History WorfHadTheFlu / FanWorks

** In ''Fanfic/WhatIfFreezaTurnedGood'', Freeza's Golden Freeza form can't reach its original levels of power due to Freeza's [[spoiler:being a cyborg; his cybernetics have to be manually upgraded]].

* The ''Series/StarTrekVoyager''/''Series/StargateUniverse'' crossover "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13312588/1/Destiny-and-Voyager-Crossroads Destiny and Voyager: Crossroads]]" includes a confrontation between ''Destiny'' and some Romulan vessels. On its own against even one Romulan ship, ''Destiny'' has sufficiently powerful weapons to do some damage to the Romulans, but this depends on the enemy ship being in the right position as the guns on ''Destiny'' are so degraded from millennia of not being maintained thatthey cannot manoeuvre properly. However, once Starfleet ships show up to help out, ''Destiny'' is able to provide more support by directing their allies on where to fire, as ''Destiny'' is capable of seeing through the Romulan cloaking devices. Once ''Destiny'' is taken to Earth, the ship [[TheGreatRepair receives a thorough refit by Starfleet]], ensuring that such a beating will not happen again.

* Flashbacks in "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13270236/1/Alive Alive]]" reveal that this is basically how Belle finally managed to kill Gaston; she had spent a few years forced to act as his dutiful wife once it was made clear she couldn't escape and he would threaten the village if she did get away, but when Gaston actively tried to murder her for failing to give him a son, Belle manages to land a few lucky blows on him because he didn't expect her to still try and fight back. Belle is then able to put some distance between them after running into the forest because Gaston's so drunk he isn't operating at his best, but even then, Belle only actually ''kills'' Gaston using a knife he threw at her to cut the worn support rope of an old bridge while he's crossing it.

* The ''Series/StarTrekVoyager''/''Series/StargateUniverse'' crossover "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13312588/1/Destiny-and-Voyager-Crossroads Destiny and Voyager: Crossroads]]" includes a confrontation between ''Destiny'' and some Romulan vessels. On its own against even one Romulan ship, ''Destiny'' has sufficiently powerful weapons to do some damage to the Romulans, but this depends on the enemy ship being in the right position as the guns on ''Destiny'' are so badly damaged they cannot manoeuvre properly. However, once Starfleet ships show up to help out, ''Destiny'' is able to provide more support by directing their allies on where to fire, as ''Destiny'' is capable of seeing through the Romulan cloaking devices.

** Under normal circumstances, as proven in their [[Manga/AkameGaKill source material]], a fight between Akame and Enshin would be a CurbStompBattle in the former's favor. When they clash here; however, Akame is running on fumes from all the injuries and exertion she's piled up over the course of the FinalBattle, especially a stab wound in her chest from Kurome that hasn't healed properly, while he's completely fresh. As such, he's able to overwhelm rather easily and pin her down, [[spoiler:which prompts Wave and Kurome to finally take her and Shirou's side against the four members of Wild Hunt present.]]

** Since [[ForWantOfANail there was no Uchiha Massacre]], Danzo has to make do with just ''one'' stolen eye, and [[spoiler:his overreliance upon it enables Mizuki and Iruka to take him down once they figure out how to circumvent it]].

[[AC:''Franchise/{{Supergirl}}'']]

* In ''Fanfic/FracturedSovereignGFC'', a ''Franchise/MassEffect''[=/=]''Franchise/StarWars''[[spoiler:[=/=]''Franchise/{{Borderlands}}'']] [[MassiveMultiplayerCrossover crossover]], the [[BigBadDuumvirate JVLN Alliance]] (Cerberus combined with pro-human forces from another galaxy) actively [[TheChessmaster exploits]] this trope by setting up "Worf" (RNS ''Revenant'', a [[MileLongShip huge]] [[TheBattlestar Star Dreadnaught]]) with the "flu." Specifically, by analyzing information about other ships like it, they know exactly how to AttackItsWeakPoint after ensuring it is PointDefenseless due to being unable to fire on friendly [=IFFs=] stolen through old-fashioned spycraft. Further, a fake attack caused any other defensive weapons to initially fire in the wrong direction. Finally, the ship is experiencing a PhlebotinumBreakdown (out of fuel) anyway, so is already weakened.

* ''Fanfic/FeralnetteAUBigFatBreak'': Chat Noir gets hit by this during ''Even a Worm Will Turn'' when attempting to duel White Knight. As it turns out, [[spoiler:the sword created by Ladybug's Lucky Charm was a ''prop sword'']] -- something he doesn't realize until the fight begins, putting him on the defensive and making it hard for him to compensate for the unexpected factor.

** Essentially applies to the canon characters [[spoiler:regarding Rita Skeeter; since Harry never lends the Marauder's Map to Moody in this timeline, Rita is caught in her animagus form when Harry glances at the Map and sees her name close by their current location when Rita herself is nowhere in sight]].

