History Main / HomeFieldAdvantage

** In fact, the power of a Servant varies depending of how much it's known and/or revered in their current location. For example, WordOfGod states that [[LightNovel/FateApocrypha Lancer of "Black"]] (UsefulNotes/VladTheImpaler) could completely destroy Berserker ([[Myth/ClassicalMythology Heracles/Hercules]]) and Saber ([[HistoricalGenderFlip gender-flipped]] Myth/KingArthur) from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', two Servants whose identities are known ''world-wide'', because he was summoned in his home country of Romania, close to his native city to boot, and has a Skill that lets him secure a certain amount of land as his own and boost his power as long as he remains within the bounds of that land (which fittingly enough, is at the headquarters of the Yggdmillennia). This dual-layer homefield advantage is enough he's able to fight toe-to-toe with [[PlayingWithFire Lancer of "Red"]] ([[Literature/TheMahabharata Karna]]) when normally he would be [[CurbStompBattle completely crushed]] by his [[StoryBreakerPower Gilgamesh-leveled opponent]]. [[spoiler:This is what ends up happening when he is forced to sacrifice said advantage to fight on the enemy's home turf]].

** The boards around the rinks may be more "lively" or "dead", affecting how the puck rebounds after hitting the boards. The home team knows that better, which can work to their advantage In all zones of the ice.

* ''Film/FreddyVsJason'': Lori and her friends take both Freddy and Jason to Camp Crystal Lake for their showdown with this trope in mind for Jason. Subverted earlier in the film, when Jason in the dreamworld gets reverted to his childhood, invoking the trauma of his drowning in the lake and throwing him for a loop.

* An important factor in ''ComicBook/SwampThing''. Swampy is able to defeat a nearly omnipotent enemy while in his Place of Power in the swamps, and he has a definite advantage anywhere he's in contact with "the clean Earth" (i.e., anywhere that nature is strong, especially anywhere that has a lot of plants - the evil coven that tried to fight him in a rain forest made a very bad mistake).

* Crucially important in ''ComicBook/{{Gravel}}''. A magician is nearly unassailable in their Place of Power, and a group of arrogant magicians only realize how scary Gravel really is when they discover that he's managed to take [[spoiler: ''the entire city of London'']] as his Place of Power.

* For the ''Franchise/GreenLantern'' comics, the living planet Mogo is a planet sized Home Field Advantage. At least, [[spoiler:while it was still alive.]]
* Played with by ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' and other Kryptonians, who have a Home Field Advantage anywhere near a yellow sun. For most Kryptonians, this is technically an ''away'' field advantage, since their own sun was ''red'', but Clark Kent was raised in Kansas, so Earth is as much his home as it is ours.

* Characters with control over the earth (such as Terra in the Franchise/DCUniverse) are very powerful near the ground and almost helpless when away from it, such as if they're high in the air, in outer space, on the ocean etc.
* In ''ComicBook/TheSandman'', the Endless are nearly all-powerful within their own domains, since they also ''are'' their own domains. Fortunately, most of them are also big on SacredHospitality.

** UsefulNotes/TheWorldCup usually helps the hosts, at least for the men. Out of the eight world champions, only Brazil and Spain never won a title at home (including France's first Cup and England's only Cup). Other standout performances: Sweden's only final, Chile and South Korea's only semifinals, Mexico's only quarterfinals (twice), and Switzerland's last quarterfinal (and only in the group-and-knockouts format). Russia reaching quarterfinals at home was their best achievement since 1982, when the Soviet Union reached the second group stage and placed seventh in the tournament. While South Africa in 2010 is the biggest subversion in that for the first time the host fell in the group stage, they also managed to get a victory against France.

* ''LightNovel/AccelWorld'': One of the benefits of being a member of a Legion is real world legion territory. As long as you're physically within your legion's territory, you have the right to refuse any Brain Burst challenges made of you, meaning you can recoup if you're low on burst points. Since anyone using the internet can be challenged, and not being on-line makes life anywhere from difficult to nigh unlivable, joining the legion that controls the territory you live in is almost a necessity unless you are VERY good at battling.

* Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_advantage tells us]] that this is considered so important that important games like playoffs or elimination matches are either held at a neutral site, or with multiple games played on both teams' home venues. It also provides numerous examples of the strength of the advantage.

