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http://www.eviloverlord.com/lists/overlord.html
(See also Peter Anspach's Star Trek Parodies List, at
    http://www.eviloverlord.com/parodies/.)


This Evil Overlord List is Copyright 1996-1997 by Peter Anspach. If you
enjoy it, feel free to pass it along or post it anywhere, provided that (1)
it is not altered in any way, and (2) this copyright notice is attached.



Attention all Evil Overlord List Aspirants: Contrary to popular belief,
taking over the universe is not as easy as it would first appear. Due to the
complexity of this task, Peter regrets that he is currently unable to give
the list the attention it deserves. The list is therefore going on a
temporary hiatus. This is a temporary condition. As soon as he is able to
respond in a timely manner -- or until he becomes unquestioned lord and
master of all things, whichever comes first -- the list will not be updated
and no new suggestions will be considered. He would sincerely apologize for
this inconvenience, were it in character for an Evil Overlord to do so.

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Being an Evil Overlord seems to be a good career choice. It pays well, there
are all sorts of perks and you can set your own hours. However every Evil
Overlord I've read about in books or seen in movies invariably gets
overthrown and destroyed in the end. I've noticed that no matter whether
they are barbarian lords, deranged wizards, mad scientists or alien
invaders, they always seem to make the same basic mistakes every single
time. With that in mind, allow me to present...

                          The Top 100 Things I'd Do
                      If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord

  1. My Legions of Terror will have helmets with clear plexiglass visors,
     not face-concealing ones.

  2. My ventilation ducts will be too small to crawl through.

  3. My noble half-brother whose throne I usurped will be killed, not kept
     anonymously imprisoned in a forgotten cell of my dungeon.

  4. Shooting is not too good for my enemies.

  5. The artifact which is the source of my power will not be kept on the
     Mountain of Despair beyond the River of Fire guarded by the Dragons of
     Eternity. It will be in my safe-deposit box. The same applies to the
     object which is my one weakness.

  6. I will not gloat over my enemies' predicament before killing them.

  7. When I've captured my adversary and he says, "Look, before you kill me,
     will you at least tell me what this is all about?" I'll say, "No." and
     shoot him. No, on second thought I'll shoot him then say "No."

  8. After I kidnap the beautiful princess, we will be married immediately
     in a quiet civil ceremony, not a lavish spectacle in three weeks' time
     during which the final phase of my plan will be carried out.

  9. I will not include a self-destruct mechanism unless absolutely
     necessary. If it is necessary, it will not be a large red button
     labelled "Danger: Do Not Push". The big red button marked "Do Not Push"
     will instead trigger a spray of bullets on anyone stupid enough to
     disregard it. Similarly, the ON/OFF switch will not clearly be labelled
     as such.

 10. I will not interrogate my enemies in the inner sanctum -- a small hotel
     well outside my borders will work just as well.

 11. I will be secure in my superiority. Therefore, I will feel no need to
     prove it by leaving clues in the form of riddles or leaving my weaker
     enemies alive to show they pose no threat.

 12. One of my advisors will be an average five-year-old child. Any flaws in
     my plan that he is able to spot will be corrected before
     implementation.

 13. All slain enemies will be cremated, or at least have several rounds of
     ammunition emptied into them, not left for dead at the bottom of the
     cliff. The announcement of their deaths, as well as any accompanying
     celebration, will be deferred until after the aforementioned disposal.

 14. The hero is not entitled to a last kiss, a last cigarette, or any other
     form of last request.

 15. I will never employ any device with a digital countdown. If I find that
     such a device is absolutely unavoidable, I will set it to activate when
     the counter reaches 117 and the hero is just putting his plan into
     operation.

 16. I will never utter the sentence "But before I kill you, there's just
     one thing I want to know."

 17. When I employ people as advisors, I will occasionally listen to their
     advice.

 18. I will not have a son. Although his laughably under-planned attempt to
     usurp power would easily fail, it would provide a fatal distraction at
     a crucial point in time.

 19. I will not have a daughter. She would be as beautiful as she was evil,
     but one look at the hero's rugged countenance and she'd betray her own
     father.

 20. Despite its proven stress-relieving effect, I will not indulge in
     maniacal laughter. When so occupied, it's too easy to miss unexpected
     developments that a more attentive individual could adjust to
     accordingly.

 21. I will hire a talented fashion designer to create original uniforms for
     my Legions of Terror, as opposed to some cheap knock-offs that make
     them look like Nazi stormtroopers, Roman footsoldiers, or savage Mongol
     hordes. All were eventually defeated and I want my troops to have a
     more positive mind-set.

 22. No matter how tempted I am with the prospect of unlimited power, I will
     not consume any energy field bigger than my head.

 23. I will keep a special cache of low-tech weapons and train my troops in
     their use. That way -- even if the heroes manage to neutralize my power
     generator and/or render the standard-issue energy weapons useless -- my
     troops will not be overrun by a handful of savages armed with spears
     and rocks.

 24. I will maintain a realistic assessment of my strengths and weaknesses.
     Even though this takes some of the fun out of the job, at least I will
     never utter the line "No, this cannot be! I AM INVINCIBLE!!!" (After
     that, death is usually instantaneous.)

 25. No matter how well it would perform, I will never construct any sort of
     machinery which is completely indestructible except for one small and
     virtually inaccessible vulnerable spot.

 26. No matter how attractive certain members of the rebellion are, there is
     probably someone just as attractive who is not desperate to kill me.
     Therefore, I will think twice before ordering a prisoner sent to my
     bedchamber.

 27. I will never build only one of anything important. All important
     systems will have redundant control panels and power supplies. For the
     same reason I will always carry at least two fully loaded weapons at
     all times.

 28. My pet monster will be kept in a secure cage from which it cannot
     escape and into which I could not accidentally stumble.

 29. I will dress in bright and cheery colors, and so throw my enemies into
     confusion.

 30. All bumbling conjurers, clumsy squires, no-talent bards, and cowardly
     thieves in the land will be preemptively put to death. My foes will
     surely give up and abandon their quest if they have no source of comic
     relief.

