Exotic Methods for Executions?

[L. Marcus]

Since the Fantasy genre is so full of violence - and since I am a sick little puppy - I'd like to draw upon your sadistic little imaginations with the following question: How do the Powers-That-Be in your campaign kill off the worst wrongdoers?

Over here in Sweden, in medieval times, we had the spiktunna, a barrel lined on the inside with long nails. The convict would be bound, hand and foot, stuffed into the barrel and rolled down a suitably steep slope . . .

There's an old folk ballad about how a king was spurned by a young maiden, so he put her in a barrel and had her rolled around his cobbelled courtyard.

The song is very romantic.

[Greatwyrm]

Well, you've got all the old standbys -- beheading, crucifixion, drowning, being eaten by things. In fantasy, you get the added bonus of magic. I'm sure a high wizard with unlimited resources at his disposal could come up with plenty of magical ways to kill people in a rude and exorbitant fashion.

A spell to turn you into a pinata and let the local children beat you apart and eat the candy.

A spell to just completely obliderate you.

A spell that basically burns you at the stake, just much slower. (RKA 4d6, gradual effect - 1 point/5 min.)

A spell that mind controls you to kill yourself by cutting yourself a part a little bit at a time.

[Susano]

Hmm... drawing and quartering. Drawing is pulling out the entrails, then the body is cut into quarters.

Burning at the stake. Strangualtion before is optional.

Impaling. Forcing the body down on a long, sharpened stake. Vlad was said to dine in a forest of impaled Turks.

I have seen illustrations of the Barbary Pirates tossing people onto huge hooks set into the sides of walls.

Pulling someone apart via a team of horses.

Putting the person in a huge pot and boiling them alive.

Iron maiden -- basically a box lined with pointed spikes.

I know some churches from the Middle Ages have cages hanging out in front. They would put people in said cages and simply leave them. But, I think the person was dead first.

[L. Marcus]

When Carolus Linnaéus came to my home town, the first things he saw were two hanged robbers and a same who'd been steglad, i. e. had his arms and legs crushed by a big wooden wheel, and then been nailed up on said wheel to slowly die . . .

[Lord Liaden]

The absolutely most twisted concept for torture/ execution I've ever come across was in one of Sax Rohmer's "Fu Manchu" stories: "The Seven Gates of Joyful Wisdom." The Doctor claimed that this was an ancient Chinese technique for punishment, but I have no idea if that has any basis in fact.

WARNING: this gets pretty graphic:






























The naked victim is laid prone on the floor, and a close-fitting metal cage is placed over his body, immobilizing him. The cage is separated into seven sections, with small raisable gates at each division, from the base of the feet to the neck. At the foot of the cage is an enclosure full of starving rats.

As each gate is raised, the rats are released into a higher section of the cage, feeding as they go, until they finally reach the victim's head. The victim is unable to move to avoid them, but can clearly watch their progress through the spaces between the bars of the cage...

[Lanith]

Stoning was always an old favorite of mine. Everyone in town gets rocks of various sizes to throw at the victim, escape if you can.

I once read about a man who was sentenced by a raj to carry a stone slab from the palace to a deserted place outside of town, lie down the convict was covered with the stone and an elephant stood on the stone.

[Susano]

Drinking liquid lead and other metals.

Flayed alive.

I recall something about sewing the cheating wife and her lover together and then leaving them out in the wilds.

[Ulryk]

In the 'Truth is stranger than fiction" dept...

Originally the Greeks and later the Romans had the brazen bull. It was a hollow bronze sculpture with a door on it and the victim was placed inside. The entire contraption was placed over flame. The nose of the bull had tubes that led to the inner chamber and were fluted. As the victim was cooked his screams would be amplified by the nose construction and were referred to as 'songs'. The inventor was the devices first victim as a test of it's effectiveness. There was one Roman leader that regarded the death scream song as the most beautiful music he had ever heard and often required it's 'music' to be able to go to sleep.

I first heard about this device on the History channel, but here is a slightly different take on this story...

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Brazen_bull

Here are more resources on historical torture devices...

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Torture

One torture from antiquity I could not find on that list was ingestion of molten metal. The victim would have molten gold, iron, or most commonly lead poured into their mouths with their head restricted. The gag reflex would force open the throat on contact and the majority of the liquid would pour down into their stomach. After the victim died the molds created would be extracted and kept as a most gruesome form of art.

EDIT: Actually the victim was the 'mold' per se, but I think you get my point.

[shadowcat1313]

theres always the simple one of polymorphing said victim into a mouse, and turning it loose where the cats can find it, snakes would be a lot quicker about it so not quite as much torture.

[Ulryk]

Actually that reminds me of another Roman execution method. Placing the victim in a burlap sack with a dog, a monkey and a snake, sewing it all up tight and then throwing the lot into the water.

And no I am not a freak... I just watch a lot of history channel...


They are the freaks. :D

[Dog Soldier]

In a fantasy novel I read long ago but can't recall the name of the Wizard caused the victims bones to ignite and be totally consumed.

