Line #1 Fanfic/FrontierSovereignGFC


1	''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11500557/1/Frontier Frontier]]'' is the final entry in [[https://www.fanfiction.net/u/2734141/ SovereignGFC]]'s MassiveMultiplayerCrossover series (that was never planned to be this big). This page assumes you have read (or are okay with spoilers from) ''Fanfic/FracturedSovereignGFC'' and ''Fanfic/{{Origins}}''; you have been warned and no attempt will be made to hide any of [[TheReveal the big reveals]] that are made in those works.
2
3	The Reapers have been [[CurbStompBattle utterly annihilated]]. Extradimensional invaders that consume everything they can get their claws on are on their last legs, thanks to a Herculean combination of technology from four different civilizations. However, the main source of all this advanced weaponry turns out to be a galaxy that itself is highly politically unstable...
4
5	Can Samantha Shepard shout her way out of this one?
6	----
7	!!''Frontier'' provides examples of:
8
9	* TwoDSpace: Averted during Grayson's "calvalry charge" through RISE[=/=]CENF fleets--they strike from above ''and'' send ships around the enemy fleet to strike behind their lines.
10	* AlmightyJanitor: Samantha Shepard finally receives a promotion to Captain after years of technically holding "only" the rank of Commander despite vast responsibilities being repeatedly placed on her shoulders. She lampshades how weird this is.
11	* BadassArmy: Subverted by Athena's clones--they're ''supposed'' to be this but in the LensmanArmsRace between the heroes and the CENF[=/=]RISE they get [[CurbStompBattle stomped hard]] (mainly due to lacking the Force).
12	* BiggerIsBetter: {{Enforced}} InUniverse, because of a school of thought in the ''Star Wars'' universe that, if not using a ZergRush of [[SpaceFighter starfighters]], one bigger ship is preferable to a swarm of small ships for taking on another big ship[[note]]Ansel Hsaio, a source of much AscendedFanon in the starships department, once noted that one large vessel facing a theoretically-equally-powerful group of smaller ships would take out the smaller ships with its massed firepower quicker than the horde could wear down the larger battleship, making it more practical to take on one Star Dreadnaught with another Star Dreadnaught, rather than a big fleet of weaker cruisers/frigates/corvettes.[[/note]]
13	* BrickJoke: Sarah's stench. Any time she uses [[EvilMakesYouUgly the Dark Side]] not only does her appearance change for the worse, but she also lets off a foul smell. Also, Sarah destroying furniture--she even alludes to how Flanders would be amused at destroying her ''own'' table to ward off attackers.
14	* CallBack: Sarah can supercharge a hyperdrive, no matter the ship (previously done to a TIE Punisher). Shepard finds [[Fanfic/{{Origins}} scientists on Capek in cryostasis]], and begins thawing them out in the hopes that they might have discovered something useful against the Flood.
15	* CannonFodder: What happens when you pit troopships against [[TheBattlestar battlestar-type]] vessels.
16	* CharacterDeath: Not so much this work (yet...), but the death count from ''Fractured'' and ''Origins'' before mean that dozens of named personalities (such as Lilith, Tina, Liara, the Illusive Man, and more) won't be showing up here as the FirstLawOfResurrection is '''not''' in effect!
17	* ChekhovsGun: Allison Nimitz sent Sarah to retrieve some Eridium gas from Pandora. It turns up later as the only way to stop Flood superships. Arguably, the "[[HollywoodAcid dissolve-everything]]" nature of it was actually foreshadowed halfway through ''Origins'' when the Republic Intelligence Service [[AssassinOutclassin tried and failed]] to kill Sarah with it but virtually dissolved the ship she was on and its crew.
18	* ConsummateProfessional: Scarlett [=DeWinter's=] crew seems to fit this more than the typical PsychoForHire that works with the rest of the Band, as over 70% of them opt to stick with her despite lack of pay.
19	* EasilyForgiven: Discussed by Grayson--he knows [[ValuesDissonance some people in the future]] will think this trope is in play and justifiably so, but he invokes the GodzillaThreshold. Samantha Shepard's attitude makes clear she's [[IDidWhatIHadToDo not proud of]] [[HeroicBSOD what she did]], and actually wants to quit the military, though not before one final fight against the Flood.
20	* EmotionlessGirl: Unintentionally exploited by Sarah as whoever attempts to overwhelm her during her investigation of a Paradise World cannot use her emotional state against her since she doesn't have enough of one to be bothered.
21	* FalseUtopia: Grayson hypothesizes this might be the "dirty secret" of CENF, but so far no proof exists. That said, an investigation of a "Paradise World" is being launched. [[spoiler:Turns out this trope was played straight--the "Paradise" worlds were actually [=Lotus Eater Machines=] fueling the Dark Side powers of distant beings.]]
22	* FantasticRacism: Played straight and averted, providing an unintended lesson in ''de-jure'' (in law) and ''de-facto'' (in fact)--policies toward non-Humans are harsh on paper but past the Mid Rim nobody really bothers enforcing them...and to its infinitesimally minor credit, [[PetTheDog CENF doesn't seem to care]]. Comes up again when the three galaxies are looking at rebuilding--as usual the old Council accuses the humans of this only to be reminded that [[{{Hypocrite}} they engaged in it]], and furthermore holding old grudges won't help anyone.
