Line #255 RealLife/TropesGToM


1	'''Tropes''': [[RealLife/TropesAToF A to F]] \|\| G to M \|\| [[RealLife/TropesNToS N to S]] \|\| [[RealLife/TropesTToZ T to Z]]
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3	----
4	[[foldercontrol]]
5
6	[[folder:G]]
7	* GameWithinAGame: Too many to count, of literally every genre.
8	** Most have no effect on gameplay as a whole, however, unless you're ''really'' good at one - and even then, it requires extreme talent and luck, or an economy system that isn't completely broken. That fact doesn't stop many players from ignoring the main game to focus on these minigames though.
9	** The fact that there's ''an entire class'' built around the creation of new minigames underscores the popularity of those.
10	* GasChamber: While they are known as very horrible ways of execution, in the recent arcs they are used to test gas mask equipment and prepare soldier class players for the possible event of chemical warfare.
11	* GayOption: While your character has less options available in the romance sidequest if they're gay and [[DifficultyByRegion some servers consider pursuing such an option a bannable offense]], recent patches to many servers have been making it easier for same-sex characters to marry and adopt children. It's generally now considered that the option is randomly hardcoded into a certain percentage of players at character creation and trying to mod it, either internally or externally is a case of FailureIsTheOnlyOption.
12	%%* GeniusCripple: Professor Stephen Hawking provides the Trope Image.
13	%%* GenreBusting: Pretty much everything before the human race came along.
14	* GenreMashup: It is not uncommon for storylines to mix elements of different genres. For instance, much of the military fiction crosses over into science fiction, and space travel seems so far to be a subplot of the military genre. Romantic storylines will be interspersed with workplace drama and sitcom, and so on.
15	* GenreShift: [[invoked]]Depending on the season, server, and player, you can get everything from action, drama, romance (which now and then might even include an occasional brief scene of erotica and pornography), comedy, tragedy, post-modernism, in the space of a few seasons.
16	** Many actors and actresses however have complained that their genres ''don't'' change feeling stuck in {{Melodrama}} and StepfordSuburbia arc, or in WrongSideOfTheTracks with studios and agents telling them they don't have money for the VacationEpisode, the talents for the MusicalEpisode, and are stuck in TypeCasting as TheEveryman or UnluckyEverydude ButtMonkey, rather than TheHero arc that gets them better roles, or higher billing.
17	** [[invoked]]Many try to break out of this, sometimes becoming a BreakoutCharacter or EnsembleDarkhorse, or otherwise trying to invoke EvilIsCool, but usually becoming a HateSink for an {{Anvilicious}} DrugsAreBad message. On the other hand, many note that TheEveryman characters over time attract a small but devoted {{Cult}} following who end up becoming VindicatedByHistory.
18	%%* GentleGiant: Blue whales, which happen to be the largest confirmed race in RealLife. Whale sharks and basking sharks also qualify.%%"Gentle" how?
19	* GentlemanAdventurer: A class built around exploration achievements. It was never easy to qualify for, and the decreasing number of unclaimed achievements eventually did it in.
20	* GentlemanThief: This class was once considered one of the better ones in the game, since it allowed exploits that kept your social status high despite regular criminal activities. A series of patches to Law Enforcement have sadly nerfed it into oblivion.
21	* GeoEffects: Plenty of those. Terrain, temperature, atmospheric conditions, everything can impair how things work.
22	%%* GhibliHills: Some regions, but they are few and far between. And diminishing.
23	* TheGhost: "[[ThatsWhatSheSaid She]]". Your character never meets her, but a lot of other characters know her, and she sure is talkative, and has an odd habit of {{Foreshadowing}} other characters' lines. She also says a lot of suggestive things, and apparently, many youth in the United States, especially young males, have had some sort of run in with her, being that most people will remember what she said at any given moment. [[spoiler:If you ask who "she" is, you will be informed that she is, in fact, YourMom.]] See also: "Them" or "They".
24	* GiveMeYourInventoryItem:
25	** The Mugger career specializes in forcing other players to give them equipment and items.
26	** Beggars, for a more KarmaMeter version of this, station themselves in busy areas to ask passing players for handouts. As this is a very inefficient method of item farming, it's usually only done as a desperate interim measure until something more viable comes along.
27	* GlassCannon: Humans are far from the toughest creatures on the face of the planet, but have invented powerful weapons to compensate for their poor defense. Thus, a human with a shotgun has a decent chance of slaying the 'bear' monster in a fight, but if that bear manages to take the damage and keep going, despite heavy penalties to movement and HP, then it can quickly wipe out the human who attacked it.
28	* GlobalCurrency: ''Massively'' averted. Almost every server has its own currency, although these can usually be exchanged.
29	** The euro, one recent step toward a multi-server currency, is as of 2011 suffering a serious crisis because all the servers treated it differently.
30	** Making things worse, there are a bewildering variety of minigames, ''each of which has its own currency''. These minigame currencies can [[MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame in some cases]] be [[RealMoneyTrade exchanged for Real Life money]], but doing so is against the HouseRules on most servers. There are proposals for a global reserve currency though, so this may become true sooner than expected.
31	%%** UsefulNotes/{{Bitcoin}} is an experimental attempt.
32	* GloryDays: To most people, it was their childhood. Literally.
33	* AGoodWayToDie: Subverted. Dying pretty much sucks no matter how you go out. Even dying of natural causes is a downer, although most players agree that dying in one's sleep is the most preferable. Anyone who commits a HeroicSacrifice is usually hailed by the rest of the [=PCs=].
34	* {{GMPC}}: According to one Player's Handbook, one who was able to Fudge creation stat randomization (rolling a massive CHARISMA and HOLY /FAITH score), auto-critical ItemCrafting and Swim checks, and ignore perma-death, more or less in that order.
35	* {{God}}: The devs are generally assumed to be this, although whether or not they exist, or if they do, are one or many, is a matter of dispute among the characters. Likewise some claim that they are really female, or even beyond the concept of gender.
36	* TheGoodGuysAlwaysWin: Sadly ZigZagged on account of {{Rotating Protagonist}}s and the lack of PlotArmor. Listing examples would be highly controversial.
37	%%* TheGoomba: Ants.
38	* GourmetPetFood: This is taken to an extreme with many treats for both cats and dogs. Semisolid snacks are especially egregious offenders: colorful and fancifully shaped (into bacon strips, little burgers, hearts, fish, et al.), they clearly are made to appeal to the owner's aesthetic sensibilities. This helps to hide the fact that they are usually little more than overpriced soy or wheat flour.
