History Main / PoisonedWeapons

---> '''Violetta:''' Tsk, I know that. That wasn't poison, that was more Movit #11. Now all I have to do is [[ExplosiveOverclocking watch you combust]].

** In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'', poisoned weapons are used primarily by the more [[PoisonIsEvil evil races]], especially the cowardly and devious Skaven and Hobgoblins. However, they're also a speciality of the close-as-you-get-to-good [[LizardFolk Lizardmen]] and a favored choice of the Skinks, a physically weedy who prefer to outwit and outmaneuver stronger foes, and especially of the stealthy Chameleon Skink guerrilla fighters.

*** The shriker cannon wielded by some [[SpaceElves Aeldari]] fires shuriken impregnated with an enzyme-based toxin so horrible it makes the target's blood explode.

** ''TabletopGame/{{Necromunda}}'':
*** The Outlaw Trading Post from the 1st and 2nd Edition of the game had blade venom available to purchase. Brewed from mutant fungi, blade venom could be used to envenom any bladed weapon so that it caused more damage to an opponent, but the user had a chance of harming themselves if they fumbled their attack.
*** In 3rd Edition, any weapons with the 'Toxin' Weapon Trait are poisoned weapons. How effective such weapons are dependent, in part, on the victim’s Toughness characteristic but if it does take effect the victim will be taken Out of Action immediately. [[AmazonBrigade House Escher]] are particularly well known for their use of such weapons.

** ''Chainsaw Warrior'' has some of the enemy C.H.A.O.S agents use envenomed weapons against you. These will eat away at your poison threshold and since the venom is from an EldritchAbomination, dying from venom will turn the Chainsaw Warrior into a zombie. The Chainsaw Warrior himself isn't above using poison, one weapon he can have is a syringe full of poison. It'll kill most enemies in one use but there's a random amount of time before it happens.

* In ''TabletopGame/HcSvntDracones'' pretty much everything out of Spyglass's weapons division is poisonous. The Fang is a dagger with pores in the blade and a reservoir in the hilt, Shardshot a glove-dart launcher, while the Shrapnel Gun only has the "Poisonous" effect because it's close to having your body filled with shards of jagged metal. Though the description for "Poisonous" ammo notes that bullets would need to be too hard to shatter to be useful and the explosion and velocity would strip most coatings so only a few weapons can use Poisonous ammo, like Spyglass products, and compound bows.

* The [[OurElvesAreDifferent Dark Elves]] in ''Warlords Battlecry'' will use poisoned weapons.

* Poisoned weapons featured in a number of Shakespeare's plays, perhaps most prominently in ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}''.

* ''VideoGame/BountyOfOne'': The "Fanged Arrows" legendary item is depicted as [[https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans//42292549/f9cfec08d60ffb0c18000c1502c56115cf9be37d.png an arrow tipped in poison]]. It makes all your shots poison enemies, which [[DamageOverTime deals 10% of your current damage at a rapid rate]] and makes them explode if the DoT kills them, [[DisasterDominoes poisoning other enemies in range]].

* ''VideoGame/PirateHunter'' has pirate enemies who wield poisoned cutlasses, which can drain health from you (or your Ai-controlled redcoats) when hit. Though you could collect a poisoned mace to use on pirates.

[[quoteright:320:[[VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Rogue1_9736.gif]]]]
[[caption-width-right:320:[[StatisticallySpeaking 6.5% increase in total damage dealt]]?\\
What do you mean "it's not deadly"?]]

* One of the targets in ''VideoGame/HitmanCodename47'' and it's "remake" ''VideoGame/HitmanContracts'' (The same target) wields a poisoned sword that he will use in combat if he spots 47. This acts as a one-hit kill in the first game and deals a lot of damage in the remake. In the remake, 47 can take the sword, and use it against guards, although it's not a very good idea, as the sword cannot be hidden or taken into other levels. In addition, the target's personal bodyguard is immune to the sword, either for unexplained reasons or [[Kevlard]].

* In ''Webcomic/RiceBoy'', T-O-E (one of the good guys) carries a poison blade, possibly anticipating that he would have to fight Golgo, and that poison was the only thing that could kill Golgo.
* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' has Daimyo Kubota using a poisoned ring to kill [[spoiler: Therkla after she decides to act in a way that is not in his best interests]].

* In ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'', Boneclaw Mother augmented her NaturalWeapon by coating the claws of her left paw in poison, in case things got desperate. Afterwards, she had to clip them down to the quick to remove the poison.
* In ''Webcomic/RustyAndCo'', Malevolus the Blackguard tries to attack the Doogan brothers with a poisoned dagger, but ends up the one being victim of it.

* One particularly nasty variant is the "prison cocktail" used by some of the more vicious prisoners against guards or fellow inmates. It consists of a cup filled with a mixture of urine, feces, and ground-up glass. The prisoner throws it in the victim's face. When the victim tries to wipe off the disgusting mess, the bits of broken glass will deliver a bunch of small cuts which makes serious infection and/or illness all but certain.

