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Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving
- 132 statements
- 24 feature instances
- 19 referencing feature instances
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | type |
FeatureClass | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | label |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | page |
ExpertInUnderwaterBasketWeaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | comment |
This character is an expert in a skill that has no practical use for them. It may be a cool, weird, fun, or even astonishing skill, but it's essentially pointless for them to have, or other characters are convinced the skill is totally useless. Tropes Are Flexible, so this skill might turn out to be useful in a rare or oddly specific situation, like a balancing-chopsticks-on-your-nose competition, and could even end up saving the day. This is not an Audience Reaction: playing an instrument, knowing a trade skill, or having some other useful ability is only this trope when it's treated as useless for the character In-Universe. Sometimes, writers will establish a character having this skill early in the work and then use the apparently useless skill in an important way later on so that no detail is pointless. Other times, especially in a Long Runner, established characters suddenly reveal their useless skill as a means of Character Development or to reveal Hidden Depths. For Main Characters, this can help to develop their backstory or just show their quirkiness. It can also flesh out supporting characters without diverting too much of the narrative focus to them. This kind of skill can also be used as part of a joke, especially if the other characters never asked about it. If the character is an expert in multiple useless skills, they might be doubling as the Plucky Comic Relief. And if this character is a superhero, whose powers are not themselves useless, then they may be a Super Zero. Compare What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway? when the useless skill is a Stock Superpower or supernatural ability. Compare and contrast Useless Superpowers, which aren't framed as useless but which the story prevents the character from using; and This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman, when otherwise useless powers become useful in a very specific situation. This trope overlaps with Chekhov's Skill when a situation arises for a character to use a skill that was previously considered useless. See also A Degree in Useless when a character's post-secondary education is treated like this. |
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| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | fetched |
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| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | parsed |
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| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | processingComment |
Dropped link to DonaldDuck: Not an Item - UNKNOWN | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | processingComment |
Dropped link to HeroSystem: Not an Item - UNKNOWN | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | processingComment |
Dropped link to LiteralMetaphor: Not an Item - FEATURE | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | processingUnknown |
DonaldDuck | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | processingUnknown |
HeroSystem | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | isPartOf |
DBTropes | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_135ee946 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_135ee946 | comment |
The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul: A girl in a sanitarium spends all day reciting letters and numbers. Her doctors have figured out that she's accurately reciting the New York Stock Exchange daily trades in chronological order. However, she does it 24 hours after it happens, so the doctors think it's useless — unlike if she were doing it 24 hours in advance. Thus, they don't really care why she's doing it. They even suspect that she's faking it by somehow getting her hands on the numbers and memorizing them to repeat the next day. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_135ee946 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_135ee946 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_135ee946 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_1d01a59f | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_1d01a59f | comment |
Moonstuck: Woona literally learns Underwater Basket Weaving from a book, which the narration sarcastically notes "there's no possible way this was a waste of your time". Zig-zagged when the seaponies are greatly impressed by the skill, which kicks off a new story arc. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_1d01a59f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_1d01a59f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Moonstuck (Blog) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_1d01a59f | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_3287d1e5 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_3287d1e5 | comment |
State of Decay: Several characters have joke traits with no impact on the skills the game tracks (i.e., the ones useful in a survival situation) intended to show how they were specced for life in modern society, not a zombie-infested wasteland. Examples include "Daydreamer", "Loved 'Idol'", "Clerk" and "Enjoyed Antiquing". By the time the second game rolls around, most of these joke traits have vanished. Makes you wonder... | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_3287d1e5 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_3287d1e5 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| State of Decay (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_3287d1e5 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_434363ba | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_434363ba | comment |
The Breakfast Club: Claire demonstrates her ability to apply lip color by tucking into her bra and rubbing her mouth against it. Without ever demonstrating it, Allison claims that she can write, eat, and play "Heart and Soul" on the piano with her toes. |
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| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_434363ba | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_434363ba | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Breakfast Club | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_434363ba | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_4cd32aa7 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_4cd32aa7 | comment |
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay liked giving NPCs useless jokey skills mostly for amusement, which would usually tie into the character's personality but be guaranteed to never come up in play. Standouts include "Whine", "Eat Spaghetti" and "Wear Clothes". | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_4cd32aa7 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_4cd32aa7 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_4cd32aa7 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5144055f | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5144055f | comment |
Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge: The Credits Gag suggests various ways the player could have made better use of the time they spent on the game, including "teach basket weaving to clams". | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5144055f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5144055f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5144055f | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_546876cb | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_546876cb | comment |
Sonic Boom: Parodied with this exchange between Sonic and Knuckles when the former offers to help his friend Tails. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_546876cb | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_546876cb | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Sonic Boom | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_546876cb | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5d354f8 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5d354f8 | comment |
The Red Dwarf tabletop game allows characters to take several of these, even allowing for specialisations in said random skills. For example, among the premade Canon characters, Kill Crazy is skilled in macrame using entrails. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5d354f8 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5d354f8 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Red Dwarf | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_5d354f8 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6059ad6b | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6059ad6b | comment |
xkcd: "Every Major's Terrible", a Take That! to nearly every academic major for training students to have completely useless skills and knowledge. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6059ad6b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6059ad6b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| xkcd (Webcomic) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6059ad6b | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6234ac40 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6234ac40 | comment |
Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs: Kogarashi Fuyuzora picked up a large number of mostly useless skills from being possessed by multiple spirits when he was young, including ping-pong, manga illustration, and free diving. These are mostly treated as useless at first but just happen to become handy later on. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6234ac40 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6234ac40 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs (Manga) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6234ac40 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_671d5c19 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_671d5c19 | comment |
