History Main / GoodWeaponEvilWeapon

*** And [[Film/{{Commando}} Arnold]].

* Whip: Generally evil, with rare exceptions. Often associated with [[WhipOfDominance domination, control, sadism, and oppression]]. The exceptions tend to be {{Adventurer|Archaeologist}} [[Franchise/IndianaJones Archaeologists]], [[{{Franchise/Zorro}} masked swashbucklers]] or [[Franchise/{{Castlevania}} vampire hunters]]. In ''Franchise/ForgottenRealms'' it's also the signature weapon of the (good) goddess of love and the Rashemi Hathran sect. Whips are not known for being lethal, so most wielders tend to be people who [[ThouShaltNotKill refuse to kill]] (on the heroic side), while on the villainous side it tends to be used by {{slave|ryIsASpecialKindOfEvil}}drivers as well as {{dominatrix}}es and other types who love to savor the pain of the enemy.

* {{Handguns}}: If guns are a mainstay, good. If not, dishonorable and evil with exception to dwarves.
** [[GunsAkimbo Two Handguns]]: Badass.
* Revolver: Often the weapon of a heroic gunslinger. On the other hand, it might be the weapon of a {{sadist}} who torments his victims with RussianRoulette.
* Assault Rifles: Evil if it's a Communist AK-47, good if it's an American M-16. Either way, usually not a main character. Unless it is an AceCustom Assault Rifle, which have laser sights and an underslung launcher.
* {{Hand Cannon}}s: AntiHero. Common in FilmNoir, detective stories, and cyberpunk.
* Submachine Guns: Mainly used by mooks, antiheroes or villains.
* {{Sawed Off Shotgun}}s: Evil, or at least {{Anti Hero}}ic, except when facing zombies.
* {{Sniper Rifle}}s: Sign of a villainous ProfessionalKiller, VillainProtagonist, or PsychoForHire. Hero characters using one of these are usually in the role of the FriendlySniper, the guy whose role is to shut down bad guys trying to ambush another hero.
* [[MoreDakka Machine Guns]]: Evil.
** Exception made for soldiers in war movies who sometimes use them, although they are generally not the hero.
*** And [[Film/{{Commando}} Arnold]].
* [[GatlingGood Gatling Guns]]: Badass (again, [[Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay Arnold]] [[Film/{{Predator}} or his friend]]), though they tend to vary wildly on ''who'' actually wields it. Typically TheBigGuy or TheBrute tend to be prominent wielders of the good ol' Gatling Gun.

* [[GatlingGood Gatling Guns]]: Badass (again, [[Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay Arnold]] [[Film/{{Predator}} or his friend]])

See GoodGunsBadGuns [[SubTrope for the more detailed gun version]]. Accompanied with GoodArmorEvilArmor. Contrast EvilWeapon, where the weapon doesn't just look evil, it ''is'' evil.

* [[DropTheHammer Hammers]]: More likely to be good than axes due to not overtly spilling blood, and normally used by TheBigGuy or dwarves. Also a popular weapon of choice for ThePaladin. Sometimes shows up in the hands of brutish bad guys, though. Regular tool-style hammers being used as a weapon of choice is usually the sign of AxCrazy.

* ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' has an interesting example involving ''the exact same weapon''. In the original trilogy, the AntiHero Kratos primary weapons are the Blades of Chaos/Athena/Exile, jagged blades with a red lightning pattern on their sides, which look just as imposing and brutish as Kratos himself. But when Kratos [[spoiler:is forced to re-use the Blades of Chaos in order to fight through the Norse Underworld to acquire an item needed to save his son during the events of ''VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4'', the blades (after a fair amount of upgrading) instead bare an elegant, runic design, showing how much CharacterDevelopment Kratos has undergone since his time in Greece]].

* [[BladeOnAStick Spears]]: Good if used by named characters, evil if used by mooks. Non-named non-evil characters with spears will usually be RedShirts, unless it's Orthodox Christian art, in which spears are depicted as wielded by good angels, both named and unnamed.
* [[BladeOnAStick Polearms]]: You don't see many of these outside of mooks, though more sophisticated warriors such as the LadyOfWar might use them.