* The [[OurElvesAreDifferent Dark Elves]] in ''Warlords Battlecry'' will use poisoned weapons.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'': [[GreenThumb Wood Aspected]] Dragon-Blooded are capable of producing a magical plant toxin from their [[BattleAura anima]]. They can poison you with a simple touch or unarmed attack, or with a very basic Charm can also channel this toxin through a weapon.
* Essentially, virtually every action adventure-based tabletop [=RPG=] (which is to say, most of them) will have at least a few paragraphs on the effects of poison on player characters -- from a simple "save or die" to lovingly detailed descriptions of a given poison's exact effects over time. Some systems (notably early editions of ''[[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons (A)D&D]]'') then promptly go out of their way to make the use of poison ''by'' player characters in turn as impractical as possible or even ban it outright, while others won't bat an eye.
** 3rd Edition has a 5% chance of accidentally poisoning yourself when applying venom to a blade, although certain classes, such as Assassins, are trained to avoid this. It's still not very practical, however, as the good stuff is expensive, and by the time you can afford it in mass quantities, most enemies will make their Saving Throw easily.
** In ''D&D'' Fourth Edition, poison use is one of the main shticks of the Executioner Assassin player class. The class makes a certain number of uses of poison each day (determined by level) which can be applied to weapons or used directly on enemies. Other classes have access to poison-based powers as well, but since the poison damage type is resisted by more creatures than any other damage type, it's not the best type of damage to specialize in.

* ''VideoGame/SuikodenII'': In a flashback, it is revealed that a previous border-skirmish between the Highlands and the Jowston Alliance was to be settled with a [[CombatByChampion contest of champions]] -- a duel between the greatest hero of both sides. That those two happened to be personal friends was supposed to make it into an honorable fight. However, when the battle was joined, the hero of Jowston, Genkaku, refused to even lift his sword. Eventually, Highland's hero had no choice but to simply disarm him and claim victory. Genkaku was condemned as a traitor and banished to Highland... but later, it was revealed that the Major of Jowston had surreptitiously poisoned Genkaku's weapon in order to ensure a victory -- but Genkaku had realized this. If he had let this subterfuge be known, it would have triggered renewed hostilities between Jowston and Highland, so instead, he simply refused to swing his poisoned blade...
* In ''VideoGame/SuikodenV'' [[spoiler:Lyon]] is stabbed and near-killed with a poisoned dagger.
* ''VideoGame/AnEgyptianTale'' have plenty of poisonous weapons the princess can collect to use on her foes, including the poisoned bow which fires asps on her targets and a serpent spear ending in a fanged head that bites and poisons her enemies. For the villains, the second boss, the HighPriestess, uses a SnakeWhip which can poison the princess if hit.
* Some StatusInflictionAttack-dealing weapons in the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' series inflict "Poisoned" on enemies when they hit.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'', Sword Mages/Mystics can enchant their swords with the poisonous Bio spell, adding magical poison to their attacks.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', any weapon with two linked materia slots could be associated with an element or status effect, including poison.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'', you can do this by junctioning the Bio spell to your Status Attack, allowing you to inflict Poison status with your physical attacks. Even better is using the Pain spell, which adds Blind and Silence, as well as Poison.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', the Rune Tooth and the Poison Knuckles can both inflict poison, while the Scissor Fangs can inflict the more dangerous venom.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', you can give any weapon this ability.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXI'' has poisoned weapons as well, but they're generally [[AwesomeButImpractical not that useful.]]
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyMysticQuest'', {{ninja}} Tristam's shuriken are imbued with poison and paralysis abilities. The various claw weapons you find on your journey also inflict poison and paralysis, with the stronger ones adding even more status effects.
* ''Franchise/MassEffect'': [[KarmaMeter Possible]] hero example: Commander Shepard can equip his/her weapons with Polonium rounds (if you can handle enemies breaking down into [[NightmareFuel green vapor]] after death). Noticeably, polonium rounds are unavailable in the sequels due to them being banned by the [[FictionalGenevaConventions Citadel Conventions]].

