humble minion
Legend
To answer the OP question - not many of them. Classic D&D villains tend to be motivated by grandiose worldspanning agendas of conquest and evil, or wholehearted servitude to evil gods. The best Ravenloft darklords transgress in very personal, intimate ways out of passion, rage or desire. I mean, Strahd won his Darklordship with one murder. One. Takhisis or Rajaat or Manshoon or Iuz would sneer at his lack of ambition. Malice Do'Urden damn near killed more of HER family than she left alive.
Different types of stories. There ARE non-Ravenloft D&D villains who could make decent darklords, but they tend to be few and far between, and they tend to originate from the novels (and by the nature of D&D novels, usually die there) because novels have stakes that are more personal.
Soth is a good Darklord because his transgressions were personal and as a direct result of his character flaws. He's a Gothic trope on legs. Other possibilities, mostly very obscure - Bishou Domincus, Vanthus Vanderboren (depending on how your run of Savage Tide played out). Kierkan Rufo. Mirran and Nym could be interesting co-Darklords. Tithian of Tyr. Kymil Nimesin.
Different types of stories. There ARE non-Ravenloft D&D villains who could make decent darklords, but they tend to be few and far between, and they tend to originate from the novels (and by the nature of D&D novels, usually die there) because novels have stakes that are more personal.
Soth is a good Darklord because his transgressions were personal and as a direct result of his character flaws. He's a Gothic trope on legs. Other possibilities, mostly very obscure - Bishou Domincus, Vanthus Vanderboren (depending on how your run of Savage Tide played out). Kierkan Rufo. Mirran and Nym could be interesting co-Darklords. Tithian of Tyr. Kymil Nimesin.