* Whip: Generally evil, with rare exceptions. The exceptions tend to be {{Adventurer|Archaeologist}} [[Franchise/IndianaJones Archaeologists]], [[{{Franchise/Zorro}} masked swashbucklers]] or [[Franchise/{{Castlevania}} vampire hunters]]. In ''Franchise/ForgottenRealms'' it's also the signature weapon of the (good) goddess of love and the Rashemi Hathran sect. Whips are not known for being lethal, so most wielders tend to be people who [[ThouShaltNotKill refuse to kill]] (on the heroic side), while on the villainous side it tends to be used by {{slave|ryIsASpecialKindOfEvil}}drivers as well as {{dominatrix}}es and other types who love to savor the pain of the enemy.

* Whip: Generally evil, [[WhipItGood with rare exceptions]]. The exceptions tend to be {{Adventurer|Archaeologist}} [[Franchise/IndianaJones Archaeologists]], [[{{Franchise/Zorro}} masked swashbucklers]] or [[Franchise/{{Castlevania}} vampire hunters]]. In ''Franchise/ForgottenRealms'' it's also the signature weapon of the (good) goddess of love and the Rashemi Hathran sect. Whips are not known for being lethal, so most wielders tend to be people who [[ThouShaltNotKill refuse to kill]] (on the heroic side), while on the villainous side it tends to be used by {{slave|ryIsASpecialKindOfEvil}}drivers as well as {{dominatrix}}es and other types who love to savor the pain of the enemy.

* ''Film/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'': The sergeant finds a private who has cut serrations into his bayonet, and explains that the opposition will not like this and do particularly nasty things to him if they catch him. The sergeant then goes on to explain that in hand-to-hand trench warfare, the best thing is to [[CombatPragmatist lop the opponent's head off with a short-handled shovel]].

!Examples:

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

[[folder:Film]]

[[folder:Mythology]]

[[folder:Religion]]
* In Orthodox Christian religious art, good angels are depicted with swords -- occasionally an example of a FlamingSword, -- spears, or occasionally bows (generally, if an angel is pictured alone, he wields a sword, while depictions of angels vanquishing demons, e.g. the scene of the Last Judgment, show angels wielding spears or bows). Demons have tridents or whips.
[[/folder]]

** This trope most likely came from [[Art/TheBayeuxTapestry Bishop Odo of Bayeux]], a kinsman of William the Conqueror, who was trying the game the system (at that time, clergy was not allowed to participate in combat -- to this day, for obvious reasons, the Catholic Church frowns VERY HEAVILY on it, and "warrior monk" orders like the Templars, Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights no longer function as military religious orders)by wading into combat during the Battle of Hastings in 1066 with a weapon that was less likely to shed blood on the rationalization that made it OK.

** This trope most likely came from Bishop Odo of Bayeux, a kinsman of William the Conqueror, who was trying the game the system (at that time, clergy was not allowed to participate in combat -- to this day, for obvious reasons, the Catholic Church frowns VERY HEAVILY on it, and "warrior monk" orders like the Templars, Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights no longer function as military religious orders)by wading into combat during the Battle of Hastings in 1066 with a weapon that was less likely to shed blood on the rationalization that made it OK.

** Another exemption is any Chinese action film set in the Three Kingdoms period, as at least one of the main [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking Generals]] favors a polearm.

** Tomahawks: [[NobleSavage Good nowadays]], NobleSavage trait from nowadays to [[OnceAcceptableTargets a few decades back]], and villainous (in Westerns) before that.

* ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' has an interesting example involving ''the exact same weapon''. In the original trilogy, the AntiHero Kratos primary weapons are the Blades of Chaos/Athena/Exile, jagged blades with a red lightning pattern on their sides, which look just as imposing and brutish as Kratos himself. But when Kratos [[spoiler:is forced to re-use the Blades of Chaos in order to go into the Norse Underworld to acquire an item needed to save his son during the events of ''VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4'', the blades (after a fair amount of upgrading) instead bare an elegant, runic design, showing how much CharacterDevelopment Kratos has undergone since his time in Greece]].