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' has a number of notable examples:
** Rogues can apply various poisons to their weapons, granting extra damage or certain special effects when an attack lands.
** Hunters have special shots called "Stings" which are loaded with various toxins that can cause InstantSedation, DamageOverTime, ManaDrain or loss of accuracy. These work like the Rogue's poisons, but unlike them, only one Sting can be in effect on a target. In ''Warlords of Draenor'', Stings were largely removed except for the sedative version, although a new optional ability called Exotic Munitions was added, which plays with this trope.
** During a duel between Garrosh and Cairne for leadership of the Horde, Magatha Grimtotem poisoned Garrosh's weapon (taking advantage of his ignorance of the pre-fight blessing tradition) so that a single lucky blow defeated the almost victorious Cairne. Garrosh was [[EvenEvilHasStandards less than pleased]], as he felt Magatha had cheated him out of a fair victory, and exiled her from the Horde.
** Some of the buffs you can get from the Mantid Paragons while questing in the Dread Wastes poison your weapons. For example, Xaril the Poisoned Mind coats your weapons with a poison that after eight hits on a target, severely damages the target and stuns nearby enemies.
** In Mists of Pandaria, [[spoiler:Vol'jin]] gets stabbed with a weapon that interferes with his regeneration capabilities. It's up to you to find the herbs necessary to heal him.
* ''VideoGame/RuneScape'':
** Players in ''VideoGame/RuneScape'' can create poisons to use on daggers, arrows, spears, and a few throwing weapons using the Herblore skill. There are three poisons, each stronger than the previous, and they're made from a herb and a dragon scale, a cactus spine and spider eggs, and poison ivy berries and belladonna respectively, from weakest to strongest. Belladonna is potent enough to strongly damage the player just when it's touched with bare hands.
** In addition to the three above, there is also karambwan paste, made from a small octopus caught on a tropical island. It's the strongest poison out there, but it can ''only'' be applied to spears and hastae. The reason? [[ObviousRulePatch There is no real one.]]
* Poisoned weapons are featured frequently in ''Franchise/FireEmblem''. There's usually no way for you to get one though, making them UnusableEnemyEquipment (or rather, Unobtainable Enemy Equipment).
** In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThracia776'', the poisoned weapons are converted into [[GoodWeaponEvilWeapon plain old iron weapons]] when in your possession.
** In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'', you can disarm an opponent and steal them and they'll still be poisonous. Not really worth it, since they do less damage than iron weapons, but it is still possible should one want to use them. A unique weapon of this type is the Valaura, a poisonous {{Light|EmUp}} [[HolyHandGrenade Magic]] tome, which is dropped by Valtome when you kill him. Explained that it's corrupted magic.
** In ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia]]'', you can get poison weapons by forging randomly dropped rusted weapons and hoping for the best.
** Kempf in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemHeroes'' uses a Venin Edge as his preferred weapon, fitting his [[DirtyCoward underhanded battle tactics]]. It causes serious damage to a foe regardless of his actual strength, [[HerdHittingAttack as well as everyone else unlucky enough to be in the vicinity]].
* Arrows in ''VideoGame/NetHack'' can be poisoned, which can lead to much frustration since poison can sometimes cause instant death. Characters are also able to coat their own weapons with poison.
* ''VideoGame/{{Magicka}}'' has several poisoned weapons. They also are the only way to create poison elementals.
* ''VideoGame/DiabloII'' allows low-level Necromancers to enchant daggers with poison. Poison enchantments on weapons was also quite common, even though these enchantments were generally far from lethal in any way.
* There's Bruno from ''Quest for Glory I'' and [[spoiler: the same Bruno's]] in ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryV''. The poisoned daggers were a plot point in the second. The hero could obtain and even use one. Not recommended if you're playing a [[LawfulGood paladin]].
* ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' features poisoned crossbow bolts, which serve as tranquilizer darts (though they kill ''you''). In [[VideoGame/DeusExInvisibleWar the sequel]] there is a similar dart gun, but also a hidden, poisoned dagger. Striking your enemies with it makes them cough from the poison in addition to extra damage. This is especially useful as continuous strikes will have your opponent hacking so much he won't have the chance to fight back.
* In ''VideoGame/Dota2'' any hero can buy the Orb of Venom to add (very minor) damage-over-time and (minor, but still useful) slow effects to their auto-attack. Some heroes have their own venomous abilities, most notably [[PoisonousPerson Venomancer]], an alchemist who turned himself into a snake-like creature. Literally all his abilities inflict poison in some form or another, it's not uncommon for him to get killed early in a teamfight, only to score multiple kills shortly thereafter as the enemies succumb to the damage-over-time effects.

* ''VideoGame/BattleForWesnoth'' has a Poison weapon special, used (in mainline) on Orcish Assassins' throwing knives, and Ghouls' claws. This ability turns both, especially Orcish assassins, into DemonicSpiders.

* ''VideoGame/MystIVRevelation'': According to Achenar's journal, he used poisoned spears to kill the two large sea monsters (known as Cerpatees) in Haven.
* In ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII'', Ezio can get a poison upgrade for his hidden blade. It's the quietest weapon in the game, and because it has a delayed effect, you can poison a target and then get long gone before the target finally dies. An [[GoodBadBugs interesting bug]] in the game means that if the poisoned target, while flailing around uncontrollably, hits anyone, all the guards will blame you and go into high alert.
* ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' series: Poisoned weapons do exist, but they behave a little differently from the norm. First, each monster has its own tolerance to poison -- Bnahabra die instantly from poison smoke, while bigger monsters tend to resist it more readily. Also, each monster takes a given amount of damage maximum from the poison, and no weapon can inflict more or less. That said, a weapon's Poison attribute is in fact its virulence -- a higher attribute means that the poison starts doing damage with fewer blows. Neurotoxins (paralysis) and sleeping agents (sleep) behave in the same way.
* ''VideoGame/{{Exile}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Avernum}}'' give players the ability to poison melee weapons or arrows. Handy for taking out that nasty spellcaster hanging out in the back, as multiple hits from poisoned weapons make the poison worse. There's also the Alien Blade, which constantly drips poison. There are enough enemies dealing poisoned attacks to make poison resistances and cures necessary. Same with the ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'' series.
* Early FPS/RPG ''VideoGame/{{Strife}}'' allows you to use poisoned bolts for your crossbow, turning it from your weakest weapon to a OneHitKill weapon on grunts.
* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals'': The [[{{Qurac}} GLA]] can infect their tank shells with toxins given the proper upgrade. [[MadScientist Dr. Thrax]], in the ''Zero Hour'' expansion, places poison on ''everything'' in his arsenal.
* ''VideoGame/MarchOfWar'': The Latin Junta have a similar combat philosophy to Dr. Thrax.
* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' has some poisoned weapons, throwing knives, and arrows. Also, enemies in Blighttown use poison darts and giant clubs. Rotten Pine Resin can also be applied to almost any weapon to temporarily add a poison effect.
* In ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' [[BadassAdorable Teemo]] uses a blowgun with poisoned darts, [[RodentsOfUnusualSize Twitch]] uses poisoned crossbow bolts, and [[{{Pirate}} Gangplank]] soaks his blades in grog -- which is apparently pretty strong stuff because it deals damage over time and slows enemies it hits. [[SnakePeople Cassiopeia]] and [[MadScientist Singed]] cut out the middleman and simply blast people with contact poison or gas.
* The Viper Blade and Scorpio Staff can inflict poison on targets in ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising''. And any weapon can be made poisonous with powers and customized abilities.

