Reliable Traitor: Difference between revisions
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A minion of the [[Big Bad]], down from [[Les Collaborateurs]] up to and including [[The Dragon]], who is motivated by pure [[Ambition Is Evil|self-interest.]] They talk back, dislike their associations, and overall make clear they don't like the antagonist. The [[Big Bad]] is nonetheless assured this will be [[Conservation of Competence|their best]] [[Evil Minions|minion]] (until they [[Heel Face Turn|desert]]) because they are not concerned with sucking up, just getting results and getting out of whatever debt or obligation makes them work with villains in the first place.
If done well, the
Compare [[The Starscream]], [[Lovable Traitor]], [[Self-Proclaimed Liar]]. Often prone to [[Chronic Backstabbing Disorder]].
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* Mycroft Holmes invokes this with regards to Campion Bond in ''[[The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen]]''. When Mina asks if Bond will be punished for his deeds, Holmes replies in the negative, saying, "It is often useful to have employees whom you know to be treacherous."
* In ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog (comics)|Sonic the Hedgehog]]'', Eggman has stated that he knows full well that [[The Starscream|Snivley]], Lien-Da, and several others are planning to overthrow him, but because of that they will work the hardest for him, because they want to inherit a strong empire. He actually goes through the trouble of saving Lien-Da simply because he was impressed by her attempt at his position.
* It was recently revealed that [[Loki]] allowed himself to die at the end of "Siege" and be reborn as a child because he realized he had become a
* The One Sith in ''[[Star Wars Legacy]]'' try very hard to avoid being Reliable Traitors. The self-serving nature of the Dark Side makes it very difficult.
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* In the Barbarossa campaign of ''[[Age of Empires II]]'', Henry the Lion betrays Barbarossa, but is still forgiven, considered a valuable ally. Then he [[The Starscream|betrays you again]], and is banished.
* [[Disgaea: Hour of Darkness/Characters|Etna]] from ''[[Disgaea]]'' makes it rather clear to [[Disgaea: Hour of Darkness/Characters|Laharl]] that she'll kill him where he stands if he doesn't prove himself worthy. Laharl just sees this as ''even more'' of a reason to promote her to second-in-command. {{spoiler|She did take out a key enemy, after all, so she gets the job done.}}
* Archer in ''[[Fate/stay night]]''. Lancer and Assassin also have shades of this trope, being motivated by being [[Blood Knight
* In ''[[Dawn of War]]'', [[Ax Crazy|Lord Bale]] expresses concern over joining forces with the Orks against the Blood Ravens due to their unpredictability, to which the [[The Chessmaster|Sorcerer Sindri]] replies "Orks are not unpredictable. On the contrary, you can rely upon them to turn against you." It doesn't matter either way, [[Xanatos Gambit|since the Alpha Legion's scheme was made to work no matter which side won and started fighting them directly]].
** ''Winter Assault'' features two very brief [[Enemy Mine|alliances]], which are brief because each side expects the other to betray them, and each side doesn't disappoint. However the fact that each of them betrayed the other side because they expected ''the other side'' to betray ''them'' might put this into [[Self-Fulfilling Prophecy]] territory.
** In ''Dawn of War II: Retribution'', Abaddon fully expects Eliphas to betray him at the first opportunity, but isn't concerned as for the moment Eliphas is completely under his power and must follow his commands. This incredibly short-sighted behavior might contribute to Abaddon also being [[Fan Nickname|known as]] [[General Failure|Failbaddon]].
* ''[[Warcraft]]'' has plenty of these. First case was [[Evil Sorcerer]] Gul'dan, who Orc Warchief Orgim Doomhammer kept around because he knew Gul'dan would be useful to the Horde, even though he didn't trust the warlock. Statements about Gul-dan say that he preferred having himself surrounded by untrustworthy, ambitious individuals like himself because he knew how they thought, and actually didn't like having individuals motivated by loyalty around him because he had no clue how they thought. Additionally, Ner'zhul, the Lich King, works for Kil'Jaeden despite quite clearly having ulterior
* Some early editions of ''[[Romance of the Three Kingdoms (video game)|Romance of the Three Kingdoms]]'' on the SNES had an oddly literal example in Lu Bu. While undeniably the [[Badass|deadliest general in the game whose WAR rating was unparalleled]], he was almost impossible to use in that function because he could be counted on to turn on whoever he served if you provided him with a modest bribe. Even measures to ensure high loyalty wouldn't come to
* In ''[[Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits]]'', Darc (a deimos who believes firmly in [[Asskicking Equals Authority]]) spurns letting any deimos who is slavishly loyal to him serve him, since he sees it as a sign that they're weak and would turn on him as soon as a stronger overlord turned up. In contrast, he happily welcomes Delma back into his service after she stabs him in the back, leaves him for dead and tries to steal control of his clan from him, seeing it as an acceptable display of strength on her part.
* ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]]'', being part of ''[[Star Wars]]'', not only inevitably features this amongst the Sith but even allows ''the player'' to implement it in the Sith Academy, playing Reliable Traitors against themselves as a distraction for their own treachery.
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== [[Real Life]] ==
* [[wikipedia:Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-
{{reflist}}
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