This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
Red Shoe: I'm not sure this is the best title for the article. Seems like there's two popular models for this kind of "elemental" power structure, and Rock Paper Scissors is the other one. What this article describes is an Aristotelian dominance structure, where things are beaten by their opposites: Light beats Dark, Dark beats Light; Fire beats Water, Water beats Fire; etc. That's probably the more popular system, but you also have real RPS or "cyclical dominance" structures, where fire beats wood, wood beats water, water beats fire. (The videogame Eternal Darkness made much of this) Actually, on rereading, this article seems to address both systems, without really making a big distinction between the two.
Andyzero: The problem is, there's too many variations. I gave examples, but really it depends on the universe. Eternal Darkness is one of the few cases where it has remained simple.
Looney Toons: You know, I really ought to read the discussions before I jump into the entries and add all my stuff to them...
Scrounge: Battle Beasts was lumped into the Transformers universe in Japanese continuity, but wasn't intentionally created as a spin-off. Removed the text referring to it as such.
Ununnilium: Taking out:
- Lum in Urusei Yatsura has a Lightning attack called "Divine Retribution".
...because it has nothing to do with Elemental RPS.
William Wide Web: Actually, having Spirit as an element dates back at least to Pythagoras, who had "idea" as an element.
Caphi: The Pokemon entry is incorrect. There are other three-element cycles in the game. An example offhand his Rock, Flying, Fighting; another is Electric, Water, Rock/Ground. Oh, and Poison, Grass, Ground. Shall I go on?
Master Hand: Is this really an anime trope? It seems more like just a video game trope to me. I've removed it for now, but what do you think?
That Other 1 Dude: Now that we have Elemental Powers, I'm going to remove Avatar and Xiaolin Showdown because they don't use the Paper Rock Scissors.
Rogue 7: I think Avatar got on this page because in one instance, they were playing a game similar to actual Rock Paper Scissors, where the elements were used. Keep it as an amusing anecdote, if nothing else.
dancecommander: At the top of the diagram: is that supposed to be a fudgesicle? If so, then what's so sleazy about that?
Alilatias: Dancecommander, Your Milage May Vary, but perhaps it's the very shape of whatever the heck that thing is supposed to be... Then again, I play Ko L, and I do not recall seeing anything in that game (or it's way too broad) that can really define 'sleaze' in just one tiny picture without wandering into super nasty inappropriate territory.
Legendarylugi: It seems to me this article got the typical strengths of Light wrong...apparently, Light is not effective against the undead, but Divine Electricity is? That's probably just a typo, but the point is, Light IS often effective against the undead. This is me asking permission to change it.
Janitor19: Is there any truth to the Fire -> Lightning -> Water -> Shadow wheel described in the Chrono Trigger section? I've played a lot of Chrono Trigger (but not the DS remake) and don't recognize that wheel at all. Was it something added in the DS remake? Or something that you don't pick up on unless you pay careful attention to everything's weakness? From my experience, if anything, it follows the Fire <-> Water, Lightning <-> Shadow system, but even then, it usually just ends up being "some monsters are weak against some elements" like many Final Fantasy games follow (i.e. Lightning beats most dinosaurs, monsters under the desert are weak to Water, etc. etc.). I would change it, but I'm afraid it is true in the remake or that I'm totally obtuse and there is some truth to it.
