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1[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aion_3931.png]]
2->''"They were warned... not to mistake grace for weakness."''
3
4''Aion'' is a [[UsefulNotes/SouthKorea Korean]] {{MMORPG}} from Creator/NCSoft, the publisher of ''VideoGame/{{Lineage 2}}'', ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' and ''VideoGame/GuildWars'', published in English in late 2009.
5
6The game is based on the conflict between two factions of humans which live on opposite halves of a shattered world; the [[LightIsNotGood noble but arrogant]] Elyos and the [[DarkIsNotEvil brave but bitter Asmodians]]. As well as an ongoing war with each other, the two factions must contend with evil [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Balaur]], a race created to protect and watch over the world, but now...[[GoneHorriblyWrong not so much]]. This makes up the game's unique [=PvPvE=] system, as the designers call it. Other than this, it's also notable for the fact that all characters possess the ability to fly, amongst other things.
7
8The game has no subscription fee and is worth a shot for free MMORPG players exasperated by some of the features in the standard business model (for example, most enchanting for equipment have absolutely no risk of item destruction on failure). It has also received a vast update with its 6.0 overhaul.
9
10----
11!!This game provides examples of:
12
13* AcrophobicBird: Played straight ''and'' justified. All Daevas have wings and can therefore fly, but their ability to do so depends on the amount of aether concentrated in the air. However, regardless of whether flight is permitted or not, flying monsters will typically hover only a few inches above the ground.
14* ActuallyIAmHim: As an Asmodian, go to Gelkmaros fortress and talk to Winstron.
15--> '''Winstron''': I don't know why the Daevas here ostracize me. Pretentious and prideful, scorning a "mere" scholar? Half of them ignore me, and the rest don't even care to learn my name! There is one among them, though, who I have heard is different. A [Player Class] who has risen through the ranks not through arrogance and ignorance, but by respecting others. This great Daeva's name is [Player Name]. If you happen to see this [Player Class], please mention that I wish to speak to them in person. Now go, leave me, whoever you are. I have no time for one such as you."
16--> '''Player Character''': "But... I...."
17* AfterTheEnd: Although so far afterward that almost no one remembers it.
18* AgonyBeam: Damage over Time (dot) skills are mostly this, but special mention goes to Songweavers' Paean of Pain for having it in the skill name.
19* AlienSky: Besides the fact the Tower of Eternity is visible from anywhere in the world, the sky has a shattered moon, three total moons, and the other half of the world floating ominously overhead.
20** Except you can never see the other half of the world, even in the Abyss.
21* AllThereInTheManual: Much of the game's central lore can be found on the official site. In the game itself, even more details can be found by clicking through pages of exposition in the Library of Sages and the Temple of Knowledge.
22* AlwaysChaoticEvil: The Balaur. [[spoiler: Subverted later on, where you can ally with the remnants of Tiamat's legions.]]
23* AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: The Asmodians.
24* AntiquatedLinguistics: The Balaur. [[spoiler: Easier to see when you start taking quests from some of them.]]
25* ArmCannon: Used by some Balaur in Katalam and beyond. Also used by the Gunslinger class.
26* ArtifactOfDoom: One of the lower-level Asmodian campaigns deals with destroying one of these. It is never mentioned ever again.
27* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: You ''start'' your character's life by doing this to get out of the newbie area. The game also features several other types of ascended beings, such as ascended lizardmen/dragons (Balaur) and even ascended trees (Elim).
28* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: How anyone's social rank is determined, both in universe and in game.
29* AttackOfThe50FootWhatever: The stronger Balaur, based on the gigantic discarded weapons littering the abyss. Also the Guardian Deities who guard fortresses.
30* BackgroundMagicField: Played with. Daevas rely on Aether to use their powers and stay immortal. Aether is Aion's (God's) own life essence, and He personally handpicked the first Daevas--His twelve [[ReligionIsMagic most devoted humans]]. However, Aion imbued Aether into the Tower of Eternity, which shattered in the world-sundering Cataclysm and is now hemorrhaging Aether everywhere.
31* BagOfHolding: Cubes (Inventories). This is an MMORPG after all. However, cubes are directly stated as being {{Hammerspace}} related.
32* BarbieDollAnatomy: Barechested ''male'' characters do not typically have nipples. [[AvertedTrope Averted]] by some costume skins.
33* BarrierMaiden: The Elyos Kimeia is this for Sataloca's heart.
34* BattleButler and NinjaMaid: In Kromede's Trial. Certain costume skins can make your character into this as well.
35* BeastMan: The Mau, a race of humanoid cat people.
36* TheBeastMaster: Spiritmasters, who summon elemental spirits to do their bidding.
37* TheBeautifulElite: In-universe, Daevas hold the highest positions in society, and ascending (becoming a Daeva) is canonically said to make the human in question unbelievably beautiful.
38* {{BFS}}: Greatswords, a favorite of Templars, and also an option for Gladiators not using their signature weapon. These swords have very slow attack speed as they have the same one as bows.
39** Some of the ''one''-handed swords are this too. Especially the [[http://aiondatabase.net/us/item/100000767/ Anuhart's Swords]] skin.
40** There's one sitting in the snowy southern-central area of Katalam that rivals the ''mountains'' surrounding it in terms of size. [[spoiler:Katalam campaigns reveal it to be Kahrun's sword.]]
41* [[BishonenLine Bishoujo / Bishononen Line]]: The Balaur.
42** Low level Balaur look like lizards or serpents.
43** Starting in the level 51-55 Chantra Dredgion, the Balaur bosses have a more humanlike appearance while the EliteMooks still look like monsters.
