LibriumArcana.Games

What are your least-favourite fiction brainbugs in literature, movies, comics, etc. and why?

Mine:

Vampire Fangs, and Biting.

Reason:

Because what sane vampire with fangs would bite someone to drink blood? It's foolish as it's quite easy to detect the vampire via sharp pointy teethmarks alone, thereby giving away your whole modus operandi.

Well, I have no problem with the fangs, but a vamp could just cut the person open with a dagger or knife, and then feed on them. It would be easier, I think.

As for my brainbug, I say sunlight vulnerability.

Especially two things: One, the fact that vampires not only burn up like they're covered in gasolene, but that their clothes burn as well. WTF?! If vampiric flesh "burns" in sunlight, that's... a little... understandable, I guess, but the amount of energy caused by room-temperature sunlight ain't enough to actually burn clothes, barring you use a magnifying glass. And even that usually only works on a hot summer day. The vampire can burn, sure I guess, but it still pisses me off. But the clothes too? Jesus.

Two, Drow Adamantine, from DnD. Why should some armor turn to dust upon contact with sunlight? I always found that stupid, even if the game balance issues (As I found out in BG II, Adamantine armor is the shit when it comes to durability) are understandable. But why should the toughest alloy known be completely weak and shitty when exposed to a soft ray of sunshine?!

It's even stupider, considering that the Drow are supposed to be so big, bad, and scarry, but are so fucking stupid that they use this armor. How did they *ever* expect to attack the Elves one day with this shit? They charge up to the Elves, shouting "Oloth plynn d'jal!", and then suddenly they end up with their swords, crossbows, armor, cloaks, everything turning to dust, and stand before the Elves, who are laughing their asses off, in their drawers.

And yes, I know this was changed in Third Addition DnD.

Vampires not being visible in mirrors. How is that supposed to work?
The human eye sees by reflected light. Humans can see vampires thus they reflect light. Anybody care to explain why they apparently reflect it towards any human who happens to be in the vicinity but NOT towards the mirror?

*Cough* Because, in folklore, reflective surfaces are supposed to show your soul. Vampires have no soul, thus no reflection.

And Now You Know.

One of my least favorite brainbugs has to be the One-Note Societyâ„¢. You know the type. Everyone even remotely in power is evil, the people are opressed, or everyone is lovely, the rulers are considerate etc. Give me some fuzzy areas damnit!

'I'm so uber I don't care' characters. So pathetically overdone it's sad.

Pcm979 wrote:*Cough* Because, in folklore, reflective surfaces are supposed to show your soul. Vampires have no soul, thus no reflection.
And Now You Know.

By that reasoning the only thing mirrors should show period is people.
Naked people at that.

Ra wrote:Two, Drow Adamantine, from DnD. Why should some armor turn to dust upon contact with sunlight? I always found that stupid, even if the game balance issues (As I found out in BG II, Adamantine armor is the shit when it comes to durability) are understandable. But why should the toughest alloy known be completely weak and shitty when exposed to a soft ray of sunshine?!

It's even stupider, considering that the Drow are supposed to be so big, bad, and scarry, but are so fucking stupid that they use this armor. How did they *ever* expect to attack the Elves one day with this shit? They charge up to the Elves, shouting "Oloth plynn d'jal!", and then suddenly they end up with their swords, crossbows, armor, cloaks, everything turning to dust, and stand before the Elves, who are laughing their asses off, in their drawers.

And yes, I know this was changed in Third Addition DnD.

Supposedly, it was the Underdark "radiation" that so enhanced raw adamantite into the Drow material. And Drow are nearly blind in daylight, so they'd have to be pretty stupid to attack during the day anyways.

Really, it's magical material with magical properties at play, is it really so farfetched? It blatantly violates more laws of physics than I care to think of, what's wrong with yet another weird property of x magical effect?

Batman wrote:

Pcm979 wrote:*Cough* Because, in folklore, reflective surfaces are supposed to show your soul. Vampires have no soul, thus no reflection.
And Now You Know.

By that reasoning the only thing mirrors should show period is people.
Naked people at that.

Tell the Old Wives, I didn't invent the idea.

Pcm979 wrote:Tell the Old Wives, I didn't invent the idea.

You're the one who presented it here. Get those Old Wives to join and I'd be happy to tell the same to them.
As it stands the idea is simply stupid.

SirNitram wrote:'I'm so uber I don't care' characters. So pathetically overdone it's sad.

I call them Dirk Pitts' after the one Cussler novel I ever had the misfortune of reading.

Blerg.

Eee. Clive Cussler, who once decided that to stop an evil plot that required a ship to use a flying plot device, thus destroying all credibility I thought the book might have had.

(It was, literally, a "flying" plot device - an airplane decked out with fancy anti-evil plot gear. I would have used a couple of cruise missiles.)