39	* GovernmentConspiracy: There are some unconfirmed theories and several confirmed ones throughout the ages. Many are extensively disproven.
40	* GrandFinale: There is fan speculation on whether the series will end with one, but in the meantime many of the most memorable arcs ended with this. Probably the most recent would be the ''very'' popular UsefulNotes/WorldWarII arc which ended with [[spoiler:the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]] according to some but with D-Day and [[spoiler:Hitler's suicide]] to others.
41	* GreaterScopeVillain: Some in-game religions have a character in their lore who is the source of evil in the world. An example is Satan from the Christian faction. However, no known way of meeting these characters has been discovered yet so they will not directly threaten you.
42	%%* GreenAesop: The Greta Thunberg plot of TheNewTens is a particularly stirring, if divisive, example.
43	* GreenHillZone:
44	** Yards, prairies, and public parks.
45	** The first level was most likely [[JungleJapes eastern Africa]], which looks like it should qualify, but this may be a subversion since it's somewhat of a DeathWorld as well.
46	* GridPuzzle: Escape rooms often feature Sudokus that, when solved, reveal the correct sequence to series of buttons needed to exit the place.
47	* GrimUpNorth: Very few characters live in the Arctic Circle at all, and among the creatures that live there are [[BearsAreBadNews fierce white-furred bears]]. Also inverted, as the ''[[MysteriousAntarctica South]]'' Pole is much worse.
48	* GroinAttack: Due to what is widely perceived as a design flaw for male characters, this move can result in a SingleStrokeBattle. While onlookers sometimes feel it can be PlayedForLaughs, it is ''never'' considered so by the target.
49	* GroupieBrigade: Members of the Artist class and/or Musician subclass will be pursued for sex or relationships by members of the [[FanGirl Groupie]] [[FanBoy Class]]. Although it seems to have tamed in later years.
50	%%* GrowingUpSucks: But most agree it's worth it.
51	* GuideDangIt: And to make it worse, there are lots of different guides with conflicting advice! It's gotten to the point that to work out anything new about TheVerse, you're actually ''expected'' to spend several years studying the fan community's extensive archive of guidebooks.
52	* GuiltBasedGaming: Most religions consider [[DrivenToSuicide cancelling your subscription]] to be ''[[SuicideIsShameful bad]]''.
53	[[/folder]]
54
55	[[folder:H]]
56	%%* HailfirePeaks: The Iceland level is like this.
57	%%* HalloweenEpisode: On October 31.
58	%%* HappilyMarried: Played straight with many couples. Unfortunately averted with others.
59	* HardModePerks: In some countries, if your work hours exceed a certain amount per day, week, or other period of time, you will earn an "overtime" bonus that gets you bonus pay on top of your usual pay. This can be quite exhausting, but can allow one to splurge on some extra luxuries or pay off much-needed bills.
60	* HarderThanHard: The International Baccalaureate high school program, said to exceed the difficulty of Honors and Advanced Placement classes. And of course, difficulty also depends on [[DifficultyByRegion region]]
61	** This DifficultyByRegion results in EasyModeMockery by ''forcing you to do it '''again''''' if you switch locales to one where the school system is harder. Some universities don’t even accept IB credit, compared to AP credit. No, really.
62	** Not to mention that many players don't even get the chance to enter the School career path, instead being forced into the Work or War levels with inadequate preparation or just unlucky rolls in character creation...
63	* HarmfulHealing: People with the celiac's disease debuff hurt their intestines when ingesting gluten. If they stop eating gluten to heal themselves, their weight and cholesterol stats skyrocket. In a worst case scenario this may cause the diabetes status effect.
64	* HaveANiceDeath: A thoughtful obituary is almost a given. Some lucky souls even receive two or three post-death debriefings, with dramatic displays costing large amounts of currency. But unless beliefs about reincarnation are true, you only get to die once.
65	** Some players have reported a GoodBadBug that lets you preview the HaveANiceDeath screen if you suffer serious trauma. This seems to be extremely rare though, and many consider it an UrbanLegendOfZelda.
66	** There's another bug in which [=NPCs=] have been known to publish an obituary for a player that hasn't died. This is particularly interesting, as players do not normally get to see their own obituaries.
67	* HealingFactor: Sadly, players possess a healing factor that takes time and cannot heal all wounds, but creatures such as worms, microscopic hydras, and some other simple creatures can regenerate from decapitation. Fortunately they are too small to harm the player, or the game would become unbalanced.
68	* HealthyGreenHarmfulRed:
69	** At stop lights, red means stop and green means go. Green is healthy because you can safely continue driving and red is harmful because we all know the health issues that come from getting T-boned by a semi.
70	** Inverted with many red, edible fruits which tend to be green and unpalatable or even inedible prior to fully ripening.
71	* HeartTrauma:
72	** DoubleSubverted. If your heart suffers physical damage, you'll lose HP and eventually die, but your personality is unlikely to change. Replacing parts of the heart (or even taking out the whole thing and putting in a pump) does not alter people in any way that would be noticeable without a medical exam. However, damage to the ''brain''(!) may cause many of the effects normally associated with this trope.
73	** The psychological trauma associated with cardiological incidents can have mind altering effects.
74	* {{Heaven}}: Different characters disagree on whether real life averts this trope or plays it straight. Those who believe it's played straight may disagree on whether or not it's a FluffyCloudHeaven, or even if there is more than one heaven.
75	* {{Hell}}: Different characters disagree on whether real life averts this trope or plays it straight. Those who believe it's played straight may disagree on whether or not it's a FireAndBrimstoneHell, or even if there is more than one hell.
76	* HelloInsertNameHere: Averted. Players generally do not get to choose their character's name at creation, though renaming is an option later. Some classes (such as the Writer, Musician, Exotic Dancer, Identity Thief and Gang Member classes) may also involve the use of names other than the one you were given.
77	* TheHero: [[spoiler:[[CallToAdventure Look in the mirror]].]]
78	* HeroOfAnotherStory: Every single player lives out his own story, so other players in relation to him is this.
79	* HideYourPregnancy: InUniverse. Available for female characters, but this SelfImposedChallenge is not generally a good idea. Hits to your Social points or Relationship values are not worth the trauma and fatigue -- to say nothing of the real risks: the unpatched Labor system ''can crash your game and prevent the noob from completing chararacter generation.''
