So, my questions for the community are as follows.
What do you think makes a great villain? I have an idea that may bloom into a possible RP if I can properly portray my character.
The character in question would be a villain who has been a terror to a kingdom for a few years, but his power is dwindling. He has reasons of his own for what he does. My idea currently would involve the second person bringing their character in and eventually prying the details out of the so called villain and possibly taking a liking to him.
I also planned on creating a child or children for the villain, little guys who he cares for even if he despises all others.
Any ideas to help me out here? Anything when it comes to creating children of a villain or even just the villain himself?
What do you think makes a great villain? I have an idea that may bloom into a possible RP if I can properly portray my character.
The character in question would be a villain who has been a terror to a kingdom for a few years, but his power is dwindling. He has reasons of his own for what he does. My idea currently would involve the second person bringing their character in and eventually prying the details out of the so called villain and possibly taking a liking to him.
I also planned on creating a child or children for the villain, little guys who he cares for even if he despises all others.
Any ideas to help me out here? Anything when it comes to creating children of a villain or even just the villain himself?
I've always found villains both incredibly fun to write and a little frustrating. It's important to make them a character all their own instead of just a loose shell of one for the sake of driving plot progression. So long as you develop a proper history for them (how did they end up this way? Any specific reasons for them being so villainy or is it personality traits alone?) and really make them their own character it's not much different from writing a good or neutral character.
I think the most important part of writing a villain, for me, is realizing that they probably don't see themselves as the villain and justifying why they continue to stay in the "wrong". Who does, really? Or, if they do, why do they continue to do this?
As far as children of villains, I would echo a lot of what I said above in the sense of "make them their own characters". They shouldn't be defined by who their parents are, though they can certainly have tendencies to be more like them. It would be just as interesting to see his children be incredibly different as it would be to see them "embrace" their heritage or destiny to become something similar.
I'm also a huge sucker for roleplays where someone falls for a villain despite their evil ways. The important thing to remember in this case (as someone who has played the villain in this scenario) is that they can't change too much for this special person. They're still going to be the way that they are (unless you want a complete change of heart sort of scenario, which is moderately unlikely?) so finding a character that balances the good AND the bad in your villain makes for a really fun RP. c:
Sorry about this being really rambly. x__x I'm not sure if it's even all that useful, but these are just the things I think of when making and trying to develop my villains. I'll probably stalk this board for tips too, since I definitely don't consider them my forte.
I think the most important part of writing a villain, for me, is realizing that they probably don't see themselves as the villain and justifying why they continue to stay in the "wrong". Who does, really? Or, if they do, why do they continue to do this?
As far as children of villains, I would echo a lot of what I said above in the sense of "make them their own characters". They shouldn't be defined by who their parents are, though they can certainly have tendencies to be more like them. It would be just as interesting to see his children be incredibly different as it would be to see them "embrace" their heritage or destiny to become something similar.
I'm also a huge sucker for roleplays where someone falls for a villain despite their evil ways. The important thing to remember in this case (as someone who has played the villain in this scenario) is that they can't change too much for this special person. They're still going to be the way that they are (unless you want a complete change of heart sort of scenario, which is moderately unlikely?) so finding a character that balances the good AND the bad in your villain makes for a really fun RP. c:
Sorry about this being really rambly. x__x I'm not sure if it's even all that useful, but these are just the things I think of when making and trying to develop my villains. I'll probably stalk this board for tips too, since I definitely don't consider them my forte.
Fundamentally, a villain requires four things to be considered such:
All of the flavors of villain stem from the styling of these four things. A villain whose scheme is to take over the world because he wishes to 'improve' it is distinct from a villain who wishes to do the same thing because he loves himself so much that he thinks it's owed to him. A villain might have a completely ridiculous scheme founded on a very tragic motivation (some flavors of Dr. Ivo Robotnik) or a stupid, petty, or childish motivation that nevertheless leads to horrifying consequences for the people in his thrall (Kim Jong Un). The crux of your villain, in his capacity as a villain, lies here; but for the rest of him, Cordyceps has it on the money. Outside of these qualifiers, he is just a person, a character, like anyone else, and it is best to develop him as such.