44** Every Balaur in Sarpan, Tiamaranta, and the level 56-60 Terath Dredgion has an even more humanoid appearance. Even including the 1 or 2 star regular trash mooks. The females look like supermodels.
45** The dragon lords (Tiamat and [[spoiler: Beritra]], at any rate) are completely humanoid in appearance and quite attractive. [[spoiler: Beritra's true form--not his appearance as the [=NPC=] Kaza--is mostly hidden by his clothing, but he's still obviously well-built.]]
46** Armor in Aion follows the BishonenLine theme. Armor starts off relatively plain and gets more and more elaborate and extravagant as item level increases.
47* BlessedWithSuck: Ascending makes you immortal: you can be defeated in battle, but you'll resurrect shortly afterwards, and you'll never grow old or ''older''. While every Daeva is happy with this circumstance, the Elyos city has child-like Daeva who is ReallySevenHundredYearsOld but looks like she's in her early teens. And she notes that she will never look older.
48* BrattyHalfPint: Rae, of Ishalgen Campaign fame.
49--> '''Nobekk''': Ah, Rae's always putting herself in harm's way and pestering us to take her along on raids. If we refuse, she tags along anyway.
50* BreastPlate: Hell yes, but at least more modest than most, considering some of the female armor model have [[ZettaiRyouiki skirts and metal/leather stockings]] instead of pants. While MagicSkirt is present to some extent, it doesn't prevent you from upskirt shots, since you can adjust the camera angle in such a way in the first place, even to your own character. By the way, the chain armor series is probably the most modest looking of the lot, so don't roll a priest if you want that kind of armor.
51* BottomlessPit: The entire sky counts as one, as your characters die (and automatically sent back to a RespawnPoint) after 4 consecutive seconds of freefall anywhere.
52* BribingYourWayToVictory: To a limited extent. Most of the purchasable items are cosmetic, but a few grant tangible bonuses.
53* CallARabbitASmeerp: Chickens are [=QooQoos=], birds of flight are Plumas, Frogs/Toads are Ribbits, Tigers are Taygas...
54* TheCasanova: Thersites is involved with quite a few quests dealing with heartbroken ex-girlfriends.
55* CastFromHitPoints: Siel and Israphel drained their bodies of aether and used it to [[HeroicSacrifice keep the Cataclysm from completely destroying the world.]]
56** A few spells in game consume health instead of mana as well, such as the Cleric's Land's Bargain and the Sorcerer's Soul Absorption.
57* CatchPhrase: Depends on race.
58** Asmodians have "Azphelumbra" ("May the Lord Azphel embrace you with His Darkness") and "Blood for Blood".
59** Elyos have "Arieluma" ("May the Lady, Ariel, surround you with Her Light") and "Faith and Arms".
60** Reians have "My eyes to your eyes".
61* ChainsawGood: The purchasable "Cataclysm's Jaws Weapon Skin" cosmetic item reskins a sword to look like a chainsaw.
62* CharacterCustomization: The character creator allows for incredible diversity. You can make your character look like an Elf, a Dwarf, or even an Orc just by messing with the sliders, to the point where not having any separate and distinct playable races doesn't matter one bit. People have even made their characters into clones of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-2BzE4fqsU Obama]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9STbPLjzkI Micheal Jackson]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CCHLyqcY18 Cloud Strife]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj8gpcxnICw Rambo]], and [[http://www.aionsource.com/forum/images-art-video-sound/34704-rl-character-creation.html Many Others]] including [[Film/HarryPotter Dobby the house-elf]] and [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Arthas]]. Some ''other'' people, however, use the character creator's powers [[http://www.aionsource.com/forum/images-art-video-sound/29476-1-2-allows-even-more-ugly.html for evil]]...
63** Armor and weapons can be given the appearance of others from the same equipment class. If you love the look of that level 1 sword you can remodel all your subsequent swords to look identical without sacrificing stats at all, for a flat token fee. No failure rate, too.
64* ChargeMeter: Introduced with some of the higher-level skills.
65* ChekhovMIA: [[spoiler: Belbua]]. We first hear of his disappearance with a level 12 quest given by his nephew. A level 39 quest has you rescue him. Backtracking to tell his nephew the good news gets you a [[NotActuallyCosmeticAward title]] called [[BigDamnHeroes Big]] [[ShoutOut Damn]] [[{{Series/Firefly}} Hero]].
66* CombatMedic: Clerics, Chanters, and Songweavers.
67* CombatTentacles: Celestius, the final boss of the solo instance Taloc's Hollow.
68* ConvectionSchmonvection: Standing near lava will do nothing to you. Standing ''in'' said actual lava will only slowly drain health. Also, Daevas can apparently stand in regular fire and only suffer 1 damage, if any at all.
69* CoolAirship / CoolStarship: It's hard to classify exactly what they are, but the Dredgion Battleships the Balaur use in the Abyss are undoubtedly cool. Scary as hell, too, as they can blast Daevas right out of the sky and carry thousands of troops to be deployed throughout the Abyss as the Balaur see fit. They also serve as instanced dungeons, with the ultimate goal to kill the captain.
70* CoolDown
71* CouncilOfAngels: The Empyrean Lords, even though they started out as ordinary humans, and have never lived in any kind of heaven or any other higher plane of existence.
72* CriticalHit: The chances of this happening can be improved by [[SocketedEquipment socketing critial strike manastones]] on top of equipment bonuses, up to a maximum of 50% critical chance. Different types of weapon have varying base critical damage multiplier - for example, daggers have 100 base crit strike (10% crit chance) and 2.3x critical damage multiplier, while greatswords only have 10 base crit strike (1% chance) and 1.8x critical multiplier.