80	* HighSchoolRocks: But only for those who manage to be popular because of good looks (usually), funniness and/or some respected talent. For others, high school is four consecutive {{Scrappy Level}}s. It can also rock for those who [[TheSnarkKnight willingly embrace (and in some cases even celebrate) their unpopularity.]] This is rare, but it happens.
81	* {{Hikikomori}}: Some characters with low CHA stats and levels in the Social skill set will take this class.
82	* HisAndHers: While often parodied in television and film, numerous products of this type can be found in the world.
83	* HitPoints: Lifeforms are too complex to sum up their vitals in a number -- the game uses a number of very complex wounds systems instead -- but many hospitals manage to condense a few properties to numbers; although it's not a true damage tracker, they do help to provide a useful status shot.
84	* HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct: The developer(s) have given no indication that there are plans to introduce a Time Travel mechanic. Considering the massive amount of RetCon involved, and the high risk that powergamers would abuse the mechanic and cause a system crash, this is probably just as well. For more musing about the moral and temporal issues, visit the trope page.
85	%%* HolyGround: Temples, churches, Vatican City, many graveyards, the Ganges River, and many more.
86	* HonestRollsCharacter: Every single one. You get what you get. The character generator can absolutely screw you. A significant number of characters, perhaps as many as 40%, are killed by spontaneous miscarriages (or if it's by choice on the mother's part, abortion) before finishing generation. If the character generator decides you should be born tall, good looking, brilliant, with a wealthy, loving family, an amicable personality, prodigious talent, and no diseases, so be it. If it decides to saddle you with a chromosomal abnormality, your mother's HIV infection, and a spinal cord that sticks out a hole in your spine, you get no reroll. At best you can ally yourself with one of the health-insurance factions (and pay substantial guild dues) to have some of the penalties reduced. There are Scientist-class players working on [[HollywoodCyborg cybernetic augmentation]], genetic engineering, and [[BioAugmentation bioenhancement]] procedures to modify these, but they currently firmly at the theoretical level.
87	* HopeSpot: While there's life, there's hope, even if another danger may be near after surviving one.
88	%%* HopelessWithTech: Unfortunately, there are many players who fall under this trope.
89	* HotterAndSexier:
90	** Puberty. It involves many players suddenly noticing certain things about the opposite (or same) sex that they hadn't before and vice-versa. They may also find themselves aroused by things that previously had [[NoSell no effect]] on them. This is of course [[AvertedTrope averted]] for players with UsefulNotes/{{Asexual}}ity as one of their character stats.
91	** [[DefiedTrope Defied]] by some aces to get people to leave them alone by deliberately not looking attractive (though usually not ugly).
92	* HouseRules: Many groups of fans have come up with their own sets of rules for playing, [[{{Scrub}} some considerably more restrictive than others]]. The game may well be more fun without them, but they are convinced that following these extra rules is worth more points. Disagreements about these different play styles have led to many nasty {{Flame War}}s.
93	* HowIWroteThisArticleArticle: An academic journal of psychology once published a scholarly study entitled [[http://www.ericpazdziora.com/best-paper-ever/ "The Unsuccessful Self-Treatment of a Case of Writers' Block"]]. Peer reviewers commended the author for showing his results in great detail while being admirably concise. Of course, [[spoiler:everything except the title is blank]].
94	* HubCity: Several, though the main ones are New York, Moscow, London, Tokyo, Mexico City, Paris, Hong Kong, Washington D.C., and Berlin. Jerusalem, Istanbul, Rome, and Beijing are still secondary hubs but are no longer the focus of gameplay.
95	* HumanityIsSuperior: We've already conquered one planet to some degree, and there are plans on the table to add [[ExpansionPackWorld several more]]. [[{{Vaporware}} Eventually]].
96	* HumansAreWarriors: We have several millennia of experience with warfare, and while it's not a trait we're always proud of, we are [[{{BFG}} very]], ''[[TankGoodness very]] '''[[UsefulNotes/NuclearWeapons good]]''''' at war. Whether or not a member of the military prestige class is proud of their status has a lot to do with whether or not they've had a chance to use their class features in a combat situation. Also, whether or not the Military class even ''is'' a prestige class depends on the server. In many servers, characters are ''forced'' to take the Soldier class: in a few, they're not even allowed to finish the tutorial levels first.
97	* HyperactiveMetabolism: Mostly averted, though a few lucky characters subvert it by being {{Big Eater}}s that don't gain much weight.
98	* HyperlinkStory: [[invoked]] Most of real-life is one giant story of multiple story-arcs with large casts of multiple languages without any real main characters. Some even argue that attempts to present main characters such as the "Great Man of History" fad popular in the Romantic arc is either BlatantLies or {{Fanon}}.
99	[[/folder]]
100
101	[[folder:I-J]]
102	* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Although most episodes and seasons are referred to by number, often in the format "episode number-arc/act-season number", there are systems which use more poetic naming, especially with regard to the acts. Notably, the China server uses a cycle of twelve repeating [[AnimalMotif animal-themed]] seasons, and the Islamic-based system counts the standard arcs from [[MeaningfulName "forbidden" to "the one of pilgrimage"]]. Code inherited from the Ancient Roman server shows that this was attempted by naming in-game time cycles for [[MythologyGag gods]], but it petered out into naming the last seven for their numbers. The attempt was briefly revived when two Emperors named time periods for themselves, but this project was abandoned and the last five are still named for their numbers.
103	* IdiotBall: [[{{AlcoholInducedStupidity}} Alcohol]] is often used to this end, as are the frequent appearances of LoveMakesYouDumb. You don't want to combine the two.
104	* IFoughtTheLawAndTheLawWon: If you commit serious and/or high-profile enough crimes, you'll suddenly find LOTS of law enforcement agencies will be out take you down any way they can.
105	* IllegalGamblingDen:
106	** There are a lot of Mafia-operated bookies where the Mafia loves getting people TrappedByGamblingDebts to get their hooks into indebted businesses.
107	** The {{Yakuza}} is theorized to have started out as guilds of street peddlers who ran illegal gambling rings, as "ya-ku-za" is the worst possible hand in the Japanese card game oicho-kabu.
108	** The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wah_Mee_massacre Wah Mee]] club in UsefulNotes/{{Seattle}} started as a legitimate nightclub, but fell on hard times and became this. It culminated in three men setting up a violent armed robbery where they planned to kill everyone inside and take all the money they could grab (as it was an illegal operation, everything was cash-only). It ended with thirteen dead and a SoleSurvivor (one of the club's dealers, who identified the robbers).
