Shrouded in Myth: Difference between revisions

When this happens in the fandom rather than in-universe, it's a [[Memetic Badass]].

 

 

{{examples}}

== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==

* The Irregulars are completely foreign entities that surpass the strength of almost anybody in the ''[[Tower of God]]''. Where the came from apart from outside the tower and what they want is a mystery to anybody.

* The wildly conflicting rumors about Vash from ''[[Trigun]]'' become an issue in the very first episode. Even at the end of the series, the fact that a [[Obfuscating Stupidity|dorky]], [[Technical Pacifist]] is the world's most notorious outlaw is still stunning everyone who learns the truth. He finds it useful on occasion to play into the stories surrounding him. Many of the rumors about Vash in the first episode could just as easily describe the 12-foot tall criminal Descartes.

** This culminates in a showdown between Descartes, the bounty hunter Loose Ruth, and (sort of) Vash, with Ruth and Descartes believing each other to be the real deal pretty much solely because they both wear red and have blond hair.

* Keima from ''[[The World God Only Knows]]'' ''is'' a weird guy deserving of the title [[Otaku|ota]][[Megane]], but his reputation as seen [http://www.mangareader.net/120-6010-5/the-world-god-only-knows/chapter-51.html here], while partially true, is a little off.

* Guts' existence is completely obscure in ''[[Berserk]]'', especially when he takes up his Black Swordsman persona after the Eclipse. Before the Eclipse, it was well known that there was a mighty man among the [[Famed in Story|Band of the Hawk]] who slayed 100 soldiers by himself, thus earning the title "[[Earn Your Title|the Hundred Man Slayer.]]" His actual name was more well known then, but after the demise of the first band, he became nothing more than myth, but his legendary feats continued to disperse and became so overblown that now a lot of people believe that he killed a whooping ''1000 soldiers'' by himself.

 

== [[Comic Books]] ==

== [[Fan Works]] ==

* In ''[[Aeon Natum Engel]]'' this is a reason behind the biggest [[It Got Worse]] in the Operation <s>It got worse</s> CATO: The whole reason behind the invasion of Iceland was to capture Moloch, the dormant Herald. The intelligence presumed that it will only be slightly larger than the {EVA}s, but when it finally surfaced, it was at least as big as the city.

* ''[[The Elements of Harmony and the Savior of Worlds]]'': Over the course of the 1500 years that have passed since she helped to found Equestria, this has happened to Megan.

* "Ms. Aoyama" from ''[[Desperately Seeking Ranma]]'', who appears to be the representative of an extraterrestrial intelligence agency that knows just about ''everything'' about ''everybody'', and who has demonstrated that she can make any electronic device anywhere in the world dance to her tune. What little the governments of the world actually know about her is supplemented with terrified speculation about her origins, employers, and limitations (if any). (In reality, she's [[Ranma ½|Nabiki Tendo]]. The persona began as a one-off gag to intimidate her sister Akane and Ryouga, but it kept being useful afterwards. And using a combination of [[Sufficiently Advanced Magic]] ''and'' [[Sufficiently Advanced Technology]] she has slowly started to [[Becoming the Mask|Become the Mask]] and by the end of the existing story material has pretty much become what she's pretended to be except for origins and employers.)

 

== [[Film]] ==

** Becoming Shrouded in Myth is the first step to becoming a Hero of the Horn.

* In Steven Erikson's ''[[Malazan Book of the Fallen]]'', Anomander Rake is widely seen as one of the most über-[[Badass]] characters in that entire [[The Verse|universe]], despite the fact that we haven't seen him do all that much in the books.

**** Strictly, it was Carrot who arrested the dragon and Vimes didn't actually kill a werewolf with his bare hands, but the rest is all true. Also, the Assassin's Guild refuses contracts both because he's so unkillable, and because his death would leave Ankh-Morpork in a shambles, but still, they dassn't try to kill him.

*** It's mentioned in passing at least once that city police forces that pattern themselves like the Ankh-Morpork City Watch are often called "Sammies" (even in areas where most people haven't heard of him), in part thanks to the Ankh-Morpork trained watchmen who leave the city to take up officer positions elsewhere.

**** Presumably a reference to the fact that British police officers are nicknamed "Bobbies" in reference to Robert Peel, the man who wrote the <s> book</s> precepts on How To Be A Good Copper.

** Also on the Discworld is Lu Tze. His deeds as an agent of the History Monks are so legendary among the few who know of the secret society that no apprentice who hears the tales suspects that Lu Tze is actually one of the temple's janitors. Even when learning the truth, it can be tempting to discount the stories or underestimate him... until you find out why Rule One on Discworld is [[Old Master|"Never act incautiously when confronted by a small, old, wrinkly, bald smiling man!"]]

* [[David Gemmell]]'s character Druss the Legend from ''Legend'' and various prequels. He's fully aware that he's mortal and fallible and that the bards have exaggerated his prowess, but he also knows the value of his legend to morale.