 31. All naive, busty tavern wenches in my realm will be replaced with
     surly, world-weary waitresses who will provide no unexpected
     reinforcement and/or romantic subplot for the hero or his sidekick.

 32. I will not fly into a rage and kill a messenger who brings me bad news
     just to illustrate how evil I really am. Good messengers are hard to
     come by.

 33. I won't require high-ranking female members of my organization to wear
     a stainless-steel bustier. Morale is better with a more casual
     dress-code. Similarly, outfits made entirely from black leather will be
     reserved for formal occasions.

 34. I will not turn into a snake. It never helps.

 35. I will not grow a goatee. In the old days they made you look diabolic.
     Now they just make you look like a disaffected member of Generation X.

 36. I will not imprison members of the same party in the same cell block,
     let alone the same cell. If they are important prisoners, I will keep
     the only key to the cell door on my person instead of handing out
     copies to every bottom-rung guard in the prison.

 37. If my trusted lieutenant tells me my Legions of Terror are losing a
     battle, I will believe him. After all, he's my trusted lieutenant.

 38. If an enemy I have just killed has a younger sibling or offspring
     anywhere, I will find them and have them killed immediately, instead of
     waiting for them to grow up harboring feelings of vengeance towards me
     in my old age.

 39. If I absolutely must ride into battle, I will certainly not ride at the
     forefront of my Legions of Terror, nor will I seek out my opposite
     number among his army.

 40. I will be neither chivalrous nor sporting. If I have an unstoppable
     superweapon, I will use it as early and as often as possible instead of
     keeping it in reserve.

 41. Once my power is secure, I will destroy all those pesky time-travel
     devices.

 42. When I capture the hero, I will make sure I also get his dog, monkey,
     ferret, or whatever sickeningly cute little animal capable of untying
     ropes and filching keys happens to follow him around.

 43. I will maintain a healthy amount of skepticism when I capture the
     beautiful rebel and she claims she is attracted to my power and good
     looks and will gladly betray her companions if I just let her in on my
     plans.

 44. I will only employ bounty hunters who work for money. Those who work
     for the pleasure of the hunt tend to do dumb things like even the odds
     to give the other guy a sporting chance.

 45. I will make sure I have a clear understanding of who is responsible for
     what in my organization. For example, if my general screws up I will
     not draw my weapon, point it at him, say "And here is the price for
     failure," then suddenly turn and kill some random underling.

 46. If an advisor says to me "My liege, he is but one man. What can one man
     possibly do?", I will reply "This." and kill the advisor.

 47. If I learn that a callow youth has begun a quest to destroy me, I will
     slay him while he is still a callow youth instead of waiting for him to
     mature.

 48. I will treat any beast which I control through magic or technology with
     respect and kindness. Thus if the control is ever broken, it will not
     immediately come after me for revenge.

 49. If I learn the whereabouts of the one artifact which can destroy me, I
     will not send all my troops out to seize it. Instead I will send them
     out to seize something else and quietly put a Want-Ad in the local
     paper.

 50. My main computers will have their own special operating system that
     will be completely incompatible with standard IBM and Macintosh
     powerbooks.

 51. If one of my dungeon guards begins expressing concern over the
     conditions in the beautiful princess' cell, I will immediately transfer
     him to a less people-oriented position.

 52. I will hire a team of board-certified architects and surveyors to
     examine my castle and inform me of any secret passages and abandoned
     tunnels that I might not know about.

 53. If the beautiful princess that I capture says "I'll never marry you!
     Never, do you hear me, NEVER!!!", I will say "Oh well" and kill her.

 54. I will not strike a bargain with a demonic being then attempt to
     double-cross it simply because I feel like being contrary.

 55. The deformed mutants and odd-ball psychotics will have their place in
     my Legions of Terror. However before I send them out on important
     covert missions that require tact and subtlety, I will first see if
     there is anyone else equally qualified who would attract less
     attention.

 56. My Legions of Terror will be trained in basic marksmanship. Any who
     cannot learn to hit a man-sized target at 10 meters will be used for
     target practice.

 57. Before employing any captured artifacts or machinery, I will carefully
     read the owner's manual.

 58. If it becomes necessary to escape, I will never stop to pose
     dramatically and toss off a one-liner.

 59. I will never build a sentient computer smarter than I am.

 60. My five-year-old child advisor will also be asked to decipher any code
     I am thinking of using. If he breaks the code in under 30 seconds, it
     will not be used. Note: this also applies to passwords.

 61. If my advisors ask "Why are you risking everything on such a mad
     scheme?", I will not proceed until I have a response that satisfies
     them.

 62. I will design fortress hallways with no alcoves or protruding
     structural supports which intruders could use for cover in a firefight.

 63. Bulk trash will be disposed of in incinerators, not compactors. And
     they will be kept hot, with none of that nonsense about flames going
     through accessible tunnels at predictable intervals.

 64. I will see a competent psychiatrist and get cured of all extremely
     unusual phobias and bizarre compulsive habits which could prove to be a
     disadvantage.

 65. If I must have computer systems with publically available terminals,
     the maps they display of my complex will have a room clearly marked as
     the Main Control Room. That room will be the Execution Chamber. The
     actual main control room will be marked as Sewage Overflow Containment.

 66. My security keypad will actually be a fingerprint scanner. Anyone who
     watches someone press a sequence of buttons or dusts the pad for
     fingerprints then subsequently tries to enter by repeating that
     sequence will trigger the alarm system.

 67. No matter how many shorts we have in the system, my guards will be
     instructed to treat every surveillance camera malfunction as a
     full-scale emergency.

 68. I will spare someone who saved my life sometime in the past. This is
     only reasonable as it encourages others to do so. However, the offer is
     good one time only. If they want me to spare them again, they'd better
     save my life again.

 69. All midwives will be banned from the realm. All babies will be
     delivered at state-approved hospitals. Orphans will be placed in
     foster-homes, not abandoned in the woods to be raised by creatures of
     the wild.