I will note that, unlike good and neutral characters, a villain must be a driver of plot, a mover and shaker, a sinister force that acts first. It is the forte of heroes to react to evil--there is little for a hero to do if all is well with the world. Therefore, villains are characters that must have more drive and momentum than others if they are to fill their role in a particular context. Otherwise, they're just unpleasant people (or maybe very pleasant people, when they aren't wreaking havoc.) This is a good thing to keep in mind when writing stories. Villains can actually become normal cast members when they stop doing villainous things, for however long that lasts, and this can be leveraged to your advantage to create very interesting stories.
On the subject of offspring: children are a fascinating way to say more about a character than actions and words alone can do. How children are treated, how they are raised, and what kind of people they turn out to be can say much about a villain that might otherwise never come to light. A villain who is a very good parent might have had a good childhood himself, and became misguided or deluded in later years. One that is neglectful, hateful, or abusive may have poor impulse control, a resentment for a past spouse, or so much damage that this is how he acts to his children even if he still harbors a love for them that he cannot express.
Think about the sort of character you want to play and the sort of role you want him to have in the story outside of just 'villain.' Comedic? Terrifying? Mysterious? Merciless? Incompetent, but dangerous? Deluded? Well-intentioned? Once you pick a direction, you can begin character development as normal, and start considering the four things I mentioned above that will turn the character into a plot-moving force.
If you're hurting for inspiration, the TV Tropes Villains index ain't a bad place to start trawling for concepts you might want to work into the character or how he's portrayed. Good luck!
- a goal and a purpose, which places him or her at odds with the good guys of the story; destroy the world, rule the world, kill someone, kill a whole group of someones, destroy something, make something (bad), make someone's life miserable, acquire something, see a project to completion, obtain control, maintain control, feed a narcissistic personality, ascend to godhood, spread anarchy, quash dissident opinions, ruin someone's reputation, corrupt innocence, have fun at the expense of others' lives or happiness, affect politics, etc;
- a means to enact that goal or purpose, or at least approach doing so; machinery, magic, military might, technology, surveillance, slave labor, good ol' charisma, money, blackmail, etc;
- conviction, a willingness to proceed against all odds; willpower, stubbornness, determination, absolute belief of being in the right, fear of what will happen if the goal is not reached, a sense of duty, etc;
- and a motive for all of these things; 'This happened to me, so it's going to happen to everyone else/this one person'; 'I'm the only one who can do this'; 'This is for the greater good'; 'The world owes this to me'; 'I'm invested in this, or obsessed with it'; 'I really need this to happen'; 'Someone I love really needs this to happen'; 'This is the only thing that brings me joy'; etc.
All of the flavors of villain stem from the styling of these four things. A villain whose scheme is to take over the world because he wishes to 'improve' it is distinct from a villain who wishes to do the same thing because he loves himself so much that he thinks it's owed to him. A villain might have a completely ridiculous scheme founded on a very tragic motivation (some flavors of Dr. Ivo Robotnik) or a stupid, petty, or childish motivation that nevertheless leads to horrifying consequences for the people in his thrall (Kim Jong Un). The crux of your villain, in his capacity as a villain, lies here; but for the rest of him, Cordyceps has it on the money. Outside of these qualifiers, he is just a person, a character, like anyone else, and it is best to develop him as such.
I will note that, unlike good and neutral characters, a villain must be a driver of plot, a mover and shaker, a sinister force that acts first. It is the forte of heroes to react to evil--there is little for a hero to do if all is well with the world. Therefore, villains are characters that must have more drive and momentum than others if they are to fill their role in a particular context. Otherwise, they're just unpleasant people (or maybe very pleasant people, when they aren't wreaking havoc.) This is a good thing to keep in mind when writing stories. Villains can actually become normal cast members when they stop doing villainous things, for however long that lasts, and this can be leveraged to your advantage to create very interesting stories.
On the subject of offspring: children are a fascinating way to say more about a character than actions and words alone can do. How children are treated, how they are raised, and what kind of people they turn out to be can say much about a villain that might otherwise never come to light. A villain who is a very good parent might have had a good childhood himself, and became misguided or deluded in later years. One that is neglectful, hateful, or abusive may have poor impulse control, a resentment for a past spouse, or so much damage that this is how he acts to his children even if he still harbors a love for them that he cannot express.
