Similar Objects, Similar Description

Flavor Text is hard work, making descriptions for all more than 100+ items of your Video Game, but why not make it easier, and show some internal Consistency by having things that are clearly related to each other, such as different Spell Levels, having similar descriptions?

Functional descriptions like "[Higher tier of healing potion heals more damage]" isn't in this trope because that's too obvious if it's just changing numbers around. Also, superficial similarities, like Helen's Mysterious Castle: Crossbow: "A strong, reinforced bow."; Broadsword: "A strong, protective sword.", Mythril Sword: "A light, magical blade.", don't count, because just repeating "strong" is similar, but they're only connected by the concept of being weapons, but that's not clearly a connection between them in-game to make it count.

Deliberately Different Description has high overlap because while it doesn't have to be a different flavorful description from other flavorful descriptions, it usually is. May also overlap with Department of Redundancy Department when related objects share descriptions because those descriptions are redundant with the way that they're related, like a hypothetical "Green Block" and "Red Block" as "A heavy block of emerald" and "A heavy block of ruby", respectively.

Usually occurs with variations of a base object, with elemental variation being a common type. Likely to overlap with Palette Swap, for variation in tandem.

Examples:

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Fan Works

Elementals of Harmony: Sideboard of Harmony: Some of the ETSAB-related chapters, "Magical Lyrical Nougat Time" and "Haec Stupri Cucurbita", have space-time-related cards at the end that have Flavor Text quotes from Minuette. Wibbly-Wobbly's space-time connection is from being a Doctor Who Shout-Out:
Warp Spacetime:
"Time is just another direction to explore. Kindly do so elsewhen."
—Minuette, temporal operative
:
Wibbly-Wobbly:
Most think time is a strict progression of cause to effect. If only it were that simple."
—Minuette, temporal operative

Literature

Thanks Truck Kun For Making Me A Trader: Both void-trader generated fruits are described in similar way, who made it, that it was a cross between a local and unknown fruit, and what purposes it can be for:
Papush (Sweet): A type of fruit researched and cultivated by the void-trader Lucinus Lullus in the Anolia region by crossing a local fruit-tree species with a species of unknown origin. It is praised for its sweet pulp and vibrant color.
Blupple (Myralis): Through reckless research by the void-trader Lillyn, this monstrosity of fruit was created by crossing an unknown species with a local fruit tree. It has the potential to yield high volumes of juice and its skin might be used for dyeing.

Tabletop Games

Magic: The Gathering: Cards with a relation to one another will often have Call Backs in their flavor text. Compare Ayula, Queen Among Bears and Kudo, King Among Bears, for instance:
Ayula: Born from the oldest red cedar, nursed on the sap of the tallest spruce, coronated under the mightiest pine.
Kudo: Born from the greatest granite boulder, nursed on the sweetest honey, crowned amid a raging blizzard.
Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Dragonp[ulse/it] Magicians Flavor Text has a pattern of describing themselves, their gift, then how they differ and relate:
Dragonpulse Magician: This boy magician has the gift of seeing the natural lines of energy that run through the earth, which his people call the Pulse of the Dragon. His exuberance and skill put him in high regard with his mentor, the "Dragonpit Magician".
Dragonpit Magician: This gifted magician can awaken the energy stored in the deep places of the earth, known as the Pits of the Dragon. His stoic approach wins him few friends, and he often bends to the desires of his pupil.

Video Games

ANNO: Mutationem: Due to similar natures between them, various item descriptions and entries in the Monster Compendium share the same description. The Corn Juice sold by Jos van Corn explain that each is made the same way with the optimal central ingredient.
Corn Juice (Small): Mysterious business man Jos Corn made it by pressing the best corn. Small but packed with flavor.
Corn Juice (Medium): Mysterious business man Jos Corn made it by pressing the best corn. The portion's just about right.
Corn Juice (Large): Mysterious business man Jos Corn made it by pressing the best corn. Big and dances across your palate.
The Battle Cats:
- The Nekolugas share similar descriptions in their first and evolved forms, with the description first wondering if it's even a cat, then being surprised by the unit's sudden transformation.
  Tecoluga: Not sure if this is a Cat... There's just something about those arms...
  Asiluga: Not sure if this is a Cat... There's just something about those legs...
  Tesalan Pasalan: Are you kidding me?! Seems like this one does massive damage (sometimes critical) to just one enemy.
  Asilan Pasalan: Unbelievable, just unbelievable. Seems like this one slows all enemies in range.
- The Colossus enemies' descriptions all mention that their lethality increases with each battle, except for Gigahaniwan.
Beacon (2018): The "Focus [Application Method]" line of items, as said in the discovered items list, they start with a trademarked line that's also a pun on the application method type, and soon talk about being a new product and eventually mentioning their secret formula:

Focus Injector:
Never miss your mark™
Up your game with the new Focus Injector from EXHANCE Energy Products. [...] the Focus Injector's secret formula

Focus Patch:
Cover every eventuality™
Say goodbye to blind spots with the new Focus Patch from EXHANCE Energy Products.[...] Our secret formula
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night: Some of the gemstones are just distinguished by color in their Flavor Text and icons, but only rubies have their color described by just one word:
Ruby: A scarlet gemstone.
Sapphire: A deep blue gemstone.
See Also
Best Build for Magda in Watcher of Realms (Gear, Stat Prio, Artifact & Awaken Prio) - AllClash Prismatic Fragment Locations Patch 29.6 - Coming Soon - Buddies are Coming Back to Battlegrounds!Best Classic Decks: A Hearthstone Tier List for Classic
Emerald: A bright green gemstone.
The Boxxy Quest series: Descriptions are similar across both entries in the series:
- BoxxyQuest: The Shifted Spires: The SI Prefix Name tier weaponry:
  1. Byte: "Basic":
    Byte Sword: A basic sword for the budding adventurer. It's nothing special, but it will do for now.
    Byte Blade: A basic light sword. Can be wielded by Spherians who can't equip normal longswords.
    Byte Bow: A basic bow for stealthy, long-range-type Spherians.
    Byte Gun: A long-range weapon capable of dealing great damage even in its basic form.
  2. Megabyte shares "Slightly stronger":
    Megabyte Sword: A slightly stronger sword for a slightly more experienced hero.
    Megabyte Blade: A slightly stronger light sword. It's only slightly less powerful than its heavier counterpart.
    Megabyte Bow: A slightly stronger bow. The arrows are magically generated, in case you were wondering.
  3. Gigabyte gear is sometimes "Genuinely strong" or "Powerful" or for the true versions of professions:
  - Genuinely strong:
    Gigabyte Sword: A genuinely strong sword. Only a true hero gets to wield this!
    Gigabyte Staff: A mage's staff capable genuinely awesome magical attacks. The element it controls is earth.
  - Powerful:
    Gigabyte Axe: A powerful axe for a truly experienced and dangerous fighter.
    Gigabyte Bow: A powerful bow capable of dealing much damage to haters and trolls alike.
  1. Terrabyte gear is for the strongest, or is powerful:
    Terrabyte Sword: A mighty and legendary weapon only for the strongest of Spherian heroes.
    Terrabyte Axe: The most powerful axe on the market. For use only by the Sphere's strongest warriors.
    Terrabyte Blade: The most powerful of all light swords available for purchase. Fast, light, and oh-so deadly.
- BoxxyQuest: The Gathering Storm: Megabyte gear is "slightly better" than "basic" Byte gear:
  1. Byte: "Basic":
    Byte Sword: A basic sword for the budding adventurer. It's not great, but it will do for now.
    Byte Staff: A basic staff for beginner mages. It casts magic missile!
  2. Megabyte:
    Megabyte Sword: A slightly better light sword. It's half the weight of its counterpart.
    Megabyte Staff: A slightly better mage's staff. This one deals water elemental damage.
Card City Nights 1:
- Bird (Beta) has Flavor Text that switch on each look, most about being jealous of possessing it:
  Dude check out that amazing bird!
  Everyone needs a bird.
  "See the world", they said. "Get a bird", they said.
  Demand for birds far exceeds the supply.
  "Hands off! I found it first!"
  Gotta have a bird.
  They were jealous. They wanted one of their own.
- Cards of characters from Healthy Weapon all use their Victory Quote as flavor text.
- Both cards involving robot elves mention that robot elves are pretty weak.
Castlevania:
- Castlevania: Circle of the Moon: The wearable Armors usually share "Armor made of [Material]":
  Leather Armor: Armor made from leather
  Bronze Armor: Armor made from bronze
  Gold Armor: Armor made of gold
  Chain Mail: Armor made from chains
  Steel Armor: Plate armor made of interlinking metal loops
  Platinum Armor: Plate armor made of platinum
  Mirror Armor: Armor polished to a mirror like surface
  Dark Armor: Cursed armor
- Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance: Leather equipment is nice to wear:
  Leather Armor: Easily maneuvered armor made from tanned hides.
  Leather Boots: Boots made of leather. Quite comfortable.
  Leather Gloves: Gloves made of leather. Warm.
Chantelise: The elemental emblems' of Flavor Text pattern is:
"This emblem draws on the power of [Element]. [Emblem description]".
Cookie Clicker: The British tea biscuits each add an element to their stereotypically British descriptions as they get more expensive...except the last one, leading to the following sequence:
1. British tea biscuits: "Quite."
2. Chocolate British tea biscuits: "Yes, quite."
3. Round British tea biscuits: "Yes, quite riveting."
4. Round chocolate British tea biscuits: "Yes, quite riveting indeed."
5. Round British tea biscuits with heart motif: "Yes, quite riveting, old chap."
6. Round chocolate British tea biscuits with heart motif: "I like cookies."
Coromon: In the Restricted Access Area, all the broken, Palette Swap Gauntlets have the same interaction text:
This Gauntlet seems broken, as if one of the modules overloaded.
CrossCode: All the "Rookie" gear has Flavor Text of:
Starting Equipment. Let the Adventure begin!
The Epic Battle Fantasy series: Gems usually have similar descriptions, but it can change between games. In the 5th game, they stop being similar. Only Emerald's description is shared between 4 and 5.
- Epic Battle Fantasy 3: The gems' descriptions usually talk about their color or about their reflectiveness:
  Ruby: A fiery and glittering gem.
  Emerald: A sparkling green gem.
  Amethyst: A beautiful purple gem.
  See Also
  Genshin Impact Nahida best build, Talent, Ascension materials, Constellation, team, and weapon
- Epic Battle Fantasy 4: Judging from how far apart Amethyst's in-game sorted from the other crystals listed here that are bunched together, it's not part of a set with the rest, unlike in the previous game:
  Amethyst: Crystals are said to heal people, but it's just a scam.
  Ruby: A red and fiery gem.
  Emerald: A green and tranquil gem.
  Topaz: A yellow and glittering gem.
- Epic Battle Fantasy 5: The forms of water / ice:
  Liquid Ice: A rare form of ice only found in warm climates.
  Solid Water: A rare form of water only found in cold climates.
Eternal Senia: Hydrangea After The Rain: Manastones usually remark on what they feel like when touched, based on the Red Lotus and Aqua Manastones, respectively:
Red Lotus Manastone: A stone with fire within. It's warm to the touch.
Aqua Manastone: A stone with water within. It's cold to the touch.
Flight Rising: While most items in the game — including Palette Swaps — have distinctive descriptions, the descriptions for some Branches describe themselves as "easily mistaken for" other branches:
Pine Branch: Easily mistaken for a Fir Branch.
Fir Branch: Easily mistaken for a Pine Branch.
Dried Cedar Branch: At least this one is distinctive.
Fortune Summoners: Both the Rare Candy items, the Strongirl and Mystery juices, for boosting Max HP and MP are "A strange, oddly-flavored juice that permanently increases Max [Value]."
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft: The twins Fjola Lightbane and Eydis Darkbane have similar Flavor Text, about their "wonder twins"-ness:
Fjola Lightbane: LOVES being called "the wonder twins."
Eydis Darkbane: HATES being called "the wonder twins."
Heroes Of Oakenhaven: The Lexica-s are described slightly differently based on their elemental affinity:
Lexica Ignis: The fiery magic within this tome charges spells with Scorching energy.
Lexica Glacies: The cold magic within this tome suffuses spells with Shivering energy.
Lexica Fulguris: The crackling magic within this tome energizes spells with Shocking energy.
Legends of Runeterra: The initial Crimson Circle member cards (the "Crimson" Disciple, Curator, Awakener, and Aristocrat) each have flavor text that consists of their respective dialogue in a shared conversation, ostensibly mundane pleasantries as they prepare for a fancy ball. Thanks to the context of the lines, it's possible to assemble a correct order for which line goes where, and in doing so, putting the first letter of each sentence spells out a hidden message: "BEWARE THE ROSE".
The Logomancer: The "Field" enemy skills are described somewhat flowerily: "Enemy skill fills the background with the [phrase]", which is literal. It changes the battle background, but it's a bit flavorful since it doesn't have to be described so flowerily, with hues, tones, and colors.
Abyssal Field: Enemy skill fills the background with the Abyss. Nullifies all pathos, logos and ethos arguments. Boosts verbal ones."
Pathos Field: Enemy skill fills the background with the fires of passion. Nullifies pathos damage, greatly boosts ethos damage."
Logos Field: Enemy skill fills the background with the hues of logic. Nullifies all logos damage, greatly boosts pathos damage."
Ethos Field: Enemy skill fills the background with the tones of ethics. Nullifies all ethos damage, greatly boosts logos damage."
Verbal Field: Enemy skill fills the background with the colors of speech. Nullifies all verbal damage and regenerates 10% EP."
Lost Ruins: Two of the Keys are noted to "be sure to" of something:
Castle Lower Latrine Key: Be sure to return this key to its rightful place after using it.
Sadora's Secret Alcove Key: Be sure to handle this key with the greatest of care.
LunarLux: Silica Rifts' Treasure Hunter Guild outpost's tools are described as certified by said guild as appropriate:
It's a Treasure Hunter's Guild certified grappling hook!
It's a Treasure Hunter's Guild certified shovel!
It's a Treasure Hunter's Guild certified pickaxe!
One Step From Eden:
- The single-bolt series of Thunder spells. They both start with "Shock and aw", but end differently. Mini's "w" because it's cuter:
  Thunder: Shock and awe
  Mini-Thunder: Shock and aww
The Phalanx cards, Counter Strike and Anchored Attack Stance Shield Beam both reference the He Protec but He Also Attac meme captions, but are also written opposite of each other:

Counter Strike: Fire 2 Kunai and gain 50 Shield.
It protec but it also attac

Shield Beam: When this hits, gain 20 shield. Anchor.
It attac but it also protec
The Other Rabbiton series:
- The Other: Airi's Adventure: The Starter Equipment shoes that are from the same world of school uniform wearers, and are both useless in combat, one worn by a rebel and one not, both start with "Black leather shoes":
School Shoes
Black leather shoes.
Platform Shoes
Black leather shoes with slightly thick soles...
It's tricky to tell if they break any school rules.
- The Other: Rosie's Road of Love: Certain prefix gear shares a quality about it:
  - Explorer's: Tough:
    Explorer's Coat: Tough and convenient.
    Explorer's Shoes: Tough shoes.
    Explorer's Hat: Favored by explorers.
  - Traveler's: Light:
    Traveler's Coat: A light jacket for travelers.
    Traveler's Shoes: Light shoes.
Palworld: Pal Eggs, between repeating what it is, and "Place in a Egg Incubator to incubate it.", talks about their internal state:
Scorching Egg: Something hot moves within.
Large Scorching Egg: Passion burns from within.
Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon: The Ultra Beasts: Buzzwole, Xurkitree, and Guzzlord in Ultra Sun, and Pheromosa, Celesteela, and Kartana in Ultra Moon all have the same Pokédex entry:
Although it's alien to this world and a danger here, it's apparently a common organism in the world where it normally lives.
Prayer of the Faithless: The Hearts all look different and touching them are all different. The fire and ice duo have an pattern that's different from the wind and earth duo, which name their stones:
- Ice and Fire duo:
  Frigid Heart: An azure stone that always feels damp.
  Blazing Heart: A crimson stone warm to the touch.
- Earth and Air duo:
  Gaia Heart: A Topaz that makes you feel sturdy just by holding it.
  Aero Heart: An emerald that emits a gentle breeze around the holder.
PsyCard: Friend Quest: Some of the states of "self" have Flavor Text about how "you" feel:
self loofing: you feel miserable.
demon self: you feel evil.
Returnal: The Database's description of the regular Atropian Key and its Malignant Key variant start with "A xeno-type technology consisting of a triangular metallic wedge with a hologram sphere, encoded with data similar to an access code".
Runescape has pets that can be obtained from bosses at a very low drop chance (typically greater than 1 in 1000, but increasing as the player hits certain kill count thresholds). Most of them from before 2018 call back to the examine text of the boss they dropped from. For instance, moles:
Giant Mole examine text: Holy mole-y!
Molly examine text: Mini-mole-y!
Ruphand: An Apothecary's Adventure: [Metal] Lodes all start their descriptions with "Bars of worked [Metal (ore)]":
Copper Lode: Bars of worked copper ore. Not so useful for potions, but great for shields and other gear.
Steel Lode: Bars of worked steel alloy. Used in weapons and armor the world over!
Mythril Lode: Bars of worked Mythril. Known as the "Wonder Steel", Mythril is the most powerful metal known to man.
Sakuna Of Rice And Ruin: Bear-derived items are described as powerful and hard to work with, but lead to good creations:
Bear Meat: Even powerful gods are amazed by the strength and vitality contained in bear meat. Though it may prove troublesome to cook, the end result is more than worth the effort.
Bear Hide: Oho, the hide of a demon bear. Even in this form, it exudes power and seems difficult to work with. It will certainly make for a high-quality material.
Science Girls!: Most of the foods are types of oranges. Or fruit, and described in a similar pattern. But not all:
- Oranges, and similar things:
  Orange: A large, round orange.
  Blood Orange: A large, reddish orange.
  Mandarin: A small, tart orange.
