Barrier Warrior: Difference between revisions

{{quote|'''Dark Cure Mint:''' The difference between me and you is that your powers only protect you!<br />

''(later, when Dark Mint is killed)''<br />

The [[Barrier Warrior]] is a character with the [[Magic and Powers]] necessary to create [[Deflector Shields]] or [[Beehive Barrier|Beehive Barriers]] to protect themselves and sometimes others. The Barrier Warrior fights enemies with an emphasis not on [[The Dark Side|destruction,]] but on protecting, and [[Personality Powers|their personalities reflects this]] by being kind and caring, with [[Actual Pacifist]] tendencies and sometimes [[Healing Hands]] to go with their defensive abilities. It should come as no surprise that characters with this ability as their main or only power are, you guessed it, heroes. Usually, they're [[The Chick]], a [[Squishy Wizard]] or [[The Smart Guy]]. In video games they specialize in protecting and aiding team mates, or [[Status Buff|"buffing"]], rather than damaging enemies.

Despite these good intentions and potent abilities, they'll pretty much suck at actually ''doing'' stuff like beating enemies or worse, ''protecting their allies!'' The problem is that their transferable [[Nigh Invulnerability]] and ease in resisting attacks that [[Could Have Been Messy]] makes them the perfect target for [[The Worf Effect]]. As soon as [[Sorting Algorithm of Evil|a new bad guy shows up,]] their shields will [[No Sell|pose all the resistance of wet tissue paper]] to their weakest [[Pure Energy|Energy Blasts.]]

As a power, generating [[Deflector Shields]] is much like [[Flight]]. In theory it's an awesome power that anyone would like, but like Flight it has become [[Stock Super Powers|a dime a dozen]] and [[What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart Anyway|pretty lame]]. Most shows give every character this ability as a secondary power/skillset from a character's main abilities (such as a [[Dishing Out Dirt|geokinetic]] blocking attacks with boulders, or a [[An Ice Person|cryokinetic]] making ice walls). It's made even more useless since it's easy to deflect [[Ki Attacks]] with other [[Ki Attacks]], and techniques like [[Deadly Dodging]] are around to avoid most attacks.

Frequently their barriers manifest depending on their morality (and may even change appearance if they [[Face Heel Turn|change]] [[Heel Face Turn|sides]]). It's either as beautiful (and deadly) [[Petal Power]] or [[Power Glows|gently glowing]] spheres, or black barriers that crackle ominously.

Compare [[Stone Wall]] or [[Magic Knight]].

== [[Anime]] ==

* In the ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' series, barrier powers are a dime-a-dozen, but some mages are demonstrably better at them than others.

** [[Badass Bookworm|Yuuno Scrya]] is the only mage in the entire extended series who doesn't have a [[Magic Wand|magic-boosting Device]], [[Crippling Overspecialization|and his talent at conventional offensive magic is weak]], so he's a second-tier fighter at best. However, he excells in a support-and-protection role in combat; his barriers and defenses are at least as effective as those of the Device-using mages. He also has the ability to capture enemies with strong binds, [[Razor Floss|rip them to pieces with magical razor-chains]], or simply [[Tele Frag|teleport them enemies against their will]]. (It's not so much that Yuuno lacks spells to defeat others, but rather that his best options for doing so are all extremely lethal.)

** Caro Ru Lushe, from [[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]] Strikers. Fullback to her team, because she has shields and an ability to boost others' powers. She also can summon dragons. No, not just that cute little pet Friedrich she has. When she has to, she summons a dragon the size of Godzilla.

* In ''[[Konjiki no Gash Bell]],'' Tio specializes in protective and healing spells (and has only a single weak offensive spell {{spoiler|until volume 20, anyway}}). In a competition where (the monsters' human partners notwithstanding) most battles are 1-on-1, this presents obvious problems.

