Villian Redemption

[Angelsboi]

Ok so i have this NPC who was always one step ahead of the PCs. Her name was My'ria and she followed Vaath. The God of Plagues and Pestilence. Vaath is seen as an obese god who can never eat and is always hungry, or a small boy who is very anorexic and cant get enough to eat.

Worshippers of Vaath usually take on one of the two forms. My'ria took on the anorexic role. She was betrayed by one of the villians and she was upset and decided to help the PCs. She is Neutral Evil.

Anywho, at the end of this last adventure, one of the PCs, a rake, confronted her and they had a very deep and meaningful conversation. The PCs were liking her as a villian, but now, they were sympathetic to her.

She is a 5th level Ex-druid, 1st level Blighter with a twist. You know how Blighters need to deforrest to use their new abilities? Well i added a new twist. She cant touch anything living, or, she accelerates the rot already in place. She can never eat and never touch anything thats alive.

As she walked away from said PC, she said she loved lily's. They were her favorite.

I want her to change. I hink the group wants to see her change too. Ive never created a villian with so much depth. She was supposed to be an annoyance, but she's grown into something MUCH more. And now, one PC, who has a difficult life, has gotten worse.

His brother was married to a girl. Sandor, the PC, slept with Myrranda and got her pregnant. Sandor's brother died and now Myrranda and Sandor are now married, the way it should have been. But Sandor is feeling something toward My'ria.

Interesting huh?

So ... if she turns her back on being a Blighter, how does that affect her 1 level of the Blighter? Its not going to be an easy journey, but she will change.

But how? Suggestions?

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

Maybe, over time, instead of her touch corrupting and destroying things it begins to make them grow? This would have to be accompanied by a shift in beliefs and so forth...

Keep the one level of Blighter as is, so that when she gets mad or similar her 'darker side' can slip out. But create a new PrC that mirrors the Blighter.

 

[The Forsaken One]

That idea is just gold I'm gonna do something with that in my campaign

Something like can cast awaken on a plant once a day at 10th level by touching it. Or something.

And have her touch awaken things at low level but just for a short while. Like for several rounds or for several minutes.

Her touch could create temporaty treants from trees around her or something. Sounds nice as I go on making stuff up about it

Thanks Tallarn

 

[Angelsboi]

Thanks for the ideas.

So what you are saying is let her have both druid and blighter levels? Only allow her to use the Blighter levels when she goes 'evil'?

 

[Angelsboi]

bump.

74 reads and only 2 responses. Im sure other people have suggestions hrm?

 

[John Crichton]

You could allow her to drop the level of Blighter and take a level of something else if she atones in some great way. The abilities of the class would stay until she gained enough XP to "replace" the level with something else (probably druid). But in order to do it she must agree to a geas or have someone cast an atonement spell if she proved she was truley worthy. Perhaps imposing a penalty such as the level of Blighter comes back (and the level that replaced it dissappears permanently; one time deal) with a vengence if she ever attempts to use her darker abilities again.

Honestly, I don't know how I would stat it out, but it would be neat to see the character try to make such an atonement. It wouldn't grant any special abilities right away (as mentioned above), but it would remove the chance of her doing further harm in the future.

You could also have her need to repair all the damage she has done over the years. You could even require that the character die (I hope you see where I am going with this) and be resurrected/raised. This assumes that someone goodly cares enough for her to go thru the trouble of such a thing. This would remove the curse she has with the rot (and in the process get rid of that pesky level of Blighter).

Tis a rebirth theme.

 

[Angelsboi]

Interesting John.

The first 'season' was an 11 story arc about a plague and getting to know the characters.

I just relieved the party of a NPC who they were dependent on and now it appears as if he has gone 'Dark Phoenix' but no one knows for sure.

The 1st seasons theme was loss.

the 2nd seasons theme is redemption. Season number 2 has a 22 story arc so it should be quite the journey.

Im thinking maybe a phoenix? Maybe she is reincarnated into a phoenix ...

 

[Arken]

Really cool campaign , Now a few ideas since thats what you're after...everything is purely suggestion and IMHO, don't take any offence or anything

Thought 1: If you were to give her a 'rebirth' into a figure like a phoenix I would postpone that until very close to the end of the story arc, it's particularly dramatic, might change what the players like about her, and doing it too soon deprives you the chance to play her character through redemption. That ebing said the phoenix idea is cool and brilliant.

