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<blockquote data-quote="Eyada" data-source="post: 4358752" data-attributes="member: 59589"><p>5) <strong>Have them be a source of PC guilt.</strong> (Note: This is a tactic that should be used sparingly to preserve its potency.) Nothing makes the villainy of a BBEG more memorable to the players than when the players are responsible for enabling the BBEG to do all those evil things in the first place. Traditional Fantasy is awash with tales of people stirring up dark things best left alone while exploring places that weren't meant to be explored --a trope that is just begging to be used in a game where the protaginists spend the majority of their time poking around in places they shouldn't be. </p><p></p><p>The ancient, formerly-bound Demon rampaging through the world after the runic circles maintaining its prison were scuffed away by the careless foot of the party's Rogue; a beautiful, seemingly innocent woman revived by the heroes who turns out to be an ancient, mighty practitioner of fell magic who had been slain so long ago she had practically been forgotten by history; or an ancient force of pure elemental evil, sealed away long ago by a now-dead God during the ancient war between the Primordials and the Gods, released onto the world when the heroes unwittingly weaken its prison while delving into ancient ruins --all typical examples of this type of BBEG.</p><p></p><p>When used sparingly, they can be memorable. If overused, it can lead to feelings of railroading ("I don't want to go into the ruins, because the DM still hasn't introduced the main villain yet, so it's probably down there, imprisoned, waiting for us to set it free so it can cause destruction.").</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Eyada, post: 4358752, member: 59589"] 5) [B]Have them be a source of PC guilt.[/B] (Note: This is a tactic that should be used sparingly to preserve its potency.) Nothing makes the villainy of a BBEG more memorable to the players than when the players are responsible for enabling the BBEG to do all those evil things in the first place. Traditional Fantasy is awash with tales of people stirring up dark things best left alone while exploring places that weren't meant to be explored --a trope that is just begging to be used in a game where the protaginists spend the majority of their time poking around in places they shouldn't be. The ancient, formerly-bound Demon rampaging through the world after the runic circles maintaining its prison were scuffed away by the careless foot of the party's Rogue; a beautiful, seemingly innocent woman revived by the heroes who turns out to be an ancient, mighty practitioner of fell magic who had been slain so long ago she had practically been forgotten by history; or an ancient force of pure elemental evil, sealed away long ago by a now-dead God during the ancient war between the Primordials and the Gods, released onto the world when the heroes unwittingly weaken its prison while delving into ancient ruins --all typical examples of this type of BBEG. When used sparingly, they can be memorable. If overused, it can lead to feelings of railroading ("I don't want to go into the ruins, because the DM still hasn't introduced the main villain yet, so it's probably down there, imprisoned, waiting for us to set it free so it can cause destruction."). [/QUOTE]
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