Plot Armor

Abilities related to Plot Manipulation/Fate Manipulation
Related Abilties	Plot Armor - Fate Protection - Breaking the Fourth Wall

Background

Plot Armor is a narrative concept where a character is protected from harm, failure, or death due to their importance to the story. Rather than relying on their own strength or abilities, the character is shielded from consequences by the demands of the plot. This protection ensures they survive dangerous situations that would realistically defeat them, often for the sake of advancing the narrative.

While it is typically associated with protagonists or key characters, plot armor can also apply to antagonists or secondary characters if the plot necessitates their survival.

Unlike the standard ability of PIS this ability is an actual, legitimate in-universe explanation for why a character can pull the stunts they've done and survive the seemingly impossible.

Also Called

• Narrative Invincibility
• Story Armor
• Protagonist Immunity
• Script Protection

Possible Applications

Plot armor can manifest in various ways, including but not limited to:

• Unexplained Resilience: Physical laws or logical outcomes are ignored, allowing the character to resist harm that would be unavoidable for others.
• Delayed Consequences: Characters may experience wounds or setbacks, but the effects are either significantly reduced or delayed to maintain the narrative's flow.
• Event Manipulation: The character subconsciously alters the outcome of events to avoid harm or achieve victory, ensuring the plot progresses as intended.
• Survival Immunity: Fatal injuries may be reduced to non-lethal damage, or the character may miraculously recover from fatal situations.
• Convenient Luck: Circumstances will always work in the character’s favor, causing enemies to miss critical attacks or environmental hazards to conveniently fail.
• Reversal of Consequences: Events that would otherwise result in a character’s defeat or death may be undone or prevented due to the character’s importance to the story.
• Destiny Manipulation: The character may be destined to fulfill a certain role in the plot, preventing their demise until that role is completed.

Potential Types

• Protagonist Plot Armor: The most common form, granting the main character survival and success despite overwhelming odds.
• Antagonist Plot Armor: Ensures the antagonist remains a credible threat until their narrative purpose is fulfilled, even when facing far stronger opponents.
• Supporting Character Plot Armor: Key supporting characters are sometimes shielded from death or harm to maintain emotional impact or further the protagonist's story.
• Situational Plot Armor: Temporary protection granted to characters in specific moments to build tension, avoid anticlimactic resolutions, or facilitate key plot points.

Possible Limitations

• Plot armor is often tied to the character’s relevance to the narrative. If their story arc concludes, the protection may cease.
• Certain abilities, such as those involving fourth-wall breaking or metafictional manipulation, may bypass plot armor.
• Plot armor generally does not prevent emotional or psychological harm, as these consequences may serve to advance the plot.
• Characters with comparable narrative significance may cancel out each other’s plot armor, leading to more balanced outcomes.

Users

• Ness (MOTHER 2): Ness is a chosen one that is protected along their journey.
• Medaka Kurokami (Medaka Box): Medaka has "The Hero" an ability that allows her to win or persevere just because she's the protagonist.