  Bell Pepper: While it's botanically a fruit, this large bell pepper should not be mistaken for a citrus - even if it is bright orange.
- Other fruits:
  Lemon: A highly acidic fruit.
  Banana: A curving, yellow fruit.
  Kumquats: A handful of tiny citrus fruits.
  Pomelo: It looks like a grapefruit, but it's almost a foot across.
The Sealed Ampoule:
- The first two Tiered by Name "of Secrecy" consumables talk about "Has about as much effect" as the third sentence of their description, after their effect and their location of discovery:
  Hint of Secrecy: Has about as much effect as finding a four-leaf clover when you're feeling blue.
  Water of Secrecy: Has about as much effect as petting a cat in a warm, sunny spot.
- The elemental Chunks have concentrated elemental power and emit a relevant sensation of the actual element:
  Fire Chunk: A stone-shaped object containing the concentrated power of fire. You can feel the heat of actual flames.
  Water Chunk: A stone-shaped object containing the concentrated power of water. You can feel the coolness of actual water.
  Earth Chunk: A stone-shaped object containing the concentrated power of earth. You can feel the strength of actual soil.
  Wind Chunk: A stone-shaped object containing the concentrated power of wind. You can feel the flow of actual wind.
Soma Spirits: The pictures in Heart and Soul's respective houses, which don't reflect what they're supposed to be, and complement each other as connections to Brave Hero Yuusha, like how Heart and Soul are mirrors of each other:
Heart: "Portrait of a Brave Hero". That's what it says on the frame in crude penmanship.
Doesn't seem very brave...
Soul: "Portrait of a Demon Lord". A crude drawing I got at a yard sale.
Looks like a weenie.
This Starry Midnight We Make: The Mochi stars, who all start off with "A star that further improves upon the adhesive and pliant qualities of [Color] Clay." The last sentences of description reference how mochi is a type of rice cake:
Blue Mochi Star: Looks delicious, like a molded, blue rice cake!
Red Mochi Star: Looks delicious, like a rice cake with tomato!
Three Fairies Hoppin Flappin Great Journey: The elemental spirits of the Shrine are described slightly differently in the Monster Compendium depending on their element:
Spirit of fire: Controling^sic fire energy in the shrine.
Spirit of ice: Controling^sic ice energy in the shrine.
Spirit of thunder: Controling^sic thunder energy in the shrine.
Spirit of light: Not a lighting technician of the shrine.
A Very Long Rope to the Top of the Sky: The Daisy and Black-Eyed Susan flowers sold in Silver Spring have similar descriptions, about their visible qualities:
Daisy: A pretty white flower.
Black-Eyed Susan: A lovely yellow flower ^sic
Weird and Unfortunate Things Are Happening: The chess piece consumables are all mysterious and psionic and such, all being vague about whether they're actually usable.
Green Knight: A mysterious chess piece brimming with psionic power. Could anyone ever use something like this?
Yellow Bishop: A mysterious chess piece brimming with psionic power. What possible use could this have?
Red Queen: A mysterious chess piece brimming with psionic power. Not just anyone can use this.
Blue Rook: A mysterious chess piece brimming with psionic power. Can anyone use this?
The World Is Your Weapon: Some of the flowers are lovely and look relaxing, implying their shared ability to "Attack Down" debuff enemies they hit:
White Flowers: Lovely white flowers in full bloom. Seeing them is enough to soothe your soul. [Attack Down (50%)]
Red Flowers: Passionate red flowers. Their beauty steals a foe's will to fight. [Attack Down (40%)]
Beautiful Flowers: Lovely flowers of type unknown to you. Gazing upon them is enough to lower your blood pressure. [Attack Down (75%)]

Similar Objects, Similar Description - TV Tropes (2024)

Examples:

References