109	** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molly_Bloom_(author) Molly Bloom]] ran illegal poker games for show business major figures until the FBI got her.
110	* ImaginaryFriend: Many players will create another fictional character as a feature. This is most common during the first dozen or so years of gameplay. It can happen at later points in the game too, but this is usually considered a sign of the "Mental Illness" status ailment.
111	* ImmortalProcreationClause: Played straight with all species if infant mortality is factored in (a few long-lived species, such as trees, can reproduce in great numbers, but most of their offspring die young). If birth control is available, human birthrates actually ''drop'' as the environment gets more conducive to good health, maintaining the inverse ratio of procreation to life expectancy.
112	%%* IncendiaryExponent: Played straight in war scenes. HilarityEnsues in chemistry lab backfires. Averted most of the rest of the time.
113	* InfinityMinusOneSword: The high school diploma is nowhere near the prestige of college degrees, but it shows that you completed your primary tutorials, and, in many servers, doesn't require expensive tuition fees to reach. A lot of non-specialized classes require having graduated high school as an entry condition, but don't necessarily require a college degree.
114	* InfinityPlusOneSword:
115	** Again, the nuclear bomb. Restricted to people who hit the maximum Job Level for Politics, and with a lot of restrictions on it even then. That said, there are persistent rumors of bugs in the code that might allow unlevelled characters to gain access to assorted {{Infinity Plus One Sword}}s. None have yet been demonstrated, but the rumors alone have made many in the fan base quite upset, especially a few seasons ago.
116	** A [=PhD=] is the highest degree level offered in many academic fields, with all the prestige and promise of high-paying careers that entail, but requires years of further study and research on top of what college undergraduates earn.
117	* InMediasRes:
118	** At the start, there is a wide cast of pre-established characters and multiple fully developed conflicts and sub-plots with little initial explanation as to how they came about.
119	** Any time a player moves, changes schools, jobs, clubs, etc they are typically started off InMediasRes. Expect a lot of info dumping.
120	* InsufferableGenius: A debuff as a result of high levels in the Intelligence stat. May cause the “Annoyed” effect when the intelligent character attempts to perform a social interaction with certain classes.
121	* InsurmountableWaistHeightFence:
122	** Played straight for your first level or so. All non-twinks have the choice to avert this trope for a long time, but as your level reaches the max cap it becomes enforced again. Many players are so acquainted to this trope that they never attempt to break it. [[LeParkour Some players on the other hand...]]
123	** Also a non-literal example for players with the [[ShrinkingViolet Shyness]] attribute, where comparatively simple social interaction becomes an Insurmountable Fence.
124	* InterfaceScrew: A surprising number, either involuntary or self-imposed:
125	** Involuntary examples: optical illusions, mental illnesses, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases cognitive biases]], bad eyesight. Inventory items can reduce the penalties on some of these.
126	** SelfImposedChallenge examples: alcohol, hallucinogens, sleep deprivation.
127	** Many items with the "[[BlazingInfernoHellfireSauce Capsaicin]]" affix are designed to cause this in the form of feeling as though you're taking extreme damage and false "debuffs" of the afflicted part being heat burned and/or acid burned. Pepper and spice items that share this affix only affect mucus membranes in most cases (which oh so unfortunately includes your [[EyeScream eyes]]). Anything to the point that it can affect other parts are weaponized as pepper-spray and a short burst is enough to inflict several debuffs to leave you in a state of ControllableHelplessness until they wear off for most people.
128	%%* InternationalShowdownByProxy: See the World Cup, the Olympics, and every game of professional sports ever played.
129	* InTheHood:
130	** Averted. In most environments, wearing a hood tends to draw curiosity, if not outright suspicion. If the local culture or weather makes hoods commonplace, a hood won't cause a character to stand out, but it won't make her any less noticeable, either.
131	** In the UsefulNotes/{{Seattle}} server, there's a joke that locals can be distinguished from tourists by their reaction to the rain: tourists tend to grab an umbrella, locals tend to simply wear a hood.
132	* InventoryManagementPuzzle:
133	** A recurring mini-game in the form of school bags, camping/canoeing trips, shopping bags, holiday packing, road trips, moving into a smaller apartment, and a woman's purse (which may verge on BagOfHolding).
134	** Averted by a small number of people who take vows of poverty, but this is unusual and often considered deviant.
135	** At the opposite extreme, characters with very high levels of money scatter their funds across many servers in an effort to keep their Financial score from suffering 'decay'. This is, so far, an unpatched exploit.
136	%%* {{Irony}}: A surprisingly common trope for a work that is neither satire nor comedy (although it has elements of both).
137	* ItCameFromTheFridge:
138	** Kefir grains swell, divide, and move around in milk like a macro-scale colony of cells.
139	** The glob of goo (scoby, short for "symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast") used to make kombucha (fermented tea) moves around in the liquid; rising, sinking, flipping over, and occasionally gaining so much bouyancy that it looks like it's trying to escape. Some homebrewers get attached to and name theirs, treating it as a pet BlobMonster that lives entirely on room-temperature sweet tea. When put up for storage, the resultant jar of grey biomass floating in amber liquid looks like something you'd find on the set of a horror movie.
140	** Any foodstuffs that aren't consumed all at once is liable to produce this, especially if it's stored in an translucent or opaque container.
141	** TropeNamer (see the note under FridgeBrilliance above)
142	* ItemCrafting: Features an extensive system tied in with the TechTree -- so extensive, in fact, that a viable strategy for some players is to devote themselves to gaining levels in one particular aspect and selling their craftsmanship to other players. New formulas are being discovered all the time.
143	* ItMakesSenseInContext: It's common for communities to have their own language and terms that outsiders may not get. For example, the soccerball fandom has terms like "hat trick", when a player scores three goals in a single game.
144	* ItsAllAboutMe: It is highly likely to come across someone being selfish while playing around in this WideOpenSandbox, and most hide it better than others... and most ''also'' [[ObliviouslyEvil don't even notice this trait of theirs]].
145	* ItsAWonderfulFailure: When someone dies, it's often customary for their loved ones to hold a funeral for them and mourn over the loss of the deceased.
146	%%* IzchaksWrath: Enter a store selling gun items, choose the rob command, and see what happens.
147	* JoeSentMe:
148	** An annual RoaringTwenties themed fundraiser at Salt Lake City's Catholic high school is called Joe Sent Me.
