Vorpal
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Vorpal is a word coined by Lewis Carroll for the poem "Jabberwocky," used first in the line "He took his vorpal sword in hand" and "One, two! One, two! And through and through / The vorpal blade went snicker-snack! / He left it dead, and with its head / He went galumphing back." Vorpal is commonly assumed to mean "deadly" or "extremely sharp", or perhaps to imply that the blade has magical properties. Many role-playing games have taken the latter interpretation, and since the hero brings the dead Jabberwock's head home in triumph have used "vorpal" to identify weapons with a magically enhanced ability to behead enemies. It is also occasionally interpreted as meaning the blade is warped.
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[edit] Appearances in popular culture
An extinct bird species from the Hawaiian Islands, the Giant 'Amakihi, was described as Hemignathus vorpalis (literally "Vorpal 'Amakihi") because it was conspicuously larger than all its congeners.
The killer rabbit from the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail has become known as "the vorpal bunny", although this name does not appear in the film. Seemingly a harmless white rabbit, it's actually a formidable, fearsome beast that guards the cave of Caerbannog. Despite the warnings of Tim the Enchanter -- and a suspicious number of skulls and bones lying about -- Sir Bors is sent to slay the bunny and is decapitated to the sound of a can opener.
In the Doctor Who novel, The Nightmare Of Black Island written by Mike Tucker, Rose asks the Doctor if he has a vorpal blade in his pocket. The doctor also quotes Lewis Carroll later on in the book.
In an episode of the Cartoon Network show Dexter's Laboratory called "D&DD" (an episode in which the characters play a game similar to Dungeons & Dragons called "Monsters & Mazes), Dee Dee, acting as the "Game Master" forces the characters to confront a dragon. When one of them slays the dragon she declares, "Your vorpal blade goes snicker-snack and WHACK! Off goes the dragon's head!"
In the Rawson Marshall Thurber film, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, the Cotton McKnight character (played by Gary Cole) says, "The Average Joes hope to drive their vorpal blade, snicker-snack, through the heart of the Globo Gym Purple Cobras."
[edit] Books
There is a murder mystery novel by Colin Forbes titled The Vorpal Blade.
It is also referenced in Graham Masterton's novel Mirror as an acronym for Victory Over Ruin Pestilence And Lust.
In the comic series Fables, the Fabletown community owns the Vorpal Blade, which they brought with them from the Homelands. When Boy Blue launched his assassination campaign against the Adversary, he used the Vorpal Sword. It is the only weapon that has ever survived contact with the shield of protective spells covering the Adversary. The blade makes the sound "snicker-snack!" when used, and is so sharp that it cleaves in twain anything it touches. It is hinted that the Vorpal Blade does the fighting itself, requiring that it only be held.
In Roger Zelazny's book Sign of Chaos the protagonist, Merlin, uses the Vorpal blade (or at least a weapon identical to it) found in a Shadow (the term for alternate worlds in the Amber series). It is there described as looking "as if it were made of moth wings and folded moonlight". The blade is apparently made of very thin material, as in its stored form it is the size of a deck of cards and "unfolds" into a full-length sword, which Merlin is able to use to effortlessly slice a fire angel into pieces.
In the novel "Quest for the Fallen Star," written by Piers Anthony and James Richey, vorpal weapons are the only means used to destroy ill-creatures.
In Neal Asher's 2005 novel Cowl, "vorpal" energy is used to enable time travel along different world lines. A character refers that the name was derived from a forgotten poem and was a type of joke.
In the VIZ translation of the manga Shaman King, the character Tao Ren's trademark move is called the "Vorpal Dance"- an attack with a kwan dao fighting spear, capable of splitting a truck in two.
Adiamante[1], the science fiction novel by L. E. Modesitt, Jr., discusses, inter alia, a future Earth after an environmental Armageddon has induced wide-spread mutations in the disrupted ecology. In that future Earth, the new and virulent creatures that have evolved are dangerous to all but protected humans or unprotected humans with powerful cognitive abilities. L.E. Modesitt’s vorpals live in the desert wastelands, instinctively hating and hunting humans.