* Certain ''VideoGame/BattleRealms'' units have weapons that have poisoned. The Serpent Clan's Zen Master Shinja dual-wields poisoned swords, while the Crossbowman and Bandit can have their crossbow bolts tipped with poison. Lotus Clan Diseased Ones exude a poisonous gas to attack.

* The [[GameBreaker Game Breaking]] Nightglow Sword in ''VideoGame/JadeCocoon'' delivers a guaranteed poison status to nearly any enemy and all but one of the ''bosses''.
* ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress'' has various syndromes that can be carried by monsters. [[http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=139121.0 !!Science!!]] has shown that these syndromes can be applied to weapons for lots of [[UnusualEuphemism fun]] for both [[VideogameCrueltyPotential your enemies]] and [[HoistByHisOwnPetard your dwarves]].

* ''VideoGame/DragonsCrown''
** The Toxic Extract skill of the Elf allows her to add poison to her arrows and daggers. [[AllThereInTheManual The Dragon's Crown artbook]] mentions that elves specifically use poison harvested from Hydeland's cat-sized scorpions for their weapons.
** The [[SpreadShot Cranequin]] crossbow the characters could pick up use poisoned bolts as ammo.
* From ''{{VideoGame/Bayonetta 2}}'' there's the [[Creator/FranzKafka Kafka]], a large bow crafted from a demonic dragonfly that can shoot out venomous spears or even infernal insects, all of which can poison an enemy and slow their movement. Also, when she uses the Tetsuzankou technique when wielding the [[MorphWeapon Rodin]] the weapon will turn into a poisonous whip that can hit multiple enemies at once.
* One of the targets in ''VideoGame/HitmanCodename47'' and it's "remake" ''VideoGame/HitmanContracts'' (The same target) wields a poisoned sword that he will use in combat if he spots 47. This acts as a one-hit kill in the first game and deals a lot of damage in the remake. In the remake, 47 can take the sword, and use it against guards, although it's not a very good idea, as the sword cannot be hidden or taken into other levels. In addition, the target's personal bodyguard is immune to the sword, either for unexplained reasons or [[Kevlard]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Evolve}}'', Val and Abe's adaptations both carry guns that inflict poison damage. in addition, both hunters and monsters have access to perks that add a poison DOT to their attacks.
* ''VideoGame/FortuneSummoners'': In the StoryWithinAStory, ''Magical Girl Merrin'', Part 4/12:
--> goblins descended on Merrin from all directions. Their swords were bent and rusty, their bows and arrows small and ridiculous... but even these could be deadly when coated in terrible poison, and the weapons lashing out at Merrin were.
* ''VideoGame/{{Chantelise}}'': As the FlavorText for the Poison Crystal says:
--> Coats your sword in poison.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Gigantic}}'' Voden can poison his arrows with toxic spores, while Ramsay can coat his Whipblade with the poisonous juices of a Juju fruit. In both cases the enemy struck with a poisoned weapon is inflicted with the Poison status effect which deals damage over time and makes healing less effective.
* In ''VideoGame/MordheimCityOfTheDamned'', this is the other specialty of the Skaven warband besides being the FragileSpeedster choice. Their unique racial skills allow any of their troops to poison their weapons, and their heroes can also equip Weeping Blades (sinister curved blades dripping with a sickly glowing poison) and Warplock Pistols (matchlock pistols which fire ''poison-coated bullets''). Yes, they ''do'' stack. A Night Runner with Warplock Pistols and mastered poisons and pinning or crippling shot is a ''nasty'' combo that can leave even a mighty [[GiantMook Impressive]] to die slowly, powerless to move or fight back, round after round.
* Anyone in ''VideoGame/NexusClash'' can use weapons coated with lesser poisons regardless of their position on the KarmaMeter, including a variant in armors that poison anyone who hits the wearer. The truly nasty poisons are the exclusive domain of [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Defiler]] demons, who don't ''need'' weapons.
* ''VideoGame/KingdomRush Vengeance'' has Asra. Her LimitBreak "[[RainOfArrows Toxic Rain]]" drops a hail of poisoned arrows onto an area of the battlefield to deal armor-piercing poison damage over a period of time. Another of her skills, "Spider Bite" causes her to coat her knife in deadly, high-damage poison and slash an enemy with it, and unlike other poison effects in the entire series which are temporary, this one [[YouAreAlreadyDead lasts until the enemy either dies or leaves the screen]].
* The Poison Needle has been a staple of the ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' games since the third installment. The weakest stated weapon in the game, it can rarely do more than one hitpoint of damage even on a critical, but it also has the chance of striking a vital spot on a non-boss enemy, insta-killing them. The typical strategy is to give it to the party mage, thereby allowing the normally weak character to contribute if their more arcane methods of attack are exhausted. [[spoiler: It also is extremely useful when hunting metal slimes, babbles, and king slimes, against which even the toughest warriors only ever do one damage, because the insta-kill works just as well on them as anything else, meaning you can rake in ludicrous amounts of xp in a single fight. Very satisfying if you've watched the little buggers run away before they can be killed one time too many.]]
* The Silent from'' VideoGame/SlayTheSpire'' has several poisoned weapons in her arsenal to dispatch her foes. Most notable are the cards "poisoned stab", which deals both normal and poison damage and "envenom", which makes '''all''' attacks to deal poison damage.
* ''VideoGame/{{Hades}}'': Dionysus, God of Wine, grants Zagreus' weapons the ability to inflict stacks of 'hungover' on enemies when they hit, [[DamageOverTime which deals a set amount of damage per second per stack on that enemy]]. It functions like a poison effect in all but name and was referred to as such during the game's early access before being renamed.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'', it is possible to tip arrows with potion effects, which naturally extends to Poison.
* ''VideoGame/MinecraftDungeons'': You can invoke this with the Poison Cloud enchantment, which provides a chance of spawning poisonous clouds upon hit.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Scrutinized}}'', the antagonist is a MadDoctor serial killer who uses a syringe to kill you. It's not clear if the syringer contains a cocktail of poison, or simply air (causing an embolism-induced heart attack). [[spoiler:The ending reveals it's Midazolam, a drug used for anathesia, procedural sedation and insomnia treatment. [[VillainRespect By this point Tanner came to respect the protagonist and did not want to kill her.]]]]
* ''VideoGame/BountyOfOne'': The "Fanged Arrows" legendary item is depicted as [[https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans//42292549/f9cfec08d60ffb0c18000c1502c56115cf9be37d.png an arrow tipped in poison]]. It makes all your shots poison enemies, which [[DamageOverTime deals 10% of your current damage at a rapid rate]] and makes them explode if the DoT kills them, [[DisasterDominoes poisoning other enemies in range]].
* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilVillage'' has the Dagger of Death's Flowers, and antique dagger described as "coated in a concoction of poisons from across the continent".

* ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'': MasterPoisoner and PsychoForHire Cheshire loves these. It's generally dangerous to let her [[DeadlyScratch so much as scratch you]].
-->'''Cheshire:''' Hand me one of your bullets. I have something agonizing to dip it in.

* In ''ComicBook/LadyRawhide: Other People's Blood'', the tip of PirateGirl Scarlet Fever's sword contains traces of gangrene: designed to turn even a scratch from her blade into a lingering death for her victims. It nearly does for Lady Rawhide.

* The Bandar Pygmy tribe, allies of ''ComicStrip/ThePhantom'', are infamous for their envenomed arrows. A [[FantasticSlurs less polite term for them]], used by their neighbours, is The Poison People.

* In ''Fanfic/FateLongNight'', Queen Nymeria Martell's spear, Chrohea Thaiye, is imbued with several poisons and diseases that she can switch at will. One of the nastiest is Tanatha Rhoyne, aka Greyscale.
* In ''Fanfic/FateHaremAntics'', [[PoisonousPerson Hassan of Serenity]] can fill her throwing daggers with her poisons.
* ''Fanfic/{{Metro}}'': Commentary on a stab wound in the first part:
--> "I can't see that the epigenetic reactivation, or 'induced burnout' as you called it, helped make the situation much better. I do accept that the treatment may have lowered the risk from whatever toxins or enchantments that could have been on the blade... but still, here we are."
* In ''Fanfic/{{Nightblade}}'', the titular Nightblade is a physically weak weapon that imparts a deadly poison on a single wound.

* ''Film/OurManFlint''. Gila uses a poisoned dart propelled by a harp to try to assassinate Flint, and Flint uses a curare-tipped dart to take out a fly.
* ''Film/HudsonHawk''. Almond Joy uses a blowgun with curare-tipped darts against the title character and Tommy Five-Tone.

* ''Film/ThatManFromRio'' opens with a museum robbery, where the crook kills a guard with a poison dart gun. It initially looks like heart failure to the police, but the museum head notes the poison is a common weapon of the vanished Mesoamerican culture that made the stolen artifact.
* In ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanOnStrangerTides'', [[spoiler: Barbossa]] poisons his sword in order to insure even more suffering when he attempts [[spoiler: (and succeeds) to kill Blackbeard]].
* In ''Film/TheWolverine'', some moronic hunters attack a bear with illegal poisoned arrows. The bear kills several of them and escapes but is left in agony. After Wolverine gives it a MercyKill, he angrily confronts the remaining hunters and stabs one of them with one of the arrows. Later, Wolverine is attacked by several ninjas with poisoned arrows.