[Vondy]

Biblical methods:

Stoning: you take them to the tallest structure or precipice in the area and throw them off. If they survive you drop a large rock on them. For most capital offenses.

Strangulation: put the person in knee deep goat dung and then take the bedsheet the crime was committed on, wrap it around their neck, and have the aggrieved parties or witnesses puuuuuullll. This was reserved for the violation of specific sex taboos: adultery and voluntary incest.

Burning: strap the person down on their back, wedge their mouth open, and poor molten lead down their throat. Oddly, this was reserved for one person: a cohen's (priests) daughter who violated sex taboos. I don't think there were any others.

Beheading: with a sword. This was reserved for idoloters, blasphemers, and informers. It was also used for people who tried to convert Jews to other faiths. Sometimes hanging was substituted.

Personally - I prefer the Jawbone of an Ass.

[Agemegos]

When Carolus Linnaéus came to my home town, the first things he saw were two hanged robbers and a same who'd been steglad, i. e. had his arms and legs crushed by a big wooden wheel, and then been nailed up on said wheel to slowly die . . .

The English term is "broken on the wheel".

[Nevenall]

It's not actually all that grusome, but I have heard tell of a method which involved spliting open a live tree, placing the victim inside, and having the tree compress their chest so they strangulate.
It doesn't sound all that effective at the moment. Perhaps I am missing some details.

Also, there is my friend's favorite method/pasttime which is described simply as "Pitbull and Meat Sauce." :)

[WhammeWhamme]

I rather like:

1) Place under a board. 2) Add weights. 3) Return to step two, keep going.

Tying them up and using them to test the range of a catapult.

Gladiatorial Death Matches.

[Lezentauw]

One of the more gruesome, was an American Indian method. I think it was the Souix the implemented this one. I know that it was used in the west where it gets hot during the day...




They would lay a person on the ground and bind each limb with a leather cord to a stake as far apart as they could. So far nothing to exotic. Then they would take another leather cord and soak it in water, double it up and insert an arrowhead into the middle. They then tied that to the persons head like a sweatband, only difference is that the tip of the arrowhead was set right in the middle of the forehead. The rest was up to the sun to dehidrate and shrink the leather cord, which would slowly pull the arrowhead into the person skull...

[Captain Obvious]

There was a sci-fi novel that I read once (I think it was Deathworld III by Harry Harrison), where the primitives on this one planet would torture/execute people by cutting off one joint a day. When it's just fingers and toes, it's just painful, especially if the wounds get infected, so death doesn't come for quite some time.

[War Cry]

Another American Indain method was to stake a person out naked next to an ant hill. Fill and cover all body orifices with honey,sometimes slitting the eyelids and let the ants do the work by slowly eating the honey and the victim.

[Lezentauw]

Yeah I remembered something about an ant hill, but I was not sure if they smoked it or not. Hence the reason I did not post it.

[Metaphysician]

There was a sci-fi novel that I read once (I think it was Deathworld III by Harry Harrison), where the primitives on this one planet would torture/execute people by cutting off one joint a day. When it's just fingers and toes, it's just painful, especially if the wounds get infected, so death doesn't come for quite some time.

I've heard about this being a Jamaican posse punishment.

[Vondy]

There is a persistent historical rumor that Edward II was executed by inserting a tube into his rectum followed by a red hot poker.

[Sociotard]

Dang, alot of the good ones have been taken.

A current form of execution used in third world countries here and there is 'necklacing'. It's easy. A tire is placed around the neck of the bound victim and lit on fire. that's all.

There's the old trick of pirates: burry a man up to his neck during low tide, and let him watch the high tide roll in.

The ancient mongols (iirc) tide a man to a wild horse and sent him off into the wilderness to meet whatever fate came upon him.

[Lord Liaden]

Dang, alot of the good ones have been taken.


There's something deeply disturbing about that remark.

Not the least of which is that I had the same thought.

[Vondy]

So, in Jewish law its extremely difficult to meet the necessary standards of evidence for the death penalty, but there is one crime - murder - that someone who commits it, esp. multiple times, but avoids punishment on a technicality can't be allowed remain within society. Since the Torah did not mandate jail time (the only instances of imprisonment in scripture is a "house arrest" ordered by King David) the normal method of dealing with this was to remand the case to the king, who is assumed to have the power over life and death. The king can simply "deal with it." But what if there is no king? What recourse does society have? In such a case society must act to defend itself, but the modes of execution in the bible are not permitted to the court. Here is how that was handled:


MISHNAH: One who commits murder without witnesses is placed in a cell and [forcibly) fed with 'bread of adversity and water of affliction.'[1]

GEMARA: How do we know [that he committed murder if there were no witnesses]? — Rab said: On a 'disjoined' evidence [2]. Samuel said: Without a warning.[3] R. Hisda said in Abimi's name: Through witnesses who were disproved as to the minor circumstances [of the crime], but not on the vital points.[4] As we learned: It once happened that Ben Zakkai examined [the witnesses] as to the stalks of the figs.[5]

"And fed bread of adversity and water of affliction." Why does this Mishnah teach, AND FED WITH BREAD OF ADVERSITY AND WATER OF AFFLICTION', whilst the former teaches, HE IS PLACED BY BETH DIN IN A CELL AND FED WITH BARLEY BREAD UNTIL HIS STOMACH BURSTS? — R. Shesheth answered: In both cases he is fed with 'bread of adversity and water of affliction' for his intestines to shrink [thus blocking the passage], and then he is fed with barley bread until his stomach bursts.

