History Main / JoinOrDie

* The credo of the Church of Universal Truth, occasional adversaries of the ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy, is "convert or die". And with a very large, very strong army, they're very good at delivering on that second part. They're able to level some planets in a matter of hours, in fact.
** Also used by name when King Blastaar takes over the Negative Zone prison. A few of the surviving prisoners were given the choice. Blastaar actually bothers [[AskAStupidQuestion asking what happened to the ones that refused it]]. [[spoiler:They died.]]

* ''Franchise/StarWars'' likes this trope. In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Vader tells the Emperor that this will be the choice he will give Luke. Vader instead gives Luke a WeCanRuleTogether. When Luke hesitates, Vader finally implies this to Luke saying that he must come with him as it is the only way. In ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', The Emperor makes the same offer to Luke, leading to the page quote.

* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Nicodemus gives Harry an offer: take up one of the [[ThirtyPiecesOfSilver 30 silver coins]] and join the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Order of the Blackened Denarius]], or Nicodemus will slit his throat once he's done eating breakfast. Nicodemus believes very strongly in PragmaticVillainy.

* ''Literature/TheReynardCycle'': Count Bricemer makes this offer to the crew of the Quicksilver. [[spoiler: Later, he reneges on the deal.]]

* In Book Four of ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'', this is Kuvira's method of restoring the Earth Kingdom to order, though she doesn't threaten - technically - to do the actual killing. With bandits rampaging across the countryside and her military the only cohesive force large enough to provide much-needed protection and aid, governors are left with the choice of accepting her authority or watching their state utterly collapse. She also [[ChainedToARailway cuffs a group of captured bandits to a maglev railway]] and provides them with a "choice": either they pledge their allegiance to her, or she'll leave them for the next train.

[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with [[Creator/BenjaminFranklin Ben Franklin's]] famous [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution Revolutionary]]-era PoliticalCartoon, which was closer in spirit to DividedWeFall.

'''Cyberman:''' '''[[CatchPhrase You will be deleted.]]'''''[kills him]''

*** Vlad Von Carstein's CatchPhrase was "Surrender and serve me in life, or die and slave for me in death". Those who chose not to surrender to him discovered he was as good as his word.

-->'''Dream:''' I want to see ''white flags!'' White flags outside your base, by tomorrow, at dawn, or you are ''dead''!

* On the ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'', [[Characters/DreamSMPDream Dream]] has this ultimatum for L'Manburg--either cease fighting for independence or he'll utterly thrash them. They refuse as expected, Dream does exactly what he promised to.

%%* "[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaCDiGames Join me, Link, and I will make your face the greatest in Koridai!]] [[WebAnimation/YoutubePoop Or else you will]] '''[[MemeticMutation DIE!!]]'''" %% ZCE, Quotes and Weblinks by themselves are not examples. %%

* The backstory of the Sith Inquisitor is that they were a [[MadeASlave former slave]] of the Sith Empire who, after being discovered to be force-sensitive, was naturally given the option to either go to Korriban for [[TrainingFromHell training]] or die where they stand.

* "[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaCDiGames Join me, Link, and I will make your face the greatest in Koridai!]] [[WebAnimation/YoutubePoop Or else you will]] '''[[MemeticMutation DIE!!]]'''"

* In ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'', Saren's response to Shepard's resistance is this. Join the Reapers - 'cause if you don't, you're guaranteed to die.
-->'''Saren''': Is submission not preferable to extinction? [...] Everyone you know and love, you will all die.

* Also used in ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'' for [[spoiler:Litchi. The message is pretty subtle, but Hazama is pretty much saying to her "Join us, or you die by your own corruption while we just toss the cure away."]]
* In ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'', the backstory of the Sith Inquisitor is they were a [[MadeASlave former slave]] of the Sith Empire, who after being discovered to be force-sensitive, was naturally given the option to either go to Korriban for [[TrainingFromHell training]] or die where they stand.
** The law in the Empire is that all Force-sensitives must go to Korriban for Sith training, even if they're too weak to make it as Sith and would inevitably die. The penalty for refusal is death. And in the tie-in novel ''[[Literature/StarWarsFatalAlliance Fatal Alliance]]'', we learn that the penalty for refusing to give your Force-sensitive child to the Sith is, oh, just guess.
* At the end of ''Videogame/AssassinsCreedRogue'', [[spoiler:Juhani Otso Berg offers you a choice between a Templar Ring or a bullet.]]

* In the trailer for ''Videogame/GhostReconWildlands'', the BigBad offers the people a choice. They can either join his drug cartel and receive food, medicine, protection, power, wealth, and the chance to rule like kings...or be ForcedToWatch as he destroys everything and everyone they love.
* In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind'', Mages Guild Stewardess Ranis Athrys has this attitude toward [[WithUsOrAgainstUs any mages who don't join the Guild]]. Several of her quests involve convincing outsider mages to join, and most can be accomplished by simply killing the mage in question.

