Intimidation through obscure references!

October 26, 2009 7:07 AM

I need a badass battle cry.

You know, something I can scream in the face of adversity, or put on a shield and hang on my wall. Although my heritage is primarily French, German and Welsh, I'm open to all histories, cultures and languages. Bonus points if it's got a cool story or myth behind it, extra-super-bonus-points if it acknowledges both badassery and the willingness to accept defeat (such as, "Today is a good day to die.")

If it's based on a particular figure or house in history, I would dearly love some background to accompany it; and if it's not a Western language and you can provide a pronunciation guide, I'd be grateful for that too. (Nothing more embarrassing than finding out you've put the emphasis wrong and are actually yelling that you love puppies.)

Strike on, brave Mefites, strike on!

posted by WidgetAlley to grab bag (64 comments total)

Allahu Akbar!
posted by Burhanistan at 7:09 AM on October 26, 2009 [4 favorites]

LEEEEEEEROOOOOOOOOOYYYYY JJJJJEEEEEEEEENNNNKKKKIIIIIINNNNNNNNNSSSSS!
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 7:09 AM on October 26, 2009 [16 favorites]

There's always Polyphemos the Cyclops's "Οὖτίς με κτείνει " (Nobody is killing me!)

Transliterated: Outis me kteinei
Pronounced: Ou-tis meh k'tay-nay

Could I talk about the Odyssey any more often?
posted by oinopaponton at 7:13 AM on October 26, 2009 [2 favorites]

SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:16 AM on October 26, 2009 [5 favorites]

SPOOOOOOOOOON!
posted by Oktober at 7:16 AM on October 26, 2009

NOT IN THE FACE!!!!!!!!!
posted by Jon_Evil at 7:17 AM on October 26, 2009

Or, you could pull some Lord of the Rings and shout the name of your homeland, or, if you don't like your homeland, whatever it is you're fighting to protect/glorify.
posted by Jon_Evil at 7:20 AM on October 26, 2009

There is the well known soccer cry:

Blood makes the grass grow, kill, kill, kill!
posted by chiefthe at 7:23 AM on October 26, 2009

Tonight we dine ...in hell!

Somebody call for an exterminator?

My life for Aiur!

Strength and honor!
posted by chalbe at 7:30 AM on October 26, 2009 [2 favorites]

Give me liberty or give me death!
Vive le Revolucion!
Banzai!
Elendil!
Aiaiaiaiai!
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 7:38 AM on October 26, 2009

http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Sangheili/Quotes
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 7:39 AM on October 26, 2009

I've always liked Scots Wha Hae and the first part is easily adaptable to your personal history:

'Scots, who have with Wallace bled,
Scots, whom Bruce has often led,
Welcome to your gory bed
Or to victory!

Also, Wikipedia has lots of other suggestions for battle cries.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:40 AM on October 26, 2009

"It's a fine day to die!"

"TURTLES FIGHT WITH HONOR!"
posted by ignignokt at 7:40 AM on October 26, 2009

Obligatory awesomesauce quote generator

For chalbe: "Hail the blood-letting! I shall paint the town a sanguine shade of doom!"
posted by chalbe at 7:42 AM on October 26, 2009

also, there's the old classic,

and chiefthe reminded me about the football cheers of the Oberlin College Marching Band, a great proportion of which were made by taking the first half of a well known aphorism or platitude, and replacing the second half with "HIT 'EM IN THE HEAD WITH A BRICK!" e.g. If at first you don't succeed... ; if life gives you lemons... ; thirty days hath September... ; blessed are the meek, for they shall...; ad libitum
posted by Jon_Evil at 7:46 AM on October 26, 2009 [3 favorites]

Stephen!
posted by jonnyploy at 7:52 AM on October 26, 2009

This unaffiliated orphan in a book I once read would shout his name in battle, which happened to be Hot Pie. So it went like this. "HOT PIE! HOT PIE!"
posted by Askr at 7:54 AM on October 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

Who can forget Bernard Hill giving Theoden's speech-

"Fell deeds awake! Now for wrath, now for ruin, and the red dawn!"
posted by bobot at 7:58 AM on October 26, 2009 [3 favorites]

One of my faves is

勝って、兜の緒を締めよ！
katte, kabuto no o wo shimeyo
After winning, tighen your helmet strings.

pronunciation: cut-teh, ka-boo-toh noh oh o shi-meh-yo

It's a samurai maxim to remain ever vigilant.


If you've not already, I'd recommend picking up a copy of the Hagakure (Yamamoto Tsunetomo). If you can't find something in there to sort you out, I'd be very surprised.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=hagakure+quotes
posted by CardinalRichelieuHandPuppet at 8:01 AM on October 26, 2009

What ho, old chap!
posted by Magnakai at 8:02 AM on October 26, 2009

Extraho trucido = "Dragon slayer" in Latin

caedis draconis---for some reason, I thought this was the same as above, but plugging it in to the Latin translator doesn't show this.