[1] I.e., the murder was witnessed by two persons who were not standing together. In that case, he cannot be executed; hence he is imprisoned. cf. Mak. 6b.
[2] I.e., there were two witnesses, but invalid to impose the usual death sentence, because they did not warn him.
[3] By 'vital points' ([H]) time and place of the crime are meant; by 'minor circumstances' (bedikoth [H]) the weapon, clothes worn by the victim or the murderer, etc. Since the vital evidence has not been disproved, the accused is adjudged a murderer; as, however, the witnesses were disproved on minor details, he cannot be executed, and is therefore placed in a cell.
[4] The witnesses having deposed that the murder took place under a fig tree. Ben Zakkai examined them on the nature of the stalks, Whether thick or thin, etc. v. supra 40a ff.
[5] V. Gemara.

OUCH!

[Mark Taylor]

One of the problems with burning at the stake (from the POV of a person wanting to inflict a maximally painful death) is that the victim tends to pass out from smoke inhalation at a relatively early stage, thus missing out on most of the agony of actually burning to death. The solution: make them wear a gas mask, then burn them at the stake. Much nastier.

I once ran a fantasy campaign set on a flat world (not Discworld). One of the preferred punishments for criminals in certain communities living close to the edge was just to throw the criminal over the edge. It's not entirely clear what happened to them after that, but it's unlikely to have been pleasant.

This one is from Iain M Banks's SF novel Consider Phlebas. The Condemned man is placed in a small, sealed room in the very deepest dungeon of the castle. The waste outlets from all the castle's toilets and other waste disposal facilities empty into this room. The castle's occupants then proceed to have a great big party. The Condemned man is given the ironic title of "guest of honour".

[teh bunneh]

[2] I.e., there were two witnesses, but invalid to impose the usual death sentence, because they did not warn him.

Clarification... What do they mean by "warn him"?

"Hey, you with the hockey mask and machete, slaughtering that co-ed... we're watching you." (best said in a disapproving, matron-like tone of voice). ;)

Bill.

[Mark Taylor]

Another method I recall a paricular tyrant using in a campaign I ran a long time ago was to tell prisoners that they would be allowed to go free if they could find their own way to the exit from their dungeon and survive. Of course the exit was at the other end of a maze full of lethal traps and it was practically impossible (if not actually impossible) to get out alive.

Since I've run a few fantasy campaigns involving nasty to outright evil tyrants, I'm sure there are more. I'll post them as they spring to mind. :D

[Old Man]

There is the classic tie person up against badger hole, then start fire at other end of said badger hole.

Then there is one that involed a large saw. The victim was sliced with the saw from crotch to head. The kicker is that the person is held upside down so they don't bleed out and the brain stays alive longer.

With magic you can use the previously mentioned ant torture but have a wizard cast Regeneration on the victim. The greater the crime, the longer you get regenerated.

Another trick with magic. Transform all the victim's bones to glass... You don't even have to hit them, just send them on their way.

[PhilFleischmann]

Oh goody! No one posted mine yet! :eg:

This one I got from Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle, and I've actually incorporated it into my campaign, and it even inspired a bit of world history. The Hook. Picture a typical hanging gallows, but instead of the rope, there's a big fixed metal hook, like an upside-down question mark. The criminal is impaled through the abdomen on the thing and left there.

In my FH campaign world, in the kingdom of Virbenland, there are hooks in public squares in most major cities, usually near courthouses or prisons. Fortunately, the current government is fairly just, wise, and merciful, so they don't see much use anymore. However, they were extensively used in the past. Why? There was a period known as the "Demon Wars" when the land and government was infiltrated by shape-shifting demons who could appear as humans. The hooks, being made of cold iron, were just as effective on demons as on mortals.

[shadowcat1313]

the norse had a wonderfully subtle method called the "Blood Eagle" which involved spreading out the ribcage like a set of wings after pulling all the muscles


then theres always staking somebody out over an anthill, and liberally applying honey to that somebody.. Apache method IIRC

[Michael Hopcroft]

There is a persistent historical rumor that Edward II was executed by inserting a tube into his rectum followed by a red hot poker.
This actually happened, at the order of his wife, who meant it as a case of the punishment fitting the crime -- Edward II was one of many English kings, incluidng Richard Lionheart and James I, who were secretly homosexual.

Homosexuality was actually a capital crime in ancient Isreal (there is a pair of verses in Leviticus that proscribed the death penalty for gays and lesibans) and for much of the middle ages iN Europe. And, of course, in Nazi Germany (although the Nazis, for some strange reason, had no objection to lesbians), where Gays were among the groups of people (includign Jews, Gypsies and poltical dissidents) who wree sent to concentration camps to die.

