Need ideas on FR evils campaign

[Nomiker]

I finally had to break down and post of my shame.

I've been lurking here for several weeks now looking for ideas on the evils campaign I will be running soon. (Way too soon)

I have found a lot of stuff that will be helpful once it gets off the ground, but I need help getting started, and haven't found anything as yet that is proving useful. I'm hoping I can find some good ways to start off a Forgotten Realms evils campaign without f-ing it up.

Here are the details thus far:

I will have a mix of good and not-so good roleplayers, including two people who only have a semi-adequate grasp on mechanics and about the same level of ROLEplay aptitude.

It will be taking place somewhere that isn't the Dales or the Sword Coast North (I'm thinking Calimshan or Amn, but not dead set)

There will be a non-duplicative mix of races/classes

We have never played an evils game, and therefore, I have never run an evils game. I want to make it EVIL. I'm going to be an EVIL DM and I'm going to (try to) show them what true EVIL can be. But, I have no idea where to start. The old "You meet in an inn" line won't work and the "Your God has commanded you accompany these people to do this thing" line is beyond cheesy.

Any advice?

 

[Dimenhydrinate]

Evil huh?

Well in FR you could make them part of the Zhents and put them together by command of Fazoul(sp?) or some such.

 

[Derulbaskul]

My suggestion is have them as members of a thieves guild in Calimport and then have a rival guild destroy their guild in the first session. The party can either escape and possibly be hunted down or can seek to become part of the new guild. If they escape, they may fall foul of the drow or the forces of Shar beneath Calimport, or they may make it into the desert where a whole new range of adventures can await. Later adventures may see them seeking revenge or recovery of a particular item: whatever, at least you have options and hooks.

Anyway, IMO, it's a better option than a tavern and one that I can personally vouch for.

Cheers
D

 

[Avarice]

You could always take this to the other edge of Faerun and have them be the toadies of a Red Wizard of Thay. Plenty of good opportunities for strife there as they do battle against the wizard's rivals, renegade slave groups, agents of
Aglarond, etc. Of course if they become too successful, their master may just have to dispose of them himself. Can't have the hired help getting above themselves, now can we?

 

[Utrecht]

Another option is the PC's were supplicants of the God-King Gilgeam of Unther or members of the government, etc.

When Muholrand invaded and "killed" off Gilgeam, the PCs were forced to go underground and are part of the resistance. This resistance group spends as much time fighting the Mulholrundi as punished any collaborators.

I would see politics and Urban adventuring a large part of this - perhaps with the PCs journeying to retrieve an artifact to ressurect Gilgeam - all the while trying to curry favor at the expense of the other PCs and the populance at large.

 

[Enceladus]

They used to have a choice as beginning good guys as to the best course of action to take. Remove this option, as low level evil weenies they have no free will. They will be dominated by a overlord or some badass general that will give them commands to go to things, kill people, raid villages, etc...the bad stuff your old good pc's always had to fight against. Make sure that they know that failure to acomplish these "tasks" is not an option and they will meet with a darth vader like death if they fail. Make that is one of the major character development obstacles to overcome, getting out from under a dominating task master.

Until then enjoy making the worms do your bidding.

 

[Clemmensen]

Beware of evil players

If I were you, I would consider letting the players be evil..
Evil players tend to "do things" good players don't, which at some point always end with the players killing or backstabbing each other.

In my experience, players who has no or little experience with RPGs tend to mess things up a lot, when they play an evil character and in the end, they will ruin the game for themselves and for you, the GM..

One thing is for sure: Evil players will always favor their personal goals to a degree, where their common goal is less important, unless they, as Enceladus said, are forced to concentrate on the common goal, by a person far more powerfull than they.. That is was its all about. Power! This is the tool you should use to control the players..

Evil players also tend to "experiment" with evil things like rape, bloody murders on innocent victims, violence at its worst, animal mutilations and the like, because they often think that these things are "evil".. And if you ask me, then "they are taking a very wrong path", since I guess that your goal isn't a "Blood-fest"..