** ''VideoGame/AceCombatJointAssault'': Varcolac uses both Russian and Western planes; fittingly enough, they start as the allied Rigel squadron before defecting early on.

* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'': Zigzagged. Krauser uses a knife as his weapon of choice, is a mercenary working for the BigBad, kidnapped the [[DistressedDamsel President's Daughter]], and if he isn't outright evil, is at least very, very amoral. [[TheHero Leon Kennedy]] ''also'' uses a knife, but Krauser's is still much larger and rather mean-looking. Somewhat [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that it's stated they worked together in the same military group before the events of the game.

* [[DropTheHammer Hammers]]: More likely to be good than axes due to not overtly spilling blood, and normally used by TheBigGuy or dwarves. Also a popular weapon of choice for ThePaladin. Sometimes shows up in the hands of brutish bad guys, though. Regular tool-style hammers being used as a WeaponOfChoice is usually the sign of AxCrazy.

* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'': Zigzagged. Krauser uses a knife as his WeaponOfChoice, is a mercenary working for the BigBad, kidnapped the [[DistressedDamsel President's Daughter]], and if he isn't outright evil, is at least very, very amoral. [[TheHero Leon Kennedy]] ''also'' uses a knife, but Krauser's is still much larger and rather mean-looking. Somewhat [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that it's stated they worked together in the same military group before the events of the game.

** ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'': One of the enemy ace squadrons you fight flies the [[RareVehicles F-15 S/MTD]]; this is in part justified in that [[spoiler:they're actually infiltrators of your country's air force]], and their counterparts in the enemy fly Su-35s. For the final encounter, both come together to face you in prototype Sukhoi craft, while the player's squad is associated with the F-14A.

* ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' has badass and morally ambiguous Archer dual wielding, WorthyOpponent Assassin with a [[strike:[[EveryJapaneseSwordIsAKatana katana]]]] [[AvertedTrope nodachi]] which is close enough, heroic Saber with long swords, barbaric Berserker with an axe-sword-club (it's a giant piece of flint, basically), traitorous Caster using a special dagger and Lancer who is, at least, [[FriendlyEnemy good-natured even if he'll eventually have to stab you to death with his spear]].

In certain stories, especially epic fantasy, there is a correlation between the [[WeaponOfChoice weapon style characters or groups use]], and how they are portrayed in the work.

An easy way to tell which {{Mook}} is just a {{Mook}}, is to look at their weapons: light blaster rifle, polearm? Standard Mook. Massive sword or really scary-looking gun? This is at least an EliteMook, if not a member of the QuirkyMinibossSquad. Weapon that looks suspiciously like the hero's? [[BigBad Uh, oh...]]

* [[AnAxeToGrind Axes]]: Evil, unless used by [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]] or heroic barbarians.

Compare WeaponOfChoice. See GoodGunsBadGuns [[SubTrope for the more detailed gun version]]. Accompanied with GoodArmorEvilArmor. Contrast EvilWeapon, where the weapon doesn't just look evil, it ''is'' evil.

*** Conversely, if it has two snakes, usually good and used by the medic, despite the single-snake staff being associated with [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Asclepius, ancient Greek god of medicine and healing]], and the two-snakes caduceus being associated with Hermes, messenger of the gods and [[CriticalResearchFailure guide to the Underworld]].

* In Orthodox Christian religious art, good angels are depicted with swords -- occasionally an example of a FlamingSword -- spears, or occasionally bows (generally, if an angel is pictured alone, he wields a sword, while depictions of angels vanquishing demons, e.g. the scene of the Last Judgment, show angels wielding spears or bows). Demons have tridents or whips.

* Katana and Rapiers: Either way, but a favorite weapon of the WickedCultured, the {{Rival}}, or the SixthRanger. They're too cool for most {{Mooks}} in any case.

** ''VideoGame/WarcraftIOrcsAndHumans'': The human knights used flails despite being good guys. Aside from that, however, the Orcs use more savage-looking weapons than the humans.

