I'm having a hard time placing the 'why', but I've been binging your content and I really appreciate your subjects and your distinct delivery. You deserve way more followers! For an upcoming feywilds HP/fantasy university campaign I want to do some 3-shots in, I'm excited to make a Snape. Awkward attachment to a part of one of the player's history that they don't know about, the weird mix of love and hate. Little bit of Strahd, little bit of Silco, etc etc.
Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars has to be one of my favorites. Over the course of so many movies and even TV shows it's fascinating to watch his brilliant plan be developed, implemented, and finally executed. And by the time anyone realized what was going on, it was far too late to do anything about it. His political, personal, and emotional manipulation is unmatched. He truly is one of the greatest masterminds in fiction. Interestingly, Darth Vader, who is essentially Palpatine's head crony, is such a vastly different villain. He doesn't have schemes and devices, but is a being of pure power fueled by hatred and sorrow. He sought to save the woman he loved, and in doing so brought about her death. Once the only thing he cared for was gone, there was no stopping his rampage of revenge and destruction. He is absolutely terrifying and I love him for it.
My DM made a villain for our long running campaign that absolutely gutted our party. Had an incredibly sympathetic motivation, had essentially the same goals as the party but was more "fuck it burn everything down" without caring about who was killed along the way. A few of our party members kept fighting to try and convince him to turn off the path he was on, heck, my character (life domain cleric of Boldrei) was killed by him before he was killed a few turns later. So they kinda met up in the grey between life and afterlife and they had a conversation and even then my character was trying to convince him to come back, but he ultimately said he had earned where he was going and didn't really feel remorse. (I also just remembered he had a cat who loved like crazy. So even checked that box haha) Our whole group was like caught between "ahhh ressurect our cleric," "yay we defeated the villain of a like year long arc," and "Noooooooo why didn't he change his ways?!" Haha. I think one villain that's always fun to adapt DnD wise, and there's many versions of him, is Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes. I like the BBC series version myself, but pretty much every version of him I've seen/read has always been fun. Great video, really enjoyed this one! Can't wait to check out more!
I love this! It sounds like your DM knocked it out of the park on that one, I love when the party feels so conflicted and so many emotions towards the antagonist! 😊 Also totally agree, Moriarty is SUCH a great example of a nuanced villain!
Silco is definitely one of my favorite examples of the magnificent bastard troupe. Unlike others like Lex Luthor or David Xanathos, you see that he isn't always in control, but the way he presents himself and delivers speeches convinces you otherwise. The loyalty scene when he's about to be assassinated by his own men is a great example of this. Silco is also one of my favorite villains in fiction. The others are N from Pokemon, Adam Neir Automata, and Xana from Code Lyoko. I like N and Adam a lot because they're so committed to their goals there's willing to risk it all to prove a point. N when he battles you to understand why your Pokemon fights, and Adam when he severed himself from the network to become mortal and fight you. Xana is different cause you never see their true form in the show, but every now and then, you get snippets of their personality. Like the episode they pretend to be Jermey or Marabounta
Ooooh that's a really good point! 😊 I think that "seeming in control" but not always BEING in control is one of the things that adds a humanizing factor to him!
One of my favourite villains is Alfred Bester, a psicop from the Babylon 5 series. He loves his people, telepaths. He would do anything for them. He wants the telepaths to rule. One thing you see through the series is how humans treat their telepaths as second class citizens so you feel for them but don't agree with Bester's methods. Walter Koenig provides a wonderful performance of being intimidating despite his short stature.
"I don't wanna be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me." - Francis Costello from The Departed. Perfect fit for a green/black dragon, lich, beholder, fey, and so many more. "I want to take this face... off." A villain who kills and shapechanges into friendly NPCs. PCs don't realize this until they return from a fetch quest from the friendly tavernkeeper, only to find that he had been killed BEFORE they accepted the quest. Perfect for... Jarlaxle, any rakshasa, doppelganger, changeling, or someone wearing the Circlet of Human Perfection.
Ooooh that is SUCH a good quote, you're absolutely right - it can fit SO many different types of antagonists and situations! Also, shapeshifters are always a blast to run! 😊
Walternate from Fringe. He is a mad scientists that is a literal dark reflection of one of the main characters. His motivations initially make it hard to fault him for what he has done. However, that is contrasted with just how far he is willing to go to win. Especially with the experiments he utilizes.
John Ryder (Rutget Hauer) in the film THE HITCHER is an all-timer for me and could be easily adapted into a role-playing game. In my experience, the best rpg villains should either tempt the PCs with power (in an immediate, mechanical sense -- like an awesome glowing sword, a book of otherwise unobtainable spells, etc.) or take precious things away from them (NPCs, magic items, treasure). The first type of villain is good for stirring up shit (perhaps even intra-party conflict) and the second type is an easy way to get instant motivation from the PCs. Sometimes you can combine them! In my current campaign, a vampire was impaled on a magic sword and promised the sword to the PCs for freeing it while also vowing not to harm the PCs. The PCs were unable to kill the vampire and then yoink the sword out, so they agreed. One week of downtime later and there was a triple homicide in the local village taking out beloved and useful NPCs. The victims were exsanguinated. 🙂 They dropped everything they were doing to track that vampire down!