73* CriticalHitClass: Assassins and Rangers have skills that guarantee critical hits for a certain number of attack skills.
74* CrystalDragonJesus: More like giant crystal tower Jesus.
75* CuteMonsterGirl: Asmodians are capable of being just as attractive as the Elyos.
76* CutsceneBoss: The Tiamat Stronghold campaign quests "Kaisinel's Command" (Elyos) and "Marchutan's Will" (Asmodian) take the player to "fight" against dragon lord Tiamat. This fight takes place in a cutscene (rendered in-game) with the player character enjoying massive CutscenePowerToTheMax alongside [=NPC=]s Kaisinel or Marchutan. The real fight against Tiamat takes place in a 12-person instance.
77* CutscenePowerToTheMax
78** In the above CutsceneBoss battles, the player slings magical attacks that stun Tiamat (a 12-man instance final boss) and puts up a magical shield that blocks her attacks. Then Kaisinel or Marchutan (depending on whether you're Elyos or Asmodian) single-handedly finishes the battle.
79** In the cutscenes for Inggison or Gelkmaros entrance quests, the player grabs and throws one of the balaur far away. While flying in a non-flight area.
80* DarkIsNotEvil: The Asmodians. While they live in a barbaric society and an even more harsh and unforgiving world, the game implies they are only doing what they must to survive. Despite their appearance, many quests show them to be very human.
81** Similarly Shedim Lady Lumiel. Before the cataclysm, she was said to be [[CuriousAsAMonkey curious]], innocent, and mischievous. Not much is known about her at present, however.
82* DeaderThanDead:
83** Almost all of the first Elyos legion to travel to Asmodae via a rift were [[CessationOfExistence erased from existence]] by Zikel.
84** Daevas that die too far away from (or not bound to) an Obelisk get stuck as ghosts forever. [[spoiler:Icaronix]] does this to [[spoiler:silence his only pursuer, allowing him to keep his disguise and bringing the demise of a whole special Elyos taskforce, including you]].
85* DeadPersonConversation: Can be done with Daevas who are DeaderThanDead.
86* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: Sort of. Dying will make you lose experience points, but the percentage lost is negligible. Moreover, there's a level cap and you can't de-level, so this is a moot point once you reach the cap. However, dying will give you soul sickness, which can only be healed by a special NPC and significantly slows down your running speed and maximum health. There are items that prevent getting soul sickness upon death.
87* EarthShatteringKaboom: What happened when Aion broke.
88* EasyAmnesia: The driving point of the Elyos side of the plot [[spoiler: and possibly part of the Asmodian one, too...]]
89* ElitesAreMoreGlamorous: Daevas are higher in the pecking order than humans, but between Daevas and the Empyrean Lords are those Daevas who serve in the elite miltary units: Guardians (among the Elyos) and Archons (among the Asmodians).
90* EliteMooks: Elite monsters have an HP frame larger than normal monsters. They are found in all group instances and a few other open-world areas, usually at end-of-campaign areas. They are designed to be fought by a party as they have much more HP than normal monsters, and process status effect resistances.
91** Solo instance {{BigBad}}s usually carry the same monster rating as EliteMooks. For example, the final boss of solo instance Steel Rake Cabin is a 2-star elite. The Mooks in the Steel Rake group instance are 2-star elites.
92* ElementalEmbodiment: Spiritmasters summon them.
93* TheEmpire: Both sides.
94* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: If one side doesn't destroy the other side's stump of Aion, the world will [[TheMagicGoesAway run out of Aether]] and the atmosphere will disperse.
95* EscortMission: Surprisingly few for an MMORPG. In most cases, the escortee cannot be attacked by monsters. Taloc's Hollow has an optional one, and the escortee helps by fighting and/or healing depending on which one you choose to save.
96* EvilTowerOfOminousness: Oh, come on. It's in the title!
97* ExclusiveEnemyEquipment
98* TheFaceless: The Empyrean Lords are depicted as glowing humanoid figures, or when the light isn't drawn as brightly, they're shown from an angle in which their faces are obscured.
99** Averted with the 3.0 Ascension update, where Empyrean Lords Israphel, Marchutan, and Kaisinel appear in-game in campaign quests with their faces shown explicitly, [[spoiler:as do Nezekan and Triniel in 4.0.]] Since 4.0, Marchutan and Kaisinel achieve NPC status and can be spoken to during certain campaign quests.
100** And then the Korean website illustrated all the Empyrean Lords ([[MyFriendsAndZoidberg and Yume]]) in the style of [[http://ftp.gameshot.net/article/2013_11/gsGA527c40d946a21p1n1.jpg The Last Supper]]. [[labelnote:From Left to Right]]Siel, Israphel, Nezekan, Vaizel, Zikel, Triniel, Yume, Yustiel, Kaisinel, Marchutan, Lumiel, Ariel, Azphel.[[/labelnote]]
101* FamedInStory: As you progress, more and more [=NPCs=] will mention your heroic achievements. Of course, this doesn't stop some of them from asking you to [[{{DudeWheresMyRespect}} run errands for them]] or merchants from [[{{NoHeroDiscount}} selling items to you at full price]].
102* FantasticRacism: In game, Asmodians and Elyos are racist towards each other and both have some racist tendencies towards Shugos.
103* FantasticSlurs: A handful have evolved out of the player community. Do you play as an Elyos? Congratulations, You're a sun-sucker. Do you play Asmodian? You're a furback. The latter is notable for [[AscendedMeme showing up in-game in later patches]].
