Need Help With An Evil PC

[BeaniBum]

So I'm running a homebrew campaign and in it one of the pcs decided to make a deal and work for the campaigns antagonist. He plans on killing the entire group but went at it poorly and he is essentially discovered. I need a way to keep him in the campaign but still be evil and try to kill the group. Any Ideas?


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[hastur_nz]

Personally I've made that the point where the PC becomes an NPC, and the player and I work out how they can run a new PC. The initial plotting, and betrayal, can be fun, but once the other PC's are onto them, that evil PC should be marked for death as per all the other evil NPCs they encounter, so it's generally more fun for everyone to hand that PC over to the DM, so they can add to the antagonist's set of minions...
That fits your idea - the character can still be evil and try to kill the group, just under the control of the DM.
Trying to keep the Evil PC under player control, when the other players know he/she is working for the enemy, feels like it would stretch credibility and not be especially fun, especially long term.

 

[BeaniBum]

Hmm I see how that would be easiest for me to control the evil pc but the character want to be evil even in a new character so is there a way to trick the other pcs to think that he is good while evil like have him possess a loved character only to the pcs despair to find out that he actually is his old evil character or some other idea?


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[Oofta]

If this ever happened in my campaign, the PC would become an evil NPC. There is virtually no way the rest of the group would, or should be forced to accept the turncoat. There is rarely any reason they would not just kill him outright - he's now proven himself to be evil and therefore justifiably target of PC murder hobos.

Short of powerful magic to force the PC to behave, why would the rest of the group not kill him?

 

[BeaniBum]

Oh no he is going to die but is there a way to trick the players with a different character have him act good and at the end have a big dramatic reveal as his original character


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[hastur_nz]

Yeah, if the player is going to always want to play an evil PC, what about the other players, is that fun for them too? Sounds like the other players will quickly realise that this player is always going to be working at cross-purposes to them... I struggle to see how that's a fun long-term proposition.

 

[Illithidbix]

I've seen times when Evil characters and Player vs Player conflict can be fun, but I've seen plenty of other times when it hasn't and simply broken games.

Basically, if anyone side is going to be invested in "winning" rather than just enjoying the mutual self-destructive carnage then it will probably end up with some bitterness.

If anyone simply doesn't like the possibility of another character being antagonistically evil at the rest of the party (rather than being ruthless *for the aims of the party*) then it is almost certainly going to end up unfun for someone.

 

[Oofta]

Yeah, if the player is going to always want to play an evil PC, what about the other players, is that fun for them too? Sounds like the other players will quickly realise that this player is always going to be working at cross-purposes to them... I struggle to see how that's a fun long-term proposition.

I have a simple rule for my players: don't play a jerk. Trying to kill of other PCs makes you a jerk (although it is not the only way).

If people want a free-for-all-stab-each-other-in-the-back campaign that's fine, but everyone has to be OK with it.

 

[cmad1977]

Let the group kill him and then have him make a character NOT INTENT ON RUINING THE GAME for the other players at the table.


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[pukunui]

I've never particularly enjoyed PvP. In my experience, it hardly ever ends well.

Remember that D&D is a cooperative game. The basic premise is that each player is playing a character that will work with the other characters, not against them. If you want to change it up, I'd check with the other players first. How did they react to this initial PC betrayal? That should give you some idea how they might take a second one.

I would avoid letting this become a regular thing, as it could have bad long-term consequences for your group's cohesion. At the very least, it'll mean that the bulk of your players will never trust that other player whose characters keep turning traitor.