'''Basic Trope''': Everyone thinks a character is TheHero, but their reputation is grossly inflated.
* '''Straight''': Bob gets public credit for heroic deeds he never actually performed.
* '''Exaggerated''': Bob is a DirtyCoward who ran away from every battle he's been in, but everyone thinks he's the biggest hero in the army.
* '''Downplayed''': Bob's heroic deeds were easier and less impressive than everyone thinks. He's said to have slain a twenty-foot-tall dragon. It was really more like five feet tall, and he really just scared it off.
* '''Justified''':
** Bob is set up as a public hero by the government/media despite his lack of qualifications in order to give the public an inspirational role model.
** Bob can't exactly control how the public sees him. Even if he were to come clean about his lack of heroism, [[CassandraTruth his fans would rather cling to the myths anyway]], so he might as well roll with it while it lasts.
* '''Inverted''':
** Bob is a HeroWithBadPublicity who constantly performs heroic deeds while [[TheGreatestStoryNeverTold getting absolutely no public acknowledgment for them]].
** Bob is an infamous villain, but he's never done anything truly evil.
** Despite all the build-up the story gives him, Emperor Evulz goes down rather easily and is considered a Fake Ultimate Villain by the fanbase who seem him as anticlimatic.
** AnticlimaxBoss
* '''Subverted''':
** Bob starts off as a Fake Ultimate Hero, but ultimately [[TookALevelInBadass grows into a true hero]].
** Alternatively, while Bob isn't as heroic as his reputation, he always assists the true heroes using his fame.
** Bob was pretending to be a fake hero as part of TricksterMentor shenanigans, he's actually a hero.
* '''Double Subverted''': ...until the situation gets bad, and he decides ScrewThisImOuttaHere.
* '''Parodied''': The falseness of Bob's reputation is blatantly obvious, but nobody ever figures it out.
* '''Zig Zagged''': Nobody is really sure how much of Bob's reputation is based in reality, and how much of it is lies; not even Bob himself.
* '''Averted''': Bob lives up to his heroic reputation.
* '''Enforced''': "Well, our hero saved the world. By all rights, he should be famous. How do we keep him relatable?" "What if someone else steals the credit?"
* '''Lampshaded''': "My reputation for heroism is greatly exaggerated."
* '''Invoked''': Bob is actually a DecoyProtagonist or a VillainProtagonist who is either in the wrong place at the wrong time or is a jerk who tries to take credit for the ''real'' heroes. Either way, he ends dead to make way for Alice, the actual hero of the story.
** Emperor Evulz is created to be an unlikeable HateSink whose sole purpose is to be the FinalBoss of the story. As such, he's designed to go down quickly to showcase that he's not as powerful and god-like as he claims.
** Bob likes to be popular, so he pretends to be a hero.
** [[TheHero Alice]] allows Bob to take the spotlight since she [[HumbleHero doesn't want the attention]].
* '''Exploited''':
** Bob's inflated reputation results in people expecting him to act the part and is a constant source of trouble for him.
** Alternately, someone finds out the truth behind Bob's Fake Ultimate Heroism and uses it to blackmail Bob.
* '''Defied''': Bob corrects anyone he hears spreading undeservedly flattering rumors about him.
* '''Discussed''': "Sometimes, I wonder if Bob is really as much of a hero as people think he is..."
* '''Conversed''': ???
* '''Deconstructed''':
** The constant stress of basing almost his entire public life on a lie slowly wears Bob down, until he finally confesses everything.
** Although [[TheHero Alice]] doesn't mind Bob getting the reputation for himself, Bob has very low self-esteem knowing he doesn't deserve it and [[DespairEventHorizon eventually breaks down]].
** [[TheHero Alice]] gets frustrated at Bob getting all the reputation for himself and makes a FaceHeelTurn.
** One day, Bob will soon have to fight against an odd to prove his status. He fails horribly and that failure convinces everyone he's a phony.
** Bob is a decent guy, but he's utterly unaware that he's a fraud, genuinely believing that he's a hero who did achieve all of the things that he did, despite not being able to pull off the same feats outside of those specific situations. This is because other people keep him in the dark, because they know that [[AwfulTruth he'd be devastated if he found out the truth of his accomplishments.]] When the truth is finally revealed, he takes it [[HeroicBSOD extremely poorly]], and the fallout places all of the blame squarely on his shoulders due to embarassment at having fallen for the ruse, even though he was just as much of a dupe and victim. His life is ruined through no real fault of his own.
* '''Reconstructed''':
** However, the person Bob confesses to helps Bob deal with his guilt and agrees to keep his secret.
** Bob does that again and by some luck, succeeds in a way to convince everyone he's not a phony.
* '''Played For Laughs''': Bob has to engage in constant {{Zany Scheme}}s to maintain his fake reputation.
* '''Played For Drama''': Everyone decides to count on Bob when they need a hero, and he lets them down.
* '''Implied''': Bob is a famous hero, but seems to disappear when things get tough.
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%% Optional items, added after Conversed, at your discretion:
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%%* '''Plotted A Good Waste''': ???