History Main / ChekhovsVolcano

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' plays with the trope, as Isle Delfino Corona Mountain doesn't explode, but Bowser does use it as a hideout (and it's accessed when the ''city'' in front of the volcano is flooded; the cause behind it is unrelated to the volcano itself).

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' plays with the trope, as the Delfino Isle's volcano doesn't explode, but Bowser does use it as a hideout (and it's accessed when the ''city'' in front of the volcano is flooded; the cause behind it is unrelated to the volcano itself).

* The ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Day of the Samurai" uses this trope, as the location of the final duel between Batman and [[{{Ninja}} Kyodai Ken]].

* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Action Figures" features BrainUploading {{Cyborg}} Metallo washing up on one. A research and excavation team are also there, noting that the volcano will erupt soon. Naturally, it does by the time Superman shows up so he and Metallo can fight and [[LavaIsBoilingKoolAid immerse each other in the lava.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'' had a variation. The volcano on Syndrome's island never erupts, but the rocket that Syndrome launches from inside the dormant cone is certainly reminiscent of an eruption, and it menaces Dash and Violet in much the same way.

* In ''VideoGame/KingdomOfLoathing'', a volcano plays an important part in the Nemesis Quest, containing a puzzle that requires using constantly-shifting chunks of rock floating in magma as stepping stones in order to reach the final showdown with your nemesis, with the volcano erupting if you win. Lampshaded as it becomes clear that the underground tunnels you chase your nemesis through are leading into the volcano: "On reflection, this was inevitable, really. I mean, you can't just have a Final Boss Battle near a volcano. It would be like having a car chase in which the fruit cart doesn't get knocked over. Or fighting crime in a giant robot and never using Rocket Punch."

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', to fulfill the requirements of a [[LethalLavaLand completely different trope]]. The only one that actually erupts is in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages]]''. ''Ocarina'''s Death Mountain does erupt just enough to rain flaming boulders on you whenever you get near the summit. It also lets out a shockwave when Volvagia is defeated, but the only effect is to clear the skies, knock that guy on the Kakariko rooftop flat on his back and get ash trapped in a nearby Goron's eyes. Another one erupts in ''Oracle of Seasons'' when Link deliberately uses bombs to set it off.
** Death Mountain is shown to be spewing ash and rocks when Link first arrives in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess''.
** While Death Mountain in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' is indeed erupting due to Divine Beast Vah Rudania's influence, the real threat when scaling the mountain comes from the fiery cannonballs Vah Rudania shoots at trespassers.
* Played with in ''VideoGame/LighthouseTheDarkBeing''. The Dark Being's VolcanoLair in the endgame ''looks'' like it might erupt, but the dark fumes coming out of it are actually fumes from the huge mining system inside it, and the volcano itself is stable enough to run a steam system that powers said machines. If the player collects enough items, however, they can make it explode anyway using a TimeBomb.
* Averted in ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}''. The volcano never erupts... [[spoiler:until the very end of the game, but then again, the WORLD is erupting.]]
* Averted in ''[[VideoGame/NancyDrew Creature of Kapu Cave]]'', in which the danger Nancy encounters around a volcano isn't from it erupting.
* If there's a volcano on the map in ''VideoGame/{{Outpost 2}}'', it will always eventually erupt.

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'' [[spoiler:is an exception to the "Mount Fuji never erupts" rule, as Lelouch deliberately sets it off near the end.]]
* Mount Fuji figures rather prominently in the second arc of ''LightNovel/KazeNoStigma'', and the mission is to prevent a demon from making it erupt. But that would be boring. Cue the cataclysmic final confrontation in a lava-field!
* In the ''Striker'' -world exist several stoneplates, that are parts of the mappa mundis, a macguffin, that show specific points of the world, where you can errupt Firesnakes thing. One of those places is of course, Mt. Fuji
* Averted in ''Manga/MagicKnightRayearth'', in which the volcano that [[CanisMajor Rayearth]] resides in, although active and spewing out a thick column of smoke, is never seen erupting violently.