Think about the sort of character you want to play and the sort of role you want him to have in the story outside of just 'villain.' Comedic? Terrifying? Mysterious? Merciless? Incompetent, but dangerous? Deluded? Well-intentioned? Once you pick a direction, you can begin character development as normal, and start considering the four things I mentioned above that will turn the character into a plot-moving force.
If you're hurting for inspiration, the TV Tropes Villains index ain't a bad place to start trawling for concepts you might want to work into the character or how he's portrayed. Good luck!
I like ones who have a redeemable factor or have a small factor to their doing or well being. Something along the lines of Kuja from Final Fantasy IX is a personal favourite of mine and Golbez from Final Fantasy IV. Both being kin to the main protags.
I also like silly, random type villains, I.E Cartoony ones in a way as well. Which can be rather amusing and a breath of fresh air. Talking about Dr. Neo Cortex from Crash Bandicoot, Dr. Wily from Rock Man or any type of villain like Snidely Whiplash, etc.
Disney ones are good as well such as Scar, Jafar to name a few.
I also kind of like pseudo type villains or ones classed as ones due to their views on some things. I.E Jealous type rival or the one who may TRY to foil the protag's ways.
I dislike Villains who are evil for the sake of being evil. Ones who have no redeemable factor and would kick a puppy or steal a kid's lollipop because he wanted it.
I am gonna go on a limb here.
I do not like Terrorist type villains. Most of it gets played out and lame in a sense to where it wears it out a welcome. Mainly I been stuck in one were someone demanded I hunt for some no body my character had no clue about and bring them back to them. Heeh No thanks.
Whatever boils down to it is your call. Get creative and have fun!
I also like silly, random type villains, I.E Cartoony ones in a way as well. Which can be rather amusing and a breath of fresh air. Talking about Dr. Neo Cortex from Crash Bandicoot, Dr. Wily from Rock Man or any type of villain like Snidely Whiplash, etc.
Disney ones are good as well such as Scar, Jafar to name a few.
I also kind of like pseudo type villains or ones classed as ones due to their views on some things. I.E Jealous type rival or the one who may TRY to foil the protag's ways.
I dislike Villains who are evil for the sake of being evil. Ones who have no redeemable factor and would kick a puppy or steal a kid's lollipop because he wanted it.
I am gonna go on a limb here.
I do not like Terrorist type villains. Most of it gets played out and lame in a sense to where it wears it out a welcome. Mainly I been stuck in one were someone demanded I hunt for some no body my character had no clue about and bring them back to them. Heeh No thanks.
Whatever boils down to it is your call. Get creative and have fun!
ARCHITECT wrote:
Fundamentally, a villain requires four things to be considered such:
All of the flavors of villain stem from the styling of these four things. A villain whose scheme is to take over the world because he wishes to 'improve' it is distinct from a villain who wishes to do the same thing because he loves himself so much that he thinks it's owed to him. A villain might have a completely ridiculous scheme founded on a very tragic motivation (some flavors of Dr. Ivo Robotnik) or a stupid, petty, or childish motivation that nevertheless leads to horrifying consequences for the people in his thrall (Kim Jong Un). The crux of your villain, in his capacity as a villain, lies here; but for the rest of him, Cordyceps has it on the money. Outside of these qualifiers, he is just a person, a character, like anyone else, and it is best to develop him as such.
I will note that, unlike good and neutral characters, a villain must be a driver of plot, a mover and shaker, a sinister force that acts first. It is the forte of heroes to react to evil--there is little for a hero to do if all is well with the world. Therefore, villains are characters that must have more drive and momentum than others if they are to fill their role in a particular context. Otherwise, they're just unpleasant people (or maybe very pleasant people, when they aren't wreaking havoc.) This is a good thing to keep in mind when writing stories. Villains can actually become normal cast members when they stop doing villainous things, for however long that lasts, and this can be leveraged to your advantage to create very interesting stories.
On the subject of offspring: children are a fascinating way to say more about a character than actions and words alone can do. How children are treated, how they are raised, and what kind of people they turn out to be can say much about a villain that might otherwise never come to light. A villain who is a very good parent might have had a good childhood himself, and became misguided or deluded in later years. One that is neglectful, hateful, or abusive may have poor impulse control, a resentment for a past spouse, or so much damage that this is how he acts to his children even if he still harbors a love for them that he cannot express.
