Just For Fun / TV Tropes Additional Evil Overlord Vows Cellblock X

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2301. If I have found the Hero's Secret Identity, only to let him know that I know during our big battle, and he says, Have You Told Anyone Else?, I'll let him know that the information is to be released to the public in the event of my death. He'll have to stay his hand, unless he's the sort that doesn't care.
2302. If there is someone I need to silence regarding an evil plot I am working on, I will try to silence them via money before I try doing so by murder. Doing it the other way around just makes them think I'll shoot them and take the money back before they can spend it, since they know I already tried to kill them earlier. If they don't take the money I can always use it to hire a hit man after they leave. And if they do take the money, killing them and taking it back when they go off to spend it is always an option.
2303. As tempting as it might be, the prisons will not be giant death traps filled with deadly architecture. After all, a clever prisoner will use such things to their advantage, especially by killing my prison guards, or those prisoners that report to me, or using them in an attempt to escape.
2304. It's one thing to steal the Hero's Master and Infinity Swords, but make sure to steal the steel and wooden ones as well — with those basic backup weapons, the Hero always seems to get the rest of their arsenal back, including the aforementioned Master and Infinity Swords. Also, if I just steal the weapons that are a real threat to me, the fact that I stole them will give this away. If I steal all of them, it doesn't give away my weakness.
2305. Never use a silly reason for war. It just doesn't look right.
2306. I will design my prisons so that they are resistant not only to the powers and abilities of the hero, but to those of his most faithful sidekick as well. That way, if I capture only one of them, the one that escapes won't be able to stage a breakout.
2307. In the event that I have special powers, like flight, telekinesis, or web-slinging abilities, if my enemy is knocked off the edge of a cliff or building, I will not use my powers to save them from falling to their death, unless there's a very good reason. That spider lady who always used her webs to pull up that raccoon thief — clearly, she was an idiot. She'd have no part in my organization.
2308. If I have a mole, who is always backstabbing those they use (law enforcement, rival gangs, my other underlings), make damn sure to get rid of them before they do the same to me!
2309. If I find out that a certain raccoon thief is in the area, try to not be his target. It isn't just him to worry about — that huge hippo will wreck things, the wheelchair-bound turtle will hack my infrastructure, and then, just as they get away from my goons, that fox cop will show up with an arrest warrant for me — I wonder if that raccoon and fox are secretly working together...?
2310. In the event that an officer is telling an underling a story about meeting me, while they are in a room filled with the bodies of the enemy, but the underling keeps interrupting them to state that one of the enemies is pretending to be dead, the officer will halt their story, and shoot each enemy body in the head. The officer can finish the story once the underling's fears that the enemy is merely pretending to be dead is removed by the certainty that the enemy is indeed dead.
2311. Should an officer be fooled by "death throes" when the enemy is pretending to be dead, the underling is to shoot the officer — such idiots have no place leading my troops. As for the enemy pretending to be dead, I'll leave their fate up to the underling — if the underling is having a good day, perhaps they'll spare them. If it's been a bad day, well, sorry fella.
2312. There's nothing wrong with having respect for a Humble Hero, whose reasons for turning me in are rather modest — making sure that their home isn't unfairly claimed by an unscrupulous money lender, making sure that there's medicine for little sick Timmy, and to prove to his children that he is indeed a Hero. I might even play along with going onto the prison transport — after all, I can always escape later.
2313. Should that humble hero get me to the prison transport only for my gang to gun him down — especially after I explicitly told them not to — immediately kill every last one of them. If they can't obey simple orders, they just aren't worth keeping around. I'll make sure that the late hero's next-of-kin get the bounty for my gang members, as it's the least I can do.
2314. As cool as the trail of gunpowder as a lit fuse to a target's doom is, use something more practical, if possible. A much shorter-timed (Dynamite) or remote-controlled (C4) explosive will do the job. Alternatively, have a team of snipers hide some distance away, and when the Hero comes to rescue the captive, shoot both of them.
2315. If I find that some high-profile member of my organization makes a point of concealing his true appearance to everyone, I will make a point of ordering a background check on him immediately. It could be that he's secretly someone who has a standing grudge against me or some other key member of my organization, and is trying to get into position to do a backstab.
2316. If someone I trying to "bargain" with insists on the performance of some long, complicated ritual before we conclude our business, I will assume that he's playing for time and covertly inform my security team to be on the look out for the arrival of a hero coming to the rescue.