Those are definitely good points! I personally have a tendency of leaning towards that first type, I love watching everyone argue about the best course of action 😂
favorite villains? Maybe Sebastian Shaw which would bring about the whole Hellfire Club, Uncle Charlie from Shadow of a Doubt, the real life Richard III (or at least the one in Shakespeare).
I use the pyramid level of villains for my death cult as it works its way throughout the land. Each tpwn/city has a small group but there are also higher levels that control an area or bigger city with of course the lich controlling all.
i'm a comic book nerd, so i'm looking at Ozymandias (from Watchmen), Black Adam, Sinestro, Gorilla Grodd, and Ultron as villains that could easily be re-skinned for D&D.
The Operative from Serenity... "Do you know what your sin is?" "There's no place for me there... any more than there is for you. Malcolm... I. Am. A. Monster. What I do is evil. I have no illusions about it, but it must be done."
My most hated villain my players have ever met had functional immortality and a ‘time stop’ stop watch so he could monologue at them then teleport away. He was in every session weekly for a year and he was not a powerhouse. The whole campaign was them eliminating his three abilities. Had a show down on a frozen lake called High Moon. Mastermind Rogue Elf Goza Nox is still talked about six years later. Put him in your games.
Ahhhh I can't wait to check it out! Honestly all of the characters are SO well written, I feel like it's a masterclass on flaws! Thanks for the kind words 😊
What villains would you recreate for your D&D games? 🧐
I'm having a hard time placing the 'why', but I've been binging your content and I really appreciate your subjects and your distinct delivery. You deserve way more followers!
For an upcoming feywilds HP/fantasy university campaign I want to do some 3-shots in, I'm excited to make a Snape. Awkward attachment to a part of one of the player's history that they don't know about, the weird mix of love and hate. Little bit of Strahd, little bit of Silco, etc etc.
Ahhhh thank you for the kind words! 😊 And I love that concept, I'm sure it's going to be a blast!
Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars has to be one of my favorites. Over the course of so many movies and even TV shows it's fascinating to watch his brilliant plan be developed, implemented, and finally executed. And by the time anyone realized what was going on, it was far too late to do anything about it. His political, personal, and emotional manipulation is unmatched. He truly is one of the greatest masterminds in fiction.
Interestingly, Darth Vader, who is essentially Palpatine's head crony, is such a vastly different villain. He doesn't have schemes and devices, but is a being of pure power fueled by hatred and sorrow. He sought to save the woman he loved, and in doing so brought about her death. Once the only thing he cared for was gone, there was no stopping his rampage of revenge and destruction. He is absolutely terrifying and I love him for it.
My DM made a villain for our long running campaign that absolutely gutted our party. Had an incredibly sympathetic motivation, had essentially the same goals as the party but was more "fuck it burn everything down" without caring about who was killed along the way. A few of our party members kept fighting to try and convince him to turn off the path he was on, heck, my character (life domain cleric of Boldrei) was killed by him before he was killed a few turns later. So they kinda met up in the grey between life and afterlife and they had a conversation and even then my character was trying to convince him to come back, but he ultimately said he had earned where he was going and didn't really feel remorse. (I also just remembered he had a cat who loved like crazy. So even checked that box haha)
Our whole group was like caught between "ahhh ressurect our cleric," "yay we defeated the villain of a like year long arc," and "Noooooooo why didn't he change his ways?!" Haha.
I think one villain that's always fun to adapt DnD wise, and there's many versions of him, is Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes. I like the BBC series version myself, but pretty much every version of him I've seen/read has always been fun.
Great video, really enjoyed this one! Can't wait to check out more!
I love this! It sounds like your DM knocked it out of the park on that one, I love when the party feels so conflicted and so many emotions towards the antagonist! 😊 Also totally agree, Moriarty is SUCH a great example of a nuanced villain!
Thanks!
Thank youuu 🥹 I was wondering where you were this week - hopefully everything with you is good!
Silco is definitely one of my favorite examples of the magnificent bastard troupe. Unlike others like Lex Luthor or David Xanathos, you see that he isn't always in control, but the way he presents himself and delivers speeches convinces you otherwise. The loyalty scene when he's about to be assassinated by his own men is a great example of this.
