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{{trope}}
[[File:handful_1725.png|link=The Order of the Stick (Webcomic)|right|[[Combat Pragmatist|Dirty tactics.]]]]▼
▲[[File:
{{quote|''"The eyes are the groin of the head."''|'''Dwight Schrute'''
This is a simple yet effective method of improving your odds of victory. [[Combat Pragmatist|A character with no compunctions about cheating]], usually the villain, flings a handful of something into the eyes of their combatant for a temporary combat advantage.
In most situations this will be a handful of loose dirt or sand grabbed from the ground, but in some instances [[Eye Scream|more dangerous and painful materials can be used to attempt a permanent blinding]].
Also see [[Go for
{{examples
== Anime and Manga ==
* ''[[
** Gin throws wood splinters towards Hitsugaya to distract him, and Jirobo uses sand against Ishida. Ganju also has a smoke bomb added with pepper for this effect but he ends up blinding himself too when he uses it against Yumichika.
** Kyoraku Shunsui has been known to use his straw hat to temporarily obscure his foe's vision.
* In episode four of ''[[Blade of the Immortal]]'', Rin uses this to escape a thug who caught her off-guard and unarmed.
* ''[[
** Vegeta uses this against Zarbon, except he does it in midair.
** ''Dragon Ball'' also has the Solar Flare/Taiyoken, which creates light bright enough to temporarily blind anyone who looks at it. Several characters and even one villain have used it to buy time/escape.
{{quote|
* Dio Brando squirts blood from his own leg wound at Jotaro in the last battle of ''[[
* In ''[[Street Fighter]] II V'', Ken calls out Guile for beating Ryu the previous night. Guile starts the fight by [[Trying to Catch Me Fighting Dirty|throwing sand in Ken's eyes]]. Guile justifies his dirty attack by saying "there are no rules in a street fight." We don't see the rest of the fight, but seeing Ken afterwards shows that it didn't go very well.
* Rokudo Mukuro from ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]'', after pretending that what was lunging at Tsuna was just an illusion, quickly reveals that it was actually a stone after [[Eye Scream|smashing it into Tsuna's eye area]].
* In the early ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'' manga, Hirutani (a gang leader) throws ''glass'' into Joey/Jonouchi eyes. It works pretty well, but Hirutani then accidentally steps on some more glass, which alerts Joey/Jonouchi to his position. Good thing too though, seeing as Hirutani was just about to stab Joey/Jonouchi in the back with, (guess what?) more glass.
** In another fight, this time squarely over Yugi, Jonouchi risked his life while he engaged a [[Bruce Lee Clone]] in fisticuffs (he held a blade in his teeth). Jonouchi revealed his first "promise" to Yugi, a can of soda which he sprayed in the punk's face. He followed it with his second "promise", and floored the sap.
* Happens to Lucario in the ''[[Pokémon
** It's also a minor [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]]. Lucario is able to dodge a Flamethrower, then he flips into the air, coming down while readying two Aura Spheres that he unloads into two of the Houndoom attacking him, then blasting the third with another.
* A common tactic for the main character of the obscure delinquent action-comedy ''[[Kyou Kara Ore Wa!!]]!'' He goes so far as to carry around small bags of dust which he uses as a defensive maneuver against those who would jump him, or as a first strike tactic.
** When Itou's mother asked him to teach her nephew how to stand up to bullies, Mitsuhashi taught him the technique, gave him an handful of salt and sent him to defeat the first passerby he met. Itou's cousin tried it on [[The Dreaded|Kagawa-san]], a gigantic yakuza who always wears [[Cool Shades]], with [[This Is Gonna Suck|predictable]] [[Curb Stomp Battle|results]].
* Reichwein in ''[[Monster (
* In ''[[
** Keep in mind that the Jagan is what allowed Hiei to go [[One
* Just before he's sent to ''[[Psyren]]'', Ageha gets pepper-sprayed in the eyes by one of the men who were after his card.
* In ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist (
* Several of the characters in ''[[
* Subverted in ''[[Kenichi:
* In episode 18 of ''[[
** In another episode, Touma throws a tube of grease from a toolbox at an enemy swordswoman. She instinctively slashes it, making the grease splatter into her eyes.
* Guts throws dirt in Griffith's face/eyes in their first battle in ''[[Berserk]]'' to try to get an advantage over him.
