History Main / NobleTopEnforcer

* Myth/IrishMythology: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] with Ogarmach, the Amazon warrior who serves as the King of the World's [[TheDragon right hand woman]]. While she's still [[AxeCrazy vicious and bloodthirsty]] and has an almost obsessive desire to kill Fionn Mac Cumhaill and his family, it's out of a desire to [[AvengingTheVillain avenge the King of the World's generals and champions]] who fell to Fionn and his allies. Showing that she has at least has a sense of comradery with her fellow warriors. By contrast, Daire Donn, the King of the World, sees most of his champions and lieutenants as chess pieces in his desire for conquest, who he's willing to throw away if it means a chance at victory. And his hatred of Fionn is entirely motivated by pettiness and ego.

** After a boatload of CharacterDevelopment, [[TheAtoner Jaime Lannister]] becomes this to his sister Cersei in ''Literature/AFeastForCrows'', working to stabilize the Riverlands with as little bloodshed as possible.

* During his brief stint as CoDragons for Ozai alongside Azula, Zuko from ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' was a Noble Top Enforcer, complete with a defection as a result of Ozai [[MoralEventHorizon going too far]]. During the rule of Azulon, Ozai and Iroh's father, Iroh functioned more or less as this, still his genial self but fully dedicated to fighting the Fire Nation's war. [[spoiler:It took the death of his son in the siege of Ba Sing Se to fully turn him face.]]

* ''WebVideo/DreamSMP'': In the Manburg era, although Quackity was the {{Vice President|Who}} to [[PresidentEvil Schlatt]] and by all means TheDragon, it should be noted that he genuinely wanted (L')Manburg to be a better place and did what he did (e.g. taking part in the Election to make it fair, pooling votes with Schlatt, etc.) in an attempt to bring fairness and justice, and has vocally spoken out against Schlatt on several occasions, most notably at the Manburg Festival [[spoiler:when Schlatt ordered to have [[TheMole Tubbo]] (who was 16 at the time) executed for treason]]. It probably helps that [[spoiler:his perspective reveals he's just as much of a victim of Schlatt's assholery as everyone else is, [[BadBoss if not]] [[DomesticAbuse more so]], and this is what drives him to make a HeelFaceTurn down the line, shortly after the Manburg Festival]].

* ''WebVideo/DreamSMP'': In the Manburg era, although Quackity was the [[VicePresidentWho VP]] to [[PresidentEvil Schlatt]] and by all means TheDragon, it should be noted that he genuinely wanted (L')Manburg to be a better place and did what he did (e.g. taking part in the Election to make it fair, pooling votes with Schlatt, etc.) in an attempt to bring fairness and justice, and has vocally spoken out against Schlatt on several occasions, most notably at the Manburg Festival [[spoiler:when Schlatt ordered to have [[TheMole Tubbo]] (who was 16 at the time) executed for treason]]. It probably helps that [[spoiler:his perspective reveals he's just as much of a victim of Schlatt's assholery as everyone else is, [[BadBoss if not]] [[DomesticAbuse more so]], and this is what drives him to make a HeelFaceTurn down the line, shortly after the Manburg Festival]].

* Haku, Zabuza's [[TheDragon Dragon]] from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''.

%%* ''Manga/DesertPunk'''s Striker %%ZCE

%%* Bruton from ''WesternAnimation/{{Dinosaur}}''.

The Noble Top Enforcer is a BigBad's [[TheDragon right-hand]] who is considerably more virtuous than their boss. Why they serve the villain can vary. They could be doing so out of [[MyMasterRightOrWrong loyalty to them]], [[MyCountryRightOrWrong loyalty to their nation]], or regarding them as the least bad alternative, or they could just be stuck in their situation [[MagicallyBindingContract through other circumstances]]. Expect this character to not do any of the real bad stuff their boss does or perform a FaustianRebellion if ordered to do something unpleasant as a way to TakeAThirdOption.

* Bruton from ''WesternAnimation/{{Dinosaur}}''.

* ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'': In the Manburg era, although Quackity was the [[VicePresidentWho VP]] to [[PresidentEvil Schlatt]] and by all means TheDragon, it should be noted that he genuinely wanted (L')Manburg to be a better place and did what he did (e.g. taking part in the Election to make it fair, pooling votes with Schlatt, etc.) in an attempt to bring fairness and justice, and has vocally spoken out against Schlatt on several occasions, most notably at the Manburg Festival [[spoiler:when Schlatt ordered to have [[TheMole Tubbo]] (who was 16 at the time) executed for treason]]. It probably helps that [[spoiler:his perspective reveals he's just as much of a victim of Schlatt's assholery as everyone else is, [[BadBoss if not]] [[DomesticAbuse more so]], and this is what drives him to make a HeelFaceTurn down the line, shortly after the Manburg Festival]].

* [[RedBaron Yellow]] [[AntiVillain Thirteen]] in ''VideoGame/AceCombat04ShatteredSkies'' is a man of honor who [[AFatherToHisMen cherishes his wingmen very much]]. This is is stark contrast to his country of Erusea, a ruthless dictatorship perfectly willing to fire upon civilians.

* [[RedBaron Yellow]] [[AntiVillain Thirteen]] in ''VideoGame/AceCombat04ShatteredSkies''.

* ''VideoGame/CustomRobo Arena'' has Marcia's brother Sergei.

* Goro from ''Franchise/MortalKombat''. He only serves under Shao Kahn for the good of the Shokan race. Unlike most of the bloodthirsty or sinister warriors in Kahn's army, Goro is an honorable warrior despite his monstrous appearance. When Kung Lao wanted to avenge his ancestor the Great Kung Lao's death at the hands of Goro, He made peace with Kung Lao noting that his ancestor was a great man and a noble warrior. He also joined the side of good after ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'' and waged war on Shao Kahn alongside Kitana.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': The Baratie arc has Gin, the first mate of the ruthless Don Krieg. Despite being reputed as utterly merciless and having the RedBaron of "Demon", Gin proves himself to be a NobleDemon, being the only one of [[UngratefulBastard his crew]] to show gratitude to the Baratie cooks for feeding him, defying Krieg's orders to kill Sanji [[BecauseYouWereNiceToMe because the latter was kind enough to serve him when starving]]. His loyalty towards his captain is only broken when the latter is defeated, after which Gin knocks Don Krieg out cold when he gets back up in a fit of rage.

Subtrope of TheDragon and AntiVillain. Although the Noble Top Enforcer can be all over the place on the SlidingScaleOfAntiVillains, they commonly trend towards either Noble or In Name Only. A DarkMagicalGirl that serves as TheDragon tends to be one. Word play on NobleDemon, which some of them are. Similar to MyMasterRightOrWrong, with one critical difference; while that trope is purely concerned with ''loyalty'', the Noble Top Enforcer is a comparison of the ''morality'' between TheDragon and the BigBad. TheGoodChancellor may serve as one if in an evil government. Related to MinionWithAnFInEvil and SympatheticInspectorAntagonist. Contrast MoreDespicableMinion, where the Dragon or other minion is ''worse'' than the Big Bad.

* Gomez in pretty much every incarnation of ''Manga/BirdyTheMighty,'' as he works for the terrorist Christella Revi but also lends advice and help to [[FairCop Birdy]] on a number of occasions. In ''Decode'' this makes him an interesting foil to the first season's villain, Shyamalan, whom he attempts to dissuade from deploying a super weapon on Earth--despite the fact that Gomez is not human, while Shyamalan ''is.''
* ''Manga/OnePiece'': The Baratie arc has Gin, the first mate of the ruthless Don Krieg. Despite being reputed as utterly merciless and having the RedBaron of "Demon Man", Gin proves himself to be a NobleDemon, being the only one of [[UngratefulBastard his crew]] to show gratitude to the Baratie cooks for feeding him, defying Krieg's orders to kill Sanji [[BecauseYouWereNiceToMe because the latter was kind enough to serve him when starving]].

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': The Baratie arc has Gin, the first mate of the ruthless Don Krieg. Despite being reputed as utterly merciless and having the RedBaron of "Demon Man", Gin proves himself to be a NobleDemon, being the only one of [[UngratefulBastard his crew]] to show gratitude to the Baratie cooks for feeding him, defying Krieg's orders to kill Sanji because the latter was kind enough to serve him when starving.

