Sauron from "Lord Of The Rings" is a literary example of this character- he's talked about and manipulates behind the scenes until Tolkien finally allows him to come on the scene.
Boom! What a great article. I like your analysis. I think villains are hard to make believable and you give some very good tips. But, as a roleplayer, I feel that good characters are even harder to make intriguing. Bad guys are fascinating, especially nowadays. Good guys often taken as fools just because they agree to do good. Just my twopence. Loved it, Knight, thanks!
You forgot that Omasa isn't above throwing bad rules out of the book and adapting the enemy's rules when needed. In doing so, he gains loyalty, even from people who would have stabbed him in the back. He wasn't above making a loss a teaching moment.
I find myself occasionally rooting for the border count.
I couldn't write too much about him here :D I already promised to write one special post about the villain's journey and in it, I will talk more about Count Omasa.
Sauron from "Lord Of The Rings" is a literary example of this character- he's talked about and manipulates behind the scenes until Tolkien finally allows him to come on the scene.
Indeed! Talk about masterclass big bad setup, implementation, and delivery :)
Thanks for the tag and for the post that satisfies my darker side. Bwahaha!
Enjoy! Next one will be about the villain's journey.
Can’t wait !
Following that, I will start with some archetypes :D
Boom! What a great article. I like your analysis. I think villains are hard to make believable and you give some very good tips. But, as a roleplayer, I feel that good characters are even harder to make intriguing. Bad guys are fascinating, especially nowadays. Good guys often taken as fools just because they agree to do good. Just my twopence. Loved it, Knight, thanks!
Thank you for the feedback! I think you'll like the next article I'll write since it is all about the villain's journey.
That is a fantastic essay, Knight. Well written. You never cease to amaze me!
Why did you block me?
Thank you! The next one will be about the villain's journey :)
You forgot that Omasa isn't above throwing bad rules out of the book and adapting the enemy's rules when needed. In doing so, he gains loyalty, even from people who would have stabbed him in the back. He wasn't above making a loss a teaching moment.
I find myself occasionally rooting for the border count.
I couldn't write too much about him here :D I already promised to write one special post about the villain's journey and in it, I will talk more about Count Omasa.
Very well written, this was a fantastic essay on the nature of what makes the 'Big Bad' such an important and great villain trope to work with.
In my next, I will write about something I used a lot in my own work - the villain's journey.
That'll be interesting.
I have found out, through trial and error, that this is by far one of the best ways to have a most glorious villain to pit against the hero or heroes.