* An episode of ''Anime/PokemonTheOriginalSeries'' has Ash battling Blaine in his in-volcano Gym. It threatens to erupt on the following episode due to the Team Rocket trio. Around half of the episode is spent trying to prevent the eruption.

* ''ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse'': Creator/CarlBarks manages to pull one in a story set in Volcanovia... a country where even most ''back yards'' have active volcanoes. Volcanovians are so used to eruptions they no longer even pay attention to them, and only fear the huge Old Ferocio will awaken. And by the end of the story...
* ''ComicBook/TheLosers'': Lampshaded.
-->'''Jensen:''' ''"Of course, it shoulda been '''obvious'''! I mean, what '''else''', right...? Moment we set foot on an island with a '''volcano''', of '''course''' it's gonna blow...!"''

* In ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'', Vanellope takes Ralph to her hideaway inside Diet Cola Mountain, which contains the Diet Cola Springs, which will get aggravated by falling Mentos. [[spoiler:Ralph kills the movie's BigBad by sending ALL of the Mentos into the Springs, causing a massive surge to rocket into the sky.]]
* The volcano in ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTimeIITheGreatValleyAdventure'' erupts, naturally.
** As does the one in [[WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTimeVIITheStoneOfColdFire the seventh movie]], though in this case it's saved for the climax of the movie.

* Comically subverted in ''WesternAnimation/TheRoadToElDorado''. The volcano starts to erupt when it suddenly stops rumbling and burps out a single puff of smoke. That Tulio just happened to shout "Stop!" at that precise instant is what convinces the natives that [[GodGuise he and Miguel were gods.]]

%%* ''Krakatoa: [[ArtisticLicenseGeography East]] of Java''.

* ''Film/{{Supervolcano}}'' contains an exaggerated example. The eponymous volcano is none other than Yellowstone, a 4400 km^2 volcano whose historic eruptions have had massive effects that were felt worldwide. When it erupts, it obliterates everything within dozens of miles from the caldera, covers most of North America in ''feet'' of ash, and covers the globe in layers of volcanic gases.
* ''Film/JoeVersusTheVolcano'', natch. This is how Joe ''[[ConvectionSchmonvection is saved from being sacrificed to it]]''.
* Subverted by ''Film/{{Volcano}}'': The movie is about a volcano suddenly emerging from the La Brea tar pits, so it doesn't get to loom threateningly in the background.

* Mt. Fuji actually does erupt in Akira Kurosawa's ''Dreams''. Of course it is, "just a dream."

* On the other hand, played straight in the 1923 silent film ''Film/TheWhiteSister'', which is also set in Naples. Mount Vesuvius does indeed erupt during the film's climax.

* ''Film/TwoThousandTwelve'': The main characters get to [[OutrunTheFireball outrun lava and pyroclastic flow]] during the apocalyptic eruption of Yellowstone Caldera. Presumably, volcanoes around the world experience this too. In real life, such events would effectively blacken out Earth's atmosphere for years to come (Tambora's 1812 explosion had 90% less ejecta than Yellowstone and that caused a year-long famine in the Northern Hemisphere), but apparently, humans come out fine not even a few weeks later.
* In ''[[Film/AlvinandtheChipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked]]'', the Chipmunks, David Seville, the Chipettes, and Ian Hawke are all accidentally marooned on a tropical island. Later on, Jeanette notices that the volcano on the island is about to erupt, and the climax of the film involved all of the them trying to get off the island before it does so.
* As an update of the JungleOpera trope, ''Film/{{Congo}}'' naturally had one erupt at the end.
* Averted in the comedy ''Film/{{Water 1985}}''. There's constant talk of the island's volcano erupting, but it never does.
* In ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing,'' Mount Doom erupts spectacularly after [[spoiler:Gollum falls into it with the Ring]]. The original idea was to have the eruption cause the destruction of Barad-dûr, but that was dropped. In the subsequent Coronation scene in Minas Tirith, the volcanic cloud over Mordor is gone, implying that Mount Doom is now extinct.
* An example that crosses over with DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: Early in the ''Literature/JurassicPark'' novel it's mentioned that Isla Nublar is a dormant volcano, which is why the island uses thermal generation (this is not mentioned in [[Film/JurassicPark the first movie]], but it's a minor detail mentioned in ''The Lost World'' to justify [[RagnarokProofing why the electronics at the abandoned Site B compound are still working]]). A central plot point of ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' is that the volcano is finally becoming active again and is about to go "kaboom", taking Isla Nublar with it... and it sure does, [[ThePlotReaper wiping out the park forever]] in the second act.

* ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'': Mount Doom after the Ring is destroyed. In fact, Mount Doom all the time.
* ''[[Literature/TheRomanMysteries The Secrets of Vesuvius]]'': Mount Vesuvius's eruption, resulting in the destruction of Pompeii. Based on RealLife.
* Played with in ''{{Literature/Freya}}''. While you never see an actual volcano to start, [[spoiler:Pele mentions creating them is her favorite skill, and it ''actually'' gets used as part of Freya's plan to destroy Impulse Station.]]
* ''Literature/DragonridersOfPern'' plays with this trope. In the (chronologically) first book, the site of Landing, the colonists' first settlement on Pern, is on a plateau between three volcanic cones, two of which are thought to be extinct and one dormant. Sure enough, a few decades after arriving they start seeing signs that the dormant volcano is getting ready to blow. Surprisingly they actually begin plans to evacuate Landing and move the majority of the population to the more geologically stable northern continent. Unfortunately all the schedules for moving equipment supplies was based on the dormant volcano being the one to blow, so stuff nearest to that was given priority, and that's what they were watching for signs of how long they had left. Cue the actual eruption coming from one of the supposedly extinct ones a lot closer to the town, and a mad scramble to get the last loads of supplies and people out of the way. Averted in all the other books in that every single Weyr on the northern continent is specifically stated to be inside a volcanic crater but not a single one of them ever proves to NOT really be extinct.
* Surprisingly averted in the ''Literature/ColdfireTrilogy'', which takes place on a very seismically active world that has lots and lots of volcanoes. There's at least one visited in each book: 1) in ''Black Sun Rising'', they visit a pirate base located in a caldera, which doesn't erupt; 2) in ''When True Night Falls'', the main villain builds his base on a volcanic plain, but actually uses magic to make sure that the volcano is ''always'' venting, thus keeping pressure from building up; and 3) in ''Crown of Shadows'', the series climax is set on a plotfully important volcano, which also does not explode.

* ''Literature/{{Ashfall}}'', and its sequel, ''Ashen Winter'', center on the Yellowstone volcano erupting and majorly screwing up civilization, at least in North America.
* In Neal Stephenson's ''Literature/{{Anathem}}'' the volcano in question doesn't really erupt. At least not until after a super dense rod is dropped from orbit into its caldera.
* Book I of the Literature/CambridgeLatinCourse was set in Pompeii, and [[ForegoneConclusion guess which historical event occurs at its climax]]?
* In the ''[[Literature/TheLongEarth Long War]]'' by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter, the [[spoiler: aforementioned [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowstone_National_Park certain national park in Wyoming]] starts rumbling across MULTIPLE parallel Earths. At the beginning of ''The Long Mars'', the sequel, it erupts on Datum Earth, causing worldwide climate change and near-universal evacuation to nearby parallel Earths.]] This particular example is so blatant that the foreshadowing underscores several major themes throughout the book: in particular, [[spoiler: the survival of humanity in the face of world-ending disaster.]]
* ''Literature/{{Congo}}'' by Creator/MichaelCrichton. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero The protagonists actually set off the volcano]] when they detonate a series of explosive charges that generate a resonant shock. In the film it just erupts naturally.
* ''The Astounding, the Amazing and the Unknown'' by Paul Malmont. During World War II, several famous sci-fi writers are seeking a device invented by UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla -- either a transmitter, a new source of power, or a weapon of mass destruction. Creator/LRonHubbard is sent to a volcanic island where he finds one of the devices which does transmit voices (unknown to Hubbard, from his colleagues who have just found the control device). In what may or may not be a coincidence, at that point the volcano happens to erupt destroying the device, though Hubbard escapes. Hubbard is sick with a fever the entire time, and it's implied [[NiceJobBreakingItHero he developed the beliefs behind Scientology from all the bizarre events]].