* In ''Film/{{Transcendence}}'', the assassin that targets Will uses bullets laced with polonium. If the bullet itself doesn't kill him, radioactive material flowing through his veins will finish the job.

* The local Amazonian headhunters in ''Film/FiveCameBack'' shoot and kill one of the plane crash survivors with a poisoned arrow.
* In ''Film/UnderworldBloodWars'', Varga slashes Selene with a knife laced with nightshade, which paralyzes her for a while.
* In ''Film/WebOfDeath'', the titular web is a mechanism in the shape of a spider, which can shoot venomous mists, poisoned silks, and deadly needles at all directions. Upon being activated it is capable of killing an entire room full of faceless goons in mere seconds.
* ''Film/TheWildGeese''. The mercenaries have to kill the soldiers in the guard towers without alerting the 200 soldiers in the barracks. They use a crossbow firing hardwood quarrels with cyanide phials attached to the tip, in order to kill them quickly so they won't make a noise. It works, but one dying man falls out of the tower, alerting another guard -- fortunately, a cyanide-quarrel kills him before he can pull the trigger on his rifle.

* ''Literature/{{Redwall}}'': Employed by villains. Cluny the Scourge has a poisoned barb on the end of his tail, which kills the Abbot slowly enough for him to deliver his FinalSpeech, and the minor villains Farran the Poisoner and the Wraith possess an instant-death poisoned dagger.
* ''Literature/TheObsidianTrilogy'': The Goblins have deadly poison on their claws and teeth (the Shadowed Elves often use them on weapons). Only the timely intervention of a unicorn can save someone from even a slight or incidental dose.

* In one of ''Literature/TheStainlessSteelRat'' stories, a character gets into a fight with an assassin, and the knife barely touches the assassin and he dies, it turns out not only did he have a ''very'' nasty knife but the knife was coated with a neurotoxin that would kill anyone on skin contact.
* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'':
** Oberyn Martell (aka The Red Viper) is infamous for using poisoned weapons, and it allows him to deliver an ultimately fatal wound to the [[TheBrute Brutish]] Gregor Clegane [[TakingYouWithMe even though he himself dies at Gregor's hands]].
** The Crannogmen are also famous for fighting with poisoned arrows and utilizing the swamps that surround their lands when they fight. Their foes refer to them as bog devils because of this.

* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', a form of dueling is mentioned as having existed shortly before [[CataclysmBackstory the collapse of the Age of Legends]] which involved DualWielding daggers laced with a slow-acting poison. Most duels ended with both participants dying.

* When the anti-hero protagonist of ''Literature/AlteredCarbon'' goes to the armorer, among the weapons he buys is a poison-coated knife.
* ''[[Literature/TheBelgariad Mallorean]]'': [[MasterPoisoner Sadi]], one of the heroic party members carries a variety of poisons, and his major weapon in battle is a poisoned dagger. When [[TheMentor Belgarath]] asks the group to minimize casualties during a fight with {{Mooks}}, he's responsible for two of the three deaths at its close -- "It's a little hard to unpoison a knife." (The third was [[CombatPragmatist Silk]] taking out an ambusher.)

* A prequel to ''Literature/DeptfordMice'' series has enemies who wear golden claws with an impossibly nasty poison that causes you to pretty much dissolve into goo. When one character finds an unconscious one of them, HoistByHisOwnPetard is subverted when the guy decides to put on the claw and kill him with it, but accidentally scratches himself. He then runs away from the incurable poison already in his veins, and dies very quickly as opposed to using his remaining time to say, ''kill the one he poisoned himself getting ready to kill''.

