I have found that most of the best villains are not three-dimensional. Frolo, Maleficent, Joffrey, Legato and Johan Liebert are some of the most imposing, effective and entertaining villains I have ever seen, and none are particularly deep. Rather, they convincingly embody a vile or destructive archetype. Not saying every villain should be this way. But as much as a writer can fail by making a simple, shallow villain, they can also undermine a villain's impact by making them too complex or relatable.
Thank you. While I do agree some of the best villains are indeed 3 dimensional and are quite complex, I find people are too quick to brush a villain off just because they're clearly evil and have little to no redeeming qualities. There's almost a fixation on needing villains to be tragic or twisted from a good to evil person or not even a bad guy just on the other side. Some of my favourite villains, like Scar, Jafar and Ganondorf aren't exactly deep, and can't really be considered good in any capacity, but their design, mannerisms and way they act make them just as good anyway
I like designing antagonists that can change their appearance depending on how threatening they need to look.1. A peace keeping robot that dresses like a typical office dad in day to day life. In this look his edges are smooth and his eyes look tired. However when he fights he dons a suit of armor with sharper edges, larger upper body and forearms as well as a helmet with red glass over his eyes giving his face a demonic glow.2.) A reptile man who has a charming pirate aesthetic to him with a red bandana atop his head and a black vest. His face looks like much like a human until he pulls back his lips and reveals his massive teeth which inadvertently gives him a disturbing facial expression.3.) A robot with multiple bodies that he can inhabit. He has a knight aesthetic to his helmet but his body becomes more militaristic as it goes down. An uninhabited drone has dim white lights behind its visor and moves in a vary robotic fashion. An inhabited drone however has much brighter lights and puts it heavy weight into all of its movements.
The series I'm making is about a 4th wall breaking triceratops, it's very much like a cartoon. However the entire plot surrounds mental trauma and psychological issues and ordeals. The main antagonist represents a bad emotion, and I was wondering if I would go for the light-hearted tone or the more serious and darker tone of the issues it tackles.
Sometimes a lighter tone can help the theme. It presents it in a welcoming manner that draws you in, so when it touches on the darker themes, its more noticeable, and more impactful. There are many light hearted looking stories that actually tackle serious subject matter. Doing it this way means the reader/viewer isn't overloaded with darkness, as it very easy to do in this day and age, and it can provide nice breaks inbetween significant moments regarding mental trauma. If this is aimed towards children as well (dunno if it is) then the lighter tone will hook them as well
Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge hey can you help me? I'm going to write a story about cyber and normal bullying. Can you help me with the bullies in the story?
I guess the word used to describe how I want my antagonist to be portrayed is prisoner. Because well... That's what they are, a prisoner of there own creation.
I think I tend to go one turn deeper. I love to have my maniacal, sadistic and "evilicious" villains. But I know these can come off as one-dimensional, which is why there's usually a reason why they embrace evil so openly (without justifying it), and why they tend to be portrayed as the reason why other lesser but more realistic villains begin their crooked ways. I think I just like the idea of a "tempter villain", in a way. Someone who is more like a force or embodiment of something sinister, that usually acts passively until the end. Most of the time my lesser villains can be reasoned with in one way or another, but the last one is completely off the rails, proud of its evil nature and completely unwilling to change. I do find it hard to get that element of "relating to the message and the protagonist's own context" though - I usually come up with it at some point while making the actual story, but I need to keep in check because I know not everyone enjoys these, and if the final confrontation feels anticlimatic because the "final boss" is not believable as a character, then you leave with a really bad aftertaste. So tl;dr I try to write "classic Disney" villains that are evil all the way but try to make them in such a way that feels fresh and exciting, not stale or overly childish.
spent both of the episodes comparing your notes and rules against my stories villain and it helps me focus them in and I think it may have given me a bit of a breakthrough not only for the motive of my villain, but the broken story of my protagonist as well. glad I found this channel this is great.
I have a question! It's about the the ghost character, but can easily be applied to other "spooky" characters. I can't understand why his design seems "proper." His appearance is round throughout his torso and "feet," and more importantly his eyes. I can see the square jaw adding to his "in the background" feel, and his fingers are sharp, but it doesn't seem to be the thing that makes him eerie.
Necro-posting here, but if I had to guess, it would be all the curves. To me, something about them sort of says "deception and mystery". Indeed, a twisted body is likely to be more flexible, elusive and always just beyond your reach.
the concepts for one of my villains is that he the living embodiment of malevolence, nothing but pure hatred for all those around him, and over time we get more hints at his why he does what he does, he does't even appear until the end of the first season of the show, i don't want to give all of it away, let's just say his first appearance in the show will leave a mark on more then just the viewer.
Elijah Blechman Sounds edgy but if done well it'll be excellent, The Joker from the dark knight is an excellent example, the element of chaos/disorder personified . He presents Batman/victims with options but there is no 'right' or 'wrong', someone will suffer no matter which option is picked. He believes that there is no such thing as fair and he makes that very clear.
