Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Tristan 05-17-06, 11:46 AM	"Just cus we are evil doesn't mean we need to be mean" recently when fathoming all the character Ideas that I will never get to play I finally stumbled on 2 new character types that are of the evil alignment that I would like to play (for those of you who dont know, everyone, I HATE most evil characters. Myfavorite class is the paladin, or the CG Bard) ANYWAYS... I was wondering how one might be able to play a deffinately evil character without being "eat your heart" evil. the two characters I thought of where a CE Elf (preferably Drow) who relied on Illusions and Undetectable alignment to survive in this world. He is a cleric of the powers of Chaos and Evil, not allying himself with any evil church feeling that gods are inferior to the greater powers of pure Chaos and Evil (which he views as one in the same). A quote of his that would show his view is "Chaos stikes out against all ends, while evil destroys everything. What I love is how the chaos of evil feeds on itself. Such powers are far stonger than the limeted forces of Good and Law. Hahahaha, the only reason why they have not been completely destroyed is because evil feeds upon itself, oh how delightful a power that it needs to fight itself as a handicap just to keep its pathetic enemies in existence long enough to continue to feed on itself" *wow, that felt weird* But as you can see, I've left plenty of room for this character to act out against evil, seeing evil and chaos the only force that deserves his malace and obsession. But thats all good and all (no ironic pun intended), but I still need ideas as to what I can do on the small run to act evil in a good way. One major thing I thought of is to manipulate powers of good (such as kindness) through beings undeserving of his attention (such as innocents) to bring pain and suffering against those who can most "appreciate" it. the other character I thought of was NE Assassin (not sure on the alignment) who traveled through the party, simply because they come across plenty of people to maim and a large amount of wealth. This character was inspired by someone's tale of their DM railroading 2 new guys with a charm person spell cast by 2 dryads, forcing them into conflict with the party. You see, I imagined my assassin feigning diplomacy long enough to get into range of the party members, then death attacking one(paralysis) and doing the same to the other, or sneak attack with subdual damage(im not an expert on the rules of death attack yet); he would then tell the party to take their friends and continue on their quest, he would stay and hold off the dryads for a moment, eager to find the best way to murder a tree spirit sorry for all the detail but I figured that it might inspire "Well, if i where playing that character I would do stuff like..." thoughts from all of you. :D
Bruunwald 05-17-06, 12:10 PM	"Just cus we are evil doesn't mean we need to be mean" One major thing I thought of is to manipulate powers of good (such as kindness) through beings undeserving of his attention (such as innocents) to bring pain and suffering against those who can most "appreciate" it. I don't know... that sounds pretty mean. And overly complicated. This seems like, to be successful, it would take a LOT of cooperation from your DM, to fine-tune his world to your evil machinations. As a credo or quirk of personality, it's okay. But in practice, it seems a bit much to hope to achieve. Unless you would be playing a mainly RP game with lots and lots of skill checks and dialogue. the other character I thought of was NE Assassin (not sure on the alignment) who traveled through the party, simply because they come across plenty of people to maim and a large amount of wealth. This character was inspired by someone's tale of their DM railroading 2 new guys with a charm person spell cast by 2 dryads, forcing them into conflict with the party. You see, I imagined my assassin feigning diplomacy long enough to get into range of the party members, then death attacking one(paralysis) and doing the same to the other, or sneak attack with subdual damage(im not an expert on the rules of death attack yet); he would then tell the party to take their friends and continue on their quest, he would stay and hold off the dryads for a moment, eager to find the best way to murder a tree spirit :D I remember that thread. Again, this sounds a bit mean. Why all the mayhem and murder and back-stabbing if he's not mean? Unless he's a complete sociopath. Sociopaths can do all of that for subtle reasons, such as simply lacking control or a desire to feel something in an otherwise empty existence. But if it's fun, if you like it, it's mean. There are plenty of ways to play evil without being mean, though. I think it's more in the presentation than in the Grand Plan. I'm thinking of Julian Sands, the actor, most recently seen as Bierko, the Russian terrorist, on 24. Mr. Sands has a few evil-but-not-mean characters under his belt. They are alternately charming, determined, calm, well-spoken and really good at killing with no emotion, or getting others to kill for them. He can play ruthless like nobody. His trick is that he's a really likeable guy in the first place, and very quiet and thoughtful. When he then does something evil, it's never over-the-top, but it's shocking in its cold brutality and efficiency. I think way back in Warlock, the film that first got him noticed in the states, he did do a few mean things, reveled a bit in the pain of others, but mainly he was still charming doing it. So I would say, concentrate on personality, rather than planning evil schemes. Schemes may not have opportunities to come to fruition, but a character's personality is his own.
Tristan 05-17-06, 12:47 PM	hmm, perhaps putting up that quote was a mistake. I dont care about appearing mean. I am looking at a character who's "friends" would describe him as an "Evil monster who doesn't deserve to live" quickly followed by "But I trust him with my life and I know I can count on him." and the example of the CE Cleric manipulating innocents to battle evil is thus: Ok, Im sure most people would agree that killing someone just cus they where rude to you and wouldn't sell you an item you REALLY needed would be an evil act. Sure they where rude, but they didn't do anything to deserve death. Enter my character, insulted and needing a particular item that he cannot get through conventional means. "Hey mister, do you have any spare change" a steet urchin asks him, the cleric just now noticing him. Ah, Idea. The cleric bends down to come to eye level with the 10 or 12 year old urchin with a kind smile on his face. "I'll tell you what, you help me with a little game im playing and i'll give you this"he says while holding up 2 shiney gold peices. The boy's smile brightens and he reaches for the gold peices while asking "What kinda game". "See that man over there behind the counter. I want you to take this vial of ink, run up to him and splash it all over him and then run away." the boy's face contorts into confusion "But wont that make him mad?" he asks. "Oh, no. Thats part of the game, dont worry nothing bad will happen, I just want to play this little trick. He is my friend I know he wont get to mad." The boy proceeds to sneak up on the merchant, then yells "Hey Mister!", when he turns around Ink gets splattered all over his bright silk robes. "Why you little...I'll make you pay for that." He lunges for the boy, but a hand grabs his collar, allowing the boy to slip away and dissappear into the crowd. "Now now, bullying little kids, you must be a horrible person." The merchant recognizes the cleric "You?! What are you doing here? I told you to leave your sight." The merchant yells, furious. "Dont take it the wrong way, I didn't want to come back here, I just dont like seeing overweight eunichs who pick on those weaker than them" At this point the merchant's face is red with anger "Why you little..." Furious, the merchant lunges at the cleric, he punches the cleric clear in the face, but as the merchant lunges he also falls over his feat and falls down with him. The poor cleric tries to keep the merchant's flying fists at bay, but he is just to furious. Pounding his way at the cleric's face, his ink stained robes flying everywhere do to the untrained and angered punches, no one notices the dark energy forming around the clerics hand. Using the cover of their scramble, he places his hand on the merchant's chest, releasing the spell. The merchant screams in pain and rolls off the cleric, clutching his chest. "Hurry, get a priest, this fool has fought himself into a heart attack." but its to late for this last victum of chaos