Tyranical Despot Ideas needed [Archive] - Wizards Community

Tyranical Despot Ideas needed [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Puskara
05-26-04, 01:19 PM Greetings:

I am playing in a new campaign next week and I have a general concept for my character. I am hoping that someone here can help me flesh him out.

First the crunchy part:

High Wisdom, High Charisma, Good Constitution and Intelligence

Will probably wear a simple, elegant courtier outfit with a polished masterwork scale shirt, a large shield and a trident (yes I stole the weapon combo from Greek mythology and the equipments appearance is very Greek as well)

He will be an Assimar of about 160 year (appears to be a 30 year old human, lifespan about 1000 years)

Potential level distribution is Despot 5 / Shaman 15 (This was a recommendation by the DM not sure I will take any levels of shaman)

That's right, Despot. My team-oriented, law-abiding, charismatic hero is Lawful Evil! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA! Basically Despot is very similar to Paladin but it has a LE alignment, highly resistant to mind effecting (immune to fear, charms, divine grace). The class also gives you an aura of fear that reduces will saves to fear effects and lets you turn to Oppress people (shaken/sickened upon success).

He is an officer in a guard detachment on the largest trading ship in the known world. While on a voyage to trade for rare valuables they are diverted into unknown waters and discover an archipelago inhabited exclusively by elves. Elves are unknown in the rest of the world BTW. Thier culture is similar to that of ancient Japan.

That is all we know right now. Basically I want to make my character a great evil leader. To be accepted into the ruling class and carve out his own little kingdom. He will be a sadist but all of his activities will fall within the bounds of the law.

Does anyone have ideas for personality traits, ideas for how to create and maintain a fief as a LE ruler, ideas for cohorts? I am open to any suggestions, including complete revamps of the character concept if your idea is interesting.

Thanks!

Puskara

PS. Any good name ideas? He woudl come from a large metropolitan traiding city and thus coudl have almost any sort of name.
TheMightyMcClaw
05-26-04, 07:02 PM Keep in mind - being a tyrant doesn't mean you have to stapled down to one place. You can be a Despot-on-the-go. Wander the land, opressing all you meet.
For example, when reaching an inn:
"I claim this Common Room in MY NAME! If any of ye would oppose me, speak now!"
And slay any and all challengers.
Or say you want someone to carry your bags:
"You there! Peasant! Thou shalt bear this on my journey, or you and every one you have ever loved shall suffer four a THOUSAND YEARS!"

Needless to say, you'll need a high intimidation score.

As for name.... I would definitely take a professional name, like "Mobile Opressor" Zodd or "Inscrutable Tyrant" Wong.
Morka
05-29-04, 11:36 AM Perhaps a high score in Diplomatie makes more sense. (I don't know which is class-skill). He could be the one who always refer to the laws of the country to defend himself.

As for cohort, your character doesn't seem to have great offensive skills. So either a wizard for magical punch, or some ogre or troll grunt.

As for the name, what about George?
Rudysseus
05-31-04, 12:10 AM As lawful evil, you should always make sure to use the laws in your favor. Make sure every contract you sign or other deal you make has some legal loophole that will allow you to come out on top within the confines of the legal system. You should also become adept at dealing with henchmen. These are people you pay to do the stuff you can't do yourself, like assassinate the rival noble lord so you can swoop in and "rescue" the lordless peasants. These are your rogues, fighters, wizards, and almost any other evil character you can imagine, just make sure that THEY aren't the ones who are using YOU. You also need have a lot of these people at your disposal, which can be hard to do right off the bat. But for every assassin you have, you need to have a trump card over that guy in case he becomes a liability and needs to be disposed. Also, you cannot have any concrete ties to these people at all. Any evidence that you were involved in illegal things is exactly what you absolutely try to avoid at all costs. (Its harder to oppress your farmers behind bars, or without a head.) Their payments are done in normal gold coins, and they are given the coins by someone who works for you that has no idea why they are giving a bag of coins to the stinky dwarf in the back alley. Having a multitude of followers comes after having power and money, and getting that power and money sometimes requires followers to help you, so its kind of a hard way to get started, so if you have fellow party members, you can attempt to get them to follow you, and make that work to your advantage. If you guys roleplay very much it shouldn't be hard for a person with high intelligence and charisma to convince the ignorant female barbarian woman that you have been around and have seen the harshness of the world, and that she would be better off to follow your example. This is also an effective way to acquire rank and file soldiers. Play your cards right in most towns, buy showing off displays of your power, money, and grandeur, and if the DM isnt a complete tool, odds are that the average mercenary or down on his luck man-at-arms will be ready and willing to sign up to get a piece of the action you are a part of. Of course you make it difficult for your followers to really advance, but not blatantly. Technicalities, prerequisites, a few "the check's in the mail" should keep your run of the mill melee person in line, just periodically allow them to indulge in fights, drinking, whoring, and that sort of thing.
Allow the wizards and clerics a bit more privilege, as they are your main allies who help keep your thugs in line, but they can also become powerful enemies if you don't let them do what they need to do. Give your wizards private quarters, or an entire keep to themselves to study their craft. Let clerics setup temples to their god/goddess. Whether you believe in them or is your secret, but thatll appease your clerics, as will giving them their own soldiers and a small amount of control of trivial aspects of your new kingdom.
Go evil dudes! :devil:

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Puskara 05-26-04, 01:19 PM	Greetings: I am playing in a new campaign next week and I have a general concept for my character. I am hoping that someone here can help me flesh him out. First the crunchy part: High Wisdom, High Charisma, Good Constitution and Intelligence Will probably wear a simple, elegant courtier outfit with a polished masterwork scale shirt, a large shield and a trident (yes I stole the weapon combo from Greek mythology and the equipments appearance is very Greek as well) He will be an Assimar of about 160 year (appears to be a 30 year old human, lifespan about 1000 years) Potential level distribution is Despot 5 / Shaman 15 (This was a recommendation by the DM not sure I will take any levels of shaman) That's right, Despot. My team-oriented, law-abiding, charismatic hero is Lawful Evil! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA! Basically Despot is very similar to Paladin but it has a LE alignment, highly resistant to mind effecting (immune to fear, charms, divine grace). The class also gives you an aura of fear that reduces will saves to fear effects and lets you turn to Oppress people (shaken/sickened upon success). He is an officer in a guard detachment on the largest trading ship in the known world. While on a voyage to trade for rare valuables they are diverted into unknown waters and discover an archipelago inhabited exclusively by elves. Elves are unknown in the rest of the world BTW. Thier culture is similar to that of ancient Japan. That is all we know right now. Basically I want to make my character a great evil leader. To be accepted into the ruling class and carve out his own little kingdom. He will be a sadist but all of his activities will fall within the bounds of the law. Does anyone have ideas for personality traits, ideas for how to create and maintain a fief as a LE ruler, ideas for cohorts? I am open to any suggestions, including complete revamps of the character concept if your idea is interesting. Thanks! Puskara PS. Any good name ideas? He woudl come from a large metropolitan traiding city and thus coudl have almost any sort of name.
TheMightyMcClaw 05-26-04, 07:02 PM	Keep in mind - being a tyrant doesn't mean you have to stapled down to one place. You can be a Despot-on-the-go. Wander the land, opressing all you meet. For example, when reaching an inn: "I claim this Common Room in MY NAME! If any of ye would oppose me, speak now!" And slay any and all challengers. Or say you want someone to carry your bags: "You there! Peasant! Thou shalt bear this on my journey, or you and every one you have ever loved shall suffer four a THOUSAND YEARS!" Needless to say, you'll need a high intimidation score. As for name.... I would definitely take a professional name, like "Mobile Opressor" Zodd or "Inscrutable Tyrant" Wong.
Morka 05-29-04, 11:36 AM	Perhaps a high score in Diplomatie makes more sense. (I don't know which is class-skill). He could be the one who always refer to the laws of the country to defend himself. As for cohort, your character doesn't seem to have great offensive skills. So either a wizard for magical punch, or some ogre or troll grunt. As for the name, what about George?
Rudysseus 05-31-04, 12:10 AM	As lawful evil, you should always make sure to use the laws in your favor. Make sure every contract you sign or other deal you make has some legal loophole that will allow you to come out on top within the confines of the legal system. You should also become adept at dealing with henchmen. These are people you pay to do the stuff you can't do yourself, like assassinate the rival noble lord so you can swoop in and "rescue" the lordless peasants. These are your rogues, fighters, wizards, and almost any other evil character you can imagine, just make sure that THEY aren't the ones who are using YOU. You also need have a lot of these people at your disposal, which can be hard to do right off the bat. But for every assassin you have, you need to have a trump card over that guy in case he becomes a liability and needs to be disposed. Also, you cannot have any concrete ties to these people at all. Any evidence that you were involved in illegal things is exactly what you absolutely try to avoid at all costs. (Its harder to oppress your farmers behind bars, or without a head.) Their payments are done in normal gold coins, and they are given the coins by someone who works for you that has no idea why they are giving a bag of coins to the stinky dwarf in the back alley. Having a multitude of followers comes after having power and money, and getting that power and money sometimes requires followers to help you, so its kind of a hard way to get started, so if you have fellow party members, you can attempt to get them to follow you, and make that work to your advantage. If you guys roleplay very much it shouldn't be hard for a person with high intelligence and charisma to convince the ignorant female barbarian woman that you have been around and have seen the harshness of the world, and that she would be better off to follow your example. This is also an effective way to acquire rank and file soldiers. Play your cards right in most towns, buy showing off displays of your power, money, and grandeur, and if the DM isnt a complete tool, odds are that the average mercenary or down on his luck man-at-arms will be ready and willing to sign up to get a piece of the action you are a part of. Of course you make it difficult for your followers to really advance, but not blatantly. Technicalities, prerequisites, a few "the check's in the mail" should keep your run of the mill melee person in line, just periodically allow them to indulge in fights, drinking, whoring, and that sort of thing. Allow the wizards and clerics a bit more privilege, as they are your main allies who help keep your thugs in line, but they can also become powerful enemies if you don't let them do what they need to do. Give your wizards private quarters, or an entire keep to themselves to study their craft. Let clerics setup temples to their god/goddess. Whether you believe in them or is your secret, but thatll appease your clerics, as will giving them their own soldiers and a small amount of control of trivial aspects of your new kingdom. Go evil dudes! :devil: