Markup View

Author: Iron Salticus

Oct 25th 2009 at 9:20:40 PM

Basically, this is about villains whose plans resemble [[RubeGoldbergMachine Rube Goldberg Machines]] in their unnecessary complexity?

* The EvilOverlordList [[ZigZaggingTrope zig-zags]] regarding this:
** Some vows, like Item #85, warn against complex plans:
-->I will not use any plan in which the final step is horribly complicated, e.g. "Align the 12 Stones of Power on the sacred altar then activate the medallion at the moment of total eclipse." Instead it will be more along the lines of "Push the button." 
** Some vows, like Item #116, encourage complex plans:
-->If I capture the hero's starship, I will keep it in the landing bay with the ramp down, only a few token guards on duty and a ton of explosives set to go off as soon as it clears the blast-range.
** Some vows, like Item #125, advise how to do complex plans properly if one really must do them:
-->Should I actually decide to kill the hero in an elaborate escape-proof deathtrap room (water filling up, sand pouring down, walls converging, etc.) I will not leave him alone five to ten minutes prior to "imminent" death, but will instead (finding a vantage point or monitoring camera) stick around and enjoy watching my adversary's demise.