* In ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'', Rena has a [[http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p141/Asa-senpai/Higurashi%20no%20Naku%20Koro%20ni/weapons/img0081468aq.jpg weapon]] that has been described by fans intermittently as a billhook, a machete, a hatchet, a cleaver, or all of them ''at once''. That's pretty much unprecedentedly evil, but the non- edged part of the blade is straight, which is [[{{Foreshadowing}} significant]].
* With all the {{Heel Face Turn}}s in ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'', the good guys end up not really following any rules on weapon alignment besides [[RuleOfCool whatever looks cool]]. Undeniably evil characters like [[BigBad Precia and Jail]] however, stick with mainstay villain weapons like whips and claws.

* King Fahn and Lord Ashram of the first ''Roleplay/RecordOfLodossWar'' anime wield swords of good and evil, respectively, that grow stronger the closer they are to each other.
* Most incarnations of ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' have this, with the protagonists' faction using simple, clean-looking weapons like [[OurWeaponsWillBeBoxyInTheFuture boxy plasma guns]] and unassuming white cylinders that project a LaserBlade while the antagonists use nastier-looking ones like large, noisy, belt or pan-fed machine guns, whips, curved swords and axes. The biggest exception to this is ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'' where the protagonists have extremely flashy, mean-looking weapons while the bad guys have scads of simplistic, mass-produced MechaMooks whose weapons wouldn't look out of place in a modern army.
* In ''Manga/BlackClover'', Licht was the kind leader of the elves and original owner of Asta's swords, and they're shining, near-white blades when he uses them. When wielded by Asta, whose Anti-Magic comes from the power of a devil, the swords are black and rusted-looking.

* ''ComicBook/XMen'': Gambit with a Staff? Good. Gambit with a knife? Bad. Warpath, Multiple Knives. Good. Spiral, Multiple Swords? Bad. Katana? Evil Samurai, unless it's ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} in one of his Japanese adventures. Dual Wielded Katana? ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}.

* The crazy Japanese girl Gogo Yubari wields a meteor hammer in ''Film/KillBill''.
* In ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' Elves use light curved blades and Alliance humans prefer medieval broadswords while Orcs sport crude, angular slabs, and Easterlings are armed with polearms. There's also the curved dagger wielded by EvilChancellor Wormtongue.
* In the 1980 ''Film/{{Flash Gordon|1980}}'' film, Vultan, King of the Hawkmen, carries an evil-looking mace. However, he is one of the hero's closest allies.
* In ''Film/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'', the sergeant finds a private who has cut serrations into his bayonet, and explains that the opposition will not like this and do particularly nasty things to him if they catch him. The sergeant then goes on to explain that in hand-to-hand trench warfare, the best thing is to [[CombatPragmatist lop the opponent's head off with a short handled shovel.]]
* Especially present in the film adaptations of ''Film/HarryPotter'', when wands used by the death eaters have more elaborate and menacing designs than those of the good wizards and witches.
* In ''Franchise/StarWars'', the light side Jedi use [[LaserBlade lightsabers]] with blades that are colored blue, green, purple, yellow, etc... seemingly every color of the rainbow except red, which is the exclusive province of the evil Sith. Along similar lines, [[Main/TheEmpire the Galactic Empire's]] weapons are all clean, utilitarian, and mass-produced, whereas the [[Main/LaResistance the Rebel Alliance's]] all appear to be heavily customized and well-used.
* In ''Film/TheRaid'', one group of tough mooks is described as the machete gang in the credits. You can probably guess from this that they are not on the side of the angels.
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'', the FryingPanOfDoom is only ever used by heroic characters.
* Zig zagged in ''Film/{{Watchmen}}''. Nite Owl and Silk Spectre 2 are unarmed (good weapon/good guy). Rorsharch is also unarmed (good weapon/anti hero). The NYPD SWAT team uses CAR-15 rifles and the regular beat cops use Smith Wesson Model 10 and Model 15 revolvers (good weapons for good guys), and the criminal exploded by Dr Manhattan uses a sawn-off shotgun (evil weapon/bad guy). The Comedian (little bit of both) uses a Colt 1911 variant (good weapon) and an Ithaca 37 and a flamethrower (evil weapon). In his closet are seen an S&W 686 (good), a CAR-15 (good) a [=HK91=], an HK [=MP5=] (could go either way) and a Franchi SPAS-12 (bad).

* The high spirits of Adam R. Brown's ''{{Literature/Astral Dawn}}'' utilize a wide variety of astral weapons created from their centers. Caspian's weapon of choice is a silver-bladed katana sword.
* A rare exception to "Only villains poison weapons": Sadi, a eunuch on the side of the heroes in the ''[[Literature/{{Belgariad}} Mallorean]]'', uses a poisoned dagger as his primary weapon.
** Justified in that one of the two defining characteristics of the Nyissans is an extensive knowledge and ... ''creative'' ... use of pharmaceuticals. (The other one is a positively astounding ability at being devious and conniving.)

** And from the same series, there's the Ulgo knife, which is generally described as one of the most unpleasant weapons in the world. The Ulgos are good guys. The knife itself is never described in detail - it does, however, possess both a serrated edge and a hook "for pulling things out", and is said to have been designed to "hurt more coming out than going in".
* A partial exception to PoisonedWeapons is ''Literature/TheDemonPrinces'': the hero uses them and is better than most of the villains.
* In ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' Sauron is depicted using a mace, and his lieutenant, the Witch-king, uses one as well. His ancient teacher, Morgoth, fought with a warhammer.
* A partial exception to PoisonedWeapons is Oberyn Martell in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. While he's not ''that'' nice of a guy (it's still ASOIAF), he has sympathetic motives and is mostly a case of [[spoiler:ShooOutTheNewGuy or ADeathInTheLimelight]] anyway. His poisoned weapon at least took out one of the characters who was much, much worse than he was.
* Zig-zagged in ''Literature/MistbornTheOriginalTrilogy'':

* A topic of discussion in ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'':

* Though we never see the weapon (a curvy Middle-Eastern dagger) in question actually wielded, this trope is invoked in the Literature/FatherBrown story "The Wrong Shape":
-->"Why, look at it," cried Father Brown, holding out the crooked knife at arm's length, as if it were some glittering snake. "Don't you see it is the wrong shape? Don't you see that it has no hearty and plain purpose? It does not point like a spear. It does not sweep like a scythe. It does not look like a weapon. It looks like an instrument of torture."

* Evil [[SuperSpeed speedsters]] in ''Series/TheFlash2014'', such as Eobard Thawne, can vibrate their hands so quickly that they can be used to cut through solid matter or rip out/crush internal organs. The titular Flash eventually learns how to perform a variation of this technique for blunt, nonlethal blows. The Season 3 villain Savitar has a BladeBelowTheShoulder on each arm.
* In ''Series/RobinOfSherwood'', anybody who uses a crossbow will be evil, without exception. This is due to the centuries-old history of the longbow as a symbol for English military might and righteousness, with crossbows being for, eeew, '''French''' people and so forth.

* In Orthodox Christian religious art, good angels are depicted with swords – occasionally an example of a FlamingSword, spears, or occasionally bows (generally, if an angel is pictured alone, he wields a sword, while depictions of angels vanquishing demons, e.g. the scene of the Last Judgment, show angels wielding spears or bows). Demons have tridents or whips.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Space 1889}}'' the spear-polearm, fork and scythe-resembling weapons the High Martian carry in their prehensile feet sure look nasty.
* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', Chaos Space Marines typically wield weapons that look similar to their Loyalist counterparts with the addition of lots of spikes and studs and skulls. Their Terminators also use maces and axes in addition to the standard PowerFist (which they add spikes to anyway.) While both groups have melee-centric squads that [[ChainsawGood favor chain weapons]], note how the squads for Chaos Space Marines tend to use Chain ''Axes'', while the squads for Loyalist Marines tend to use Chain ''Swords''.
* In ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', Good-aligned Clerics traditionally wield maces or other blunt weapons. Evil clerics and fighters often carry flails or other spiky things. The game claimed this dated back to the Middle Ages where the Clergy were allowed to join in battle, but because they were forbidden to "spill blood" they were restricted to using blunt weapons. Because you can totally bash somebody's head in with a mace and not get blood everywhere. Though the idea that warrior priests used maces to not shed blood may have been a misunderstanding of the actual events, and were more likely symbols of authority.