2317. Of course, if the person in 2315 is trying to hide a facial deformity, or something, I'll respect their comfort.
2318. Of course, if the tribe of the person in 2316 traditionally engages in such long rituals, respect them.
2319. In the event that the cave holding the treasure I've been looking for, and have found, is collapsing, leave the place and be safe. Then, once the dust settles, pick up a pick and shovel, or other appropriate tools, and start digging. After all, I can only enjoy the treasure, if I'm alive.
2320. Resistances are fueled by the hope they give people. The entire reason people rebel is because the despair of their situation has become too much for them to bear and they’re willing to die fighting to change it. It is a form of suicide for the sake of change. As such, I will do everything in my power to make my empire be a symbol of hope to those who support me. Evil is defined by the individual. I may use means that most people agree are evil, but if I endow them with hope, I will not be their villain. The more people who consider me their hero, the less potential rebels. The more of my populace who would rather be dead than suffer how they are currently, the more rebels I will need to fight. A happy empire is a productive, obedient empire. If my evils are the source of their ability to hope for their children to be happy, they will fight to their last breath to defend me.
2321. Do not start a war, or fight, with someone who doesn't want one. It never ends well, as either they'll kick my ass, or get help from someone who can.
2322. On the other hand, should someone want a fight with me, I'll go, "Are you sure about that?" I'll then list why it would be a bad idea to do so, like my own abilities, and those of my allies. If they still insist, make it end quickly.
2323. When listing my abilities, I will make certain not to do so in sufficient detail that my hypothetical enemies can then plan around them.
2324. When planning a Deadly Game for kicks or for a greater reason, I should never invoke There Can Be Only One on a literal sense. If the chosen victor arrives at the conclusion with his team, I must gracefully allow them to win. Failure to do so will result in the attempt for Bread and Circuses collapse around me.
2325. I must also make sure the winner(s) is given proper care, so that they don't have any reason to stop me.
2326. Never mess with a retired lawperson or former member of the military. They might make things difficult, either personally or through their friends.
2327. If any of my mooks play video games, I will reward faithful service with bonuses in said game. No mook will ever be inspired by a reward that isn't important to them. Ideally, said game will be made by me or a loyal programmer.
2328. If I am a computer game company owner, and some independent game developer comes to me with a game, and I think that the idea behind it isn't worth my time, yet the game engine itself would really enhance any and all of my current and future projects, I will have the decency to pay them the royalties for the game engine. In fact, if I'm really successful, I might even help them publish their small game — might be worth it.
2329. I will not attempt to weaponize some seemingly unstoppable beast, alien, monster or eldritch horror unless I am absolutely certain that I can stop it should it slip its leash and come after me.
2330. If stopping said beast, alien, monster or eldritch horror is dependent on some MacGuffin, I will make certain I keep at least two of them on my person at any time I am anywhere near it. That way it (or a meddling hero) will be less able to force me to drop the only thing keeping me alive.
2331. I will screen my prospective minions for mental health problems. If possible, I will refrain from hiring insane minions. If a certain crazy minion has abilities that are too useful to pass up, I will still make sure to take note of the fact that he's crazy and only assign him to tasks where his psychological problems will not hinder his ability to complete them or cause him to do something that will cause problems for me down the line.
2332. If I receive a prophecy stating that my defeat can only happen if some circumstances that appear to be a flowery description of "never" occur, I will not rest on my laurels secure in my inevitable victory until I have confirmed that said circumstances really are impossible. If they are possible, I will make them impossible if I can. Birnam Wood cannot to Dunisnane come if I burn it down.
2333. I will make it clear to my subordinates that while I don't like my personal time being interrupted, if something truly important is going on, they will not be punished for making sure I know about it. If a major development has happened in the war, my knowing about it so I can respond accordingly as soon as possible is far more important than my intended lie-in.
2334. If my entire plan centers on my simple desire to have kids, I shall endeavor to always remember that I’ve no need to transverse across multiple universes to acquire them when adoption agencies exist and there are always children there in need of a loving home. If they need to be my biological children, then I can always try getting into a relationship and starting a family with them, or find a sperm donor.
2335. Before I treat my soldiers as expendable cannon fodder, I will first do two things. First, I will confirm that I really do have enough men and/or potential recruits that I can afford to treat them as expendable cannon fodder without suffering from problems caused by manpower shortages down the road. Second, I will take care that my soldiers don't realize that I consider them expendable. Soldiers that know that I am willing to send them on hopeless charges or abandon them to die on a whim are likely to desert, mutiny, or surrender at the first opportunity.