104** Also, Elfs for Elyos (not entirely unwarranted, as some Elyos have elven features) and Assmos for...well, take a guess.
105** In Spanish-language servers, 'palomo' (''pigeon'') is a popular "affectionate" nickname for Elyos among Asmodian players.
106* FantasyMetals: {{Mithril}}, {{Orichalcum}}, Adamantium, and Drenite.
107* FetchQuest: Tons, naturally.
108* FighterMageThief: And Priest, the four original base classes.
109* FlashStep: Blind Leap for Sorcerers, Ambush for Assassins.
110* FloatingPlatforms: The Abyss is made of these, being so imbued with Aether. Almost every map has at least one area with floating platforms/rocks, and are usually a sign that your character will be able to fly.
111* ForWantOfANail: Go to Sarpan and talk to Shuos.
112-->'''Shuos''': Oh, Lady Siel! Why have you forsaken me?! My pen broke, [Player Name]! MY PEN! I cannot complete my report for Kahrun without it, and if Kahrun has no report from me, he'll likely send troops. And what if those troops were needed elsewhere?! What if their absence allows our foes to crush our defenses? We could all die, and all because of my stupid, stupid pen!
113* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Storyline wise, only the greatest of humans can ascend into a Daeva. In game, every player character ascends into Daevas at a very low level of 9 (level cap is 65).
114** The upper half of Atreia, Asmodae is a world of darkness and shadow according to the lore. In reality, you will bring sunscreen and sunglasses on your real-life visit to Asmodae during daytime. In nighttime, both Asmodae and Elysea are roughly as dark as each other.
115* GameplayGrading: Some instance dungeons, such as Dark Poeta, Sealed Argent Manor, and Eternal Bastion are graded on the performance of the participant(s). The possible letter grades are S, A, B, C, D, and F. There are score and time cutoffs to achieve each particular grade, and higher grades provide better rewards. No rewards are given if the participants receive an F grade.
116* GiantFlyer: Unexplained giant flying whales/fish/dragon/whatthefuckevers seem to serve more as scenery than anything else in the game. There's at least 4 flying around the Verteron zone alone.
117** If you ever see a chat message about a "betafish" its usually in relation to these things.
118* GlowingEyesOfDoom: The Asmodians aren't evil per-se, but their eyes glow red when they're killing.
119* GodIsDead: The shattered tower stumps are the remains of what used to be god, though there are hints in-game that Aion (God) is watching from the sidelines.
120* GoodThingYouCanHeal: Ascended? Congratulations, you get to spend your life dying pointlessly for things like finding peoples cats, because hey, you can recover from it, right?
121* GoodWingsEvilWings: Averted with the Elyos and Asmodians - they have angel wings and black angel wings respectively and are about the same in terms of good and evil. Played straight with the Balaur, who have the bat "Devil" type of wings. Note, however, that the Asmodians did have bat-like devil wings in pre-release demonstration versions of the game which can still be found on a few Asmodian enemies.
122** Elyos and Asmodians alike can have glowing bat wings if they equip Storm Wings or Tiamat's Spectral Wings.
123* GreenEyedMonster: According to the Aion website's [[http://powerwiki.na.aiononline.com/aion/ official wiki]], [[spoiler: the Empyrean Lord Israphel's jealousy of Siel, plus a desire for greater power, led to his eventual corruption. It seems to be implied that this is what led him to call for peace with the Balaur, which in turn led to the destruction of the Tower of Eternity.]]
124* GreyAndGrayMorality: Neither side is traditionally good or evil, but things are [[ShadesOfConflict much more complicated]] than it might seem at first.
125* GunsAkimbo: Gunslingers.
126* HardWorkHardlyWorks: You'd think the Elyos, living lives of comparative ease and comfort to those of the Asmodians, would be naturally more fragile, right? [[MusclesAreMeaningless Wrong.]]
127* HeroicSacrifice: Siel and Israphel sacrificing themselves in order to keep the planet from falling apart. [[spoiler:Except Israphel lives.]]
128* HighlyVisibleNinja: One of the two available motion change manuals allow you change any or all of your idle / running /jumping / resting animation into this. It's purely cosmetic and has no impact on gameplay in any way. Taken further with ninja-themed armor and weapon skins.
129* HollowWorld: It used to be this, but the Cataclysm blew up most of the equator, making it look more like an apple core.
130* HumanResources: [[spoiler:The Lepharists become guilty of this later on.]]
131* IdiotBall: Yeah, sure Zikel, please attack the Balaur diplomats ''your friends summoned for peace talks''. Cue Tower exploding in the resulting conflict and the AfterTheEnd situation at present.
132* IdleAnimation: And it changes depending on gender, terrain, and weather.
133* IKnowKarate: Chanters wield a quarterstaff and use it like a {{Wuxia}} protagonist. And look ''awesome'' doing it.
134* ImAHumanitarian: The moral consequences of this are completely ignored. The sapient (but evil) Balaur are considered a delicacy, and all the top-level, most useful cooking recipes specialize in cooking Balaur meat.
135* ImpossiblyCoolClothes: ''Everything'' about Daeva culture, from architecture to the design of boats, but especially clothes, armor, and weapons. Both Elyos and Asmodians look absolutely ''fabulous''. Most female outfits for both factions also feature CombatStilettos. The awesomeness of all this is debatable; its impracticality certainly isn't.
136* ImprobableWeaponUser: Thanks to certain weapon skins, you can kill enemies with flowers, carrots, fish...
137* {{Immortality}}: Daevas have several subtropes of this.
138** TheAgeless: Once they ascend, Daevas stop physically aging.