23	* GovernmentProcedural: The plot thread involving drama inside the Trans-Galactic Republic has finally resolved itself...with a coup. Admiral Adam Grayson finds out about this when he phones home to other Trans-Galactic Republic members.
24	* GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe: Hinted at repeatedly with the [[VideoGame/TIEFighter Nami]] but otherwise deliberately [[TakeOurWordForIt left up to the reader's imagination]] as to what, exactly, such aliens look like.
25	* HeelFaceTurn: Sarah. A Flood MindRape combined with messy neural imprinting tends to do that. She did get nudged along by Flanders, Shepard, and Co. as well. She also gives more than a [[WeHaveReserves "So what?"]] reaction upon realizing she's going to have to kill more innocents on her side in order to achieve her goal of hunting down the OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness.
26	* HeroicSacrifice: On a species-wide scale, the "old" (Consensus) geth [[GreatOffscreenWar kept the Flood busy]] for so long that the monstrosities were not able to properly focus on the heroes. [[FridgeHorror Imagine what would have happened]] if it ''had'' zeroed in on them given the horrific losses inflicted...
27	* HidingBehindReligion: Tevos gets this thrown in her face since the asari made it illegal for anyone to ''not'' share prothean artifacts...while hiding a prothean artifact of their own inside a temple on Thessia.
28	* HoldYourHippogriffs: The ''Star Wars'' characters, as usual, along with doses of PardonMyKlingon.
29	** "...like a [[labelnote:klatooine paddy frog]]regular frog...[[/labelnote]], you will not know your doom until the [[labelnote:slimy hand of a Hutt]]water slowly boils[[/labelnote]] reaches for you."
30	* {{Hypocrite}}: Grayson believes Nimitz guilty of this, since she made a lot of noise about "war crimes" by the Maliwans, Torgue, etc. because they used [[OrbitalBombardment nuclear weapons]] against civilians who were aligned with their enemy, yet kept [[HeroicBSOD Shepard]] and [[KnightTemplar Sarah]] around because of [[GodzillaThreshold the stakes]]. Somehow the former wasn't justified, but the latter was. He thinks this is silly.
31	* ItsTheOnlyWayToBeSure: Utterly destroying the Citadel and local space with a huge detonation by a missile that [[EarthShatteringKaboom blows up entire planets]] is deemed the only way to get rid of the Flood.
32	* JediMindTrick: The RISE Council doesn't like Dirctor Vance's insistence that there isn't a problem with someone taking over their digistruction facilities. They "persuade" him of the error of his thinking.
33	* MasterOfIllusion: The darksiders Sarah fights show her quite a bit that she suspects isn't real. It turns out she's right.
34	* MercyKill: The few remaining quarians living on Rannoch, having been infested by Flood, are vaporized.
35	* MoodDissonance: When a ''Soul Reaper'' missile is fired toward the Citadel to end the war, a computer counts down from ten like old-school rocket launches. [[CrossesTheLineTwice Then it says "Have a nice day!"]] upon detonation.
36	* NeverMessWithGranny: Scarlett [=DeWinter=] is significantly older than the rest of the Band's leadership. She essentially [[BatmanGambit lets the rest self-destruct]], [[MamaBear keeps her fleet intact]], and sticks her finger in CENF[=/RISE's=] eye when the opportunity presents itself.
37	* NoKillLikeOverkill: ''Eighteen'' Star Dreadnaughts are sent to destroy a Flood infestation on ''one'' planet. Perhaps it was partially a CatharsisFactor for Samantha Shepard...
38	* NuclearOption: Once it's determined where the Flood is coming from, a huge Gravemind on the Citadel, it's decided to fling a [[NukeEm really big missile]] at said space station.
39	* OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness: Whoever is trying to lure Sarah in through the Force.
40	* OneWordTitle: Sort of a RunningGag[=/=]RuleOfThree by now, since ''Fractured'' and ''Origins'' both are also one word.
41	* OrbitalBombardment: When you have a [[FlauntingYourFleets whole fleet]] of [[MileLongShip huge starships]] that were sort of built for this, why not? When dealing with Flood, ItsTheOnlyWayToBeSure!
42	* PardonMyKlingon: A kriffing Sith magocracy! Vape-headed rodder who only blows ion trails!
43	* PowerLimiter: Battle Meditation is normally far more effective, however, as noted by Armando Bailey and Sarah, ''something'' is damping their powers in this galaxy.
44	* PetTheDog: When Urdnot Wrex finds out that Tuchanka still exists as opposed to being subjected to an EarthShatteringKaboom like he thought it was, he immediately apologizes to Athena for snapping her legs as he believed her responsible for the destruction of his homeworld.
45	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Admiral Grayson is considered such both by the heroes and the AntiVillain Scarlett [=DeWinter=].
46	* RedemptionQuest: A possible motivation for Sarah's desire to seek out the OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness daring her to try to kill them.