 70. When my guards split up to search for intruders, they will always
     travel in groups of at least two. They will be trained so that if one
     of them disappears mysteriously while on patrol, the other will
     immediately initiate an alert and call for backup, instead of
     quizzically peering around a corner.

 71. If I decide to test a lieutenant's loyalty and see if he/she should be
     made a trusted lieutenant, I will have a crack squad of marksmen
     standing by in case the answer is no.

 72. If all the heroes are standing together around a strange device and
     begin to taunt me, I will pull out a conventional weapon instead of
     using my unstoppable superweapon on them.

 73. I will not agree to let the heroes go free if they win a rigged
     contest, even though my advisors assure me it is impossible for them to
     win.

 74. When I create a multimedia presentation of my plan designed so that my
     five-year-old advisor can easily understand the details, I will not
     label the disk "Project Overlord" and leave it lying on top of my desk.

 75. I will instruct my Legions of Terror to attack the hero en masse,
     instead of standing around waiting while members break off and attack
     one or two at a time.

 76. If the hero runs up to my roof, I will not run up after him and
     struggle with him in an attempt to push him over the edge. I will also
     not engage him at the edge of a cliff. (In the middle of a rope-bridge
     over a river of molten lava is not even worth considering.)

 77. If I have a fit of temporary insanity and decide to give the hero the
     chance to reject a job as my trusted lieutentant, I will retain enough
     sanity to wait until my current trusted lieutenant is out of earshot
     before making the offer.

 78. I will not tell my Legions of Terror "And he must be taken alive!" The
     command will be "And try to take him alive if it is reasonably
     practical."

 79. If my doomsday device happens to come with a reverse switch, as soon as
     it has been employed it will be melted down and made into
     limited-edition commemorative coins.

 80. If my weakest troops fail to eliminate a hero, I will send out my best
     troops instead of wasting time with progressively stronger ones as he
     gets closer and closer to my fortress.

 81. If I am fighting with the hero atop a moving platform, have disarmed
     him, and am about to finish him off and he glances behind me and drops
     flat, I too will drop flat instead of quizzically turning around to
     find out what he saw.

 82. I will not shoot at any of my enemies if they are standing in front of
     the crucial support beam to a heavy, dangerous, unbalanced structure.

 83. If I'm eating dinner with the hero, put poison in his goblet, then have
     to leave the table for any reason, I will order new drinks for both of
     us instead of trying to decide whether or not to switch with him.

 84. I will not have captives of one sex guarded by members of the opposite
     sex.

 85. I will not use any plan in which the final step is horribly
     complicated, e.g. "Align the 12 Stones of Power on the sacred altar
     then activate the medallion at the moment of total eclipse." Instead it
     will be more along the lines of "Push the button."

 86. I will make sure that my doomsday device is up to code and properly
     grounded.

 87. My vats of hazardous chemicals will be covered when not in use. Also, I
     will not construct walkways above them.

 88. If a group of henchmen fail miserably at a task, I will not berate them
     for incompetence then send the same group out to try the task again.

 89. After I captures the hero's superweapon, I will not immediately disband
     my legions and relax my guard because I believe whoever holds the
     weapon is unstoppable. After all, the hero held the weapon and I took
     it from him.

 90. I will not design my Main Control Room so that every workstation is
     facing away from the door.

 91. I will not ignore the messenger that stumbles in exhausted and
     obviously agitated until my personal grooming or current entertainment
     is finished. It might actually be important.

 92. If I ever talk to the hero on the phone, I will not taunt him. Instead
     I will say this his dogged perseverance has given me new insight on the
     futility of my evil ways and that if he leaves me alone for a few
     months of quiet contemplation I will likely return to the path of
     righteousness. (Heroes are incredibly gullible in this regard.)

 93. If I decide to hold a double execution of the hero and an underling who
     failed or betrayed me, I will see to it that the hero is scheduled to
     go first.

 94. When arresting prisoners, my guards will not allow them to stop and
     grab a useless trinket of purely sentimental value.

 95. My dungeon will have its own qualified medical staff complete with
     bodyguards. That way if a prisoner becomes sick and his cellmate tells
     the guard it's an emergency, the guard will fetch a trauma team instead
     of opening up the cell for a look.

 96. My door mechanisms will be designed so that blasting the control panel
     on the outside seals the door and blasting the control panel on the
     inside opens the door, not vice versa.

 97. My dungeon cells will not be furnished with objects that contain
     reflective surfaces or anything that can be unravelled.

 98. If an attractive young couple enters my realm, I will carefully monitor
     their activities. If I find they are happy and affectionate, I will
     ignore them. However if circumstance have forced them together against
     their will and they spend all their time bickering and criticizing each
     other except during the intermittent occasions when they are saving
     each others' lives at which point there are hints of sexual tension, I
     will immediately order their execution.

 99. Any data file of crucial importance will be padded to 1.45Mb in size.

100. Finally, to keep my subjects permanently locked in a mindless trance, I
     will provide each of them with free unlimited Internet access.

Of course, these are merely the Top 100 Things I'd do. Other suggestions
have been sent to me which didn't quite make the Top 100 List. But they are
still so good that I couldn't bear to throw them out. Therefore, as an
expression of gratitude, I have tossed them into...

                               [Cellblock A]

                                     and

                               [Cellblock B]

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

This web page has been given the following awards:

   * Cruel Site of the Day for Friday, December 13, 1996.

                      [Go to the Cruel Site of the Day site]

   * Worst of the Web for Wednesday, May 21, 1997.

                        [Go to the Worst of the Web site]

   * Things To Do If Bored for Monday, September 8, 1997.

                                     [Image]

   * This page has also been added to the index of Fun Reading at The Mining
     Company <http://scifibooks.miningco.com/>.

   * An award from the The Enlightenment Zone
         [Acknowledgment of Enlightenment from The Enlightenment Zone]

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you have any other tidbits of advice that you would like to contribute to
this list -- you're too late! The list is full. However there is still
plenty of room left in The Dungeon: Cellblock B. Feel free to e-mail me with
your advice or visit the Evil Overlord Homepage at
http://world.std.com/~olorin/peter_overlord.html. (Suggestion may be
summarily rejected or edited without your permission. What do you expect
from an EVIL Overlord?)

