History Main / NemesisWeapon

** The [[Videogame/KingdomheartsI first game]] has Sora's Kingdom Key contrasting with the Keyblade of People Hearts wielded by [[RivalTurnedEvil Riku while under Ansem's control]]. Sora's Keyblade has the power to unlock doors and seal the worlds to protect them from the darkness. Riku's has the power to remove a heart form a person, creating a Heartless, which Sora later uses to free Kairi's heart form his own.
** After Riku returns to the side of Light, he eventually gains the Way to the Dawn, a keyblade that includes the Heartless' Emblem as its keychain (sans X); WordOfGod is that it's an "evolved" form of his Soul Eater from the first game. He also fights Sora's Nobody, Roxas in the time between ''I'' and ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII II]]'' using Oblivion while Roxas wields Oathkeeper.

*** This is the motif of Roxas's alternate keychains in ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsThreeFiveEightDaysOverTwo 358/2 Days]]''. While all of Sora's keyblades throughout the series are modeled and named after the worlds he visits, Roxas's weapons have Nobody motifs and [[NamesToRunAwayFromVeryFast ominous-sounding names referencing pain and loss and/or light and darkness]]. The only two exceptions to this are the [[WeaponOfChoice Zero Gear]] (which turns Roxas's keyblade into Oathkeeper, Oathkeeper & Oblivion, or the aformentioned Two Become One) and the [[JokeWeapon Casual Gear]] (an umbrella).

** ''[[Videogame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep Birth by Sleep]]'' has another example. Ventus's Keyblade, Wayward Wind, and Vantias' keyblade the Void Gear, Ventus is part of an elemental theme with his peers and friends, Terra and Aqua, while Vanitas' Keyblade represents emptiness. Given that [[spoiler: they both were once the same being]] and Ventus' belief in ThePowerOfFriendship, there is a definite connection there.

* Sanyiel of ''Webcomic/HeroInTraining'' (basically half-demon-half-angel, all magically unstable) kept himself from undergoing SuperPowerMeltdown by forging part of himself into two opposite swords, one angelic and the other demonic.

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* Dragon Riders in ''Literature/TheInheritanceCycle'' all use unique swords made from an incredibly rare metal, and Eragon originaly uses the crimson sword Zar'roc (meaning Misery) which originaly belonged to the evil dragon rider Morzan, but [[spoiler: after it gets stolen by Murtagh, Morzan's son, at the climax of the second book, Eragon has to find a replacement. It takes him until the half-way through the third book, but he finaly gets his own sword, colored bright blue. Eragon even considers naming it "Hope" because hope counteracts misery, but Saphira shoots it down. He instead goes with [[FlamingSword Brisingr]] meaning fire.]]

* In ''Literature/{{Shatterpoint}}'', Mace Windu notes that the [[{{Vibroweapon}} razor-edged vibroshields]] used by Kar Vastor and his acolytes are a twisted mirror of the Jedi lightsaber; he uses his sword as a shield, while they use their shields as swords.
* In ''Literature/BimbosOfTheDeathSun'', Jay Omega's celebrity ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' campaign includes a Nemesis Weapon to Tratyn Runewind's own sword, named "Runeslayer", [[spoiler: which snaps Runewind's sword in two before it's used to kill him. All done to provoke the Runewind fanboy, who Jay (rightly) suspected of murder.]]

* From ''Series/DoctorWho'':

-->'''The Master:''' ''Laser'' screwdriver; who'd have sonic?
** In "Battlefield", Mordred boasts that his sword is 'brother to Excalibur'.

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* Literature/HarryPotter's [[MagicWand wand]] is one of two which share cores from the same phoenix. Whereas Harry's is made of holly, a wood well-suited to his dangerous life, its brother, which went to Voldemort, is made of yew, a supreme material for DarkMagic. The connection between the wands makes them almost unable to defeat each other, and every showdown between Harry and Voldemort using them ends in a draw. Voldemort catches on to this late in the series and starts looking for a more powerful wand.

** The Doctor's iconic sonic screwdriver is almost universally used to productive means, although it could easily be turned into a weapon if he were so inclined; so naturally TheMaster makes his own "laser screwdriver", seen in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E13LastOfTheTimeLords Last of the Time Lords]]", which can do all the same things but also zap people.
** In ''Battlefield'', Mordred boasts that his sword is 'brother to Excalibur'.