** Although the legend isn't all '''that''' exaggerated: drugged and ambushed by five assassins, who got in the first blow with a club to his head, sixty-year-old Druss kills three of them, then captures and starts to interrogate the fourth. The fifth assassin, who'd held back, picks that moment to attack, and the captive dies as a human shield. Assassin Five wisely runs away.

* The Comte de Saint-Germain and, to a lesser extent, any Godwalker in ''[[Unknown Armies]]''.

* The nature of the [[Big Bad|Sea Hags]] in ''[[Fifty Fathoms]]''. A problem for any party who wants to save the world.

 

== [[Video Games]] ==

* Master Chief, the main protagonist of the ''[[Halo]]'' trilogy, became something of a "demon" in the eyes of the highly religious aliens of the Covenant after he destroyed Installation 04 (Halo).

* In ''[[Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World]]'', [[Tales of Symphonia|Lloyd]] [[Idiot Hero|Irving]] of all people seems like a character Shrouded in Myth to new protagonist Emil, especially since he's described as [[The Messiah]] by all his former allies, but has seemingly turned into a [[Rogue Protagonist]] at the start of the game, and had murdered Emil's parents before his very eyes. {{spoiler|The truth? [[A Wizard Did It|A Decus did it]].}}

* In ''[[Baldur's Gate]] 2'', Renal the "Bloodscalp", head of the Shadow Thieves in Athkatla {{spoiler|(but not really; he's a front man)}} is disappointed when he first meet you, having expected something more impressive. One of the possible dialogue options is to tell him that you expected more from such a high-ranking [[The Syndicate|Shadow Thief]].

== [[Web Comics]] ==

* In ''[[Get Medieval]]'', Asher gains a reputation as a invincible, miracle-working warrior, much to his consternation. And even moreso when Sir Gerard reminds him that people (namely, Gerard's superiors) will expect him to repeat his [[Ass Pull]] victories on a regular, reliable basis.

* ''[[Bob the Angry Flower]]'' brings us [http://www.angryflower.com/108.html The Man on the Hill.] But it turns out he's pretty lame.

* In ''[[Drowtales]]'', Quain'tana is shrouded in myth to her daughter {{spoiler|(actually granddaughter)}} Ariel, who daydreams of the day she'll meet her famous mother. Unfortunately, when her wish is finally granted, Quain isn't exactly the warmest parent.

* Subverted in the ''[[Ciem Webcomic Series]]''. No matter how many battles Ciem fights, including many of them alone, she is never regarded by the criminal underworld (with exception of the Hebbleskin Gang) as anything more than Emeraldon's ''sidekick''. To the media, she manages to go over six years without registering as anything other than "a curiosity." On the mayor of Dirbine's birthday, she is ''merely allowed'' to show up and say hello to the crowd. No key-to-the-city-type thing. The crowd neither loves nor hates her particularly; but most of the time, [[No Hero to His Valet|they simply ''ignore'' her]]. When reporters actually do try to get together a list of public perceptions; it's like the townsfolk [[Laser-Guided Amnesia|merely blocked it out of their own minds]].

* This is a major theme of ''[[Girl Genius]]'', with basically all of the main characters known only through wild mixtures of exaggeration and utter fabrication.

** Othar has a reputation. To the point of being a [[Villain with Good Publicity]] ''and'' a [[Hero with Bad Publicity]] at the same time. After all, even other mad people consider him a complete nutcase, so he's just too crazy for most sane folk to track what he actually did some or other time.

* [[Word of God|Erin Ptah]] of ''[[And Shine Heaven Now]]'' reveals that by the time ''[[The Colbert Report|The Eagle of Hermes]]'' happens, [[Hellsing|Seras Victoria]] has this status in the public's eye, only being seen a couple of times since the Millennium invasion.

* ''[[Tales of the Questor]]'': [https://web.archive.org/web/20130301034743/http://www.rhjunior.com/totq/00600.html trying to learn what the dragon is like.]

** Annie herself after one summer in the Forest (plus one {{spoiler|brief, but spectacular run-in with some of Ysengrin's [[The Starscream|less-than-subordinate]]-s}}) [http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=1357 became a semi-mythological figure] out there.

* ''[[The Unspeakable Vault of Doom]]'' presents: "[http://www.goominet.com/unspeakable-vault/vault/409/ The nature of the Beast]" (the medieval legend vs. the awful truth).

* ''[[Schlock Mercenary]]'', after all the madness the Toughs have been through.

{{quote|'''Antossa''': I don't want rumors. I want an actual threat assessment.

'''Tess''': Their marketing manager would be a truly formidable opponent. }}

 

== [[Western Animation]] ==

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Characters As Device]]

[[Category:Fame and Reputation Tropes]]

[[Category:Infauxmation Desk]]