Professedly Powerless Puppetmaster: Difference between revisions

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Goo Monster

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Line 1: {{trope}} [[File:app-~~shojo_9697~~shojo 9697.png\|link=The Order of the Stick\|frame\|He'd have you believe his cat is the real power behind the throne, and that is exactly how he's been able to keep it.]] {{quote\|''"Paranoia? I rule a city where I have to [[Obfuscating Stupidity\|fake senility]] just to avoid being assassinated. I took Improved Paranoia like 5 levels ago."''\|'''Lord Shojo''', ''[[The Order of the Stick\|Order of the Stick]]''}} Appearances can be deceiving. Just ask those who unwittingly serve the ~~[[Apparently~~'''Professedly Powerless Puppetmaster]]'''. When the game of politics is played with [[Deadly Decadent Court\|daggers and poison]] [[Fate Worse Than Death\|(and worse)]], sometimes the most advantageous place to be is off the board entirely. Playing the part of the [[Obfuscating Stupidity\|witless,]] [[Obfuscating Insanity\|raving]] [[Cloudcuckoolander\|lunatic]] is a useful (and life-extending) tactic when surrounded by murderous schemers: rather than waste their energies eliminating the idiot, they spend their time instead betraying and sabotaging their more obvious rivals, leaving the ~~[[Apparently~~'''Professedly Powerless Puppetmaster]]''' free to turn the players into pieces in his own game. When he makes a move, everyone assumes it's one of the other players manipulating him. Once the deception is complete, he can act with impunity. There are two main variations on this trope: Line 12: * 2. The character is in a position of no obvious authority at all, [[Almighty Janitor\|but which allows him to exercise influence over others regardless.]] A subtrope of [[Manipulative Bastard]]. Compare [[Not-So-Harmless Villain]]. Compare [[The Dog Was the Mastermind]] {{examples}} Line 45: == [[Video Games]] == * The Viscount in ''[[Dragon Age II]]'' is universally regarded as a weakling when, in fact, he is one of the few [[Reasonable Authority Figure~~\|Reasonable Authority Figures~~]]s in Kirkwall who has kept violence in the city at bay for many years through subtle manipulation and maintaining the balance of power. * Emperor Uriel Septim VII from ''[[The Elder Scrolls]]'' series may count. While he is still [[The Emperor]], his Cyrodiil legions are nowhere near the fighting force they once were and only his elaborate schemes keep his empire from disintegrating into many local kingdoms until his death in part four. Line 64: {{reflist}} [[Category:Gambit Index]] [[Category:~~Apparently~~Professedly Powerless Puppetmaster]]