* In ''Franchise/StarWars'', both [[MagicKnight the heroic Jedi and the evil Sith]] wield the iconic [[LaserBlade lightsaber]]. A lightsaber can only be constructed precisely enough to function with the aid of TheForce, and in the hands of a Force-user it's the ultimate personal weapon. The core element is the [[PowerCrystal focusing crystal]]; Jedi usually use natural crystals of various kinds, producing a variety of different colors and blade forms, while Sith all use a kind of synthetic crystal made using TheDarkSide that produces a red blade.

* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', the final boss Demise wields a sword that looks like a bigger and spikier version of Link's iconic Master Sword. Moreover, both swords are inhabited by spirits that serve the ends of the swords' masters. Whereas the Master Sword's spirit, Fi, mostly just gives advice, Demise's sword spirit actually serves as his [[TheDragon Dragon]].

** After Riku returns to the side of Light, he eventually gains the Way to the Dawn, a keyblade that includes the Heartless' Emblem as its keychain (sans X), He also has to fight Sora's Nobody, Roxas in the time between ''I'' and ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII II]]'' and the Keyblade that Sora earns in the Final Mix version of II (and that Roxas himself can wield in ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsThreeFiveEightDaysOverTwo 358/2 Days]]'') is the Two Become One, which has the Nobody Emblem on the Guard

The nemesis weapon is likely to be used by the BigBad, but might also go to TheRival, TheDragon or another lesser enemy. It can also change hands as these are defeated, being acquired by more powerful foes. Similarly, the 'good' weapon may be wielded by TheLancer or some other secondary protagonist.

** Her Kamui (clothing made completely of life fibers and capable of unparalleled power) is a black school uniform named Senketsu. And her main rival, student council president Satsuki Kiryuin, wears a Kamui named Junketsu, which is a white school uniform. These two are the only ones capable of wearing Kamui [[spoiler: apart from their mother Ragyo]]. And toward the end of the series, [[spoiler: Ryuko and Satsuki are forced to battle while wearing the other's Kamui. Because Junketsu was created with pure Life Fibers, it tries to take over whoever wears it unless the wearer is in line with Junketsu's goals (Ragyo) or sufficiently strong-willed to bend it to her will (Satsuki). Senketsu, conversely, was created by Ryuko's father with modified Life Fibers that do not have this tendency]].

* ''ComicBook/TheMightyThor'' has had a lot of villains with Nemesis weapons. The brutish Absorbing Man and Wrecker, for example, were empowered by Asgardian magic, but where Thor wields Mjolnir, they wield thuggish instruments like a ball-and-chain or a crowbar, respectively. Their weapons tap the same sort of Asgardian magic as Thor's hammer, but are much cruder, mortal instruments. Similarly, the signature weapon of Ulik the troll is a set of "pounders" -- brass knuckles, essentially - made of the same magic metal as Thor's hammer.

* Creator/MichaelMoorcock's ''Literature/TheElricSaga'' has two examples. Elric's signature weapon is the magical sword Stormbringer. One of his opponents is his EvilCounterpart cousin Yyrkoon, who wields Stormbringer's "brother" sword Mournblade. Later, in ''The Revenge of the Rose'', Gaynor the Damned (a Chaotic EvilCounterpart not just to Elric, but to all versions of the Eternal Champion) wields a "leach blade" which drains the power from magical weapons, including Stormbringer.

See also EvilCounterpart and ReforgedIntoAMinion, two similar tropes that occur to characters.

* From ''Series/DoctorWho'', the Doctor's iconic sonic screwdriver is almost universally used to productive means, although it could easily be turned into a weapon if he were so inclined; so naturally TheMaster makes his own "laser screwdriver", seen in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E13LastOfTheTimeLords Last of the Time Lords]]", which can do all the same things but also zap people.

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* ''Anime/KillLaKill'': Ryuko Matoi's weapon and goku uniform both have an counterpart.

