The Hero's Birthday/Playing With

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


Basic Trope: The adventure begins on the protagonist's birthday.

  • Straight: At the beginning of the story, Peter "Pro" Tagganist wakes up one morning to the announcement that it's his birthday.
  • Exaggerated: Pro sees Humongous Mecha fighting, Godzilla rampaging, and a Colony Drop going his way in his birthday. And then a loud voice booming, "An Adventurer Is You!" and suddenly Pro is wielding a shiny sword.
    • The entire story happens on the hero's birthday.
  • Justified: The prophecy the plot centers around specifically states that the day of the cataclysm will coincide with the day The Chosen One comes of age.
    • One of Pro's birthday gifts, a family heirloom, turns out to be the crucial MacGuffin that kick-starts the plot.
    • The villain targets the Five-Man Band of friends during Pro's celebrations.
    • The heroes decide to explore, unleashing an evil.
    • The heroes go to a place where the villains decide to strike.
  • Inverted: The story ends on Pro's birthday.
    • The story begins with the announcement of the villain's birthday. He decides to blow up Pro's hometown, causing him to seek revenge.
  • Subverted: Pro wakes up at the story's beginning surrounded by party decorations... and remembers that it's his sister Ann's birthday.
  • Double Subverted: Then it turns out that they were born a year apart.
  • Parodied: Emperor Evulz' zombie army arrives at the small town of Peaceville, and some townsfolk fight them back. Turns out every single one of them have the same birthday: that day.
  • Deconstructed: Pro's birthday begins as a joyous occasion until he walks out of a room and one of his presents blow up. He finds out it was a bomb from Emperor Evulz. None of Pro's friends except four nor family survived the explosion. He sets out his journey full of sadness and a desire for Revenge.
  • Reconstructed: ???
  • Zig Zagged: ???
  • Averted: No birthdays are celebrated throughout the adventure.
  • Enforced: "Parents are probably buying our games for their kids' birthday, let's have a resonance with that for extra impression."
  • Lampshaded: "...And what do I get for my birthday? I get stuck having to save the world!"
  • Invoked: Pro decides on his birthday to, say, explore the Pyramids for treasure.
  • Exploited: The sages searching for The Chosen One search in particular for someone who's celebrating their birthday on the day they find him.
  • Defied: Pro decides not to do anything special on his birthday, reducing the chances of him being involved in an epic adventure.
  • Discussed: "Look, it's Pro's birthday, right there at the beginning. That means he HAS to be the protagonist."
  • Conversed: ???

Happy birthday! Head to The Hero's Birthday to start the epic of your life!