149	** TruthInTelevision in some clubs. They'll let you in if you happen to know the owner's name.
150	* JoinsToFitIn: Thousands of clubs exist for characters with similar interests to bond over these interests.
151	** Especially for characters who have chosen the Musician class, this is practically necessary in order to make the class a viable career-path. That said, there are some who decide to go alone, but even they need to hire a group of other characters in order to perform and earn money.
152	* JumpPhysics: Applies in the pole vaulting minigame.
153	[[/folder]]
154
155	[[folder:K]]
156	* KilledOffForReal: Not just common, though some have beliefs that the dead return in some way - enough players will tell others that ghosts linger in the living world and can contact the living. Occasionally averted with last-minute desperation tactics, such as defibrillation and CPR, but it has yet to be seen that one stave off Character Death indefinitely.
157	** Subverted [[AuthorAvatar that one time]]. However, this might again be the case of an UnreliableNarrator...
158	** The time limit at which enforced Character Death becomes more likely was [[TropeNamer once]] [[MethuselahSyndrome much higher]], if you believe Literature/TheBible.
159	*** The time limit has gotten higher due to [[ScienceMarchesOn advances in science and medicine.]]
160	** Many factions claim that the game ends with AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence, the number of characters ''will'' eventually bring on a system crash, and there is ''no'' indication that character death by timing-out provides any higher final score than death by any other means. Yet one still finds very few characters willing to undertake a DyingMomentOfAwesome.
161	* KillerRabbit:
162	** Many animals (and people) fall under two categories: those that don't look dangerous but can kill or injure someone at various levels, and those that do look dangerous and can kill or injure at various levels. Some people look meek but have such an "animal" inside them. Exceptions could count in gentle giants that are not provoked and many types of smaller life forms that, if not carrying diseases, lack the weaponry and/or aggression to actually cause any significant harm.
163	** Subverted with rabbit characters, who can scratch and bite, but will take some time to injure you ''horribly'', giving you time to defy this trope by calming them down or otherwise remove yourself from the situation.
164	** During the early stages of the Human server there were carnivorous relatives of animals which would today be thought of as harmless or nearly harmless. Two examples being the "Killer Kangaroo" and what has been called the "Demon Duck of Doom" [[http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/07/060725-kangaroo.html]] No killer rabbits though - that we know of.
165	** Played straight, however, with the 'rabies' status effect. It makes normally harmless bunnies -- or puppy dogs, kitties, and so on -- into fearsome carriers of guaranteed death, unless an antidote is quickly applied.
166	* KillItWithFire: TropeNamer; a form of AppliedPhlebotinum called "fire" has been adapted into various forms of DepletedPhlebotinumShells ([[ArrowsOnFire flaming arrows]], black powder bombs, flamethrowers, napalm, fuel-air bombs and laser-guided thermobaric missiles, to name just a few) in order to kill them all.
167	** In one of the earlier seasons the Toba volcanic event caused a near reboot of the human server. Many non-human players were also affected.
168	** On a higher scale some have speculated that the earlier Chicxulub cosmic event ended the dinosaur story arc.
169	* KillItWithWater: TropeNamer. According to [[TheGreatFlood some]], the GameMaster decided after the first few seasons that the characters and plot were going completely OffTheRails. The GM felt that the best course of action was to [[RocksFallEveryoneDies drop a flood on everyone]] except for a few of the characters; just enough for a Reboot.
170	** Ironically, water is a key component for every lifeform in the entire series and will remain so for the foreseeable future.
171	* KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter:
172	** So far, this has held true in RealLife, from slings and stones, to bows and arrows, crossbows and bolts, cannons and shells (and guns and bullets), and more recently, guided missiles. And in the future, mass drivers like railguns and Gauss cannons provide a logical path for even further advancement of kinetic weapons. EnergyWeapons have also existed for quite a while, in the form of [[KillItWithFire fire]], and recently a couple of experimental lasers as well, but have never been so prominent.
173	** The top-tier move "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_bombardment Rod From God]]" has been found in the code and would allow for the destruction of entire bases and settlements in one go, but no one has unlocked it yet.
174	* {{Klotski}}: The International Obfuscated C Code Contest had a winning entry one year that solved this puzzle. Here's the catch: When presenting its moves and the current state of the board, it would print out valid C code (obfuscated to look like the blocks)... which compiled into a program that did the ''same thing but faster''.
175	* KudzuPlot: So complicated, even the characters "in charge" don't know what the hell's going on most of the time. Whether the author(s) do(es) themselves is hotly debated among the fans (apart from the issue of whether the author/s even exist). [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History Entire]] [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeology academic]] [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleontology disciplines]] are dedicated to making just a little sense of the storyline.
176	[[/folder]]
177
178	[[folder:L]]
179	* LaboriousLaziness: Who hasn't torn their room apart looking for a missing TV remote control when they could just walk over to the TV and change the channel that way?
180	** This is void, of course, for some "too modern" [=TVs=] that ''require'' the remote to operate on them.
181	** Many players have also reported spending hours looking for the keys to their car just to drive down to the grocery store for a few daily supplies, when it would have been much faster (and easier) just to walk instead. Of course, this often turns into a ShaggyDogStory, since often the keys turn out to have been in the exact place the player expected them to be in, only they missed them the first time they looked.
182	* LampshadeHanging: Art, especially comedy. And this wiki, of course.
183	* LateForSchool:
184	** Most players are late for school at least once in their play-through.
185	** [[AvertedTrope Averted]] with (most) players who choose the homeschooling path.
186	* LawOfConservationOfDetail: PlayedWith. There are so many details that some have to avert this trope, but can be an EnforcedTrope if characters are {{macgyvering}} resolutions to their personal arcs, and at other times a DefiedTrope, such as when an important-seeming detail like a religion-themed item turns out to be purely aesthetic. Played straight in the math level.
187	* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Some characters believe they can talk to the ''other'' god/being/whatevertheycallittoday. Also, [[spoiler:[[MindScrew this is not a page about a TV series or an MMORPG]]. ]]
188	%%* LeaveTheCameraRunning: A continuous trope.
189	%%* LemonyNarrator: Sadly, many forms of mental illness take on this trope.
190	* LensmanArmsRace:
191	** Humanity's entire story arc has seen us go from crude rafts and sticks with sharp stones attached to nuclear weapons and space flight.
192	** Evolution. The winners survive.