** Heironeous, the TabletopGame/{{Greyhawk}} god of [[LawfulGood Chivalry and Justice]], carries a battleaxe or longsword, as do his followers. His [[CainAndAbel brother]] Hextor, god of [[LawfulEvil Tyranny and War]], is associated with the spiked flail.
** D&D has made exceptions for various gods with favored weapons (as with Heironeous and the battleaxe pre-3rd edition), but as of 3rd Edition opened up the range of favored weapons for clerics pretty widely - especially for gods of war and combat. Most fit this trope fairly well even so. In ''TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}'', for example, most of the good gods still favor traditionally "good" weapons or those that are derived from tools with a functional purpose (the goddess of feasts and abundance likes sickles, which are a farming tool), while the evil gods still favor "evil" weapons (the god of death likes the SinisterScythe, whose evil connotations overcome its own use as a farming tool).
* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'', Priests of Sigmar tend to fight with two-handed battle hammers, and lead armies from the front. Since Sigmar is a god of war and his symbol is a hammer, this is all justified. Priests of Sigmar tend to be a bit overbearing and have KnightTemplar tendencies, but are generally good guys.
* ''1001 Science Fiction Weapons'' for D20, has a few weapons that are usually used by evil, such as certain of the rays in the pulp weapons chapter, the Rod of the Lawgiver, and most of the radioactive weapons (well if not evil, then certainly [[AxCrazy bat guano crazy]], given that you're holding a piece of radioactive material in your hands to hit someone with). Most of the weapons, however, are meant to be accessible, dependent on the situation, to the [=PCs=]. Scythes is one particular example; in that there are many scythes which one can understand a farmer owning, because their [[EnhancedArchaicWeapon technological enhancements]] may actually ''improve'' their ability to reap wheat (although, [[FridgeLogic why are you reaping wheat by hand when you can economically create force field and superchilled blades?]]). However, the superheated scythe sets wheat on fire, so it cannot be used for harvest; it is stated that if you see one of these on the wall then the person is probably a villain.

* In Shakespeare's ''Theatre/{{Othello}}'', heroic Claudius uses a sword. It's implied that his attempted assassination may have been done with a knife.
* His same-named counterpart in ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', however, is very much a villain, and is very fond of poison, using it both to murder the title character's father, and on PoisonedWeapons to try to kill Hamlet himself.

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance'' has [[BigBad Ashnard's]] Gurgurant, a black flame patterned sword with a more or less flat tip, evil. [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast It's also named after a cannibal king from Arthurian mythology.]]
* ''[[VideoGame/SoulSeries Soulcalibur]]'': Ivy wields a sword that separates into multiple parts: good. It does turn into a whip, but that helps it with the BifurcatedWeapon bit. Astaroth wields axes: evil.
** On the series' page picture are the two swords that the ''Soul'' series revolves around: Soul Calibur (right) and Soul Edge (left). Soul Edge, once an ordinary sword, [[EvilWeapon gained a malicious will of its own]] (which manifests as the firespawn Inferno, a FinalBoss in some of the titles) due to tasting an ''immense'' amount of blood on the battlefield and soon evolved into a [[TheCorruption corruption-spreading]] ArtifactOfDoom. Soul Calibur was created by the Hero King Algol from a purified shard of Soul Edge. They are currently wielded by TheHero [[TheAtoner Siegfried]] and the BigBad [[MadeOfEvil Nightmare]] (himself an incarnation of Inferno), who, [[BrainwashedAndCrazy at one point]], [[EnemyWithout used to be the same person]]. ''Soulcalibur IV'' does subvert this, however, as Soul Calibur is heavily implied to be a KnightTemplar in regards to Soul Edge. ''Soulcalibur V'' confirms this, showing the two swords aren't so different after all; they don't represent Good vs. Evil as much as OrderVsChaos, and Soul Calibur's idea of "order" is also ''very'' bad for humanity.
* Half subverted, half played straight in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4''. Krauser uses a knife as his WeaponOfChoice, is a mercenary working for the BigBad, kidnapped the [[DistressedDamsel President's Daughter]], and if he isn't outright evil, is at least very, very amoral. [[TheHero Leon Kennedy]] ''also'' uses a knife, but Krauser's is still much larger and rather mean-looking. Somewhat [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that it's stated they worked together in the same military group before the events of the game.
* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' has a variant; It has been noted that in almost every game, the protagonist squadron and sometimes his allies usually fly Western Fighter Aircraft (usually American) while the antagonist ace squadron(s) usually use either high-tier Russian fighters (usually a variant of the [[CoolPlane Su-27 Flanker]] ). This is however subverted multiple times.
** In ''VideoGame/AceCombat2'' the protagonist squadron (presumably, given the cover art) flies the Su-35 Super Flanker, while four of the ZOE aces use American jets (the last uses one of the series' first two fictional fighters). [[VideoGame/AceCombatAssaultHorizonLegacy The remake]] switches this around, where the protagonist is now, as always, associated with the F-22, but ZOE remains free of Russian craft, and only one of the four other important ace squadrons encountered uses non-NATO aircraft.
** In the uncut ''VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere'', the only faction that flies Russian planes (a futuristic [=MiG=] and two upgraded Sukhois) is UPEO, which is the starting faction (you can later defect) and is [[GreyAndGrayMorality as close as it comes to the Good Guys in this game]].

