History Main / SymbolicWeaponDiscarding

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': In [[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheAwakening the third season premiere]], Aang struggles to admit that the Fire Nation defeated him. He refuses to do anything that will perpetuate the notion that he is dead, so he won't cover up his distinctive airbending tattoos or hide in a stolen Fire Nation ship. When he finally accepts he's been beaten and must cover up his identity to strike back at the Fire Nation, he does so by burning his airbending staff, the weapon he used most in fighting the Fire Nation before his defeat.

* ''WebVideo/PiratesSMP'': A subtle case; after tracking down his younger brother Acho on a quest star suspected to be a suicide mission, Scott swaps out his [[AncestralWeapon family heirloom rapier]] for a diamond-adorned rapier Acho found and gave him, [[spoiler:shortly before stars MoreHeroThanThou-induced death in said quest]]; by the finale, Scott is seen exclusively using this new weapon, with the old sword absent from his inventory for the entire livestream, with only a couple of cursory mentions that he changed weapons at all. Given his later decision to [[spoiler:leave the Faction Isles to get away from their parents in Acho's memory]], it's evident that even if he's supposed to be [[TheDutifulSon the dutiful "golden child"]] of the family, the BigBrotherInstinct is always going to trump that, and it's this subtle "choice" that allows him to [[spoiler:break free from the [[ParentalFavoritism otherwise toxic]] familial dynamic]] at the end of the finale.

* ''Series/{{Galavant}}'': After King Richard kidnaps Galavant's girlfriend Madalena and forces her to marry him, Galavant rushes to stop their wedding. With all eyes on him when he enters the hall, he begins a [[GrandRomanticGesture grand romantic speech]] that includes tossing aside his sword as he offers Madalena "great love" over King Richard's "great fame" and "great fortune." Madalena chooses the fame and fortune, and the [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome unarmed Galavant is knocked unconscious]] by Richard's bodyguard.

** When the [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Maiden of the Spear]] Aviendha begins training as a [[MagicalSociety Wise One]], her first task is to throw away all her battle gear as a renunciation of her old allegiances. Stoic as she is, it moves her to the brink of tears.

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedValhalla'': Eivor spent their whole life determined not to die a coward and enter Valhalla after being traumatised by their father's SenselessSacrifice as a child. The requirment for that according to their religion is to die in battle with an axe in hand. However, in the climax of the game, Eivor and Sigurd get trapped in Yggdrasil, which is actually a LotusEaterMachine, and they realize that Valhalla is a simulation. In their attempt to escape, Eivor is locked in a HopelessBossFight against Odin, who for the entire game was trying to get Eivor to give in to their rage for the sake of glory. Odin keeps using Eivor's axe to drag them back close to him and force them to keep fighting against him instead of reaching the gate that would let them escape. The only solution? [[SheatheYourSword Unequip the axe and run away]]. This decision marks a huge turning point in Eivor's CharacterDevelopment, as they finally come to terms with their father's death and realize there are far more important things in life than glory on the battlefield, like their clan, family, and friends.

* ''VideoGame/FableI'': The Hero faces a LastSecondEndingChoice: throw the BigBad's InfinityPlusOneSword into the Void forever, or murder his sister with it to claim it for himself. Needless to say, rejecting such an evil source of power is better for both the KarmaMeter and the world at large.

* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'' ends with Moebius officially being defunct and the 10-year curse being lifted, meaning that the ForeverWar between Keves and Agnus is officially over. With this newfound freedom, the one of the first things that Noah does is throw the Lucky Seven into the ocean. This symbolizes that, with the nations separating, his time as an Ouroboros is over, and with the war ended, he now wishes to solve his problems without violence.

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': In [[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheAwakening the third season premiere]], Aang struggles to admit that the Fire Nation defeated him. He refuses to do anything that will perpetuate the notion that he is dead, so he won't cover up his distinctive airbending tattoos or hide in a stole Fire Nation ship. When he finally accepts he's been beaten and must cover up his identity to strike back at the Fire Nation, he does so by burning his airbending staff, the weapon he used most in fighting the Fire Nation before his defeat.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': In "[[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS7E12VictoryAndDeath Victory and Death]]", Ahsoka leaves behind one of her lightsabers [[FakingTheDead to make any pursuers think she died]] in the crash-landing of the ship she was on alongside everyone else. Part of the reason this is symbolic is because the lightsabers were modified by her teacher and friend Anakin Skywalker, who she fears is dead following the announcement of Order 66, and so leaving it behind is her accepting she will never rejoin the Jedi Order. Leaving behind the lightsaber also symbolically represents her leaving behind the Republic, which has now transformed into TheEmpire. In her next chronological appearance in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'' she has built her own custom lightsabers and notably notes that she is "no Jedi".