A sword identified as a Vorpal Blade, able to cut space-time, is featured in Charles Stross' forthcoming Glasshouse.
'Vorpal Blade' is the name of an upcoming book by the Military Sci-Fi author John Ringo. In the story, 'Vorpal Blade' is the name of a new, highly advanced, US Submarine.
[edit] Music
There is a Montreal-based IDM artist called Vorpal[2], who is known for his complex beats and cut-and-paste melodies. Vorpal is released on Sublight Records.
Australian Post Punk band Piano Piano, fronted by the notorious Ron Rude produced an independent vinyl album in 1980 called 'The Vorpal Blade'
[edit] Games & Computer & video games
In the Munchkin by Steve Jackson Games, there is a card named "Vorpal Blade". According to the text in the card it gives a +3 bonus to the user and "an extra +10 against anything that starts with the letter J. Don't ask why. Don't ask what Vorpal means, either."
The Vorpal Blade is a well hidden weapon in Konami's video game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for PlayStation and Sega Saturn. It is described as being able to "slice cleanly through enemies."
In Dungeons & Dragons, a popular role-playing game, a vorpal weapon is one which will behead foes on a dice roll of a natural 20. In the game's reference manual Deities and Demigods, King Arthur's sword Excalibur is described as being a "vorpal weapon." Many MUDs (multi-user dungeons) also incorporate this adjective into some of their weapon descriptions.
The "vorpal bunny" is also featured in the GrailQuest series of interactive fiction books, notably in book 6 (Realm Of Chaos). A successful strike against the player character by the vorpal bunny in combat immediately severs the character's head and ends the story.
In the Gameboy Advance game "Golden Sun", there is a weapon called the Elven Rapier, which has a chance of using the attack Vorpal Slash.
The Vorpal Blade appears in NetHack and Slash'Em, where it has a one in twenty chance of beheading any enemy (that has a head) with each hit; it also kills jabberwocks instantly.
In Angband and its variants exist Blades of Sharpness, which have a chance of dealing additional damage based on the wielder's strength and the weight of the weapon. A unique weapon, the Vorpal Blade, is a specially enchanted Blade of Sharpness that is also among the heaviest weapons in the entire game (allowing it to deal the most immense of sharpness bonuses to vulnerable enemies).
In the Playstation game Vandal Hearts (Konami), the characters attempt to escape a prison and are confronted by a jailor wielding a Vorpal Blade which strongly resembles a Kusari Gama.
In Final Fantasy for the NES, PlayStation, and Game Boy Advance, there is a powerful sword that the Knight, Ninja, and Red Wizard classes can use called the Vorpal Sword. This use of the word can probably be traced to the use in role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons.
In Final Fantasy XI for the PC and PlayStation 2, there are weapon skills called Vorpal Blade, Vorpal Scythe and Vorpal Thrust, as well as a common enemy called a Vorpal Bunny.
In Final Fantasy XII for the PS2, an enemy known as the Vorpal Bunny makes an appearance in one of the games' hunts.
In Dynasty Warriors 4 for the PlayStation 2, there was a Vorpal Orb which, when equipped, caused the character's weapon to do massive damage to named characters and will instantly kill normal soldiers.
In Tales of Phantasia for the SNES, PlayStation and GBA, the Vorpal Sword has no critical hit powers, but is enchanted with ice magic.
In Skies of Arcadia the Vorpal Blade makes its appearance as a fairly powerful weapon for the character Vyse.
In the prequel to Tales of Phantasia, Tales of Symphonia for the GCN, the Vorpal Sword is one of the two swords needed to create Lloyd's Material Blade, a pair of swords that can hold the two halves of the Eternal Sword and gives Lloyd an extraordinarily powerful attack (Falcon's Crest) when he has the sword equipped and his HP is low.