As an aspiring author and artist, your videos are very helpful! They're also good-quality, and are easy to understand. You make character design seem so easy... Anyways! Thanks!
I have a villain I've been working on for a story about monsters that I wouldn't mind an opinion on. the idea behind his origin is that there was a boy who was the broken, albino love child of a bogeyman and a human. a being existing and manipulative of fear, who had the capability to at the same time feel it. this boy himself is not actually the villain mind you, but rather the feelings inside of him are. as an outcast he led a life of torment in the bogeyman society, and his core body welled up with unimaginable amounts of stress, fear, and pain. even after he is ultimately saved from his hell by one of the protagonists in the story, he finds fear in all things in life, even his saviour. the fears and pain inside well up and become infected and warped. they crack his core being and creates a sentient, child like being inside of his infection. the being begins to feed the fear further, growing more powerful off of the pain of the broken child. ultimately, the being, who refers to himself simply as the Bogeyman, takes its own form beyond the core of its progenitor. and it unconsciously takes a mimicked form similar to that of the saviour that rescued the boy. the being begins lashing out and feeding the fear around it, becoming one with it. it's only goal is growth and desire. it wants. and it feels it deserves what it wants. and it pursues that, without any real concern for the protagonists and their resistance. it merely goes out to face the world, whether or not the world is ready for it. I would put more but paranoia keeps me from explaining too much lol anyways, would this constitute a valid existence for a villain? something that shouldn't exist, but does regardless of reason and forces the protagonists to look their own fears and flaws in the eye
Hey im trying to make a character that is a protag but i dont know how i can make them more likeable. So its a minion/sidekick-thingy who have no morals and tries to plan to rebel against their own boss just so that they have the power themselves to rule the world and do villain things protag is a very childlike,a butt and kind of a two faced b- and the boss is kind of the type of people who do evil for " balance" Sorry for bad english
You know, this gets me thinking. What if I have a character that is portrayed as a villain by the hero but really isn't a villain and really only cares about the hero, but since the hero goes to extreme lengths, the villain will also and also the hero hates the villain, but the villain likes the hero, hmm seems confusing doesn't it?
Is it okay to make a villain that looks really cute? Because I use a cute art style, and I want the villains to resemble the heroes EDIT:Thanks for the heart!
4:40 i feel like that type of villain has its place... like the iconic bowser doesnt really have much motivation until super mario sunshine, but before then, he's just kidnaping the princes cuz he's bowser! also probably political power.... wow... i just noticed the subconscious depth bowser has....nevermind i guess? definitely something to take note of!
so, I have this villain idea, his name is Mika. He is powerful, strong, sneaky, and deceptive. Normally, he takes the form of a scared and innocent child, to try and get people to him and feel sympathetic towards him. Over time, when people trust Mika, he will try and convince them to help him kill his younger sister, Cordelia, who will be the protagonist of the story. He normally takes the form of a little boy with pale skin, short black hair, and black eyes, that wears dirty and worn out clothes. When he's in his true form, he is an adult changeling (not MLP) with long white hair, ghostly pale skin, white eyes, and usually wears a black cloak.
In my story, the main character has elemental powers that are directly connected to the villain. The villain is a hellbent maniac trying to use the main characters insane power to their advantage, and they've been secretly training them to get to this amount of power without their knowing. The villain makes the main character go into a sort of insanity (I know, cliche edgy oc here or whatever) in which they almost turn into the villain which is all part of their plan. The villain is actually two main characters who train the main characters with their powers and while young touched this cursed stone which made them turn into the blood driven demon that the characters know them as. I've come up with all of this, yet still can't draw my characters like I want them to look **sigh**
MelloJello I have some heavy criticism but hopefully you will take this into consideration and improve but you can also choose to ignore it altogether. Your choice I guess. I'll be honest, i don't think you really thought this out enough. Firstly are the villains separate characters from the main characters? Or like some alternate reality? your choice of words is really confusing. I also think that the 'item of evil corruption (the stone in this case)' thing is used as a crutch more than anything, try to do away with it (unless its an entity with its own consciousness then that would be interesting). Thirdly, what are 'insane powers'? And if the villain is a maniac, how can he train the main character... how are they even linked? ...everything is so confusing, no wonder you can't draw them. I think you may want to change some parts of the story. Try thinking of the time and location for a start. Could be anything. Then think about the motive and how it will actually benefit the villain in the long run. Oh and one more thing, 'insane' isn't a proper adjective, or at least how it's used. Being insane isn't what you think it means. It means being mentally unstable. You may think schizophrenic or psychotic but it also means being autistic (not as an insult as in legitimate autism), unable to tell right from wrong, flipping in and out of control over their actions and those people are suffering inside and no one can tell them why. It's not funny, It's legitimately sad and troubling. I've seen many amateur writers use this adjective this way and it's really distasteful to a lot of readers. Try being more specific or use another adjective. Well that's all I have. Maybe you could write down a revised version in the replies. I really want to see what you can come up with.