One episode of The Powerpuff Girls (1998) has Buttercup figuring out her unique ability among the girls (like how Blossom has Ice Breath, and Bubbles is fluent in Spanish). Buttercup's happens to be curling her tongue, which, despite not being as practical as the other two, she seems fine with. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_671d5c19 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_671d5c19 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Powerpuff Girls (1998) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_671d5c19 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_68237790 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_68237790 | comment |
Pathfinder uses the Craft and Profession skills from Dungeons & Dragons, but lists the most common types of crafts and professions in the skill description. The Unchained expansion adds options to become even more specialized in those skills, though they remain of similarly limited value to adventurers. This varies enormously with the specifics; there are lots of applications for being a skilled sailor or engineer in an adventure, but your baking skill probably won't be called on. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_68237790 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_68237790 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Pathfinder (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_68237790 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_69071a1b | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_69071a1b | comment |
"Profession" is also a skill in Mutants & Masterminds, but is slightly more flexible in that it acts effectively as a blanket for anything that falls under that profession's umbrella. For example, "Profession: Butcher" means you not only know how to prepare meat, but have a general knowledge of livestock anatomy and some idea of the layout of the local cattle farms. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_69071a1b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_69071a1b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Mutants & Masterminds (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_69071a1b | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6ac55ec7 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6ac55ec7 | comment |
Dungeons & Dragons: 3rd Edition characters can invest in "Craft" and "Profession" skills, some of which are so specific and so useless to adventurers that they're usually only of use to NPCs and as prerequisites for certain obscure Prestige Classes. For example, the Archdevil Mammon, Lord of the Third Circle of Hell, happens to be a fantastically skilled bookkeeper. (After all, his portfolio is greed, and that means knowing your way around a bank...) | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6ac55ec7 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6ac55ec7 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Dungeons & Dragons (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6ac55ec7 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6c1d09b3 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6c1d09b3 | comment |
One NPC in Fallout 3 is Snowflake, a ghoul who runs a barbershop in the ghoul city of Underworld. Since Snowflake is the only ghoul in the entire game with a full head of hair, he's incredibly bored and will work on you for free just to have a customer. (This allows you to alter your character's appearance.) He even directly compares a ghoul barber to "a screen door on a submarine". | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6c1d09b3 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6c1d09b3 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Fallout 3 (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_6c1d09b3 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7385bc4d | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7385bc4d | comment |
Doraemon: Nobita can create shapes with strings and rubber bands (called ayatori). It's one of the few things he can do well, and the fact it never sees any meaningful use is usually Played for Laughs. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7385bc4d | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7385bc4d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Doraemon (Manga) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7385bc4d | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_74795739 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_74795739 | comment |
The Pirates of Penzance: Major-General Stanley introduces himself with the iconic Major General Song in which he lists such useless, absurd and/or completely impossible talents like humming a fugue or writing a washing bill in Babylonic cuneiform.note Fugues contain multiple melodies playing simultaneously so it is impossible to hum one; Cuneiform was an undeciphered dead language at the time the work was written. Finally, he admits he doesn't have much knowledge a military man should have, such as telling at sight a Mauser rifle from a javelin (i.e. a gun from a spear). | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_74795739 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_74795739 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Pirates of Penzance (Theatre) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_74795739 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_77a899a | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_77a899a | comment |
Things Mr. Welch Is No Longer Allowed to Do in an RPG: Exaggerated and overlaps with Master of None: | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_77a899a | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_77a899a | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Things Mr. Welch Is No Longer Allowed to Do in an RPG (Blog) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_77a899a | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7ac0e0b0 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7ac0e0b0 | comment |
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist: While Nomi-Nomi is decent at fanfiction writing, cosplaying, video games and pop culture, these skills are unfortunately in low demand in a nascent colony under siege by aliens. This results in them being unsure of what actually useful job they want do in the future. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7ac0e0b0 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7ac0e0b0 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7ac0e0b0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7c942ba0 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7c942ba0 | comment |
Sket Dance: The other characters mercilessly point out how boring Bossun's special ability to "concentrate really well" is. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7c942ba0 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7c942ba0 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Sket Dance (Manga) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_7c942ba0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_81a56238 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_81a56238 | comment |
Changeling Space Program & The Maretian: Fireball is a spacewalking expert. You'd think that would be an incredibly useful skill for an astronaut? Not so much when you're marooned on the surface of an alien planet. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_81a56238 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_81a56238 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Changeling Space Program & The Maretian (Fanfic) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_81a56238 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_9f89a5f0 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_9f89a5f0 | comment |
Pokémon: Magikarp is infamous for starting out with only one ability, Splash, which has no effect whatsoever. It takes considerable patience to train it to the point where it can learn a useful move like Tackle. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_9f89a5f0 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_9f89a5f0 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Pokémon (Franchise) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_9f89a5f0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_bcb32dc6 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_bcb32dc6 | comment |
Shadowrun: Player Characters get free skill points for "knowledge skills", which include things like former job experience, hobbies, hometown knowledge, etc. Knowledge skills tend to come into play rarely if at all, and can include things like knowledge of hacker havens, the ability to speak fluent Esperanto, or a near-encyclopedic knowledge of the music of Maria Mercurial. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_bcb32dc6 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_bcb32dc6 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Shadowrun (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_bcb32dc6 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_ef7b3325 | type |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_ef7b3325 | comment |
Fantastic Four: Willie Lumpkin the mailman jokingly suggests that he should join the Fantastic Four because of his special ability to wiggle his ears. | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_ef7b3325 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_ef7b3325 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Fantastic Four / Comicbook | hasFeature |
Expert in Underwater Basket Weaving / int_ef7b3325 |
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