A Very Social Villain

[Kyouhen]

Greetings!

So I have an idea for a villain that I want to slip into a campaign at an unspecified point in the future, but can't quite seem to figure out how to make him. Basically what I want to do is make one of those villains that are extremely powerful that also constantly pops up to chat with the PCs and mock them.

Now I know that isn't very hard to do, but the main thing I'm looking for is ways to make it so the PCs don't even bother attacking this guy more than once or twice. I'm aiming for something along the lines of Discord (MLP:FiM) or Q (Star Trek) where there's a few initial attempts to hurt him but afterwards the PCs will just put up with his continued existence. Again, still not hard, just have it so he magically poofs around whenever they try, but I'd like to be able to do this in a way that the PCs don't feel like it's a DM ex machina.

Any ideas?

[Frog Dragon]

A warlock with a fondness for "Flee the Scene" and "Beguiling Influence"? Both of those can be done with just 6 levels of invocation progression, so you could probably mix it up with another caster class if you want, though the eldritch disciple and eldritch theurge classes.

[Grommen]

Your concept is at odds with it's self.

#1 introducing the villain to the players is going to spark a fight, I would say 90% of the time. If you want said villain to survive you have to make him to tough and so far over there level they they can't win.

#2 If you do so they are going to feel like your rail roading them.

Me personally, I say let them feel slighted. It will only make their eventual victory over this villain all the more sweet. Besides that, I don't think that every problem should be solved by violence. Or should it be level appropriate. I would make sure that everyone playing with you gets that though. a lot of people just assume (Hay he put it their we can smash it).

In my current campaign the players decided, quite on a whim, to attack a goblin who actually stopped to talk to them and ask them questions. He offered Parlay even, and in a Pirate campaign! They jumped him anyway. Then they figured out that he was 6 levels higher than them. :smallbiggrin: Yep they got stomped, but they managed to run away. And from that point on they are far better behaved players.

Back to what class, and build. Wizard comes to mind first. One capable of divining the party, and studying them. A cleric would work well as well. Same concept, he spys on the party to stay one step ahead. So he always knows what spells they have, what classes and capabilities.

Now the fun one would be a bard. Say the king of thieves. This chap has a gadget for everything and a trick for everyone. Has a bluff skill so high that even his momma don't know when he is fibbing. And wile robbing the players blind, def, and dumb, he does it with a smile and a wink..

Something like Tarquin. That is one magnificent bastage.

[Venger]

Discord (MLP:FiM) or Q (Star Trek)

both played by Jon DeLancie

I would highly suggest checking out the "Joker Bard", created as the antithesis to the Batman wizard, it's just what you're looking for

http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=5496158

tweak, borrow, change as necessary for your party's level and power level

[DeltaEmil]

Have it be a fiend that is projecting its mind around, possessing things that have to be specifically attuned for it (like a cult of volunteers, or specific locations tainted with evil, or evil magic items). In the beginning, it is extremely arrogant and doesn't really care that the player characters destroy/kill/undo its host bodies, because it still has enough. Because it feels so sure in winning, it actually tries to convert the player characters to its cause, which is why it's willing to talk with them, even if they manage to destroy its host bodies, or perhaps because of it (they are powerful and stuff, and he likes to become its partners).

[Weirdlet]

Perhaps if he's a social villain, have a social solution? It goes a bit against the kick-down-the-door attitude of most adventurers in most games, but perhaps an emphasis on the rule of law and consequences for getting caught- the guy's a baddie, but if you make a move on such an upright citizen of the realm (wink wink nudge nudge) in public, you're going to be subject to arrest and imprisonment. Have that pointed out to your fellows by an NPC- and if they try to confront him in a place where he can't fall back on being an Upright Citizen of the Realm and untouchable by law, well, A) that's going to take some planning and creativity on the part of the players, and B) that's when the gloves can come off a bit. Your villain, having been attacked while away from easy call for the authorities, can show if he's a coward who's depended on his social status to keep him safe, or a real tough nasty who's just been playing this whole time- and he might still try to throw blame on the PCs or put out a bounty on them, use their attacks for political spin.