Think about the sort of character you want to play and the sort of role you want him to have in the story outside of just 'villain.' Comedic? Terrifying? Mysterious? Merciless? Incompetent, but dangerous? Deluded? Well-intentioned? Once you pick a direction, you can begin character development as normal, and start considering the four things I mentioned above that will turn the character into a plot-moving force.
If you're hurting for inspiration, the TV Tropes Villains index ain't a bad place to start trawling for concepts you might want to work into the character or how he's portrayed. Good luck!
- a goal and a purpose, which places him or her at odds with the good guys of the story; destroy the world, rule the world, kill someone, kill a whole group of someones, destroy something, make something (bad), make someone's life miserable, acquire something, see a project to completion, obtain control, maintain control, feed a narcissistic personality, ascend to godhood, spread anarchy, quash dissident opinions, ruin someone's reputation, corrupt innocence, have fun at the expense of others' lives or happiness, affect politics, etc;
- a means to enact that goal or purpose, or at least approach doing so; machinery, magic, military might, technology, surveillance, slave labor, good ol' charisma, money, blackmail, etc;
- conviction, a willingness to proceed against all odds; willpower, stubbornness, determination, absolute belief of being in the right, fear of what will happen if the goal is not reached, a sense of duty, etc;
- and a motive for all of these things; 'This happened to me, so it's going to happen to everyone else/this one person'; 'I'm the only one who can do this'; 'This is for the greater good'; 'The world owes this to me'; 'I'm invested in this, or obsessed with it'; 'I really need this to happen'; 'Someone I love really needs this to happen'; 'This is the only thing that brings me joy'; etc.
All of the flavors of villain stem from the styling of these four things. A villain whose scheme is to take over the world because he wishes to 'improve' it is distinct from a villain who wishes to do the same thing because he loves himself so much that he thinks it's owed to him. A villain might have a completely ridiculous scheme founded on a very tragic motivation (some flavors of Dr. Ivo Robotnik) or a stupid, petty, or childish motivation that nevertheless leads to horrifying consequences for the people in his thrall (Kim Jong Un). The crux of your villain, in his capacity as a villain, lies here; but for the rest of him, Cordyceps has it on the money. Outside of these qualifiers, he is just a person, a character, like anyone else, and it is best to develop him as such.
I will note that, unlike good and neutral characters, a villain must be a driver of plot, a mover and shaker, a sinister force that acts first. It is the forte of heroes to react to evil--there is little for a hero to do if all is well with the world. Therefore, villains are characters that must have more drive and momentum than others if they are to fill their role in a particular context. Otherwise, they're just unpleasant people (or maybe very pleasant people, when they aren't wreaking havoc.) This is a good thing to keep in mind when writing stories. Villains can actually become normal cast members when they stop doing villainous things, for however long that lasts, and this can be leveraged to your advantage to create very interesting stories.
On the subject of offspring: children are a fascinating way to say more about a character than actions and words alone can do. How children are treated, how they are raised, and what kind of people they turn out to be can say much about a villain that might otherwise never come to light. A villain who is a very good parent might have had a good childhood himself, and became misguided or deluded in later years. One that is neglectful, hateful, or abusive may have poor impulse control, a resentment for a past spouse, or so much damage that this is how he acts to his children even if he still harbors a love for them that he cannot express.
Think about the sort of character you want to play and the sort of role you want him to have in the story outside of just 'villain.' Comedic? Terrifying? Mysterious? Merciless? Incompetent, but dangerous? Deluded? Well-intentioned? Once you pick a direction, you can begin character development as normal, and start considering the four things I mentioned above that will turn the character into a plot-moving force.
If you're hurting for inspiration, the TV Tropes Villains index ain't a bad place to start trawling for concepts you might want to work into the character or how he's portrayed. Good luck!
This is a wonderful read - you should write guides! 😄
Fiebs wrote:
This is a wonderful read - you should write guides! 😄
Thank you; that is very kind. I hope you (and our OP) were able to glean even some small inspiration from it!
@Fiebs
@ARCHITECT
@Asroc
@Cordyceps
Thanks to all of you for the advice, give me some time and I will definitely put all of your advice to good use.
@ARCHITECT
@Asroc
@Cordyceps
Thanks to all of you for the advice, give me some time and I will definitely put all of your advice to good use.
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