* An episode of ''{{Anime/Pokemon}}'' has Ash battling Blaine in his in-volcano Gym. It threatens to erupt on the following episode due to the Team Rocket trio. Around half of the episode is spent trying to prevent the eruption.

** Averted in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' as the island volcano doesn't explode, but Bowser does use it as a hideout.
** Lakeside Park, the first track of the Special Cup in ''VideoGame/MarioKartSuperCircuit'', features a volcano in the background that starts erupting in the second lap, dropping debris and flaming rocks on the track.

* One of the levels in ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyAdvancedWarfare'', a game in a series well known for its extremely dramatic setpiece battles and shocking disasters with thousands or millions of death, is set on the small Greek island Santorini. It was the sight of the most devastating volcanic eruption in European history that led to the collapse of all mediterranean Bronze Age empires except the Egyptians, and possibly the source of the [[Atlantis]] Myth, and is on the list of the 17 most dangerous volcanoes in the world. It's also a game about futuristic superweapons. Yet the giant underwater volcano, on whose crater rim the level takes place, doesn't get either mentioned or does any kind of exploding.

%%[[/folder]]

** In ''VideoGame/PaperMario64'', Mt. Lavalava erupts.

* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'' has one of the most popular fictional volcanos in all media has erupting. Orodruin become the Mount Doom, blanketing the Southlands in its pyroclastic flow that blots out the Sun.

* The volcano in ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTime II'' erupts, naturally.
** As does the one in the seventh movie, though in this case it's saved for the climax of the movie.

* ''Fanfic/JWITCHSeason1'': It's mentioned early in the chapter "Divide and Conquer - Chaos and Hilarity" that Mount Heatherfield is a dormant volcano. Later, the Monkey King attempts to activate it with a spell, only to end up being short of three pounds of wood for one of the ingredients. After he's turned back into a puppet by Daolon Wong, Cedric gets the idea to activate the spell by using the puppet, in an effort to get rid of the heroes. [[spoiler: Of course, just like in canon, the lava is actually harmless cherry gelatin.]]

* The Sacred Mountain of Eddis in Literature/TheQueensThief is a volcano. This is mentioned all the way in the first book, where it doesn't erupt but is a convenient place to dispose of a sacred MacGuffin that would otherwise cause political problems. In the second book, however, the queen of Eddis mentions that she has been having prophetic dreams of the volcano erupting and destroying most of her country, which is an underlying plot point that drives some of the political machinations in later books. As of book five, the volcano has yet to erupt... [[https://i.harperapps.com/covers/9780062874474/y648.jpg but that's expected to change in book six]].

* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' series has a few examples:
** In ''VideoGame/PaperMario64'', Mt. Lavalava erupts.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG: Legend of the Seven Stars'' features a volcano that does not erupt, although one NPC does comment it looks like there's a lot of activity around it. The level doesn't count as much of a LethalLavaLand either. Neither of these points, however, detracts from the dragon boss fight.
** VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiPartnersInTime features Thwomp Volcano, which does blow up after the BossBattle.
** Averted and played straight in ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiDreamTeam''. Averted with 'real world' Mount Pajamaja, which despite being temporary base to the BigBad and a key part of the plot, doesn't erupt at any point during the story. Played straight with the dream version, which does (because you actually try to get it to blow up to open the portal again). Also, the dream one is... a [[ThatsNoMoon sentient being]] which tries to kill the Mario brothers, so it turns out the whole eruption idea wasn't the best one.
** Averted in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' as the island volcano doesn't explode, but Bowser does use it as a hideout.
** Lakeside Park, the first track of the Special Cup in ''VideoGame/MarioKartSuperCircuit'', features a volcano in the background that starts erupting in the second lap, dropping debris and flaming rocks on the track.
%%* ''VideoGame/GoldenSun1'': Mt. Aleph.

