Line #147 Franchise/BreathOfFire


1	%% Leave image on right. It screws up the first set of bullets, otherwise
2	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bof_1514.png]]
3	[[caption-width-right:300:[[Series/DoctorWho Splendid fellows]], [[LegacyCharacter all of him]].]]
4
5	''Breath of Fire'' was a long-running [[EasternRPG JRPG]] series by Creator/{{Capcom}}, who are better-known for their action and {{fighting game}} fare.
6
7	Like ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'', the stories are only tenuously connected but share various species, characters, and gameplay elements, such as:
8
9	* A blue-haired hero, at first unnamed but later established to be "Ryu" after the Japanese word for "[[AnimalMotif dragon]]." He always has the ability to morph into a dragon, though the mechanics differ from game-to-game.
10	* An [[WingedHumanoid angelic]] blonde named Nina. She's always a skilled [[WhiteMagicianGirl mage]] rather than a fighter.
11	* Worlds where humans live side to side with [[BeastMan anthropomorphic]] moles/dogs/any other animal, as well as the occasional [[PlantPerson talking plant]]. (Bizarrely, [[HotSkittyOnWailordAction they can all interbreed.]]) The recurring {{black mage}}/[[MsFanservice fanservice character]] is Deis, a descended goddess with [[SnakePeople the lower body of a snake.]]
12	* Enough psychological drama to make your head spin.
13	* [[BlindIdiotTranslation Laughably-bad translations]], at least for the first two games.
14	* Really weird dungeon design. The first two games had mazes that included the insides of a giant robot reminiscent of the later ''[[VideoGame/EarthBound1994 EarthBound]]'''s Dungeon Man, the [[JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind mind of a sentient (though senile) tree]] and [[FantasticVoyagePlot the stomach of an overweight queen]] which must be flattened by killing all the demons that have infested it. Fun times.
15	* Freaky-looking monster designs. Generally speaking, you'll start out against the usual monster fare like slimes, but by the end, you'll be taking on giant pulsating brains with fangs or giant demons with multiple, draconic-headed tentacle-like appendages coming out of every part of their body. The HopelessBossFight at the start of ''II'' is another famous example.
16	* A connected storyline between the first three games, albeit separated by hundreds or even thousands of years at a time. There's some argument over whether the fourth game comes first or last in the chronology. [[AllThereInTheManual The game's official artbook]] states that the fifth is not connected with the others.
17	----
18	!!The games are as follows:
19
20	* ''VideoGame/{{Breath of Fire\|I}}'' (1993): The original focused on Ryu's quest to save his sister and the world from [[TheEmperor Emperor]] Zog, who plots to release Myria, [[GodIsEvil a goddess of temptation and strife]]. It was localized by [[Creator/SquareEnix Square]] rather than Capcom, the game's makers, resulting in a translation which wasn't ''quite'' as bad as it could have been. However, Square's translators had to truncate a lot of item descriptions to fit the in-game menu and [[AdaptationNameChange renamed a lot of characters]] seemingly at random, making some of the connections between ''I-III'' vague.
21	** Released on: Platform/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem, Platform/GameBoyAdvance, Platform/WiiU, Platform/Nintendo3DS, Platform/NintendoSwitch
22	* ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireII'' (1994): ''II'' introduces Ryu as a young boy who, after nodding off to sleep one morning, finds [[RetGone his family has vanished and no one recognizes him]]. Flash to adulthood, where Ryu must clear his buddy's name after he is caught breaking inside a vault. Seems like small potatoes, but it gradually unravels a conspiracy involving Myria's offspring, who has some massive evil plans, indeed. The English translation was atrocious even by the standards of the day, but a high-quality [[http://www.romhacking.net/translations/1384/ fan translation]] exists.
23	** Released on: Super Nintendo, Game Boy Advance, Wii U, New Nintendo 3DS, Switch
24	* ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIII'' (1997): The series' [[VideoGame3DLeap first foray into 3D]]. Again, we follow Ryu as he ages from a child to an adult (eventually learning he is the [[TheChosenOne savior of his people, the Brood]]), and the main antagonist is a religious figure.
25	** Released on: {{Platform/PlayStation}}, {{Platform/PlayStation Portable}}
26	* ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV'' (2000): ''IV'' has two protagonists: It moves back and forth between Ryu's journey to discover his [[AmnesiacHero lost memories]] and the resurrected GodEmperor Fou-Lu's quest to restore his empire. It is significantly darker than its predecessors, focusing more on the political tension between nations, the relationship between gods and humans, and the process by which a would-be hero [[KnightTemplar can become a villain.]]
27	** Released on: [=PlayStation=], Microsoft Windows
28	* ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireDragonQuarter'' (2002): ''DQ'' ([[StoppedNumberingSequels the number was dropped]] in the Western release) is the last console game and a radical departure in terms of gameplay and setting. Ryu seeks to escape a DieselPunk-inspired [[BeneathTheEarth underground city]] with Nina in tow, despite the surface world being declared off-limits. Standing in their way is Bosch, Ryu's ex-partner and ''bona fide'' ImplacableMan. Interestingly, the story is not meant to be beaten in one playthrough, and more scenes are added each time you die and start over.
29	** Released on: Platform/PlayStation2
30	* ''VideoGame/BreathOfFire6'' (2016) It was originally announced in August 2013 and planned for release in 2014. This new game wouldn't be available for any home or handheld consoles, but rather for smartphones, tablets, and Windows [=PCs=]. It was later pushed back to the end of 2015, and was further limited to mobile devices and touchscreen Windows platforms. Devastatingly for longtime fans, it turned out be a Japan-only mobile game. It was again pushed back to February 2016 and then finally released, but soon closed down in September 2017.
31	** Released on: Microsoft Windows, Android, {{UsefulNotes/iOS\|Games}}
32
33	A manga adaptation of the fourth game was recently produced by Comic Blade Avarus. The final chapter was published in January 2010, with the final volume compilation printed in May of that year 2010. It has been licensed in French and Chinese.
34
35	The series is often joked about by fans as being Capcom's most-hated IP, as it's one of the few ones (and certainly the most prominent) not to appear in the VideoGame/CapcomVs line (not counting the occasional [[TheCameo cameos]]). [[note]]Worth noting that [[https://www.eventhubs.com/news/2017/feb/14/over-150-female-characters-were-considered-addition-umvc3-none-them-made-cut-niitsuma-details-roster-choices/ according]] to ''VideoGame/UltimateMarvelVSCapcom3'' producer Ryota Niitsuma, there were plans to have [[VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV Fou Lu]] and [[VideoGame/BreathOfFireII Katt]] join the roster that ultimately went nowhere for different reasons (he thought that international audiences wouldn't recognize Fou Lu and that staff users like Katt weren't a priority).[[/note]]
36
37	Not to be confused with Adron e'Kieron's Breath of Fire Battallion (light cavalry, all of whom are powerful sorcerers) in ''Literature/FiveHundredYearsAfter''.
38
39	----
40	!!This series provides examples of:
41
42	* AcronymAndAbbreviationOverload: The first two games in particular suffered quite heavily from this.
43	* AllInARow: The standard arrangement of your party members in the series.
44	* AllThereInTheManual: In the case of ''IV'' and (to a slightly lesser extent) ''DQ'', a fair amount of the world's background info only exists in the Official Works artbooks.
45	** The first game has also a timeline detailing most of its backstory, from the origin of the universe to the current in-game war.
46	* AlternateUniverse: Two, possibly three, universes exist as follows:
47	** ''I-III'' are canonically in the same universe, [[NonLinearSequel separated by hundreds if not thousands of years per game.]]
48	** ''Dragon Quarter'' is (per Capcom) in an AlternateUniverse unrelated to other games.
49	** The position of ''IV'' is best described as controversial.[[note]]Arguments for AlternateUniverse, AlternateContinuity, and two separate arguments for being in the "I-III Verse" (as both {{Sequel}} and [[AnachronicOrder Prequel]]) have all been made by the fandom. [[/note]]
50	* AmericanKirbyIsHardcore: The box cover art in ''I'' and ''II''. Mind you, the Ryu in ''I'' could give Conan a run for his money.
