I think the list of nearly 20 possible cases in the main body might be a bit much. About half of them could be simplified down to something like:
"The spell is so inefficient (doesn't do enough damage, takes too long to cast, requires a contrived setup, etc.) that players are better off using other abilities."
"It's in a better place, Strong Bad. Or rather, it's in the same place, but now it's got a big hole through it."
Are folders broken, or is it just me? Can't understand why only the "tabletop games" one works.
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That videogame folder is much too large.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
How much natter about Dungeons & Dragons is officially 'too much'? I don't want to wipe out all that hard work, but it seems like "Played straight in AD&D; subverted in 3rd Edition; rarely found in 4th edition" sums it up.
Reason number six:
- The spell is incapable of actually killing an enemy. Percent Damage Attack and HP to One attacks, for example, require a follow-up normal attack to deal the killing blow.
It should definitely stay, but be edited to mention that it only applies "when normal attacks/spells are strong enough to deal similar damage, but with the chance to kill on the first blow."
Also there should be a reference to reason number 1, since they never work against bosses.
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Grant
Is this purely for magic or can useless sci-fi abilities in games be added to the list?
Fsteak Hide / Show Replies
It's a game mechanic. It works for sci-fi stuff too, but only if it's an equivalent sort of weapon.
Fight. Struggle. Endure. Suffer. LIVE.
Can someone clarify what this trope is about? I've seen examples of useless spells and useful (without being useless) spells (with no 'aversion' stamp)
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If I understand it correctly, it is about spells or other actions or items, whose use is very situative: they're mostly useless, but quite important or powerful for a certain purpose.
Mm. If you excuse me, I must go set my own city on fire. Count Selvan, Radiant Historia
It's about spells that should be useful, but for various reasons are not. Like status spells in RPG's, for example. All the garden variety mooks are susceptible to them, but those enemies are the ones you don't really need them to beat. The enemies you would really like to blind/silence/slow/poison, like bosses, tend to be immune to them as a matter of course.
Shouldn't this trope be named "Useless Useful Mechanics" instead? Spells comes off as narrow and exclusionary to examples you might not consider magic at all.
There should at least be clarification that examples which aren't technically "spells" still fall under this trope.