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Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:13

A character does something incredibly brave and dies, is maimed, or is otherwise irrevocably harmed doing it.

A bad character who was once good (especially corrupt police) can redeem himself in the last act by Taking The Bullet (etc) that was meant for The Hero. Thus expunging all his previous evil, avoiding forcing The Hero to arrest or confront him, and avoiding any real life penalties like disgrace, jail, etc. Note this is separate from Redemption Equals Death in that, in this case, the death and redemption come in a single act.

There are essentially three kinds of Heroic Sacrifice:

Note that with the above definitions, "the beginning" is the first three episodes, and "the end" is the last three episodes, of a standard 26 episode season. Increase or decrease these counts as the series requires.

If The Hero, The Lancer, or someone who never "fell" wants to do this to enable the team's success (or takes it upon himself/herself to do this), it's often justified by their being otherwise mortally wounded or trying to avoid becoming a Zombie Infectee. A "normal" heroic sacrifice is a wee bit too close to suicide otherwise; just ask the Martyr Without A Cause.

When this is What You Are In The Dark, they get more credit, because no one will ever know the depths of their sacrifice. Especially if this requires their Dying Aloneunmourned and unremembered.

When more than one character is ready, willing, and able to make the sacrifice, a More Hero Than Thou dispute will often arise.

It also happens if the Sidekick of some other party member wants to get The Hero out of The Sadistic Choice. Usually followed by a How Dare You Die On Me scene after they Face Death With Dignity.

See Taking The Bullet, Self-Destructive Charge, You Shall Not Pass, and Someone Has To Die for specific types of Heroic Sacrifice. A Friend In Need often requires it. Contrast My Revenge Is Mercy, when a dying villain decides to save a life.

The Doomed Moral Victor fights a battle where the outcome is clear from the beginning. Contrast My Death Is Just The Beginning.

Contrast Senseless Sacrifice and Stupid Sacrifice.

This is a Death Trope so you should know the drill by now. Spoilers ahead, you've been warned.


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