** There's also Danny, an early character whose only shown ability is to heal himself. Despite this, he comes awfully close to being a [[Badass Normal]], taking out guys with guns without even using a spell. Eventually, he does get shot, but it only takes a first-level spell to get him up again, hinting that had he survived, he'd be nigh invincible. However, he gets his book burned not in battle, but in protecting a museum artifact. Fans speculate that had this not happened, Danny may have made it to the end, although this is somewhat balanced by having his book reader be a little old man. {{spoiler|In the manga, when Gash's book first glows gold giving him the ability to use other demon's spells, it is Danny that saves him with his one and only spell, completely healing the thrashing that Gash received at the hands of Clear Note.}}

* The [[Deflector Shields|Distortion Fields]] on ''[[Martian Successor Nadesico]]'' are also useful for offense (and like most Aestivalis weaponry, are an [[Homage]] to ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'', above, albeit not as creepy). The most generally powerful attack the [[Humongous Mecha]] pilots use involves angling their Distortion Field to a point and ramming the enemy with it, a technique named "[[Gekiganger 3|Gekigan Flare]]" as a reference to ''Nadesico'''s [[Show Within a Show]]. When Aestivalis appear in [[Super Robot Wars]], the Gekigan Flare (or combination attacks involving it) is usually the Aestivalis's [[Limit Break]]. Gekiganger fanboys Akito and Gai usually have the Double Gekigan Flare as a [[Combination Attack]]. Given that Gai usually survives much longer in a Super Robot Wars game than he did in his own series, you have a surprising amount of opportunities to use it. (It never did get used by Akito and Gai in the series, because they hadn't seen the [[Short Anime Movie]] that introduced it yet.)

* The [[Black Box|LambdaDriver]]-equipped Arm Slaves in ''[[Full Metal Panic]]'' are another example of mecha using force fields offensively, although they verge on variable-shape [[Energy Weapons]].

** Fuu Hououji, also from ''[[Magic Knight Rayearth]]'', whose Winds of Protection are capable of stopping any attack (as well as [[The Medic|healing diverse injuries]]), if she's prepared for it. Otherwise, her shields eventually buckle and suffer [[The Worf Effect]].

** Since he started using magic again, Fai Flourite from [[Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle]] is also this. Notably, in a recent chapter of the manga he threw up a barrier and held it against an all out onslaught of magic from ''two'' other characters.

** There is also a single instance of Lelouch finding a non-defensive use for the shield, near the end of the series: {{spoiler|Holding open a hole in [[Kill Sat|Damocles']] own shield so that Suzaku and some [[Mook|Mooks]] can get inside and lead a direct attack.}}

* Megumi Kurogane of ''[[Gate Keepers]]'' is of the versatile variety, creating giant walls to block enemy attacks, as well as using said walls to crush them. {{spoiler|This power is inverted into a piercing ability after her [[Face Heel Turn]]}}.

** Later on, the [[Crossbone Gundam]] X3 is built with I-Field generators in its arms, and they're powerful enough to force the [[Big Bad|Divinidad's]] weaponry against itself at ''very'' close range - much like trying to shoot a blocked gun.

*** By this point decades of technological improvement have made it possible for a normal-sized mobile suit, rather than a giant like the Psycho & Ex-S Gundams, to operate an I-Field, but the power requirements are still a major limited factor. Especially since "normal sized" has become smaller by this time, with mobile suit design de-emphasizing armor in favor of speed, agility and presenting a smaller target profile. The I-Field generators also produce a lot of heat, requiring 2 minutes of cooldown for 1.75 minutes of operation, otherwise the generators will overheat to the point of destroying themselves.

** Haruna also sometimes uses her [[Art Initiates Life]] artifact to create shields.

** Also, most mages have a personal shield active all the time. By chapter 141, Asuna has learned to attack in teams: She [[Paper Fan of Doom|blows]] the shield away right before Negi or Kuu Fei hits.

** This editor remembers her threatening to use them to create a brain embolism/aneurysm at one point.

** The Invisible Woman has easily taken out the other members of her team with force fields, as well as knocking out both [[The Hulk]] and [[She Hulk]] by cutting off their air. This was mocked in an issue of Exiles, implying she brags about the feat often.

