Child Mage/Playing With

Basic Trope: The spellcaster of the team is also the youngest member.
 * Straight: Ichigo is the youngest member of Sol's party.
 * Exaggerated: Ichigo is only five, and not in a Really Seven Hundred Years Old context, either.
 * Justified:
 * Ichigo is one of The Chosen Ones destined to defeat Emperor Evulz, and they can't exactly wait until she grows up before taking care of him.
 * Children never have the physical strength to be a weapon user but they can have the intelligence to be a caster.
 * Inverted:
 * The magic user is the oldest member of the team.
 * Or, to take it one step further, a role usually given to a younger character is given to someone older. Instead of having a White Magician Girl as the healer, they have grizzled Badass Grandpa Richard taking care of their medical needs.
 * Subverted: She looks younger than the rest of them, but she's older than she looks.
 * Double Subverted: Ichigo is around the same age as her teammates, but they're all Kid Heroes, and she's still the youngest of the lot.
 * Parodied: Ichigo is a toddler who's barely able to speak; her vocabulary consists almost solely of cantrips, chants and various other spells.
 * Deconstructed:
 * Though powerful, Ichigo still gets treated like she's Just a Kid due to her youth... rather ironic, given she basically sacrificed her childhood for training. She may physically still be a child, but mentally, she hasn't been one for so, so long...
 * Alternatively, Ichigo is a powerful mage, but too immature to wield her power wisely, and frequently gets the team into trouble this way.
 * Reconstructed:
 * Over time, her comrades get to know her better and treat her as an equal, while also helping her to learn how to be a child rather than "just" a magical prodigy.
 * Powerful but immature, Ichigo is better off with Sol's party than she would be left to her own devices, as Sol's guidance provides her both a good role model and a set of rules... She very quickly learns to work with others, as well as becoming noble and brave, because she doesn't want her friends to get hurt.
 * Zig Zagged: Ichigo is in a group of Kid Heroes, but she still looks the youngest. However, she's Really Seven Hundred Years Old, but is cursed to keep the maturity of a seven year old.
 * Averted: Ichigo is about the same age as the rest of her party.
 * Enforced:
 * "Let's make our best spellcaster the youngest; that way she'll be extra-special and adorable!"
 * They needed a Token Mini Moe, but thought a Cute Bruiser would be too unrealistic.
 * Lampshaded: "Aren't you a little young for adventuring?" "Fragaria FLARE--!"
 * Invoked: The party draws cards with jobs on them, and Ichigo happens to get the wizard card.
 * Defied: The party refuses to bring a child into battle, preferring to go without a mage than endanger Ichigo.
 * Discussed: "Oh, boy, that red-headed kid's got a unique sprite... how much you wanna bet she's gonna turn out to be our Token Mini Moe spellcaster?"
 * Conversed: "Why is a child mage more convincing than a child warrior?" "Err... wands aren't as heavy as swords?"
 * Played For Laughs: Ichigo is a Glass Cannon, but more keenly aware of the 'Cannon' aspect than the 'Glass' and acts like she's the team leader. Opponents tend to underestimate her until the first time a bright pink fireball erupts in their face.
 * Played For Drama:
 * Ichigo is The Chosen One who is supposed to prove key to defeating Emperor Evulz. However, Emperor Evulz learned of this prophecy and attempted to wipe out her bloodline. She survived, but now the prophecy has to be fulfilled before the emperor takes care of her.
 * Magic powers or not, the heroes' potential allies tend to be upset with them for endangering a child.

Back to Child Mage.