In modern Israel, biblical law is not enforced in this regard and modern judaism is almsot universally opposed to the death penalty in all cases. (I had a very inetrsting religoous discussion with one of my jewish friends who told me that, ironically enough, one of the thinkers who was most infleuntial in forming modern Jewish relgious thought was Jesus, although they do not consider him the Messiah and do not believe he rose from the dead.)

[Lezentauw]

Since we are using methods posted in books, you could follow in the steps of Steven King.

Tie a person in a chair with a rope placed horizontally about 2 feet above his head. Then tie the tails of two cats together, and then place the tied section of the tails at the rope. The two cats will dangle and claw each other, and anything that gets in between apart, to get down.

[Susano]

What story was that from?

[Dog Soldier]

How about boring them to death? I know a guy that would be an executioner if that were possible. :D

[DRThrush]

In a fantasy world I created there is a nation that worships the god of the oceans. When a person is condemned for breaking a "capital" holy law they are taken to the docks where the high priest summons sharks and the condemned is thrown to them.

Being buried alive inside a coffin is a pretty nasty death sentance, and can be used to very dramatic effect if the condemned is a PC.

oh and there is the famous Roman one:

Shove a living snake up his #$@! :)

-Dave

[tkdguy]

http://www.torturamuseum.com/

http://www.shootingiron.com/chamber/

http://residence.aec.at/kop/A2/work/h47b.htm

[keithcurtis]

I have a book on historical torture which I have never been ablet o read for more than ten minutes at a time. Human beings can be pretty gruesome and sadistic.

Something that no one has mentioned yet are the Triangles in Morton Bay. In penal Australia, the condemend convict was tied to a big metal triangle at low tide. As the tide came in, he was slowly bitten to death by crabs. In salt water.

Keith "." Curtis

[L. Marcus]

Thanks, people! You've been very informative. I almost wish I didn't ask . . . :D

[Vondy]

Clarification... What do they mean by "warn him"?

"Hey, you with the hockey mask and machete, slaughtering that co-ed... we're watching you." (best said in a disapproving, matron-like tone of voice). ;)

Bill.

In Jewish law, unless a person has been warned that their actions warrant the death penalty they cannnot be executed by a rabbinic court. So yes, "if you do that you will be executed" is the warnin. Exceptions do exist, which include torah scholars and their adul children since its presumed they already know. So its possible to be convicted of a capital crime and be exempt from execution. When this happens they are given lashes and are formally warned in court. A rabbinic court that executed more than one defendant in a seven year span was called a "bloody court." The king, however, could act as he saw fit if the matter was brouht before him. In the case of murder - and only murder - a convicted person who was exempt from execution on a technicality would be remanded to "royal justice" as the torah gives a king the power to act for the preservation of society. Ezra's court decided, in the absence of a king, that the rabbis - in the case of murder - were obligated to act for the preservation of society as well.

[Vondy]

Homosexuality was actually a capital crime in ancient Isreal (there is a pair of verses in Leviticus that proscribed the death penalty for gays and lesibans) and for much of the middle ages iN Europe. And, of course, in Nazi Germany (although the Nazis, for some strange reason, had no objection to lesbians), where Gays were among the groups of people (includign Jews, Gypsies and poltical dissidents) who wree sent to concentration camps to die.

Gee, thanks for letting me in on something I didn't know... and no, leviticus doesn't say that. It says a "man who lies with another man as one would lie with a woman." So only gay men who have consensual anal intercourse - and what's more - to be executed they would actually have to have consensual anal intercourse in front of two kosher witnesses after being warned that proceeding was a capital crime. What's more - the Torah says one who sins (capital crimes) in private is cut off by the hand of heaven, so the court has no interest in conducting a "sting operation." I have a sneaking suspicion there weren't too many such executions - in fact, the Talmud records at least one capital crime no one was ever executed for - the law of the rebellious son.

Oral and manual sexual contact between two men - again, only if there were two kosher witnesses (so essentially a public act) - would result in lashes and would not be covered by the verse in leviticus. The relevent prohibition there is "licentousness." Incidentally, a heterosexual couple who had sex (anal or vaginal) or sexual contact (oral or manual) in the presence of two kosher witnesses (i.e. in public) would be given lashes as well. Lesbianism was never a biblical issue, but was proscribed for Jewish women by the rabbis, but rabbinic violation are never capital and rarely corporeal in adjudication. It also would require a public display to merit a reaction from the court.


In modern Israel, biblical law is not enforced in this regard and modern judaism is almsot universally opposed to the death penalty in all cases.

Gasp, I'm shocked. Really? You do know I'm an orthodox Jew who lives in Israel, spent several years in seminary, and has classes in Talmudic law several times per week, right? Of course, ancient Judaism was also reticent about the death penalty. A court that executed more than once in seven years - and some say seventy - was called a bloody court. What's more - the court was admonished to search for extenuating circumstances at length and had to wait 24 hours after passing a death sentence and then re-poll the judges to ensure none who voted "guilty" wished to change their vote. And there's a case in the tanakh where David foregoes a death sentence and gives a lesser penalty.


