Line #41 PlayingWith/PlotArmor


1	'''Basic Trope''': A main character frequently survives deadly situations simply because they're one of the main characters.
2	* '''Straight''': [[TheHero Bob]] is placed in a LiteralCliffhanger over some jagged rocks, falls, and is rescued JustInTime by [[GiantFlyer Alice,]] while the other Redshirts hit the rocks.
3	* '''Exaggerated''':
4	** Bob's foot is ''touching the rocks'' before Alice saves him.
5	** Bob survives because he conveniently [[{{forgot\|AboutHisPowers}} remembered]]/[[NewPowersAsThePlotDemands suddenly gained the ability]] to fly.
6	* '''Downplayed''':
7	** Bob doesn't die, but he gets crippled from an attack.
8	** Characters important to the plot have increased defense and/or HitPoints values for no discernible reason except their plot roles, but they can still be taken out depending on how the PlayerCharacter acts.
9	** Bob and a Redshirt are ambushed by enemy mooks. The redshirt is shot InTheBack but Bob is able to [[LastStand gun down many mooks before dying]].
10	* '''Justified''':
11	** Bob's AppliedPhlebotinum alerts Alice to his peril.
12	** Bob is TheChosenOne, and his allies are on high alert to keep him safe.
13	** The story follows Bob because he literally exhibits plot armor in universe. No matter what he does, he becomes more important to the plot and he is always saved from danger, which is all part of why people think he's TheChosenOne.
14	** The story is a prequel, so it would make sense that Bob won't be killed since he appears in the original story.
15	*** Alternatively, the story ends with a {{cliffhanger}} meaning Bob effectively survived before doing any harm.
16	** Bob is the "Loved Ones" to the BigBad's EvenEvilHasLovedOnes, knows said Big Bad will never allow him to come to any actual harm, and milks this for all it's worth.
17	** Bob is a CosmicPlaything and the cosmos have no intention of letting him die.
18	** Bob's existence is part of a StableTimeLoop and he can't die because of that.
19	** [[AnthropicPrinciple The reason stories are told about Bob in the first place is because he happened to be the one who survived all the perils]].
20	** [[WebAnimation/SuperMarioGlitchy4sSuperMario64Bloopers Bob is a]] BarrierMaiden [[WebAnimation/SuperMarioGlitchy4sSuperMario64Bloopers whose death will destroy the whole universe, and thus, the universe itself has self defence mechanisms to keep him from dying]].
21	* '''Inverted''':
22	** AnyoneCanDie
23	** RedShirt
24	** Things are perfectly safe. Bob somehow dies anyway, for no reason other than the plot needed him dead.
25	** TheyKilledKennyAgain
26	** RocksFallEveryoneDies
27	** EverybodyDiesEnding
28	* '''Subverted''':
29	** DecoyProtagonist
30	** It's a WhamEpisode where, for the first time, it's shown that AnyoneCanDie.
31	** People with plot armor dies twice as fast.
32	* '''Double Subverted''':
33	** Bob [[UnexplainedRecovery comes back]] near the end of the series.
34	** Bob is seemingly killed but has [[FakingTheDead faked his death]].
35	** Bob is actually killed but gets magically resurrected.
36	* '''Parodied''':
37	** [[PromotionToOpeningTitles Upon joining the main cast]] Bob is issued a suit of "Standard Issue Plot Armor[[{{Tradesnark}} ™]]"
38	** Bob is DrivenToSuicide, but continually fails in increasingly improbable ways, simply because he doesn't have permission from the writers to die.
39	* '''Zig Zagged''': Sometimes Bob gets into these situations, and sometimes he doesn't.
40	* '''Averted''':
41	** Bob falls on the jagged rocks and dies.
42	** Bob is never put in a LiteralCliffhanger situation in the first place.
43	* '''Enforced''':
44	** The executives fear that if TheHero is killed, people won't watch the show, so the writers are not allowed to kill Bob.
45	** Bob's actor is on contract for several more seasons.
46	* '''Lampshaded''': "It's hard to believe you're still alive after so many close calls... [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall It's like someone up there just won't let you die.]]"
47	* '''Invoked''': Bob [[RageAgainstTheAuthor temporarily leaves the story]] in order to blackmail the author into making sure that neither he nor the other main characters die.
48	* '''Exploited''': Charlie is GenreSavvy and knows that main characters tend to stay alive longer, so he intentionally becomes Bob's [[TheLancer best friend]].
49	** ''Bob'' knows he can't die, and so [[SurprisinglyEliteCannonFodder volunteered for suicide missions on this basis.]]
50	** Evulz knows Bob has plot armour and works it into his scheming.
51	* '''Defied''':
52	** Emperor Evulz' EvilPlan to kill Bob is extremely methodical, trying to account for every single variable to avoid giving Bob ''any'' chance to make it out alive.
53	** Evulz sends out [[HeroKiller Harry]], who has successfully disposed of would-be heroes.
54	** Evulz sends Bob a gift, which is a Red Shirt. [[Webcomic/EnsignSueMustDie Bob wears it and dies offscreen soon after.]]
55	* '''Discussed''': "Don't worry about Bob too much. He's TheChosenOne, I'm sure he'll make it out of this mess somehow."
56	* '''Conversed''': "The way Bob keeps surviving those situations is getting boring. It takes all the suspense out of it if we know Alice is just going to rescue him ''yet again''".
57	* '''Deconstructed''':
58	** Bob develops SurvivorsGuilt due to his inexplicable luck with deadly situations.
59	** The resident {{Red Shirt}}s begin to resent the fact that Bob cannot die when so many of them have perished.
60	** Bob has developed suicidal thoughts and tries numerous times to kill himself, which ultimately fails due to his plot armor.
61	* '''Reconstructed''': Bob uses his gift for [[DeathSeeker death defiance]] to face impossible odds and to ensure that he never lets anyone die again, earning the respect of the RedShirtArmy.
62	* '''Played For Horror''': Bob ends up as a MainCharacterFinalBoss. Due to his plot armour, his former allies are unable to actually do much against him due to Bob's plot armour ensuring that he'll survive anything they throw at him. Bob kills them and proceeds to raze the rest of the planet.
63	----
64	Back to PlotArmor
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66	%% Optional items, added after Conversed, at your discretion:
67	%%
68	%%* '''Implied''': ???
69	%%* '''Played For Laughs''':???

Context PlayingWith / PlotArmor