I wish to thank the following contributors to this list who, if I ever
happen to become an Evil Overlord, will be named as lieutenants -- but not
trusted lieutenants -- in my Legions of Terror:

   * Peter Ashen <[e-mail]>
   * Vance Atkins <[e-mail]>
   * David Borcherding <[e-mail]>
   * Ian Bell <[e-mail]>
   * Devon Black <[e-mail]>
   * Bill Campbell <[e-mail]>
   * Torgeir Christiansen <[e-mail]>
   * Paul Dietrich <[e-mail]>
   * Mario Di Giacomo <[e-mail]>
   * Chris Dunham <[e-mail]>
   * Jon Fowlkes <[e-mail]>
   * Tony Gowland <[e-mail]>
   * James Grannon <[e-mail]>
   * Ward Griffiths <[e-mail]>
   * Dave Harper <[e-mail]>
   * Paul J. Henry <[e-mail]>
   * Julie Helmer <[e-mail]>
   * Greg Huffman <[e-mail]>
   * Lynn Irwin <[e-mail]>
   * Curtis M Johnson <[e-mail]>
   * Noah Johnson <[e-mail]>
   * Ramin Kamal <[e-mail]>
   * Edmund Kao <[e-mail]>
   * SEK <[e-mail]>
   * Terran Lane <[e-mail]>
   * Bill Lee <[e-mail]>
   * Michael Lorton <[e-mail]>
   * Mike Marano <[e-mail]>
   * Christy Marx <[e-mail]>
   * Andy Mcdermott <[e-mail]>
   * David Mcelfresh <[e-mail]>
   * Angus McIntyre <[e-mail]>
   * Kevin Meehan <[e-mail]>
   * Meteor <[e-mail]>
   * Pete Meyers (Wasser) <[e-mail]>
   * Mark Minisi <[e-mail]>
   * Eric Minton <[e-mail]>
   * Jesse Mundis <[e-mail]>
   * CL Murphy <[e-mail]>
   * Mark Musante <[e-mail]>
   * Sunil Narayan <[e-mail]>
   * Francesco Nicoletti <[e-mail]>
   * Daniel Palivec <[e-mail]>
   * Joel Polowin <[e-mail]>
   * Zed Rational <[e-mail]>
   * Peter Scott Rogers <[e-mail]>
   * Lisa Rose <[e-mail]>
   * Sara <[e-mail]>
   * Yuri Schimke <[e-mail]>
   * Lucas Schofield <[e-mail]>
   * Kathryn R. Smith <[e-mail]>
   * John & Donna Spert <[e-mail]>
   * L. J. Tomsho <[e-mail]>
   * Taldin the Blue Unicorn <[e-mail]>
   * Jae Walker <[e-mail]>
   * Monika Weikel <[e-mail]>
   * Justin Wiley <[e-mail]>
   * Bill Woods <[e-mail]>
   * [e-mail]
   * [e-mail]
   * [e-mail]
   * [e-mail]
   * [e-mail]

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

I would also like to proclaim "Hercules", "Xena", "Sinbad", "Tarzan" "Robin
Hood", and "Conan" to be the Official Television Shows of the Evil Overlord
List. Their repeated efforts to illustrate why Evil Overlords need such a
list serve as examples to us all.

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------





                          The Dungeon: Cellblock A

Peter's plan to create a Top 100 List has come to fruition. However, there
are several other bits of advice he'd follow if he ever became an Evil
Overlord...

[Editor's note: the following list is numbered using the HTML <OL> tag with
the START parameter set to 101. If the list below starts at 1 instead of
101, your browser doesn't support the latest HTML standard.]

101. I will not order my trusted lieutenant to kill the infant who is
     destined to overthrow me -- I'll do it myself.

102. I will not waste time making my enemy's death look like an accident --
     I'm not accountable to anyone and my other enemies wouldn't believe it.

103. I will make it clear that I do know the meaning of the word "mercy"; I
     simply choose not show them any.

104. My undercover agents will not have tattoos identifying them as members
     of my organization, nor will they be required to wear military boots or
     adhere to any other dress codes.

105. I will design all doomsday machines myself. If I must hire a mad
     scientist to assist me, I will make sure that he is sufficiently
     twisted to never regret his evil ways and seek to undo the damage he's
     caused.

106. If my supreme command center comes under attack, I will immediately
     flee to safety in my prepared escape pod and direct the defenses from
     there. I will not wait until the troops break into my inner sanctum to
     attempt this.

107. Even though I don't really care because I plan on living forever, I
     will hire engineers who are able to build me a fortress sturdy enough
     that, if I am slain, it won't tumble to the ground for no good
     structural reason.

108. Any and all magic and/or technology that can miraculously resurrect a
     secondary character who has given up his/her life through self
     sacrifice will be outlawed and destroyed.

109. I will see to it that plucky young lads/lasses in strange clothes and
     with the accent of an outlander shall REGULARLY climb some monument in
     the main square of my capital and denounce me, claim to know the secret
     of my power, rally the masses to rebellion, etc. That way, the citizens
     will be jaded in case the real thing ever comes along.

110. I will not employ devious schemes that involve the hero's party getting
     into my inner sanctum before the trap is sprung.

111. I will offer oracles the choice of working exclusively for me or being
     executed.

112. I will not rely entirely upon "totally reliable" spells that can be
     neutralized by relatively inconspicuous talismans.

113. I will make the main entrance to my fortress standard-sized. While
     elaborate 60-foot high double-doors definitely impress the masses, they
     are hard to close quickly in an emergency.

114. I will never accept a challenge from the hero.

115. I will not engage an enemy single-handedly until all my soldiers are
     dead.

116. If I capture the hero's starship, I will keep it in the landing bay
     with the ramp down, only a few token guards on duty and a ton of
     explosives set to go off as soon as it clears the blast-range.

117. No matter how much I want revenge, I will never order an underling
     "Leave him. He's mine!"

118. If I have equipment which performs an important function, it will not
     be activated by a lever that someone could trigger by accidentally
     falling on when fatally wounded.