(I had a very inetrsting religoous discussion with one of my jewish friends who told me that, ironically enough, one of the thinkers who was most infleuntial in forming modern Jewish relgious thought was Jesus, although they do not consider him the Messiah and do not believe he rose from the dead.)

You're friend - while Jewish - is an Am Haaretz.

[shadowcat1313]

always remember, be careful what you wish for, and never ask questions you dont want to hear the answers to...

I'm sure we didnt even remotely include all the historic methods if you really want more.

[L. Marcus]

I almost wish I didn't ask!

I'm a sick puppy . . .

[gewing]

roll them up in a fresh buffalo hide and place it in the sun. It shrinks....


Sit them on bamboo shoot (yes, On and around) These grow up to a foot a day... sharp point. Asia and perhaps other areas.

tie them to a table on a boat, drive a nail into one bone every day... Chinese General did it, I believe.

the Iron mare Razor blade slide.

bury them up to the neck, in the middle of a polo field.


Tie them over the muzzle of a cannon. Used for traitors, I believe.

wall them up in a room. that is all.

not lethal per se, but...

Put them in the stocks, and coat their feet with a heavy salt brine. Put goats in the room. The constant tickling as they lick the salt off drives the victim mad.


tie them down over a badger hole, set a smokey fire at the other end.

fictional ones people I know have come up with.

PIano wire, Helicopter, shark infested waters, and genitalia. Nuff said. BLEARGH! :sick:

3 foot by 10 foot room, bare walls. floor is a conveyer/treadmill covered in sand paper. Victim is naked, roof is locked down. Eventually Exhaustion will set in. :sick:

[gewing]

I thought the blood eagle was slitting between the ribs and pulling the lungs out to each side?


puke puke puke puke puke puke


the norse had a wonderfully subtle method called the "Blood Eagle" which involved spreading out the ribcage like a set of wings after pulling all the muscles


then theres always staking somebody out over an anthill, and liberally applying honey to that somebody.. Apache method IIRC

[L. Marcus]

PIano wire, Helicopter, shark infested waters, and genitalia. Nuff said. BLEARGH! :sick:
Bleargh, indeed . . . ! That's horrid! :eek:

:eg:

[tkdguy]

Also, you'll notice the breast rippers in one of the links I provided. That was meant for women who committed adultery. But I can see that working on a man's testicles. I said that to a friend, and he literally doubled over. :eg:

[gewing]

The person at the middle one is really disturbed, imo. I thought it was history and reflection until I looked at the "instruments" page.



http://www.torturamuseum.com/

http://www.shootingiron.com/chamber/

http://residence.aec.at/kop/A2/work/h47b.htm

[tkdguy]

The person at the middle one is really disturbed, imo. I thought it was history and reflection until I looked at the "instruments" page.
Yeah, you're right. Of course, people have to be disturbed in order to think of torture instruments anyway. Still, using those ideas makes for a good horror flick.

[Rage]

In a fantasy novel I read long ago but can't recall the name of the Wizard caused the victims bones to ignite and be totally consumed.
I think The chick who Ged rescued in the second Wizard of EarthSea book did this... Actually she may have turned their bones to salt.
--
--

I've always found flaying people alive and then covering them in salt to be rather nasty.

I think it would be interesting if you had one of those "channel healers" (healers that channel sickness from the sick into some other vessel) get control of the people who have been sentanced to death. I mean growing thirty cancers in a day and then becoming a poster boy for the cities leper colonies would be nasty.

[gewing]

yeah, but it sounded like he was giving "TESTED" ideas on how to torture someone with a bottle cap. ETC!!!




Yeah, you're right. Of course, people have to be disturbed in order to think of torture instruments anyway. Still, using those ideas makes for a good horror flick.

[Fitz]

I notice noone has mentioned that old classic, being nibbled to death by ducks.

[L. Marcus]

. . . Ow?

[tkdguy]

yeah, but it sounded like he was giving "TESTED" ideas on how to torture someone with a bottle cap. ETC!!!
I wonder if I can hire that guy for special jobs?

[L. Marcus]

. . . Turning to the Dark Side, are we, tkd? ;)

[tkdguy]

. . . Turning to the Dark Side, are we, tkd? ;)
Been there for years.

[Metaphysician]

Depends, how much would he charge for contracts on the writers of Identity Crisis and Wargames??

[Captain Obvious]

Sit them on bamboo shoot (yes, On and around) These grow up to a foot a day... sharp point. Asia and perhaps other areas.


Does this do anything? My experience with bamboo shoots is that they're very soft, just like the kind that come in a can. They grow really fast, but if you step on one it smushes.

[tkdguy]

Does this do anything? My experience with bamboo shoots is that they're very soft, just like the kind that come in a can. They grow really fast, but if you step on one it smushes.
Slivers of bamboo can be very painful when inserted under the fingernails and toenails.