139** RespawnPoint: Daevas traditionally wake up near an obelisk after they die, and staying near one is necessary for revival. [[GameplayAndStorySegregation Player characters are not]] [[{{Pun}} bound]] [[GameplayAndStorySegregation by this resurrection requirement.]]
140** ResurrectiveImmortality: Daevas can also self resurrect on the spot, given that they have the right items or skills activated.
141* ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty: Averted, as you're stuck at whatever age you ascend at for eternity. One of the first Daeva Elyos meet is a child who's several hundred years old, and an Asmodian Daeva talks about the seeming sadism of being ascended when he was on his death bed and now has to watch his family grow old and die when he can't even take up his blade.
142* IncorruptiblePurePureness: Lady Siel, one of the Empyrean Lords who died to keep the world from falling apart.
143* InhumanlyBeautifulRace: Daevas are this to regular, non-ascended humans...at least in-universe. Thanks to the extensive character customization options, player Daevas can range from this to {{Gonk}}s.
144* InsufferableGenius: Kahrun likes to style himself as this, as shown by his journal. Would be SmallNameBigEgo if he weren't the Reian Lord.
145--> Brilliant Observation: Idgel cubes are difficult to make.
146--> Plan: Difficult is my middle name.
147* InsurmountableWaistHeightFence: Averted, as you can jump over these fences to evade enemies or take shortcuts.
148* InvisibleWall: Two types:
149** Flight Zone Boundries. You can run or glide through them, but not fly through.
150** Truly invisible walls, that cannot even be run or glided through them. Usually prevalent in most instances.
151* ItemCrafting: Natch.
152* KickingAssInAllHerFinery: A lot of truly ''fabulous'' outfits are available to your character. Male and female both.
153* KingIncognito: Well, Lord Incognito. Vaizel likes to hang out with humans while in disguise. [[spoiler:Lords Nezekan and Triniel become this in the Katalam/Danaria campaigns.]]
154* KyuAndDanRanks: Aion's Abyss rank system has 9 kyu ranks and 9 dan ranks. 9th-1st kyu are soldiers, 1st-5th dan are officers, 6th-9th dan are respectively called generals, great generals, commanders, and the governor.
155** Your Abyss rank is based on how many Abyss points (AP) you have for kyu ranks, and Glory Points/Honor Points (GP) for dan ranks.
156** Dan ranks (officers and above) are only available to the top 1,000 characters on the GP leaderboard, per faction on each server. Higher dan ranks have even tighter leaderboard position requirements - The required leaderboard position for each respective dan ranks are 1000, 700, 500, 300, 100, 30, 10, 3, and 1. Yes, only one governor per faction per server!
157* LaserBlade: Aether Blades, available in [[http://aiondatabase.net/us/item/100000879/ blue]], [[http://aiondatabase.net/us/item/100001665/ green]], and [[http://aiondatabase.net/us/item/100001659/ red]] versions.
158* TheLifestream: Aether, and consequently the Aion tower.
159* LightIsNotGood: The Elyos zealously believe that the lack of strife they experience in their world is proof that they are blessed by God, and see the Asmodians as soulless inhuman monsters to be killed without remorse. Including civilians and children.
160** Similarly, the Seraphim Lord Kaisinel is a vicious BloodKnight and doesn't care much about anyone's life.
161* LimitBreak: Most skills requiring Divine Power to use.
162* MacGuffin: Siel's Relics.
163* TheMagicGoesAway: Well, it hasn't yet, but it's going to pretty soon if someone doesn't do something about it.
164** At the same time, [[PowerCreepPowerSeep player Daevas are becoming more and more powerful with each new update]] as expected in any MMO.
165* MirroringFactions: The lore descriptions of each faction's attitudes apply only to the worst or most hardened of them. Many of the [=NPCs=] that a player will meet (especially outside the starting area) could well have come from the other side. One Asmodian Daeva even laments that his people no longer know what they fight for. In fact, both sides believe themselves to be blessed by Aion though they do venerate different aspects of the deity.
166* MixAndMatchCritters: All of the natural fauna in the setting.
167* MonsterArena: The group instance Empyrean Crucible and the solo instance Crucible Challenge.
168* {{Multishot}}: Some Ranger skills are this, notably Arrow Deluge. Arrow Storm is more of the RainOfArrows sort, as the attack animation has several spectral rangers appear next to the ranger who is using the skill.
169* MusicalAssassin: Songweavers. Taken to an extreme when you can ''drop giant treble clefs on people''.
170* NoShirtLongJacket: The male version of the "Marra's Party Dress" costume that can be applied to any class of armor, as well as the male cloth versions of the Elementis Forest and Argent Manor armor sets.
171* NoticeThis: With the 4.7 patch, quest items that need to be gathered now have a conspicuous glowing star hovering over it.
172* OlderThanTheyLook: Daeva stop aging when they ascend, so ancient Daeva can have the bodies of small children.
173* OurAngelsAreDifferent: Daevas are exceptional Elyos and Asmodians, capable of manipulating aether to a degree previously only seen by the Empyrean Lords. In return for dedicating their existence to their people, they become immortal. Reians, unlike other Daevas, have only one wing and are therefore incapable of flight.
174** Though the Balaur were intended to fill the more traditional "Angel" role before they rebelled, as stewards and messengers of Aion and protectors of humanity, and usually have a mix between angel names and folklore monster names. And they are dragons with ''spaceships.'' Which leads us to...
175* OurDragonsAreDifferent: The Balaur were originally created as the rulers of Atreia, but quickly got drunk on their power and turned evil.