[[AC:''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'']]
* {{Lampshaded}} in ''[[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/299981/1/why-no-one-messes-with-celestia/behold-the-bringer-of-light Why No One Messes With Celestia]]'' where the titular character notes that a lot of ponies doubted her power after she was defeated by Queen Chrysalis. According to the alicorn herself, she had to choose between losing the fight and hoping things would work out or winning but incinerating the entire castle and its inhabitants. Her true power fires a beam of plasma that burns as hot as the sun's core but also requires almost a solid minute of preparation to cast all the spells to protect her surroundings and anyone who isn't her target.

* In ''FanFic/{{Fractured}}'', a ''Franchise/MassEffect''[=/=]''Franchise/StarWars''[[spoiler:[=/=]''Franchise/{{Borderlands}}'']] [[MassiveMultiplayerCrossover crossover]], the [[BigBadDuumvirate JVLN Alliance]] (Cerberus combined with pro-human forces from another galaxy) actively [[TheChessmaster exploits]] this trope by setting up "Worf" (RNS ''Revenant'', a [[MileLongShip huge]] [[TheBattlestar Star Dreadnaught]]) with the "flu." Specifically, by analyzing information about other ships like it, they know exactly how to AttackItsWeakPoint after ensuring it is PointDefenseless due to being unable to fire on friendly [=IFFs=] stolen through old-fashioned spycraft. Further, a fake attack caused any other defensive weapons to initially fire in the wrong direction. Finally, the ship is experiencing a PhlebotinumBreakdown (out of fuel) anyway, so is already weakened.

Rex initially fares poorly against Van Kleiss, with his anger making him sloppier and easier to predict. Once Ben arrives and he calms down, the two easily gain the upper hand in the fight.

* Downplayed in ''Fanfic/AmazingFantasy''. Izuku struggles in his fight against Yaoyorozu during the Heroes vs. Villains exercise as he was already injured and winded after his fierce brawl with Bakugou. His attention was also occupied with getting to the bomb hidden among her decoys and the increasing pressure of him running down the clock. Even then, he notes that he could probably defeat her if he went all-out, but he decides against that as he wouldn't be able to properly regulate his SuperStrength to avoid seriously hurting her.
* In ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8702285/1/The-Ninth-Sekirei-Pillar The Ninth Sekirei Pillar]]'', Naruto fought against Mutsu three times. The first two, he was either not taking Mutsu seriously or was completely exhausted. The third fight, Naruto was fully rested and pissed, resulting in Mutsu being on the wrong end of a CurbStompBattle.

* ''FanFic/SecondWind'': Luffy and Zoro, having done MentalTimeTravel, are capable of using Haki and are already stronger than most New World Captains. The thing is, they'd be even stronger than that if they weren't in their younger, untrained bodies. While they still know how to do their techniques, their bodies are too weak to handle the full scope of their improved fighting styles. It's explicitly stated that his is the reason why Zoro, despite putting up a much better fight than in canon, still lost to Mihawk at the Baratie.
* In ''[[http://ficwad.com/story/228496 The Pride]]'' [[Franchise/{{Naruto}} Sakura]] manages to defeat [[OldMaster Tsunade]] because while the former isn't yet twenty, the latter is sixty and her ultimate technique has aged her closer to eighty. Once Tsunade is rejuvenated to her prime again, making her stronger than ever since she's still an OldSoldier, Sakura compares their spars to when she first started training under Tsunade.
* In ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9920512/1/Reaching-for-a-Dream Reaching for a Dream]]'' Naruto gets ambushed by Orochimaru (who not only has a powerful new body but has also learned [[SuperMode Sage Mode]]) then shortly afterwards Itachi and Kisame come to collect the Kyuubi. While Orochimaru does flee when he realizes they've arrived and Naruto does manage to kill Kisame, Itachi's still alive (though injured) and Naruto's completely out of juice. He's left with no other option than to limp away and hope that either Itachi collapses before he does or help arrives.
* According to Dumbledore in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11502532/4/Breath-of-the-Inferno Breath of the Inferno]]'', the only reason Harry beat Voldemort was because the latter was severely weakened, utterly deranged, and acting uncharacteristically stupid. Even so, Voldemort proves capable of casting a dozen spells with a single wave of his wand and Harry only barely wins.