51	* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit: ''II'' and ''III'' are the prime offenders; the rest of the series averts this trope.
52	* ArtShift: All art in the first five games of the series is done by Tatsuya Yoshikawa (who also did character designs for Devil May Cry 4 and 5, plus many games in the Mega Man series), but starting with ''III'' the art makes a break from large-eyed, colorful characters draped with jewel-encrusted clothes, to characters with smaller, more natural faces, muted colors, and a greater emphasis on a UsedFuture look. ''Breath of Fire 6'' takes the art entirely in the other direction, with brightly-colored cartoony characters and even goofier-looking monsters; notably, Tatsuya Yoshikawa is not credited for the sixth game's artwork, nor, apparently, is anyone else.
53	* BackFromTheDead:
54	** Tyr/Myria in ''I'' and ''III''; thought KilledOffForReal in ''I'', came BackFromTheDead in ''III''.
55	** Arguably Fou-lu in ''IV'', but more of an explicit subversion of KingInTheMountain.
56	* BeastMan: Interesting in that in ''I''-''IV'', the people lose their animal characteristics and become more human-like.
57	** All the same, though, in the first four games it is actually easier to list what kinds of {{Beast M\|an}}en do ''not'' appear in the games. If anything, it's more of a transition from flat-out FunnyAnimal to [[LittleBitBeastly kemonomimi]].
58	* BelligerentSexualTension:
59	** Rei and Momo in ''III''.
60	** The manga adaptation of ''I'' turns Ryu and Nina into something like this.
61	* BigBad:
62	** ''I'': Zog appears to be this at first, but it turns out that [[spoiler:Tyr/Myria]] [[GreaterScopeVillain was the one pulling the strings]].
63	** ''II'': [[spoiler:Deathevan, the spawn of the previous BigBad, and deity of the religious movement.]]
64	** ''III'': [[spoiler:Myria reprises her role, but is painted in a far more sympathetic light this time around.]]
65	** ''IV'': GodEmperor Fou-lu, the EvilCounterpart of protagonist Ryu. [[spoiler:Turns out he really isn't that bad at all. Lord Yuna, however, more [[MadScientist than]] [[ManipulativeBastard qualifies]] for the role, the [[KarmaHoudini bastard]].]]
66	** ''Dragon Quarter'': [[spoiler:Bosch and Chetyre appear to be equal contenders for the title, but most would probably go with the latter.]]
67	* BigCreepyCrawlies: All over. Giant cockroaches, giant ants, giant ''humanoid'' bees, giant ''humanoid'' flies, giant ''fire-breathing'' leeches, etc.
68	* BilingualBonus:
69	** In ''III'', the names of the ghosts in [=McNeil=] Manor in Japanese are references to business concepts.
70	** Also in ''III'', most characters related to the port city of Raphala are references to fishing terms, fishing lures or actual fish.
71	** In ''IV'', names rendered in kanji were [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/forum/printthread.php?t=7371 renamed to their Korean hanja readings]] for international versions. The puns still stay intact.
72	** Also shows up in ''DQ'' in a manner combining names and Russian counting.[[note]]Origin = Math term for 1, Odjn a transliteration for Russian ''adin'' "one", Dover a mangling of Russian ''dva'' "two", Chetryre being a straight transliteration of Russian ''chetyre'' "4", and so on.[[/note]]
73	** Most of the CreativeClosingCredits in ''II'' are so chock-full of Western culture references that it probably went over most Japanese folks' heads. And due to name changes for the English version, most Westerner's heads, too.
74	* BlindIdiotTranslation
75	** Somewhat in ''I'', which was largely a result of farming out the English translation to Square (who engaged in mass {{Woolseyism}}).
76	** Much much worse in ''II'', which was the result of Capcom doing it in-house during a period where their non-Japanese localization in general had much to be desired...
77	*** The translation of the second game, aside from some alcohol references and a certain Puff-Puff massage scene, ''was'' actually accurate since it was a direct translation of the Japanese script word by word. The problem was that Japanese is a very vague language often omitting parts of sentences and relying heavily on context, besides having a very different grammatical structure for sentences. Most translations from Japanese fill in those blanks from context. However, Breath of Fire II, and infamously Final Fantasy 7, did not--and the resulting "English" translation is almost unintelligible.
78	** Bizarrely, unlike many other [[UpdatedRerelease ports of RPGs to the system,]] the GBA ports of these two games ''did not re-translate anything at all''.
79	* BossInMookClothing: The series' recurrent example is the [=GooKing=], ever since ''II''. Other well-known examples are the Archmage and Berserker from ''III'' and the Rider from ''IV''. Technically, they're not Bosses, but ''they should be''; they're some of the most powerful enemies in the series!
80	* {{Bowdlerized}}: A RaceLift and a few minor edits in ''I'', mostly subverted in ''II'', a [[ShesAManInJapan gender-swap]] with ''DQ'', and more than made up with in ''IV''. Check their respective pages for more detail.
81	* BreathWeapon: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Well, obviously.]] Ryu's a ''dragon'', after all.
82	* BrokenBridge: ''I'' and ''III'' have a few literal examples (''I'' in particular is littered with them). There are also other examples in the other games, like the Imperial Causeway in ''IV''.
83	* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler:Myria and Deis. Becomes explicit in ''III''.]]
84	* TheCameo: Every game after the first has cameo appearances from previous game's party members: ''II'' has Karn and Bo; ''III'' has Mogu, Gary (Gill in Japanese, short for Gilliam/Bo), Worker (Japanese name Builder/Ox), Bow and Jean; and ''IV'' has Rei, Teepo and Momo (the latter doubles as a Master). ''DQ'' has [[TheCameo its cameo]] in a bit more obscure form--the puppet-girl instructors from ''IV'' show up as the game's merchants.
85	** And yes, all of these count as [[MythologyGag Mythology Gags]] if not blatant [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]].
86	** On top of that, the first game has a cameo from Chun-Li (in the Thieves' Town and, if you know the trick, in the ending), and the third game cameos from Chun-Li and Sakura (in the Arena, watching the fight).
87	* CantDropTheHero
88	** Averted in ''I''; once you have at least five party members, it is possible to switch Ryu out of the main fighting party.
89	** Similarly averted in ''IV'', with the threshold dropped to four.
90	* ChainOfDeals: Present in the first four games, but ''especially and painfully'' so in ''I''.
91	* {{Combos}}: There's a "Super Combo" Skill in ''III''; in ''IV'' onwards, its part of the gameplay.
92	* CharacterLevel
93	* ComicBookAdaptation: Quite a number of them, actually--two separate manga adaptations and an official sidestory for ''I'' and a manga adaptation for ''IV'' that are actually directed by Capcom, and a mess of others:
94	** The original ''VideoGame/{{Breath of Fire\|I}}'' had no less than ''two'' manga adaptations, ''[[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/breath_of_fire_ryuu_no_senshi/v01/c001/1.html Breath of Fire: The Dragon Warrior]]'' and ''Breath of Fire: Princess Of The Wings''. The first is a {{Shonen}} manga which is a fairly straight (if [[CompressedAdaptation heavily compressed]]) adaptation, while the second is a {{Shoujo}} sequel set after the end of the game.
95	** In addition, an officially directed SpinOff sidestory of ''I'' exists (''Breath of Fire Part 2: Little Adventurer'') [[spoiler:involving Ryu and Nina's child and Gilliam's child.]]
96	** The ''IV'' manga ''Utsurowazarumono: Breath Of Fire IV''; "Utsurowazarumono" is a term meaning roughly "The Unchanging Ones" and is usually translated in English-language adaptations as "Endless") is a straight ComicBookAdaptation with additional material from the artbook. It's also an example of the FleetingDemographicRule, and the final volume was released in time for the 10th anniversary of ''IV'''s release in Japan.