In the PC RTS Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, the Night Elf glaive thrower can receive an upgrade called "Vorpal Blades," allowing its three-bladed, spinning projectiles to pass through multiple units. Also, in the MMORPG World of Warcraft there are several varieties of "Vorpal Dagger."
In 1997, the sequel to HeXen, called HeXen II, has a sword called the Vorpal Sword that is used by the Paladin class. It can be swung at enemies to damage them, but when powered by the Tome of Power, it shoots waves of lightning.
In American McGee's Alice, a video game released in 2000, the Vorpal Blade appears but is the least powerful weapon in the game being essentially a rusty kitchen knife, with the mildly magical ability of returning to the hand after being thrown.
The 1985 computer game The Bard's Tale and its sequels, The Bard's Tale II and The Bard's Tale III, feature a spell called "Vorpal Plating." Casting this spell upon a party member slightly increases the damage done by their weapon.
The 2004 game Bard's Tale released for PlayStation 2 and Xbox features a summonable creature named the "Vorpal Rat," which will throw itself at enemies for copious amounts of damage.
The game Culdcept released for PlayStation 2 features a "Vorpal Sword" card, which will add 30 to one's stength, as well as granting a critical hit.
In the Japanese RPG Grandia II (Dreamcast, PS2 and Windows) vorpal weapons allow the wielder to teleport directly to the target and a hit it without a possibility of being intercepted.
In the D&D-based computer game, Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, the player may assemble a Githyanki Vorpal Blade from the "Silver blade" and the "Silver hilt" artifacts. The sword is a two-handed weapon that has a 25% chance of instantly killing whatever it hits. Some enemies, however, are immune to this effect.
In Linley's Dungeon Crawl, vorpal status on a weapon multiplies that weapon's base attack damage.
In Golden Sun the Elven Rapier has a chance of unleashing "Vorpal Slash."
In TaskMaker, An incredibly powerful Vorpal Blade can be found in the keep behind the TaskMaker's throne room.
In Adventure Quest, any character can purchase a Vorpal Edge in Yulgar's Inn. However, Guardian players have the ability to take the sword to Nimrod in the Guardian Tower to sharpen it, so it can deal more damage. Also, there is a monster called VorpalZard. Its appearance is the same as the SnowbunnyZard. This is a parody of Monty Python and the Holy Grail's killer rabbit.
In Legend, a 1992 Amiga and DOS game by Mindscape, a Vorpal Blade is the definitive sword for the Bard class.
In the computer game Dungeon Master, the Vorpal Blade is a black flambard style sword, capable of damaging non-corporeal creatures such as wraiths or ghosts which cannot be harmed by normal physical attack.
In the strategy game Heroes of Might and Magic V the Pit Lord units sport Vorpal Swords.
In the RPG Progress Quest there is a prefix for weapons called Vorpal, e.g. a "+57 Vorpal Invisible Pole-adze".
In Pikmin 2 a treasure similar to a food can platter is called "Vorpal Platter".
In Fallout 2 the protagonist may engage in a random encounter with King Arthur's Knights battling a vorpal rat while travelling the wastes. The vorpal rat has an abnormally high amount of armour but only roughly 11 health points and upon defeat, it would allow access to a cave containing the Holy Hand Grenade, a weapon which could deal an equally abnormal amount of damage (500-600 damage) to enemies.
In the shareware RPG Realmz, there are two vorpal defensive spells: "Vorpal Plate" and "Vorpal Shield". The former will make the affected harder to hit in battle, while the latter will cause any attack to do 5 points less damage. Also, the scenario "Griloch's Revenge" features an enemy named "Vorpal Defender", a magically animated sword.
A sword similar to the NetHack version of the "Vorpal Blade" appears in the MMORPG Kingdom of Loathing. It is represented by a closed parenthesis (in reference to NetHack), and has a 2x chance of dealing a critical hit. Its description includes, "This is a vorpal sword. It would be quite at home going 'snicker-snack'."