193	** Parasitism. The game of move-countermove between parasites and disease-causing organisms and their victims is stunningly complex. Some players spend their whole lives in a class studying the defenses of one species, the human immune system, and all those players have to have very high INT stats just to get the class.
194	** Antibiotics. Penicillins break cell walls. Beta-lactamases break penicillins. And we're off to the races.
195	* LethalJokeCharacter: It's one way to interpret a (relatively) hairless biped with smaller fangs per body size, a generally less practical version of claws, about no poison whatsoever bar bodily waste, a lack of natural weapons such as horns, incredibly long and perhaps dangerous physical development, a muscle tone and a movement speed that are outclassed often enough, if not lethargic, not-so tough skin, no thick fur, about no special defenses, and (until very recently) [[DeathByChildbirth a quite high risk for character creation]], has achieved this status with nothing more than the ability for its thumbs to have [[BoringYetPractical oppositional movement]] and a [[BadassBookworm large brain]]. [[MagikarpPower Technology]] and a potentially limitless TechTree have given this race the chance to either unmake its world or survive its end. Not to mention there have been numerous cases of such beings enduring more than expected and even accounts of them getting an advantage in direct combat against other species in the animal kingdom. Ever notice ''every'', or should we say [[MostWritersAreHuman about every]] player reading this page has this character type? Interestingly, although they have Strength and Speed scores that are fixed at low levels, humans ''can'' train up their Endurance stat to exceed that of most land animals. Few choose to cultivate this skill outside of a few hobbyists and the few diehards who stick to the Hunter-Gatherer class.
196	%%* LethalLavaLand: Many places, most notably Hawaii, Japan and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Etna Sicily]].
197	%%* LetsPlay: There are over millions of videos depicting these, as well as other mediums.
198	* LevelGrinding: It can take decades of grinding to achieve levels in most {{Prestige Class}}es. Most skills require some LevelGrinding to raise to the point where they are at all useful, though there are exceptions.
199	%%* LifeWillKillYou: Unfortunately, statistics regarding life expectancy indicate this to be one defining feature of real life.
200	* LightningCanDoAnything: Captive, artificially-generated lightning is used to run various machines, from children's toys to supercomputers.
201	* LikeRealityUnlessNoted: The TropeNamer. Played straight to the most part, except for the [[RealityIsUnrealistic 'unrealistic']] bits...
202	* LinearWarriorsQuadraticWizards: The Nerd class has a really hard time going through the early levels, especially High School and the PVP, while "jocks" can mostly go around doing what they like unhindered, but eventually the jocks tend to [[WhosLaughingNow end up working for the nerds]]. However, it's possible for the [[{{Munchkin}} Jock class to take levels in nerding]], and vice versa. The Nerd class is not only often a self-imposed challenge, but all of its class specifics can be freely taken up by any other class without hindrance to physical and social abilities. GeniusBruiser, BadassBookworm, and HospitalHottie are freely available to those who are [[LuckBasedMission blessed with talent and the opportunity to take those classes.]]
203	* LoadsAndLoadsOfLoading:
204	** Played straight with gestation, but otherwise averted. All textures and cutscenes load instantaneously. Even the [[VideoGame/TheSims splines reticulate]] so fast you'd barely notice them at all. It turns out the video engine runs faster than the viewer is physically able to perceive it - which seems like a real waste of processing power.
205	** Played straight during the "School" and "Employment" arcs if your character has the "Heavy Sleeper" trait, as well as any location where server capacity is limited and you have to wait for a lengthy time for service (known as "queues" or "lines" in one common form)
206	* LongRunners: 12,000 years of human civilization measured from the start of the Neolithic, with many {{Missing Episode}}s along the way. 13.7 billion years back to the presently held beginning though, the Big Bang, which itself could be questionable. Several other series set in the RealLife-verse are also LongRunners - stromatolites, jellyfish, sharks and spiders to name just a few. Some long-running fan-favorites, including the dinosaurs and mammoths were eventually KilledOffForReal... but spin-off and {{Expy}} characters such as birds and elephants were kept around. And of course, bacteria, some of the very first characters to appear, still make up more than half of the cast list.
207	%%* LoveDodecahedron: But usually not PlayedForLaughs.
208	* LoveHurts, but also LoveRedeems, and [[strike:sometimes]] frequently LoveMakesYouCrazy. All of these may be experienced by the same character at various points, in some cases multiple times.
209	* LuckBasedMission: If you pick the Gambler or Entrepreneur class, there are a lot of these that affect how much money you have. But at least they tend to keep you alive, unlike the Soldier class during wartime. However, if you have money, it's well-known that you can more easily turn luck toward your favor. To be honest, though, the entire game is like this--everything from finding a job to attaining fame to [[BreadEggsMilkSquick surviving the Plague]].
210	* LudicrousGibs: Entirely possible with certain weapon or object interactions with players. Such interactions generally cause an instant {{Permadeath}} and can lead to psychological debuffs for other players who witness them or their aftermath.
211	[[/folder]]
212
213	[[folder:M]]
214	* MacrossMissileMassacre: Favorite tactic of militaries across the world, heavily used in air and naval combat. Combined with {{nuke\|Em}}s to make a superweapon called the ICBM, and the Cluster Bomb to make the staggeringly destructive MIRV warhead. The Macross Missle Massacre has become less popular as newer strategies emerged, especially in light of recent developments in the manner of war.
215	* MagicAIsMagicA: The "laws" of physics are long-standing models which operate reliably enough for the practitioners to "act" as if they were true. We're still a long way from direct manipulation of the system code.
216	%%* MagicalComputer: Most notable aversion... even if some seem not to realize this.
217	* MagicalRealism: There's some ongoing debate in the playerbase regarding whether the setting operates under this genre or strict realism. It mostly hinges over whether certain players' reports of having unlocked special Psychic and Medium classes, or of having discovered rare mobs such as the Bigfoot in the North American servers, should be believed or are hoaxes.
218	* MagikarpPower: Thanks to a process called "Puberty", which begins the prestige class minigame, even the wimpiest young player can develop into a hardcore badass.
219	** See that kid mutilating classic rock songs on his new guitar? Remember his name.
220	** See that Troper over there? Remember his name too.
221	** You know that nerd you always pick on in class? Someday he will be your boss. Unless, of course, the one picking on that nerd realizes grinding mental, physical, and social stats are all possible in this setting and prevent crippling overspecialization.