Thought 2: If you were to give her a 'rebirth' into a figure like a phoenix then you are making a movement from a blighted figure to a pure figure. Perhaps she should never reach true purity until the point she changes, as a tortured character she can be interesting and a sympathetic figure.

Thought 3: To redeem herself I wouldn't go with quiet contemplation or similar as it isn't very dynamic . I'd aim for a more tortured playing out of events.

Now some actual plot ideas, sorry for waffling

1. She could be a figure of key cosmic importance to Vaath (his child, an innocent soul that if corrupted gives huge power, destined to be the srongest servant in history etc.) This gives a reason for her redemption to be of importance.

2. Vaath might try to reclaim her soul by sending an avatar (the anorexic child) and posing one that needs her help. She could identify with teh child and care for it which gives Vaath a way to claim her back.

3. You could have her take to feeding the poor, one day something terrible happens (massacre of the poor she helps, death of a person that has been of key importnace to her)because of actions of her old religion turning her back to either despair or anger.

4. She might, in despair, at some point throw herself against the full might of Vaath's religious institution as an act of suicide.

5. Her rebirth as a phoenix could be a final release freeing her from the clutches of Vaath. Perhaps being a channel for Vaath's power at a key climax adventure (in a Dark temple or castle) to gain power/destroy the world. The PCs have to choose to destroy her, she'll beg them. Afterwards she can be reborn, leave it long enough that they think she is actually dead.

6. You could perhaps have her soul grow purer but be unable, come what way, to stop her blighter powers growing because of Vaath's concentration on her. she is then torn between being a better spiritually whilst being more corrupted physically.

7. She might be suicidal or mad, the PCs can help her through that.

8. She might hold a key to destroying Vaath or at least harming him. (think Aeries and the Holy Materia). She can be killed as she performs the ritual to stop the power of Vaath being released on the world (evil Anorexic sephiroth assassin type person that is a proxy of Vaath ) you might set this in the darkest centre of Vaath's worship. The PCs may beat the bad guys but the process of evil being released on the world ins't stopped THEN have her revive as a phoenix and unlock her power. This might need to be altered a bit as it is a bit TOO close to FFVII

9. She might reject all good figures as she feels she is unwothy to be around them whislt rejecting evil too again this could send her mad.

10. You could make the use of her 'blight' powers addictive if you wanted to take a 'junkie' type path.

More Ideas some other time maybe I feel very self concious about typing too much . It's only 'cos I think it's a cool storyline though . Tell me what you think though, I can give other approaches if I got the wrong end of the stick.

 

[Sollir Furryfoot]

Hrm, perhaps the reason for her blight abilities would be that one of the prerequisites for taking it would have been some sort of ritual or curse placed upon her.

The PCs, if sympathetic enough, could help her on this quest to get rid of the curse/reverse the ritual, or-if they don't choose to do so she can do it on her own (and prolly get captured or what not). Of course, the other members of her temple, and probably the deity himself would be mad at her, and can serve as opponents (if not already).

Just a thought

 

[John Crichton]

this is a good thing

Interesting John.

The first 'season' was an 11 story arc about a plague and getting to know the characters.

I just relieved the party of a NPC who they were dependent on and now it appears as if he has gone 'Dark Phoenix' but no one knows for sure.

The 1st seasons theme was loss.

the 2nd seasons theme is redemption. Season number 2 has a 22 story arc so it should be quite the journey.

Im thinking maybe a phoenix? Maybe she is reincarnated into a phoenix ...

I just noticed that you are modelling (unintensionally?) these adventures like the start of BtVS. Do a shorter (mid-season replacement show) season to intro the characters then get really into it. Bygones...

As for redemption, are there any other characters that need redeeming that you could feed off of besides this girl? It's always fun to criss-cross these things so it permiates almost all the characters.

And as for rebirth into a Phoenix, that would be something should happen WAY down the line (which is probably what you were thinking anyway) because it is such a powerful and almost God-esque being. I do like that possibility, tho.