Evil is a complicated word, so don't use it. Instead use all the words that would somehow fit an "evil" person like: cynical, selfish, mean, cruel, disrespectfull and the like.
Use these words to describe to the players how you would like them to behave. Don't let them use all the words, but let them choose 2 or so, and preferable different ones for each character. This way the characters are becoming individuals, with their own set of thoughts, ideas, goals, personality and so on, and in the end it will be more obvious for them how to be "evil". They will see that they don't have to murderers to be "evil" and that their behavior towards others will "say it all".

As a GM you should use these words too, to make that "evil feeling". Making the players feel they are treated wrong, cheated, disliked and so on, creates that "bitterness" evil players tend to have and will make them feel that "the world is against them and now they will pay back". This might seem stupid at first, but think about a couple of "scenes" in your game that could occur: The landlord in the tavern who refuses to serve them, takes ekstra charge for their beers or just spill the beer without giving the "victimized" character a new one. Add a little commentary like:"Sorry lad. You'd better hold on to that next time..".

Think of scenes where your players really can show the world their "evilness" like how would they react to the little girl who begs for money? The cutpurse who is cought in action? The drunk (and alone) cityguard who yelled at them earlier in front of a lot of people, which was vey humiliating? If you create these scenes it will be easier for the players to find out, "how it is to bed evil" and it will be easier for you to make an "evil" game..

..and then you add that little something that will control them..

Don't let them find a treasure for their own pleasure; They would start fighting each other for it = No adventure.. just dead characters..
Instead let them find a treasure, which they were told to find AND bring back to their employer, who by the way is a really powerfull and evil guy, who enforces the characters own "evil" characteristics on the themselves. his way you can make some very intresting intrigues: Would the thief dare to take a few coins for himselves? Would the warrior tell their employer that he saw it or blackmail the theif?

Intrigue is what playing evil characters is all about? Are your players ready for that? "Evil" characters always "plot" things against others to their own advantage? That's why they are evil, right?

Well, I write a lot (sorry about that ) But in short:

A Roleplaying game with "evil" characters will:

- always deal with intrigue.

- always be about with power and the struggle to obtain it.

- always be about "those feelings we don't like to have in real life".

- always be about "Those actions we do not like to perform in real life".

- have an tendancy to be short-lived campaigns, since evil characters seems to die more often than good.

- be more difficult to master, both for the players and the GM.


I hope that you could use some of the things i mentioned. Perhaps it's all very unclear and confusing, but I hope you at least got idea, of what you are about to start.. "Evil" can be difficult if you don't know how to make it evil..

- Clemmensen

 

[Faustus]

The Shadow Thieves of Athkatyla in Amn is a good place to start and evil campaign. Plenty of intrigue. You can send them on missiions together to get them started. Guards, Cowled Wizards, Knights of the Heart, the Lathanderites, so many good guys tp throw at them.

 

[mseds99]

I f u want more of a "barbaric" evil campaign, I think Thar, near the Moonsea is an excellent place. Chult is very cool, too....some Juan-Ti blood in their veins....

 

[Sertimon]

Hi Nomiker!

I second that Derulbaskul's suggestion! Calimshan is definitely a good place to start an evil campaign in: it’s interesting, different, filled with intrigue and backstabbing. Most "cali****es" are obsessed with wealth which is a perfect motivation for evil characters, and will go through any means to claim it (be it lies, murder or blackmail). Slavery is also quiet common and Calimshan also has an extensive underworld network.

One way to pull them together is perhaps to have them put to slavery, and as they are to be taken to the Bazaar/Marketplace they are "rescued" by some guild of a kind. Then the "former slaves" are forced to work for this guild. Let the guildmaster or however is in charge make it clear that they "owe" their freedom to this man/women. They will do as he/she says or be destroyed. Just to show your point (and that the guildmaster means business), it might help to give them an example by killing one of the "other slaves" or one of the guildmaster's guards: "As my guards, you are replaceable. As long as you are indebt to me, you will abide to my rules and my orders. My agents will be watching you, so do not ever think about crossing me. Follow Haseid yn Basha and he will provide you with equipment and weapons."

Or something along those lines ...