [[CainAndAbel Vanity's death]] and conclusively unmask 'Maripony' as Twilight Sparkle. When Blackjack's friends leave to find a way of healing her, the ''Seahorse'' is attacked by bandits who brutally rape and mutilate her. After a long-overdue reconciliation with P-21, Blackjack is taken onto the deck and [[DiedInYourArmsTonight finally dies in Glory's embrace]], under the stars.]]
629** Chapter 36. [[spoiler: Sanguine, desperate to get EC-1101, uses Red Eye's forces to completely wipe out several towns where Blackjack has been, including Brimstone's Fall. In the end, he [[TheBadGuyWins gets the file]], having also killed Priest. We also learn that Blackjack's firing of Folly has awakened something terrible within the Core, and meet a group of ponies who hum the disturbing tune from Blackjack's BadFuture nightmare.]]
630** Chapter 52. [[spoiler: Glory's mother, Dawn, reveals herself to be the leader of the Harbingers. She asks Blackjack to hand over EC-1101, threatening to destroy Chapel with a tank if she doesn't. During the ensuing fight, a squad of Enclave soldiers appears, led by Glory's father, Sky Striker. Sky attempts to convince Dawn to come back to the sky, but she refuses. She then reveals a [[TronLines Tron Lined]] LovecraftianSuperpower and viciously attacks him. Also, that tank turns out to be Deus.]]
631** Chapter 62. [[spoiler: Thunderhead erupts into civil war, Glory turns back to her original form, Rainbow Dash turns out to be alive and a ghoul, Lighthooves turns out to have become a cyborg along with all of his subordinates through using data stolen from Blackjack and intends to infect all of Thunderhead with his modified version of the raider plague. Blackjack becomes a full cyborg to stop him, gaining wings in the process and losing much of herself. Lighthooves motives are finally revealed; he wishes to destroy the Enclave, having discovered the true nature of his ancestor [[DirtyCoward Meph]][[KarmaHoudini itis]]. At the end, Lighthooves dies, Shadowbolt Tower is destroyed by an implosion megaspell, much of Thunderhead is rubble and Blackjack falls into the [[EldritchLocation Core]].]]
632* WhatHaveIBecome:
633** [[spoiler: Blackjack shows elements of this following her augmentation. She finds her automated breathing, lack of heartbeat, and optical interface deeply disturbing, to the point of sympathising with Deus.]]
634** [[spoiler: Sanguine]] admits to these thoughts, though it's not enough to stop [[spoiler: him]] from doing the unspeakable.
635* WhatTheHellHero: Blackjack receives these frequently, though more often out of concern than outrage. However, her [[spoiler: various abuses of P-21 in Stable 99]] and [[spoiler: suicide attempts]] are genuine examples. Rampage calls her out on [[spoiler: going ahead with Scotch Tape's memory wipe, and leaves the party as a consequence]].
636** [[spoiler: In Chapter 40 Blackjack delivers one of these to Twilight Sparkle's consciousness via Lacunae, after witnessing firsthoof all crimes against equinity she committed to create the Impelled Metamorphosis Potion.]]
637** Blackjack gets this from just about everyone after she [[spoiler: cheats on Glory with Stygius.]]
638* WhoWantsToLiveForever: Rampage doesn't. Apparently, several other Reapers ([[spoiler:and many of the former Marauders]]) have this problem.
639* WhereIWasBornAndRazed: [[spoiler: Although she tries to make things better, Blackjack [[spoiler:is eventually forced to MercyKill the entire population. It would have been a HeroicSacrifice [[DrivenToSuicide (of sorts)]], but a prior [[DealWithTheDevil Deal With The Goddess]] literally dragged her out.]]
640* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes:
641** Due to her Stable upbringing, Blackjack is terrified of air travel. When she has to do it, she prefers to spend the trip in a memory orb. Just looking up at the sky makes her nauseous.
642** Various events make [[WrenchWench Scotch Tape]] [[{{Irony}} afraid of machines]].
643* WonTheWarLostThePeace: [[spoiler: The battle for Stable 99]].
644* WorldBuilding: Within the already deep world of ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestria, Hoofington stands out for being extremely detailed, with a rich history, many cultures and factions with their own complex politics, a good two dozen fleshed out settlements, a very large cast of characters, and more research labs and weapons factories than you can shake a rocket launcher at.
645* WretchedHive: Flank is a town built on prostitution and drug abuse.
646* YouKnowTooMuch: Goldenblood invokes this, dropping an unfortunate eavesdropper down an elevator shaft.
647--> '''Goldenblood:''' Do you know what the three most precious things in Equestria are, Dewdrop?\
648'''Dewdrop:''' Family, sir? Friends? Um… money?\
649'''Goldenblood:''' Family is a dime a dozen. Friends are articles of convenience. And money is trash. No, the three most precious things are loyalty, love... and secrets.
650* YouMonster: {{Subverted}} when [[spoiler: Blackjack decides to look into the memory orb Deus left for her]].
651--> [[spoiler: "So…" I muttered as I stared at the orb, its light casting my features in its ghostly glow, "[[HeWhoFightsMonsters One monster to another…]] what's on your mind, Deus?"]]
652* YourHeadASplode: Several slaves in Chapter 29, and many victims of Blackjack's [[ProjectileSpell magic bullet spell]].
653* YouShallNotPass: Vanity, word for word, while protecting Harpica and some foals from an angry mob.
654* ZodiacMotifs: The Zodiac clan is a group of assassins which operate out of Hoofington University. Each member is named after a different sign of the Zodiac, and they each have the Zodiac that they represent tattooed over their Cutie Mark.

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