119. I will not attempt to kill the hero by placing a venomous creature in
     his room. It will just wind up accidentally killing one of my clumsy
     henchmen instead.

120. Since nothing is more irritating than a hero defeating you with basic
     math skills, all of my personal weapons will be modified to fire one
     more shot than the standard issue.

121. If I come into possession of an artifact which can only be used by the
     pure of heart, I will not attempt to use it regardless.

122. The gun turrets on my fortress will not rotate enough so that they may
     direct fire inward or at each other.

123. If I decide to hold a contest of skill open to the general public,
     contestants will be required to remove their hooded cloaks and shave
     their beards before entering.

124. Prior to kidnapping an older male scientist and forcing him to work for
     me, I will investigate his offspring and make sure that he has neither
     a beautiful but naive daughter who is willing to risk anything to get
     him back, nor an estranged son who works in the same field but had a
     falling-out with his father many years ago.

125. Should I actually decide to kill the hero in an elaborate escape-proof
     deathtrap room (water filling up, sand pouring down, walls converging,
     etc.) I will not leave him alone five-to-ten minutes prior to
     "imminent" death, but will instead (finding a vantage point or
     monitoring camera) stick around and enjoy watching my adversary's
     demise.

126. Rather than having only one secret escape pod, which the hero can
     easily spot and follow, I'll simultaneously launch a few dozen decoys
     to throw him off track.

127. Prison guards will have their own cantina featuring a wide variety of
     tasty treats that will deliver snacks to the guards while on duty. The
     guards will also be informed that accepting food or drink from any
     other source will result in execution.

128. I will not employ robots as agents of destruction if there is any
     possible way that they can be re-programmed or if their battery packs
     are externally mounted and easily removable.

129. Despite the delicious irony, I will not force two heroes to fight each
     other in the arena.

130. All members of my Legions of Terror will have professionally tailored
     uniforms. If the hero knocks a soldier unconscious and steals the
     uniform, the poor fit will give him away.

131. I will never place the key to a cell just out of a prisoner's reach.

132. Before appointing someone as my trusted lieutenant, I will conduct a
     thorough background investigation and security clearance.

133. If I find my beautiful consort with access to my fortress has been
     associating with the hero, I'll have her executed. It's regrettable,
     but new consorts are easier to get than new fortresses and maybe the
     next one will pay attention at the orientation meeting.

134. If I am escaping in a large truck and the hero is pursuing me in a
     small Italian sports car, I will not wait for the hero to pull up along
     side of me and try to force him off the road as he attempts to climb
     aboard. Instead I will slam on the brakes when he's directly behind me.
     (A rudimentary knowledge of physics can prove quite useful.)

135. My doomsday machine will have a highly-advanced technological device
     called a capacitor in case someone inconveniently pulls the plug at the
     last second. (If I have access to REALLY advanced technology, I will
     include a back-up device known as a battery.)

136. If I build a bomb, I will simply remember which wire to cut if it has
     to be deactivated and make every wire red.

137. Before spending available funds on giant gargoyles, gothic arches, or
     other cosmetically intimidating pieces of architecture, I will see if
     there are any valid military expenditures that could use the extra
     budget.

138. The passageways to and within my domain will be well-lit with
     fluorescent lighting. Regrettably, the spooky atmosphere will be lost,
     but my security patrols will be more effective.

139. If I'm sitting in my camp, hear a twig snap, start to investigate, then
     encounter a small woodland creature, I will send out some scouts anyway
     just to be on the safe side. (If they disappear into the foliage, I
     will not send out another patrol; I will break out the napalm.)

140. I will instruct my guards when checking a cell that appears empty to
     look for the chamber pot. If the chamber pot is still there, then the
     prisoner has escaped and they may enter and search for clues. If the
     chamber pot is not there, then either the prisoner is perched above the
     lintel waiting to strike them with it or else he decided to take it as
     a souvenir (in which case he is obviously deeply disturbed and poses no
     threat). Either way, there's no point in entering.

141. As an alternative to not having children, I will have lots of children.
     My sons will be too busy jockeying for position to ever be a real
     threat, and the daughters will all sabotage each other's attempts to
     win the hero.

142. If I have children and subsequently grandchildren, I will keep my
     three-year-old granddaughter near me at all times. When the hero enters
     to kill me, I will ask him to first explain to her why it is necessary
     to kill her beloved grandpa. When the hero launches into an explanation
     of morality way over her head, that will be her cue to pull the lever
     and send him into the pit of crocodiles. After all, small children like
     crocodiles almost as much as Evil Overlords and it's important to spend
     quality time with the grandkids.

143. If one of my daughters actually manages to win the hero and openly
     defies me, I will congratulate her on her choice, declare a national
     holiday to celebrate the wedding, and proclaim the hero my heir. This
     will probably be enough to break up the relationship. If not, at least
     I am assured that no hero will attack my Legions of Terror when they
     are holding a parade in his honor.

144. I will order my guards to stand in a line when they shoot at the hero
     so he cannot duck and have them accidentally shoot each other. Also, I
     will order some to aim above, below, and to the sides so he cannot jump
     out of the way.

145. My dungeon cell decor will not feature exposed pipes. While they add to
     the gloomy atmosphere, they are good conductors of vibrations and a lot
     of prisoners know Morse code.

146. If my surveillance reports any un-manned or seemingly innocent ships
     found where they are not supposed to be, they will be immediately
     vaporized instead of brought in for salvage.

147. I will classify my lieutenants in three categories: untrusted, trusted,
     and completely trusted. Promotion to the third category will be awarded
     posthumously.

148. Before ridiculing my enemies for wasting time on a device to stop me
     that couldn't possibly work, I will first acquire a copy of the
     schematics and make sure that in fact it couldn't possibly work.

149. Ropes supporting various fixtures will not be tied next to open windows
     or staircases, and chandeliers will be hung way at the top of the
     ceiling.