== [[Card Games]] ==▼
* ''[[Magic the Gathering|Magic: the Gathering's]]'' [http://magiccards.info/bok/en/153.html Blinding Powder] comes to mind. (Of course, from the ''players'' perspective the oldest card embodying the trope in the game would probably be [http://magiccards.info/al/en/102.html Fog].)▼
== Comic Books ==
* [[X
* ''[[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]'' would sometimes give his opponent a faceful of webbing to temporarily blind them. He first used this tactic during his first rematch against [[Sinister Shades|Doctor Octopus]].
** And basically every subsequent encounter with him, to the point that the good doctor began treating his goggles with a special solvent.
* In ''[[Knights of the Dinner Table]]'', Bob was once able to defeat Nitro (after Nitro [[Berserk Button|touched his dice]]) by blinding him by tossing a shaker full of salt into his face before clobbering him with a dinner tray.
* Rorschach does this, with pepper, to a SWAT team member in ''[[Watchmen (
* One of the early stories of ''[[Gold Digger (Comic Book)|Gold Digger]]'' had Britney fighting an Empress of Shang-Ra-La (tagging for her human sister Gina). Brit practically had the girl on the rope when she uses the dust trick to gain an advantage. Unfortunately for her, Brit's built like a truck and her senses can pick up on her movement easily, rendering the tactic useless.
* In ''[[Ms. Tree]]'' #49, after being shot in the back, Michael blinds her attacker with a handful of dust in an attempt to get away.
* One episode of ''Marvel Team Up'' pitted [[Fantastic Four (Comic Book)|the Thing]] and [[Ghost Rider]] against the [[Master of Illusion|Miracle Man]]. While the Ghost Rider dealt with the supernatural constructions the Miracle Man had created, Ben Grimm went after the main villain himself. The Miracle Man began confusing Ben with illusions, until he remembered the Miracle Man's major weakness-namely, that the Miracle Man needs to see in order to use his powers. Since they were fighting in a desert, all Ben needed was one handful of thrown sand to blind the Miracle Man long enough for his illusions to vanish, after which he was easy prey.
* When [[Alpha Flight]] made a guest appearance in the last issue of ''[[Crystar Crystal Warrior]],'' Northstar incapacitated a [[Kaiju|giant Chaos monster]] by flying up and tossing a handful of cornmeal in its eyes (the cornmeal having been conjured out of Shaman's pouch).
* In ''[[Sin City]]'', Kevin blinds Marv by slicing him across the brow, allowing blood to fill his eyes.
* [[Jonah Hex]] does it while fighting mountain scum in ''Hex'' #4. (Given Jonah's penchant for fighting dirty, it would be surprising is this was the only time this trick was used in the various series.)
* Sonja does this Raven in the ''[[Red Sonja]]: Raven'' one-shot.
== Film ==
* JCVD gets a face full of salt in ''[[Kickboxer]]''.
** In the film's spiritual prequel, ''[[
* A faceful of quicklime is a popular tactic used by villains in Chinese [[Wuxia]] martial arts films. Not only does the powder mess with the opponent's vision, but if they try to wash it off with water instead of oil, the chemical reaction will burn their face off.
* ''[[Undercover Brother]]''. During Mr. Feather's climactic fight against the title character, he throws dirt in UB's eyes to blind him.
* ''[[
* ''[[Predator]]''. In her first escape attempt, Anna grabs a handful of leaves and throws them in Dillon's face. It works about as well as you'd expect.
* ''[[Gladiator (
* Charlie/Hank attempts this on the dirty cop in ''[[Me Myself and Irene|Me, Myself & Irene]]'', but since Hank isn't half as smooth as he thinks he is, he accidentally throws the dirt in Irene's eyes instead.
** Also, Hank spits into his own eyes to discomfort Charlie when the personality assumes control of the body.
* In ''[[The Lion King]]'', Scar blinds Simba by kicking hot ashes into his face.
* I seem to remember ''[[Fist of Legend]]'' briefly involved dust going into someone's eyes during combat. The main difference is that they were showing [[Honor Before Reason]]. The bloke with dirt in his eyes acknowledged the skill of his opponent, while the one who put it in his eyes blindfolded himself to even the odds.
* ''[[Tank Girl (
* The [[Big Bad]] in ''[[The Scorpion King]]'' throws a fistful of ash in the eyes of [[The Hero]] during the climactic battle.
* ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'': During the Norrington-Jack-Will fight in the second movie, Norrington kicks sand in Will's face. This is used in part to show how Norrington has gone from honorable to a proper pirate.
** How about the way Jack won the first duel of the saga?
* This happens in ''[[The Cable Guy]]'' during the medieval times fight.
