Recurring Villains
- Thread starter Quickleaf
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Ryujin
Legend
Yup, I've used them. The best way to handle a foil like that, is to start with him being the puppet master; always pulling strings from the background. At Heroic levels the characters could never hope to take him on, so they work to foil his hired thugs.
He might start to make the odd appearance, at Paragon levels, only to stick his head in to say, "Finish them!" before disappearing back to his lair. He makes a good tool to set the stage for a combat, waving his hand and transforming the landscape to better suit his henchmen's attempt to destroy the party. For the most part, though, he is still just a name whispered by dying opponents. My favourite, hoary old and trite line is to have captured enemies mysteriously die the moment that they say his name.
Epic is when the BBEG truly starts to notice the party, and take a personal hand in eliminating them. His "Evil Plan" (tm, patent pending) is always foremost in his mind, but he isn't above taking a few minutes to have his closest associates take on the party. He is still far too smart, to risk his own skin, but he might take active part in a combat for a couple of rounds. He always has a contingency for escape.
Final levels are when the "Evil Plan" is almost ripe, when he can't just walk away and is most vulnerable. Now he MUST stand and fight, or everything that he's planned for is for nought.
He might start to make the odd appearance, at Paragon levels, only to stick his head in to say, "Finish them!" before disappearing back to his lair. He makes a good tool to set the stage for a combat, waving his hand and transforming the landscape to better suit his henchmen's attempt to destroy the party. For the most part, though, he is still just a name whispered by dying opponents. My favourite, hoary old and trite line is to have captured enemies mysteriously die the moment that they say his name.
Epic is when the BBEG truly starts to notice the party, and take a personal hand in eliminating them. His "Evil Plan" (tm, patent pending) is always foremost in his mind, but he isn't above taking a few minutes to have his closest associates take on the party. He is still far too smart, to risk his own skin, but he might take active part in a combat for a couple of rounds. He always has a contingency for escape.
Final levels are when the "Evil Plan" is almost ripe, when he can't just walk away and is most vulnerable. Now he MUST stand and fight, or everything that he's planned for is for nought.
Ryujin
Legend
... or his plan, all along, was to BECOME a Demon Lord, Arch Fiend, Arch Fey, minor diety, Lich Lord........
Getting back to the issue of Have I used them? (since I failed to answer it above), I have.
One recurring villain that works well and is (kinda) human is the vampire. Sure, vampires lost some of their bite in 4th Ed. imo, but they can still easily reapper. The nice thing about vampires is that you can let the party fight them multiple times, even "beating" them, but still leave the villain with an out.
However, as others have said, for a more traditional humanoid villain, the best approach is usually to let the PCs fight their organization. Sure, they know that they are fighting the Dark Lord's organization, which means they are fighting him (or her), but they just don't get the chance to deal with the BBEG directly until near the end.
One recurring villain that works well and is (kinda) human is the vampire. Sure, vampires lost some of their bite in 4th Ed. imo, but they can still easily reapper. The nice thing about vampires is that you can let the party fight them multiple times, even "beating" them, but still leave the villain with an out.
However, as others have said, for a more traditional humanoid villain, the best approach is usually to let the PCs fight their organization. Sure, they know that they are fighting the Dark Lord's organization, which means they are fighting him (or her), but they just don't get the chance to deal with the BBEG directly until near the end.
JoeGKushner
Adventurer
I realize that, to some extent, the difficulty of a monster is determined by the DM's needs. However, epic solos seem to be awe-inspiring creatures of vast power: archdevils, archfey, demon princes, primordials, gods, ancient dragons, that sort of thing. How do you justify, narrative-wise, a human acting as a solo monster?
I agree 100%.
The other thing to remember, and this may strike some as odd, is that the reoccuring villain himself doesn't necessarily need to be powerful. When I just finished Elizabeth Moon's Sheepfarmer's Daughter, the main villain, "Honeycat" (love those crazy mercenary names) is in charge of vast resources and has various powerful allies.
Personal power? Not so much.
In the Superman revamp headed by John Bryne in the 80's, Superman's main foe Lex Luthor went from a power suit wearing lunatic to a corporate millonaire genius. This gave him access to things that would make him a menance to Superman but keept him out of Superman's reach.
Power takes many forms.
Quickleaf
Legend
With all the great comments it seems like there's maybe 10 common ways DMs keep recurring villains alive...
Indirect Confrontation: The easiest way to keep a villain alive is to keep them off camera. While the PCs may know about and hate the ultimate villain, they don’t have an actual confrontation with him until the end, instead dealing with proxies as they foil the villain’s plots. Is he a non-combatant with political power that makes him untouchable? Is she a dark overlord of vast power? Or is the villain found/imprisoned somewhere, like another plane?
Ambiguous Villain: It’s unclear just how villainous the villain is. This works best for tragic or sympathetic villains with a sense of honor. Only at the end of the campaign do they show their true face, at which point the PCs may try to redeem, kill, or even rescue them. At various points throughout the campaign, the villain may ally with the PCs to accomplish a mutual goal (though they’d best sleep with one eye open), and a canny villain may play on this dynamic.
Unknown Villain: The villain’s identity is a mystery to be unraveled over the course of the campaign. There should be two or three strong suspects at the end for the PCs to deduce which is the true villain. Several plot twists work here. Maybe it’s a conspiracy and all of the suspects are in on it? Maybe the villain has a change of heart by the time the PCs catch up with him, and now seeks to undo his “mistake”? Maybe the villain doesn’t even realize they’re the villain? For example, a man cursed as a werewolf, a woman possessed by a spirit, or a villain who suffers amnesia or multiple personalities.