* [[spoiler:Kratos to Mithos]] in ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia''. TheDragon doesn't even agree much with his boss but follows him [[EnigmaticMinion for his own reasons]]. [[spoiler:He eventually joins Lloyd after having his fatalism beaten out of him. And it's even revealed he already was on their side; all of his mysterious actions and encounters with the group in the second act were him preparing things to take down Mithos for good. Not to mention for [[DeathSeeker his own death]].]]

** Villamax in ''Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy'' is a noble warrior who dislikes underhanded methods and always keeps his word towards his enemies. He also detests involving innocents in his battles. This ultimately causes him to clash with Trakeena during the finale when she orders him to fire at innocent civilians.

* Mirage to Syndrome in ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles''. She turned on him after he ordered a plane known to have children on board shot down. That, [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal plus Syndrome showing absolutely no concern for her life when Mr. Incredible had her by the throat]].

* ''Series/Daredevil2015'': In season 1, James Wesley is both Wilson Fisk's right-hand man and closest friend, is a hypercompetent advisor and sidekick, [[ShipperOnDeck and encourages his courtship with Vanessa]]. Fisk considers [[LikeASonToMe him a surrogate son]], is devastated by his death, and dispatches Dex to kill Karen Page to avenge him when she visits Fisk in his penthouse to rub it in his face.

* While it's left unclear for a long time if Athena in ''Manga/{{Appleseed}}'' is an AntiHero or an AntiVillain, she is clearly not above using every dirty trick at her disposal to maintain the stability of the city [[CrystalSpiresAndTogas Olympus]], even if it means intimidating the parliament to do things her way. Her right hand Nike is much more civil and reserved and deals with problems discreetly behind the scenes. [[EmotionlessGirl To such a degree]] that she becomes even scarier than her boss.

** And the differences between the two are only matched by the differences that Griffith has with his human counterpart Guts himself. When he defeated Guts, he convinced him that he belonged to him and Guts embraced it enough to even commit some political assassinations on his behalf but when they ended up including a child by accident, his horror made clear that he wouldn't agree to it if Griffith ordered him to do this specifically, which made it all a really happy coincidence for Griffith.

** Gladiator of the Shi'ar Empire is this, though his devotion to MyCountryRightOrWrong hinders his inherent nobility as he often finds himself being forced by his own ideals to serve rulers that are either evil, insane, or some combination of the two.

* ''Fanfic/BloodAndHonor'': Sanguis is her master's right hand and top enforcer, employed to intimidate or eliminate his rivals. The Emperor eventually recruits her to do the same job for him. Though she carries out their orders faithfully, she often chooses to behave mercifully and shows displeasure at some of the more underhanded assignments.

* Cutter to General Mandible in ''WesternAnimation/{{Antz}}''. While the General is a [[GeneralRipper power-hungry, megalomaniacal psychopath]], Cutter is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure who only goes along with the General's plans to "build a stronger colony" until he realizes that the colony is already strong and that Mandible's plan will only damage that. Of course, being an ant, the concept of thinking for himself and questioning orders never occur to him until after Bala suggests it.

* ''Film/RocknRolla'': Archy, in comparison to his antisocial and vicious boss Lenny Cole, has a sense of honour which offsets his cold pragmatism, intelligence and charisma. [[spoiler:Initially being loyal to Lenny despite his distaste for the latter's sadism, Archy eventually turns on Lenny upon discovering that the latter had previously betrayed him.]]

** Villamax in ''Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy'' is a noble warrior who dislikes underhanded methods and always keeps his word towards his enemies. He also detests involving innocents in his battles. This ultimately causes him to clash with Trakeena during the finale, when she orders him to fire at innocent civilians.

* In ''VideoGame/Bayonetta2'', BigBad [[spoiler:Loptr is literally MadeOfEvil, he's the evil half of the former God of Chaos, Aesir, and wants to claim the powers Aesir gave to humanity back just so he can be {{God}} again, only this time without his good half, Loki. His [[TheDragon Dragon]], Balder, on the other hand is a DragonWithAnAgenda and is actually a very noble and heroic Lumen Sage, who is only allowing himself to be manipulated by Loptr so he can kill Loki, whom he thinks killed his wife. Once that is cleared up, he pulls a HeelFaceTurn immediately and aids Bayonetta in taking him down.]]