* The second ''TabletopGame/DarkSun'' game, ''Wake of the Ravager'', had a volcano level; if you took too long to complete it, the volcano would blow and you'd get a NonstandardGameOver. Unfortunately for those playing on modern computers, the game clock seems to run on processor speed, so unless you know how to adjust the proper settings, it is impossible to complete the level and, by extension, the game, before the volcano blows.
* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls''
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' itself averts the trope when it comes to Red Mountain, the central volcano of Vvardenfell (the game's setting) island. Red Mountain only belches smoke and red dust throughout the game, but does house the VolcanoLair of the BigBad (which was formerly the capital of the long-extinct [[OurDwarvesAreDifferent Dwemer]]).
** Following the events of ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'' and a nearby ColonyDrop (all part of an epic TraumaCongaLine for Morrowind), Red Mountain erupts during the TimeSkip prior to ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]''. As a result, Vvardenfell's settlements were destroyed and much of mainland Morrowind was left under a choking cloud of dust. (These events are known as the "Red Year".) Many of the [[OurElvesAreDifferent Dunmer (Dark Elf)]] people were forced to flee, both due to those events and the subsequent [[LizardFolk Argonian]] [[TheDogBitesBack invasion]], with many settling in [[GrimUpNorth Skyrim and Solstheim]].
* Inevitable in ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress'': If there's lava somewhere on the map, it will eventually be pumped onto the surface by the player. There's a bug where if a volcano is spawned overlapping a bottomless pit on a local map, the result is an instantaneous eruption, forest fire, and death.
** Not quite inevitable nor an eruption anymore; since there are no bottomless pits and volcanoes don't naturally erupt, any lava/magma flooding is engineered by the player, due to shortsighted or deliberate design. Knowing that magma is present in every map leaves abusing it as the only dwarfy thing to do, volcanoes simply open up options much sooner.

* Averted in ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}''. The volcano never erupts... [[spoiler:until the very end of the game, but then again, the WORLD is erupting.]]
* The volcano in ''VideoGame/{{Bugsnax}}'' erupts during the game's climax, where it's triggered by [[spoiler: the Bugsnax that make up the island finally rising up to attack the characters.]] Before this, lava constantly flows from said volcano into Boiling Bay, and it's possible to go Bugsnak-hunting in its lava tubes (and [[ManOnFire set yourself on fire]] multiple times).
* The StableTimeLoop in ''VideoGame/IcewindDale II'' in Dragon's Eye.

* ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIII'' is the first VideoGame/DragonQuest to feature a volcano. Naturally, you make it erupt for the purposes of getting a magic MacGuffin. The quest to make it erupt takes fully a quarter of the game. Said volcano also plays a key role in the backstory -- and the AttractMode cutscene.
* ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVII'' plays with this: the very first thing you see upon arriving is the volcano erupting! ...In a vision, anyway, which you then have to prevent.
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyMysticQuest'': The volcano erupts at the end of the Lava Dome stage. That's right, while you're ''inside'' it. And the lava flow cools quickly to make a new path you can walk along. ConvectionSchmonvection.
* Mt. Zublo in ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIII'' erupts, blocking passage around it and an entire section of the game is dedicated to getting around it. Even having to inevitably go through it.
* Played with in ''VideoGame/LighthouseTheDarkBeing''. The Dark Being's VolcanoLair in the endgame ''looks'' like it might erupt, but the dark fumes coming out of it are actually fumes from the huge mining system inside it, and the volcano itself is stable enough to run a steam system that powers said machines. If the player collects enough items, however, they can make it explode anyway using a TimeBomb.

* In ''VideoGame/KingdomOfLoathing'', a volcano plays an important part in the Nemesis Quest, containing a puzzle that requires using constantly-shifting chunks of rock floating in magma as stepping stones in order to reach the final showdown with your nemesis, with the volcano erupting if you win. Lampshaded as it becomes clear that the underground tunnels you chase your nemesis through are leading into the volcano: "On reflection, this was inevitable, really. I mean, you can't just have a Final Boss Battle near a volcano. It would be like having a car chase in which the fruit cart doesn't get knocked over. Or fighting crime in a giant robot and never using Rocket Punch."
* Averted in ''VideoGame/CadillacsAndDinosaurs''. Throughout the game the volcano is smoking away in the background, and though the characters keep thinking it's going to blow, it's actually the smoke from the factory concealed within.
* The last three missions of ''VideoGame/GuildWars: Prophecies'' take place on or directly adjacent to a massive volcano, with ''two'' climactic battles in its active crater. It explodes at the very end of the campaign.