97	** Note here that these are only listings of ''Capcom-directed'' adaptations (aka stuff Capcom had an active hand in providing material for). There are also [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/newnmk/?it=bof/bofbooks.html multiple]] Capcom-''licensed'' but not Capcom-''directed'' manga including:
98	*** An anthology-comic for ''IV'' (which has both serious and parody stories).
99	*** Multiple {{Yonkoma}} collections for ''III'' (one) and ''IV'' (two). Yes, Capcom ''loves'' its Breath of Fire-related {{Yonkoma}} treatments (considering they also okayed the "Behind The Cover Comic" yonkoma in the Comic Blade Avarus manga).
100	*** At least one Capcom-directed comedy manga (Capcomic) also has occasionally had [=BoF=]-related comics.
101	** And yes, for the record, all of these are Japan-only. Fortunately, there are scanlations for some of this material available, mostly of the earlier mangas, the Comic Blade Avarus manga adaptation of ''IV'', and some material from the ''IV'' anthology comic.
102	* ContinuingIsPainful: of two different flavors:
103	** In ''III'' and ''IV'', characters who remain KO'ed at the end of the battle are revived at 1 HP, but suffer a 10% cut to their maximum HP that can ''only'' be restored by staying at a bona-fide TraumaInn. Unfortunately, the effect accumulates if it happens repeatedly, up to a 50% cut in max HP.
104	** Choosing the "SOL:Restore" option in ''Dragon Quarter'' lets you try again from the most recent SavePoint ... only without whatever items you were carrying when you actually saved your game there.
105	* ConvenientQuesting
106	* CounterAttack: In ''I'', it was mostly an ability used by a few characters like Ryu and Karn's Puka form. From 'II'' onwards, Counter attacking becomes universal for both allies and enemies.
107	* CriticalHit: Under various names ("Crit", "Toasted") before setting on "Critical".
108	* CrystalDragonJesus: ''II'' has this in spades and ''IV'' has an arguable case with ''Eastern'' religions (particularly Taoism, Buddhism and pre-Taoist shamanic practices) rather than Christianity. [[spoiler:It can even be argued that the Yorae Dragon itself is portrayed as a Crystal Dragon ''Matreiya'' (Buddha of the future) and ''all'' the Endless are portrayed as literal Crystal Dragon Taoist Immortals. For that matter, Fou-lu is a literal Crystal Dragon Founding Divine Emperor.]]
109	* CuteMonsterGirl[=/=]CuteMonsterGuy: By the time you reach the endgame, your party will probably have a few of both.
110	* DeathOfTheOldGods: 'II' has the old animist dragon gods being forgotten in favor of a new [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed I-Can't-Believe-It's-Not-Catholicism!]] monotheistic religion [[spoiler:which is really a PathOfInspiration serving an EvilGod]].
111	* DefendCommand
112	* DemotedToExtra: Bleu/Deis was demoted game by game: An important party member in ''I'', an OptionalPartyMember in ''II'', a Master in ''III'', a NPC in ''IV'',[[note]]though her soul resides in Ershin[[/note]] and completely absent in ''Dragon Quarter''. Of course, she was always ridiculously powerful whenever she was available... There were plans to originally put Deis in ''Dragon Quarter'' per Capcom. [[spoiler:As noted above, this even made it to the early concept art stage before the character concept was essentially replaced by Lin.]]
113	* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: Most notable in ''I''-''III''. (In ''IV'', technically [[spoiler:both Ryu and Fou-lu are [[PhysicalGod Physical Gods]] (technically, halves of the ''same'' god) and Ryu's initial weaker state is because he's the "younger half" of the LiteralSplitPersonality]]; in ''Dragon Quarter'', [[spoiler:both Ryu and TheRival Bosch end up being possessed by [[WeaponOfMassDestruction Dragons Of Mass Destruction]].]]
114	* DiscOneNuke:
115	** Surprisingly in ''IV'', the Burn spell. Have Ryu learn it, and you can have easy-spamming access to the game's famed {{Combo}} magic. It ''will'' save your noggin a couple of times.
116	** In ''I'', there are a couple: An item obtained after the second boss allows any character equipped with it to deal 30 damage to the entire enemy party; most characters can't do anywhere near that much damage to one enemy, let alone the entire enemy party. Likewise, the flame rapier, but instead of giving a good attack boost, it can be used as an item in battle, to do ''90 Damage'' which is far more than Nina would ever do by stabbing someone with it. Only two other things around that stage of the game even come close--one's a spell that costs a lot of MP for that point, the other is the Hero's Dragon form.
117	** In ''II'', the level 2 Dragon spells can be obtained as soon as you first recruit Jean (and right before his story plot, where he becomes unavailable).
118	** An expert use of [=Sol:Restart=] in ''Dragon Quarter'' would allow your party to have a hefty amount of ExperiencePoints at their disposal.
119	* TheDragon: The first four games have a notable one: Jade in ''I'' ([[spoiler:atleast before he takes over]]), Ray in ''II'', [[spoiler:Teepo]] in ''III'' and Yohm in ''IV'' (explicitly noted as such in the manga adaptation).
120	* DubNameChange: Every game in the series has had this happen to a greater or lesser extent with ''I'' and ''IV'' having the most extensive. (Of note, this seems to be a common curse among ''all'' games produced by Capcom and released internationally.)
121	** In ''I'', a partial list includes renaming of Deis to Bleu, Gilliam to Bo, Builder to Ox, Danc to Karn, Manillo to Gobi, and that's just for starters. (Most name changes are largely due to both space restrictions and outsourcing of the translation to Square and can be considered legitimate examples of {{Woolseyism}}.)
122	** In ''II'', Boche to Bow,[[note]]The Japanese name would be shouted-out in ''DQ'' with Bosch and the English name is a shoutout to Bo in the first[[/note]] Rinpoo to Katt,[[note]]The Japanese name was also in part shouted-out in ''DQ'' with Rin/Lin[[/note]] Tapeta to Jean, Aspara to Spar, plus several other name changes. Unfortunately, [[TranslationTrainwreck Square can't be blamed for this one]]...
123	** In ''III'' Pecoros to Peco, Garland to Garr, Babaderu[[note]]Shout-out to an enemy name in ''II''[[/note]] to Bunyan, plus several other characters, enemies, items and dragon forms. The majority of changes were to [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/forum/printthread.php?t=7333&pp=40 preserve puns or jokes or to localise them]].
124	** In ''IV'', a ''partial'' list includes Master to Ershin,[[note]]In an attempt at a multilingual spoiler; "Ershin" is Chinese for "two souls"[[/note]] Babaderu to Bunyan, ''all'' NPC dragons to the Korean hanja readings for the kanji noting what kind of dragons they were, multiple town names from Japanese kanji readings to Korean hanja readings, other things being changed to Korean readings or even random Korean words, multiple dragon forms having names changed...[[note]]The Japanese versions made use in part of names from Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky"[[/note]] The list is so extensive, it's better if you just take a look at it [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/forum/printthread.php?t=7371&pp=40 here]]. The extensive DubNameChange treatment of ''IV'' has also led to issues regarding translation of its ComicBookAdaptation. The English FanTranslation has generally gone with the {{Dub Name Change}}s; the licensed French version of the manga may also be going with the DubNameChange names.
125	** In ''Dragon Quarter'', there aren't a whole lot (especially compared to the rest of the series!)--but notable ones include renaming Members to Regents and DB's to Genics (the renamings, for once, seem to be restricted to classes rather than characters).
126	* DuelBoss: A lot! Usually either for an EstablishingCharacterMoment or because Ryu needs his EleventhHourSuperpower.
127	* EliteTweak: Started with Shamans in ''II'', then progressed to the Master/Skill System from ''III'' onward.
128	* FacialMarkings: Every game in the series has this going on to an extent, as would be expected with the proliferation of {{Beast M\|an}}en in this series.
129	** Ryu in the original ''Breath of Fire'' has a red tattoo-like image of a dragon on his forehead.
130	** All of the Woren/Furen in the series, with the exception of Lin (who is a CatGirl rather than a tiger) in ''Dragon Quarter'' have tiger-like stripes on their face.