Yo Following your tips of a good villain i have a question Having them to search for revenge is a good idea? Like if a guy lost his family at hands of another guy then the first guy turns nuts and wants to kill everyone of the second guy kind
A villain has to look like a threat. Not necessarily evil, not even powerful. They don't even have to look like a threat all the time. But when the stakes are high, when it's time for the big confrontation, the villain has to look like a threat to the heroes. Be it by looking strong or sickly, sleak or ugly, smooth or spiky, strong, angry or just plain dangerous. If the audience can believe that somebody is afraid of your villain, you're already halfway there.
Glad I found this channel but my only problem is I first need to be able to draw something more basic, simpler people, at the least something that doesn't look like a a pile of crap. I guess my problem is I'm a perfectionist on some things so I will spend half an hour trying to draw one line, only to then give up from frustration. It's really irritating because I always wanted to draw good but always seem to be just enough off that it looks bad
I know nobody is going to see this, but I'm making a villain (I've only figured out a couple things about her, so she's really unfinished) who kind of has the power to change people's emotions and reasoning, like Monika from DDLC (not really) or Robert Modell from the X-Files episode "Pusher", but her power is to basically destroy peoples minds/emotions by deleting or adding memories. This is probably a trashy idea but I haven't thought up much, so I'll keep going.
The question I have is what is the negative side affect of using these powers like getting some disturbing images stuck in her mind or if she has to go into some type of dreamland in order to steal or replace certain memories.
I haven't really thought too much about that, but my main two ideas have been she would have disturbing images stuck in her mind like you said, or, (this one's not as good) she has to change her appearance in some way, but I haven't explored that one as much.
Nakool Maletira more or less. Some villains are hated, like Geoffrey, but some villains are do cool that you look at them and say "hey, this guy os badass". Those villains are, sometimes, more likeable than the heores. A combination of personality, stile, apearence and power.
Nakool Maletira they are generally arrogant, or confident, they use to walk in a "noble way" with the hands in the back, or they walk very slow, or they flight a lot, they use to have long hairs, with armors and cloacks or longcoats, what make them look more overpowered, and they use to be very powerful.
Is that a specific example in your case? Sure, it may help that their reason for wanting the gem is also clear, and perhaps a little bit more personal than the typical "I want absolute power!" trope. The character may be trying to win someone back, earning someone's approval, or finally take revenge for the death of a loved one, things like that. We care as an audience far more about the "get the gem" side of the story when we understand why it's desired in the first place.
Cool! If it's not much to ask, do you have a video about coolish robots or AI. Because I am really getting stuck with my game. I am probably asking too much... but can you do undead themed videos? Like, how to design non scary souls ghosts skeletons etc.
what if the villain, his minions and even his surroundings where to be based on roundshapes to confuse the reader/viewer and challange the idea of triangular shapes for evil character? a good example of this are the GRINEER in warframe: vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/warframe/images/6/64/Grineer.png/revision/latest?cb=20121103152534 vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/warframe/images/0/03/Kweens.png/revision/latest?cb=20161117165802 what do you think about this idea Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge ?
what if it is clear from the beginning that they/he/she are evil and still use this shapelanguage? to stay with the example of the GRINEER: they are obvious as the violent, dictatorial empire from the very beginning of the story and still all sport the round shapes.
How do you choose color for a villain? I want to make evil characters with lots of color, but it often flips around and somehow makes them look like a hero lol When I think of villains, I think of decepticons, I think of doctor octopus, green goblin, all these characters don’t really have very colorful motifs, green goblin is green, but he is literally only green, decepticons, gray. Why the heck is thanos imposing, is it just his posture? Why the heck is Charles munts from Up threatening? Maybe it’s because it looks like they match the environment? Like darth Vader resembles the cold dark void of space? Is it the same thing with thanos? *Why the HECK is Batman not a supervillain*
I'm trying to build a story with multiple arc villains (approximately one per arc, but the larger of a threat they are the more they appear. I just wanted to know how not to pull a spider-man 3 but still flesh them out.
I'd say give it time. Just like the Avengers had several movies beforehand building up the characters before them getting together, the same has to happen for your villains. So long as you give enough of an arc to them so that the readers can understand where each of them are coming form, and so long as you give them a valid reason to team up, it should work.
can the villian be something else? like a group of ppl rather than one person or some force not controlled by anyone? is this as effective as having a specific character? examples?
BC1 Regime Governments. Look at DC's Injustice, or the Nazis. There is a main man but has a small following who takes control of an army. Force of nature? Earthquakes. Tornadoes. Tsunamis. Anything can do. If you want good ideas for villains, try watching Rick and Morty (if you're old enough), see how they present the antagonists. It's usually a conflict of oppositions rather than just good vs evil.