* ''VideoGame/KingsQuestVII'' has an interesting variation. The volcano is active, but some {{Steampunk}}-type machinery in use by the trolls keep it from blowing. However, [[BigBad Malicia]] would like to use it to get revenge on Etheria, the Fairy Kingdom, even if everything ''else'' is turned to slag in the process. It's up to Valanice and Rosella to prevent this.
* ''VideoGame/TrialsOfMana'': The heroes are shipwrecked on a remote volcano island that's slated to go off at any moment (the screen even shakes from time to time with pre-eruption tremors), but of course it doesn't go off until you've accomplished all that you're supposed to and you have a way off the island. (Hooray for [[DeusExMachina conveniently passing by turtles]]!)
* ''VideoGame/{{Bug}}'' has one in [[LethalLavaLand Arachnia's]] background. [[spoiler: Bug pushes [[BigBad Queen Cadavra]] into it when he beats her, causing it to erupt]].
* Averted in ''[[VideoGame/NancyDrew Creature of Kapu Cave]]'', in which the danger Nancy encounters around a volcano isn't from it erupting.
* If there's a volcano on the map in ''VideoGame/{{Outpost 2}}'', it will always eventually erupt.
* One of the levels in ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyAdvancedWarfare'', a game in a series well known for its extremely dramatic setpiece battles and shocking disasters with thousands or millions of death, is set on the small Greek island Santorini. It was the sight of the most devastating volcanic eruption in European history that led to the collapse of all mediterranean Bronze Age empires except the Egyptians, and possibly the source of the [[Atlantis]] Myth, and is on the list of the 17 most dangerous volcanoes in the world. It's also a game about futuristic superweapons. Yet the giant underwater volcano, on whose crater rim the level takes place, doesn't get either mentioned or does any kind of exploding.
* ''VideoGame/SamAndMax'': The plot of Season 2 episode "Moai Better Blues" features stopping a volcano as the main goal for Sam & Max. While they couldn't stop the volcano from errupting in time, utilization of another time-and-space Bermuda Triangle portal blocked the volcano to prevent the erruption destroying Easter Island. [[spoiler:[[BrickJoke The erruption of lava comes into play again]] by TheStinger of the final episode, resulting in the Soda Poppers trapped in the lava pit getting fried [[TemptingFate immediately after they declared they'll return]].]]
* In ''VideoGame/Transformers2004'', the Decepticons have a VolcanoLair on an IslandBase in the final [[spoiler:earth]] level. The FinalBoss is fought on a platform suspended over the lava. As you stand and Megatron falls, the volcano decides to erupt, [[spoiler:seemingly [[NeverFoundTheBody taking Megatron with it]]]].
* The ''VideoGame/CivilizationVI'' expansion ''Gathering Storm'' uses this trope as a game mechanic. Active and dormant volcanoes can be found scattered around the map and much in real life, erupt on an unpredictable basis. There is a risk-reward calculus to settling cities and building improvements near them, as eruptions can create fertile land and proximity to the volcano can boost faith or science, but of course the eruptions can also destroy anything nearby. The game lampshades this with several humorous messages if you decide to settle close to one.

%%* According to the documentary The Last Day of the Dinosaurs, the asteroid that caused the mass extinctions at the end of the Cretaceous period possibly caused this trope to go UpToEleven. Allegedly, the seismic catastrophes created by the impact may well have caused long-extinct volcanoes to erupt again.