Anyway, I always liked Dragon Slayer as a battle cry.
posted by Grlnxtdr at 8:12 AM on October 26, 2009

Avengers Assemble!

X-Men Forever!

Taters!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:16 AM on October 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

"Phasers on stun!"
posted by Jon_Evil at 8:18 AM on October 26, 2009

No clue about your whereabouts, but my friends and I dream of a day when, instead of those god awful "USA, USA" chants, the national soccer team adopts America, FUCK YEAH it's theme song. It's got something going for it.
posted by Ghidorah at 8:18 AM on October 26, 2009

My personal battle cry:

"And damn'd be him that first cries, 'Hold, enough!'"
(Macbeth: Act 5 Scene VIII)
posted by notashroom at 8:29 AM on October 26, 2009

"Lok'tar ogar" = "Victory or death"

Or, "For the Horde!" will do...
posted by bricoleur at 8:32 AM on October 26, 2009

Let's ROLL!


God, remember that one?
posted by orme at 8:44 AM on October 26, 2009

"Excelsior!"
posted by ignignokt at 8:46 AM on October 26, 2009

WOLVERINES!

(really, no love for "Red Dawn" yet?)
posted by Vervain at 8:48 AM on October 26, 2009 [2 favorites]

"Dibs on the liver!"
--Battle cry of my old half-orc FRPG character
posted by Jasper Fnorde at 8:53 AM on October 26, 2009

For the Welsh in you I suggest "Cymru am byth" [roughly pronounced: cum-ree am bith] (Closest translation = Wales Forever).
I'm not aware of it being an ancient Welsh battle-cry (a unified independent Wales hasn't done much in the way of wars) but it goes down well at rugby matches!

Alternatively, "Gwlad!" [roughly pronounced: gwlaad] which is always the loudest part of the anthem whenever it's sung (in context it means 'Wales!', the literal translation is 'country!' or 'homeland!' so I suppose you can use it to mean wherever you're from).
posted by sid.tv at 8:59 AM on October 26, 2009

This... is my boomstick!
posted by maxpower at 9:09 AM on October 26, 2009 [2 favorites]

the 2 year old of friends always cries "choo-choo-train" with an emphasis on "train". Gives you a nice bunch of explosive choos and something to work yourself up to (train!!!). If you get really excited, add more choos.
posted by Namlit at 9:34 AM on October 26, 2009 [2 favorites]

Let's show this prehistoric bitch how we do things downtown.

or

Captain Caaaaaavvveemaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnn!
posted by The World Famous at 9:48 AM on October 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

Come on you sons of bitches! Do you want to live forever?
posted by Benjamin Nushmutt at 10:03 AM on October 26, 2009

What, no haka?

I saw the All Blacks perform the haka before a game in New Zealand. Intimidating. Probably best done with friends, though.
posted by MonkeyToes at 10:07 AM on October 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

Yeah, was just dropping by to suggest the haka. It's badass.
posted by craven_morhead at 10:15 AM on October 26, 2009

Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi! Xena!!
posted by SuperSquirrel at 10:23 AM on October 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

What ho, varlet!
posted by theredpen at 10:23 AM on October 26, 2009

"Come back with your shield or on it."

I learnt this one from my 8th grade history teacher, more than a decade before "300" came out, and apparently it was a genuine Spartan saying. ("With your shield" = victorious; "on your shield" = dead.)
posted by Pallas Athena at 10:44 AM on October 26, 2009

Μολὼν λαβέ
posted by infinitewindow at 10:57 AM on October 26, 2009

Some good (and funny) suggestions, guys, let's keep 'em rollin' in!
posted by WidgetAlley at 10:58 AM on October 26, 2009

KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN

Sorry. Had to.

Excelsior!
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 11:00 AM on October 26, 2009

It's OK to play with dolls!
Let's get sticky!
I like Squirrels!
It's sneezing time!
I'm filled with tinier men!
It's Great to be Alive!
I vote for justice!
posted by filthy light thief at 11:13 AM on October 26, 2009

In my family, it's "let's blow this popsicle stand!"

No one really knows where it came from.
posted by sperose at 11:47 AM on October 26, 2009

It's Clobberin' Time!!!!

I am become Death, Destroyer of Worlds
is well-known as a quote from the Bhagavad Gita uttered by Robert Oppenheimer after the first test of a nuclear bomb, but I much prefer test director Kenneth Bainbridge's reply to Oppenheimer:
Now we are all sons of bitches.
posted by Jon_Evil at 1:31 PM on October 26, 2009

While running, wild-eyed and crazy-looking towards the enemy, scream "Dear Lord, what's that thing behind you?!" Then, when they turn to look, hit them in the back of the head.

Alternatively, "There can be only one!"

