The voting period is over. Congratulations to "Murphy's Law" for winning our first ever Tournament of Tropes! The trope was represented by The Night Rangers, by J. R. Froemling. I hope everyone had some fun, and we look forward to running more community events in the future!
Original article:
Queue up your favorite “boss fight” music, it’s time for the final battle! Forty tropes entered, only two remain in our first community event of 2023.
You can view the full bracket that got us to this point HERE.
Note: This article will be updated with the winner when voting is concluded. No need to find a different link!
Before we get to the final fight, let’s give one last round of applause to all the tropes and stories that did battle along the way. Laterpress is not using affiliate links for this community event. All proceeds from any sales go directly to the authors!
Representing Reluctant Heroes, and Animal Companions
The Adventurer’s Guide To Shopkeeping and Sidequests, by Elle Wilson
Representing The End of the World, and Family Secrets
The Beginning of the End, by Emily S Hurricane
Representing PTSD and Questionable Morals
Joy, by Emily S Hurricane
Representing Science Wizards and Robot Girls
The Magician and the Mechanical Doll, by Gaius J. Augustus
Representing Heists, and Dreamwalking
The Office Job, by Edward Eidolon
Representing Mysterious Benefactors, and being Pawns to Cosmic Powers
Anti-Villains: One Night in Harlem, by Andrea Stanet
Representing Small Town Romance, and Motorcycle Clubs
Covered, by E.A. West
Representing Star-Crossed Lovers, and Royal Palace Intrigue
The Stars & Green Magics, by Novae Caelum
Representing Chosen Ones, and Never Ending Quests
My Celtic Luna, by J. R. Froemling
Representing Faster-Than-Light Travel, and First Contact
Target 10: A Space Adventure, by C.P. Night
Representing Age Gaps, and Immortal Love Interests
Good King Lyr, by Novae Caelum
Representing Scrappy Underdogs, and Found Family
Sigils & Sushi, by Nia Quinn
Representing Secret Worlds, and Sentient Buildings
A Wreck of Witches, by Nia Quinn
Representing Multiverses and “Fish out of Water”
Welcome to the Nexus, by Nate Gillick
Representing Magitek, and Arranged Marriages
Ocean of Dreams, by Rebecca Ehrick
Representing Damsel in Distress, and Lost Knowledge
Thomas and the Girl from Another World, by E.R. Zanes
Representing Rescue Missions, and Dangerous Magic
Dead Lands Rescue, by E.R. Zanes
Representing Fourth Wall Breaking, and Genies / Djinn
1001 Episodes to Literary Godhood, by Nate Gillick (writing as Eldritch Thundergod)
And now... drumroll please... the final battle!
The Championship Match: Alien Artifacts vs. Murphy's Law
Alien Artifacts are a popular science fiction trope, where explorers encounter some relic or piece of technology from a lost or vanished alien race. The Stargate franchise is filled with alien artifacts, from the Stargates themselves, which allow for travel across the galaxy, to lost deposits of knowledge, and even the lost city of Atlantis itself. These artifacts don’t always push humanity forward though. In the Dead Space games, alien Markers lead to madness, death, and nightmarish transformations.
You can find alien artifacts in On the Outward Edge, by C.P. Night
Murphy’s Law is popularly known as the idea that “Anything that can go wrong, WILL go wrong.” Characters may make careful plans to confront an enemy, but those plans will all go awry, often spectacularly. Any genre can use this trope. I’m most familiar with its use in military sci-fi, where battle plans against invading aliens blow up in our hero’s faces, or in fantasy, where best-laid-plans devolve into the kinds of hijinks you may see from a good group of D&D players.
Murphy’s Law is in full effect in The Night Rangers, by J. R. Froemling.
Voting remains open until 11am Central time on Friday.