Look at Peridot's redemption arc from Steven Universe, or Zuko's from Avatar: The Last Airbender. They start off as imposing antagonists who eventually become our precious cinnamon rolls. I tend to ramble so I'll bold my points to make reading quicker. *Step 1: Know their motivation for being bad.* Peridot was following Homeworld's orders, Zuko was trying to reclaim his honor to resolve daddy issues. If they weren't in these positions, they probably wouldn't be doing the things they do. Peridot wouldn't be on Earth, Zuko wouldn't be hunting Aang. Your side villain should be in a similar boat of just following orders, or doing what they think is right. *Step 2: Give them depth.* At first we think Peridot is just another threat to our main characters. Then we realize she's scared and doesn't hold much value in herself without her limb enhancers. At first we think Zuko is just the main villain, until we realize his motivation and just how much he's struggling. We should be able to relate to these characters, and even find sympathy in them. *Step 3: Make it clear they're redeemable.* This character doesn't do anything immensely diabolical. They're just following orders. If they do anything immensely diabolical, they have remorse for it. The villain justifies their actions, but the redeemable villain sheds a few tears over the city they just blew up. They struggle, just like us and just like the protagonist. Peridot is only checking on the Cluster and running from the Gems, Zuko is wrestling with his own demons and is driving himself to capture Aang, but clearly doesn't want to kill him or anyone else. I hope this gives you a few ideas, and wasn't too confusing!
I loved this video! But, unfortunately, I didn't really understand what you meant with the "Triangular-shaped Language". Can you/anyone else help me understand that? And if so, thank you very much.
Of course, I have a set of videos about shape language: ua-cam.com/play/PL-ng1NuQbDGUX2EagyS2xpu18w5I_Fn0r.html these are a little older, but there are updated versions in the Learn Character Design course.
i'm in a werid spot I'm making a show but everytime I try to think of a villin i come to the conclusion that I don't think I need one specfic character to be the villan since it's a slice of life and that any of the characters could cause conflict from episode to episode. kinda like mlp minus the big baddies
I made my own female villain her name is norga she basically a expiremint made out of earth minerals like crystal's , lava and toxic chemicals and I did decide to give norga a menacing look to let people know what she is capable of.
sometimes the true villain is the helper of the ,,true,, villain ..just take fawful from the mario and luigi series started as cacklettas helper collected resources in the sewers of the mushroom kingdom and planned his evil plans rose up and fullfilled his evil planes and succeded...then he died DX
They can definitely work. take a look at some of the villains from Steven universe, or even King Candy/Turbo from wreck it Ralph. He’s a really tiny, cute guy who has a really evil feel about him somehow
+Sans the Skeleton His actions and basis for doing them matter more than his words! A lot of times, villains pull the “is it really that bad” card. Doesnt change that they might be an awful person
Bill cipher is the evilest looking and triangular villain
triangles are the most imposing shape of all!
Ehem I think you'll find the most imposing shape is the T
It’s sad that I was inspired to write a story, and make a villain, after drawing a picture of bill cipher lol
The evilest dorito in animation
hes su cute tho
I have found that most of the best villains are not three-dimensional. Frolo, Maleficent, Joffrey, Legato and Johan Liebert are some of the most imposing, effective and entertaining villains I have ever seen, and none are particularly deep. Rather, they convincingly embody a vile or destructive archetype. Not saying every villain should be this way. But as much as a writer can fail by making a simple, shallow villain, they can also undermine a villain's impact by making them too complex or relatable.
Thank you. While I do agree some of the best villains are indeed 3 dimensional and are quite complex, I find people are too quick to brush a villain off just because they're clearly evil and have little to no redeeming qualities. There's almost a fixation on needing villains to be tragic or twisted from a good to evil person or not even a bad guy just on the other side. Some of my favourite villains, like Scar, Jafar and Ganondorf aren't exactly deep, and can't really be considered good in any capacity, but their design, mannerisms and way they act make them just as good anyway
"Is the villain environmental..."
*Imagines an evil plant*
Feed me, Seymour!
In this world, is kill or be killed!
the game is good....the fandom isnt
Howdy! I am Flowey the flower!
Cough cough
Flowey from undertale
Cough cough
I like designing antagonists that can change their appearance depending on how threatening they need to look.1. A peace keeping robot that dresses like a typical office dad in day to day life. In this look his edges are smooth and his eyes look tired. However when he fights he dons a suit of armor with sharper edges, larger upper body and forearms as well as a helmet with red glass over his eyes giving his face a demonic glow.2.) A reptile man who has a charming pirate aesthetic to him with a red bandana atop his head and a black vest. His face looks like much like a human until he pulls back his lips and reveals his massive teeth which inadvertently gives him a disturbing facial expression.3.) A robot with multiple bodies that he can inhabit. He has a knight aesthetic to his helmet but his body becomes more militaristic as it goes down. An uninhabited drone has dim white lights behind its visor and moves in a vary robotic fashion. An inhabited drone however has much brighter lights and puts it heavy weight into all of its movements.