131	** All of the HalfHumanHybrid "warrior" or "trance" forms of Ryu and his respective draconic antagonists have facial markings.
132	** ''Dragon Quarter'' in particular is chock full of examples ''not'' directly related to BeastMan proper:
133	*** Nina has a tattoo on her forehead. Capcom has said that this is a brand indicating she has such a low D-ratio that she's legally considered a lab-rat.
134	*** Bosch develops a particularly frightning version [[spoiler: when he forces the lab researchers to graft the remains of Chetyre on him; literally half his face ends up turning black with greenish circuitry-like marks.]]
135	*** Elyon also has extensive, "Dragon Hybrid"-esque FacialMarkings and horns. [[spoiler:These are stigmata from an ultimately failed link with [[WeaponOfMassDestruction Odjn]]--in fact, in one conversation he has with Odjn afterwards, half his face is covered in black with ''red'' circuit-like marks, and Elyon notes that even the remnant of that link is killing him.]]
136	* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: Ultimately subverted as a game mechanic for ''Dragon Quarter''. You can only win by [[spoiler:driving your D-Counter up to 100% in the final battle.]]
137	* FantasyCounterpartCulture: ''II'' and ''IV'' in particular has a ton of these.
138	** The Fou Empire in ''IV'' is explicitly a fantastic version of imperial-era China (most likely the Qin Dynasty) or imperial-era Korea.
139	** Ludia in ''IV'' is a FantasyCounterpartCulture to a northern European country (possibly Victorian England).
140	** The traditional Woren culture (and Worent in particular) is a fantastic mish-mash of several Native American cultures, particularly of Southwestern peoples like the Hopi and Dine/Navajo.
141	** Wyndia in ''IV'' may be meant as a Netherlands {{Expy}}.
142	** The [=PabPab=] are a fantastic equivalent of isolated indigenous peoples, particularly the Aka "Pygmy" people.
143	** [=SimaFort=] in ''II'' takes itself as a counterpart to France, specifically noted by the clan's natural skills (cooking and art) and their GratuitousFrench.
144	** [=HighFort=] in ''II'' seems a pseudo-counterpart to Germany, and helps drive the point home with the german-sounding names their habitants have.
145	* FantasyWorldMap: All games but ''III'' and ''DQ'' have an in-game world map which fills up as the party travels through it.
146	* FastForwardMechanic: The main character has a spell to do this.
147	* FishingMinigame: A series staple starting with ''II'', although fishing also existed as an automated process in ''I''.
148	** ''III'' in particular is heavily enamoured of this trope, even using it for ThemeNaming and extras. The fishing minigame in ''III's'' re-release for PSP actually unlocks concept art that has never been published (even in artbooks). Characters were named for fishing lures and one town was even named after a lure manufacturer.
149	** ''IV'' actually had its fishing minigame ''released as a GaidenGame for Japanese cell phones''.
150	** ''DQ'' is exceptional in being the sole game in the series that doesn't have a fishing game of any sort. This was not for [[ExecutiveMeddling want of planning]], though.[[note]]Capcom even states a fishing minigame was in the works up until only three weeks before ''Dragon Quarter'' was released in Japan and was cancelled due to deadlines[[/note]]
151	** This trope eventually was treated to an AffectionateParody in an official Capcom "comedy manga" featuring all four Ryus (''Dragon Quarter'' was not yet released) engaging in an ice-fishing contest.
152	* FissionMailed:
153	** ''II'' has one in its prologue.
154	** ''III'' has the {{Hopeless Boss Fight}}s against Balio and Sunder and Garr respectively.
155	** ''IV'' has Fou-lu's Hopeless Boss Fights against Yohm, and technically the BadEnd of the game qualifies as an unusual variation. [[spoiler:You get to control the Infini Dragon who proceeds to destroy your entire party. It's strongly implied that Infini proceeds to go on an [[OmnicidalManiac Omnicidal]] RoaringRampageOfRevenge against humanity.]]
156	** ''Dragon Quarter'' actually elevates this to an overt game mechanic. You've tried to keep the D-Counter from going to 100% (lest Ryu's DeadlyUpgrade devour him from within)...and in the final battle with Chetyre [[spoiler:you MUST get your D-Counter over 100% to win, something involving Odjn erupting in [[Franchise/{{Alien}} chestburster]]-esque fashion from Ryu's ruined body.]]
157	* FiveTokenBand: In ''III'', you have Ryu (a dragon with a human appearance), Momo (a Grassrunner with rabbit features[[note]]this was confirmed in her concept art from ''Breath of Fire III: Memorial Book''[[/note]]), Nina (a [[WingedHumanoid Wyndian]]), Garr (a gargoyle-like Guardian), and Rei (a Woren).
158	* FullyDressedCartoonAnimal: Quite a few - notably, everyone in II and I, Rei and to a lesser extent Momo and Nina in III, everyone in IV.
159	** BarefootCartoonAnimal: Garr in III.
160	* FusionDance: Danc/Karn [[spoiler:and, ultimately, Agni]], in ''I'', the Shamans in ''II'', Balio and Sunder in ''III''.
161	* {{Gamebreaker}}: Needless to say. Check individual work entries for details.
162	** The Kaiser transformations are {{gamebreaker}}s in nearly every entry, particularly in ''III'' and ''IV''. Once you get these dragons under your control, WHOAH.
163	* GameHuntingMechanic: The ability to hunt is a recurring element, usually by entering randomly spawning patches of grass on the [[OverworldNotToScale world map]], which takes the player to an area with animals they can hunt by attacking with the party leader's weapon (most games have at least one character with a ranged weapon to make this much easier). Slain animals drop meat and similar items which can be used as HealthFood or [[MoneyGrinding just sold]].
164	* GlobalAirship[=/=]GetOnTheBoat: ''I'' and ''II'' have been rather original in these regards: ''I'' has [[spoiler:Nina turning into a Great Bird]] and [[spoiler:Gobi turning into a giant fish]], whereas ''II'' makes use of a whale, [[spoiler: the Great Bird]] and a ''flying city''. Dropped off since ''III''.
165	* GodIsEvil: Subverted. Several of the evil "gods" throughout the series are either a) actually demons in disguise ([[spoiler:as in ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireII'']] or b) {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s who crossed the DespairEventHorizon ([[spoiler: ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV'']]).
166	* GodIsGood: Ladon, the Dragon God, is shown throughout the series to be very real and very much an awesome guy; usually being a wacky combination of BunnyEarsLawyer, CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass, EccentricMentor, and GrumpyOldMan.
167	* TheGoomba: The "Goo"-type enemies have been the series' starting {{Random Encounter}}s since the beginning; though their appearance and name debuted in ''II'', with the first game having eyeless versions named "Slimes".
168	* GottaCatchThemAll: in ''IV'', less catching, more like ''recruiting'' [[spoiler:the Endless.]] Obtaining them all, in addition to the dragon genes, allows Ryu to actually control the [[{{Gamebreaker}} Kaiser dragon properly.]]
169	** The genes in ''III'' may also count, although they aren't required storyline-wise.
170	* GuideDangIt: Present in most of the games: The requirements to obtain the dragons in ''I'', the requirements for the best ending and certain shamans in ''II'', gene combinations in ''III'', etc.
171	* HealthDamageAsymmetry
172	* HelloInsertNameHere: You're generally able to name the hero whatever you see fit (the default name is always Ryu).
173	* HeroesPreferSwords: Every Ryu is a sword-user. The one exception is in ''I'' where Ryu also has the option to wield boomerangs, complete with a different attack animation.
174	** Many players tend to forget about swords once the first Boomerang is available, and continue using it until the next, and use that one until the last one. Sure, hitting 1 enemy for 150 will do more than the boomerang's 100-120, but if you have 5 enemies, 5x100 is a lot more than 150 on one enemy.
