Line #18 Main/HarmfulToTouch


1	A substance or material which causes pain, injury or death to anyone who makes skin contact with it. There are several reasons this may happen: the object is cursed or possessed by a malicious will; the object is protected by some kind of defense system designed to keep away unauthorised users; or, the object is just really hot, very sharp, radioactive, or otherwise naturally dangerous, in which case it probably doesn't need to be mentioned here (unless it has some property of being ''supernaturally'' hot or sharp).
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3	Typically there is some way to bypass this threat, especially for the defense system type, in which case you might see certain characters handling the item without any undue consequences. In other cases, just wearing gloves might protect you. Or you might require specialised PhlebotinumHandlingEquipment.
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5	If the object in question is possessable and always fatal, it's also an ArtifactOfDeath. If it's harmful but only to certain species or individuals, it falls under either WeaksauceWeakness or KryptoniteFactor. An EmpathicWeapon may have this as a defense feature to avoid being used by someone it doesn't want. Anything MadeOfEvil will have this effect.
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7	PoisonousPerson is this in person form. Related to TouchOfDeath. See also AgonyBeam, {{Curse}}, DemonicPossession and SoulJar.
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9	Compare CollisionDamage for another meaning of "harmful to touch".
10	----
11	!!Examples:
12	[[foldercontrol]]
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14	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
15	* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'':
16	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders Stardust Crusaders]]'': Alessi's Set takes the form of a moving shadow, which [[FountainOfYouth de-ages]] anyone who touches it and makes them more vulnerable.
17	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable Diamond is Unbreakable]]'': The [[YouDirtyRat Bug-Eaten Rat]]'s Ratt fires a toxic dart that permeates flesh to dissolve upon contact as Jotaro found out by performing a BulletCatch with it caused his hand to melt.
18	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind Golden Wind]]'': Scolippi's Rolling Stones becomes automatically active around someone who's fated to die soon. If the one being targeted touches it, it will give them another, less futile way to die. The admonition, however, is that the victim still cannot escape their death either way.
19	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStoneOcean Stone Ocean]]'': Pucci's C-Moon is able to invert anything it touches, causing part of a person's body to turn [[BodyHorror inside-out]], making it lethal in close quarters combat.
20	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureSteelBallRun Steel Ball Run]]'': The Boom Boom trio's Tomb of the Boom all share the ability to turn anything they touch, including their own blood into a powerful magnet that can crush people.
21	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureJoJolion JoJolion]]'': Urban Guerrilla's Brain Storm flies around his targets to dig into their skin and inject a hemolytic virus, melting flesh in seconds.
22	** ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureTheJoJoLands The JoJoLands]]'': The Wild Cats' Cat Size spread [[MasterOfThreads moving threads]] that cause InstantKnots when touched to tightly apply pressure to whoever they've caught.
23	[[/folder]]
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25	[[folder:Comic Books]]
26	* In the Star Comics version of ''Franchise/MastersOfTheUniverse'', only He-Man/Prince Adam could touch the Power Sword, as it would deliver a painful magical blast to any other living being -- including He-Man's fellow heroes. Inorganic beings such as the Horde Troopers were unaffected, though. It should be noted, however, that this, along with pretty much all of the Star Comics. falls under CanonDiscontinuity.
27	[[/folder]]
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29	[[folder:Fan Works]]
30	* In ''Harry Potter and the Unspeakable'', the wand which Harry obtained from Ollivander's, made of meteorite and dubbed the "Celestial Wayfarer," was said to be harmful to any evil person who touched it. A particular character was later revealed to be Snape's evil stepfather on Polyjuice when he was forced to pick up the wand while in court and it burned his hand.
31	[[/folder]]
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33	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
34	* In ''Film/TimeBandits'', Kevin warns his parents not to touch a piece of Evil that the dwarves didn't dispose of. They (as usual) don't listen to him. Boom.
35	* The MacGuffin from the 1985 ''Film/RedSonja'' movie is lethal to any male who touches it.
36	%% Needs Context * The AppliedPhlebotinum in ''Film/MysteryTeam.''
37	* ''Film/Blade1998'': Blade's sword has a rather nasty security feature on it, just in case Blade's prey get any ideas about using his weapon against him.
38	* In ''Film/TheJackal'', the titular assassin sprays something on his SUV that was holding his gun as a would-be thief was tailing him. He somehow dies from whatever it was.
39	* In ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014'', the Power Stone has a tendency to quickly damage and then kill those who attempt to wield it without proper precautions. Luckily, carrying cases that can contain it seem to be pretty easy to procure.
40	[[/folder]]
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42	[[folder:Literature]]
43	* In ''Literature/{{Gone}}'', touching the barrier feels like sticking your entire arm in an electrical outlet.
44	* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Mordite is a kind of corporealised mortality. Just getting near it can be lethal.
45	* The Sword of the King of the [[Literature/EnchantedForestChronicles Enchanted Forest]] feels uncomfortably hot to anyone not in the King's family line.
46	** The same series also features the Frying Pan of Doom, which can only be handled by its rightful bearer [[MundaneSolution or anyone wearing an oven mitt]].
