Which is the best villainous organisation in D&D?
- Thread starter Brakkart
- Start date
Imret
First Post
Well, I haven't read enough Eberron to vote Emerald Claw (though given what I've seen of Eberron, it might be the most developed), and I really want to vote for the Zhentarim...who doesn't love a fantasy mafia?...but I've gotta vote for the illithid over-conspiracy. I mean, not only do they have dreams of multiversal conquest, they want to extinguish the sun. Can't get more diabolical than that.
Evilhalfling
Adventurer
Scarlet Brotherhood
Monks, Psions, and Devils
add halflings and it would be unstoppable
Monks, Psions, and Devils
add halflings and it would be unstoppable
Romnipotent
First Post
Brakkart said:
Modern setting; Microsoft expands into hardware and goes on to buy out arms manufacturer Lockhead and a few arms makers. Software coding is still left to the military, as MS cannot be trusted. Meanwhile, in Japan, Honda finally perfects a mobile robot that uses fear for energy. While no one would be afraid of a Honda, they sell the patents to MS. The best source of fear is gerbils being rolled in a cage, however once deployed with the MS Vulcan 2K6 in a densely populated city they are reletively self sustaining. In this reality Microsoft was not sued for monopolising and such.
D&D: The Candy Stripers of Iuz. In a GH game once the DM decided the main evil, where door to door cookie salespeople with deamon possession cookies of Iuz. entire populaces fell to cookie crunch ripples
BiggusGeekus
That's Latin for "cool"
Knights of Takhisis
I am not, not, not a Dragonlance junkie. Actually, I'm not much of a DL person in general. I read DL books as fluff when I'm traveling on weekends or whatnot. But the Knights are excellent villians. Their code of honor makes them a viable alternative to the good guys. They are true "Lawful Evil" and create an oppressive society, but they crack down hard on criminals. It isn't hard to see how a war-torn viliage might welcome them as opposed to the good guys who would inisist on a fair trial for theives and bandits. The Knights of Takhisis would act as judge, jury, and executioner as long as they knew they had caught the right person.
I am not, not, not a Dragonlance junkie. Actually, I'm not much of a DL person in general. I read DL books as fluff when I'm traveling on weekends or whatnot. But the Knights are excellent villians. Their code of honor makes them a viable alternative to the good guys. They are true "Lawful Evil" and create an oppressive society, but they crack down hard on criminals. It isn't hard to see how a war-torn viliage might welcome them as opposed to the good guys who would inisist on a fair trial for theives and bandits. The Knights of Takhisis would act as judge, jury, and executioner as long as they knew they had caught the right person.
Joël of the FoS
First Post
The Kargatane, of course! Their evil schemes closed the best Ravenloft web site ever! 
Seriously, the Kargatane is an evil spy organisation enforcing the dread Azalin's power. They are quite cool.
Joël
Seriously, the Kargatane is an evil spy organisation enforcing the dread Azalin's power. They are quite cool.
Joël
Mac Callum
First Post
The Zhentarim, all the way (with the caveat that I'm not familiar with all of the listed organizations.)
Of course, I'm saying that as a DM. The Zhents are the "best" evil because they're neutral evil in pursuit of profit. They can have ANY motive as long as they make money off it. This makes planning plot-quests with Zhents involved really easy, but easily diabolical too. "What's that you say, the Zhents have found a profitable market selling the still-beating hearts of elven children to the drow? Something must be done!!" Man, that never get's old.
As for the Thayvians, they were "Evil", with the capital 'E' and everything, and then they decided to be the Wal*Mart of magical items. What the hell? Sure, it makes sense from a business point-of-view, but as a DM, it shoots their "evil factor" down like 10 notches. Suddently PC's are like "Well, we could fight them, but they have the best selection of wands in Faerun, and I don't want to lose access to that." Erg. Sure, it's not like I couldn't change that if I wanted to, but like George Lucas digitally inserting Christian Haydenson to the end of Return of the Jedi, the knowledge alone has ruined the original for me.
The Emerald Claw does look tres cool, but I don't have enought experience with them "in game" to realy "feel out" how evil they are. Time will tell.
Of course, I'm saying that as a DM. The Zhents are the "best" evil because they're neutral evil in pursuit of profit. They can have ANY motive as long as they make money off it. This makes planning plot-quests with Zhents involved really easy, but easily diabolical too. "What's that you say, the Zhents have found a profitable market selling the still-beating hearts of elven children to the drow? Something must be done!!" Man, that never get's old.
As for the Thayvians, they were "Evil", with the capital 'E' and everything, and then they decided to be the Wal*Mart of magical items. What the hell? Sure, it makes sense from a business point-of-view, but as a DM, it shoots their "evil factor" down like 10 notches. Suddently PC's are like "Well, we could fight them, but they have the best selection of wands in Faerun, and I don't want to lose access to that." Erg. Sure, it's not like I couldn't change that if I wanted to, but like George Lucas digitally inserting Christian Haydenson to the end of Return of the Jedi, the knowledge alone has ruined the original for me.
The Emerald Claw does look tres cool, but I don't have enought experience with them "in game" to realy "feel out" how evil they are. Time will tell.
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