47	* RedShirtArmy: Athena's clones become this against Force-sensitive troopers created by CENF[=/=]RISE. The only way they can win is [[ZergRush by attrition]].
48	* ReformedButRejected: Sarah. Less "evil to good" and more [[JustFollowingOrders "following insane orders"]] to "not actively destroying everything," though for obvious reasons people don't trust her.
49	* RepressiveButEfficient: The Council on the Establishment of the New Future is actually quite competent, much more so than the [[DemocracyIsBad Trans-Galactic Republic]] at the cost of ''de-jure'' [[FantasticRacism racism against aliens]]. (Gee, [[RecycledScript heard this one before?]]) It helps that [[UsefulNotes/HerbertHoover "a speeder in every garage, a HoloNet transceiver in every town, and a job for every willing worker"]] is ''actually working out'' under CENF. [[spoiler:Later subverted when it turns out the Paradise Worlds were actually Dark-Side-powered [=Lotus-Eater Machines=].]]
50	* ScienceMarchesOn[=/=]TechnologyMarchesOn: InUniverse, Athena and her clones are (partially) surpassed by newer soldiers designed from a captured RISE operative using Athena as the base, a sort of AllYourPowersCombined, clone edition.
51	* SpiritAdvisor: Like Angel to Maya before, [[spoiler:Lilith]] shows up to Sarah during her final battle.
52	* ShoutOut: The massive Flood form on the Citadel is repeatedly called an "[[VideoGame/StarCraft overmind]]." The new CloneArmy, an improvement on Athena, is called [[VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm Valla-class]] and use "DS-PLNE" to tamp down their UnstoppableRage.
53	* StarshipLuxurious: Played straight and averted at the same time. The fact that Star Dreadnaughts have ''swimming pools'' is somewhat ridiculous (though the Trans-Galactic Republic justifies it InUniverse), however a lack of ''water'' means said luxury cannot be enjoyed.
54	* StealthInSpace: ''Ultimatum'' has a "scattering field" installed (so less effective than a traditional ''Star Wars'' cloaking device), however any sort of high-energy discharges such as simply turning on DeflectorShields or even active sensors will reveal the vessel.
55	* StrikeMeDownWithAllOfYourHatred: Whoever taunts Sarah is trying this--they ''want'' her to seek them out to fight them. She knows it's probably SchmuckBait, but also thinks she can handle whatever it turns out to be.
56	* SubspaceAnsible: The [=HoloNet=], par for the course in a work featuring the technology of ''Star Wars.'' ''Mass Effect'' has its quantum entanglement devices, and ''Borderlands'' has a "relay" network.
57	* TakeThat: InUniverse, the now-former Citadel Council gets a huge one from Samantha Shepard for their HeadInTheSandManagement and being GenreBlind. They ''try'' to pull a WhatTheHellHero but get bowled over as their accusations of [[FantasticRacism racism]] fall flat. [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Adrian Victus]] does get a point in--the Trans-Galactic Republic has shown itself almost as incapable of action as the Citadel Council, only for Shepard to shoot back that if the Council had a moral leg to stand on in this regard (hint: they don't), they would have done something besides stick their heads in the sand. Luke's ghost in the Great Holocron disses Imperial tech from his era, saying "you could probably do twice as well with half the size" referring to [[SerialEscalation ever-larger dreadnaughts]] being considered by Admiral Grayson.
58	* ThePowerOfHate: Par for the course with the Dark Side from ''Star Wars'', whoever is taunting Sarah urges her to use this, but she ultimately subverts the trope as she recognizes ([[SpiritAdvisor with some help]]) that this won't win her the fight.
59	* TokenEvilTeammate: Sarah. Notably, she doesn't ''want'' to be the "evil" one anymore, but everyone else (not without justification given the [[Franchise/StarWars universes]] [[Franchise/MassEffect they're]] [[VideoGame/{{Borderlands}} from]]) doesn't trust her.
60	* UngovernableGalaxy: That's what seems to be going on across two of three (as ineffective as it was, the Trans-Galactic Republic qualified as an intergalactic government). This "reboot" will make yet another attempt to subvert the trope in two galaxies known for it.
61	* VelvetRevolution: When the Trans-Galactic Republic falls, the only casualties are a few Senators. The new StateSec government leaves everyone else alone, though their [[PrivateMilitaryContractor contracted help]] spans the gamut from ConsummateProfessional to PsychoForHire.
62	* VillainBall: Downplayed and lampshaded. The Council on the Establishment of the New Future (RISE) is well-aware that hidden installations can be found, however, they were counting on TwoDSpace[=/=]SpaceIsAnOcean being in play for the heroes and anyone else who might look. When their Director makes them aware that this gambit has failed which results in someone having massive amounts of ships and soldiers courtesy their own facilities, they are displeased. However, they openly admit that such eventualities were in fact possible (averting ThisCannotBe), just more likely than anyone wanted to think.
63	* WhyWontYouDie: Dark-side apparitions to Sarah when she arrives in their enclave but ends up shrugging off their attacks.

Context Fanfic / FrontierSovereignGFC