** In ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'' one of the enemy ace squadrons you fight flies the [[RareVehicles F-15 S/MTD]]; this is in part justified in that [[spoiler:they're actually infiltrators of your country's air force]], and their counterparts in the enemy fly Su-35s. For the final encounter, both come together to face you in prototype Sukhoi craft, while the player's squad is associated with the F-14A.
** In ''VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar'', out of the 12 major ace squads you face in the game, only three (Gelb's Su-37s, Gault's Su-47s and Schwarze's [=MiG-31s=]) play this trope straight; the rest mostly use American jets (such as Grun's [=F/A-18=]s, Silber's F-4 and F-16s, or Wizard's YF-23s and F-16XLs) with the others likewise focusing on other Western nations like France (Espada Two's Rafale) and Sweden (Espada One's Draken, Indigo's Gripens). This game also codified the series' trend where this trope is only played halfway, as the protagonist ends up being associated with an American jet (the F-15 in Cipher's case) while the final boss instead uses a completely fictional fighter (in this case the "ADFX-02").
** In ''VideoGame/AceCombatXSkiesOfDeception'', some of the ally Redshirts use the Flanker.
** In ''VideoGame/AceCombatJointAssault'' Varcolac uses both Russian and Western planes; fittingly enough, they start as the allied Rigel squadron before defecting early on.

* In ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'', this shows up in the two warrior races of the [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Covenant]]: The characteristic weapon of the ([[HeelFaceTurn ultimately]]) good Elites is the [[LaserBlade Energy Sword]]. The signature weapon of the viscous Brutes is a big, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin brutish]] Gravity Hammer. This applies to the designs of rest of their weapons too; Elites tend to favor organically elegant curves, while Brutes favor making everything spiky.
* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', [[spoiler:the Master Sword is shown at the very end of the game to have an EvilCounterpart wielded by the [[GodOfEvil Demon King Demise]], whose spirit and humanoid form is named [[BigBad Ghirahim]].]]
* Averted in the ''Franchise/MassEffect'' series, where alignment is independent of weapon choice. Machine pistols are very common on both sides in the [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 second game]], Shepard can get [[AIIsACrapshoot Geth]] guns in all three games and [[BugWar Collector]] guns in the second, and gets access to [[HandCannon large pistols]], [[MoreDakka assault rifles]], and [[BladeBelowTheShoulder wrist-mounted omni-blades]] regardless of [[TheParagon Paragon]] / [[AntiHero Renegade]] alignment.
* In ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' there are sometimes weapons or objects (lightsaber crystals for example) that can only be used if one has the proper alignment.
* Partially averted in the first ''VideoGame/WarCraft'', where the human knights used flails despite being good guys. Aside from that, the Orcs use more savage-looking weapons than the humans. ''Warcraft III''[='=]s [[UnholyHolySword Frost]][[EmpathicWeapon mourne]] makes it amply clear that it's evil. Terrifyingly serrated blade? Horrifying ornaments? Emits a [[EvilIsDeathlyCold nasty aura of ice and cold]]? The only way it could get any more ObviouslyEvil is if it was actually warning potential wielders that it's going to steal their soul... oh wait, it actually does that too! Shame Arthas had gone so far into the deep end at that point that he couldn't care less.
* The ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals'' mod ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheReds'' completely and utterly flips the stereotype of western nations using "good" and "humane" weapons. The European Union-successor ECA uses all manner of horrifying weapons including lethal microwave weapons, cluster bombs, land mines, nerve gas and even nukes, all out of sheer desperation.
* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' has one so evil that [[http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Mace_of_Molag_Bal_%28Skyrim%29 guards can freak out if you approach them with it.]]
* ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' has an interesting example involving ''the exact same weapon''. In the original triology, AntiHero Kratos primary weapons are the Blades of Chaos/Athena/Exile, jagged blades with a red lightning pattern on their sides, which look just as imposing and brutish as Kratos himself. But when Kratos [[spoiler:is forced to re-use the Blades of Chaos in order to go into the Norse Underworld to acquire an item needed to save his son during the events of ''VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4'', the blades (after a fair amount of upgrading) instead bare an elegant, runic design, showing how much CharacterDevelopment Kratos has undergone since his time in Greece]].