* In ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic III'', each castle has its own native terrain, on which its heroes are more mobile than the enemy heroes.

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'':
** Deities are always more powerful while on their home plane(s) than they are on other planes. For example, in older versions of the rules deities had control over who could cast Wishes on their plane(s).
** In the ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'' setting, Darklords are extremely powerful and almost undefeatable inside their own domain. In the ''TabletopGame/MasqueOfTheRedDeath'' campaign expansion this applies to the powerful minions of the Red Death when they're in their lairs.
** In ''TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}'' this applies to a number of factions, which helps contribute to the [[UsefulNotes/ColdWar Cold-War-esque]] stalemate between them:
*** Jaela Daran, The Speaker of the Flame, gains a staggering 15 levels while inside Flamekeep (she's normally level 3). The same thing applies to her EvilCounterpart.
*** This is said to be the main reason Erandis d'Vol is still alive; while within her sanctum she can perform magical feats of such absurd power (one of the given examples being "summon FutureBadass ghosts of anyone who enters the sanctum, under her control") that even if they know where it is, the more heavyweight factions of the setting don't consider it worth the trouble to attack her.
*** The Wardens of the Wood take this to its logical extreme: their leader Oalian is a level 20 druid... but also a ''tree'', making him incapable of leaving his home field at all.
** In 5[[superscript:th]] Edition, some monsters have access to "Lair Actions" while on their home turf, effectively wielding their environment against their enemies in addition to the monster's own actions for the turn. This is enough of an advantage that these monsters usually have a higher Challenge Rating when encountered in their lairs.
* In ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'', similarly, most demigod-level outsiders (Demon Lords, Archdevils, etc.) receive various additional benefits when fought within their personal realms.

* The Chaos Gods of ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasyBattle'', ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' and all those other spin-offs, are omnipotent in their own realms. Outside of it, they're still extremely powerful but now limited and vulnerable - so much so that Slaanesh, a god who destroyed entire space sectors of an interstellar alien empire, was beaten up and kidnapped by elven gods when s/he was outside of home in ''TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar''.
** The [[OurElvesAreDifferent Asrai/Wood Elves]] in the Fantasy version of the game are able to maintain their power base despite having neither the numbers or industry to compete with surrounding factions, by having a sentient forest that seeps in ancient magic and deliberately confuses any intruders with ever-shifting labyrinthine pathways; the Asrai have a pact with the spirits that dwell inside Athel Loren and have had centuries to learn the layout of their forest home. [[WhenTreesAttack The forest itself often and fights alongside them]]. Thus, any army marching directly into Athel Loren during the spring and summer months is effectively committing suicide; however in winter, the forest goes dormant and the Asrai cannot rely on its help.
* From ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'', the [[MadScientist Baron Blade]], whom normally goes down easily, becomes a '''massive''' threat if you fight him in his home environment of [[{{Ruritania}} Mordengrad]], due to the way his keywords and the keywords on the Mordengrad deck interact.

* ''Fanfic/DungeonKeeperAmi'' plays this straight. All Keepers have significant advantages in their own domain. [[MundaneMadeAwesome Including, but not limited to:]] [[DeathTrap many complex traps]], [[GeniusLoci the corruption effect of the Dungeon Hearts]], [[DomainHolder and the ability to cast magic anywhere, instantly.]] In addition, they basically [[MagicalSecurityCam see and know everything that happens]] in their own dungeon and can even press the wills of mindless animals into their service, within their zone of influence.
* In ''Fanfic/OpeningDangerousGates'', the demon Xiphias Gladius' strength and stamina is constantly replenished as long as he's in the sea, not to mention he has control over water. Unfortunately for him, Tier Harribel easily usurps his control over the sea and then knocks him onto land, making him easy pickings for the heroes.