[L. Marcus]

Slivers of bamboo can be very painful when inserted under the fingernails and toenails.
A true classic, like roasting alive over a bonfire . . .

[tkdguy]

With lots of herbs and spices. And an apple in the mouth, of course! <drool>

[L. Marcus]

Shush! I think I can hear someone out there salivating . . . ! :eek:

[L. Marcus]

This could very well be considered torture, at least if you're not used to it - the Northern Swedish delicacy of Sour Herring! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surstr%F6mming)

[Captain Obvious]

Slivers of bamboo can be very painful when inserted under the fingernails and toenails.

Yeah, well that's mature bamboo, which is hard and woody. The shoots are very soft and stir-fryable.

[tkdguy]

Yeah, well that's mature bamboo, which is hard and woody. The shoots are very soft and stir-fryable.
And they taste great with soy sauce!

[Outsider]

Turn them into a zombie with a twist. Instead of being mindless undead with no will of their own, keep the mind, but still remove the will.

They're in there, they can sense their environment, and can feel everything that happens to them (including their slow rotting away), they just cant DO anything other than what they are commanded to do by the necromancer who 'created' them, or his designated proxies. (note : the zombie cannot be commanded to follow its own will... it doesnt have one)

[Old Man]

The feudal Chinese were very good at torture and execution. Aside from the usual Death of a Thousand Cuts, there was also the Chinese version of the stocks, which was just a big square of wood that was fastened around the neck... and was so big that you couldn't reach your head with your hands. I've seen pictures of prisoners who were made to wear those for months. Chinese hanging involved a similar stock, only mounted on stilts, with the prisoner made to stand on a stack of planks so that he wouldn't hang. Then the planks would be removed one by one.

The Mongolians used to execute people by wrapping them in a blanket and then driving horses back and forth over them. Horses try not to step on people that they can see, but if you're obscured by a blanket, well...

I've also heard of another method of execution, which I think was Middle Eastern, where the executionee would be bound and laid on hard ground, and then everyone in the town would pour a couple of handfuls of gravel on them. Eventually the weight of gravel on the chest prevents inhalation.

[PhilFleischmann]

And, of course, in Nazi Germany (although the Nazis, for some strange reason, had no objection to lesbians), where Gays were among the groups of people (includign Jews, Gypsies and poltical dissidents) who wree sent to concentration camps to die.
Actually, they did object to lesbians. They were often made to wear black triangles, the same way male homosexuals were made to wear pink triangles and Jews, yellow stars.* It wasn't the sex between two women that was the problem, it was the "anti-social refusal to contribute to society by bearing children" that the Nazis objected to.


In modern Israel, biblical law is not enforced in this regard and modern judaism is almsot universally opposed to the death penalty in all cases.
It isn't so much that "modern Judaism" is opposed to the death penalty, but rather that many modern Jews (mostly secular) are opposed to the death penalty. The Jewish Bible (the Old Testament to you goyim), is very much in favor of the death penalty. That you must execute murderers is the only commandment repeated in all five books of the Torah. Later, Talmudic (or rabbinic) tradition placed so many restrictions on it that they essentially removed the death penalty all together. The requirement of two witnesses and a warning is not in the bible anywhere. Nor is the claim that one execution in seven (or seventy) years constitutes a murderous court.

But back to the topic at hand: One type of execution that might make for an interesting situation in a FRPG is the kind where the victim must execute himself, or it's his own action that keeps him alive until he gives up, such as having his arms bound behind his back and hanging by his teeth over a precipice. How long can his jaw muscles hold out? This one is admittedly not too sick or disgusting, but I'm sure you can think of some that are, if you're so inclined. The sandpaper treadmill that someone mentioned earlier is one example.

*If the Nazis had managed to get all the way to Ireland, they probably would have made leprechauns wear orange stars, pink hearts, green clovers, blue diamonds,... I am ashamed of my own sick sense of humor. :hush:

[Vondy]

It isn't so much that "modern Judaism" is opposed to the death penalty, but rather that many modern Jews (mostly secular) are opposed to the death penalty. The Jewish Bible (the Old Testament to you goyim), is very much in favor of the death penalty. That you must execute murderers is the only commandment repeated in all five books of the Torah. Later, Talmudic (or rabbinic) tradition placed so many restrictions on it that they essentially removed the death penalty all together. The requirement of two witnesses and a warning is not in the bible anywhere. Nor is the claim that one execution in seven (or seventy) years constitutes a murderous court.



1) If mishnaic and talmudic law "all but removed" the death penalty does that not mean Judaism took a strong position in terms of the death penalty - specifically, against the broad use of the death penalty - well over a millenia before modern Judaism even came into being?

2) The requirement of witnesses (plural) in capital cases is scriptural - since you're calling people goyim your Hebrew should be good enough to determine that from a simple reading of the original text - without talmudic assistance. Warnings, on the other hand, might require talmudic logic to see, though once you've gone through the argument its plain its inherent in the scriptural text itself.

3) No one said the assertion that a court that executed someone in a 7/70 year period was a bloody court was scriptural - its recorded in the talmud as being the sentiment of the Jewish people dating back - at least - to the period of Ezra.