* Korsica in ''VideoGame/HiFiRush'' is the head of security for Vandelay Technologies, and is highly loyal out of gratitude for the company saving her hometown from an ecological disaster when she was younger. Unlike the other department heads, who are generally megalomanical and obsessed with money, Korsica is straightforward and pragmatic. She's the most focused on catching Chai and the others simply because stopping intruders is her whole job, and she takes her duties very seriously. The heroes do notice that she's not insanely egotistical like the other bosses, and speculate that she's genuinely unaware of the sinister MindControl plot around Project Armstrong. [[spoiler:Korsica does start looking into the project despite initially brushing off Chai's warnings, and it turns out that Kale deliberately kept her in the dark because she's too noble. The discovery that the company truly isn't what it once was, along with Kale nearly killing her because YouHaveFailedMe, prompts a full HeelFaceTurn.]]

* ''Roleplay/TheBalladOfEdgardo'': Militant [=Xer0=] (yes, spelled that way) was a ridiculously petty EvilOverlord who tried out his endless powers on innocent newbies for fun and wouldn't let go of even a tiny grudge. His main enforcer, Goldnharl, was a quiet warrior who was secretly simmering in anger at how he had earned all of his overpowered gear and abilities the hard way, by actually playing the game, while [=Xer0=] had gotten his power through sucking up and/or whining to the moderators until they gave him whatever he wanted. The only reason he even served [=Xer0=] was because it was either that or get his ass kicked by the guy whose level was an infinity sign and who had the mods on speed dial. After [=Xer0=] [[UnwantedRevival revives him from a worthy death he had entirely accepted]], Goldnharl immediately pulls a HeelFaceTurn and joins the protagonists to help them take the bastard down.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'', Dreadwing was one of the highest-ranking Decepticons under Megatron, and greatly loyal to the Decepticon cause. He's painted as much more honorable than Megatron, and is shown to care deeply for and [[spoiler:mourn the passing of his twin brother, Skyquake.]] Multiple times throughout the series, Optimus Prime offers Dreadwing the opportunity to join the Autobots, and they demonstrate a good deal of mutual respect when they fight. Eventually [[spoiler:Dreadwing ends up leaving the Decepticons entirely, enraged that Megatron intended on covering up how Starscream turned Skyquake's corpse into a zombie. He even aids the Autobots, providing them much-needed relics, but still turns down Optimus's last offer of a full defection, choosing to instead remain unaligned. He makes one final mission to kill Starscream, and is ultimately killed by Megatron himself when he refuses to stand down.]]

* ''LakePlacidVsAnaconda:'' Murdoch's main mercenary, Beach, shows disgust and anger about how Sarah gets several of their companions killed, tries to stop her at one point, and [[spoiler:ultimately kills the anaconda.]]

%%* Haku, Zabuza's [[TheDragon Dragon]] from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. %%ZCE

* Strife from ''Fanfic/PowerRangersTakeFlight''; a robotic warrior who rescues [[DarkChick Sasha]] and fights the Rangers quite a few times. [[spoiler:He's really a telepresence robot controlled by Dillik, the monster maker/inventor for Trask.]]

* In ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands 2}}'', The Sheriff of Lynchwood has Deputy Winger, who urges the citizens to not get on the Sheriff's bad side as she's simply looking for an excuse to hang people. While he fights the heroes alongside the Sheriff in her boss fight, a bonus objective is to not harm Winger (in other words, [[Music/EricClapton shoot the sheriff, but do not shoot the deputy]]).

* Villamax to Trakeena in ''Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy'', who becomes pissed when Trakeena goes too far. He dies for it though.
** Preceding Villamax was Ecliptor from ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace''. Though he always acted antagonistic towards the Rangers, his nobility [[ParentalSubstitute came from raising Astronema from when she was a child]] and [[PapaWolf doing anything to protect her]], and his repeated clashes with the [[TheStarscream traitorous scumbag]] Darkonda. Sadly, he wound up BrainwashedAndCrazy at Darkonda's hands, removing any nobility he had left; he wound up [[spoiler:being turned into sand by the Z-wave in the series finale]].

* Archy from ''Film/RocknRolla''. While not exactly the most noble of noble top enforcers, he is clearly shown to be more understanding and sympathetic than BigBad Lenny Cole.