History Main / ThePlan

* Blue (or Green, in the English version) in ''PokemonSpecial'' pulls off at least one of these per story arc, some more complicated than others. [[GambitRoulette And some that are just plain]] {{ass pull}}s.

* Pictured above is a Lord of Change, Greater Daemon of the Chaos god Tzeentch, patron deity of sorcerers, planners, backstabbers and mutants in ''WarhammerFantasy'' and ''Warhammer40K''. Tzeentch, his daemons and his mortal agents/pawns specialize in making plans, so many in fact that all of them are the backup plan for another plan failing/require another plan to fail in order to work. It's all but stated that Tzeentch does this on purpose, deliberately setting his plans up for failure because his final victory over all other gods (Chaos, C'tan, elf/Eldar and otherwise) would also be his defeat, [[AndThenWhat leaving him with nothing to do.]]

This is a subtrope of BattleOfWits. Also, GambitIndex covers everything about ThePlan, such as who plans and who foils the plan, how the plan is revealed, and what is done after it works. This index covers only the plans themselves, and is divided into two categories-- Types of Plans; how the scheme will work, and Specific Plans; what the scheme will accomplish. If it would fit in both, it goes in Specific Plans.

->'''Robot Devil''': "Ah, my ridiculously circuitous plan is one-quarter complete."
-->-- ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', ''The Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings''

* Specifically invoked by Creator/IsaacAsimov in ''Foundation And Empire'' (Part 1), and the whole ''Literature/{{Foundation}}'' trilogy itelf represents arguably the most colossal example ever attempted, involving an entire galaxy consisting of roughly a few quadrillion people over a period of a millennium, with a dash of [[XanatosSpeedChess Xanatos Speed Chess]] [[spoiler: (The Second Foundation)]] thrown in to keep the whole thing from going off the rails.
** "Foundation and Earth" makes ''that'' plan the culmination of an even ''larger'' plan that spans back some 15,000 years (and forward another few if necessary). It also includes two alternate back-up plans and finally a MacGuffinDeliveryService to provide the mastermind behind it all (already coming up against the limits of being TheAgeless) with a longevity boost in order to see it all through to completion.

In nearly every work, you have a [[{{Plots}} Plot]]. Frequently, a plan will guide the plot. Often an EvilPlan, hatched by the villain. Some plans are complex, with so many unforeseen events acting in concert, making it a GambitRoulette. Other characters try to stick with ASimplePlan, which always gets more complicated. If the character doesn't plan ahead, it's an IndyPloy. If you can’t figure out what subtrope a character's plan belongs to, just PotHole it here.

* ChainOfDeals - The goal is to get object A, but you have to get B, which needs C, but you can’t get it without D...

* ScheherezadeGambit - Convince the killer you’re more fun alive than dead.

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** Played with in ''Fanfic/TheStarsAscendant''. Twilight apologizes for saving Equestria the wrong way, assuming that Celestia had some sort of plan for battling Tirek that she messed up. Celestia feels guilty because she ''didn’t'' have a plan and was just desperately trying to keep Tirek from stealing the alicorns' powers.

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* In ''VideoGame/AzraelsTear'', TheLeader of the group of Templar Knights assigned to protect the HolyGrail has a great vision of the future in which the human race is dying; a "Thief" enters the Temple of Aeternis where they and the Grail reside, passes an elaborate test of worthiness, and leaves with the Grail to save mankind. The Templars' fellow order the Prieuré de Sion sees it as their holy obligation to ensure the Grail comes under their control after the test and thus manipulates things to ensure this happens no matter what. Eventually, it is revealed that they had "helped" the vision come true by leaking information about the Grail to the Raptors, technologically advanced professional tomb robbers.[[note]]Of significance is that "raptor" means "thief" in Latin.[[/note]] Thus, several Raptors arrive at Aeternis, competing to acquire the Grail. Only one will emerge with it. Or possibly one of the Guardians will take it for himself instead. But whoever gets it, the Prieuré waits to take possession in the end.

-->-- ''WesternAnimation/Futurama'', ''The Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings''

* ASimplePlan

'''Count Geoffry:''' *Eye Twitch*

'''Evil Knight #1:''' "What about [[MissingStepsPlan the middle bits?]]"\\

** ''Literature/ChildrenOfDune' has the Corrino plan to assassinate the twins and retake the throne.

This is a subindex to the GambitIndex. GambitIndex covers everything about ThePlan, such as who plans and who foils the plan, how the plan is revealed, and what is done after it works. This index covers only the plans themselves, and is divided into two categories-- Types of Plans; how the scheme will work, and Specific Plans; what the scheme will accomplish. If it would fit in both, it goes in Specific Plans.

[[caption-width-right:343:Just. As. Planned.]]

'''Count Geoffry:''' *Eye Twitch*\\
--''WesternAnimation/BlazingDragons'' episode 3, ''Tournament Day''

* ''Fanfic/ThousandShinji'': The events of the history are part of the plan of [[spoiler:''[[TabletopGame({{Warhammer 40000}} Tzeentch]]'']] to [[spoiler:defeat the C'Tan and the Necrontyr,]] and he hoped accomplishing this by [[spoiler:manipulating events so that Shinji, Asuka, Rei and Misato transformed into the new Chaos Gods.]] The existence of a "plan" is revealed and mentioned several times in the final chapters until finally [[spoiler:Tzeentch shows up,]] tells that "everything went just as planned", and explains exactly what the plan consisted of and what his goals were.

* ''Fanfic/ThousandShinji'': The events of the history are part of the plan of [[spoiler:''[[TabletopGame({{Warhammer 40000}} Tzeentch]]'' to [[defeat the C'Tan and the Necrontyr,]] and he hoped accomplishing this by [[spoiler:manipulating events so that Shinji, Asuka, Rei and Misato transformed into the new Chaos Gods.]] The existence of a "plan" is revealed and mentioned several times in the final chapters until finally [[spoiler:Tzeentch shows up,]] tells that "everything went just as planned", and explains exactly what the plan consisted of and what his goals were.