175	* HeroicMime: Nina in ''Dragon Quarter'', and Ryu in all of the other games, though avoided in other adaptations like manga and audio cds. Subverted in ''I'', where Ryu ''will'' occasionally put in a line or two of dialog, and in ''IV'' when Ryu speaks [[spoiler:after fusing with Fou-lu.]]
176	** Ryu "speaks" several times in ''III'', but only in his own mind, most often while "talking" to Peco, who is an ''actual'' silent character [[spoiler:except when Yggdrasil's speaking through him.]]
177	** There are also a couple points in the first two games where Ryu speaks, both of which happen in segments where you don't control in him. The first game is a point where you control Nina and hear Ryu mutter stuff in his sleep, and in the second is in a flashback where you control his mother, and Ryu speaks normally like everyone else.
178	* HitPoints
179	* HopelessBossFight: Another well known staple from the series starting in ''II''. Barubary's first fight and most famously Tiga in ''II''; Balio/Sunder's first fight and Garr in ''III''; Ight and Fou-Lu's first time as a BossFight in ''IV''.
180	* HyperactiveMetabolism
181	* InescapableAmbush: A few rooms in ''Dragon Quarter'' will lock, fill the room with DemonicSpiders, and [[MusicalSpoiler change the music]] to a sinister theme. ThisIsGonnaSuck.
182	* InevitableTournament: ''II's'' Colloseum contest and ''III's'' Contest of Champions in Genmel.
183	* InUniverseGameClock: Day/Night cycles are implemented in ''I'' and ''II'', and are used in a few story-related events like entering Nanai in ''I''. It was dropped since the third game.
184	* InfinityPlusOneSword: Every game has one...and it's usually ''not'' the weapon the game hints at.
185	** In ''I'', there are two: The first, and the most-known, is the Tri-Rang, and has to be ''the'' easiest InfinityPlusOneSword to obtain in any RPG: Wait until you can fly, and just land in a certain spot[[note]]Namely, the base of the left tower on a northern island[[/note]] and hit the "A" Button. It really is that simple. The other, a hammer, is found in the last dungeon, by checking some random pillar. It isn't the stats that's the greatest thing about this weapon; it is the fact that it ''casts Comet when used as an item in battle''. (You can also get Ryu's strongest sword weapon, the Emperor Sword, by checking a pillar in the room before the final boss. Not nearly as powerful as the Tri-Rang, but still stupidly easy to get.)
186	** In ''II'', The game's InfinityPlusOneSword is fished out of a certain fishing spot. The catch is that you most likely need the best fishing pole, and you need flight to reach it. Specifically, you need the Great Bird -- while the flying city can, well, fly, it's too large to land near that fishing spot. Past a certain point, the Great Bird becomes unavailable for the rest of the game, [[PermanentlyMissableContent meaning you can't get the sword]].
187	** In ''III'', there are two: One is a RandomlyDrops from a very hard enemy that almost always runs away unless you know what to do; the other is dropped by an extremely powerful monster. The good news, is that the monster ''always'' drops said weapon. The bad news, the monster can easily kill you in a couple hits.
188	** In ''IV'', the InfinityPlusOneSword is gained through a complex fishing side-quest.
189	* InexplicableTreasureChests: All over the friggin' place.
190	* InformedEquipment: Party members might equip different kinds of weapons and armor, but they always look just the same as ever. Just about the only exception is the alternate sprite/animation for Ryu's boomerang in ''I''.
191	* ItemFarming: Starting with ''II'', most of the top-tier equipment could only be found as ludicrously-low-rate drops, usually from the strongest endgame enemies. ''III'' even included a spell you could learn that would increase the drop rate for enemy items. In ''I'' however, most of the best gear was found in a ''flea market''; you just had to be patient for someone willing to sell their uber-powerful weapon or armor to walk by (and then decide whether it was worth trying to haggle them down on the price or risk them walking away).
192	* JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind: Frequently and often a major plot point in ''I''-''IV''.
193	** Portrayed especially tragically in ''III'' [[spoiler:regarding Teepo.]]
194	** Ends up as frank BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind in ''IV'' [[spoiler:when the party frees Deis from her wards inside Ershin.]] In the manga version of ''IV'' (and in a story in the ''IV'' anthology comic) [[spoiler:the changeover from BadEnding to GoodEnding also occurs via JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind. ''Infini's'' mind.]]
195	* KleptomaniacHero: Standing operating procedure is to check every dresser and cabinet of every house you can go into for various free items.
196	* KnightTemplar: Vexacion in ''Dragon Quarter'' qualifies in that he believes he is upholding the order of the CrapsackWorld in destroying Chosen of the [[WeaponOfMassDestruction D-constructs]]. [[spoiler:He forces his son Bosch to engage in gladiator-style fights against dangerous [[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke Genics]] ''around the time Bosch would be learning the alphabet''.]]
197	* LastChanceHitPoint: Ryu in ''II'', Everyone (with unique quotes) in ''III''. Possible in ''DQ'' via equipping the Valor skill.
198	* LastOfHisKind: Not even attempted in ''I'', where there are plenty of living dragons left. Played with in ''II'' and ''III'', where Ryu appears to be the last living dragon, only to find the rest of his race hidden within a [[HiddenElfVillage secret village.]] The dragons in ''IV'' and ''Dragon Quarter'' are more individual [[PhysicalGod Physical Gods]] than a "race" per se, so their low number isn't as significant.
199	* LaughingMad: Fou-lu in ''IV'' [[spoiler:after realising that Mami had been used as Hex Cannon ammo [[GoMadFromTheRevelation and going stark-raving mad as a result]]; it is even more disturbing in the manga adaptation.]]
200	** A second instance in the Japanese version of ''IV'', again involving Fou-lu [[spoiler:in the bowdlerised scene where he decapitates Soniel.]]
201	** In ''Dragon Quarter'', Bosch descends into this as time goes by [[spoiler:particularly after he has Chetyre's remains surgically grafted onto him.]] Bosch was also [[WellDoneSonGuy considerably broken beforehand]], though.
202	** Rei, of all people, [[spoiler:after learning that Ryu was alive and well after all those years they've been apart.]]
203	* LegacyCharacter: There are quite a few, and not just Ryu and Nina.
204	** There is often [[spoiler:one other remaining dragon]] whose powers are still active, [[spoiler:but Ryu is forced to kill them (Sara in ''I'', Ray in ''II'', Teepo in ''III'').]]
205	** Nina's sister in ''II'' and ''IV'' undergo [[spoiler:transformations that cost them their lives; into a bird in ''II'' and into an EldritchAbomination in ''IV''.]]
206	* LegendaryInTheSequel: Many of the games will [[ContinuityPorn reference]] previous titles. III has a picture of the heroes from I, [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/images/bof3/bof3mb_7.jpg complete with halos]] and [[ArtisticLicenseHistory characters you don't remember]].
207	* LivingMacGuffin: Nina in ''Dragon Quarter''. [[spoiler:Ryu's quest to open the path to the sky is because Nina took a lung-filter-full of poison gas and as a result is choking to death in Sheldar's air; the only air left pure enough for her to breathe is on the surface.]] And this started [[spoiler:after Trinity essentially tried to rescue/kidnap/Gundamjack Nina, leading eventually to Ryu's [[PhlebotinumRebel defection from the Rangers]] in a crisis of conscience.]] And poor Nina [[spoiler:was essentially a FlawedPrototype of what amounted to a ''human air-scrubber filter''--the "production models" being ''headless clones of her in PeopleJars''.]]
208	** Both Elina and Ryu would count in ''IV''. The game starts out with Nina and Cray trying to find the Wyndian crown princess Elina (who went missing when trying to broker a peace treaty with TheEmpire). The party stumbles upon Ryu, who eventually becomes a LivingMacGuffin once it's revealed he is a PhysicalGod and the LiteralSplitPersonality of Fou-lu.
209	*** In the manga adaptation of ''IV'' [[spoiler: ''Fou-lu'' of all people ends up being a LivingMacGuffin for Ryu. Ryu's characterisation is much'stronger in the manga than in the game.]]