2336. Just because they are expendable cannon fodder doesn't mean that my forces should be treated as such. After all, since it costs money, time, and/or other resources to train them, make sure that expending said cannon fodder is worth it.
2337. If my Empire spans entire solar systems, then while I shall invest in fortresses and garrisons necessary to house and protect the necessary network of information and archival data on several key planets, I will instruct every mid to high level ranking member of my military, architecture, and research divisions that such fortresses shall only house information that is largely trivial, and under no circumstances should any information regarding super weapons, troop deployments, or anything even remotely related to my Empire’s infrastructure, among other such vital information, be stored at such locations regardless of where they are. Such information will always be stored in my own personal archives in my own home, and only I will have access to it after any and all other copies are destroyed or erased.
2338. If I have an item that blocks or negates an ability of the hero, instead of keeping it loose on my own person all the time, I will wait for an appropriate moment and then graft said item to their skin. The hero will likely get rid of it, but that'll be hard if they no longer have their magical bulletproof shield and I have a Gatling gun.
2339. If magical power is granted by a highly addictive and dangerous drug, I will under no circumstances take said drug. Instead, I'll grant my underlings this drug instead, using their addiction to keep them in line.
2340. Related to the above: If this drug's effects are so dangerous that any underling that ingests it is at severe risk of instantly dying by the second dose, I will not continue to use it. I'll instruct my scientists to create a diluted version instead.
2341. I will consult other "X" Lists as they are available. A diverse worldview is important to maintain perspective.
2342. Pursuant to Rule 78 on "Things I Will Do If I Am Ever the Hero", I will attempt to find a Trusted Lieutenant or Dragon whom compliments rather than apes my powers and thus my weaknesses. For example, if my power set is of the Flying Brick variety, I shall make the appropriate efforts to find a Second-in-Command who is a hyperintelligent being without superpowers or, at least, does not have the same source as I do.
2343. If my non-copying Second displays the appropriate loyalties, they will receive such in return. As mentioned elsewhere, The Power of Friendship is not a Hero exclusive trait.
2344. If I have a long standing alliance with a similarly wicked Evil Overlord that has spanned generations, I will not let my guard down around them and expect the same from them. However, this does not mean we cannot throw an alliance anniversary barbeque and bake-off for our respective Legions. Though we do not meet on the Fields of Honor, it doesn't mean I expect my legions to come in second place in the Chili competition.
2345. If my long-standing ally is threatened by a hostile power, I will take the appropriate actions that benefit my empire the most. That said, if it's beneficial for my empire to send in boots, we will come full force and Chili competition results be damned.
2346. The infrastructure of my empire will be geared towards allowing the quickest movement of men and material to wherever I need them most. This includes adequate means of keeping material secure in all aspects of usage (think at rest, in motion, and in use) and more than adequate capability to transport them, be it on horse, cart, train, air, or ship. My troops will be kept as mobile and self-sufficient as possible, including the ability to live off the land, requisition local supplies, or otherwise keep their baggage trains secure. Organization of my empire's Legions will be done in such a way that they will be capable of independent action while my other units move in with haste to assist, relieve, or otherwise deliver a decisive blow.^note A constant theme of the history's greatest empires and conquerors is that the capability of their armies to move with great speed in unexpected ways to exploit any advantage. Empires like Rome, Ottoman Empire, Prussia/Germany, Napoleonic France, and even the United States placed great value on infrastructure, organization, logistics, and administration. This allowed them to move large numbers of boots with relatively great speed for the time, keep them supplied, and allowed a uniquely smooth administration of orders for decisive action.
2347. If territories I have recently acquired are in my long-term plans and they are relatively quiet in terms of actions from the Rebellion, I will similarly build out the area's infrastructure. Not only does this greatly aid militarily, but economically as well. As a necessary corollary, I will ensure that I have adequate alternative transportation from my primary types when on campaign. Though it may be a bit slower than my empire's primary means, the ability to move quicker than a slow summer's stroll through a serene wooded glen while in enemy territory will always be of paramount importance.
2348. I will never place any trust in Social Darwinists at all even if I seem to agree with them. They always look to be the strongest (or throw their support behind the strongest), and they may betray me when I show a slight amount of weakness (even if it's a ruse to let The Hero's guard down).
2349. Though I'm an evil overlord, I should consider that there are methods other than violence to keep my Empire in check. A good military is always useful, but monopolizing things such as travel, medicine, manufacture and farming is a lot less expensive and arguably more effective.
2350. That being said, I will make sure that in the event that my nonviolent oppression fails, I will ensure that I still have a military strong enough to quickly and effectively quash any rebellions.