Silco is also one of my favorite villains in fiction. The others are N from Pokemon, Adam Neir Automata, and Xana from Code Lyoko. I like N and Adam a lot because they're so committed to their goals there's willing to risk it all to prove a point. N when he battles you to understand why your Pokemon fights, and Adam when he severed himself from the network to become mortal and fight you. Xana is different cause you never see their true form in the show, but every now and then, you get snippets of their personality. Like the episode they pretend to be Jermey or Marabounta
Ooooh that's a really good point! 😊 I think that "seeming in control" but not always BEING in control is one of the things that adds a humanizing factor to him!
One of my favourite villains is Alfred Bester, a psicop from the Babylon 5 series. He loves his people, telepaths. He would do anything for them. He wants the telepaths to rule. One thing you see through the series is how humans treat their telepaths as second class citizens so you feel for them but don't agree with Bester's methods. Walter Koenig provides a wonderful performance of being intimidating despite his short stature.
Definite a solid choice! 😊 Also I think short kings can be just as intimidating! Silco is also in that camp 😂
Magneto energy
"I don't wanna be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me." - Francis Costello from The Departed. Perfect fit for a green/black dragon, lich, beholder, fey, and so many more.
"I want to take this face... off." A villain who kills and shapechanges into friendly NPCs. PCs don't realize this until they return from a fetch quest from the friendly tavernkeeper, only to find that he had been killed BEFORE they accepted the quest. Perfect for... Jarlaxle, any rakshasa, doppelganger, changeling, or someone wearing the Circlet of Human Perfection.
Ooooh that is SUCH a good quote, you're absolutely right - it can fit SO many different types of antagonists and situations! Also, shapeshifters are always a blast to run! 😊
Walternate from Fringe.
He is a mad scientists that is a literal dark reflection of one of the main characters.
His motivations initially make it hard to fault him for what he has done. However, that is contrasted with just how far he is willing to go to win. Especially with the experiments he utilizes.
Oooo I’m unfamiliar with Fringe! Adding it to the list! 😊
John Ryder (Rutget Hauer) in the film THE HITCHER is an all-timer for me and could be easily adapted into a role-playing game.
In my experience, the best rpg villains should either tempt the PCs with power (in an immediate, mechanical sense -- like an awesome glowing sword, a book of otherwise unobtainable spells, etc.) or take precious things away from them (NPCs, magic items, treasure).
The first type of villain is good for stirring up shit (perhaps even intra-party conflict) and the second type is an easy way to get instant motivation from the PCs.
Sometimes you can combine them! In my current campaign, a vampire was impaled on a magic sword and promised the sword to the PCs for freeing it while also vowing not to harm the PCs. The PCs were unable to kill the vampire and then yoink the sword out, so they agreed. One week of downtime later and there was a triple homicide in the local village taking out beloved and useful NPCs. The victims were exsanguinated. 🙂
They dropped everything they were doing to track that vampire down!
Those are definitely good points! I personally have a tendency of leaning towards that first type, I love watching everyone argue about the best course of action 😂
Megabyte, from Reboot! Heck, all the villains: Hexadecimal, Cyrus, Mouse, even Daemon. Lots of different archetypes to work with.
Oooo! I’m unfamiliar- but I already love Frisket 😍
favorite villains? Maybe Sebastian Shaw which would bring about the whole Hellfire Club, Uncle Charlie from Shadow of a Doubt, the real life Richard III (or at least the one in Shakespeare).
Yessss Richard III is an underrated choice!
I use the pyramid level of villains for my death cult as it works its way throughout the land. Each tpwn/city has a small group but there are also higher levels that control an area or bigger city with of course the lich controlling all.
It’s such a good system! I feel like it always keeps things feeling interesting! 😊
i'm a comic book nerd, so i'm looking at Ozymandias (from Watchmen), Black Adam, Sinestro, Gorilla Grodd, and Ultron as villains that could easily be re-skinned for D&D.
Black Adam’s a favorite of mine 😊
The Operative from Serenity... "Do you know what your sin is?"
"There's no place for me there... any more than there is for you. Malcolm...
I. Am. A. Monster. What I do is evil. I have no illusions about it, but it must be done."
Oooooh solid pick! 😊
Roy Batty from Bladerunner.
An icon! And a great chance to incorporate more doves! 😂
I make a really good chicken soup
Make sure to make some for villains in your games! You never know when one of them just really needed some TLC! 😂💕
My most hated villain my players have ever met had functional immortality and a ‘time stop’ stop watch so he could monologue at them then teleport away. He was in every session weekly for a year and he was not a powerhouse. The whole campaign was them eliminating his three abilities. Had a show down on a frozen lake called High Moon. Mastermind Rogue Elf Goza Nox is still talked about six years later. Put him in your games.
Oooooh a showdown on a frozen lake sounds super cinematic! 😍 I love this, it sounds like your players did too!
HEYO! I just made a video about Jinx just like this. Great minds think alike!
I watch your career with great interest.
Ahhhh I can't wait to check it out! Honestly all of the characters are SO well written, I feel like it's a masterclass on flaws! Thanks for the kind words 😊