* In the [[So Bad
* In the ''[[Tales
* In ''[[The Lost Boys]]'', two boys are attacked by a vampire in the bathroom. When it smugly informs them that the garlic bulbs floating in the bathtub [[Our Vampires Are Different|won't affect it]], one scoops up a handful of the water -- ''holy''
* Averted in ''[[Ready To Rumble]]'', where David Arquette's character throws powder in the face of Diamond Dallas Page. DDP is unfazed and immediately calls him out on it, saying that that trick doesn't actually work.
* In ''[[The Hunted]]'' Benicio Del Toro's chracter does this to [[Tommy Lee Jones]] ''with his own blood''.
* In ''[[Jodhaa Akbar]]'', the eponymous Akbar does this to
* Happens in ''[[The Karate Kid|The Next Karate Kid]]'', only there it [[Chekhov's Skill|doesn't give any advantage whatsoever]].
* Near the end of ''[[The Jungle Book (Disney film)|The Jungle Book 2]]'', Mowgli actually kicks sand at [[Knight of Cerebus|Shere Khan's]] face after the tiger has cornered him, Shanti, Ranjan, Baloo, and Bagheera as revenge for burning off his tail just right before luring Khan into a volcano, throwing him into a crack in the ground full of lava, and dropping a stone tiger head on him.
* In ''[[Marked for Death]]'', Hatcher kicks sand at Screwface, but it only works for a second before the villain regains his bearings.
* In ''[[Three Ninjas]],'' the [[Big Bad]] throws a pepper bomb (see Black Egg under [[Real Life]]) in Grandpa's face in the final fight.
* Master samurai Shinzaemon from ''13 Assassins'' faces down his rival and equal in skill at the end of the movie, but demonstrates that they were equal only because the formal conditions of the dojo by {{spoiler|kicking mud in his opponent's face and decapitating him (also cutting a much anticipated fight anticlimactically short).}}
* In ''[[War, Inc.]]'', Hauser pours a bottle of hot sauce into Walker's eyes.
* Sherlock does this twice in ''[[Sherlock Holmes (
== Literature ==
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* This trope is one reason [[Nightside|John Taylor]] never goes anywhere without condiments, pepper especially.
* In ''[[Col Sec Trilogy|ColSec Rebellion]]'', {{spoiler|[[The Smart Guy|Samella]]}} beats a thug by first throwing dust in his eyes, then following it up with a [[Groin Attack]].
* In the [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]] based series 'Brunner the Bounty Hunter,' the title character carries several small packets of salt up his sleeves for this purpose.
* The fake Belle Starr does this to a shotgun guard in ''Waco's Badge'' by [[
* In ''[[Temeraire]]'', enemy dragons are often fought off with pepper-guns. Mostly it just causes a [[Pepper Sneeze]], but unlucky dragons can be permanently blinded.
* In ''[[
▲== Live Action TV ==
▲* In ''[[MST3K]]'' episode ''[[Warrior of the Lost World]]'', during the big brawl scene, I think.
** In the episode ''[[Horror of Party Beach]]'', during the fight at the beginning. Quip the guys: "Oh, my radial keratotomy!"
** In the episode ''[[I Was a Teenage Werewolf]]'', around the same time; Michael Landon pulls a handful of soil out of a nearby wheelbarrow and throws it at the [[Dawson Casting|middle-aged high school student]] who's been beating the tar out of him so far. It doesn't really help.
* One ''[[Malcolm in
* Standard move in ''[[Xena: Warrior Princess]]'', IIRC.
* This has happened in ''[[Power Rangers]]'' once, against a Ranger, suited and wearing a helmet that completely covers his face. Now, throwing something opaque and gooey at a Ranger's faceplate ''would'' be a good idea, but sand does not work that way.
* ''[[
* Murdoc blinds ''[[MacGyver]]'' with a handful of dirt during a fight in a mine in the episode "Strictly Business".
** Mac himself blinds a bruiser with a bucket of ashes in "The Escape".
* In the Pirate versus Knight showdown of ''[[Deadliest Warrior]]'', the Pirate tries this against the Knight while on the beach.
** In the Spartan versus Ninja episode, the Ninja is equipped with Black Eggs (see the Real Life folder below).
* In the ''[[
* A really silly variation occurs in ''[[
* In the ''[[Castle]]'' episode "Under the Gun", Rick Castle is being forced to dig up buried loot from a grave for a pair of criminals. He calls out that he's found it and, when the peer into the grave, he flings a shoveful of dirt into their faces.
