16 teams. 4 rounds. Only one will prevail.
The Great Westmore Nerf War is a Diary of a Wimpy Kid fanfic (or LLB/Looks Like Book) posted on r/LodedDiper throughout May and June 2021 by Reddit user u/CorporalPig22
. It is loosely based on The Great High School Nerf War saga by YouTube user The Sea Rabbit, and also uses some elements from the video game Nerf Arena Blast. The LLB was also featured in the subreddit's "Your Daily Dose of Diper" newsletter.
You can read it here.
Tropes:
- Accidental Misnaming: Subverted and justified, in a way. On Page 29, Holly assures us that she did not accidentally call Greg "Fregley."
- Action Girl: Holly and Trista.
- Adaptational Alternate Ending: The LLB (and by extension the battle against "Who Darted?") ends very differently from the original video by having the G-Force win the entire tournament as opposed to the somewhat Downer Ending from the original video that saw the "Justice League" lose after the third round.
- Adaptation Deviation: Justified by author's notes in the image captions. For example, the story takes place around the year 2000 as opposed to the original video taking place in 2015.
- Adaptation Expansion: The third round in which the G-Force takes on the "Tycoons" in the Plainview Hotel.
- Adaptational Explanation: The Sunday Shootouts from the original video are expanded upon.Greg: So for the Sunday Shootout, the Nerf War moderators set up this big arena outside on the football field. Now, I know that's technically on school grounds, which is usually against the rules, but here, and only here, it's considered fair game. The two teams who tied scores in their rounds will face off against each other, but all five members from each team will participate, regardless if they were eliminated or not. So that meant me, Collin, and Trista were back in the game, but so were Jeffrey, Belvin, and that other guy we ambushed the other day. The first team to have all of their members eliminated loses.
- Adaptational Name Change: The "Flock of Pretty Ducklings" from the original video are now The Flock of Popular Ducklings.
- Age Lift: They may not really look it, but Greg and his friends are sophomores in high school as opposed to being middle schoolers.
- Ascended Extra: Trista and Collin are part of Greg's friend group, and by extension, their Nerf War team.
- Bullet Time: During the Sunday Shootout, Greg dodges several darts in a spoof of "that one scene in The Matrix."
- Continuity Nod: While hiding behind the vending machines at the Plainview Hotel, Greg remarks that "at least there aren't any Scientologists lurking around here," referencing the time he stopped Scientology from taking over the world.
- Didn't Think This Through: Greg believes that he's safe from being shot by his opponent when he's within the bounds of his fenced-off backyard. That is, until an enemy dart sails over the fence and hits him on the chest. The next day at school, the Nerf War moderators explain the flaw in Greg's plan.
- Gang of Hats: All members of the "Too Many Cooks" team wear chef hats like it's 2027. Heck, practically every team participating in the Nerf War (except "Who Darted?") has their own gimmick, whether it's a ragtag group of heroes or a police force with a very unfitting name.note
- Mythology Gag: One of the members of the Too Many Cooks team works part-time at Corny's.
- Also, Greg's high school is called "Westmore High School," a nod to Westmore Middle School from the movies.
- Personal Horror: In the fourth round, after Greg takes out Jeffrey Laffley, he gains a sudden lust for enemy blood, which eventually leads to his elimination in the stairway shootout.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Basically the G-Force's team gimmick.
- Shout-Out: A couple to Scott The Woz. Greg notes that the team "Too Many Cooks" were "wearing chef hats like it was 2027." Later, when the G-Force faces off against Bryce Anderson and his "Flock of Popular Ducklings", Greg takes up a lookout position in the parking lot of a restaurant named "On Your Mark, Get Set....Munch!!".
- Also, one to the classic James Bond title theme:Greg: This had officially turned into a covert, undercover, James Bond-type mission. Cue the guitar riff!
- During the final battle, Greg starts quoting "Sweet Victory".
- Also, one to the classic James Bond title theme:
- The Something Force: Greg's Nerf War team is called the "G-Force."
- Taking the Bullet: Near the end of the Sunday Shootout, Holly saves Greg from being eliminated by diving in front of him and taking the darts for him.