The series I'm making is about a 4th wall breaking triceratops, it's very much like a cartoon. However the entire plot surrounds mental trauma and psychological issues and ordeals. The main antagonist represents a bad emotion, and I was wondering if I would go for the light-hearted tone or the more serious and darker tone of the issues it tackles.
Sometimes a lighter tone can help the theme. It presents it in a welcoming manner that draws you in, so when it touches on the darker themes, its more noticeable, and more impactful. There are many light hearted looking stories that actually tackle serious subject matter. Doing it this way means the reader/viewer isn't overloaded with darkness, as it very easy to do in this day and age, and it can provide nice breaks inbetween significant moments regarding mental trauma. If this is aimed towards children as well (dunno if it is) then the lighter tone will hook them as well
The perfect villain is the love-triangle!
Bill?
@@AvalynTheAccursed yeah "love" exactly
2:22 If you think about it, Darth Vader has a trangle on his helmet, and his cape makes one too
im glad I found this channel, thank you!
Thank YOU!
Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge hey can you help me? I'm going to write a story about cyber and normal bullying. Can you help me with the bullies in the story?
I guess the word used to describe how I want my antagonist to be portrayed is prisoner. Because well... That's what they are, a prisoner of there own creation.
I think I tend to go one turn deeper. I love to have my maniacal, sadistic and "evilicious" villains. But I know these can come off as one-dimensional, which is why there's usually a reason why they embrace evil so openly (without justifying it), and why they tend to be portrayed as the reason why other lesser but more realistic villains begin their crooked ways. I think I just like the idea of a "tempter villain", in a way. Someone who is more like a force or embodiment of something sinister, that usually acts passively until the end.
Most of the time my lesser villains can be reasoned with in one way or another, but the last one is completely off the rails, proud of its evil nature and completely unwilling to change. I do find it hard to get that element of "relating to the message and the protagonist's own context" though - I usually come up with it at some point while making the actual story, but I need to keep in check because I know not everyone enjoys these, and if the final confrontation feels anticlimatic because the "final boss" is not believable as a character, then you leave with a really bad aftertaste.
So tl;dr I try to write "classic Disney" villains that are evil all the way but try to make them in such a way that feels fresh and exciting, not stale or overly childish.
Thanks for this, so far my antagonist is the only one I haven't redesigned using all of your helpful tips, now I can get started on that
spent both of the episodes comparing your notes and rules against my stories villain and it helps me focus them in and I think it may have given me a bit of a breakthrough not only for the motive of my villain, but the broken story of my protagonist as well. glad I found this channel this is great.
I have a question! It's about the the ghost character, but can easily be applied to other "spooky" characters.
I can't understand why his design seems "proper." His appearance is round throughout his torso and "feet," and more importantly his eyes. I can see the square jaw adding to his "in the background" feel, and his fingers are sharp, but it doesn't seem to be the thing that makes him eerie.
Necro-posting here, but if I had to guess, it would be all the curves. To me, something about them sort of says "deception and mystery". Indeed, a twisted body is likely to be more flexible, elusive and always just beyond your reach.
The ghost looks like a combination of Ghostfreak and the moth with the freezing power, both from Ben10.
he does
when you said "moth with the freezing power" for a sec I thought you meant Leif from Bug Fables lmao
Big Chill
So what the fusion will be called? Ghostchill? Or Big freak?
kinda reminds me of Redeads from zelda as well
the concepts for one of my villains is that he the living embodiment of malevolence, nothing but pure hatred for all those around him, and over time we get more hints at his why he does what he does, he does't even appear until the end of the first season of the show, i don't want to give all of it away, let's just say his first appearance in the show will leave a mark on more then just the viewer.
Elijah Blechman
Sounds edgy but if done well it'll be excellent, The Joker from the dark knight is an excellent example, the element of chaos/disorder personified . He presents Batman/victims with options but there is no 'right' or 'wrong', someone will suffer no matter which option is picked. He believes that there is no such thing as fair and he makes that very clear.
Sounds like Bill Cipher.
As a Game Master, I find you to be extremely helpful and thought provoking. I love it. Subscribed.
As an aspiring author and artist, your videos are very helpful! They're also good-quality, and are easy to understand. You make character design seem so easy... Anyways! Thanks!
I imagine a metallic crow, which desires to toil with things, which needs to be destroyed, due to it's unforeseeable consequences.
I have a villain I've been working on for a story about monsters that I wouldn't mind an opinion on. the idea behind his origin is that there was a boy who was the broken, albino love child of a bogeyman and a human. a being existing and manipulative of fear, who had the capability to at the same time feel it. this boy himself is not actually the villain mind you, but rather the feelings inside of him are. as an outcast he led a life of torment in the bogeyman society, and his core body welled up with unimaginable amounts of stress, fear, and pain. even after he is ultimately saved from his hell by one of the protagonists in the story, he finds fear in all things in life, even his saviour. the fears and pain inside well up and become infected and warped. they crack his core being and creates a sentient, child like being inside of his infection. the being begins to feed the fear further, growing more powerful off of the pain of the broken child. ultimately, the being, who refers to himself simply as the Bogeyman, takes its own form beyond the core of its progenitor. and it unconsciously takes a mimicked form similar to that of the saviour that rescued the boy. the being begins lashing out and feeding the fear around it, becoming one with it. it's only goal is growth and desire. it wants. and it feels it deserves what it wants. and it pursues that, without any real concern for the protagonists and their resistance. it merely goes out to face the world, whether or not the world is ready for it.
