Villain-Beating Artifact: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

{{quote|''Welcome to my cave, young adventurous Hero. Here, pick one of these three artifacts, because at your current level you can't defeat [[Big Bad|the villain]] or [[Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?|punch out Cthulhu]]. He, his [[Mook]]s, scientific experiment pet, and his three-year-old niece will [[Curb Stomp Battle|defeat you in less than a minute]] if you do not use this item.

''The first was forged of [[Made of Good|purest minerals]] and one of its special ingredients is [[Nature Adores a Virgin|virgin tears of joy]]. This artifact is able to take on and even kill [[Made of Evil|Evil Incarnate]] itself.

''The second is a whip that was handed down from the legendary [[Vampire Hunter]]s, whose heir is lost to history. If their blood runs in your veins, this will boost your [[Amplifier Artifact|current spells and strength]] to be on an equal match with the [[Big Bad]]'s strength, skills, and magic.

''Which do you choose?}}

 

The [[Villain-Beating Artifact]] is a one-purpose [[MacGuffin]] that makes it possible for a functionally inferior hero to take out a vastly superior [[Big Bad]]. What differentiates it from the [[Infinity+1 Sword]] is that it's ''only'' useful against that one Big Bad -- against any other foe or in any other context it's basically no more effective than a wet noodle. And that assumes it can even be wielded or applied in situations outside of its intended purpose; some video game instances of the Villain-Beating Artifact are simply inert lumps occupying inventory space before and after their special use. However, against its intended target it is often a [[One-Hit Kill]], turning him from [[Hopeless Boss Fight|an unbeatable monster]] into a [[Zero Effort Boss]].

 

 

 

{{examples}}

== Comic Books ==

* [[DC Comics]] has the Spear of Destiny, which is the most powerful weapon ever. It holds supernatural powers that allows its owner to [[Mind Control| control the minds]] of those with superpowers.

 

== Film ==

* ''[[Kubo and the Two Strings]]'': The titular character and his companions must find three weapons -- the "Sword Unbreakable," "Breastplace Impenetrable," and "Helmet" -- in order to defeat the Moon King. {{spoiler|Kubo has little to no training on how to use these weapons. So, he [[Taking a Third Option|takes a third option]] and uses his shamisen to defeat the Moon King.}}

* In ''[[Omen III]]'', [[The Antichrist]] Damien Thorne's weakness is the Seven Daggers of Megiddo. Only one will do.

 

== Literature ==

* ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' had several such items:

** The Troll God's Hammer that's used to whomp Glory down to size in Season 5.

** Hope's Dagger, which was made from the first sun rays on earth. This is the only weapon to harm the First Evil.

* ''[[Doctor Who]]'': Subverted in the episode "Last of the Time Lords," which has Martha Jones spending a whole year searching for a weapon which was separated into four parts that can defeat the Master. It's revealed at the end that the Villain-Beating Artifact {{spoiler|was just a ruse merely to distract from Martha's real objective.}}

* ''[[Once Upon a Time (TV series)|Once Upon a Time]]'' twisted this trope. The only way to defeat the [[Big Bad]] is to steal his dagger, {{spoiler|but you'll replace the Big Bad if [[You Kill It, You Bought It|you somehow manage to kill him.]]}} The Duke chose to ''control'' the Dark One with this dagger; Rumplestiltskin did not.

* In ''[[Madan Senki Ryukendo]]'', it's stated in the Kanon of Light that {{spoiler|to defeat DaiMaOh, they need three Ultimate Keys.}}

 

== Video Games ==

* ''[[Warcraft 3]]'': Not a specific weapon, but mainly a damage type. Divine armor's weakness is Chaos, which is reserved for Hell's legions or insanely strong monsters. In order to defeat [[Physical God|Cenarius]], an invulnerable demigod, Grom Hellscream's orcs reactivate some sort of demon pact which allows them to defeat him [[Gameplay and Story Segregation|by giving them Chaos damage]].

** Also, Illidan devours the Skull of Guldan (another VBA), which the Legion were using earlier to spread corruption in the Night Elves' forests. This turns him into a half-demon, but gives him the powers to defeat Tichondrius.

** Someone told Prince Arthas that to defeat Mal'Ganis (the dreadlord), he must search for the Frostmourne (a legendary sword). Once Arthas gets it, he confronts the dreadlord. Mal'Ganis laughs and states he fell into their trap, and to add to the sucky-ness, the sword consums Arthas's soul. While it's true, Arthas's real master is the Lich King, who seems to serve the Burning Legion and [[The Starscream|has his personal agendas]]. Arthas then follows orders to slay Mal'Ganis.

* In ''[[Neverwinter Nights 2]]'', the only way to injure and even kill the King of Shadows was to find the Silver Sword of Gith. But it was broken into several shards when it was used earlier and your character isn't the only one interested in collecting them.

* In ''[[Baldur's Gate 2]]'', you are told that you'll need a special rod of destruction to defeat the Unseeing Eye. Actually, it's easier (though less profitable) to just kill his followers until he appears, since the Unseeing Eye is just a standard mage with more hit points than usual and less dangerous (unlike the beholders that one needs to kill just to get the rod).

* In ''[[Colobot]]'', the only way to defeat the alien queen is to find and use the Phazer Shooter. You'll need to collect four keys to open the vault in order to acquire it.

** ''[[Fire Emblem Gaiden]]'' has its own Falchion, which is the only thing that can kill off Duma once and for all (besides using the Cleric's Nosferatu spell, which may be a bug in the original game).

** ''[[Fire Emblem: Genealogy of Holy War]]'' has the Falchion substitute in the form of the Naga spell: [[In-Universe]], it's treated as one, but on a gameplay standpoint the Naga spell isn't necessary to defeat the [[Final Boss]]. (Good luck beating him without it, though.)

* Both invoked and averted at various times in the late, lamented ''[[City of Heroes]]''/''[[City of Villains]]''. During some plot arcs you would be given special weapons to use on the enemy at hand -- but you didn't ''have'' to use them, and they would remain in your inventory of powers until you used up their charges (which could be months or even ''years'' later). A good example would be the anti-ghost weapons you could get in several different arcs, including a villain arc that sent you up against [[The Dragon|Ghost Widow]]. In other arcs, though, you would find, receive or craft weapons or items that would immediately vanish with the end of your need for them -- this included things like the grenades from the Lambda trial or the wand which cures the Lost that you would make at the end of the Midnighter Club membership arc.

 

== Western Animation ==

* In ''[[Adventure Time]]'', the gauntlet that Billy owns has the power to seal the Lich. {{spoiler|Unfortunately, the bad guy destroyed it before Finn can make good use of it. Finn has to resort to using the [[Power of Love|Power of Liking Someone A Lot]], just to destroy its physical form.}}

* In ''[[Scooby Doo Mystery Inc]]'', Scoob and his friends found out that they need to find and use the Heart of the Jaguar to destroy {{spoiler|the Crystal Sarcophagus, because Annuaki was sealed in it.}} During the final episode, {{spoiler|the real "Heart of the Jaguar" wasn't the crystal spearhead (which was destroyed earlier), it's [[The Power of Friendship]] which binds the gang together. This and teamwork were used and Scooby use the spearshaft to shatter the sarcophagus.}}

 

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