150. I will provide funding and research to develop tactical and strategic
     weapons covering a full range of needs so my choices are not limited to
     "hand to hand combat with swords" and "blow up the planet".

151. I will not set myself up as a god. That perilous position is reserved
     for my trusted lieutenant.

152. I will instruct my fashion designer that when it comes to
     accessorizing, second-chance body armor goes well with every outfit.

153. My Legions of Terror will be an equal-opportunity employer. Conversely,
     when it is prophesied that no man can defeat me, I will keep in mind
     the increasing number of non-traditional gender roles.

154. I will instruct my Legions of Terror in proper search techniques. In
     particular, if they are searching for escapees and someone shouts,
     "Quick! They went that way!", they must first ascertain the identity of
     this helpful informant before dashing off in hot pursuit.

155. If I know of any heroes in the land, I will not under any circumstance
     kill their mentors, teachers, and/or best friends.

156. If I have the hero and his party trapped, I will not wait until my
     Superweapon charges to finish them off if more conventional means are
     available.

157. Whenever plans are drawn up that include a time-table, I'll post-date
     the completion 3 days after it's actually scheduled to occur and not
     worry too much if they get stolen.

158. I will exchange the labels on my folder of top-secret plans and my
     folder of family recipes. Imagine the hero's surprise when he decodes
     the stolen plans and finds instructions for Grandma's Potato Salad.

159. If I burst into rebel headquarters and find it deserted except for an
     odd, blinking device, I will not walk up and investigate; I'll run like
     hell.

160. Before being accepted into my Legions of Terror, potential recruits
     will have to pass peripheral vision and hearing tests, and be able to
     recognize the sound of a pebble thrown to distract them.

161. I will occasionally vary my daily routine and not live my life in a
     rut. For example, I will not always take a swig of wine or ring a giant
     gong before finishing off my enemy.

162. If I steal something very important to the hero, I will not put it on
     public display.

163. When planning an expedition, I will choose a route for my forces that
     does not go through thick, leafy terrain conveniently located near the
     rebel camp.

164. I will hire one hopelessly stupid and incompetent lieutenant, but make
     sure that he is full of misinformation when I send him to capture the
     hero.

165. As an equal-opportunity employer, I will have several hearing-impaired
     body-guards. That way if I wish to speak confidentially with someone,
     I'll just turn my back so the guards can't read my lips instead of
     sending all of them out of the room.

166. If the rebels manage to trick me, I will make a note of what they did
     so that I do not keep falling for the same trick over and over again.

167. If I am recruiting to find someone to run my computer systems, and my
     choice is between the brilliant programmer who's head of the world's
     largest international technology conglomerate and an obnoxious
     15-year-old dork who's trying to impress his dream girl, I'll take the
     brat and let the hero get stuck with the genius.

168. I will plan in advance what to do with each of my enemies if they are
     captured. That way, I will never have to order someone to be tied up
     while I decide his fate.

169. If I have massive computer systems, I will take at least as many
     precautions as a small business and include things such as virus-scans
     and firewalls.

170. I will be an equal-opportunity despot and make sure that terror and
     oppression is distributed fairly, not just against one particular group
     that will form the core of a rebellion.

171. I will not locate a base in a volcano, cave, or any other location
     where it would be ridiculously easy to bypass security by rapelling
     down from above.

172. I will allow guards to operate under a flexible work schedule. That way
     if one is feeling sleepy, he can call for a replacement, punch out,
     take a nap, and come back refreshed and alert to finish out his shift.

173. Although it would provide amusement, I will not confess to the hero's
     rival that I was the one who committed the heinous act for which he
     blames the hero.

174. If I am dangling over a precipice and the hero reaches his hand down to
     me, I will not attempt to pull him down with me. I will allow him to
     rescue me, thank him properly, then return to the safety of my fortress
     and order his execution.

175. I will have my fortress exorcized regularly. Although ghosts in the
     dungeon provide an appropriate atmosphere, they tend to provide
     valuable information once placated.

176. I will add indelible dye to the moat. It won't stop anyone from
     swimming across, but even dim-witted guards should be able to figure
     out when someone has entered in this fashion.

177. If a scientist with a beautiful and unmarried daughter refuses to work
     for me, I will not hold her hostage. Instead, I will offer to pay for
     her future wedding and her children's college tuition.

178. If I have the hero cornered and am about to finish him off and he says
     "Look out behind you!!" I will not laugh and say "You don't expect me
     to fall for that old trick, do you?" Instead I will take a step to the
     side and half turn. That way I can still keep my weapon trained on the
     hero, I can scan the area behind me, and if anything was heading for me
     it will now be heading for him.

179. I will not outsource core functions.

180. If I ever build a device to transfer the hero's energy into me, I will
     make sure it cannot operate in reverse.

181. I will decree that all hay be shipped in tightly-packed bales. Any
     wagonload of loose hay attempting to pass through a checkpoint will be
     set on fire.

182. I will not hold any sort of public celebration within my castle walls.
     Any event open to members of the public will be held down the road in
     the festival pavilion.

183. Before using any device which transfers energy directly into my body, I
     will install a surge suppressor.

184. I will hire a drama coach. The hero will think it must be a case of
     mistaken identity when confronted by my Minnesota accent (if everyone
     sounds American) or my Cornwall accent (if everyone sounds British).

185. If I capture an enemy known for escaping via ingenious and fantastic
     little gadgets, I will order a full cavity search and confiscate all
     personal items before throwing him in my dungeon.

186. I will not devise any scheme in which Part A consists of tricking the
     hero into unwittingly helping me and Part B consists of laughing at him
     then leaving him to his own devices.

187. I will not hold lavish banquets in the middle of a famine. The good PR
     among the guests doesn't make up for the bad PR among the masses.

188. I will funnel some of my ill-gotten gains into urban renewal projects.
     Although slums add a quaint and picturesque quality to any city, they
     too often contain unexpected allies for heroes.

189. I will never tell the hero "Yes I was the one who did it, but you'll
     never be able to prove it to that incompetent old fool." Chances are,
     that incompetant old fool is standing behind the curtain.