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedValhalla'': Eivor spent their whole life determined not to die a coward and enter Valhalla after being traumatised by their father's SenselessSacrifice as a child. The requirment for that according to their religion is to die in battle with an axe in hand. However, in the climax of the game, Eivor and Sigurd get trapped in Yggdrasil, which is actually a LotusEaterMachine, and they realize that Valhalla is a simulation. In their attempt to escape, Eivor is locked in a HopelessBossFight against Odin, who for the entire game was trying to get Eivor to give in to their rage for the sake of glory. Odin keeps using Eivor's axe to drag them back close to him and force them to keep fighting against him instead of reaching the gate that would let them escape. The only solution? Unequip the axe and run away. This decision marks a huge turning point in Eivor's CharacterDevelopment, as they finally come to terms with their father's death and realize there are far more important things in life than glory on the battlefield, like their clan, family, and friends.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': In [[Recap/GameOfThronesS1E8ThePointyEnd "The Pointy End"]], [[RoyalBrat King Joffrey]], now occupying the Iron Throne, "rewards" Ser Barristan Selmy, the Lord Commander of his Kingsguard, with forced retirement from what is supposed to be a lifetime post. To make it more offensive, Jaime Lannister, "The Kingslayer", is going to be promoted to Lord Commander. A defiant Ser Barristan, who even at his age could slice through his fellow Kingsguard as if he was cutting cake, throws his sword at Joffrey's feet, telling him to "melt it down with all the rest" of the swords that make up the Iron Throne, and strides out of the throne room.

* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': At the end of season One, Galadriel has to sacrifice Finrod's knife in order to craft the rings that will allow the Elves to remain on Middle Earth. She is hesitant because sacrificing the knife also means finally giving up her obsessive quest to kill Sauron.

* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': At end of season One, Galadriel has to sacrifice Finrod's knife in order to craft the rings that will allow the Elves to remain on Middle Earth. She is hesitant because sacrificing the knife also means finally giving up her obsessive quest to kill Sauron.

* ''Film/TheLittleMermaid2023'': King Triton does this with his trident while agonizing over Ariel's disappearance, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone since used it to destroy her secret grotto in a fit of blind rage]]. After watching it emit an ominous glow that had earlier bathed him in shadows, he lets it slowly drop to the floor. He can't even ''look'' at the thing without being reminded of [[MyGreatestFailure his greatest mistake]].

-->-- ''Literature/TheWayOfKings''

* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'' ends with Moebius officially being defunct and 10-year curse being lifted, meaning that the ForeverWar between Keves and Agnus is officially over. With this newfound freedom, the one of the first things that Noah does is throw the Lucky Seven into the ocean. This symbolizes that, with the nations separating, his time as an Ouroboros is over, and with the war ended, he now wishes to solve his problems without violence.

* ''Manga/TheSevenDeadlySins'': After Meliodas' team was framed for treason and forced to split up, he pawned Lostvayne- the legendary sword given to him by the King of Liones- for money to build [[TheAlcoholic an alehouse]] with. The anecdote shows Meliodas' [[StepfordSmiler otherwise suppressed]] emotions about that day, his incredible power (he correctly ascertained he did ''not'' need a sword to protect himself), and how much he's changed from the bloodthirsty conqueror he used to be. It also shows [[spoiler:the wisdom of Merlin, who found the sword and kept it in reserve until her friend was willing to try again]].

* ''Franchise/AceAttorney'': At the end of the second game, Franziska von Karma, now filled with confusion and doubt after the events of the final case, parts back towards Germany while leaving behind her signature [[WhipItGood whip]]. In the epilogue, if you hand over the whip to Edgeworth, he will give it back to her in the airport, encouraging her to remain a prosecutor, not for pride or honor, but to fight to find the truth. Yes, [[CourtroomAntics this is a game about lawyers]].

* ''VideoGame/TitanQuest'': In the Act 3 quest "A General in Repose", the PlayerCharacter meets Rang Ju, a disgraced former general who has decided to live a life of contemplation in the wilderness. He abandoned his weapons and armor in a nearby cave, declares he has no further need of them in his new life, and allows the player to retrive them if they can find a use for them.

* In ''Manga/NanatsuNoTaizai'', after Meliodas' team was framed for treason and forced to split up, he pawned Lostvayne- the legendary sword given to him by the King of Liones- for money to build [[TheAlcoholic an alehouse]] with. The anecdote shows Meliodas' [[StepfordSmiler otherwise suppressed]] emotions about that day, his incredible power (he correctly ascertained he did ''not'' need a sword to protect himself), and how much he's changed from the bloodthirsty conqueror he used to be. It also shows [[spoiler:the wisdom of Merlin, who found the sword and kept it in reserve until her friend was willing to try again]].

* ''Anime/SaberMarionetteJ to X'': Halfway through the show, after a gruesome battle, the Sabbelberg ends up sinking in a lake. After concerns, the main cast decides to let it sink as it's "a reminder of war times". Afterwards, the Saber Dolls throw their weapons into the same lake, as part of their CharacterDevelopment.