Chaotic Evil Party, Help!

[Mr.Panda]

Howdy people. So I've been Dming for many years. But I've never had a Chaotic Evil party before. These folks are truly chaotic evil, I started them out with no alignment and told them I'd assign alignment after a few sessions. Well wouldn't ya know it, all they wanna do is team up with the Hobgoblins and destroy and loot each town they come across (then kill the hobgoblins). They rob and kill friend and foe a like. And damn near each other at times. So any one have any advise on what kind of approach I should take to Dming for this sort of party? Obviously the "there be the dungeon" thing is out cause they prefer to attack the defenseless and unsuspecting. I figured just having a reference like a Volo's guide for lots of towns and saying "ok guys, whatcha doin today?" Any advice would be appreciated!

 

[Mesh Hong]

Go after them with the Good Guys, the game is pretty much the same as usual but instead of you being the Big Bad Evil Guy, you are now the Big Bad Good Guy.

The basic premise will also have to be turned around, instead of the party reacting to the plan of the BBEG, they will probably be setting the agenda and will have their own master plan (or whimsical chaotic rampage). So you as the good guys will be reacting to their plan and trying to stop them. Mechanically there isn't really that much difference.

Show them the brutal power of people who know they are better than the PCs and have the backing of the civilised world.

Show them the tenacity, zeal and determination of good aligned adventurers hell bent on saving the world from them.

Hunt them down with an order of Paladins whose religious duty is to battle evil. Use every advantage you can justify to crush them.

In short let them be as evil as they want, let them have fun burning their allies and resources in chaotic double dealing and backstabbing. Then let them realise that the forces of good have organisation, civilisation and co-operation on their side, all of which are not easily beaten. Show them why it is most common for good to triumph over evil.

 

[Hand of Evil]

Just remember, that for every action there is a reaction. The party should have a bounty on their heads and be pissing th powers that be (good & evil) off, as they monkey wrench plans. Lawful evil hates chaos as much as Lawful good!

 

[Mallus]

Show them why it is most common for good to triumph over evil.

That depends on what you're using for inspiration, doesn't it?

I'd do everything Mesh Hong said --so long as you're having fun running a game villains-- but make sure it's a fair fight along the way. Resist the urge to demonstrate why good always triumphs over evil. First off, because it doesn't, and second, because playing with the deck stacked too much against your favor is no fun, especially in a game where players invest months, even years of real-time.

 

[Gilladian]

Evaluate first whether or not you want to continue with this game. Is it fun for you? Are the players having fun? Or are they getting sick of their rampage yet? If their pattern of turning against each other continues, you may find they let their in game disputes spill out into real life. Be careful to nip this in the bud, if it happens. You don't want to lose half your gaming group.

Personally, this would so turn me off as a DM, that I'd be dropping the game.

 

[Doug McCrae]

I think the problem with attacking towns is that they're just not as interesting as dungeons. The solution I would advocate is to explain this to the players. Ask them to work with you to make the game fun. Trying to win the game is all very well, but it can get out of hand.

 

[Mesh Hong]

I'd do everything Mesh Hong said --so long as you're having fun running a game villains-- but make sure it's a fair fight along the way. Resist the urge to demonstrate why good always triumphs over evil. First off, because it doesn't, and second, because playing with the deck stacked too much against your favor is no fun, especially in a game where players invest months, even years of real-time.

Yes, I probably got a bit carried away with the tone of my post.

Of course I would always assume that the same principles of Fun and Fairness were applied exactly the same as in a normal game.

But I would recommend that you don't pull any punches, the evil group certainly won't.

I would also have a quick word with your group to see how they expect the campaign to develop. They might actually expect their characters to go out in a blaze of glory.......you never know

 

[Doug McCrae]

They might actually expect their characters to go out in a blaze of glory.......you never know

There's definitely an appeal to a 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' style ending.

 

[Camelot]

Do you want them to be evil? You can try to persuade them in game to change heart before its too late. This is a really good idea for showing your players that evil is not a good choice, while still letting them "win:"

http://www.enworld.org/forum/blogs/juergen-hubert/920-path-evil.html

Basically, you give them the option to do evil things, while also giving them the option to do what's right, but if they always choose evil, then they become hated by the world and turn out to be the harbingers of a thousand years of darkness. Which sucks, but can still be fun.

 

[Dausuul]

Well, as others have said, the first question is: Do you have any intrinsic objection to running for a CE party? If not, carry on. If so, sit your players down for a chat.

Assuming you choose to carry on, keep in mind that what the players do, acting in character, is not a surefire guide to what they want or what will make the game fun for them. For instance, whenever I send a party on a "save the world" quest, they invariably go to all the powerful good NPCs they can think of and try to recruit them. They do so because it's the logical thing to do in character... but if they actually succeeded at recruiting one of these bad-ass NPCs, they would hate the result (the big NPC does the important stuff while they do side missions). So I design all my powerful good NPCs to be non-recruitable for one reason or another, although they do provide some assistance so the players don't feel their time was wasted.

I suggest that your PCs' propensity for attacking defenseless towns is likely the same thing. Going after weak and vulnerable prey is perfectly sensible behavior, as any predator can tell you. But that doesn't mean the players will have fun if the game consists of nothing but pushover fights. Push back! The suggestion to have an order of paladins start hunting them down is a good one.

For a long-term campaign arc, I recommend tantalizing the players with the lure of Phenomenal Cosmic Power. For bonus points, design the PCP so that obtaining it requires exactly as many people as the party currently has members; this ought to cut down on backstabbing a bit.