[King Atticus]

My favorite charismatic baddies are mind control guys. I know it's easy for high level PC's to nullify that but you can get around that. I like Sorc/Mindbender type builds. Just break your save DC's and up until your party gets immunity you can play with their heads all you want plus with telepathy you can give him mindsight so nobody can get anywhere near him without his knowledge. Even after they get immunity he has the ability to have thralls to do all the heavy lifting for him. His only job is to be so charming people want to hurt his enemies for him. Makes for a great politician or upstanding member of society so the party could have to fight through an entire town of his devoted followers to get to him at the end.

[Toliudar]

Unless you have a turn-optimized cleric in the group, a BBEG with the ghost template might be fun. Especially if it's not immediately obvious that he/she is in fact incorporeal. Their malevolence ability means that they could borrow a body, go and chat with the PC's - either revealing or not revealing their true identity - and if the host is killed, it's no real loss to the BBEG.

[Kuulvheysoon]

Beguiler sounds right up your alley - you've got the skill points to fill up those social skills, and illusions/enchantments make it easy to confuse the party and slip away unharmed/alive.

Grab him telepathy with the standard Mindbender dip for extra fun.:smallbiggrin:

[sol_kanar]

What about an Illusionist? He could interact with the party using an illusion of himself, while hidden (or invisible) in hear/sight range (then again, he could use Clairvoyance to increase the range). He could also have researched an Illusion spell that lets him create an "Illusionary Simulacrum" of himself: such Simulacrum would allow him to see and speak through its senses, but not casting spells or using powers. Just a way to communicate and walk around. If attacked, it disappears, but then the Illusionist could cast it again, and again...

The "possessing" villain is also easy to despise, making use of bodies of other people. I once used a demon with the "Possessing Fiend" template of Eberron, and he was one of the most hated villains ever. It is also easy to make it a recurring villain: maybe it is actually a coward, and even if allegedly more powerful than the PCs, he will not face them if not inside a host. Once such host is destroyed, he will flee.

[Randomguy]

You could make a ghost: he'd just reform a few days after he's killed anyway. Eventually they'll stop bothering and just ignore him.

[Kyouhen]

both played by Jon DeLancie

I would highly suggest checking out the "Joker Bard", created as the antithesis to the Batman wizard, it's just what you're looking for

http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=5496158

tweak, borrow, change as necessary for your party's level and power level

Yep, I do love me some DeLancie villains. :smalltongue: I just find that the most terrifying/awesome villains are the ones that aren't afraid to mock the heroes to their face because the heroes (for whatever reason) just won't react.

So that's two votes for Bard, and the Joker Bard might actually work pretty well. Having access to whatever tools he wants and scrying on the party would be a great way to let him have a cheat button active while still giving me the ability to say that I'm not just railroading them out of killing him.


What about an Illusionist? He could interact with the party using an illusion of himself, while hidden (or invisible) in hear/sight range (then again, he could use Clairvoyance to increase the range). He could also have researched an Illusion spell that lets him create an "Illusionary Simulacrum" of himself: such Simulacrum would allow him to see and speak through its senses, but not casting spells or using powers. Just a way to communicate and walk around. If attacked, it disappears, but then the Illusionist could cast it again, and again...

The "possessing" villain is also easy to despise, making use of bodies of other people. I once used a demon with the "Possessing Fiend" template of Eberron, and he was one of the most hated villains ever. It is also easy to make it a recurring villain: maybe it is actually a coward, and even if allegedly more powerful than the PCs, he will not face them if not inside a host. Once such host is destroyed, he will flee.

I had thought of this, but don't really want to use illusions or possession for this guy. The entire point of him is that he's so comfortable with his superiority over the PCs that he sees no reason why he shouldn't just walk up to them, get in the fighter's reach, and have a nice friendly chat. He will taunt them, mock them, and walk away and all they'll do is curse him as he turns his back on them.