2351. My prison, central military base, evil fortress and lab will all be spread out across my Empire, not in the same building.
2352. If there is some ancient relic out there that is capable of granting incredible power to whoever owns/controls it, I will not send my subordinates to retrieve it if there is the slightest possibility that claiming for themselves will occur to them. I will get it myself.
2353. In the event that I decide to give the hero a riddle to solve for a chance at saving their life, I will under no circumstances make the answer something like 'death', 'hope' or god forbid 'love'. These answers may be cool sounding, but they are incredibly easy to guess (especially in a dramatic moment) and I'll have a much better chance at victory if the answer is more along the lines of 'The 2003 Antwerp Diamond Heist' or 'Your Mother'.
2354. If I am in a fantasy or science fiction universe, I shall take note of anything stated to not be humanly possible, and make a point of finding out if such things can potentially be done by any of the non-human races that might contribute a sidekick to the hero's party.
2355. When my minions occupy all dungeons and territory, all weapons or tools that could aid the hero in his quest to defeat me is to be found and confiscated or destroyed. Any areas involving free health rejuvenating will be quarantined and blockaded.
2356. All shopkeepers who inform my lieutenants of any suspicious persons buying weapons or tools will be rewarded for the service. All shopkeepers who fail to inform my lieutenants of any suspicious persons buying weapons or tools will be summarily executed.
2357. All weapons just lying around in mysterious caves will be confiscated, regardless of what any old man says. This includes any empty graves.
2358. If there is a weapon or spell that is fatal to me is in the same dungeon that I use as my headquarters, it will be replaced by a fake, but similar weapon. That is to ensure that the hero cannot defeat me and I can hold it over him when he discovers its a fake. Metaphorically speaking, of course. The real weapon or spell will be thoroughly destroyed.
2359. If I touch the magical artifact, and it splits up between myself and the heroes, I will accept that I cannot gain complete control of the artifact and sue for peace and/or agreement that will allow me to maintain control of my territory. It seems antithetical to being an Evil Overlord, but I must be pragmatic. If it split up when I touched it once, there is no need to go after the heroes to gain their artifacts because it will just split up again when I gain possession in a never-ending battle between me and their descendants until its it become one huge legend. At some point, I just need to cut my losses and take what I can get.
2360. If I run into a person in a ruined city or similarly creepy area, I will strive to learn everything I can about them before trusting them. If their name begins with the prefix 'Mor-' and isn't Mortimer, Morton, Morrigan, Morgan, or Morbius, I will run away as fast as possible. Any individual named 'Mordeth' or 'Mordred' or 'Moragh' or whatever is sketch as hell and will not be trusted, regardless of my level of power or evil.
2361. Keep in mind the practice of Multinational Teams, as those seem to do fairly well for the Heroes - the same should apply for myself.
2362. I will avoid the philosophy of "with me or against me". It sounds impressive, but in practice it's likely to create unnecessary enemies, forcing me to either have to fight a multi-front war I can't afford, or in extreme cases just piss off some individual or group that can take me alone. It's much safer to encourage people who don't want to be with me to remain neutral, at least until I've finished off my current batch of enemies and secured my position.
2363. When instructing my minions to kill a friend/relative/loved one of some noted badass, I will make it clear that they are supposed to kill said person, not just fatally wound them. The difference is that in the former, the badass loses a friend/relative/loved one without knowing who did it, while in the latter, the friend/relative/loved one has a nasty tendency to die in the badass' arms after gasping out their killer's identity, causing them to go on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge.
2364. As a follow-on, said minions should also make a point of sanitizing the crime scene after making sure of the kill to make sure nothing traces back to me.
2365. If wiping out an entire village of people is necessary to my plans, I will make sure my troops and I get everyone rather than blithely assume they're all dead. Even if the sole survivor is merely a child, he or she could start a quest to destroy me upon reaching adulthood.
2366. If my empire is building a game changing super-weapon, never name it with an Obviously Evil name. I will advertise its beneficial uses if necessary, so that the rebellion will only look at it with unease rather than a symbol to unite against.
2367. Running Both Sides does sound good, on paper. My allies and enemies will be watching me closely, and if I am the leader of both the empire and the rebellion, it may cause trouble. My empire's agents will target me to get rid of the resistance, for example.
2368. Similarly, if I have a Mole in Charge in the enemy organization/rebellion/empire, I should order to send me every detail the enemy is planning, but the ones I act on are solely on my discretion, and sometimes I must act contrary to what the detail they're sending. It will look very suspicious for them if every move they are making is countered by us.