* Hercules had arrows poisoned with hydra blood. Creator/{{Sophocles}} is the first author to mention this, making this one OlderThanFeudalism. Similarly, a poisoned arrow was used to finally kill the otherwise InvincibleHero Achilles towards the end of the Trojan War.
* Valeri Petrofsky of ''The Fourth Protocol'' by Creator/FrederickForsyth carried a handgun that fired hollow-point bullets ''[[AbnormalAmmo filled with cyanide]]''.
* ''Literature/TheCabinetOfCuriosities'' reveals that the [[DiscOneFinalBoss thought to be]] BigBad was [[spoiler: poisoning weapons, clothing, and other objects in an effort to find an effective means of destroying humanity, research he stopped only because he felt the creation of Hydrogen Bomb made him think the rest of humanity was perfectly capable of destroying itself on its own]].
* ''This Immortal'' by Creator/RogerZelazny: assassin Hasan (who has been forcibly disarmed) is forced to fight [[ImplacableMan the Dead Man]] and spends the time filing his nails. To really sharp points. His bullets (which weren't taken away) had meta-cyanide on them. He scratched the Dead Man at the start of the fight and stalled until it dropped. Then he got the leader too.
* ''Literature/TheSaint'': The Saint himself discovered a poison-dart launcher built into a doorbell once. He avoided getting shot, kept the dart, and later used it in a booby-trapped parcel to [[HoistByHisOwnPetard prick the finger of the villain]].
* ''[[Literature/MrsMurphyMysteries The Tail of the Tip Off]]'': A rather ingenious example is found in Rita Mae Brown's novel. When H. H. Donaldson drops dead after going to a basketball game, an autopsy shows he was poisoned through an injection in the neck, but the poison would have had to have been administered during the game for it to kill him when it did. No one saw anything despite the bleachers being packed, and Donaldson didn't react in any way as he would have had someone jabbed him in the neck with a needle. [[spoiler: It turns out the killer froze the poison into an ice dart and was able to kill Donaldson by shooting it our of a noise maker into his neck. No weapon was found because the ice melted, releasing the poison.]]
* In Creator/EdgarRiceBurroughs's original ''Literature/{{Tarzan}}'' books, Tarzan uses poison arrows that he steals from the natives, at least until he scares them into leaving a bundle out with some food every so often as 'tribute' to the forest spirit they think they've angered.
* In the ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'' story ''Literature/BlackColossus'', Shevatas poisoned his blade to deal with the snake.
* In ''Literature/FromRussiaWithLove'', Rosa Klebb had a poisoned dagger at the toe of her shoe. She nicks James Bond with it and he passes out from the poison in seconds. The novel ends at that point. (Compare with [[Film/FromRussiaWithLove the film]].)
* In ''Literature/MemorySorrowAndThorn'', [[MagicalNativeAmerican Binabik]] carries a hollow walking stick, a small roll of poisoned needles, and a bundle of loose wool. When combined, these make a blowgun that shoots poison darts, allowing the diminutive [[OurTrollsAreDifferent troll]] to pack a lethal stealth attack.
* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': How Maysilee Donner got so far during her games; she fought using poison darts. She was good enough with them to be able to kill a Career.
* In ''Literature/TheIronTeeth'', Saeter and his slave/apprentice Blacknail occasionally use weapons coated with paralytic [[GiantSpider timber spider]] venom.
* In Creator/MichaelMoorcock's ''Erekose/John Daker'' story ''The Eternal Champion'', Erekose uses the poisonous (or radioactive) sword Kanajana. The toxicity of the blade will kill humans and eldren with a slight scratch. Kanajana is so dangerously "radioactive" (Erekose himself isn't sure if it's radioactive or supernatural) that it needs to be kept in sheathe and can only be safely used by him.
* In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'' it turns out that the sword of Godric Gryffindor is made from "goblin silver" that repels dirt and dust and "imbibes that which strengthens it", meaning that [[spoiler: since Harry stabbed a Basilisk in the head with it back in ''Chamber of Secrets'' it is now imbued with basilisk venom, one of the few things that can destroy a Horcrux]].
* In ''Literature/DarthBane: Dynasty of Evil'', the Huntress manages to capture Darth Bane by cutting him with knives coated in a fast-acting but non-lethal neurotoxin.
* According to ''Literature/StarWarsPhasma'', the eponymous character is a fan of these, [[spoiler:using a poisoned dagger to seemingly kill Cardinal, and also using a particularly nasty poison on Hux's father]].
* In the first book of ''Literature/TheNightAngelTrilogy'', Kylar uses a poisoned weapon to kill [[spoiler:Durzo]].
* ''Literature/TheDaevabadTrilogy'': The Geziri tribe of [[OurGeniesAreDifferent daeva]] use [[BifurcatedWeapon forked]] copper ''zulfiqar'' swords as their signature weapon, which exude a deadly poison when they [[FlamingSword erupt in flames]]. Their fighting style emphasizes mobility and shallow slashes to exploit this since a cut doesn't need to be deep to be lethal.
* In ''Literature/FengshenYanyi'': the Immortal Yu Hua makes his return with a brand new Fabao (magic treasure tool) called the "Blood-Altering Divine Knife", a short curved blade which can grow longer and is coated in a lethal poison that clots the blood of the victims in their veins. Luckily, the only victims (Nezha and Leizhenzi) are immune to his instant-death effect, though they're still left out of the game. His master Yu Yua made the knife and, at the same time, three magic pills which are the only known antidote.

* ''LightNovel/AestheticaOfARogueHero'': Phil's {{BFS}} is coated with poison. Akatsuki collapses with a terrible fever when the blade nicks him.

** During a duel between Garrosh and Cairne for leadership of the Horde, Magatha Grimtotem poisoned Garrosh's weapon (taking advantage of his ignorance of the pre-fight blessing tradition) so that a single lucky blow defeated the almost victorious Cairne. Garrosh was less than pleased.

** The Hrunting in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow Aria of Sorrow]]'' is an example of a poisoned sword.

** ''Literature/LegendOfTheShadowWarriors'' has the fifth and deadliest of the warriors using poisoned throwing stars as his WeaponOfChoice. Fail to kill him before he uses that weapon, and you're a goner.

** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'', in a more traditional use of the trope, lets you apply poisons to your weapons which will deliver the poison's effects on the next enemy it strikes. Poisons can be found or purchased, and you can also create them yourself through the [[AlchemyIsMagic Alchemy]] PotionBrewingMechanic. This causes [[FridgeLogic some confusion]] as to how a [[DropTheHammer warhammer]] -- [[CarryABigStick or other blunt weapon,]] which [[MindScrew has no method of actually transmitting the poison into the host's body]] -- can be poisoned in the same manner as, say, [[HeroesPreferSwords a sword]] or [[AnAxeToGrind an axe]]. (It can also be applied to a ''bow'', although it's implied that you're actually applying to the next arrow fired.) Further, "poisons" can have effects beyond simply dealing damage. Poisons can drain [[{{Mana}} Magicka]] and Stamina, or inflict "weakness to" [[ElementalPowers certain elements]], or [[StatusInflictionAttack inflict other status effects]] such as Silence or Paralysis.

* ''Literature/TheCityOfBrass'': The Geziri tribe of [[OurGeniesAreDifferent daeva]] use [[BifurcatedWeapon forked]] copper ''zulfiqar'' swords as their signature weapon, which exude a deadly poison when they [[FlamingSword erupt in flames]]. Their fighting style emphasizes mobility and shallow slashes to exploit this since a cut doesn't need to be deep to be lethal.

* ''VideoGame/{{Exile}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Avernum}}'' give players the ability to poison melee weapons or arrows. Handy for taking out that nasty spellcaster hanging out in the back, as multiple hits from poisoned weapons make the poison worse. There's also the Alien Blade, which constantly drips poison.
** There are enough enemies dealing poisoned attacks to make poison resistances and cures necessary. Same with the ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'' series.

* ''TabletopGame/TheOneRing'': Heroic adventurers [[PoisonIsEvil don't have the option]], but some orcs and other creatures of darkness wield weapons that where their {{Critical Hit}}s are {{Status Infliction Attack}}s of Poison. That duplicates the effect of a serious Wound and can cause other penalties, like temporary partial blindness from orc-poison.

** ''Chainsaw Warrior'' has some of the enemy C.H.A.O.S agents use envenomed weapons against you. These will eat away at your poison threshold and since the venom is from an [[EldritchAbomination]], dying from venom will turn the Chainsaw Warrior into a zombie. The Chainsaw Warrior himself isn't above using poison, one weapon he can have is a syringe full of poison. It'll kill most enemies in one use but there's a random amount of time before it happens.

* ''Manga/OnePiece''

->''"Gingerly he drew the sword, and from it dripped a greenish liquid exactly like that which slavered from the scimitar-fangs of the reptile. The blade was steeped in the poison of the snake's own kind, and the obtaining of that venom from the fiend-haunted swamps of Zingara would have made a saga in itself."''

-->-- '''Creator/RobertEHoward''', ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'' (''Black Colossus'')

* ComicBook/TeenTitans'': MasterPoisoner and PsychoForHire Cheshire loves these. It's generally dangerous to let her [[DeadlyScratch so much as scratch you]].

* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'': The aforementioned Cheshire poisons Diana this way and had poisoned her temporary co-worker ComicBook/{{Cheetah}}'s claws for her. Unbeknownst to Cheshire the reason this didn't work was due to Cheetah feeling she had a life debt to Diana at the time and removed the poison on her own weapons and treated Diana for Cheshire's poison before handing her over to their boss.

** The "Zejar-Dulaga" are magical poisoned arrows created by the Darklords. One is powerful enough to one-shot the hero... or a Darklord.

* ''Series/TheDefenders2017'': Sometimes, the Hand's ninjas dip the blades of their weapons in a special poison that can kill their opponent.
** ''Series/Daredevil2015'': Said poison is used to wound Elektra when she and Matt are attacked investigating Midland Circle. Stick is forced to revive her at Matt's apartment using various ingredients from his kitchen. Elektra spends several days bedridden as she recuperates.
** ''Series/IronFist2017'': Said poison ends up getting into Colleen's body when she gets nicked in the shoulder by a ninja during a fight at one of Madame Gao's factories in China. It doesn't take effect until after she and Danny are back in New York City. Fortunately for Colleen, Bakuto is there to teach Danny how to use the Iron Fist to suck out the poison. That he knows the Iron Fist cures the Hand's poison is justified since he is one of the Hand's Five Fingers.

* Hercules uses arrows dipped in the blood of the Lernean Hydra; wounds from these arrows are deadly as there is no cure. [[spoiler:He died when he wore clothes his wife had drenched in the blood of the centaur Nessus ([[{{Irony}} or in hydra blood in some versions]]), who had told her it would make Hercules faithful to her]].

* Essentially, virtually every action adventure-based tabletop [=RPG=] (which is to say, most of them) will have at least a few paragraphs on the effects of poison on player characters -- from a simple "save or die" to lovingly detailed descriptions of a given poison's exact effects over time. Some systems (notably early editions of [[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons (A)D&D]]) then promptly go out of their way to make the use of poison ''by'' player characters in turn as impractical as possible or even ban it outright, while others won't bat an eye.
** In D&D Fourth Edition, poison use is one of the main shticks of the Executioner Assassin player class. The class makes a certain number of uses of poison each day (determined by level) which can be applied to weapons or used directly on enemies. Other classes have access to poison-based powers as well, but since the poison damage type is resisted by more creatures than any other damage type, it's not the best type of damage to specialize in.

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