Looking up into the sky: "By your command!"
posted by Ghidorah at 3:12 PM on October 26, 2009

sperose: In my family, it's "let's blow this popsicle stand!"

No one really knows where it came from.

Well, it's in the NES game Earthbound, but it goes back at least to the 70s.

Cheesy antiwar songs are a goldmine for silly battlecries (the canonical example being Billy, Don't Be a Hero).
posted by Kattullus at 3:30 PM on October 26, 2009

"Wheat!" was the battle cry of Porter Rockwell, a "colorful figure" and mormon guy who killed lots of people in gunfights.
posted by Barry B. Palindromer at 4:47 PM on October 26, 2009

Willingness to accept defeat? Bah! "Carpe noctem!" Seize the night! As in...

Throw your voice high into the air full of pride
Find your own road to glory
Use what powers life may give you
Never cease the fight
If you cannot win the day
Seize the night
[Ref obscure metal lyrics]
posted by gueneverey at 4:50 PM on October 26, 2009

IT BURNS WHEN I PEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

It'll confuse people too.
posted by Brak at 5:20 PM on October 26, 2009

"all right boys! let's get our throats slit!"
posted by Philby at 7:00 PM on October 26, 2009

Battle cries.

My favorites:

"The Almogavars used to cry "Desperta ferro!", which translates as "Awake the iron!". They used to cry this shout the dawn before a battle, while they beat their swords on the nearby rocks to keep them clean from the rust. In the dim light many sparks were lighted, which scared the enemy watching them, as explained by Ramon Muntaner. Is now used by Spanish paratroopers."

"The British Parachute Regiment has traditionally used the unique battle-cry "Wahoo Mohammed!" when going into battle. Its use originates from World War II, 1942-1943, when men of the 1st Airborne Division were used for conventional combat for the first time in Tunisia, during the North African campaign."

And just for inspiration, go read Gen. Patton's "Blood and Guts" speech. Who knew the man was capable of sentiments such as: "Someday I want to see them raise up on their piss-soaked hind legs and howl, 'Jesus Christ, it's the Goddamned Third Army again and that son-of-a-fucking-bitch Patton.'"
posted by MonkeyToes at 7:43 PM on October 26, 2009

The renowned William Wallace bellowed one resounding word just moments before his execution:

FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by matticulate at 11:08 PM on October 26, 2009

THERE'S ONLY ENOUGH FOR MEEEEEEEEEE!
posted by fonetik at 1:10 AM on October 27, 2009

Tangentially related question (am I allowed to do that?): I also really like the Finnish battle cry, "Hakkaa päälle Pohjan poika!" But, it being Finnish and all, I have absolutely no idea how to say it. Anyone willing to render a phonetic pronunciation?
posted by WidgetAlley at 3:41 AM on October 27, 2009

Confusion to Bonaparte!
posted by atrazine at 6:14 AM on October 27, 2009

The first thing that came to my mind was this popular phrase from all the old war movies that I'd watched:

Merdeka atau mati!

"Freedom or death!"

Copy n paste:

* Meaning: We have to fight for our freedom as long as it takes, and we shall not mind the death following our struggle for independence.

* That is a very common motto in Indonesian wars against the Dutch colonialisation, usually written "Merdeka ataoe mati", because at that time, 'u' was still written as 'oe', just like the current 'y' was 'j', the 'j' was 'dj', and the 'c' was 'tj'.
posted by joewandy at 10:34 AM on October 27, 2009

"Hakaa päälle Pohjan poika" is in the song "Rex Regi Rebellis" by Turisas, just after 6:00. Here's a link to an mp3. The exact pronunciation is a bit hard to hear, but if you can shout it like the Finns, you should be good, right?

Do you know what that translates to, by the way? Or where it comes from? I've never heard of it, other than incidentally in song...
posted by gueneverey at 5:31 PM on October 27, 2009

DAMN! DAMN! DAMN!-Florida Evans. Good Times
I think she said it when she knew she would have to whoop some ass and when she knews things weren't going her way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

THUNDER! THUNDER! THUNDER! THUNDER CATS! HOOOOOOOOO!!!
posted by Hydrofiend at 8:15 PM on October 27, 2009

I'm rather partial to Gene Hunt's "You are surrounded by armed bastards!" but you need a posse to make that stick.
posted by zadcat at 8:36 PM on October 27, 2009

guenerverey, thanks so much for the link, that's really helpful! It's my understanding that the cry translates to something approximating, "Cut them down, sons of the North!" Which is ridiculously awesome.
posted by WidgetAlley at 6:44 AM on October 28, 2009

KKKKAAAPPLLLAAAAAAW!
posted by tumples at 5:30 PM on October 28, 2009

GRAR!

Might wanna get the okay from jessamyn.
posted by deborah at 6:49 PM on October 29, 2009