Post/Author/DateTime	Post
calypso 06-20-06, 11:09 PM	So, in an upcoming/ongoing Forgotten Realms game, I'll be playing a manipulative, conniving sorcerer. Namely, a lawful evil Mindbender that, to some extend, worships Loviator. This means that he will be using people toward some end, and generally being a not-nice guy. I'm thinking kind of like Magneto from X-Men, only younger and can control people. In addition, a "schtick" I'm going with is the use of drugs to keep cohorts/minions in line. Namely, getting them addicted to drugs, and then being their pusher in exchange for service. Now, all that being said, I need suggestions on playing the character in a manner that isn't going to ruin anyone elses fun. Everyone is playing, to some extent, a not-nice character. There's a warlock, an assassin, a dervish, and a monk of Kelimvor. So, suggestions, guidelines, etc? This is the first time our group has tried something like this, and I want to make sure that everyone has fun, and no one is made uncomfortable. Oh, and if you have thoughts on the character itself, feel free. Calypso
Tramp4life 06-21-06, 12:39 AM	Evil characters just have a different perspective--if you take evil to be a difference of opinion vs. ACTUAL black & white evil like D&D espouses. Magneto thought of himself as the savior of the Mutants--couldn't say Hom0 Sapien Superior 'cause the filter thought I was talking about orientation! :rolleyes: . He didn't consider himself evil, just at war--different perspective. The gov't agent guy from Serenity (the movie based on Firefly) was evil. Lawful evil, and used evil tactics to get things done (no apologies, he was a monster). He was also honorable. If the characters are beholden to a God (even a good one), or a kingdom, they could travel and commit heinous acts on others and not consider themselves "evil" even though they would smash baby orcs under their boots to save wear and tear on their weapons (think of any genocide in Africa, the Spanish Inquisition, what the U.S. did to the Indians, Blacks, pick a race! ;) ). If they were privateers or mercenaries, they could be "evil" and not hurt each other--hired to work as a team; reliant on each other to get things done. If they're black and white D&D evil, they have to have some reason to work together and not kill each other when it became profitable to do so...
Jaisin 07-06-06, 04:24 PM	This sounds like a fun character to play. Always have the drugs on you, and disdain divine healing. Unleash a contagion on a village, and then go and treat them with your 'medicines'. Some will survive, some won't. Those that resist the contagion can be convinced that the 'medicine' will continue to keep them healthy. Evenutally, their will will wear away, and you've not only got people who genuinely like you, but due to your ability to plant suggestions of mass epidemic and their now physically drud-dependent bodies, need you for their protection. That's a good way to wipe out the serf income of a certain lord you want to blackmail/use/extort - the serfs will work for you, but not for him unless you tell them to. Haha. Anyway. All of that can be under the guise of intellectual superiority - You're better than everyone else. Arcane magic, and best of all - sorcerous arcane magic is better than divine magic. You don't need spellbooks. You don't need deities. Why should anyone else? Your party, since there are no clerics, could buy into that, and have good roles to play along side you. Be achingly polite. Be refined. Have well thought-out opinions on everything, and then a "spin" side to the same topics. Dress well. Be free with coin (after all, you can just charm someone to give it back if you really need it, or run out of weak-willed nobles to extort). Dispense casual remarks of disdain towards the clergy - "they didn't keep the plague from coming, even though they could, now did they? And where are they now that you need them? Locked up in their temples praying to the same inefficeint god that turned his eye from you in the first place? Here. Try this, it'll make you feel better, and you don't need anyone but yourself to keep you healthy." Scoff when your boots get dirty, but don't be afraid to touch sick people when offering your 'medicines'. Hrmmm. anything else? Would any of that work?
Eidolon Faer 07-08-06, 02:29 PM	An evil character can work JUST FINE in a party just so long as the other players know they can trust you. It's that simple. Mr. "I'm going to use Dominate Person on my fellow PC's and sell them into slavery to the Mind Flayers for a tidy profit" is going to destroy the campaign or be killed by the party. No other outcome is possible. But if the party KNOWS that, no matter how much of a bastard you may be to outsiders, you'll look out for them and not sell them out, it will work. It's that simple. This is also why Kenders, despite being nonevil, tend to be slaughtered out of hand the moment they try to join a party. "Tee Hee. I'm a happy-go-lucky Kender. I think I'll just steal the Wizard's spellbook, 'borrow' the Fighter's favorite sword, and use the cleric's Holy Symbol to pry the cap off a bottle of beer. I'm roleplaying, so they aren't allowed to be angry with me." No, they're just roleplaying killing you slowly and mounting your severed head on a hoopak as a warning to others. Also, it's not as if it's HARD to think of a reason why an Evil PC would refuse to betray the party. It's obviously in his interest to keep his friends loyal. And yeah, that priest of Pelor may be squeamish and boring, but he's a heckuva lot more trustworthy that some of those OTHER evil types out there.
Espynwislyn 07-08-06, 10:57 PM	As has been said, being an evil character is not that different from playing a good one. The main idea, however, is to aim your evil actions twords NPCs. Think about it, even as an evil person, you need to realize that your entrusting your lives to these people. Every day adventurers put their lives on the line together. It's only logical that they would need to trust one another, and it prevents frustration out of game.