History Main / UnicornsAreSacred

* Subverted in TheDresdenFiles. While this may apply to unicorns affiliated with Summer, the [[TheFairFolk Winter court]] version that appears in ''Summer Knight'' is [[HellishHorse far from sacred]].

* In ''MagicTheGathering'', the [[http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=16625 Feast of the Unicorn]] card depicts the head of a unicorn roasted with an apple in its mouth, with the flavour text "Could there be a fouler act? No doubt the baron knows of one."

** A similar situation is going on in nearby Hagsgate, which is cursed to "share [Haggard's] feat and share his fall." It is ''strongly'' implied that they never interfered with Haggard's capture of the unicorns because the Red Bull always drove them near the town so they could see them too.

* King Haggard from ''Literature/TheLastUnicorn'' captured all the unicorns (except one) with the Red Bull and drove them all into the sea, just because he could. His explanation for his actions was that the sight of a unicorn was the only thing that could make him happy.

* Inverted in ''DrMcNinja'': The doctor's motorcycle is a transformed EvilOverlord unicorn.

* In ''VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2'' the Legendary Pokemon Keldeo is more or less a unicorn, and the backstory behind it certainly suggests that it is a divine creature.

* In ''Film/{{Legend}}'', Unicorns are treated as ethereal beings so holy it would upset the order of the universe for a mortal to touch one. Killing the last two unicorns that guard the power of light would allow the demon lord to roam the world freely in darkness. Also, the BigBad shows just how evil he is by ordering a unicorn's horn to be cut off, which causes the world to freeze over.

* In ''Film/{{Legend}}'', Unicorns are treated as ethereal beings so holy it would upset the order of the universe for a mortal to touch one.
Killing the last two unicorns that guard the power of light would allow the demon lord to roam the world freely in darkness. Also, the BigBad shows just how evil he is by ordering a unicorn's horn to be cut off, which causes the world to freeze over.

* In ''Film/{{Legend}}'', killing the last two unicorns that guard the power of light would allow the demon lord to roam the world freely in darkness. Also, the BigBad shows just how evil he is by ordering a unicorn's horn to be cut off, which causes the world to freeze over.

* Killing a unicorn is seen as a particularly heinous thing to do in ''Literature/HarryPotter''; Firenze refers to it as a "monsterous thing". The only person known to have done it in the series is [[spoiler:Voldemort/Quirrel]], further emphasising this. Drinking unicorn blood can prolong one's life, but the drinker will be cursed from the moment the blood touches his lips for having slain "something so pure and defenceless".

* Averted in ''TalesOfSymphonia'', where, even though you have to kill a Unicorn to get its horn to heal someone, the unicorn reveals that its death just means a new unicorn will be born elsewhere, so there is no "curse," nor is it an evil act, to kill a unicorn for a greater good.

* King Haggard from ''Literature/TheLastUnicorn'' captured all the unicorns (except one) with the Red Bull and drove them all into the sea, just because he could.

* Killing a unicorn of your alignment in ''VideoGame/{{Nethack}}'' incurs a sizable penalty to your LuckStat. ''Sacrificing'' a unicorn of your alignment (whether or not you killed it) is generally a good way to suffer YetAnotherStupidDeath, by way of [[BoltOfDivineRetribution invoking your god's wrath]]. Possibly a Zig-Zag example, in that you incur no penalty for killing cross-aligned unicorns (and are, in fact, rewarded).

* King Haggard from ''TheLastUnicorn'' captured all the unicorns (except one) with the Red Bull and drove them all into the sea, just because he could.

* King Lir from ''TheLastUnicorn'' captured all the unicorns (except one) with the Red Bull and drove them all into the sea, just because he could.

{{Unicorn Unicorns}} are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works of fiction. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to be an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that they have crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator.

[[Unicorn Unicorns]] are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works of fiction. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to be an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that they have crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator.

Unicorns are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works of fiction. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to be an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that they have crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator.

Unicorns are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works of fiction. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to be an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that he has crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator.

Not to be confused with DeadUnicornTrope. See also: MoralEventHorizon.

Unicorns are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works of fiction. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to be an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that he has crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator. This is a common trope in works that feature unicorns, due to the fact that the symbolic significance of unicorns is widely understood, making it useful in establishing or reinforcing villainy in a character.

