Hypothetical Game Case Study: The Samurai

Let's go back to our samurai swordsman. Your Master has a bonsai tree that is 150 years old cultivated, and handed down to him by his own Master who is long since deceased. Your Master has used the careful cultivation of the small tree to perfect his patience.

Then, during either a cinematic or during gameplay, the villain destroys the tree. This would foreshadow the fact that your Master is going to be killed.

The bonsai tree could be turned into a Usable Symbol, with a function in gameplay its magic could heal you when you're injured or restore your life force when depleted. Thus, its destruction would not just foreshadow your Master's death; it would also affect gameplay by depriving you of a source of healing and thus increasing your jeopardy.