176* ParentalAbandonment: [[spoiler:Kahrun's]] backstory, and the reason why he has no idea of his parentage. They still tried their best considering the circumstances, but what they did might as well have been this. Played straight with Arekedil, who starts off his quest line by asking you to find his parents, who abandoned him in the woods.
177* PathOfInspiration: The Lepharist movement... maybe. [[spoiler:Confirmed after you hear Lephar's MotiveRant.]]
178* PeopleJars: Used by the Lepharists, Asmodian and Elyos both.
179* PlayerVersusPlayer: A central part of the game. Some areas have this option forcibly turned off, making it a neutral or a PvE-only zone. Some ''other'' areas are [[PlayerVersusPlayer PvP]] enabled, but with [=NPCs=] that attack you if you attempt to kill a member of the opposite faction.
180* PointyEars: In character creation, you can move the ear shape slider toward the right to give yourself pointy ears. Some [=NPC=]s on both factions (particularly Lephanist Revolutionaries) have pointy ears.
181* PortalNetwork: Daevas use a PortalNetwork to get around quickly. Apparently, humans that try to use it {{telefrag}} themselves.
182* PowerGivesYouWings: What happens when someone becomes a Daeva.
183* PowerTrio: The Seraphim Lords, Shedim Lords, and even the Dragon Lords all have two sets of Power Trios.
184** '''Seraphim Lords:'''
185*** Ariel: Thoughtful and amiable. Is dissappointed that Azphel's recklessness ruined the peace talks with the Balaur. Leader of the Seraphim Lords. (Ego)
186*** Nezekan: Contemplative, but decisive. Nezekan is reserved and tolerant, but adamant once he reaches a conclusion. (Superego)
187*** Vaizel: [[BrilliantButLazy Playful, selfish, and cunning]]. Often goes off on his own in disguise to hang out with ordinary humans, and sometimes neglects his duties. (Id)
188*** Ariel: (Ego)
189*** Kaisinel: A dark and enigmatic BloodKnight who is focused on getting revenge on Shedim Lady Lumiel for [[{{Revenge}} embarrassing him in battle]]. [[ShesAManInJapan He's a girl in Korea]]. (Id)
190*** Yustiel: TheHeart of the group. Gentle and caring, she's most interested in peace and reconciliation. (Superego)
191** '''Shedim Lords:'''
192*** Azphel: A decisive perfectionist who holds himself and his subordinates to high standards. Hates Ariel for being too weak-willed to continue the fight against the Balaur and believes that Ariel has failed in her duties. Leader of the Shedim Lords (Ego)
193*** Zikel: Azphel's right hand. Once a friendly rival of Nezekan, they have [[RivalTurnedEvil fallen out of favor]] with one another. Zikel is violent, arrogant, and lacks self-control. Somewhat of a RecklessSidekick, as he was partially responsible for the events that ignited the abyss war. (Id)
194*** Marchutan: Quiet, respectful, and completely [[TheStoic stoic]]. Also TheBigGuy. Prefers rational planning rather than Zikel's impulsiveness. (Superego)
195*** Azphel: (Ego)
196*** Triniel: Composed and calculating, she prefers to strike precisely and accurately. Has a cold indifferent personality. (Superego)
197*** Lumiel: Not much is known about her since she joined the Shedim Lords, but according to accounts from before the cataclysm, she is curious, innocent, and mischievous. Pursues magic studies with the same curiosity that a PlayfulHacker applies to computer security. (Id)
198** '''Dragon Lords:'''
199*** Fregion: The first Balaur to ascend and become immortal, and also the first to propose that the Balaur should be rulers over everything else. In spite of his initial enthusiasm, he now worries that the Balaur's endless desire for power may lead to ruin. (Ego)
200*** Meslamtaeda: A [[RedOniBlueOni Red Oni]], and a BloodKnight. So HotBlooded that only Fregion can dare to control him. (Id)
201*** Ereshkigal: A [[RedOniBlueOni Blue Oni]]. He is especially attuned to [[AnIcePerson cold and ice magic]], but has learned to control all the elements, even to the point where he is rumored to be able to cause jungles to sprout up in deserts. He is dispassionate and prefers rational thinking, which is very unusual for the Balaur. While he has a reputation for cruelty, he maintains strict adherence to his own code of honor. He was the first Balaur to take up the Empyrean Lords' peace proposition, and a primary debater before the assassination attempt on Fregion and the subsequent cataclysm. (Superego)
202*** Fregion: (Ego)
203*** Beritra: TheQuietOne. He would prefer that others not know he even exists, and prefers to hide in the shadows. (Superego)
204*** Tiamat: She would prefer that everyone know she exists, and is motivated primarily for fame, fortune, and to prove herself. (Id)
205** Note that the Seraphim Lords and Shedim Lords each have one member whose personality traits best fit those of the other group as a way to show that LightIsNotGood and DarkIsNotEvil.
206* {{Precursors}}: The Danuar. [[spoiler:Tiamat wanted their technology so badly that she used the confusion of the Cataclysm to invade their land. They destroyed their weapons rather than let her take them, and they eventually went extinct. ]] Their legacy can be found in the Idian Depths.
207* PrivateMilitaryContractors: The players start in one of these.
208* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Asmodians in general.
209* {{Pun}}: In so, ''so'' many quest titles. Some double as {{Shout Out}}s.
210* RageAgainstTheHeavens: The Balaur turned against Aion (God) when he refused to grant them more power over the world, ordering them to serve humans. They ''succeeded.'' Notably, there has yet to be a major Elyos or Asmodian faction that is misotheistic about Aion although each side certainly feels that way towards the other's pantheon.
211** Except that Balaur were banished from Atreia into a different dimension, and the humans are now heavily empowered and ABLE to fight back. Plus, see the above entry for "God Is Dead."