** Her kamui (clothing made completely of life fibers and capable of unparalleled power) is a black school uniform named Senketsu. And her main rival, student council president Satsuki Kiryuin, wears a kamui named Junketsu, which is a white school uniform. These two are the only ones capable of wearing kamui [[spoiler: apart from their mother Ragyo]]. And toward the end of the series, [[spoiler: Ryuko and Satsuki are forced to battle while wearing the other's kamui]].

* Sanyiel of ''Webcomic/HeroInTraining'' (basically half-demon-half-angel, all unstable magically unstable) kept himself from undergoing SuperPowerMeltdown by forging part of himself into two opposite swords, one angelic and the other demonic.

** the [[Videogame/KingdomheartsI first game]] has Sora's Kingdom Key contrasting with the Keyblade of People Hearts wielded by [[RivalTurnedEvil Riku while under Ansem's control]], Which Sora later uses to free Kairi's heart form his own. Sora's Keybalde has the power to unlock doors and seal the wrolds to protect them from the darkness, Riku's has the power to remove a heart form a person, creating a Heartless.

* Gene Starwind of ''Anime/OutlawStar'' uses a "caster", essentially a gun that shoots spells. The type of weapon is not unique but very rare and considered antiquated despite its considerable power. In the last episode, his rival Ronald [=MacDougal=] uses a staff caster. The two casters completely cancel out.

*** Sasuke's signature move Chidori is a hand thrust charged with electricity. Naruto's Rasengan is similarly used ball of pure energy. It turns out that Chidori was a bastardized version of what should've been a Lightning Release Rasengan. After learning this, Naruto is able to create a proper Wind Release Rasengan.

* ''Anime/KillLaKill'' has two examples involving the protagonist, Ryuko Matoi.
** Her WeaponOfChoice is one half of a giant pair of scissors [[spoiler: created by her father to cut life fibers]]. The other half is wielded by the insane Nui Harime, [[spoiler: the woman who murdered her father while stealing said weapon]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'': The Star Saber and the Dark Star Saber, used by [[BigGood Optimus Prime]] and [[BigBad Megatron]] respectively. The Star Saber is a legendary weapon while the Dark Star Saber is a EvilKnockoff made by Megatron.

* In the ''Literature/PercyJackson'' series, Luke creates a special sword called Backbiter, which has one blade made of Celestial bronze (which can harm monsters and immortals, but can't harm heroes and mortals) and one blade made out of tempered steel (which can't harm monsters and immortals, but can harm heroes and mortals). This serves as an antithesis to all heroic weapons, which are only forged out of celestial bronze as heroes are never supposed to harm heroes, but more specifically it works as an antithesis to Percy's Ripetide.

* ''Comicbook/IronMan'''s enemy the Titanium Man wears a suit of armor like Tony Stark's, but one that's much bulkier and contains nothing but offensive weaponry, as opposed to the more versatile toolset in the Iron Man armors.
* ''Comicbook/TheMightyThor'' has had a lot of villains with Nemesis weapons. The brutish Absorbing Man and Wrecker, for example, were empowered by Asgardian magic, but where Thor wields Mjolnir, they wield thuggish instruments like a ball-and-chain or a crowbar, respectively. Their weapons tap the same sort of Asgardian magic as Thor's hammer, but are much cruder, mortal instruments. Similarly, the signature weapon of Ulik the troll is a set of "pounders" -- brass knuckles, essentially - made of the same magic metal as Thor's hammer.
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* In ''Franchise/StarWars'', both [[MagicKnight the heroic Jedi and the evil Sith]] wield the iconic [[LaserBlade lightsaber]]. A lightsaber can only be constructed precisely enough to function with the aid of TheForce, and in the hands of a Force-user it's the ultimate personal weapon. The core element is the [[PowerCrystal focusing crystal]]; Jedi usually use natural crystals of various kinds, producing a variety of different colors and blade forms, while Sith all use a kind of synthetic crystal made using TheDarkSide that produces a red blade.

* ''Literature/HarryPotter'''s [[MagicWand wand]] is one of two which share cores from the same phoenix. Whereas Harry's is made of holly, a wood well-suited to his dangerous life, its brother, which went to Voldemort, is made of yew, a supreme material for DarkMagic. The connection between the wands makes them almost unable to defeat each other, and every showdown between Harry and Voldemort using them ends in a draw. Voldemort catches on to this late in the series and starts looking for a more powerful wand.