* When Lelouch tries to use his victory over Cornelia during the Black Rebellion as why he can defeat her in Saitama in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9919523/1/Code-Geass-Redo-of-the-Rebellion Code Geass: Redo of the Rebellion]]'', C.C. corrects him that he beat Cornelia while she was in the middle of a psychological breakdown, not at her prime.
* [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Spike]] reflects in ''[[http://buffy.adult-fanfiction.org/story.php?no=600092175&chapter=2 Hurt Me]]'' that he only beat two Slayers by severely weakening both first. The Slayer he fought during the Boxer Rebellion he'd killed after posing as a soldier and sending troops after her for several days. Against Nikki Wood, he left her sleep deprived by scaring her infant son several times each night for a few days then fought her in a subway car where she couldn't use her weapons effectively. He's fully aware that if he hadn't, he would have been staked in seconds by either one.
* Lampshaded by Ranma in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12327523/5/Ranma-Happenstance-Gone-Right Happenstance Gone Right]]'' that the first time he and Shampoo fought she'd been tired, had no idea how he fought, and severely underestimated him while Ranma was rested, had watched her fights, and knew she was a strong fighter. Now that they're sparring after knowing each other for some time, she'll do much better.
* Deliberately averted in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3665921/51/Black-Flames-Dance-In-The-Wind-Rise-of-Naruto Black Flames Dance in the Wind: Rise of Naruto]]'' when Ino challenges Sakura to a fight. Sakura gives Ino a soldier pill to make sure she's at 100% so she doesn't have an excuse when she loses.
-->'''Sakura''': You're going to be fresh as a daisy when I plant you in the ground.
** Much earlier, Naruto won handily against Zabuza because the latter got too caught up in the fight to remember the gravity seals on his sword weighing him down.
* In ''Fanfic/FateParallelFantasia'', several characters get more than one Servant. The problem is that since a Master has to supply Servants with energy, the Servants are not as strong as they would normally be since the energy is divided.

* In ''Fanfic/AvengersOfTheRing'', the energy drain caused by the portal that sent them to Middle-Earth is the only reason Thor and the Hulk didn’t just tear through their early opposition such as the troll and the Uruk-Hai army and cut a path to Mount Doom single-handedly, as they needed time to regain their lost energy; immediately after arriving in Middle-Earth, the vortex had drained so much power that Banner only retained a degree of Hulk’s enhanced healing, and Thor’s only obvious abilities were greater-than-average strength and the ability to summon Mjolnir back to him after he threw it.
* In ''Fanfic/TheLandOfWhatMightHaveBeen'', it is revealed that Elphaba suffered from a minor variant of this in her first fight with 'Alphaba', an alternate version of herself with virtual immortality and over fifty years' more experience of using magic than Elphaba herself. In Elphaba's first direct fight with her counterpart, Elphaba had just survived a particularly gruelling battle with a creature that is essentially the manifestation of Frexspar's rage and loathing, where Alphaba came to the fight fresh and ready to attack. When the two face for a second time with both of them starting the fight refreshed and alert, although Alphaba still has more raw power and experience, both of them starting the fight at their peak allows Elphaba to withstand Alphaba's initial assault and provoke her into a rage where she will make mistakes and let Elphaba get past her defences.
* ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'' features a few examples of this:
** In Chapter 18, two of Misty's Pokémon were defeated by a wild Golduck. This happened because [[WhatIsThisFeeling she was so worried]] [[ClingyJealousGirl about the possibility of Iris getting together with Ash]] that her head wasn't in the battle. In the same chapter, Ash loses a round against Paul because he's too angry to be focused, [[spoiler: because Paul blasted Ash's Primeape into the sky, possibly with fatal consequences]].
** In Chapter 21, the Team Rocket trio is able to capture a criminal named Felgrand since all of his Pokémon had just been defeated by Ash.
** In the Whitney Interlude, one night owl of a trainer tries to invoke this with Whitney by challenging her at four in the morning, thinking she'll be too tired to battle him at full capacity. It doesn't work. If anything, it backfired by making Whitney angrier and more motivated to beat him.
** Giselle in the Pokémon Tech Interlude [[CurbStompBattle lost rather easily to Ash]], who despite being technically a rookie at the time, [[PeggySue has knowledge about her from the previous timeline]].
** In his own gaiden, Ash's Charmander constantly lost his battles under Damian due to a mix of overworking himself and Damian not bothering to properly feed and heal him.
* Lampshaded in ''[[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/299981/1/why-no-one-messes-with-celestia/behold-the-bringer-of-light Why No One Messes With Celestia]]'' where the titular character notes that a lot of ponies doubted her power after she was defeated by Queen Chrysalis. According to the alicorn herself, she had to choose between losing the fight and hoping things would work out or winning but incinerating the entire castle and its inhabitants. Her true power fires a beam of plasma that burns as hot as the sun's core but also requires almost a solid minute of preparation to cast all the spells to protect her surroundings and anyone who isn't her target.
* Jaune does fairly well against Neo in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12574905/20/In-the-Kingdom-s-Service In the Kingdom's Service]]'' despite her being overwhelmingly the superior fighter because the car she was standing on a moment ago exploded, leaving her injured, deaf, and physically unbalanced.
* In ''FanFic/FadedBlue'', [[MakingASplash Lapis]] is unable to defeat Garnet when confronted at the fountain because the most readily available body of liquid consists of Rose's healing tears, which instantly heal whatever damage she deals. Lapis herself quickly realizes this and [[KnowWhenToFoldEm decides to retreat]], but Garnet manages to grab and poof her when she tries to fly Steven and Blue Pearl to safety as well.
* Downplayed in ''Fanfic/TheWarIsFarFromOverNow''. Vision does remarkably well against Ultron and the Chitauri but he still realizes he's nowhere near as effective as he could be because, being only an hour old, Vision barely understands what his powers are, let alone how to use them.
* ''Fanfic/FateHaremAntics'':
** Rider gets stabbed with Lancer's Gae Bolg. Since Gae Bolg inflicts [[WoundThatWillNotHeal wounds that do not heal naturally]], the wound hinders her and makes her struggle in her next few fights. It isn't until she [[IntimateHealing has sex with Shirou]] that she gains enough mana to heal the wound.
** Like in canon, Saber's poor energy supply from Shirou leaves her with poor stamina and unable to use Mana Burst very often, until she replenishes her mana by having sex with Shirou.
* Ash's Duskull Spectre in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11803928/25/Challenger Challenger]]'' is eventually revealed to be even older than Agatha but because it never bonded with a human trainer, most of it's power was still locked away in the Distortion World. After a single battle against Agatha's Mega Gengar, Spectre evolves into Dusclops and Agatha comments that once it has access to it's full power, Spectre will be a match for any of her pokemon.
* Goku in ''Fanfic/LegendOfTheMonkeyGod'' is considerably stronger than canon, including knowing how to fly and use ki attacks before meeting Bulma. However, when the Pilaf gang steal the dragon balls, they also steal almost all of Goku's and Bulma's supplies. By the time Goku and Bulma are captured in Pilaf's castle, Goku's only had a single sandwich to eat in the last day and a half, leaving him too weak to do anything after blasting a hole in their cell. As a result, Bulma has to save the day by stealing Pilaf's wish.
* In the ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'' fanfic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12295645/1 Imperial Servant]]'' the titular pressure point technique is an ancient Amazon punishment for martial artists guilty of rape that has the double effect of making a male unable to have an erection and severely reducing their physical abilities. As [[spoiler:Ranma]] has been under its effects since he was ''twelve'' (though ''not'' because of [[spoiler:Genma]]), every defeat he suffered since then retroactively falls under this.
* Taiyang Xiao Long in ''Fanfic/AGirlAndHerBike'' does very poorly against an Ursa Major, whom any normal Huntsman should have little trouble against, but he was caught off-guard when it attacked and by the time he got his weapon out, his Aura was already in the red.
* ''Fanfic/MyIdealAcademia'': Shirou Emiya gets turned into a kid. He remembers all his fighting skills and magecraft, but is hindered by his smaller body and his underdeveloped muscles and Magic Circuits. He has to slowly learn how to reopen his Magic Circuits. He muses that if he had his older body, he would have defeated Angra Mainyu with ease.