I would put more but paranoia keeps me from explaining too much lol anyways, would this constitute a valid existence for a villain? something that shouldn't exist, but does regardless of reason and forces the protagonists to look their own fears and flaws in the eye
here's a fun challenge! try to explain a way to create a villan character who is also the main character of the story
2 words: Invader Zim
Megamind
The joker
Death note
Hey im trying to make a character that is a protag but i dont know how i can make them more likeable.
So its a minion/sidekick-thingy who have no morals and tries to plan to rebel against their own boss just so that they have the power themselves to rule the world and do villain things
protag is a very childlike,a butt and kind of a two faced b-
and the boss is kind of the type of people who do evil for " balance"
Sorry for bad english
A villain is a victim who's story hasn't been told yet
+Pinkzer UA-cam Nice idea!
Pinkzer UA-cam An enemy is just a friend you haven't made yet :))))))))))))))))))))))))))
Sorry
Deep.
Or they’re just psycho and want to kick the dog for the lulz. Like Bill Cipher. That’s one evil triangle.
@@rainpooper7088 That's why triangles are evil!
You know, this gets me thinking. What if I have a character that is portrayed as a villain by the hero but really isn't a villain and really only cares about the hero, but since the hero goes to extreme lengths, the villain will also and also the hero hates the villain, but the villain likes the hero, hmm seems confusing doesn't it?
No I totally get It, he's misunderstood.
thanks this helped me make an ultimate evil plan and backstory for my villain
Hehe my character in my comic is already a triangle. This just makes me giggle a bit, creating him before watching this >v>
Hmm. Just as helpful as the first, which is great!! ;) Good job, Brookes.
Is it okay to make a villain that looks really cute? Because I use a cute art style, and I want the villains to resemble the heroes
EDIT:Thanks for the heart!
Thats no problem!
Oh no! hearts go away when you edit your comment!
@@simonj6801 :(
4:40 i feel like that type of villain has its place... like the iconic bowser doesnt really have much motivation until super mario sunshine, but before then, he's just kidnaping the princes cuz he's bowser! also probably political power.... wow... i just noticed the subconscious depth bowser has....nevermind i guess? definitely something to take note of!
so, I have this villain idea, his name is Mika. He is powerful, strong, sneaky, and deceptive. Normally, he takes the form of a scared and innocent child, to try and get people to him and feel sympathetic towards him. Over time, when people trust Mika, he will try and convince them to help him kill his younger sister, Cordelia, who will be the protagonist of the story. He normally takes the form of a little boy with pale skin, short black hair, and black eyes, that wears dirty and worn out clothes. When he's in his true form, he is an adult changeling (not MLP) with long white hair, ghostly pale skin, white eyes, and usually wears a black cloak.
I love your drawing style! ^^
In my story, the main character has elemental powers that are directly connected to the villain. The villain is a hellbent maniac trying to use the main characters insane power to their advantage, and they've been secretly training them to get to this amount of power without their knowing. The villain makes the main character go into a sort of insanity (I know, cliche edgy oc here or whatever) in which they almost turn into the villain which is all part of their plan. The villain is actually two main characters who train the main characters with their powers and while young touched this cursed stone which made them turn into the blood driven demon that the characters know them as.
I've come up with all of this, yet still can't draw my characters like I want them to look **sigh**
MelloJello
I have some heavy criticism but hopefully you will take this into consideration and improve but you can also choose to ignore it altogether. Your choice I guess.
I'll be honest, i don't think you really thought this out enough.
Firstly are the villains separate characters from the main characters? Or like some alternate reality? your choice of words is really confusing.
I also think that the 'item of evil corruption (the stone in this case)' thing is used as a crutch more than anything, try to do away with it (unless its an entity with its own consciousness then that would be interesting).
Thirdly, what are 'insane powers'? And if the villain is a maniac, how can he train the main character... how are they even linked? ...everything is so confusing, no wonder you can't draw them. I think you may want to change some parts of the story.
Try thinking of the time and location for a start. Could be anything. Then think about the motive and how it will actually benefit the villain in the long run.
Oh and one more thing, 'insane' isn't a proper adjective, or at least how it's used. Being insane isn't what you think it means. It means being mentally unstable. You may think schizophrenic or psychotic but it also means being autistic (not as an insult as in legitimate autism), unable to tell right from wrong, flipping in and out of control over their actions and those people are suffering inside and no one can tell them why. It's not funny, It's legitimately sad and troubling. I've seen many amateur writers use this adjective this way and it's really distasteful to a lot of readers. Try being more specific or use another adjective.
