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Blinded by the Light: Difference between revisions
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Depending on the work, the light source could be any number of things. For example, in [[Fantasy]] works it's likely [[Fantastic Light Source|some sort of magic had a hand in it]], while in [[Science Fiction]] it is more likely to find flashbang grenades or devices specifically designed for this sort of thing.
If some characters have been in the dark for a while, this can occur with much weaker lights than normal, while leaving other characters unaffected, since [[Day Hurts Dark
An example of [[Truth in Television]], since the use of flashbang grenades is highly prevalent in modern police forces and armies have been using natural light in various ways to blind and hinder their enemies for centuries<ref>The modern flashbang emits approximately two million candlepower when it goes off. By comparison, a 25 watt light bulb emits 1700. This is exactly as devastating to your eyes as it sounds</ref>.
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== Video Games ==
* Some [[Humongous Mecha|mechs]] in ''[[Mechwarrior]] Living Legends'' mount large spotlights on their shoulders, which can be used to blind players using the nightvision overlay when it's dark.
* ''[[Alan Wake]]'': The game's combat system is based entirely around using light (from flashlights, flares, flashbang grenades, etc.) to damage or render vulnerable the various enemies. Also, some [[Non
* ''[[Call of Duty]]'': Most iterations of the series features grenades that can blind your enemies (or yourself if carelessly used).
* ''[[Heroes of Might and Magic]]'': Most iterations of the series have a spell called "Blind" that effectively works this way.
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* During the age while armies still utilized campfires at night, it was not uncommon for those to be used as a means of deception. Merely looking at a light source at night temporarily ruins the eye's low light adjustments, meaning that while looking at such a campfire (or for that matter any other light source at night), it was impossible to actually see the people (if any) that existed around it; only the light source would be visible. Armies got pretty creative with this back in the day, from setting up false camps (the enemy won't know theres no one by the fire until its too late), to lighting a minimal number of fires to hide their number (sometimes going as far as just one big fire; good luck guessing how many people are sharing it), to ordering the camp to make several times its number in flames. A cunning general may even combine the various methods, essentially rendering the enemy's attempts to scout his position at night futile or downright counterproductive. Even in warfare, there are [[Subverted Trope|uses for fire]] [[Kill It With Fire|other than killing]].
* One of the armored vehicles used in the Normandy landings in [[World War Two]] was essentially an outdated tank with the gun replaced with a very high intensity lamp, entirely encased in the turret save for a narrow vertical slit. The turret would pan back and forth, perodically painting the German defenses with blinding light to make it impossible for them to see the troops on the beaches. They also had various filters they could put onto the light while in action, so as to make it harder to determine how far away the vehicle was if you wanted to [[Pun|put its lights out]].
* In [[World War II]], the British "hid" the Suez Canal with an array of spotlights and shifting reflectors intended to dazzle the eyes of bomber pilots. When they tested it by having two British planes fly into the area, they found the effect disoriented the pilots so much that both planes nearly crashed -- just from flashing lights. Best part? This was just ''one'' stunt thought up by [
* The LED Incapacitator, a rather recent non-lethal weapon which works by creating a bright pulsing light with continously changing colours to dazzle and disorient an opponent when violence is not permitted. Again a very valid self defense tactic, very bright hand held torches might be expensive but stun\flash grenades operate on the same principle, making them worth every penny.
* A more mundane example: pilots who fly at night have to avoid any bright lights for upwards of 20 or 30 minutes before a flight in order to maintain their night vision. Their cockpit lights are run at the lowest setting that lets them see their instruments, because any bright light will force them to start all over again trying to readjust to the darkness of night. As a result, airports will often actually be ''much'' more dimly lit than some folks might expect, as the last thing they want to do is to blind a pilot who is trying to take off or land.
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[[Category:Grenade Tropes]]
[[Category:Blinded By The Light]]
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