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View Full Version : Playing an Undead Villain...As A PC



Leliel
2009-11-12, 12:57 AM
Well, recently, I submitted an application for Even Heroes Fall (http://www.myth-weavers.com/showthread.php?t=81504), a (literal-minded) game where you play as an undead hero-turned-BBEG.

Of course, we have the mummies, and the vampires, and the liches, but a template that the players submitted got my attention-the Pale Reaver.

For those of you who don't own Open Grave, that's essentially a type of vampire that arises when a person dies as a result of a betrayal they facilitated.

Naturally, I was intrigued, so I retooled an old hero of mine-Math ab MacCool-as what would happen if the fire of vengeful wrath burning inside him-a pretty important flaw in his personality-if he was consumed by it, and ended up failing his friends because he put punishing the guilty ahead of protecting the innocent.

Of course, the DM-hopefully I'll be able to call him our DM-wants top-notch roleplaying, I am wondering how you would portray a hero that fell to his dark side, but is still trying to serve the cause of justice.

Mastikator
2009-11-12, 01:00 AM
Fiddle with the definition of justice.

Edit- to clarify. Your character fell to the dark side, that means he got himself a complex of some sort in the process. I don't know the details of your character so I can't give you details, but in general terms, make the fall become a reoccurring theme that shapes the character and evolves into a more reformed, more powerful form of evil, or a path out of the dark side.
What's your characters rationalization?


Edit2- Or you can say, to hell with justice and let your character serve himself instead of some outside cause. What does your character crave? Power, money, knowledge, vengeance, blood, pleasure? That's your new "justice".

Leliel
2009-11-12, 01:09 AM
Fiddle with the definition of justice.

Edit- to clarify. Your character fell to the dark side, that means he got himself a complex of some sort in the process. I don't know the details of your character so I can't give you details, but in general terms, make the fall become a reoccurring theme that shapes the character and evolves into a more reformed, more powerful form of evil, or a path out of the dark side.
What's your characters rationalization?


For the Greater Good, essentially.

Unlike the Tau, he doesn't actually believe his own spiel-which isn't helped by his patron (he's a warlock), who keeps on sending visions to torment his conscience.

Mastikator
2009-11-12, 01:20 AM
Can you give a brief summery of his backstory including what went on in his head?

Leliel
2009-11-12, 01:38 AM
@Mastikator: Basically, Math was a founder of a group of resistance fighters against a racist, corrupt empire of elves, despite-or perhaps because of-a prophecy made when he was born that slated him to become an enemy of the gods.

During his adventures, he fell in love with another founder-a tiefling named Akita. This was not lost on an empire Major by the name of Kurias, who killed her in an ambush deliberately designed to do that in hopes of breaking Math's spirit, and thus killing two birds with one stone. Unfortunately for the Major, and a lot of other people, this had the effect of unhinging him instead, causing the inferiority complex left over from his childhood to blossom into a fiery hatred of all things imperial.

This would later cause a major tactical error when he deliberately withheld battle intel from his squad in hopes of fighting Kurias again. However, the trap he sprung has a lot more troops then he had initially thought, and he and his friends were massacred.

Since he betrayed his allies to fulfill his lust for vengeance, he fell prey to the curse of the Pale Reavers and came back as one of the masked vampires. After the initial shock and self-horror wore off, he came to realize that his new state isn't that bad, as the abilities he gained allows him to pursue bloody justice much more efficiently.

And the fact that he deliberately avoids contact with his own resistance group has nothing to do with the fact that he is so ashamed of himself that he never wants to show his face to them again, I assure you.

[/false reassurance]

Celesyne
2009-11-12, 01:45 AM
The way I see it, you could almost play it from the Harvey Dent/Two-face point of view. Justice through everyone else isn't true justice. It is only fair and true Justice if left to chance.

Mastikator
2009-11-12, 01:58 AM
Hmm my spontaneous thoughts are that he could try to seek redemption, with the ultimate goal being to become normal again and re-unite with the resistance. Or just go on a vengeful killing-spree that will only lead to him forgetting his principles.
Either could work as a greater good. If you want him to become more good later then go with the former, if you want him to become more evil later then go with the latter.

Shademan
2009-11-12, 03:21 AM
or you could pull a darth vader.
bringing justice to the world, even if I have to choke the living poop outta it!

Crafty Cultist
2009-11-12, 03:49 AM
your character's personality will probably depend on whether or not the character seeks redeption. if he does he will probably have an internal struggle between his hatred for the empire and what he was before he began to fall. if he does not seek redeption, he will probably be an unrelenting enemy for the empire and utterly unshakable in his conviction.

His newfound agelessness will make him more patient and able to wait. if all else fails he could simply stalk and kill the empire's soldiers one by one