4) Our people have never been sola scriptura. We have always had an oral tradition - it grew and evolved because that's what oral traditions and tribal traditions do. As such, whether or not something appears specifically in the written tradition or the oral tradition extrapolated from those writings doesn't change the authenticity (read: Jewishness) of the answer.

5) As for the value of avoiding the death penalty where possible, King David himself avoided it in one scriptural case - and several of the talmudic dictums regarding the adjudication of such cases rests in the proverbs and psalms. In addition, mishnaic and talmudic law did not rise up in a vacum over night. It was something that had evolved within the tribal paradigm since the tribe's inception. It was only written down at all because of persecution.

[PhilFleischmann]

1) Fair enough, but I was talking more specifically about "Modern Judaism" and "Modern Jews." Not the same thing as Talmudic Judaism. In Israel, there may not be as much of a distinction as there is in America. Most Jews here are opposed to the death penalty for reasons that have nothing to do with Talmudic law. And the vast majority know little or nothing of either the Bible or the Talmud.
2) Interesting. I'm not arguing with you, but where is the witness requirement exactly, in the scriptural text? I don't remember any such requirement in either the Torah or the rest of the Bible.
3) Fine. No argument here. My only point was that not every Jewish interpretation agrees with the bloody court idea.
4) Again, no argument here, but it does change the disputability of the answer. And disputing a rabbinic ruling in favor of a biblical ruling is also no less authentic or Jewish.
5) Fine. Not a problem. Even God Himself avoided it in a scriptural case - when Cain murdered Abel he was not put to death.

[Koshka]

Hmm... drawing and quartering. Drawing is pulling out the entrails, then the body is cut into quarters.


There was a variation on this I saw in a book on the Gunpowder Plot. Noose around neck, pull up to dangle for a bit, cut down before complete unconsciousness or death ensues. Chop off genitals, burn in front of victim. Then draw and quarter.

IIRC (I should check that book out again), the crowd took pity on one of the men being executed for that plot. During step one, they swarmed the execution site and pulled on his legs hard enough to strangle him before the rest of the process occured.

[tkdguy]

Gouge out one of the victim's eyes. Make him eat it. Be sure to make him chew. Then feed him other parts of his body. Keep his other eye intact so he can see what he's eating.

[WhammeWhamme]

But back to the topic at hand: One type of execution that might make for an interesting situation in a FRPG is the kind where the victim must execute himself, or it's his own action that keeps him alive until he gives up, such as having his arms bound behind his back and hanging by his teeth over a precipice. How long can his jaw muscles hold out? This one is admittedly not too sick or disgusting, but I'm sure you can think of some that are, if you're so inclined. The sandpaper treadmill that someone mentioned earlier is one example.


Ah, yes. Reminds me... Wire Noose around neck, clothes removed, have them stand up on a block of ice.

[bluegodjanus]

There's always the old classic of defenestration, although if we're in a fantasy game that includes magic, we could go with the following:
Magically liquefy the victim's bones, then grab by the feet and beat into a nearby convenient stone wall.

[gewing]

lets just say the points are sharp, and they go right through...



Does this do anything? My experience with bamboo shoots is that they're very soft, just like the kind that come in a can. They grow really fast, but if you step on one it smushes.

[Old Man]

Magically liquefy the victim's bones, then grab by the feet and beat into a nearby convenient stone wall.

Then just as they fall to the floor, make the bones hard again.

Speaking of bamboo:

In a dark room, tie executionee over a patch of new bamboo shoots, cast continual light spell on executionee, close door.

Speaking of continual light:

Cast Continual Light on executionee. The D&D version now has the spell slowly consume whatever it is cast upon.

Speaking of casts:

Place executionee in full body cast. Place a few roach eggs under cast.

[Houston GM]

For pure sadism, I'd use a deep telepathic probe to learn the criminal's deepest fears. Then I'd tailor the punishment to fit their fears.

Example #1
Slythe the Traitor is afraid of snakes. He is condemned to die by giant constrictor. The punishment is announced to Slythe, and the execution date is set a week or two in the future.

In the meantime, a giant constrictor is captured and put in the cell next to Slythe's (or somewhere else where Slythe can see it constantly). Every day, the prison guards bring a cage with a small snake in it and place it in front of Slythe's cage. They then feed a rat to the small snake as an "educational demonstration".

If Slythe deliberately avoids watching the snake dine, the prison guards can supply helpful commentary: "The snake has worked his way down to it's front legs now. Hey! Did the rat just kick? I thought it would be dead by now for sure."

When Slythe falls asleep, the guards can toss a small, non-poisonous snake into his cell. The snake will seek to keep itself warm by snuggling up under Slythe's blanket.

Minutes before the scheduled execution, Slythe is given a brief stay. "Slinkey doesn't look like he's quite hungry yet. I guess we better wait another three days."

After being allowed to agonize over his fate for a sufficiently long time, Slythe gets put into the constrictor's cage, and the snake enjoys a leisurely meal.

