Line #33 PlayingWith/JerkassGods


1	'''Basic Trope''': The deity or deities are portrayed as cruel.
2	* '''Straight''': The gods are seen as petty, abusive, and uncaring to mortal beings and play around with their lives like as though it's their cosmic toys.
3	* '''Exaggerated''':
4	** The gods are seen as sadistic and monstrous [[TheSociopath sociopaths]] to mortal beings and will always use DisproportionateRetribution.
5	** The gods are not only jerks to mortals, but [[WorldOfJerkass also to each other]].
6	** GodOfEvil.
7	** GodIsEvil
8	* '''Downplayed''':
9	** The gods are aloof and apathetic to mortal beings but less on purpose, which can make them come across as jerks.
10	** The gods run on BlueAndOrangeMorality, but a clever mortal can get them to be helpful as long as they understand how they think.
11	** The gods [[TheGadfly like pulling lighthearted pranks on mortals]], which the latter often find upsetting, but they never do anything worse than that.
12	* '''Justified''':
13	** As higher beings, they have no reason to care or sympathize with a bunch of [[PunyEarthlings lowly mortals]]. All they care about is doing whatever they want with them and nothing else.
14	** Or they ''were'' good, or at least well-meaning, but they suffered some sort of trauma that made them TookALevelInJerkass, becoming increasingly cold, vengeful, and petty. Naturally, their inability to let go of old grudges leads to everyone else suffering.
15	* '''Inverted''':
16	** [[GodIsGood The gods are good.]]
17	** Mortals are jerks towards the gods, who put up with them despite the fact they could easily [[BoltOfDivineRetribution teach them a lesson]].
18	* '''Subverted''':
19	** The gods turn out to have a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold soft spot for the mortals deep down inside]].
20	** While most gods play this trope perfectly straight, we then meet [[HairOfGoldHeartOfGold Serenity]], goddess of the harvest, who aids the heroes with her divine powers.
21	* '''Double Subverted''': ...just before [[TheSociopath they]] all [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk treat them crueler than they could possibly imagine]].
22	* '''Parodied''':
23	** God's fist crushes humans from time to time.
24	** The gods scowl at the audience by BreakingTheFourthWall.
25	** The gods considered ascending Bob into godhood, but they went back on the idea because he wasn't cruel enough.
26	* '''Zig Zagged''':
27	** It appears that the gods can vary between cruel and kind whether they were having a bad day or when they're nice when they feel like it.
28	** Alternatively, some gods are cruel while others are kind.
29	* '''Averted''':
30	** The gods are neither cruel or kind.
31	** The gods don't exist.
32	** Gods are, on average, no crueler (or kinder) than mortals.
33	* '''Enforced''':
34	** The author is a cynic who believes that any being of a higher place than others will either be indifferent or downright hostile to lower-plane beings.
35	** The story would be no fun if the gods were kind and simply solved the conflict effortlessly, so the author makes them jerks to explain why they don't.
36	* '''Lampshaded''': "[[NayTheist I hate the gods.]] They're massive jerks."
37	* '''Invoked''': A mortal who already treats their fellow humans as playthings seeks to ascend to godhood in order to more openly get away with it.
38	* '''Exploited''': Someone uses the jerkass nature of the gods to gain political power to create a secular state that [[DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu tells the gods to sod off.]]
39	* '''Defied''':
40	** Somebody decides to {{kill the god}}s to deal with the problem permanently.
41	** The gods recognize that (these) mortals could, potentially end them -- whether by [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly lack of worship]] or blunt deicide -- and so keep at least decent relationships.
42	* '''Discussed''': "I think our gods might not be so good after all..."
43	* '''Conversed''': "Whats with deities and acting cruelly?!"
44	* '''Implied''': Unfortunate events keep on happening to the characters.
45	* '''Deconstructed''': The jerkass nature of gods makes mortals constantly cower in fear and servitude of them.
46	* '''Reconstructed''': Mortals build themselves up in response and [[RageAgainstTheHeavens surpass the gods.]]
47	* '''Played For Laughs''':
48	** The gods aren't even mean to mortals. [[UngratefulBastard Mortals still think the gods are jerks.]]
49	** The gods cross over into ComedicSociopathy.
50	* '''Played For Drama''': The gods end up erasing themselves from existence because they treated their worshippers cruelly, and [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly their worshippers decide to stop believing in the gods]]. Only one god treats their worshippers kindly and suffers from SurvivorGuilt.
51	* '''Played For Horror''': {{The Sociopath}}ic gods enjoy sending plagues and suffering to mortals.
52	----
53	"Hey, thine dipshit there, drag your ass back to Jerkass- GREAT! JUST GREAT! [[JerkassGods THE GODS ERASED THE LINK!]] [[BigNo NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"]]

Context PlayingWith / JerkassGods