212* RainbowPimpGear: Completely averted...unless you're into that thing. Players can change the appearance of their gear to that of any other piece of gear in their inventory. You can also dye your gear whichever color you want. That means you could conceivably make yourself look like a level 1 character, or you could keep the looks of that super-cool armor set you ditched a long time ago without having to worry about losing any stats.
213* RandomDrop and RareRandomDrop: End-game instances have a small chance to drop one random piece of ultimate grade equipment exclusive to that boss, which have to be rolled among each party member.
214* RareCandy: The items "Secret Remedy of Growth" (North America) / "Growth Serum" (Europe), sold in their respective cash shops at very high prices. These items fill up 20% of a character's experience bar and limited to characters level 54 or below.
215* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Daeva remain at the age they ascend at until they die. This goes even if they are children.
216** Also a possibility for the shugo Vindachinerk, even though shugos can't become daeva. The game mentions that he was the one who created the first [[BagOfHolding cubes]], and that he learned how to make them from Empyrean Lord Israphel, the Lord of Space. The catch is that Israphel has been dead for several thousand years, so either Vindachinerk has somehow extended his lifetime by a ridiculous amount, or he used some kind of time travel.
217* RedEyesTakeWarning: Asmodian's eyes glow red in combat.
218* RegeneratingHealth and RegeneratingMana: The rate at which you regenerate these can be raised with skills or [[RestingRecovery simply by sitting down]]. Some skills can slow this down for your enemy.
219* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: The Balaur.
220* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: [[spoiler: Kromede in Kromede's Trial.]]
221* RunDontWalk: Can be toggled, but if you're set to walk mode and you draw your weapon, your character will automatically switch to run mode.
222* SamusIsAGirl: Shaga, a gladiator who fought in the Impetusium wooed many women who gazed into his eyes, and became the greatest champion who ever participated in the colosseum... until it was eventually discovered that he was a she.
223* SceneryPorn: Even at launch the game was considered one of the prettiest {{MMORPG}}s on the market, but from the looks of what's shown in the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PAM0wr7cZ8 Aion Vision trailer]] this looks like it's going to be ramped up to eleven. The newer areas in Balaurea are especially this.
224* ShatteredWorld: Atreia was split into three chunks, Elysea, Asmodae, and Reshanta (the Abyss). Balaurea is just the outer surface of the Elysean/Asmodian chunks.
225* ShopFodder: Gray items are explicitly ShopFodder as indicated by in-game hints. NPC merchants' sell windows have a button that lets you sell all of your ShopFodder in one click.
226* ShouldersOfDoom: While most shoulderplates are much more modest than those in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', several do exist in this game, the most iconic being the ''[[NonindicativeName Graceful]]'' Shoulderplates model, which is nearly as wide as the character is tall, minus the flames spewing out. Some shoulderplates even have [[SpikesofDoom spikes]].
227* ShoutOut: Aside from the quest titles, some game mechanics and monsters are these.
228** Wandering the Poya Jungle zone are a [[Film/KingKong giant Manduri called Takun]] and an [[Franchise/{{Godzilla}} even larger Frillneck called Gojira]]. They can and will fight each other if they meet and the outcome is always a coin toss. Gojira even has a baby that you can find -with some effort- [[LordBritishPostulate and kill]].
229** Lorendo, an NPC archer in Morheim, has Creator/OrlandoBloom's face and, yes, [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings pointy ears and long platinum hair.]]
230** [[WesternAnimation/Frozen2013 Elsa's]] hair is now available as an option.
231** The Songweaver class has a skill chain that goes Song of Ice -> Song of Fire -> Thronesong. [[Literature/{{ASongOfIceAndFire}} Now where have we heard something like that before...]]
232** In Gelkmaros, an NPC asks you to bring a request to a famous detective named [[Literature/{{SherlockHolmes}} Shorleck]]. This quest triggers another one called "The Game is Afoot".
233* SlidingScaleOfCooperationVsCompetition: Group and alliance instances depend on cooperation (to the point where some alliance instance leaders will demand the use of a voice chat service). Fortress sieges, on the other hand, give out rewards and other sustained benefits if the fortress is captured...but depending on how much damage you do in relation to other players, your reward changes.
234* SoBeautifulItsACurse: Kromede was considered so beautiful that people thought Aion itself sculpted her face. She was constantly showered with marriage proposals, politely turning them all down. She later became a Shadow Judge, but was eventually investigated for corruption. Her downfall was caused by the people hurt by her not returning their love giving the court evidence against her. [[spoiler: However, the Kromede's Trial dungeon seemed to show that most of the latter part was inaccurate at best.]]
235* SocketedEquipment.
236* SpaceJews: Shugos have a secretive culture based around trading and capitalism. One Shugo mentions that he has recently lost his fortune and is now "a young shugo with an old shugo's fur". An in-game book says "[[UsefulNotes/{{Judaism}} A Shugo will never cheat another Shugo]], but taking advantage of other races seems to be encouraged." It also says "...Some go so far as to say that Shugos are responsible for all evil in the world. Some particularly vicious rumors claim that Shugos drink the blood of human infants..."
237* SoundtrackDissonance:
238** Averted in the original zones introduced with the 1.x patches, where normally the music is peaceful and relaxing while the player is not battling, changes to faster battle tunes when the player enters combat mode. You can still turn off combat mode music in the settings, though.
239** Played straight in the zones introduced in 2.0 and later, as the newer zones do ''not'' have battle [=BGM=]s included. Even with battle [=BGM=] setting enabled, these peaceful music continue to play while the player is fighting enemies in these areas.