* This is how the Scarlet Chorus recruits in ''VideoGame/{{Tyranny}}''. If the conquer a town or defeat an army, they bring all the survivors together and offers them 'redemption' in the Chorus. Those who refuse are killed on the spot. Those who accept are thrown into a circle with all the other accepters and handed a weapon, with the understanding that [[DeadlyGraduation nobody leaves the circle alive until they've killed at least one other person inside it]]. The surviving half of ''those'' are then offered a place in the Chorus as frontline troopers, with the unfortunate 'candidates' at that point being either so well and truly traumatised or already so psychopathic that they're a perfect fit for the Chorus.
* [[DiscussedTrope Mercedes voices this trope]] in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemWarriorsThreeHopes'' as a {{Deconstruction}} of the DefeatMeansFriendship mechanic in-game. While your army has the ability to recruit certain characters after defeating them instead of killing them, and Mercedes is happy to not have to kill her former friends and classmates, she also notes that it's not much of a choice; you're forcing people to choose between betraying their friends and family or dying.

[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with [[Creator/BenjaminFranklin Ben Franklin's]] famous [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution Revolutionary-era]] PoliticalCartoon, which was closer in spirit to DividedWeFall.

[[folder:Film - Animated]]
* On ''WesternAnimation/PeterPan'', Captain Hook gives Wendy and the boys the option of joining his crew or WalkingThePlank.

-->'''Manny:''' Look, as much as I'm tempted to join a monkey...the Easter Bunny and a giant bag of pudding...I'll pass. No one's going to stop me from getting back to my family!
-->'''Captain Gutt:''' That family is going to be the death of you!

[[folder:Film - Live-Action]]

-->They asked Johnny to join and he didn't, so they broke his arm. They asked Willy to join and he didn't, so they broke his leg. Then they asked me to join, and they were looking at my neck.
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** In the ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' episode [[Recap/AgentsOfSHIELDS2E3MakingFriendsAndInfluencingPeople "Making Friends and Influencing People"]], Ward explains that this is HYDRA's policy, particularly towards [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividuals Gifted]] people. If they don't serve HYDRA, they're seen as a threat, and exterminated.
** ''Series/Daredevil2015'': James Wesley tries to threaten Karen Page into backing off on her investigation into [[ComicBook/TheKingpin Wilson Fisk]] with the offer of a "job", then threatens her life when she makes clear she will not budge. [[TheDogBitesBack Karen grabs his gun and shoots him to death with it]].

** ''Series/LukeCage2016'': Diamondback crashes a secret meeting of gangsters in Colon's Gym and kills all of the bosses, with the exception of Mariah, Shades and Domingo. He tells Domingo that he's being spared to send a message to the other gangs in Harlem: either they buy from Diamondback, or he'll kill them.

[[folder:Visual Novel]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* In ''TabletopGame/WerewolfTheApocalypse'': when the Black Spiral Dancers capture Gaia Garou, they give their captives the choice of traversing the Black Spiral Labyrinth or facing execution.

* ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'' used this as a style of advertisement. [[http://www.sinfest.net/view.php?date=2000-05-18 The word from our sponsors]]: "It's us... or it's death".

* [[DiscussedTrope Mercedes voices this trope]] in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemWarriorsThreeHopes'' as a {{Deconstruction}} of the DefeatEqualsFriendship mechanic in-game. While your army has the ability to recruit certain characters after defeating them instead of killing them, and Mercedes is happy to not have to kill her former friends and classmates, she also notes that it's not much of a choice; you're forcing people to choose between betraying their friends and family or dying.

A subtrope of WithUsOrAgainstUs. Supertrope of MutantDraftBoard. Compare SadisticChoice and AnOfferYouCantRefuse. Related to WhyDontYaJustShootHim

* Standard operating procedure for [[Literature/HarryPotter Lord Voldemort]].
** It's said in ''Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone'' that he killed James and Lily Potter because they refused to join him.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'' likes this trope. In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Vader tells the Emperor that this will be the choice he will give Luke. Vader instead gives Luke a WeCanRuleTogether. In ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', The Emperor makes the same offer to Luke, leading to the page quote.

* A similar situation occurs in ''WesternAnimation/IceAge4ContinentalDrift'':

* On the ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'', LetsPlay/{{Dream}} has this ultimatum for L'Manburg: Either cease fighting for independence or he'll utterly thrash them. They refuse as expected, Dream does exactly what he promised to.
-->'''Dream:''' I want to see ''white flags''! White flags outside your base, by tomorrow, at dawn, or you are ''dead''!

* In ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'' fanfic ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'', [[ComicBook/{{Legion Of Super-Heroes}} Mordru]] is putting together an army to destroy the Legion of Super-Heroes. He gives his prospect recruits one choice: follow him or die right away.

* ''Webcomic/TrueVillains'' has the NominalHero Sebastian try to vanquish the DiabolicalMastermind Xaneth Antares, only to be subdued and offered a job instead. He flips to VillainProtagonist pretty quickly. [[spoiler:Xaneth also has insurance in the form of a StableTimeLoop from his patron God of Knowledge to demonstrate Sebastian's future loyalty.]]

* Conscription is in essence this trope. Whether or not death is involved depends on the conscripting government. Even if one objects to military service, the bosses usually find something else for one to do. Summed up, in relation to the Soviet Union, by historian Robert [=O'Connell=].