Example #2
Blanca the Aldulterous Consort is afraid of heights. She is condemned to die by falling. The punishment is announced to Blanca, and the execution date is set a week or two in the future.

Blanca is imprisoned in a small cage which is hung from a pole that extends two yards from the tallest tower in the keep. The courtyard below her is kept lit so she can see how far down it is even in the dark.

When Blanca falls asleep, the prison guards push the cage with poles in order to make it sway back and forth.

Minutes before the scheduled execution, Blanca is given a brief stay. "The Lord Magistrate wanted to view the execution, but he won't be back for another four days. We'll have to wait until he arrives."

After an appropriately long delay, the rope supporting Blanca's cage is slowly cut through while she watches, sending her falling to her death.

[Kilmore]

Keelhauling! The bad sailor would be tied to the bow of a sailing ship and chucked off the front. Then the ship would run over him and the condemned man would bounce and tumble over the nails, splinters, and especially the barnacles.

There was a good one in the movie Hawk the Slayer as well, where the giant tied up a slaver and laid him down on his back, slinging a mace on a rope over a tree branch and forcing the end of the rope into his teeth. When the slaver opened his mouth... smunch!

[gewing]

I really enjoyed "hawk the Slayer" but I had forgotten that one. Thanks.


Keelhauling! The bad sailor would be tied to the bow of a sailing ship and chucked off the front. Then the ship would run over him and the condemned man would bounce and tumble over the nails, splinters, and especially the barnacles.

There was a good one in the movie Hawk the Slayer as well, where the giant tied up a slaver and laid him down on his back, slinging a mace on a rope over a tree branch and forcing the end of the rope into his teeth. When the slaver opened his mouth... smunch!

[Jinx999]

A Chinese method I once read about:
Bury the executee up to their neck in the ground. Invite passers by to try sawing the head off with a bamboo saw.

From The Twelve Kingdoms
Tie the victims hands to a post and an ox to each leg. Drive the oxen in opposite directions. An ox is a lot slower than a horse.

[L. Marcus]

From The Twelve Kingdoms
Tie the victims hands to a post and an ox to each leg. Drive the oxen in opposite directions. An ox is a lot slower than a horse.
Wow! I bet this does wonders for your posture!

[Susano]

Keelhauling! The bad sailor would be tied to the bow of a sailing ship and chucked off the front. Then the ship would run over him and the condemned man would bounce and tumble over the nails, splinters, and especially the barnacles.


As I understand it, a line is tied to the ankles and the wrists, and the man is run along the keel of the ship. As he is face down, the ship's keel goes along his back, where the barnacles tear it to ribbons. I presume this is survivable, as it wasn't a form of execution, just extreme punishment. Of course, this the same navy that uses the cat-o-nine tails to lash people with, and it was possible to be lashed around the fleet, with every ship that you encounter during a voyage obligated to whip the victim.

As for bamboo swords -- there is the film HARI-KIRI where a samurai is forced to commit seppuku with a bamboo sword...

[L. Marcus]

As for bamboo swords -- there is the film HARI-KIRI where a samurai is forced to commit seppuku with a bamboo sword...
I've got this one on DVD . . . Pretty nasty scene! Good movie, too. Heart-rending drama and some sword-wielding action.

[Pfathai]

I think The chick who Ged rescued in the second Wizard of EarthSea book did this... Actually she may have turned their bones to salt.
--
--

I've always found flaying people alive and then covering them in salt to be rather nasty.

I think it would be interesting if you had one of those "channel healers" (healers that channel sickness from the sick into some other vessel) get control of the people who have been sentanced to death. I mean growing thirty cancers in a day and then becoming a poster boy for the cities leper colonies would be nasty.
No, it was in the first one, at that tower place... this wizard guy made molten lead flow in the guy's bones.

[The Mad GM]

Most ancient forms of execution are both public and fairly inexpensive, so magic is probably not appropriate, even though there was a fair amount of ritual to it.

There was some story where a vampire who ruled an area would execute people by turning them and placing them in a cage where the sun would get to them. Or maybe the vampire was merely a courtier, I can't remember.

Another story that sounds alot like Dr. No on a budget involved an enormous lens that would focus the sun on a single burning spot that would travel across an arc every day, burning the pattern of it's movements into a steel sheet for astronomical study. Simply put the condemned individual somewhere in the 'afternoon' section of the path.

They could serve as targets for experimentation by the alchemist guild apprentices. If they survive a month of hourly imbibing, they are let free.

The Maenads tore Orpehus apart, and there was some story where the gods caused some ruler's wife and daughters to go berserk and tear him apart. Compelling violence against a loved one would be a possible punishment for complicity in treason (a crime where expensive methods might be allowable) and one party was less culpable. I'm not sure who gets off easier if the love is sincere.

Imprisoning them in a major bell tower that is tolling noon. Apparently the vibrations of that decibel for so long were enough to rupture arteries. There was a murder mystery with that as the premise, Lord Peter Whimsey series by Dorothy Sayers, though the title escapes me.

Have them watch as their character sheet is fed into a shredder. ;)