222	** A single group of players, thanks to the talent trees unlocked by thumbs with oppositional movement and large brains, could wipe dozens of servers out forever, maybe even eliminate every player in existence.
223	* MakeTheBearAngryAgain: The 21st century seasons, especially the high-point in the Southern Ossetia arc in the middle of season 2008, and taken to new heights in the Ukraine arc of 2022.
224	* MainCharacterFinalBoss: [[spoiler:You've spent your last moments succumbing to your inner demons and committing heinous atrocities as a result]].
225	* MalignantPlotTumor: Quite a few. By no means a complete list:
226	** A [[RagTagBunchOfMisfits band of refugees, thieves, debtors, runaway slaves and whoever]] get it into their heads to build a small town around seven hills in Italy. Then an [[RoyalBrat Etruscan prince]] insulted [[BerserkButton one of their women]], with results that were [[LetsGetDangerous less than pleasant]] [[MuggingTheMonster for the Etruscans]]. As a result the most famous [[TheEmpire empire]] in history is formed, and most of the most powerful nations in the world call themselves a [[TheRepublic Res-pub-lic-a]]
227	** The execution of a [[JesusTaboo certain minor Jewish leader in first-century Judea]], eventually sparked off one of the great world religions.
228	** A WackyWaysideTribe of Arab nomads in-between Persia and Rome during the Ancient World arc go on to dominate half the known world (and invent another major religion) during the Medieval arc.
229	** Dividing up the Middle East seemed almost like an afterthought at the close of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, but it has led to no end of headaches in recent seasons.
230	** A handful of rebellious British North American colonies ended up establishing the Modern World arc's superpower.
231	** The Japan server for the most part was concerned only with its minigame until around 150 seasons ago, then featured prominently in the UsefulNotes/WorldWarII story arc and remains one of the more influential forces in the game today. Players on it insist it be kept to players who started out with it only, and constant [[PlayerVersusPlayer PvP]] incidents have led to it causing friction with the other Asian servers.
232	** See even wider-reaching examples under LethalJokeCharacter and TheSingularity.
233	* MandatoryMotherhood: Until recently, it was nearly impossible to get very far on the Sex Life quest chain without automatically starting the Parenting quest chain. These days, many servers have implemented options that let you choose if and when to initiate the latter, irrespectively of where you are on the former. [[ButWeUsedACondom Some bugs remain that can make the game default to the old behaviour, though.]]
234	* TheManyDeathsOfYou:
235	** Averted, in that death is usually one-time and permanent. However, there are a ''lot'' of different ways to do it.
236	** Suffocation, bleeding out, decapitation, broken neck, cancer, drowning, heart attack, stroke, dismemberment, impalement, being hit by a car, Immolation (Burning to death), deadly predators, murder, suicide, murder-suicide, AIDS/HIV, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, falling from ''too'' high a height, shock, crushed, being too hot, being too cold, lethal injection, and gassed. That is just the tip of the massive iceberg that is death. [[spoiler:Also includes death by ice-berg.]]
237	%%* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Depending on which {{fanon}} you subscribe to.
238	* MeaningfulFuneral: Every character sees at least one, most likely.
239	** TheFunInFuneral: Sometimes occur, considering how commonplace funerals are, ie. Creator/MontyPython's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsHk9WC7fnQ Graham Chapman]].
240	* MeaningfulName: Generally subverted. Even on servers where new characters's names' meanings are taken into consideration at registration, it can be hard to tell whether this isn't a SelfFulfillingProphecy, as undeveloped characters are quite suggestible. Can be DoubleSubverted by characters who inherited their name from seasons where this trope was PlayedStraight, who also coincidentally inherited the relevant trait.
241	* MeatMoss: Biofilm. There's also a cave formation known as "Snottites", which are long strings of MeatMoss feeding on toxic cave water. They filter out all the nutrients and water, and leave a drop of pure sulphuric acid to drip down.
242	* MediumAwareness: Well... we do have this page.
243	* MegaNeko: Lots! Lions, tigers, cougars, jaguars, leopards ... but they rarely make good pets.
244	* {{Meganekko}}: Also well-represented. Glasses are popular enough that people wear them when they don't even [[RuleOfSexy need them.]]
245	* MemeticMutation: InUniverse. The primary medium for these to occur in. For instance, if someone says "Magneto was right" outside the Marvel universe, chances are good they will be a player character in RealLife.
246	* MemoryRestoringMelody: Forgetful characters feel the power of remembrance when listening to certain special songs. Probably has something to so with the songs themselves being familiar to the characters in some way.
247	* MentalWorld: Players who grind enough levels on the "Dreaming" skill and complete the required quests which take a fairly long time depending on the player’s commitment unlock the "Lucidity" perk, which gives them more control over the environment and [=NPCs=] during the "Sleep" minigame. It is unknown why, but experiencing this gives the character a "Happy" buff after completing the minigame, which is one of the reasons why many players desire it, other than that characters who are experts in that field have proven that performing a skill while in the minigame causes them to have a higher level in whatever it was in the main world. There are multiple methods to unlock the achievement, some of which are more reliable than others, though it is recommended that players in pursuit of it perform as many of them as possible to minimise the time taken. [[GuideDangIt Players have only recently begun to work out the code behind this feature, meaning that there are only a limited amount of in-game guides to help them with the quest.]]
248	* MetaFiction: The philosophy genre gets more meta with every iteration. It started with fanfics about the ideas behind the code and evolved into fan discussions about what a PlayerCharacter even is.
249	* {{Metaplot}}: An enormous number of independent stories exist in the Real Life universe, but metaplots about world affairs happen sometimes (such as the two [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI world]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII wars]] and the UsefulNotes/ColdWar).
250	* {{Metapuzzle}}: Crossword books sometimes have solutions that can only be derived when solving individual crosswords and riddles beforehand.
251	* {{Minigame}}: There's all sorts of these scattered around, but they require a fair chunk of in-game currency to play. Some of these even contain minigames within themselves! It's even possible for the player to take a path which allows them to design new mingames. You can learn about the tropes of these minigames [[VideogameTropes here]].
252	* MinigameZone: These, called arcades, used to be very popular in the 80s. Some restaurants even have these.
253	* MinMaxing: Largely averted, as the most successful people are usually those who have bothered to build up their Charisma alongside whatever technical knowledge needed, and a great many people who have focused on building knowledge at the expense of social networking haven't done as well. For the most common objectives, this is true. However, there are plenty of alternate objective and victory conditions allowing for many different min maxing options.