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* In ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'', TheHero picked up a hammer for MundaneUtility and [[TookALevelInBadass leveled up with it]]. The AxeCrazy pure evil psychopath is also the only one who wields a full sword (though another hero uses swords, what he actually ''wields'' are swords broken in half.) Later also demonstrated with the good and evil personalities of one character: the good wields a magic wand that can turn into a pistol (a precise weapon that cannot be fired multiple times in succession), while the evil wields a pimp cane that can turn into a fully automatic assault rifle (a highly destructive weapon that will likely cause a ton of collateral damage). The trope is not played consistently though. The girl who uses a lipstick that can transform into a chainsaw is on the side of good. And so is the guy who uses sickles.
* Zeetha in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' has two katars as her weapon of choice. She is described as a "swordmistress", and is also quite unambiguously good.

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' had a duel between WellIntentionedExtremist AntiHero Jet and AntiVillain Zuko. Jet has a pair of hookswords, while Zuko uses a set of dual swords. On that note, [[TheHero Aang]] uses a glider-staff, while Sokka starts with a club and boomerang, but later [[CharacterDevelopment stops using the club]] and eventually gains a sword.
* The sequel series, ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'', continues this trend. Police Chief Lin Beifong and her employees use whips controlled by Metalbending, but Amon and his Equalists provide more technologically advanced weapons, most notably taser prods and electric gloves. Amon's Lieutenant (who's only ever referred to as [[NoNameGiven Lieutenant]]) [[DualWielding uses two]] kali-sticks hooked up to a backpack generator for added ShockAndAwe. He's terrifyingly proficient with them and something of an EnsembleDarkhorse.
* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'' has [[PsychoForHire Lockdown]], a BountyHunter who loves taking pieces off helpless targets. He has a chainsaw, and is decidedly evil and probably a little crazy too.
* Megatron from ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformers'' is literally an Evil Weapon, his disguise form being a Walther P38.
* For the trifecta, ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' has the Star Saber, the sword of the original Primes' leader Prima, now in Optimus' possession as of late Season 2. Because of the threat this poses to his Decepticon legions, Megatron forges a counterpart out of Dark Energon for his own use: the ''Dark'' Star Saber.

** The Decimar Blade is Gunmar’s trademark weapon. It grants him the power to [[BrainwashedAndCrazy enslave others to his will]], either using it as a means of turning his enemies into his mindless slaves or as an ultimatum, [[BadBoss threatening to rob the will of those loyal to him if they fail him in a task]]. He is also able to summon it out of thin-air [[EvilCounterpart not unlike the Sword of Daylight]].

* Club: Either way; [[SpikesOfVillainy bad guys like to add spikes.]] Generally a sign of brutish, unintelligent characters.