* In ''Fanfic/PonyPOVSeries'', The Blank Wolf is more powerful in the land where he was born. He's able to ignore some of his usual limitations like being unable to come near a god.
* In ''Fanfic/FateLongNight'', Queen Nymeria Martell's Bloodline Relic, called "Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken", causes the battlefield to experience the sweltering heat of the Dornish deserts. As a native of Dorne, it doesn't really bother her, while her opponents will quickly become exhausted and thirsty.
* In ''Fanfic/ImaginarySeas'', Percy gets a massive power boost while in water. In addition to raising his overall fighting prowess, it bumps his Magic Resistance up to A, and he has an additional layer of NighInvulnerability so long as he's near the sea. However, in an inversion of this trope, Percy loses the Curse of Achilles in Rome or areas conceptually defined as Rome because of how the Little Tiber washed it away in The Son of Neptune.

* In ''Fanfic/GuardiansWizardsAndKungFuFighters'', it's established that a Heart's power is significantly enhanced (to RealityWarper levels) when the bearer of the Heart is on its native world.

* Every ''Film/HomeAlone'' movie involves a little kid laying traps in a building he knows inside and out, while the adult criminals don't. Taken UpToEleven in the third movie, where the criminals are a team of professional international thieves.

* Sometimes happens on ''Series/RuPaulsDragRace'' during the "Lipsynch For Your Life" portion if the song is more suited to one queen's style than the other's. For instance, in the first UK season, Cheryl Hole is a Music/CherylCole impersonator and predictably does well when she has to lipsynch to a Cheryl Cole song. But in the next episode, she's up against Baga Chipz to an Music/AmyWinehouse song, and since Winehouse was a huge influence on Baga's drag, Cheryl's pop-based dance moves don't save her since Baga does a much better at embodying the artist and sends Cheryl packing.

** Cold-weather teams tend to hold a certain advantage in late-season and postseason games held in December and January, as they may be accustomed to games in freezing conditions than warm-weather teams. The New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers (with the mythological "frozen tundra" of Lambeau Field) in particular have had historically good success in these conditions, leading to success closing out regular seasons and into postseason football.

** In addition to the venue- and weather-related advantages for American football teams, one historically recurring trend is West Coast teams struggling in early games on the East Coast, even if it's a mismatch on paper. The theory goes that the 1 p.m. start time for East Coast "early" games does a number on West Coast players, in which their bodies are still feeling like it's 10 a.m. Pacific time and have trouble getting "game ready" three hours than they are typically accustomed to.

** A possibly apocryphal story holds that the Green Bay Packers have never lost at home below a certain temperature, and that the Miami Dolphins have never lost at home ''above'' a certain temperature.
** Sometimes it can also be a home weather advantage: The New England Patriots usually win when it's snowing, especially against teams from warm climates or those whose home field is indoors.
** When building Metlife Stadium to replace the old Giants Stadium, the New York Giants and New York Jets decided not to give the new stadium a roof (even though doing so would give them the ability to generate revenue from indoor venue events outside of football) because they liked having the advantage of visiting teams quarterbacks and kickers having to adapt to the swirling winds of the New Jersey Meadowlands.

* Averting this trope is precisely why the UsefulNotes/SuperBowl is held in a neutral location outside the competing teams' hometowns, or even home ''states''.
** Actually, the site is chosen several years in advance, making it theoretically possible for a team to play in its own stadium. That, however, didn't happen until Super Bowl LV in Tampa (February 2021), won by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

* The ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' series has at least two enchanted ships that give this. Davy Jones from ''[[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanDeadMansChest Dead Man's Chest]]'' and ''[[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd At World's End]]'' can move through the Flying Dutchman at will, while Blackbeard from ''[[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanOnStrangerTides On Stranger Tides]]'' [[spoiler:or rather, whoever has his sword can manipulate the Queen Anne's Revenge and, if Barbossa's exposition is to be believed, any other ships they encounter, at will]].

* In ''Film/StarTrek2009'', Chekhov suggests using their knowledge of the local Solar System to their advantage, formulating a plan that involves the ''Enterprise'' dropping out of Warp within Titan's atmosphere and using the interference from Saturn's rings to mask their approach from the ''Narada's'' sensors.

