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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jack7" data-source="post: 4634502" data-attributes="member: 54707">I like much of the advice given so far.I'm gonna suggest though both strategic and tactical rivalries and adversaries.In my setting Phae rivalries are built in to the background. As part of the milieu. Politically, socially, economically, culturally, religiously.The Byzantines are rivals of the Persians and the Bulgars. And the Goths. The Bulgars of the Russians. The Persians of the Muslims. The Muslims of the Christians. The Italians of the Byzantines, the Vikings of the Byzantines. War and politics and religion make for immensely good sources of long running an deep seated rivalries and animosities. And having characters and players get involved in situations like that make for enormously good rivalries. That's strategic rivalry.On a tactical level you can develop organizations that are directly opposed to the aims and natures of your characters. For instance in my world there was an Anti-Pope who developed his own military arm named the Dragoons. During his reign he instituted a purge of the Cavaliers, Paladins, and Rangers in the West. The Cavaliers were nearly wiped out, the Paladins all retreated to the Franks, and the Rangers went into hiding. After the anti-pope was overthrown and the real pope re-established the Dragoons went into hiding, and now hope to re-establish their own base of influence by trying to finish off the Paladins, becoming influential in the court of Charlemagne, and then putting a new anti-pope into office. That situation has led to intense and bitter rivalries between the Dragoons and the Paladins, the Cavaliers (who now exist as a secret, underground organization) and the Rangers, many of whom have fled to Eastern Europe or the Byzantine Empire and taken up life as frontiers lawmen and scouts. Anytime Dragoons encounter Paladins, Cavaliers, or Rangers there is bitter and instant rivalry and opposition the one to the other, and it also makes for very interesting political maneuvers in Constantinople, in the Frankish Empire, and among many cities in Italy. That kind of thing also makes for an historical rivalry that intrinsically has both strategic and tactical elements. When you tie political, religious and cultural dispute directly to the organizations that players and characters are involved in then rivalries become a natural part of the background and "character life."The Druids are rivals of the Church. Bards often admire both some clergymen, especially monks who maintain historical records and train bards in history, and often train under Druids for other matters. Yet many clergymen and Druids clash for obvious reasons. So getting caught in the middle of rivalry, especially  a bitter or dangerous one is often a great source of on-going character conflict.Otherwise, tactically speaking I often use sabotage, and infiltration. I infiltrate an organization or government or so forth that the party works for or is related to or associated with in some way, and then if it works as planned the spy or agent is gone before the players even know what happened. Finding out later they were duped or infiltrated makes the players want to get at the spy even when they don't know who he is. And on-going rivalry with a built in mystery is developed. It has been both my gaming and real world experience that a dangerous and unknown enemy often makes for the very most interesting and challenging kind of rival and adversary one can possibly imagine.Sabotage works in the same fashion. Players often despise a successful saboteur especially one that puts them in direct danger repeatedly. Make the saboteur an already hated enemy, like a Dragoon or a really shrewd Persian agent, and that's doubly effective.Theft rings, or thieves preying upon the party or their interests, and hostage taking are excellent maneuvers. Kidnap or abduct a family member, child, friend, employer, or even a party member. Rivalries develop quickly that way.If you want really good rivalries, enemies, NPC opponents, monsters, etc, there are many ways you can create both strategic and tactical adversaries. Strategic rivalries provide a large-scale, generalized backdrop of national, political, religious, and cultural interests, and tactical rivalries make strategic rivalries come alive at the level of the individual.Just do it like it happens in the real world. Look at what your players and characters are attached to and what their interest are, and then develop counter-organizations, operatives, agents, powers, governments, religions, and forces to work against those interests, both strategically and tactically. Good luck.</blockquote>

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