** In ''VideoGame/PaperMario'', Mt. Lavalava erupts.

[[folder:Real Life]]
* Italy is the only volcanically active region in Europe. Since its history is long, erupting volcanoes are very well-documented.
** Vesuvius, which turned the entire city of Pompeii to ashes. It erupted in late 1943 with enough force to provoke an effective local ceasefire in [=WW2=], as both the Germans and the Allies struggled with the practicalities of staying alive in what threatened to become a disaster area. Creator/SpikeMilligan related that his artillery unit was tasked with evacuating Italian civilians from threatened areas, as humanitarian relief took precedence over fighting the Germans. (who apparently used the respite to regroup a safe distance away and prepare new defences).
** Also in Naples, and in a sense far more worrying than Vesuvius, are the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phlegraean_Fields Phlegraean Fields]], a very large volcano that shows signs of a possible eruption in the not too distant future.
** Sicily has Etna, which erupts frequently, and Stromboli off the coast is in a nearly constant state of eruption.
* In the United States:
** Mount Rainier is feared to be this. Largest Volcano in the lower 48, one of the broadest in the world in terms of glaciers and crags and area. Tacoma and Seattle, with about 3.5 million people, lie nearly entirely on old mudflows from the volcano that are less than 200 years old.
** In the same volcanic neighbourhood as Mount Rainer is Mount St. Helens, which practically became a unit of measurement in the severity of volcanic eruptions after it went off in 1980 and killed 57 people.
** The volcanoes of the Hawaiian islands erupt (well, ooze) frequently, meaning the islands are slowly growing bigger (and volcanoes that are now underwater may someday reach the surface, as more lava builds up higher). To complete the frequent comparisons with Hawaii, the French island of La Réunion has the Piton de la Fournaise volcano. It's easily accessible, erupts on average once a year, and its average level of danger is exemplified by how the first reaction of locals and tourists when an eruption is announced is to organize eruption-sighting tours.
** The geysers, hot springs, and "paint pots" of Yellowstone National Park are all caused by geologic activity from a massive caldera that spans the whole region. Pray it never, ever explodes.[[note]]The general consensus among volcanologists is that it's not likely to for at least a few hundred years, and more like a few thousand.[[/note]]
*** The Yellowstone hot spot is located in Wyoming. The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory is based out of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, some 250-plus miles to the south.
*** The Yellowstone Hot Spot is actually just the latest in a long line of hot spots extending back to the Southwest over several states. The North American plate moves and the hot spot gradually shifts.
* Although many supervolcanoes or megacalderas are extinct now, there are still some active ones, not just Yellowstone. Taupo in New Zealand is another still active one.
* According to the documentary The Last Day of the Dinosaurs, the asteroid that caused the mass extinctions at the end of the Cretaceous period possibly caused this trope to go UpToEleven. Allegedly, the seismic catastrophes created by the impact may well have caused long-extinct volcanoes to erupt again.
* The leading contender for the cause of the Permian-Triassic Mass Extinction (also known as [[ApocalypseHow The Great Dying]] and an event that puts the Cretaceous-Tertiary Mass Extinction to shame) is the eruption of the Siberian Flood Basalts, the ''largest'' volcanic event known to have occurred on Earth.
* In Indonesia:
** The Toba catastrophe theory, which not only reduced humanity to a few thousand individuals (fortunately, that wasn't enough back then), but may also have been the true cause of the last ice age, or at least hastened its arrival, which it was coincidentally followed by. In fact ''all'' supervolcanic eruptions can lead to an ice age.
** Krakatoa is still feared to be this, or more precisely Anak Krakatau, 'Child of Krakatoa'. After the original volcano blew itself apart in 1883, a new volcano started growing out of the caldera the old one left. These fears proved to be valid when Anak Krakatau erupted on December 22, 2018, causing the volcano to collapse to a small caldera barely above sea level, and producing a deadly tsunami.
** Tambora, which spewed so much dust into the atmosphere that it lowered temperatures for several years and made 1816 'The Year Without a Summer'.
* Inverted with permafrost. Due to its involvement in climate change, it is not really permanent at all, and it contains a huge amount of carbon dioxide and methane (both greenhouse gases) frozen within it, assuming if the above was true.
* The Thera eruption, which wiped out the Minoan settlements on Santorini some 3600 years ago, and possibly caused a tsunami that destroyed coastal communities and agricultural areas on Crete 200 km away. This eruption might have been the basis for the Atlantis myth.
* The largest volcano known to mankind, Olympus Mons, poses no threat to anyone but possible future Mars explorers. Estimates for how long it's been inactive range from 2 million years ago to back in Jurassic times; astrogeologists suspect that its activity cycle is much less regular than that of Earth's volcanoes, as Mars has no plate tectonics to dictate when pressures build up within its magma chamber. Hence, if and when it ''does'' erupt, there won't be much prior seismic activity to give an advance warning.
* Last but not least Io, the innermost of the [[UsefulNotes/TheMoonsOfJupiter four Jupiter's largest moons]]. Despite being just a bit larger than our [[UsefulNotes/TheMoon Moon]], it contains around 400 active volcanoes and each space probe that has imaged it has found something volcanic going on there.
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-->'''Lemon-head Cannibal'''[[note]]yes, really. He's wearing a giant lemon on his head. Just go with it[[/note]]: You fool! You've given cheese to a lactose intolerant Volcano God! Do you know what that means? You've brought about the Coming of the Divine Dysentery! ''Run for your lives!''
--> (later)
-->'''Guybrush''': Wow! That was even more spectacular than I had hoped!