47	* The [[AgonyBeam Agiels]] in ''Literature/TheSwordOfTruth'' series automatically cause pain to whoever touches them, including the wielder. The degree of pain, and whether they cause physical injury, can be adjusted.
48	* In ''Literature/TheBlackCompany'', a man tries to pick up SealedEvilInACan by hand and the sheer evil of it gives him a 3rd degree burn that won't heal.
49	* [[Literature/TheSilmarillion Silmarils]] will burn anyone who takes them that is not good enough to hold them.
50	* In the original version of ''Literature/{{Aladdin}}'' (the story, not the Disney movie), Aladdin is warned to not touch ''anything'' in the place where the lamp is being held. He is warned that if his clothes so much as brush the walls, he'll be killed.
51	* In Theodore L. Thomas' ''Literature/TheClone'', the eponymous life form is a giant blob of organic matter that [[ParanoiaFuel inhabits the sewage system]] and dissolves any organics it touches into water and food for itself. The worst part of it? It doesn't hurt ''at all'', so you won't even notice it until half your leg is gone.
52	* In the ''Literature/{{Lensman}}'' series, a Lens will instantly kill whoever touches it if that person isn't its owner. We see a few cases where someone other than the owner handles a Lens (usually another Lensman), but it's always with insulated forceps, gloves, and containers.
53	[[/folder]]
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55	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
56	* The forcelances in ''Series/{{Andromeda}}'' are equipped with DNA-recognition keys. They're 'supposed' to deliver an electric shock large enough to make an unauthorized user let go, but Harper likes to tinker with the charge.
57	* In ''Series/BabylonFive'', a researcher who touched the surface of a Shadow vessel was described as having died instantly as if the life had just been sucked out of him.
58	[[/folder]]
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60	[[folder:Religion]]
61	* [[PublicDomainArtifact The Ark of the Covenant]] is said in Literature/TheBible to smite anyone who touches it without specific ecclesiastical consent. This apparently applies also to anyone [[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk looking inside]].
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64	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
65	* Some magical items in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' will automatically inflict damage on anyone of the wrong alignment who picks them up. A few are safe to handle initially, but trying to invoke their power if you're the wrong alignment/class/whatever will cause damage to hp, xp, or abilities. A version of this mechanic also shows up in ''VideoGame/NetHack''.
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68	[[folder:Video Games]]
69	* Pretty much any invincibility powerup which inflicts CollisionDamage on enemies during its duration.
70	* ''VideoGame/ANNOMutationem'': [[BrownNoteBeing The Eroder]] is a huge orb of an unprecedented substance that forcibly causes anyone's body to deform into a BlobMonster upon contact with its entire being.
71	* Ink in ''VideoGame/DeBlob''. It's harmful even to the Inkies, and they're made of it!
72	* In ''VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame'', Shandor's black slime. As Winston points out, "the stains don't ever come out."
73	* In ''VideoGame/LaMulana'', the CrystalSkull will hurt you if you touch it without having the Talisman of La-Mulana.
74	* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
75	** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': The Malice is a purple substance spawned off from Calamity Ganon that is found on various surfaces that instantly damages Link once he makes contact with it.
76	** The Gloom in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'' is a black and red substance that saps the vitality of anyone who touches it. Several Hylians can be seen moaning in pain as they rest in bed due to them coming in contact with the Gloom. Standing in the Gloom for too long will [[MaximumHPReduction reduce Link's maximum health]], leaving him with less overall health unless he either goes to the surface, stands under a lightroot, or consumes food that can cure the Gloom.
77	* Phazon in ''VideoGame/MetroidPrimeTrilogy'' is explicitly extremely dangerous to life in general. It tends to be rather immediately fatal to organisms exposed to it, and wildly mutative to things that aren't killed by exposure. Even with her Varia suit, Samus' health is depleted extremely quickly when in contact with Phazon, at least until she gets the Phazon suit. Ways of dealing with Phazon are developed in the following Prime games, but it still has a habit of killing everything it comes into contact with.
78	* ''VideoGame/SlimeRancher'': The player will suffer radiation if they are within a Rad Slime's vicinity and will take damage if they are too close for too long.
79	* ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy'': Dark Matter is depicted as a purple-black form of GrimyWater that causes Mario to disintegrate upon touching it.
80	* ''VideoGame/TalesOfArise'': Shionne is affected with the "Curse of Thorns", that inflicts agonizing pain to anyone who touches her. It doesn't appear to actually inflict physical harm, but the painful touch alone made her a pariah. The cause for this curse is eventually revealed to be [[spoiler:a piece of an EldritchAbomination that's [[SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan sealed inside her]]]].
81	[[/folder]]
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83	[[folder:Western Animation]]
84	* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', Cartman claims his super-high-tech Trapper Keeper will impale any hand whose fingerprints don't match his. Kyle doesn't believe this, but decides not to touch it when Cartman gives him a chance to debunk the claim. The show being what it is, we later see that Cartman was telling the truth.
85	[[/folder]]

Context Main / HarmfulToTouch