* Optimus in ''Fanfic/TFAKaleidoscope'' doesn't do so well against Pyro-Goblin since his reformatting at the car factory had him rebuilt using weaker Earth metals (it's noted that even the police drones have more durability), plus he starts out the fight with a worn out, powerless battle-axe and the entire fight was in a cramped tunnel where he didn't really have any room to move about.
* Kara in ''Fanfic/DaughterOfFireAndSteel'' ends up getting captured by the military due to the fact that she was still adjusting to her new SuperSenses at the time and was suffering from SensoryOverload, causing the loud noises made by the military's weaponry to hurt her until she was knocked unconscious.
* ''Fanfic/EchoesOfYesterday'': When Kara arrives in Earth Bet, her solar energy reserves are depleted and she estimates it will take her several days in the sun to fully recharge. During this time, she exhausts herself saving the inhabitants of a burning building and immediately gets into a fight with Lung. [[CurbStompCushion Though she gets several good hits in]], she runs out of energy and gets beaten up and knocked out cold.
* ''Fanfic/BecomingATrueInvader'': By the time of her final fight with [[TheDragon Tak]], Gaz is suffering from fatigue and wounds from earlier fights and has to struggle just to keep up with her. [[spoiler:She ultimately wins only thanks to some [[CombatPragmatist pragmatic trickery]].]]

* ''Fanfic/FeralnetteAUBigFatBreak'': Chat Noir gets hit by this during ''Even a Worm Will Turn'' when attempting to duel White Knight. As it turns out, [[spoiler:the sword created by Ladybug's Lucky Charm was a ''prop sword'']] -- something he doesn't realize until after the battle begins, completely throwing him off and causing him to struggle.