Well that's all I have. Maybe you could write down a revised version in the replies. I really want to see what you can come up with.
Yo Following your tips of a good villain i have a question Having them to search for revenge is a good idea? Like if a guy lost his family at hands of another guy then the first guy turns nuts and wants to kill everyone of the second guy kind
A villain has to look like a threat. Not necessarily evil, not even powerful. They don't even have to look like a threat all the time. But when the stakes are high, when it's time for the big confrontation, the villain has to look like a threat to the heroes. Be it by looking strong or sickly, sleak or ugly, smooth or spiky, strong, angry or just plain dangerous. If the audience can believe that somebody is afraid of your villain, you're already halfway there.
Thanks so much for these videos!
Glad I found this channel but my only problem is I first need to be able to draw something more basic, simpler people, at the least something that doesn't look like a a pile of crap. I guess my problem is I'm a perfectionist on some things so I will spend half an hour trying to draw one line, only to then give up from frustration. It's really irritating because I always wanted to draw good but always seem to be just enough off that it looks bad
I know nobody is going to see this, but I'm making a villain (I've only figured out a couple things about her, so she's really unfinished) who kind of has the power to change people's emotions and reasoning, like Monika from DDLC (not really) or Robert Modell from the X-Files episode "Pusher", but her power is to basically destroy peoples minds/emotions by deleting or adding memories. This is probably a trashy idea but I haven't thought up much, so I'll keep going.
The question I have is what is the negative side affect of using these powers like getting some disturbing images stuck in her mind or if she has to go into some type of dreamland in order to steal or replace certain memories.
I haven't really thought too much about that, but my main two ideas have been she would have disturbing images stuck in her mind like you said, or, (this one's not as good) she has to change her appearance in some way, but I haven't explored that one as much.
@@angelcomesdown Sounds like an interesting character if done right.
I would not want a hated villain, I would want a loved villain, this are the best villains, like Algol, Sephiroth, Chase Young and etc..
these characters are loved because they are hated. they have very contemptible backgrounds.
Nakool Maletira more or less. Some villains are hated, like Geoffrey, but some villains are do cool that you look at them and say "hey, this guy os badass". Those villains are, sometimes, more likeable than the heores. A combination of personality, stile, apearence and power.
Nakool Maletira they are generally arrogant, or confident, they use to walk in a "noble way" with the hands in the back, or they walk very slow, or they flight a lot, they use to have long hairs, with armors and cloacks or longcoats, what make them look more overpowered, and they use to be very powerful.
Very helpful video. Great job! :D
great video!
aka yellow diamond. she's like super pointy and triangler.
How would you name them
so the "power" they are looking for can be a like jem/totem that evades all phisics?
Is that a specific example in your case? Sure, it may help that their reason for wanting the gem is also clear, and perhaps a little bit more personal than the typical "I want absolute power!" trope. The character may be trying to win someone back, earning someone's approval, or finally take revenge for the death of a loved one, things like that. We care as an audience far more about the "get the gem" side of the story when we understand why it's desired in the first place.
as always awesome keep up the good work also can you show us what hardware and software you use?
+andrew papakonstantinou Thanks Andrew! In this video I'm using an iPad Pro and Procreate (it's what I've been using almost always recently)
For example for a game. can you make tips for designing rivals or/and final forms?
+Hggg Hhgg I'm working on my Designing Game Characters course right now, will be covering this!
Cool! If it's not much to ask, do you have a video about coolish robots or AI. Because I am really getting stuck with my game. I am probably asking too much... but can you do undead themed videos? Like, how to design non scary souls ghosts skeletons etc.
thank You!
what if the villain, his minions and even his surroundings where to be based on roundshapes to confuse the reader/viewer and challange the idea of triangular shapes for evil character?
a good example of this are the GRINEER in warframe:
vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/warframe/images/6/64/Grineer.png/revision/latest?cb=20121103152534
vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/warframe/images/0/03/Kweens.png/revision/latest?cb=20161117165802
what do you think about this idea Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge ?
TerribilisScriptorAabsolutely, very subversive. Done often when the villain is a surprise, eg King Candy, etc.
what if it is clear from the beginning that they/he/she are evil and still use this shapelanguage? to stay with the example of the GRINEER: they are obvious as the violent, dictatorial empire from the very beginning of the story and still all sport the round shapes.
How do you choose color for a villain? I want to make evil characters with lots of color, but it often flips around and somehow makes them look like a hero lol
When I think of villains, I think of decepticons, I think of doctor octopus, green goblin, all these characters don’t really have very colorful motifs, green goblin is green, but he is literally only green, decepticons, gray.
Why the heck is thanos imposing, is it just his posture?
Why the heck is Charles munts from Up threatening?
Maybe it’s because it looks like they match the environment? Like darth Vader resembles the cold dark void of space?
