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Basic Trope: A defeat suffered by the military causes morale to plummet.

  • Straight: Upon hearing the loss of Fort Tropeia, which was said to be impregnable and defended by the best troops in The Federation, the morale of the population plummets as now the People's Republic of Tyranny is closing in on Capital City.
  • Exaggerated:
    • Half the army's best officers, all their special forces units, ten divisions of infantrymen, two air squadrons, five strategic missiles, and every helicopter were lost.
    • to add insult to injury, this was done purely through one Tyranian's Fartillery.
  • Downplayed: Fort Tropeia was lost, but the army still has other fortifications and defensive plans ready.
  • Justified: The war was already going badly, and this made people realize that defeat was inevitable.
  • Inverted: The enemy's attack resulted in heavy casualties for their own side, weakening them irreparably.
  • Subverted:
    • The Army High Command expected to lose the fort, and now that it has fallen, the enemy is vulnerable to a counterattack.
    • Against incredible odds, Fort Tropeia manages to hold the line.
  • Double Subverted:
    • The High Command's counterattack resulted in even further casualties, far more than were at Fort Tropeia, and now the enemy is in the outskirts of Capital City.
    • However, despite holding the fort, the Federation has lost vital troops it can no longer replace, leading to a Pyrrhic Victory.
  • Parodied: Fort Tropeia is a run-down shack with an old cannon out front. The Federation surrenders immediately when it is destroyed with a sledgehammer.
  • Zig Zagged: Fort Tropeia was lost, but at the same time, half the PRT's general staff was killed in one go. An entire Federation squadron of fighters was then destroyed, but the enemy's armored division was decimated.
  • Averted: Colonel Williams managed to hold the fort and drive off the enemy.
  • Enforced: For the last year, the Federation of Tropes has suffered one catastrophic defeat after another.
  • Lampshaded: The Battle of Fort Tropeia would enter military textbooks as the most decisive battle of the war.
  • Invoked: ???
  • Exploited: The attacking forces know they can't take Fort Tropeia; so instead they cut off all its communications with The Federation and convince the world that they've taken it in a Curb-Stomp Battle. The Federation surrenders without the People's Republic of Tyranny ever firing a shot at Fort Tropeia.
  • Defied: The fall of Fort Tropeia leads to a Remember Tropeia movement that strengthens morale.
  • Discussed: "Fort Tropeia had the latest defenses, the best troops, the top generals. Losing it made us realize how the People's Republic of Tyranny was not going to stop."
  • Conversed: ???

Back to Shocking Defeat Legacy. They said it would never fall...I lost most of my friends at that battle...

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