* In ''Film/Aquaman2018'', the first duel between Arthur and his half-brother Orm is in Orm's favor due to this. Arthur has spent most of his life on land, and though he was trained in the ways of Atlantean combat by Vulko, he's still a relative novice at fighting underwater. Orm on the other hand has spent his whole life underwater and has been trained since childhood to be a master of fighting underwater. Arthur is able to hold his own for a bit, but it becomes painfully clear that he has no chance of winning. [[spoiler:Mera's intervention is the only thing that saves Arthur's life.]] In their rematch, Mera advises Arthur to take the fight to his home turf, so Arthur forces them to the surface. Orm is not used to fighting on the surface, while Arthur is, allowing Arthur to defeat him.

[[folder:Franchises]]
* Franchise/MonsterVerse:
** [[Characters/MonsterVerseGodzilla Godzilla]] is a lumbering MightyGlacier on land, but he's surprisingly fast when swimming in the ocean. In ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'', he takes advantage of this when [[spoiler:he drags King Ghidorah underwater during their second fight. Godzilla can fight easily in the ocean, while Ghidorah is hampered by his massive wings.]] Similarly, during his first encounter at sea with Kong in ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'', Godzilla is able to nearly kill Kong (who, as an ape, is poorly suited for the water) very quickly by just dragging him underwater to drown him.
** Conversely in regards to ''Godzilla vs. Kong'', when Godzilla and [[Characters/MonsterVerseKingKong Kong]] face off a second time in Hong Kong, the big ape can [[KingKongClimb rapidly swing between the skyscrapers]] and more easily dodge Godzilla's attacks.
** In the tie-in graphic novel ''Kingdom Kong'', [[Characters/MonsterVerseKaiju Camazotz]] takes full advantage of being a GiantFlyer whilst fighting Kong, a versatile but ultimately land-bound Titan who doesn't really have anything his size to swing off of. It's when Kong has Camazotz on the ground that the latter is in trouble.
[[/folder]]

-->'''The Liberty Manifesto''': "We had the advantages of interior lines of supply ([[DeadpanSnarker that's military for 'surrounded']]) and familiar terrain (that's military for 'we're fighting them in our own living rooms')..."

* In **TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}, similarly, most demigod-level outsiders (Demon Lords, Archdevils, etc.) receive various additional benefits when fought within their personal realms.

* ''VideoGame/{{AkaSeka}}'': Each character is native to a country within the game's universe, and employing them in battles taking place in that country will grant them buffs as well as bonus experience points. For example, Abe no Seimei is from the Miyabi country, so bringing him to a battle in that country makes him more powerful and gives him more experience points.

[[folder:Web Original]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' in the episode "Syren" the titular mermaid villain floods Paris. The underwater environment causes issues for Ladybug and Chat Noir who can't breathe underwater. This is remedied by special potions which grant them aquatic abilities.
* ''WesternAnimation/Primal2019'':

* ''Inverted'' in ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' with Lapis Lazuli, who has [[MakingASplash hydrokinesis]]. A projection of the Homeworld's intended terraforming of Earth and Peridot not even knowing what rain ''is'' implies the Gem Homeworld has little to no water. If true, Lapis is nothing hot on Homeworld, but on Earth (which is primarily COVERED in water), her powers [[LikeADuckTakesToWater make her]] [[PersonOfMassDestruction near god-like]].

** Most characters in the ''TabletopGame/ChroniclesOfDarkness'' can buy some form of "Safehouse" merit. Upgrading the Security rating of the Safehouse penalizes attempts to break in. Most supernatural characters also have abilities that can make attacking a safehouse very difficult, such as [[TabletopGame/WerewolfTheForsaken Werewolf]] warding Rituals, [[TabletopGame/GeistTheSinEaters Sin-Eater]] Boneyard Manifestations (which overlap with FieldPowerEffect), or various [[TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening Mage]] tricks (Wards, Bans, spatial distortions, spirit or ghost guardians, Life-altered guard animals, {{Golems}}, contingency-triggered spells, [[LongList etc]]).

Of course, this isn't just about sports. If the [[AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs bad guys attack the hero in his home]], he's bound to have [[HomeAloneAntics a few tricks up his sleeve]]. Even if he doesn't have anything prepared, who knows his home better than he does? Perhaps you're a local hero and everyone supports you, actively or clandestinely, in your fight against the rampaging killbots. Perhaps you're a PhysicalGod, and your home is literally part of you. Perhaps you can even [[DomainHolder change the local laws of physics]] to confound attackers. The possibilities are endless.