210	* LukeIAmYourFather: Exemplified in ''II''. Ryu, [[spoiler:the dragon on the mountain behind Gate is your mother, and the old man you saved from (or fried on) the eye machine is your father.]]
211	** And also in the revelation that [[spoiler:Deathevans is Myria's spawn.]]
212	** In ''IV'', [[spoiler:Ryu gets the "Fou-lu is your other half" speech from Deis earlier in the game, and later on gets an "I am your [[strike:father]] LiteralSplitPersonality so let's have a SplitPersonalityMerge" speech from Fou-lu near the end.]]
213	* LuckStat: Only used in ''I'' and ''II''.
214	* MadScientist: Cort from ''I'', Dr. Palet from ''III'' and Lord Yuna from ''IV''.
215	** Elyon is implied to have a touch of this in ''Dragon Quarter'' as well. [[spoiler:Nina's "wings" (and the room full of headless Nina-clone PeopleJars) are a failsafe in case the path to the sky isn't opened; Elyon is dying and the situation re Sheldar's air is becoming increasingly desperate.]]
216	* MarketBasedTitle: In Mandarin and Cantonese territories, ''Breath of Fire'' is known as 龙战士 (Dragon Warrior). And yes, they went with this with the ComicBookAdaptation treatments as well, both in officially licensed and FanTranslation versions, likely because a transliteration of "Breath of Fire" using hanzi would have been nigh unintelligible.
217	* MeaningfulName: Plenty, and usually in both original and english. Just for starters, we have: Ryu = "dragon" in Japanese, Bo uses ''Bo''ws, Ox is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin while Builder is his [[TheBlacksmith his dayjob]], Mogu is [[BilingualBonus Mogura = "Mole" in japanese]], Sten comes from the japanese rendering of Extend (''Ekusutendo''), Rand Marks and Aspara Gus are [[PunnyName self-explanatory]], etc...
218	** Fou-Lu's pseudonym in ''IV'', Ryong, seems to be the Japanese pronunciation of "dragon" in Korean.
219	** Ershin[[note]]"Two souls" in Chinese[[/note]] in ''IV'' is one of the PropheticNames. In the Japanese version, there's a pun that attaches the name Master to her, which is localized as the translation of Ershin in the Fou Empire's language.
220	** Deis ALSO is one of the PropheticNames--and one which was only revealed as prophetic in ''III'' and ''IV''.[[note]]"Deis" is essentially a feminisation of "Deus", meaning "God". Yes, Deis' name literally means "Goddess".[[/note]]
221	** In the Japanese version of ''I'', the BigBad's right-hand is named Judas. [[TheStarscream He should have reconsidered hiring him.]]
222	** Elyon in ''Dragon Quarter'' counts in this, especially if you consider some of the Kaballah imagery.[[note]]"Elyon" is a traditional Jewish name for the Most High, or in other words, ''God''; appropriate, seeing as Capcom said he was originally meant as a Fou-lu Expy.[[/note]]
223	** Vexacion in ''DQ'' as well [[spoiler: at least if you ask his son Bosch about the matter... or the Chosen he killed before Ryu.]]
224	** Won-qu and A-tur (Fou-lu's foo-dogs or guardian lions) in ''IV'' arguably are symbolically named.[[note]]In traditional placement of foo-dogs or foo-lions, one (usually the male) represents "Un" and one (usually the female) represents "A". These together represent "Aum" and are an expression of infinity in Buddhism (a rough equivalent of the Christian concept of "the Alpha and the Omega"); the game even follows the Japanese tradition of having a pair of a dog ''and'' a lion.[[/note]]
225	* MeditationPowerup: ''III'' and ''IV'' feature abilities that increase the power of the user's next strike, generally flavored as some form of meditation.
226	* MoneySpider
227	* MushroomMan: One of the fusions in ''II'' turns Spar (an androgynous plant man) into a cute mushroom girl.
228	* MultipleEndings: All installments tend to have a "good" ending and a "bad" ending. ''II'' also has a "meh" ending.
229	* MythologyGag: Nearly every game in the franchise after the first has this to greater or lesser extent (though to be technically correct, only those occurences in ''Dragon Quarter'' and possibly ''IV'' count as Mythology Gags). Of note, with a single exception, these tend to be examples based on the ''Japanese'' names and tend to be lost in the [[DubNameChange international localisation renamings]] Capcom is infamous for.
230	** The most notable examples include Bunyan/Babaderu in ''III'' and particularly ''IV''[[note]]In the Japanese version, the MythologyGag started out in ''III'' as a ShoutOut to a previous enemy in ''II'', and in ''IV'' both the Japanese name and DubNameChange are references to the character in ''III''[[/note]] and Bosch and Lin's names in ''Dragon Quarter''.[[note]]Shout-outs to Boche/Bow and Rinpoo/Katt in ''II'' respectively[[/note]]
231	** A blatant ContinuityNod example with Bow's DubNameChange in ''II''.[[note]]Which is a reference to the previous game Archer's DubNameChange, Bo.[[/note]]
232	** The Dragon Tear from ''II'' is the basis of an item MythologyGag in ''III'' and ''IV'' (depicted as a [[PublicDomainArtifact magatama Ryu wears]] in ''IV'').
233	* NakedOnArrival: Done twice with Ryu from ''III'' and done once with Ryu from ''IV''. Also done by Deis (AKA Bleu) in ''III'', who then [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beats the snot]] out of [[TheBigGuy Garr]] [[FullFrontalAssault without bothering to get dressed first]].
234	* NeverTheSelvesShallMeet: [[spoiler: Averted in ''I''. You can encounter a girl that looks just like Nina, but with blue clothing, when you first visit Tunlan. Later, there is a mishap involving the [=TmKey=] (one of the Goddess Keys that essentially acts like a TimeMachine artifact capable of making time dilation/compression fields), and Nina gets sucked into a time vortex, and the rest of the party is thrown to Tunlan. Apparently the girl that looks like Nina ''is'' Nina, but with [[EasyAmnesia amnesia]]]].
235	* NoHeroDiscount
236	** Small aversion in the first game: one of the first things you do in the game is rid Camlon of the monster that has taken over their castle after the Dark Dragon attack. If you return later in the game, the inn only costs 1 G. Of course, by then there are places you can go like Arad and rest for free; the real reason to head back to Camlon is to see the statue they have erected of you in the middle of town out of gratitude.
237	* NonhumanSidekick: Bow in ''II'', but there are almost no really "human" characters in the entire series, including Ryu himself, until ''Dragon Quarter''.
238	** [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman If you think about it]], they're almost ''all'' human, as there seems to be a stable social mix of them in almost every society in the series. Bow is essentially human too.
239	* NonStandardGameOver
240	* NoStatAtrophy
241	* {{Novelization}}: ''III'' and ''IV'' have novelisations. Unfortunately, as with practically all merchandising material for ''Breath of Fire'', these are [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]]; even worse, there is no known FanTranslation.
242	** The ''III'' novel (''Breath of Fire III - Childhood Chapter'') focuses largely on events from the early part of the game.
243	** The ''IV'' novel (''Breath of Fire IV: The Unfading Ones - The Arukai Dragon'') is a fairly straight {{Novelization}} in roughly the same way the manga of ''IV'' is [[spoiler:in that both the novel and manga are heavily Ryu-centric in characterisation.]]
244	* OneTimeDungeon: Nanai and the dungeon beneath it are destroyed after you leave. Neither Mogu nor Mote's dream dungeons can be re-entered once you complete them. The Goddess' Tower is also destroyed [[spoiler:after Jade releases the Goddess]].
245	* OneWingedAngel: With about four exceptions, ''every single boss'' from at least ''I''-''III''. Since quite a few of them were known to throw vicious [[PlayerPunch Player Punches]] before you finally got to fight them, taking down yet another generic giant monster that happens to have their name on it this time instead of the evil tormenting form you're used to can be somewhat unsatisfying.
246	* OurDragonsAreDifferent: Each dragon form you can take has a different appearance, as well as move set and strength. The Myrmidon form is essentially a HalfHumanHybrid, while the Kaiser form is a (golden) Western dragon.