Unicorns are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works of fiction. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to be an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that he has crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to mean that. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator. This is a common trope in works that feature unicorns, due to the fact that the symbolic significance of unicorns is widely understood, making it useful in establishing or reinforcing villainy in a character.

Unicorns are mythical animals which often represent things such as grace, purity and light in works. Given this, anybody killing or otherwise harming a unicorn can be taken to an utterly repugnant character. This can often mean that they've crossed the MoralEventHorizon, but it doesn't have to. Often, the act of killing the unicorn will cause some curse to be placed upon the perpetrator. This is a common trope in works that feature unicorns, due to the fact that the symbolic significance of unicorns is widely understood, making it useful in establishing or reinforcing villainy in a character.

[[AC: {{Film}}]]
* In ''Film/{{Legend}}'', killing the last two unicorns that guard the power of light would allow the demon lord to roam the world free in darkness. Also, the BigBad shows just how evil he is by ordering a unicorn's horn to be cut off, which causes the world to freeze over.

[[AC: {{Literature}}]]
* Killing a unicorn is seen as a particularly heinous thing to do in HarryPotter; Firenze refers to it as a "monsterous thing". The only person known to have done it in the series is [[spoiler: Voldemort/Quirrel]], further emphasising this. Drinking unicorn blood can prolong one's life, but the drinker will be cursed from the moment the blood touches their lips for having slain "something so pure and defenceless".
* King Lir from TheLastUnicorn captured all the unicorns (except one) with the Red Bull and drove them all into the sea, just because he could.

* Merlin had The Labyrinth of Gedref. Arthur killed a unicorn despite Merlin warning him not to, and Camelot was cursed. Arthur had to succeed at three tests to prove his worth in order to lift the curse. He almost failed, but passed when he attempted to drink the allegedly poisoned drink to save Merlin. In the end, he buried the unicorn horn and the unicorn came back to life.

[[AC: {{NewspaperComics}}]]
* in the Dilbert strip, when he is assignrd to the Marketing department as a punishment, Dilbert discovers a group of unworldly Elf-like types who boast every Friday s unicorn barbecue day. (Naturally, the eternal loser Dilbert gets the bun with the horn in). But elsewhere in the Dilbert universe we are told Marketing is a place of great and terrible primal evil... (in other strips, Marketing and Sales conspire to make life Hell for engineers by selling things they haven't designed yet. Hell: Marketing sell thingds that haven't been invented yet and which are generally scinetifically impossible...).

[[AC: {{TabletopGames}}]]
* In Magic: The Gathering, the [[http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=16625 Feast of the Unicorn]] card depicts the head of a unicorn roasted with an apple in its mouth, with the flavour text "Could there be a fouler act? No doubt the baron knows of one."
* ''DungeonsAndDragons'' ForgottenRealms setting. In order to create the Tome of the Unicorn (which was made of metal plates), a wizard named Shoon killed 12 unicorns and bathed the plates in their blood. This was considered an especially evil act in a world where evil deeds are quite common.

[[AC: {{Videogames}}]]
* Killing a unicorn of your alignment in ''VideoGame/{{Nethack}}'' incurs a sizable penalty to your LuckStat. ''Sacrificing'' a unicorn of your alignment (whether or not you killed it) is generally a good way to suffer YetAnotherStupidDeath, by way of [[BoltOfDivineRetribution invoking your god's wrath]]. Possibly a Zig-Zag example, in that you incur no penalty for killing cross aligned unicorns (and are in fact rewarded).
* Justified in Videogame/{{Overlord}}. The whole forest is tainted by evil and you can (and should) mercy-kill them.
* Averted in TalesOfSymphonia, where, even though you have to kill a Unicorn to get its horn to heal someone, the unicorn reveals that its death just means a new unicorn will be born elsewhere, so there is no "curse," nor is it an evil act, to kill a unicorn for a greater good.

[[AC: {{WebOriginal}}]]
* Inverted in DrMcNinja: the doctor's motorcycle is a transformed EvilOverlord unicorn.

[[AC: {{WesternAnimation}}]]
* In [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixzhgsY6lQY this]] [[TheSimpsons Simpsons]] couch gag, the workers manufacturing the Simpsons merchandise are depicted as miserable slaves made to work for cruel masters at Fox. There is a unicorn chained up in the underground sweatshop, looking malnourished and unhappy.