morally ambiguous antiheroes?

[Ysgarran]

I was reading the 'Champions of Ruin' blurb on the WotC and read this:

'you will discover everything players and Dungeon Masters need to create the most evil organizations, treacherous villains, and morally ambiguous antiheroes.'

My first thought that WotC has not displayed much talent in writing good 'morally ambiguous antiheroes.'. I thought that the Shadowbane prestige classes were a start in this direction.

My favorite NPC archetype or protoganist for my players is the one that the characters like on a personal level but still need to fight for reasons of religion, racial identity or other reason that does not break down strictly along the good/evil axis.

Are there any characters (NPCs) in the WotC realm that fit the bill of 'morally ambiguous antiheroes.'? Good examples from other campaign worlds would be interesting. Who does this the best? It seemed that the 'Black Company' book might one place. Is it?

later,
Ysgarran.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

It seemed that the 'Black Company' book might one place. Is it?

That would be one place to look, yes.

Hollofaust is another. The idea is that it is a city of necromancers who are good. But they're basically mostly good. Lots of moral ambiguity here.

 

[Shemeska]

Are there any characters (NPCs) in the WotC realm that fit the bill of 'morally ambiguous antiheroes.'? Good examples from other campaign worlds would be interesting. Who does this the best? It seemed that the 'Black Company' book might one place. Is it?

later,
Ysgarran.

Any of the characters from the 'War of the Spider Queen' novels. And given that they're in FR it seems relevant to mention. That said the Realms, and the Realms' novels have done better with respect to realistic antiheros in 3rd ed versus core books by and large.

Going back an edition I think that Planescape and Ravenloft (both 2e TSR and the 3e version) dripped with antiheroes and tragic heroes. With the former, Duke Rowan Darkwood of the Fated was probably the single most reviled person in Sigil in the end but a cult of personality almost before his end. And despite all that he does I have to respect the guy for what he has to endure and what his ultimate fate was. But Planescape was all about moral ambiguety straddled in between ultimates of good, evil, law and chaos. Evil could rise and good could be flawed to the core and more often it was a clash of philosophies or of law/chaos than it was a simple clash of perfect good and perfect evil.

While I'm less familiar with the NPCs of Ravenloft, I think the setting speaks for itself.

I'll second that mention of Hollowfaust. It was a really nice twist on the standard necromancer deal.

I like morally ambiguous heros and PCs. My last campaign/1st storyhour was a mix of good and neutral including a fallen celestial (who did not start out as fallen). And there were a number of 'good' people that turned out to ultimately stab their comrades in the back, and some 'evil' folks who ended up being allies of conveniance.

My current campaign/2nd storyhour is even more along those lines with, I think, only one PC actually being good, and one of them being full blown evil. Add in a celestial/fiend hybrid who is rather precariously balanced between conflicting inner natures and it's been fun so far.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Elric of Melnibone

Kane (Karl Edgard Wagner) Two books collect his work about Kane. One of the best anti-heroes (villains) who isn't stupid, and isn't too much of a whinner.

Artemis Entreri (probably spelled that wrong) Evil man...

I'm sure there are others. Heck, in many aspects, Conan, as originally written, is very selfish and out for himself, not the 'common good'.

 

[Vraille Darkfang]

Elric of Melnibone

Artemis Entreri (probably spelled that wrong) Evil man...

Many of Moorcock's aspect of the Eternal Champion are antiheroes to one degree or another.

Jaraxle of Bregan D'ereth (?) makes a better antihero than Artemis in my opinion. Artemis is better as a straight out villian.

I supposes you could claim Raistlin from dragonlance as an antihero.

Volo from FR is obviously anti-hero (as in opposite of hero).

Warhammer novels have a lot of anit-heroes in them.

 

[Allandaros]

Elric's already been mentioned, I see. Good...good. Also look up the various Princes of Amber (Roger Zelazny) and the earlier Fafhrd and Grey Mouser book (Fritz Leiber). Heck, if you're running any sort of fantasy game, you should read Fritz Leiber.

 

[ThirdWizard]

Stephen King's protagonist from The Gunslinger, Roland, is a good example of an anti-hero in literature.