254	* MindScrew: [[spoiler:This very [[ParanoiaFuel article]] to anyone who [[PrimalFear takes this seriously that]] [[FridgeHorror reality is a]] TV show or an MMORPG. [[WordOfGod (Which we all know isn't true)]]]]
255	%%** Philosophy. Quantum physics. Relativity.
256	%%** Many things about economics make no sense either.
257	%%** Psychology, especially depth psychology (ie Freud and Jung).
258	** The inability to access in-game help or get a response from the mods or devs has become a MindScrew in the eyes of some players, who join the Atheism faction or opt out of the religious aspect of the game entirely.
259	** Any scenario where a player doesn't know who to trust, or who, if anyone, is telling the truth. Lots of he-said-she-said can result in mind screw, though players with sufficiently good [[CopsAndDetectives investigative stats]] can serve as [[MindScrewdriver Mind Screwdrivers]].
260	** The tactic known as "gaslighting" involves one player inducing this by convincing another that his or her recollection of previous gameplay is inaccurate. Because of the potential impact on the subject, this is generally considered an extremely unethical strategy.
261	* AMinorKidroduction: Downplayed, each character's tutorial section is usually at least 10% of their entire playtime.
262	%%* MisplacedWildlife: Invasive species and zoos.
263	* MissingEpisode: [[invoked]]The reason why the "Archaeologist," "Anthropologist," "Paleontologist," "Forensic Scientist" and other similar classes are available. There appear to be no ways to revisit any previous level, nor to stream video footage of those levels in play. As such, multiple player guilds and careers have developed specifically to gather together, analyze and discuss the fragmentary traces and records of older arcs.
264	* MissingManFormation: Frequently used to honor fallen members of the Pilot class.
265	* MistakenForPregnant: Every woman of childbearing age is apparently pregnant when there's a sign of a full belly. One should never mind such possible explanations of bloating, gas, obesity/being overweight, eating a big meal, or any medical situation that does not involve pregnancy.
266	* MistreatmentInducedBetrayal: {{Bad Boss}}es who cross the line often have this happen to them.
267	* MoneyDearBoy: [[invoked]]Some players would do anything just to get a lot of money (even taking it from other players without the other one's knowledge, something illegal in most servers).
268	* MoneyForNothing:
269	** Averted. There's just so much stuff to be bought with the in-game currency that you will ''never'' have too much money. Oh sure, the other players may say you do, especially indulging in ConspicuousConsumption, there's always charities to give that money to.
270	** On a more literal level, you can get Money for Nothing. It's called "arbitrage" and only really works [[FridgeLogic if you already have]] [[UnstableEquilibrium a lot of money in the first place]].
271	* MoneySink: Some of which are required to ''survive''. Real estate is a popular one whose necessity for survival is somewhat debatable, as is ''haute couture'' fashion.
272	* MookMaker: The infamous Ant Queen. Sometimes she is a neutral party who only fights other insect-type enemies, but many players will treat her like an enemy if her children appear in their homes.
273	* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Played with. The vast majority avert this trope, but those that play it straight tend to gain extreme levels of infamy.
274	* {{Mordor}}: Often the result of warfare, strip-mining, and/or chemical contamination. Reducing a playzone to this status is ''much'' faster than restoring them to their previous condition, but this doesn't seem to matter to the characters involved.
275	* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: [[ThreateningShark Sharks]] have three rows; certain deep-sea fish are even worse.
276	* MotionParallax: In real life, it's a measurable physics phenomenon that helps us calculate stuff like astronomical distances. For one, parsecs; i.e., the distance where the parallax angle is measured from opposite sides of UsefulNotes/{{Earth}}. For another, determining the distance of UsefulNotes/{{stars}} is done by trigonometric parallax, which computes the relative movements of objects against a "fixed" background of far-off stars and galaxies. In other words, the closer a star is, the more it will seem to move, which is very noticeable when one does a [[HeavenlyConcentricCircles star trail]] photograph.
277	%%* MrImagination: ''Everyone'' is this to some degree, or 99% if you believe Rene Descartes.
278	* MuggingTheMonster: Happens to members of the criminal class who aren't careful in selecting their prey, especially if they mess with someone who possesses self-defense items, or invested in self-defense skills, or is of a prestigious class. One of the ''very'' rare instances of LaserGuidedKarma, a trope that Real Life generally doesn't use.
279	* MultipleEndings: Every character has a different way their different chapters and adventures close, though people say the very, [[AnyoneCanDie very]] end is an 'equalizer' - and even that has a large amount of possibility. In general a character has many, many BadEnding and DownerEnding options.
280	* {{Munchkin}}:
281	** The "Scientist" and "Engineer" classes are a variant. Their class abilities consist of memorizing the complex equations and rules that govern Real Life so they can squeeze every last possible advantage out of them, including figuring out even more of the rules. Unlike other munchkins, however, they rarely make much direct use of their discoveries themselves -- they tend to act as support classes, providing knowledge and equipment to more active players -- and as such their work carries with it the potential for respect and prestige.
282	** The "Theologian" and "Philosopher" classes also work along these lines and were the {{Trope Codifier}}s for the first several thousand seasons. In fact, the Scientist and Engineer classes developed from these two older classes and there was significant overlap until roughly 250 seasons ago. Theologians and Philosophers are still very common today.
283	** For minigames and some [[PlayerVersusPlayer PvP]] events, the "Attorney" class (also related to the others, although somewhat more distantly) specializes in memorizing the extremely complicated legal codes, precedents and cultural leanings of various guilds and servers, in order to be able to provide the strongest possible justifications or attacks for actions in internal disputes. They can make quite a lot of money by selling their services to other players.
284	** Creator/StephenHawking is a particular instance of this. After getting hit with a particularly bad Debuff that dropped all physical stats to near 0, he compensated by grinding his [=INT=] through the roof.
285	* MustHaveCaffeine: Coffee is second only to petroleum for gallons consumed per year, since it gives great buffs to Alertness.
286	* MyRuleFuIsStrongerThanYours: A necessary skill if you ever have to fight your corner before a court or tribunal. Members of the "Lawyer" class may be enlisted to employ this skill on your behalf, but this can be extremely resource intensive.
287	* MythArc: Somewhat of a subversion, considering the plot has grown so convoluted that some are beginning to question if there even is one, though some religions would beg to differ.
288	[[/folder]]
289

Context RealLife / TropesGToM