Is it the same thing with thanos?
*Why the HECK is Batman not a supervillain*
I'm trying to build a story with multiple arc villains (approximately one per arc, but the larger of a threat they are the more they appear. I just wanted to know how not to pull a spider-man 3 but still flesh them out.
I'd say give it time. Just like the Avengers had several movies beforehand building up the characters before them getting together, the same has to happen for your villains. So long as you give enough of an arc to them so that the readers can understand where each of them are coming form, and so long as you give them a valid reason to team up, it should work.
What are shapes that give the opposite feel of a triangle's?
MeerkatBlitz circles I guess...
can the villian be something else? like a group of ppl rather than one person or some force not controlled by anyone? is this as effective as having a specific character? examples?
BC1 Regime Governments. Look at DC's Injustice, or the Nazis. There is a main man but has a small following who takes control of an army.
Force of nature? Earthquakes. Tornadoes. Tsunamis. Anything can do.
If you want good ideas for villains, try watching Rick and Morty (if you're old enough), see how they present the antagonists. It's usually a conflict of oppositions rather than just good vs evil.
I have a question, what if I want to make a side villain who seems like a jerk in the beginning, but is actually a sweetheart?
Look at Peridot's redemption arc from Steven Universe, or Zuko's from Avatar: The Last Airbender. They start off as imposing antagonists who eventually become our precious cinnamon rolls. I tend to ramble so I'll bold my points to make reading quicker. *Step 1: Know their motivation for being bad.* Peridot was following Homeworld's orders, Zuko was trying to reclaim his honor to resolve daddy issues. If they weren't in these positions, they probably wouldn't be doing the things they do. Peridot wouldn't be on Earth, Zuko wouldn't be hunting Aang. Your side villain should be in a similar boat of just following orders, or doing what they think is right. *Step 2: Give them depth.* At first we think Peridot is just another threat to our main characters. Then we realize she's scared and doesn't hold much value in herself without her limb enhancers. At first we think Zuko is just the main villain, until we realize his motivation and just how much he's struggling. We should be able to relate to these characters, and even find sympathy in them. *Step 3: Make it clear they're redeemable.* This character doesn't do anything immensely diabolical. They're just following orders. If they do anything immensely diabolical, they have remorse for it. The villain justifies their actions, but the redeemable villain sheds a few tears over the city they just blew up. They struggle, just like us and just like the protagonist. Peridot is only checking on the Cluster and running from the Gems, Zuko is wrestling with his own demons and is driving himself to capture Aang, but clearly doesn't want to kill him or anyone else.
I hope this gives you a few ideas, and wasn't too confusing!
@@effeffiagonalick5078 thats pretty rough buddy-
I loved this video! But, unfortunately, I didn't really understand what you meant with the "Triangular-shaped Language". Can you/anyone else help me understand that? And if so, thank you very much.
Of course, I have a set of videos about shape language: ua-cam.com/play/PL-ng1NuQbDGUX2EagyS2xpu18w5I_Fn0r.html
these are a little older, but there are updated versions in the Learn Character Design course.
Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge thank you.
Arial Chechire! you have such a pretty name
Pain looks like a villian
Menasing, imposing, brooding, dark, deceptive how does this remind me of transformer prime
i'm in a werid spot I'm making a show but everytime I try to think of a villin i come to the conclusion that I don't think I need one specfic character to be the villan since it's a slice of life and that any of the characters could cause conflict from episode to episode. kinda like mlp minus the big baddies
I made my own female villain her name is norga she basically a expiremint made out of earth minerals like crystal's , lava and toxic chemicals and I did decide to give norga a menacing look to let people know what she is capable of.
this is helpfull to me my avater is a villen to a show called yugioh i have troble with giveing her flaws
sometimes the true villain is the helper of the ,,true,, villain ..just take fawful from the mario and luigi series
started as cacklettas helper
collected resources in the sewers of the mushroom kingdom and planned his evil plans
rose up and fullfilled his evil planes and succeded...then he died DX
Every
Villain
Is
Lemon
Can cute villians work?
They can definitely work. take a look at some of the villains from Steven universe, or even King Candy/Turbo from wreck it Ralph. He’s a really tiny, cute guy who has a really evil feel about him somehow
@@tinybubble330 oooooh thank youuuu. This really helped me
@@nate_the_gamer360 no problem, have a good one!
@@tinybubble330 you too bud!
I made the most opposing looking character ever…
But for the face I did the :) emoticon
I really like this video, however I disagree with 1 thing. A villian does not have to be hated, he could actually be sad.
Do I say "HAVE to" in this video?
Ok Elli nelson
If my villain admits that they and the protagonist are neither the hero nor the villain is he still all that bad
+Sans the Skeleton His actions and basis for doing them matter more than his words! A lot of times, villains pull the “is it really that bad” card. Doesnt change that they might be an awful person
Thanks
Sorry bill nelson
What?
Hamburger