** Suffice to say, while her personality is still the mothering/nurturing type, and the original stories featured her as a sometimes-invisible [[Distressed Damsel]], Sue has gone a long way towards subverting this trope when it comes to how her powers are used.

* Melissa Joan Gold aka Songbird from the ''[[Thunderbolts]]'' creates pink solid-sound energy constructs quite similar to Sue Storm.

* Subverted with [[Captain America]], whose sole weapon - his iconic indestructible shield - is, when thrown, a great offensive weapon against most people.

** During a period when his shield was lost or destroyed (around the fifth or sixth time... it happens to him a lot), Cap was given an energy shield which acted in this way. Being a traditionalist, he quickly went back to the old shield once it was found/rebuilt.

* [[Booster Gold]], late of the ''[[Justice League of America]],'' is a huge subversion. He's a [[Idiot Hero|pompous dimwit]] with super strength and a one-track mind, and he rarely even thinks of using his force field in critical situations.

** He's been using it more recently and in more creative ways, such as wiring up his forcefield with his blasters to blast the area in a burst so he wouldn't get mindcontroled. One of the reasons he didn't use it so often was because it might weaken his immune system.

* Bella in [[Twilight (Literature)|Breaking Dawn]] is able to protect herself and her allies from the mental powers of enemy vampires.

* Kharl in [[Saga of Recluce]] uses Order Barriers as his main ability often using them to not just protect himself but to suffocate enemies while deflecting firebolts at armies of soldiers.

* Harry Dresden qualifies. Over the course of ''[[The Dresden Files]]'' series, he's used various bracelets to create both convex and flat shields. Up until {{spoiler|his hand got burned to a waxy crisp (the shield blocked the physical effects of fire but not the heat it produced)}} it primarily shielded against objects and other kinetic energy. He made sure the next version of the focus corrected that little flaw.

* Derek Huntsman of the web-novel ''[[Domina (Literature)|Domina]]'' has the power to create barriers. Quite fitting for someone with [[Chronic Hero Syndrome]], though a little odd for someone in the position of [[The Hero]].

* Guarlions (and similar machines) in ''[[Super Robot Wars]] [[Original Generation]]'' can generate a forcefield when moving at high speeds. Naturally, one of their strongest attacks [[Ramming Always Works|is to ram things hard]]. Similarly, the [[Super Robot]] Giganscudo will also use its fields to slam into the enemy, either when using its massive weight as a weapon, or by grabbing the enemy from a distance and slamming it into its field-shrouded mass.

* In the MMORPG ''[[Fly FF]],'' an entire class, the Assist, as well as its higher-level counterpart the Ringmaster, is dedicated to buffing and healing.

* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' has several classes capable of becoming [[Barrier Warrior|Barrier Warriors]]. Priests can make protective barriers out of an allies' soul, with some priests actually enabling these shields to reflect damage. Paladins go one step further into the defensive variety, able to make themselves invulnerable to damage, make an ally invulnerable to physical (but not magical) damage, or sacrifice themselves to make an ally immune to absolutely everything but removing them from combat. Finally, Warriors can turn their shields into fully offensive weapons.

** More recently Priests specializing in the Discipline tree have become a full embodiment of this trope. Discipline Priests specialize in creating shields to prevent damage rather than to heal it.

** Mages are probably the ones with the most buffs that act as shields, most of which also can be used outright offensively just by being there and getting hit by enemies. They have molten armor, which on top of lowering the attacker's crit chance on the mage actually does fire damage to the attacker. They have frost armor, which raises their armor value and, depending on how far down you go into the frost specialization of their magic, will slow any melee attacker to varying degrees and outright chance-on-hit freeze them in their tracks. THEN they have the literal stop-all-incoming-damage shields, Mana Shield (which eats through lots of mana and kinda sucks) and Ice Barrier which on top of being a very effective defense will also explode and freeze all enemies in range of the mage when it takes its max damage. Oh, and they have two "wards" that absorb any incoming fire or frost damage and, if glyphed, can actually convert part of said absorbed spell into their own mana.