247	** The Dark Dragons in ''I'' generally play ''very'' fast and loose with the definition of "dragon". [[spoiler:Most look like dragon/insectile hybrids. You do see plenty of Dark Dragon soldiers transforming into purple, orange-winged European-style dragons, though you never actually fight one of these guys, and Emperor Zog himself transforms into a giant purple dragon when you fight him, but you only see his head.]]
248	** This extends to the NPC dragons in ''IV'', based largely on ''Eastern'' dragons. [[spoiler:Each dragon is an Endless, a PhysicalGod of an elemental force. These often tend to look decidedly ''un''draconic, with the Sand Dragon resembling a cross between a ''Franchise/{{Dune}}''-esque SandWorm and a flying fish and P'ung Ryong/Raui resembling a cross between an elephant, a [[GiantFlyer flying whale]], and an Eastern dragon. They only get ''weirder'' from there.]]
249	** Also played with in a different fashion in ''Dragon Quarter''. [[spoiler:In this AlternateUniverse, dragons were genetically engineered [[WeaponOfMassDestruction Weapons Of Mass Destruction]].]]
250	* PeninsulaOfPowerLeveling: The Pagoda Island in ''I'', Monster Island in ''II'' and, with proper preparation, Mt. Zublo in ''III''.
251	** Also, in ''I'', at one point the hero winds up in an area all alone, allowing him to get an entire party's worth of EXP by himself, fighting enemies that aren't all that hard to defeat. This also happens ''again'' later on, except Ryu and Nina are together.
252	** Going on a similar point as the above, going to a certain floor of the desert dungeon before going into the sea, you have 4 people in the group. Finding 3 gold slimes on that floor gives more EXP than the best EXP fight in the game (except for the monster gold slime which is far too rare), so you could level Ryu, Nina, Bo, and Karn to Level 99 faster than you could level the entire party in the last dungeon.
253	** In ''IV'', you can use the same XP splitting exploit, by having Ryu learn [[DiscOneNuke Burn]] and having him go to the dungeon in the plains before he is supposed to. Since entering the plains causes Ryu to be solo, you can split him up from the rest of the party any time at your leisure. [[BoringButPractical Burn]] costs almost nothing to cast, and the enemies there are weak against it, to boot.
254	* PlantPerson: Spar/Aspara in ''II'', Peco in ''III''.
255	** Taken to extremes with Su Ryong/Kenki and Cho Ryong/Taapu in ''IV'' who are literal plant ''dragons'' (of trees and grass, and by extension, forests and grasslands, respectively).
256	* PoweredByAForsakenChild: The Hex Cannon/Carronade in ''IV'' uses people who are kidnapped and tortured to the point of insanity as the literal [[HumanResources warheads.]]
257	** Portrayed in especially tragic means (both literally and figuratively) [[spoiler:in Mami's torture and death, ''especially'' in the manga adaptation of this scene. In fact, the author of the English FanTranslation explicitly has commented on the emotional impact of translating this section.]]
258	* PowerCopying: Learning skills from enemies is a staple since ''III''. ''Dragon Quarter'' presents a variation, where some (if not most) of the characters' skills are stolen (as actual items) from enemies.
259	* RandomEncounters
260	* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Every game in the series has at least one.
261	** ''I-III'' has Deis. Definitely in the "thousands of years old" range by ''III'', per at least [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/newnmk/?it=bof/bof1time.html some timelines]] potentially ''far'' older. There's also Tyr/Myria.
262	** ''IV'' has Fou-lu (canonically 600 years old and also a case of ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty) and everyone who lives in Chek besides the Abbess (everyone living there is implied to at least be an adult, if not truly ancient individuals, but all look around seven years of age).
263	** ''DQ'' has Elyon (canonically 1000 years old despite looking in his mid-twenties, mildly averted[[note]]as Elyon is dying...hence why [[RussianReversal IN SOVIET SHELDAR DRAGON RIDES YOU]] despite being a [[AudienceSurrogate low-D]] who normally hasn't a chance to be a Chosen[[/note]]) and Cupid (who looks in hir early teens but is nearly as old as Elyon per Capcom).
264	*** It is also implied heavily that [[http://www.dragon-tear.net/newnmk/?it=bof/interview.html all of the Regents fall under this trope]]. Confirmed "far older than they look" Regents or former Regents include Mebeth,[[note]]A former Regent when Elyon was younger[[/note]] Vexacion,[[note]]Who has been apparently killing Chosen ever since Elyon became head Regent[[/note]] and Deamoned.[[note]]Who is actually confirmable as being ''older'' than Elyon; he was the former head Regent, but lost one of his eyes to Elyon when the latter was a Chosen of Odjn[[/note]]
265	* RecurringElement: Quite a few; see the description.
266	* RedemptionEqualsDeath : [[spoiler:Cerl]] in ''I'', [[spoiler:Jade and Sara]] in ''The Dragon Warrior'' manga, [[spoiler:Ray]] in ''II'', [[spoiler: Garr and Gaist]] in ''III''.
267	* ReviveKillsZombie: Starting in ''III'', healing spells will also deal damage to undead enemies. Case most damningly proven when, in ''III'' or ''IV'', you encounter a group of zombies lead by a [=ZombieDr=]. Beat up his comrades enough, and he'll cast the game's most powerful group-healing spell to get them back on their feet. Needless to say...[[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments doesn't quite work as intended.]]
268	* TheRival: [[spoiler:Bosch]] in ''Dragon Quarter''; also a borderline {{Archenemy}}.
269	* RodentsOfUnusualSize: Giant cockroaches have been in every game on the series sans ''DQ''. In ''III'', there were [[GoddamnedBats Giant cockroaches that can jump several hundred feet in the air and crush you flat upon landing.]]
270	** Subverted in ''I'', as they were normal sized, ''you'' were the small one; and ''IV'', when Nina is shrunk by some faeries and battles a normal-sized swallow.
271	** For {{NPC}} examples, ''DQ'' allows you to recruit ''ants'' as grunts in the fairy colony.
272	* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Except in ''II'' (where Nina is exiled) and ''DQ'' (where she's not a princess), all other Ninas are quite pro-active when it comes to do something.
273	** ''I'': Nina takes the initative to obtain the cure for her father's poison.
274	** ''III'': Nina is sent to handle the investigation and arrest of [=McNeil=] and takes the initiative to deal with the situation at the Chrysm Crop plant.
275	** ''IV'': Nina takes the initiative to find her missing sister Elina, who went to broker a peace treaty with [[TheEmpire the Fou Empire]] and put an end to their 600-year-plus cycle of running Hot and UsefulNotes/{{Cold War}}s.
276	* SandIsWater: Dragons can swim through it, in fact.
277	* SealedEvilInACan: [[spoiler:Myria/Tyr]] in ''I'', and [[spoiler:[[strike:Hell]] Infinity]] in ''II''.
278	* ShoutOut: The ending credits of ''II'' gave full names or at least first name and surname initials to ''every'' character in the game ever, {{NPC}}s included. The great majority of these were references to people and characters from just about anything: Other Capcom games, real people, TV characters, music bands, etc. Bizarrely, many of them were references to western people that were ''not'' added by translation. In fact, the game is filled with reverse cases of BilingualBonus moments that its original Japanese audience probably never figured it out. To name a few:
279	** The name "Tiga" is a [[BlindIdiotTranslation bad romanization]] of "Tiger", but the credits show that there's an extra "g" in his name. [[Franchise/WinnieThePooh Yes, that one.]] In fact, the entire [[LaResistance resistance]] [[ShoutOutThemeNaming is named after Disney characters.]]
280	** There is a woman in the first town that has a peculiarly slightly-darker skin tone than the rest of the area's {{NPC}}s, her name is Whoopi. According to the credits, her last name starts with a G.[[note]]As in Whoopi Goldberg[[/note]]
281	** The monster Algernon, as well as its two allies who fight with it, are shout-outs to the book "Flowers for Algernon" and its writer Daniel Keyes respectively (the latter cases being respectively scrambled and a SdrawkcabName in Japanese in the game).