240*** This holds particularly true for Katalam and Danaria, which are full-time PK zones. Area near capturable bases can be subject to intense battles. Examples of 4.0 zones [=BGM=]s: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8DgaCdUpCY this]] or [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJ79zdLM3nM that]].
241* SquishyWizard: Sorcerers and to a lesser extent, Spiritmasters.
242* StarCrossedLovers: The Asmodian Bollvig and the Elyos Myanee. The Asmodian Hinden and the [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent Seiren]] Esnu. The upper-class Annemari and the low-born Jefaln. [[spoiler:Empyrean lords Nezekan and Triniel. Bonus points to the last two couples for having children despite their respective taboos (Annemari/Jefaln out of wedlock while the former was [[ArrangedMarriage engaged]], Nezekan/Triniel for being Empyrean Lords, who are explicitly forbidden from having children amongst themselves by Aion Himself).]]
243* StayingAlive: Daeva can always resurrect their bodies if they're killed near an Obelisk. If they aren't near an obelisk, however, they run the risk of actually dying for real, or [[AFateWorseThanDeath wandering around forever as a disembodied spirit]].
244** In-game, this means [[GameplayAndStorySegregation you're never far from an Obelisk.]] Even if you're attacking the Balaur in their home dimension.
245* StoneWall: The Templar are the primary tanking class. Gladiators and the Priest branches aren't quite as durable, but they can work as substitute tanks. Aethertechs were designed to be a magic-based version of Templars.
246* SuperMode: Players holding Abyss rank of 5th dan or higher (Army 5-star Officer) can transform into Guardian Generals, which have a huge amount of HP and MP, deals increased damage, and move much faster than normal players.
247* ThinkingUpPortals: Used for a WarpWhistle. The Sorcerer Illusion Gate skill which opens a portal to their faction's capital city.
248* TortureTechnician: Hamam [[TheMagnificent the Torturer]].
249* UndeadChild: Boggarts
250* TheUnfought: [[spoiler: Lephar/Israphel]].
251* UnwantedRevival: A few of the dead heroes for the Brusthonin campaign Graves of the Red Sky Legion are this.
252--> '''Ghost''': Even when I'm dead I can't get any peace! What do I have to do to get some rest? I died! Isn't that enough?! What do you have to know about so badly that you'd wake the dead?
253* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans: The mission statement of the Lepharists.
254* VerbalTic: The Shugo, nyerk!
255** Actually, "nyerk" isn't so much of a verbal tick as it is a very offensive curse word in their own language making it an Unusual Euphemism rather than a VerbalTic.
256** More accurately, their 'akakakakak' they occasionally add to the end of their sentences.
257** In the official forums of Americas' version, their profanity filter are configured to replace swear words into "nyerk".
258* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Assassins. One of their skill sets involves ''carving runes into their target's flesh with their weapons''. Runes which then proceed to ''explode''.
259* VideoGameFlight: WingedHumanoid Daevas, which represent every single level 10+ player characters in the game.
260** SprintMeter: in the form of a Flight Meter. Initially each character can only sustain 1 minute of free (hovering) flight. A character who depleted all available flight time while midair will fall to the ground, taking FallingDamage. Mounts can also use the flight meter as a SprintMeter.
261** Free flight is only possible in small cylinder-shaped flight zones. GravityBarrier and InvisibleWall surrounds the boundries of the flight zones, but you can glide past the {{InvisibleWall}}s. Exception: The entire Abyss (Reshanta) is a flight zone.
262** NotQuiteFlight: Gliding can be done almost everywhere, even in areas where flight is prohibited (i.e. the majority of the game). Guiding will result in continuous loss of altitude, but you may catch some VentPhysics which allow you to stay in the air for a bit longer. Gliding in no-fly zones will consume flight meter at twice the rate of normal flight.
263** The wings also serves as an ImprovisedParachute by hitting the glide key while falling.
264** Monsters are almost always on the ground, and trying to attack a grounded monster from midair will result in the monster regaining all health (called "resetting"). True {{AirborneMook}}s (as in they live in the sky, instead of a winged mob sticking to the ground all the time) are rare in Aion.
265** StationaryWings are averted, however. Except when gliding instead of flying, a Daeva's wings flap normally.
266* VisibleInvisibility: Assassin and Ranger classes can make themselves invisible. If you're playing as one, you and members in your group can still see your character, only made partly transparent and hunched over.
267* WaterfallIntoTheAbyss: Asteria Fortress has literal versions of these, as it's located in the aptly named Abyss.
268* WhenTreesAttack: Agrint mobs.
269* WhipSword: Every melee weapon type has a selection of long-range extendable whip versions.
270* WhoWantsToLiveForever: If a human ascends while old and frail, they are going to ''stay'' old and frail for eternity. Likewise, children who ascend do not have the chance to grow up.
271* WingShield: Player characters who are killed will huddle on the ground with their wings domed over them, shielding their body until they're either [[CombatRescuscitation resurrected]] or time out and respawn at their [[RespawnPoint spawn point]].
272* WombLevel: The Dredgion instances.
273* {{Wutai}}: Most areas involving the [[BeastMan Mau.]]
274* YouHaveResearchedBreathing: Emotes have shades of this. You start out with some basic ones like eating and sleeping, but battle-hardened Daevas apparently need skillbooks to learn to do push-ups.
275* YouNoTakeCandle: The Krall combine this with HulkSpeak. Especially noticeable once you start doing quests with them.
276-->'''Targatu''': Cah! White wing! White wing no hurt Targatu! Targatu friend! Targatu friend!!

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