190. If my mad scientist/wizard tells me he has almost perfected my
     Superweapon but it still needs more testing, I will wait for him to
     complete the tests. No one ever conquered the world using a beta
     version.

191. I will not appoint a relative to my staff of advisors. Not only is
     nepotism the cause of most breakdowns in policy, but it also causes
     trouble with the EEOC.

192. If I appoint someone as my consort, I will not subsequently inform her
     that she is being replaced by a younger, more attractive woman.

193. If I am using the hero's girlfriend as a hostage and am holding her at
     the point of imminent death when confronting the hero, I will focus on
     her and not him. He won't try anything with his true love held hostage.
     On the other hand, the fact that she has been weak, slow-witted, naive
     and generally useless up to this point has no bearing on her actions at
     the moment of dramatic climax.

194. I will make several ludicrously erroneous maps to secret passages in my
     fortress and hire travellers to entrust them to aged hermits.

195. I will not use hostages as bait in a trap. Unless you're going to use
     them for negotiation or as human shields, there's no point in taking
     them.

196. I will hire an expert marksman to stand by the entrance to my fortress.
     His job will be to shoot anyone who rides up to challenge me.

197. I will explain to my Legions of Terror that guns are ranged weapons and
     swords are not. Anyone who attempts to throw a sword at the hero or
     club him with a gun will be summarily executed.

198. I will remember that any vulnerabilities I have are to be revealed
     strictly on a need-to-know basis. I will also remember that no one
     needs to know.

199. I will not make alliances with those more powerful than myself. Such a
     person would only double-cross me in my moment of glory. I will make
     alliances with those less powerful than myself. I will then
     double-cross them in their moment of glory.

200. During times of peace, my Legions of Terror will not be permitted to
     lie around drinking mead and eating roast boar. Instead they will be
     required to obey my dietician and my aerobics instructor.

Due to the ever prevalent problem of prison overcrowding, we have been
forced to open another cell block, Cellblock B.
  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Those who helped create the Top 100 List have kept their positions of honor
even if their entries wound up here. However, others have offered their aid,
albeit late, and so still deserve some reward. If I ever become an Evil
Overlord, the following people will be granted luxury suites in my dungeon
and receive a diet of fresh-baked bread and imported mineral water.

   * Daniel Abraham <[e-mail]>
   * Ken Arromdee <[e-mail]>
   * Marc Asher <[e-mail]>
   * Donald Ayre >[e-mail]<
   * James Barbetti <[e-mail]>
   * Robert Barbetti <[e-mail]>
   * Bruce Barnes <[e-mail]>
   * Chris Beard <[e-mail]>
   * R.M. Bernstein <[e-mail]>
   * Ellen Theresa Bjorge <[e-mail]>
   * Dan Black <[e-mail]>
   * Grahame Bowland <[e-mail]>
   * Wes Bridges <[e-mail]>
   * Chris Campbell <[e-mail]>
   * Melanie Chameleon <[e-mail]>
   * Kimberly Chapman <[e-mail]>
   * Patrick Chester <[e-mail]>
   * Garrett Choi <[e-mail]>
   * Gail Dahlstrom <[e-mail]>
   * Aguido Horatio Davis <[e-mail]>
   * James Denam <[e-mail]>
   * Kirsten Edwards <[e-mail]>
   * Douglas Elder <[e-mail]>
   * Karen Feigenbaum <[e-mail]>
   * Jay Fife <[e-mail]>
   * Natalie Forrest <[e-mail]>
   * Sam Gonhue
   * Stephen Griffith <[e-mail]>
   * Wallace Hale <[e-mail]>
   * Bill Herdle <[e-mail]>
   * Ben Hsu <[e-mail]>
   * Rick Jones <[e-mail]>
   * Myranda Kalis <[e-mail]>
   * Harry Kenney <[e-mail]>
   * Kevin Krom <[e-mail]>
   * Bruce Ladewig <[e-mail]>
   * Jo Laing & Dave Palmer <[e-mail]>
   * Gregory Lam <[e-mail]>
   * Linda Lassman <[e-mail]>
   * Meg Levin <[e-mail]>
   * Tim M. <[e-mail]>
   * Frank Marler <[e-mail]>
   * Mark McDermott <[e-mail]>
   * Walter Means <[e-mail]>
   * Norman Meluch <[e-mail]>
   * Bryce Merriman <[e-mail]>
   * Kim Moser <[e-mail]>
   * Kevin Andrew Murphy <[e-mail]>
   * Fred Musante <[e-mail]>
   * Steve Nelle <[e-mail]>
   * Tony J. Podrasky <[e-mail]>
   * Joel Polowin <[e-mail]>
   * Michael Powers <[e-mail]>
   * Timothy Ruppell <[e-mail]>
   * Karen T Sharp
   * Robert Shaw <[e-mail]>
   * Carrie Shutrick <[e-mail]>
   * Mike Stanczyk <[e-mail]>
   * Kal Socolof <[e-mail]>
   * Erik Tavares <[e-mail]>
   * Beth and Richard Treitel <[e-mail]>
   * John & Linda VanSickle <[e-mail]>
   * Skip Wall <[e-mail]>
   * Eric Wardwell-Gaw <[e-mail]>
   * Steve Wellcome <[e-mail]>
   * Matthew Wilcox <[e-mail]>
   * Eric Wilner <[e-mail]>
   * Robert J. Woodhead <[e-mail]>
   * James A. Wolf <[e-mail]>
   * Lydia Wooster <[e-mail]>
   * John Woznack <[e-mail]>
   * Robin Yenney <[e-mail]>
   * Dominic Yong <[e-mail]>
   * Sean Young <[e-mail]>
   * HPrill <[e-mail]>
   * James <[e-mail]>
   * Judy <[e-mail]>
   * Lizard <[e-mail]>
   * Maie <[e-mail]>
   * Melchar <[e-mail]>
   * Vladico <[e-mail]>
   * <[e-mail]>
   * <[e-mail]>

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

This Dungeon List is Copyright 1996-1998 by Peter Anspach <[e-mail]>.
If you enjoy it, feel free to pass it along or post it anywhere, provided
that (1) it is not altered in any way and (2) this copyright notice is
attached.