* ''VideoGame/Battlezone1980'' - {{Enforced|Trope}}. The volcano within the game was originally not going to erupt, but Ed Rotberg (the programmer of the game) was pestered by his coworker Owen Rubin into making it active. After Ed finally suggested that Owen write the code himself, it was found lying on Ed's desk the next day.
* There is a volcano in ''{{VideoGame/Grow}} Island'' but it have a twist. In the game's last turn instead of erupting a creature will emerge from it and pour lava out of its head-tentacle.

* Possibly in the making for ''Franchise/DragonAge''. A codex entry found in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' mentions the Fereldan mountain of Dragon's Peak, a dormant volcano; according to the codex, there is a legend which states that the volcano will return to life after the last true King of Ferelden dies. [[spoiler:One of the companions in ''Origins'' turns out to be the last known member of the royal family.]]
* The Volcano Weather Forecast in ''VideoGame/{{Carto}}'' says there won't be an eruption today, which surely means there won't be an eruption. (There's an eruption.)

* ''Film/DantesPeak'': The eponymous community is built on a mountain with a large dormant volcano underground. The main character is part of a seismic research team who comes to investigate the possibility of an eruption, which most people think is absurd because it's been quiet for hundreds of years. Right before they're set to leave, they discover that they were right all along and the volcano is preparing to erupt.

* ''Film/DantesPeak'': The eruption of the titular volcano is the main focus of the film. Surprisingly well-researched, despite some ArtisticLicense.

* Three-quarters subverted in ''ComicBook/ElfQuest''. The volcano near Sorrow's End doesn't blow its top, it just rumbles very loudly. The rumbling triggers a stampede that the Wolfriders have to deal with. And then played straight in a much later storyline when the first major eruption in centuries coincides with an invasion.
* In Franchise/{{Superman}} story ''Comicbook/KryptoniteNevermore'', Superman flies to an island to tame a volcano before it erupts and kills the islanders.
* The island of Pulau-Pulau Bompa in ''Franchise/TinTin: [[Recap/TintinFlight714 Flight 714]]''.
* Creator/CarlBarks manages to pull one in a story set in Volcanovia... a country where even most ''back yards'' have active volcanoes. Volcanovians are so used to eruptions they no longer even pay attention to them, and only fear the huge Old Ferocio will awaken. And by the end of the story...
* Lampshaded in ''ComicBook/TheLosers''.
-->Jensen: Of course, it shoulda been '''obvious'''! I mean, what '''else''', right...? Moment we set foot on an island with a '''volcano''', of '''course''' it's gonna blow...!

* There is a volcano in ''{{VideoGame/Grow}} Island'' but it have a twist. In the game's last turn instead of erupting a creature will emerge from it and pour lava out of it's head-tentacle.