Basic Trope Description: A specific law: Every able citizen of a country has to serve in the army for some time.
- Straight: Every male Troperian citizen has to serve in the military for two years after leaving school.
- Exaggerated:
- This law also applies to every female citizen, and also to the disabled and insane. And even the animals and plants of Troperia aren't exempt from it.
- Every citizen of Troperia stays in the military for life (a civilian life is officially a "long leave") and can be even called up to duty in old age.
- Downplayed: Every male Troperian citizen has to serve in the military for two years after leaving school, but there is the option to do two years of volunteer social work instead.
- Justified:
- Troperia has a militaristic culture. Before you haven't served, you aren't considered as a real adult.
- Troperia was invaded and has to get a lot of soldiers fast.
- Troperia is surrounded by hostile countries interested in Troperian land.
- Gender-Inverted: All female citizens of Troperia, a Lady Land, are drafted into the armed forces for two years after leaving school.
- Inverted:
- Troperia has no army, so it is practically mandatory to stay out of the army.
- Troperia has an all-professional army, where all the soldiers are volunteers. It is especially forbidden by law to force anyone to join the military.
- Subverted: Bob, a young Troperian, laments that he doesn't want to touch a gun, and that he is especially not a Death Seeker. Then we learn that he was blackmailed to kill himself.
- Double Subverted: Bob is a Straw Civilian and considers the draft a call to die a senseless death.
- Enforced: The work is intended as a political commentary about war, conscription and how to lead an army in general.
- Averted: All armies in the work are professional-only armies.
- Parodied: Every conscript suddenly gets sick as soon as they gather in the induction office: One goes suddenly blind, the other one suddenly deaf, the next one is suddenly insane...
- Zigzagged: Some countries in the setting practice conscription, others not.
- Invoked: The Government of Troperia passes conscription laws due to the looming threat from Tropestan.
- Exploited: Albert, a Drill Sergeant Nasty, uses the steady influx of soldiers to live out his darkest sadistic fantasies.
- Defied: The parliament of Troperia decides about installing conscription laws, but they don't come to pass.
- Lampshaded: "Congratulations to your graduation!" "Thank you, but I will only be pleased in two years...when I get out of the army."
- Implied: All young adult male Troperians are performing universal military service.
- Discussed: Alex and Charlie discuss whether they will follow the draft, how it will be in the army and how they will spend their incoming time there.
- Conversed: "If my country had this, I would participate in protests against it."
- Deconstructed:
- Many young Troperians die in the country's many wars. The women don't have enough men left to marry, and the civilian workforce is considerably weakened.
- The war and time spent in the army traumatizes and brutalizes most Troperian men, what makes things like Domestic Abuse and alcoholism a common problem in Troperia.
- Reconstructed: Troperia is usually at peace, and knows that an army should be only there for self-defense. The mandatory time in the army is usually more like a sports camp that is followed by life in a nearly normal workplace, and usually nothing cruel and traumatizing.
- Played for Laughs: Conscripts learn stuff like handing out flowers and courtship. Everything with the justification that this is the best way to secure peace.
- Played for Drama: During their time in the army, the conscripts are confronted with massive bullying, Drill Sergeant Nasty, terrible food and apathetic to outright malicious superiors. Everyone just tries to survive and not to get mad and suicidal.