* ''[[Star Trek:
** In "Shore Leave", Finnegan throws dirt into Captain Kirk's eyes, yelling, "Eat dirt!"
* In the ''[[Psych]]'' episode "The Amazing Psych-Man and Tap Man, Issue 2," this is a favored tactic of Gus' masked vigilante persona, Tap Man. Unfortunately, his aim sucks, so he usually only manages to throw sand at his opponent's midsection.
* In the ''[[Baywatch]]'' episode "Pier Pressure", Hobie uses the trick to escape from a bully.
* In the ''[[
== Newspaper Comics ==
* In "The Snake Goddess" storyline in the ''[[James Bond]]'' newspaper strip, Bond blinds an opponent by throwing a ''potted cactus'' in their face.
* One of the [[Murder, Inc.]] members tries it on Modesty in the ''[[Modesty Blaise (
* Rangi does this to Lex Murphy in a ''[[Footrot Flats]]'' strip. Not having any sand available, he improvises by using a handful of dried sheep droppings.
== Professional Wrestling ==
* This is a time-honored tradition for heels (and some faces) in [[Professional Wrestling]], with salt usually being the substance of choice, but others have been used (for instance, The Great Muta. Just... The Great Muta.)
** At Wrestlemania IX, Yokozuna's manager Mr. Fuji helps him win the WWE title with some salt in the eye. When [[Hulk Hogan]] comes out to complain, he gives him an immediate match, tries the same gambit with him... and [[Hoist
** Tajiri and his various
** [[Vince McMahon]] threw dirt into [[The Undertaker]]'s eyes during their "Buried Alive" match.
== Tabletop Games ==
▲=== [[Card Games]] ===
▲* ''[[
=== [[Tabletop RPG]] ===
* ''[[Dungeons
** In the [[Dark Sun]]/World of Athas setting, gladiators are trained to use dirty tricks in combat, such as throwing sand in an enemy's eyes. These tactics are also used by Athasian halflings.
** 'Sand in the Eyes' is a level 7 rogue attack in 4E.
* ''[[Amber]] Diceless Role-Playing''. The Weapons part of the Other Factors in Combat section mentions heaving fluids, dirt or powder into an opponent's eyes during a fight.
* ''Starblazer Adventures'', based on the 1970s-80s British [[Comic Book]]''. The Blinding maneuver could involve throwing dirt in someone else's eyes.
== Theatre ==
* Happens in the offstage fight between Secutor and Retiarius in ''[[Androcles
== Video Games ==
* Sand Attack from ''[[
** Mud Slap functions similarly, but does damage as well.
* Rogues in ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' have an attack called "Blind" that incapacitates the target for about 8 seconds, or until they're hit with something else. Originally, they required a special compound called "Blinding powder" but this was outmoded in a patch. The devs added the tag "Once favored by rogues as a blinding agent, it was abandoned for more readily available resources... like dirt" to the now-defunct powder.
* In ''[[Onimusha]]: Dawn of Dreams'', the boss Munenori Yagyu, when knocked down uses this when he gets back up up. If it connects, the character's then stunned temporarily.
* Burglars in ''[[
* Edge's "Disgraceful Kick" special attack in ''[[
* Several of Ryuji Yamazaki's special moves in the ''[[
* You can do something like this in ''[[
* ''[[Two Worlds]]'' allows both the player and most humanoid enemies to use it. This often leads to absurd situations where 5-6 opponents keep trying to kick dirt in your face instead of, you know, hitting you.
* The "Ninjutsu" defense set available to Stalkers in ''[[City of Villains]]'' has a "Blinding Powder" move, a cone-shaped AoE power which lowers the targets' accuracy and visual range, incapacitates them until the next time they're hit, and even has a chance of confusing them.
* ''[[Super Punch Out]]'' features Masked Muscle, who cheats repeatedly. One of his moves is to spit in your eye, making everything blurry and preventing you from attacking for about ten seconds.
* In a particularly awesome example, in ''[[Utawarerumono]]'' Hakuoro (the hero) and Oboro ([[The Lancer]]) have just started fighting, presumably to the death. Hakuoro is pretty tough, but Oboro is better. When he gets injured along the arm, he flings his own blood into Oboro's eyes, blinding him and throwing off his balance so he can't fight any more. Of course, his arm is bleeding rather heavily, so it essentially ends in a draw.