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------




                          The Dungeon: Cellblock B

What can we say? Despite the horrendously barbaric conditions of The Dungeon
(only two premium cable channels and the complete lack of a jacuzzi), eager
applicants keep sending in their suggestions. To deal with our own
overcrowding, we proudly announce the opening of a new cell block.

[Editor's note: the following list is numbered using the HTML <OL> tag with
the START parameter set to 201. If the list below starts at 1 instead of
201, your browser doesn't support the latest HTML standard.]

201. All giant serpents acting as guardians in underground lakes will be
     fitted with sports goggles to prevent eye injuries.

202. All crones with the ability to prophesy will be given free facelifts,
     permanents, manicures, and Donna Karan wardrobes. That should pretty
     well destroy their credibility.

203. I will not employ an evil wizard if he has a sleazy mustache.

204. I will hire an entire squad of blind guards. Not only is this in
     keeping with my status as an equal opportunity employer, but it will
     come in handy when the hero becomes invisible or douses my only light
     source.

205. All repair work will be done by an in-house maintenance staff. Any
     alleged "repairmen" who show up at the fortress will be escorted to the
     dungeon.

206. When my Legions of Terror park their vehicle to do reconnaissance on
     foot, they will be instructed to employ The Club.

207. Employees will have conjugal visit trailers which they may use provided
     they call in a replacement and sign out on the timesheet. Given this,
     anyone caught making out in a closet while leaving their station
     unmonitored will be shot.

208. Members of my Legion of Terror will attend seminars on Sensitivity
     Training. It's good public relations for them to be kind and courteous
     to the general population when not actively engaged in sowing chaos and
     destruction.

209. I will not, under any circumstances, marry a woman I know to be a
     faithless, conniving, back-stabbing witch simply because I am
     absolutely desperate to perpetuate my family line. Of course, we can
     still date.

210. All guest-quarters will be bugged and monitored so that I can keep
     track of what the visitors I have for some reason allowed to roam about
     my fortress are actually plotting.

211. If my chief engineer displeases me, he will be shot, not imprisoned in
     the dungeon or beyond the traps he helped design.

212. I will not send out batalions composed wholly of robots or skeletons
     against heroes who have qualms about killing living beings.

213. I will not wear long, heavy cloaks. While they certainly make a bold
     fashion statement, they have an annoying tendency to get caught in
     doors or tripped over during an escape.

214. If a malignant being demands a sacrificial victim have a particular
     quality, I will check to make sure said victim has this quality
     immediately before the sacrifice and not rely on earlier results.
     (Especially if the quality is virginity and the victim is the hero's
     girlfriend.)

215. If I ever MUST put a digital timer on my doomsday device, I will buy
     one free from quantum mechanical anomalies. So many brands on the
     market keep perfectly good time while you're looking at them, but
     whenever you turn away for a couple minutes then turn back, you find
     that the countdown has progressed by only a few seconds.

216. If my Legions of Terror are defeated in a battle, I will quietly
     withdraw and regroup instead of launching a haphazard mission to
     assassinate the hero.

217. If I'm wearing the key to the hero's shackles around my neck and his
     former girlfriend now volunteers to become my mistress and we are all
     alone in my bedchamber on my bed and she offers me a goblet of wine, I
     will politely decline the offer.

218. I will not pick up a glowing ancient artifact and shout "It's power is
     now mine!!!" Instead I will grab some tongs, transfer it to a hazardous
     materials container, and transport it back to my lab for study.

219. I will be selective in the hiring of assassins. Anyone who attempt to
     strike down the hero the first instant his back is turned will not even
     be considered for the job.

220. Whatever my one vulnerability is, I will fake a different one. For
     example, ordering all mirrors removed from the palace, screaming and
     flinching whenever someone accidentally holds up a mirror, etc. In the
     climax when the hero whips out a mirror and thrusts it at my face, my
     reaction will be "Hmm...I think I need a shave."

221. My force-field generators will be located inside the shield they
     generate.

222. I reserve the right to execute any henchmen who appear to be a little
     too intelligent, powerful, or devious. However if I do so, I will not
     at some subsequent point shout "Why am I surrounded by these
     incompetent fools?!"

223. I will install a fire extinguisher in every room -- three, if the room
     contains vital equipment or volatile chemicals.

224. I will build machines which simply fail when overloaded, rather than
     wipe out all nearby henchmen in an explosion or worse yet set off a
     chain reaction. I will do this by using devices known as "surge
     protectors".

225. I will explain to my guards that most people have their eyes in the
     front of their heads and thus while searching for someone it makes
     little sense to draw a weapon and slowly back down the hallway.

226. I will have a staff of competent detectives handy. If I learn that
     someone in a certain village is plotting against me, I will have them
     find out who rather than wipe out the entire village in a preemptive
     strike.

227. I will never bait a trap with genuine bait.

228. If the hero claims he wishes to confess in public or to me personally,
     I will remind him that a notarized deposition will serve just as well.

229. If I have several diabolical schemes to destroy the hero, I will set
     all of them in motion at once rather than wait for them to fail and
     launch them successively.

230. I will not procrastinate regarding any ritual granting immortality.

231. Mythical guardians will be instructed to ask visitors name, purpose of
     visit, and whether they have an appointment instead of ancient riddles.

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Those who helped create the Top 100 List have kept their positions of honor.
Those who were originally let into Cellblock A are still languishing away.
But I still feel the need to reward the new contributors. If I ever become
an Evil Overlord, the following people will be granted corporate suites in
my dungeon and receive a diet of homemade bread and pure spring water.

   * Torbj÷rn Andersson <[e-mail]>
   * Jeff Chien <[e-mail]>
   * David Hendershot <[e-mail]>

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

This Dungeon List is Copyright 1996-1998 by Peter Anspach <[e-mail]>.
If you enjoy it, feel free to pass it along or post it anywhere, provided
that (1) it is not altered in any way and (2) this copyright notice is
attached.

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------