* [[Warhammer Online]] has several healer classes with barrier or damage reduction abilities, most notably the Chaos Zealot (and its [[Our Dwarves Are All the Same|stunty]] equivalent the Runepriest) - they have barriers to shield their entire party, single targets, or prevent damage to themselves; they can buff to reduce incoming magic damage; they have tactics to increase the armor of allied players or put up a barrier on themselves; finally, they have two separate morale abilities to absorb damage across the party.

* Speaking of Golems, the [[Summon Magic|Summoned Monster]] Golem from ''[[Final Fantasy V (Video Game)|Final Fantasy V]]'', ''[[Final Fantasy VI (Video Game)|Final Fantasy VI]]'', and ''[[Final Fantasy Tactics]]'' will stop any incoming physical attack with its huge rock (or metal, in VI) hands for a little while after being summoned. Similarly, [[Final Fantasy VI (Video Game)|Shadow's dog Interceptor]] will [[Made of Iron|randomly shield him from damage]], only to come back and savage the enemy in return. And in ''[[Final Fantasy IX (Video Game)|Final Fantasy IX]]'', the primary duty of the great [[Summon Magic|Eidolon]] Alexander is protect the castle, and city of Alexandria, with its gigantic angel wings.

** In nearly all of his incarnations, the Carbuncle summon is the magical counterpart to Golem, projecting a reflect shield over your party to deflect most magic spells.

* Priests in [[Dragon Force (Video Game)|Dragon Force]] use a spell called Holy Shield that is this trope

* Aqua in ''[[Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep]]'' has some useful Barrier powers. Her default guard is a magic barrier, her counter attack after blocking is to shatter the barrier, and she has the ability to rush enemies with a barrier up.

*** There is also a wizard nobody that falls into [[Demonic Spider]] territory due to the use of indestructable transparent blocks that it uses for both offense and defense.

** ''[[Kingdom Hearts 358 Over 2 Days|358/2 Days]]'' gives us the Barrier Master Heartless, whose sole reason for existing is protecting its allies and itself from damage until it is defeated.

** Fossilmaiden also has an extra shield attached to the hilt of her [[Laser Blade]].

* Mori Motonari of ''[[Sengoku Basara]]'' combines this with [[Trap Master]]. One of his abilities includes creating light barriers that bounce people off of them. If done correctly, he can make trap enemies between two barriers, bouncing them off each other and killing bosses incredibly quick.

* Arguably, Ratchet from ''[[Transformers Animated]]''. His main ability comes from his wrist-mounted magnetic field generators, which he often uses to create shields against enemy attacks. They're a bit more malleable than the average [[Deflector Shields]], though, and they can can just as easily toss enemies around or push objects into them.

** In the original ''[[Transformers]]'', Trailbreaker also had force field powers.

** Tahu's also a subversion as far as personality is concerned, as he's as [[Hot Blooded]] as they come and not prone to running and hiding behind cover (though he's mellowed a bit in that regard).

* Eric the Cavalier from the animated ''[[Dungeons and Dragons (Animation)|Dungeons and Dragons]]'' is issued a shield that projects an invulnerable force field. He doesn't use it very often, though, because his usual reaction to danger is to [[Lovable Coward|run away and hide]].

* In ''[[Wakfu (Animation)|Wakfu]]'', sufficiently powerful magic users generate shields at a whim. Both the villain Nox and the benevolent dragon Grougaloragran project force shields to protect themselves from each other. There's also the whole class of Fecas whose gimmick is having cool shields.

* In ''[[Challenge of the Go Bots]],'' Leader-1 had this ability. However, it took a lot of energy and was exhausting for him, so he could only maintain a forcefield for a couple of minutes at a time.

{{reflist}}