282	** One of the weirdest {{shout out}}s in ''III'': Balio and Sunder's FusionDance, Stallion. He not only resembles a certain [[Series/{{Ultraman}} Kaiju hero]], he attacks ''and'' moves like one, too.
283	** In probably one of the more obscure examples, the manga adaptation of ''IV'' has shout-outs--to an earlier, Capcom-licensed ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV'' anthology comic published in 2000.[[note]]The final page of chapter 19 as well as portions of chapters 25 and 27 are a straight ShoutOut to the ''[=BoF=] IV Anthology'' story "Across The Nightmare", and a good portion of the Kaiser Dragon sequence in the manga is a ShoutOut to the ''Anthology'' story "Ryu to Yobareshimono" ("One Who Is Called A Dragon").[[/note]]
284	** Another manga-related shoutout, this time from the [=GBA=] re-release of ''I''; Jiiku/Sieg and Rai's names are shout-outs to the characters Sieg and Raifel from the ''Princess Of The Wings'' ComicBookAdaptation of the (original) ''Breath of Fire''.
285	** In ''IV'', the names of the monsters Rasso summons can be lined up to spell "Joy Mecha Fight", an obscure [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joy_Mech_Fight Famicom game released by Nintendo]].
286	** It's been suggested the name of the Kaiser Dragon is ''itself'' a ShoutOut to the [[http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1951-1953-kaiser-dragon1.htm Kaiser Dragon classic car]].
287	* SidekickExMachina: Subjected to overt AffectionateParody in the [[{{Omake}} "Behind-The-Cover Comic" Yonkomas]] contained UNDER the dust covers) of Volume III of the manga adaptation. Ryu actually calls Rasso out as [[CampGay OKAMA]]. Ryu tends to be prone to this in the "Behind The Cover" yonkomas. In one of the "Behind The Cover" comics in volume 5, Ryu also ultimately calls ''Fou-lu'' out as "Ikemen" (translated as "Cool Guy") in a remarkably similar manner.
288	* SoleEntertainmentOption: At first, there appears to be only the Contest of Champions to take people's minds off of things (and after the TimeSkip it ceases to run). But after the TimeSkip, Ryu's journey takes him to [[WretchedHive Syn City, the "illegal" town]], which seems to have an active red-light district. The implication is that the citizens of the world have the world's oldest pastime to entertain themselves. (Let us ignore the {{Squick}} factor of there being only one hooker and instead extrapolate the existence of others!)
289	* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The goddess Tyr/Myria, depending on which of the first 3 games you're playing.
290	* SpritePolygonMix: ''III'' notably had this. ''IV'' too, but the art styles were better matched.
291	%%* StandardRPGItems
292	* StatusEffects: Common in all games are the classics like "Poison", "Sleep", "Confuse" and "Paralyzed". Then there's others like "Curse" (''I'', ''II'' and ''IV''), Silent (all but ''I'') and "Euphoria" (''IV'').
293	* SweatDrop: Used to comedic effect in ''II''. Hitting certain [=NPCs=] and objects in ''III'' and ''IV'' will cause them to react in this way.
294	* SummonMagic: The dragon system in ''II'' and ''IV''; faeries in ''IV''.
295	* ThemeNaming:
296	** Literally the only ones not fitting into this is Vexacion (who is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin) and Mebeth (a Japanification of "Theatre/{{Macbeth}}").
297	** ''IV'' had a lot of fun with this in general for setting up ''Stealth Punchlines''.
298	*** The first syllable of the names of the children in the Synesta orphanage spell out (in Japanese) a phrase reading roughly "I'm just lining up all these kid's names..."
299	*** As noted in the ShoutOut entry, Rasso's summons (giant hulking animated suits of armor) spell out (in Japanese) "Joy Mecha Fight".
300	** ''III'' had many of its faeries named for various types of fly-fishing lures.
301	** ''III'' also had a not-terribly-obscure-in-its-own-country ShoutOut with the original names of Kukuys (Kukurusu) and Doan. This is a reference to the ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' episode "Cucuruz Doan's Island", and was likely renamed in the English version because this episode at is still in KeepCirculatingTheTapes mode (reportedly the episode [[http://gundam.wikia.com/wiki/Mobile_Suit_Gundam_Episode_Guide#Episode_15:_Cucuruz_Doan.27s_Island has never been translated to English on Tomino's direct order]] as he feels "Cucuruz Doan's Island" was substandard and essentially filler).
302	** ''I'' has one with Bo's Japanese name Gilliam and the son of his tribe's chief, Terry. Put them together and you get Creator/TerryGilliam.
303	** Extensively in ''DQ''. Check that entry for details.
304	* TimeSkip: Following the prologue in ''II'' and halfway through ''III''.
305	* ToiletHumour: In ''II'' and ''IV''. Made even more impressive in that in both cases, these are essential parts of the ''plot''.
306	** Including a dungeon in ''II'' entered ''by jumping in a toilet''.
307	** In III, there's a scene where Sunder is surprised while he's taking a leak.
308	** And in ''IV''...well...let's just say to reforge the King's Sword, there's a fetch quest. Involving meeting up with fairies and obtaining ''[[SolidGoldPoop fairy turds]]'' as a material component to alloy with the steel in the sword. [[OnlySaneMan Scias]] is horrified.
309	* TokenHuman: Ryu is from the Dragon Clan, but looks close enough human to pass as one and believe he's completely human until his dragon clan powers are awakened.
310	** In ''II'' he's a HalfHumanHybrid, so is technically this trope. In ''V'', the rare furries were [=NPCs=]. In I and II, they were mostly nonhumans, but there was Karn/Danc in I. III had a tiger, a WingedHumanoid, a Kitsune-type creature, and an angel who seemed to be equine with avain elements, with an onion as the TeamPet. In IV, it was kitsune, dog, tiger, WingedHumanoid, and RobotBuddy.
311	* TookALevelInBadass: Happens to Ryu when he gets to transform into a dragon. Peco in ''III'' gets the ability to [[spoiler:breathe ice and fire!]] On top of that, he also [[spoiler:undoes the BigBad's erasure of you whole team!]]
312	** Also happens to Ershin in ''IV''. She gets a whole new set of powerful spells mid-way through the game.
313	** Arguably in ''Dragon Quarter'', though in his case it's the result of a DeadlyUpgrade.
314	%%* TransformationSequence
315	* TurnsRed: Every damn boss in ''I'', as well as a few in ''II''. The final boss of ''I'' has almost three times as many HP ''after'' she TurnsRed.
316	* TwoBeingsOneBody: In ''I'' and ''II'', fusion is a very powerful technique to temporarily create strong characters. In ''III'', the Fusion Gene creates a similar effect, and there's also Balio and Sunder, who use this to transform into the only form you're ''[[HopelessBossFight supposed]]'' [[HopelessBossFight to beat.]]
317	%%* UndergroundMonkey
318	* UnstoppableRage: Ryu in ''II'' [[spoiler:when he breaks from Deathevans' crystal cage after he kills the whole party, and then rushes at him ignoring the demon's attacks and slices him up good]]; Rei in ''III'' [[spoiler:after losing his "family" Ryu and Teepo]]; Ryu's first transformation into the Kaiser Dragon in ''IV''.
319	* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Plenty of characters and clans have the ability to shapeshift into other forms. The various dragon forms of Ryu are the best example.
320	* WarpWhistle: The Warp/Shift spell (Hyuuru in japanese) in all games but ''III'' and ''DQ'' (''IV'' has it as a map skill rather than spell, though). ''III'' makes due with teleporters spread all over the world for easy transportation.
321	* WeBuyAnything
322	%%* WrapAround: The world from ''I'' and ''II''. ''III'' and onwards limited themselves with a flat map with unreacheable borders.
323	* TheWorldTree: Gandaroof from ''II'' and Yggdrasil from ''III''. There are also several "lesser" Yggdrasil spread over the world in both games.
324	%%* TheXOfY

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