2369. I will not break a society's truce traditions unless I am 250% certain I can silence everyone who could report that I did so. Attacking during a truce may guarantee the element of surprise, but if word gets out, nobody will ever trust me again, and I might need to work with some of the neighbors of the people I killed at the truce site, at least until I'm ready to conquer them as well. If possible, I will instead work out exactly when the truce ends, so I can ambush them five minutes later. Their guard should still be down, but I won't be making unnecessary enemies by violating the local taboos.
2370. I won't trick the soldier in my unit that thinks that he's the last of his people, and has been sabotaging my attempts to capture the rebels by blowing their bases up, into killing that hidden colony of survivors that I set up. Instead, I'll invite them into my office, get two fresh glasses, a bottle of unopened wine, pour said wine into the glasses, take a sip, invite him to have some. I will then inform him that I know that he's been sabotaging my capture attempts over what I did to his people. I will then inform them of the hidden colony, that it exist, even show them a few pictures of the colonists, especially those that are family and friends to the saboteur, and mention that it would be a shame if someone that disobeyed orders blew it up because they thought that they were trying to prevent me from capturing rebels. It ought to scare them into obeying my orders about minimal casualties.
2371. If I need to send minions out to search for something, I will make certain they have a clear understanding of what they're looking for. They shall then be instructed, when questioning civilians about it, ask politely if they've seen what I'm looking for, using a description rather than a name in the event that the man on the street may have seen it but didn't know what it was called, rather than menacing statements on the order of "You know what we want". After all, if they interrogate the wrong person, they honestly might not know what I want, and this sort of behavior can either inspire the victim to be a hero or summon a hero to rescue him. Escalation to violence should only be done if there are genuine grounds to believe that the person being questioned does know something and refuses to reveal it.
2372. If a weapon purported to have the power to thwart evil is impaled on a stone somewhere, I will make a point of encasing it in concrete and then hiring an artist to turn the resultant slab of stone into some sort of sculpture. In time, everyone will forget that the magic weapon was ever there, and even if the hero figures out what I did with it, he won't be able to get to it without a gratuitous act of public vandalism.
2373. I reserve the right to fire any of my advisors who deliberately gives me bad advice, doubly so if it's painfully obvious that their advice is bad. Giving me bad advice is one thing, but insulting my intelligent too? Unpardonable.
2374. I will not take credit for historical conspiracy theories... unless I really did those. No telling if the real culprits will want my head for stealing their thunder, especially if they're an Ancient Conspiracy.
2375. If I'm running a double-agent for another organization, I will never hire the most likely or the least likely person for the job.
2376. If I have to, I will consider hiring both, but to protect the real mole.
2377. In light of entries 2329 and 2330, I will consider simply siding with the said eldritch abomination just in case. There's no harm in joining the winning side, and besides, a deviation from Enemy Mine is good every now and then.
2378. If someone with a skill set I want is being sold as a slave, I will buy them and then set them free, then offer to let them work for me as a paid worker. It’s unlikely that they will not resent me if I choose to keep them enslaved, and it is equally unlikely that they will not be incredibly grateful if I choose to free them. At the very least, they’ll work harder as a paid worker.
2379. Disregard the previous rule if the enslaved individual is Obviously Evil and clearly not the type to feel gratitude. Instead, if that’s the case, I will not buy them. Let some other villain hopeful be the one to feel their wrath once they get their freedom.
2380. I will never announce to the hero that "No one is going to save you now". This is just asking fate to prove me wrong.
2381. If I have hired or blackmailed a few highly skilled assassins to kill the hero, I will not make it a contest where only the one of them who kills the hero will get what they want unless it would actually bankrupt me to pay them all. If the assassins hunting the hero are competing to be the one to kill him, he can use their disunity to his advantage. It’s better if they’re working together.
2382. Unless Immortality comes with absolute supernatural power, I will have a method to kill myself should the need arise. Being tortured for eternity would be bad.
2383. If the hero’s existence is the inadvertent result of me time traveling to prevent the hero from existing while the hero’s allies time travel to stop me from preventing the hero’s existence, I’ll make a note of it and pass it down to myself so that I don’t time travel in the first place. Of course, I risk creating a universe destroying paradox, a timeline where the hero doesn’t exist, or a timeline where the hero was born under slightly different circumstances and thus make things mostly unchanged, but hey, it’s worth the risk if total victory is achieved.