* The [[
* You can do this in both ''[[Bushido Blade]]'' games by hitting the Subweapon buttons without a subweapon in your possession. However, this is a serious breach of Bushido and sinks your invisible [[Karma Meter]] in the first one.
* ''[[Guild Wars]]'' Rangers get the 'Throw Dirt' ability which blinds foes.
** As did the Mercenary class in ''[[Dark Age of Camelot]]''.
** The Assassins got a similar skill called Blinding Powder.
* ''[[Dragon Age]]'' Rogues have a similar ability, but it 'stuns' foes (since the game doesn't have a 'blind' [[Standard Status Effects|Abnormal Status]]).
* This is one of the abilities that Ezio learns in ''[[
** Then in ''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
*** Or to just jump out of the way.
* ''[[
* In ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'', Rikku's main method of attack is to use special items that damage the enemy. She can also use different types of grenades to inflict a number of status ailments, one of which is called "Dream Powder" that [[Captain Obvious|puts enemies to sleep]] when Rikku uses it.
* Some enemies in ''[[God Hand]]'' will kick up dirt. If you get hit, you take no damage but the entire screen is briefly obscured by sand clouds. Elvis can do similar with his cigar smoke.
* Cody can do this after being knocked down in the two ''[[Street Fighter]]'' games he's appeared in to keep opponents from rushing him.
* This has been the effect of [[Mortal Kombat|Sonya]]'s Kiss of Death ever since it's been worfed from a Fatality to a regular move: she blows some pink-ish toxic dust which stuns the opponent, temporarily blinding them. In a show of [[The Dev Team Thinks of Everything|attention to detail]], the technique has no effect on [[Disability Superpower|blind swordsman]] Kenshi.
* In [[Gladius]], rogues and some other light classes have a skill called 'Incapacitate Heavy', with an attack animation that involves throwing powder toward their opponent's head. The fact that you can use it on foes facing away from you... well.
* The mudmen in ''[[Left 4 Dead]] 2'' splatter mud over the players' vision with each hit they inflict. The [[Random Encounters|rarely-seen]] zombified Jimmy Gibbs Jr. can do the same with motor oil.
* In ''[[Fallout: New Vegas]]'', this is an Unarmed technique that you can learn from the Great Khans known as the Khan Trick after completing a series of missions for them.
* A common detective item on modded [[Trouble in Terrorist Town]] servers is Pocket Sand, which allows them to blind assailants and gives them enough time to identify and kill them.
== Web Comics ==
* ''[[Order of the Stick]]'' provides the page picture, with Roy hurling sand into Thog's eyes. After ''smashing a potion vial on his face'' didn't work.
* ''[[
== Western Animation ==
* In Sokka's training duel in ''[[
* In one episode of ''[[Metalocalypse]]'' where Dethklok takes up comedy, Pickles throws sand in the eyes of the heckler who had driven him to avoid the stage for months afer finally working up the courage to perform again.
* [[King of the Hill|Dale Gribble]] can do this trick any time he wants, [[Crazy Prepared|thanks to his]] [[Calling Your Attacks|"Pocket Sand!"]]
* Subverted in the first season of ''[[The Simpsons]]'', where Bart uses this dirty trick on Nelson Muntz, only to have Nelson shrug it off and continue his beating anyway.
* ''[[Jonny Quest]]'' TOS episode "Arctic Splashdown". Jonny throws a snowball in an enemy guard's face to stop him from shooting Hadji.
* On ''[[The Secret Saturdays]]'', Zak flings a handful of mud into Munya's face during their fight in the Amazon in "The Kur Stone, Part 2".
* In ''[[Star Wars: Clone Wars]]'', Anakin and Ventress use the Force to splash water into each others' faces.
* Kron does this to Aladar with a handful of dirt in Disney's ''[[
* In the ''[[Thundercats
== Real Life ==
* [[Older Than Steam]]: [[Real Life]]: Ninjas used to have ''metsubushi''
* Okinawan oar-fighting has a couple techniques where the oar blade is used to flick sand into an opponent's eyes; if you're fighting with an oar, odds are you're on a beach...
** It'd work with water too, albeit more briefly.
* Terrorists are fond of putting acid in people's eyes. This has been done at protests outside abortion clinics, and by certain [[Animal Wrongs Group
** Acid attacks are prevalent in countries like India and Pakistan, most are committed by boys rejected by girls.
----
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Trying to Catch Me Fighting Dirty]]
[[Category:Fight Scene]]
[[Category:Eye Tropes]]
[[Category:Just for Pun]]
▲[[Category:Trope]]
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