The Demon Princes: Difference between revisions

* [[Coup De Grace]]: {{spoiler|Howard Alan Treesong--to himself.}}

** Also indirectly {{spoiler|Suthiro the poisoner, whom Gersen has infected with ''cluthe'' but who still needs a finishing shot when Gersen nearly gets too close.}}

* [[Evil Is Petty]]: All five Demon Princes are seen exacting [[Disproportionate Retribution]] for relatively minor slights.

* [[Evil Overlooker]]: Justified in ''The Face'': it's actually {{spoiler|foreshadowing.}}

* [[Gilded Cage]]: Interchange in ''The Killing Machine'', a planet whose sole purpose is to house kidnap victims awaiting their ransom.

* [[Gotta Kill Them All]]: {{spoiler|Except for Howard Alan Treesong, whom Gersen is satisfied has been broken as a man.}}

* [[Hair of Gold]]: Alusz Iphigenia from ''The Killing Machine''.

* [[Heroes Want Redheads]]: Alice Wroke from ''The Book of Dreams''.

* [[Karmic Death]]: {{spoiler|Malagate is killed by the world he wanted to conquer.}}

* {{spoiler|[[Last Girl Wins]]: Alice Wroke}}

* [[Mad Artist]]: Navarth the poet (''The Palace of Love''). Depending on your tastes, his poems as seen in the book may be a fine example of [[Stylistic Suck]].

* [[Masochist's Meal]]: Darsh food is intentionally vile: the people of Dar Sai seem to pride themselves on their ability to stomach it. The once-mentioned Sandusker cult also has the same attitude to their food. And part of ''The Book Of Dreams'' revolves around a banquet for the highest-ranking members of The Institute at which ''charnay'' is served - a foodstuff which, apart from being fruit, is more or less a direct stand-in for ''fugu''.

* [[Master Poisoner]]: The planet Sarkovy's [[Planet of Hats|Hat]] is brewing and finding creative ways to administer poisons. The higher ranks of their grand masters can be [[Poisonous Person|Poisonous Persons]], although in a touch of realism, these people tend to die rapidly themselves. Hero Kirth Gersen spent several instructive years there, to the point of being able to outwit and infect a rival Master Poisoner.

* [[Mugging the Monster]]:

** Young Kirth's first kill happened by this.

** A story is recounted of a mugger who tried to jump Howard Alan Treesong, who at that point was [[The Syndicate|licensing every criminal act in that section of the Oikumene]]. Treesong had the man arrested.

* [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast]]: Each of the Demon Princes has selected a name that appeals to him: Lens Larque is a predatory bird from his native planet; Howard Alan Treesong is named for the hero of an obscure story cycle; Kokor Hekkus' [[Meaningful Name]] comes from the screeching sound made by his title beheading machine.

* [[Nightmare Fetishist]]: Kokor Hekkus.

* [[Not So Different]]: In ''The Face'', {{spoiler|Kirth Gersen decides to carry out Lens Larque's final plan — and for pretty much the exact same reason}}.

* [[Omniscient Council of Vagueness]]: The Institute, again. Purposely, as it turns out.

* [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old]]: Kokor Hekkus has been operating for two hundred and eighty-seven years.

* [[Rescue Sex]]: Jerdian Chanseth.

* [[Revenge Before Reason]]: A recurring theme throughout the series. One of Gersen's girlfriends leaves him when he refuses to end his quest for revenge.

* [[Sacrificed Basic Skill for Awesome Training]]: Kirth has been trained by his grandfather [[Tyke Bomb|since childhood]] in fighting, assassination, poisons, weapons, disguise... but his socializing abilities are primarily focused on infiltration rather than regular human interaction.

* [[Spider Tank]]: The "dnzad".

** They are:

*** [[Blood Knight|Lorris Hohenger the Red]]

*** [[The Chessmaster|Mewness of the Green]]

*** [[Evil Genius|Jeha Rais the Black]]

* [[The Stoic]]: Jehan Addels. High-ranked members of the Institute are expected to be this.

* [[So What Do We Do Now?]]: The final lines of ''The Book of Dreams'':

[[Category:Literature]]

[[Category:Jack Vance]]