Foolproof Escape: The villain devised the perfect means of escape and there’s nothing the PCs can do to prevent it. To avoid feeling forced, this should be hinted at during the campaign, or even outright revealed prior to the confrontation. For example, the villain’s spirit leaps into a new body when they die, the villain possesses an artifact granting mastery over magic portals, or the villain anticipates excessive reinforcement showing up.
There Was No Body: Nobody could possibly have survived that! In the heat of battle the villain “dies” in an explosion, falls off a cliff, drowns in a stormy sea, is buried in an avalanche or cave-in, is swallowed by a portal mishap, etc. However, no one finds a body, and the villain lives to vex the PCs another day.
Special Condition: Villain can’t be killed for good except under specific circumstances, like slain by a blessed weapon, or destroying a phylactery.
Transformation: In the words of Obi Wan Kenobi: “Kill me now and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.” The villain returns as an undead vampire or lich, is recruited into Asmodeus’ infernal army, undergoes divine apotheosis, or otherwise sheds their mortality.
Decoy: To quote Spaceballs: “You fools! These are their stunt doubles!” It wasn’t actually the villain the PCs killed, but a twin, clone, doppelganger, etc. To prevent this from feeling heavy-handed, you’ll want to drop clues during the campaign that suggest the villain has a decoy (or at least is thinking along those lines). This could be as simple as a prince who places a look-alike in his wagon, concerned that he could be the target of an assassination plot.
Dire Repercussions: Killing the villain is worse than keeping them alive, and can lead to tragic consequences. PCs trying to kill a noble or government official would be accused of treason without hard evidence. A zealous villain could become a martyr for his cause, making his followers more numerous and powerful, unless the PCs first weaken his cause. Or perhaps the villain is the only person keeping control of something dangerous, so the PCs must find a way to contain/eliminate the threat on their own first
A Fate Worse Than Death: Perhaps it is the villain’s own doing, or perhaps the vengeful PCs are responsible, but the villain suffers a fate worse than death. Usually this is a player-initiated situation, but a DM could suggest it as a possibility through NPCs. Perhaps they’re trapped inside a nightmarish demi-plane for eternity? Or maybe they’re “rehabilitated” against their will to become good? Or perhaps they’re simply left disgraced and destitute? Or do they spend their remaining days in an insane asylum muttering the heroes’ names?
Indirect Confrontation: The easiest way to keep a villain alive is to keep them off camera. While the PCs may know about and hate the ultimate villain, they don’t have an actual confrontation with him until the end, instead dealing with proxies as they foil the villain’s plots. Is he a non-combatant with political power that makes him untouchable? Is she a dark overlord of vast power? Or is the villain found/imprisoned somewhere, like another plane?
Ambiguous Villain: It’s unclear just how villainous the villain is. This works best for tragic or sympathetic villains with a sense of honor. Only at the end of the campaign do they show their true face, at which point the PCs may try to redeem, kill, or even rescue them. At various points throughout the campaign, the villain may ally with the PCs to accomplish a mutual goal (though they’d best sleep with one eye open), and a canny villain may play on this dynamic.
Unknown Villain: The villain’s identity is a mystery to be unraveled over the course of the campaign. There should be two or three strong suspects at the end for the PCs to deduce which is the true villain. Several plot twists work here. Maybe it’s a conspiracy and all of the suspects are in on it? Maybe the villain has a change of heart by the time the PCs catch up with him, and now seeks to undo his “mistake”? Maybe the villain doesn’t even realize they’re the villain? For example, a man cursed as a werewolf, a woman possessed by a spirit, or a villain who suffers amnesia or multiple personalities.
Foolproof Escape: The villain devised the perfect means of escape and there’s nothing the PCs can do to prevent it. To avoid feeling forced, this should be hinted at during the campaign, or even outright revealed prior to the confrontation. For example, the villain’s spirit leaps into a new body when they die, the villain possesses an artifact granting mastery over magic portals, or the villain anticipates excessive reinforcement showing up.
There Was No Body: Nobody could possibly have survived that! In the heat of battle the villain “dies” in an explosion, falls off a cliff, drowns in a stormy sea, is buried in an avalanche or cave-in, is swallowed by a portal mishap, etc. However, no one finds a body, and the villain lives to vex the PCs another day.
Special Condition: Villain can’t be killed for good except under specific circumstances, like slain by a blessed weapon, or destroying a phylactery.
Transformation: In the words of Obi Wan Kenobi: “Kill me now and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.” The villain returns as an undead vampire or lich, is recruited into Asmodeus’ infernal army, undergoes divine apotheosis, or otherwise sheds their mortality.
Decoy: To quote Spaceballs: “You fools! These are their stunt doubles!” It wasn’t actually the villain the PCs killed, but a twin, clone, doppelganger, etc. To prevent this from feeling heavy-handed, you’ll want to drop clues during the campaign that suggest the villain has a decoy (or at least is thinking along those lines). This could be as simple as a prince who places a look-alike in his wagon, concerned that he could be the target of an assassination plot.
Dire Repercussions: Killing the villain is worse than keeping them alive, and can lead to tragic consequences. PCs trying to kill a noble or government official would be accused of treason without hard evidence. A zealous villain could become a martyr for his cause, making his followers more numerous and powerful, unless the PCs first weaken his cause. Or perhaps the villain is the only person keeping control of something dangerous, so the PCs must find a way to contain/eliminate the threat on their own first
A Fate Worse Than Death: Perhaps it is the villain’s own doing, or perhaps the vengeful PCs are responsible, but the villain suffers a fate worse than death. Usually this is a player-initiated situation, but a DM could suggest it as a possibility through NPCs. Perhaps they’re trapped inside a nightmarish demi-plane for eternity? Or maybe they’re “rehabilitated” against their will to become good? Or perhaps they’re simply left disgraced and destitute? Or do they spend their remaining days in an insane asylum muttering the heroes’ names?
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