2384. If I need to bring in an organ transplant specialist to perform such a surgery to enhance one of my Elite Troops on the promise of letting him go afterward, then threaten him with the safety of his family should he speak of any weaknesses this new terror should have, I will do as promised and let him go and then keep his family on watch just to be safe. I will certainly not try to keep him on retainer under the pretense of "you're too valuable to be released". After all, this guy is a specialist and I hired him for a reason, so on the off-chance the Hero needs him to help a Littlest Cancer Patient, the Hero will discover I'm holding him captive and save him, leaving the doctor VERY motivated to explain the situation, prompting the Hero's party to rescue the family and ensure the doctor blabs about the weakness.
2385. Related to the above, I will make sure my Legions of Terror know what the doctor's family looks like. They will be required to check and double-check for disguises to make sure the person they're kidnapping is not actually a member of the Hero's party in disguise.
2386. If at all possible, I will make all my plans seem completely nonlinear to any and all outside observers. If none but myself can discern my next steps, none but myself can affect them in any way.
2387. I will have my Legions of Terror regularly sweep the realm to exterminate hordes of monsters. Not only will this deny the Hero and his party valuable experience, it makes for good PR from the local towns and settlements.
2388. Additionally, I will hire neutral adventurers to speak with the locals and accomplish anything they may need, so that the Hero won't be able to complete any quests that might give him good loot to deal with my Legions of Terror.
2389. If there is a prophecy regarding the Hero's journey and what he is meant to do, I will not concoct or spread a counter-prophecy that paints him in a bad light. Because as the Hero fulfills the true prophecy, and the counter-prophecy remains unfulfilled, people will start to question the motives of me and my seers.
2390. My evil megacorp will not engage in highly destructive or hedonistic business practices just because there is no competition business-wise. We're here to make money through corporate takeovers, not revel in a victory we haven't yet earned.
2391. If the rebel alliance opposing my evil megacorp claims the energy source I'm producing is killing the planet, I will have my R&D team start to research energy sources that won't and switch to one of those, regardless if it's less efficient. Despite what some people may think, you can't make a profit off a dead planet if you can't even leave it.
2392. If I hear that the leader of a large settlement has just claimed to have become an Overlord (they need not be evil), but hear from some merchant that the leader only did so through the aid of a powerful high-ranking monster... I will not trust this information. I will instead send spies to the rival Overlord's settlement to ascertain the truth. Chances are said rival spread that story himself for one reason or another.
2393. If my rule must remain secret due to being the leader of a Nebulous Evil Organization, I will trust in the natural skepticism of humans. If someone learns some secret operation of mine, I will let them ramble and possibly get thrown into a mental ward. Trying to kill them only validates their story, especially to the Hero trying to find information on my organization.
2394. Aside from my five-year-old advisor, I will not in any way conscript Child Soldiers. Nine times out of ten the Hero is a Friend to All Children, and forcing kids to do something so evil is only going to send him on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge that will ruin whatever clandestine operation I was going to send the kids on.
2395. I will never force innocent people into my Legions of Terror, no matter how skilled in combat or sports they may be. Instead I will only use the worst scum of society. Sure they have a higher tendency to backstab, but that's what brainwashing is for.
2396. If for whatever reason I must make use of the dead for my Evil Plan, I will not under any circumstances kill the Hero. Odds are the Grim Reaper himself will have good reason to want my schemes to stop and will thus resurrect the Hero with greater power than before.
2397. If I don't need to be present in the location of a ritual I need completed to accomplish my Evil Plan, I won't suddenly teleport there just to micromanage and belittle the mage performing the ritual. At best it will throw off his concentration and cause the ritual to fail. At worst the whole thing could blow up in both our faces, literally and fatally.
2398. Should I ever decide to host a fighting tournament in my realms, I will not challenge the winner in an effort to crush him and prove my superiority. After all, if he got this far, he might just beat me. Instead he will simply be given his trophy and cash prize and sent on his way.
2399. Related to the above, I will not be the one to give the winner his prize personally, just in case the winner only wanted to get close enough to kill me. If possible, I will let my traitorous advisor do it under the pretence of pretending to be me. Of course, also make sure to thoroughly analyse how the winner fought and won in each round, so that I am able to train in at least one fighting style that is strong against his own one, just in case we do eventually end up battling. Better still, multiple ones both unarmed and otherwise.
2400. Before trying to stop a Henshin Hero mid-transformation, I will first take a few battles to observe it. If the transformation is instantaneous or otherwise has a barrier in place during the transformation, then I won't bother.